"Come here, Eddie!" Knell cooed softly as the toddler giggled and crawled over to him. "Yes, Eddie! Come to Daddy!"
A knock sounded at Knell's office door as the small boy with snakes in his hair crawled into the open arms of the man known as Doctor Clone.
"Enter," Knell beckoned as he held the babe to his shoulder, patting him on the back.
The door opened and I saw as Doctor Walter Curie entered the room, a clipboard under one arm and a briefcase in the other.
"Ah, Dr. Curie!" Knell said excitedly, placing the young boy on the tabletop. From where I sat, I could see two tiny little pointed teeth protruding from his mouth. This boy was a meta... and I just didn't like it.
"Please, Doctor Curie, sit!" Knell said, gesturing to the chair across the table from me. The table was a small circular stainless steel design with large leather chairs placed around it. Just like Dr. Knell... cold, yet comfortable.
"Now, gentlemen," Knell said, sitting calmly into his chair, rubbing the small back of the child before him, "I've invited you all here to see my progress."
"Wh...what is it, Knell?" Curie spoke up, curious.
"Do you remember Edulcore Cicciotto?" Knell asked.
"The Olympic runner from Italy?" I spoke up. "The alleged metahuman. He had to turn in all his medals due to a discovered metagene?"
"Exactly," Knell said, smiling. He shook a baby's rattle before the child, who giggled fiercely at this as the snakes on his head hissed. "Well, I'd like you to meet Eddie - the first metahuman clone."
"What?" Curie said, rising suddenly from his seat. "Are you insane? That's not even legal!"
"I don't see why not," Knell said, quietly steepling his fingers as little Eddie played with the rattle. "Metahumans are not humans. Not at all. The law forbids human cloning, not metahuman cloning. I've consulted my lawyers and I'm well within my rights on this."
"Uh," I interjected raising my hand timidly, eyeing the baby carefully, "I don't mean to sound snotty or anything, but, as I recall, Cicciotto didn't have snakes for hair..."
"Oh, that," Knell said, waving his hand at me dismissingly. "I wanted to see how his DNA would react with a little bit of genetic splicing. Nothing major, just a little bit of cobra DNA thrown in the mix. You know... for variety."
"I see," I said, covering my mouth with my hand.
"Now, may I continue?" Knell said curtly, eyeing Curie and I. Neither of us made any motion, so Knell continued. "Dr. Curie, may I see the contents of your briefcase?"
"Certainly, sir," Curie said, sliding his metallic briefcase across the table to Knell. Eddie smiled, placing a slobbery hand on the case.
"Now, now, Eddie," Knell scolded mockingly. "Let Daddy play with his own toys..."
Pulling the case away from the boy, Knell undid the locking latches and lifted the lid. The contents of the case brought an incredible smile to his face.
"These are the samples I requested?" Knell asked.
"Yes, sir," Curie responded, nodding. "Every member of TriVex Corporation exhibiting metahuman DNA, whether it be dominant or recessive."
"Excellent," Knell said, raising a vial of blood from the satchel, his eyes seeming almost glazed over. "You've tested everyone, then?"
"That's correct, sir," Curie answered again, fidgeting nervously.
"Good," Knell said, placing the vial back into the case and closing it. "This shall prove useful for my scientists as we begin the next phase."
"Next phase?" I asked, leaning forward on my right elbow. "Zach, what is this about?"
"Well, Charles, if you must know," Knell said, obviously resenting my calling him familiarly, "the United States government has requested and funded our metahuman research for reasons that I must keep confidential. However, let me just say that it is in the best interest of TriVex to cooperate."
"Alright," I answer, leaning back in my chair, still very skeptical.
"And, so, Charles, let me just let you know why I've asked you in on this meeting."
"I have to admit," I said, smirking, "I was a bit curious."
"Well," Knell began, petting Eddie's snake-filled head, "according to the research provided us by Dr. Curie's department, we've found that most metahuman outbreaks are occuring in Chicago. We're sending you to TriVex's Chicago branch in order to acertain the reasons as to the outbreaks there."
"You're... sending me to... Chicago?" I ask, stunned. "Wh-why me?"
"You seem the most likely candidate, what with your success in the mapping of the metahuman genome," Knell stated, pulling Eddie into his lap. "An MCCA agent will meet you at headquarters to assist you when you arrive."
Knell reached into a small compartment behind his section of the tabletop, and pulled out an envelope. Sliding it over to me, he continued his diatribe.
"In there you will find your plane ticket," he said. "I expect you to be on the 8:30 am flight to O'Hare tomorrow morning."
"Uh, this is a one-way ticket," I said, looking up curiously.
"Exactly, Dr. Walker," Knell said. "In the event that you will be returning to the main headquarters, TriVex will supply your return fare. Until then, you are to stay in Chicago. Is that understood?"
"Yeah," I answered, rising. "Yeah, I gotcha, Zach."
I quickly exit the room. Knell makes no move to stop me, but rather continues rocking Eddie, who is beginning to fall asleep.
I hear footsteps behind me as I continue to my office. Turning sharply on my heels, I see Dr. Walter Curie walking behind me, trying to get my attention.
"Is there something I can help you with, Doctor?" I ask, obviously perturbed.
"Yes, Doctor Walker," Curie said nervously, handing me a folded slip of paper. "I expect to see you shortly in my lab..."
With that, the small mousey man walks off, toward his lab. I raise an eyebrow in confusion as I unfold the paper that he gave me. As my eyes skim over, I notice my face becoming flushed and my eyes growing wider.
"Oh, my God..." I mutter. "No. Not this... anything but this..."
Covering my eyes, I find myself leaning against the wall in the metallic corridor.
"Damn..." I whisper as tears begin to roll down my face. "Damn it all to hell..."
[ 11-16-2001: Message edited by: Chewy Walrus ]
