Chapter 7: Corruption
Zane's view across the valley was phenomenal. Last night's storm created bright yellow puddles everywhere like polka dots. The air still smelled like ozone, and the clouds hadn't left, so the rain was still not done. They were just in the middle of a break. He judged that he had a few minutes to collect samples before it started, so he walked to the nearest pool of... whatever the substance was and put it in its own test tube. He trotted back to the base and just barely felt the ghost of a raindrop on his shoulder.
"I'm back!" he called out, and Moi instantly circled him, her paws making clicking noises on the wood.
"Yay! Welcum hom Mistuh Za-ine!" she meowed, tail flicking in happiness.
"Afternoon, Moi," he said, walking to the new lab next to their quarters. "Are Jay and Suzanne still here?"
"Yup! Dey're explowing te udder rooms!"
"Alright, then I can get some work done while they do that." So far, all of the plants that he'd studied were like wildflowers back home. Not harmful, but not of any medicinal or edible quality, either. Nothing out of the ordinary thus far except for what Suzanne had said was a human-like figure a few days ago. He hoped to find them, for they had run off into the corrupt area of the desert, where they weren't ready to go yet. Tomorrow, however, he planned to set out with Moi. He was a droid, after all, and common ailments took far longer to get to him than for Jay or Suzanne.
"Wee won't be aibl to go vewy fah witout duh flowuhs wee need," she'd told him. Moi knew where these flowers were, and she said that they were back where she'd began, in her old den. Moi promised to go with him, but they would head in the direction they needed to go to do their quick jobs. Zane needed to get in and out as quickly as possible, and Moi said that the flowers wilted easily.
He sat down his equipment, and prepped the lab for another test. He hadn't used flames on any of the plants yet, but so far they had proven very sustainable. They came out of water dry, didn't show any signs of freezing or thawing, and no corruption. The plants he'd gathered so far weren't useful in the medicinal field, but they could use them for practical reasons.
Zane came up to the canyon's top just as Jay and Suzanne began checking their weapons, and making sure they were secure. Their job was to find the nearest water source, as a fail-safe in case Garmadon's old appliances stopped working. They hadn't been touched in a while, after all.
He made sure that everything he needed was there, and Moi's poultice was in his system, so he started walking after the little cat, waving to the two behind him. They waved back, and jogged the other way.
Moi ran around in circles, and constantly jumped up just to say, "Hoiya!" to the birds that passed over head. They were just silhouettes, but Zane could see long graceful plumes for their tails, but hilariously tiny wings.
Soon, the corrupted land loomed before them, and Zane took a deep breath. All that preparation, and here it was. On the horizon line, he could make out large shadows moving slowly, lumbering towards an unseen destination.
He began taking samples immediately. Hands skimming over lumps of gurgling taint on the sand. Here it was in a mud form, and in others it just seemed to stain the powder beneath their feet. Moi gestured towards the lumbering shadows.
"Staee awaee frum dem," she mewled quietly. "Dey are big mud monstuhs, laik claee cuhm to laif!"
"I could probably handle them," Zane shrugged. "However, for the time being, I'll take your word for it."
After a while of collecting specimen, his hands were caked in the stuff. Black like bruises, with purple around the edges as it got thinner. He brushed his palms together, and a little fell off.
"Hey, Moi, how do I get this off?" he asked. The little creature sniffed his hands.
"Dehr's a liddle bit uv goop on dem. Watuh shood doo it, az long az yoo scwub really hahd," Moi looked confident, like this was where she was truly proving her usefulness. She was, and Zane was grateful. He move to give her a scratch behind the ears, but recoiled when he remembered the mess.
"I'll thank you later," Zane sighed with a smile. "I think that's enough for today. Besides, I think the flower is starting to wear off." He had noticed the violet on the edge of his vision, but thought it was just something on the ground as he worked. But now, it was everywhere, and turning everything the same hue. Moi nodded quickly, and leaped ahead back the way they had come, Zane following with a fast gait, a hazy heaviness slowing him down.
He got back just as Zane thought he would fall asleep standing. The corruption certainly wasn't easily dealt with. Not like a headache, or even a bad migraine. This was a poison that you couldn't ignore. Moi helped him wash off the sticky mixture of sand and violet.
"Blegh," Moi grimaced, scrunching up her muzzle.
"You're telling me,"replied Zane. Jay and Suzanne were back, and said that they'd found a fresh water source, a river in fact, about a half mile along the canyon's face, where it ended in a waterfall. The river at the bottom of the canyon had too much sediment in it, so the one above ground seemed best. As Suzanne said this, her face wasn't as cheery as usual. She was still smiling, but he could tell she was hiding something.
He crossed his arms and raised his brow like an impatient parent. Suzanne sighed knowingly. Zane could figure anyone out.
"What's going on?" he asked simply, lowering his shoulders a tad.
"I- I think... I think I saw that figure again. I swear, even. They were just there, and as soon as they saw that I was staring at them, they ran away, back towards the corrupted area." She shrugged, silently saying that there was noting else they could do about it.
"Anyway, how was the trip?" she asked, a real smile back on her face.
"It went well, but I still feel horrible," he said, exhaling slowly. "I got some good samples, but the flower doesn't really last all too long."
"Aww, well..." Suzanne thought for a moment before lighting up and inhaling sharply. "Here, you've done a lot for all of us on this trip, so you can go rest while Jay and I make dinner! Right, Jay?"
"Yeah, of course!" the Master of Lightning yelled from back in the hallway. Zane smiled weakly, and nodded, walking past Suzanne as she bounced up and down.
"Let's see what this kitchen can do!" she said aloud.
He woke up in a cold sweat. Which was odd. At least he'd slept off the poison, which got rid of his dull nausea and throbbing headache. He'd use his time more wisely tomorrow, getting more living specimen as well as trying to reverse the corruption somehow.
He looked at the clock. Three in the morning. Wait...
Zane wasn't a heavy sleeper, considering as a droid he didn't require more than a sufficient power charge, so how did he manage to sleep for almost ten hours?! He stood abruptly, nearly falling over, and rushed into the kitchen to make sure everything was okay. He halted and clapped a hand over his mouth.
How? How was she here?
She turned around and her eyes widened. Her brows angled towards each other, and her features drew into a scowl. Skylor Chen.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she asked. "You should be in bed like a good little student, shouldn't you?"
"I should say the same to you," he replied, then realizing what he should have started out with. "How did you get in here? This dimension uses a special portal."
"None of your concern," Skylor replied coldly, her fists flexing, finger curling in a tense procession. "The others are asleep, so I figured I'd scope out the area where Suzanne was staying." She bit her tongue, and it was Zane's turn to be tense.
"What do you want with her?" he scowled. "She is my teammate, so I will not hesitate to defend her." Skylor remained silent, then scratched the back of her head, a smirk on her face.
"The others are asleep," she repeated. "So... I might as well take you out first." He tried to react fast enough, but Skylor seemed to read his thoughts. He lit his hands with ice, and he stopped the knife before it could hit him in the chest. She replied with another attack of her own. She hadn't touched him yet, so she didn't have his element for the time being, so all she could muster was a swift kick, which Zane easily dodged before shoving her to the floor and pinning her down with his knee.
"Good thing you decided to "scope out" our base, because you'll be staying here for a while," he practically hissed. Skylor looked defeated, but tried to scratch at his eyes with desperation.
"Zane!" Suzanne's shrill cry sounded behind him. "What's going on?!" Her staff was clutched in her hand, and she looked ready to strike, more out of fear than offense. Jay was right behind her, and kept close to the shorter girl. He recognized Skylor right away.
"I never trusted you back on the island," he said. "And when I learned that your father was the one that captured Zane, I grew furious at the thought of you. Then you vanished. What do you want, Skylor?"
"Sky..." Suzanne breathed, her breath hitching. Her weapon clattered to the floor. "I thought... You were..."
"Dead?" the red-haired woman replied, stopping her struggles. "Can't get rid of me, Suzy." Before Zane could do anything, Suzanne had thrown him aside, causing the ice to break and the knife to skitter to the wall. She pulled Skylor in for an embrace.