Unipsi, lovely entity
chapter 77c: immunity
“You should stop looking Scilla”
“how could I? Look at those trees. The snow frozen in place… how could I just look away?”
“you will have your time. But our priority now is to immunize you”
“wait what?”
“your immune system will probably collapse if exposed to the surface. If we want to increase the number of expeditions and avoid oxygen tanks, an artificial and controlled introduction is needed”
“but you brought me out once”
“yeah I did. You had oxygen micro-cells. Do I have to remind you that you already got sick once?”
“no. I remember that. I’m not against your idea. Just wondering why only now”
“oh. It is super simple. I go in and out more often from here than from the rest of the structure. There are also a lot of external samples in Iridana. They are not dangerous to me, or anybody who is used to this planet but they would harm outsiders. You are one of them”
“so… what’s the big plan brainiac?”
Iris stared at Scilla silently. Her eyes moved slowly from top to bottom and back.
“Pills should work. Judging by your size I don’t expect severe side effects but I’ll prepare for them as well… you know just in case. Oh and I need a sample of your cells. So I’ll take that as well. Go sit on a couch I’ll be back”
It didn’t take much for Iris to return with just 2 pills in her hand. Strangely she took no sample. She showed the pills to Scilla.
“so… you have to take both pills. One will help with… they will allow you to survive outside to almost anything that is common. I don’t have one for rare diseases. Still you have two options. Take them little by little. Especially the large one that as you can see has 3 dents to cut it. Or take both.”
“if you are telling me it’s because there is a difference right?”
“smart girl. Yep there is one. I looked and there will be a day of so-called bonaccia, which means that there will be no wind. The perfect conditions to go out. However if you take the pills little by little we will miss it cause it’s in 3 days. If you take them both. You will face some mild side effects. You will not die from them. Of course. And be ready in time.”
“of course. But?”
“Butt. Hehe butt.”
She is just like 511. I guess she couldn’t resist.
“Iris”
“but you will feel sick for a day or maybe 2. side effects are usually stomachache, coldness. Lack of hunger. Photo-sensitivity. Some muscular pain, maybe spinning head.”
Scilla had mixed feelings about taking both pills.
“if we miss… the whatever day. How long before a new one?”
“I don’t know. They can be predicted but not so easily during winter. As a matter of fact they are usually around 30 days apart. With a 15 days variability. So for you it will be like 45 days or something.”
“why longer for me?”
Iris looked back at Scilla confused. Her face was asking if she had forgotten.
“…oh fuck right. I forgot. Your days are longer”
“so… choose”
“fuck it. You said it won’t kill me right?”
“you will live peacefully. Just imagine getting a bit sick for a day. I’ll take care of you”
Convinced Scilla took both pills one after the other. Following Iris’s advice, she laid on the couch and looked for some TV shows that were automatically translated. It didn’t take much for the pills to kick in. it started with a headache that moved from just an inconvenience to a more painful one. Then it came the muscular pain. Shortly after the coldness. Iris of course was beside her. When she sensed the change in temperature she left running and returned with a blanket for Scilla. She covered her and started playing with her hair.
“You should try to sleep Scilla. Pain is only temporary but I can’t give you much to remove it.”
“I will manage. Getting shot is far worse”
“I suppose it is. I’ll make you a special tea. Won’t taste good at all but it will help you out. Then you will sleep got it?”
“yes mum” replied Scilla smiling.
Iris stood still and smiled back. Scilla could tell it was a genuine smile as it looked evil. Like all Iris’s true smiles.
In 5 minutes Iris left and returned with a small cup, almost overflowing, containing a dark red liquid. Scilla’s nose was clogged by mucus so she was spared from the horrible smell. Drinking it was still a disgusting experience as the tea tasted of dirt, beet and unripe apples.
“tastes like shit”
“I know. But it’s a good remedy for… just trust me on this”
“I drank it. Can’t trust you more than that”
“right. Then try to sleep. Do I let the TV running?”
“yeah. It feels like someone is speaking to me. I prefer so”
“then I’ll turn it off. I’ll speak for you”
“oh, you don’t have to…”
“I know. I want to. So… let me tell you about flowers. Especially the one that you just drank…”
Iris started chatting. She was speaking nonstop about all the smallest details she could remember about a few yet important species of flowers. Iris spoke with a calm, soft and warm voice that soon induced Scilla to sleep.
More than 20 hours later Scilla woke up thanks to a peculiar aroma reaching her nose. Something tasty was surely nearby so her brain immediately turned her on.
“I see. You like food too” spoke Iris. She was standing right beside Scilla with a plate and a glass of a clean yet fizzy liquid on the other hand.
“come on, sit. Don’t want a mess on my couch”
Scilla pulled herself up keeping the blanket with her. All side effects were gone but her body was still stiff and was clearly in the recovery process. Iris gave her the plate and placed the glass on the coffee table before them. Then she sat beside Scilla. The plate contained 3 thick slices of a massive sausage that had burned skin and some grill marks. By the side a dense sauce of a dark brown color and what looked like fresh bread. The smell was absolutely amazing.
Scilla was just stunned by it and by Iris’s behavior so far.
I don’t know what happened. Why is she so… caring and gentle? She is… she is good??? like angel level good. Is this a trap? Nobody can be so good without a reason right? Where’s the catch?
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But there was no catch. 608 was never corrupted by the Whispers. She may had a difficult upbringing, but her nature was peaceful.
“I know that maybe it’s not what you would eat for a better recovery but outside of a fire I don’t really know how to cook. Or combine things. The sauce was invented by 503.”
“this is amazing… so amazing that… I can’t believe it. Did the pills fail? Is this my last meal?”
“n...no? It’s all good. Why can’t you believe reality?”
“well… well… because people are never good for the sake of being good… they all want something. Sorry if I’m not… just trusting this...all of what happened. You speaking until I sleep. And this food”
“I’m not offended. Sisters used to tell me that I was too good. That people would not believe it. Find it strange. I suppose it’s true. But I have my own gains. You can’t escape natural laws. All you will ever do is to gain something. Otherwise, you will never do it. So to please your mind. I had my own gain. You just have no clue what it is. Nor did my sisters”
“… … you know… you are younger than me. You have basically no life experience. Yet you can be really wise. Way wiser than me.”
“thank you”
“Can I know what you gained?”
“maybe you should eat before it gets cold”
Put at ease and encouraged to eat Scilla proceeded to devour her plate. Just like the smell suggested. It was pure meaty perfection.
It is always amusing how Leermorfs intentions are always so misunderstood. Doesn’t matter where they are, what they look like, nor what time they are living in. They always get misunderstood. They had such an unfortunate life. Never once they were believed. Never once befriended. Never once left in their peace. Countless fought in fear. Fear of replacement. Fear of being eaten. Fear of a silent invasion that never once was. Of those fools, none stand now. Only echoes and memories live on in Leermorf's minds.
“I… I have things to do… take care of yourself Scilla. I’ll return when we can go outside”
“omnh. Oh… sure”
Alone Scilla finished the food she was given. Rest some more and then she walked around exploring the mysterious Iridana base and Iris’s home. She immediately noticed that a lot of doors wouldn’t open. She was sure that she lacked authorization. She wondered briefly about the why but soon decided it was probably to keep her away from something dangerous. Walking around all she saw were labs and smaller underground farms.
About 1 day later, Iris reappeared in Scilla’s life.
“follow me. I have something to show you”
“oh, not even a hello?”
“why? We are under the same roof. You don’t say hello every time you meet for dinner at your home right?”
“...well no but…”
“just follow me”
Iris led Scilla into narrow and long corridors with a lot of stairs. Most of the doors they went through were locked for Scilla. Then finally the last door opened into a cubical room. 2 sides were almost completely made of glass and so was a triangular portion of the roof. However, they were far far away from said windows. Between them and the light, there were 50 meters of pure chaos. Weapon exhibition lockers, power armors left standing, loads of machines, a couple of enormous beds even for Scilla’s standards, and pillow forts. So many pillows and blanket forts that made traversing the room practically impossible. Practically on the other side of the room, there was only one bed that appeared used with a perfectly tidy zone beside it. In such zone 3 weapons. An SMG, an assault rifle, and a sniper rifle. Beside standing ominously the surprisingly big ARAC-P1. It was Iris’s armor and as such it had several decals on it. However the small and few killing decals were not important. What struck the eyes was a gigantic yellow lightning decal that occupied the front torso.
What’s the meaning of that? I doubt it’s an artistic choice.
“what do you… what do I have to see?”
“this”
They passed beside a wardrobe that was concealing a lean size suit. It was no ARAC-P1, but it was not just a thermal suit.
“this is for you. Wear it while I get into mine and then we will roll out”
“is this why… why you were away?”
“why else?”
“no...emh. Nothing. I’ll wear it”
Iris instructed Scilla about the procedure to get in and out of the suit. Fortunately for her, it was still ‘old technology’ so it didn’t require a connective suit. Scilla entered easily, way too easily. The suit was perfectly sized almost as if it had been directly built upon her body.
Did she measure me while I was knocked out?
Of course she did. Iris was never particularly known for understanding privacy or boundaries.
Done with the armor Scilla waited for Iris and regroup with her. Inside her ARAC Iris felt different. No longer peaceful. Scilla followed her again and through several corridors, they got to an exit to the surface.
“remember. The outside is not safe. Ask me before doing anything out of the ordinary.”
“I can manage myself. I think”
“you think wrong Scilla. Very wrong”
after a scanning chamber, a decontamination one, and an isolation chamber they finally reached the surface.
They popped on the side of a steep mountain. Before their eyes extended forests and plains covered in snow. A path, probably with underground heating, led away passing between 34 6,2 meters tall obelisks each with its own statue of a different Idra. They were not in order but started with 476 and ended with 484. about 1 out of 3 had the tip artificially broken. All statues were also gradually better. 476’s statue was crude, unrefined and lacking. 484’s statue was out of the ordinary. It felt real. They were all made with a black material that looked like a mix of marble and obsidian. The layer of snow on them was fairly short, only 10cm. Before all the statues, there were flowers popping out of the snow. Ice blue flowers with 7 sharp petals and a deep blue core which made them inflorescences, not flowers. Some statues had more than others but one was above all. 484 was a small garden of strange plants carefully kept in place and separated. A mix of blue, grey, and white flowers spelled a composite word in Estir. It was clearly a graveyard or at least a tribute to those no longer here. Scilla remained silent while they walked past, yet she couldn’t not notice some footprints in the snow. They were really small, as if they belonged to a monkey or a raccoon. Those stopped around 484 tombs.
We are not alone out here. I believed they would kill everything that moved. I shall ask.
“are we safe outside?”
“as safe as you could be on this hell hole”
“doesn’t help much. I saw prints in the snow…”
“don’t worry. The barrier kills unwanted creatures. But it’s rare that they get out here. Only Stigras with a death wish reach for Iridana. They all know to stay away.”
How intelligent can these creatures be if she speaks of them… as if they are capable of civilization and abstract thought? Do they not come here because of her? Or is there something or someone else out here?
“what are they afraid of?”
“gravity anomalies for the most part.”
“and for the other part?”
“me.”
Snow soon piled out and so did a peculiar effect, snow floating. Since Weeping sky is a mixture of matter and gravron matter, snow is a mixture as well. In those snowflakes where gravron was prevalent, peculiar behaviors appeared, the most common was floating above the ground as if they were stopped in time. Scilla followed Iris who left a trail in them.
“where we going?” asked Scilla
“beyond that small hill covered in teeny tiny plants. That’s where a torrent flows. I adore that place.”
Some walking later, out of the small forest and into a way less dense flooded forest. What Scilla believed was just a creek passing by turned out to be more like 50 creeks, each at least half a meter wide but really shallow. 30 cm at best. They dug into the ground making several small islands now covered in heavy snow. Several plots of land had trees on them and all along the torrent's sides flowers prospered alongside thick, wet moss. That place immediately reminded Scilla of her home and the time spent outside with Nuria.
“whoa. This place is… beautiful”
“it’s even better in the other seasons. Just watch out for the flowers”
“you planted them?”
“why should have I done something like that?”
“then why watching out?”
something was telling Scilla that Iris was smiling with malicious intent.
“… get close to one”
Scilla curious and confident approached a solitary flower. When she was about 40 cm away from it the plant turned toward her and the air separating them fell into the river frozen. Scilla jumped back.
“THE PLANT TRIED TO KILL ME! THE PLANT!”
“Indeed it tried. What you see isn’t really frozen air. What you just experienced was being attacked by a Laciari flower. They send out their pollen which of course uses gravron. It mixes with moisture in the air with an exothermic reaction that heats up the surroundings but at the same time produces a really cold molecule that gets to -80°C and is still flying toward you. It basically hunts by cold burning the prey. Before you ask it’s a carnivorous plants. Its root are agile and really long so it can eat bigger prey once they fall dead beside it.”
“I can understand now why you always said that the surface is dangerous. Fucking hell even flowers try to kill you”
“happy to see that you are understanding. Now. Since the plant has wasted its cold payload. It’s time to show it the cycle of life.”
Iris walked to the flower that didn’t react to her and just cut it. She then opened her helmet and just ate the plant. During the process, as the flower came in contact with Iris’s saliva, a glaze of ice formed and was immediately crushed by Iris’s teeth. Scilla heard it crackling and breaking while Iris chewed it.
“what the fuck!? you ate it!”
“yeah. It’s edible. Kinda sweet and moist with ice shards. It’s super funny. I have a small farm of them to eat a bunch during summer. It’s like ice tea that makes itself while chewing. Come on, I’ll trick a second for you to try”