Chapter 5: failed attempt
November 19, 2023 at 1:04 PM
The stranger in white landed on the roof, not far from Caroline, who apparently did not notice him. Maybe it's for the best. Taking a tablet from his belt, the young man began to type something.
Personal notes of Adam Dubrovsky
I have successfully landed in Sector 1045, New York. It is now 6 p.m. On the first inspection, it was revealed that atmospheric toxicity has decreased by 35% from the last mission in this sector. I also noticed a girl... Adam looked at the trail of the fleeing Caroline and saw Archie, making some corrections to the text: girl and a dog. Judging by the uniform, the girl is a worker under the directive of General cleaning of the Land. So far, it has not been possible to get in touch. I feel that this expedition will be very interesting. After finishing the first recordings, Dubrovsky turned off the scanner. To say that Adam was in mute shock is just to keep silent. He had long since lost hope of finding anything, and eventually came across a girl with a dog. There were a lot of questions in my head. Where did the man come from? How could she survive? Are there any more workers? And how her four-legged friend also got here. Looking at previous research results, it's hard to believe this. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would have considered it the ravings of a madman. Dubrovsky was a space ranger who was sent to find life on a planet from the Plant Kingdom, but it turned out that he found something completely different. Although, theoretically, since the level of toxicity has dropped, then maybe small sprouts have appeared here. It will be necessary to scan the entire city to get an accurate result. But first, it's worth dealing with Caroline. For a very long time, people from Earth did not get in touch, although Adam's colleagues tried. Basically, they either got scared and ran away, or were hostile. It was immediately clear that they were wary of everything around them. Which is not surprising. The earth has become a lost place. Guesses were made about the internal relations between the workers based on the few cases when the Rangers came across survivors. Given that there were limited resources, many fought against each other for a jar of expired food and water. Roughly speaking, the principle is "either you or you". Then, under such conditions, how to bring Lina to a dialogue? Most likely, she will avoid Dubrovsky, with thoughts that Adam may harm her? But he wasn't going to let go of this opportunity. Even if Adam does not find the plant, it will still be a significant study in the field of Earth history. After all, about five hundred years have passed since the Bnl starships took off into space. It was necessary to somehow get Caroline's location, but how exactly, Dubrovsky still had little idea. Adam decided to just watch her for now. Maybe Karolina will lead Dubrovsky to the other survivors? He turned on his anti-gravity boots and took off.***
Caroline ran into a narrow alley between the houses and stopped to catch her breath. She had an uneasy feeling. What if that guy followed her? What should I do then? Avoid it? But how if a stranger can fly? But it is unlikely that he will be able to escape, if anything happens. The situation was not saved when she noticed the absence of Archie next to her. Not only that, Caroline also didn't want to lose her husky! Now there is one more potential danger, and he is where the hell! Archie needed to be found urgently, which in the current circumstances was three or four times more complicated, given that Dubrovsky was wandering around somewhere. But if Lina doesn't go looking, she'll be left without a best friend. Therefore, Lina cautiously looked out and looked around. Gathering all her strength into a fist, Caroline walked out of the alley.***
Adam noticed that Archie had fallen behind the hostess and was lost. Unlike Lina, he smelled Dubrovsky's scent and came closer to him. Before touching him, Adam scanned him for contagious infections. The tablet revealed nothing, so Dubrovsky sat down on one knee and gently stroked his head. Archie's tail wagged, and he began to rub against his palm. — So Archie — Adam saw a collar with a crookedly written nickname, — And how did you manage to get here? — Dubrovsky asked himself a rhetorical question, — I think you should be given to the hostess. He will be worried — After these words, he picked up the dog and flew towards Lina.***
— Archie, Archie! To the leg! — Caroline shouted, but there was no answer. At first. A quiet hum of something came from behind, as if some kind of device was working. And this sound was rapidly approaching, causing waves of goosebumps to run down Lina's back. — Excuse me, didn't you lose your dog? — Adam had no time to put the husky on his feet, as he immediately moved towards the hostess. — Archie! — Caroline hugged the dog tightly. Dubrovsky watched this scene for a couple of seconds until Lina noticed him standing next to her. — Next time, watch your pet more carefully, he may get hurt — — Oh, g-good — Caroline didn't notice how she hugged Archie closer to her. — May I ask your name? — Realizing that this was the perfect moment to strike up a conversation, Adam decided to act. — N-no, I have to go! — Panicking, Lina couldn't think of a better reason to leave, taking Archie with her, almost breaking into a run. — Wait, where are you going?! — Dubrovsky was about to grab his sleeve, but thought better of it in time. Right now, it can only make the situation worse. And so Caroline ran away again. Yeah, so much for getting to know you. Well, at least I learned the dog's name, at least some progress. Maybe.
