Chapter 13: The Jade Disc's Stellar Light
Dr. Alice Winters' discovery struck the vault's cold, stagnant air like a stone dropped into a dead pond, sending ripples through the silence.
"The lunar far side?"
Sophia Reed was the first to react, narrowing her eyes. Her sharp gaze swept over the smooth Taiji Jade Disc before returning to Alice's face, flushed with excitement.
"Doctor, are you certain? That place is nothing but rocks. Every probe humanity ever sent has combed it. What could possibly be hidden there? An alien base? Or the home turf of your 'Void Watcher'?"
"Not a base."
Alice shook her head, her finger hovering just above the projected star map emanating from the Jade Disc, as if afraid to disturb the intricate points of light.
"The energy signatures are entirely different. The Void Watcher's signal carried intense spatial turbulence and damage artifacts. But the signal I detected from the lunar far side before the Dark Day… was 'colder', 'quieter'."
She paused, looking at Jack. "Like a machine dormant for countless eons, its basic functions only just awakened by the surge of the Aether Tide. And Sergeant Harper's mention of the 'Arbitrator Protocol'… it also originated from the lunar far side! This is no coincidence!"
Jack Miller's heart pounded like a drum against his ribs.
The Jade Disc's resonance, the ancient tome's vibration, Alice's scientific corroboration, Harper's dying words… every thread converged inexorably on that desolate celestial body!
He struggled closer to the Jade Disc, his slinged arm making his movements awkward. He reached out with his uninjured right hand, hesitated, then carefully placed his palm over the cool center of the Taiji symbol.
Upon contact!
A current of cool, pure energy, far clearer and more potent than before, flowed into his palm through the Pericardium 8 (PC8) acupoint!
This energy felt utterly different from the power he'd drawn from the ancient tome. It was purer, vaster, carrying an ancient, boundless will. Instantly, it soothed the feverish exhaustion and pain-induced agitation within him!
The searing pain in his arm vanished as if doused in ice water, replaced by a profound, soothing coolness!
Even more astonishing, the wisp of Aether Flow within him, weak as gossamer, began to strengthen and grow active under the nurturing guidance of this external cool energy! Like a parched riverbed receiving fresh spring water, it spontaneously began circulating along a faint, yet more complex pathway (vaguely corresponding to a main, dark-gold energy channel in the tome's meridian diagram), perceptible to his innate perception!
"Ah…"
Jack couldn't suppress a sigh of pure relief. The tension left his brow, a trace of color returning to his pale face. It felt like a desert traveler finding an oasis, or an exhausted explorer sinking into a warm pool.
"Jack?" Alice looked at him with concern.
"I'm fine… better! Better than I've felt in a long time!" Jack's voice trembled with astonished joy. "The Jade Disc… it's nourishing me? Guiding my Aether Flow?"
Sophia, arms crossed, watched Jack's near-rapturous expression and gave a derisive snort.
"Tch. Getting high off touching a rock? Looks like the apocalypse gave you a serious case of cabin fever, Prophet." Her barbed wit remained, though a flicker of curiosity and well-concealed concern lurked in her eyes.
"But since this 'battery pack' works so well, maybe put it to practical use? Like… welding this damn door shut tighter? Or conjuring some hot tea? My stash ran dry yesterday." She tapped her empty thermos, producing a hollow clang. Her humor was a needle piercing the cloud of despair.
Jack focused, attempting to guide a portion of the strengthened, Jade-nourished Aether Flow towards his fingertip.
This time, it was effortless!
A point of golden luminescence, significantly brighter and steadier than before, ignited at his fingertip. It held for nearly five seconds before slowly fading.
"Whoa!" Sophia whistled, genuinely impressed this time. "Beats a lighter any day! And the staying power's… not bad." She added a suggestive wink, earning an exasperated eye-roll from Alice.
Alice, however, was riveted by the Jade Disc itself. The instant Jack channeled the energy, she noticed several of the faint points of light within the concentric rings etched onto the jade surface flickered weakly! As if briefly activated by Jack's power!
"Energy interaction!" Alice breathed, her voice tight with excitement. "Jack, your Aether Flow… it might be a key! Try channeling energy… into the Taiji symbol! Just a trickle! Like… activating a Rune!"
Jack took a deep breath, centering himself. He carefully drew a wisp of the now-tamed, Jade-nourished Aether Flow within him, directing it through the PC8 point in his palm, and gently fed it into the center of the Taiji symbol on the Jade Disc beneath his hand.
Hmmm…
A faint tremor, seeming to originate from deep within the jade itself, resonated through the vault.
Then, something astonishing happened!
The Taiji pattern, inlaid with white and black jade against the dark jade background, suddenly glowed with soft, swirling light – luminous white and profound black! These lights flowed like living things, slowly rotating and merging along the S-curve of the Taiji!
Simultaneously, the concentric rings and stellar points etched around the Taiji seemed to awaken! A faint, yet distinctly visible, pale blue luminescence rose from the jade surface! Not all the points lit up; only some formed a fragmented, three-dimensional projection of a star map, hovering inches above the Jade Disc!
At the core of the projection was the Moon!
And at a precise coordinate point on the lunar far side, a symbol composed of nested geometric structures was highlighted! Its style was identical to the primordial glyphs bordering the star charts in the ancient tome!
"That's it!" Alice's voice shook with elation. "That's the signal source I detected! This symbol… is it spatial coordinates? Or… an activation command?"
"Fascinating…" Even Sophia, usually so caustic, was momentarily transfixed. The suspended, swirling luminescence of the 3D star map held a mysterious, cold beauty, like an observer deciphering the universe's code.
"So, the answer is a dot on a map? We need to throw a tea party on the lunar far side?" Her tone dripped with absurdity.
"Go to the Moon?" Jack gave a weary laugh, glancing at his sling. "In our current state, getting out of this building alive is wishful thinking." He ceased channeling energy. The Jade Disc's glow rapidly dimmed, the star map projection dissipating. The brief activation had drained his mental reserves once more.
"One bite at a time, one monster at a time," Sophia shrugged, her flippant mask sliding back into place.
"Priority one is survival. Harper's boys bought it outside, but that doesn't mean we're safe. We need to inventory supplies, make a plan, and…" she pointed at the vault's massive door, "…figure out what fresh hell is waiting out there."
Her words snapped the other two back to reality. The vault dampened most sound, but it wasn't silent. Faint tremors, distant muffled explosions, and an unsettling low-frequency hum seemed a constant backdrop.
The trio moved into action.
Sophia took position guarding the main door and the few air vents welded shut with steel plates, her ear pressed against the cold metal like an alert predator.
Alice returned to studying the Taiji Jade Disc, meticulously sketching the star map details and the enigmatic symbol in her notebook.
Jack, hampered by his injury, helped Sophia inventory the crates in the vault alongside her.
The haul was significant.
Beyond the medkit, they found:
Crates of military MREs (vacuum-sealed, expired but likely edible).
Large sealed barrels of distilled water.
Several intact cold-weather sleeping bags and wool blankets.
A basic toolkit (wrench, pliers, hacksaw).
Most precious: a small diesel generator and sealed drums of fuel tucked in a corner! Sophia confirmed the critical components were intact.
"Power means light, heat, maybe even charging," Sophia patted the generator, a glimmer of genuine relief in her eyes. "Dr. Winters, any juice left in your precious camera? Fancy filming a 'Vault Survival' documentary?"
Alice ignored the quip, wholly absorbed in replicating the complex symbol in her notebook.
Jack sat on a pile of blankets, attempting to circulate the Jade-nourished Aether Flow within him, focusing on its restorative effect on his body. The cool energy washed over his injuries, bringing continuous comfort, like tiny sparks of life flickering at the wound's edge.
• Just then, Sophia's ear, pressed against the door, twitched violently!
Her body snapped taut like a drawn bowstring. Silently, she raised her shotgun, training it on the door, her gaze sharp as honed steel.
"Shh!" Her hissed command was barely audible. "Outside… movement! Not Shadow Hunters… Footsteps? Many… light… but scattered…"
Jack and Alice's hearts leapt into their throats.
Jack immediately halted his energy circulation, scrambling for his Glock. Alice snapped her notebook shut, her eyes fixed on the door in alarm.
Beyond the heavy vault door, in the dead silence of the corridor, came the sound of footsteps – deliberately soft, deliberately suppressed – growing louder.
More than one person!
And… they had stopped right outside!
Then, a voice, deliberately low and thick with a Slavic accent, spoke in English through the metal:
"People inside! We know you are there! Sergeant Harper's men? Or civilians? We mean no harm! Just seeking safe place! Open door! Or we come in ourselves!" The words claimed "no harm," but the threat beneath them was palpable.
A cold, predatory smile touched Sophia's lips. She racked the shotgun's slide. The kachunk of a shell chambering was stark in the stillness.
She called back, her voice pitched low but carrying undeniable force and authority:
"Occupancy's full, friends! Try your luck elsewhere! Take one step closer, and I serve a buckshot buffet! All you can eat! Test me. I dare you."
She tilted her head slightly towards Jack and Alice, mouthing the words: "Get ready."
The fragile hope and brief sanctuary inside the vault shattered under the pressure of the unknown "guests" outside.
Sophia's knuckles whitened on the shotgun grip, the muscles in her legs coiled like steel springs beneath her tactical pants.
Alice gripped Jack's uninjured arm tightly, her fingers icy cold, her body trembling slightly, yet her eyes held an unnerving resolve.
Jack took a deep breath, feeling the strand of Jade-nourished Aether Flow within him – now docile yet resilient – slowly suffuse his limbs. It brought a faint, but tangible, surge of strength.
In the corner, the Taiji Jade Disc pulsed with its subtle inner light, the secret of its star map sinking back into shadow.
Survival became the only, and most immediate, "answer."