RB Chapter 41 All Spectrum Eyes
After dinner, the two boys headed back into their room. Elec hit the sack and within a few minutes, he was snoring.
Eric was still in a state of excitement! Adrenaline coursing through his veins. He couldn't wait to test his abilities!
He entered the virtual reality pod and went into the virtual Kampala city.
------
Ivy was stroking Leah's hair in a green themed room. Leah had no idea because she was sleeping soundly. She hadn't woken up a single time ever since Ivy brought her home. It was the effect of the drug Ivy herself had doused her with.
"Leah, my daughter. I took revenge for you. But everything went haywire with other people's meddling." She mumbled before sighing wistfully.
She had seen how Elena had turned out and if she wasn't broken, that would be a miracle.
She didn't wish for the same thing to her daughter that's why guilt was eating away at her. It was also one of the reasons she chose not to persist in staying when Leo had told her that her work was done.
It pained her to see that someone's daughter had ended up like that due to her actions.
"I hope they manage to save her."
------
When Eric entered the virtual city, the first thing he did was head northwards. He was going to that forest. This time, he didn't bring along a weapon. He wanted to test the limits of his abilities. A weapon would only get in the way.
The moment he walked out of the north gate, he was greeted by quietness and darkness, a bad time to head into the forest. The day was simulated to follow the outside.
It was currently night and the chirping of various insects was all he could hear the moment he stepped into the forest. But he knew that all wasn't what it seemed, most mutated animals came out at night! They were masters of the forest terrain, unlike him a newbie.
His simulated symor suit was black and if you didn't look closely, you would never know that he was moving! He was so quiet! Except for his dark blue eyes, everything else was dark.
He was trekking along at a snail's pace, the night wasn't exactly his friend, so he had to make sure he wasn't caught off guard. The mutated animals had night vision, something he lacked.
As his eyes moved around cautiously in the dark, a burst of light entered his vision, almost blinding him!
He hurriedly closed his eyes but what shocked him and caused his mouth to hang open, was that some of the light could pass through his eyelids to reach his eyes!
The forest had lit up bright like everything was producing light!
"What happened!?" A question escaped his lips as he dropped his vigilance unconsciously. Light in a myraid of colors was reaching his eyes!
"What is this!?" He wondered! He once again opened his eyes and they weren't as bright as before. It looked like they either automatically regulated the light or his brain had developed a way to interprete this voluminous amount of information falling into his eyes.
It was brighter than even day! There was nothing which could escape his vision. He could even see light emitted by a few organisms a few feet under the ground!
"Am I seeing things in all color spectrums?" That idea appeared in his mind.
His dark blue eyes had turned a lighter shade and now, they were taking in the scenery.
He had a hunch that if he willed it, he could even log out of this illusory world. After all, all the images here were all in his brain, like a dream. He could simply will them to vanish.
His tense and cautious posture changed into one of more confidence as he strutted deeper into the forest.
He was amazed by the vibrancy of the forest the deeper he went.
it was like he was looking at a three dimensional, four dimensional painting!
All forms of organisms entered his eyes as he headed deeper. He even managed to judge by their colors how strong they were! Some were bright to an extent that he judged them to be at the same level as him, while others were so dim that they barely registered.
So far the ones he had seen weren't the night wondering kind. They were tucked away in their lairs asleep. He skirted around some of those which looked like they would be troublesome.
Something big but too dim to be of any threat entered his vision. His brain was processing information from all the color spectrums to give him a detailed image. This creature looked to be a bird. It was a wonder how it had grown that big.
What bothered him though was that it was looking straight at him. Not doing anything, but just moving its head to follow him.
He saw that its eyes contained a curiosity that showed its intelligence.
"Why are you here?" Eric almost tripped on a branch when that high pitched voice entered his ears. He took on a battle stance and looked around vigilantly.
"Who's there?" He whispered. Shouting in the night was dangerous.
'I thought I was the only one in the forest this night. Could it be that there are others who hunt at night? Of course!? People with night vision!' He came to such a realisation.
'But why can't I see anyone? I can see in every color spectrum but I don't see anyone! How come my all spectrum eyes, 'he chose to name them like that', can't see him.
"Boy! Why are you looking around? You were looking at me just now!"
"What?" A realisation hit Eric and he hurriedly whipped his head around to stare at the bird. It was still dim in his vision, which meant that it was weak.
"How can you talk?" He asked.
"I ate a human and copied his vocal cords. Why are you sauntering as if you own the forest?" It asked.
Eric could see its beak opening and closing. He was still vigilant. This bird was clearly not normal.
"What does that have to do with you?" He asked.
"Hahahaha...this is hilarious! Boy! This is our time! Most humans wouldn't dare to encroach in the night! Could it be that you are one of those really strong humans?" It asked.
'Wow! The people who created this virtual world are geniuses!' Eric praised in his mind. These creatures didn't lose out in intelligence with humans.
He had only heard of such creatures when he had perused intelligence regarding the creatures in the wilderness.
"I see...your eyes are special. It isn't the telltale glow of night vision, but those little arcs of electricity mean that there is more to your eyes." The bird continued.
Eric couldn't identify the species it had evolved from. It was like a parrot but had the head of an owl.
Those big yellow eyes had a shimmer which was causing a tingling in his spine.
"I want those eyes!" It shouted.
"What do you mean? You must know that you can't truly get my eyes, right?" Eric was sure that this bird understood that it was in a virtual world.
"There are secrets to this world that you don't know." A hint of smugness in its voice.
"Oh!" Eric was truly surprised. Now he was even more cautious.
Its dark claws which were gripping the branch let go and it dived down towards him.
A look of shock appeared in his eyes the moment the bird took off. He even blinked as tears rolled down his cheeks!
The previously dim bird in his vision had lit up with a blindingly bright light.
It was like it had been able to camouflage all the emissions from its body! And when it moved, it had lit up like a sun in his vision!
'This is bad!' He hurriedly ducked into the undergrowth and ran.
The bird was hot on his heels from above. Eric made sure not to run in a straight line. He was making sharp corners around trees.
"Little boy! There is no use running! You can't escape from me!" The bird's voice spread around the forest.
At first Eric thought the bird was going to provoke the other creatures, but what appeared in his vision was different! The other beasts were cowering in their lairs not daring to come out. The forest had gone quiet except for the two beings who were engaging in a chase.
"What do I do? This bird is stronger than me!" That's what Eric reached as a conclusion. He was sure that there was no way he could win! This bird was probably equal to the clan leaders.
He had decided to head deeper. He was sure that if he tried to head back into the city, the bird would surely stop him, but now, it was toying with him since he was moving deeper.
Twigs snapped! The undergrowth brushed off his symor and dew coated his body.
He could feel the wet liquid through the armor. But now wasn't the time to care about such minor things! His life was on the line!
TRIVIA
The mantis shrimp, it has a membrane instead of eyes which can pick up all colors of the spectrum including UV light. Eric can even see waves. Electromagnetic, radio, gamma, and the others. But his eyes can regulate the amount if light that reaches his photo receptors so that he doesn't go blind.
What if you had a membrane like that instead of skin, imagine the possibilities!