“So, what do you do if you get hungry later in the evening?” I asked Hepf while we were walking back.

“Normally we won’t get hungry because we rarely do physical activities, but if we do get hungry, there is a kind of fruit that is grown on the hilltop. It’s a very special fruit that only grows here at this altitude. We sometimes pick some of these fruits and give them to the volunteers who bring us food. They are very happy to take these back and share them with others, depending on how many they get from us,” Hepf told me.

“What kind of fruit is it?” I inquired curiously.

“The trees on which they grow look more like small shrubs, with long and narrow leaves. They are about one meter high and grow very slowly. Some of those trees are over a thousand years old, but they are still less than a meter in height. The fruits they carry are big and round, measuring about seven to 10 centimeters in width, and their skin is of a bright yellowish gold colour. They are special because they glow in the dark, which makes it easier for us to pick them at night. The mature ones glow brighter than younger ones. We usually collect the fruits at night and give them to the people from the city in the morning,” Hepf explained.

“That seems quite odd, what’s the name of the fruit?” I was quite eager to learn more about them.

“We call it ‘sedecon’ which means ‘the fruit of quarrel’,” he said.

“What? Why do you give it that weird name?” I asked.

“Sedecon only glow when they are on the tree. As soon as they are picked, they stop glowing. After they have been picked, they still maintain their yellowish gold colour on the first day and they taste sour and sweet, like the Dunya, or what you call guava. After twenty-four hours, or on the second day, their colour gradually becomes orange and they taste sweeter, and start to smell more like sumeena, or mango. On the third day, their colour becomes pinkish-red, and they taste even sweeter and smell like strawberry. On the fourth day, they will have a red colour and their taste and scent will be similar to a grape. On the fifth day, their colour turns into a dark purple, and their taste and scent is similar to a lychee. On the sixth day, they become dark blue with the taste and scent of passion fruit. On the seventh day, they turn black, and their taste and scent are like dried dates. On the eighth day, the colour turns white because they are covered all over with white blotches. The taste and scent in that state are similar to a durian. On the ninth day, their skin becomes translucent, and a violet liquid appears inside the fruit. We tear it open to drink the liquid, which is a bit alcoholic, like wine. And if you wait until the tenth or twelfth day, its skin will have become even more translucent, and the liquid inside will be clearer as well. When that happens, you’ll have the best alcoholic drink you can find here,” Hepf said with a wide grin.

“Wow, and this weird fruit really exists?” I asked, not quite sure if he was making up all of these descriptions to tease me.

“Certainly!” Hepf assured me with a sincere look.

“Some of the residents of the city have never tasted it yet since these trees only grow at this altitude. The hills in other areas are much lower, whereas only the eastern part of this hill is high enough to allow them to grow. But everyone who taste this fruit will have a different experience as its taste depends on its maturity, and their preference and opinion will differ from others. But exercise caution when you eat the fully matured fruits because their alcoholic contents can cause you to lose your mind for several days. During those days, you will likely pick a fight with others. This is the reason why we gave this fruit the name ‘sedecon’ or ‘the fruit of quarrel’,” Hepf explained.

The three of us kept talking while we slowly walked back to the building where Ruthorn was waiting. When we arrived, I noticed a bright light, similar to that of the spaceships I had encountered earlier, shining through the window from inside of the room.

“What is that light?” I turned to ask Hepf and Piet.

“This is Master Ruthorn sending a telepathic communication to the team very far away. At this moment, there are no other places in the universe more chaotic than Gaia,” Hepf answered.

“He’s communicating with the higher beings on Gaia. They are reporting on the current situation and Master Ruthorn is giving them some advice on your world,” said Piet.

“But why is he emitting that light?” I asked.

“Our suits, as well as our gowns and hats, can accelerate the communication, similar to how our spaceships travel, but this is done for a different purpose. When these very high frequencies occur, the substances release energy. What you see now is just an illusion. This phenomenon only occurs when we want to communicate with many people at the same time, it doesn’t happen in our one-on-one communication,” Hepf explained.

The three of us stood there watching the light for a while, as it gradually faded away and disappeared.

“Master Ruthorn has stopped communicating. Let’s go inside now,” said Piet.

When I entered the room, I saw Ruthorn sitting in a big chair with his eyes closed. We quietly approached him and sat down across from him.

“Master Ruthorn, what happened?” I whispered as he slowly opened his eyes.