While she was unconscious, Tamara dreamed of a massive spacecraft buried all around her, a crystalline structure so geometrically complex no human mind could have devised it. It stretched across the bowels of the earth, far beyond the limits of the hotel grounds. The green light it exuded was both sickening and enticing, washing over her like a hazy mist. It was the sort of combination only an altered state of mind could produce. And then she woke up to the absolute certainty it was all true.

“Welcome back,” Ashley declared, holding a small bottle of smelling salts to her nostrils. “I can’t say I’m surprised by your reaction because it’s a lot to take in so suddenly, isn’t it?”

“I... yes...” Tamara shook her head, but the fog clouding her judgment didn’t go away. “How long was I out?”

“About five minutes.”

“Strange, it seemed like five hours or more.”

“Yes, the atmosphere around here sometimes plays weird tricks on human perception. It’s not harmful though, and you’ll get used to it in no time.”

The two women were still inside the elevator, its doors unbudging. Ashley helped Tamara stand up and composed her clothes before saying,

“Why don’t you take a better look to admire all its beauty? I understand you have questions and while I don’t possess all the answers just yet, I’ll tell you everything I know, agreed?”

“I... I’m not sure where to begin.”

“You can start with the obvious query,” the rich woman chuckled.

“Is this really an alien spaceship?”

“That much is a given, and there are at least three more like it, one in South Africa, another in the eastern part of France, and one more buried in South America.”

“Does that mean you’re a...?” Tamara gasped.

“Who? Me? No!” Ashley laughed. “I’m as human as you, though I’m flattered you actually thought I could be something other than that. I just found it and others like it and have been studying in secret ever since.”

“How? How did you stumble upon this?”

“I’ll tell you, but how about I do it over a tour? We can even head inside if you wish.”

“Yes! Oh my God, yes! This is absolutely incredible!” Tamara could barely contain her juvenile excitement. When History calls, you either listen or run away, and she was anything but a quitter.

“Good. Follow me then and don’t stray off the main path. There are some nasty drops up ahead that will probably kill you if you’re not careful. If you feel woozy as we talk, let me know so you can take a breather, okay?”

“Why are you being so nice to me right now?”

“Because whether you want it or not, you’re now a part of this world. I need you to see everything for yourself before the next step.”

“And what is the next step?”

“One question at a time, Tamara. You wanted to know how I discovered this, right?”

“Yes, please.”

“Very well.”

The two women started walking along a suspended passageway above one of the ship’s many sides. It was all angles underneath them, like a forest of stalagmites or ice crystals erupting from the core of the planet. The green haze was everywhere, reflecting on the mirrored surfaces in a never-ending spectacle of moving patterns that defied both logic and gravity. Phantom traces of light swirled at their feet as if they were being exhaled from a living creature laying dormant.

“It all started three and a half years ago,” Ashley said. “At my request, a survey was being conducted at the underground parking lot of the hotel. We had recently experienced a minor earthquake and doubts arose about the state of the foundations. I needed to make sure everything was in order, so the lowest level was sealed off while a team of experts did their job. Everything seemed in order until the first of three aftershocks came to be, the last of which did the unthinkable and opened a giant sinkhole on the ground. Two men were standing on it when it happened and no, I regret to say, they didn’t make it.”

“That’s awful.”

“Agreed, but their sacrifice was not in vain. We couldn’t retrieve their bodies right away for fear of more replicas, but once the geological situation stabilized, I hired a specialized firm in subterranean rescues that not only got the job done but discovered a series of intricate passageways that led deeper underneath. They were the first to inform me that there was something buried here, but it was dangerous to explore it fully at the time. Together with yet another team of experts, a plan was devised to strengthen the foundations of the hotel while digging deeper to access what lay beneath us. It was a morose operation, one I had to go to extra lengths to remain secret, but despite what some people may say, money does fix all problems. The original chambers were widened and my private elevator shaft extended all the way down here. When the truth of what was hidden was revealed, I had the same reaction as you. This changed everything for me.”

Ashley stopped at an intersection of the platform. The path to the left led to a slope where additional digging was underway while the one to the right continued along the ship’s length before opening up to a hexagonal chamber further down. It was from there they could access the interior, where layers upon layers of additional revelations were waiting.

Tamara stopped as well and from her new vantage point, she could almost touch the craft’s surface, the enigmatic material drawing her in like a moth to a flame.

“What’s it made of?”

“Unknown. Analysis suggests it has some similarities to the structure of diamonds, but there are components in it for which we’ll need a new periodic table.”

“How long has this been down here?”

“Unknown as well, though everyone’s guess is that we’re looking at a remnant of a civilization that visited our planet long before we became the dominant species around. As for what they looked like or where they came from, we can only speculate.”

“You didn't find bodies? No fossilized remains of any kind?”

“No, just the ship and leftovers of tech completely different from anything we’ve ever imagined possible. The same has been true for the other sites though we’re still in the preliminary stages of exploring the South American craft.”

“You said this one was found by accident, but what about the others?”

“We may not know everything there is to know about the metallic and mineral structure of this ship but the first thing my team of scientists discovered was that it radiates a particular energy signature which we’ve been able to record and amplify in a closed environment. Three satellites under our control have been used to scan the planet’s surface looking for possible matches, and when any trace of abnormality is discovered, I send a team to the ground to investigate. They pose as geologists with all the necessary permits and equipment for a detailed analysis and once the finding is validated by them...”

“... you purchase the lands they’re in and use them to build a new hotel while exploring the subterranean grounds. That’s quite the elaborate facade you’ve got going on.”

“And one that’s been working almost flawlessly so far. However, we’ve recently had some problems at the South African dig, and since you were there at the time... I’ll be sure to punish the responsible for the erroneous information that came to me but it’s too late to change what happened now.”

“Never in my wildest dreams did I think this is what you were hiding.”

“Well, I imagine ‘alien spacecrafts’ is the last thing people think of when they see me or my empire mentioned on the news, but now you know. My life is science fiction, Tamara, and it just keeps getting more exciting. Ready to go inside?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be, I think.”

“After you then.”

Tamara took the first step inside the hexagonal chamber as it descended into the ship’s confusing interior layout. Were it not for the bright set of lights signaling the correct way to go, every corridor would have looked the same, the protruding crystals making everything smaller than it was. The green mist was even more pronounced on the inside, but Tamara’s lungs had already gotten used to it.

“Is this always like this?” she asked.

“No. It was worse in the early days, but we have air purifying systems in place that keep everything flowing normally and other than a few occasional headaches, we have had no real issues.”

“Where does this path lead?”

“To what we believe to be the ship’s heart. Take the next turn to the right, please.”

Tamara complied, and the cramped corridor where every corner resembled a spiky death trap gave way to a new chamber that was at least as large as two basketball courts lined side by side. It didn’t have any seats, screens, or any sort of recognizable control panel, save for two clearly symmetrical crystal formations, one in black and the other in blue combining at the top and then irradiating like filaments of an oversized web across every other division. It was the most exhilarating sight ever since the unexpected tour had begun. Three men wearing white suits were investigating the leftmost formation, while another one at the end of the room compared notes on a silver tablet.

“Oh wow! It’s gorgeous!” Tamara exclaimed.

“Yes, it really is something else. If you look at each crystal end, they appear to have different shapes embedded within, almost like a keyboard. We think this can be the basis of their language, but we haven’t been successful deciphering it so far.”

The symbols themselves were three-dimensional, appearing different to the naked eye depending on how you looked at them. A set of wavy lines seen from the left became two entwined hearts with a spiral-like shape running through them if seen from the right and something else differently from a different angle, but there was no actual movement to them. The crystals were static, only the perception of what they contained changed with the observer’s position.

“This is absolutely insane.”

“Believe it or not, there’s something even better at the other end. Come on.”

Tamara followed her host one more time through another series of maze-like hallways that made as much sense to her as an M. C. Escher creation, complete with impossible objects, truncated and stellated polyhedra, and tessellation. Her own self was refracted a thousand times as she kept walking, limbs getting heavier while her mind became lighter.

“You’re getting dizzy, aren’t you?” Ashley grabbed her right shoulder, forcing her to stop. It’s okay, breathe... Close your eyes for a moment and focus on your breathing only so you can adjust. The mind tricks will keep getting worse if you don’t center yourself. Inhale and exhale at the count of three, okay. One, two, three... and out it goes. One, two, three... good. One more time, okay? One, two, three... that’s it. Open your eyes when you’re ready and don’t worry about anything else. We’re nearly there."

Tamara blinked, seeing herself staring back at her from every direction of the ship. While they were mere reflections of her bewildered nature, for a second they felt off, manifestations of parallel realities that shouldn’t have been there in the first place. Ashley held her right hand for the rest of the way until they reached the craft’s most off-putting room of all.

It was five times larger than the one they had come from and its “ceiling” was decorated with long spikes the size of normal human beings. A Frankensteinian mishmash of generators had been added to the center of the division to power rows upon rows of smaller crystal-like cocoons where hundreds of people stood inside, fully dressed, arms and legs bound by almost invisible shackles and two large green tubes filled with a swirling liquid thicker than water attached to their temples. Although they seemed perfectly content in their suspended animated state, Tamara had a different opinion.

“What the...? Miss Wilson, what is this freak circus?”

“This, my dear, is where your tour ends and your new life begins,” Ashley replied with a clap. At once, four guards decked in the same uniform as the ones that had escorted Tamara to the billionaire’s suite surrounded them without making a sound.

“I don’t understand. Why are these people here, and what are you doing to them?”

“The same I’ll be doing to you. As I said, many secrets of this ship remain a mystery until now, but not this one. Of all the wonderful things we’ve discovered inside, this is the most exciting. Whoever those creatures were, I have a feeling they were conquerors and slave owners which explains the existence of these loyalty chambers in the back.”

“Loyalty chambers?”

“Do you like the name? I came up with it myself. It sounds better than brainwashing pods or mind-control shells, don’t you think?”

“Are you fucking insane?”

“I may be a lot of things, but insane is definitely not one of them. I didn’t ask to discover this technology, but once I realized its potential, I knew I had to use it. These babies are incredible, you know? The liquid inside those tubes stimulates the cerebral cortex of any living creature attached to them, and for the lack of a better word, effectively wipes their slates clean. You go inside with all the weight of the world on your shoulders, and you come out a few hours later, devoid of any worries or any troubling memories, with a perfectly clean mind that can be trained and programmed at will. If you ever wondered what it would be like to have an army of drones at your disposal, look no further than this room. And yes, the other ships have these chambers, too.”

“And these people, they’re...” Tamara puffed.

“Employees, contractors, test subjects... Running an empire as big as mine is hard work and the best way to maximize profit is by having everyone play their roles to perfection. There’s a reason my numbers exploded recently and you’re looking at it. Everyone in this room comes out a better person than they were when they walked in and, most important of all, they never forget who they owe their allegiance to when they’re done. What can be more perfect than that?”

“Is that what you want to do with me? To turn me into something I’m not, a husk at your disposal?”

“My dear, please understand this,” Ashley caressed Tamara’s right cheek like a mother comforting her child about something terrible. “It’s not that I want to do this no matter how fun it is, but it has become a necessity that I can’t ignore. You’re smart and inquisitive, and you could do me great harm in the future if I allowed you to roam free. So you didn’t discover the truth on your own, but you got closer than many others in the past and when I find a liability, I deal with it. You would have never done the right thing if I hadn’t threatened your family and I don’t believe you’d be able to keep my secret for long after all you’ve seen. That’s just not the kind of person you are. There’s good and honor in you, and those traits are amazing to have, but not what I need to thrive in the business world. I need loyalty, commitment, and people who blindly follow instructions, so I continue to be the powerhouse that I am. I can threaten you, or bribe you, but you’ll never be fully mine without this sort of incentive. I assure you the process is quite painless and that you’ll love being one of my thralls just like everyone else. You won’t remember a thing unless I want you to and the next time you’re face to face with the Board of Directors, you’ll sing nothing but praises to my leadership. Boys, put her in one of the loyalty chambers so we can get this show started.”

“Wait, Miss Wilson, you don’t have to do this! Please don’t do this!”

“It’s already done, dear, and you’ll be thanking me for the honor soon enough. We’ll talk again when the cycle is complete.”

“No! WAIT!” Tamara gesticulated furiously as she was dragged across the craft, kicking and screaming to the unperturbed drones who no longer had a choice to say ‘no’. The chamber welcomed her panic as if it were a blessing, every moving part inside it grabbing her, smothering her, claiming her as its own. The tubes gyrated above her wailing scalp, latching on to that enigmatic point that defines one’s individuality, not understanding it yet not needing to, for true purpose lay in renewal, rebirth into a vessel of pure service and nothing more. The green became white and the white pure infinity beyond the need for rational thought.

The young woman’s eyes declined into nothingness, arms and legs becoming flappy appendages next to her unconscious body while she was being stripped of everything she had learned, and all thoughtful volition. All the secrets of the universe, once at her fingertips, were now destined to be buried in a veil of conformity, eternal and immutable.

When the first session was over, she would still acknowledge her name and recognize her face in the mirror, but not the reasons that had led her there, or the memories of beautiful days with friends and family alike. Servants always do the right thing, and that is to obey the superior will that pulls their strings, whether above ground, underneath it or anywhere in-between. There’s a thin line between Heaven and Hell, pleasure and pain, resistance and capitulation, yet she would dare not cross it, pull it, or snap in two. The designation remained, but not the soul behind it. Her new owner always had the last words to say.

“One less thing to worry about,” Ashley freshened her make-up and yawned. Without turning back, she returned to the elevator and then to her suite to check on the progress of the South American excavation. When the new chambers were up and running as well, she would be unstoppable and that, more than anything, was absolutely perfect.