The A.R.EX. Project:Transformation

by Angelo Facchin

  * * *

  He was given a bedroom with a hotel-like feel to it. The furniture was simple, with a Victorian theme to it. It seemed a bit extravagant, considering he had to get used to prison mattresses and his &*$@#! cellmate.

  Two days later, after performing custodial task apparently ordered by the state, he was given a full physical and medical evaluation. He was asked what food he liked and served his preferences, but the food tasted of sterility, ammonia, like the smell of the building itself.

  He quickly gulped down his latest meal and took a cold shower in the adjacent bathroom. Afterwards, he settled down on the bed, feeling drowsy. Too drowsy.

  He was falling asleep pretty fast for someone who just took a cold shower. His limbs were stiff and failing him, but why?

  And then it hit him. The food! They must have drugged his food with some sort of sleeping agent. For some reason, they didn’t want him conscious. Panicking, he tried to get off the bed, but only managed to fall to the floor before seeing his world fade away to nothingness

  * * *.

  Patrick Sandlak was in his office, working overtime, which he had being doing often ever since Mark Reeves had left him in charge of the company so that he could take a vacation to the Bahamas with his family. The paperwork was always there, ready to remind of its presence. If he ignored it, then it would start piling up faster than normal. Thankfully for him, he didn’t have a family and his social life was pretty much meaningless.

  On his desk, Sandlak saw what looked to be a copy of his A.R.EX. file that was photocopied. Why would this be on his desk. On the stack of pages, was a note saying that Janiece Ryder, Meyers’ lawyer, had a faxed copy of the file in her possession!

  How could that have happened? There shouldn’t have been any way for her to have that file. On top of that, she was Meyers’ attorney. If she ever caught a whiff of his being here…no that was not an option. His project was his life’s work, his ticket to a perfect world he‘d been dreaming of for years. He had to find some way to change this situation and turn it in his favor. He dialed Kirk Hall’s number.

  “Hello? Thank you for the memo you sent me. Tell me, can you send me information on Janiece Ryder,? Much obliged, thank you.”

  He then started off towards the operating room to set his newly hatched plan in motion. Meyers was already unconscious, and was cleared for testing. It felt ironic to him that Janiece Ryder’s fears where all going to come true soon enough.

  Chapter 11

  Thursday, October 29th, 1998, 2:51 AM

  BIOGENCORP Laboratories

  BIOGENCORP’s third and fourth floor had a few renovations made to it in recent months. The entire eastern wing of the building on those floors had been hollowed out, and remade into an operating room. The room was filled with computers and monitors. There, it was told, was where the world would change.

  And it had already changed. The A.R.EX. project had finally concluded its first successful test. Patrick Sandlak finally had a good reason to smile. His hard work had paid dividends, and now he could set his plan in motion.

  The A.R.EX. project was his brainchild, so to speak. A.R.EX. stood for Anthropomorphic Reptilian Exo-Skeleton. The project’s goal was to start by creating a squadron of 15 reptiles to be used as soldiers in military operations. These beings were to be put into service by the military, acting in covert operations where secrecy was the key to success. Not only that, but Sandlak theorized that they could also be used in an open battlefield should enough of them be eventually produced.

  Erickson Meyers was chosen for the project because of his skills in Aikido, which he learned at an early age and achieved the rank of third dan black belt. If that wasn’t enough, but Sandlak really wanted to see whether or not his serum could actually have healing properties. What was changed, was that Meyers himself was no more. His body and mind where now new entities, transformed into an A.R.EX. soldier that was able to recognize his surroundings, but had no personal memory of who or what he was.

  Sandlak was proud of the Mind Shifter, his patented key to the human brain. By using this specialized computer, he could peer into anyone’s mind and change, add, or erase anything he saw fit. The brain used electric signals much the same way a computer’s motherboard would function. Like a computer, the human brain would put together the different signals it received. Every signal had a place to go or come from. The Mind Shifter had done Sandlak a great deal of good.

  Using the Mind Shifter to erase Meyers’ personal memories by severing several neural connections in the temporal lobes, Sandlak felt he would then be able to mould the transformed creature as he desired. He was careful not to touch his general knowledge or other basic abilities such as motor skills, vision, and hearing.

  The idea behind the process was to avoid the pain of announcing death to loved ones, and also create a soldier who would never hesitate before going out on the field. It would be much easier to send these beings that nobody knew or cared about into battle and not have to worry about them sacrificing their lives for whatever reason.

  Erickson Meyers was no more. Instead, there was a formidable and intimidating creature. This being sported thick, leathery, black hide typical of a Gila monster, but he had a tall, lanky frame, which was much like Meyers‘. His larynx, now repaired thanks to a regeneration gene commonly found in a Salamander, would hopefully be able to function. To make him look even more intimidating, instead of yellowy-orange blotches on his skin typical of Gila monsters, the new being had a bright-yellow lightning bolt pattern on his limbs, across his back, and encircling his head. A mane of jet-black hair had grown and now reached all the way down to his shoulders and his teeth were a lot sharper than a human’s. His extremities had long, hard, pointed nails, almost like claws. Sandlak didn’t bother cutting them. They would be good for shredding flesh apart.

  Sandlak and his colleagues brought the being to the bedroom on a gurney, where Sandlak waited for it to wake up. He didn’t have to wait very long, as the creature started to move its limbs. Its eyes flickered, and there was a slight moan. Suddenly, the being woke up and sat upright, rubbing its head and its eyes, as if waking up after a night‘s sleep. Sandlak saw with mild surprise, that his eyes were aquamarine colored.

  Sandlak was a little nervous about how the being would react when it woke up for the first time. There was always the chance that it wasn’t going to be too happy about finding itself in a strange room with a strange person sitting next to it. There was also the slight chance that the Mind Shifter didn’t do its job, and that it was Erickson Meyers sitting there on the bed looking at him.

  He knew that if he could get this being to trust him, then his plan would be successful right away. He would start by asking it a few simple questions, hoping his creation could speak and understand him.

  “Hello,” said Sandlak.

  “Hello,” replied the being, its voice deep, soft, and calm. There was no evidence that it was in any way suspicious of its situation or its surroundings. Sandlak eased his way into a conversation.

  “Do you have any idea where you are?”

  The being looked around, trying to get its bearings. Its movements were slow and hesitant, its eyes slowly going from one side of the room to another, trying to find familiarity in its surroundings.

  “I‘m in some sort of room…perhaps a bedroom?”

  “Correct. In fact, you are in our only bedroom. You are in a genetics facility. Do you know what that is?”

  “No. Why am I here? It can‘t seem to remember…”

  “Now, don‘t worry, I will explain everything to you, so ask away.”

  “What‘s my name?”

  “Your name is Arex. You are a brand new being I‘ve just created here in this lab. You will be put to service for the American military starting two days from now. For now, we must asses your physical, psychological, and medical states to make sure everything is fine, okay?”

  “I suppose so.”

  Arex’s voice was a little raspy
and hesitant. Sandlak noted that there was a human quality to it, though not quite as recognizable, which meant that it was probably a remnant of Meyers’ own voice as it was before his accident.

  After helping Arex off his bed, the two set off to the medical wing Sandlak had set up for the project’s “volunteers”. After several physical and cognitive tests, Arex was cleared to be put to work. Sandlak figured had he had plenty of time to find Janiece Ryder and silence her for good.

  Chapter 12

  Thursday, October 29th, 1998, 2:24 PM

  Janiece Ryder’s Apartment

  Janiece was going through a lot of stress even though she took a week’s sabbatical from work as per her boss‘s request. A she left she saw that she had received a stack of faxed papers from her friend Daisy. She was wondering at first, whether or not it was some sort of practical joke, but as she read through the pages, she realized that it was much too elaborate for a prank. A phone call to Daisy confirmed it was no joke, and that it had her best friend was terrified.

  The details of this project were horrifying. They sounded like something out of a horror movie, or a bad comic book. Janiece wondered how anyone could be a sick as to even try and pull something like that off, let alone find someone stupid enough to volunteer for such an experiment. This had to be illegal, and Janiece was worried because Daisy found herself tangled in all of that just because she got curious.

  Janiece had to tell Joe Henry about it, but there one slight problem: even if BIOGENCORP had the technology and the knowledge to run a project this grotesque, they were being funded by the Pentagon, the very headquarters of the American military. The staff there represented the nation’s entire defense system. Everyone working there had strong political and legal ties. The entire country, even the president would be implicated one way or another if this project was exposed to the masses. There would be a massive military and political upheaval not unlike what happened during the 1970s.

  Not only that, but the legal implications were severe. If the project was exposed, then BIOGENCORP would probably deny that it even existed, claiming that the entire scandal was a hoax designed to scare the population. Even Janiece, who had read the file, couldn’t really believe in it. Daisy would also get in trouble if word of this got out. She would be sue right out of her clothes for being so ready to share some of her employer’s confidential information with one of her acquaintances.

  In the new mess she found herself in she completely forgot about Rick Meyers. Jason’s father had been missing for two days now. There had been no word of him back at the penitentiary, and Joe Henry‘s efforts to locate him were in vain. Law officials had decided to chalk it up as an escape ploy in which Rick was the ringleader. This couldn’t have come at a worse time, as she had prepared his latest appeal. Janiece had promised Jason that she would find him, but she didn’t even know where to look for him. He could be anywhere on the globe. What if something happened to him? She would never be able to explain this to Jason.

  Her doorbell rang, taking her out of her reverie. Jason went and opened the door for her. He answered the door to a woman in a professional suit and suitcase.

  “Hi, can I please talk to Janiece Ryder? Is she here?”

  “That would be me. Please, come in.”

  Janiece made coffee for them while her visitor seated herself down.

  “My name is Mika Nomura. I represent the FBI. I‘m investigating BIOGENCORP.”

  “Really? Thank you. This is great news.”

  “It is? What do you mean?”

  “It means you probably know about the A.R.EX. project. Daisy contacted you, didn‘t she?”

  “I‘m sorry, the what project? I‘ve never heard of anyone named Daisy.”

  Janiece sighed. She was sure that Daisy had called the FBI asking for their help with the A.R.EX. file. But if the agent wasn’t there because of that, what was she doing in her apartment? She gave the agent her cup of coffee and quickly went to her desk and took out her copy of the A.R.EX. file out of her filing cabinet. She figured if Mrs. Nomura wasn’t here for that reason, she could at least hear her out.

  “Here it is. This file contains everything I know about the A.R.EX. project. My friend, Daisy Carter came across this information. Before you read it, though, I would like to know why you‘re here.”

  “You see miss Ryder, we are here to ask you some questions about one of your clients.”

  Janiece hoped she wasn’t talking about Rick.

  “Which one?”

  “Erickson Meyers.”

  “Have you found him? Is he alright? They kidnapped him, didn‘t they?”

  “Actually, I was trying to work undercover on a case involving possible corruption in BIOGENCORP. I was called upon to visit the Penitentiary where Mr. Meyers was located. There, I was given the task to translate everything your client said by Chief Scientist Patrick Sandlak. He asked Mr. Meyers to volunteer for testing an experimental drug that could possibly repair any human tissue. He presented a court order signed by a judge and yourself, of course. Naturally, this looked really suspicious. I suspect Dr. Sandlak of having contacted you and offering you a deal on your client’s behalf. I have to investigate all the leads here, so now I have to ask what your story is, since the judge who‘s name appears on the document insists on never having met you. I hope you recognize, as a lawyer, that you are in big trouble. You will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, no matter how innocent Mr. Meyers seems.”

  First, Janiece loses her client to a kidnapper with a PhD, then she came that close to losing her job in a fit of rage, and now she was being accused of having cooperated with her client’s kidnappers. Could things get any worse?

  “Mrs. Nomura, I have no idea about some experimental drug, but I do know that I was never contacted by Mr. Sandlak, or any of his potential associates. My signature was forged. By whom, I don’t know. If I were to participate in getting a temporary release for my client, I would‘ve been there myself to survey the proceedings. This is exactly what I told James Keith, the warden. My client should still be in his cell right now, awaiting his next appeal, which was supposed to be today. I don’t even understand Dr. Sandlak’s motives for having taken my client out of all people. Is it possible that your case and this file I received are related?”

  Janiece gave the file to the agent, who read through it. Her Asian eyes grew wide as she read.

  “Who gave this to you,“ she asked, ”is this some sort of joke?”

  “I‘m afraid not. Like I said, Daisy works at BIOGENCORP as a medical researcher. She managed to get her hands on this file, which she was supposed to erase while cleaning up their computers. I don’t believe she‘s involved in this crazy scheme, but I haven‘t been able to do anything about this file before you knocked on my door. If word of this project gets out, the scandal that will ensue will tear the nation apart and put Watergate to shame. Now that I think about it, I‘m starting to believe that Rick will be forced to be a guinea pig for Dr. Sandlak. If Sandlak is successful, than Jason will lose his father for good. I hope you can do something about this situation, because this might affect the world as we know it. I don‘t know who else to turn to. Please, believe me when I say I am not involved. Bare Hill‘s warden, Mr. Keith, will testify that I was there, not two hours after Rick was kidnapped, looking for him.”

  There was no telling what was going through the agent’s mind. Did she believe her? Could she afford not to? What could she do with that kind of information? Just when she thought that she had an answer to her prayers, now she had to contend with another set of questions that had no answers. Why would Sandlak choose such an ordinary person like Rick? He didn’t have any money, a physical description that narrowed down less than half a given population, and he couldn’t speak a single word to boot. There were so many other prisoners, most of whom could probably be seasoned criminals, it just didn’t make sense, especially since Rick’s case wasn’t even that well-known, despite its extensive media coverage.
r />   “Can I have a copy of these pages, please?”

  “Wouldn‘t you want the original fax?”

  “No. You need to keep these with you. Right now, they may yet be the only clue to finding your client.”

  Janiece agreed, and gave the agent a copy of the fax she had received. Agent Nomura left, with a promise that they would keep in touch. Now all Janiece had to do, was wait and see what would happen next.

  Chapter 13

  Saturday, October 31st, 1998 1:04 PM

  Abandoned Apartment, New York City

  Arex suddenly found himself alone in an abandoned apartment building somewhere in a city called New York. It had been three days since he first woke up and he was deemed ready by Patrick Sandlak and his staff for his first mission as an American soldier. It seemed strange to him that he would be performing a military operation on his own, inside the borders of the country he was supposed to be serving. It was even stranger to him when he was simply given an envelope, a handgun, a map, a week’s worth of rations, and was simply told to read the contents of the envelope.

  Arex peered into one of the apartments. It smelled awful and dirty, as the entire building seemed to be rotting to its core. He sat down on a wooden chair, with his tail somewhat wrapped around his waist, a habit he quickly picked up. He set the envelope on a nearby table, opened it, and began reading. As he read on, he realized that he was being ordered to kill someone. His target was a woman named Janiece Ryder.

  Sandlak had written up a profile on Janiece Ryder, depicting her as a lawyer working in a district of New York called Manhattan. She usually took the defense side of a case that she decided to work on.

  Where the file got stranger was when it came time to find out the reason why he should kill her. Apparently, she was working for Mafioso, whomever they were, and often would represent them and have them acquitted for various reasons other than their innocence. She was also able to “silence” witnesses herself by ending their the he was now told to end hers.