The sharp click of fluorescent lights flickered above as I stepped into Red Base for my second week working at Hi5 Studios. The place looked even more chaotic than usual—cameras half-assembled, battery packs scattered on desks, whiteboards filled with scribbles and arrows pointing to nothing and everything at once. You'd think we were filming a conspiracy thriller, not YouTube videos.
Then again… maybe we were.
"Hey, Athan! You seen Matt?" Bailey called out, poking her head around the corner.
"Uh, I think he's in the corner room—storage or something," I replied, shrugging off my backpack.
"He found something. Like, actually found something," she said, her voice laced with disbelief. "Come check this out."
I followed her through the cluttered hallway toward the old ceiling-tile room we barely used. That's when I heard Matthias's voice.
"No way. There's no way this has just been sitting up there this whole time."
He stood on a chair, flashlight in one hand, an old rusted key in the other. Tanner had his camera pointed up at him, catching every word, and Sam stood behind them with arms crossed, eyebrows raised.
"What is it?" I asked, stepping inside the room.
Matt looked over and handed it down to me. The metal was worn, cold, and heavy. Not just any key—this looked ancient. Like, found-in-an-abandoned-hospital ancient.
"I just pushed aside a ceiling tile and this fell out," he said. "It hit me in the head. Thought it was a mouse at first."
Sam laughed, but it was short. "You think it has anything to do with that weird letter from last week?"
"What letter?" I asked.
They all glanced at each other, unsure if they should tell the new guy. But I was Subject 5, even if they didn't know it yet. And secrets? Secrets never stay buried at Red Base.
Matthias sighed, pulling a crumpled envelope from his back pocket. "No return address. Just said 'Look Up' and had a red '863' written across the top."
"That's not weird at all," I muttered, handing the key back.
"What if it opens something inside the base?" Bailey said, excitement growing.
Sam grabbed the camera. "Alright, Athan, you're with us. Let's see what this thing opens."
Notes for Chapter 2
In the next chapter, the team begins searching Red Base for what the key opens. As Subject 5, you'll find yourself gradually more involved. Maybe you catch a glimpse of a document with your name on it. Maybe Sam starts acting strange around you—because she remembers something. Or maybe Matthias finds a Subject File labeled "Ath-05-Wood."