Ashlem was right of course, we were complete novices with no clue what to do. Seeing no point in it, I just leant back against the wall and let my mind wander. Ironically that was probably the best tactic I could possibly have chosen.
I stood in the old graveyard. It was the perfect place, symbolic, We’d told them we only gave the new drug to blood brothers, or were they cowards unwilling to cut their own flesh? Silly Hafsexis, so macho, so predictable. Above, the full moon breaks clear of the clouds, bathing the four RedJakkers in his light as they lie upon the tombs, waiting for a gift far greater than the squalid addiction that they’d been promised.
To the left, someone cried a warning, too late; two pin-pricks pierced my thigh. Pain. Every muscle clenching inward. ‘Taser’ I thought... as everything faded
I blinked and pushed myself away from the wall. For a second time, nobody had noticed anything out of the ordinary had occurred.
As I’d half expected, Ashlem had been looking directly at me, but as soon as he was aware that I was actively looking back at him he switched his gaze to someone else. What I’d felt, hadn’t been one of my dreams, I was certain. Although it had been superficially similar, this was more like remembering something, like someone’s home video, but with an emotions track as well as sound. Then it clicked into place: I’d just ‘seen’ Ashlem’s capture. He’d been trying to help those desperate addicted boys.
Suddenly Salil let out a piercing scream and clutched at his head.
Dr Blake took one glance at Salil and then at the Wraeththu before hitting the alarm button next to the door.
“It’s a trap” announced Jeaki a few seconds later, his voice sounding pained. “Six wants the guards sent in. He figures that the more he can disable now, the less he’ll face when he escapes.”
By that point, three CGS had already entered the cell. The first one was already down, clutching his shattered knee. If it had been me, I’d have picked up the fallen nightstick, but Ashlem never gave it a glance, turning his momentum into a spinning kick that left the second guard’s arm hanging at a sickening angle.
I’d never seen fighting like this; it wasn’t a proper martial art, more like a cat in a sack. Ashlem was so fast and agile that the CGS seemed to move in slow motion. When he struck, bones broke. I’m sure the other Specimens just saw him going murderously berserk, what I saw was a display of non-lethal maiming.
The fifth CGS to enter the room didn’t bother with tactics and simply spread himself wide and charged. In the relatively confined space, Ashlem had no way of dodging; once he was down it was pretty much all over.
I kept grimly silent. There was no point in telling the others that Ashlem was innocent, not now.
*Sixteen* Someone whispered deep in my brain.
I was awake instantly. If the words in my head were not enough, there was an almost painful heat in my fingertips. Pulling the sheets back with my left hand, I could see that the fingers on my right hand had reddened as if scalded. Ashlem. It had to be.
*No. This isn’t a dream* murmured the voice in my head, in a patient motherly way. *Try to picture a word in your mind*
Obediently I pictured a word, forming it carefully one letter at a time, like a three year old with a crayon.
*H.O.W.?*
*You recall all the static when you were touching the glass? The Nayati discharged a small amount of agmara through a focusing majhahn.*
*?* I sent the question mark imagining it to be 6ft tall.
*You don’t have the words. Call it magic if you must; it isn’t really, I’ll explain later.* replied Ashlem. *Basically I’ve made it so we can talk undetected.*
*Why... We... Talk...?* I thought carefully
*Because you know I’m not evil. You know that they are wrong to detain me and... I need you to trust me.*
If this had been a normal conversation, I’d have said ‘yeah right. Trust a murdering Wraeththu? You’re kidding’, but this conversation was different, mind to mind. I could feel the intrinsic honesty and nobleness that I’d glimpsed in his memories.
*Trust... maybe* I formed cautiously
*That’s good, because I know what they plan to do to you next.* he continued, with an undercurrent of urgency that practically grabbed me by my throat. *Dr Hart thinks that he knows my secret, he thinks he knows why we are stronger and faster and smarter; a drug that performs a simple trick with the DNA, something that he can copy. Hart is a fool, he sees the tip of the iceberg and assumes that there is nothing more They will inject you with my blood to see what it will do. It will do more than they think; it will alter the very fabric of who you are, make you better in ways you can’t even conceive of, but it’s not safe. All I can do is to ensure you are prepared.*
*Why... You... Warn...?*
*We Wraeththu protect our own. They will make us blood brothers of a sort, and as it is my blood, it is also my duty to act as your hienama, your guide.*
I radiated an unfocused feeling of alarm and confusion, which he ignored.
*I can’t sustain this link much longer. Just remember this, you mustn’t eat anything tomorrow. You should tell the others not to eat either. Your body will react like food is a lethal poison. Also, and this is vital...understand, vital ... you must meditate, think about who you are, the core of what makes you You. You mustn’t lose your sense of self.*
My mouth went dry. Telepathy isn’t like speech. I could tell Ashlem believed what he said was a certainty.
*Remember to meditate.* Ashlem’s words drifted away, the tingling in my fingertips fading as well.
I think he was wise not to go into detail; had he done so, I wouldn’t have been nearly so calm. I lay awake looking at the ceiling wondering what it all meant. It must have been earlier than I thought, because I was soon asleep again, dreaming of deep magics and profound rituals.
When I awoke, all doubt had fled, I was absolutely certain that I had to warn the others not to eat anything. Oddly I didn’t think about avoiding the experiment. I guess it was another point where I could have said ‘stop’ and walked away. But I didn’t. It didn’t even occur to me as an option. I wonder now if my dreams had reached back in time and ensured that I took the course I did, or perhaps Ashlem’s influence went deeper than he let on.
I tried to convince them at breakfast and failed miserably. Only Jeaki and Sarah took me seriously, the other three choosing to consume our uneaten portions.
Paul looked up from his cereal “Six is a seriously sick puppy; you can’t rely on anything he’s telling you.”
“Have you asked Dr Blake about any of this?” asked Jeaki
“We can’t tell Blake” I hissed urgently
“Can’t tell Dr Blake what?” asked Dr Gupta, who I hadn’t noticed, seated behind us
“Six telepathically warned Sixteen not to eat anything today,’ replied Jeaki. “Something about a drug you’re planning to test on us.”
Dr Gupta looked surprised. “You say Six told you this telepathically?”
“Yes,” I admitted reluctantly
“And where were you when he told you this?”
“My room”
“Goodness gracious; that is a range of nearly a hundred feet. How extraordinary.”
“What about the drug test?” asked Sarah. “Was he lying to Sixteen?”
“It is true that Dr Hart has booked you for a drug trial,” replied Gupta enthusiastically. “I can tell you that I have reviewed his work, and it is a breakthrough. I would even suggest that it is a work of genius, a gene therapy that doesn’t actually alter the genes at all; a thing of beauty.”
“But is it safe?” Sarah persisted.
“Of course, of course... Here, I’ll show you.” Gupta grabbed several sets of condiments and arranged them on the table. “Here, normal DNA: four proteins CTG and A in a double helix spiral. But what if we insert a third strand, making a triple helix? This way we keep your original DNA undamaged and use the third strand to add additional cell functions. We know it can be done
. Six’s DNA is already like this. It is a truly elegant solution, and also totally reversible.”
“And will our fasting before the drug trial be a problem?”
“No, it should not have any bearing on the test.” replied Gupta “It is your choice of course, but it really is quite safe.”
My next clear memory is of (I guess) the next morning, walking nervously into a lab on the lowest level of the Institute. It was a lab I’d not seen before. The main feature of the room was six medical beds, each with a whole wall of medical monitors behind them.
I walked over to one of the bed and hopped up onto it, almost immediately my fingertips tingled.
*Sixteen?*
*Yes*
*Did you meditate? Do you know who you are?*
*Yes* I replied, thinking it odd that Ashlem believed that some stupid meditation was more important than the not eating thing.
*I have generated as much luck as I can Sixteen, it’s up to you now.* His voice faded, leaving me wondering how one went about ‘generating’ luck? In fact the comment caused me to doubt everything Ashlem had said.
I returned my attention to the room, noting that the others had each chosen a bed and were standing next to them looking grim and tense. They might not have believed Ashlem’s warning, but just now they were having second thoughts.
“Lady and Gentleman,” announced Dr Hart. “Dr Gupta tells me that he’s given you his unscientific explanation of what we are here to do.” The emphasis on the word ‘unscientific’ seemed to be more about his opinion of Gupta’s ability than our lack of knowledge.
“Ashlem thinks you’ve missed something.” I said, bluntly
“Six? What could a streetscum kid like him possibly know about genetics?” asked Hart dismissively
I frowned. The man just radiated arrogance. He didn’t just ‘think’ he was right; he ‘knew’ that he was, with a certainty that had no room for doubt.
“The genetic splice we will inject is based upon the performance enhancing drug used by Wraeththu gangs,” Hart explained. “You needn’t worry about addiction. The original designer apparently intended it to impart a permanent enhancement without any side effects. If we are successful, we will have taken a giant leap toward a solution to the fertility problem. We will be able to replace the damaged genes with a single vaccination. I predict we’ll all get awards for pioneering this research. Oh....” He paused impatiently. “I am legally obliged to ask if any of you wish to back out.”
We all looked nervous.
“You should know that if you exercise your right to refuse treatment, your contract will be terminated, without prejudice” Hart continued.
I assumed that ‘without prejudice’ meant if anyone did back out, they’d be blacklisted and doomed to a life of poverty in the gang-infested slums. Not exactly a great choice, that.
“Please sign these release papers and we’ll get started,” added one of Hart’s assistants.
Lacking much else to do, I focused my attention on the dark liquid in the syringes; it seemed that each of us was being injected with a progressively larger dose. Paul would receive the smallest infusion, whilst I was going to get the largest. Finally, it was my turn. The syringe was inserted into my arm and the entire vial of blood was pushed into me.
At last, I allowed myself to be scared. No, scared isn’t a strong enough word: ‘terrified’… I was fucking terrified. The stuff was in me now and I had to hope that Ashlem was right
*It’s started?*
*Yes*
*Then it’s time for you to know the rest. In an ideal world this would have been explained. But I couldn’t risk ‘Them’ knowing. There is no easy way to say this, they’re giving you my whole DNA, not just parts they think they’ve isolated.*
*?*
*You’re not going to be male anymore*
*WHAT?!*
*You’ll be like me, a hermaphrodite.*
*No!*
*Calmly Sixteen, this is the ultimate gift, absolutely not a handicap*
Once again the advantage of telepathic honesty came to Ashlem’s aid. His last statement was wrapped in that emotion of utter certainty. The being called Ashlem har Unneah was utterly certain that what I was about to become was better than male, by several orders of magnitude.
Even so, the fact remained that I was in the process of being turned into a genderless mule, unable to....do things.
Ashlem’s mental laughter, as gentle as a caress cut through my panic. *We Wraeththu look after our own Sixteen, you will never be outcast. And you aren’t losing your gender, you’re gaining a superior one*
I started to hyperventilate and sweat. It might have been the genetic splice kicking in, but if I’m honest, it was probably just good old-fashioned fear... No matter how Ashlem dressed it up, I was fucked.
“Feeling ok?” asked Paul
“Yeah, I’m just scared” I replied, irrationally unwilling to discuss what I’d just learned.
“See, it was just Six messing with your head, like we said,” added Salil
“You think?” Sarah said. “Look at your arm.”
Salil’s arm looked like someone had taken a paintbrush and painted fake blood vessels in a dark bruised red. I looked at my own right arm; the veins were already inflamed, bulging so that they looked like ivy wrapped around a tree trunk. So fast! My heart hammered in my chest.
“Clever, clever, clever,” muttered the Dr. Hart. “The adrenalin levels are way up. The first generation of converted cells is creating it, telling Specimen 16’s heart to beat faster ensuring that the serum reaches every part of the body quickly.”
“Oh… great!” I gasped sarcastically. “Are you... going to... do a... fucking... running commentary?”
“Specimen 16 is exhibiting mild levels of distress, accompanied by adrenaline-induced aggression.” said Dr. Hart, speaking into a recorder.
“Screw you too!” I snarled
Across the room, I could see the others watching me and looking fearful. Jeaki, Salil and Sarah had all begun to sweat; the other two seemed to still be ok.
“Specimens 13 through 16 also show signs of heightened adrenal activity,” Hart continued. “No reaction from 11 and 12. Presumably the serum dosage was too low to initiate cellular integration.”
“You… don’t even... know… the correct dosage... do you?” hissed Jeaki
“Dosage is one of the test parameters,” replied Hart as if it were obvious.
For the next few hours things went on about the same. With the exception of Paul and Calvin, we were all feeling pretty uncomfortable; but if I was honest, it was not really any worse than any of the fevers I’d had as a child. We kept each other’s spirits up with bad jokes and anecdotes.
And then Sarah died.
It happened suddenly, one minute she was like the rest of us, panting and sweating, heart racing, the next she clutched at her head, and a single gout of blood spurted from her nose. To be fair, Hart’s team were on her in seconds, one shining a light in her eyes, one keeping her upright so that the blood didn’t choke her, and another checking the EEG sensor readouts.
“No good, she’s gone,” said one of the assistants. “No brain activity, no pulse.”
For the first time that I’d known him, Hart had the decency to look worried. Although I suspected that it was worry about losing the International Awards that he’d promised himself, rather than Sarah’s condition.
We Specimens just sat there in shock, not moving, not speaking, trying not to think.
The next thing I recall is hearing the doctors arguing. Clarke was saying that he’d warned Hart, Gupta was showing concern for our safety, while Hart argued that Sarah must have had an undetected physiological condition that Clarke had missed.
Finally Director Calcutt walked into our room and took a look at us for himself.
“Flush the serum. Full blood replacement. Stat. You’ve obviously missed something.” He ordered “Gupta, take charge here. Hart... my office.”
&nb
sp; Someone cheered weakly; it might even have been me.
Immediately there was a bustle of activity as intravenous feeds were wheeled in and hooked up, along with a second line fed to an empty plastic blood-bag.
My energy levels dropped about then, and I lay limply on my bed not really caring about anything that was going on. At some point the curtains had been drawn, leaving me feeling that I was floating in a sickly green limbo.
“Sixteen? Can you hear me?” asked Dr Gupta
“Yes” I replied, somewhat irritated.
“How are you feeling? Have your symptoms eased at all since the blood transfusion?”
“You’ve finished?” I asked in a wavering voice.
Gupta frowned and turned to one of the nursing assistants. “Have someone run a DNA marker check on the last bag of drained blood from each of them. I want to know the percentage of hybridized blood cells remaining.”
“What....killed… Ssr..uh?” I asked
“Specimen 13 had a stroke. Her blood pressure spontaneously doubled; we’ve never seen anything like it. Thankfully she didn’t suffer.”
I closed my eyes again. Basically her brain had exploded.
The sound of the curtains drawing back roused me again, this time all of the doctors were present. I glanced around at the others, they were all lying flat out, although Paul and Calvin were propped up and seemed slightly more energetic.
Gupta sighed before he addressed us. “I’m sorry to tell you that the blood replacement failed to flush out the hybrid DNA. The replacement blood was being hybridised almost as soon as it entered your bodies. I have reviewed Dr Hart’s notes and I am ashamed to say that his research has not been as rigorous as I had been led to believe. Bluntly, we do not know what outcome to expect.”
“Ashlem does... Get him up here.” I replied
Gupta glanced at Calcutt, who shook his head firmly.
“At least ask him! You don’t have to let him out.” snapped Jeaki from the next bed.
Calcutt nodded once, his face grim.
With the ‘big announcement’ done, our curtains were drawn again and I was back in the light green limbo. Some time later a message came to me from Ashlem.
Paragenesis: Stories of the Dawn of Wraeththu Page 19