THE WALLS OF THE CAVE WERE COVERED IN A STRANGE, GLOWING SUBSTANCE that seemed to pulse with an otherworldly energy. The floor was littered with strange, alien artifacts, and Eo could sense the immense power that was emanating from them.

Eo turned to the rest of the crew, his eyes wide with wonder. "This is incredible," he said. "We could learn so much from these artifacts."

Bog nodded in agreement. "But we must remain cautious," he reminded them. "We don't know what kind of power these objects possess."

Eo knew that Bog was right, but he couldn't help the excitement that was building inside him.

Org examined a crystal-like object with a tentacle, and felt the energy spread through its neurons.

"Trippy shit, huh?" Xavie said.

Org made an indifferent sound. Waves in water did the same thing to its brain, the soft and calm pulsations, as he communicated in assorted blurps to Xavie, who was one of the few students in their class who spoke its language, Anthropodian, and New English.

Xavie crossed his arms and walked to his own section to reverie in slight boredom like Zephyr, who had decided to take selfies on her gizmo. To its surprise, she knew a lot of cute poses.

In order to distract himself for an important moment, he began to talk to Org. "You're not that bad for a nerd. Sorry for being so sucky to you this whole time."

Now Org was listening. He cautiously made eye contact to the human with its eye.

“When I was a kid, I was, well, the best in everything at the academy. I don't really like sharing credit with others." Xavie winked a smile at Org. “Maybe it's not as bad as I thought."

A happy Org saw Xavie more as a challenger than a competitor.

Xavie shifted on his feet, letting the lighter silence between them speak for itself. Then, he saw a reflection in the distance, and below. In the dim luminescence, he jogged over to it, with Org following behind him. Org got in front of Xavie when he trekked too far.

"I'm just gonna see what it is! Relax, squirt-jello!" Xavie whispered.

Org meeped in frustration; Xavie's favorite nickname for it still lingered, but at least it now had an endearing ring.

Xavie looked back twice at Captain Eo, who was nose deep in some stupid glowing crystals. Commander Bog caught his eye, and he quickly retreated back into a dark corner of rock, quickly hopping down to the new site.

"Cadet Xavie, you are out of bounds--return immediately!"