Somewhere beneath the frigid surface of the Vykarin Wastes lies a network of tunnels cut from solid stone, interlaced with strange, crystalline "veins" that once pulsated with light and energy, though now have gone dark and cold. Despite this, the corridors still remain warm – much warmer than the blighted land above – though not necessarily warm enough to make Naga visitors comfortable.

Presently, one of the Nagas from the expedition is touring the site, as the Rhian and Savanite workers labor to clean up the last traces of the green liquid that remained after the last "incident".

To make up for the loss of the site's own built-in lighting, at regular intervals there are torches set in sturdy stands, and occasionally lanterns as well, which can be picked up for closer inspection of a find. While there are plenty of tools for collecting and studying artifacts, this network of tunnels has, so far, proven to be mostly barren of any such thing.

Still bothered about the strange box previously discovered, Fetiss ventures towards the heart once again. Wondering, why make a box, without a lid, perhaps he is thinking of it the wrong way, it is perhaps a cube, with a handle…

Fetiss suddenly stops, that might be it, the handle is made to easier operate the box, cube. The cube might be a tool of sort, perhaps a key. Glancing over his shoulder he tries to locate what Bassai is doing and tell him this- but suddenly thinks better of it, deciding to find this out for himself.

The green goo is gone now, the path no longer obstructed. Multiple corridors and tunnels twist off in various directions, but the main way leads into a chamber that widens into yet another, forming a cul-de-sac that is the site of the earlier accident. The crystal-glassy-orb is still mounted on the wall, and another is affixed to the ceiling, just as before. The room is the same as it was the last time the snake visited, just that the veins are not glowing, and there are blackened places here and there that hint at a raging fire.

Discreetly sneaking down the corridor, keeping an watchful eye out for both the architect and his personal Savanite slave, he sneaks into the cul-de-sac.

Fetiss slithers a little closer to the glassy objects, looking at them.

The one in the ceiling is most definitely beyond reach. But the one set into the wall is more accessible. It is irregular in form, suggesting something organic rather than something sculpted to serve a purpose, but there is something about the patterns of faults and "imperfections" in its depths that somehow suggest order and meaning.

Fetiss carefully extends a glowed hand and touches the ground based orb of glass, quickly pulling his hand back.

Nothing happens.

Gaining a little more courage after this Fetiss slowly runs his fingertips along the orb, feeling it, as he tries to look how it is secured into the wall.

There comes a sound from the depths of the orb like someone blowing over the top of a half-filled glass bottle, and for a moment there are a few points of unfocused light from within the orb, underneath the snake's fingertips, but they quickly fade, along with the noise.

Fetiss sinks down so his face is almost in level with the orb, as he looks at it. He removes his glove and stroking it tenderly with his fingers, amazed by this reaction by an inanimate object. His lantern stands on the floor a way back.

Stroking the orb provokes no more such reactions. It remains dark and cool … but not quite so cool as it ought to be at room temperature.

Fetiss tries to stroke the orb with his glove then, carefully.

This, too, provokes no further reaction, no matter how hard the snake tries to replicate the earlier actions.

Rising and putting both hands around the orb, Fetiss sees if it can be moved at all. But he does not pull with full strength, a little worried of what Bassai would say about this if he broke something.

The orb is securely anchored in the stone. There is no sign of any give.

From somewhere behind him, the snake can hear a sound much like the earlier one – the one much like blowing over a half-full bottle.

Quickly turning around, Fetiss tries to locate the source of this sound.

Silence. Nothing moves. There's no hint of what might possi – No! Something's moving! It's coming around the corner … It's FLOATING!

A disc of crystal and glittering mineral growths hovers just off the floor, rounding the corner, coming into this chamber.

Fetiss hisses sharply and starts moving away from the glassy orb, and the floating disc.

Along its edges rise multiple stone growths, much like stalagmites, but they curve, forming something that resembles a sort of railing around the disc, except for a gap on one side.

Rummaging in his bag for something like a weapon, all he can manage is the bonesaw, used for cutting off legs.

The disc slides mere inches off of the floor, perhaps three to four feet in diameter, and slows as it enters the chamber.

Rather than going straight through the middle of the room, the disc follows the curving walls, making a roundabout path, coming to a stop in front of the glassy orb mounted in the wall.

Fetiss carefully crawls closer to the disc, inspecting the stalagmites and the gap amongst them.

The gap is easily wide enough for Fetiss to slip between the stalagmite "railing" and onto the disc, if such a purpose were advisable.

Pulling down the hood, Fetiss crawls a little closer to the disc, seeing it does not react to him. He looks round, his shield expanded, to see if anyone is watching. Then he flicks his tongue and decides to embark upon the disc.

No one is watching, the disc does not react, and nothing happens … until Fetiss gets onto the disc. Once he is on, the disc faintly lights up beneath him, and there is that hollow sound again … as the disc starts moving!

Fetiss remembers with a hiss that he forgot his lantern…

The disc continues making a circuit about the room … then slides right on out of the chamber, passing between two of the torch-holders as it goes.

Fetiss tries to snatch a torch as he passes by on the disc.

The snake manages to grab the torch, knocking over the wooden torch-stand in the process, the latter falling to the stone floor with a loud clatter. The disc continues gliding right along, turning and heading down one of the twisty little passages, all alike.

Lifting the torch high for better light, Fetiss tires to make out where he is going. He suddenly remembers an old tale told to him and rifles though his pockets for some crackers, or pills or anything.

Some dried rations (perhaps crumbly enough), miscellaneous pills and samples of dried foam goo are the best candidates.

Fetiss tries to make himself a trail, easy to follow backwards, by dropping small pieces of rations, at first.

The disc continues skimming along, then slows to a stop right before an opening to the side of the passage. A chamber can be seen beyond, a fairly small, cylindrical one with a very high ceiling, by the looks of it.

It also has … no visible floor. The disc slides toward the opening to this chamber.

Grabbing hold of the stalagmites with one hand, the torch in the other, Fetiss tries to look for a way of getting of.

The best way to get off would be to jump out the back, through the gap in the railing, though the landing might scuff a bit, since the snake has no benefit of legs (let alone boots) for the landing.

Fetiss decides to follow this all the way, but he looks worriedly at the hole in front of himself and mumbles "Holy earthworm, let me land soft." in Imperial of course.

The disc slides on out for a moment into open air in the cylindrical chamber, the walls of which are just out of easy arm's reach. The disc stays there … for only a moment … and then … DROPS!

Fetiss hisses sharply, biting his jaws together and thinking, "This is it, I am gonna get flat." gripping the railing, digging his fingers into it almost painfully hard.

The disc continues downward, the rushing air threatening to snuff out the torch… but then, with a stomach-churning jolt, the disc comes to a stop, and the torch flares back to life.

Exhaling due to the force, Fetiss looks around, trying to make out where he is.

Another opening can be seen, leading out of this cylindrical chamber. The disc takes it, moving out into a passage looking exactly like the one Fetiss was just in. Well, not EXACTLY. There are no crumbs.

Dratting that he dropped the dried ration he was laying out for a trail, Fetiss continues with as much green goo as he has.

The similarity soon ends, as the winding passage gives way to a much larger chamber … a thrumming noise filling the air, much like the sound which previously filled the cul-de-sac which was the site of Bassai's little "accident" earlier.

Fetiss unwillingly curls up a little, ready to strike, he hisses silently and looks around, his shield still fully extended.

The cavernous room has a number of glassy arches running down its center, each one about three feet tall, each parallel to the next, forming a "bridge" of sorts, such that, if the snake were particularly bored and brave (or deranged), he could slither underneath each one of them, to the end. All of them glow faintly … all of them save for a few here and there that are dark, and which are broken, as if the halves had snapped, and then sprung apart.

The crystal veins in this room glow faintly – faintly enough that Fetiss did not notice it until now. There are also various crystal orbs here and there much like those in the aforementioned cul-de-sac, with strange energies coursing and pulsating within their depths.

Fetiss waits, looking around, flicking his tongue, intrigued at this new magnificent sight, waiting for the disc to stop.

The disc makes a journey about the chamber, again following the wall, until it reaches a plateau that rises from the floor … and parks, hovering in place right above the stone dais.

Fetiss says out loud, mostly to hear something else than the alien humming, "Bassai is a fool, thinking he has destroyed everything. This is magnificent." He grins and says, "And, all mine."

Thinking that everything has gone well so far, Fetiss slides over up on the dais.

The moment the last of Fetiss' coils slip off of the disc … it slides away, gliding off about the room … and disappears down another one of those dark corridors.

Fetiss shouts "No!" and tries to reach out for the disc, but he is too late.

The snake is left alone in the chamber, with all these strange crystalline and glassy constructions, and that alien thrumming sound.

Fetiss would perhaps want Bassai here anyway, he looks around, trying to see how he can get away from the platform.

There are shelves of rock which extend from the walls, as well as stone bridges that traverse the room, while the floor itself is not really all that far below – only about six feet at its deepest point. Steps here and there make the access easier, and various stepped levels provide more shallow gradations between the elevations.

Fetiss crawls over to some nearby steps, looking of they seem sturdy enough to hold his weight.

The steps, carved from solid stone, seem to be more than sufficient to hold the cobra Naga's weight.

Trying to make his way back to the passage the disc came in through, Fetiss looks around, seeing if he can spot any other exits.

Exits there are aplenty, leading into a maze of twisty little passages, all alike.

Fetiss tries to find his way back to the passage he entered via.

Eventually, Fetiss locates some of his crumbs. The passage lies beyond … and doesn't go that far before it goes by the cylindrical chamber the disc came down. Unlike the one above, this one has a floor. However, the ceiling is most certainly higher, and the walls offer no means to facilitate climbing.

Letting out a long disappointed hiss, Fetiss tries to see if there is any stair nearby, for example by the side of the cylindrical room. But he makes sure he do not venture too far away, because he wants to find his way back.

No such conveniences present themselves.

Fetiss tries to make his way back to the big room then, deciding he has better chances getting another lift than actually climbing that hole.

Back in the main room, Fetiss is presented with the multi-tiered chamber and its long line of arches, most complete, some sprung apart.

Fetiss looks around to see if any more white discs appear, before he continues upon his crawl back to the platform.

Time passes. No discs appear. The thrumming continues without ceasing.

Suddenly stopping short, Fetiss decides to look for the different glassy orbs in this room counting them.

The glassy orbs are in a multitude of different shapes and sizes and locations, having no particular uniformity about them in their numbers.

Fetiss covers his face with his hands and just hisses sharply to himself. His shoulders sagging slightly. After a while in self despair he crawls up to the platform, and tries to find an orb looking like the one he touched earlier.

There's a fairly large orb that bears some resemblance to the one he touched earlier, roughly in the center of the area in front of the platform, fixed to the wall. It glows faintly, various lights playing within its depths.

Fetiss reaches out and touches the orb, prepared to pull back his hand quickly.

Where Fetiss' fingers touch the orb, the glassy substance glows faintly in different colors. Again, he hears that 'glass bottle' sound.

Moving quickly, but still carefully, Fetiss positions himself on the platform, looking around.

Fetiss waits…

Nothing moves within the chamber. Thrum thrum thrum…

Fetiss grits his teeth and looks around worriedly, then hisses shortly andcrawls down from the platform, sagging down a little more.

With another 'glass bottle' sound, a crystal disc slides into the chamber, hovering off the floor, making a circuit along the walls.

Following the glass disc, Fetiss tries to get to a place he can throw himself upon the disc, preferably without piercing himself on the stalagmites.

The disc comes to a stop above the plateau where Fetiss touched the orb, and hovers there, a couple of inches off of the stone surface of the raised dais.

Fetiss crawls up on it as quickly as he can, gripping the stalagmites.

The disc begins moving … retracing the path Fetiss took to reach this chamber, soon reaching the cylindrical room … and shooting up the shaft!

Fetiss waits till the disc flies in over safe ground, on the upper level. Then slithers of, not caring if it hurts.

The cobra snake wipes out, hitting several of his own crumbs, the torch going out as it hits the ground. The snake is left in pitch black darkness.

Fetiss hisses and curses in Imperial, as he tries to uncurl himself. Feeling his bruises and checking if he has broken anything.

Nothing is broken. While the landing was painful, the disc wasn't moving swiftly enough to present too great of a hazard. The only thing possibly broken might be pride, but nobody was apparently there to see.

Smiling humorlessly to that thought he could almost live with some broken pride now, as he crawls around on the floor, trying to sniff and feel his way to the unlit torch.

The unlit torch is within reach, not much trouble at that, easily traced by the smell of smoke it gives off after being snuffed out.

Closing his eyes and offering a short prayer to the snake of luck Fetiss looks through his pockets for some flint and steel, or anything, to relight the torch with.

Nope. Must have forgotten to pack some of that.

Fetiss blows at the torch to keep it glowing slightly at least, as he brings out a bottle of spirit he uses to clean his tools and wounds with. He opens it, and pours its contents on the other of his face masks.

The volatile substance works wonders. A glow turns into a faint flame … and then bursts as the vapors catch light. The tunnel is lit again, scattered crumbs revealing the way back to safety.

Fetiss hisses sharply and smiles, finally luck is coming his way. Then he realizes the torch is not all that is burning, small drops of alcohol on his hand are starting to hurt now. His first reflex is to drop the torch, but he manages to hold on to it instead, gripping it tightly, as he puts his burning hand in his armpit, hoping to suffocate the fire.

Fetiss tries to find his way back to the camp, following his previously laid crumbs.

The crumb trail provides the way. There are, after all, no wild creatures to snatch them up. At last, Fetiss makes his way back to the Rhians and Savanites … who show no indication of realizing that the snake has been gone and off on any adventures at all.

Grinning to himself Fetiss considers his alternatives. He could on one hand tell Bassai about all this, but that would only make him some sort of Savanite to him, only helping him out with his project, and would do Fetiss little good. But Bassai seemed prepared to give Fetiss a share of the honor, at least considering the clearing of the green substance. On the other hand, Fetiss could keep silent about this, and later, when they have returned to Nagai, reveal HIS discovery to the archaeologists, giving him full honor for it. But what would then happen if Bassai learned of this as well? Then he would get no share at all. Considering to keep silent, for now at least, Fetiss crawls back to the camp, trying to hide his burned hand.