Dance or Die: a Fanfiction

Chapter 19 - Closed Case

"That's where it begins again, on Earth," Soli said, "We did wake up in our homes, and we got back to making music, after recovering from the stuff we went through."

"It wasn't easy at first, 'cause we were still trying to recover from the exile thing, so we were basically starved," Derek added, "But here we are."

Doctor Max nodded, looking down and writing on his papers.

"I see," the doctor said, "I'm assuming the extraction is how you don't have the bioradiation as of now..?"

"Yes," Soli said.

"Aurora was only able to give it back as long as we were around her," Nate said.

"Okay then. I think that's all, gentlemen," Dr. Max said, standing up, "If we need any more questions answered, we'll call you."

The five then stood, shaking hands with the doctor while he thanked them for their time. They all exited the room in a slightly haphazard line, the doctor in the back of it, behind Jake. As Dr. Max was about to turn into his department's hallway, a new question came to his mind.

"Mr. Olds! Jacob!" he shouted to them, halfway down the hall to the lobby. The man glanced at his bandmates, then walked casually over to him.

"Yes?"

"One last thing," he began, "I remember that one of you said that bioradiation can regenerate. How long does it take for it to come back?"

Jake looked off to the side, eyes wide and letting a forced breath out of his mouth.

"To be honest, we've all forgotten. We've made Earth our home now, and even with the culture shock last year, we just don't know anymore. If I had to guess, it'd be several years. But I don't know what we'd do with the powers here anyway."

"Alright, thank you, sir," Dr. Max said as they exchanged a brief nod and waved each other goodbye. They parted ways, and although he didn't get an exact answer, he was satisfied he got the information he needed right away.

Coming to sit at his desk, he set the papers down by his computer monitor and looked for the file that held his research. While typing down the information, he wondered if there were any more on Earth like these men. Inwardly, he hoped so, because he still wanted to know more, for the sake of his own curiosity and America's hidden field of research. Sure, there were other humanoid aliens named and listed in the small cabinet beneath his desk, but the species of Arroth-Nil seemed just a little more intriguing and impossible to the doctor.

"In the future," he muttered, sighing, "We'll have more opportunities. All in good time."