Mind Painter by Tom B. Night

Author:Tom B. Night [Night, Tom B.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2020-11-16T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21: The Definition of Insanity

Earth Year: 2350

Martian Year: 167

“I’m surprised you didn’t know—you seem to know everything. And doesn’t Bright Future Technologies make most of the radiance therapies that are going to be tested on us? It’s the company that recruited and is paying me.”

Gloria avoided Caspian’s big golden eyes. “I didn’t—and still don’t—want to know who the Volunteers are. Of course I could have found out, but I blocked the information from myself.” The Volunteers’ identities weren’t publicly disclosed, but some took the initiative and were vocal about their participation, resulting in more than a few getting killed. She could feel him still staring at her and continued, “I mentioned earlier that other than the Life Lab I’m no longer involved in sol-to-sol operations, and I meant it. Beyond assisting with some…marketing…I don’t work on any of the extra-Martian living projects. I directly oversaw our involvement in the Ark and Earth missions and already feel responsible for condemning enough people to terrible deaths. At my age I simply don’t have it in me to be so intimately involved in likely condemning hundreds more.”

Whatever anxiety Caspian had been holding back from her with the help of drugs and other techniques was now exposed. The bravado was gone. “You really don’t think it will work? That it’s not possible to destroy or neutralize the virus?” he asked quietly, as if he already suspected the answer. “There are people on the Network suggesting—”

“Stop,” she interrupted, shaking her head. Two ships had been sent to Earth, each stocked with earlier versions of the therapies now on Phobos awaiting the arrival of the BLUE RETRIEVER and the radiance sample it had scooped up. The two ships had also each contained approximately one hundred people who had ‘volunteered’—in exchange for vast sums of money—to test them on themselves. Both missions had failed spectacularly, much faster than even the most pessimistic expected. The Volunteers had quickly progressed to the final stage of the disease and gone insane, convinced they were being attacked by monsters. They even attacked each other. To avoid discouraging future Volunteers the files had been destroyed, but Gloria’s augmentation allowed her to play back what she’d seen with perfect fidelity. She’d also been alive and a distant witness when similar events were playing out all over Earth. She didn’t want to think of young Caspian suffering a comparable fate. “Whether or not it works, I won’t let you be one of the people gambling with your life to find out.”

“But lives aren’t worth as much where I’m from, and I’ve already been paid and spent most of the first installment. It’s the only way to get off the Floor, to this.” He motioned to the park around them. The Volunteers were given a percentage of the money up front so they at least had the opportunity to enjoy some of it. It also made it harder to back out. “I’m not doing another stint in the mines.”

Gloria looked around at the magnificent park, a sad smile on her face.

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