Progenitor

by Sherri Fulmer Moorer

  “This is where I come in,” Annaliese said. “The ‘breakdowns’ he’s referring to are the instances that got us the funding to get this project going. All of the people in our study had a lapse of memory where they did strange things that they later couldn’t recall. For example, one of my patients in Raleigh, North Carolina, was standing the street in front of her home screaming at the sky and scratching at herself. She started bleeding from her nose, ears, and mouth and passed out just as her husband found her. That happened to all of them. They were wandering around and ended out in isolated areas having what I can only refer to as a ‘psychotic break’ before spontaneously bleeding and passing out. When they regained consciousness, they had no memory of the event.”

  “Did you find any physical evidence to explain what triggered these episodes?” Mandy asked.

  “Only extremely heightened electrical activity in their brain.”

  “We detected a spike in the wave frequency through the satellite systems during that time frame.” Galen said. “There was a coronal mass ejection from the sun that passed our system in the time frame that directly correlates with all of these experiences. We wonder if that had something to do with it. The signals did transmit back to Earth.”

  “Did it affect anything else?” Mandy asked.

  “There were some interruption in radio waves and a slight delay in transmissions through the satellite systems, but that’s normal,” Galen said. He paused, tapping his finger on his computer. “There was one other thing, but I’m not sure if it’s significant or not. We picked up a strange deep space signal at that time, too. It was a simple binary code that hit our Jovan monitoring systems. It hasn’t happened again.”

  “Do you know the source of it?” Mandy asked.

  Galen shook his head. “That was before the modifications started to our systems to pick up the deeper space signals. They’re still working on that.”

  “When do you think that will be up and running?” Mandy asked.

  “Mid-January to early February is the time frame we’re being given. The Space Exploration Society just launched the mission to make the upgrades at the space stations. Bear in mind that it takes some time to get astronauts ready for such a mission and to reach their destination. We’re rushing this one, mainly by trying to remote in to the deep space sensors through the space station relays in orbit.”

  “That’s hoping we don’t have any more coronal mass ejections, or other interference with the satellite system,” Dr. Patel said.

  “I know they weren’t happy about launching a week before Christmas,” Annaliese remembered Avery’s tirade on the telephone last week about why the committee couldn’t wait one more week to do this. He took the brunt of the complaints from the astronauts and families since Galen spent so much time flying between Houston and Washington D.C. with the study.

  “We have to move on this, especially if something’s coming from deep space that affects our systems,” Galen said.

  “I know,” Annaliese shifted in her chair, “and it’s frustrating because we’re rushing everybody to do things, but we aren’t coming up with much of our own to report.”

  “It’s only been ten weeks since the study officially started,” Mandy said. “We need more time to figure this out. Why are they rushing us for a report so soon?”

  “Politics,” Annaliese said. “The session is closing for holiday break the day after tomorrow, and then half of the Senators are up for re-election next year. They want to go home and tell their constituents that they did something good, and they did it fast. It’s all about political posturing and campaign donations.”

  Mandy snorted. “That’s not how science works. These things take time, and we’ve barely begun.”

  Dr. Patel laughed. “We’re funded by the Feds, so we have to play by their rules.”

  Galen laughed. “They need the science for votes, and we need their money for science. It’s not the best of both worlds, but it’s all we’ve got.”

  “What else do we have to report to the oversight committee?” Dr. Patel asked. He brought up a list on his computer with bullet points on their discussion. “There is clearly a link between the human behavior aspects and interstellar activity through our systems. So far, we can’t find anything concrete that ties together medical and interstellar. What else do we have?”

  “Two things,” Annaliese said. “All of the ‘miracle cure’ witnesses that we have on file are between the ages of twenty-five and fifty, with an IQ in the range of 120-140.”

  “That’s interesting,” Galen said. “So we’re talking about a group of people in the prime of life. How fortunate that they were completely healed of all of their ailments, so that puts them at an advantage both mentally and physically.”

  “An advantage over what?” Mandy asked.

  “The rest of the general population,” Annaliese said. “Think about it. They’re smart, but not too smart to be practical. And now they have nothing holding them back physically, either.”

  “I see your point. You can’t deny that’s a top-notch group of select individuals,” Mandy said. “What other demographic data do we have on them?”

  “They’re evenly split between male and female. Also, there’s an average representation of races compared to the last census: Caucasian, African-America, Hispanic, and Asian. They all have college degrees, and approximately half of them have advanced degrees.”

  “They’re professionals?” Galen asked.

  “Yes,” Annaliese said, “they would be considered upper-middle class individuals.”

  “Another thing is that the abilities these people demonstrated coincide with their profession,” Dr. Patel said, typing the bullet points on the list. “The people that could transfer data or see and hear conversations worked with computer systems and telecommunications. The ones that could see inside bodies were medical professionals. The ones that could fix things were design professionals. The ones that could grow and kill plants worked in the natural sciences.”

  “The one that could conduct electricity was an electrical engineer,” Annaliese said softly.

  Everybody stared at her. She flushed as she snapped back to attention. “I’m sorry, I was thinking out loud.” She drank her coffee. “We have this subsection of society represented, and their abilities are tied in with a combination of their areas of professional specialty, and the interstellar activity. Do we have anything from physics?”

  “My work is slow,” Mandy said. “I’ve been over the satellite signals and the energy readings from the physicals and neurological readings. The waves are a perfect match, but I’m stumped on how one is affecting the other. I hope these upgrades to the satellite systems help.” She sighed. “It would also help if I had autopsy data from the ones that passed away. The subset we have in the study are as normal as normal gets. The energy readings and radiation on their bodies are slightly heightened and seem to be growing, but it’s at a nominal rate and doesn’t seem to have much of an effect on them.”

  “What do you mean?” Annaliese asked.

  Mandy tapped her computer to check her notes. “Their body temperature is slightly elevated, averaging around 99 degrees. Their neurological activity is heightened, but that seems to correlate to faster thinking and reaction times.” She looked up. “I think I could have gotten better data if I could have studied them while they were demonstrating these abilities you talked about, but that seems to have stopped. And the scars from the wounds where the ‘miracle healing’ occurred in August have completely healed, and there’s no radiation from the wound or from the healing like there was in the week after the healing happened.” She leaned back in her chair. “I’ve hit a dead-end. I’m waiting on something else to happen so I have something to work with.”

  Annaliese squinted, studying the bullet points on the projector. “I’m looking at Peter Burke, who was spontaneously cremated. Who was the witness to his ‘miracle cure?’?”

  Dr. Patel checked his notes. “A cousin
named Bruce Burke. He was healed of an ear infection, and was one of the people that could transmit digital data. He’s a Network Engineer for a large IT firm in Charlotte.”

  “Is he part of the study?”

  Dr. Patel nodded. “We flew him up here for his physical scan in early November. I believe one of your partners did the interview and scans for the psychiatric analysis. We didn’t find anything unusual in him. Or rather, his findings were consistent with the others.”

  Annaliese tapped at her computer. “There’s no mention of his cousin’s spontaneous cremation in the notes on him. Maybe I should call him and ask about that.”

  “That was a decision made by Peter Burke’s daughter, not by Bruce,” Dr. Patel said. “Remember, Bruce wasn’t a direct relative. He had no say in the final arrangements. He was just there when Peter bolted out of bed and grabbed his ear.”

  “Even if you asked him, he’d probably tow the family line,” Galen said. “Think about it, Annaliese. What would you say if somebody asked about your father being cremated against his wishes?”

  Annaliese set her jaw and stared at the screen darkly. “We missed so much with letting that group pass without analyzing their medical data. I don’t want to lose anymore.”

  “Neither do we, but we also can’t afford to spend time on minutiae that doesn’t have anything to do with the study,” Dr. Patel said.

  “That’s just it. We don’t know what has to do with anything,” Annaliese said. “Mandy has nothing to work with, and we haven’t found much.” She waved her hand. “This is barely a report. We should have more.”

  “Annaliese,” Mandy reached across the table and patted her hand. “I understand your frustration. I’m the one without a report or anything to work with, but like I said, we’re still early in the study. All things considered, I think this is pretty good.”

  “More data will come in,” Galen said. “We don’t have to chase it. Those satellite upgrades are in progress. Be patient.”

  “That’s what I plan to report to the committee on my end, and I recommend the same to all of you,” Dr. Patel said. “Mandy’s right. This takes time, and we have a respectable amount of data already. At least we have a basic framework established. That’s not bad for ten weeks worth of work from around the country. Emphasize that in your section report and everything will be fine. They’ll have something to take back home with the promise of more to boost our cause and their campaigns next year.”

  Galen turned to Mandy. “Make your presentation based on what you’ve counted out, and devise a plan to investigate new theories when the deep space data comes in. See, you do have something.”

  Mandy laughed. “I guess when you work with politics, you’d better find a way to make nothing sound like something.”

  A young woman cracked open the door and poked her head in. “Your meeting is in ten minutes. Are you ready?”

  Dr. Patel shut down the projector app on his computer. “Yes, let’s go.”

  They rose from their seats and followed the young woman down the hall to the meeting room. Dr. Patel hung back until he was walking behind the others with Annaliese. “Dr. Boyce, may I ask what your plans are for the upcoming Christmas holiday?”

  “We’re staying in D.C,” Annaliese said. “Kieran and I went home on Thanksgiving break to see my family. Mom is flying up here this weekend with Kieran’s parents and sister, and Avery’s due in early next week.” She paused. “I couldn’t go back to Columbia yet.”

  Dr. Patel nodded. “It was a tough Thanksgiving, then?”

  Annaliese nodded.

  “That’s understandable. It’s the first holiday without your father.” He paused. “What about your cousin, Kalea? Is she still here?”

  Annaliese shook her head. “She went home at Thanksgiving, and she’s staying down there over Christmas and New Year. She said she’d come back when we’re ready for follow-up studies. She wanted to get back to her work.”

  Dr. Patel laughed. “I saw her a month ago on the Metro. She told me that she enjoyed visiting D.C., but she was ready to go home. I believe that was right before Thanksgiving.” He stopped, gently taking Annaliese’s arm. “May I give you some free medical advice? Take a break over the holidays. You’ve worked nonstop on this for the past ten weeks, except for those few days you took for Thanksgiving. I realize you have a personal stake in it between your father and your cousin, but you need to give yourself a break. You’ve made a personal situation professional, and it’s exhausting you. Take a break before you break down.”

  Annaliese smiled. “Thanks, Dr. Patel. Maybe I will. Sidney, the other patient I had up here, is heading back to Raleigh for Christmas. Maybe the time is right for a time out.”

  Dr. Patel smiled. “Doctor, heal thyself! Your breakthrough might be just on the other side of a well-earned and much needed rest.” He resumed walking, quickening his pace to catch up with the group. “I know it’s hard with all that’s happened, but try to have a Merry Christmas. The discoveries of the New Year may depend on it.”

  Annaliese forced a smile. “I know you’re right.”

  Chapter 34

  “Kalea’s refusing to talk to the investigator with the funeral board about Dad’s cremation,” Avery said from his chair next to the elegant Christmas tree softly illuminating the living room on Christmas night.

  Annaliese stretched to see her mother, Kieran, and Elise, consumed in a game at the kitchen table in the next room. “Is that why Mom’s been moody?”

  Avery nodded. “She had a fight with Kalea and Uncle Gerald just before flying up here.”

  “He won’t talk to the investigator either?”

  “No, but he can’t tell them anything that they don’t already know. Kalea was there through most of it, but she won’t talk to the investigator. She says it can’t be undone, so why hurt someone else in the process?”

  “A part of me agrees with her. This complaint is dragging out Dad’s death. Haven’t we had enough? It’s over. Maybe we should let it go.”

  “His final wishes were disrespected. Don’t you care about that?”

  “Of course, I do! It’s just,” she paused, staring at the tree, “what do we get from this? The funeral director gets fined, or maybe his license is suspended. The Board gets the money, his livelihood is taken from him over a mistake, and we get nothing. I don’t see this as a case where anybody wins.”

  “He should pay for what he did.”

  “He did. He paid for everything regarding the memorial and burial. And besides, he didn’t do it. It was two members of his staff, and he already fired and replaced them. What more do you want?” Annaliese sipped her water. “There’s been enough suffering over this. Why can’t we let it go? Let Dad rest in peace. In the end, it does nothing but drag out our grief and hurt us more. Why do that?”

  Avery stared at Annaliese. “I guess that means you won’t talk to the investigator either?”

  Annaliese shifted in her chair. “I already did. He called while I was in my Congressional Committee Report on Thursday, and I called him back that afternoon. He thanked me for the call but said it didn’t make much difference. It’s Mom’s word against the funeral directors, and I don’t think anything that we say is going to change that. Dad never put his burial wishes in writing, so there’s nothing to prove that they weren’t carried out. The Board will probably fine the guy and go on their merry way with a few extra thousand dollars in their coffers.”

  Avery sighed. “The investigator told me the same thing on the telephone Thursday. I think that’s why Kalea won’t talk to them. She’s probably had it up to her eyeballs between Dad dying and being up here for two months for your study.” He smiled. “I saw your report on television. They replayed it while I was in the airport. You’ve done a lot in a little time.”

  Annaliese blew out a frustrated sigh. “We haven’t come up with anything. That was smoke and mirrors for half of those jerks to get campaign funding for re-election next year.”

  “I
think it’s something. At least you know what you’re working with.”

  “I’m sorry you were the emotional punching bag for those astronauts and their families that had to launch last week and couldn’t get the delay. And then you had this case with Mom complaining to the funeral board on top of all of that chaos. What does she hope to accomplish?”

  “She wants to sue. She hopes that the board decision will help her in a civil case.”

  Annaliese stared into the kitchen. “She doesn’t need the money. Dad left her everything! Heck, Kalea got more than we did.”

  “That’s all Kalea will ever get, and he knew it. He knew his portion of the family estate would be left to us once Mom is gone.”

  “Kalea will get Uncle Gerald’s and Aunt Daphne’s portion of the estate.”

  “But she was there for Dad these past seven years while he was sick, and we weren’t.”

  Annaliese looked away. Avery reached over and grabbed her hand. “Annaliese, I’m sorry, but it’s true. You and I were able to leave the family estate and pursue our careers because we knew Kalea would stay in Columbia and take over Uncle Gerald’s business. We knew she’d be there to keep an eye on things, and we took advantage of her staying there so we could conquer the world in other places.” He took back his hand and leaned back in the chair. “It stings me too that he left her so much money, but you know what stings me more? That she deserves it. That I wasn’t there more, and I can’t ever get that time back. Working with the Space Exploration Society is a lifelong dream, but I’ve spent the past three months wondering if I sacrificed my relationship with my father for it.”