Fractured Resolve

The outpost hummed with subdued activity as the team awaited the council's orders. Anxiety hung heavy in the air, a silent tension that spoke louder than words. 

Each member of the team tried to find solace in their own way, but no distraction could erase the images of the ruined base or the loss of the shard.

Tobi sat at a corner table in the common room, staring at the faint glow of a datapad. He wasn't reading, his mind kept replaying the footage Neon had salvaged, particularly the brief, shadowed glimpse of the cultist leader.

Matilda entered the room, her presence commanding even in silence. She dropped into a chair across from Tobi and placed a steaming cup of something vaguely resembling coffee in front of him.

"You're brooding," she said simply, her voice carrying a mix of concern and impatience.