The ship was no longer just an inanimate vessel. It had become a living organism, pulsating with the rhythm of the signal. Every corner, every shadow seemed to move with a life of its own. The walls were alive, breathing, shifting. Time itself felt unstable, like a thin layer of glass about to crack.
The crew moved through the ship in a haze, their movements slow, deliberate. The looping effect of the signal had become more pronounced. The same conversations, the same moments—repeated over and over in a dizzying spiral.
Kaelen stopped in his tracks, suddenly aware of how familiar everything felt. He had seen this hallway before. He had stood here, at this exact spot, just minutes earlier—or was it hours?
A voice called from behind him.
"Kaelen, come on. We need to check the comms again."
Mira. He turned to see her, but then she blinked and the hallway warped, flickering like a malfunctioning hologram.
"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice concerned.
Kaelen swallowed hard. "I'm not sure. Something's wrong with... everything."
Mira studied him for a long moment, her brow furrowing. "You're not making sense. We need to focus. The signal is messing with your mind, Kaelen. We can fix it. We just need to keep moving."
Kaelen nodded numbly, but in the back of his mind, he wasn't sure they could fix it. Not anymore.
They passed through the corridor, but when Kaelen glanced over his shoulder, the hallway had changed. It was no longer the same. The walls were darker, the lights dimmer. The hum of the signal was louder now—closer.
It was as if they were walking through a different version of the ship. A version that was shifting and evolving in real time.
He turned to Mira, but she was already walking ahead, her footsteps echoing in the growing darkness.
And for a brief, terrifying moment, Kaelen wasn't sure if she was real.