Golden Age FTL

As the discovery of Element Zero pushed humanity into a golden age, their eyes turned away from that beneath their feet, and towards the stars. The way they would do this, is use their newest discovery, Element Zero, to power the vessels that would take them to these stars. The machine itself was made from Element Zero products, light and durable. The machine contained an element zero conversion chamber. The kinetic energy created by converting element zero into any material would push it to the stars. The craft was made in low orbit. This way, any material debris made by Element Zero conversion would not cause any harm to people on the ground as it would burn up on reentry. It would have taken humanity to the stars, but the stars came to us. The robotic alien forces came down. The colony ship was the first to go. Its destruction was seen through most of the planet.

Utility

As the population of Earth grew, physical space became a currency. The solution was to move people to another world. Millions of people were put in cryo sleep to allow travel between earth, and the nearest habitable world.

Manufacturing

It is a long, and complex process involving thousands of engineers. First, they needed to build a low-orbit construction rig to hold the unfinished machine in place. Next, they must transport the materials to the rig, and assemble the structure. Then, they must fuel the machine with large quantities of Element Zero.

Social Impact

It was humanity's greatest innovation. The ability to move faster than light itself was thought to be impossible. It was going to allow colonization of other worlds, and even other galaxies.

Inventor(s)

It was invented, and was going to be piloted by the famed James S. Flowers. He was thought to know everything there is to know about Element Zero.

Access & Availability

Only one existed, and it was destroyed in the first minutes of the invasion.

Complexity

It is a very complex, and delicate machine. Someone must monitor every angle to ensure that nothing malfunctions.

Discovery

All the discoveries linked to Element Zero are credited to this machine's invention. Each one was another step toward what was the summit of scientific discovery.