Aria was the first to turn her head to him, her eyes landing onto Ryan's with curiosity."What is it?" she asked barely above a whisper.
Ryan still looking up at the nozzle, replied"I think I've found where the water would be supplying the plants from," His gaze was fixed on the tiny droplets of water forming at its tip.
Samuel's head slightly turned towards Ryan in interest, as he awaited further explanation.
"Where?" Samuel asked and Ryan pointed to the nozzle, his other hand tracing the path of the water droplets.
Aria looked at Ryan with awe, her gaze lingering on his features. His handsome face that was made with a chiseled jawline, and the piercing dark eyes that made her heart skip a beat. She admired not only his physical strength but also his intelligent and resourceful mind.
"Genius," she whispered, lowly but Samuel nodded in agreement, "Whoever built this knew what they were doing. This system could sustain us for some years." Aria was referring to Ryan as the genius but she wouldn't lie that the person who made this place was a freaking mastermind.
Samuel and Aria both raised their heads up as they took in the sight of each table having a nozzle at the ceiling for the drip irrigation system.
"Wow, this is impressive," Aria breathed."Whoever designed this thought of everything. This must have taken years to develop."
"So, how can we turn it on to spray?" Samuel asked as they all looked at the ceiling.
Aria turned to Ryan. "Do you think it's automatic?"Ryan shook his head. "I don't think so, there must be a control somewhere."
"Let's search the place again." As they searched, Aria asked, "What if it's voice activated?"
Ryan chuckled in amusement. "That might be a possibility," he said and before anyone could react Samuel shouted "On," he commanded but nothing happened.
"See, not voice activation," Samuel said grumpy.
Aria nodded thoughtfully, her long brown ponytail hair swaying gently as she moved. "And if it was, the owner would have programmed it to recognize only their voice," she added with logic.
"Good point. So, let's find the control panel" Ryan said and they began to search again, Aria scanned the walls, her gaze sweeping across the concrete surface, searching for any hidden panels or buttons.
Samuel moved to the shelf in the back, his eyes scanning the dusty surface. The fluorescent lights above illuminating the fine layers of dust coating every surface.
Samuel saw something resembling a remote control nestled between the wall and the back of the shelf, its black a plastic casing standing out in the drab surroundings. The remote's surface was scratched and worn.
"Maybe we're looking for a remote, not hidden buttons," Samuel called out to Ryan and Aria, picking up the remote from the place.
Ryan and Aria turned to see Samuel's hand as he held up the remote control. Samuel examined the remote, his fingers tracing the buttons. "Looks like a remote," he said.
"Let's try it," Aria suggested with optimism as she gazed at the remote control in Samuel's hand.
The remote that was held firmly in Samuel's hand, had only two buttons on it, one was colored red and the other green.
"Which should I try?" Samuel asked, seeking confirmation from them, if it was only him, he would have acted but he is starting to feel comfortable with this new people. His dark blonde hair was still a mess, and his eyes reflected the weariness at the remote control.
Ryan shrugged. "Try the red one first," he said, measured.
Aria shook her head vigorously in disagreement. "No, no," she said firmly, Ryan's eyebrows rose in curiosity. "Why not?" he asked.
"Think about it," Aria started to explained in simple logics. "Green means go, like traffic lights and red means stop."
Ryan nodded in understanding, his expression changing to admiration. "I didn't think of that" he praised.
Samuel nodded, impressed by Aria's quick thinking. "Green it is, then," he decided and he pressed the green button.
There was a brief pause and that was the moment they held their breaths while giving eachother side glances, the trio waited with bated breath for the irrigation system to respond to the remote command.
"splash" A loud sound echoed through the room, shattering the silence and signaling the system's activation. The irrigation system sprang to life, the little nozzles at the ceiling spraying water in precise, directly onto the empty tables where the plants would soon take their roots.
"Fuck yeah" Samuel exclaimed, that's what am talking about, he took a step forward.
Aria grinned with triumph, her shoulders relaxing in relief after all she would have been blamed if her suggestion was wrong. "Told you!" she said, looking at Ryan.
Ryan chuckled, relief washing over his face too, they were all tensed. "Nice work," he praised.
The sound of dropping water filled the air, echoing off the concrete walls, a soothing melody that seemed almost surreal.
As they watched, the tables began to fill with water, the liquid reflecting the harsh fluorescent lights above, creating a mirror effect.
"Off it, we don't need the water to go to waste," Ryan said practical, They don't know how much the water supply is to let it get to waste.
Samuel nodded and pressed the red-colored button this time.
The button clicked softly and the spraying water stopped, leaving them into silence again but the only sound was the gentle lapping of water against the tables.
"Now we just have to plant the seeds," Ryan said rubbing his hands together.
"Let's get started," Aria replied, "but where's the soil?" She looked around the room, searching for any sign of the essential material.
"That's a good question," Samuel said, "We didn't see any soil when we were searching for hidden buttons." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, it was true they hadn't seen soil, not even when they were scouring the room for hidden controls. They remembered checking every corner.
"Maybe it's hidden," Ryan suggested, come don't look at him, it might be hidden as the tunnel was full of hidden things."This place is full of surprises."
"Or maybe we overlooked it," Samuel added and Aria nodded. "We should check again." she turned to face Ryan and Samuel.