[ WP ] Turns out it was n't the Nazis hiding on the dark side of the moon . It was the Roman Empire . They 've come back with a vengeance .

The chamber was filled with people. The committee of scientists crowded around the projection, staring at the data coming in. The temperature was the most immediately surprising thing. The rover recorded twenty degrees Celsius. A technician commanding the remote carefully piloted the rover over the ridge before the crater. Pitching downwards, the low quality grey footage from it showed odd reflections in the shadow at the bottom of the crater. 
 Thoroughly confused, the fifteen preeminent researchers' minds raced. The next scans seemed to confirm what none of the committee dared to suggest. Liquid water on the moon! The multitude of minions were stirred into action, moving to phones and computers. 
 The rover, ill equipped for water sampling, reported anyway. Peter Sherman, the newest secretary, read out the results. 
 `` Above average Helium-3, as expected. No dissolved Oxygen. Also, Lead?'' 
 `` You, technician,'' called Professor Hurt to the pilot of the robot, `` Take us north out of this crater. Perhaps the spheres that the sonic imaging reported have something to do with this.'' 
 The nameless lackey followed her instructions, ascending the bank out of the crater, climbing the ridge above the crater. The sleek rover, about the mass of a car, struggled to find traction on the damp grey dust. Once it reached the top of the hill, it again slowly pitched downwards. The researchers held their breath. The 45 spheres were grey and were partially submerged in the dust. They glinted in the thin twilight, and what looked like a vaguely avian insignia decorated one. Balanced on the top of the ridge, the rover's field of view showed most of the valley, nicknamed Orb Valley in mission planning. 
 It did not show the reason the rover's solar panels stopped outputting power. 
 Professor Hurt began to look slightly blue and queasy, still holding her breath. The whole rover rolled to the right. 
 `` We've lost sample vibrator function and the receiver is down,'' reported Sherman, calmly gazing at his computer. 
 The pilot stood up from the rover controls, peering at Mister Sherman's shivering hand. The committee were mesmerised and whispering amongst themselves. Sherman continued, `` We've lost connection to motors, not that we could use them anyway. Uh, just lost thermometers...'' 
 He trailed off as the camera twisted at an impossible angle towards a figure. It was humanoid, and covered in thick metal. It sported a helmet with a glassy section at its front and a grey plume extended from the helm's peak. The camera refocused on the helmet and revealed a recognisably human face, pale and severe. The rover's power supply was severed by some unknown damage, and as the transmitter's capacitor drained, the man in the spacesuit drew a shimmering white gladius and raised it above his head like a torch. 
 The committee of scientists silently stared at the static on the display, stunned. The unnamed rover driver spoke up. 
 `` Y'all better see these here sonic scan results. About them metal balls.''
