I leaned heavily on the tree with my back, the rough and twisted bark of the tree slowly letting the heaviness of what I saw - what I heard - envelop me with its cold and suffocating presence.
The mouse drone was still on the move, silently gliding through the colony like a phantom, and its little feet made no sound on the ground. I really had no idea how long I had been watching. Maybe hours. The sun had changed its position in the sky, and the long, weird shadows were cast on the earth.
And the things I'd discovered?
They were even worse than I had thought.
The mouse had somehow gotten into what appeared to be a purposely-built vault—a small, fortified building loaded with data tablets, printed logs, and an only flickering holographic projector.
A team of scientists in lab coats over their combat gear was gathered around it, whispering and very concerned.
