The Wastes Exploration

Getting a read on the fungi Alcyone had grabbed hadn’t turned up much information. They didn't seem harmful, and were returned to her by the gate guards, but something about the cavern she found them in didn’t sit quite right with her. There had to be something there.

“Why not just take better equipment and double check? Since you’re so worried.” A higher-pitched, chipper voice quipped from across the table. “Can’t be too big of an issue for a big buff gal like you, right?”

Alcyone’s eyes practically rolled out of her head as she took a sip from her mug. “Oh yeah? You fixin’ to come with me?” She accused, affixing the Intellect Stock under her golden gaze. “I know you’ve got an ID on you, Lam. You can’t pull the wool over my eyes on that one.”

Alcyone’s companion sat up a bit straighter, a nervous chuckle coming from him as he held his mug. “Oh, that? Alcie, you know I'd love to come with you, but, aha… All the work I've got to get done… Those fungi! You wanted me to pour over them--and I can’t exactly do that if I'm, you know, out roughing it like the big guns! Haha...ha?” 

She could only shake her head at Lambren in amusement. “Sure. Whatever,” she scoffed. “Just make sure you’ve got a respirator. The damn things smell like sugar coated corpses.”

“A respirator, huh?” Lambren cocked his head to the side, his ears following suit. “I could get you one of mine. A little token of this partnership? A sign of good faith?”

“Good faith of what? Me not crushing your fragile little neck between my jaws?” Alcyone barked in laughter. “If you’re offerin’. I won’t tell you no.”

“Then it’s settled! You’ll be the muscle out in the wastes, and I’ll be the dashing hero scientist who helps uncover the answers.” Lambren grinned. “A perfect partnership.”

“Some muscle I'll be, lugging mushrooms out of the wastes.” Alcyone looked to the ceiling, admiring the detail of the cafe. Nearly dying made her appreciate it a bit more. The feeling of it… Alcyone gripped the handle of her mug ever so slightly tighter. It hadn’t left her mind since it happened.

---

Heading back out into the wastes with the new respirator that Lambren had offered was a bit strange. It was almost like being confronted with death all over again, to be out here so soon. Alcyone refused to let herself be seen as a coward, despite nobody else even having known of her troubles the day before.

She made her way through the sands, fiddling with the little side dials. She wasn’t quite sure where Lambren had found this model, but she wasn’t complaining. The respirator itself functioned more like a helmet rather than a simple maw covering like she had used the day before. It also seemed to account for ears a lot better than the tech that Work stocks like her were able to get their paws on semi-regularly. It definitely wasn’t stock equipment, but it did still have its serial numbers, so it had to be a legit purchase.

The entrance to the cave was a bit foreboding, if simply because of prior experience, but Alcyone made the descent effortlessly. She was better prepared this time around, for both the wastes and whatever would be in this cave. She was a bit surprised to find the respirator working as well as it did. The smell of the fungus hardly reached her at all. Lambren seemed to know how to pick his tech. She would give him that.

Making her way over to the crystals to investigate them, Alcyone reached a gloved hand out to lightly touch one of the protrusions. With the gold light from the fungi illuminating them, they almost seemed like they were some kind of precious jewel. A deep, rich purple color filled the majority of the crystals, with some having a more golden orangey color closer to the ground. Alcyone wasn’t a geologist, nor did she really have any kind of expensive jewelry, so to her, it was a nice way to observe it. A bit of luxury in a death cave. Who would have thought.

Her observation of the crystal was cut short by the sounds of footsteps, little scuffles approaching from behind. Alcyone hardly had enough time to turn before a sharp pain slammed into the back of her head, followed by a rock tumbling down against her feet. It didn’t feel as though her skull was cracked, but it did make her eyes water a bit. She spun on her feet, teeth gritting and raising a hand balled into a fist.

“Alright! Who’s fucking around?!” She yelled into the cavern, her voice echoing. Her eyes caught the tip of a tail rounding the corner as her voice trailed off. Nothing that size could be a Phuzo. Not even the small little Work stock she’d seen in Astyr’s office talking up a storm.

Grunting in frustration, Alcyone reached a hand to rub the back of her head. It had to be some kind of little lizard, being a territorial asshole. As she blinked the water out of her eyes, she noticed a shimmer on the ground. Turning her gaze downward, she saw the rock - or what she had thought was a rock - by her feet. She knelt down and lifted it, turning the object over in her hand. She wasn’t entirely sure what it was. Something metal, for sure, but it didn’t seem to have any identifiable purpose. It was weathered and battered, but shiny enough to reflect the light from the crystals.

Humming in consideration, Alcyone looked back to the mushrooms and crystals. She pocketed the object and grabbed a few more mushrooms to take back to Lambren.  Ideally she’d like to contact him, but she doubted that enough beacons had been placed to accurately chart out communications out in the wastes. It was a dead zone, both in service and in lives.

Alcyone looked back at the cavern’s entrance as she exited, pausing for a moment. Aside from whatever little critter was in there, and the admittedly pretty crystals, she doubted that there would be any reason to return. Giving the cave a parting nod, she turned back and made her way towards the gates of Praque. If Lambren actually made any progress for her while she’d been gone, it would be interesting to see. Maybe him and his smart little Intellect brain could make heads or tails of the object. Not that she’d ever give him the satisfaction of admitting his talents of investigation.