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Eve
Look at her face, I wonder if she’s even heard of makeup? Thought a girl with glittering gold eye shadow smeared clear up to her eyebrows. I listened to her thoughts with little interest; I don’t take beauty tips from people who look like they’re responsible for half of Avon’s sales.
Hmmm. A stocky boy wearing a football jersey pondered. She’s decent looking, I wonder if ... I abruptly shifted my concentration to a girl who was clinging to him like she owned him.
The leech-like female was his girlfriend; she was looking at me appraisingly, trying to decide whether I was a threat to her position as girlfriend-of-Mr. Popularity. No she finally determined Her hips are too big, she’s too tall, and her clothes are a little baggy... I changed my focus again as she rambled on about my “inferiority.” I smiled at the class and grabbed a seat in the middle of the room. It’s safe territory, it’s not in the front where you have to pay attention, but it’s not in the back where the future-delinquents-of-America reside; their thoughts are not the sort of thing I want to be close to.
I was early for history, my first class, so I scanned the room trying to find potential friends. The ideas jumbled together in my head. I shouldn’t have smoked so much weed last night... I wish I had never listened to Jennifer, I’m the only one wearing... Is that Rachel with her new nose? She said she was getting plastic surgery but... Is he looking at me, I hope so I’ve been flirting with him all summer... It’s interesting how some people think in words, some in images, and some in vague emotions, I’m still waiting to meet a person who thinks in scents.
The teacher entered the room; he was a short man of about fifty years with a beer-belly and bright blue eyes that emanated a wry sense of humor. I settled back in my chair in preparation for the endless oratory that high schoolers always get on the first day. He handed out the normal slips of paper for our parents to sign, gave each us a syllabus, and handed out the textbooks.
MORE TO COME AS SOON AS MY MUSE COMES BACK FROM HAWAII
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Both Ways
Introduction
In the year 2576 A.D. there were essentially two races of Homo sapiens: those who could afford genetic enhancements, and those who could not. The rich made themselves stronger, smarter and better looking. Anyone who’s ever heard of Darwin or of the phrase: “survival of the fittest” knows that any individual with an advantage is more able to survive and pass on his or her traits. The enhanced developed into a class separate from everyone else as they improved each generation. The poor grew poorer and the middle class dissolved into poverty as well. The differences between the social groups grew more and more pronounced. Soon the best jobs and government positions were filled completely by the “gifted” few that ruled under the pretense of representing the “ordinary man.”
Under the domain of the genetically enhanced huge advances were made. War was unknown, all diseases were curable, and a peaceful, effective world government was formed. Factories ran with the bare minimum of human supervision, food was developed for maximum production, and pollution was being methodically removed. Manual labor was practically non-existent yet physical fitness was greatly stressed and obesity was something seen only on talk shows. Earth was a costly utopia.
Sadly, only a small percentage of humanity enjoyed the benefits of the upper class. Thanks to generous welfare programs no one starved. Yet the distinction between the “regular, ugly, weak, mentally deficient” people and the “extraordinary, gorgeous, strong, genius” people was too great to ignore. Revolution was whispered, then spoken, then cried to the world. The non-enhanced has strength in numbers, and the enhanced took notice. After several forceful demonstrations a committee of philosophers, sociologists, and politicians gathered to discuss the source of the uprising. After months of debate they discovered what the lower class had been telling them all along: genetic enhancements divide humans. After even more periodic and violent demonstrations the committee was “persuaded” to ban all non-medical experimentation and production of genetically enhanced human DNA. Only government-approved research could be conducted and that was severely limited to curing simple genetic disorders.
The upper class grumbled, protested, held debates, appealed and visited illegal clinics. The government conducted raids, placed restrictions, and watched, as enhancements became nearly impossible to obtain. Over generations the two classes merged back together and the period of social division and unrest became memory of oppression and science gone too far. The descendants of the enhanced were despised, and subtly injured, as a sort of scapegoat for any inequality that happened to occur.
2854 AD
Inside the neat orderly hospital there was a neat orderly department. It was the smallest branch of the hospital since it dealt with very expensive treatments that were frowned on by the government. Among the neat orderly files and computers there were two doctors alone in an office long after everyone else had gone home. Together they were heatedly discussing something very messy and very disorderly.
“This is wrong” Dr. Lucia Monroe declared “you can’t just play God with genetics, you know as well as I do what happened centuries ago.”
Dr. Joseph King sighed “Right and wrong is irrelevant at the moment” he replied patiently “what is relevant is that I’m getting paid to create a few enhanced embryos, and you, Lucy dear, are going to help me. Please, stay focused.”
“How do you know I won’t turn you in?” Lucy questioned.
In response Dr. King handed her copies of the lab results she’d recorded years ago. They contained information on an illegal procedure she had once performed; she had given her father an injection that changed him in such a way that he could fight off the illness he was dying of. The government wouldn’t allow this; the man was old enough that death was only a matter of time, and the procedure was highly unorthodox. Genetic enhancements were only used for common disorders, and even then they were regulated severely. Dr. Monroe knew that, but decided to risk it to save her father’s life.
Joseph laughed, “This is enough evidence to lock you away in a labor camp for at least twenty years; you will help me.”
Lucy glared at him, suppressing a stream of tears, “Yes,” she answered “I will”
“Good” Dr. King smiled “ I believe you’ll find the salary quite generous” 2875 AD
Mr. McConnell’s office was a like a classic example of Victorian style with it’s leather-bound books, mahogany furniture and antique atmosphere. One would almost think it was a room preserved and untouched over centuries if there weren’t glaring displays of the latest technology: a state of the art computer, advanced communication system, and numerous compartments hidden in the walls containing the best personal electronics money could buy. Mr. McConnell worked complacently as Bach chimed from hidden speakers. He was nearly finished with reading a proposal that could increase his profits by twenty-five percent or collapse an entire department of his company when he was abruptly interrupted by his ten year old daughter bounding into his office.
“Daaaaaaaaaad!” Brooke screeched “Skye broke my solar system model, Europa is orbiting in five pieces now.”
Mr. McConnell sighed and put away his work, “go and get him” he commanded patiently.
Brooke grinned, stuck her head out the doorway and bellowed “Skyeeeeeeeeee! You’re in trouuuuuuble!”
“ I said go get him” Mr. McConnell reminded his daughter gently.
Brooke sighed dramatically and was about to leave to find her brother when he entered the room. “What?” he demanded grumpily.
“Did you break Brooke’s solar system model?” Mr. McConnell asked.
“Mahkah helped.” Skye accused sullenly.
Soon afterwards Skye, Mahkah, and Ignacia were all gathered in the office looking belligerent as Brooke sat on Mr. McConnell’s lap sticking her tongue out at her siblings when she thought her father wasn’t looking. Despite their frequent petty disagreements they were a peaceful island of domestic bliss compared to the world of constant divorce, murder, affairs, and drug usage. Biologically they were all completely unrelated; Skye was a lanky boy of African descent with a solemn face and burning black eyes, Ignacia was a Chilean beauty with glossy dark hair and a perfect tan complexion, Mahkah was a muscular Native American boy with a broad face and a broad smile to match, while Brooke was a blonde-haired blue-eyed European. None of them bore any resemblance to their lean, red-haired father who was currently mediating between the disagreeing children.
“Let me get this straight,”
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