"Patterns" Episode 2: January 14-17, 2026

SCENE 1: Campus Coffee Shop — January 14, Morning

The coffee shop is buzzing with early morning energy. Maeve, Priya, and Ji-woo sit at a corner table, laptops open, notebooks scattered. They've barely slept. Maeve has a spreadsheet pulled up, Ji-woo is scrolling through her phone, and Priya is sketching something on paper.

MAEVE

Okay, so I made a list. Things we all have in common beyond the obvious.

JI-WOO

Hit me. I love a good list.

MAEVE

We were all adopted at exactly three days old. All labeled as "emergency placements." All have sealed records. All got full-ride Navy scholarships we didn't even apply for—they just offered them to us.

PRIYA

(looking up) Wait, you didn't apply either?

JI-WOO

I thought I was special. They just sent me a letter saying I'd been selected. I thought maybe my SAT scores or something...

MAEVE

Same. They said I was "identified as a candidate for advanced study." I mean, I'm smart, but I'm not like genius-level.

PRIYA

They told me I had "unique aptitudes that align with national interests." What does that even mean?

Ji-woo sets down her phone, her expression darkening.

JI-WOO

I think it means they've been watching us. For a long time.

The table goes quiet. Around them, students laugh and chat, oblivious.

PRIYA

There's something else. I've been thinking about yesterday. About what happened with Maeve.

MAEVE

The mind-reading thing?

PRIYA

Yeah. What if... what if that's not the only thing? What if we all have something?

JI-WOO

(skeptical) Like superpowers? Come on, Priya. This isn't the X-Men.

PRIYA

I'm serious. Think about it. Have either of you ever had... I don't know, weird experiences? Things you couldn't explain?

Maeve and Ji-woo exchange glances. There's something there.

MAEVE

(hesitant) Sometimes... sometimes I know things are going to happen. Like, seconds before they do. I thought it was just good reflexes or intuition.

JI-WOO

(quietly) I can find things. Lost things. People think I'm just observant, but it's more than that. I just... know where things are. Even when I've never seen them before.

Priya leans forward, excited but also scared.

PRIYA

We need to test this. Carefully. Figure out what we can actually do.

MAEVE

And not tell anyone. If the Navy is involved in this, if they've been watching us... we need to be smart about it.

JI-WOO

Agreed. This stays between us. No parents, no roommates, nobody.

They put their hands together in the center of the table, a silent pact.

SCENE 2: Navy Liaison Office, Campus — Same Day, Afternoon

The office is sterile and generic—a desk, some filing cabinets, motivational Navy posters on the walls. Commander ELIZABETH MARSH, 40s, crisp uniform, sits across from Maeve. Her smile is professional but doesn't reach her eyes.

COMMANDER MARSH

So, Maeve, how are you settling in? I know the transition can be difficult.

MAEVE

It's fine. The mobile home is actually pretty nice. And I've already made some friends.

Something flickers in the Commander's expression. Interest.

COMMANDER MARSH

Oh? That's wonderful. It's important to build connections. Anyone from the program?

MAEVE

Just some girls in my park. We're all freshmen, so we have that in common.

Maeve keeps her voice casual, but her heart is racing. She can feel the Commander probing.

COMMANDER MARSH

That's great. You know, Maeve, this program is designed to identify and nurture exceptional individuals. People who might serve their country in unique ways. Have you given any thought to what field you might want to specialize in?

MAEVE

I'm thinking maybe engineering. Or computer science. I'm still exploring.

COMMANDER MARSH

Both excellent choices. And how about... extracurricular interests? Anything unusual catching your attention?

The way she says "unusual" makes Maeve's skin crawl.

MAEVE

Just the normal stuff. Soccer team tryouts are next week. Maybe join a hiking club.

COMMANDER MARSH

(leaning back) Good, good. Well, if you ever need anything, my door is always open. And Maeve? It's important that you report any... irregularities. Strange occurrences, unusual feelings, anything that seems out of the ordinary. For your safety, of course.

MAEVE

Of course. Thanks, Commander.

As Maeve leaves, Commander Marsh picks up her phone. She doesn't dial—just presses a button.

COMMANDER MARSH

Subject One is exhibiting expected social bonding patterns. She's withholding information. Moving to Phase Two monitoring.

⬥ ⬥ ⬥ THREE DAYS LATER ⬥ ⬥ ⬥

SCENE 3: Priya's Trailer — January 17, Evening

The three girls have transformed Priya's small living room into a research lab of sorts. Papers pinned to walls, three laptops, empty energy drink cans. They look exhausted but energized.

JI-WOO

Okay, I've been digging through public records. There's no trace of any adoption agency that handled all three of our cases. The names on our paperwork? They don't exist anymore. Dissolved, disappeared, no forwarding information.

PRIYA

That's not normal, right? Agencies can't just vanish.

MAEVE

They can if someone with resources wants them to. Someone like, say, the U.S. military.

PRIYA

I had my meeting with Commander Marsh today. She asked me about my "cognitive patterns" and whether I'd experienced any "perceptual anomalies." Those were her exact words.

JI-WOO

She asked me about "spatial awareness capabilities." This isn't coincidence. They know something about us. Maybe they've always known.

Maeve stands, pacing. Her red hair catches the lamplight.

MAEVE

What if we're part of some kind of experiment? What if we weren't just adopted—what if we were placed? Strategically?

PRIYA

(voice shaking) Then who are we? Who are our real parents? And why us?

Ji-woo pulls up something on her laptop.

JI-WOO

I found something else. This program we're in? It's called Project Constellation. I found one reference to it in a declassified budget document from 2007. But nothing else. It's been completely scrubbed.

MAEVE

Project Constellation. That's ominous.

PRIYA

A constellation is a pattern of stars. Individual points that only make sense when you see them together.

The implication hangs in the air.

JI-WOO

You think there are more of us?

MAEVE

Three points don't make a constellation. But a dozen? Two dozen? That would.

Priya walks to the window, looking out at the quiet mobile home park.

PRIYA

We need to be more careful. If they're monitoring us—and I think they are—we need to act normal. Go to classes, do our homework, be good little scholarship students.

JI-WOO

While we figure out what the hell is really going on.

MAEVE

And we practice. Whatever these abilities are, we need to understand them. Control them.

PRIYA

Agreed. But carefully. No dramatic displays. Nothing that would show up on their radar.

Ji-woo closes her laptop with a decisive click.

JI-WOO

So we're doing this. We're going up against the U.S. Navy to find out the truth about ourselves.

MAEVE

(grim smile) When you put it that way, it sounds insane.

PRIYA

Good thing we have each other. Because we're probably the only people in the world we can trust.

SCENE 4: Unmarked Office Building — Same Night

The same room from before. Commander Marsh stands with another figure—DR. DAVID CHEN, 50s, civilian clothes, the bearing of a scientist rather than a soldier. Multiple monitors show thermal imaging of three mobile homes.

DR. CHEN

They're accelerating faster than previous groups. They've already identified the pattern.

COMMANDER MARSH

Is that a problem?

DR. CHEN

On the contrary. It confirms the hypothesis. When subjects from the same batch are brought into proximity, cognitive enhancement occurs. Subject Two—Priya—is already showing measurable telepathic reception. Subject Three's precognition has increased by thirty percent. And Subject One's spatial intuition is off the charts.

COMMANDER MARSH

What about the others? How many are in this cohort?

DR. CHEN

Nineteen total. We're bringing them in gradually. Too many at once could be... destabilizing. For them and for us.

COMMANDER MARSH

They're digging into their backgrounds. They found Project Constellation.

DR. CHEN

(unconcerned) We left that breadcrumb intentionally. They need to discover the truth on their own terms. If we simply told them, they'd never believe it. Never accept it.

COMMANDER MARSH

Accept what, exactly? That they're designer babies? Genetically engineered weapons?

DR. CHEN

(sharply) They're not weapons, Commander. They're the next step. Humanity's insurance policy against threats we can't even imagine yet.

He turns back to the monitors, watching the three girls through the walls of their homes.

DR. CHEN

They'll figure it out eventually. And when they do, they'll have to choose: embrace what they are, or try to run from it. Let's hope they make the right choice.

◈ Pattern Recognition ◈

Maeve: Precognitive reflexes—can sense immediate future events

Priya: Telepathic reception—can hear thoughts of those nearby

Ji-woo: Enhanced spatial intuition—can locate objects and people

Project Constellation: A classified program with 19 subjects in this cohort

The Truth: They're not just adopted—they're engineered

END OF "Patterns" Episode 2: January 14-17, 2026

The patterns are emerging. The questions multiply.
But the biggest question remains: What were they created to do?

A dramatic series about identity, friendship, and the mysteries we carry.
© 2026 • Over The Fence Dot Net

Patterns

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