Risk Alleviator by Camille Picott

Author:Camille Picott [Picott, Camille]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pixiu Press
Published: 2013-08-13T22:00:00+00:00

***

“The blood analyses show large traces of cognitive enhancers and neurobehavioral drugs,” Dr. Hom says.

“Of course they do!” Dr. Nguyen, standing on the other side of the counter, spits out the words. “They are responsible for his intelligence. They—”

His words are lost in a long hiss from Riska, who crouches on Dr. Hom’s shoulder. He quiets as the nice doctor strokes his fur.

“They’re the reason the Risk Alleviator attacked the soldiers,” Dr. Hom says.

“Explain,” says a third voice.

Riska directs his hiss at Miss Winn, who is unmoving in her wheelchair. The screen on her chair rotates in his direction, the woman there narrowing her eyes at him.

“You modified my Aircat DNA when you made Riska,” Dr. Hom says. “Aircats are genetically designed to be susceptible to influence; it’s how the neural nets work. Imagine the Aircat brain to be like that of a human teenager’s: immature and impressionable. The neurobehavioral drugs amplified those characteristics in Riska and made him unpredictable and erratic. That’s why he attacked those soldiers. The combination of the videos and drugs made him unstable. It was only natural for him to lash out.”

The screen swivels to face Dr. Nguyen. “Is this true?”

“Dr. Hom is postulating. We don’t know what triggered yesterday’s outburst. The cognitive enhancers were working. The Risk Alleviator is showing elevated intelligence. He was able to learn from the videos—”

“He wasn’t learning the right things,” Dr. Hom says. “I told you Aircat DNA is delicate. I tried to warn you. I came to your lab—”

“You weren’t trying to help me,” Dr. Nguyen snarls. “You were trying to get into my lab to steal my research. You—”

“Enough,” Miss Winn says. Both men fall silent.

“What I want to know from Dr. Hom is whether or not he thinks this project can be salvaged,” she says. “Your prognosis, Doctor?”

“I believe the animal can be guided in the direction of a true Risk Alleviator, although not in the way Dr. Nguyen envisions.”

“There you go, always trying to undermine me. You—”

Miss Winn cuts him off. “Details, Dr. Hom,” she barks.

“Dr. Nguyen envisions herds of Riskas patrolling corporate compounds and homes of the wealthy. A high-end security defense system. Better than any watch dog. Based on what happened yesterday, we can agree the Risk Alleviator has mastered his defense skills. What he lacks is direction. He knows how to defend, but he doesn’t know who to defend.”

“Of course he does,” Dr. Nguyen cut in. “The videos—”

“The videos showed him how to fight. There was nothing personal in the training to help him internalize the difference between good and bad. Something different is required to help him learn who needs protecting.”

“How do you suggest this be done?” Miss Winn asks.

“My imprinting serum will enable him to identify his charges and their enemies. It shouldn’t have any negative reactions with the altered brain chemistry of an Aircat. With the imprinting serum, I can teach Riska to protect a particular person or a small group of people, like a family. He will provide localized protection for wealthy customers.

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