1 | The Terrible Dreamer

Chapter 17

"Are you sure you want to know?" Aiya asks Gregori. "Once we tell you everything, your life will never be the same, again. You may be risking everything on this."

Gregori doesn't even take a second to think it over. "When you called me, I already knew there would be risks. This is what I've been working towards for over ten years. Any information we can uncover, especially from another planet, can help our race survive past its prime." He places the jar in the enclosed tent, whispering what sounds like a mantra, "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life."

While Gregori's setting up, Aiya tells him everything from who we really are to the incident last Friday night. She glances over Sensei's death, but delves into detail after detail about Vear and his threats. After ten minutes of talking and answering questions, the tent has been disinfected. Gregori gets to work and he can't stop smiling.

"Wow. I just... I'm at a loss for words. It's really a lot to take in. To think your family has been living here for, you said three generations, and no one has suspected a thing." He stops for a second to ask Aiya, "The laser beam that NASA received. Does it have anything to do with Akane or this butterfly?"

That's a good question, actually.

"No, it's probably one of the voyagers," Aiya says. "Akane likes to keep to themselves."

Gregori nods his head in understanding. He's actually taking this really well.

"I'm surprised you're not geeking out. Learning that aliens are real and all," I say.

He carefully spreads gold dust from inside the jar onto a Petrie dish. "I've always believed aliens exist. If humans exist, then its only conclusive other life exists outside our solar system," he says, not once looking up. "Being able to test it, though, is another notion entirely. After I'm done here, we will need to wait twenty minutes for the results. In the meantime, I'll continue studying it and looking closer at the specimen."

I hug my arms, feeling a chill run through me. "Just be careful."

While we wait for the results, Gregori decides to take a chance and remove the butterfly from the jar. It hasn't moved an inch since going in the tent, eerily still even as the plastic prongs lift it up by the wing and sits beneath a microscope. A small screen magnifies it above the tent, zooming in closer and closer, until details beyond the naked eye are shown. Tiny sparkles dance around, twirling and multiplying as dust falls from the butterfly's wings.

"What is that?" I whisper, not far from Gregori's shoulder. I've seen enough Biology textbooks to know those don't look like your typical DNA cells.

He's just as hypnotized as I am. "I don't know, but... I think it's healing itself."

"What?" Ken startles us; he's near Gregori's other shoulder, leaning on the table. "What do you mean healing itself? That's impossible. I've searched all of Akane's history and not one text mentioned the butterfly could self-heal."

"But no one has looked at the butterfly this closely, either," Aiya interjects.

"Look at this," Gregori slides out a laptop from beneath the case. It's hardwired in to the tent, collecting data more than likely. He pulls up a few files until he stops and finds the file he's looking for. A video plays on the screen, mimicking the one we're seeing in real-time, but different. "Here our cells are restoring itself after applying the healing ointment we invented at BioGENEtics. Comparing their speeds from a glimpse, I'd say the butterfly is healing a thousand times faster, if not more."

"So, you're saying it would be really difficult to rip a wing off," I say. Ken and Aiya meet my gaze and know exactly what I'm talking about. We couldn't destroy it.