Sigma 16 - Chapter 24 – Scan Credit Gathering (Patreon)

With the sun just beginning to peek over the horizon, Talia confirmed her suit and equipment were good to go while exchanging the fusion cell in her RSU-7S. The base was in great shape and her gear was working as good as it was supposed to be, as long as the readout could be believed. So far, Neo had done an excellent job of keeping all the reports and lists updated for her, and more importantly, accurate.

She knew that going back into the jungle wouldn’t be an easy task. She was quite a way away from where she’d chased the spider into it, and picking her path across the rocky desert would require some care. Unlike her urgency driven drive from her crash site to the Bootstrap Module, she’d take a careful approach to maneuvering across the rough terrain this time.

“Did I forget anything?” Talia asked.

[Notice: While this unit cannot ascertain all intended equipment User wished to bring, all primary survival equipment and items have been acquired for this expedition.]

“Right. Thanks, Neo.” Talia replied. She was not the type to dwell on things, so she activated her RSU and crossed her human-made bridge across her base’s new trench. Five minutes later she drove back, stopped at the bottom of the stairs, fetched a backup fusion cell, threw it in the cargo container attached to the back of her vehicle, and sped away for a second time.

The RSU-7S’s wheels kicked up a small cloud of dust behind her, as she made her way southeast and out of the valley with her base in it. The first several kilometers were easy to navigate, but the difficulty quickly picked up as she moved into one of the many rock gardens.

Instead of hurrying to weave her way around everything, Talia pulled out her multi-tool and began to obliterate a path. It slowed her progress to a crawl, but it was necessary. Each obstacle removed meant one less potential hazard for future expeditions, and the basic infrastructure would make travel back and forth between her base and the jungle much faster.

[Informative: Future travel duration between Bootstrap Module and Jungle Edge is estimated to decrease 68% in the future due to improved route conditions.]

Neo’s voice chimed in every so often with updates or suggestions which helped keep her focused during the several long hours of slowly picking her way out of the desert and towards the jungle. Even that support felt like it was wearing thin when she caught sight of the lush foliage between two rocking hills.

The sight inspired her to press forward, and finally she broke out of the rough terrain and into the flat sand plain that surrounded the jungle’s thick edge area. The sun had reached the center of the sky, and the long shadows of the greenery had been dispelled, at least on the outside.

She knew how underneath the canopy an entirely different atmosphere would greet her.

She worked her improved trail all the way up to the jungle edge, stopping at the narrow hard line of flat scrabble that separated the foliage and sand. For the first time, she stared at the formation and how it was uniform the entire length of the jungle, going north and south.

It almost seemed engineered. “Neo, do you think the jungle is…artificial?”

[Informative: No artificial design elements can be detected from any derived scan data.]

“Huh. Oh well. I guess nature is pretty strange here.” Talia replied. The jungle’s edge was just as thick and impassable as she remembered as she looked at it from up close. She set had the brilliant idea to scan the foliage before burning a path.

| Cortex Inc. Credit Value: +55 |

| Cortex Inc. Credit Balance: 100 |

“Easy points. Should have done that the first time.” Talia said with a smile. She switched her tool to disintegration mode. She was pretty sure that the foliage was going to rapidly seal itself as it had when the spider had cut the hole, and when she’d burned her way free.

Having to do that on every trip would be annoying, and it did cost her in battery power. If there was a tunnel that blocked the foliage from regrowing…

She cut a swatch ten meters deep, then switched to fabrication mode. A simple cylinder design appeared, and she filled the overlay with the rock she had collected along the way. On the inside, she sprayed a thin coat of Durasteel for durability. She only bothered to finish the floor, though, saving battery power for the rest of the tunnel construction.

It took her twice as long to cut through the jungle’s thick barrier edge. Whatever Neo said about it not being artificial, the entire eco-system had developed in a way that cocooned the cool, humid inside from the hot desert outside.

[Informative: User has successfully established entry point into designated exploration area.]

“Yeah. It’ll be a lot easier to get in and out now,” Talia replied.

The cool temperature and high humidity of the jungle air hit her immediately upon breaching the interior, reminding her once more that her suit was only filtering the air instead of running on an external supply or its own generated gas.

Nearby her entry point, a small stream of water bubbled out of the ground and ran in a shallow stream toward the jungle’s heart. It was her first sight of running water up close. She wondered how the jungle integrated with the rivers she had seen flowing through it in the far distance.

Maybe she’d find out after a few expeditions.

She went back to bring her ATV through the tunnel, flicking the vehicle’s headlights off the second they came on. She kept her suit headlamp offline as well, knowing very well that she didn’t want to attract any of the acidic glow bugs. Her suit’s light amplification system was more than adequate to handle the bioluminescent lighting under the jungle’s canopy.

Talia started to try to push deeper in. That proved far more difficult than she expected. Her tires snagged on random roots and got stuck in the many holes that dotted the area. After five minutes, she gave up and walked the vehicle back to the tunnel and set it off to the side for when she returned.

“We’ll need some type of specialized vehicle if we want to drive through this mess.” Talia muttered.

[Notice: Hoverbikes have been known to be effective for traversing rough, heavily vegetated terrain. Possible schematics are available for purchase in the 1500-2500 Scan credit range.]

She rolled her eyes. “Of course they are. Well, hopefully we can find some things worth scanning. Before we think about that hoverbike, I want to upgrade my suit’s filtration system. As much as I appreciate how well the filters have worked so far, I would like to switch to an oxygen generator. Death by virus-melted organs is not on my bucket list.”

She checked her multi-tool status.

[Multi-Tool]

| Power Level: [35% (Batteries x2)] |

| Durability: [89%] |

| Tool Level: Basic, Upgraded Mining |

| Total Capacity: 60/1100 |

[Contains]

| Refined Silicates x16 |

| Durasteel: x12 |

| Raw Strata: x32 |

Sure enough, the tunnel had taken up most of the materials she’d acquired on the way to the jungle. Now she’d have plenty of space for mining any high-value deposits she found. Maybe she’d consider taking down one of the massive trees again. As much as she hated the thought of downing another one of the ancient things, they were essentially massive stores of rare metals and materials.

It would take her a dozen trips with her ATV to collect all the material from one entirely, but that’d be a plethora of material for building her growing base.

She’d consider it for later. For now, she needed to focus on her scanning mission.

“Neo, keep an eye out for any valuable mineral deposits or things we haven’t scanned yet,” Talia said.

[Affirmative: This unit will assist User in identifying potential scan targets and resource deposits.]

The yellow glow bugs she had seen her previous time in the jungle were joined by a series of different colored ones. Most of them stayed flittering about near the canopy, but a few dipped low enough into range for her to scan them. A sad ‘Brooop’ sounded from her multi-tool.

[Notice: This species is identical to previously scanned insect and is not worth any additional scan credits.]

“Urgh.” Talia grumbled and pushed deeper through the trees. Every so often, Neo would highlight a small formation of rocks that matched the scans she’d taken inside the spider-alien cave.

Despite the lack of light, more vegetation grew in this section of the jungle, following along the streambed. Several rustles of the underbrush brought false alarms bad enough that she pulled her PAR off her back and slung it on her front to keep it closer at hand.

She’d not seen much sign of small fauna, but the sounds told her that there was something out there even if it was hiding well enough. Neither her suit sensors nor Neo spotted it.

That or she was jumping at ghosts. But considering her earlier encounters, she expected there was something making the noise.

Her first big score came in the form of a cluster of bioluminescent plants. Their large, radiating fronds pulsed with an ethereal glow that lit up the surrounding gloom and drowned out the other plant’s light. The sight was almost mesmerizing, and she reached out to touch one of the large leaves with a finger, but to her horror, the light of it suddenly went black and the leaf crumbled into dust before her eyes.

[Warning: A large amount of biological material has been eliminated by suit filtration system. Further exposure could overwhelm or reduce system efficiency to dangerous levels.]

She took a step back quickly, but still pulled out her multi-tool and scanned the remaining plants.

[Recorded: Alien Flora Species #1]

| Cortex Inc. Credit Value: +200 |

| Cortex Inc. Credit Balance: 300 |

“At least it was worth something,” Talia whispered. A chill ran up and down her spine had how dangerous the plant was, and she felt like berating herself for being so stupid as to touch some unknown alien plant…because she had thought it was pretty!

She turned to leave the dangerous plant behind and continue her expedition…with more care. But Neo pulled her short with a message.

[Notice: As previously stated, a User opportunity to earn ECCs is present. First naming credits will be earned for the first explorer to name each species of flora, fauna, and strata.]

“Oh. Like the Rockslasher. Right, I wasn’t thinking.” Talia turned back toward the luminescent plant. The ethereal light seemed to pulse from the leaves. After a few more seconds of thought, she finally came up with something. “I’ll name this one Lumina Symbiose.”

[Affirmative: Name has been recorded and added to User profile. Upon reconnection with an accredited ECC facility, all naming data will be remitted. User can expect payment upon name confirmation.]

“Sure. Easy enough.” Talia replied before turning to continue down the stream. She avoided walking directly in the water, but it felt like it would eventually lead to more discoveries or go…somewhere. She really didn’t have any other direction to go. Everything seemed the same to her.

Until she stumbled upon a jagged purple crystal. Unlike most of the unique things she had seen, the crystal didn’t have its own bioluminescent glow. Instead, thousands of little stars sparkled like stardust across its metallic sheen. Despite the contrast with the Lumina Symbiose, it was just as beautiful.

She still avoided touching it, though.

[Recorded: Alien Mineral Formation #1]

| Cortex Inc. Credit Value: +200 |

| Cortex Inc. Credit Balance: 500 |

That was more credits than she had expected, but she hadn’t really identified any rhyme or reason to the values of the things she scanned yet, but 200 was decent. If her memory was good, then she now had enough to purchase the oxygen upgrade system she wanted for her suit, too.

A name came to mind relatively easy, too. “Sparkle Alloy Deposit,” she declared.

[Notice: Sparkle Alloy Deposit contains large amounts of materials needed for Advanced Alloy synthesis.]

It was almost a shame to destroy something so pretty, but Talia pulled out her multi-tool. A few minutes later the deposit was gone, and she was two hundred units of Advanced Alloy richer.

The foliage around the stream continued to thicken until it was nearly maze-like. The hinderance was annoying, and after scanning the water, which turned out to be perfectly normal, she started walking on the bare stones there. Not much further along and she discovered the reason for the thickening plants.

A large circular area of bubbling pools would have filled the area with a sulfur smell, she suspected, if her air wasn’t being filtered. Plants crept right up to the water’s edge, seemingly seeking the warmth and heat of the hot springs. Multiple large brown fronds sprouted up between the hot pools of water, separated from the regular greenery.

The leaves of those plants nearly dipped down into the water themselves, each one displaying a striking geometric pattern that seemed unique to each one.

[Recorded: Alien Flora Species #2]

| Cortex Inc. Credit Value: +150 |

| Cortex Inc. Credit Balance: 650 |

The name took a little more thinking, but she ultimately decided on “GeoThermis.”

Before she could continue, dozens of yellow highlights appeared on her HUD, bringing rocks that were hidden under the water to her attention.

[Notice: Submerged mineral deposits are likely of high value.]

“Thanks, Neo.” Talia said before moving deeper into the water for a closer look.

The minerals were shaped like eggs, each one laced with striking blue veins that pulsed with an inherent luminescence which she realized was what was giving the pools their striking glow. Their uniform shapes made her almost think they were eggs, but her scanner confirmed they were a mineral deposit.

[Recorded: Alien Mineral Formation #2]

| Cortex Inc. Credit Value: +175 |

| Cortex Inc. Credit Balance: 825 |

The pulsing blue veins reminded her of her fusion cells, which gave her an idea for the name. “Vein’s of Volta.”

[Notice: New element detected. Veins of Volta appear to contain high levels of high-energy matter and would process into unrefined energetic material that could be refined in a power-cell fabrication facility.]

Talia grunted in surprise. She hadn’t expected to find anything useful for high-density power production. At least on the surface. She scooped up nearly half of the rocks before her multi-tool beeped it was full.

That settled whether she was going to proceed deeper into the jungle or not. “Okay. Looks like we are heading back to the ATV to unload.”

She didn’t want to just follow the same path back, though. So, she diverted further away from the stream. She kept the water in sight, though, to help her navigate. Her mini map ensured she wouldn’t get lost, but she didn’t want to have to keep glancing at it constantly.

Halfway back, the choice proved fortunate because she ran into a new plant. It was a bush, but it was covered in succulent looking fruits that seemed to pulse with multiple colors at once. The colors seemed to spiral as the light slowly faded into and out of existence.

[Recorded: Alien Flora Species #3]

| Cortex Inc. Credit Value: +125 |

| Cortex Inc. Credit Balance: 950 |

She christened it “Spiral Chroma Fruit Bearer.”

“This trip is going pretty well, isn’t it, Neo?”

A rock flew through the air and bounced off her helmet in reply.

[Warning: Hostile action detected.]

She caught a flicker of movement from the corner of her eye. She spun towards it, her hands going straight to her PAR. Before the shadowy figure disappeared, she recognized the familiar silhouette of one of the spider-aliens she’d encountered before.