"Well, there seemed to be nothing," Laurel said as the result from the AMS kit showed up.
"See. It was just a scratch." Lazarus smiled. The wound had almost healed now.
"Really? Are you sure this stupid machine wasn't just malfunctioning?" Lexus said. "There is no way that thing wasn't poisoned."
As much as Xiaolang hated it, he agreed with Lexus. That mechanical tube with a needle on its tip looked like it was poisoned. There was no way that the tube's function was just to lightly wound its enemies like this. He wondered what those tubes were used for.
"That's what the AMS said. If the machine is broken or if the scanner is malfunctioning, it will tell us so. There is no way it would give us a false positive," Shingo said.
"What if there is a poison the AMS couldn't detect?"
[The Automated Medical Scanner not only detected specific poisons or diseases from the body. It primarily detected whether there was something wrong with the human body. If there is an anomaly that interacts with the human body, the AMS would detect it.]
"See? There is nothing to worry about," Shingo said.
"Hmm…."
"I am glad… Maybe the machine in the ruin was malfunctioning." Anna smiled, relief washing over her.
"I'm going to sleep. I am tired from all the digging. And we didn't even find food," Lexus scowled, going to his own chair.
"Yes. I am tired as well. Let's rest, everyone. Once we wake up, we shall have a late dinner." Laurel nodded.
Several minutes after Lazarus tucked herself in, she had a dream. She was back inside that tower, now lit up like a disco hall. Then, she spiraled, her body tumbling on the floor before she came face to face with a winged creature.
The creature peered into her, curious. Lazarus stared. Her eyes somehow couldn't get a grip on what the creature looked like. It was all engulfed in shadow. Its wings spread outward, enveloping her with familiar warmth. Then came an incoherent whisper that echoed through her very being.
"Ah!!" Lazarus yelped. The world warped into the familiar metallic ceiling. The inside of the lifepod. Her gaze swept from side to side, searching for the monstrosity that haunted her.
"Hm? What's wrong, Lazarus?" Xiaolang was the first to wake up.
"... Nothing. It was a dream, I think." Lazarus took a deep breath. Her heart was beating hard because of the dream. It was as if her soul had split. She somehow yearned for it. The image of the ghostly apparition haunted her. But now that she was awake, that feeling was gone.
"What time is it?" Laurel groaned.
[It is past midnight according to the 48-hour system turned into the familiar two 24-hour denominations. It is approximately 13.00 PM.]
Shingo proposed a new time system. Since they were not in the colony and their activity largely depended on sunrise and sunset, he proposed to Mistral that they divide the day into 24 hours during daytime and 24 hours during nighttime. So, sunrise to sunset would be 0 AM to 24 AM, and from sunset to sunrise would be 0 PM to 24 PM.
"I see. We overslept. We were supposed to wake up at 4 or 6 PM…" Laurel groaned.
"We slept late. I think this is natural. It was 4 PM when we arrived here," Shingo shrugged.
"Ugh… We almost ran out of water," Laurel groaned as she looked over her ration box and found that they only had one bottle of water left.
"Should we go and fetch some?" Xiaolang asked. By now, they had gone through the forest multiple times. He was sure they could finish somewhere between 21 and 22 PM—two hours to go there, four hours boiling, and two hours to go back, especially if they all worked together.
"Hm… Maybe we should. If we all go together, we could save time."
"Hey! I am hungry. Can't we eat first?" Lexus said.
"We should eat near the lake. That way, you can also drink when you are thirsty," Xiaolang said.
"Tch." Lexus scoffed, followed by another rant about how inconvenient life here was. But he still agreed.
It was the first time the group had ventured to the lake at night. The colorful forest drove away the darkness, but it created its own fear. It felt alien, unfamiliar. Something that shouldn't happen.
"Waah!" Lexus yelped as a purple amoeba slithered near his leg. The creature had blended well with the glowing environment. When Lexus stepped on it, it squelched and burst, splashing its liquid everywhere before fleeing.
"Ugh… Damn amoebas!" Lexus kicked them away.
"Don't do it, Lexus. That's cruel! Let's just watch our steps, alright?" Lazarus grabbed Lexus, who was about to kick another amoeba toward a tree. Sensing danger, the purple amoeba changed its color and slithered into the grass. Its movement was no faster than a crawl.
"Hurry up! I am hungry right now!" Lexus stomped on the ground.
"If you want to become monster food, be my guest," Xiaolang said. His eyes still wandered through the forest. The lake shimmered with color; it was as if a rainbow had been painted across it. Xiaolang hesitated, wondering whether it was safe. But as he scooped a bowl of water from the pond, the water was clear. The light came from the river floor.
"Shingo, Laurel."
"Yes. We are watching the lake and our surroundings. There are dark shadows cast on the lake. I think those shadows are the scarabs," Laurel reported.
"Good. Continue monitoring them. Warn me if one comes close."
"Understood." Laurel nodded. As they went about doing their water duty, Lexus lay down on the ground. His eyes gazed at the empty sky.
"Alright, lazy kid. Your stew is ready. We will also fill up the water bottles to carry home later," Laurel sighed.
"You know, I think it is not bad to eat here once in a while," Shingo said. "Usually it is dark at night. But thanks to these bioluminescent creatures and plants, it is hardly dark inside the forest at night."
"Yeah. It feels like we are in a light show at a park," Laurel nodded.
"It's beautiful," Anna said.
"The meat seems good. We are still okay." Bob turned the spectrometer toward it.
"It's cold…" Anna whimpered, her body shivering.
"It's so hot at noon, but it's so cold at night. This planet is crazy!" Lexus complained as he wolfed down his stew.
"There are planets with more extreme environments than this," Laurel said. "There is barely a 20-degree difference between day and night."
"The colony barely had 5 degrees!"
"Colonies are artificial, you know."
"I think Earth also had similar temperature swings, right?" Lazarus nodded.
"That's why finding planets with life is very hard," Laurel nodded. "We lucked out with Earth. None of the other planets inside the USF has that kind of composition. Low temperature swings, breathable air, and water."
"Guys. I think we should go to the spire again," Xiaolang began the discussion.
"... Yeah…" Laurel wanted to argue. But the spire was their only clue to civilization.
"There are computers there, right? Do you think we should bring Mistral along?" Xiaolang continued.
"No! We have to dive underwater and cross a pond to get there! Definitely not!" Shingo said.
"Why? Your computer is waterproof, right?"
"It is. But just because it is waterproof doesn't mean you should use it near water. Definitely not! Moreover, there are monsters there! What if it gets damaged?" Shingo said.
"You can just ask Bob to run away with your briefcase in that case," Lexus nodded.
"Still. It is safer in the lifepod. Besides, did you find a USB there? Mistral can't connect without a USB port or Wi-Fi. It's useless. This is alien technology. We don't have their encryption or even their language."
"... I think it's worth trying. We will make sure it's safe. We can turn it off, right? That way, we will also avoid any electrical damage," Laurel said.
"... no. Unless you find a USB port, there or you can connect to their wireframe with your neurogear or smart boxes, I won't take Mistral out of the lifepod."
"Alright." Laurel nodded. "Ah, but before that, I think we should stockpile some food first. I found another grove of crystal watermelons across the river."
"I see."
"We only have one or two meals left," Shingo nodded.
"Let's get back. Are we done with the water?"
"Yes. It cooled down quicker on this cold night," Shingo said.
The night was serene, with several purple amoebas crawling on the trees, munching on grass. Then morning came. Another hard day of work awaited them. Through the dense forest, Lazarus could see the spire jutting out of the trees.
"Huh?" Lazarus tilted her head. Through the gaps in the trees, she saw something odd. It had changed somehow. The stone, soil, and moss that grew on it had shed off in one place, revealing its distinctive purple-colored wall. They had only dug through the base layer yesterday, two meters tall. It shouldn't reveal so much.
"What is it?"
"Look! The spire is weird!" Lazarus dashed through the trees and to the pond where the spire stood.
"Careful! Don't run on your own. There might be a scarab there!" Laurel said. Yet she also followed her. She had also seen the spire and wondered what had happened to it. As they got closer, a faint humming sound echoed. The sound droned on; it was as if it was singing.
"It came from the spire," Lazarus said.
"What happened…" The group halted below the lake.
"Look! The spire is opening up!" Shingo said as he pointed toward the base layer. Just as he said, a huge square hole opened from the base. The soil that had dropped off the spire piled up in front of it, covering half of the door's height.
"The spire had a proper door after all! Why couldn't we find it before?" Lexus sighed.
"It was here. We thought it was just a wall, but apparently, these seams can be opened, huh…" Xiaolang compared the spire with the pictures they had taken before. There were small, almost invisible seams all across the base layer. Xiaolang thought these seams were just a byproduct of precast construction. It happened all the time in colonies. But apparently, the builders somehow thought it was a good idea to put doors indistinguishable from those seams.
"Geez. They should put more consideration into making this door," Lexus said.
"Let's go in!" Lazarus said.
"Wait, what about food?" Laurel complained.
"We can pick those melons later, right? I think something changed inside," Shingo said. He then peered into the pond. "Xiaolang, are there any of those scarabs here?"
"No. I don't see anything like that. But be careful. It's a bit dark at the river floor. Bring your spear."
The spire looked the same as yesterday. Machines beeped, and the lights were turned on. Laurel wondered what generator this building used, and how this seemingly abandoned building had suddenly come to life.
"It looks as if nothing has changed." Laurel frowned.
"Let's look at the second floor." Xiaolang climbed the spiral staircase to the next floor.
Just as he climbed to the third floor, a pair of eyes stared at him.
"Son. We should forgive others. Not simply because someone told us to. You see, if we forgive others, it will bring peace. I hope you will learn it someday. You are my proud son." ~Bob