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Description
Scene 2: The Discovery

The pod shuddered as it broke through the upper atmosphere, the turbulence a harsh reminder of the world's precarious state. Yet, from within the shielded chamber, Elena felt an odd thrill. The surface rushed closer, a scarred mosaic painted in the hues of a dying star.

"Initial scans indicate…" She stopped, the expected readings stuttering across her monitor. A furrow appeared between her brows. "Orion, I'm getting a strange anomaly. Subterranean. A structure of some kind?"

Orion shifted closer, gaze piercing the data as if willing his enhanced sight to discern its secrets. "Depth?"

"Significant," she said, tracing a line across the screen. "And surprisingly complex. Doesn't appear natural. Could be ruins, but this level of organization…"

An unsettling thought struck her. "There weren't supposed to be any previous colonization attempts marked for this quadrant."

Orion's posture straightened, the warrior alertness suddenly sharp in the confines of the pod. "Perhaps the records are incomplete."

Elena's mouth tightened. The Empire rarely admitted to failure, especially when it involved abandoned outposts on the fringes. She ran a diagnostic on her instruments, everything came back green. This was real.

"Let's have a closer look," she decided. "Adjust trajectory. We'll land near the anomaly."

With a groan of protesting hydraulics, the pod altered course. The landing was rougher than expected, the ground yielding with a brittle crunch beneath its weight. Elena exchanged a glance with Orion – they both felt it. Something was *off* about this world, a discordant hum beneath the overt signs of decay.

She powered up the environmental suits. "Standard protocols. Atmosphere is breathable, but the composition is odd. We'll take samples..."

Exiting the pod, the sight hit them with unexpected force. It was the sheer *emptiness*. The desolation wasn't the harshness of a barren moon, but an aching hollowness, as if something vital had been scooped from the bones of this world.

She activated the deep-scan on her wrist unit, searching for the source of the readings. "There!" Pointing towards a barren rise, she signaled. "Let's move."

The walk was strange, the pull of gravity weaker than expected, giving each step an unsettling buoyancy. When they finally crested the rise, Elena stopped short, a gasp escaping her lips.

It was a structure, undeniably. A lattice of metallic spires burrowed into the ground, their angles stark against the natural curves of the weathered slopes.

"They're… alive," Orion breathed, a touch of awe in his usually stoic voice. The spires pulsed, barely perceptible at first, a slow rhythm echoing the planet's faltering heartbeat.

**What do they do next?**

Perhaps Orion's senses lead him towards an entrance hidden in plain sight, or Elena risks sending a signal down hoping for response? The choice is yours!

Description
Scene 2: The Discovery

The pod shuddered as it broke through the upper atmosphere, the turbulence a harsh reminder of the world's precarious state. Yet, from within the shielded chamber, Elena felt an odd thrill. The surface rushed closer, a scarred mosaic painted in the hues of a dying star.

"Initial scans indicate…" She stopped, the expected readings stuttering across her monitor. A furrow appeared between her brows. "Orion, I'm getting a strange anomaly. Subterranean. A structure of some kind?"

Orion shifted closer, gaze piercing the data as if willing his enhanced sight to discern its secrets. "Depth?"

"Significant," she said, tracing a line across the screen. "And surprisingly complex. Doesn't appear natural. Could be ruins, but this level of organization…"

An unsettling thought struck her. "There weren't supposed to be any previous colonization attempts marked for this quadrant."

Orion's posture straightened, the warrior alertness suddenly sharp in the confines of the pod. "Perhaps the records are incomplete."

Elena's mouth tightened. The Empire rarely admitted to failure, especially when it involved abandoned outposts on the fringes. She ran a diagnostic on her instruments, everything came back green. This was real.

"Let's have a closer look," she decided. "Adjust trajectory. We'll land near the anomaly."

With a groan of protesting hydraulics, the pod altered course. The landing was rougher than expected, the ground yielding with a brittle crunch beneath its weight. Elena exchanged a glance with Orion – they both felt it. Something was *off* about this world, a discordant hum beneath the overt signs of decay.

She powered up the environmental suits. "Standard protocols. Atmosphere is breathable, but the composition is odd. We'll take samples..."

Exiting the pod, the sight hit them with unexpected force. It was the sheer *emptiness*. The desolation wasn't the harshness of a barren moon, but an aching hollowness, as if something vital had been scooped from the bones of this world.

She activated the deep-scan on her wrist unit, searching for the source of the readings. "There!" Pointing towards a barren rise, she signaled. "Let's move."

The walk was strange, the pull of gravity weaker than expected, giving each step an unsettling buoyancy. When they finally crested the rise, Elena stopped short, a gasp escaping her lips.

It was a structure, undeniably. A lattice of metallic spires burrowed into the ground, their angles stark against the natural curves of the weathered slopes.

"They're… alive," Orion breathed, a touch of awe in his usually stoic voice. The spires pulsed, barely perceptible at first, a slow rhythm echoing the planet's faltering heartbeat.

**What do they do next?**

Perhaps Orion's senses lead him towards an entrance hidden in plain sight, or Elena risks sending a signal down hoping for response? The choice is yours!