From Leo's diary
We didn't have the time to see well that plant, as we just run out of that room as fast as we could to reach a safe place. Luckily it didn't seem able to leave the room it was placed in, so we could remain in the lab to rearrange our ideas.
I definitively didn't expect to meet a giant alien plant willing to attack us, what on Earth happened in that place?
Demonstrating remarkable self-control skills, Silas immediately set to work on an antidote for the neurotoxic spores, still wearing one of those very uncomfortable protective suits. “The plant seems blocked into that room, but we have to solve the intoxication problem before we can take care of it", he said.
He wasn't sure which composition was the best, so he had meticulously prepared various formulations to test on a few "volunteers" among the people contaminated by the spores.
Meanwhile, I was looking for clues around the rest of the lab. At that point, it seemed likely that someone among the drug dealers I'm investigating on sneaked into this place, and did something that turned a Sixam plant into that giant monstrosity and scattered its spores and seeds all over the place. But who would ever do something like this? And why?
Leo: Orion, can you do something too, by chance?
Orion: From here I see the lab perfectly.
Leo: If this is the case... Do you think there is something out of place?
Orion: Apart from the giant plant, everything seems to me as we left it.
Leo: (frustrated) You could plan a bit safer experiments though, what the heck is that stuff?
Orion: Hey, my experiment is the one on that table down there. Do you think it's dangerous?
Well, dangerous is not the first adjective I would think of, he's not wrong...
In any case, once the syntheses of the antidotes to be tested ended, we returned to Orion and Silas's trailer, waiting for Orion's symptoms to manifest. I guess it would be useless to specify that he immediately proposed as a volunteer for the antidote test, am I wrong, my dear diary?
Leo: Those clouds still look very worrisome...
Silas: (tired) We can't afford to waste any more time, let's go in.
Orion: (Pragmatic) What should we do with that plant, then? Flood it with herbicide?
Silas: Do you think you still have enough in the warehouse?
Orion: I think so, you know?
Silas: Then we should do some calculations, to optimise the...
Orion:…
I get caught off guard every time Orion experiences the neurological effects of those spores. Silas instead always managed to keep the focus on what needs to be done, and shouted to me:
Silas: Now, give him the antidote!
Leo: (Worried) Ehi, how are you doing?
Orion: safasdeghyksfss... that's not the way to administer an antidote, you know?
At least it seemed to work, what a relief...
Similarly, we also administered the serum to a couple of other contaminated people passing by.
Someone experienced a few side effects, but they all eventually woke up.
???: What the... Hei, I'm feeling so much better! Thank you!
We soon had enough data to determine which antidote was the most effective. Well, to be honest Silas had, I was just doing what he said to. So I followed him when he decided to take a dose of the antidote too, to avoid any future contamination.
Arrived to that point, we could focus on that last and giant obstacle which separated us from the end of the emergency operation in Strangerville. We had to get rid of that giant plant and, for doing so, we needed a plan.
Leo: Hello, Claire? Yes, the situation here is a bit complicated, but let's say we managed to pinpoint the problem, I think. When I get back I'll explain, don't worry. Also say hello to Luke and Lyra when they wake up, please!
I was making my usual phone call at home, I'm really starting to miss them, when Orion sat down beside me thoughtfully.
Orion: I just wanted to tell you that, em... Well, that you are not obliged to participate, in the destruction of that giant plant.
Leo: ...
Orion: I mean, that thing shouldn't be so dangerous, its main defence weapon is those neurotoxic spores that, with that antidote, shouldn't hurt us anymore.
Leo: How about those tentacles wiggling all over the place then?
Orion: It's mostly to scare us, but it should be easy to avoid them. If we keep at least four meters away, it shouldn't be able to reach anyone. It is just a plant after all, it doesn't have a brain.
Leo: ...
Orion: However, you saw the situation in here... I mean, I can't assure you that there won't be any other unexpected issues suddenly showing up.
Leo: I thought so.
Orion: In short, you have a family waiting for you at home. Maybe you shouldn't risk so much in here, you know?
I couldn't deny that I thought about it too. But I was still a policeman, it was my duty to help people. Also, what assured me that those spores couldn't reach my home too, if we didn't stop them right away? And then...
Leo: Don't be silly, you are family too.
Orion answered me hinting to a smile, but he also continued to play with his necklace with a thoughtful expression I saw on his face way too often in the last few days. He continued to seem terribly proven by the situation, I had never seen him like this.
Knowing him, I found it hard to believe he was just scared about the plant, it was not like him. In fact, looking at him better, more than worried and exhausted he seemed… sad.
In the last few days, I noticed that he had started to play more and more often with that necklace that he always wore. Thinking about it was something I also saw Silas doing, at some point.
Leo: What do your necklaces mean?
Orion: Well, it's a long story...
That vague answer was probably meant to avoid the topic, but it had the effect of making me think better about what I observed in the last few days and which I ignored to focus on work. My brother and Silas lived together and, in the first days I spent here, they often seem to joke together. They seemed quite close-knit, so to speak.
But the more the days passed, the more I had seen them drift away, their way of speaking became much colder and, by now, they are only talking about calculations, formulas and equipment needed to restore the peace in that weird little town. Thinking about it, I had them arguing more than once, and at a certain point Silas even stopped wearing that necklace that seemed so important to them.
With all this evidence, I would not even need to be a detective to realize that...
Leo: Silas and you are in a relationship, isn't it?
My brother stared at me in surprise for a few moments before anwering, he probably didn't expect me to notice.
Orion: (cautiously) Well... sort of.
Leo: Did you have an argument? That’s why you’re like this, isn't it?
Orion: ...
Leo: So...
At that point Orion probably had enough time to realize that he didn't want to talk to me about that topic. He had never been good at opening up and talking about his feelings, thinking about it. So, he decided to just change the topic of the conversation:
Orion: We have more urgent things to think about, don't you think?
Well, probably he's not wrong, we need to get rid of that plant as soon as possible. We will have the time for solving the rest afterwards, I guess.
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