“And is he going to give up the children?”
“No. He doesn’t want to. They’ve been asking him about a group called Gendigm, though. They say you’re working for them. That you’re trying to destroy humanity. Is that true, Michael?”
“Of course it’s not true.”
“Well, apparently if you tell them what they want to know about Gendigm, they will let you both go.”
“Yes, I know.”
I am starting to wonder how much the government has said to Sophie, and how much of what she is telling me is what they’ve told her to tell me. Are they listening in on everything we are saying? It hardly matters any more. I have to protect Gendigm. They have the code for the modifications. They are the only ones who can spread it around the world and make it freely available. Even if governments spread propaganda about how dangerous these children are, nobody will risk not modifying their children this way if they have a choice. Thousands of children like the ones we’ve already created are hopefully already being conceived. Within a single generation the whole of humanity will be different.
“Michael, please,” Sophie says. “Dylan doesn’t want to testify against you, and he doesn’t want to give up the children, but if you won’t tell them about Gendigm then he’ll have to.”
“He won’t have to,” I say.
“Yes, but if he doesn’t they’ll start a full scale war on the New Church.”
“They’re bluffing,” I say. “I don’t even think they have the resources.”
“How can you be so sure?”
I don’t know what to say to her, and while I’m trying to work it out our time is up.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
I SIT AT a well worn wooden desk before a judge and jury. Due to the nature of the proceedings, the public has not been permitted to enter, but a row of eager, seagull-like reporters sits in the media stand. To my right sits James, my lawyer, Karen, James’s legal assistant, and Barnaby, my trial lawyer.
“If it pleases your honor…” Danny Brown, the short, thick-necked, prosecutor is saying.
“Go ahead,” says Justice Granger, a thin, bearded man. He waves his hand at Mr Brown.
“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” Danny starts, “the evidence that I am going to be presenting before this court over the next few weeks will show beyond the shadow of a doubt that this man who sits before you today, Mr Michael Khan, is guilty of seven charges of terrorist activity.
“For eight years, Mr Khan has been involved in creating genetic modifications for the human immune system that will endow those born with them with far more resistance to diseases than normal. Now, you may think at first that such a modification would be wonderful, and no doubt Mr Khan’s defense will try to convince you that Mr Khan had only the public’s best interests at heart when he created this procedure. Until, however, you realize how such modified humans could quite easily be responsible for breeding strains of viruses that might be deadly to the rest of us.
“Not only has Mr Khan modified these individuals to be highly resistant to viruses, but he has also modified them to be extremely cooperative. So — a highly cooperative group of individuals who have a much higher than normal tolerance to disease… Mr Khan’s defense will tell you that these modifications were being created for the benefit of humanity, but our evidence will clearly show how he was planning all along to use individuals modified in this way as weapons of destruction.
“Let’s go back to the beginning, though. Over thirty years ago, Michael Khan met another student, Dylan Hume, at Melbourne University. Michael and Dylan were roommates and, as they were both studying genetics, they became friends. You may know of Dylan Hume — he is now one of the leaders of the organization known as the New Church. The New Church believes that a total collapse of society is upon us and, as such, owns many self-sufficient islands and sea-steads around the world. Now, when Mr Khan and those he was working with needed a safe place to raise and train their genetically enhanced children, what better place to use than self-sufficient sea-steads whose destination almost nobody knows about?”
As Danny Brown is speaking, I keep an eye on the faces of the jury. Judging by their expressions, my chances of getting off are in free fall. I want to get up and explain to the jury and even the press, right then and there, why exactly I did what I did, how it was all their fault as much as mine, how I was only trying to do what was best for the planet as a whole. Not for the current generation of Homo sapiens maybe, but for the countless other species with whom we share this planet and even for the future of humanity itself.
Once Danny is finished the judge calls a short recess, and my team and I retire to a small, wood-paneled room off to the side of the courtroom.
I sit shaking my head. Karen puts a hand on my back.
“It’s okay,” she says. “They always make it sound ten times worse than it is. That’s their job.”
“Well, are you still ready to go ahead with our plan?” Barnaby says.
“I think it’s the best hope we’ve got,” I say.
Fifteen minutes later, Barnaby stands up in front of the judge and jury. He is young, only thirty-seven, but he has a reputation as one of the best trial lawyers in the country. I watch him walk up to the jury, tall and good-looking. Not good-looking in a swarthy, seductive sense, but in an innocent, kind-of-guy-you’d-like-to-marry-your-daughter sense, which makes almost everything he says seem like the truth.
“This shouldn’t be a trial about my client, Michael Khan,” Barnaby says to the judge and jury, holding out his hands, “and how he supposedly wanted to destroy the world through genetically modifying a highly-cooperative, highly disease-resistant army. That is just a paranoid hallucination on the part of our government. The true crime, ladies and gentlemen, committed by the government itself, as well as every single one of us, is what we are doing to this planet and to each other. And that is what this trial should really be about.
“Given that it isn’t, though, and that instead we are here wasting our time trying to convict an innocent man — over the next several weeks we will show how, far from being a criminal who deserves to be locked away for the rest of his life, Michael Khan is a dedicated scientist who was using his intricate knowledge of science to create a better world for humanity. In case some of you, like the prosecution, haven’t noticed, the world, ladies and gentlemen, is in a very sorry state.
“Now, my client here, understanding what is going on probably better than almost anybody else in the world, decided, along with a number of other scientists, to do something about this. They decided to genetically modify humans not to be smarter, or stronger, or better at sports as many other companies are doing, but to modify humanity to be more cooperative and empathetic and resistant to diseases. Does this sound like the work of an evil genius to you, ladies and gentlemen? Would any of you, upon meeting a person like this on the street, say “Oh my God, who in God’s name created this terrible abomination?” If you were to meet a person who no longer got sick from AIDS, or cancer, or the flu, or malaria, or HIV-4, or almost any other disease, would you want them destroyed?”
“Over the next few weeks, we will introduce a wide range of scientific experts who will back up almost every aspect of Michael’s world view, and we will prove how Michael’s plan, to create a more cooperative, more disease-resistant species, far from being part of a plan for world domination by a race of super-soldiers, is actually part of a very well thought-out scientific plan to save humanity from themselves and their very self-destructive habits, and to save what’s left of the rest of this planet at the same time. Now, if that sounds like a good idea to you — then watch out. The government will probably try to lock you up too.”
Some chuckles emanate from the jury and all of a sudden, far from living in fear as I have for last six months, my heart glimpses the tiniest possibility of hope.
“Now, the prosecution will try to convince you that everything Michael has been working on over the last ten years was gui
ded by his over-riding desire to destroy humanity. Why, ladies and gentleman, would a man who wanted to destroy humanity, an extremely intelligent and capable man like Michael Khan, go about trying to destroy humanity by creating a cure for many known diseases? And why would he then try to bring up children from birth to use in fifteen or twenty years as biological agents? Wouldn’t a man with the skills and knowledge that Michael obviously possesses, find it far quicker and more economical to simply develop one or two highly contagious diseases and create a vaccine for those diseases that could easily be applied to a select group of “soldiers”, who Michael wished to keep alive, including, presumably, himself and his family members?”
We were warned before giving our case that any mention of the work I did for the military would land us all in prison without a trial. Barnaby wants to stretch that ruling as far as absolutely possible, but hopefully not to overstep it.
Barnaby continues: “It is my duty here to prove to you over the next few weeks that there are far easier ways to achieve what the government is accusing Michael of, and, that if someone like Michael wanted to do this, he could easily have done so in a much more efficient manner. Now, either Michael is stupid, which evidence will show he is clearly not, or he is not guilty of the crimes that he is being charged for.”
Barnaby goes on for another fifteen minutes, and by the time he’s finished Mr Brown’s brow is furrowed and he is whispering urgently to one of his assistants.
“Thank you,” I say, when we return to the small room off the side of the court again.
“Don’t get too excited,” Barnaby says. “We’ve still got a long way to go yet, and it’s going to be an uphill battle.”
“It’s going to come down to whether or not the jury considers your actions terrorism,” James says. “It’s a very good thing you didn’t talk to the government more than you did while you were locked up, or they might have tried to mount a different case against you.”
That night, back in prison, I am taken to an interrogation room where Don is waiting for me with a cappuccino and a slice of what he tells me is his wife’s best chocolate cake, although for all I know he could have bought it at the staff cafeteria. James is there with me.
“How can I help you?” I say to Don, stuffing my mouth with cake.
“We were wondering if you’ve reconsidered?” Don says. “And want to offer you one last chance to do so.”
“Reconsidered what?” I say, although I know exactly what he’s talking about.
“Reconsidered disclosing everything you know about Gendigm. They’re the ones really behind this, and we’re pretty sure that even with you locked away they’ll continue on with their plans. They’re hardly going to care about one scientist, are they?”
“I’m really not sure.”
“What is it you think they’re trying to achieve, Michael? Why is it that you’re so interested in protecting them? Do you really think they’re doing the best thing for humanity, for purely altruistic purposes? Don’t you think they might have a hidden agenda of their own?”
This is an option I’ve considered, and now Don makes me consider it again. “Such as?” I say.
“Such as controlling the world once everyone else on it has been modified to be more cooperative. You don’t think that’s a dangerous situation? One that will give whoever is in charge an unfair advantage, if they’re not actually modified themselves?”
“And why would they want to do that?”
“Don’t be naive, Michael. That’s what humans have always wanted: power. You think something like this wouldn’t give someone an almost unlimited amount of power?”
“I don’t think you understand the way our modifications work. Those who are modified aren’t just going to follow anyone. Just because they’re more cooperative, doesn’t make them stupid. It just means that instead of trying to take for themselves all the time they’re just as concerned about the welfare of others. The welfare of the group, and of other groups.”
“So you’re prepared to sacrifice everything for these people, are you? Not only your own life but Dylan’s life, the lives of the people in the New Church, and the lives of the children you’ve already modified?”
“I’m not the one threatening them.”
“You leave us no choice, Michael.”
“We always have a choice. And you’re making yours.”
“Listen, Michael, I know you’re angry. I know some pretty bad things have happened to you, and that you think this government is responsible for them. But that doesn’t mean you should give up on us. That doesn’t mean you should become worse than the people you’re trying to destroy. If you let that happen, you’ll never forgive yourself.”
“I’m never going to forgive myself for what I’ve done as it is.” I think about all those people in the de-reg zone who were wiped out by the virus I helped create.
“Well think about those children then. Harvey and Shy, is it? The ones you wanted to adopt?”
“How do you know about them?”
“Wouldn’t you like to protect them and all the other children? Wouldn’t you like to protect your friend Dylan, and the New Church? The people who have done so much for you? Are you really prepared to give everything up? Because you know we’ll go after them, don’t you? If we can’t get at Gendigm, we’ll have no other option but to destroy the New Church. Someone has to pay, Michael. It’s the way things work. You understand that, don’t you?”
I nod.
“Well, have another think about it,” Don says, and he leaves the room.
“What do you think?” I say to James.
“Let’s hope he’s bluffing,” James says. “I’m sure the government has probably got a lot more important things on their plate than attacking the New Church just to kill a hundred children. Especially seeing as the code for the modifications is out there already anyway.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. It’s hard to think straight when you’re locked up in a cell every day, and I depend on James for support.
The court room comes to life again at 10am the next morning.
Anthony Simons, my old nemesis from Geneus, is on the stand, and Mr Brown runs him through his history with me and our project.
“Did Dr Khan ever mention that his wife had HIV-4?” Danny says smugly.
“No, he didn’t.”
“Was it his duty to disclose this information to the company?”
“He wasn’t required to, but it certainly would have made a difference in how we viewed the project. We believed that Dr Khan was carrying it out because he truly believed he could make it work, and not just because he was interested in finding a cure for his wife.”
“And he kept this information hidden from everyone at Geneus the whole time?”
“Yes, as far as I know.”
“Why do you think he did this?”
“Objection,” Barnaby calls again. “This witness can’t possibly know what was in the mind of my client.”
“Overruled,” the judge says. “I’ll allow it.”
I am starting to get the impression that the judge is on the side of the prosecution. I wonder how many strings have been pulled, although I am actually a little surprised that I am getting a trial at all. With the country as it is at the moment, nobody would really care too much if an obscure geneticist went missing. Then I wonder if all this isn’t just an elaborate ploy to get me to disclose my knowledge of Gendigm, and to tell them everything I know. Surely torture would be more efficient. But maybe they’re worried I’ve got contacts — and that torture of their own citizens would turn people against them. The whole thing is starting to feel like a farce.
“There were many times in the life of the project when we were about to shut it down,” Anthony continues. “The project almost sent the company bankrupt, and it was only because Michael kept convincing our CEO, Klaus Hofferman, that he was so close to finding a solution, that we continued. On many of these occasions, it turned out Michael was no closer to
finding a solution than he’d ever been. He was stringing us along, risking the entire company and the jobs of all its employees in the meantime. If we’d known that his wife had HIV-4, and that was his true motivation for wanting to keep the project alive, we would almost certainly have shut it down.”
“Okay, thank you, Mr Simons. That’s all for now,” Mr Brown says.
“Mr Savoir, do you have anything you would like to ask Mr Simons?” The judge looks over at Barnaby without raising his head.
“Yes indeed, your honor, I have plenty of things I’d like to ask the witness.”
“Well, get on with it, then.” The judge motions impatiently to the floor.
Barnaby takes his time, checking some last minute notes, and then just before it seems the judge might explode in anger, he glides on over to the stand.
“Mr Simons, thank you for taking the time to come in today,” Barnaby says. Anthony nods, his face slightly twisted — whether out of displeasure or fear I’m not quite sure. “Well, first up, I’d like to ask you a bit more about why you think it was necessary for Michael to disclose that his wife had HIV-4 to Geneus.”
“As I said, if he had told us that, we probably wouldn’t have continued with the research.”
“But what if Michael truly did believe he could make this project work? In fact, hasn’t time proven that he could? Doesn’t he now have a fully functional immune system modification that makes its bearers resistant to many diseases ordinary people aren’t resistant to? Hasn’t he cured his wife of HIV-4, and isn’t that same treatment now being used on others?”
“Yes, but that’s not the point. The point is, at what cost to the company? And how was that achieved?”
“Was Michael under any sort of legal obligation to disclose this information to the company?”
“No.”
“Did you disclose to the company every detail of your life at the time?”
“Anything which might have been relevant to company decisions I would have.”
Perfectible Animals: A Post Apocalyptic Technothriller (EidoGenesis Book 1) Page 23
