Post by Hayate on May 13, 2010 19:35:26 GMT -5
Inside the large metallic construct nestled in the Mojave Desert’s shroud of sand and dirt, over a dozen of the world’s top-leading scientists had gathered to take part in the top secret Project X.
The team of intellects is led on a short tour through the “Facility” by project director Johann Kepler. He could barely contain his own excitement. “This is history in the making, gentlemen.”, Kepler starts, addressing the group. “With the accomplishments made here, we will revolutionize modern medicine forever. Ah… But, of course, none of this would even be possible if not for the heartbreaking generosity of our better man for providing us with such suitable candidates for this endeavor. Let’s meet our ‘patients’ firsthand, shall we?”
Off to the side, a scientist is seen standing near the stasis pods holding Rose, Aqua, and Midori. He speaks aloud, reading off of a clipboard in his left hand. “Subject ‘X-2’. Name: Rose Walker. Born June 18, 1996 in New York City. She has an aneurysm on her anterior cerebral artery.”
“In other words, a time bomb waiting to explode.”, Kepler adds.
“Subject ‘X-3’ -- Aqua Fontana. Born December 3, 1996 in Venice, Italy. Partial blindness, and slowly worsening.”
“A shame. And I hear Venice is breathtaking this time of year.”
“Subject ‘X-4’ -- Midori Kondo. Born March 10, 1995 in Osaka, Japan. Paraplegic since birth.”
“And, as I understand it, an avid sports fan. The poor girl.”
As the tour continues, the group happens upon a fourth stasis pod, isolated from the other three. Inside slept what seemed to be a common chimpanzee. “And this one?”, observes one of the scientists in the group.
Turning to face the pod, Kepler looks at the ape with odd fondness. “Ahhh… As if I could ignore our first ‘patient’ here. A more than charitable donation from the Las Vegas Zoo. …What was it again, Sanders?”
Looking back at his clipboard, the scientist Sanders replies, “Uh, Down syndrome, Dr. Kepler.”
“Yes, that’s the one. A crippling thing, that. But we’ll soon fix it…won’t we, Jojo?”
Having fallen a bit behind the group, John Utonium’s eyes were fixated on the girls Rose, Aqua, and Midori, as he’d found himself magnetically drawn to them for some reason. ‘They’re…just children…’, he thinks. ‘Not even grown up and in college yet… And we’re gonna--’
“Hey, Utonium.”
“!!!” His train of thought derailed, Utonium turns to the voice that had called out to him, and discovers fellow scientist and college friend Richard Hardly. “Oh. It’s just you, Dick. For a second there, I thought I was in physics class again.”
“Heh, yeah. That spacing out thing you do’s still going strong, huh? C’mon, we don’t wanna get left behind, or Kepler’ll eat us out.”
“Be right there.” With one last look over his shoulder, Utonium gazes up at the slumbering girls, wondering if they would truly benefit from the life that awaited them at Project X’s completion. He begins the trek further into the Facility, the clack-clack of his polished lab shoes echoing in the silence.
Further inside the elaborate structure, the group comes to a narrow corridor with a glass pane at one side. The protective glass served as a window into a cooling chamber housing a multitude of vials, each containing a strange, black liquid. As he presses his fingertips to the glass, Kepler speaks. “And lastly, we come to the heart and soul of Project X, our pride and joy, for which we owe the project’s very culmination. The product of years’ worth of research in stem cells and nuclear engineering. I call it…‘Element X’.
“Nuclear engineering…?”, Utonium reaffirms, as disheartening thoughts brew over. “Element X is radioactive…!?”
Having expected such a reaction, Kepler asserts, “I assure you, Dr. Utonium, Element X is 100% safe. We’d conducted dozens of safety tests and inspections prior to your arrival here. The only way Element X would be harmful to one’s health is if large amounts of it were to enter the bloodstream and without a stabilizing agent. We’ve taken all of the necessary precautions. …So relax, huh? Stress is bad for someone your age.”
A brief laugh is shared amongst the group of scientists, and the tour presses on.
But Utonium wouldn’t have been able to call himself a genuine scientist if he hadn’t stopped to consider the potential risks there would be exposing three teenage girls and an ape to something radioactive. “…”
The Facility tour concludes in the foyer it began in, with Kepler addressing the row of scientists like a sergeant addressing his soldiers. “I have a saying in my line of work. ‘In Terra inest virtus, quae Lunam ciet.’ ‘There is a force in the Earth which causes the Moon to move.’ My fellow scientists, we are that force. With the resources you see before you, we have the power to change the world at its very core. What starts out as just a handful of lives today could be a small city tomorrow! And the day after that, an entire country! This is why Project X is here! This is why we’re here! …So…let’s make the dream a reality, shall we?”
At Kepler’s inspiring words, the row of scholars shares a round of applause. Amidst the sound of clapping hands, Richard leans over to Utonium at his right and murmurs, “Betcha this guy got an A in public speaking. Hehehe.”
Utonium, however, was less interested in tickling his funny bone and more in the three girls that slept soundly just outside his line of view. The ultimate goal of this project was to change their lives. But the question that nagged at the back of Utonium’s mind…was how.
Three months later…
“Status report.”
Through automated steel doors, Dr. Kepler enters the Facility’s main testing lab. As is expected of him, he makes an appearance once every couple of weeks in the lab to monitor and document the progress of Project X’s test subjects.
One of the researchers addresses back to him. “Cell growth in each of the subjects is progressing smoothly, Dr. Kepler. The Element X is taking all desired effects; no negative reactions so far.”
“Glad to hear it. Any details?”
“Nothing that needs to be reported. Whatever cells the subjects are lacking, the Element X is compensating for. They should be up and about in another month or so.”
“Excellent. …Hmm?” As his visions moves slightly upward, Kepler discovers Utonium standing by Rose Walker’s stasis pod. Troubled by this sight, he approaches.
With his fingertips pressing against the pod glass, Utonium is lost in thought as he watches Rose sleep. ‘What’s wrong…? Do you not like it here or something…?’
“Utonium.”
“!!!” Once again yanked from his inner monologue, Utonium turns to the almost cold look on Kepler’s face.
“…” Suddenly, a tender smile takes the place of Kepler’s previous expression as he addresses Utonium. “…How’s Miss Walker doing?”
“Oh. W-Well… The Element X appears to be taking to her system just fine. The aneurysm’s shrunken considerably since she arrived and will be ready for removal soon…but…”
“…‘But’…?”
“…I’ve detected some minuscule reactions about the rest of her body. It’s not processing the Element X as well as Aqua-- I mean, Subjects ‘X-3’ and ‘X-4’ are.”
“Hmm. I see. …Increase the dosage. 20 cc’s.”
“Increase? Wouldn’t decreasing the dosage be more prudent?”
“Playing it safe never yields results. Besides, as I’ve told you, Element X is perfectly harmless.”
“In small increments, yes. But--”
“If you agree, then do it.”
“But it’ll hurt her!”
Utonium’s outburst earns him looks of shock from nearly every scientist in the lab. Realizing his lapse in judgment, the agitated researcher backs away.
“…I understand how you feel, Dr. Utonium. Far be it from me to see harm come to any of our subjects. But you and I are men of science. We can’t get emotionally invested. That is soil men like us can’t ever tread. …I trust you’ll keep that in mind.”
“…Yes, sir.”
“…10 more cc’s of Element X should be enough.”
“Yes, Doctor.”
Having said his part, Kepler pockets his hands and takes his leave of the lab. As though to ignore Kepler’s warning, Utonium looks up at Rose’s slumbering face again. From the side, Richard decides to put in his two cents. “Sheesh. You’re just a big trouble magnet, aren’t you? …What’s gotten into you, Johnny? You’re eyeing ‘Red’ over here like she was your own kid.”
“I’m not really sure how to rationalize it, Richard. Maybe I just feel sorry for them. I mean, she’s got an aneurysm, Aqua over there’s going blind, Midori can’t walk… They’re just kids. They shouldn’t have to deal with stuff like that at their age. …I never did have kids of my own, you know. Having these three here… It kinda feels like they are.”
“…What about the monkey? He supposed to be your pet or something?”
“Hahahaha!”
Sharing in his friend’s laughter, Richard approaches Utonium from the left and puts a hand on his shoulder. “You’re working too hard, man. C’mon. Let’s grab some lunch. Your treat.”
“Heh. You haven’t changed since college, Dick.”
“Damn straight.”
Through the frigid steel hallways of the Facility, Utonium and Richard make their way toward the mess hall. The smell of freshly baked bread and assorted chowders was enough to make even the most diligent of scientists salivate. While it had brought up feelings of nostalgia for the two of their college days, the thought of how much they’d grown up since then also dealt their egos a hefty blow.
During the stroll, the pair passes by a dimly lit corridor whose only source of light was through a crack in a door at the end. From said door, the two just barely makes out a human voice.
“You hear that?”, nudges Utonium. “…That sounds like Kepler.”
“Must be his office back there.”
Overcome by curiosity, the inquisitive Utonium decides to go a-snooping and quietly inches over to the office door.
“Now what are you doing!?”
“Would you relax? What’s wrong with a little…investigative analysis? It’s not like Kepler has anything to hide, right?”
“If he has nothing to hide, why sneak around behind his back?”
For once, Utonium was unable to come up with a response.
“…You’ve got problems, Johnny.”
“Just go on ahead to the mess hall. I’ll meet you there in a bit.”
With a shrug, Richard complies and turns away. “Whatever. But I ain’t holding a spot for you in line.” And with that, he leaves Utonium to his own devices.
The closer Utonium draws to the door, the clearer the voices behind it become. Kepler’s voice was naturally identifiable, but the voice of the person he was conversing with was foreign to Utonium’s ears.
“I grow impatient, Kepler.”
‘Who is that…?’
“I assure you that the other scientists and I are working as swiftly as we can. ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’, sir.”
“If you have time to give me meaningless proverbs, you have time to give me results. How are the test subjects doing?”
“Development is…lax, admittedly, but steady. You know what they say about bad eggs. Let’s just say I have a few that are troublesome to handle.”
“I don’t ‘handle’ bad eggs. I break ‘em.”
“Yes, I’m sure you have your own methods for doing things, as I do my own. Regardless, the Excelsior program is still on schedule. You’ll have your little toys soon enough.”
Judging by the sound quality of the other voice, Utonium deduced that he and Kepler were just chatting via video feed. ‘‘Excelsior program’? What on Earth is--?’ Utonium would have his thoughts interrupted yet again when, in his haste to withdraw, he unwittingly knocks over a short metal pipe that had been leaning against a nearby wall. It makes a rather deafening clang as it falls onto the floor. “!!!”
“Who’s there!?”, panics Kepler from inside his office.
‘Shit!’
As Kepler swings the ajar door fully open, he discovers the prying Utonium on the other side. “Utonium…!”
Before the alarmed Project X director, Utonium had his right hand held up in a fist, as though he were about to knock on the door. “Oh! There you are, Doctor.”, says Utonium, feigning surprise. “Pardon the intrusion, but I was wondering if you’d like to join us for lunch.”
“…” Upon closer inspection of Utonium’s person, Kepler notices tiny beads of sweat gathering at his temple and that his hands were trembling. “…Sorry, but I’m very busy right now. Another time perhaps.” Immediately following this, Kepler proceeds to close his office door all the way.
Seemingly in the clear, Utonium exhales a heavy sigh of relief. ‘That was too close…’ But now, the middle-aged scientist had a reason to suspect Kepler’s motives. He wanted to know more about this ‘Excelsior program’ and the details surrounding it. Motioning a full 180 degrees, he makes his way toward the mess hall, once again lost in thought.
On the other side of the office door, the enigmatic Kepler is seen still palming the doorknob. Just as Utonium now had suspicions about him, so too did he call Utonium’s reliability to question. “…”
In the mess hall, a small percentage of the scientists that made up the Project X team enjoys an afternoon meal, as prepared by the Facility’s cooking staff. At the west end of the hall, Richard Hardly samples of such a meal as he awaits the arrival of his confidant. Mere moments later, a shadow is cast upon the dining Hardly, drawing his attention up. “Well, took you long enough.”, he greets with faux annoyance. “You get your fill of being a spy?”
“Almost…”, Utonium responds as he seats himself. “…I need your help with something.”
“With what?”
“You’re still good at encryption hacking, right…?”
“…I’m listening.”
The days that followed would be uncharacteristically uneventful. The progress of Project X’s test subjects was steady and constant as always. Utonium had held off on his investigation into the Excelsior program so as to avoid suspicion. Thoughts of Rose, Aqua, and Midori were enough to keep him occupied.
Late one mid-March evening, after everyone in the Facility had retired for the day, one of the computer labs was still well in use. Before the monitor, Richard attempts to access classified Project X files, his fingers racing across the keyboard. Under his breath, the hard-at-work Hardly is heard mumbling as if in a mantra, “Uh-huh… Yeah… Here we go…”
Over Richard’s shoulder, Utonium watches as his friend works his magic. “So can you do it?”
“Pssssh. Who do you think you’re talking to? …Though if Kepler catches us in here, we’re dead meat.”
“Just like old times, huh?”
“Hehehe. I’ll say. So what are we looking for?”
“I overheard Kepler mention something called the ‘Excelsior program’.”
“‘Excelsior program’… Got it! Here it is! …Looks like some sort of military program sponsored by the U.S. government.”
“Military? What does the military want with Project X?”
“‘Genetic engineering’… ‘Human enhancement’…They’re using Element X…to create an army of super-soldiers!”
“What!?”
Just then, a series of intermittent low-pitched beeps cuts the discussion short. “…Uh-oh.”
“What is it!?”
“IDS just kicked in. They know we’re here.”
“!!!”
“What do we do? There’s no way out…!”
“…”
A cluster of hastened footsteps approaches from down the hall. All of a sudden, a trio of armed guards bursts in with handguns loaded and fully cocked. “Freeze!”, the foremost guard cries. The three lock their barrels onto a solitary target.
His cover blown, Utonium steps away from the computer terminal and holds out his empty hands in surrender.
Shortly, the group is joined by an infuriated Johann Kepler. “Well, well. Look who I caught with his hand in the cookie jar.”, he starts in a strangely calm tone.
“Kepler, you monster!”, Utonium snaps. “Did you think I wouldn’t eventually find out what it is you’re planning!?”
“‘Planning’? We all have so-called ‘plans’. You’ll have to be a little more specific.”
“Drop the act! I know all about your ‘Excelsior program’! That you plan to turn Project X’s test subjects into human weapons! And you have the nerve to call yourself a man of science!?”
“It is precisely because I’m a man of science that I created Project X. The realm of science isn’t the world of sunshine and rainbows you believe it to be, Dr. Utonium. It’s a world of darkness, of cruelty. When forced to live in such a world, you do what you must for the good of mankind.”
“I refuse to believe that!”
“Machines, biological warfare, the atomic bomb -- you can’t deny that all the advances made in science over the years have been for the sake of gaining a competitive edge over man’s enemies. There’s no denying it. And there’s certainly no changing it. While we do our subjects a service in ridding them of their debilitating afflictions, we have a bigger, much greater purpose.”
“These are real human lives you’re toying with, Kepler! You talk about our ‘subjects’ as though they were lab rats to be disposed of when we’re through with them! They’re real human beings with real names!”
“…” With a backhand motion of his arm, Kepler signals for his guards to stand down and lower their weapons. Upon doing so, he walks up to Utonium to address him up-close. “I warned you about getting emotionally invested, Utonium. It’s only because I still require your expertise that I’m not taking you into custody. But you’re going to forget everything you saw and heard here or else. Our subjects are replaceable, and so are you.”
“…”
“…So glad we’ve come to an understanding.” With an about face, Kepler exits the lab, with his trained guns at his heel.
Left alone in solemn silence, Utonium quietly calls out, “…The coast is clear, Dick.”
Having been in hiding, Richard emerges from underneath the terminal desk, now free to breathe easy as he was practically holding his breath that whole time. “Whew! I saw my life flash before my eyes just now! Ahhh… I owe you one, Johnny.”
“More like you owe me three.”
“But, man, talk about keeping up a public appearance. Who knew that’s what Kepler was like under his mask…?”
“…”
“…So what’s the plan now, Utonium? Maybe we should quit while we’re ahead. I don’t think we can fight this one.”
Unfortunately for Utonium, Richard was more than likely correct. Kepler had the entire Project X committee, along with its legal team, at his back. He’d have won before it began. Resigned to this, Utonium exits the lab as well, deep in thought, and wanders the Facility aimlessly until he happens upon the sleeping girls Rose, Aqua, and Midori. The thought of them being turned into mindless soldiers disconcerted him. It almost made him physically ill. “…I won’t let them do as they please to you…”, murmurs Utonium to himself. “I won’t let them turn you into weapons…! I’ll die before I let that happen!”
A handful of days later, Jojo the chimpanzee – better known at the Facility as Subject ‘X-1’ – is once again let out into an open-air environment to stretch his legs (as well as his brain). With a considerable amount of Element X the driving force behind his intellect, Jojo now had the mental capacity to solve complex mathematical equations and algorithms. In a Facility room shielded by Plexiglas, a pair of researchers observes as the little ape writes out such calculations on a whiteboard in black marker ink. “It’s extraordinary, isn’t it?”, one of the scientists remarks. “Just a few months ago, this little guy couldn’t even stand upright, and now he’s doing Algebra.”
“Yeah, the Element X has really worked wonders with him. …I almost feel bad for calling him a ‘poor dumb monkey’ when he first got here. Heh.”
“Hey, careful what you say around him. He’s smart now; he could actually understand you.”
“Hahahaha!”
As the two converse and laugh amongst themselves, Jojo takes a pause in his calculations.
“…It will be starting soon…”
“Eh? You say something?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
Suddenly, the ‘ah-OO-ga’ sounds of klaxons blare noisily across the Facility halls. “ALERT!”, a voice exclaims through a building-wide intercom. “BREACH IN SECTOR D! PLEASE STAND BY AS PROPER SECURITY MEASURES ARE ENFORCED! I REPEAT, BREACH IN SECTOR D! PLEASE STAND BY…!”
“Security breach?”, one scientist repeats doubtfully, as such a possibility seemed near unfeasible. “Who would want to break in here?”
“We’d better get ‘X-1’ back to the--” Cut off mid-sentence, the other scientist is surprised to find that Jojo had vanished. “Hey, where’d he go?” His eyes dart about the room in search of the ape until a mass of claws and black fur ambushes him from above with a screech. “Aah!”
Elsewhere in the building, a second group led by Kepler makes a mad dash toward Sector D, where the stasis pod and Element X samples were kept. The party reaches the cooling chamber which stored all of the vials of Element X. As they peer through the protective glass window, the group is shocked to find every vial destroyed, the black viscous liquid spilled about the floor and seeping into the cracks. “The Element X!”, Kepler shrieks in horror. “My life’s work!”
Shortly, the party is joined by a couple of security guards. “Dr. Kepler, sir!”
“Who is it?!? Who’s the intruder?!?”
“Our sensors didn’t pick up any intruders, sir!”
“None…!? That’s impossible!”
“WARNING!”, the intercom voice interjects again. “PROTOCOL VIOLATION DETECTED IN STASIS LAB! PROTOCOL VIOLATION DETECTED IN STASIS LAB!”
Kepler was able to put two and two together at this point. His teeth were liable to crack from the pressure at which he clenched them. “…Utonium…!!!”
Inside the aforementioned stasis lab, Utonium, using Richard’s hacking program, works to erase all of Project X’s data with the supposed intention of bringing both Project X and the Excelsior program to a permanent standstill. Just a few feet away from where he stood, Rose, Aqua, and Midori are seen wrapped in towels and loaded onto a sort-of platform baggage cart, ready to be transported away. “Almost done…! Just a little more…!”
“Utonium!”
Across the lab, the frenzied professor spots Richard. “!!!” He pointed a gun at him. “…Richard?”
“I swear, it’s one thing after another with you…! The hell do you think you’re doing…!?”
“…I can’t just stand by and let this happen, Dick. You heard Kepler yourself; he sees humans as nothing more than guinea pigs to be experimented on and thrown to the lions…!”
“And you have a problem with that! I get it! But this… This is just plain stupid! You know what they’ll do to you once they get their hands on you!?”
“…You gonna stand in my way…?”
“Even if you do manage to get away, what then!? Where will you go!? They’ll track you down! And what about the girls!? They won’t be able to go back home!”
“I have an old house up in Townsville. We’ll be safe there until I can figure things out. …I can’t abandon them, Dick. I can’t let them be drawn into this kind of life. I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone.”
“Always the idealist… Always the dreamer… You always gotta be the ‘Great Utonium’…”
“…”
“…”
“…Dammit!” Turning his gun on the lab door, Richard fires a couple of shots into an electronic access panel, preventing entry to the lab for anyone on the other side. “…Consider us even.”
Utonium bares a relieved half-smile. With one final keystroke, he deletes all of Project X’s data. Having accomplished this, he takes a hold of the cart and wheels the girls toward the emergency exit.
With his friend’s retreat secured, Richard drops the gun onto the floor. “…Heh. Way to keep me entertained up ‘til the very end, Johnny.”
Outside the lab, the scientists try in vain to get the doors open. “No good! It won’t open!”
Kepler had all but reached his boiling point. ‘Utonium, you have no idea what kind of mistake you’re making…!’ Turning to the guards, he commands, “Lock down all exits! Utonium is not to take even one step off this property!”
“Yes, sir!”
Even further outside, just beyond the Facility walls, Utonium carefully places the girls inside his car -- Aqua in the passenger seat, Rose and Midori in the back. Once securing Aqua’s seatbelt, he jumps into the driver’s seat, starts the engine, and peels away from the lot. “…”
“…Mmm…” Stirred awake by the goings-on around her, Aqua slowly opens her eyes and looks up at Utonium, naturally curious as to why she was in a moving vehicle. “What’s going on…?”, she utters in a low, soft tone. “Who are you…? Where are we…?”
“…My name is John Utonium. I’m taking you away from this horrible place.”
Having been roused from her sleep as well, Rose chimes in. “Are you with Project X? Where are you taking us?”
“…Somewhere safe.”
A GPS navigation device on the dashboard powers itself on. “Destination? ”, an automated voice inquires.
“Townsville, Orange County.”
“Confirmed. 287 miles to destination. Please follow the path specified.”
“Good. Looks like they haven’t jammed my signal yet.”
“LOOK OUT!”
“!!!” Focusing on the road again, Utonium notices a large chain-link fence starting to close shut. “Hmph! Hang on!” With a firmer grip on the steering wheel, he presses down on the gas pedal, almost doubling the vehicle’s speed.
In a maneuver that almost makes the earth quake, the vehicle breaks through the fence, ripping it away from its foundation. Their getaway was virtually certain.
Wrapping the towel tightly around her naked form, Rose cries out, “Jeez Louise, man! This ain’t an action flick!”
“Heh. I apologize. It was the first time I’d ever attempted something like that.”
With the worst now behind them, the group races through the desert at speeds exceeding 55mph, nothing lying ahead but hope of a new beginning.
“…And so…”, the fatherly professor concludes. “…the brave knight rode off on his horse and carriage with the three young maidens in tow, promising them only bright days to come. …The end.”
Midori was amused by the liberties taken with this retelling of the story. “You’re a knight now? When did that happen?”
“Hey, don’t look at me. You’re the one who asked me to tell it.”
“Hehehe.”
“What’d you think, Aqua?”
The man’s inquiry would be met with the sound of soft snoring coming from Aqua’s bed.
Rose saw it coming a mile away. “Hah. Every single time.”
Rising from his seat, Utonium walks over to tuck Aqua in underneath the covers.
“In all seriousness, Professor…”, Rose continues. “…we realize the risk you put yourself at and the sacrifices you made to bring us here. Even though it’ll be a while before we can go back to our homes and families…you’ve been like a real father to us. …Thank you…for everything.”
“Yeah, what she said.”, Midori enters with. “You’re alright, ‘Pops’.”
It pleased Utonium greatly to know that the girls had come to treat him like a father just as he’d come to treat them like daughters. “Thank you, girls. After a year like this, I needed to hear that.” After putting Aqua to bed, he moves for the door, turning back to them once more. “…Sweet dreams.”
“Night.”
“G’night.”
Taking leave of the girls’ bedroom, Utonium heads for his own, pondering on the girls’ words as he walked.
“Thank you…for everything…”
“…” The man couldn’t help but chuckle. In all the grief getting emotionally invested got him, he was content with the results.
…Elsewhere in Townsville, a figure cloaked by darkness looms over the cityscape from atop a towering skyscraper. It casts its menacing gaze upon the city with intent to ruin.
“…Just as the sun sets the morning sky ablaze…so too shall this city erupt in fire…”
The team of intellects is led on a short tour through the “Facility” by project director Johann Kepler. He could barely contain his own excitement. “This is history in the making, gentlemen.”, Kepler starts, addressing the group. “With the accomplishments made here, we will revolutionize modern medicine forever. Ah… But, of course, none of this would even be possible if not for the heartbreaking generosity of our better man for providing us with such suitable candidates for this endeavor. Let’s meet our ‘patients’ firsthand, shall we?”
Off to the side, a scientist is seen standing near the stasis pods holding Rose, Aqua, and Midori. He speaks aloud, reading off of a clipboard in his left hand. “Subject ‘X-2’. Name: Rose Walker. Born June 18, 1996 in New York City. She has an aneurysm on her anterior cerebral artery.”
“In other words, a time bomb waiting to explode.”, Kepler adds.
“Subject ‘X-3’ -- Aqua Fontana. Born December 3, 1996 in Venice, Italy. Partial blindness, and slowly worsening.”
“A shame. And I hear Venice is breathtaking this time of year.”
“Subject ‘X-4’ -- Midori Kondo. Born March 10, 1995 in Osaka, Japan. Paraplegic since birth.”
“And, as I understand it, an avid sports fan. The poor girl.”
As the tour continues, the group happens upon a fourth stasis pod, isolated from the other three. Inside slept what seemed to be a common chimpanzee. “And this one?”, observes one of the scientists in the group.
Turning to face the pod, Kepler looks at the ape with odd fondness. “Ahhh… As if I could ignore our first ‘patient’ here. A more than charitable donation from the Las Vegas Zoo. …What was it again, Sanders?”
Looking back at his clipboard, the scientist Sanders replies, “Uh, Down syndrome, Dr. Kepler.”
“Yes, that’s the one. A crippling thing, that. But we’ll soon fix it…won’t we, Jojo?”
Having fallen a bit behind the group, John Utonium’s eyes were fixated on the girls Rose, Aqua, and Midori, as he’d found himself magnetically drawn to them for some reason. ‘They’re…just children…’, he thinks. ‘Not even grown up and in college yet… And we’re gonna--’
“Hey, Utonium.”
“!!!” His train of thought derailed, Utonium turns to the voice that had called out to him, and discovers fellow scientist and college friend Richard Hardly. “Oh. It’s just you, Dick. For a second there, I thought I was in physics class again.”
“Heh, yeah. That spacing out thing you do’s still going strong, huh? C’mon, we don’t wanna get left behind, or Kepler’ll eat us out.”
“Be right there.” With one last look over his shoulder, Utonium gazes up at the slumbering girls, wondering if they would truly benefit from the life that awaited them at Project X’s completion. He begins the trek further into the Facility, the clack-clack of his polished lab shoes echoing in the silence.
Further inside the elaborate structure, the group comes to a narrow corridor with a glass pane at one side. The protective glass served as a window into a cooling chamber housing a multitude of vials, each containing a strange, black liquid. As he presses his fingertips to the glass, Kepler speaks. “And lastly, we come to the heart and soul of Project X, our pride and joy, for which we owe the project’s very culmination. The product of years’ worth of research in stem cells and nuclear engineering. I call it…‘Element X’.
“Nuclear engineering…?”, Utonium reaffirms, as disheartening thoughts brew over. “Element X is radioactive…!?”
Having expected such a reaction, Kepler asserts, “I assure you, Dr. Utonium, Element X is 100% safe. We’d conducted dozens of safety tests and inspections prior to your arrival here. The only way Element X would be harmful to one’s health is if large amounts of it were to enter the bloodstream and without a stabilizing agent. We’ve taken all of the necessary precautions. …So relax, huh? Stress is bad for someone your age.”
A brief laugh is shared amongst the group of scientists, and the tour presses on.
But Utonium wouldn’t have been able to call himself a genuine scientist if he hadn’t stopped to consider the potential risks there would be exposing three teenage girls and an ape to something radioactive. “…”
The Facility tour concludes in the foyer it began in, with Kepler addressing the row of scientists like a sergeant addressing his soldiers. “I have a saying in my line of work. ‘In Terra inest virtus, quae Lunam ciet.’ ‘There is a force in the Earth which causes the Moon to move.’ My fellow scientists, we are that force. With the resources you see before you, we have the power to change the world at its very core. What starts out as just a handful of lives today could be a small city tomorrow! And the day after that, an entire country! This is why Project X is here! This is why we’re here! …So…let’s make the dream a reality, shall we?”
At Kepler’s inspiring words, the row of scholars shares a round of applause. Amidst the sound of clapping hands, Richard leans over to Utonium at his right and murmurs, “Betcha this guy got an A in public speaking. Hehehe.”
Utonium, however, was less interested in tickling his funny bone and more in the three girls that slept soundly just outside his line of view. The ultimate goal of this project was to change their lives. But the question that nagged at the back of Utonium’s mind…was how.
Project Powerpuff
Part 2
[/i][/center]Part 2
Three months later…
“Status report.”
Through automated steel doors, Dr. Kepler enters the Facility’s main testing lab. As is expected of him, he makes an appearance once every couple of weeks in the lab to monitor and document the progress of Project X’s test subjects.
One of the researchers addresses back to him. “Cell growth in each of the subjects is progressing smoothly, Dr. Kepler. The Element X is taking all desired effects; no negative reactions so far.”
“Glad to hear it. Any details?”
“Nothing that needs to be reported. Whatever cells the subjects are lacking, the Element X is compensating for. They should be up and about in another month or so.”
“Excellent. …Hmm?” As his visions moves slightly upward, Kepler discovers Utonium standing by Rose Walker’s stasis pod. Troubled by this sight, he approaches.
With his fingertips pressing against the pod glass, Utonium is lost in thought as he watches Rose sleep. ‘What’s wrong…? Do you not like it here or something…?’
“Utonium.”
“!!!” Once again yanked from his inner monologue, Utonium turns to the almost cold look on Kepler’s face.
“…” Suddenly, a tender smile takes the place of Kepler’s previous expression as he addresses Utonium. “…How’s Miss Walker doing?”
“Oh. W-Well… The Element X appears to be taking to her system just fine. The aneurysm’s shrunken considerably since she arrived and will be ready for removal soon…but…”
“…‘But’…?”
“…I’ve detected some minuscule reactions about the rest of her body. It’s not processing the Element X as well as Aqua-- I mean, Subjects ‘X-3’ and ‘X-4’ are.”
“Hmm. I see. …Increase the dosage. 20 cc’s.”
“Increase? Wouldn’t decreasing the dosage be more prudent?”
“Playing it safe never yields results. Besides, as I’ve told you, Element X is perfectly harmless.”
“In small increments, yes. But--”
“If you agree, then do it.”
“But it’ll hurt her!”
Utonium’s outburst earns him looks of shock from nearly every scientist in the lab. Realizing his lapse in judgment, the agitated researcher backs away.
“…I understand how you feel, Dr. Utonium. Far be it from me to see harm come to any of our subjects. But you and I are men of science. We can’t get emotionally invested. That is soil men like us can’t ever tread. …I trust you’ll keep that in mind.”
“…Yes, sir.”
“…10 more cc’s of Element X should be enough.”
“Yes, Doctor.”
Having said his part, Kepler pockets his hands and takes his leave of the lab. As though to ignore Kepler’s warning, Utonium looks up at Rose’s slumbering face again. From the side, Richard decides to put in his two cents. “Sheesh. You’re just a big trouble magnet, aren’t you? …What’s gotten into you, Johnny? You’re eyeing ‘Red’ over here like she was your own kid.”
“I’m not really sure how to rationalize it, Richard. Maybe I just feel sorry for them. I mean, she’s got an aneurysm, Aqua over there’s going blind, Midori can’t walk… They’re just kids. They shouldn’t have to deal with stuff like that at their age. …I never did have kids of my own, you know. Having these three here… It kinda feels like they are.”
“…What about the monkey? He supposed to be your pet or something?”
“Hahahaha!”
Sharing in his friend’s laughter, Richard approaches Utonium from the left and puts a hand on his shoulder. “You’re working too hard, man. C’mon. Let’s grab some lunch. Your treat.”
“Heh. You haven’t changed since college, Dick.”
“Damn straight.”
Through the frigid steel hallways of the Facility, Utonium and Richard make their way toward the mess hall. The smell of freshly baked bread and assorted chowders was enough to make even the most diligent of scientists salivate. While it had brought up feelings of nostalgia for the two of their college days, the thought of how much they’d grown up since then also dealt their egos a hefty blow.
During the stroll, the pair passes by a dimly lit corridor whose only source of light was through a crack in a door at the end. From said door, the two just barely makes out a human voice.
“You hear that?”, nudges Utonium. “…That sounds like Kepler.”
“Must be his office back there.”
Overcome by curiosity, the inquisitive Utonium decides to go a-snooping and quietly inches over to the office door.
“Now what are you doing!?”
“Would you relax? What’s wrong with a little…investigative analysis? It’s not like Kepler has anything to hide, right?”
“If he has nothing to hide, why sneak around behind his back?”
For once, Utonium was unable to come up with a response.
“…You’ve got problems, Johnny.”
“Just go on ahead to the mess hall. I’ll meet you there in a bit.”
With a shrug, Richard complies and turns away. “Whatever. But I ain’t holding a spot for you in line.” And with that, he leaves Utonium to his own devices.
The closer Utonium draws to the door, the clearer the voices behind it become. Kepler’s voice was naturally identifiable, but the voice of the person he was conversing with was foreign to Utonium’s ears.
“I grow impatient, Kepler.”
‘Who is that…?’
“I assure you that the other scientists and I are working as swiftly as we can. ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’, sir.”
“If you have time to give me meaningless proverbs, you have time to give me results. How are the test subjects doing?”
“Development is…lax, admittedly, but steady. You know what they say about bad eggs. Let’s just say I have a few that are troublesome to handle.”
“I don’t ‘handle’ bad eggs. I break ‘em.”
“Yes, I’m sure you have your own methods for doing things, as I do my own. Regardless, the Excelsior program is still on schedule. You’ll have your little toys soon enough.”
Judging by the sound quality of the other voice, Utonium deduced that he and Kepler were just chatting via video feed. ‘‘Excelsior program’? What on Earth is--?’ Utonium would have his thoughts interrupted yet again when, in his haste to withdraw, he unwittingly knocks over a short metal pipe that had been leaning against a nearby wall. It makes a rather deafening clang as it falls onto the floor. “!!!”
“Who’s there!?”, panics Kepler from inside his office.
‘Shit!’
As Kepler swings the ajar door fully open, he discovers the prying Utonium on the other side. “Utonium…!”
Before the alarmed Project X director, Utonium had his right hand held up in a fist, as though he were about to knock on the door. “Oh! There you are, Doctor.”, says Utonium, feigning surprise. “Pardon the intrusion, but I was wondering if you’d like to join us for lunch.”
“…” Upon closer inspection of Utonium’s person, Kepler notices tiny beads of sweat gathering at his temple and that his hands were trembling. “…Sorry, but I’m very busy right now. Another time perhaps.” Immediately following this, Kepler proceeds to close his office door all the way.
Seemingly in the clear, Utonium exhales a heavy sigh of relief. ‘That was too close…’ But now, the middle-aged scientist had a reason to suspect Kepler’s motives. He wanted to know more about this ‘Excelsior program’ and the details surrounding it. Motioning a full 180 degrees, he makes his way toward the mess hall, once again lost in thought.
On the other side of the office door, the enigmatic Kepler is seen still palming the doorknob. Just as Utonium now had suspicions about him, so too did he call Utonium’s reliability to question. “…”
In the mess hall, a small percentage of the scientists that made up the Project X team enjoys an afternoon meal, as prepared by the Facility’s cooking staff. At the west end of the hall, Richard Hardly samples of such a meal as he awaits the arrival of his confidant. Mere moments later, a shadow is cast upon the dining Hardly, drawing his attention up. “Well, took you long enough.”, he greets with faux annoyance. “You get your fill of being a spy?”
“Almost…”, Utonium responds as he seats himself. “…I need your help with something.”
“With what?”
“You’re still good at encryption hacking, right…?”
“…I’m listening.”
The days that followed would be uncharacteristically uneventful. The progress of Project X’s test subjects was steady and constant as always. Utonium had held off on his investigation into the Excelsior program so as to avoid suspicion. Thoughts of Rose, Aqua, and Midori were enough to keep him occupied.
Late one mid-March evening, after everyone in the Facility had retired for the day, one of the computer labs was still well in use. Before the monitor, Richard attempts to access classified Project X files, his fingers racing across the keyboard. Under his breath, the hard-at-work Hardly is heard mumbling as if in a mantra, “Uh-huh… Yeah… Here we go…”
Over Richard’s shoulder, Utonium watches as his friend works his magic. “So can you do it?”
“Pssssh. Who do you think you’re talking to? …Though if Kepler catches us in here, we’re dead meat.”
“Just like old times, huh?”
“Hehehe. I’ll say. So what are we looking for?”
“I overheard Kepler mention something called the ‘Excelsior program’.”
“‘Excelsior program’… Got it! Here it is! …Looks like some sort of military program sponsored by the U.S. government.”
“Military? What does the military want with Project X?”
“‘Genetic engineering’… ‘Human enhancement’…They’re using Element X…to create an army of super-soldiers!”
“What!?”
Just then, a series of intermittent low-pitched beeps cuts the discussion short. “…Uh-oh.”
“What is it!?”
“IDS just kicked in. They know we’re here.”
“!!!”
“What do we do? There’s no way out…!”
“…”
A cluster of hastened footsteps approaches from down the hall. All of a sudden, a trio of armed guards bursts in with handguns loaded and fully cocked. “Freeze!”, the foremost guard cries. The three lock their barrels onto a solitary target.
His cover blown, Utonium steps away from the computer terminal and holds out his empty hands in surrender.
Shortly, the group is joined by an infuriated Johann Kepler. “Well, well. Look who I caught with his hand in the cookie jar.”, he starts in a strangely calm tone.
“Kepler, you monster!”, Utonium snaps. “Did you think I wouldn’t eventually find out what it is you’re planning!?”
“‘Planning’? We all have so-called ‘plans’. You’ll have to be a little more specific.”
“Drop the act! I know all about your ‘Excelsior program’! That you plan to turn Project X’s test subjects into human weapons! And you have the nerve to call yourself a man of science!?”
“It is precisely because I’m a man of science that I created Project X. The realm of science isn’t the world of sunshine and rainbows you believe it to be, Dr. Utonium. It’s a world of darkness, of cruelty. When forced to live in such a world, you do what you must for the good of mankind.”
“I refuse to believe that!”
“Machines, biological warfare, the atomic bomb -- you can’t deny that all the advances made in science over the years have been for the sake of gaining a competitive edge over man’s enemies. There’s no denying it. And there’s certainly no changing it. While we do our subjects a service in ridding them of their debilitating afflictions, we have a bigger, much greater purpose.”
“These are real human lives you’re toying with, Kepler! You talk about our ‘subjects’ as though they were lab rats to be disposed of when we’re through with them! They’re real human beings with real names!”
“…” With a backhand motion of his arm, Kepler signals for his guards to stand down and lower their weapons. Upon doing so, he walks up to Utonium to address him up-close. “I warned you about getting emotionally invested, Utonium. It’s only because I still require your expertise that I’m not taking you into custody. But you’re going to forget everything you saw and heard here or else. Our subjects are replaceable, and so are you.”
“…”
“…So glad we’ve come to an understanding.” With an about face, Kepler exits the lab, with his trained guns at his heel.
Left alone in solemn silence, Utonium quietly calls out, “…The coast is clear, Dick.”
Having been in hiding, Richard emerges from underneath the terminal desk, now free to breathe easy as he was practically holding his breath that whole time. “Whew! I saw my life flash before my eyes just now! Ahhh… I owe you one, Johnny.”
“More like you owe me three.”
“But, man, talk about keeping up a public appearance. Who knew that’s what Kepler was like under his mask…?”
“…”
“…So what’s the plan now, Utonium? Maybe we should quit while we’re ahead. I don’t think we can fight this one.”
Unfortunately for Utonium, Richard was more than likely correct. Kepler had the entire Project X committee, along with its legal team, at his back. He’d have won before it began. Resigned to this, Utonium exits the lab as well, deep in thought, and wanders the Facility aimlessly until he happens upon the sleeping girls Rose, Aqua, and Midori. The thought of them being turned into mindless soldiers disconcerted him. It almost made him physically ill. “…I won’t let them do as they please to you…”, murmurs Utonium to himself. “I won’t let them turn you into weapons…! I’ll die before I let that happen!”
A handful of days later, Jojo the chimpanzee – better known at the Facility as Subject ‘X-1’ – is once again let out into an open-air environment to stretch his legs (as well as his brain). With a considerable amount of Element X the driving force behind his intellect, Jojo now had the mental capacity to solve complex mathematical equations and algorithms. In a Facility room shielded by Plexiglas, a pair of researchers observes as the little ape writes out such calculations on a whiteboard in black marker ink. “It’s extraordinary, isn’t it?”, one of the scientists remarks. “Just a few months ago, this little guy couldn’t even stand upright, and now he’s doing Algebra.”
“Yeah, the Element X has really worked wonders with him. …I almost feel bad for calling him a ‘poor dumb monkey’ when he first got here. Heh.”
“Hey, careful what you say around him. He’s smart now; he could actually understand you.”
“Hahahaha!”
As the two converse and laugh amongst themselves, Jojo takes a pause in his calculations.
“…It will be starting soon…”
“Eh? You say something?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
Suddenly, the ‘ah-OO-ga’ sounds of klaxons blare noisily across the Facility halls. “ALERT!”, a voice exclaims through a building-wide intercom. “BREACH IN SECTOR D! PLEASE STAND BY AS PROPER SECURITY MEASURES ARE ENFORCED! I REPEAT, BREACH IN SECTOR D! PLEASE STAND BY…!”
“Security breach?”, one scientist repeats doubtfully, as such a possibility seemed near unfeasible. “Who would want to break in here?”
“We’d better get ‘X-1’ back to the--” Cut off mid-sentence, the other scientist is surprised to find that Jojo had vanished. “Hey, where’d he go?” His eyes dart about the room in search of the ape until a mass of claws and black fur ambushes him from above with a screech. “Aah!”
Elsewhere in the building, a second group led by Kepler makes a mad dash toward Sector D, where the stasis pod and Element X samples were kept. The party reaches the cooling chamber which stored all of the vials of Element X. As they peer through the protective glass window, the group is shocked to find every vial destroyed, the black viscous liquid spilled about the floor and seeping into the cracks. “The Element X!”, Kepler shrieks in horror. “My life’s work!”
Shortly, the party is joined by a couple of security guards. “Dr. Kepler, sir!”
“Who is it?!? Who’s the intruder?!?”
“Our sensors didn’t pick up any intruders, sir!”
“None…!? That’s impossible!”
“WARNING!”, the intercom voice interjects again. “PROTOCOL VIOLATION DETECTED IN STASIS LAB! PROTOCOL VIOLATION DETECTED IN STASIS LAB!”
Kepler was able to put two and two together at this point. His teeth were liable to crack from the pressure at which he clenched them. “…Utonium…!!!”
Inside the aforementioned stasis lab, Utonium, using Richard’s hacking program, works to erase all of Project X’s data with the supposed intention of bringing both Project X and the Excelsior program to a permanent standstill. Just a few feet away from where he stood, Rose, Aqua, and Midori are seen wrapped in towels and loaded onto a sort-of platform baggage cart, ready to be transported away. “Almost done…! Just a little more…!”
“Utonium!”
Across the lab, the frenzied professor spots Richard. “!!!” He pointed a gun at him. “…Richard?”
“I swear, it’s one thing after another with you…! The hell do you think you’re doing…!?”
“…I can’t just stand by and let this happen, Dick. You heard Kepler yourself; he sees humans as nothing more than guinea pigs to be experimented on and thrown to the lions…!”
“And you have a problem with that! I get it! But this… This is just plain stupid! You know what they’ll do to you once they get their hands on you!?”
“…You gonna stand in my way…?”
“Even if you do manage to get away, what then!? Where will you go!? They’ll track you down! And what about the girls!? They won’t be able to go back home!”
“I have an old house up in Townsville. We’ll be safe there until I can figure things out. …I can’t abandon them, Dick. I can’t let them be drawn into this kind of life. I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone.”
“Always the idealist… Always the dreamer… You always gotta be the ‘Great Utonium’…”
“…”
“…”
“…Dammit!” Turning his gun on the lab door, Richard fires a couple of shots into an electronic access panel, preventing entry to the lab for anyone on the other side. “…Consider us even.”
Utonium bares a relieved half-smile. With one final keystroke, he deletes all of Project X’s data. Having accomplished this, he takes a hold of the cart and wheels the girls toward the emergency exit.
With his friend’s retreat secured, Richard drops the gun onto the floor. “…Heh. Way to keep me entertained up ‘til the very end, Johnny.”
Outside the lab, the scientists try in vain to get the doors open. “No good! It won’t open!”
Kepler had all but reached his boiling point. ‘Utonium, you have no idea what kind of mistake you’re making…!’ Turning to the guards, he commands, “Lock down all exits! Utonium is not to take even one step off this property!”
“Yes, sir!”
Even further outside, just beyond the Facility walls, Utonium carefully places the girls inside his car -- Aqua in the passenger seat, Rose and Midori in the back. Once securing Aqua’s seatbelt, he jumps into the driver’s seat, starts the engine, and peels away from the lot. “…”
“…Mmm…” Stirred awake by the goings-on around her, Aqua slowly opens her eyes and looks up at Utonium, naturally curious as to why she was in a moving vehicle. “What’s going on…?”, she utters in a low, soft tone. “Who are you…? Where are we…?”
“…My name is John Utonium. I’m taking you away from this horrible place.”
Having been roused from her sleep as well, Rose chimes in. “Are you with Project X? Where are you taking us?”
“…Somewhere safe.”
A GPS navigation device on the dashboard powers itself on. “Destination? ”, an automated voice inquires.
“Townsville, Orange County.”
“Confirmed. 287 miles to destination. Please follow the path specified.”
“Good. Looks like they haven’t jammed my signal yet.”
“LOOK OUT!”
“!!!” Focusing on the road again, Utonium notices a large chain-link fence starting to close shut. “Hmph! Hang on!” With a firmer grip on the steering wheel, he presses down on the gas pedal, almost doubling the vehicle’s speed.
In a maneuver that almost makes the earth quake, the vehicle breaks through the fence, ripping it away from its foundation. Their getaway was virtually certain.
Wrapping the towel tightly around her naked form, Rose cries out, “Jeez Louise, man! This ain’t an action flick!”
“Heh. I apologize. It was the first time I’d ever attempted something like that.”
With the worst now behind them, the group races through the desert at speeds exceeding 55mph, nothing lying ahead but hope of a new beginning.
“…And so…”, the fatherly professor concludes. “…the brave knight rode off on his horse and carriage with the three young maidens in tow, promising them only bright days to come. …The end.”
Midori was amused by the liberties taken with this retelling of the story. “You’re a knight now? When did that happen?”
“Hey, don’t look at me. You’re the one who asked me to tell it.”
“Hehehe.”
“What’d you think, Aqua?”
The man’s inquiry would be met with the sound of soft snoring coming from Aqua’s bed.
Rose saw it coming a mile away. “Hah. Every single time.”
Rising from his seat, Utonium walks over to tuck Aqua in underneath the covers.
“In all seriousness, Professor…”, Rose continues. “…we realize the risk you put yourself at and the sacrifices you made to bring us here. Even though it’ll be a while before we can go back to our homes and families…you’ve been like a real father to us. …Thank you…for everything.”
“Yeah, what she said.”, Midori enters with. “You’re alright, ‘Pops’.”
It pleased Utonium greatly to know that the girls had come to treat him like a father just as he’d come to treat them like daughters. “Thank you, girls. After a year like this, I needed to hear that.” After putting Aqua to bed, he moves for the door, turning back to them once more. “…Sweet dreams.”
“Night.”
“G’night.”
Taking leave of the girls’ bedroom, Utonium heads for his own, pondering on the girls’ words as he walked.
“Thank you…for everything…”
“…” The man couldn’t help but chuckle. In all the grief getting emotionally invested got him, he was content with the results.
…Elsewhere in Townsville, a figure cloaked by darkness looms over the cityscape from atop a towering skyscraper. It casts its menacing gaze upon the city with intent to ruin.
“…Just as the sun sets the morning sky ablaze…so too shall this city erupt in fire…”
