Umbrella Corporation Theme -

The walls of the corridor were no longer concrete. They were covered in a slick, black velvet—mycelium, grown from the cracks, spreading in seconds. And from that velvet, faces pushed outward. Not screaming. Smiling. The faces of technicians, security guards, janitors—all the staff she'd had lunch with, argued with, ignored. Their eyes were closed, their expressions placid, as if dreaming a wonderful dream.

Elara leaned closer. On the floor near Kai’s feet, a fine black dust had begun to accumulate. She squinted. It wasn't dust. It was a hair-fine mycelium—black, glistening fungus—growing from the pores of his bare feet, spreading out in a fractal pattern across the white tile.

Elara ran.

"Vitals, Marks?" she asked the technician beside her. umbrella corporation theme

The lights in the observation room flickered. Once. Twice. Then they turned a deep, arterial red. Alarms did not blare. Alarms were for emergencies. This was not an emergency. This was launch.

"Get the director," she whispered.

The door screeched open. Salt wind slapped her face. She stumbled out onto the dock, gasping. The walls of the corridor were no longer concrete

Tonight, the umbrella would open for everyone.

She didn't run to the elevators—those were Thorne’s territory. She ran for the old maintenance stairwell, the one that predated The Cap’s renovation, the one not on any digital schematic. Her heels clattered on the iron grates. Behind her, she heard a soft, wet sound, like a sponge being wrung out. She glanced back.

Marks shrugged. "Deep contemplation? The Nyx strain enhances cognitive function." Not screaming

In the salt-choked air of the old whaling district, the Umbrella Corporation did not advertise. Its headquarters was a brutalist slab of obsidian glass, humming a low, subsonic note that made your teeth ache. Locals called it "The Cap." Officially, it was a pharmaceutical research facility. Unofficially, it was where the future went to be perfected—or to die screaming.

"Then why isn't he moving?"

Tonight, the rain would be kind.