| Generated by Google Flow text-to-video AI software, powered by Omni Flash |
The technology that Leona used to boost Kayetan’s merging ability was the
same she used to get him back home. That way, they didn’t have to make yet
another sling there. Once he did return to Earth, though, he would not be
able to return. They were many light years away, and he couldn’t usually
travel that far. Of course, he was at hers and Mateo’s wedding, where he
managed to merge people from all over the bulk, so how was he able to
accomplish that? She forgot to ask. They’ve changed realities and timelines
so many times since then, though, so he might not have even ever done that.
As it turned out, the fire that burned down the crops was a total accident.
There was technically an arsonist, but it was part of nature. The team
didn’t have much time to study it, but there was a special type of alien
beetloid which could start fires by rubbing its legs on stones. It must
infuse the right kind of metal into its diet, and spark a reaction through
some kind of chemical that it also produced. It might do this to clean, or
mark its territory, or maybe as part of a mating ritual. Some of the endemic
plant life could handle it by dispensing a natural fire suppressant. It
appeared to be a symbiotic relationship, actually. The beetles
cleared the brush for whatever reason they had, and the fire-resistant
plants got to keep all of the soil’s nutrients for themselves, against the
burnable competitors. The grapes would obviously not survive over in their
territory.
The solution? Plant the grapes on the other side of the river. This caused
some uproar in the population, but they agreed to it, because it was the
only answer that made any sense. And it would probably help in the long run.
Since they now had no choice, this was where they were going to live.
Everything Ramses’ computer was afraid of, with two factions growing apart
from each other, was no longer an issue. Well, it could still happen, but it
would not be because of grapes. They would survive this crucible at least.
When they finally reunited on Ramosus in 2568, they found themselves trapped
in the in-house slingdrive. Romana was on the other side of the plasma
barrier, holding her hands up defensively. “Now, I know that you’re mad, but
don’t you feel fulfilled? You completed your tasks. That’s all we’ve been
wanting, right? You’re not here to seek out new life and new civilizations.
You’re volunteer fixers. I just gave you a little nudge. I know you didn’t
want to do it like this, but I’m hoping you’ll forgive me one day, if not
outright thank me. I just...I wanted you to stop worrying about me, and to
move on.”
Mateo tried to push his hands through the plasma. It gave, but it didn’t
break. “Why are we locked up in here? Did you think we were gonna hurt you?”
“No, I didn’t think my parents, aunts, and uncle were going to physically
cause me harm, but I thought you would punish me. I wanted to see Boyd
again, and you wouldn’t let me. I figured I would feed two birds with one
worm. You six get the satisfaction of saving two colonies from themselves,
and I get to spend time with the one person who is only for me. The barrier
is just so I could gauge your reaction upon returning.”
Leona placed her hand on the barrier too, but to try to reach out to Romana,
not to escape. “Our reaction is that we love you, and that the Boyd program
is dangerous until Ramses makes sure it’s safe from the dark particle
corruption. It was never permanent.”
“Well...” Romana seemed bashful now. “That wasn’t all I wanted to do with
Boyd.”
“What did you want to do with him? Meet him in immersive VR?” Mateo pressed.
“No.” She opened her arm to present a young man who was walking into the
lab. “Ladies and gentleman, may I present to you, Boyd Nieman...literally in
the flesh.”
No comments :
Post a Comment