“This is Dr. Antonio Romero. First audio log of sample 4536. Date March 14, 2017. Time 7:03 in the morning.”
“This is my first time keeping a recorder beside me while I research samples brought to me from the field. Normally, I record my findings through pen and paper, or through the computer. But Erica recommended that I try using the recorder, as it can be used to capture details that I might miss.”
“A brief introduction: I run the optical properties center in the advanced government research institute, which includes myself and two other researchers: Dr. Henry Chen and Dr. Erica Stewart. Our team handles the determination of optical properties of unknown samples.”
“At our disposal, we have a large dark room where no external light sources can penetrate. Within that room, we have spectrometers, spectrophotometers, lasers, specialized lamps, and other equipment.”
“Sample 4536 was given to us by one of the field agents, Olaf Henderson. It was safely stored inside a metal briefcase. A briefing from him indicates that it looks like a near-transparent crystal. He told us that initial assessment indicates it is not radioactive.”
“It seems to behave very strangely under varying light sources. He told us that the sample does not glow when directly exposed to a 365nm UV light source. However, after exposing it to the same light source after 12 hours of near-complete light isolation, it glows a bright pink. He also notes that under direct sunlight, the sample’s shimmer appears to change over time. Sometimes it is opalescent. Sometimes it has a faint golden hue. But it always maintains its transparency.”
“Considering some of the samples I have seen, I am not surprised. Anyways, I have it now, so let’s begin.”
Click.
“Opening the briefcase, we can see a large, perfectly transparent crystal in the shape of a teardrop. It is almost 32cm high with a max diameter of 15cm. It is quite light. Putting it on the scale indicates it has a mass of 1.23kg. Looking at the sample in an office setting, it appears to shimmer in a faint light green hue. Interestingly, Olaf mentioned a golden hue under similar conditions, which I do not observe here. This discrepancy is curious and warrants further investigation.”
“I will take it to the dark room and expose it to various colors of light to see what I can get.”
Echoes of footsteps.
A door opening and closing.
Machinery humming.
“Let’s begin. Before starting, I will note that the crystal has become less transparent with a white color. The shimmer remains the same.”
“I will start by placing the sample on a white surface using red, green, blue, yellow, purple, and pink light sources.”
Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.
“The sample does not respond to any of the colors. Testing using UV light sources, 395nm and 365nm.”
Click. Click.
“Sample appears to respond only under a 365nm light source. It appears to be fluorescent, emitting a light purple glow.”
Wheels rolling.
Click.
Sounds of a machine humming and whirring loudly, then slowly fading away.
“That’s strange. Using the spectrometer, it looks like the crystal is emitting 634.7nm and 490.2nm wavelengths. However, there is no broad range or normal curve shown in the graphs. It is purely a straight line. A pure delta function. How interesting. Olaf's report didn't mention any specific wavelengths but a pink glow after 12 hours of only 365nm light exposure. How curious.”
Click.
A door opening and closing.
Echoes of footsteps.
“I will transfer this sample to Henry and Erica. They will handle the laser analysis of the sample. I am excited to see what they find tomorrow.”
“Second audio log of sample 4536. Date March 15, 2017. Time 11:12 in the morning.”
“Henry told me that both he and Erica have completed the laser analysis. Their findings indicate that the sample does not behave like glass. When the green laser emits a beam at the sample at various angles, it seems to reflect it directly back into the laser. The reflection angle does not change with different wavelengths, including 365nm.”
“Perhaps I should specify as to stress the strangeness of their findings. They observed no refracted, transmitted, or absorption behavior during the experimentation. 100% of the incident beam was reflected back into the laser.”
“They also mentioned that the sample appeared to have changed visually. It is now white and purely opaque. It is not exhibiting the purple glow under 365nm that I observed earlier.”
“I told them that considering the rather discrete wavelengths this sample emits, perhaps we should shine a laser at those wavelengths to see if it will respond. Erica suggested that if we submerge the sample in different media, we could alter the laser wavelength to possibly match its emission wavelength. They will start by adjusting the red laser wavelength to 634.7nm and report their findings.”
“Third audio log of sample 4536, if it can be called that. Date March 16, 2017. Time 8:47 in the evening.”
“I am saddened to report that there was an incident in the dark room nearly 8 hours ago. The only one affected was Erica. Her well-being is unknown. On-site technicians told me she was holding a bloodied glass shard. It appears she stabbed her eyes out with the sample and kept screaming incoherently.”
“Erica was the only one in the dark room at the time. She was handling the adjustments of the red laser wavelength using various media. I found her recorder on the table next to the sample. All the machinery and lights were off. The equipment was scattered on the floor. Blood... blood everywhere.”
Sniffling and sobbing.
“Olaf and his colleague, Christy, came to see both me and Henry an hour after the incident. They informed us that Erica is currently being monitored at one of the finest government medical facilities. The doctors are doing everything they can to save her, but her condition is critical. We should know more about her status by tomorrow.”
“In the meantime, we have been advised to rest for about a month while the lab is put back in order. They need to find a replacement for Erica during her recovery. Additionally, it has been recommended that no one works with the sample alone. They will hire a few people to supervise us while we work.”
“Before ending this rather short audio log, I want to play a section of Erica’s recorder. I am not sure what to make of it.”
Click.
A woman talking.
“… the medium is now prepared. After adjusting the ratios between media 3, 7, and 21, I finally got that damn red laser to change from 632.8nm in air to 634.7nm in the mixture. I will call it my baby for now until I can figure out a better name. I will prepare a tank filled with my baby…”
A woman chuckling.
“… that will allow the sample to be fully submerged. Time to prep the tank. Go for lunch. This will take an hour. Maybe.”
Echoes of footsteps and a woman whistling.
Thud. Snap. Click.
A machine whirring and liquid oozing.
“Ok. Tank prepared. My baby pouring into the tank. Time for lunch.”
Echoes of footsteps.
Click.
A door opening and closing.
Silence for 19 minutes.
Static noise for 2 minutes.
Silence for 23 minutes.
A door opening and closing.
Click.
Sounds of footsteps and a woman whistling.
“Oops. Left my recorder on. My bad. No harm done though. Tank looks roughly 90% filled. Preparing the sample for submersion.”
Slosh.
Wheels rolling.
“Firing the laser in three. Two. One.”
Click.
Machine whirring.
“Huh. Antonio was right. Look at that. The sample responds to this laser wavelength. I can see a purple image projected onto the background from the laser. Strange that it changed the incident wavelength so much, let alone act like a caustic lens and projected an image onto the wall. I will need to document this in more detail later. I will describe the image now.”
“It looks messy. Chaotic. No wait! It appears to have fractal patterns. The top left looks like a Mandelbrot set. The image is extremely clear considering the circumstances. I can see at the bottom left that there are many circles. The biggest ones at the center, then expanding outward. At first, it looks like there is no pattern, but from a distance…”
Echoes of footsteps.
“…it looks like several chains of circles spiraling from a large center circle. This is beautiful.”
Static noise.
“Hey. What’s that forming in the center? It kind of looks like a…”
Static noise for 15 seconds.
“Cannot unsee… it’s in my head… Shapes that don’t make sense… Different dimensions…”
Static noise for 12 seconds.
“What is that? Who are you? What are you?”
Static noise for 32 seconds.
Loud screaming for 27 seconds.
Glass breaking.
Machinery toppling.
A door opening and closing.
Click.
“I will return this tape to Olaf shortly.”
Sigh.
“Both Erica and Henry are very close. An item really. Right now, Erica is under strict classified monitoring, and we cannot see her. I will comfort Henry soon.”
Silence for 2 minutes.
“The sample has been stored in a vault until further notice. Right now, I am emotionally compromised. I will recommend a course of action once I return. Probably after a month. Might end up telling them to keep that sample locked up forever. Who knows.”
“I will know once I return.”
By - emflux
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