15 "By His Wounds You Have Been Healed, Edi"

Edi and the others had done their depressurizing routines and came inside the bubble to undress. He hurried with getting off his gear, as he was eager to check on Vemund as soon as he could - but Cap told him to do things properly, to treat his suit with respect, as they were very expensive, and he reminded Edi of their purpose and how important it was to leave them in good shape for the next man to use it. Edi took it into consideration, though he hurried slowly, and ran after the people carrying him on a stretcher back to their headquarters. They had to stop by the bullet train track to wait for a passing train, and Edi caught up with them.

"Vemund! Vemund, are you ok?", he said as he approached him, but he saw he was close to unconscious. Edi thought he might as well be so he could get some rest. They hurried over the tracks after the bullet train had passed and the tracks had stopped glowing red. He followed them back to the HQ, and they entered through the large metal doors and further into the cell areas, where they went in and laid him down in a bed there. The medics shut the door, and Edi was not allowed to follow them in there - but he stood outside and paid attention through the clear door.

That room looked like it was the same as the cell Edi had been in from the outside, but inside was a completely different story. The bed looked comfortable, the walls had nice portraits of the cave on them, and there was a fridge with a clear door that held exotic looking beverages. It also had a huge monitor that paid attention to all kinds of medical information, and the medics hooked Vemund up to all kinds of wires and sensors to keep a good eye on his physical and medical state. He came back again from his dreamy state but did not respond to any of the medics' questions, and his eyes looked glassy and distant. Yet, he looked peaceful. Cap had returned from the brink zone and stood himself next to Edi. He acknowledged his company, and they kept silent for a few seconds.

"He will be fine. I have seen lesser men come back from worse", Cap said to Edi in an attempt to comfort him. "Listen... This is no prison, as you have probably understood by now", he admitted, to Edi's great surprise. It was probably a helping hand for Edi in a new world, but he was intrigued at what Cap had to say next. "I am pretty sure we have already told you this place can be whatever you need it to be, and that is still true. We find us here, in a huge pocket of air a long way below the mighty ocean, we manage to find food and resources to sustain everyone who lives down here, and we have created technology that simulates sunlight that makes life here possible", he continued. "And if you continue living here and keep exploring life and our history, you will hopefully understand more and more of this place. It is completely voluntary, you can leave at any time you want to - although the ways you can get to the surface from here, are strenuous. And yet, I have not mentioned life and the people who live up there", he said and scoffed at the idea, and Edi felt comforted and enlightened as ever. They kept watching Vemund, and the medics flicked a sort of a switch somewhere that made the glass in the door become opaque as it had in Edi's cell... Or room. "Now, let us let 'hopper' Vemund rest in peace and quiet", Cap said and began walking to the communal area and signed for Edi to follow him - and so he did.

As they passed the fountain, Runa greeted them in an overly formal manner, unsure of how to speak to Cap. "Hello, sir. How is Vemund?", she asked, shoulders high.

"At ease, 'hopper'. Your friend is fine, he just needs some rest after having had quite a day", he said, trying his best to calm them down. He still seemed a bit bothered, Edi thought maybe he was still blaming himself for the incident. "How about we all go get some tea and sit over there?", he suggested and pointed to a small, dark coffee table with comfy chairs around it. They nodded and went to get tea bags and mugs and water. They made the tea and went to sit. Cap sat down in the corner, with Edi and Runa on each side. They had a view towards the garden, and beyond it, people playing softball on the court formerly used for martial arts training.

"Not to bother you, Cap, but I still have a lot of questions. I just wonder how you found this place? Has there been people here for a long time?", he asked Cap. He snickered and gave Runa a look.

"You should ask her those kinds of questions", he said and nodded in her direction, and then took a sip of tea to see if it was too hot to drink still. Runa smiled cutely back at him. Edi looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"Well... I found this place, actually. With some friends a long time ago", she hinted. Edi looked all the more confused.

"Wha... How? You're not that old, are you? You must be about my age, right?", Edi estimated. She laughed loudly before she had to stifle it. "Surely this whole city could not have been built in your lifetime?", he continued. He thought she looked younger than 40, at the most.

"Well... Should I tell him, Cap?", she asked him sincerely. He shrugged his shoulders. "This place screens its inhabitants for quite a bit of radiation, meaning if you stay here, you can live to be... Well, as old as I am. A lot longer, probably", she estimated. Edi had morphed into a human-sized question mark at that point.

"So..? How old are you?", Edi asked because he simply had to know.

"That is not a very polite question to ask a lady, do you think?", she said and stared Edi down - and then she laughed heartily, wiped some tears of joy and laughter, and smiled at Cap. They both sipped their mugs of tea. Edi was embarrassed to ask again but waited in eager anticipation in case she would actually tell him. "I am now 179 years old. My 180th is right around the corner, I think. And I am getting sick of big birthday celebrations", she sighed, accompanied by another nice smile. Cap smiled too and zoned out while looking down into his mug.

"Yep... I am celebrating my... 134th, I think - soon enough. I am getting sick of celebrating my birthdays too. I and my wife have actually decided to only celebrate 'half round' and round birthdays, so next year will be my next party", he said, scratching his chin stubble.

Edi sat there, his tea going cold. Cap nodded at someone behind Edi, but he just sat still, supporting his head on one hand. "What do you say we go for a walk in the city, Edi?", Cap then suggested. He stood up abruptly - Runa copying him. She tugged at his shirt.

"Come on, Edi", she said. "Let's go!", she said, and put her arm in a loop Cap had made with his one arm to support her, and they made ready to go. Edi followed, although flabbergasted. He began studying people's faces closely to see if he could know how old they actually were. But inside the HQ, he only found smiling faces and bodies that were eager to do a full day's work. No signs of old age or disease. He waddled along, and they stepped out of the gates onto the sandy ground outside. They walked along the same path they had followed a distance when they were going to the brink zone, but they never crossed the bullet train tracks and kept walking towards the city.

Edi caught up with them and noticed some people were waving to them from their porches and kitchen windows. Working men full of dust took off their caps and hats and bowed their heads slightly when passing the company of three, and Cap and Runa nodded politely back. Edi sensed they were characters of significance in Nuja. They passed stilted houses and shops until they got to a majestic building that looked like it was an English castle.

"This is where the emperor resides and rules from. Until recently, my brother was that person", Runa said and took in its grandiosity with awe, and Cap said his 'hellos' and greetings to a man cleaning the foundation from sand and dust. With no follow-up, they kept walking across the square in front of the castle.

"I want to show you a peculiar and wonderful place", Cap spontaneously said to Edi, and he nodded shortly to accept the invitation.

They walked for ten minutes or so until they reached what looked like a hybrid of a waterfall coming out from the wall of the cave, and a fountain or geyser in the middle of a lake that was larger than the entire headquarters. Up to the left of this rumbling water show, there was a road leading to a huge gap in the rock which looked like a tunnel of sorts. The tunnel was completely dark and was probably unfathomably long.

"That is where we found you", Cap said and pointed at the tunnel. Edi got wide-eyed and felt shivers all throughout his body.