The experiment

Sophia awoke on the cold, sterile floor of a white room. Her head throbbed, and her throat was parched. She blinked, disoriented, taking in her surroundings: seamless white walls, a faint hum of machinery, and an unsettling brightness that seemed to come from nowhere. Her clothes—a thin white sweatsuit—clung uncomfortably to her skin. It was unsettling to think that someone had undressed and redressed her while she was unconscious.

Memories fluttered back in fragments. She had been at The Mayflower, celebrating her promotion with coworkers. There was laughter, clinking glasses, and then...nothing.

“Hello?” her voice cracked, weak but defiant.

“I wouldn’t waste my breath if I were you,” came a voice from the corner.

Sophia spun around, startled. A man leaned against the wall, his arms crossed. He looked haggard, his scruffy beard and bloodshot eyes suggesting he'd been here longer than she had.

“Who are you?” she demanded.

“Nathan Conwell,” he said, stepping forward, his voice calm but tinged with resignation. “You can call me Nate.”

Sophia’s heart raced. “Did you bring me here? Is this some kind of sick game?”

Nate snorted. “Do I look like I’m in charge? Trust me, if I knew how to get out of here, I wouldn’t still be standing around waiting for introductions.”

Sophia crossed her arms, keeping her distance. “What do you know about this place?”

“Not much,” Nate admitted. “All I know is, there’s no way out. No doors, no windows. Just walls. Lights too bright to think straight. And food? Forget it. They’re starving us. My guess? Military experiment. Psychological torture.”

Sophia narrowed her eyes. “Why would they do this?”

“Because they can,” Nate replied grimly.

Hours passed, or perhaps it was days—time had become meaningless. The room seemed to pulse with an unnatural energy, as though it was alive. Sophia tied strips of her sweatpants around her eyes to dull the relentless brightness, but the material was too thin to block it out entirely.

As hunger gnawed at her, she found herself questioning everything. Why was she here? Who had done this? Could she trust Nate? She glanced at him across the room. He sat quietly, his eyes darting to the walls as if searching for an escape that wasn’t there.

When the sound came, it startled them both—a low hum, followed by a circular hatch opening in the floor. From it rose a small table, laden with food: a decadent chocolate cake, a platter of sandwiches, and a glass pitcher of water.

Sophia’s stomach growled loudly.

“Well, well,” Nate muttered, eyeing the spread. “Looks like someone upstairs is feeling generous.”

Sophia hesitated, her instincts warning her. “What if it’s poisoned?”

Nate chuckled darkly. “Better to die full than starving.”

“I’ll try it first,” Sophia offered. “If it’s safe, we’ll share.”

“Right,” Nate said, suspicion flickering in his eyes.

Sophia approached the table cautiously, cutting a small slice of cake. The rich, chocolate aroma made her mouth water. She took a bite and closed her eyes, savoring the taste. It was heavenly—a stark contrast to the hell they were trapped in.

“It’s fine,” she said, turning to Nate with a smile. “Let me cut you a piece.”

She served him a generous slice, her movements slow and deliberate. As Nate took his first bite, closing his eyes in satisfaction, Sophia struck.

The knife, concealed behind her back, plunged into his neck. Blood spurted as Nate choked, his hands clutching at the wound. He collapsed, his eyes wide with shock and betrayal.

Sophia stepped back, breathing heavily. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, though she wasn’t sure if she meant it.

As Nate’s lifeless body slumped to the floor, a voice echoed through the room—deep, mechanical, and inhuman.

“Experiment complete. Results conclusive. Test subject B demonstrates expected behavioral patterns under deprivation conditions. Test subject A: terminated. Preparing subject for secondary testing.”

Sophia froze, her blood turning to ice. The walls of the room began to shift, and a hissing sound filled the air as a thick, noxious gas seeped in. She coughed, her vision swimming.

Through the haze, she saw the walls part, revealing silhouettes—tall, humanoid figures with elongated limbs and featureless faces. They moved with a fluidity that defied logic, their presence radiating an aura of cold indifference.

“No!” Sophia screamed, fighting against the gas, against the terror clawing at her mind. But her body betrayed her, succumbing to unconsciousness.

When Sophia awoke, she was no longer in the white room. She lay strapped to a table in a dark, cavernous space. Above her, strange symbols glowed faintly, and the air buzzed with an unnatural hum.

The humanoid figures loomed over her, their alien eyes studying her like a specimen under a microscope.

“Subject B displays potential,” one of them said, its voice resonating in her mind rather than her ears.

Sophia struggled against the restraints, her heart pounding.

“What do you want from me?” she cried.

The figure tilted its head, as if amused.

“To understand your kind. To see how far you will go for survival. And now, to prepare you for your next role.”

Sophia’s screams echoed in the vast chamber as the beings began their work.

Epilogue

In a distant control room, data streamed across monitors. Graphs and charts detailed the psychological breakdown of two human test subjects.

“Another successful trial,” a dispassionate voice announced. “Prepare the next batch. The invasion requires precision.”

Deep in space, a fleet of ships hung in the void, their sights set on Earth.

For humanity, the end was just beginning.