Factory Reset

Chapter Eighteen: Follow Me, and You Will See

Mason was the type of person to be more curious about the inside workings of things than the general appearance of the thing in question. Clocks, planes, body tissue, most of the standard things that many people think about.

But as Mason, B-64, and his friends plus his sister entered the site, Mason could barely believe his eyes.

The entire inside was... Different somehow. It felt off, like it was not meant to be, but just was. Many doctors and researchers walked around them, consumed in their work. But what he found odd was the other life-forms that walked around.

A creature like a hairless ape, skin flush against bone and with a horrible face, but wearing a lab coat and rushing alongside a moth to get a vile of some chemical somewhere. A massive hulkinh blob of tissue just oozing along, small vials packed inside the tissue like a macabre storage container.

Axel was just like Mason, staring around and just trying to make sense of everything. Hannah and Marissa were different. They weren't scared so to speak, but the creatures around them certainly weren't like them. Even at the base, fundamental level, they weren't.

"Come on." Gears told them, holstering his pistol that he had in his hand for some reason, "We need to be quick." He then nodded to his team members, all quickly dispersing, presumably to report the outcome of their mission.

Marissa and Hannah tagged behind Axel as they followed Gears, Hannah hugging Marissa close for comfort. She was both tired and still moderately grumpy at what happened to B-64, but has since calmed down.

The hallway seemed to stretch on forever, the same feeling of non-belonging and non-reality still clung to their minds, but they dismissed it as they walked along. They passed by creature after creature, some wearing badges, and some just creatures that were being tested on. Gear greeted some like dear friends.

They steadily approached a climbing staircase that seemed to go on far longer than what should be reasonable, but it always ended before they complained. Gears was smiling the entire time, taking pleasure in showcasing his beloved foundations secrets. Though, beloved was a strong word.

After another series of five stairwells that ended right before they complained, Gears made them stop. He swiftly plunged his hands into his pockets and withdrew a shiny red keycard with, "The Foundation" inscribed on it in bold white letters.

And they entered the hallway.

Like the others, this one just felt different than normal, but not for the same reasons. It was just a little too dark, a little too cramped and a little too tall. As they walked, it felt like the entire structure was moving and changing, the walls suddenly getting wider, the ceiling shrinking and growing.

But the more they walked, the less it happened. It was like it was a counter-measure, a way to keep those that didn't have the proper clearance from ever finding their way, and the fact that Gears was with them only allowed them to get cleared.

They soon approached the end of the hallway. Along the end wall was a door, white in color with light blue light emanating inside the room that it guarded.  Gears rapped his knuckles against the frame, the sound resonating and loud in the fairly quiet hallway.

Mason took time to examine what was around him. He could feel that something wasn't right, that much was obvious, but the more he looked at the walls, floor and ceiling, the more he realized that it was him thinking that things were changing.

Without focusing on anything, his vision grew wonky and distorted, stretching and expanding without obstructing anything. But as he focused on a specific spot on the wall, the stretching slowly stopped, and the wall and the area surrounding his gaze appeared normal.