“Indigenous organic material,” Cass said slowly, looking over at him. Maybe their secret wasn’t going to remain a secret much longer. “Does anyone else know?”
“Not yet. I didn’t want to tell anyone until I’d confirmed my findings and made sure the sample hadn’t just been corrupted somehow. That’s why I left—I only intended to make a quick trip and collect a sample myself, but I underestimated how quickly the storm would arrive.” Alina hesitated. “And even now that I’ve confirmed it… This could change everything.”
He joined Cass and she took his hand, a gesture that didn’t escape Alina’s notice. The other scientist’s eyes widened, darting between them, and then she smiled.
“I see things have changed while I was away.”
“I was away too. We were trapped at Station 12 by the storm.” She looked up at him and he nodded. They might as well pool their knowledge. “We found something at Station 12,” she continued. “Something alive.”
Alina’s expression shifted from curiosity to shock. “You too? More plant life?”
“Yes, although it’s not the same kind of plant,” she said carefully. “But we also discovered something else entirely. Something alive.”
Alina went white, grabbing hold of her desk as if for support.
“Alive and not… not a plant? What happened to him—it?”
“It’s dead,” he said, and Alina gave a shocked cry, collapsing down into her chair.
“We didn’t kill it,” Cass said quickly, releasing his hand and hurrying over to her friend. “Not on purpose anyway. We were trying to contain it after it attacked us and it just… exploded.”
A muffled sob came from Alina and Cass put her arm around her.
“We didn’t want to harm it, but we had to do something. Zach barely managed to defeat it the first time it attacked, and it tore his side open with its claws.”
“Claws?” Alina repeated, an odd note in her voice, and Cass shuddered.
“Horrible claws. Like a crab’s claws but much larger, and we think they were capable of digging through rock.”
“What else did it look like?” Alina demanded. Cass gave her a puzzled look but obediently described the creature.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have any record of it,” she concluded. “When it blew itself up, the energy pulse wiped out all our records.”
Alina’s original excitement seemed to have returned.
“That’s incredible. All these life forms emerging at the same time.”
“All?” he asked, and Alina blushed before looking away from him.
“As I said, the storm came on faster than I expected. I had to take refuge in an underground cave, and there were plants growing there as well.”
Something about her voice was a little too casual, and he was sure she wasn’t telling them everything. But that would have to wait.
“We need to secure this lab,” he said firmly. “Lock down the samples and data. Then we talk—all of us—and figure out next steps.”
“We need to compare notes,” Cass agreed. “This information can’t become public knowledge yet. Not until we understand what we’re dealing with.”
Alina nodded immediately. “There are too many people who would try and exploit it. I can initiate quarantine protocols. It’s standard procedure for potentially hazardous materials, and it will give us twenty-four hours before we’re required to file a formal report.”
Cass rejoined him as Alina started the process.
“Do you mind waiting a little longer to tell the Judge?”
“No,” he said, watching Alina. “I want to hear what Alina has to say first. Then we can decide.”
He wasn’t quite sure what he expected to learn, but when they gathered around the lab table, Alina seemed strangely reluctant to share her information.
“Can you show us where the samples came from?” he asked.
