The doll was unlike any other. Crafted with soft porcelain skin and eyes that blinked a little too naturally, she was the newest generation of sleep companions — advanced, sensitive, and unnervingly lifelike. Designed to monitor sleep patterns and provide comfort to restless children, she was purchased for one purpose: to ease Emily’s troubled nights.

Her name, according to the box she came in, was “Luma.”

Emily’s father placed Luma carefully in the corner of the room, just beneath the charging node installed near the ceiling molding. Her glassy eyes flickered as the connection took hold, a subtle hum vibrating through her limbs as she powered on.

“Get some rest, sweetheart, okay?” he said, brushing a curl from Emily’s forehead and planting a soft kiss there.

Emily nodded, clutching the corner of her blanket. “Okay, Father.”

The lights dimmed on their own — a feature of the smart home system. The shadows of the room elongated and shifted, but Luma’s gaze remained steady, directed toward the little girl’s bed.

In the quiet that followed, only the sound of Luma’s internal fans whispered in the dark.

⸻

Luma’s Internal Diagnostics — Active.

Audio Sensitivity: High.

Facial Recognition: Locked on Emily Greene.

Comfort Mode: Enabled.