Into Darkness
“Are you sure about this?” Mu Shang skeptically asked.
Ye Chong shrugged helplessly and said, “I don’t know, this stuff was always taken care of by my Papa, and I’ve only tried it a few times. Plus, we used giant landworms’ blood back then, how can we get those now when we’re running out of time? I just thought it might be worth trying to use the lizard’s blood! It will be best if it works out, else we’ll have to start digging for those worms!”
Ye Chong poured the iron lizard’s blood into a container, added a few nameless ingredients, and heated the container with a stove placed underneath. A moment later, the liquid mixture started to bubble, and Ye Chong continuously stirred it with a stick. The liquid gradually turned red, then blue; the bluish glow on Ye Chong’s face made him look like an evil witch concocting a cursed potion. Even the ever daring Mu flashed his bionic eyes in alarm.
They had obtained the iron lizard’s scales, and those were indeed good for repairing the cabin, but soldering the scales with the metallic hull of the mech was a big problem! There were no tools at hand, and while one could say that one cannot make bricks without clay, having only clay without any appropriate tools did not mean bricks would come easy.
Fortunately, Ye Chong was bright, and came up with an alternative way! Back when he tried to attach the barbs on Winnie’s knees, Papa had a few ideas and, after a few trials and errors, invented an odd formula to produce a strong binding agent. The formula was effective - or at least, Winnie’s barbs had survived dozens of impacts without it falling off - and that was why Ye Chong was confident with the binding agent.
However, replacing landworm’s blood with the iron lizard’s might affect the results, and he was a little anxious about it.
Ye Chong carefully stirred the liquid in the container, and stopped when the liquid began to radiate a faint fragrant smell. As Ye Chong inhaled the alluring smell, he suddenly had a thought that, perhaps, this liquid would taste amazing... And just as quickly, he banished that devilish thought. Impulse is the devil, impulse is the devil… Ye Chong repeated the mantra in his mind, but when his vision passed by the stirring stick’s end dipped in blue, Ye Chong could not help but swallow a hard gulp.
He took out two pieces of metal sheets, painted a layer of the binding agent on them, and immediately stuck them together and dropped them into the water tank beside him. The blue liquid squeezed out between the boards when it met with water and turned colourless in the blink of an eye.
Ye Chong scooped up the two metallic sheets and wiped them dry. He then passed them to Mu Shang.
“It’s done?” Mu Shang asked.
Ye Chong replied carelessly, “I don’t know, that’s why I need you to test it!”
Mu took the boards and tested them a little. “They seem alright, but what we want is to bind biological and metallic materials together!”
Ye Chong smiled at that. “I’ve already thought of that!” He procured a tiny piece of iron lizard scale.
The experiment was a success, or at least, they were successful under these conditions!
Ye Chong then took the largest scale he could find, brushed on a thick layer of blue liquid, and slapped it over the large hole in the cabin. The hole was sealed firmly, but Ye Chong was not satisfied yet, and added a few more scales on top.
Mu Shang did not mince its words. “Your handiwork is absolutely ugly!”
Ye Chong observed the crude patching of the cabin’s walls, and declared, “That may be, and I might not know much about it, but this could be an artwork of enormous depth! Do I need to patch another layer from the outside?”
Mu Shang replied, “That is not necessary. We do not have a ventilation system. If we patch from both sides, the air pressure inside would be fatal when we make a space jump!”
Ye Chong came to realize the implications. “Oh, understood! But what should we do with the leftover scales?” He pointed at the heap of iron lizard’s scales on the floor. They had removed every single piece of scale from the lizard, but who would have thought they only needed a few? There were still many left, and it would be a waste to leave the scales behind, but how could they bring them all along?
Mu proclaimed, “There’s still space in my alternate dimension, let’s keep them there!”
Ye Chong, an athletic looking young man, appeared skinny before the huge Mu Shang. The pair sat side by side on the peak of a trash mountain closest to Ye Chong’s home. Behind them was the towering structure of the Pulse Signal Relay Station. It was evening, and the orange-yellow radiance from the nearest star lent vitality and warmth to the desolate planet.
The duo sat quietly, just like that, unwilling to spoil the rare moment of peace and quiet!
The last of the star’s shining rays vanished beyond the horizon. Mu spoke up, “The energy cells are charged! It’s time for us to move!”
Ye Chong nodded. Although the most important step was finished, both of them still had plenty to do.
Ye Chong sat in the pilot’s cabin. The initially spacious cabin was packed with all kinds of energy cells, till Ye Chong could not even move in his seat. With his helmet on, the outside view came clearly to his mind.
Suddenly, Ye Chong was hit with a pang of dismay – it was here where he and Papa had lived for more than a decade; he knew every nook and cranny of this place, and every trash mountain held traces of his many adventures.
Ye Chong let out a long, heavy breath.
No matter where he went, it was all for survival!
Ye Chong gave a long look at the place where he grew up in, and spoke hoarsely, “Mu, let’s go!”
Mu Shang slowly rose to a low altitude, and abruptly accelerated vertically towards the sky.
Ye Chong watched as the Pulse Signal Relay Station beneath him grew smaller and smaller, until it became unrecognizable. Ye Chong was mesmerised!
Mu was fast. A thin layer of surging plasma enclosed the entire surface of the mech, and occasionally sparked due to friction with the air at high velocities. With Mu’s speed, they would soon escape the gravitational pull of the trash planet and enter space!
Ye Chong took in the sight of the deep, dark space against the brilliant colours of the nebula - with silky faded reds and swirling smokes of blue, the nebula swam amongst the stars speckled across the infinite darkness of space. The sight was truly intoxicating!
Although this was his first time in space, Ye Chong was not interested in the view before him.
Mu spoke up, “Ye, active the pilot shield system, it’s the green button on the third row from below your right armrest!”
Ye Chong acknowledged with an “Alright,” and obeyed. A transparent screen came up from his seat and wrapped around him. Ye Chong touched the screen curiously, wrapped in an oval egg-like protective shield. The screen was soft and elastic, like some kind of rubber. This was his first time touching something like this.
Mu’s voice rang, “Ye, no sudden movements now, we’re going to accelerate!”
Ye Chong, “Accelerate?”
Mu Shang’s reply was placid. “Yes, a space jump is only possible beyond a certain speed threshold. I only have a 41% chance of passing that threshold, and that was only in theory!”
Ye Chong was indifferent. “I’ll follow your lead, it’s not like I have a choice right?”
Mu Shang’s engines roared to life, and they flew into the infinite darkness ahead!
What future awaited them ahead?