Chapter 11, The Bio-Plant, Part 1
"Alright, we're coming up on the lab! Pack it in!" I yelled back to my party. We had been traveling for almost the entire day, having left Riyute early this morning. During the ride, I had gone over the mechanics of the teleport, having failed to do so earlier. One drawback to using it was the cooldown, only being able to use it once every twenty-four hours. Once we were nearing the lab, it was already reaching nightfall. As we moved, Deimos and Phobos moved closer behind Luna as we ran, creating a tighter formation.
'Wasn't this trip supposed to be shorter?' I thought to myself. 'Well, we're here anyway so, no point in complaining about it.'
We dismounted while the wolves changed back to their human forms and we approached the entrance of the lab. It was a large stone cut out, embedded into the mountainside.
"What do you think?" Luna asked, Filo coming up next to her. Over the past several hours, she had grown considerably, now becoming up to just above my waist. Her growth spurts weren't gradual, however. Instead, they appeared in puffs of smoke, and all of a sudden Filo had gained a considerable amount of weight. She had also eaten all the feed a while before we had arrived and would wine until we stopped to hunt something for her to eat.
'And why is she growing so damn fast? Even compared to her original rate, this is ridiculous.'
"We're only recovering the seed and it's pretty cramped inside so I'll leave you and the wolves here. Raph, Deimos and I should plenty for this."
"Why not me?" Luna asked with surprise.
"Because Filo's taken a liking to you more than me now and God only knows what'll happen if that bird has another growth spurt while we're in there, and she finally comes to the size of a full-grown filolial."
"You're sticking me on bird duty?" Luna asked as Filo let out a hurt squawk at Luna's words.
"Yes. Besides, I want to ask those two some things while we're down there."
"Ask who what?" Deimos asked as he walked up behind us.
"Speak of the Devil. You and Raph are with me on this one. I wanna check on some stuff with you two while we're down there."
Phobos nodded and got Raphtalia's attention, signaling her to come over.
"You two know what to do." I said, addressing Luna and Phobos. "There shouldn't be any monsters so don't worry if we take a while. Just make sure we don't have any guest."
The pair nodded while I began walking into the lab, raphtalia, and Deimos following me. As we entered, I brought out my Prisma shield and let the prism levitate, lighting our way in the dark tunnels.
The tunnels themselves weren't all that impressive, even as an archeological find. The walls and ceiling were made sandstone, with strange murals covering the floor. Most of the chest and tables were barren, already looted from eager archeologist or scientist, or adventurers either on a job or looking to make some money.
Some time passed as we walked before I began asking questions.
"How have you two been?" I asked.
They hesitated before answering, not expecting the question. They looked at each other and shared a look of agreement.
"We've been doing well Master Carter." Raphtalia said.
"No problems here." Deimos followed.
"Good to hear. What about your fighting?"
"You've seen us fight together before Carter. Why ask?" Deimos asked.
"Because I wanna make sure what I see and what y'all intend are the same thing. I'm not displeased or anything, you've both been exceptional fighters, but I don't problems to go unignored."
The pair seemed to accept my answer, and Raphtalia spoke up.
"Well, Deimos fights as the rook, keeping his shield up and defending the right side while I cover the left rear. If a strike coming in is too heavy for me to parry, I switch places with Deimos so he blocks the blow and step in while our opponent is staggered."
"Same thing if I'm taking a heavy strike, though, 'cept the swapping places part." Deimos added.
"Sounds about right, and what about relationship wise?"
"Relationship?" Raphtalia asked with a blush while Deimos raised an eyebrow.
"Not romantically Raph," I said rolling my eyes. "I meant as individuals. You work well as combatants, but what about as party members?"
"Why ask us that? I mean, we work well as combatants so there shouldn't be much of a problem, right?" Deimos asked.
"Things aren't that simple Deimos. Sometimes people grow strong relations in battle. Sometimes their ability to fight depends on how their relationship outside of fighting. Even before ending up in this world, I knew that bit of wisdom very well."
'Not just training with the Lonestar Watchmen, but drone competitions as well. Wonder how that jackass William is doing anyway? Dude can write a crazy program but it was a challenge in itself to work with him.'
They walked on silently, thinking over how to answer what they had been asked. Before they could answer, we came to a part of the facility that was far larger. Old tables and chest lined the walls of what was most likely one of the actual lab spaces. The hallway continued through, but I didn't know what came after, nor did I feel like spending more time here than we needed to. Looking in the corner, I spotted the chest that contained the seed.
'Adventures for later I suppose.'
"We'll finish this talk on our way back up. I just need to make sure the seed hasn't been taken." I said walking up to the chest. I opened it and was relieved to find the seed inside.
I let out a sigh of relief. "And with that, on to the village." I said picking up the seed. But as I brought it up I felt some resistance and stopped pulling.
'What the…?' Looking into the chest, I could a small green vine running out from under the seed and into a hole in the chest.
'Oh shit.'
Before I could yell to Raphtalia and Deimos, green vines began sprouting breaking through the sandstone walls, each one going straight for us.
"Run!" I finally got out to them. They didn't need me to say anything, already making their way to the exit, cutting everything that got in their way. The vines were a light brown, bark light material, adapted for the harsh desert climate.
I yanked the seed, tearing from the root and following my party members as well, but before we could get out, the vine grew over the exit, blocking our escape.
"Down the hall!" I yelled to them, pointing back to the empty. They jumped back and ran back, following me down the path. I moved the prism in front of us as we ran, vines erupting from the stonework behind us as we ran.
Soon, the vines stopped erupting from the walls and only followed us through the corridor. As we neared the end, I could make out a faint light. I glanced back at Raphtalia and Deimos.
"We're almost out!" I called back. I looked forward to the light in front of us, but the contrast made it looked bright white and blurry.
We ran through, coming to a catwalk above a well-lit area. All around us was a layout of pathways like the one we stood on. Water ran through from one of the walls, falling into a network of tunnels below us.
"Keep running!" I yelled back, hoping to cross the platform. Just as we neared the center of the bridge, a massive green vine broke up through the platform. On it was a single yellow eye in the center of a pink flower. Along its sides was an array of thorns and extensions.
"What the Hell!" I heard Deimos yell behind. Before I could give any orders, vines grew along the side of the bridge, picking it up and tilting it.
"Hold on!" I yelled to my party.
"Raph!" I heard Deimos yell. He had his hand reached out as the bridge began to tilt to the point we were falling. Raph grabbed his arm before we fell, Deimos pulling her close as we all fell.
I looked down into the water and landed with a splash.
Everything was blurry. I slowly opened my eyes, distant images began to appear as I heard faint sounds and felt something on my face. As everything began to clear, I felt a clear pain in my lungs. I rolled onto my side and began coughing up water.
"Don't worry. I'm here." I looked up but couldn't see much. A light appeared and I could make out Raphtalia with the light in her palm. It wasn't very bright, but it served well to light her face and the ceiling. Looking around, I could see we were on a small walkway by the water with a round ceiling and second path on the other side.
"Raph-" I grunted as I felt a pain in my side. My hand moved on its own and went to cover the side.
"Don't move too much, you were hurt pretty bad."
Gritting my teeth, I tried again. "Where are we? And where's Alpha?" I asked, looking around, but not seeing him.
"He must've landed in a different area than us when we fell from the bridge. That plant came down and started looking for us. I had to keep us under the water for a while." She said with a mix of worry and regret.
I tried getting up, grunting as I ignored the pain that flared through my side.
"You shouldn't get up." She jumped, laying me back down. I relented, begrudgingly, and let her. I caught my breath, the attempt to stand taking away what little energy I had regained.
"How long have we been here?"
"I can't tell down here." She said with sadness. "I tried applying some of the aid I had but…"
She didn't finish, instead, looking at a small bag filled with broken glass and spilled material.
"Don't worry. It's fine." I said, trying to ease her.
"No, it's not."
"What?' I asked, somewhat surprised.
"Every time. Every time it falls between you or me, it's always you who gets injured." She said.
Tears began to roll down her face. "Every hit, every blow, every strike. You shoulder all of it, and it's always you who gets hurt because I'm not strong enough."
"You think that's why?" I asked, perplexed by how she felt. She at me in the eyes, surprised by what I asked. "Raph. I take those blows because it's what I'm best at. I'm not as strong as Phobos, or as fast as Luna. And God knows I'm not as smart as you or Alpha.
"I take those hits, because, out of all of us, I bounce back the fastest. I take those hits so you don't end up in the same conditions I do. That's what being partners means."
"Deimos…" Raphtalia said.
I held my breath, moving slowly, and waiting. Above me was a light, blurred by the water, but ever present. It moved in front of me, over me, and then past me, before disappearing entirely. I rose slowly, letting my head come out of the water and letting out the breath I was holding before taking a new one. I brought my hand up and rubbed my eyes, the old water irritating them.
Squinting, I looked around the passageway, and to my relief, didn't see the large flower of the plant.
'Alright, think. Your team is scattered, your alone behind enemy lines and anything but stealth will most likely result in your death. You trained for this, you know what to do.' I thought, trying to calm my nerves but remembering one crucial factor.
'That's the Rangers! Not the Militia!'
I was panicking, trying to get my thoughts in order, and the ever-present feeling of an angry, giant, man-eating cactus wasn't helping. I took a deep breath, trying to focus. I swam up to the side of the waterway and picked myself up on the platform, careful to make as little noise as possible.
'Well, you've certainly done it this time.' I thought to myself, looking at the situation I was in. When I had first landed in the water, I got on the platform and started running, taking winding turns and obscure ways to try and through the plant off my path. When I had gotten a corner ahead, I jumped into the water and waited, slowly moving as to not be detected.
I sighed, raising my hand and looking at the seed I had snagged. It wasn't much. It was ripped off with a part of the root but wasn't doing much more than hanging uselessly.
'But it just might be enough.' I absorbed the seed into my shield and was relieved when an alert appeared, saying I had unlocked the Bio-plant shield. I summoned the shield and brought up the menu.
It was a simple design. Sprouting from the gem in the center two large leaves and two small leaves. The large leaves covered my arm and elbow while the smaller two added width to the shield. Four vines sprouted between the leaves, bending to follow the larger leaves, adding a strange flair to the shield.
'Bit different than I remember.' I thought to myself. Focussing on looks later, I began tinkering with the options, moving further down the pathway.
Now the question was what to make.
I had no idea what the shield allowed me to create. The most complex thing I could remember being created was a seed that grew temporary shelter, but it took some two days and the help of an alchemist to create. I was alone and had at most an hour before I was found.
Not wasting time, I thought through what I would need.
'To get out of here, I'll need to do three things. Find my companions, kill the plant, and get up to the bridge. If I end up going platform based, then I could probably go straight for the opening inn the cave ceiling. Killing that plant will be difficult, but combat orientation is certainly within the realm of possibility for a plant strain. The problem is finding Raph and Deimos and a way out of here.'
'We could get out of here without killing the plant, but we'd need to be fast. I could create a combat plant to create distractions but I won't know if it'll attack the other two if they come across it… Got it.' I thought, bringing up the screen to code the plant. It was a strange format but not something I was inexperienced in.
'Create a three-base trigger. If it detects a bright light, none-tap based sounds, interval sound recorder should work for that, and a negative base if a wire is tripped. If even one of those isn't met, the plant won't spring. If they are, hostility will shoot up to one-hundred percent but sentience will remain low so the plant has no problem detonating.' I thought as lines of code began to form. Each one came together with every thought I had, adapting itself to fit where needed. To the left of code was an image of a plant that began to form with each new input.
It was a large, simple flower with multiple roots and no stem. In its center was a container for powerful acids that would eat anything it came in contact with. Once the code was complete, it fell under the 'combat' category, next to the 'Acid-Sprayer Strain', a version that, luckily, was already within my shield and wouldn't lash out at me or my companions.
'Platform is simple. It just needs to raise us up. Could probably create a simple two-button trigger with a pair of leaves, the problem is the strength it'll need. It'll take some time to grow large enough to lift us, and I don't trust putting a high enough degree of sentience on this thing to lift us without trying to eat us. Might be able to use cancer-like cell replication and have even cells not at the outside multiply as well. I'll need to add some sentience to it so the plant can control the growth and not end up killing itself.' The code for this plant was far shorter, but the design was far more complex.
Fully grown, the plant would have wide stock and deep roots, with a wide flower using bark to support the petals and weight. A smaller extension came from the center of the plant which would act as a lever to control how it moved.
'Now to make something to help me locate the others… That's gonna be complicated.' I thought as designs are concepts flooded my mind, each one with its own benefits and drawbacks, but all of them hinging on a complex mechanism.
Raphtalia grunted as she moved, supporting me with one arm while holding up her other, keeping the light that showed us the path in front of us. Her legs moved shakily while I walked with a limp. We had been moving for some time now but were beginning to question if we were going the right way.
"We should rest here for a bit." I said out loud.
"I'm fine." Raphtalia grunted.
"You're tired. You can't keep this up for much longer." I said with concern.
"We just need to find Carter. He'll have something we can use. He always does."
"No. He doesn't." I said, starting to become annoyed. "He didn't know about the dog attack. He didn't know about the vaults. And now he didn't know about the Bio-plant sprouting. How would have something for this?"
"We'll figure something out. We always do." She said determinedly.
"And what exactly can we do with two, maybe three men down? You're exhausted and we don't know what condition Carter's in. He's still recovering from three days in the hospital and just fell from a bridge into a damn cavern. We're in deep here, and if we can recover some strength now, we should. We'll probably need it later."
I held my breath, hoping I had convinced her.
"Fine." She said reluctantly. She walked over to the side of the wall and set me down, propping my back against the wall while she slid down the wall next to me, completely exhausted.
"How long do you think we've been walking?" I asked.
"I… Don't know? Hard to tell down here."
We sat there in silence for some time. It wasn't until the silence became unbearable that I spoke up again.
"Why me?" I asked. Raphtalia was taken aback from the question.
"What do you mean?" She asked confused.
"You had Luna or Phobos to pick from. Both would probably have been better choices than me. So why me?"
"Phobos doesn't like having a mount."
"He says that but he gets lonely on long rides. He actually does want a riding partner."
"And Luna already picked Carter."
"So I was the last option?" I said.
"No-that's not-!" She stopped when she noticed the grin on my face. "You're an idiot."
"Perhaps. But that didn't seem to stop you."
'Why won't you work!?' I thought.
For the past hour, it had been the same thing over and over. I would write the code, check the code, create a seed, plant the seed, and the seed would start growing, but quickly wither.
The design was supposed to send out vines with bioluminescent flowers that would pulsate in the direction of the center, leading to me, but would shut off if it detected something that wasn't me or my party, a piece of code I snagged from the 'Acid Shooted'.
What instead happened with this strain is the branches had grown out, aiming to start encompassing the cave, but quickly withered and decayed before they reached the sides.
I brought up the code again, looking for any faults, but not finding any. I opted to rewrite the code again, deleting sections of it and replacing them with new lines.
'You are my creation. My design brought to life by the power of this shield.' I said closing the code and creating a seed.
'You are to follow my word as I have laid out for you to do so! Now-' I thought, raising my hand with the seed.
'Work Dammit!'
We had started moving again, going deeper into the caves in the hopes finding Carter. The light Raphtalia held was starting to dim, the constant use of her magic and supporting me putting a strain on her. Now it was only bright enough to light a few feet in front of us.
'This is starting to get pretty grim.' I thought.
"Listen, Raphtalia. I think, we should consider the possibility that…"
"Don't talk like that Deimos." She cut me off. "We just need to keep going."
"Raph, you're almost out of mana. If we try moving in the dark there's not telling what'll happen."
"Then we have to find him. Soon."
"We're not going to find him!" I yelled, shocking Raphtalia. "We've been looking for hours and we're almost out of energy. We don't know where he is, we don't know where we're going, and we don't even know if he's alive…"
I looked down, losing all hope. The realization hit Raphtalia hard, losing hope as well.
"...Do you really think so…?" Raphtalia asked slowly.
"I don't want to. But… I don't see anything short of a miracle saving us now."
Raphtalia looked down, not sure what to do.
'Now or never.' I thought to myself.
"Raphtalia. If we're... Going to die, I need to tell you something." I started.
'...' I was speechless. Everything I tried, every strain, every code, every design.
They failed.
Any plant that tried failed miserably, not even reaching basic stages. Testing my other creations, they withered away as well, the dark area of the waterway not conducive to the plant's growth, and killing them before they could become anything useful. And with every plant I tried, the air grew thinner, filling it with more carbon and expelling precious oxygen.
'Is this how I lose my companions…?' I thought, a green hue beginning to dawn the walls.
'Is this how I lose my life…?' The green hue grew brighter, anger and disappointment flooding my mind. The world began to grow fuzzy, the lack of abundant oxygen beginning to take its toll.
'I was supposed to protect this world… But I couldn't even protect my allies.' As the thoughts came through, the green light grew brighter, tearing away at the crumbling walls and boiling the stagnant water. With the last embers of determination, a simple sentence crossed my mind.
'I can't let them die.'
'So don't.'
In one motion, every bit of light disappeared, replaced by the feeling of pain, as if something was burrowing into skull. I fell onto my knees, numb from the pain, but as quickly as it appeared, it left, leaving me on my hands and knees, gasping as the air around me suddenly tasted fresh.
'That voice.' I thought. 'It's the same from the duel…'
Alerts began covering my vision, each one expanding into long lines of code, many times longer than anything I had written.
'What the…?' Looking into my Bio-plant shield, I found many new strains throughout the list, and even a new category, that they all seemed to fall as well.
'Elixi seeds? What are…' I shook my head, deciding to think about it later. 'What do we have to work with?'
Of the seeds I received, many were combat oriented, if the names were anything to go by. Corpse Vine, Tangle Weed, Seed Spitters, Bone Mouths, each name giving a vivid image for how the pants would dispose of anything it became hostile to. Many of them were darkened, locked out of use from me, but what I had what I needed. The long list of names continued until I found two in particular. Seeker pollen and Burrow Flower.
Grabbing the seeds, I planted them and, with glee, watched them sprout.
'Time to find my party.'
"What are you saying Deimos?" Raphtalia asked.
"There's... I need to… For a while now, I've had this feeling."
Raphtalia turned towards me, a blush creeping up on her face.
"Ever since the wave. No, a bit before then, I started thinking of you as more. More than a partner. More than a friend."
I struggled to find the words I needed.
"You mean…" She paused.
"Yes." I said. I looked down for a moment, piecing together the words that I wanted to say. "Raphtalia. I-"
I never finished my words. Her arms wrapped me my neck and pulled my head down. I felt something warm on my lips. She pulled back and put her head on my shoulder, softly crying.
"Why'd you have to wait?" She whispered.
The light in her hand dimmed behind my head, Raphtalias magic running on fumes.
The sound of stone cracking filled the hallway all around us, but we didn't break the embrace as the light in her hand grew dimmer.
"...This is the end isn't it…" She asked. I didn't say anything, the light in her hand doing little more than to light my back. The shadows of roots lined the walls, the sound shifting material filling our ears.
I closed my eyes as the lights went out.
But something else happened.
Slowly, new light began to fill the hallway, shining through to my closed eyes. I opened them, awestruck by what I saw.
All around us were large, cobalt flowers. Each one glowing a soft blue amongst the stone. Their centers each faced at an angle to the hallway. Smaller lights began to form in the air all around us, each light moving down the hallway and around the corner. Those that strayed became dark, disappearing from sight.
'What is this…?' I faced forward towards Raphtalia, who was just as awestruck. We looked at each other and realized who had done this.
"And you thought he was dead." She said with a smug smile, but relief evident in her voice.
"Then I guess it's a good thing I'm not the smart one." I said with a slight laugh. I put my arm over her shoulder, her hands coming up my chest to support me. "Let's go find our leader."
We began our slow walk down the path, following the light laid out by the flowers.
I fell back against the stone, relief flooding my system. In front of me was the map laid out by the pollen.
The Seeker Pollen seed grew into a large flower. It's blue petals opened up, a small grey ring surrounding a dusty looking surface in the center of the flower. It released untold amounts of large spores that moved throughout the tunnels, covering every surface they came in contact with. As the large spores spread out, smaller ones had floated above the flower, taking the shape of the many bends and turns in soft blue light.
The Burrow Flower seed left a small bud that created a vine, merging the base of the flower of the Seeker Pollen flower while its roots cut deep into stone and dirt.
A long segment of the map pulsated as rings of light moving towards my position. They moved past me and into a larger open area that resembled an angular bowl, the pollen not reaching the higher parts of where we fell from. Moving down that path were two spots that moved slower and glowed brighter than the surrounding pollen.
'I can't believe that worked.' I thought, a smile creeping on my face. Looking at the plants, an idea came to mind.
'That voice… No. I'll think about that later.' I got up and began heading own the path, moving in the opposite direction of the pulsing lights. 'Right now, I have to find my party.'