A promising future

Leaving the control room for last your group walked to the giant doors on the left first. On the right side of the doors was another circle that you pressed. You expected a loud rumble, but instead the doors quietly slid open revealing a large room that would be used for housing dinos. Stalls of various sizes lined each wall. A few of them were huge, most of them were sizable enough to keep Lysandra in, and there were also a few that seemed tiny compared to the rest. One of the walls was lined with various tooling such as forks, wheelbarrows, and shovels. You were pleasantly surprised to see a vehicle similar to a Bobcat from your old world sitting in the center of the room. Smaller rooms you walk into on the side appear to be storage rooms for food storage and tack for the dinos.

Leaving that room you walked to the other side and opened those giant doors as well. This was apparently a storage room of some sort. It was just as large as the dino stall room, and clearly someone was planning ahead. There were vehicles lined up that looked like ATVs in your old world. As well as some larger tracked versions. Trailers of various sizes sat behind them. Rows of closed wooden boxes sat in neat rows in front of the vehicles. Your group walks to one of the boxes and opens it up. Inside you see tools such as hammers, nails, and other things necessary for building. Moving from box to box it is tools and materials any town would need to get started. Having no background in building a town you couldn't guess how much stuff it will help build, but it isn't a small amount.

Moving to another door you open it to find it is full of books and what look like computers. This room more than the rest brings a smile to your face.

"It's a library, probably a good chunk of their combined knowledge, history, and culture" you say out loud to yourself.

"This is amazing, this is treasure" Annabel chimes in picking up a book and caressing it like she just picked up a bag of gold.

"Time to teach me how to read" Yvette says smiling at you.

"Absolutely" you reply wrapping an arm around her. Suddenly a very sobering thought hits you.

"What's wrong" Rene asks seeing you suddenly frown.

"This is probably the most valuable room in here. Once word gets out it exists..." you trail off.

"People are going to want to take it for themselves aren't they" Jane says hugging you from behind. You nod your head slowly as you think about the guaranteed conflict this room symbolizes for your group and your goals. This whole place really was something other's would want to take forcefully. You knew how to fight, but you weren't a warrior. You weren't a leader before, and certainly knew very little about battles and strategy. Somehow you doubt all those real time strategy games you played in your youth were going to be much help, but that was about the extent of your experience commanding troops of any kind. Hitting you like a ton of bricks you saw your group dead at your feet having failed to protect them, and you fell to your knees in almost shock.

The group almost immediately encircles you in a cocoon of hugs. You try your best to focus on them and your breathing. You let your mind entertain the terrible vision knowing it was futile to ignore it or try to think of something else. After a moment you were able to collect your thoughts and stand back up.

"We have a choice to make" you tell the group as you squeeze them tightly to thank them for their support. They wait for you to explain.

"This room, and this entire place, is meant to begin the rise of technology back into this continent. Once word of this place reaches other places it will mean people will want to take it. Our choice is to hide this place again to avoid that conflict, or take up the mantle of using it for the good of this continent. I don't want to make that choice alone, because if we do take up that mantle all of our lives will be at greater risk compared to before. This place is going to accelerate the eventual conflict my plan for eliminating slavery will bring, and I don't know how fast it will come as it is, but it is coming since I plan on bringing conflict to them anyways, and I don't know if we'll be ready" you explain as seriously as you can muster.

"So what, we take what we can use, close it up, and act like we never found it" Jane asks.

"If we were to abandon this place yes. We'd also have to find another place to settle as someone would eventually find the entrance to this place if we settled here" you reply.

"John, we shouldn't abandon this place. This place is eventually going to be found, and the next person to find it might not be as...nice...as we are. I know you don't like being compared to Jason, but I think it is fitting in this situation. Right now our choice is the difference between Jason finding this place, and Wendel. Right now we've found it and we can have the chance of using it for good, but if someone like Wendel found it..." Annabel says leaving the last part unsaid. She's right of course. If someone like Wendel found this place there would be a wave of death spreading from this location. You sigh deeply knowing you can't let that happen.

"I agree with Annabel" Yvette responds.

"I'll do whatever everyone else does, but I agree with Annabel as well" Rene adds her answer to the pile.

"It's going to be dangerous, but I agree, we need to be the ones controlling this place" Jane replies.

"So be it" you reply. "We have a couple rooms left to check in here it looks like, and then we can go check if we can get the main doors opened up or not" you add.

Two more doors are visible to you in the storage room. The first door you try doesn't let you in. All it displays is a blue square shape next to the door, which you place your hand against, but it just turns the square red. Moving to the next door it slides open to reveal a large room full of plants. Rows and rows of them.

"Hey Annabel" you call out to her "You need to see this room" you tell her as she approaches.

Annabel's jaw literally drops as she steps into the room. The group smiles as you all watch Annabel step through the rows and rows of plants. Another room of treasure it seems. Also probably one of the more advanced rooms. Who knows how long these plants have been here, but since they are still alive this facility seems to be able to give them the proper nutrients, light, and water they need. That doesn't even touch on the subject of some of these plants being annual plants that should die every year. It makes you wonder what exactly is in control of all the systems this place must require.

Putting that out of your head for now though you starts walking down the rows of plants yourself. Some you recognize and some you don't. The oddest plants are plants for eating, as those for sure should be dead by now. Carrots, corn, potatoes, beans, and various other ones you recognize from your old world, and there were some from this world you recognized like that spiky fruit you'd eaten at New Eden. There was also a significant amount that you didn't recognize at all, but judging from how Annabel was running from plant to plant it seemed like she knew what they were. Annabel suddenly stopped and you watched her look for you. Spotting you she approached you rapidly, almost making you a bit nervous from the look in her eyes, but those were immediately squashed when she pulled you in for a kiss.

"We're definitely staying now" she said looking you in the eyes with a look you could tell she was staying even if you all had decided to leave. The smile on her face showed she was joking, but only a little. You chuckled and gave her a peck on the lips letting her know you agreed. Another plant caught her eye and she practically ran to it leaving you to yourself once again.

"I'll leave you to it then" you called out to her, but she was too entranced with her new garden to do anything but smile at you.

You gathered up the rest of the girls and headed back into the main chamber where you thought the control room was. Entering the windowed room you confirmed it must have been the control room. Inside was a console. It hummed to life as you approached it and you could see several buttons appear on the console. There were two that immediately caught your eye. One was labeled "Open" and the other was labeled "Close". Without even thinking you pressed the open button. Immediately you felt the ground shutter slightly and you watched as up the ramp two giant doors began swinging upwards. A little dirt fell inside as the giant doors were covered now, but that extra weight didn't see to slow them down at all, and soon you were staring at the sky outside.

"Wow" was all any one said. You left the remainder of the buttons alone knowing that was a fairly dumb thing to have done. Behind you there was a chime and you notice a blinking circle next to a door that slid open. Taking a look inside you once again felt surprised at what you were seeing.