"Gro, why do you think King Ur wants us to capture these outsiders?"
A Bagda, hidden among the tree crowns and dressed in garments made of leaves, quietly asked his companion.
"I don't know," Gro replied curtly.
"Even if you don't know, you can at least speculate. King Ur's orders may seem random, but they always have a purpose."
"Not interested. What's the point of guessing? Even if I figure it out, what good does it do? Being king isn't for just anyone. All we need to do is stay by his side and faithfully carry out every command he gives."
Over the years, watching Muria lead the Ikonan tribes of the Ayalei Forest through various changes, Gro had become a diehard loyalist of Muria.
Coo! Coo! Coo!
As the two Bagda were about to continue their conversation, a clear bird call echoed from the distant treetops, signaling the presence of their target. The two Bagda immediately fell silent.
...
"Wow, so this is Pandora! It's so beautiful! If I could, I'd love to take off my helmet and breathe in this world's fresh air!"
In a forest not far from the base, a team in protective suits was slowly moving through the woods. A blonde, blue-eyed girl, holding a recording device, curiously scanned her surroundings, her voice as clear as a songbird's.
"Ajie, if you want to die, you can take off your helmet," a female companion half-jokingly responded, though there was a hint of malice in her voice.
"Mina, don't talk nonsense. The atmosphere on Pandora contains trace elements that are lethal to humans. Without our suits, we wouldn't survive here for more than ten minutes."
The team leader, a tall woman with black hair, spoke sharply. She then turned to the lively, bouncing blonde girl, Ajie, and sternly said, "Ajie, remember the name of this world—Pandora. Yes, it's beautiful, but that beauty hides dangers that could kill you. You not only need to be wary of the air but also the plants and animals. They can take your life in an instant."
"Got it, Dr. Ellen!" The two girls obediently lowered their heads in acknowledgment after the reprimand.
"And that goes for all of you, not just them," Dr. Ellen Hallman added, glancing sternly at the rest of her students.
"Alright, let's start the fieldwork. Observe all the plants around you and compare them with your recording devices. If you find any species not listed in the database, report it to me immediately. You'll earn extra credit!" Ellen, a botanist and pharmacologist, instructed her students. Her team was mostly female, with less than a third of them being male, a result of her field of study.
She specialized in researching herbal remedies and was obsessed with developing medicines to preserve vitality, slow aging, and even extend life. This focus had attracted the attention of many influential figures, allowing her to bring her students on an expedition to a base dedicated to extracting energy minerals.
While Dr. Ellen and her students eagerly collected plants in the hope of discovering the secret to immortality, hidden eyes among the foliage were watching them...
"Ah!" A sharp, sudden scream echoed through the forest, cutting off abruptly, leaving the area in silence. The researchers, engrossed in the exotic beauty of Pandora's flora, were instantly on alert.
"Who screamed just now?" Dr. Ellen asked nervously, though there was a faint tremor in her voice.
"Dr. Ellen, it was Lar!" a trembling male student raised his hand. He was Lar's close friend and recognized the scream from their occasional pranks.
"Lar? Where is he? What happened? Find him!" Dr. Ellen ordered urgently.
"Lar!" "Lar!"
Panicked shouts echoed through the forest. It wasn't long before they found Lar's recording device abandoned in the underbrush.
"This is Lar's recorder!" one of the male students picked up the device, terror in his eyes as he realized there was no sign of Lar nearby.
"Contact the base immediately!" Dr. Ellen commanded decisively, turning to the four soldiers assigned to protect them.
The soldiers didn't immediately follow the command. One lifted his rifle, scanning the surroundings cautiously. Having been stationed here for two years, he knew how dangerous this world was.
When no immediate threat appeared, another soldier attempted to contact the base, only to find the communicator emitting nothing but static. The connection had been cut off.
"There's a high-energy lifeform nearby! Its energy field is disrupting our communication!" one soldier shouted in terror. Many things could block signals, but being this close to the base, only one explanation made sense.
As soon as he finished speaking, a glowing stone hurtled from a distance, smashing into the power core of his exoskeleton armor, knocking him down instantly.
Within seconds, the remaining three soldiers raised their rifles and fired at the source of the stone. But before three seconds had passed, three more stones flew in from different directions, striking their backs and disabling them just as swiftly.
"What's happening?" The sudden, terrifying attack left the group of students, fresh out of the safety of academia, frozen in shock.
Then, from all directions, figures clad in white glowing patterns emerged from the foliage, their expressions emotionless as they looked upon the intruders.
"It's the Bagda!" Dr. Ellen's face paled at the sight. She had done her research and knew that a single Bagda was as powerful as a humanoid mech.
"Respected Bagda warriors, we are just scholars. If we've angered you by collecting plants, I sincerely apologize and will offer compensation!"
Sensing the danger, Dr. Ellen raised her hands and spoke through a translator, hoping to defuse the dire situation.
"Outsiders, remove all tracking devices that would allow your people to find you. Keep only the life-support systems necessary for survival and follow us quietly. We guarantee your safety."
...
Five days later, as a group of captives was being escorted toward Cloudview Peak, a pleading voice, filled with sobs, echoed through the forest. Dr. Ellen clutched her student Ajie in her arms, tearfully begging the Bagda around them:
"Please, can you send my student back? Without her life-support system, she'll die!"
"What do we do?" A Bagda, visibly flustered, looked at his companions. Ajie had tried to escape, and when he caught her, he had accidentally shattered her helmet.
"Take her back to King Ur. He'll know what to do," another Bagda decided after a moment of thought, glancing at the now pale and lifeless Ajie.
...
At Cloudview Peak, inside a crude yet massive palace, a group of dejected outsiders sat on the ground, their faces filled with confusion and despair.
"Dr. Ellen, Ajie has no vital signs!" Mina reported, her voice trembling with fear as she examined Ajie's lifeless body.
"I see," Dr. Ellen replied, her heart sinking into a pit of hopelessness.
"What do they want with us?" one student angrily shouted, clenching his fists.
"Who knows? But it seems they don't intend to kill us," another student remarked.
"What good is that? If our life-support systems break, we'll die here anyway!" A male student, his face pale, glanced fearfully at Ajie's body, realizing how close death was.
As the group wrestled with their fear and uncertainty, an overwhelming pressure suddenly filled the room, making their hearts race uncontrollably.
Moments later, golden light flooded into the palace, banishing all shadows, while the weight of the pressure increased, making every heartbeat thunder in their chests.
"Ah, sorry!" A warm voice broke the tension as the blinding golden light began to fade, revealing a towering figure before them.
It was a giant, tall and well-proportioned, with long black hair and eyes that glowed faintly gold. His blue skin was adorned with softly glowing golden patterns, and an aura of reverence and power radiated from him, making everyone instinctively want to kneel.
"What is this?" Dr. Ellen muttered, almost in a trance, as she stared at the godlike figure.
"I am King Ur, ruler of the 100,000 Ikonans in the Ayalei Forest," Muria introduced himself with a smile, turning his gaze to Ajie's pale, lifeless form.
"I apologize for the disturbance caused by my knights. Fortunately, they haven't harmed any of you."
"Ajie is dead, and you still claim none of your knights harmed us!" A male student shouted, consumed by grief and fear for the future after losing the girl he secretly admired.
"Dead? So, according to your civilization's definition of death, this girl is already deceased." Muria approached the lifeless Ajie, looking down at her. "However, in my eyes, she's still alive!"
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