The Crater's Fate

Chapter Nineteen: Circuit Breaking Kraken!

And the calamity of the time ended, giving me peace of mind. It has given me time to restock supplies and begin planning out what I have to do. My exploration under the Floating Island hasn't ended; there is still much to learn. But the Mountain Island holds many secrets, as much as the external biomes around it do too. And I've hardly mapped out anything to do with those regions...The entire area is completely blank. So that's what I've resolved to do, a few months later. It's been about a year (maybe a few months over that) since I've been here. And only four, maybe five, months since I found out I was infected. I've kept up biological scans of my body, watching the infection struggle to progress. Whatever makes me such a good survivalist is actively improving immuno-responses in my body, slowly the infection rate. I can't wait forever, and it's possible the infection will continue to slowly develop in my system as I keep getting reinfected through the water.

Speaking of, there's two things that I've been doing which has kept me from exploring all this time. Resource gathering and experimentation. Specifically, the hunt for food and adequate water supplies continues. I no longer feel safe using Bladderfish for water, so I've been harvesting salt deposits and coral pieces from the tubes. Apparently, properties in the coral allows the reaction to fabricate bleach...Which can be turned to filtered water? I really don't question it, but it hasn't killed me so far. I guess I can live with not knowing how that works. I've also made quite frequent trips to the Sea Treaders, collecting up resources. They aren't attacking so much anymore. Guess that my constant arrival and departure without paying them any mind has convinced them I'm not a threat. In fact, they sometimes follow me a little bit. High fish content means high flora for them to eat from the ground, so they followed me to new feeding spots?

In terms of experimentation, it's all about those crimson sacs. In five months, I've managed to determine quite a bit about them. They're similar to the already present Creepvine Seeds, which makes sense. The vines I found share similar attributes to Creepvine. The sacs themselves are tough but I did pierce it, allowing access to its internal parts. Getting a feel for it, I deduce that the substance inside is mostly liquid, but prone to hardening overtime. I figure that the vines provide liquids to the sacs, allowing the internal parts to remain liquidised. It's properties...Are not too dissimilar to blood...So, Blood Oil. From the Bloodvines. Wow I'm so creative.

I'm glad I picked up four. According to extensive PDA data analysis of them, I can actually do something with them. I'm...Not the smartest in the world, but the PDA picks up where I falter. It has been constantly analysing the properties and figuring out what I can do with all of them, including usefulness when compared to resources and blueprints I already have. It's come up with a result. A chemical called Benzene, C6H6. A type of solvent of some sort...? If applied to fibre mesh, it can result in a hardening reaction for tougher fibres. At least, that's what the PDA says. A sort of...Synthetic Fibre! It's just what I needed for the Reinforced Dive Suit. What else? Two diamond, two titanium. I have those already. I gather up the resources and craft the suit. First the fibres; the role fabricated is larger than expected. But I use it to make my new Reinforced Dive Suit. Streamlined with a black coloured base and orange and grey highlights, with three grey stripes across the chest. It also came with a set of gloves, similar in colours. I put both on, using it as an opportunity to check my wounds.

I sure have a lot of those. The back scar is eight or so months old and hasn't needed bandages for one month. It's no longer at risk of opening and is healing properly. The side scar...? It looks a lot better, and internal scans indicate that all internal damage has healed over properly. I mean, it's still a nasty looking scar. And I keep it wrapped up in bandages for now. Puncture wounds of this size do not heal quickly nor nicely. I'm bound to keep it wrapped up a little longer so it can heal properly. As for the other puncture wounds, they have healed and are now fully scarred over. In time, they will fade. But not any time soon. 

With the suit on, I feel much more protected. It's thicker and actually armoured. I'll be capable of survival much easier now, especially as I go deeper. Speaking of, let's waste no more time. I've stocked my Cyclops with so many provisions, including extra power cells, batteries, food, water, medkits, raw materials and any extra equipment I can't afford to carry on my personage. There's a small room connecting the bridge to the vehicle bay hatch; here I put a fabricator and radio for later usage. Last but not least, I put my Seamoth into that vehicle bay. I check over my Tracer, ensuring it's functioning, before beginning to head out. This will be the Tracer's first test run. The radiation in the water has assimilated back to normal levels after Jupiter III detonated. It won't have any effect on my Tracer system...hopefully. I did decide to give my Seamoth a name too...Even if it's rather unofficial. Shiva. Like my name! Well, more my name comes from Shiva.

I continue my descent into the water, catching glimpses of electrical sparks crackling in the ocean. Ampeels. At least I'm in the right place. Something else emerges from the depths. Sort of shorter than the Ampeel, with jagged teeth and glowing green eyes. It looks rather similar to a shark. It comes closer to my Cyclops, moving as if...drawn to me? I go to the light controls (next to the ladder down) and turn off my internal lights. And it leaves me alone...? I guess this thing, in such aquatic depths, sees such little light that it's attracted to the small light source it can get. That's how it finds its prey. Given it's...Appearance, with a thick hardened shell, I will call it...Boneshark.

I keep progressing, finding another damaged lifepod. Lifepod 12 is here...? Carefully, I turn my Cyclops' engine off and exit. Not with the Seamoth. I'm close enough to be okay. I enter through a hole there and assimilate PDA data, getting back to my Cyclops before reading it through. Dr...Donavon? He was on Jupiter III...He experimented on me! He is one of those...surgeons who cut me open for DNA sampling. Turns out, he's not a real doctor. He cheated the medical exam, relying on the technology to do his job for him. That didn't help him when he got infected, just like I am.

I keep going, picking up a radiation signal from my Tracer. As I proceed deeper, it grows stronger. I manage to triangulate the position of the tech I'm supposed to find when it starts growing weaker again. But I can't find the actual thing! It's very hidden...So probably isn't a base. Just another useless arch that I can't use, most likely. Nevertheless, it's good to know where it is, so I use my Seamoth to look around...When I get hit with the strangest noise.

It's not like a Reefback...Not even a Reaper...So strange...Slightly high pitched and it sounds as though...Straining? I search rapidly for the source, and I so wish I hadn't. I wish I had just gone back to the Cyclops. Because it's huge. The lower half...Hardened, brown with eight legs and two...arms? All with mighty claws...The top half, bulbous and more jellyfish like with a large mass inside. The second my Seamoth turns to it, landing my lights on it, it shrieks, releasing a powerful green blast from its great head...And I can't move! My Seamoth is completely out of power! What happened?! I was at 90% a second ago! It creeps closer and panic begins to overtake me...What do I do?! I can't go out there and change my power cells. It'll catch me first. The thing swings two of its legs once it's near, tearing into Shiva's hull. But my power's back! Immediately, I go to my Cyclops before it can strike again, turning around and going right back home.

I didn't find the tech, but it was probably useless anyways...I'm still shaking, even now, as I stumble into base. I collapse on the floor, not unconscious. Just letting it sink in. So my nerves will stop shaking and I can actually stand normally. So the weakness will go away. In all the things that I have faced, Reapers...Reefbacks...Sea Treaders...I've never been unable to do anything...Unable to move.

I've never felt so helpless.