Jeremy walked into the lab in a huff, grumpy and angry that he had been called away from his work once again. But when your supervisor requested your presence, it was hard to refuse.
"Ah, Dr. Green. I am so glad you could make it. We were just about the begin the next test and we would like for you to be here to witness it," said Dr. Stein.
"Next test? What are you talking about?" asked Jeremy. There were a large variety of projects in progress at Horizon Labs, each conducting tests almost daily. He honestly had no idea to which project or test Dr. Stein was referring.
"The Chimera Project, my boy. Thanks to your work, we were able to reopen the project. For a trial period, as it were," said Dr. Stein.
"The Chimera Project? I thought that was a failure," said Jeremy.
"It was," said a voice in the shadows. Jeremy was startled to see a what looked like some kind of large anthropomorphic snake slither into the light. "But after reading through the work you had done on the project for your sister, Polly, we were able to make a breakthrough."
"Ah, Jeremy, I would like to introduce you to Harold, an expert on Aquatic and Marine animal genetics and the lead scientist of the Chimera Project, " said Dr. Stein.
"Pleased to meet you, " said Harold, offering his scaly hand for Jeremy to shake.
Jeremy remained still, his hands at his side.
"You let them work here?"
Dr. Stein grew cross.
"Now, now. I'll have none of that nonsense. Horizon Labs is an equal opportunity employer and Harold was more than qualified for his position, even before he chose to be converted. And his conversion has only helped his work," said Dr. Stein.
Jeremy was shocked. He still found it difficult to believe any human would willingly subject themselves to the Animalian virus, but this was a highly educated man. He couldn't understand why an intelligent person would choose to be mutated.
"Okay, then," said Harold, dropping his hand. He slithered away and tried to hide his disappointment. He would have thought that an intelligent man like Jeremy would not have been so blinded by prejudice.
"Well, as I was saying, thanks to your work we were able to tackle the problem and create a way to use the virus to hybridize genes from two different species," said Harold.
"But I thought that was impossible. The different viruses attacked one another, destroying their DNA templates in the process or so I have read somewhere," said Jeremy.
Dr. Stein clicked his tongue.
"You should know better than that, Dr. Green. Viruses do not 'attack' one another. They may compete to infect cells and even compete for resources if they infect the same cell. But there is no known mechanism for one virus to directly attack another," said Dr. Stein.
"Well, he is a little right. The DNA templates used by the virus did degrade, as well as the tissue it inhabited. But it was because the conflicting information provided by the genes on the different DNA strands confused the molecules that were supposed to use it. You see, the problem was simple when we really analyzed it. Two different genomes from two different species provided two different instructions for the same organs. In our trial run of a goat and lion chimera, for example, there were two different instructions for limbs - one for paws and one for hooves. The cells literally tore themselves apart trying to complete both sets of instructions simultaneously, " said Harold. "That is why it worked successfully for Teela, the uplifted eel. There were no competing instructions for limbs - eels don't have any inherent instructions for limbs."
"Still, even after we identified the problem, we could not find a viable solution. Until I read over your work. The way you attempted to silence the other polar bear genes in Polly was nothing short of brilliant, although misguided, " said Harold.
"But my method didn't work. Polly still became a polar bear. I just delayed her transformation, " said Jeremy.
"True, but my team found a way to stabilize the compound that silenced the genes. Well, at least long enough for the virus to complete the conversion process," said Harold.
Jeremy was outraged. He couldn't believe that someone had perverted his work in this way. Instead of a cure, they had used it to just make a different kind of Animalian.
"Honey, I have brought the volunteer," said a new voice.
Jeremy turned to see another large snake-like creature guiding a young woman into the lab.
The volunteer appeared to be in her mid-twenties, but it was hard to tell under all the make-up. She looked like some kind of punk rock reject from the 80's, with a shaved head save for bangs styled into a purple-dyed bob hanging just above her eyes, a leather collar, black biker shorts, black fingerless gloves, a black shirt with some kind of Animalian symbol, and numerous piercings above her eyes and in her nose.
"Thank you, honey," said Harold, giving his mate Kirana a kiss. "Now would you be a dear and go turn on the recording equipment. We will want to document everything."
"Of course," said Kirana. "I can hardly wait."
Jeremy couldn't believe his eyes. He turned to Dr. Stein and tried to reason with him.
"You can't be serious?! This is dangerous! That kid has no idea what she signed up for," said Jeremy, grabbing desperately onto Dr. Stein's lab coat.
"Nonsense!" said Dr. Stein, brushing Jeremy's hands away. "This is science, not science fiction. Nothing ever goes wrong at Horizon Labs, or in Animalia for that matter. This is paradise, a utopia where everyone is good and no one ever has any problems, save a little teen drama. It would be a cliché if something unexpected happened!"
"Not to mention boring and unrealistic," murmured Jeremy.
"What was that? I didn't quite catch what you said..."
"Nothing," murmured Jeremy.
"There is no need to worry, Dr. Green. We have done in vitro tests on cell cultures as well as innumerable computer simulations. The procedure may not work, but it will not harm our patient. You have my word on that, " said Harold.
"So, when do I get paid?" asked the girl with annoyance.
"Come on, Dr. Stein. Is this really the best candidate?" asked Jeremy.
Dr. Stein cleared his throat, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Well, we didn't have many volunteers for this project, considering the perceived risk by the general public. Can you believe some people still have such little faith in science? They actually think we might accidentally create some kind of monster, like one of those silly creatures from a video game. Absurd! And of course, most of the prime candidates wanted to be part of the more popular Thylacine or Phoenix projects," said Dr. Stein. "She may look a little rough around the edges, but I assure you she has passed all of the required screening tests. And we have full approval by the Institutional Review Board. This isn't some secret 'mad science' project."
Jeremy rushed up to the girl and tried to plead his case again.
"Listen, you don't have to do this. I'll pay you whatever they offered. I'll double it," begged Jeremy. "Just walk away! You don't understand ....."
"Chill, dude," said the girl, slapping Jeremy's hands away. "I know what I am doing. I am going to be converted. Animalians Rock!"
The girl smiled, made the hand-horn gesture, and began to bob her head in time to imaginary music.
"There now - see, the girl has consented," said Dr. Stein, pulling the girl away from Jeremy. "You will get paid after the procedure is complete. Now, if you will just remove your clothes...."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, " said the girl. "I didn't sign up for that. I thought this was a science experiment. I ain't doing no kinky shit, at least not for what you are paying me."
"Suit yourself," said Harold. "But you will at least need to remove your piercings."
The girl cursed as she removed the rings from her nose and handed them to Dr. Stein.
"I better get those back after this is over, " said the girl. "ALL of them."
Harold slapped a needle, removing any air from the syringe. He looked back over his shoulder.
"Kirana, are you ready?"
Kirana gave him the thumbs up signal from behind her camera. Harold held the needle just inches from the girl's arm.
"Are you absolutely sure you want to do this? The process is irreversible, " said Harold.
The girl gave him a wicked smile.
"Let's rock!"
Harold took that for consent and injected the compound into her arm. He then slithered back to join the others to watch the change.
"Just what is she supposed to change into?" asked Jeremy.
Dr. Stein cleared his throat, looking slightly embarrassed. "Well, we wanted to start with something simple. The lion-goat mix was a little too complex. So we went back to something that was practical as well as...."
" ... popular," finished Harold. "She is supposed to become a gryphon. A mixture of lion and eagle."
Great, thought Jeremy. That combination certainly won't cause any problems. I can't wait to see how it turns out....