Section Four

Leon sighed, swinging a foot, staring out at the ocean. He had climbed one of the trees next to the base, and was now about fifteen feet off the ground. Below him spread part of the large garden that surrounded most of the base.
Hearing something, he crouched on the branch, looking down. One of the lady Eden residents (Edenites? Edenlings?) was tending the garden below him. He clambered down, hooked his legs over a branch, and dropped his front half so he hung upside down. “Howdy.”
She jumped, scowling at him from where she stood a few feet away. “What are you doing?”
“Hanging out.” He kept his face straight with minor effort.
She chuckled. “Well you better get down before your face turns purple.”
He dropped down easily, brushing himself off. “So. Which one are you?”
“Natalie.” She shook hands easily with him. She was a ruffled lemur, eyes already split into the three rainbow irises of an Edenite. “You must be Leon.”
“Quite correct. What some help?” The last was sheer impulse more then anything.
“Sure. I’m just pulling weeds though.”
“Just be sure and tell me what’s a weed and what isn’t.”
She smiled. “Not much into gardening, eh?”
“Not really, no. I can learn though.”
“Good.”

“Hey Andrew, check this out.” Pigma said over his shoulder.
Andrew walked over and saw what his cohort was pointing out: Leon, crouched in the garden, talking to one of the natives and pulling weeds. “Since when does he garden?”
“Damned if I know. Where’s Wolf?”

Wolf sighed, staring up at the ceiling somewhat blankly, laying on a couch in one of the dens. He panted almost continuously, and had already stripped from the waist up, but to no avail. He was utterly, miserably hot, and it made him tired and dizzy.
“Wolf? You awake?”
He brought himself out of his reverie and looked at Pigma and Leon. “What?”
“You ok man?” Andrew asked, crouching on his toes next to the couch.
“No. No I’m not.” He wiped his hand across his brow, feeling nauseous.
“Anything we can do?”
“Make’em turn on the AC… Jesus I’m gonna be sick…” The last half was mumbled.
“Flu?” Andrew stood, looking at Pigma.
“Nah, I don’t think so. Let’s go find Scott.”

“Heat stroke? Poor guy.” Scott stopped messing with the hydroponics and stood. “Only place with air control is sickbay. Let’s see about moving him there.”
“Why only there?” Andrew asked as they walked.
“A lot of medicines are temperature sensitive, and if you’re sick, it’s better to be in a controlled area.” Scott turned into the den. “How you doing, Wolf?”
“Horrible.” Wolf replied, panting.
‘Eden?’ Scott asked, helping Wolf up.
|Move him to sickbay for now. Sorry, Wolf, but your pretty fur is going bye-bye.|
‘Going to change his fur type eh?’
|Have to, for his sake.|
Wolf breathed a sigh of relief when they stepped into sickbay, sinking onto one of the beds there, ceasing his panting.
“Listen, Eden’s going to trigger some major fur loss, ok?” Scott said, pressing a bottle of water into Wolf’s hand.
“Sounds good to me. Thanks man.” Wolf flopped back, relaxing.
“No problem.” Scott left, leading Andrew and Pigma out.

“You listening, Fox?”
Fox snapped back into focus, looking at General Pepper. “Sorry.”
“You don’t seem much like yourself.”
“Yeah I know. Sorry.”
Pepper stared across the table at his old friend. Fox looked back, irises adjusting.
“Were there any risks to you coming back?” Pepper finally asked.
“Yeah, one.” Fox picked up his drink. “The thing that happened to the rest of the scientists.”
“Do tell.”
“It’s called the Primaeus Effect. It’s when the evolution spins out of control and causes loss of sentience.”
“Ouch. That’s a serious danger.”
“I’m not too worried. My evolution is done.” Fox smiled. “Besides, even if it did spin out of control, what’s it going to do, make me smarter?”
“Smartass. Seriously, Fox. What if it did happen?”
Instant response. “I’d want to be shot. Put out of my misery. No amount of strength can outweigh lack of intellect.” He looked at Pepper over the rim of his glass as he took a drink.
“Put down like a rabid dog.” Pepper shook his head.
“I don’t think there’s a cure for the Primaeus Effect once it’s complete.”
“Facing that risk you still came home.”
He blinked, setting his glass down. “Well yeah, wouldn’t you?”

Of the four members of the Star Wolf team, Leon was the first to actually become an Edenite.
A few days after he started helping, he first started hearing Eden’s voice. He took it in stride, happily immersing himself in helping with tasks around the base. When asked why he was so eager, he only shrugged, but he was happy with the fact that he would never again go to war—he had been more then tired of the whole ordeal.
The first to start evolving, though, was Wolf.
“I’m not coming out.”
Scott rubbed his eyes. “I told you you’d be loosing fur.” He told the closed door lamely.
“I am not loosing fur, I am freaking molting, and I am not coming out until I stop doing so.”
“Suit yourself.” Scott tossed his hands up and left. ‘Is he really that bad, Eden?’
|In a way. He’s shedding huge amounts of fur, entire handfuls at once, and it makes clothing uncomfortable. He’s currently sitting on the floor, reading a book and running a brush through his fur, trying to hurry the process up.|
‘I don’t pity him, I’ve gone through worse.’ Scott had to grin.

Pigma sighed, watching with some horror as teammate by teammate, his friends fell to Eden. He wasn’t surprised that Leon was first, Leon was deeply enjoying himself. It did surprise him that Wolf fell next. Wolf had always been strong, but he crumbled easily to Eden, loosing most of his fur in the process, and suddenly regaining sight in his blind eye. Andrew slowly caved next, now hearing Eden, but not evolving yet.
Pigma refused to let himself fall to that. No, he’d shoot himself, and take his team with him, before he would.

“How long’s it been?”
Andrew thought back. “Almost a month.”
Wolf crouched at the edge of the cliff, staring out over the water. He looked a good bit different now, sleek thanks to his fur loss, and he had left the eyepatch off as well. He was so happy to have binocular vision again he was happy to be part of Eden’s web. “Busy month.”
“Yeah I know.”
Wolf stood and stretched. “Almost lunch time, come on.”
They were a good two miles from base, but walked the distance easily. Partway there, another Edenite named Samuel joined them, carrying a string of fish that looked to be just-caught.
“Any idea what’s for lunch?” Andrew asked as they walked.
“I know we’re barbecuing for dinner.” Samuel replied. “But I don’t have a clue about lunch.”
|Natalie, Alena, and Leon stir-fried.|
“Thanks Eden.”
|And yes, there’s a veggie stir-fry.|
“Much obliged.” Andrew grinned.

Pigma watched as the rest of the group returned, Samuel carrying a string of fish that he turned over to Natalie. Lunch was ready, which was fine by him.
|Pigma.|
He ignored the voice, closed it out, made himself stop hearing it. He would NOT be taken by Eden. He WOULD NOT.

|Your teammate is stubborn.|
Wolf glanced at Pigma. ‘Yeah I know. He always has been.’
The day slowly dwindled, and dinner passed. Fires were lit, and Wolf and Leon laughingly joined the song and dance. So what if those on Eden were practically making their own culture? They rather enjoyed it, stomping around the fire as the others pounded out infectious jungle rhythms.
Leon grabbed Natalie’s hands and spun her, actually lifting her off the ground, her skirts swirling. Eden had done one thing for him, and that was heal his shattered, maddened mind. Like Wolf, he had learned to love life on Eden.
Andrew sat off to one side, banging on makeshift drugs with a few others, laughing. No more war, no more oppressive, demanding uncle, just a life to live in paradise.
Pigma was the only unsmiling face that night.