It was a hot, sunny afternoon when Lily, clad in a hazmat suit, strode into the laboratory building. She appeared hurried and overwhelmed.

The hallway was eerily silent, deserted—as she'd anticipated. Unlike other workplaces, which bustled during the day and fell silent at night, this institute reversed the pattern. For the past two days, she'd observed it teeming with activity at midnight, while remaining deserted by day.

This was a legitimate place of business, yet its nocturnal operations intrigued her. Were they simply accustomed to working late, or were their experiments only feasible at night? Regardless, this inverse schedule worked to Lily's advantage. She could execute her plan during regular working hours, eliminating the need for late nights and extra precautions.

Aside from a few individuals in their private labs—perhaps napping—the hallway was utterly silent.

Lily held her breath and entered the institute's inner sanctum. Her iris and fingerprint scans, facilitated by Mike earlier, cleared smoothly. Her mission: to uncover this research's top secrets. The information provided previously had been incomplete, a fact she'd expected given the institute's wariness, despite their need for her expertise. Even the sight of the giant, mutated wilfordi root, while outwardly unfazed, had astonished her.

It wasn't that she hadn't seen such things before—apocalyptic films frequently depicted similar horrors, attributing them to environmental collapse or reckless scientific pursuits. However, witnessing it in reality was a different matter entirely. Beyond the wilfordi root, she suspected experimentation on other poisonous plants, animals, perhaps even humans. The past plague, with its victims—Cameron, Austin, Edward, and possibly others—suggested as much. Lily knew she had to eradicate this institute before it brought irreversible harm to the world.

She planned to begin with the wilfordi root, determining its potency and any changes in its toxicity. Next, she would hack into their database for firsthand information.

She knew the location of all surveillance cameras and monitoring systems. Security systems were her specialty. Hidden cameras and other such contingencies remained uncertain, but time was not on her side. Delay risked the institute's impatience.

The research center's emptiness was unsettling. Only the hum and beep of machinery filled the silence. To be safe, Lily went to a workstation, feigning document organization while scanning her surroundings. Pens and notebooks on some seats indicated recent occupancy; their return was imminent. This was her chance. If caught, she could claim to be searching for information.

She bent over the keyboard, beginning to type. The "boss" had provided her with a secret key and login, but access was severely limited. Beyond basic information retrieval, she was blocked. The top secrets weren't on this computer. She tried Mike's credentials, but they were rejected.

Frowning, she turned toward the wilfordi root, lost in thought. The plant, housed in a giant glass jar, seemed almost alive, even waving at her.

Unable to resist, she approached. Just as she reached out to touch it, a deep voice cut through the silence, sending a shiver down her spine: "I wouldn't do that if I were you."