<aside> 🎲 ORACLE: Inner First Look RESULT: Thick haze or smoke; Carried tech is disrupted

</aside>

As Argus descended the ladder into the vault, his communicator crackled in static. Usually, signals didn't carry far deep within the underground, but this caught his attention; his communicator typically didn't complain this close to the surface. Not that he needed to call in Zoya right away, but he hoped that the strangeness wouldn't escalate much further.

His boots hit the ground, and Argus released his gloved hands from the ladder. He scanned his hat lantern across the room, but he couldn't get much visual through the mist. His mouth tasted of granite.

Great. As much as he wanted to speed through this place to find Lucas, he couldn't take too many risks if he wasn't going to see far.

He placed his hand on his sword and moved forward, craning his ear toward the darkness.

<aside> 💡 First expedition of the campaign!

</aside>

<aside> 🎲 EXPEDITION: Flower Ring Expedition

RANK: Dangerous

MOVE: Undertake an Expedition

APPROACH: Stay vigilant: Roll +wits (3)

RESULT: 8 (5+3) vs. 4 & 7

Strong hit. "You reach a waypoint. Envision the location and mark progress per the rank of your expedition."

Expedition: 8/40

</aside>

<aside> 💡 For this, I'm going to test out the oracle array: I will roll a six-sided dice alongside the d100 to determine whether I consult the Vault Interior table or the Ruined table.

</aside>

<aside> 🎲 ORACLE: Vault Interior (3) Feature (16): Damage or debris

</aside>

The mist thinned out as Argus walked from the entrance chamber into the next room. This room gave him more hints on this place's purpose.

<aside> 🎲 ORACLE: Descriptor + Focus

RESULT (88 & 87): Secret System

</aside>

As Argus intuited, this room used to contain complex machinery. Burst pipes were lined across the wall, their edges fraying outward like man-eating flowers. A long rectangular cube stretched nearby one of the walls—maybe some sort of desk? Everything around him continued to be metal. Metal walls, metal floors, metal cuboid. His rubber soles plodded against the iron.

While the center of the room was empty, aside from pieces of pipe debris, Argus felt drawn to the lopsided shelving and the stony piles spilled underneath. Even on a rescue mission, he couldn't shut down his scavenger instincts. Could he find something useful for his mission?

<aside> 🎲 MOVE: Explore a Waypoint

"When you divert from an expedition to examine a notable location, roll +wits (3)."

RESULT: 5 (2+3) vs. 2 & 5

Weak hit. "You uncover something interesting, but it is bound up in a peril or reveals an ominous aspect of this place. Envision what you encounter. Then, take +1 momentum."

I also take +1 momentum from the Explorer asset for rolling a hit on Explore a Waypoint. Momentum goes 4 to 6.

ORACLE: Vault Interior (3).

Interior Peril (26): Fragile structural integrity.

ORACLE: Descriptor + Focus

RESULT (71, 36): Obscured Grave

</aside>

Argus knelt on the ground and sifted through the pile, setting aside the stones as he progressed through the debris. He uncovered an object quickly, and his lantern light bounced off its bronze exterior. He dislodged the object from the pile. The residue gave way and left him holding a hefty vase.

Unfamiliar symbols ran across the curves in diagonal stripes. Perhaps it was a precursor script? The symbols resembled squiggly lines with open circles on the end of lines. It reminded him of the flowers he spotted on the surface.

A metal cover capped the top of the vase, and Argus considered prying it open. For all that he knew, it could be an urn.

Before curiosity could overtake him, he heard a rumbling in front of him.