Our Roots, our Destiny (Chapter 9)

Through the static, a voice rang, "Genefrod!"

"Where am I? What's going on?" Genefrod said.

"According to our sensors you're covered by a mass of tendrils and mineral."

"It's dark! I can't see anything!" Genefrod said.

"According to our EYES, you're covered by an Echoan Mega-Tuber."

"Echoan?" Genefrod said, panicked.

"But I doubt there's a Mega-Tuber in 37 petameters."

"Who are you?"

"Oh, sorry! It's Hibne. Kegrel, Hoag and I are here trying to figure out how to extract you. You know, without making things worse."

"How long was I out?" Genefrod said.

"one hundred ninety minutes," Hibne said. He marched up to the fanned arms of the mega-tuber and took a sample.

("We'll need a tank of hydrazine,") Hoag said at last. ("Can we dismantle one from Entreprize?")

("No, but our jetpacks have plenty,") Kegrel said.

"What's the (hydrazine) for?" Genefrod said.

"These plant things reeeeaally don't like hydrazine," Hoag said.

"You're going to blast me out?" Genefrod shouted.

"Well no, more like we're going to threaten the alien with cancer and severe chemical burns, but I'm sure you know how likely a plan involving hydrazine is to go off without a hitch."

Kegrel and Hoag started work on their plan. They took off their and Hibne's jet packs and dismantled the propellant canister. Hibne stood by with a machete ready to cut Genefrod out as soon as possible. Kegrel started to dump the propellant directly over where Genefrod was buried. The entire structure began convulsing, as the surface layer of the Mega-Tuber bubbled and shriveled. The tendrils beneath began giving way, pulling out from the toxin, before being severed from within, left writhing in a pile. Hoag and Hibne started cutting, until they could see Genefrod.

["Ah! I see light!] My helmet is completely covered in dirt!" Genefrod said.

Hoag started to pull Genefrod out. ("He's too heavy!") he said, and Hibne helped. Genefrod's joints were sore, but once he was freed, he began climbing out of the decaying vines, guided through his temporary blindness by Hibne.

Once out, he wiped his visor clear and could see a foggy view of his rescuers.

"Alright, we've gotta get out of here. The plants are not gonna be happy," Kegrel said, and the four started running. Once they were away from the damage, tendrils slowly started encroaching on them again. Hibne pulled out his jetpack controls and began firing one of the motors intermittently, which caused the forest to slowly open up as the plants tried to avoid the team.

Finally they reached Entreprize, which was beached on the lakeside.

They ran into the lake.

"We'll have to decontaminate. Dive under the water, make sure you're completely submerged," Hoag said.

("Is that enough?") Hibne said.

"Wait! We're contaminating the waters!" Genefrod said.

"Whose waters?" Hoag said. "We have to get clean enough to decon in the airlock."

Genefrod entered the water and wiped his visor off. After some time, the four of them trudged back onto the beach and clambered up the ladder into Entreprize. Their space suits were showered down in the airlock, and then they came aboard proper.

Entreprize was a large mobile base as well as a space shuttle, and the airlock opened into an orange-lit laboratory.

("Commander on deck,") Stwig said, looking up from a glovebox.

("As you were,") Kegrel said. Genefrod turned to face Kegrel.

"Alright, now we're safe. What the [HELL] is wrong with you? You didn't think to specify a little thing like the MOVING MIMICK PLANTS covering Kerbin in your report?"

"(That is QUITE ENOUGH)," Hoag said.

"No, no, I understand," Kegrel said. "Well for one thing, we didn't realize they were planet-wide. We only saw them around the former Savannah and around KSC."

"You need to have a serious talk with your captain about sharing information. If we don't know EVERYTHING you know, we won't be able to investigate this problem together." Genefrod said.

"We were going to wait until you'd arrived, so you could see the plants at KSC first-hand."

"But... then I crashed instead."

"Affirmative. I might suggest you get some rest before we disembark for KSC to finish our expedition."

"I want a report on everything you know about those plants when I wake up," Genefrod said.

"On this ship!" Hoag started, "Kegrel gives the orders!"

Kegrel held his hand up. "(That's enough, Hoag.) I'll have to consult with Captain Kerrigh."

"Of course," Genefrod said, his temper still short.

"Why don't I show you to the bunks?" Hibne said.

"...fine." Genefrod said. Hibne brought him to a small room with beds built into the walls. Three of them were closed, and a fourth was open with a Kerbal inside, reading something on a transparent glass tablet. She looked at Genefrod and slid her bunk door closed. Genefrod slid into the bed, which was a little too small for him. He wasn't expecting how quickly he'd fall asleep, with how often he'd lost consciousness in the past 6 hours.