Two days later, twenty Federation team members and seven reptilian natives emerged from the surface exit of the massive cavern...
Jason climbed out, saw the two bright stars hanging in the alien sky, and breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He wondered: Should we drill a more efficient transit tunnel right through the mountain? Otherwise, traveling over 100 kilometers underground every time they wanted to visit the native village would be a logistical nightmare.
He pulled out his satellite communicator, relayed his request to Central Command on the surface, and transmitted the exact coordinates of the village. The engineering division promptly agreed, promising to locate a geological weak point and excavate a shortcut as soon as possible.
The seven reptilian natives, bundled in thick leather hides, likely the entirety of their village's winter reserves shivered violently in the freezing surface temperatures. Emerging from the cavern, they all fixed their eyes reverently on Jason.
