The saying had always been drilled into her mind as a child that ‘Hard Work Paid Off.” Now Phact had to wonder if the person who first spoke those words had any idea just how hard people would later have to work to have it pay off. In her case, what she was doing was defined as impossible. One should not be able to have living, growing plants on a lifeless rock. And yet, there she was, sitting on the moon, toiling away at the little garden she had uncovered. Phact might have been ever so slightly ignoring the fact that what she was doing was technically impossible and only an idiot that slid across the desk of people at NASA who were trying to figure out how to move human populations into space and onto Mars. At least that was what Lena had told her about when the topic came up between them and both girls had agreed that might not be the smartest move before eying Xan.

Cultivating space. An idea that had for the longest time been nothing more than science fiction.

“Frank Herbert, eat your heart out.” Phact snickered as she leaned back onto her heels, running a white gloved arm over her forehead to brush dirt and sweat from her face. Head to toe the senshi was covered in the grey dust of the moon so the move did very little but make a glove even darker, not that Phact cared. After All, her mind was wrapped up in the fruit of months of hard work.

It had never been an easy process. After finding the area, Phact had spent a good deal of time just trying to unearth everything. Debris had littered the ground ranging from small rocks and boulders all the way to tapestry fabric and what Phact had assumed was some sort of metal work? It had been bent in far too many oblong directions for her to make heads or tails out of it so into the discard pile it had gone! What she had found under all of the rubble though made it worth the sore muscles and bruises. Though several times she was glad to be up there alone. Stupid heels….

Slowly at first, Phact had been rewarded for her patient and clumsy attempts at gardening. Small sprouts had push through showing signs of life as they twisted and climbed towards the light of the heavens. It had been hard to notice at first because everything was still caked with dust until leaves began to unfold and she could finally see that these weren’t just window blown dust bunnies. That moment might have been on of particular pride for the woman who had just started reading up on how to care for plant life. Though she was still questioning if she should bring water up there and see how it worked.

Maybe moon plants didn’t need water? Or maybe there was...Nah.

Phact had to admit that she had been particularly impressed with a pair of vines off too one side of the small plot. She had managed to bring two larger sticks and set them up for the pair to twist around. At this point they had nearly made it halfway up each of their supports and even looked as if they might be willing to bloom at some time in the near future. Phact hoped they would wait for her at least. She would hate to miss it due to the time restrictions of their month long wait.

But there was something else that had been bothering her since the little patch had started to grow. Shaking the dust off her hands, Phact glanced back around at her surroundings. The first thing she had done upon finding this place had left the largest question in her mind: what was it used for?

As odd as it might be to see life on a dead rock, it was even more odd to realize the life was planted in a square space defined by some sort of stone boundary to keep things out and other things in. Someone or something had painstakingly taken the time to dedicate this area for a purpose. It was that purpose Phact wanted to know. Badly!

So badly that she had begun to take the time to go through the rubble that had piled up against the side of the palace. There were large pieces she had forgone moving but most of the small ones were now being used as edging around her little garden. Still she had found nothing. It had been a feeble hope she was sure. After all, it would be too convenient to have a door to whatever answers she was looking for right there.

Reaching down to the vine closest to her, Phact popped off a few leaves and lifted them to her mouth. Accident? No. She had begun trying little things on purpose looking to see if there was more to some of these strange vines than just beauty. She had been right so far. The dead looking leaves on this vine were like a shot of espresso and she might have begun looking forward to collecting them before leaving each month. Sadly not everything had been pleasant as one that had bloomed had given Phact one hell of a headache. Not to mention the taste was...well horrible was polite.

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