"Trees?" Noble furrowed her brow.
The room was very large compared to the others, with a tall ceiling. The light here was different, more natural. The yellow glow reminded Noble of what the sun should be like if not for the pollution and the protective barrier around the city to keep the air filtered.
"And grass!" Yoa pointed as he stepped onto the lush green carpet.
Indeed, the room looked like a miniature forest from before the dark times. Even the most expensive parks in the NQSC didn't have trees so vibrant. There was a tinge of red running along the veins of the plants that made them look especially alive. The leaves rustled slightly as they entered the strange terrarium.
The liquid on Yoa's glistening skin joined the dampness of the air. Droplets fell from his fingertips onto the grass.
"You may want to shield your eyes." He warned her.
Noble summoned her trusty umbrella, and soon a gentle, cloudless rain was falling from above.
Noble held out her hand to catch a drop on her hand. It had the same glistening quality as Yoa's skin.
"Now I know why they call you the Rainmaker."
Yoa shrugged, droplets rolling off his waterproof lab coat. "It's a humble ability, but I am rather fond of it."
Noble leaned forward to examine one of the tree trunks.
"I remembered you liked biology, but this is on another level. What are you studying?"
"I am trying to splice plant DNA from our world with some modifications of algae in the Dream Realm. The combination should make for more robust vegetation in both places." Yoa explained.
"Robust?" Noble wasn't sure she liked the sound of that.
"Part of our food crisis is that we have too many people and not enough natural food. If we can get plants to grow more quickly that are resistant to climate change, we will have to rely less on synthpaste and other artificial foodstuffs. It would revolutionize the agricultural world."
As the rain stopped, Yoa's skin returned to its glistening state. His eyes continued to sparkle with the possibilities.
"That sounds amazing!" Noble looked up at the fruit hanging from the nearest tree.
The last time she had seen a grove like this was in her Nightmare. The fruit there had been the most delicious she had ever tasted.
"It will be if we can get it to work," Yoa nodded. "There is still a lot of testing to be done. Genetic modification can be tricky. We need to make sure each step of the way is safe before we try it on a larger scale."
"Safe?" Noble pulled back her hand from the enticing red fruit that she was about to touch.
The researcher chukled. "Don't worry, nothing here should hurt you. Awakened have a different constitution, as you well know. We can eat most anything without it killing us. But mundane humans, well..."
"They are more fragile," Noble finished the thought.
"Precisely, so we need to make sure that normal humans can consume them without any side effects." Yoa's hair bounced with his emphatic speech.
"How do you plan on doing that?"
Even after passing out Synthpaste to refugees, Noble hadn't given much thought to how real food is produced or distributed. She had been more concerned with feeding the sea of faces before her. It wasn't until she relocated her family to the Dream Realm and saw the logistics of society that she gave any real attention to how food was grown.
'I did not get my mother's talent for growing things.'
In contrast, Yoa and his water aspect seemed perfectly suited for this kind of work. It was funny how differently the Spell shaped different people.
"There is a process that was used for years for products to work their way up to human usage. It was a series of experiments that used creatures similar to humans to look for unintended consequences."
"Animal testing?" Noble frowned.
There weren't many animals left in the waking world. While some had been transferred to the Dream Realm in a new attempt at farming, most creatures were few and far between. Using the ones that were left made Noble feel sad.
"Don't worry. We aren't barbaric. I have an explorer who has tracked down Nightmare Creatures that fit what we need." Yoa's words set his companion's mind at ease.
"That's good."
"He should be here in a little while. Until then, I have a couple of things I need to prepare." Yoa grabbed his gloves from his workbench and shook off the droplets before sliding them on his hands.
"Oh, I understand," Noble smiled. "Thank you for showing me around."
"What? Oh! I wasn't trying to get rid of you. You are welcome to stay and watch if you are not needed elsewhere."
The man's offer was genuine, and Noble was too curious to refuse.
The man pulled his goggles over his eyes and frowned. He couldn't see!
He dug through a drawer to find a dry cloth, wiped the lenses, and replaced them on his face. He handed Noble a second pair from a drawer in his desk.
Noble slipped them over her eyes. She doubted they would do any good if something actually went wrong, but there was a strange comfort in having them in place anyway.
Yoa took a sample of bark and blade of the grass back to his workstation. He removed a cover from a machine and stuck his specimens underneath. They came up on a projected screen.
Yoa adjusted the magnification.
"Those are cells?" Noble had taken science courses in her formal education. These looked a little different from what she remembered.
"They are." Yoa marked something down on his data pad. "They are healthy and growing. Look!"
Noble could see what he meant. As she watched, a cell split, making two copies of the original. They split again and again in quick succession.
"That's amazing!"
"It will never get old," Yoa looked like he might cry, though it could have just been the dewy nature of his skin.
Noble watched as the researcher took a few more measurements. He seemed very happy with the results of his labor.
"I think that just about does it. Everything looks healthy and in order." Yoa's communicator buzzed. Sliding up his goggles, the man checked the message and nodded firmly. "He's here."
Noble raised an eyebrow as her companion excused himself for a moment to retrieve his guest.
Noble looked at the fruit once again. Could it really be the answer to world hunger?
'That would be amazing!'
The leaves rustled as the door opened a second time. This time, Yoa entered with a second man. The newcomer wore a suit of Awakened armor and had a pack slung across one shoulder. His brown eyes matched his long hair and short goatee.
Noble stepped forward to welcome them.
Yoa motioned to the other gentleman.
"This is the explorer I told you about. Professor Noble, this is Spade. He will be helping me in the final part of today's experiment."
"Nice to meet you," Noble held out her hand for the man to shake.
Spade reached out and took the lady's palm. When he did, the pack at his side began to growl.