mlyss

How goes it, Kelly?

Just finished logging the Polar Area's plant monitoring data. Most of our fifty-three newcomer plants show no abnormal traits, and have survived the initial observation period. But as you can see here...

This Sheath Zelkova by the door? These two severely curled up leaves are a sign of dehydration.

That patch of Icefield Cottongrass is clearly still growing, but the number of cotton balls hasn't been increasing much, and the amount of cotton fiber is lower than normal too.

That Square Sunflower is our most obvious case. Its disc florets should be always extending towards the sun, but it's drooping so low it's almost touching the soil.

All within expectations. We've only just begun planning out the vivarium's Polar Area, so we're lacking both data for integration and accumulated experience.

Quick, go ask Director Muelsyse about it. She'll definitely know where the problems lie.

(Speaking of which, there's something magical about the way the Director knows plants so well. Everyone's been secretly wondering if she really can talk to plants.)

(Don't go spouting nonsense now.)

Kelly, try resetting the parameters of this area's circulation system, and add some mycorrhiza bacteria to the substrate to promote the absorption of water and nutrients.

Director Muelsyse!

...But the parameters were precisely configured according to the data sent by Miss Magallan.

It's true that Maggy sent the plants, but she's just an explorer. What does she know about botany?

Every bit of biological data she collected is only true for when these plants are growing in Sami.

The vivarium is still too 'warm' for them.

Try lowering the temperature and humidity a little.

Alright, Director.

Next up is inspecting the Plateau Zone, right? Let's head there together.

(Moving fingers contentedly)

(Vigorously stretching)

Be careful, Sheath Zelkova. Your fingers have been curled up all this time, so take care to not strain your veins when stretching them out so suddenly.

Hey, don't get me started. Quit moving around so much, your cotton's flying all over my face.

What did that guy say earlier? The plateau area is just a little further up? Maybe we can talk to the legendary Stipa if I send my cotton flying a bit further.

You only just left Sami, so everything feels new to you, huh.

Hey, Square Sunflower. Why so quiet?

He's wilting. Where's his energy gone? I guess he's still not used to the new environment yet.

No, I haven't seen him eating or drinking at all, so my guess is that he's feeling a little moody.

So they <i>do</i> have emotions.

Who said that?

...It's raining.

It can rain indoors? Or is this that so-called circulation system?

What sort of rain is this? Why are the droplets sticking to my branches? I can't shake them off.

Hiya, fellas. Let's reacquaint ourselves, shall we? I'm Muelsyse.

You're here again.

Whoopsie daisy. I went to find Nasti to modify some equipment. She's not exactly the chatty type, so it took some time.

Anyhow, you guys are looking way peppier than before.

We make do.

At least you haven't been curling up your leaves on purpose, right?

I'm gonna be personally overseeing the Polar Area until the second batch of plants arrives next month, okay?

So I'll be switching up your substrate at noon. I redid the new formula according to the soil samples I got from Sami.

You'll get all the yummy nutrients you need through the 'rain' or 'dew' at random. We're scrapping the 'regular' pattern.

Lemme know if you need anything else. Terrain, air, soil, water, climate... what are the optimal conditions for you to survive? Don't be shy now, me and the vivarium don't judge.

You're so patient with us, Muelsyse.

I actually included a Polar Area when I first planned this place out, but no one from Ecological had been to Sami back then. So we shelved it.

But I've been directing ecological experiments at Rhine for the past few years, so I thought we had a solid enough foundation to...

Why Sami?

Many see it as an inaccessible and frigid region. Sealed off, isolated, mysterious, dangerous.

Well, it's not <i>just</i> Sami I'm interested in. I've got my peepers on every special ecosystem in Terra.

Sami's just specialer than most. Wetlands, forests, and icefield, in that order. A weird combo, really... Hmm, how do I put it? A little 'forced'?

Plus, while it <i>is</i> absolutely freezing compared to the centrum, it's got abnormally abundant biodiversity that doesn't conform to the laws of ecology at all.

So my best guess is that Sami's just really 'clean.'

'Clean'?

I took some physiological samples from you guys... The amount of Originium granules in your root systems is way lower than average.

Could you try dumbing that down for a plant?

Sami is by far the best environment for my experiments.

So, you want to recreate a 'Sami' in this giant glass house?

A glass house... uh-huh.

But why, Muelsyse?

Because I'm the youngest and bestest ecologist here at Rhine Lab, of course!

I've got both the ability and the responsibility to turn this glass house here into the cleanest place in Terra. It'll have the freshest air, the most hospitable climate, and the most nutritious soil.

It'll have the richest ecosystem ever, for every kind of fragile lifeform to freely thrive in.

That's what I've always been... um, pursuing?

(Forcefully shedding cotton)

(Shaking branches and leaves freely)

Hehe, thankies.

Is that something worth applauding?

Ah...

Square Sunflower! You scared the spit outta me, suddenly opening your mouth like that!

He's been like that ever since he arrived, more than half a month ago.

What a downer. He's always sulking about something.

He's still brooding over how he got transplanted from the forests of Sami to a strange city.

But what's done is done, so why not just get used to it here? One of my cotton balls floated into the water of the compartment next door, and I could taste the 'seawater's saltiness.'

Who knows? If you'd stayed in Sami you might be manure by now. The seeds of your special disc florets make you both fowlbeast fodder and a digestive aid for carnivores with big appetites.

You should spit out your cotton properly before spouting all that nonsense.

Hmph.

Muelsyse. Don't you want to know why I've been wilting since I got here? Aren't you curious?

A Square Sunflower's disc florets will always face the sun. True, your vivarium's lighting system can even simulate how the sunlight changes at different times of day.

It's very... what you people would call, 'advanced.'

...But in the end, it's no sun.

Hmm...

The real sun is outside your glass house. But remove this layer of glass, and this mix of soil, air, temperature, moisture, and microbial clusters will no longer be tenable.

Even if you perfectly replicated each and every grain of soil, gust of cold wind, and block of ice from Sami, this place would still be no different from the specimen box you put me in to bring me here.

Well... compared to most other plants, the way you photosynthesize is kinda special, so there's not much I can do about that.

That's not what I meant.

No, I gotcha.

Oceans, mudflats, forests, deserts, the Black Flow... Wherever you lift the veil of nature, you're bound to find a nice surprise.

Whether a place has four distinct seasons, is warm and pleasant all year round, has harsh extremes that flip from bitterly cold to scorching hot, or whatever else, it's just the result of natural evolution over thousands of years.

...And not a perfectly set up 'experimental environment.'

This place will never become 'Sami.'

Sheesh. Do you know how much I wish I could grab you fellas and show you around Rhine HQ and Trimounts?

Sure, Sami is a mystery to me. But science is just as much a mystery to you guys.

Science can help us break the boundaries of nature. Shape new environments. It can help us... find answers.

You're lying to yourself, Muelsyse.

Hmm?

A tech company's exploration platform has discovered the last surviving grove of Pale Conifers in the mountainous region of northern Columbia...

And what's that got to do with you?

There's a mountain village nearby, and though the population registry has been outdated for ages... some of the names in it match up with a missing persons list from Trenton.

Pretty sure not even Director Jara would be this concerned with what her employees get up to after hours.

Your behavior is far, <i>far</i> from gentlemanly, Justin Jr.

Hey now, don't get offended. I don't have any ulterior motives, and besides, I don't even know what you've been trying to track down.