They set foot inside. Something clacked above them. Lights burst to life, revealing the entire room. The source of the illumination remained difficult to ascertain. Parts of the ceiling just seemed to glow but however it worked, it chased away all the shadows while casting a couple of beams specifically on a pedestal opposite them.
“That’s promising,” Lysa said. “And motion activated lights.”
“Not a surprise given the shield.” Kyle rubbed his chin. “Okay. Let’s check that thing out then we can look through the rest of this place.” He started across the chamber. Every footstep echoed off the vast ceiling, even when he tried to walk softly. At the halfway point, he stopped to turn in place, soaking up the majesty of it.
Massive structures like that spoke of opulence to him though this culture may have been acknowledging simple economy. They chose to build their structure into the cliff, which may have been hollowed out already. Regardless, the way they decorated the walls and ceiling, the pillars and the floor, the lights… it all spoke to people who cared about aesthetics.
Well beyond a survival phase. Kyle continued along the way, catching up with Lysa. This speaks to a sense of awe… of reverence. They must have cared about whatever they planned to store here. Enough so to put it in a place of real splendor. He jogged the last little bit, standing beside his partner.
The pedestal held a black box floating above a foundation. A white glow surrounded it, humming from the power expenditure. Lysa scanned it, walking around the thing several times. Kyle leaned to examine the thing, noting that it was perfectly smooth on all sides, the matte finish drinking in all the light.
“That’s a cube,” Kyle said. “Is it hollow?”
“More concerned about the power right now,” Lysa replied. “I’m almost done with the scan.”
“I’m just thinking it might have something inside it.”
“It might. But it won’t matter if we can’t take the thing.”
Kyle held his hand close to the light. It didn’t give off any heat. “It’s not like the shield outside.”
“No, it may just be a suspensor field.” Lysa frowned. “Why would they have it levitate? That doesn’t make much sense.”
“Cause it looks amazing?” Kyle offered. That earned him a glare. “You know, sometimes people do things just because they’re neat. They don’t need a particular reason. Look around at the walls. They’re gorgeous. Whoever built this place cares about the splendor. So it’s not a farfetched idea that we’re looking at an aesthetic choice.”
“Surprisingly well thought out excuse for saying something looks cool,” Lysa said. “And I honestly can’t refute it. There’s no mechanism in place on the pedestal, nothing on that foundation. No energy we have to be worried about. No radiation even, not even low levels. We could just take it. And nothing should happen.”
“Because you checked for mechanisms,” Kyle confirmed. “Right?”
“Yes. I scanned the entire structure here and there’s nothing.”
“Right. So…” Kyle shrugged. “Should I just… take it?”
Lysa sighed. “I… guess?”
Kyle put on his leather gloves. “That make you feel better?”
“I mean, I don’t want you to lose a hand,” Lysa said, “but I’m also glad to let you have a go at it.”
“Thanks… I guess.” Kyle let out a breath, wiping sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. He took a moment to steady himself… then grabbed the cube with both hands. Drawing it back shut down the foundation, turning off the humming power. He held his breath in anticipation of something awful happening.
When it didn’t, he let it out. “I’m okay.”
“That’s debatable.” Lysa scanned him. “No ill effects. No radiation. Nothing at all. You’re good.” She directed the scanner to the cube. “And that thing… it has an internal power core. Holy shit.”
“What? That’s not good. What am I holding? How nervous should I be?”
“It’s just…” Lysa hummed. “The core in that thing is powerful enough to destroy our ship. If it blew up? Easily.”
“But it’s not volatile, right?”
“No. It’s very stable. I’m quite frankly baffled about how they crammed so much power into such a small space. We couldn’t do it. Humanity, I mean.” Lysa lowered the scanner. “We should get it back to the ship to check it out. I need the bigger computer to perform a proper analysis. And the three-dimensional scanner can do a full assessment.”
“Do you think it’s a good idea to do that?”
“How else are we going to examine it?” Lysa tilted her head. “Do you have any ideas?”
“I don’t know. Maybe we should observe it for a few hours. Make sure it’s not going to disintegrate or something creepy. That thing could’ve been holding the outside structure intact. If we mess with it before we know, and the core gets exposed, it could be extremely dangerous. Don’t you think?”
“Yes, and no. Okay. Why don’t we examine the rest of this place before we head out? That way, we’ll give it a chance to do whatever. Will that make you happy? Or at least more comfortable?”
“I’m good with that.” Kyle gestured to the left. “I’ll bring it with me over here. You want to check the other side?”
“Sure.” Lysa paced away. “But I’m willing to bet you anything we’ve found the only important thing in this entire place.” She rose her voice to be heard. “No matter what else this place holds, that weird cube proves everything. Anyone who thinks we made it up or built it ourselves just has to look at our finances to know we’re not that clever.”
I hope she’s right. Kyle looked at the box, weighing it in his hands. He expected it to be heavier but he put it at no more than fifteen pounds max. The sides felt tough, the whole thing gave off a sense of density like
