Rangerville Trailer Park, Sunday, May 16, 2021, 7:40PM
The drive back from the crater had been quiet. Molly's mind was already racing ahead, thinking about what she would need to turn the various parts left on her workbench into a working version of the scanner. Lucius, for his part, sat in silence, looking out the window at the desert sky.
Pulling into the trailer park lot, Molly had every intention of simply dropping Lucius off and heading straight over to the lab, but something in Lucius's silence drew her attention. Without a word, he stepped from the car and walked across the trailer park, his eyes still fixed on the sky. Turning to follow his gaze, Molly gasped softly and followed him.
A tower of clouds rose over the distant crater, swirling slowly like a gathering storm. The very sky itself was different, eerie and strange. Molly realized she could still smell the sickly-sweet scent that had filled the air of the secret lab. It was fainter now, but it was everywhere.
"What... what is that?" Molly breathed softly, almost to herself.
"The Mother," Lucius answered. "She is reaching out now. Her power rides on the wind."
"Crap," Molly groaned. "Did we do this? Lucius? We did this, didn't we? When we opened the door... did we let this out?"
"Yes," Lucius said simply. "I believe we did."
"I was really hoping you'd say no," Molly sighed.
"It would have happened with us or without us," Lucius said. "It's what we do now that matters."
"Right." Molly took a deep breath, tasting the sickly-sweet air. "Right. Let's get to work."
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FutureTech Labs, Sunday, May 16, 2021, 8:00PM
"Lyric, don't you ever go home?" Molly asked the receptionist. Also, who names their kid Lyric, she wondered not for the first time.
"I pulled swing swift," Likable Lyric smiled winningly. "What brings you in, Dr Prescott?"
"Rush job," Molly said. "Need another working sensor prototype for testing right away, so I thought I'd just come in and get it done."
It wasn't technically a lie, Molly thought. She just hadn't said who needed the sensor, or why.
Likable Lyric wouldn't argue with the senior project engineer taking the finished module out. It wasn't like Molly Prescott, FutureTech's top troubleshooter, was going to steal company property... or, you know, use it to personally try to stop an outbreak of extra-dimensional plant zombies.
It's like high school all over again, Molly sighed.
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Western Desert, Sunday, May 16, 2021, 9:00PM
Under eerie skies, the desert around Rangerville was blooming. The strange plants which had appeared a few weeks ago had suddenly blossomed, growing larger and pulsing with an inner luminescence that seemed to echo the uncanny sky.
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Rangerville Trailer Park, Monday, May 17, 2021, 6:50AM
"You make your own granola, don't you?" Molly asked.
She was trying very hard not to think about what was going on in the world, and food had always been a great distraction. A little too great sometimes, she thought.
"Hmmm?" Lucius remained focused on his book. "Oh, yes... something I picked up from some nice folks who lived in Old New Henford a little while ago. Flower people," he chuckled. "Though they weren't actually. Flowers, I mean. I knew an actual flower woman, once, long ago. Blodeuwedd. Poor woman. Turned into an owl."
"Right," Molly said, bemused. "Anyway... I'm going to take our shiny new scanner out and see if I can get us some useful data on these strange plants. Not that I'm sure what to do with it once I get it."
"Never fear," Lucius said. "I have some ideas."
He has some ideas, Molly thought. The man who learned to make granola from hippies, talks about flower-owl-women and might possibly have shared a beer with the actual Thor has some ideas. This will be good.
At least the scanner works.
What on earth is this?
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FutureTech Labs, Monday, May 17, 2021, 9:20AM
"Good morning, Dr Prescott," Likable Lyric greeted her brightly.
Really, does this woman ever go home? Maybe she just lives in the breakroom.
"Your guest will have to sign in," Likable Lyric added.
"Of course," Molly smiled. "This is... Dr. Tempest. He's assisting me with analyzing some data from the sensors."
Lucius said something in a rapid, staccato language that caused Likable Lyric to blink, startled, and respond in a burst of the same chirping tone.
"Of course," a flustered Likable Lyric said. "Just sign here."
"What was that about?" Molly asked.
"Nothing important," Lucius smiled. "She's a nice young person, doing her job. She won't disturb us."
"You know something I don't," Molly said.
"Molly, I know a great deal that you don't," Lucius smiled, "but, of course, as an engineer you know a great deal that I don't. I can barely figure out my phone."
"... and yet, you know how to use a chemical analyzer?" Molly said.
"Well, as it happens, yes," Lucius said. "I've worked with an older model some years ago."
"So, how is it an ancient warlock knows how to use a chemical analyzer?" Molly asked.
"Please," Lucius bristled. "I am a witch."
"Sorry, is warlock offensive or something?" Molly blinked.
"Yes. Extremely," Lucius said. "It means 'oathbreaker,' and there are few greater insults you could offer me."
"Oh... sorry," Molly winced. "I didn't know."
"Which is why you remain un-cursed," Lucius said a gentle smile. "As to your actual question, chemistry is essentially just alchemy with less newt... and I am a very good alchemist. Now, let's see what these samples can tell us."
She'd found them out in the desert, near the strange plants. Lucius had called them 'spore clusters' and believed they were an early stage in the plant's life cycle. He'd insisted they collect as many as they could find that morning.
Molly watched Lucius work with mingled fascination and frustration. She understood the machine he was using. She could probably break it down, tune it up and rebuild it, but she couldn't make sense of what it was telling him.
So, she watched the ancient being who didn't own a TV and could barely use his phone working the machine like a professional, all the while muttering to himself in a musical language she didn't understand.
"Dyna. There you are," Lucius said at last. "I do believe this is what you needed."
"I do believe you're right," Molly smiled. "Go alchemy. I'll get to work on the hazmat filters."
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