Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

The shuttle only took a few minutes to get into position and get all of the settings prepared to create a large opening on the side of the biodome that would let daytime light in through the whole year.

This particular one was near the equator, so the amount of variability was limited, and the opening that they were going to create could be disguised as a cave system or ledge when viewed from a distance.

That would please the locals, who were clearly still terrified of the Harvesters and the no longer existent pollution outside. But the hope was that once they saw that the sun was shining and the air was clear again, they would consider possibly exploring the surface again.

[Ready to begin.] The shuttle pilot informed the team.

"Alright, our ship is going to clear some of the dirt from that side of the dome so that the sunlight can get in, and you won't have to rely entirely on the indoor lights anymore. There is nothing alive out there but plants, so you don't have to worry about safety. But the natural light will help keep your plants growing well and keep your people fed until they're comfortable following the route through the lower levels to get outside.

You can either follow us when we leave, or I will draw you a map, and you can follow that outdoors when your people are ready." The Team Leader explained.

"True facts?" The alien asked hopefully.

"Just watch."

The shuttle pulled and burned away the covering on the side of the dome, right near the top, and sunlight began to stream in, turning the dim twilight inside to something close to afternoon sun.

It was little more than a window in a huge room, so it wasn't as bright as it had been intended to be, but it was much more than it had been, and the Hunters had high hopes that the change in light wouldn't mess up the plant life balance too badly.

The aliens in the trees began to come forward into the direct light, in awe of what they were seeing, and Max realized what had happened in their culture.

[When the black fog of pollution began to clear, the dome was already mostly covered in dirt. Then, as the dirt got thicker and blocked out everything, they couldn't tell the difference. They thought that everything was immensely toxic outside. They didn't even know that the dome was buried.] Max informed the away team.

Everyone watched as one of the aliens climbed the scaffolding on the biodome walls and made their way to the cleared section. Once they were there, they took a bundle of leaves from their pocket and wiped down the inside of the window, increasing the amount of light streaming in, and then stood there, basking in the warm glow of the sunlight.

The alien on the scaffolding turned around to face the dome and cleared his throat.

"My people. What these strange aliens say is true. The sun is bright outside, the air is clear, and the skies are the promised blue again. The treacherous black-hearts buried our dome in dirt under the cover of the fog and left us.

The star has returned to our people, and the days of suffering and rationing are soon to be over. The fears for the future are fading, and I will personally follow these aliens outside to test the truth of their words. If the air is clear, we will start the farms that we were promised and celebrate with all the food we can eat."

The pronouncement had everyone cheering, but even through the helmet cameras, Max could see that the group's leader was very concerned about something. Most likely, it was the condition of the rest of the groups that had been hiding, and that was not going to be great news.

The Darklings only harvested when a planet reached billions of occupants. If one in ten had been in hiding from the pollution, and fewer than a hundred thousand still lived, then almost all the other projects had failed or had left too early and had died outside.

The alien leader made his way back down the scaffolding as the leaves on the trees began to subtly shift toward the light source, taking in as much as they could of the new abundance, and the last remaining members of this group gathered to hear the official pronouncement.

They were not at all in agreement with the leader being the one to follow the Hunters outside, though. He was chosen as the best one to lead them, and if this was a trick, or the Hunters were wrong about what their species could survive, it would be a disaster for them to lose him.

So, as he approached, the first one to make contact stepped between the Team Leader and the biodome's leader.

"Elder, please rethink your position. I will go with them to see the outside and return back. Our people need you here to guide them through this change. We can't risk you going outside before we have verified that it is safe."

Max and Nico started rapidly checking the area to make sure that they hadn't missed any more life forms, like a wild animal that might have the adaptation the aliens based their own changes on. Nothing came up, only plant life and the pair gave a sigh of relief while the two aliens argued about who should be the first to set foot outside the dome.

"If the seal on the dome is broken, does that not mean that the dome will die? The outside world will steal our water, and the rains will end. That is what we have always known would happen if the dome cracked." One of the aliens asked.

"We were careful not to let anything in or out other than ourselves. We have a technology to block air from moving through doors when we open them, so your dome is safe, and we can keep it that way. The seals are all intact, and they can be resealed when you pass through, so the farms you wanted to build outside can be accomplished without damaging the biodome itself." The Team Leader informed them.

Doing it perfectly would mean taking careful measures about what doors were open and which where closed, but the lower-level tunnels wouldn't let much out, no matter what.