Atkovan chatter rang through the glass domes. The capital was bustling with activity and filled with goods that were handed out by robots, from foul smelling orange fruit, to clothing and strange, small electrical devices. The Atkovans seemed to be exchanging something for them – circular, jet black token with inscriptions onto their faces.
As they walked from one dome to the next, they caught sight of food courts, markets, and even living parks full of plants from the surface, carefully nursed to survive in this strange new environment. Playing on a patch of vines were two young Atkovans. The jumped around on the soft greenery, throwing a makeshift toy submersible to one another.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Asami whispered to Korra.
The Commander had been busy looking up at the towering trees in the park. She admired the ornate benches at their roots and the colourful flowers arranged in neat rows. Asami's voice brought her back to reality, but she had no idea what she was on about.
She shook her head, looking up at the engineer.
Muu was busy giving them directions. They described the way to the living quarters, the various shopping centres, recreational areas, offices and labs. Mako and Bolin were listening intently, while Kuvira hung back, watching things with the same scepticism as Asami seemed to imply.
The engineer checked the Atkovans couldn't hear her before she whispered again. "They're doing pretty well."
Korra frowned. She took a look around and she was right. They were here to combat a pandemic, and yet they hadn't come across a single affected Atkovan. That seemed to be a good thing.
Something was off. The three Atkovans they had met on Kythera had made such a big deal out of the pandemic that it seemed strange that life was going on normally, as though nothing was happening. Perhaps they had just gotten the wrong impression.
"And here we are!" Muu exclaimed, taking them through the tunnel at the far end of the hive, passing through a couple of Atkovans standing guard right before the gate. "Our parliament is right through here. You will meet with our government representatives from all the regions on Atkova."
The crew nodded. This was exciting – not just because they finally got to talk about why they were here, but also because they would get to learn more about the rest of Atkova.
The guards let them into the parliamentary dome, and it was already obvious that they had arranged it to look as such. There were ornaments lining the circular walls – shelves full of trophies, taxidermies of strange animals and aquariums of life that they hadn't seen before from their pod journey. The most impressive of all were the large, chunky diamonds that dotted the tables every so often. Something so rare on Earth must have been abundant on Atkova, and further confirmed their suspicions that the ground was indeed made of coal.
Sat around the large central table were only three Atkovans. They rose as the crew walked in, most definitely dressed to show their status. Their coats were lined with jewels that sparkled in the artificial light, and they each had a sash to indicate the region they represented.
"Welcome." The first Atkovan stepped forward. They donned a bright blue sash with an inscription they could not read. "I am Xoro, the representative of our people here in the capital." They pointed towards the other two members, their sashes black and purple respectively. "We also have members of the natural resources district and the industrial district from the surface. Khan and Burku."
The crew bowed their heads, greeting each one in turn.
"We'd like to thank you for your bravery in coming here to help us directly. As you may know, the pandemic led us to lose touch with the allied nations around our galaxy."
This was news to the crew. "Allied nations?" Korra said.
Xoro nodded. "You must be from very far away, but in this end of the Universe we had rich trade routes spanning across many parsecs. When the disease struck our nation, we were cut off from the rest of the network, ever since…" their voice dwindled as they judged the looks of the crew. They realized the humans hadn't heard of this and hesitated.
"Since what?" Kuvira butted in.
"Since we found that it could spread to the other species too."
The crew looked at each other. They hadn't planned for this.
"But our biologies are so different," Asami said.
Xoro shrugged. "It didn't seem to matter. About two hundred fell ill on the intra-galactic hub we shared with the other nations, and they shut us away in fear that their people would suffer like ours were. This was decades ago, and we have suffered the consequences."
Kuvira frowned. "Suffering? Your city is thriving!"
Korra shot her a look. She didn't want this to be a repeat of last time, though after what the Atkovans had done to her she could understand if she bore some resentment.
Khan finally spoke up. "We isolate our sick as best we can, but no matter what we try there are always more that fall ill to the disease."
Xoro nodded. "As a government we kept our capital safe and ensured our people here still had the means to live comfortably. It was a great effort, but our people are thankful for it."
The crew took a moment to take it all in. Could they also get sick from the disease?
"And where are the rest of the regions?" Korra asked.
"The regions Khan and I represent are both on the surface," Buruk said. "We have done our best to ensure they are safe too, but the laboratories you will be working with are all here in the capital, so you won't have to travel far."
The crew had more questions, but before they could get another word out Xoro turned to Muu. "Why don't you show the newcomers to the labs? Introduce them to our scientists."
Muu bowed their head, before motioning for the human to follow them.
Korra and the rest complied, and they followed the Atkovan back through the hive.
"Actually, Muu," Korra said as they walked. "I think it may be best if we split up. Some of us should visit the rest of the regions to see how we can help."
The Atkovan hesitated. "Split?"
The Commander looked at the rest of the crew. "I don't know anything about diseases, so I'd probably be more useful somewhere else. What do you guys think?"
Asami nodded. "Sounds good."
"It'll be faster this way," Kuvira said.
Muu shifted uncomfortably. They looked back to the parliamentary dome. "I don't think that's right. The leaders said we should all head to the lab."
Korra waved her hand dismissively. "Yeah, but this way things will work better. We can handle ourselves. We've been to a lot of planets."
"Well… I…" the Atkovan looked from one crew member to the next. They all waited for their answer and they stuttered for a few moments. "No. I'm sorry I can't do that. I must accompany you and I cannot be in 3 places at once."
"But-"
"I am sorry. Now please," they seemed to give a polite smile, curling their lips, showing their jagged, bleached teeth. "Follow me and I will show you everything you want to see."
The Atkovans were an advanced species, and it definitely showed in the complexity of the laboratories they build. The crew were shown round the different samples coming in from infected Atkovans, sealed away in airtight containers. Even when in use, they were completely isolated from the room, and the petri dishes of tissue samples were accessed through gloveboxes.
None of the crew members had much experience in biology, especially not one of a foreign species, but as they were introduced to the research team leader they were hoping for a better explanation.
"Hello," an Atkovan in lab gear approached them, moving their goggles to their forehead, revealing their dark, beady eyes. "My name is Bryx. I lead the research team here as we are scrambling for a cure." They motioned towards the stack of petri dishes sealed away behind glass screens. The pieces of tissue stored in them looked jagged, almost as though bits had been shredded away. "As you may know, we are battling a flesh-eating disease."
Bryx proceeded to run them through the equipment they had available, explaining the biological tests they ran, from blood tests, to biopsies, and presenting them the machinery that they used to identify compositions of flesh and blood alike. The crew crowded around the screen they showed, squinting and trying to understand the chemicals they were testing for.
"We have never been able to find anomalies in blood samples. There are no irregularities in electrolytes, or spikes in the immune system." Bryx gestured towards the readings almost helplessly. "There is in fact nothing to suggest the body is even fighting a disease."
The writing of the Atkovans was incomprehensible to the crew, so instead Bryx had switched to display models of the molecules they were testing for instead. While they couldn't read what they wrote, the crew was at least able to identify some basic compounds that must have been the building blocks of life on Atkova. Lithium salts, carbon chains and ammonia levels in the test subjects' bodies lit up, as well as an alarmingly high content of an ion displayed as C≡N-, which seemed to be normal for them.
As they carried on walking through the lab, inspecting samples and machinery, Korra noticed Asami being distracted by something else for a moment. She followed her gaze to the far end of the dome. On the screen, it seemed like the Atkovans had left some data open, and though they couldn't tell what it was, the graphs produced seemed to mean something to the engineer.
She turned her attention back to Bryx.
Asami waited for a pause in the Atkovan's explanations before she interrupted. "Excuse me," she said, "What is that for?" she pointed towards the machine she was looking at.
Bryx took a moment before clearing their throat. "An infrared spectrometer. It's used to measure the chemical bonds in compounds so we can identify them."
The engineer nodded. "I presume you never found anything out of the ordinary."
"No," the scientist chuckled. "It was a dead end."
They moved on, not mentioning the results of the spectrometer again.
As their tour drew to a close, the crew was growing increasingly more tired. It was all a lot to take in, and it was becoming obvious that they were out of their depth here. Perhaps the best approach would be to just support the Atkovans while they found a cure themselves.
They thanked Bryx before Muu led them back through the tunnels.
"I have been asked by the leaders to offer you a place to stay in our capital here," they said. "If you so wish."
"That's nice of them, but I think we'll rest back on the ship," Korra replied. "Where… you know. We have water and stuff."
Muu chuckled. "Yes, of course. I did forget."
They took them back to the landing pad, bringing in a pod for them to use.
"I will come back for you in the morning," they said. "We're excited for you to see the rest of our wonderful planet."
The crew thanked them, before heading back to the surface. The ride back was strange, and they looked at each other not even knowing where to start.
"This is gonna be fucking hard, isn't it?" Kuvira finally broke the silence, leaning back against her seat.
She got a round of nods from everyone around her.
The ship's lights were dimmed, and the crew had gone back to their quarters. Though they had spent half a day exploring the capital, none of them felt like they really knew what they were dealing with, despite Muu's and Bryx's best attempts to introduce them to everything.
Korra sat on the edge of her bed, staring out into the dark shadows of her room. Her Commander's jacket was thrown over the back of the chair. Her tablet sat on her desk open on the digital log she was meant to be keeping but she had written just under two lines.
She let out a sigh. She couldn't understand it – there was nothing wrong. The Atkovans were cooperating with them and there was nothing trying to kill them here. Sure, the planet was hazardous, but they were managing just fine.
As quietly as she could, she got up and slid her jacket back on, tiptoeing out into the corridor. Everyone's doors were shut and she slowly made her way down. She knocked softly on the last door.
It was a few moments before Asami answered. She stood in the doorway, frowning as she saw Korra all dressed again.
"You ok?" she asked.
Korra motioned for her to be quiet as she whispered. "I'm heading out."
"What?"
"I'm going to find the other districts."
"Wh-"
"I saw smoke when we were by the sea, they're not far."
"But Muu said they'll come for us tomorrow." Asami said, though knowing full well it won't change Korra's mind.
The Commander looked at her, tilting her head. She raised an eyebrow and Asami sighed. She was right.
"I'm coming," she said finally.
"Are you sure? We don't know what's out there."
The engineer rolled her eyes. "That's not stopping you." She went back into her room, taking her own jacket and lacing up her boots.
Korra checked no one else had come awake before leaning on the door frame. "So… is this like an adventure?"
"One that could end badly. But yes."
She smiled. "That's exciting."
They sneaked through the spaceship, putting their suits and helmets on before stepping out. The doors make a loud hissing noise, but as they looked back at the ship none of the lights came on. They seemed to have sneaked out successfully.
Trudging through the thick vines was harder than they expected, especially without Muu's machete to guide them. The path they had cleared to the spaceship was already starting to overgrow again as more plants and vines spread across the empty gaps.
"This place is so weird," Korra said, pushing vines aside to try and get through.
"It's… definitely interesting." Asami followed close behind. She looked down at the electric glove on her hand. She hadn't covered it with the space suit so she could still use it, and the material had already started to bleach around the edges.
"If I knew there was so much ammonia everywhere I wouldn't have argued with Iroh to send us here." She chuckled. They were nearing the edge of the thick foliage, hearing the sea waves crashing against the coal banks.
"I never thought there could be ammonia-based life, but it would explain why we might have missed their solar system for so long."
"Yeah?"
"We usually search for water on planets to determine if there's life. We never thought to search for anything else." Asami wasn't a biologist though, and she didn't know why that was the case.
"Couldn't understand a word back at the lab," Korra said. They finally came out of the thick rainforest and started walking along the edge of the shore.
"It was definitely new to me as well," Asami answered. "Although…" She trailed off.
Korra turned to see her frowning, looking at the ground as they carried on walking. She was trying to find her words.
"I don't know for sure but there was something strange on that infrared spectrometer. I haven't used one in so long, must have been my first year at uni."
"Everything looked strange to me."
"I guess I wouldn't have thought so much about it if Bryx hadn't have dismissed it so soon."
Their walking slowed as they entered the foliage again, following the trail of smoke in the sky from one of the nearby districts.
"You don't think the Atkovans would try to hide something, do you?" Korra said.
Asami hesitated. "Well… they don't seem exactly honest. What was that thing about Muu needing to accompany us everywhere?"
"Probably a safety thing."
"And the capital is oddly rich for a species that's presumably dying."
"Maybe they isolated the disease really well."
"And Bryx wouldn't show us the spectrometry results. The one thing I know to do."
"Perhaps it wasn't… relevant." Korra's voice nearly trailed off at the end. She was starting to see what Asami was saying and sighed. "God, really?"
The engineer shrugged. "I don't know. I could just be paranoid. We know what happened when Kuvira trusted the ones back on Kythera."
"We can't judge all of them just because three Atkovans were bad."
"I didn't mean that."
The trees and vines were becoming less and less dense, and eventually they were able to see further through them. They spotted roads that they had missed through the shrubbery, but they all led to the collection of buildings in the centre. In the midst of them, large towers bellowed smoke out into the air above, and a thick smog formed around the rooftops. Although it was night, the lights in the factories were all on, lighting up the many neighbourhoods that surrounded them.
"I think we're here," Korra said. The noise of machinery was audible even from a distance.
They weren't sure how cautious to be, so they tried sneaking through the shadows to get closer to the district. The roads weren't so busy at this time, but every so often a lorry would pass through. They stuck to the walls of the buildings, staying out of sight as they looked for signs of Atkovans. The lights in almost all the houses were off, and there were a few convenience stores dotted around the factories whose lights were bright and colourful. The smell of sulphur filled the air, one of the many ugly sides to the rampant industry here.
"This must be Burku's district." Asami said. The sides of the factories were donned with purple banners and inscriptions they couldn't read. "The industry of Atkova."
Korra nodded, squinting through the dimly lit streets. There was an Atkovan coming out of the convenience store, carrying a bag of canned food. Their clothes were dirty with thick, black oil, and their skin had darkened in patches around their hands and arms.
The Atkovan headed down through the buildings – blocks of terraced housing alternating in between blocks of apartments. They opened the door and headed inside, just about missing Korra and Asami lurking in the shadows. As they went in, the two crewmates heard them talking to someone, but their voice was too quiet for their earpieces to pick up and translate. They were whispering something.
Korra and Asami loked at each other. They both knew their curiosity would get the better of them so they headed up the alley to the Atkovan's door, knocking gently a few times.
There was no answer.
They tried again, only a little louder.
Again, the Atkovan didn't answer them.
"Maybe their culture doesn't know what knocking means," Korra said.
Asami wasn't so convinced. "Just hold on a moment." She walked to the side, trying to see through the window.
"Asami! You can't just look into someone's house."
In that moment, the door handle clicked. The hinges creaked as the Atkovan poked their head out ever so slightly.
"Hi, we don't mean to disturb you but we-" Korra started.
"Are you from Earth?" The Atkovan spoke quietly, so much so that their earpieces were only translating their sentence in parts, not being able to pick up all of it.
"Y-Yes," Korra said.
"Do you have the cure?"
The Commander's face dropped. "No. But we're trying to find one."
The Atkovan nodded, before going to shut the door again.
"Wait!" Korra said after them. "Who were you talking to?"
Something made the Atkovan pause, looking down at their feet. They looked sullen and their chest seemed to heave with heavy breaths. "My son," they said. They opened the door, letting the two crewmates in.
The house was small and cramped, and had at most two rooms. The dining table was full of protective factory equipment which had seen better days and the cupboards were open and empty, with the bags of canned food still on the floor waiting to be stacked.
Korra and Asami froze as they walked in, seeing the Atkovan's son sitting on a chair in the far corner, slumped and seeming to struggle to breathe. Their body looked shredded, and the bone on the side of their jaw was becoming visible as the flesh seemed to retreat away from it. They seemed to have tugged or pulled at their clothes, since their shirt looked ripped and frail, gaps in their skin underneath their garments.
The parent of the poor Atkovan started to sob, letting out low guttural gasps as ammonia tears ran down their face. "Please," they managed to get out. "Don't tell them."
The crew mates took a moment to take in what was happening.
"What?" Asami said.
"Don't tell them. Please. They'll take them away."