Diamond Rain Zone

Article written by Mina

The Diamond Rain Zone, as named by its discoverer, Mina Pérez. Was she brave for venturing where no extraterrestrial had gone before? Who's to say. One could argue that's what we all do every day. But to return to the topic at hand, the Diamond Rain Zone, or DRZ, seemed like an ordinary place at first. The giant crater in the ground in the middle of the forest just wasn't the weirdest thing that the brave adventurer, Mina Pérez, had seen on this planet. But, if I were to go into all the wondrous things she'd seen in her years on this world, we would be here for a long time.

Crystal: Jude. Jude, please make your wife take this seriously.

Jude: If you think I can make Mina do anything, you have not been paying attention. Plus, I told her to explain it in her own words.

Crystal: Gods help us.

Jay: She is aware that she could write this in the first person, yes?

Mina: I am aware.

The crater seemed empty. The interior was this sort of strange clay, which Mina brought back a sample of. Information on that can be found in Jude's additional notes. The area was also massive. It would be hard to estimate just how large it was, but the other side seemed to blend into the distant horizon, the trees behind it nothing but a faint blur along the edges. The quiet in the area was unsettling. As if no life would dare set foot in this place.
It was nearly nightfall when Mina found the place, so she made note of it and then returned to camp. Two days later, she decided to investigate it further. This time, as she approached the area, there were gusts of wind that probably would have chilled her, if not for her enhanced biology. One of the many reasons Mina is sent on missions such as these, I might add!

Jude: It is important to me to note that you were not sent on a mission here, you went off to explore an unknown area without mentioning anything to anyone. For all we knew, you were on an ordinary hunting trip.

Mina: Hey, this is my perspective from before I got that lecture, okay? I'm just being true to the time period.

Jude: I suppose you have a point.

Crystal: Does she, though?

The winds got stronger and stronger as she approached. Many times, Mina considered turning back. Instead, she swallowed her fear and continued on. She was maybe ten feet from the crater when something sharp zipped through the air, down from above like deadly rain. The sting in her arm was the first hint that something had gone wrong here. The second hint was the blood. And then, there was another, and another. Arms, legs, face, everything that was touched by whatever was raining down was bleeding. Shallow cuts combined with things embedding themselves in her flesh.



Mina hurried to find cover. There was a cave nearby, which she remembered from the first time through. Yet another upside of her enhanced biology, her perfect memory, coming to her aid once more. She had to go quite far back in the cave before she was no longer being hit with the tiny shards from outside. The wind was howling, and she was terrified that whatever this was, it had reached all the way back to her home. Her husband, her friends, her friend's kid, all could be in danger, and she couldn't get out of this damn cave.

Angel: Oh, Mina...

Mina: I'm just adding drama. Everything was obviously fine. The stupid diamond rain didn't reach you guys.

Angel: Yeah, but you were worried about us.

Mina: Oh, fuck off.

Jude: Too late, Mina. I think everyone already knows about your soft and squishy heart.

Mina: Fine. I was worried. It's my stupid job to protect you guys. Mine and Crystal's. If something bad was happening, and I was stuck in a cave, bleeding all over the place, that means you'd be down literally half of your protectors.

Angel: We love you too, Mina.

There were some animals also hiding in the cave. Mina was somewhat worried about that at first, but it soon became clear that they weren't going to harm her. She isn't sure that she's seen these animals before, and has provided Jude with a detailed description of them to be written elsewhere. Other than this family of strange animals, Mina was alone in the cave and was able to take a look at her wounds.
Buried in her flesh in an ungodly amount of places were these strange crystals. They reminded Mina of diamonds, and when tested later, it turned out that's exactly what they were. Diamonds raining from the sky. It was almost beautiful to watch from far back in the cave, even as the plant matter and any small creatures trying to get around outside of the cave got obliterated.
Once the storm passed, three entire hours later, Mina emerged from the cave. Diamond crunched against diamond as she walked through the crystal debris. Her first thought, of course, was to return home. But, the crater was so close. So, she hurried to take just a small look at it. As she approached, the diamonds on the ground because more and more numerous. Eventually, there wasn't a step she took that didn't crunch beneath her feet. And when she saw the crater, she was awed.
The entire crater was filled with diamonds. Jagged edges of crystal jutting out of the clay. Somehow, this storm was most intense here, and it clearly happened often enough to erode the ground into the crater Mina had seen. She didn't know why it hadn't been full of diamonds when she had first found it, and decided that was a question for her egghead husband. For now, she needed to return home and make sure the storm hadn't touched the people she was meant to protect. Luckily, the storm had been highly localized. Jay had even pointed out that it was possible such a storm could have happened before in the years they've all been on this planet without any of them having any idea, because the DRZ was just that far from where they had settled.
Also, for the record, Mina has no desire to return to the DRZ. Having chunks of diamond dug out of her flesh was an experience that would have already been more painful than getting caught in the storm. The fact that her worried husband was doing the digging did not actually improve the experience.

Jude: You fucked off for literal hours and then stumbled back into camp with blood all over you! I think I had a right to be a little worried!

Mina: I know! I felt bad!

Jude: Ah. I see. Well, everything turned out fine.

Crystal: PLEASE take your emotions elsewhere. Ideally, inside your fucking home.

Mina: It's my article and I say feelings are allowed.