NEXUS POINTS : Chapter 25-26

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Chapter 25

“Dr. Bartlett is unavailable. Please call and schedule an appointment,” the AI repeated.

Kora refused to leave. She pleaded to the black ten-centimeter by ten-centimeter comm pad in front of her. “Dr. Bartlett, I really need to talk to you.” 

Still no response. She closed her eyes. 

“Tell her the truth,” the small voice inside prompted her. 

Kora bit her lower lip. “Dr. Bartlett, this isn’t just about my research, or me slowly losing my mind. I’ve tested a sample group of 180 patients at SCH, and over ninety percent have the same brain degeneration.”

She thought about Cody and her voice choked with emotion. “There’s this... little boy... He’s only six years old… I just… I just need to be pointed in the right direction…”

Kora fought back the tears welling up in her eyes. She started to lose hope. This is futile... 

She heard a click to her right. The metal gate slowly opened. 

Bartlett stood a few meters away, her hands in her lab coat pockets. “Tell me about your sample group.”

*

Rene Bartlett seemed astonished by the test results in front of her. Of the 180 patients at SCH who were tested, 166 showed signs of degeneration in the limbic region of their brain. While half of the 166 patients had brain tumors, the other half had healthy brain tissue and function, their only symptom the atrophy. The degeneration had progressed further for some than for others. Fortunately, no one had yet exhibited signs of psychosis.

“Did you say you also tested positive?” Bartlett asked.

“Yes.”

“Then the next logical step is to test a sample of healthy people.”

Kora nodded. “I agree. Yong told me he had seen similar brain atrophy from the FS experiments. He said it’s caused by mutations in the hypothalamus, hippocampus and amygdala, but I couldn’t detect any mutations from my own experiments.”

“That’s because the mutations he spoke of were not somatic and they couldn’t be detected by the methods we normally use.” 

“I...don’t understand.”

Bartlett stared into Kora's eyes. “Before I go any further, tell me about Yong’s arrest.”

Kora recapped the circumstances surrounding Yong’s arrest and her dismissal from NID. 

Bartlett listened carefully, trying to piece the puzzle together on her own. When Kora finished, she got up from her chair and disappeared into a room in the back of her lab. She returned several minutes later with a stack of black hardbound notebooks in her hands.

“I believe this is what you’re looking for,” she said simply, putting the notebooks in front of Kora. 

Kora was filled with excitement. She picked up one of the notebooks. Bartlett’s notes detailed research on hybridization of human DNA and DNA from three unknown origins. A series of experiments were conducted in vitro followed by human trials over a period of two years. 

The original research focused on resistance against mutations caused by various pathogens including viruses and bacteria. There were also experiments on alterations of genes that transcribed proteins in the immune system. Most of these experiments were unsuccessful. 

Then the research team accidentally stumbled upon an unusual phenomenon during one of the human trials. The team called it “The Cascading Effect.”

“What do you mean by a gene cascade?” Kora asked.

“When we introduced the foreign DNA into healthy brain tissue, we found they caused the expression of hundreds of genes simultaneously, without permanently mutating the genes themselves. This in turn initiated a chain of molecular events in the brain.” Bartlett explained.

“How?”

“Well, it’s really a rather complicated process. As you know, the human genome is not static, but rather a dynamic system with genes being expressed and then reverting back to their original states constantly. The foreign DNA hijacked brain function by interfering with normal gene expression.”

“Do you mean by mutating the genes?”

“That’s one of the ways. But mostly the foreign DNA inhibited or over-expressed certain genes by causing methylation and histone deacetylation.”

Kora was intrigued. “You keep using the term foreign DNA. What species did the DNA come from?”

Bartlett smiled. “Good question. No one really knew. The State provided the DNA and the people in charge weren’t exactly forthcoming.” She paused for a moment. “We suspected the DNA was non-terrestrial in origin.”

“Non-terrestrial... You mean as in...alien DNA?” Kora’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The smile disappeared from Bartlett’s face. “Why is that so surprising? You can’t be so arrogant as to think ours is the only planet with intelligent life. You disappoint me, young lady.”

Kora fell silent. She had a point.

Bartlett’s voice softened. “Anyway, one of the gene cascades we discovered, LYN120, had a profound impact on the amygdala and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. In fact, the cascade overrode the body’s natural stress-regulating mechanism and produced heightened fight or flight responses.” 

She pointed to a page that had been dog-eared in the notebook Kora was holding.

Kora flipped to that page. Bartlett’s notes indicated that the LYN120 cascade caused aggression, hysteria, paranoia, hallucinations, and even death. Curiously, while it seemed to take control of the limbic brain, it also caused degeneration in the same region, with the amygdala being affected most severely. 

Kora couldn’t believe her eyes. The subjects of the FS human trials exhibited the same symptoms Anita had. The brain biopsy results were almost identical to what she and Sandberg had found in their own experiments. 

Unfortunately, the project was shut down soon after the discovery of the cascades. 

“Why were the experiments shut down?” Kora asked.

Bartlett lowered her eyes. Mixed emotions appeared on her face. “The effects of the foreign DNA cascades were so drastic and in some cases devastating the State labeled them as biological weapons. In the worst case... well... one of the subjects became violent. He... he killed one of the researchers on the team.”

Kora could hear the grief in her voice. The victim had to have meant more than just a colleague to Bartlett. “I’m...sorry to hear that.”

Bartlett looked into the distance. “That was a long time ago...” She turned to Kora. “The question is, what are you going to do now?”

Kora looked at the stack of notebooks in front of her. If it’s a genetics problem, then I can solve it! she thought to herself. 

“I’m going to find out if the condition we’re seeing now is connected to the LYN120 cascade. Then I’m going to find a treatment for it.”

Chapter 26

Beck Hollen was alarmed by the surveillance report in front of him. It was sent to his workstation by the AI in the surveillance camera in Detention Room 2F, Yong Liu’s room. The report warned that Liu was potentially at risk because he hadn’t eaten or slept in 48 hours. The AI extrapolated that at this rate Liu would be dead before his trial. 

Beck pulled up one of the video recordings the AI had flagged as “troublesome”. Liu was shown being aggressive and antagonistic towards a guard who tried to convince him to eat his meal. 

Something had to be done. Perhaps the man wanted some real food. Beck headed towards the cafeteria on the third floor. 

His thoughts drifted towards Kora Amelli. Their last encounter was…surprising. Beck wondered why it was so easy for her to get under his skin. Amelli really wasn’t his type. Too conventional, for one thing, and that temper of hers! Women like that needed work, and he was working hard enough as it was. Yet there was something about that woman he felt drawn to. 

Beck shook his head, trying to get those desert-colored eyes out of his mind. It’s too bad Gina Jenkins worked in the same department as he did. Office romances usually brought trouble, especially when they didn’t work out.

Beck knocked on the door of Liu’s detention room. He gestured for the guard to wait down the hallway, then put his left palm against the access pad. The air-lock clicked open. 

Liu was sitting on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands. He looked tired, his hair disheveled, his eyes bloodshot. He seemed to have lost a lot of weight since Beck had last seen him a week ago.

“Dr. Liu, I was told you haven’t been eating your meals. Are you feeling okay?” Beck asked.

“I need to... see my… attorney,” Liu mumbled, somewhat incoherently.

“Sure. I will arrange for him to visit, but you need to eat your meals. Here, I brought you some food from the cafeteria. I know the food here...” 

“I need my attorney,” Liu repeated, cutting Beck off.

“Are you all right, Dr. Liu?” Beck put the tray down on the table. He walked towards Liu.

“Get me my attorney!” Liu snapped.

“Take it easy! I’ll call your attorney.” 

Beck backed off. He put his right hand on the weapon under his jacket. “You need to calm down.”

Liu closed his eyes. He couldn’t seem to catch his breath. Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. His faced turned paper white. He clenched at his chest, a terrified look on his face. Liu tried to walk to the lavatory, but he could barely stand.

“Dr. Liu?” Beck asked, reaching out to steady him.

Just then Liu collapsed on the floor, his head barely missing the partition to the lavatory. His whole body began to shake violently.

“Medic! Call a medic!”

- End of Chapter 26 -