Aynsefian

The cabin has three rooms. A large main room at the front that we have just walked into, and two smaller rooms at the back. They are all completely empty. The only things inside the cabin are sand on the floor and a few dead leaves from the trees.

I’m not sure how the sand and leaves got in here. There’s no wind at all in this cave. At least as far as I can tell. Maybe there’s an exceedingly gentle air current that I can’t detect.

We look around for any signs of habitation, even from decades or centuries ago. There’s nothing at all. Just sand and leaves on the floor. It’s disappointing.

Arlyss and Cindlyss appear to be of the same mind. They glance at me with resigned looks. I do however get the feeling that they think we can stay here for a little while. I’m wondering if we shouldn’t explore further, following where the water goes. I’m tired again, though. I still need to get my strength back.

“Can we stop and have some more moss?” I ask.

They nod in response. There’s still plenty of it around.

“I wonder if any of the other plants around here are edible?” I remark, politely. “Maybe you can have a look and let me know? I’ll try to figure out where we can sleep tonight.”

They nod again and head straight back out into the trees. I give them an appreciative glance as they do.

In the meantime I am already looking around for where we can sleep. I think we can use the cabin. I’d like to. It feels quite homely, despite the lack of furniture. The leaves inside the cabin give me an idea. We could use the excess of leaves outside to make beds of some sort. I don’t relish the thought of sleeping directly on the hard stone floor, so we’ll need some floor covering.

If I can gather a lot of leaves from underneath all of the ferns, maybe we can pack them together and make some sort of mattress. What could we wrap them in, though? Some of the more recently fallen fern branches, perhaps? It might take a lot of work, but time is something we have plenty of.

The recently fallen fern branches are still quite sturdy. I can actually tie miniature knots in the branches, so I can weave them together. I decide to start by making a pillow for each of us. That seems a luxury, but it’ll be nicer than a rolled-up sweater, which I have been using up to this point.

The work is laborious. It seems like I’ve been at it for hours and then I finally finish the first pillow. In reality it’s probably only been ten minutes or so. The pillow is quite good, really. Firm but not too firm, and the right height. With my spare sweater over the top, it’s comfortable enough. I’m proud of myself.

Arlyss and Cindlyss have brought back some berry-like fruits for us, letting me know with a subtle gesture where they found them, and that they are plentiful. I taste one, getting my first real pleasant surprise since we have been here.

They are absolutely delicious. Probably the nicest thing I have ever eaten in my entire life.

They are sweet but not too sweet, and immensely satiating. I only have to eat a few and then I don’t want any more. Yet I feel joy after having finished eating them. They are beyond my wildest dreams, food-wise.

“Are these? …do you think…” I stammer. “Are these perfectly okay to eat?”

Cindlyss nods emphatically.

“You’re sure? I won’t get sick from eating them too often?”

They shake their head. I’m astonished. I never knew food could taste so good. My hunger in the past week is probably embellishing my reaction a fair bit, but they’d be delicious even if I was back at home at the family meal table.

I have to get back to work on our pillows. I groan internally. It’s tedious but necessary work. Arlyss and Cindlyss have been studying me for the last few moments and are ready to help me make our beds.

They have now removed their all-weather suits and are back to their usual clothing – a satin-like, loose hanging black material from their home planet. It really is a pleasant temperature in this part of the cave. The water in the lake is even warm, comparatively speaking. Something occurs to me as I think of this.

I can have a wash.

Not yet, though. I must at least finish our pillows, with help from Arlyss and Cindlyss. I badly want to get cleaned up, though. I’ll get the work done and then reward myself with a wash.

I glance at the food that my good friends have gathered for us. They have a number of moss variations, plus those amazing berries, and some other pieces of fruit that look like a small mango. I’m looking forward to trying those too, but I’m not hungry right now. So we have some food choices. Our situation continues to get better.

Between the three of us, and after about an hour of labour, we have managed to make three pillows and the beginnings of three mattresses. The mattresses are thin, and only a foot square, but they provide some sort of cushioning at the hip level. That’s where we’ll need it the most, comfort-wise.

I’m going to have a wash now. It’s time. The lake is actually cold as I step into it, but it’s tolerable. I have no soap or anything else. The sand on the lake bed is pure and clean, so I scoop up a handful and use that to scrub myself. It works well enough.

It’s cold when I get out, and I have nothing to dry myself with. I have to put the same dirty clothes back on. Nonetheless, the wash has refreshed me. The Purlinians are heading out to the lake themselves as I am returning. It’s so nice that they respected my privacy. I smile at them, so glad for their company.

On returning back inside to our cabin, I’m ready to sleep. I have no idea what time it is. Then I recall – Salvation has a clock. He’s been sitting there quietly while we work. I feel bad for him. His power reserves are at 32%. He’s not running any labour-intensive modes right now, but I want to find a way to recharge him. I don’t want him to go silent.

There’s nothing we can do for him, though. I feel sad. He saved our lives. Now he’s going to run out of power and die, and I won’t be able to have him light up our lives for much longer. I could turn him off, but that seems worse.

In any case, his clock says that it’s 9:03pm. I wouldn’t normally sleep just yet, but I’m really tired.

Our mattresses can be completed tomorrow. I sleep, as do my companions.

I’m not dreaming of Nikse any more. I think that’s a good sign. My dreams however are indistinct and broken by my uncomfortable sleeping surface as I toss and turn throughout the night.

I wake, still feeling tired, but marginally better than the day before. Recovery from that trek up on the planetary surface will be slow.

I wake, eager to try the new fruit and to get to work on finishing our mattresses. Farther down the lake shore, I have noticed, are more fern trees and more leaves. There are more than enough around the cabin anyway. We can get it done.

Then what? Do we leave and explore farther down, beyond the lake? Or stay here? I think for now I’d like to stay until my energy returns fully. Then we’ll see.

The new fruits actually taste similar to apples, rather than mangoes. They are nice enough but are not nearly as tasty as the berries. I save those for last. What a joy they are.

The Purlinians are awake and have eaten also. I glance at them and the mutual understanding is that it’s time to finish our mattresses. We step outside to gather more materials. Salvation follows us. Something to my right, out on the lake surface, or rather just above it, draws my attention.

It is the most appalling sight imaginable. It fills me with the most horrible feeling of despair.

There is a small ship, not much bigger than Nikse, hovering above the lake. However, that’s not what appals me. It’s the writing, clearly visible, on the side of the ship.

The writing says: “IR84U Scout Ship”.