The Astralaceaes

Chapter 13: Sparrow's Workshop

Haledon stood mesmerized by the jellyfish lazily drifting above his head. The red lights danced down the canals of the creature's bell-shaped body before trickling to the tentacles' tips as droplets of glowing water. The bioluminescence warmed the room and cast long, eerie shadows behind the objects that once hid in the darkness.

Haledon began to scan excitedly, immediately noticing a small tree with long vines stretching down from the canopy. Dangling from the end of each cord were trumpet-shaped flowers of pure white.

"What's that!" Gazeas yelled out in amazement.

Haledon turned to see her outreached arm and spotted, drifting beyond her fingers, several bumblebees the size of pumpkins. Their black and yellow bodies buzzed excitedly as they moved over Haledon's head and disappeared above.

"Worker bees, of course," Sparrow spoke nonchalantly.

Haledon adjusted to face Sparrow with questions, only to watch her turning back to whisper with Spark. The two exchanged quick words, their stares fiercely locked on the other. Beginning to move closer, Haledon felt Gazeas grab at his arm. She pointed up, her straining eyes staring toward the dark ceiling.

"Can you see that?" She asked. "I can barely make anything out in this red light."

"Sparrow said our SOIL will adjust over time." He informed her as he adjusted his gaze up. "Oh, yes, I do see that..."

Through the red light and shadows, Haledon could distinguish an outline of a honeycomb framing made into the ceiling. Busy bees buzzed their way in and out of sizeable hexagonal grids with purpose.

"It looks like a honeycomb of some sort." Haledon continued.

"For the bees to live in?" Gazeas asked, squinting to see better.

"I have no idea."

"Haven't you been here before?"

"Nope," Haledon replied dully as a wiggling body above caught his attention.

One of the bees feverously buzzed away in its waxy cell. The black and yellow abdomen wiggled with excitement as the head dug deeper. With a flicker of its wings, it began withdrawing from the honeycomb. The worker crawled outside the wall before it buzzed down to Sparrow, dropping something into her hand.

Sparrow inspected the object before drawing signs in the air with a free hand.

"Is that–uh–" Mek-Tek squeaked out, pulling Haledon's attention away from Sparrow and Spark.

The Sciurus had scampered away from the group before standing and awkwardly walking on his hind legs. After a long drag from his sphere, Mek-Tek released a plume of white vapours before walking through it with a soft cough.

"Is that a Broadhead, Fourth Branch?" He continued before taking another drag from the straw.

Haledon looked in the direction of Mek-Tek. Staring down at the Sciurus, he felt like he could see something out of the corner of his vision. Following Mek-Tek's gaze, he rubbed at his eyes and concentrated. The image of a Broadhead came into focus.

The sharp edges of the reflective metal cut through the air, casting long red shadows across the floor. Harsh lines played with Haledon's perception and challenged him to differentiate the ship's reflection from the world around it. With each step he took closer, the reality of the room seemed to dance along the surface of the metal.

"Fifth Branch," Witch-Hazel replied as they looked towards the craft. "It's a new rendition from the last battle. Notice how uncomfortable it is to look directly at the ship, making it near invisible? They're evolving defensive traits for active camouflage."