Rise of the Fallen: Ascensionis

by Danny R Negron

  Joshua is completely lost at this point and tells them, “Okay. This stuff is way over my head. I'm gonna go read some Dr. Seuss with Phoebe.”

  As Alexandria laughs at him while he walks away, Jerry looks at the data and whispers, “Of course. It makes perfect sense.” He looks at her and asks, “Do you have some free time? I can gather these materials right now.”

  “Yeah! Let's do this.”

  Alexandria puts on a lab coat and follows Jerry into an even colder room where glass vials containing keratinocytes are kept frozen in liquid nitrogen. Jerry explains, “As you may already know, keratinocytes are needed to form the epidermal layers. The protein that you mentioned earlier are also stored here and have been already prepared to be combined with artificial fibroblasts.”

  “Great! That means that we don't have to wait the required three weeks.”

  “Exactly. While I dispense the mixture into the molds over there, you can thaw the keratinocytes to prepare for the seeding. Remember, as soon as the skin comes in contact with the air, that's when the layers begin to form.”

  She nods and proceeds to take the glass vials out of the nitrogen tank. As she walks toward a machine used to accelerate the thawing process, Alexandria finds herself anxious to complete this project. She has succeeded in creating Fluffy but this will be the first time that she works on a human-like body. She notices that the thawing process is very close to becoming completed. Jerry is heard shouting, “I'm done here! How are the keratinocytes coming along?”

  The process finally ends and Alexandria quickly takes the vials while saying, “They're ready! I'm on my way!”

  She arrives next to Jerry and hands him the thawed vials of keratinocytes. He individually inserts them into what looks like a gun chamber protruding from the computer console and, afterwards, presses a button. The chamber's slots close and it makes a whirring sound until a loud click is heard. Jerry grabs hold of two controls and says, “For science, Alexandria.”

  She smiles at him and repeats in acknowledgement, “For science.”

  Jerry types several commands and the skin mixture inside the large vat is seen swirling. “Injecting the keratinocytes...now.”

  He presses another button and the sound of whirring is heard as the keratinocytes gets injected into the mixture. Alexandria gazes in wonderment at the entire process of creating artificial skin and whispers, “Wow.”

  Jerry moves his office chair to another console and says, “Now, it's time to wrap the skeleton with carbon nanotube for her muscles.”

  She looks up at the robotic skeleton as yarns of a spaghetti-like material grab onto the feet and works its way up until the muscles are completely formed. A long needle gets inserted into the spine and the entire lifeless body gets lifted. While being moved to the vat, Jerry tells Alexandria, “I'll need you to be ready to transfer the respirocytes. If the timing is off by even seconds, we'll have a big mess to clean up.”

  She sits herself down next to a console and replies, “Just give me the word.”

  Alexandria keeps her eyes on the robotic body as it stops moving just above the vat. Jerry takes a deep breath and says in a low tone, “Here we go.”

  The body then begins to make its descent. It gets submerged and Jerry says, “Okay, Alexandria. As soon as I lift it out, a large blast of air will come into contact with the mixture. This will result in the formation the epidermal layers.”

  He pulls on the control and the body can be seen exiting the vat. After he pushes a button, the body can be seen swaying as a result of the strong gusts of wind. He shouts, “Start the transfusion!”

  Alexandria responds to this by typing several commands. She observes a needle getting injected into the body's arm and the blood can be seen traveling down the tube straight into the vein. Alexandria gasps and informs Jerry, “Oh, no. The hair follicles and enamel.”

  “Way ahead of you.”

  She looks up and marvels at how the nails, teeth and hair gradually begin to grow. Unexpectedly, the hair color fades to a purplish hue!

  “Ummm...Mr. Desmond.”

  “Yeah, I see it. That's odd. It could be the result of a chemical reaction between the protein and the respirocytes.”

  The procedure comes to an end and Jerry analyzes the data on the screen. Alexandria asks impatiently, “Well?”

  “If it was going to reject it, it would have done so by now.”

  He turns his head to look at her and says, “We did it.” Alexandria screams with joy and hugs him. Jerry laughs and says, “One final step remains.”

  She lets go and tells him, “To transfer Phoebe.”

  Phoebe sees both Alexandria and Jerry arrive and yells, “Hello again!”

  Joshua asks them, “How did it go?”

  Jerry sits down and replies, “We did it. Phoebe, I think it's time for your nap.”

  “Nooooooo! But I'm not tired, Jerry!”

  Alexandria touches her mechanical arm and says, “If you take a nap, I'll bring my puppy later so you can play with him.”

  “Really? You promise?”

  Joshua is so amazed at how Phoebe's self-awareness allows her display all of the traits and characteristics normally found in a sweet human girl! Alexandria nods and replies, “Yup. I promise.”

  “Then I'm ready for my nap.”

  Jerry logs in and types several commands which causes Phoebe to slowly shut down. Her last vision is of Alexandria whispering, “We'll see you soon.”

  What seems like seconds later, she feels something strange smothering various parts of her face. What is this new sensation? Is this what is called...wet? She hears a faint voice calling her name. “Hey. Phoebe...wake up.”

  She feels the tension of muscles around her eyes which surprises her and she asks in a quivering voice, “What's wrong with my eyes, Jerry?”

  “It's okay. Don't be scared, honey. Wake up.”

  Phoebe finally opens her eyes and she is, at first, unable to make out the fuzzy object that is sniffing her. Her vision becomes clearer which enables her to now see the puppy right above her. She gasps and her mouth opens wide with happiness. The feeling of her muscles performing this action scares her and she places both of her hands on her cheeks. Alexandria quickly sits down next to her and says, “Don't be scared, Phoebe. Look at your hands.”

  She looks at both of her hands and then back at Alexandria. She asks her, “Do I have...skin?”

  Alexandria takes out a mirror and shows it to Phoebe. She gazes at her reflection and her hair color fades from purple to a light orange. This bizarre occurrence makes Alexandria look up at Jerry in astonishment. It's as if her hair color changes depending on her current emotion.

  Dr. Frankenstein walks down a nearby hallway as he ponders to himself the many ways in which the virus may be spread. Perhaps in a fashion similar to that of Operation Big Buzz back in 1955? The military actually dropped yellow fever mosquitoes over Georgia during that campaign. He becomes distracted by a childlike voice very familiar to him. The voice can be heard further down the hallway reciting lines from the popular children's book called Cat in the Hat. This makes each hair on the back of his neck stand on end due to the fact that he last heard this during his time here developing artificial intelligence. He jogs while also looking down the hallway and notices a small group of people huddled around a small child. Alexandria sees her father and uses her hand in an attempt to have him come closer. She shouts, “Dad! You need to see this!”

  The child pokes her head out between a person's legs and smiles at Dr. Frankenstein. He sees that the little girl is about six years old with shoulder-length purple hair.

  “Phoebe?”

  Her hair color fades to a bright yellow and she runs toward him while shouting, “Luwig!” He kneels down and gives Phoebe a big hug while saying, “It is you! But...how?”

  Phoebe points her finger at Alexandria and replies, “Jerry and that nice lady made my new body!”

  Dr. Frankenstein picks her up and walks toward Jerry
and his daughter in utter astonishment over what they have created. Jerry tells him excitedly, “Your daughter is a genius.”

  Alexandria smiles and asks, “Well? What do you think?” The doctor looks into Phoebe's light green eyes and replies, “She's...perfect. The both of you have done a remarkable job. The skin texture and hair follicles can easily be mistaken as belonging to a human child.”

  Phoebe rubs Dr. Frankenstein's beard with her hands and says while laughing, “You're fuzzy, Luwig.” He laughs and lowers her down to the floor. Phoebe sees Fluffy and quickly runs toward him while yelling, “Fluffy!”

  Dr. Frankenstein says to Jerry in astonishment, “And to think, Phoebe was originally a digital assistant that you created for your smart-phone.”

  Joshua says incredulously, “Wait a minute. You're telling me that she started out as a tiny mobile app?”

  “As hard as it may be to believe, Joshua, it is true. She was modeled after his little sister...I apologize, Jerry. I'm not sure if you approve divulging such personal information.”

  “No worries, doctor. My little sister was hit by a car when she was six. She died upon impact.”

  Dr. Frankenstein continues, “I noticed his digital assistant and was intrigued. Since he had previous experience making contributions to the development of open source operating systems, I convinced him to create his own operating system and integrating Phoebe so that she may interact with the kernel.”

  Joshua interrupts him by saying, “Sorry. I am beyond lost at this point.”

  Jerry grins and explains in simpler terms. “In other words, instead of humans using the operating system, Phoebe would be given complete control of everything.”

  Dr. Frankenstein suddenly feels something tug on his pant leg and looks down to find Phoebe with a sad face. Her hair then gradually fades to blue.

  “What's wrong, Phoebe?”

  She shows him her bruised elbow and replies, “It hurts, Luwig.”

  Jerry scolds her by saying loudly, “You're not used to this body, Phoebe. You need to be more careful.”

  Alexandria kneels down and strokes the bruise with her finger. It feels just like the real thing! She says to her remorsefully, “Awww. I'll kiss it and make it better.”

  She gently kisses her elbow and Phoebe reacts to this by giving her a smile. Her hair color changes to yellow and she sings, “Much better!” This adorable reaction makes Alexandria squeeze her cheek and say, “You are just too cute!”

  Phoebe hugs her and runs away to chase Fluffy again. Alexandria stands up and asks her father, “How's Barbara doing, dad?”

  “Don't you worry about her, konfect. I performed a minor operation and she is now on the path to a rapid recovery. David, on the other hand, is rather distraught. If any of you see him, leave him be.”

  Dr. Frankenstein becomes startled by Henry's voice saying, “Doc! I'm ready now.”

  “I'll send Indrid right away, Henry.”

  Joshua touches his shoulder and tells him candidly, “Do you think that you can drop me off at my house, Dr. Frankenstein? I really do appreciate all that you have done but I have a life to get back to.”

  He smiles at Alexandria and says in sincere manner, “But I'd like to show your daughter a bit more of what New York has to offer. If it's okay.”

  Dr. Frankenstein raises his eyebrow and senses a slight indiscretion with allowing his daughter to become too involved with Diana Garrison's son. At the same time, he does not want her to feel imprisoned and would like for her to have some social interaction. He concedes and replies, “Fine.”

  He points his finger Alexandria and reminds her, “You should be grounded for walking out there on your own, young lady.” Alexandria hugs him tightly and whispers, “Won't happen again, dad. Thank you.”

  Dr. Frankenstein then informs Joshua, “Oh, and I have contacted Major General Albert Avery at the American Institutes for Research in Washington, DC. He was not too pleased with last night's fiasco but he has informed me that your vehicle is safe and sound at your home.”

  “Hold on. Are you talking about Project Stargate by any chance?”

  “Well, of course, my boy.”

  “My granddad told me the project ended in 1995, though.”

  “If there is one thing that you need to get accustomed to, it is that information available to the public may not always be true. The Defense Intelligence Agency has not, and will not, discontinue their research into the occult and paranormal phenomena.”

  Alexandria sighs and pulls on Joshua's arm while saying, “I've had enough conspiracies for one day. Let's go.”

  Dr. Frankenstein shouts at them as they walk away, “Indrid will be waiting at Hangar 18!”

  Phoebe suddenly appears in front of Alexandria while holding Fluffy in her arms. She raises him while yelling, “Alexandria! Wait! Don't forget Fluffy!”

  “You take care of him for now.”

  Alexandria pats her head and walks past her at a fast pace. Phoebe looks into the puppy's eyes and her hair changes to a light brown as she asks herself, “Me?”

  Fluffy leaps from her arms and she yells, “Hey! I'm supposed to take care of you!” As she runs after him, Jerry shouts, “Phoebe! Be careful!”

  The sound of a loud thump followed by a crash is heard. Jerry moans and covers his face with his hand while Phoebe cries in pain. Dr. Frankenstein pats him on the back and says, “It would seem that we have become unwilling nannies, my friend.”

  Meanwhile, Barbara awakens from her sleep and finds Sajjad sitting down on a chair next to her. The memory of the vicious fight with David makes her touch her ribs. There is only a slight discomfort now as opposed to the intense pain from last night.

  Sajjad grins and tells her with admiration, “I must admit. I have never believed in the story of David and Goliath...until witnessing your victory over David Stubbe, Miss Echevarria.”

  She gradually sits up and replies wearily, “Thanks, but I would rather not do that again.”

  Barbara hears Sajjad wheezing and notices him using an inhaler afterwards. She asks him, “Asthma?”

  “One would think that I suffer from that condition but no. I am what is called an Abarimon...which explains the fashion in which my feet are positioned.”

  She looks down and is puzzled as to why she did not see the odd positioning of his feet before. They are both facing the opposite direction! He continues his explanation by saying, “You may think that this is a handicap but, in actuality, this physical condition allows us to run at incredibly high speeds. My people used to live in a valley previously named Mount Imaus. Today, it is referred to as the Himalayan Mountains. There exists in our homeland a special kind of air that, if inhaled for an extended period of time, will prevent you from breathing any other kind of air. To make a long story short, Joseph Jaeger provided us with these inhalers so that we may be able to roam freely to any place that we desired.”

  Dr. Frankenstein walks in and is glad to see that Barbara's recuperation from her injuries is progressing at the rate which he expected. He says to her, “Already awake, I see. You'll be on your feet in no time at all.”

  “Thanks to you. How's David?”

  He looks down at the floor and shakes his head while replying, “Ever since he reverted back to human form, he refuses to speak with anyone. We'll need to give him some time.”

  After sitting down on the bed next to Barbara, he adds, “I believe that someone is aware of our investigation and changed the password of his panic room as a warning.”

  Sajjad asks in a somber manner, “What comes next, doctor?”

  “It is imperative that I meet with Miss Garrison in person as soon as she returns from Bohemian Grove. I just pray to God that the outbreak does not occur beforehand.”

  Chapter VII

  Frank Garrison gazes, from his living room window, at the young man mowing his lawn while enjoying his usual morning coffee. He is more than capable of performing the task on his own, but he has known sixteen year old Adam
Eastman ever since he was a little baby and has always held firm of his opinion that kids his age benefit from the experience of earning money with hard work. Besides, it's better for him to do this rather than sell drugs to his classmates. He's a good kid from the same neighborhood. Maybe a bit shy and not the most popular judging from his Clockwork Orange movie t-shirt and eyeglasses, but is very intelligent and actually prefers reading books over Facebook. Then again, he may not have many friends so he might find the social network useless in his case.

  An hour later, Adam wipes the sweat from his forehead and knocks on the front door of Frank's home. Frank opens the door and immediately hands him a tall, frigid glass of iced tea.

  “Thanks, Mr. Garrison.”

  “No, thank you, Adam. That there is one heck of a good job.”

  Adam grins in response to the compliment and is so thirsty, that he finishes the beverage in a matter of minutes. He hands the empty glass to Frank and shoves his well-earned money into his pocket. Frank asks, “How's everything, kid?”

  Adam shrugs his shoulders and replies, “Eh. Okay, I guess.”

  “Did you ever ask that girl out? You know, what's her name?”

  “Melanie. She said that I'm a very nice guy and sees me more like brother. That's a one way ticket to the friend zone.”

  Frank is disgusted at the way current society has been molded in such a way that a man who shows respect, courtesy and emotional support to a woman is regarded as a friend with no foreseeable evolution of the relationship in the future.

  “I'm not exactly a hunk, Mr. Garrison. See you next time.”

  Frank doesn't know what kind of advice to offer while watching him walk away. He's sure the kid must have heard it all by now. It's just a phase. You'll grow out of it. The right girl is out there waiting for you. The best things come to those who wait. He shakes his head with a sense of regret and closes the front door.

  Several hours later, Adam enters the Brunswick Square mall to buy a book and kill some time. All the while, he's listening to a John Lennon song on his phone. Why Do You Sleep? He's always had a fascination with the era of the hippies. Back in those days, the verb socializing didn't have anything to do with posting status updates and waiting for people to like them. If people wanted to know how the other was doing, they would actually walk to his, or her, house and have a face to face conversation.