The Fair & Foul (Project Gene Assist Book 1)

by Potts, Allie

  "There has got to be another way," she spat, standing upright once more. "If only I had something like an invisibility cloak." The thought reminded Juliane of her old office at the ACI campus with the set up of cameras that fooled the eye into thinking that the lower levels weren't there. The ax struck again, this time breaking through. She was nearly out of time.

  She reached out with her mind as if she was interfacing with her emulator program. Suddenly, it was as if she could see and feel the man’s neurons firing, as if she was setting up a private network but with far less intimacy. She visualized herself twisting and pulling at their endings.

  "It's not her. Just some kid," yelled the man at the wall to his partner as the ax broke through the rest of the way. "Blonde girl, probably seventeen . . . nineteen tops."

  The man was dressed in a thick dark jacket of a heavy material. A firefighter, realized Juliane. That would explain why he had an ax in the truck; he wasn't just some mobster or deranged psycho. Just paranoia. Juliane shivered.

  "She must have gotten away."

  Those weren't the words of someone on a rescue mission. Her heartbeat raced. She was not being paranoid. The wail of sirens could be heard in the distance. There is no way I am going to be able to keep this disguise up with that many people, thought Juliane.

  "Keep your eyes out. She can't have gotten far."

  To Juliane, the firefighter said, "Don't worry, Miss. We'll have you out of here in no time."

  The hole in the wall widened.

  "Now how did you get stuck back there?"

  Juliane shook her head, afraid to speak.

  "Wrong place, wrong time?"

  Juliane nodded eagerly.

  "Did you see anything, anything that would explain why someone would want to blow up these shops?"

  Juliane vigorously shook her head.

  "Anyone else back there with you?"

  Juliane shook her head again, this time more slowly.

  "Maybe this is your lucky day after all." To his partner he yelled, "All clear."

  Turning back to Juliane, he continued, “Miss, if I were you, I'd be a bit more careful where I go alone. There may be some dangerous people in the area. Do you have someplace else you can go?"

  Juliane nodded.

  As he pulled the last bit of wall separating them away, the firefighter glanced in the direction of his partner. The other man was turned away, still talking on his phone. “Then you'd better get out of here, kid."

  Juliane ran out of the pet shop and down the street as fast as her feet would carry her as the sound of additional fire trucks and police cars could be heard arriving on the scene.

  Thirty Five

  Juliane stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror as she fought back another wave of panic. A breaking news alert flashed across her vision. It was a report of yet another bombing attributed to the lizard-masked individuals, but in another city, states away. She closed her eyes, filling her lungs to capacity with slow breaths as she reminded herself that it had been several days since she had found herself in the shop's back room. No one had come to her door making threats. The lizard people didn't know who she was. She had no reason to keep looking over her shoulder, but they could be anyone.

  The board waited for her upstairs. It was still business as usual as far as Damien was concerned. They were setting an example for the masses. She opened her eyes to examine her outfit for the tenth time. It was pure white, tailored and pressed to perfection. It screamed power. Now all she had to do was master her features so that her expression matched. Today was not the day to appear to be anything but completely in control. Damien had made it clear that she had his backing, but she still needed to convince the rest of the group. She felt sick.

  Juliane frowned as she fought the urge to vomit; Sarah and likely Camille would be looking for a reason to reject her proposal out of personal dislike. For the first time, she regretted not attending more of these meetings in person. Then maybe she would have a better sense of who her true allies might be.

  She arrived at Damien’s tower and proceeded to the sixth floor, where she was the first to enter the hexagonal conference room. Her gaze took in the artwork on the walls. The piece was really quite lovely, whether it was viewed up close or afar. One of these days, she needed to ask Damien who the artist was.

  Juliane heard voices in the hallway. Her pulse quickened as she imagined the voices belonged to masked men. She clenched her fists. Her nails bit into her palms as she fought the urge to flee from the room.

  Her legs threatened to lock as she pulled out the chair opposite from Damien’s usual spot. Once seated, she crossed her ankles, locking her feet behind the chair's rollers as she waited for the rest of the board to file in. The door opened, allowing Durham and Sarah to enter. So distracted by their conversation, neither acknowledged her presence.

  “Eithan is exasperated,” Sarah pronounced.

  “Well, I would think that’s an understandable response, all considering,” replied Durham.

  “He is reckless.”

  Durham shrugged. He stopped in his tracks when he noticed Juliane in the room.

  “Miss, I believe you are in the wrong room.”

  Juliane felt her body begin to relax. As she leaned back into the chair, Durham stuttered. His mouth flapped open and close, yet no sound escaped.

  Sarah’s eyes narrowed to slits. She stared at Juliane until Juliane thought the glare could bore a hole through her skull. “Juliane?”

  Juliane allowed herself a small smile. “In the flesh.”

  “Well that was a neat trick," said Sarah.

  Juliane willed her features to remain serene. What trick? What had they seen? Oh no, she thought, the near panic attack. She must have involuntarily modified her features. How could she explain what she had done without letting Sarah know how easily she had been affected by what was going on miles away? Sarah would make sure someone so jumpy couldn't be trusted with making sound decisions.

  “I thought it would be nice to share what I’ve learned,” Juliane replied. Nicely done, she thought.

  “Juliane? Here and sharing? The world truly has gone mad.” Camille entered the room, standing close to Sarah.

  “After you were kind enough to share your youth program with me, I thought it would be rude not to return the favor.” Juliane glanced at Durham. His face also showed an ageless quality, except no one would mistake a person with those strong angles to be anything younger than fully adult. He had shaved his head recently, and only pale white stubble broke up the gleam of his scalp. The effect did nothing to help hide a small, round red-gray bruise from the center of his forehead. Juliane returned her attention to Sarah and Camille. She could not decide if it was only the room’s lighting, but it appeared that they too had a similar mark.

  “Juliane.” Alan had arrived. Juliane had been expecting to see a broken man. She did not expect the carefree individual who strode into the room. Immediately, thoughts of Betty’s paranoia filled her mind. Out of curiosity, Juliane glanced at his forehead but found no shadow mark.

  “I truly am sorry for your loss.”

  “Are you?” Alan purred. “Well, that’s a small comfort.” His stride remained unbroken until he stood directly across from Juliane, his hand caressing the leather of the seat back. “I am glad to see that you were able to join us today. I know I am not alone when I say that the board has missed your presence.”

  The room was silent. Alan tapped the chair where he stood three times before taking a step back and sitting down one position over. Sarah glanced at Alan with her eyebrows raised as she took the chair immediately to his right. Durham said nothing as he sat at the table a few chairs down from everyone.

  Damien had continued recruiting additional team members throughout the years. Their group was now thirteen, in addition to Damien, and the others began filing in, filling seats where there was room. Eventually, the only ones missing were Eithan and Dam
ien himself.

  Sarah rose from her seat and placed a finger on a small pad mounted on the wall. A portion of the artwork moved to become a video monitor. It was definitely different to see the room from this side of the screen. Juliane took a deep breath. She could get through this.

  “Good afternoon to you all. I am so glad that you were all able to make it today. Eithan and I are not able to join you in person for reasons which will be made evident soon enough.” He paused, and several of the others exchanged questioning looks. It seems that I am not the only one who has secrets for Damien to keep, she thought.

  “As all of you know, many of our firm’s efforts have centered on technology to improve the human experience. Juliane is here today to pitch a new energy collection, storage, and disbursement strategy."

  Juliane saw a number of eyebrows rise. She wasn't surprised. The way Damien described it made the project seem a world away from her area of expertise. Only a few years ago, they would have been right.

  She could feel the throb of energy coming from the walls as if the room were alive. It felt like the building itself was encouraging her to continue. As Alan leaned forward in her seat, she told herself she had no reason to be afraid. She wasn't sure if she meant of the vote or Alan.

  Damien's words brought her attention back to the meeting at hand. "Following her presentation, I will be turning the discussion over to Eithan, who has been hard at work cracking the next big advancement in nanorobotics and bioengineering. Juliane, you have the floor.”

  Juliane rose and began her presentation. Alan watched her every move like a raptor, but remained silent throughout the entire proceeding as if he had been given an advance copy of the script. The vote passed without a single voice of dissent. It had been easy.

  Before she regained her seat, memos were sent instructing various outlets to move forward with the balance of land and material acquisition. They had authorized the construction of orbital solar sheets, which would harness energy and then convert the power into a signal that could be received by the statues' antennas. Juliane slumped in her chair. Now that it was over, the entire experience felt rather anticlimactic. Perhaps that was the reason she couldn’t stop feeling like she should be far away from the room.

  The video screen focused on Eithan. The geneticist appeared frazzled and altogether out of sorts, yet triumphant. “As many of you know, my workspace over the last few weeks has been rather . . . fluid.” Several of the others in the room chuckled. Juliane frowned in confusion. Another inside joke, she thought.

  Eithan continued after the laughter died down. “However, my primary research location has remained secure, and I am pleased to state that I am ready to begin phase two. I would like to thank those who have already volunteered to act as test subjects; I am honored by your trust.” Eithan paused again to collect his thoughts. Juliane glanced around the room. Sarah seemed to be struggling to keep a smug smile from her face. Durham also looked pleased with himself while rubbing the mark on his forehead.

  Juliane scanned the rest of the room. At least two of the others shared a pale bruise in the center of their forehead, though she would not have seen it had she not been looking for it. Was Eithan’s work related to the mark? thought Juliane to herself. Her attention was drawn back to the video monitor as the camera zoomed out. Damien could be seen in the background leaning against a white and chrome cylinder that had to be at least seven feet long.

  Eithan joined Damien. He caressed the metallic surface before turning back to address the board. “We were told by our elders from the time we were children that there are only two certainties in life, death and taxes. I am here to say that we were lied to. While there is still no easy way to get around taxes, death should consider itself officially on notice.”

  Juliane realized she had been holding her breath. As she released it, she heard at least one person in the room snort in derision.

  “The road ahead will not be painless. Some of us already have firsthand experience." Juliane heard more chuckles. "But there will always be some pain in any worthwhile change.”

  Juliane looked around for the source of the laughter in time to see Sarah nod her head at Eithan’s words.

  “Fifty years ago, technology such as cryogenics was relegated to the science fiction bin, and those of us who pursued it were ridiculed out of the scientific community. That is until we discovered nanorobotics."

  Juliane took another look at the cylinder on the screen and raised an eyebrow. To her knowledge, those that were researching pseudo-sciences such as cryogenics were still laughed out of any worthwhile positions. Just what was Eithan suggesting?

  “Thanks to Camille’s research, we have unlocked the ability to rebuild cellular structures. However, that technique is limited by its very nature. She has admitted that all she can do is slow down the natural aging process.”

  Juliane glanced at Camille, who looked as if she had just tasted something sour. Juliane found herself feeling sorry for the woman. If what Eithan implied was true, Camille’s work would wind up being only a footnote in the annals of history rather than the headline it deserved to be.

  “I would like to introduce you all to my hard-working assistants.”

  The video feed switched over to a super magnified image. The nanobots looked similar to cartoon renditions of bombs. Tendrils extended out from their base and could be seen interacting with cellular platelets.

  “Nanobots have been around for several decades. Studies in the early twenty-tens found that nanobots could be used to repair muscle damage and in fact made the repaired muscle more resistant to future damage. Researchers took it a step further and began using nanobots to aid in cardiac surgery, effectively dropping the mortality rate for heart disease by a quarter.”

  Eithan paused again. Juliane suspected that he must be scanning his audience to ensure that everyone followed his presentation. While the science was not her specialty, Juliane was aware of the technology. Likely the rest of the room was too.

  “Now, thanks to Camille’s work, we have identified the root of aging within the human body, but her technique is indiscriminate. Cancerous cells will receive the same rejuvenating treatment as healthy cells. My projections show that brain tumors, particularly in men, would become especially difficult to treat if left alone.”

  If Camille looked any more displeased by the direction of the conversation, laser bolts would begin shooting out of her eyes. Eithan blanched. He must have also noted the expression on Camille’s face.

  “I am sure you were fully aware of the risk.” Camille’s lack of interest in promoting her work made a great deal more sense now. Of course she wouldn’t want to be known for increasing cancer’s strength.

  “Why is the risk more pronounced in men than women?” asked John, one of the newer board members.

  Eithan smiled, and his shoulders relaxed. “That’s due to the shortened Y chromosome in male DNA.” Eithan’s skin returned to its more natural coloring. “An injection combined with deployment of nanobots delivered directly into the prefrontal cortex will become critical. This injection will improve a subject’s internal ability to differentiate between healthy and unhealthy cells. The nanobots would then be deployed to damaged areas and commanded to either repair good tissue or destroy cancerous cells.”

  “So, you’ve cured cancer?” asked Lillian, another board member. Juliane noted that no one was laughing now.

  “No, not cure. We may never fully understand the reasons why one cell turns, versus another. What I am saying is that we now have a treatment which does not require chemotherapy, does not place a person’s immune system at risk, and is completely effective.”

  Eithan grinned from ear to ear. Damien stepped up to pat him on the shoulder.

  “But what happens when your nanobots run out of power?" asked Lillian. "As you said, the cancer risk will still be there. What happens when your treatment stops working? Will we all be expected to be jabbed in the forehead ever
y couple of years with a large needle? It looks like some of you are okay with that, but I—for one—am not a fan of needles.”

  Damien spoke up, “The tube you see behind me should alleviate your concern.” Damien gestured for Eithan to continue.

  “Yes, of course. Before I learned of Camille’s technique, I had been working with the nanobots as a means of inducing a hibernation-like state designed to prevent muscle dystrophy for deep space missions. The tube you see behind me is one of a dozen prototypes. It is designed not only to perform routine body scans, but it also administers replacements as needed. Sarah, Durham, both of you received your injections this way. Would you like to describe the experience?”

  Durham spoke up, “I honestly can’t. It was nothing like I’ve ever experienced before. You could feel the pain, but at the same time, there was almost a dreamlike quality to it. Sarah?”

  Sarah’s eyebrow arched. “I think that it will become an extremely individual experience, just like any other form of treatment. What could be agony for you, could feel like nothing more than a bee sting to me.” She continued, “So are you proposing that we advertise this as something like a spa or rejuvenation center?”

  Damien laid a finger aside his lips. “That is an interesting proposition, Sarah.”

  Sarah looked like a child who had just been given the last cookie in front of her siblings.

  Camille chimed in, “That would allow us to move forward much more quickly without causing a public panic.”

  Durham agreed, “Yes, that could work.”

  Lillian replied, “If we pull from Juliane’s power supply and control this specific nanobot’s production, there would be little cost of operation. If we included Camille’s treatment as part of the rejuvenating package, we really would control the fountain of youth.” She clapped her hands.

  “You might not want to start counting those dollars quite so soon," asked Alan. "What if people found out a way to keep the nanobots charged without visiting your so-called fountain? There goes the monopoly."