Chapter 2

As we are walking, we see something bright on the ground. It looks like a small light-blue disk, appearing and disappearing rapidly. "What's that?" Ida hurries over to it as I follow her. When she tries to touch it, suddenly, our surroundings light up. The walls and floor nearby are restored, the lightbulbs become bright, and two humans appear in front of us. Wait, is that...

"Ason!" He is staring at another male human in white and black. I believe he has observed me before. But something is strange with both of them. They are standing completely still. Sometimes they briefly disappear before reappearing. Our surroundings, too. The ground looks smooth, but I can still feel the grass against my legs.

"Whoa. Is this a holorecord?" Ida asks.

Now that she mentions it, Ason has explained them before. They record actions and can demonstrate them later in great detail. Their range, however, is limited. "I think so," I reply.

Ida passes her hand through the disk again, and Ason begins to shout.

"They went ahead with the reversion! Now everything around Lab 1 is contaminated. We need to evacuate immediately!"

"Seems you were right." The other researcher also seems concerned. "Are the filters working?"

"The particles are too small. It's only a matter of time before they spread to the whole colony!"

"The whole colony? How many specimens did they revert?"

"Twelve!"

"Twelve?!" The other researcher stamps his foot. "Those madmen! Alright, I understand. I'll evacuate this wing."

"Thanks." Ason starts to walk back. "I need to warn the branch colonies too!"

"Why? Will the contagion reach them?"

"No, but that's not what I'm worried about!" Ason shakes his head. "I don't have time. Just hurry, and please save Olvy and the others too! Make sure they get out safely." Ason then begins running. Once he is past the restored walls, he vanishes completely.

The other scientist turns around. He begins to run, but abruptly stops. "Sorry, Ason, but I'm not sticking my neck out for some animals. I have people to save." As he finally starts running, the holorecord ends. The lights fade, and we see only the empty, broken halls again.

If I understood correctly, the humans left this colony to escape something toxic. Ason trusted another researcher to bring me and the other animals out, but he simply chose not to. Not surprising, but... Why did Ason not find me himself? Knowing him, he must have had a good reason, but what? What was urgent enough that he chose not to evacuate us?

"Hey, Olvy?" Oh, Ida has been trying to get my attention. "Do you know what they were talking about?"

I walk closer so she can touch my head. "I do not know what a 'reversion' is, but something the humans did caused something dangerous to appear. They were trying to find everyone to leave this place."

Ida immediately looks worried. "Oh no. Is Mom safe?"

"I do not know. We should try to find more holorecords."

"Okay!"

The two of us continue down the long hallway. Every section is similarly broken, and we find more, larger holes in the ceiling. If only my device could reach them. As we walk, we keep looking for more holorecords. Hopefully, they will tell us where Ason and the other humans went. Did they safely escape, or did something happen to them? What did they create that forced them to leave?

"Hey," Ida speaks again, "that man Ason. Is he your friend?"

"Yes," I respond. "My only friend."

"Oh." She does not ask any more of him.

After walking for longer, we find another holorecord. This one is also on the ground, flickering brightly by itself. I ask Ida, "May I activate this?"

"Sure. Let's take turns." She is very polite.

After moving my foreleg through the disk, our surroundings appear new once again. This time, there is one female researcher with long yellow hair and two males, one with short dark hair and one with long dark hair. They all seem as worried as Ason was.

"Mom!" Ida shouts.

"That is your mother?" If I remember correctly, that female researcher is also named Ida. Is it common for humans to name their children after themselves? How confusing. I pass my foreleg through the edge of the disk, and the researcher Ida begins speaking.

"The experiment in Lab 1 created a biohazard! The quarantine is ineffective, so we need to leave! If you see any clouds of pollen, avoid them! We don't have treatment for unknown species!"

"Understood!" the short-haired researcher responds. "Uh, which exit's the closest?"

"The south one! Follow me!" Researcher Ida quickly turns around.

"Wait," the long-haired researcher shouts. "What about the subjects?"

"Forget about them! We need to leave now!"

"But isn't your--"

"Enough! Hurry!" Quickly, researcher Ida runs and disappears from the area. The two researchers stare at each other for a second, but in the end, they also follow her. Like before, once the humans are all gone, the holorecord ends. Only the child Ida and I remain.

"Did you hear that?!" Ida looks at me eagerly. "Mom left from the south exit! We need to follow her!"

"Oh, yes." I stare at the holorecord still flickering on the ground. That was Ida's mother, but... something about her words bothered me. Not only that, but where was Ida herself at that time?

"Olvy?"

"Sorry, I was thinking. Can we explore more? I--"

"No! We have to find Mom! Come on!" She is already moving. "She went this way!"

It seems I cannot change her mind. Very well. I must follow to make sure she avoids danger. If only my hover device was faster.

What happened here? We arrive at the exit, but it is very cluttered. In front of the huge metal door, many boxes, lights, and other machines are scattered on the ground. In the past, they stood neatly to the side. Now, they lie broken and aged. We can simply walk by, but it is a strange sight.

"Here's the lock!" Ida finds the panel on the wall and places her hand flat on it. As it lights up, the large door groans, and particles fall down as it tries to open. After a few seconds, however, it falls silent. "Huh? Why won't it open?" Ida tries to use the panel again, but this time, it does not even respond.

"Is it out of power?" I wonder out loud.

"But, what about Mom?  She went through here..." Oh no, she might start crying. What should I say?

"We can find another exit."

"We can?"

I approach her. "All exits lead outside. We can go south from there."

She blinks and rubs her eyes. I think she has calmed down. She places her hand on my head and smiles. "Okay, let's do that."

"Wait," I think. If we will be stuck in here longer, there is something I must know. "Ida, how did you arrive here?"

She looks confused. "Um, I don't know. When I woke up in the suspension tube, I was all alone. Mom was gone. Everything was dark too. I was looking around everywhere, and then I found you."

"A suspension tube? Can you show me?"

"Sure."

After retracing our steps, she leads me deeper inside, to an old small room. There, I see five wide glass tubes as tall as the room itself. The leftmost tube is broken, and the middle one still looks wet. Nearby is a large machine with many strange buttons on it. A table nearby has some pens and papers on top. I have never seen this room before.

There are also two holorecords here. Ida activates one of them, and the entire room becomes like new. Researcher Ida appears, along with the two others from before. When I look at the tubes, I see one of them is filled with a clear blue liquid, and a human child is floating inside. That is... Ida. She looks asleep. A device with a tube is around her mouth. There are also small white disks on her arms and legs, each with a wire coming out. What is happening?

"All readings look stable," researcher Ida says as she writes on a tablet. "Telepathic capabilities are developing much faster than projected. At this rate, she might not even need physical contact soon." She lowers the tablet to look at her child. "Excellent! Everything is proceeding wonderfully!"

"Yeah..." The long-haired male researcher sighs as he approaches little Ida's tube.

"What is it?"

"Nothing, just... Every time, it looks uncomfortable in there."

"The sensors are noninvasive," researcher Ida walks next to him. "In any case, she's asleep during the examination. She doesn't feel a thing."

"I know," he sighs. "I still can't help but worry if she'll run out of oxygen or something."

"The backup oxygen and suspension fluid will last thirty years at least.  The colony's generator, even longer." Researcher Ida taps the large machine twice. "There are failsafes, too. There's no point in worrying now." She sets down the tablet and walks back to the tube. After placing her hand on the glass, she whispers, "Ida, you've been doing great! With your results, they'll have to give us new equipment!" With that, the holorecord ends.

"Did you hear that?!" Little Ida looks excited. "Mom said I'm doing great! She said I'm excellent, and wonderful!"

"Oh, yes..." I did not understand all of her mother's words, but she did seem proud. Yet, something also bothered me. The way she looked at her child was... strange. Almost like how the other researchers looked at me. Is it normal for humans to look at their children that way? I try to recall the other parents I met, but I cannot remember.

I decide to play the next holorecord. When it starts, child Ida is inside the tube again, and another child is in a different tube. Only researcher Ida is standing in the room, looking at the machines.

"Subjects' vitals are stable. Brain activity is good. One hour remaining..." She then looks back at her child in the tube. "Honestly, why can't these readings be done faster? They've had 400 years for improvements. Even if the subjects don't age inside, I'm still..." She sighs and shakes her head. "I forgot my work tablet. Backups are... full, good. Me being out for a few minutes won't matter."

She leaves the room, which now has only the two children floating in tubes. Several seconds later, we hear a distant, loud noise, and the holorecord ends. Oh. Ida was in the middle tube, and that other child was in the leftmost one.

I look at Ida, who has been standing patiently. She does not look upset or confused by the holorecord, only happy to see her mother again. Does she not understand what happened, or am I thinking too much?

Hm... If she is truly fine, then perhaps I need not worry. Perhaps I am the strange one, then.