The Astralaceaes

Chapter 44: Boarding the Comet

"Board the Comet?" Mek-Tek barked, pivoting his head towards Haledon. "Are you out of your forswyn mind?"

"Yeah, there's no way that's a good idea." Spark agreed with Mek-Tek as she raised her empty hands. "I don't even have my daggers."

Gazeas glanced between Haledon and the Comet. Her eyes widened as the pink glow washed over her, and she realized why the Druid was pressuring forward.

"This is your dream, isn't it?" She asked, looking back at him with a curious look.

"Yes, and I feel that boarding the Comet is what we're supposed to do!" Haledon said confidently.

Haledon felt a familiar calm wash over his body as though he was again living in that first dream. He shook it off and looked to the Guild.

"I think we should board the Comet," Gazeas said to the group with an acknowledging nod.

"You Astra Druids and your longing to become compost," Witch-Hazel remarked as they tapped at the Mecharrion panel, enhancing the view of the Comet's trailing arm. "Since I'm the tiebreaker—and decided we're going in—this is where we need to land."

Haledon leaned closer, examining the odd spherical shape that rolled over and into the liquid metal arm of the cosmic jellyfish. Attempting to count the sides, he lost sight of the polyhedron as it dipped beneath the living metal ocean.

"How do you know?" Haledon asked Witch-Hazel.

"Sparrow and I encountered a Comet once before. We thought it was the only one and that we had disabled it—either way, we were wrong. We discovered that the engine is in this structure and should be a singularity with a mass far greater than any of the Scouts. Enough for an escape."

"This is a bad idea," Mek-Tek grumbled as he gripped the reigns to guide the Broadhead towards the tail. "Uh—everyone? We don't have control anymore."

"What do you mean?" Haledon asked as he watched a confused Mek-Tek snap at the reigns and pull them from side to side.

"I mean, my organic override was further overridden by the Comet. And it's pulling us directly into the bell!"

"Well, we don't want to be there!" Witch-Hazel bellowed and began to dance their hands over the panel.

"We need to retake control of this ship," Mek-Tek said with a forced calm voice before inhaling deeply from his straw. Exhaling a vapour cloud, he clicked away at the metal console. "Witch-Hazel, get the primary power crystals rooted and ready for a restart."

"Got it—Haledon, Gazeas," Witch-Hazel ordered the Druids. "I need you to place your hands here and repeat after me, 'Arbor abstergo ferrum.' Got it? Don't stop until after the reset."

Witch-Hazel gripped Haledon's hand and put it beside their bramble frame on the console. Tapping the metal for both Druids to begin, Witch-Hazel began to click away at the hovering red lights.

"Arbor abstergo ferrum," Haledon began to chant alongside Gazeas. He watched as plants crawled from his hand and across the board.

Witch-Hazel's fingers became knotted amongst the crawling roots, but their hands failed to slow. The metal began to disappear beneath the vines, and Witch-Hazel's hands eventually dug deep into the console. Releasing a low grunt, they withdrew a thick root made of bundled smaller root hairs.

"I have the primary power roots bound," Witch-Hazel told Mek-Tek. "Tell me when you're ready."

"Three, two, one," Mek-Tek reached into his panel. "Now!"

Witch-Hazel bent the root until its crystalline interior cracked in half with a loud snap. The ship went dark, with only the light of the Mecharrion bomb casting liquid reflections against the metallic interior.