Chapter-5

For more than four billion years, the sun has been burning steadily since it was born from primordial interstellar gas. In comparison to this time scale, the five thousand years of human civilization documented in writing seem like a blink of an eye. The sun, on the other hand, changed dramatically in that moment. And it just so happened that human civilization developed and possessed some preliminary interstellar detection capabilities in the blink of an eye.

A comprehensive organization that integrated the crisis management department, scientific research department, psychological intervention department, and other departments was established just six hours after the solar upheaval. The Solar Crisis Coordination and Processing Center was established, and the head of the Human Alliance served as its director. During the crisis, the old man gave the crisis center the authority to coordinate and control all other departments.

The solar crisis coordination center is charged with two tasks. The first task is to investigate the internal physical mechanisms that could cause such changes in the sun and come up with a solution. a method of transmission the situation between Brad and Alex has remained private. Top scientists who attended the morning meeting, as well as a few high-ranking Human Alliance officials, are the only ones who know what's going on. I pin my greatest hope on you, and I give you the most authority and resource inclination, as the old man said, but these things cannot be said in public.

Alex is aware of the situation.

This strange situation dominated the first day of the weekend. Alex stayed at home for a day, didn't eat, didn't answer the phone, and simply sat motionless in his chair.

Virat just stood there like a statue next to Alex.

Alex had become severely haggard in just one day. It wasn't until the evening that Alex sighed and said, "Virat, go to sleep in the guest room," in a voice so hoarse that he couldn't believe it.

Alex went into a dreamland after Virat was placed. Alex's thoughts were still erratic even when he was sleeping. Alex had dreams about countless people crying, tall buildings collapsing, the ground being covered in ice and snow, and countless people dying tragically... He also dreamed of Brad from time to time, and that he was with his family before returning home. "Goodbye," said the final words...

Alex was well aware that his destiny had changed dramatically as of today. This transformation began when Brad invited him to drink with him and when Brad kept his only relic to himself.

The sky is becoming increasingly bright. Even though he was exhausted, Alex got up early in the morning.

Today is the second anniversary of the solar crisis. Alex's expectations were not met. The temperature is lower today than it was yesterday, and the sun has dimmed. In this midsummer season, Alex had no choice but to dig out the long sleeves and trousers that had been sealed for a long time and put on spring and autumn clothes.

The temperature will continue to fall unabated. Despite the fact that water has a high specific heat capacity, oceans cover more than 70% of the earth's surface, and the earth has a thick atmosphere that can retain heat, it is still insufficient. When a thing's source changes, no matter how many other branches it has, it can only slow down the rate at which things develop. Lower levels of solar radiation are at the root of the current solar crisis.

Alex sat on the co-pilot of the car, tightly wrapped in the slightly chilly morning wind.

This morning, there was yet another high-profile meeting, even more so than the one the day before. Not only will the alliance's top leaders be present, but so will leaders from various departments and fields, as well as related scientists. This is a discussion about "how human society should deal with this solar crisis." Alex, a regular researcher, was also invited to attend because of his special status. This is also why Alex is getting up early again today.

Virat's driving abilities are exceptional. Alex once gave birth to the delusion that the family car he was riding in had been upgraded to a luxury car without his knowledge while under Virat's control. But this illusion did not last long, or, to put it another way, Alex's focus on it did not last long. Virat was a calm and collected individual. Virat was silent, and Alex was silent as well. Alex simply looked out the window of the car.

It's business as usual in the bustling metropolis. The impact of the strange temperature changes has yet to reach the world of ordinary people. People were still in a hurry, there were still food trucks on the street selling food, and office workers were still huddled together waiting for the bus, as Alex had seen before. The sun is currently dim, but no one is paying attention to it.

Alex's mind wandered to an odd thought.

"Human society as a whole is like a slow-moving, slow-feeling monster... External stimuli are always slow to respond to. It's often time for things to be irreversible when it truly feels the harm that this change has brought to itself."

"However... Fortunately, humans have the powerful tool of science at their disposal. If we are still in the age of ignorance, I am afraid we will not know what happened until we are extinct."

This was a strange thought, so Alex pushed it out of his mind as soon as he could.

Virat escorted Alex to the conference room door and then waited outside. The meeting will begin later.

"First and foremost, please allow the scientific research department to speak," said the meeting's host.

The scientific research department's representative is a well-known stellar physicist. Brad was supposed to be the representative of the scientific research department, but he is no longer there.

"We have not found any possible reasons for the decrease in the level of solar radiation during this period of observation and research," the scientist said. "We have to say this, despite how frustrating it is. The only thing we can tell you is that the sun's radiation level is still decreasing—dropped it's by three thousandths in the last twenty-four hours. We have no idea how much it will drop or how long it will stay there. We don't know how long this will last, let alone whether solar radiation will return to normal levels in the future. "All we can say is that everyone should be prepared for the worst." According to the scientist.

"What is the worst outcome to expect?" Alliance president asked.

"The sun is completely extinguished," the scientist said after a brief pause.

"Please tell me the implications of this situation and the likelihood of it occurring," the president said.

The scientist replied, "Sorry, we can't estimate the chances of this happening because we don't know anything." "As for the ramifications...have you heard of Pluto?" The Earth will resemble Pluto if the sun goes out. By then, the surface temperature will have dropped to more than minus 200 degrees Celsius, all liquids will have condensed into solids, and all the gases that make up the atmosphere will have condensed due to extremely low temperatures, falling from the sky to the surface, the earth will have lost all protective layers, a wide range of interstellar radiation and asteroids will bombard Earth freely, and all life will have perished."