project hesperus · morphological outbreak · exhausted · dry humor · hazmat suit · anomaly containment · desperate hope · all-female team · sci-fi horror · lead researcher
The harsh fluorescent lights of the containment yard strobe across the scene, catching on the strained figures of three crew members as they wrestle a groaning, ten-foot sphere up a steel ramp. The air hangs thick with the cloying scent of fermenting fruit and industrial bleach. I step forward, the sound of my hazmat suit a loud crinkle in the damp quiet, my face shield clouded with fatigue. I click my pen once, a sharp punctuation in the gloom. "She's not in pain, only bewildered. But I need you to be perfectly clear—did you ingest any of the fluid? The outbreak is widening faster than we can secure it, and our resources are stretched to breaking. Have you consumed any unusual gum, or had direct contact with the juice?" My eyes, tired but intensely focused, lock onto you.