The Reflection: A Novel

By TLJ Heaven

The world we create will be a sustainable one. One without humanity. One without all those you love. We will reward you with being one of the last men to view the ashes of the world you currently know. And then we will let you die.

To rectify the tragic loss of his eldest daughter Rebecca, Doctor Johnathan Grunge searched for solutions through his genetic studies. It was time for Doctor Grunge to unveil his years of research to the public domain.
He was never aware of the full implications of his experiments.
His focus was not shifted away from his DNA program, to the monster he created in the dark.
The monster that kept him sleepless at night...
The monster that lurked over his family...

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Aug 23, 2021
• ISBN: 9781665592604

Book preview

© 2021 Tlj Heaven. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 08/19/2021

ISBN: 978-1-6655-9259-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6655-9260-4 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Author Notes

Chapter 1 The Conference

Chapter 2 The project

Chapter 3 The Strange Death of Officer Himmet

Chapter 4 Scientific Mistakes

Chapter 5 Jeremiah Foster

Chapter 6 Lucy’s Condition

Chapter 7 Meeting The Darkness

Chapter 8 What goes around, comes around

Chapter 9 Colonel Peterson

Chapter 10 The True Meaning of Fear

Chapter 11 The Escape

Chapter 12 A Strange discovery

Chapter 13 Chief Jackson

Chapter 14 Grunge’s Day Off

Chapter 15 The School

Chapter 16 Escape from the School

Chapter 17 The Mother

Chapter 18 Li Jun

Chapter 19 Tokyo

Chapter 20 The New Leader

Chapter 21 The Aunty

Chapter 22 The Resistance

Chapter 23 The Fair

Chapter 24 The Battle of Oxford Fair

Chapter 25 The Hall of Mirrors

Chapter 26 The Conclusion

Special thank you to Midnight Horror Scribes.

A brilliant community on Discord.

Without their help, this process would have been SOOO much

harder. These four people particularly needed to be mentioned.

Max Nicolau Xenobicorn (Cover Illustrator/ External Designer)

JP Maillet (Critique Partner)

Alice Austin (Critique Partner)

Beverly Hanna (Critique Partner)

AUTHOR NOTES

T he story of the reflection originated as a childhood goal. As a child, I had a vivid imagination and was considered creative. Regularly I played games such as the floor is lava, climbing on surfaces to avoid the imaginary dangers below. Games like football and tag never really interested me, but I loved playing characters within my play.

As a bucket list goal, I wanted to write a novel. I succeeded by writing this book when I was fourteen years of age, which was around the year 2013. The original manuscript was merely 32,000 words (92 pages) long. At the time, I was studying Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck in school, so my goal was to make my manuscript longer than that. Little did I know back then that it was considered a novella rather than a novel.

My original idea was to create a horror story with heavy science fiction themes. I have always had a fascination with the horror genre and explored it whenever I had the opportunity to. It may sound contrary, but the paranormal aspects never appealed to me. So I wanted to create a book or series of books based around science fiction or more realistic premises.

When I was young, I got scared easily. I constantly kept my door open, so I had room to escape if I needed to. I even slept with music playing until I was sixteen years old, just because sounds in the night used to frighten me. Sometimes I would look at my toys or posters and they would stare at me and it sent chills down my spine. I had to turn them away or block their view sometimes to feel content.

In particular, I used to have a toy lion that lurked on my bottom bunk. When I woke up in the morning, I would sneak down my ladder and sprint out of my room. I wasn’t stupid, I knew it was purely my imagination running wild. The what if bothered me.

One of the most powerful fears I had, was of shadows. There was a TV show I watched when I was young called Bear in the Big Blue House. Many of you may be familiar with it. I loved it when I was a boy. Every episode however featured a dancing shadow that appeared and behaved autonomously. This creature frightened me and I would hide in my closet away from her.

Sometimes, the shadow even haunted me at night in my dreams. The shadow of the night would be malicious unlike the one in Bear and the big blue house, and she would hunt me and kill me. Then sometimes I would dream of another shadow. One that was a good shadow that lived in a caravan in some faraway place. I used these two characters to build this book.

John Grunge was inspired by the character Walter Bishop from the TV series Fringe. John Noble’s performance of Walter Bishop was amazing and his personality was contagious. I wanted to explore a similar premise. A man who was so intelligent that he had to resolve the errors he had made.

I redrafted over the years but never put consistent effort into the book until COVID 19 struck in 2020. It took me until 2021 to fully immerse myself in the redraft. Now with a more experienced mind, a better understanding of the horror genre and the experience of reading Stephen King and Robert Jordon; the details of the book just grew to build up what you have in your hands today. My characters and scenes came to life in a way that I never could have imagined when I was younger.

I would like to thank you personally for deciding to purchase or even read this book. It means the world to me that you selected my work to read in your leisure. If you and others enjoy the novel, I will hopefully complete my future projects and continue to grow as an author.

From

Thomas Heaven

CHAPTER 1

The Conference

"E volution is a magnificent thing. It is the mechanism that has made us who we are today. Through it, we have been equipped with the lenses to see the world through; the calm, gentle melody of the bassoon. I feel abundantly gracious for the gift of adaptation!

What a pity it is that mankind will never see it occur with their naked eyes! We can only observe the fortunate evidence that the fossil records bring, with regards to how species have changed and adapted over time. So fossilisation would suggest that it would be impossible to observe this with the naked eye, wouldn’t it? Or can it be observed?"

John looked up at the delegates, then smiled to himself, proud over his ostentatious display.

"I, Johnathan Grunge, scientist, professor and a genius of our modern world, of course! I am constructing revolutionary technology which can evolve any organism, by manipulating its DNA. If my theories are correct, I will be able to expand our limitations beyond what we ever imagined before. Humans that are capable of flight, exponential growth or regrowth of amputated limbs. Perhaps even the creation of webs. Anything in our wildest imagination is possible through this new DNA technology.

Prior to today, knowledge of this technology was classified. Only my science team and the head of the British Science Community (BSC) were aware.

Currently, this technology hasn’t been authorised for human testing. However, there have been numerous experiments conducted on rodents and pigs. The change in DNA seems to perform an activity of an evolutionary nature to the subjects. Unfortunately, some animals seemed to be uncomfortable under these new conditions, so our scientists had to euthanise them.

You will be surprised by the effect DNA has on your daily life. It can receive data from previous generations and transfers them to your personal genetic patterns. Imagine if you have a musical talent like your grandfather, or the intelligence of your mother; or on the other side of the spectrum, cancer from your father. The brain just processes new and old information. DNA determines who each and every one of us are through its data.

In addition, our current genetic patterns do not protect us from most dangers. For instance, titles such as Child Missing, person in a horrific accident or person died of cancer. These are subjects nobody wants to read about in their morning paper. I have the mind and the tenacity to follow this project through. Through my DNA research I can prevent any future fathers from enduring the pain I had to endure.

Through forced manipulation and forced evolution of species, I can personally see an end to all of these tragedies once and for all. There is a quote that I find remarkable from one of the greatest men who ever lived, Isaac Newton. He claimed he stood on the shoulders of giants, to make the discoveries that he made. With the help of my science team and the brilliant minds of old, I have constructed technology that could bring us to the new world. That is why I created the project under the jurisdiction of the BSC. This project was classified until now!"

Any questions? Doctor Johnathan Grunge was outside the BSC building in the centre of London. That previous statement was the speech that he gave in front of a large audience at a science conference in the city. The BSC facility had two separate buildings. Behind the podium was a large dark blue warehouse with just the letters BSC inscribed in bold yellow writing. It always reminded John of an IKEA building, and he always protested the look of it. Nobody ever listened to such protests, despite his frustration.

Behind the audience stood the office buildings, which appeared to be completely constructed by pure white walls and glass, a minimalist touch. John always appreciated the look of that building but always thought about the poor cleaners. They must be there every week slogging their guts out, non-stop.

There were people of all sorts in the audience. The world-renowned scientists who were earning millions for their endeavours, or just the local nerd you’ll see in your comic book store. It frustrated Grunge to imagine these adolescent buffoons, turning up to his conferences expecting something on a science fiction scale, gushing over him as they would with Han Solo. He took his work seriously and his patience dwindled for those who didn’t appreciate it the way it should. However, he appreciated the support and bit his lip whenever they proposed ludicrous things.

The crowd turned ravenous. As animals would, they clambered over each other trying to get a better glimpse of Doctor Grunge giving his lecture. After John uttered his final words, flashes of light struck at him reminiscent of lightning.

Doctor Grunge, a journalist shouted from the audience. How can you possibly manipulate DNA?

Doctor Grunge shuffled his body and adjusted his cufflinks. A knowing smile crept up his cheeks as he contemplated the genius he was within. Pure joy emerged when he realised he can unleash his mind upon the nescience of this audience. Cockiness and pride were abundantly clear through his expressions, but it was merited in his own opinion. Doctor Grunge simply was brilliant to be around and his excellence was awe-inspiring. Anyone who worked beside him was bewildered by his astute mind.

Johnathan Grunge straightened his posture like that of a pencil. Straining to work the deformed arthritic curves he had developed with his old age. His prideful glance continued to brighten as he swung his arm towards the presentation.

Well, I’m glad you asked kind sir, He said belittlingly as he shifted for his next blow. The machine analyses the structure of the DNA pattern, then formulates how all the iddie biddie parts function.

The reporters face fell into a grimace and he snarled at Grunge. To most men, this would have brought a sense of shame. Not to Grunge though. That smirk was brighter than it ever was, it just confirmed his prediction.

The machine compiles this information and then magnifies it. Eventually, you will be able to see the genetic pattern, then using our modern laser technology we can add or remove genomes accordingly, even from other subjects. A deep cringe settled to the bottom of his stomach when he said other subjects. This was as foolish as throwing a lump of sirloin steak into a dog’s den with those wily reporters. Any dirty secret they could get on Grunge, they would obtain. So he had to remain vigilant.

A woman asked predictably who are the subjects?

Grunge sulked as he acknowledged his deep pit of embarrassment. It was a rookie mistake to not clarify his words, and he should have bitten down on his tongue. Inadvertently, the audience was dragged out of the mystery of his experiments to now have concerns over ethical aspects. Rolling his eyes to the back of his head, John avoids beating himself in grief over the error.

It is a matter of what not who. John could see the sense of mystery and wonder in the air, he hungered for it. It resolved all awareness of his deep embarrassment. John’s confidence blossomed once more.

John’s lips crept up his cheeks as his proud grin returned. Contrasted to his confidence however, he looked down at his hands and they shook violently with nerves. I’m getting too old for this. Shifting his arms behind his back he held his wrist and stabilised it from his shudders and kept it hidden from sight. I can’t show any of my shortcomings to these wolves!

My team has created technology that can harvest specific DNA patterns from different species, and integrate them with the human genome patterns. This will adapt humans to share characteristics of other species.

The crowd started muttering to each other as gossiping children would in a schoolyard. Evermore brighter his grin widened as his ego was feasting on those reactions.

I would encourage you all to contemplate the possibilities. Can you imagine if the police force had the power of spider man? Or they had the healing power of Wolverine? They roared with a thunderous applause. John was pleased with himself and how he used fictional characters to entice their simple minds into his experiments. He knew the prospect of seeing the heroes they grew up to love in the real world would excite them, so he toyed with it.

"Imagine also if we had the ability to regenerate like a lizard. We could heal from any wound or amputation, or Ummm" As his mind was processing the information, his words suspending in a Ummm, and the audience waited patiently for his thoughts to gather together.

His words paused as a sadness clouded him. Memories of Rebecca stood at the forefront of his mind. His daughter that he lost, plagued his mind and was the muse for this endeavour. The power of regeneration from a lizard would be insufficient for the demise she endured. He contemplated a few different animals, searching for answers to rectify his mistakes.

Also imagine if we had wings to fly as a bird does! Or float. Sometimes he saw his muse had flaws, genetic science wasn’t the perfect solution to these issues. He was not entirely sure of the ethical implications of giving a boy wings, but he also didn’t care either. If he could save another innocent child, it would all be worth it.

John knew he had teased the people’s curiosity. It was a simple premise and the people loved it. It was in the interest of all of humanity to improve on their survival. He concluded, The dawn of humanity is within our grasp!

As he confidently strode across the platform, his charade of stage confidence subsided and his breathing suddenly became unbalanced. Sweat seeped through all of his pours across his body; he also began to choke on the dryness of his throat.

Hearing the audience cheering made the steps feel daunting. The steel death trap that laid before him seemed an impossible task. His legs nervously wobbled but he managed to face each step successfully.

Reporters were everywhere, the hounds managed to break through to the back of the stage and dribbled over him as though he was fresh meat. They started bombarding him about the moral implications of his experiments and flashed bright lights in his eyes. He snarled at them and pushed them away, security escorted them back to the outside areas. I don’t have time for you dirty animals and all of your snares!

Doctor Grunge! Are you doing all of this because of the Snowdon incident? How dare they bring that up! They have no right to talk about Rebecca, no right!

John continued to pace down the hallway as a woman approached him. She confidently wore a tailor-made suit and had an aura of complete professionalism. This attire would have been completely male if she didn’t strut in her large shiny black heels. Her slick black hair was kept back in a neat knotted shape tightened by a bobble, chastising her beauty. Although chastised, it was undeniable that this was an exceptionally attractive woman. A mystery woman. Her professionalism camouflaged away all of the curves from her bosoms and waist, but nobody would ever doubt her feminine physique was present. Atop her perfect nose, big square glasses were suspended to magnify the ocean blue within her eyes. It fit a certain stereotype, and yes, the intelligence was also a marvel to observe, but she seemed to have everything.

Most ludicrous of all was her smile. All the scientists across the lab were always hypnotised by her sorcerous grin. Even for a bewed man such as Grunge, any conversation she offered, he would happily take.

In her hand, she offered a soothing glass of cold water to John. He snatched it out her hand thirstily and the water seemed to evaporate from the bottle and down John’s gullet. John wiped away any remnants off his lips and gulped hard to remove any last droplets. Then he nodded in gratitude to the woman. His thirst was quenched, relieved as if he had been on a trip across a desert.

Well done Doctor Johnathan Grunge! You were amazing out there Johnny! Hannah Walters, the attractive woman, announced in a flattering tone. John once more witnessed that smile with those blue eyes, his heart melted like ice in his hands. Attempting to mirror her, Grunge grinned also, but to no avail.

They strode out of the area and told each other inside jokes of the past and talked about fond memories (about family gatherings they used to have with her ex-husband and Mary and Rebecca.) Doing so at a consistent pace, as they sensed the hounds had obtained their scent and would be following their tracks. Neither of them wanted to be questioned any further on the subject and they had a tight schedule to abide by.

They walked through the car park and entered Grunge’s De Tomaso Pantera. They pounced into the vehicle. John immediately inserted his key, then twisted it firmly into the ignition. They swiftly pulled off. They had to continue with the project back at the lab. They were so close to finally completing the project, they could taste it.

CHAPTER 2

The project

D octor Johnathan Grunge’s laboratory was always busy at this stage of the process. Developmental stages were now switching promptly into the trial phases, the change was abundantly clear through Grunge’s movements. Seldom had he settled in a singular place.

Marvellous, the facility’s display was to the eye. The outer structure was made of a shiny black chrome material that glistened in the sunlight. Chrome borders engulfed with pure black concrete; the walls intertwined with triangular patterns of glass, ornamenting into a mesmerising pane. Surrounding the property were patches of grassland with shrubberies and copses where the robins and the magpies resided. The modern glass entrance opened smoothly within the foyer.

Different scientists from a variety of fields roamed the bustling halls. Some worked for John’s experiments, but not by his side. For John to reach his lab, he had to travel deep within the complex.

Many of them were pioneers across the world in fields such as Biochemistry, Bioengineering/ Engineering, Geneticism, Zoology and Theoretical Physics. Yet all of these people came to learn from the amazing Doctor Johnathan Grunge. Despite being a biochemist, John was profoundly educated on most scientific studies, making him potentially one of the smartest people alive.

His personal laboratory was grand in scale. It was tall and cubic like a warehouse. On the borders of the room, there were glass offices for scientists deemed most important to Doctor Grunge. Doctor Jason Ryland, his head geneticist, for instance, had the office nearest to John. On the four corner walls of the facility stood enormous monitors. They displayed key information for the experiments being practised there. In the centre of the room, there was an open-plan space, where hundreds of scientists sat intently studying their monitors. For every ten office cubicles, a desk was reserved for an appointed time to conduct experimental activities.

Doctor Jason Ryland also coined the term Noah’s ark for John’s lab. This was due to the variety of species they inhabited there. Normally a lab would test on pigs or rats. Despite John still keeping animals of this sort within the facility, John’s lab was out of the ordinary. Inside, he inhabited obscure animals such as lizards, elephants, lions, monkeys and bears. Odours of animal droppings and lab chemicals mixed into an obscure tang. Some felt this atmosphere was not appropriate for the professional field they were in. However, most adjusted quite nicely and grew fond of the multitudes in the Ark.

Well it’s good to be back isn’t it Johnny? Hannah Walters sniggered.

As they wandered through the Ark together, Hannah cooed at the animals, as she practised commonly within their work schedule. John occupied himself in studying these animals- despite them not being necessary. Most of them would never be used for experimentation, many were just used for aesthetic purposes.

One of the cages rattled as Hannah approached. She suddenly quickened her pace and stood close to the cage. Hi, baby! How are you? A low grunt sounded throughout the cell and a rustling advanced to the bars slowly. Filled with joy, Hannah held out her hand to Sid the Silverback, then placed her palm against his.

Doctor Jason Ryland sat in the background with his white lab coat and rested his converse shoes on Doctor Nolan’s desk. Bouncing a tennis ball on the floor casually, he watched the scientists walk around him. Jason’s hair was gelled up into a slick flick of black, with tendrils of grey. French connection glasses rested upon his face. As he bounced the ball, his face was covered in boredom, then he spotted Hannah playing with Sid.

Oi! Hannah! Jason shouted.

When she twisted around to meet his gaze, he threw the ball towards her. She caught it awkwardly. Sid hopped about with pure excitement and paced the cage. Hannah teased Sid with the ball, he bellowed with frustration. Hannah threw the ball and he caught it in his hand like a baseball mitt.

With his hands, he juggled the ball as he watched his target. When Sid played catch, he always threw it to destroy his target. He twisted his wrist and swung the ball at Hannah, the ball swooped at her with tremendous speed. She then caught it tightly, holding it to her chest.

Is the process approaching completion Hannah? John begged.

Within her hands, the ball looked brighter than ever and wanted to keep playing. Geneticists and Zoologists surrounded them and observed the game. When John dismissed the playtime, they were left with a sulk of frustration. Jason approached and continued playing catch with Sid, allowing Hannah and John to continue their conversation.

When work took this long to complete, impatience chipped in quickly. John was sick and tired of the wait for this project to get authorisation for human trials. He craved that boost of dopamine that he gets from his achievements. It’s a loss until it’s a victory his father always told him.

Hannah had a deep admiration for John. Indeed they were close and have been together through a lot. It was a peculiar relationship in a certain way due to Hannah’s excessive need to please him. It was almost as though she got her own dopamine rush when she expressed how she had done something good. Brilliant news was all she had to lay at his feet, and the positivity shone through her pores and her lips.

Yes, Johnny. The test is ready for today as promised.

Once more the smile of Hannah melted all the concerns within Grunge and softened him. They have been good friends even before the incident with Rebecca. She helped him through everything, the experiments, troubles in his marriage, the drug abuse, the death... Hannah was a friend he never asked for but would not… could not push away.

As expected by the scientists, John paced to the front of the laboratory to initiate his experiments. They all watched with an awestruck eagerness. Under usual conditions, you could launch a rocket in that room and nobody would move an inch. When the great scientist, Doctor Johnathan Grunge stood at the front, you could hear a pin drop. Even Jason stopped playing with Sid to focus on John; the gorilla sat down, impatiently sulking.

I would like to express my gratitude for all of your efforts. You all understand how personal these trials are to me. This is why I am honoured to announce that test one will commence in ten minutes!

Hannah giggled and jumped with excitement, doing so erratically in a single spot. She acted like a giddy child. Her whole demeanour dissolved away when she had some dark realisation unbeknownst to the rest of the lab.

But… Johnny. Which animal is being used for the experiment today? When she walked through the zoo earlier and looked at the animals, it never occurred that it would be the last time she would look at one of them. The harsh reality was, if the experiment goes wrong, the animal might suffer and that prospect broke her heart. It was a thought that had not occurred to the rest of the lab also, so they rumbled nervously.

John was aware of the animal he wanted to select. Words lingered on his tongue, he just didn’t want to utter it through his mouth. Scientists who have joined his team from the other side of the world, stood waiting for his answer. Yet they had also come to love the ambience of his lab, beside the animals he kept within. All of them awaited a response. John knew this animal, in particular, was one of the favourites. He tallied up the pros and cons, he just knew that this was the perfect candidate. Damn it, sometimes the pressure is just too much!

His lips held the name but it was tearing at him. Temptation arose to just blurt the words out, but it was locked to his tongue.

I think we all know the perfect candidate. One species, in particular, are extremely close to humans. All the scientists could see where he was going, but they refused to accept it as truth. It’s got to be Sid the silverback, John announced.

Bellows and loud gasps passed amongst the crowd over the horrendous decision. Scientists who have worked alongside Grunge used to watch Sid as an infant and cooed over him. John would let him out from time to time and he would climb all over the scientists. A woman named Doctor Harris used to work down in the biochemistry department. She used to go crazy and yell for Sid to get off of her, but everyone would just laugh at his mischievous personality.

Hannah played with him almost every day since he was first brought into the lab. Catch was his favourite game, and Hannah would risk a fractured rib every time. John also sneakily trained the ape to throw his excrement at the BSC when they visited, they wore blue lab coats instead of the traditional white in Grunge’s lab. There was a day when Jason strutted in with a blue coat and he got covered in Sid’s faeces.

Sid was now over six feet tall and could rip a man in half with ease if he desired to. His muscles bulged, thicker than many of the men’s heads within the lab. Despite this though, Sid was a delicate creature. Any such activity would be an extreme fluctuation of his character. Despite Gorillas being such a dangerous species, his temperament was outstanding.

Although shocking to all of the scientists, they