But Dana knew the data. The Tube had been designed to find the smallest unit of information in the universe. Instead, it seemed to have invited something in. The light suddenly expanded, filling the diameter of the Tube, pressing against the glass. The vibrations intensified, shifting from a hum to a low, melodic thrumming that Dana felt in her very marrow.
"That's impossible," Marcus scoffed. "It's photons and vacuum."
"Status report," Dana barked, her voice echoing off the sterile walls.
Dana Hayes stood at the threshold of the subterranean research facility, the hum of the "Analytic Tube"—or "The Tube," as the staff called it—vibrating through the soles of her boots. As the lead systems engineer, she wasn't here for the prestige; she was here because the Tube was the world's most advanced particle accelerator, and it was currently screaming.
Dana looked at the empty glass. The Tube had finished its first analysis. Now, it was time for them to follow where the data led. AI responses may include mistakes. Learn more
She reached out, her gloved hand hovering inches from the glass. The light surged toward her touch, mimicking the shape of her palm on the other side of the barrier.
The Tube wasn't a circle like the ones in Geneva. It was a perfectly straight, five-mile vacuum of glass and chrome that ran deep beneath the Nevada desert. Its purpose was to "analyze" the fundamental fabric of reality by firing concentrated light through a series of crystalline filters.
