“You must be prescient then,” I said looking at my future.
“Say what?” Denny gave me a confused look.
“It means you can see the future Denny; I was flippant.”
“Oh, I see. Well, I think I have gotten to know you a little bit over the last day or so.”
I nodded and turned back to the SUV, I grabbed a pair of binoculars that I had stashed in the glove box. We weren’t all that far from the plantation, but I wanted a close up before I ventured in.
The air was bothering me, was it the heat or was the air somehow different in the plantation? Nor could I discount the fact that I might be looking at a mirage, I hoped that wasn’t the case. But reality was a bitch, and I had to face the possibility that this was nothing more than a hallucination.
I walked back to Denny and took a deep breath before bringing the binocs to my eyes. Before the plantation started, I saw the shimmer of the heat wave. Finally, I looked at the plants, my salvation.
For something that granted immortality, they seemed rather unimpressive. Small and green, just like Denny said, and I saw the little red flecks. The leaves were floating instead of swaying in a breeze or heat haze.
The air around was thick and very different to what was directly outside the plantation. I let the binoculars drop; this could be a serious problem. What the hell was it, water or air that I could breathe?
“What did you see?” Denny asked.
“The plants look like you described, but the air is weird. I can’t figure out if it’s air or water or something in between.”
I rubbed my eyes; this was a pain in the ass. I had to go in; there was no question about it. But what the hell would happen? I kicked some of the sand in front of me; I hated this. The unknown always bugged the hell out of me. Ironic considering that I had worked for the Man so long.
Screw it, I would go and deal with whatever the air was. Maybe if I moved fast enough, I could get a few plants and make it out before anything happened. Well, anything worse than already had.
I opened the trunk of the SUV and took out a container I had put in earlier that would hold the plants upright and safe. And a small trowel, not that I knew what the hell to do with gardening tools usually, but I guess I would be learning. Junior Botanist in the making.
“Be careful in there, don’t take unnecessary risks.”
“I sure will try not to, but I need a closer look at those plants.”
He grunted, “And maybe later you can explain to me why they are so important?”
“If I pull this off Denny we’ll have a lengthy conversation about these plants,” I said, “And the benefits they have.”
“Ok, sounds intriguing. Please be careful, though. I touched the building, but the air looks funny on that side.”
I peered into the haze, trying to penetrate the heat wave and figuring out the quality of the air over the fields. Nothing illuminated what I had seen through the binocs. Shit, I was scared. What if I died the moment I stepped into those fields?
I jumped as Denny’s hand landed on my shoulder, “You don’t have to go in if you don’t want to.”
He smiled at me in what I assumed was a comforting manner; I hadn’t tried that expression in a very long time. I shook my head; I didn’t have much longer, so it was now or never.
“Thanks, Denny, but it has to happen.”
“One of those things we will discuss at some point?” He said.
“I imagine so. I hate to make promises and not keep them. So yes, we will discuss all of this eventually.”
I took a deep breath and started walking, the plantation getting closer swiftly. Or rather, I was getting closer quickly. Semantics but with the oddity in front of me I wasn’t entirely sure if I was going towards it or if it was coming to me.
Far quicker than I had thought but slower than I had hoped I reached the edge of the field of plants. They were small all right, I could see far into the distance, and it was a sea of green. I tentatively pushed my hand into the air over the field. It felt cooler than the air on my side. It felt heavier and moist; it settled on my hand like water.
I was freaking out; I couldn’t breathe water! I pulled my hand out and looked at it carefully, it didn’t seem sopping wet, but it was very moist. Which would be weird and uncomfortable to breathe but I shouldn’t die.
Well, maybe not right away. Hopefully, if I were fast enough, I could hold my breath and grab a few plants close to the edge and get out again. I was a coward, shit; I was horrified at the thought of being unable to breathe.
Yeah, I totally had a fear of being buried alive and unable to breathe. We all had things we were scared of; I know you have something that wakes you up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night.
Breathing, slow and steadily I took a step in between the rows of neatly lined up Shi plants. I stood quietly in the bounty of immortality, not breathing. Peering around it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.
There was a cool breeze moving the leaves around, a slight rustle in the air. The heat haze was behind me; I could see it clearly but here I felt nothing like that. It was like I was drifting on the water of some ocean somewhere, the golden glow surrounding me with peace and bliss.
After a few moments, I had to suck in some air and oh how that hurt. It felt nothing like what I had come to understand as air; this was a fire. Pure and simple, if I breathed this in for too long, I was sure my lungs would burn up.
I panicked but bent down and opened my case. Trowel in hand I started gently extricating the first plant. It came out smoothly and was such a beautiful thing, the size of a fern, and the fragrance was freshness personified. It hurt to breathe but the Shi made the pain worth it.
I scooped out dirt and put a goodly amount in the bottom of the case, and then gently transferred the plant into it. The case would hold at least four of the plants; I hoped that was enough.
My lungs were aching, but there was no time to pay attention that, I needed to work gently but quickly. These beauties had to be harvested and brought with me. After what felt an eternity to my lungs, I had four Shi plants nestled comfortably in the case.
I closed the case carefully and turned around to return to my side of the plantation. I gasped painfully when I saw the divide between the two places. My paranoia had been such that I hadn’t seen the most remarkable thing about the place I had stepped into.
The air was different because I was on a different planet.