It took the Craton the better part of twelve hours to maneuver itself closer to the moon they called Omen.

"We cannot get closer than 20,000 kilometers," Ji-min Bin told Jaya. "Any closer and we face too high a possibility of an impact with something big enough to hurt."

They came in towards the Moon, and at this distance it was still just a speck.

"Projected loss if we send in probes?" Jaya asked.

"Within acceptable levels, Captain. But any loss of probes could prove to be a problem further down the line if-"

"Send the probes," Jaya ordered.

A frown adorned the woman's round face. Her name was Aminia Smith, Cenz's Vice Commander, and standing in for him while he was on Ko. She was highly competent, but a little too risk-averse, Jaya thought.

"Probes launched."

One probe was lost before reaching Omen, after two other pieces of rock smashed into each other, pelting it with their debris. But the other fifteen made it without incident.

"Scanning the moon," Smith said. "Scan will take approximately twenty minutes."

"If we should find something-" Jaya began.

"Ugh . . ." The surprise in Smith's voice and face was unmistakable.

"What is it?"

"We've found something, Captain. There's . . . there's a structure on the moon. It's in something of a valley, but it's just there! It's not even shielded against scans."

Stolen story; please report.

"Show me," Jaya said.

The probes were moving fast, and the clip was less than a second, just a glimpse while passing a crater. But even in that brief view, it was clearly artificial.

Enhanced scans appeared, freezing frames and building a three-dimensional view of the structure.

It was metal, well-built, nestled into a crag within the crater. The outside was unadorned, just a plain grey. There wasn't even much sign of damage from impacts.

"Is there anything in it?" Jaya asked.

"We can't tell, Captain. Its walls are thick, but that shouldn't matter much against impacts . . . however, the location it's placed in is very safe. The moon is geologically stable for much of this area, and since it's in this crack inside a crater, it's hidden from most impacts."

"Finish scanning the whole moon," Jaya said. "I want to know if there are other buildings."

"Could still miss other structures," Cutter said. "Only luck this one was seen."

"What is your recommendation, Chief Engineer?" Jaya asked.

"Send a team. Investigate structure. Dangerous, yes. But best way to answer questions."

Cutter was looking at her almost imploringly, and Jaya was surprised to see the Bicet so desperate.

"Navigation," she said. "Could we get teams down there?"

"I think so, Captain," Ji-min Bin answered. "It's a short transit, and the shuttles have point-defense weaponry. If we approach from the direction the moon is heading, we can avoid the latest debris coming off. And since this isn't far off the pole - yes. It's dangerous, but I think it's something that can be risked if you feel it's important enough."

Jaya clicked on a line. "Lt. Commander Pirra, prepare teams two and three for a drop onto the moon."

Pirra came back immediately. "Captain, request permission to take Response Teams One and Two."

"Is Response Team One prepared?"

"Yes, Captain," Pirra replied. "I've got an all-clear, and so does Najafi. Only Guoming is still recovering."

"A team of eight. Do you feel that's sufficient?"

"Yes. We still have two Fire Teams."

Jaya considered it for a few moments.

"Very well, Lt. Commander. Suit up your team, and prepare for moon drop."