The Inspiration Behind This Story
This is the beginning of a multi-part story, much of which has already been written, about two main characters. A female geneticist by the name of Dr. Natia Greenheart, and her mentor and scientist himself named Khalil Buhari. It is set in the Not-Too-Distant future in a highly-advanced fictional nation-state. It's an Afrofuturist story just in time for Marvel's Black Panther which is being released in February. I personally like the story and have written a solid half of it already, I just never finished it. Maybe based on the type of feedback I get, I can finally finish this thing lol.
I really enjoy writing science fiction and fantasy. It's a form of escapism for me. The weird and wild worlds that can be created that are either far-fetched or just plain crazy excites me.
This story touches on topics such as self-directed evolution (man-made evolution), semi-sentient androids, corporate espionage, and war. Among other things. It is designed to force the reader to question the extent of technological advancement and how far it should be allowed to go, while being fun at the same time.
PART 1 - PROJECT MAXIMUS
Manden City - 2052
How does one balance the ethical pursuit of scientific discovery with the drive for success and wealth? Dr. Natia Greenheart pondered on the philosophical question as her car drove her down a wide five lane highway through the heart of Manden City to the most important event of her life.
She sat upright with her back straight. The bright rays from the sun gleamed throughout the interior of the Gemini X - bouncing off the lustrous white and silver dashboard and instrument panel. Through an expansive sunroof, the massive skyscrapers of Manden City towered overhead. It was a peaceful city and a marvel of technological innovation and energy independence. All of Manden City was solar-powered, the skyscrapers were wrapped in translucent solar panels that could fade between all colors of the rainbow. Throughout the day and night, Manden City was vibrantly colorful and full of hope. Many buildings contained open-air botanical gardens that extended out onto balconies. In Manden City, they were used for everything from dates to lunch breaks.
In her heart, Natia knew one person was missing. "Adan." Natia spoke the name of her husband and an augmented photo-real, three-dimensional image of him softly flickered into being. It was as if Adan himself were sitting adjacent to her. She felt that in many ways Adan was a victim of her pursuit of professional success and wealth. The type of wealth that allowed her to afford a solar-powered, self-driving autonomous vehicle like the Gemini X. Fully integrated with augmented reality windows and interior panels for mood setting.
There is nothing that can be said that can break you. Natia thought - knowing that seemed like something Adan would say. She knew she could use his reassurance, but also was aware that she didn't need it. Everything she had accomplished thus far led her to this point.
For the past four years, Dr. Natia Greenheart has worked as Project Manager for Endonis Technologies. Since 2048, she has used her PhD in genetics and genomics well; working with Endonis scientists on disruptive technologies in fields ranging from bio-nanotechnology to genetic engineering and self-directed evolution. Natia liked to envision herself as a black, female Albert Einstein. She yearned for that type of global recognition one day. Knowing that her current project's success hindered on everything going right at the convention she was headed to.
The Gemini X glided with ease through the traffic and Natia's heartbeat increased as the Ebony Coliseum came into view as the highway curved to the left. A solar-bathed infrastructure, the Ebony Coliseum was shaped like an inverted horseshoe. It contained the largest botanical garden in the city at its apex. The building itself was a product of a revolutionary approach to materials engineering and nanotechnology.
"Always impressive." Natia's eyes widened in awe of the gargantuan one hundred and fifty story building that now rose imposingly above her ever so suddenly. A wide, beautiful smile stretched across her face as she watched the shifting colors of the solar panels fade back and forth between shades of brown caramel and gingerbread. During the day, the building glowed with various light brown shades as it harvested the quanta that radiated from the sun. While at night it shined like a bright golden-yellow diamond.
The Gemini X came to a stop at the entrance. A moment went by and Natia heard a knocking on the passenger door. "Shall I open Natia?" Michael - the artificial intelligence that controlled the Gemini X spoke through the speaker system.
"Yes." The door opened and Natia extended one leg of her lengthy six foot frame outside. She stopped before exiting, "Michael, I have an answer to the question we were debating on our way here."
"And your conclusion is ma'am?"
"It is only unethical if your cause is unjust. So in that sense, the ends can at times justify the means - as long as your endgame is right."
"Duly noted Dr. Greenheart. Now go show them who's boss."
Natia exited from her car and straightened her jacket before shaking the hand of the man who knocked on her door. Security is getting shorter these days. She thought as she watched the top of the man's head as he and two others escorted her through a crowd of onlookers with cameras and press. It was a cool and windy day - all Natia could do was watch as the entrance drew closer and closer.
Once inside, she could feel the heatwave from the coliseum cross her chilled face as she entered a backstage waiting area. Everyone turned to gaze up at her - something she was used to, though some were too shy to hold eye contact. Natia was known to tower over people even without heels on, but today she wore them because it was a special day. Today she'd be interviewed on live television and it would be seen around the world. She didn't care about that though, she had one job and that was to convince enough members of Endonis Technologies to continue funding Project Maximus. Endonis members numbered in the millions - people from all walks of life who contributed an average of fifty dollars a day to keep the scientific co-op afloat.
Being able to handle pressure is partly why you have this job. She thought before noticing a supervisor to her left barking orders at his employees. "You sir, excuse me - what's the hold up? I'm ready to get on that stage."
He stammered to find the words as he looked up at her. "They're uh - they're ready for you now Dr. Greenheart."
She smiled at the berated workers. She still recalled jobs from her youth that she hated because of overbearing Supervisors who needed to be checked every once in a while. She fought to keep all worst-case scenarios out of her mind as security continued escorting her through a maze of hallways and private elevators that that led to the main auditorium where over thirty thousand of some of Endonis' highest-contributing members were seated. Patience was not one of her virtues and she knew it. She wanted what she desired and as quickly as possible.
They turned a right corner and there it was - Natia could see the stage from a distance. Massive and imposing, much larger than she had originally thought. She looked into the eyes of the backstage workers and could see their augmented reality contact lenses shifting colors - some likely recording and live-streaming over A.R. social media sites like LifeZone. She could hear the cheers from the audience clearly now; her interviewer - one Justice Samuels - was just wrapping up his warm-up presentation -
"Make no mistake Endonis members, we will discover the truth today. We all have the right to know how our money is spent and what our money is going to promote in our name."
Here we go. Natia calmed her mind because she knew she was ready. While she liked the work Justice did as an investigative reporter...she felt the man was out of his league here. There's no way I'm failing on this day, especially not with Adan watching at home.
"So, let's not drag this on any longer." Justice extended his arm in the direction of Natia's location backstage. "Let's all welcome to the stage one of the highest-ranking scientists at Endonis Technologies and the woman who says she's cracked the code of immortality - Dr. Natia Greenheart!"
Natia walked out onto the stage with her chin held high, making sure each fast-paced stride she took made a powerful statement. The crowd cheered and rose to their feet as thousands of flashing camera lights reverberated throughout the auditorium. Natia and Justice met at the center of the stage and exchanged a polite handshake and smiled towards the audience for the ever-important photo-op.
Justice's hand gestured towards the seat across from his own. A short mahogany table stood holding two glasses of water between the two of them and one wifi headset for Natia. She sat down and placed the headset underneath her long, braided black hair with the small microphone just to the side of her mouth. She cleared her throat and nodded signaling that she was ready.
"Thank you for joining us today. I can imagine your schedule doesn't provide room for much extra." Justice started off with light commentary.
Natia immediately began measuring the man up. "Oh no problem Justice and thank you and the Ebony Coliseum for hosting this convention celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the founding of Endonis Technologies! There is always room for the members. Without everyone in the audience, those watching across Manden City and the entire nation of New Manden, I wouldn't be here right now."
"Before we begin, I'd like to direct everyone's attention to the live opinion tracking poll on the projector behind us." Justice pointed towards a three-dimensional bar graph displayed with augmented reality technology that hovered in the air upstage from their position. "The poll currently shows that fifty-five percent of Endonis members currently do not support the continued funding of Project Maximus. Seeing that I consider myself part of that percentage...tell us why we're wrong...doctor."
Natia senses a hint of contempt in Justice's voice. "I wouldn't say the members are wrong, just misinformed due to false information being put out there by our detractors. When Project Maximus is complete, the fear of death will be a thing of the past. It is the most disruptive project being funded at Endonis -"
" - So disruptive that most of the research needs to be kept in secret? One wonders if it is worth the trouble..."
"Yes, it is worth it and always has been. We understand that secrecy is frowned upon in New Manden. This is a new country still building and expanding on the gains made after the Great New Deal of 2030. The people of New Manden are proud to say they live in the most transparent nation on Earth with transparency etched into our constitution."
"Yet the inner workings of this project still remains a mystery."
She kept her gaze strong. "Let me be clear here Justice, this is technology meant for the people of New Manden...not the entire world. Our people funded it and we should be the main benefactors of it. The more we release about our research, the more likely it is to fall into the hands of our enemies. The very same people we fought against in the Second Civil War."
Justice looked over at the opinion poll and saw that it had gone down from fifty-five to fifty-four percent and shook his head. "Let's change subjects...Endonis Technologies, among many things, is a biotechnology company that serves its members by providing very affordable, and sometimes free, genetic augmentations. I know the scope of the company goes beyond simply biotech...but how can you rationalize jumping from altering genetics to create stronger cells or even providing cosmetic enhancements like eye and hair color - to changing the nature of life itself? Are you not attempting to play God? Is your research unethical?"
The question sent an electrical pulse from her brain in the form of a shiver down Natia's back. "Unethical? No. That is not the type of research I participate in. No person has ever been tested under my supervision that didn't want to be. Unethical is giving black patients syphilis to test and see how their bodies would react to it without their knowledge or repayment after damages were done."
The statement was met with a small cheer from the crowd.
"We conduct tests on near-human android subjects anyway. We abide by the law and most importantly we respect our members. For the people of New Manden, my fellow Mandenite brothers and sisters, to preserve our future success, we have to push the envelope. We have to consistently question societal norms...even our own."
"So if you were ever asked to do something unethical - you would reject it?"
Natia paused before responding - a pause that held for a couple seconds too long. The ends justify the means. She thought, but knew she couldn't say. Not at this moment with so much on the line and they'd never understand where she's coming from. "Yes...I would reject it."
"It took you a second to get that out, " the crowd laughed at Justice's comment. "Are you sure about that?"
"There are two things I'm sure of, my love of science and my love for Endonis. Unethical research violates both of those and puts both at risk."
Justice peered once more at the poll - no change. He knew he needed to turn up the heat. "Let me ask you about the Chairman of Endonis Technologies, Khalil Buhari, and the corruption allegations that caused a frenzy last year that saw you questioned in front of the New Manden Congressional Oversight Committee."
Natia froze. The one question she'd hoped wouldn't come up. For the first time she began feeling uncomfortable. "Ah yes, Senator Lewis' witch hunt that didn't turn up anything." She nodded her head eagerly to hide her newfound anxiety. "I'm ready."
"It's caused Chairman Buhari's popularity to plummet - and this is a man who cut his teeth at the Battle of Charlotte some twenty-two years ago. New Manden in many ways wouldn't exist without him. Being that he is your boss, how do you reassure the members in attendance and watching across the AugNet that two people accused of corruption are the right people for the job? Should you even have the power to determine whether we all live forever?
Natia fought everything in her power to stop herself from grabbing Justice by the neck and lifting him up into the air with her bare hands as his feet dangled by her knees in front of her. She'd been sizing him up and knew he didn't weigh more than her maxed out bench weight of two hundred pounds. She hid an athletic frame that rivaled some male athletes underneath the business casual outfit she wore. However Natia knew better than to do that.
"If you read the reports that have come out after that charade, it's clear there was an agenda against Endonis with some members of Congress. All accusations have not only been proven false, but several accusations have even been retracted and the Congressmen who perpetuated those lies recanted them."
"But -"
"- No listen for a second. There is nothing more important to me or Khalil than the success of Endonis. What we are doing will revolutionize the Direct Democracy of New Manden and eventually the world. Imagine a world without sickness, a world where you don't have to worry about losing your loved ones. Where when near death your memories, experiences - basically your consciousness can be transferred into a pre-built clone of your preferred age so that you can continue your conscious existence in a brand new body for a new lifetime."
She let that sink in for a second.
"That is not a dream, it's a reality...if you make it a reality members." Natia dared to look at the augmented poll hovering in space. Suddenly, the side that was against continuing to fund Project Maximus now sat at fifty-one percent - a drop of four percent since the start of this interview.
Not enough. Natia knew she had to dig deeper to win that last two percent. "You mentioned the Battle of Charlotte earlier Justice - I remember those days well. I was ten years old - I could hear the socialists and fascists fighting outside my home. My father fought for the New American Army and my mother was a strong supporter of the N.A.A." The space beneath Natia's eyes began to tingle, quiver and burn with sadness as she thought of her parents. "The last time I saw my mother alive she said to me - 'The struggle will not be won on the battlefield, but in the mind...we are only oppressed to the extent that we choose to be."
At that point, Natia could see out of the corner of her eye the thousands in attendance rise to their feet. A sea of hands were raised in celebratory joy and passionate jubilation. In unison they roared, "We are one! We are one! We are one!"
A tiny tear trickled down from the corner of Natia's right eye which was facing the crowd. A moment caught on camera that had an immediate impact.
"Well it appears as if you've won over the members Dr. Greenheart." Justice's voice cracked with defeat and he let out a long, low sigh at the new results of the poll. "Your project now enjoys the support of fifty-two percent - a seven point swing. I must say, I may not agree with all of the secrecy, but your passion and drive is intoxicating and I can no longer fight against that."
Natia smiled. He was right where she wanted him. "Thank you for that Justice."
"It appears that Project Maximus will continue after all."
"Indeed it will. Indeed it will Justice."
Leave a comment below and tell me what you think about it so far. I'd love to get the feedback. I will post Part 2 tomorrow more than likely.
🤓✅
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