Experiment X

Unspoken X

CHAPTER
3

Aria adjusted her glasses, allowing the large black frames to slide into their accustomed place on her face as she carried her carefully prepared sandwich into the sterile quiet of Lab Six, nestled away from the main laboratories of the facility. The lights were dimmer here, the hum of machinery quieter than in her personal lab, making it an ideal place to steal a moment of respite from her meticulously scheduled routine.

She was strict with her diet and routine, especially when it came to meals, and this sandwich was a product of that same precision. Its layers were exact, each ingredient weighed and portioned to perfection: protein-rich turkey, crisp slices of cucumber, leafy greens, and a thin spread of low-fat dressing on whole-grain bread. Her orange juice was organic, freshly squeezed, kept at exactly the right temperature in the small lab fridge, where it sat neatly beside her research notes and specimen samples. Aria found comfort in the symmetry and predictability of it all.

Settling onto a stool near the glass wall that separated her from the subject of her current research, she reached for the sandwich, lifting it with both hands, appreciating the familiar weight of it. Eating lunch alone here, in a space reserved for containment and isolation, brought her a strange sort of peace. It was free of the disruptive chaos of the cafeteria—the hum of idle chatter, people jostling in line, the scramble of trays and dishes. Here, she could focus.

But as she lifted the sandwich to her mouth, a voice broke the silence, low and rough, resonant in a way that sent a tremor down her spine.

"Could I have something to eat?"

The words were simple, straightforward, but their effect was anything but. Aria's fingers froze, her sandwich hovering in mid-air as her pulse quickened, her mind struggling to process what she'd just heard. Slowly, almost reluctantly, she turned her head, eyes drawn to the source of the voice like a magnet.

And there he was.

Specimen X, the alien being she'd been meticulously studying and dissecting in her notes, stood within his containment unit, his tall frame restrained by heavy chains at his wrists and ankles, his movements restricted within the cage-like structure that was barely large enough to accommodate him. He met her gaze, unblinking, with an intensity that held her captive as surely as his restraints held him.

Aria's initial shock was tempered only by her logical, scientific mind, which fought to rationalize what was happening. He had spoken. Her alien subject had spoken. Her mind scrambled for a logical explanation, each possibility more improbable than the last. No alien specimen in all her years of study—not one—had ever shown the capability for human speech. Their vocal cords, while adaptable in some species, were not developed enough to articulate language with human-like precision. And yet, she had heard it. As clearly as if he'd whispered the words directly into her ear.

"Could I have something to eat?" he repeated, his voice steady, deeper this time, laced with a quiet power that both unnerved and intrigued her.

The scientific part of her brain screamed to analyze, to ask a hundred questions at once, to record and document every possible reason for this unprecedented phenomenon. Yet she remained rooted to the spot, caught in the intensity of his gaze. His expression was unreadable, yet somehow it was filled with an intelligence that went far beyond what she had anticipated. He wasn't simply speaking; he was communicating, understanding.

She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. "You... you spoke," she managed, her voice barely above a whisper.

His gaze didn't falter. There was a quiet confidence in his eyes, a certainty that made her feel as though he'd been watching her long before she had ever looked at him. Aria could feel the weight of his scrutiny, as though he were analyzing her with the same detachment she usually reserved for her subjects. It was unnerving—and, on some level, deeply unsettling.