Kaz sucked in a breath at the flash, looking up for a moment and then back down at the scanner. He stopped messing with the settings, wondering if they would pick anything else up. "Telo." he said. "The scanner…flashed. Something to the east. It's gone now, but…" he trailed off, unsure if he should be panicking or not.
Telo leaned in towards the tree, inspecting it even closer. From what he could see, there were no scorch marks, and it wasn’t like the entire tree was affected, either. He wondered what were the factors to have caused this sort of situation, and he was about to look around for more clues, until Kaz called out to him.
“Flashed? You mean as in something actually popped up on it?” He only briefly glanced over at the other man, but his main focus was this strange tree. There wasn’t any visible residue aside from the actual damage and the quills.
"Yeah. And then it disappeared again." He replied, tapping at the screen gently to try and get it to do something again. He didn't want to be caught by surprise. Then again, maybe it had just been a glitch? That was quite possible, he supposed. But they couldn't be too careful.
The blip that had shown up on the scanner briefly appeared once more, a bit further back than it was before, and for a bit longer. It then vanished again.
Telo raised a hand towards the quills before pausing. He took a step back and put on gloves that he kept on him, then moved back towards the tree again. It was something about those quills. They weren’t large, but they’d been flung at the tree with such force they’d been able to pierce the bark. Telo decided to take one or two as a sample.
“Probably just a bug or something,” Telo dismissed it.
"It just happened again!" Kaz exclaimed, frowning a little. Was it a glitch? Or was it something else? He had no idea, and honestly…he wasn't sure he wanted to find out, if it truly wasn't a glitch. He found himself hoping that they were alone on this planet, because if he knew anything, it was that alien life couldn't be a good thing. It never was in any of the stories he'd read or movies he had seen, and while he knew that those were sensationalized, the odds of alien life being peaceful was…slim.
“Listen- I’m sure it’s just a glitch or something. Fiddling with that sort of tech usually results in faults.” Even though Telo couldn’t help but glance across the stream, towards the other side. There was more ground foliage on that side, which meant more ways to obscure yourself. And that was where the signal came from..
“And anyways, have you seen this tree? It’s almost like something burnt or melted the bark…” Telo put the quills he’d collected in his pocket, but there were still some left in the tree. He moved back in closer to take a look. No burn marks - just damaged wood, and mysterious quills.
Kaz put the scanner back in his pocket, heading over to take a look. "Weird." He commented, cocking his head faintly. "I…have no idea what that's from." He ran his hands through his hair, frowning. He cocked his head again, trying to get a better look through his one good eye. "We can analyze it back at the pod, if you like."
“Sure. We can do that.” Telo responded.
He could’ve sworn that he had the feeling of someone or something watching him, but when he looked around, there was no one but Kaz. He decided to say nothing on it and dismiss the feeling as minor paranoia. It would all pass within a few days on this moon. At least, he hoped.
Kaz nodded. "Let's go, then." He checked the scanner, and headed in the direction of the pod, chewing on his lip. The blips, the quills…they couldn't be coincidences. Could they? They might…but if they weren't, and something or someone else lived on this moon…how would they react to the sudden appearance of a pair of humans?
Telo moved on. He couldn’t help but look at the other trees, to see if there were any oddities with them, but there didn’t seem to be. It was just that one, specific tree. Telo wondered what happened - and he also questioned how long ago that ‘event’ happened. He worried how his first night on the moon would be.
Kaz kept walking, still a little anxious. Maybe it was nothing…but if it wasn't? If it wasn't, what then? What could he and Telo do, if it wasn't nothing? He swallowed as they entered the clearing with te pod.
Nothing had changed since they’d left. Telo decided to make one of his objectives first and foremost; enter the pod and collect his backpack where he kept most of his stuff that he needed on him. He also took out the two golden tinted quills, and carefully set them on one of the desks in the pod. Part of him almost wanted to imagine what sort of creature these quills belonged to - the other part of him didn’t.
Kaz headed into the pod, flicking a few switches and changing settings around so that the pod would charge via the solar panels embedded in it. That way, it could stay charged and, in turn, charge everything else. He set the scanner down, stretching and then moving to survey everything they had brought. He hoped it was enough.
“I’ve got the jar now, I’ll go and get a sample of the water.” Telo turned, almost immediately deciding to head back. He wouldn’t be long, anyways. The distance between the pod and the stream wasn’t far. At least, to him. The way Telo sees it, is that if they split their tasks, maybe they can cover more ground. But he’s not so sure if the other man agrees with him. Either way, he’s going to get that water.
Kaz nodded a little. "Alright. You want to take a scanner with you? Just in case." he grabbed one of the spares, holding it up, ready to hand it over if Telo wanted it. He might not like the other man, but he knew that their chances of survival were better if they could at least cooperate.
After a moment, his response came. “Sure, I’ll take it with me.” Telo confirmed, reaching his hand out.
He nodded, handing it to Telo. "There. Be careful. I don't want to be the only human on this godforsaken moon." He said. Sure, he might not have liked Telo, but that didn't mean he actively wanted the other man to die. He wasn't like that.
Telo kept his eyes on him for a moment as he put away the scanner. He knew he’d just referred to the possibility of him..Telo..dying out there. But what really could he die to out there? His memory flashed back to the ‘glitch’ on the scanner, and the feelings of being watched, but he brushed it away.
“I’ll be back soon.” He said, turning and leaving. He moved quickly - no, he wasn’t nervous, he wasn’t nervous - but he did want to hurry this task as fast as possible. He paused, glancing at the pod one more time before resuming his trek back towards the stream. It wouldn’t be far.
Kaz nodded faintly, and started working to set up camp. As he worked, he ended up stripping off some of his outer layers, humming quietly to himself as he set up the main tent, working on organizing things. Tent was, perhaps, not strictly the best word. It had stiff, tough sides, and wasn't really all that flimsy at all.
Telo arrived at the familiar stream, leaning down to collect a sample of the water. He wasn’t nervous, he wasn’t nervous - but the jar did slip from his hands as he kneeled to the ground. It didn’t break, but it was a louder noise, in the oddly silent forest. Part of his mind wandered to why it was so silent. Maybe the animals had been scared off by the pod, but you’d think they’d be back by now. But there was nothing.
He could’ve sworn he felt eyes on his back, something moving behind him, but there was nothing showing up on the scanner he’d carried along. Still, Telo readied his rifle, just in case.
Kaz continued to work on setting up the camp, wanting to be able to sleep later without worrying about setting up in the dark. He didn't hear it when the jar dropped, as he and Telo were a bit too far apart for that.
Whatever had been watching Telo had left. All he knew was there was a sudden release on him, that whatever he’d felt - that feeling of being watched had faded away for now.
Telo scooped some of the water into the jar. It was clean, or at least it looked clean. Untouched. He kept on looking, checking to see if he had enough. When he was able to confirm it, he slid the lid back on and stood up, deciding not to waste any time and head right back.
A bit further up the trail, closer to the camp, twigs snapped.
Kaz straightened a little, thinking he heard something. He set the supplies he'd been carrying down, hand moving to grip the butt of his gun. He had no idea what to expect, but he didn't want to aim a gun at Telo if the sound was just Telo returning.
Whatever was in the woods by the camp seemed to have also have stopped moving, or at least avoided the twigs. Telo himself had not heard the noise - he was beginning to make his way back, albeit carefully. He’d nearly tripped over some roots at first, going at a fast pace. He decided to slow down. Until he was more familiar with running the trail.
There would be a noise. Something scraping against bark, maybe scratching the tree, or climbing up it. Telo heard that, but he just assumed it came from the camp, given how close he was now.
Kaz hummed faintly as he waited for Telo to come back with the water sample. He made sure the testing station was set up and ready so that when the water was back, they could test it. If, in fact, it was safe to drink, then that was all well and good. If it wasn't, then they would need to set up a water purification system, so that they had water to drink other than the stores they had brought with them.