A Warm Welcome
Doctor Wingerd stood to the side of the stage as she
watched her test subjects file into the large hall and find their seats. Excitement coursed through her. At last she was going to get what she had
always dreamed of: fame and power. Once everyone was seated and had quieted
down, she turned on her mike and climbed the steps to the stage.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!” she cried as
she strode to the center of the stage, her heels clicking on the hard
surface. She spread her arms in welcome
as she beamed at the faces around her. “I
cannot tell you how pleased I am to see you all here before me and that you
were all so willing to sacrifice your time to help science continue to move
forward! I hope you all had safe travels
here from wherever you came from and I hope you are all finding your living
arrangements to be satisfactory!” A
murmur of approval arose from the audience as these words. She wasn’t surprised, everything about the
apartments she had built for them was top of the line and most had never lived
anywhere quite so nice in all their lives.
Silencing the crowd with a slight wave of her hands,
she continued, “Now, I know you are all eager to get to the dinner we have
specially prepared for you, so I will be quick in giving you some of the
details as to how things are going to work out here. Over the next week you all will be meeting
with 250 of the world’s best 3D modelers to create your new bodies. You will also be meeting with 250 of the
world’s best psychologists and medical professionals to create your new mental
and medical state. Tomorrow you will
have the whole day to yourselves to explore our facilities, begin to work out
and list what changes you would like to make to yourselves, or anything else
you might want to do around the center.
I am sorry that you will not be able to go into the city as there is
just too much of a risk of injury or of you getting lost.” Groans of disappointment and some protests
erupted at this, but were quickly silenced by her next words. “I know that is a disappointment to many of
you, but I want you to know that later on during testing, there will be several
trips into the city, so do not despair.
We just need you to be patient.”
“Monday is when the work will begin, so Monday,
Tuesday, and Wednesday, half of you will be meeting with our modelers from 9am
to 6pm each day while the other half is meeting with our psychologists and
medical professionals. You all will
switch on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
Sunday will again be a free day for you all to analyze your new looks,
personalities, etc. and decide if there are any further changes you’d like to
make. Beginning next Monday, we will be
taking 50 people each day and placing you in the Transformer over the next two
weeks. Following your transformation you
will each be placed in isolation for a week so we can observe the changes and
make sure there have been no complications.
After that, you will be taken out of isolation and we will begin running
a series of physical and mental tests to make sure everything is functioning
properly. You’ll be getting more details
as to what will happen after that when we get closer.”
“Now tonight when you get back to your apartments
you will find a packet on your beds.
Make sure you read it carefully and that you read it all. It will outline the parameters for your
physical and mental changes and give some advice and ideas for what you might
want to consider when deciding what those changes will be. I would recommend that you do spend a portion
of tomorrow making a comparison list of what changes are most important to you
and which are least important. That will
help you to organize your thoughts and also help the professionals you’re
working with know what to focus on. Remember,
you will be able to change every aspect of your physical body from height and
weight to eye and hair color to bone structure and any physical deformities you
might have. You will also be able to remove
any mental infirmities you have except for cerebral palsy and autism. I am sorry to say that we have not been able
to fully correct those issues, though we have certainly been able to make vast
improvements. Moreover, due to you all
being our first group of testers, you will have to opportunity to try out more
talents than we would normally. We have
the full explanation in your packets, but just to give you a bit of a teaser,
if you’ve ever dreamed of playing the piano or any other instrument at a high
level, or having the ability to play some sport at a more professional level,
this is your chance! And now with that,
I think it’s time to eat!”
The conclusion of her speech was met with thunderous
applause and she couldn’t help but give a self-satisfied smirk as she walked
off the stage. Her personal assistant,
Andrei, offered his hand as she stepped down.
She accepted it as she descended gracefully.
“That was beautifully done, ma’am,” he said
respectfully. “Particularly there at the
end, you really piqued their curiosity.”
“Well that was the point, dear,” she said, patting
him on the shoulder. “Shall we go into
dinner? I’d like to talk to some of
these people.”
She spent the next hour going from table to table,
taking the time to talk briefly with each person and assess their mood. When she was done, she was quite pleased. The people all seemed very excited, each in
their own way, about the upcoming changes in their lives. She thanked them all one more time for being
there, reminded them to read their packets thoroughly, and then exited the building.
Outside, she sighed happily and breathed in the cool
night air. The research center was built
on nearly 30 acres of land. Besides
being the site of the massive research center, her personal house was on the
property as were the ten apartments that had been built specifically for the
subjects of the trial. It also had a
full gym including an Olympic sized pool, a large riding stable, a golf course,
basketball courts, a soccer field, a baseball diamond, a running track, a music
building, a computer lab, medical facilities, and a whole variety of other
indoor and outdoor facilities. Her house
sat on a large hill overlooking the center with a perfect view of New York
City.
Pulling her keys out of her purse, she quickly slid
into her car and drove the short distance to her house. As she pulled into the driveway she remotely
activated the massive gate that stood open at the entrance to the facility, closing
it and blocking the only entrance and exit.
She smiled as she climbed out of her car, satisfied that no one would be
leaving the property or sneaking on.
Inside her house, she tossed her keys onto the granite
counter in her kitchen and proceeded to pour herself a glass of wine. Leaving her shoes in a heap on the floor, she
walked into her living room and reclined on the couch, sipping her wine as she
looked out the floor to ceiling windows.
New York was ablaze with light and sounds, though she could hear none of
it in the comfort of her home. It was so
beautiful, she thought, it looked so alive.
But there was an ugliness there too that the bright lights
concealed. She knew, she had seen the
ugliness first hand. She felt the
excitement of the evening begin to escape as she continued to stare at the
city. Beautiful on the outside with
ugliness on the inside. Like me, she
thought bitterly. She knew it was true
of every city, but not every city was in plain view.
(Disclaimer: I am not a science or medical geek or know-it-all, so I am well aware that parts of my book here are going to be outside the realm of possibility. I have done what research I can to make it as authentic as possible, but due to the nature of my story, many of the science and medical aspects are going to be impossible. I hope you'll be able to ignore those shortcomings and just enjoy the story for what it is.)
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