 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
<< Back to Poems & Writings Main
Alpha and Omega - Part 12
By Marie Ellen Pacha
His benefactors had planned well beyond the cloning stage however. In many ways they were visionaries...but then they should have been. They had manipulated world affairs for so long they should have been able to anticipate the outcome of their actions. In granting nuclear power and weaponry to relatively unstable nations they placed their futures in shaky hands.
They assumed that eventually some disaster would befall the planet; either manmade or natural. And they had no intention of dying when that happened. Not only did they create Eden, but they created our facility and seven others like it around the world. They would have shelter, and they would not go hungry in the event of a disaster. But they misjudged their ability to control their pawns, and they mistimed their escapes.
And one other crucial link was not put in place. The data that would allow god to communicate with the other facilities was not entered into Eden's databank.
Eventually that became a dilemma for god. His/its programming indicated he was to clone particular individuals, and keep them in uteri until they reached maturity. During this period they would be subjected to procedures and experiences, education if you will, that were designed to mimic the life experiences of the original subject. Once the "birthing" process was complete the clones were supposed to be released to fulfill whatever objective the originator had pre-ordained for the remainder of their life span.
Lawson was still alive and present in Eden at the time of Armageddon. He saw no reason to change god's programming at that time. He had been told by his benefactors that he would be contacted by another agency in the event of a disaster; this was their way of maintaining control over him. He had not taken an active role in developing or monitoring delivery of supplies to Eden and no way of knowing how long he could maintain his existence; let alone that of his creations.
He had not had the foresight to anticipate an extended period of isolation with his staff. It consisted of all men. Unless they were contacted by that outside agency they would eventually perish from old age, unless of course they utilized the cloning facilities and "created" a female, and mated with her their bloodlines would perish.
After the first flurry of missiles struck he met with staff, and explained the situation as fully as he understood it. At that point he planned to ensure that all the equipment could and would maintain itself in the absence of all human life and technical support. And then he offered his staff the option of cryogenic life support or having their DNA stored for eventual cloning. By the time 10 years had passed all of his assistants had chosen one or the other option; although a few took a third option, suicide.
Lawson was eventually left alone, with god as his only companion. His last directive to god was to begin cloning procedures as programmed. By this time he assumed that these clones might be the last humans left on earth. He forgot that god had not been programmed to provide more than minimal life support for the clones. The clones had been altered to be resistant to all known diseases, but there were other medical conditions god was not programmed to anticipate or treat. In an effort to protect his creations from themselves Lawson programmed their food supply to include doses of hormones designed to decrease sexual drive and prevent conception. God would teach them what to eat; Lawson assumed they would continue that routine indefinitely. If other humans survived they would be the ones responsible for integrating the clones into whatever society existed; and teaching them the social norms and mores. But he did not program god to monitor the clones' compliance. And he did not take into account the first two subjects that would be cloned, or free will.
His last communication to his colleague indicated that his health was failing and his life was nearing its end. He had no plans to clone himself.
Continue to Part 13
This article is © copyrighted by Marie Ellen Pacha. Any use of this article, in full or in part, is strictly prohibited without written permission from Marie Ellen Pacha.
|
|
| |
 |
|
| |
