The Choice The vial trembled in Iris’s hand. The liquid inside was dark, thick, alive. It seemed to pulse with its own heartbeat, a rhythm that matched the pounding in her ears. The sirens were closer now — not behind her, but around her, inside her, a wail that came from somewhere deep in her … Read more
The Sirens The sirens grew louder. Iris sat on the cold warehouse floor, the journal in her lap, the vial in her hand. Her heart was pounding so hard she could feel it in her throat, her temples, her fingertips. The sound of the police cars was getting closer, and with each passing second, her … Read more
The Thing Inside Iris sat on the cold warehouse floor, her back against the wall, her hands trembling in her lap. The older version of herself stood by the window, staring out at the darkness, her silhouette sharp against the dim light. The silence between them was heavy, thick, suffocating. The white room. Never leave. … Read more
The Future Woman Iris did not sit down. She stood in the doorway of the warehouse room, her phone flashlight still illuminating the space, her eyes fixed on the woman behind the desk. The woman who had her face. The woman who said she was her. Thirty years from now. “That’s impossible,” Iris whispered. “Is … Read more
The Photographs Iris didn’t sleep that night. She sat on her couch, wrapped in a blanket, staring at the wall. Oliver watched her from the armchair, his tail twitching, his yellow eyes unblinking. The apartment was dark except for the glow of the streetlamp outside, casting long shadows across the floor. She had tried to … Read more
The Interrogation Room The police station smelled like coffee and fear. Iris had never been inside one before — not as a visitor, not as a witness, certainly not as a suspect. The fluorescent lights hummed overhead, casting a sickly pallor on the gray walls. The chairs were hard plastic, bolted to the floor. The … Read more
The Dirt Under Her Nails The dirt wouldn’t wash off. Iris stood at the bathroom sink, scrubbing her hands with soap, then more soap, then dish detergent, then a scrub brush she found under the cabinet. The water ran brown, then gray, then pink as her skin began to break. But the dirt remained — … Read more
The Singing Dark The signal appeared at the edge of the galaxy on a Tuesday. No one knew where it came from. No one knew what it wanted. No one knew why it was singing. The colonists of Aethelburg heard it first. Then the sleepers. Then the ships. Then everyone. The singing spread like a … Read more
The White Room The first thing she noticed was the light. It was everywhere — above, below, around — a flat, white glow that had no source and no shadow. There was no window, no lamp, no sun. Just light. Endless, sterile, suffocating light. The second thing she noticed was the silence. Not the quiet … Read more
THE DAUGHTER’S CHOICE (EPILOGUE) Years later. Nova sat on the porch of her hut, watching the sun rise over a forest that had not existed a decade ago. The trees were tall now, their leaves green and full. Birds sang in the branches. A stream ran nearby, its water clear and cold. A child sat … Read more
