Peacekeepers of the Vast/Hyperspace
The fastest way to move information is still with jars full of memory cards on the back of a freighter. Just… don't lose the freighter in hyperspace.
Hyperspace, or H-space, is second dimension of space separated from normalspace, or N-Space, by a thin veil between dimensions. To transition between dimensions jump by way of a jump window. The normalspace universe is far too vast to send things or information across in a timely manner. Hyperspace is an infinite sphere, much like normalspace, empty except for the poorly understood gravitational eddies that cut through it and sentient made objects maintained there. Hyperspace is significantly compressed with each point in H-space having a one-to-many correspondence with N-space, allowing good transit times even when traveling at low fractions of c. The topography of H-space is constantly shifting and the emptiness glows an unpleasant red due to the gravitational forces. Sources of energy on the other hand, tend to glow blue. Travel by beacon and known route is advised.
Hyperspace is accessible by jumping - the use of a focused gravity beam to pierce the veil between n-space and h-space and accelerate an object through the resulting jump window. The energy requirements of piercing, and accelerating the void are significant, and without properly tuned shielding, the jump will exert significant tidal forces on the jumping object. But so long as one has access to a sufficiently powerful gravity beam and sufficient normal-space velocity to pass through the portal intact, one can enter hyperspace.
Exiting hyperspace is both simpler and much harder to survive. N-space objects do not belong in hyperspace, and will slide down the jump gradient towards N-space. The jump gradient is exponentially steeper in H-space as the corresponding N-spaces gets closer to a gravity well. All objects without station keeping maintenance, will eventually fall back into N-space, likely deep into a powerful gravity well. An uncontrolled transition back to N-space can be traumatic - the one-to-many correspondence may end with atoms that were once next to each other separated by considerable distance, with unfortunate results for whatever the object once was. The use energy shielding can keep an object together - and opening a jump window from H-Space requires less energy to allow a safe transition.
Jump windows are one-way only for anything with more mass than a photon. N-space to H-space is always considered outgoing, and H-space to N-Space is always considered incoming. The jump gradient is simply too steep, although it is possible a ship traveling fast enough could transit…