Avalon Dreaming

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

A planet full of Life

"Av·a·lon [av-uh-lon]–noun Celtic Legend . An island, represented as an earthly paradise in the western seas, to which King Arthur and other heroes were carried at death. It was said to be magical and beautiful to behold."

Out of all the results which were generated by the portable digital dictionary; it seemed Avalon was the most fitting for this place. It was a place which Death had been their entrance to, and an island of paradise instead of the cold ice rock they were sent to explore.

It seemed to be both uplifting and comforting to now have a name for their new home which they all knew deep down – they would never leave. It also made perfect sense. It became the name of the world itself. Avalon, the planet off the known map. A rock of strange and beautiful life; fourth planet from a new sun. And now it was also home to the last remnants of human kind.

The Oasis that Andrew and Jackson had bathed and played in before the startling discovery was named just that. The Oasis. In the coming days and weeks that they spent moving equipment closer to the opening of the large ecosystem, they used it to rekindle their spirits, bathe, and have playful battles of splashing each other.

It was as if, for a little while at least, the afterglow of the discovery lasted for a long time. The adults, who lost their childhood, regained it over the next few days even when the tasks seemed so common and boringly routine. It also proved to be quite therapeutic, helping to strengthen their muscles and ease their pains.

The cavern section which overlooked the large gaping mouth into the new ecosystem became their home base. They slept, ate, and worked there as a group.

Madison and Logan however spent a lot of hours alone near the Arcanis, and to their surprise the ship was far from 'dead'. Its systems were still quite active. Its hydro thermal collection units still functioned and kept the ship constantly fuelled. It also helped Madison and Logan scan the world in new and powerful ways and allowed them the opportunity to charge new portable fuel cells for the encampment.

What they learned about the world was what Arcanis showed them. A surface that was littered with electrical storms, wicked sun exposure, and sometimes near toxic sandstorms. Although it proved the perfect atmosphere for the back solar radiation collector panels – it would be deadly to try to exist outside on the surface. And it would be foolish for any of them to explore the surface for any length of time.

It seemed the ship dropped into the perfect position to give them the strongest rate of survival. And in their amazement the ship also picked up other pockets of protected space in other areas under the thick earth plates of limestone and rock. The living surface of this world was underground. Life it seemed could only be subterranean here which accounted for the evolution of life which seemed highly adapted for these geo pockets.

The long spiral vines which traversed from the ceiling to the floor seemed to be ancient roots of some remnants of surface life. Some of the wide coils were large enough to easily span ten feet across. And inside the resin globes were soft ambient bio luminescent sap. The fireflies seemed to be swimming insects living in the sap itself. A type of larvae that ate and held onto the luminescent glow.

It attracted the birds to rest in the vines and protect it from some of the burrowing species. Perhaps the birds ate the bugs and gained some of their glow. Everything seemed to have a part to play in another species life here. It was hard to think of all the ways life was tangled together down there.

Colours, lights, and strong visual displays seemed to be common. It even sometimes would echo from one species to another – like a visual display beyond the known senses. There seemed to be some sort of living connection that they had no way to understand. A group communal language that was beyond a human's recognition.