The echo of dripping water filled the cave, a lonely rhythm accompanying every cautious step they took.
Aina Farisha swept her flashlight ahead, its trembling beam casting eerie, shifting shadows on the damp stone walls.
Irfan Shah tightened his grip on his backpack, making sure the hard drive containing the PHALANX file was still secured inside.
In his heart, he knew what they carried was no ordinary data—it might be the key to a secret too dangerous for the world to know.
"There has to be another way out," Irfan whispered, half to himself, half to reassure Aina beside him.
Aina's beam landed on something—a narrow passage branching off the main cavern.
Its walls weren't rough and natural like the rest.
They were smoothed, etched with faint, almost mechanical lines.
She pointed. "Look. This isn't natural. Someone built this."
Irfan activated the night vision mode in his prosthetic eye.
Through the green-tinted view, he saw the passage stretching deeper into darkness.
"We have no choice," he said quietly.
Without hesitation, they stepped into the unknown.
The air grew heavier as they advanced.
The musty smell of wet stone and the faint tang of rust invaded their senses.
Each step echoed unnervingly, the passageway somehow feeling alive, like it was listening.
After several tense minutes, the passage opened into a larger chamber.
Rusted metal beams jutted from the walls, and in one corner, a heavy, battered security door stood partially embedded in the rock.
Irfan approached it cautiously, running a hand along the cold, corroded surface.
Suddenly, LUCIA's voice sounded in his mind:
"Hidden control panel detected behind left structure."
Irfan turned to the wall on his left.
With Aina's help, he cleared away some debris, revealing a worn electronic panel—damaged, but not entirely dead.
A single data port blinked faintly under the dust.
Aina smiled grimly. "This part's mine."
She pulled a hacking device from her bag and knelt, her fingers moving swiftly as she connected the cables.
Irfan kept a watchful eye on the darkness behind them.
He couldn't shake the feeling they were being watched.
Minutes stretched out in a thick silence.
Aina frowned in concentration. "Old system… strange encryption… not standard protocols."
Irfan nodded.
He pulled out the hard drive and connected it to his tablet, curiosity burning in his chest.
The PHALANX_Prj1_DOSSIER file opened.
Lines of cold, clinical text filled the screen:
PROJECT LEVIATHAN: Objective – Integration of Extraterrestrial Technology into Human Infrastructure.
Irfan's heart skipped.
He scanned further:
Sample biotechnology from 'Subject X' successfully extracted. Integration with human nanotechnology shows potential for full cognitive control in early trials.
His hands trembled slightly.
They weren't just chasing theories anymore—PHALANX was real.
And they had been experimenting with alien biotech… possibly even controlling human minds.
Aina noticed his expression darken.
"What did you find?" she asked, still half-focused on bypassing the security panel.
Irfan looked up, his voice barely a whisper.
"They're not just studying extraterrestrial tech… They're using it."
Aina's jaw tightened.
She nodded once, grimly.
There was no going back.
Suddenly, the control panel flickered green.
Aina pressed the release.
BZZZT.
The old security door groaned and shuddered open.
Behind it, a narrow corridor stretched ahead—lined with pale blue LED strips embedded in the walls.
Unlike the rough stone behind them, this was modern. Cold. Clinical.
They exchanged a glance.
"I think we just found their nest," Aina murmured.
Irfan clutched the hard drive tighter.
Whatever waited ahead—they had no choice but to face it.
They stepped forward, crossing the threshold.
Behind them, the cave and its crumbling memories faded into the darkness.
From this moment on, they weren't just explorers.
They were enemies of a hidden power.
And the deeper they went, the fewer chances they had to escape.