"What're you doing…" Celi pondered, watching as Astra dug through a cave, pulling on a specific plant, a village basin right besides her.
"Trying to win the favor of the people…" She grunted, her hands working to pull down on a vine that stuck itself to the walls of a cave. With a breath of effort, she planted her feet into the wall, tugging as hard as she could until the plant finally gave way, the root tearing from the wall as she staggered backwards onto her rear.
"There!" She cheered, showing Celi the plant she held. It was a series of purple vines, all wrapped around clusters of plump grain filled buds. "Analyze this, Celi!"
Celi huffs wearily, her gaze scanning the plant as its characteristics appear on the screen before her.
[Plant: Grainvine!]
[A specimen that attaches to the walls of damp caves, often brushing against animals that wander by! They attach their grains to their fur, in hopes the tired beast takes refuge in another cave not too far away! It also achieves pollination attracting bugs with the sweet scent of its vines! They're high in carbohydrates and starch!]
"I had a feeling the minute I saw those grains, does this mean we can make flour with this?" Astra asked, looking up at Celi with eyes of excitement.
"If you'd read the planet analysis you'd know…but yes—" Celi murmured, watching as Astra stood, dusting herself off.
"Alright let's get to work then!" Astra announced, immediately going for the next one on the cave walls.
"What do you hope to achieve with this?" Celi pondered, Astra turning to answer the question with a confident smile, as though it was obvious.
"The backbone of society of course!" She declared, her words couldn't be more vague. "We're going to make bread and wine!"
"Why?" Celi tilted her head to the side, confused by her tactics.
"Like I said Celi! It's to win over the people's favor! Show them the beauty of science! And food is a universal language." Astra managed to finally pull out another, practically out of breath by the end of it.
"Even if you manage to make this— what sane person would take food from the enemy," Celi questioned, seeing Astra nod slightly to the village entrance.
"I'm sure you noticed her," Astra hushed, both their gazes secretly falling on a younger Aelvarian, her lime green skin matched the color of her eyes, her face framed by flowing brown hair. The young girl's tail wagged in curiosity, her gaze more serious than she actually feels.
"I'm sure the curiosity of a child's gonna get the better of her eventually," Astra stated, wiping the sweat off her brow. "Besides if I don't win them over and Belk loses, who knows what'll happen to me."
"So you're doing it to save your own skin!" Celi snapped, disappointed by her shallow reason.
"Of course I am~" as always the young technician carries no semblance of shame.
'I know you're up to something…' The child thought, her gaze narrowing as she stared more intensely, 'The chief probably believes you but I don't!'
'With my eyesight, and knowledge of the forest, you can't hide anything from me!'
The morning wares on the sun soon descending behind the trees as the stars start to peek their heads through the sky above. Astra looked up at the dimly lit sky with a soft smile on her lips as she started to get to work.
"I think this place's good," She announces, stopping by a small cliffside near the river. She scanned the area, her eyes falling on a stone that's stuck within the cliff. "Let's get that out, Celi."
Celi nods and they both get to work, the little girl watching as they dug the rock out and started to wash it by the riverside.
'What're they doing…' She thought, her eyes narrowing skeptically.
Celi sat by the rock for hours, hitting the vines against the stone as the grains fell off, their strands from their hairy outer shell shimmering in the dim light.
"Alright, time to wash and grind these bad boys!" Astra grinned, Celi nodding at her command, dipping the basin into the river, filling it completely with water. When she brought it over, Astra dropped the grains into the water filled basin, watching as the strands float to the top.
Celi sighed as she watched Astra swirl her hand through the floating grains, separating the fibrous strands from the heavier seeds. She scooped up a handful of the cleaned grains and let them slip through her fingers, watching the moonlight glisten on the wet kernels.
"Now we grind these!" She grinned, her eyes turning to Celi. "Celi if you would~"
Celi sighed, a portal opening on the ends of the stone she washed, cutting them into a size small enough to be held before dropping it in Astra's hands.
"Perfect!"
The duo continued to work tirelessly, their little spy already all tuckered out and snoozing by the trees.
When the paste was done it was back to the basin, the young technician standing up and stretching for a moment. Grabbing eggs she snuck out from the dining hall, along with some potassium carbonate extracted from burnt ash using [master gatherer].
"Crack the eggs…" she murmured to herself, her hands cracking the shell and letting the yolk fall, pouring the potassium carbonate all the while.
"And done!"
Celi raised a skeptical brow. "And where exactly do you plan on baking it? You realize we don't have an oven, right?"
Astra waved a dismissive hand. "I'll figure it out. One step at a time, Celi." She stood up, stretching,
"Besides, with this we can make something else instead," Astra mused, stretching to the sky. The sound of the trickling river in front of them draining down the path.
"And what's that?" Celi pondered.
Astra smirked, her arms crossed as she took a minute to build suspense, "Ramen of course!"
After what seemed like hours of labor the duo finally managed it, watching as delicious steam drifted in the cold night sky, Astra pouring the homemade ramen into bowls before eating them with chopsticks made from the forest.
Her eyes light up in amazement, a soft hum coming from her lips as she relishes the fruits of her efforts. "It's so sweet!"
"Who knew the Grainvines would taste so good!" She fawned, her moment interrupted by the sound of a stomach growling in the distance, a devilish smirk crossing her face the moment she heard.
The young technician got up from where she was, walking over to the forest where the girl remained asleep.
Astra crouched near her, her hand gently nudging the girl.
"Hey~" She cooed softly, watching as the girl looked up with tired eyes, her gaze snapped wide open once she realized who it was, getting back as far as possible.
"W-what do you want!?" She demanded to know, making sure to keep her distance.
"Nothing, you just sounded hungry so, I brought you something," Astra smiles softly, watching as the girl stared at the bowl she held, the delicious smell clearly tempting her.
"I don't want it…" She lied, looking away reluctantly.
Astra sighed, taking a bite before her eyes, she watched as the noodles seeped past Astra's lips, her stomach growing even more restless at the sight.
"See?" She asked, her mouth filled with noodles as she continued to chew. "It's perfectly safe!"
Hesitant, the girl took the bowl from Astra, putting the rim of it to her lips as she tried it. Her eyes sparkling as the rich, sweet broth hit her tongue, the young Aelvarian drinking the whole bowl.
"Was it good?" Astra asked, her voice laced with curiosity as she watched the girl carefully wipe her lips with the back of her hand. The shy, almost hesitant expression on her face was a subtle contrast to the eager glint in her eyes. Slowly, the girl handed the empty bowl back to her, her fingers brushing the sides, as if reluctant to part with it.
"Can I have more... please?" she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.
Astra smiled softly, rubbing the head of the young girl before standing on her feet.
"Sure thing,"