by Selena Kitt
“Which explains the absence of your skinsuit, no doubt.” Abrahams nodded at K’s expression of surprise. “Oh yes, my dear, I know much about your kind. I have studied the Purists methods of genetics for generations. There is much that is admirable in the way your people mix DNA—admirable but flawed.”
“What do you mean?” Boone asked, stepping up and putting a hand on K’s shoulder. “K’s case is... unique. I’d appreciate any insight you might have on the matter.”
“Why merely that they refuse to use all the resources available to them. The solar system is filled with strange and wonderful creatures—why not use them?”
“Because human/animal hybrids tend to be unstable. They can’t reconcile the two halves of their nature which most often leads to madness or death,” Boone said sharply.
“Do I look mad to you, Doctor Boone?” Ilesca stepped toward him, her whiskers twitching. “I assure you, I am not though Doctor Abrahams is my father and my mother was a common tabby feline from Earth-that-was was.”
Loki looked at the white haired doctor and made a face. “You had sex with a cat?”
Abrahams laughed. “Oh dear me, no. I must agree with the Purists on that point—asexual is the only correct method of reproduction. What my darling Ilesca means is that I mixed my own DNA and that of my pet cat, Madam Curie, in order to make her. So while the cat was her genetic mother, she was actually conceived and carried to term in an artificial womb.”
K knew the idea that the cat-woman had been conceived and born the same way she herself had, ought to make her feel better but somehow it didn’t. She frowned. “This is all very interesting but we’re here to get our ship fixed and move on. Can you tell us what you want from Boone in order to make that happen?”
“K—” Boone began but Abrahams laughed and shook his head.
“Now, now, don’t be upset, Doctor Boone. Your bodyguard poses a very reasonable question. After all, her only interest is protecting you and sadly, I must confess that the township of Jamesville and the surrounding territories can no longer be considered strictly, well, safe.”
K frowned, wishing again for her gauntlets. “Then what are we doing down here? Why did you bring us here in the first place?”
“Oh this area is safe enough.” Abrahams nodded vigorously, as though assuring them it was true. “It’s just the aboveground areas—the town itself—that is in danger.”
“Oh, is that all?” Loki muttered.
Boone cleared his throat. “How many people live in Jamesville?”
Abrahams shrugged. “Four or five hundred humans and hybrids, give or take. Less since the last attack.”
“Attack?” K and Loki spoke at the same time and K shot the Erian a glare which he returned with interest.
“Who or what attacked you?” Boone asked. “And how do you expect me to help?”
“We’ll get to that in a minute.” Abrahams made a shooing gesture as though it was a pesky, minor detail. “First, Doctor Boone, I would be honored if you would view some of my work.” He nodded at the glass partition at the end of the room where K could see cages.
“Only if I come with him,” she said before Boone could open his mouth.
“But of course,” Abrahams said smoothly. “This way. And perhaps your other colleague—Loki was it?—would care to see our guest quarters. Ilesca dear, show him, won’t you?”
K thought it was a mistake to separate—not that she considered Loki much of a backup. But after a short nod at Boone, the Erian followed Ilesca out of the lab without a murmur of protest. Foolish, K thought, watching him go. She was determined not to be parted from Boone for any reason and silently told him so with a look. He nodded back gravely and allowed her to precede him through the glass partition as Abrahams led the way.
“I’m very proud of my creations,” the scientist said, taking them to the far cage at the end of the long glass room. “Though most of them have only a little human DNA—just enough to boost their intelligence. Take this one for instance.” He nodded at the cage which was large enough to walk into. A creature with both fur and feathers crouched in the corner of the cage, eyeing them mistrustfully.
Boone frowned. “What is it?”
“A hybrid of a baboon and an African grey parrot. I often use DNA from species from Earth-that-was—it tends to be more stable,” Abrahams explained.
K frowned. “What is the point of such a creature? Why create a mixture of the two?”
“Aside from the pure scientific data that such a mixture generates, I try to make new species that will be useful in some way. This little fellow might not look like much now, but he will be an excellent lab assistant in the future. He’ll have a baboon’s ability to manipulate objects and a parrot’s ability to speak. Won’t you, Manny?”
The creature, which had a long, sharp curving beak, ambled forward on all fours to the front of the cage. “Yes... Doctor,” it said in a high, screechy voice that put K’s nerves on edge.
Abrahams winced. “That will do, Manny.” He nodded at the baboon/parrot hybrid and then looked back at Boone. “I’m still working on the voice.”
“Mm-hmm.” Boone nodded impartially. K wondered what he really thought.
“Well, continuing on...” Abrahams showed them the contents of the other cages, most of them mixtures of two, three, or even four other species. He told what DNA each contained and their future function, speaking mostly to Boone.
K had grown up in a purely industrial area on a planet where most of the animals had become extinct but she had seen enough footage of Earth-that-was to understand what its animals were supposed to look like. None of Abrahams’ hybrids looked right to her and from the look in Boone’s eyes, he felt the same but he only nodded politely as the white-haired doctor showed them cage after cage of aberrations.
As they were studying an animal that was a cross between a type of salamander native to Pan and an Earth-that-was rat, K had a sudden thought. Did Boone see her the way he saw Abrahams’ strange creations? After all, she was a hybrid herself, in a way. She didn’t think she had any animal DNA but she was certainly a strange case. A Puritan with Erian DNA—one might as well cross a soft, furry bunny rabbit with a prickly porcupine. Which, incidentally, was one of the few things Abrahams seemed to have missed.
“I’m especially fond of these though they have only a trace amount of human DNA,” he was saying as they reached the last cage in the row.
“What are they?” Boone asked, squatting down to peer into the rather low cage.
K stooped down as well. The creatures inside were no larger than her hand and all of them had sharply pointed ears and long muzzles with huge, clear crystalline eyes. Their long bodies had reddish fur with black spots and their slender tails whipped excitedly from side to side.
“These are a nice mixture—fox, miniature cheetah, and volkhound from Colossus.”
“A volkhound?” Boone frowned. “Those have been extinct for the last eighty cycles.”
“Indeed.” Abrahams nodded. “A great shame since they are most charming creatures. I was able to obtain a sample of their DNA from some well-preserved specimens. I don’t like to tell you how much I paid—they’re collector’s items, after all. But it was well worth it.”
“I’ve never seen a live one,” Boone straightened up and K did too. “Weren’t they supposed to be mildly telepathic?”
“Empathetic is more like it. They sense the emotions of others and act accordingly. In fact, they feed off emotions in a way—they siphon off negative feelings like fear and pain and anger.”
“Huh. An animal version of valium.” For the first time, Boone looked really impressed.
Abrahams shrugged. “Oh, hardly that, though it’s true the person whose negative emotions the animal takes feels slightly calmer afterwards.”
“Still, it’s quite impressive. You say they have almost no human DNA?”
“Just a trace amount—enough to give them the ability to understand the rudiments of our s
peech. Though, unlike some of my other creations, they cannot speak themselves.”
“That might not be such a bad thing,” K murmured, thinking of the screechy voice of the parrot-monkey. Boone raised an eyebrow at her but Abrahams was much too busy talking about his “creation” to notice her sarcasm.
“I’m sure you can see the value of such an animal. They could be of great use in a number of places—med centers, care facilities for the mentally or terminally ill... the possibilities are endless. Just imagine!”
“Fascinating.” Boone nodded. “And pretty damn cute. Look at these little guys.” He whistled softly at the creatures and all of their ears pricked up, their jeweled eyes focusing on him in obvious interest.
“They are, aren’t they?” Abrahams smiled fondly. “I’ve been breeding them smaller and smaller with each succeeding generation. These will pretty much stay the size they are now. Would you like to hold one?”
“Well sure.” Boone smiled. “I’d love to.”
“Excellent.” Abrahams seemed inordinately pleased.
“Wait.” K frowned. “Do they bite?”
“Naturally not. All aggression has been bred completely out of them. This batch has the mildest nature yet.” He opened the door of the cage and snapped his fingers. “Here, little ones. Who wants a treat?” Several of the little animals ran to his outstretched hand, almost falling over themselves in their eagerness.
“It’s okay, darlin’,” Boone said in a low voice as Abrahams crouched down to pick up one of the creatures. “I know you’re trying to protect me but I think I can handle something this size.”
“You don’t know what it might do to you.” K frowned stubbornly. “He said they could alter emotions and since you have so many of them, you might be altered considerably.”
Boone’s eyes flashed. “So I should try to be cold and emotionless like you—is that what you’re saying?”
K lifted her chin. “In this case it might be wise.”
Abrahams had clearly heard their whispered discussion. “Now, now, my dear—I never said they alter emotions. They simply feed off them.” He straightened up and held out one of the little creatures to Boone who accepted it carefully. It was so tiny and he was so large it fit neatly into the palm of his hand. When it showed no fear, he lifted it to his face and looked at it more closely.
“What do you call these little guys, anyway?”
“A vox.” Abrahams shrugged, smiling. “Ilesca coined the name and it just stuck.”
The vox leaned forward eagerly, sniffing at Boone’s face. Its eyes, which had been crystalline and clear a moment before, were now a deep bluish-green, not that different from the color of Boone’s own eyes, K saw. Suddenly it shot out a long pink tongue and licked his cheek.
Boone laughed in surprise. “Friendly little guys, aren’t they?”
“They feed on positive emotions as well.” Abrahams nodded at the vox. “In fact, it’s possible to tell what the person holding the vox is feeling, simply by reading their eye color. This little one senses your happiness to hold him and your interest in him.”
“Really? You can tell all that by its eye color?” K was interested despite herself. “Do they live only on emotions or do you feed them other food as well?”
“They get a daily ration of nutrition feed, of course, though they can fast for up to a solar week with no ill effects. However, without a sentient being to hold and touch them every day, they will become weak and ill almost at once. I think you can conjecture which type of ‘food’ is more important to them.”
“Is that right?” Boone murmured. “I don’t suppose the trace amount of human DNA you used in them was Erian?”
“As a matter of fact, it was.” Abrahams nodded. “Excellent deduction, Doctor Boone.” He looked at K. “I should have asked you earlier—would you like to hold one, my dear?”
“You mean... touch it?” K bit her lip uncertainly. The idea should have filled her with revulsion but somehow it didn’t. The animals were so small and sleek and furry with their big eyes and funny little pointed faces. What had Boone called them? Cute. They were cute.
Boone was watching her with a slight frown on his face. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to, darlin’. Though I think you can see they’re pretty harmless.”
“No,” K said, surprising herself and, from the look on his face, Boone as well. “I’ll hold one. For a moment.”
“Excellent.” Abrahams bent down and scooped up another of the little voxes to put in her hands. “They make wonderful pets, you know,” he said as K accepted the little creature from him, being careful not to make skin-to-skin contact during the transfer. “Most everyone in our settlement has one now. They eat so little and give so much affection. All they really ask is a little attention and access to your emotions. Would you like one?”
K held the soft, furry vox carefully. “You’re very generous but if you know as much about my kind as you claim, I’m sure you’ll see that would be a bad idea. We are taught from an early age to purge our emotions—to feel nothing. I fear I would starve such a creature to death. I cannot give it what I do not have.”
“On the contrary, my dear.” Abrahams motioned to the vox. “Look at its eyes.”
K glanced down to the little pointed face that was upturned towards hers and had to repress a gasp. The vox’s eyes were swirling with a blend of colors, changing so rapidly it was hard to keep track. Red... black... gray... orange... dark, stormy purple—each shade came and went in an instant.
“My, my, my.” Abrahams shook his head. “Anger, fear, worry, distrust, desire... you are a maelstrom of negative feelings, my dear. A veritable emotional vortex—this little one will be full for a week at least.”
“I... that can’t be right.” K stared at the little creature who was looking back at her intently. She looked up at Boone who was studying her quietly. “It’s somewhat more difficult to control what I feel without the suit but I never thought... Here.” She thrust the vox back at Abrahams. “Take it back.”
“Are you sure?” He took the little creature from her. “If you hold him just a little while longer you may be relieved of some of your pain and doubt.”
“I have no pain and doubt.” K crossed her arms over her chest protectively.
“Very well, my dear. If you say so.” Abrahams put the vox back, ruffling its fur gently. He looked at Boone. “What about you? Would you like to keep yours?”
“Well...” Boone looked indecisive until the little animal leaned forward eagerly and licked his cheek again. “Hey,” he said, laughing. “That’s cheating.”
“He’s quite taken with you. He must like the taste of your emotions.” Abrahams smiled. “You can give him back at the end of your stay if you like but in the meantime if you wouldn’t mind it would help me out immensely if you let him stay with you. It gets quite tiring holding each one enough every day to give it sufficient nourishment. Not that I don’t enjoy it but it takes time away from my work.”
“Poor little guy, just looking for three squares a day, huh?” Boone scratched the vox between its pointed ears. It closed its eyes and made a soft humming sound. “Aww... okay, then,” Boone murmured. “I’m sold. I’ll help you out with this one—at least while we’re here.” He lifted the vox up to his shoulder and it curled up beneath his ear with a contented sigh, its long tail wrapped around the back of his neck.
“Excellent. I thank you, truly I do.” Abrahams nodded earnestly. “Well, then, now that you’ve seen my work shall we adjourn to the other room where I can fully explain our problem?”
“Sounds like a good idea to me.” Boone nodded, looking relaxed.
“Good. This way if you ple—” Abrahams was interrupted by a shrill yip-yip-yip coming from the vox cage. The animal K had held was standing on its tiny hind legs and begging. How she could tell them apart and know it was hers, K didn’t know but it seemed obvious somehow.
“What... what does it want?” she asked. It was an effort
to speak since her throat was suddenly dry.
“Hmm.” Abrahams bent down again. “I do believe it wants you, my dear Paladin.” He shook his head. “Most unusual for them to form a bond so quickly. Would you like to take it back and keep it for me while your ship is being fixed?”
K shook her head quickly. “I can’t. I told you, it would starve to death with me.”
“Come on now, darlin’, we both know that isn’t true.” Boone spoke quietly and his vox’s eyes went deep blue. K wondered wildly what the color meant—sadness? Was Boone feeling sorry for her for some reason?
“It is true,” she insisted. “And I don’t think you should have been so quick to accept a strange animal as a pet, Boone. How do you know what its long term effects on you might be? It’s dangerous and you’re being irrational.”