THe Soulless XI (675 hits)
Category: NoneRating: 1.7 on 22 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Anthony Locascio (View user info) at 2005-07-06 08:58:32 EDT
"He's beautiful, isn't he?" Bosell said quietly. He'd never had children, but he imagined that what he was feeling right now was something like what a new father felt looking through the plate glass window of a hospital nursery at his newborn son. Next to him, slim, dark, and imposing in his customary black suit stood Blaine Joshua. Bosell had glanced at him furtively several times as they had stood observing their creation, looking for some kind of imperfection in the man, a hair out of place, a pimple or a crease in his suit. It wasn't the possibility that Joshua had no imperfections that the doctor found so incredible, but rather that he had been born with all of the imperfections inherent in any individual and one by one had stamped them out, refining himself the way a swordsmith would refine a piece of raw iron from ugly brown oxide into a shining, straight blade. It was one of the many qualities of Joshua that Bosell held in total and complete awe.
"Have you ever seen seven billion dollars in hard currency, Doctor Bosell?" Joshua replied quietly. He had never once ever raised his voice above a conversational tone. "When you have, perhaps you will have a new standard of beauty."
Bosell sniffed. "Money. Money can't buy what I've created here today for you. Money didn't make it happen. Money doesn't make art. Make no mistake, Blaine, you are looking at art at its highest level. Every sinew, every bit of bone and muscle, is sculpted at the lowest level. The greatest artists always handpick their materials. That's what I've done, on the lowest level possible. This is art at the molecular level."
"Why can it talk?"
The question had been hanging in the air between the two of them for hours. Bosell's hand reflexively went to his pocket. The tape was there. Touching it was reassuring for him. He had noticed years ago that since Joshua had given it to him, he had stopped biting his fingernails.
"He has many abilities. We've tested quite a few of them, if you would read some of the reports I sent you. I'd hate to think we were wasting all of that paper for nothing."
Joshua waved a hand in irritation. "Yes, yes, reports, statistical analyses, oxygen utilization, blood counts. Why can it talk, Doctor Bosell?"
"It's bred to be intelligent, more so than the average person."
"You're not answering my question, doctor." Even though his voice hadn't changed in the slightest, Bosell could sense the growing anger at his evasions. "You told me that this thing would come into the world as a newborn baby, that it would be no more able to speak than you or I at birth. You told me it would need a year or two of training, that it would learn fast, but would still need to be taught from the ground up. I understood that. I understand that crafting a masterpiece takes time, just like any patron understands his artists. What I don't understand is why you were wrong. It's talking, Bosell. It can talk and understand. It knows English as well as I do, and I spent many years at study. I'm willing to bet it knows a lot of other things. I'm willing to bet that it can at least do some basic mathematics. I'm certain that it would understand that one plus one equals two, and it very likely understands much more than that. I want to know why, Bosell."
He shrugged and turned back to the glass, glancing from the vital sign monitors to the sleeping creature. "There are many possible explanations. I'll know better when we go to prototypes two and three and beyond."
"No."
Bosell's head snapped around to look at Joshua. "What?"
"No. You will work with this specimen until you find the answers that I require."
"We've broken through the vagaries of the genetic code, Joshua. We've proven thirty years of research, and you want to stop now? You want to put things on hold? You should be approving me five more facilities, you should be calling the board to make more appropriations, you should...."
"A man as deeply in debt to me as you has little place in telling me what I should do, Doctor," Joshua said passively. Stung, Bosell could do little but let his mouth hang open. "I admire scientists, Doctor Bosell. I always have. Even when I knew at an early age that I did not possess the natural talent to be a world class researcher, I knew that there was so much I could do to support brilliant men like you. I like scientists because they in effect create power. They create knowledge, which is the basis on which all power is formed. But one thing men like you so rarely understand that even more important than creating power is controlling it. Power that is uncontrolled will come to control you, in time. When you tell me that you don't know why this creature can speak, I know that the power you've created is getting beyond your control. Now you will pull back and learn more about the thing that you've created. You will understand it fully, inside and out, before we proceed,"
"I've given you what you wanted, you bastard!" Bosell spat. "I've given you the world, life tailor made to your specifications. And you tell me you only want ONE?"
"One. For now. You should relax, doctor. You would be less indignant if you knew just how many members of the board you have proven wrong with this success. Now I ask that you understand more fully your masterpiece."
"I won't do it!" Bosell nearly screamed. "Fuck you! I won't sit on my hands while the greatest scientific achievement of the biosciences does fucking jumping jacks and handstands and recites the alphabet so you can feel more in control! Where's your balls, Blaine?"
"You'll do as you're ordered," Blaine said, still not turning to face the apoplectic doctor. At the end of the glass-enclosed hallway, two of his heavily armed bodyguards leaned into the doorway. He raised one hand languidly, and they nodded and ducked back through the doorway.
"The hell I will," He spat on the carpet at Bosell's feet. " I don't take orders from you,"
"Yes, you do," Joshua said evenly. "You've been taking them and you will continue to take them. I own you, Bosell. You seem to have forgotten that. I gave you a life at your own request many years ago. Now I demand one in return. Yours. You owe me that debt, and I will collect it, with the appropriate interest."
"This is far beyond money, Joshua. This is more than history, scientific history. This is etching the future in stone."
"There is nothing beyond money, doctor, because money is a form of power. History books are bought and sold, just like everything else. Power is the ship. History is what follows in its wake. Power is the light, history is the shadow cast by it. You'll see that soon enough, before this is all over."
"You can't ask me to quit, Joshua, not now," Bosell whispered.
"I'm not asking you," Joshua replied. "If I tell you so, you will follow me into hell itself. You should get to work. So should I. Good to see you again." He turned and strode purposefully down the hall. His two guards fell in behind them, the sound of their heavy boots echoing down the glass corridor, making Bosell wince with every footfall. As they walked, Joshua dialed into his cell phone. There was no outside signal under the stone and steel of the laboratory superstructure, but the lab itself was on a private radio communication network.
"It's Joshua......yes, the meeting is over.........yes, you were right.......yes......He may be having second thoughts. I'm certain you understand that it would be helpful to have a set of eyes and ears.......I knew I could count on you.......you have the number. I'll be expecting your call. Good day."
He hung up and smiled inwardly. To know the limits of power and people was one of the things in the world that he found most pleasing. Behind him, Doctor Bosell looked down at his sleeping, monstrous child and fingered the tape that he kept in his breast pocket.
User Reviews
Submitted by BlazinBull (user info) at 2008-01-31 10:57:43 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
This is going somewhere good.
Submitted by Viper_04 (user info) at 2005-11-13 05:05:02 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Wooohoooo! Back at the lab!
Submitted by Brdn_Nkd (user info) at 2005-11-09 12:03:50 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by ILL34GL3 (user info) at 2005-07-07 13:00:39 (#)
Ranking: -1
No Comment
JACKASS
Submitted by maiorano84 (user info) at 2005-07-29 20:26:54 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Screw you, winner.
Submitted by nrduncan (user info) at 2005-07-22 17:03:00 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
another +2 for another addition to an awesome story.
Submitted by ILL34GL3 (user info) at 2005-07-07 13:00:39 EDT (#)
Ranking: -1
No Comment
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-06 22:53:06 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No problem. This series is great.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-07-06 22:00:00 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-06 20:55:55 (#)
Ranking: 2
1.2 on 10 reviews?
FUCK THAT!
--
You can thank that ILL34GL3 cunt. I've had my share of asswipes like that.
Submitted by domenad (user info) at 2005-07-06 21:50:44 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Thanks for catching me caes - I fucked up the name and went back to the original one I had planned, Adam. I'll fix it from here on out.
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-06 21:32:01 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I think once you've rated once, subsequent ratings have a much-reduced effect.
Submitted by Axolotl (user info) at 2005-07-06 21:06:19 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
How is it possible that it's 1.2 on 11 reviews? It's all +2s except for one guy!
I better balance this out. Good story.
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-06 20:55:55 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
1.2 on 10 reviews?
FUCK THAT!
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-06 19:26:00 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Another +2 to spread the love.
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-06 19:25:42 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Your strength seems to really lie in character interaction. It's always fun to see two of your guys just talking to each other. Somehow even though the words may be nothing I think anyone would ever say, it all flows very naturally and remains compelling.
I'd like to know why you changed John's name to Adam two or three posts ago -- or am I going mad?
Submitted by munkeypants (user info) at 2005-07-06 14:24:58 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-07-06 12:38:06 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I really liked this
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-07-06 12:38:02 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
cause this was good.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-07-06 12:37:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
A well-told tale
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-07-06 12:37:52 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
always gives me wood.
Submitted by ILL34GL3 (user info) at 2005-07-06 12:09:54 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Lies! All lies!
Submitted by wardy (user info) at 2005-07-06 09:20:18 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
fish sticks!
Submitted by BLITZKREIG_BOB (user info) at 2005-07-06 09:09:58 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Foul temptress. I'll bet she thinks Ziggy's gotten too preachy, too!
-- Homer Simpson
The Last Temptation of Homer