Story Seed - Core

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The four operatives wriggled through the the winding tunnels deep below Harmonious.  Conduits and cables wound through the space with them, some pulsing with power, others with fluid, or high energy plasma guided by integral magnetic coils.  There were wires too, and thin pipes that dripped sweat.  That some of these were bio-mechanical and dripped actual sweat rather than condensation only added to the sense of claustrophobic discomfort.

The Estate's intelligence said that the Karum had built something here.  Something that would not be good for Earth.  Not that the Karum ever did anything that wasn't bad for Earth. Sam and Janel were joined by
two Quiet Cabal operatives; Klaatu-barada, at the group's front, and Nikto at the rear.  That the Estate and the Cabal were working together indicated just how potentially serious this particular situation was.

Ahead, Klaatu punched a grated access panel out of its frame and slide out of the narrow tunnel, rolling into a crouch and sweeping the area once before motioning Sam and the rest to come out.  Sam dropped to the floor, a metal grating that made Sam grin wryly at how similar things were on Ruk sometimes.  Behind him Janel and Nikto clambered out of the tunnel, squinting in the sudden bright.

The area was bathed in a sickly green glow that reflected off metal, and tinged biomechanical flesh in hues of green and brown and purple.  They followed Klaatu through a few wending passages and suddenly out into a vast open space.

At the center of the chamber was a massive globe of steel and glass and tendon and muscle.  The green light that bathed the entire chamber emanated from there. "Well, that is one rather large power core." Sam glanced down at the scanner in his hand, "Aaaand, it is only barely stable at the moment. This thing could take out all of Ruk if it blows. What the hell was the Karum thinking?"

"They were going to warp it to Earth." Janel pointed to the massive dynamos, "Those are inapposite generators.  This whole place is rigged to transport out."

Summary - A group of Estate and Cabal operatives journey deep under Harmonious on Ruk to find a Karum doomsday weapon.