Walter hangs up the phone and sighs, staring at the cuboid as fluid runs out the hole and spreads over the surfaces of the cuboid, defying gravity and physics. Some fluid drips onto the pedestal and seeps into it like a sponge.
Nemolopolus bows his head from frustration. "Why did you even invite the DOD, or what I call 'Dumb and Destructive'?"
Walter is quick to respond, "Unlike the Barge and life beyond borders, this bunker resides in US territory. The DOD built this bunker for us decades ago. And the Committee was founded by the US government. We must work with these agencies, whether we like it or not."
"Well, you shouldn't like it. The whole reason for the Barge science platform is to be autonomous from this kind of political power play. If we can't contain that leak, it will seep into the walls and floor, and you'll have to shut this bunker down."
The lab door opens and in carts a man-sized capsule-shaped chamber. They unseal an end of the chamber. One of Nemolopolus' men who brought in the chamber hands scientist Sandy a tool resembling a hack saw with no blade. She presses the handle and a laser beam appears as the saw blade.
Sandy instructs Nemolopolus' men, "Grab the edges of the pedestal top holding the cuboid. We have to take the part of the pedestal that absorbed fluid."
Nemolopolus' men grab the edges of the pedestal top. Rather than removing any of the clamps, Sandy cuts horizontally through the pedestal underneath the cuboid. A few drops of the liquid leaks through the pedestal top, dripping onto and through the glove covering Sandy's hand before she finishes the cut. Once she finishes, Nemolopolus' men pick up the top of the pedestal attached to the cuboid and shove the whole thing into the open chamber.
"A drop got on my glove and seeped through into my skin. Tie off my wrist!" screams Sandy.
One of Nemolopolus' men takes a plastic pull tie and yanks it tight on her wrist. Sandy takes the laser saw, holds the contaminated glove hand inside the chamber, and cuts off her own left hand at the wrist, the hand dropping into the chamber. While Sandy stumbles backward trying to suppress her loud scream, Burt and his lab techs grab Sandy to aid her. Nemolopolus' men seal the chamber.
Nemolopolus yells into the console mic, "Pressurize the chamber!"
His men release gas valves on the chambers side and the pressure inside the chamber increases. Through a portal on the chamber, the liquid oozing out of the cuboid slows to a stop, coagulating into a clump.
"The chamber is holding the liquid," yells on of Nemolopolus' men.
"Sparks, help Sandy. Get the chamber back on the Mantis transport now!"
Walter jumps onto the mic, "Professor Stone, rush Sandy to the infirmary room. Stop the bleeding, get her a transfusion, and give her something for the pain."
Nemolopolus says to Walter, "Once she gets blood, we need to get her back to the Barge for surgery."
"We can operate on her here."
"I know you can. But she's our family. We will take care of her."
Nemolopolus' men rush the chamber out of the room. Burt and the technician pick up Sandy by the arms and legs, whisking her from the lab.
Walter reassures Captain Nemolopolus, "We'll get Sandy stabilized. I am so sorry about her hand; I can't believe she did that."
"She had no choice. The fluid went through her suit into her skin. We have no idea what a superfluid could do in the blood stream, or if it gets into bone marrow. We don't know what that fluid is. Once Sandy is stable, we'll take her back to the Barge for operation."
"She won't be ready to move for about twenty minutes. I'll instruct them to temp suture any veins, soft cover her wrist stub, and we have plenty of O blood to compensate for blood loss. We'll give you an extra pint for transporting her," assures Walter.
Captain Nemolopolus checks a digital pocket watch displaying a dozen time zones, "The chamber will be on the transport any minute. Hopefully we'll be able to find long-term storage, or a way to reseal the cuboid. Since the DOD attacked my security and tried to take my transport, my men probably didn't finish docking the Grey craft frame from Roswell to the Mantis. I assume they are on that now, so they will need the twenty minutes you are helping Sandy to finish that. Oh, here is your part of the trade."
Nemolopolus pulls a computer chip from his jacket pocket, "This is the information on the Greys' human hybrid DNA. It's the complete genome mapped, plus any notes and ideas on the subject of how the Greys spawned them, and a direct comparison to Homo Sapiens DNA."
Walter takes the chip, "How did your security hold off, or should I say terminate the DOD soldiers? The DOD doesn't lose a firefight. What weapons were you using that they never saw before?"
"That is one of our many secrets, and I'm sure I will soon get an offer from the Pentagon to purchase those very guns for the military. The Barge is not untouchable because it hides in international waters or has diplomatic immunity. It's because our tech, including our weapons, are far beyond what any single government has created. He is not the first military, or even US military, to attempt taking us. Most government funded research programs rely as much on forceful acquisition as actual discovery, regardless of country. World greed for technology gives them the belief they are entitled to take what they desire. We killed many soldiers from many countries defending ourselves. And those same countries always come back with rich apologies begging us for research."
"Can we help any of their injured men?" asks Walter.
"My men are instructed to allow those who attack us to collect the fallen soldiers after the attack is quelled and repelled. It shows the attacking power I possess the confidence to let them collect their injured and dead without fear; a compassionate act that deters them not to try again."
"The Committee has never underestimated your capabilities," assures Walter.
"And the Committee has always been a trusted and welcome friend of mine and the Barge."
"Can you at least tell me about the laser saw?"
"We developed it for the Chinese. They came to us with the laser research for the tool. But they couldn't create a portable power sources that fit into the handle making such a tool practical, or how to limit the laser to the tool's length. They gave us their laser research and eleven billion yen, and we developed a power source and range limiter with a reception crystal. Since I am taking the Zeus Box, maybe you want to trade for that."
"We don't have a way to contain the Zeus Box. One of your best scientists lost her hand in her efforts to keep it from contaminating my facility. I think what you sacrificed to help is enough to earn it from us."
"Sandy's injury is tragic, but we will make her one hundred percent. Truth be said, we often suffer injuries in our acquisition of materials. You deserve something from us for taking the Zeus Box, Professor Tomb. Let us say for now that I owe you. When you need help, or a favor, call in the marker."
"Thank you, Captain."
Nemolopolus nods. "If you don't mind escorting me to the medical room. I want to be with Sandy until she is ready to move."
Walter and Captain Nemolopolus leave the observation room.
The Issue Of Tissue
Chapter 11
Dr. Black's Lab, Colorado Mountain Facility.
Dr. Black wipes the eye lenses on an optical microscope, buffs the sample platform of her transmission electron microscope, and cleans off a small biopsy plate. On two of the many wall monitors are occupied rooms. One is Nineteen bandaged from head to toe lying on a hospital bed with a telepathic implant headset covering his ears and eyes; the other is Eighteen lying on a contour bed in his personal bedroom. Both lay motionless, their vital signs scroll across the bottom of each display.
After stopping to watch the two figures on the monitors, Dr. Black goes over to the refrigerator, unlocks it, and pulls out a tray with a folded cloth draped over its surface. On top of the cloth is a very narrow vial holding a flesh core sample; the one she took from the Grey Valley Bunker during her escape.
First, Dr. Black removes the stopper from each end. She then pushes a med
ical rod through the thin vial, causing the long organic sample to come out, sliding onto a tray. Using a scalpel and a clamp, she slices a few ultra-thin cross-sections from the sample, one at each end and one in the middle. Carefully placing them in line on a microscope slide, she adds saline and covers with a top slide.
She takes it over to the TEM microscope, turns it on, and sets the largest of the monitors to display the image. The three different sections of the slide appear on the monitor as she focuses and zooms in on each, stopping on the third. After stepping away, she starts a recording program on the computer, and then puts a wireless microphone on her lapel.
"Second entry to file...52...point...37...dash...4. Bio sample of Grey specimen tissue extracted from the Grey Valley Bunker. As stated in last entry, the acquisition of this specimen was in 1947, Roswell, New Mexico. Kept frozen until thawed a few days. Since then, it achieved room temperature during its transit here, and now kept below forty degrees Fahrenheit. The extraction sample was from a Grey extremities partial consisting of two wrists and hands that were...for a lack of a better term...materially combined with an inorganic high-tensile metallic alloy surface.
"Today, I extracted three cross-sections for analysis. Two of the three sections are a hundred percent organic tissue from a Grey, and the last cross section is an integration of the organic Grey tissue and inorganic alloy.
"How did this tissue became integrated with alloy? There was a matter transformation...dimensional phasing... shift, Wal...Professor Tomb, the Committee's Head Scientist explained it, and deceptive of me to infer I understood, as he himself is uncertain of the exact cause-effect. What I can say is two matter types exited a rift anomaly, and the matter re-materialized together. The outcome resulted in the unexplained coexistence of organic and inorganic material integrated in this sample.
"Today, I am verifying that observation was correct. That they are in fact coexisting."
Dr. Black analyzes the third sample, adjusting the magnification to a cellular level. After a moment of reflection and observation, she takes multiple screen shots of the image, then continues to zoom in to a molecular level.
"My original observations were correct. There is an equal distribution, apportion, or allocation of organic and inorganic molecules. What is fascinating is it doesn't affect the cellular structures. The tissue cells are identical in the three samples, except one has alloy molecules in it, passing through the cell walls, but not disrupting or damaging the cell. The structure is a flexible lattice arrangement of inorganic molecules that goes through the cell walls and...I can see even nuclei being penetrated by the lattice, but not damaging the organic composition. It is not just molecules combining, but in harmonious balance. As if the nuclei biomolecular information was rewritten to include the inorganic material as part of the cell, understanding how to exist with it. Another observation is the inorganic alloy molecules are spaced further apart than typical alloy molecules. This allows for the organic material to pass freely through the alloy mesh. I imagine, however, the increased molecular spacing makes the alloy within the flesh less durable and more flexible."
Dr. Black searches folders in her computer and opens one, then opens a test result document. She reads the results.
"The first entry to this report was when I extracted a section from each end of the core sample and gave it to my lab technicians to do the short-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase enzyme test. I am assuming the Greys possess similar enzymes and enzyme reactions as other creatures of Earth origin. I wanted to see if the breakdown of the SCHAD was the same in the organic sample as the organic-inorganic integrated sample to determine if post-death the degradation, or rigor mortis, was the same in both sections. The results say the organic sample was frozen post mortem, but the blended sample appears as if it was still alive when frozen."
She turns away from the computer and leans back in her chair, looking off while she continues to talk with her lapel mic.
"I am not proposing that the palm was alive while the wrist was dead. The creature from which this sample came was deceased. However, I speculate the coexistence of the organic and inorganic molecules cause the palm to degrade at an extremely slow rate, appearing as if alive when frozen.
"What these test results can't tell me is whether slower deterioration is caused by the unique inorganic and organic molecule alignment, two molecular types unifying, or alterations in the nucleus' biochemical processes. Since no recent specimens have undergone a similar molecular integration from dimensional phasing, I cannot say if such integration is duplicatable, or if this fluke is a one in a hundred trillion.
"The next test I will perform was inspired by observations made on the primary hand-wrist specimen. Both optical and x-ray scrutiny revealed where the wrist-hand was one hundred percent organic, a puncture hole existed from the core sample extraction. Yet, where organic flesh and inorganic alloy integrated, the core extraction location sealed, showing no sign of material removal. Therefore, the combined molecular structure must possess a fluid or gelatinous quality, even when frozen, where it could close the extraction site without issue, scar, or mark, though the overall shape of the hand maintains solid structural form.
"I am verifying this observation by performing puncture tests on the core sample cross-sections using two micro-wire filaments: one puncturing an organic sample, and the other puncturing the organic-inorganic integrated sample. I will then withdraw the filaments and time how long it takes a puncture location to seal, or not seal."
Dr. Black takes two tubular sections of the larger core sample and places it in a spectroscopic device; a transparent chamber that contains an array of tiny agile robotic arms. She adjusts two of the robotic arms, both with their robotic clamps holding a single micro-thin metal filament, and slides the arms into position aside the samples. With the help of a magnifier connected to an adjustable arm, she uses delicate robotic controls to move the filaments up against the samples without penetrating them. Once in place, Dr. Black moves the magnifier aside and turns to her computer, typing in commands until x-ray images of the spectroscopic samples appear on the large monitor, a split screen with each sample on a side. She adjusts each x-ray image until they center on the location where the filaments touch each sample, then starts a video recording of each image.
Turning back to the robotic arm controls, Dr. Black moves the arms with subtlety and precision, inserting the filaments into the samples, puncturing them while watching on the x-ray split screen. Once the filaments penetrate through the sample, they are withdrawn. One x-ray shows an insertion puncture path through the sample post removal. The other x-ray shows the sample sealing together until the puncture path disappears. Dr. Black stops the two recordings and files them in the computer.
"Filament test visual recordings stored as files 52.37-4A and 52.37-4B. Organic sample 52.37-4A responds as expected, the puncture remaining after filament removal. Recording 52.37-4B, the inorganic-organic sample's puncture sealed. The integrated material responded differently than an organic material and still maintains its organic structure. I must inquire with someone more familiar with the states of materials and the phasing process the integrated material underwent before attempting to explain why. If only I had a greater knowledge of inorganic molecular behavior and dimensional physics. There is a groundbreaking biological discovery here that I can't explain or recreate without such knowledge."
Dr. Black takes the microphone off her lapel and deactivates the equipment. She removes the core sample from the spectroscopic device, and with forceps, lifts the core sample and sets it in a larger vial of preservative solution. After sealing the vial, she places it back into the refrigerator before locking it. Dr. Black removes her latex gloves, tosses them into a hazard disposal container, then washes her hands. While drying, she leans against a counter with exhaustion.
On the monitor displaying patient Nineteen in bandages, Dr. Diamond enters the room. He looks into the room camera and speaks.
"Dr. Black?
"
Dr. Black works a communication control and replies, "Yes, Dr. Diamond?"
"It's time to change the imprinting information sent to Nineteen's headset implanter. Before I do, I need to confirm no irregularities or disturbances in his vital signs."
"No, he's been fine. What information are you implanting next?" asks Dr. Black. On the monitor, Dr. Diamond scrolls over a digital pad he holds.
"All the files on chemistry, biochemistry and chemical interactions pertaining to combustion and explosions. And Russian language proficiency."
"The speed the device imprints knowledge amazes me," says Dr. Black.
"If I had this in college, I would have studied less and had time for a social life."
"I will be there in ten minutes to take a blood sample from Nineteen," confirms Dr. Black. Dr. Diamond nods to the camera, then gets to work. Dr. Black changes lab coats and turns to leave the room, but stops before exiting. She looks back and stares at the monitor with Nineteen, then goes to an equipment cabinet and pulls out a telepathic information implant headset identical to the one worn by the Nineteen on the monitors. After a long moment of contemplation, she puts the headgear back in the cabinet and leaves.
A Time Proposal
Chapter 12
Auxiliary Office, Colorado Mountain Facility.
With an erasable marker, Walter draws equations, vortex sketches and device blueprints on his office walls, doors, paper scraps, and even placement markings on the floor. With amazing speed and dexterity, Walter mumbles as he jumps from equation to equation, touching up drawings, and making notations. He stops and looks around, taking in his work.
Turning to his computer, he opens a camera program. Walter grabs a wireless camera next to the computer, then moves around the room ph0tographing his work, the images from the camera showing up on the computer. Then, he copies the pictures on the computer and puts them into a folder. Walter saves a word processing document he was writing and adds it to the folder. He encrypts the folder and compresses it.
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