And So It Begins

In the remote wastelands of Country G, within the confines of a covert research facility, the night shift was nearing its end. Scientists and researchers, cloaked in fatigue, were preparing to hand over their duties to the day shift counterparts. Miss Ella Bold, the lead scientist, began her journey to her office.

As she walked down the gleaming, sterile hallways, scientists and researchers scuttled past her, offering friendly but weary greetings as they left their posts.

One researcher with a disheveled lab coat rushed by, giving a tired grin. "Morning, Miss Bold. Good luck with your shift."

Ella returned the smile, her own lab coat crisp and impeccable. "Thank you, Johnson. Rest well."

Further down the corridor, a scientist with unruly hair and a stack of papers under one arm nodded to her. "Ella, it's all yours now. Make some breakthroughs today."

She chuckled and replied, "I'll do my best, Sarah. Get some sleep."

The exchanges were brief, a delicate ballet of scientists in transit. Each person's eyes carried the weight of a night spent in the pursuit of knowledge, and their movements bore the fatigue that came with it.

Ella continued on her path, ready to embark on the next chapter of this unending scientific endeavor.

Arriving at her office door, Ella Bold stood before it, a determined yet ritualistic gesture. With her gaze fixed on the sensor panel next to the doorframe, she spoke her name clearly and confidently, "Ella Bold."

A soft, melodic voice, belonging to the sophisticated AI system named Seraph, responded,

"[Welcome, Dr. Bold. To proceed, please initiate fingerprint verification.]"

Ella placed her right thumb on the designated scanner and maintained a patient poise as the device processed the data. She then followed Seraph's instructions, offering voice, eye, and facial verifications one after another.

The high-tech security measures had always been a matter of routine for Ella. They were her gateway to a treasure trove of knowledge and secrets locked within her office. The final authentication, facial recognition, led to the impressive doors gracefully sliding open.

As the doors revealed her office, she turned her attention to Seraph and spoke, "Seraph, lights on."

However, as the soft illumination filled her spacious office, Ella's calm demeanor gave way to shock. Her eyes widened as she found herself facing a mysterious woman draped in all-black attire, a veil obscuring her face.

The unknown visitor's voice echoed with an eerie familiarity. "Dr. Ella Bold, renowned scientist. Your accomplishments in advanced biotechnology in combination with arcane energy and AI automatic spellcasting circuites research are quite impressive. I've learned quite a lot about you. You've uncovered secrets of civilizations long lost to time, such as the forbidden ritual beneath the Mesopotamian sands. Your past affair with the elusive cryptographer. The experiment that went tragically wrong, resulting in the accidental death of your colleague. Not to mention your intricate relationships with Professor Lawrence. Your funding from the enigmatic Prometheus Foundation, and your darkest secret, the forbidden texts hidden in the vault beneath this very facility."

Ella mused inwardly, her hands shaking slightly, and beads of sweat forming on her forehead. "I may not know who this woman is, but I'm sure she is a professional in her craft. To be able to enter a room with up to five layers of security without even alerting the system... If I don't give her what she wants, I might die here."

Ella's heart raced as the realization dawned. She was confronted with an enigmatic stranger who seemed to know every fact of her life. Her voice trembled as she inquired, "Who are you, what do you want and how did you even get in?"

The woman in black leaned forward, the shimmering fabric of her veil obscuring her expression but not her intent. With a calm and measured tone, she made her demand clear. "I want the cornerstone, Dr. Bold. Give it to me."

Ella's face turned pale upon hearing the woman's request. She mused inwardly, her thoughts racing. "The cornerstone is a highly classified item under research. Although its use has not been discovered yet, the dimensional energy it radiates is strong enough to rival the core of a king-class monster. If I were to reveal the location of that item, it would spell disaster."

Ella's eyes widened as the weight of her secret knowledge pressed down on her shoulders. She was well aware of the significance of the cornerstone, an enigmatic artifact that had consumed her research efforts for years. The magnitude of its untapped power and the secrets it held could reshape the world, but she had never anticipated a confrontation like this.

Ella then began to stutter, her voice quivering with fear, "I... I... I have no idea..."

The mysterious woman, undeterred, closed the distance between them, each step seemed to somehow echow in the small office. Her flowing black attire swayed with her movements. She raised a gloved hand and pointed a slender finger directly at Ella. Her eyes, though hidden behind the veil, gazed into Ella's with intensity.

The woman spoke in measured tones, "But your face is telling another story."

Ella's body language spoke of distress and desperation.

The woman simply chuckled beneath her veil as she said, "No matter, it's not like I actually expected you to talk in the first place. I just wanted to see how you would act under pressure," the woman remarked.

Ella then asked in fear, "So what do you plan to do? Since you are well aware I won't be talking."

The woman smiled wickedly, replying, "Oh dear, if your mouth doesn't want to talk, I will just have to ask your mind instead." She pulled off her glove on her right hand, revealing her hand covered in glowing, bluish-purple tattoos that pulsed with energy. A grotesque mouth-like symbol was etched on her palm, and it stretched out its tongue, thick saliva dripping.

Ella mused inwardly, "I am obviously in danger by staying here, but I'm unable to move my body to run away. It's like she has me frozen," she thought, her eyes fixed on the approaching tongue.

The woman moved closer, and Ella's fear grew. Her eyes widened as the tongue drew nearer.

"Now... let's begin," the woman said. Suddenly, the office doors closed with Ella's screams barely audible.