Four tsabhua gathered at the edge of the water. The flooded hallway was normally dark, but in all the activity, someone had placed a portable floodlight pointing at the still, ominous water. It was colder in the second ring than the first, but just as humid, giving the air a clammy feeling that clung to the fur of the group. Nauxha had accompanied Orion and Sea as part of the assistance agreement between the two colonies, but Nazig had already been present when they arrived, contemplating how to proceed. News had spread quickly of this new challenge to exploring the mysterious bunker, but it was different, seeing it in person.

After introductions, Nazig was first to break the lull in conversation that had fallen over them. "I've heard others talking about finding a way to drain all the water in here," he started, "It's too dangerous to just go swimming around. People could get lost, and run out of oxygen in their air tanks."

Nauxha and Sea had perked up at the mention of draining the water. "Has anyone made headway on clearing the water out?" Nauxha asked.

"Some," Nazig replied, and turned to point behind them, where a line of dried black scum showed where the water level used to sit. "No fast way to do it, though."

"If our fields are too wet, we dig passages and put in drainage tiles," Orion spoke up. She did not look at any of the group, instead staring at the obstacle in front of them.

Sea snorted at her. "How are we going to dig drainage under the bunker?" she asked. "We're already underground. There's no deeper point to drain the water to." Orion shrugged. She did not seem to think that was her problem.

"It's not a bad idea, though," Nauxha interjected, tilting her head. "We could install pipes, with pumps at the surface to draw out the water and send it away."

Nazig nodded slowly, but a frown formed on his face. "That's a lot of pipes," he said. "We'd need to get a lot of colonies on board to provide the materials." The other three looked at each other. Wayward Station and Zagreus-15 worked in collaboration, but Nazig was correct- the project was too big for the two of them. Sea sighed.

"Maybe we could talk to some of the diplomats, ask them to go around to interested colonies and secure cooperation," she offered.

Orion took a few steps forward, leaning down to stick a finger in the water to test how cold it was. "Before we do any kind of draining, we need to make sure there's no more water getting in. We'd be stupid to take the water out, only to let more get back in," she said.

Nauxha nodded, ignoring the less-than-tactful wording. "I suppose we should look around for obvious water sources before reporting back. That way, we'll have a better picture of how to proceed with the pipe and pump system," she added. Sea and Nazig nodded along. Orion took it upon herself to start the hunt, wheeling and heading back down the corridor. Sea rolled her eyes before following, and the two remaining tsabhua set off after.

Their initial search was not very fruitful. Occasionally, a cracked tile leaked water down the wall, or a broken pipe dripped onto the floor. Algae grew in damp corners. Yet, no major source of flooding was found. Nauxha was the first to sigh in frustration. "Maybe we'll need to explore underwater after all, if that's where the water is coming from," she suggested. None of the others looked thrilled at the prospect, but couldn't disagree. After a bit more inconclusive looking around, the group split up, preparing their reports for their individual colonies.