Nelson was studying the mutated mushroom Caroline gave him. He didn't even lift his head. "Not going." Denton, rejected again, flopped back dramatically. Life was so boring. When would Caroline return? He wanted to go out and fight mutated creatures. Somehow, the base felt less fun than the old shelter. When Tyler headed up the mountain to look for Caroline, she happened to be on her way back. They met halfway along the trail. Tyler rode Snow. He wore nothing but shorts and a tank top. The heat was unbearable, like the whole mountain had turned into a steam room. In just two days the streams had shrunk noticeably. Caroline was riding Raven, taking her time down the slope. Suddenly Raven sped up. A moment later, she saw Tyler and Snow. "Let's go home together." Tyler had planned to say a lot after seeing her. But when the moment came, that was all he could manage. Caroline smiled. "Okay." She actually had something important to discuss with him. Seeing how quickly the water sources were shrinking, she realized there was a security risk. Any remaining water in this heat would attract desperate people. As the weather kept heating up, even with water-type ability users producing water and the shelters trying their best to provide supplies, there were still people out there who couldn't find any in the scorching heat. Some of them would eventually come searching this way. This place was remote enough that normally no one would show up, but that man who wandered through the mountains earlier had already triggered an alarm in her mind. Better to prepare than get caught off guard. So she wanted to talk it over with Tyler and set up a few traps around the area. After hearing Caroline's plan, Tyler nodded. He agreed it was necessary. In the apocalypse, caution was survival. "You go rest. Leave this to me and Denton. That kid is so bored he's growing mold. Good time to give him something to do." Caroline chuckled. "Okay. But make sure the military gets a message. We don't want them walking straight into the traps." They agreed instantly. When they returned to the base, Denton exploded with excitement at the word "traps." "Yes! Work—finally! Caroline, you don't know, while you were gone, Tyler stared at the door every day waiting for you. Wouldn't even let me leave. I almost died of boredom." Tyler shot him a deadly look, and Denton shut up with two awkward laughs. Caroline then checked on Nelson. When he said he had already made progress on the mutated mushroom research, she was thrilled. "Nelson, you're amazing!" The mushroom could quickly replenish abilities in battle, which was useful. Still, she had a feeling that eating the mushrooms straight like that probably wasn't the best way to use them. And pulling out a mushroom to bite into in the middle of a fight... Yeah, that just felt silly. So she had handed the mushrooms to Nelson to see if he could turn them into something like injections or oral solutions. Nelson, hearing there was work, rolled up his sleeves immediately. She didn't expect that after only two days, he had already figured things out. Just as Caroline was about to leave his lab to rest, Nelson suddenly asked, "Caroline, what flavor do you like? Vanilla, white peach, apple, strawberry, pineapple..." Caroline blinked. "Huh? You're making it a drink? We can pick flavors?" "Yes. Add a little extract and it works. Any flavor is fine," Nelson said. He pointed at a paper on the table. "Tyler and Denton already picked theirs." Caroline stepped closer, curious. The paper listed everyone flavor choices. For Tyler, it was spicy hot sauce. For Denton, it was cotton candy. Caroline stared. "Really?" So much for the classic peach, apple, or pineapple she had imagined. These two had gone completely off the rails. "Give me soursop flavor," she said.Busy as he was, Nelson lifted his head and looked at her. That look made Caroline feel oddly uneasy. "What?" she asked. Nelson replied, "Caroline, I analyzed the molecular structure of Denton's scent when he uses his ability. Guess what it resembles? Not exactly the same, but close." The corner of Caroline's mouth twitched. "Okay fine. Make mine peach. Just peach."