Both footsteps were getting fainter right after the last alien spoke its words. Pressing my back against the large icy pillar, I peeked to the alien who was heading back to the quarter. After confirming that the other one was heading to its opposite direction, I could finally begin to tail it towards the quarter.
I guess I must follow this thing in order to get inside and look at that schematic. I must know what I may go against later!
I would not lie and must admit that these aliens were good at doing a makeshift construction on just very few days. Not only they managed to power their temporary quarter with a perfectly non-polluting energy source, but they are also somehow capable of constructing it without destroying the natural features of the cave.
I suppose construction engineers of the whole world should at least try to follow their examples, huh….
The closer I got to the quarter by tailing the specific alien, the more thrilled I got, not knowing what to expect nor think. One think that I knew for sure, was that if one of them spotted me and the whole facility went on alert, I had to use my handgun, shoot them right by their heads and hoping the penetration power of this Tokarev handgun is enough, unlike the .45 ACP and 9mm.
That, and I only have a total of approximately sixteen rounds including the ones inside the spare magazine, so I must make every shot counts. So far, my left arm had not been acting up again, especially since I entered the cave together with the others and I would like to think it would keep it that way.
Ah, finally we have arrived at the side door. I must wait for it to gain access and sneak fast inside while the barrier is still opened.
Hiding behind another icy pillar, I peeked at the alien on how it gained access inside. It first put its palm right at the center of the barrier that blocked it from going inside. After about five seconds, the barrier began to open from the center and widened up evenly to all eight directions. The access was then opened, it walked inside immediately after that.
Okay, I must be quick and keep my footsteps down now!
It was kind of a trouble for me since my feet could not move very fast unlike Ryan, and whenever I walk while crouching to dampen my footsteps, it was always very awkward for me to move. I did not know about Ryan, but Travis clearly had no trouble doing it for hours, and that enabled him to be in his sneaking mode for a long duration.
Then, the barrier suddenly began to close up again just when I get the tip of my feet right in front of the access.
Oh, come on! Give me a few more seconds!
I had no choice but to jump inside and hid behind the nearest wall in case the alien noticed something behind it. Good thing I could hold my breath for some period or it could rise its suspicions too. Its footsteps were not heard however, so I peeked out of the wall for a bit, and after confirming that the alien really did not turn back, I could tail it again, which was then more than twenty meters away from me.
This was more or less the features inside the hallway of the first floor I had entered into:
The main materials they used to construct their quarter was none other than the ice themselves, or at least I believed so since the skin on my fingertips felt a mild chill when they got contacted with the wall. At each of both edge upper sides along the wall, was a protrusion with bright yellow-greenish light illuminating the hallway. Again, the light must be coming from the bioluminescent plankton.
The floor was very smooth, not a single hole or dents caused by a makeshift construction process were found. Somehow, they also added a motif on the ceiling with each one having a distance of about four meters.
It amazed me on how smooth the surfaces of the hallway were; from the floor, the wall, the ceiling, and even the protrusion. I could not find any signs of flaw on how they constructed the facility at all….
No, now is not the time to be amazed with all this stuff; I have to follow that thing.
There was a T-junction just at the end of the hallway. The alien took the direction to the left, disappearing for my sight, and so I had to increase my pace to catch up with it.
I hope I do not make too much noise….
Turning left, there was a spiral staircase about fifty steps away from me and the alien had just begun to ascend it. Hiding again behind the corner of the wall, I recalled the similar structure and design of the spiral staircase. It resembled the one inside the mothership five years ago, especially since there seemed to be a large hole at the center of the staircase which could be a space for a small elevator to go up or down the quarter.
But it did not use that center elevator feature. So that facility is chief-exclusive only, huh….
The alien's footsteps were getting fainter, and thus it was time for me to follow it again upstairs.
Ascending up the stairs while keeping the noise of my footsteps as quiet as I could, but when I reached the second floor of the quarter the alien was not there since the entire floor was completely empty. At least, that was what I believed.
I had to pick up my pace when ascending the stairs again since the footsteps were no longer heard. I was a little worried if I had lost track of it, but to my relieve it was indeed on the third floor.
And was apparently talking with another of its kind….
"Someone from outside told you to come here?"
"Yes. I thought that I will have to call for someone once I get here, but here you are."
I peeked a little, and it seemed that the two of them were going to actually get inside the special room and guard it from the inside. It would be very difficult for me to get in then, but suddenly one of them seemed to get a call just as they were about to step inside.
"Yes? Wait, repeat that please."
"What is it?"
"Rooftop, now."
And just like that, the two of them rushed back to the spiral staircase without realizing me hiding against the wall just outside the hallway of the third floor. It was not that long before their loud and hasty footsteps could no longer be heard, providing me with the opportunity to enter the special room.
Well, that took care of the crowd….
Finally entering their special room, a large octagonal table was standing right at the center of it. There were five buttons on one side of the table, certainly with either of them would show me the schematic of their gunship.
I have to take guess? Let us see….
I pushed the button at the middle, and to my surprise, it was the right button to show the overall view of the gunship.
It was proved to be yet another evidence of the high technology gap in defence, particularly in aerospace and spacecraft between humans and aliens.