The Genetic Lottery: (A Futuristic Thriller) (EGALIA Book 1)
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‘Day 5: Patients complain of a throbbing headache though mental faculties operating at its peak, eidetic memory operational and IQ tests return with an average increase of 20 points.’
‘Day 10: Throbbing headache complaints persist and increased in physical lethargy. However, mental faculties remain at its peak.’
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‘Day 30: Patients’ experience acute pain in the brain with episodes lasting about 10minutes each. Patients’ mental faculties remain sharp.’
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‘Day 60: Patients report numbness in limbs. Because of acute pain in the brain, have to be restrained.’
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‘Day 90: Patients Deceased.’
Ren physically recoiled from his desk. He began frantically pulling up all the results again. His mind working overtime as he digested the information. Stunned, he alerted Paris, who was sitting next to him on her own computer looking through the other files. Paris promptly pulled up the entirety of the folder on her screen and got to work. What she saw horrified her and there was a moment of silence between them as they both struggled to process what they had just read.
Paris was the first to break the silence. She said, “Wow. We have to authenticate this information. Let’s go through it again, to make sure…” Ren agreed and together, they looked through all the information again, making sure what they had read was indeed accurate.
Within the hour, Ren and Paris had gone through all the data. Every single byte had been double-checked, no stone left unturned. With a sickened expression on both of their faces, Ren and Paris looked at each other in despair. The overwhelming conclusion was clear.
This first generation microchip did not work. From all the reports, it appeared that patients initially complained of headaches, which then gradually turned into acute episodes of unbearable pain; so much pain that patients had to be physically restrained. Patients also experienced a slow process of paralysis in their limbs even as their minds remained hyperactive. It seemed that the human brain just could not tolerate the stimuli artificially enforced by the microchip and begun shutting down the body instead. Finally, as the chip had already fused with the brain tissue, the process was impossible to reverse. All patients in the microchip experiment died.
After looking at each other shell-shocked for several moments, Ren and Paris quickly sobered up as they realized the importance of the news they were sitting on. They needed to disseminate this information to the public quickly. All those consumers lining up to get the Infinity Chip were going to get hurt! Their parents needed to know, everyone needed to know!
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At the same time, Brian and Lyxa were actually close by. They had just arrived outside the Wan’s holiday home. Lyxa had finally managed to locate her dear friend, Pamela and they were here to seek help.
After the fateful meeting with Mayor Wayne, Brian worked tirelessly in his laboratory, carrying out small scale experiments to test out the validity of the information he had gathered about Clyxint from his surreptitious snooping into his parents’ home and work computers.
His personal experiments only served to confirm what he already knew. Clyxint was very likely to impact humans negatively. However, he needed far greater scale in his experimentation to confirm his findings and make the necessary link to the efficacy of the Infinity Chip. He needed a bigger laboratory, more equipment and more manpower on this project and it was only a matter of time before his parents or someone from Etak Inc. would discover what he was doing.
After sharing his concerns with Lyxa, who had been relentlessly pressing him for updates on his research, Lyxa had decided that they would go see her friend Pamela, heir to the Nutrienas empire, who surely had the resources to help them.
Brian and Lyxa were ushered into Pamela’s room on the second floor of the sprawling mansion. Walking into Pamela’s huge room, Lyxa couldn’t help but smile. The room was furnished with an eclectic mix of furniture and the walls were filled with unique, ornately-framed psychedelic art, betraying its owner’s interesting taste.
Seeing Brian and Lyxa enter the room Pamela jumped up from her position on her king-sized bed and leaped forward to pull Lyxa into a hug.
Lyxa chuckled as she returned the embrace joyfully. Pulling away slightly, she said to Pamela, “I’ve missed you! Are you ok?”
Pamela hugged Lyxa tightly back, “Yes, I’m fine. Thank you for reaching out to me. You’re the only person who has tried to contact me. Everyone else at school is treating me like I’m some kind of leper!”
Lyxa smiled, thinking that Pamela must be quite alright since she was still in full possession of her flair for the dramatics. “Well, you’re the one who went into hiding. You can’t blame them. I had to call in so many favours to get to you. Your company staff can be really tough to get through. Luckily your sister’s secretary recognized me after I kept making a scene at your company’s lobby,” Lyxa laughed.
Pamela’s eyes grew wide, “You did that for me? Wow, is something wrong? What’s up?”
Lyxa said, “Yes, actually. We need your help.”
As Lyxa explained the situation to Pamela, with Brian demonstrating the evidence he had gathered so far about the Infinity Chip, Pamela was stunned.
Pamela stood up and with her arms flailing, said, “This is really horrible. Of course I will help! You know what, I’ve been hearing a lot of things from my sister about this Etak guy. It seems that he’s bent on taking down our companies. She and Ren were looking into him just awhile back. I think they will be very happy to know that he is a fraud!”
“What a horrible man! You know what, there’s no time to waste! I think we best let my sister and Ren know. I think they will find all this information very useful and they will be more than willing to help you guys! Let’s go tell them now!”
Pamela checked their state of the art security system for the location of her sister and Ren. “Oh, they are in the study! Let’s go!” she said, leaving the room without a second thought.
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Pamela barged into the study without knocking. Without waiting for a reply, she strode in confidently with Lyxa and Brian timidly following her lead.
Orion Wan and his wife, Jean, Paris and Ren looked up, startled by Pamela’s sudden entrance.
“What’s going on sis?” Paris asked her sister, surprised that her little sister had interrupted their strategy meeting. Ren and Paris were just in the midst of explaining to Orion and Jean the information they had found about the microchip and they were just about to discuss how best they were going to use this against Alex Etak.
Pamela said, “Paris! Big news! The Infinity Chip, that Etak person… is a fraud! Lyxa and … Brian… found out…”
Paris cut off her panicked sister and said, “Calm down, tell me slowly.”
With Paris’s encouragement, Pamela, Lyxa and Brian began to explain the situation.
There was a deep pause after they finished as everyone took in the news.
Ren and Paris, with their quick minds and the knowledge about the microchip fresh in their minds, were the first to glean the truth, and they were shocked. This was more horrible than they had imagined. Putting all the information they had together, from their own findings about the microchip and Brian’s new information, they were now more certain than ever that the Infinity Chip was defective. It appeared that Alex Etak had discovered the 1st generation microchip experiments and found a way to combine it with Clyxint invented by Brian’s parents. This was genius because Clyxint, as a powerful pain reliever, could easily suppress the headaches and pain the patients complained of with the 1st generation microchip. Also, combined together, the new Infinity Chip would then have all the benefits - increased brain prowess as well as the ability of going without sleep.
However, after sharing their thought process with the room and especially with Brian’s scientific in
put, it was increasingly clear to all of them that Clyxint would probably only offer a temporary solution to the 1st generation microchip’s side effects. Not only would Clyxint have the side effect of suppressing their emotions and feelings of empathy, dehumanizing them, it seemed most likely that the Infinity Chip would have debilitating physical effects on the human body. Perhaps even without the users themselves realizing they were experiencing problems, since any pain they felt would be very much subdued. The plan was both genius and horrific in its implications.
Just as everyone was processing the horrors of the Infinity Chip and its effects, a call came through on Orion’s personal phone. He tapped his watch twice to connect the call, his secretary’s voice coming through, “It’s Alex Etak of Etak Inc. calling sir.”
Speak of the devil! Orion’s face changed at the mention of Alex Etak.
“Put him through,” he told his secretary calmly.
“Yes sir,” his secretary said.
Everyone watched Orion with expectant eyes as he got off the phone. Because of the automatic soundproof shield that most businessmen activated for phone calls, none of them could make out what he was saying, though Ren and Paris caught some of it through clever lip reading.
Ren and Paris immediately went up to Orion, desperately wanting to know what Alex Etak wanted and Orion wasted no time in sharing the contents of the call.
Alex Etak had volunteered a trade. Etak Inc. had accumulated a sizeable amount of OrionWan-Nutrienas shares. And now, Alex Etak was offering a part of these shares back as a gesture of goodwill in exchange for a controlling executive seat on the board of OrionWan-Nutrienas.
Both Ren and Paris were shocked at the extent of what Alex was demanding.
“So this is his game plan,” Ren said.
“What a greedy pig,” Paris said, to cries of agreement from Pamela.
Orion however was not so much shocked as he was puzzled. They had all thought that Alex Etak wanted control of his company. Why would he stop now? Didn’t he want to take them down? Would he really be willing to work with them to grow the company? He was most suspicious of Alex’s true intent.
Orion Wan said, addressing everyone in the room, “We need to think over this deal carefully. Who knows what the sly fox actually wants from us? Regardless, we now have leverage over him. We know his chip doesn’t work. We have the upper hand now. We just need to think how best we should strike…”
Chapter 10: Checkmate?
In a move of perhaps karmic retribution, Orion Wan decided to leak the news to the press (anonymously of course), that the Infinity Chip was flawed with the patient logs as proof.
Wary of Alex’s true intentions, Orion was greatly hesitant to participate in any under-the-table dealings with him. He decided that weakening Etak Inc.’s credibility and hence crippling Alex financially would be the strongest way forward. Thereafter, he could easily buy back the shares of his own company when Etak Inc. became desperate.
Of course, he didn’t want the people to suffer as well, the Chip was potentially fatal. He cared about the people, when his interests aligned with theirs. I’m not a monster, I’m not like Alex Etak… I’m saving the people! he thought to himself, smug in his righteousness.
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In Etak Inc.’s main office, the PR department was having a nightmare handling the media frenzy that erupted after secret documents regarding the origins of the Infinity Chip leaked to the press, suggesting undisclosed side effects and a potentially fatal outcome for users.
Alex Etak gave swift directions to his team to contain this mess. They were going to deny all suggestions that the Infinity Chip was harmful. Even if those reports weren’t fabricated by some jealous fearmonger, they were only regarding Clyxint and the 1st generation microchip that formed the basis of the Infinity Chip. They were to insist that Etak Inc. had moved beyond those prototypes. The Infinity Chip was a new generation hybrid that was tried and tested. It was guaranteed to be safe, and it worked. At least that was what they were going to tell the press, Alex thought to himself, as he directed his team to contain the rumours.
The Green scientists who were the leading developers of the Infinity Chip would also make a statement later that day, publicly refuting the rumours about the Infinity Chip’s viability. Alex instructed his team.
Speaking of whom, Alex was furious. Those scientists had promised that all potentially unfavourable data had been destroyed. How did the press get a hold of this? As if he didn’t pay them enough! How could they let this get out?
Thinking about it more carefully however, Alex was puzzled. The information regarding the first generation microchip couldn’t have come from the Green scientists. He himself had stumbled upon the microchip while investigating Alpha5’s more clandestine investments and unearthed the opportunity to merge the technology with Clyxint to give birth to the Infinity Chip. Unless… someone in Alpha5 had begun to sniff things out! Alex started to worry. He had to move his plan forward quicker than he imagined. He needed to protect his Queen.
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Brian returned home in a frantic mood. The truth about the Infinity Chip was emerging and his parents were going to be implicated. This had turned out far bigger than he had imagined. He knew he had to save the people, warn them about the use of the Infinity Chip, but now he was suffering from immense guilt from knowing he had betrayed his parents; albeit to do the right thing.
When he got home however, Brian got a great shock. Everything was in a huge mess, drawers open, doors unlocked, digital frames shattered. He walked in silently, afraid that there might be an armed intruder in his home.
To his surprise, he heard voices coming out from his parents’ bedroom. Creeping forward, he heard his name mentioned several times in the heated conversation.
“What about Brian? Are we really just going to leave him behind?” a soft voice that Brian recognized as his mother’s said. “It’s too late to think about him… WE have to get out, now!” Mr Green said.
“I know we never wanted a child but we did raise him for 18 years! Shouldn’t we at least leave him a note?” Mrs Green asked her husband.
Mr Green snapped back, “Well I’m busy now. You can do it if you want to!”
After a long pause, Mrs Green replied, “Nevermind then. I guess we’ve done enough. The government mandated a child and we raised him. We’ve done our part!”
The conversation drew to a close as the sounds of drawers being ransacked spread to where Brian was standing, rooted to the spot, as Mr and Mrs Green frantically crammed the remaining of their valuables into suitcases.
Realizing that his parents were about to leave their bedroom, Brian instinctively hid himself from view. He could hear his parents leaving the apartment from the spot where he was hiding. When the front door slammed shut, his heart sank. His parents were gone.
Brian gripped the wall behind him to stop himself from collapsing in shock. Each and every of his parents’ words had struck him in his heart deeply. Years of feelings of isolation and loneliness came bubbling to the surface, Brian felt overwhelmed with despair. His parents had abandoned him, without a care. They had never loved him. He was just an obligation to them, a government-mandated chore to be carried out to fulfil their society’s reproductive needs.
How could they be so selfish? How could they only think to save themselves?’ Collapsing on the floor and cupping his head in his hands, Brian felt no tears fall even as his heart ached with despondency. That’s it! He had time and time again made excuses for his parents, but no more.
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Later that day, Alex Etak got the bad news that the Green scientists had skipped town. Alex cursed. As if he didn’t have enough on his plate already. He always knew they were unreliable, too damn greedy for their own good. They were never satiated with what he gave them, always asking for more, even threatening at times to reveal what they knew working on the Infinity project. Maybe those crazy bastards really sold me out! How dare they run away now! Alex vo
wed to get back at them, immediately sending some of his staff to track them down.
Sighing deeply, Alex felt suffocated. Things were unfolding so rapidly and everything seemed to be slipping away from his grasp. Things were getting serious. He had already denied three calls from the Mayor. Without the Mayor’s support, the people were going to turn on him soon. He had to act quickly before things got further out of hand.
Alex called his personal secretary over. “Tim, it’s time. Please start looking into Level & Co. as per my instructions.” His secretary nodded and said, “Yes sir.”
Alex sighed, he didn’t want to have to do this. Doing this was like showing his hand prematurely during poker. It was bound to provoke the hornet’s nest and Alex wasn’t quite sure he was ready for the consequences. However, he had no choice. The bad press about the Infinity Chip had hit him much harder than he was prepared for and it was time to cut his losses and concentrate on his final goal.
Chapter 11: Oedipus Complex
Orion slammed his fist on his desk. He thought that Alex Etak would lay low with all the negative press the Infinity Chip was getting, but he was wrong.
In the past few weeks, Alex had used his remarkable build-up of control in OrionWan-Nutrienas to provoke him in every way possible. With a whooping 33%, Alex was no small shareholder and with his talent and charm, had managed to persuade several other minority shareholders to band together in creating inconveniences for the company’s management. They had used every loophole in the book, using their positions as shareholders to demand for endless meetings, asking for detailed financial reports spanning several years back, and even demanding background checks for all their top level employees.
Orion had hardly slept a wink dealing with all their inane requests and he could only fume in silence. He knew that losing his temper publicly would only fuel the minority shareholders in their crusade.
Orion was just about to leave his office for yet another shareholder meeting when his wife called. What she told him shocked him to the core and he stood rooted to the spot as he listened to what his wife had to say. As she finished, he said, “I’ll just finish the shareholder meeting as fast as I can. I’ll meet you at home.”