As the embers of the blood-red dawn had yet to fade, Bruce made his way through the explosion-ravaged corridor into a laboratory. The experimental space was extremely cramped, spanning roughly twenty square meters, yet it had been squeezed to its limits, even incorporating a mezzanine structure to maximize space. The air was thick with the pungent odor of formaldehyde mixed with the acrid scent of burned fat, creating an oppressive atmosphere that was nearly suffocating.
The most striking feature was the two transparent glass columns on the mezzanine. Floating in semi-solid nutrient solution were two obese female bodies, their eyes closed, oxygen tubes inserted into their nostrils, and their bellies covered in dense clusters of sensory patches—both resembling products of modern technology
