Fecundity

By Cuger Brant

Humanity's headlong rush to play the Almighty and alter the very structure of life had led to disaster. Pandora's Box had been opened, but this time there was nothing left inside!

I have written this tale as another; what if; story. Like my other 'tales of revelation', It is best read when you are alone or on a journey, and like most of my writing, it is a 'food for thought' exploratory journey of sorts, delving into another subject much ignored by the public. If you are a keen gardener, you will want to keep a keener eye on your plants after reading it!
It will happen. As man plays Russian roulette with the very fabric of God's creations, his profane contempt will be his undoing.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cuger Brant
• Release date: Nov 19, 2011
• ISBN: 9781466069466

Cuger Brant

I am a philosophical psychologist with a twist of comedy; as far as you are concerned, I am either a madman or have a point.My little stories mean to stretch your imagination and your awareness. I hope they give you pleasure, food for thought, and change your perception about you, your world, and your safe little place in it!I sincerely hope that, if you read my books, they are not what you were expecting!Author Note:A word about my writing, facts, and study material: Trust me when I say; I get all my facts right before I put pen to paper; this gives me the privilege to distort them as much as I please with a clear conscience.All political or religious connotations are fictitious; offense taken by oneself or on behalf of another is by personal choice!

Book preview

Introduction

It had to happen sooner or later; with Man playing God, continuously interfering with nature and the natural order of life, no one heeded nor cared for the consequences. Too late, the geneticists realized, treating natural selection with contempt, something to experiment with, would have unforeseen ramifications.

A mistake was made, a terrible, incalculable mistake. Humanity's headlong rush to play the almighty and alter the very structure of life led to disaster. Pandora's box had been opened, but this time, there was nothing left inside…

*****

Fecundity

The Start

Patterson was tired, very tired. He needed to relax. His hastily booked flight from New York to Gatwick Airport was irritating at best. He was used to more ‘private’ accommodation on a flight, but under the circumstances, needs must!

The journey was loud, cramped, and stuffy, from overcrowded, smelly adults, to noisy, irritating children. He was agitated more than usual after his flight and after half an hour trying to get a taxi. Then, the driver, a typical; Do what mate? Where do you want to go, mate? And then, talking inanely about his most treasured icon in life, no, not his wife, or his children, but his football team! His hero, his star player, and how good he was at kicking a bloody football!

Derr-brain! Patterson thought to himself as he sat there, listening to the taxi driver droning on. It was a colloquialism his children often used when not getting through to someone. Hello, hello, is there anyone in there? he thought, wanting to knock on the taxi driver’s head but resisting the impulse. After a few polite agreeing grunts to the driver's mindless droning, Patterson's thoughts drifted off to somewhere else. Suddenly his thoughtful meanderings were interrupted.

That’s forty-seven quid mate, the taxi driver said as they arrived outside the Spa Hotel in Tunbridge Wells. Collecting himself, feeling stiff after the ride, Patterson disembarked from the car and pulled his wallet out. At the same time, the driver dumped his suitcase on the tarmac.

There you go, mate, Patterson said, shoving the money into the taxi drivers open hand. He gave him just that; forty-seven pounds!

What, no tip? The taxi driver commented disappointedly.

After listening to that crap, you should be paying me! Patterson muttered under his breath.

As the taxi drove off, Patterson stood there for a moment and gazed around to collect himself. It was a nice evening; the sun was a red haze, slowly and lazily settling down for the night. Studying the hotel, he noticed the building was one of those old English country mansions from the last century, which had been restored and converted into a hotel.

A porter came out and, after welcoming him, picked up his luggage, and Patterson followed him inside to the reception. A warm smile from the woman behind the desk greeted him, making him feel comfortable.

I have a room booked, Patterson said, giving his name.

That's right, Mr. Patterson, room thirty-two, nice view of the grounds, she replied.

That’s good, Patterson replied. Thank you very much!

When he was shown his room, the first thing he did was to run a hot bath. He looked out of his room window and noticed how green the grounds looked after being in New York. The contrast was refreshing to the senses.

The pollard trees were in full leaf, with squirrels running up and down the trunks. In the distance, he could see a lake half-covered with water lilies, a gentle wisp of mist was beginning to rise off the water as the evening heat dissipated. Ducks were contesting their territory for the night, and geese hissed at each other in sorting out their pecking order on the banks.

Nice place, he said quietly to himself.

He undressed and got into the hot bath and began to unwind. As he relaxed and let the warmth soothe his stiff, aching muscles, thoughts of the meeting the next day with the boss, Dr. Drayton came to the fore.

I wonder what Drayton is so worried about that he wants to see me in person? Patterson thought," funny remark he made on the phone:

It's all gone wrong, my God, we're in trouble now!" Drayton had said.

Patterson reflected; what has gone wrong? Was it the project's financial backing, or did Government Minister Caine get cold feet and persuaded the committee to backtrack on the deal?

Patterson thought of last year when it all started. Caine had mentioned that the government would back one of their projects. Ghiacom Genetics had grabbed the offer with both hands. It was at a cost, of course. The government wanted a large percentage of the royalties when it came to fruition, and they wanted the credit for it.

Ghiacom had decided to add altered sequences of DNA to the aphid to control it as a pest.

A university scientist had hit on the idea and seemed to have the way to implement it, but not the cash. Ghiacom, the biggest genetic laboratory in the country, also had the biggest brains, snapped him up.

It would solve their financial problems, and, in the process, the project would rake in millions. They all had to sign the official secrets act; in fact, all of us did, at the insistence