Yoongi returned the rhesus monkey to the cage that sat alongside its DNA creator.
‘Strands of subject B identical to subject A and showing zero evidence of mutation.’ Yoongi reeled off the data, whilst from behind the fortress of monitors, Namjoon’s fingers sailed gracefully over his keyboard.
The laboratory floor was huge, and their level alone was dedicated to the research and development of cloning cells - from plants and small organisms to a variety of furry mammals. The duo worked alone, but due to the glass partitioned workspace, there was little privacy amongst them and their peers.
Yoongi’s attention shifted when a plump man with a rapidly receding hairline peered into their workspace without so much as an acknowledgement. His boss, Mr Cheon, had a talent for belittling each and every member of staff, when ironically, he had zero training in the field of science.
‘I can’t stand anything about that guy,’ Yoongi barked, keeping an eye on the man’s whereabouts. ‘He throws orders at us, but doesn’t know the difference between a petri dish and a test tube.’
‘Don’t let it get under your skin. We both know the guy can’t even flip a burger,’ Namjoon muttered, still engrossed in his work as he slid his chair over and reached for a microarray slide. ‘We just need to keep our heads down. Our time will come.’
Yoongi hovered behind, glancing between the lens he adjusted into focus, and the paper he scribbled his findings on. The DNA from their latest subject - Milo the monkey - had been a success. Their furry friend was healthy with no mutations.
‘What are we doing here, Joon?’ Yoongi continued, knowing his colleague was frustrated too, but better at hiding it. ‘We have the perfect formula to create a sustainable human clone.’ Namjoon only looked up briefly between recording his results. ‘How many opportunities do we give them until it’s time to move on?’
‘We’re working on a government project. They have to ensure everything we do is ethical,’ Namjoon droned his words of wisdom.
‘Exactly,’ Yoongi challenged, ‘but we aren’t the government.’ He tried to reason with the unexcited eyes that now looked up at him. ‘We’ve already done the hard work. We just need to take it over the finish line.’
‘I want to make history as much as you do,’ Namjoon sighed and adjusted the speaker that flooded the room with heavy bass. ‘Just be patient.’
Yoongi watched Namjoon nod his head with the rhythm. Part of him was jealous, because he was unable to push his dreams aside and take orders from the clowns at CIN Tech.
‘Joon.’ Yoongi coughed when the door opened and the incompetent dimwit, Cheon Dal-Su, entered their lab.
‘Not now, Yoongi, I-’ Namjoon tapered off and plastered a smile on his face when he noticed their disgruntled boss strolling towards them.
‘How many times do I have to walk into you so-called scientists with this god awful noise?’ Dal-Su glared and lifted his hand to his neck, silently asking them to cut the music.
Both men bowed in unison before Namjoon trudged over to the speaker, and in an instant, the room became sullen.
‘We were hoping you would stop by.’ Yoongi begrudgingly dropped his attitude, and tested the water on taking the next steps. ‘We’ve been discussing a new idea and-’
‘Not interested.’ The stubby chief dismissed him as he prodded the hi-tech machines, leaving greasy prints on the sterilised surfaces. ‘Do what we ask of you, and stop trying to be the next Einsteins.’
Yoongi glanced at his buddy, and had to bite his tongue to stop the word vomit that was brewing. He was at breaking point with the ignorant buffoon, and if he spoke his mind, they would be marched off the premises without a second thought.
‘Sir, if you could let us have five minutes to explain, then-’
Namjoon was cut short by a dismissive open palm, and Yoongi had to hide a sneer of disgust as Mr Cheon stood toe to toe with them; the beads of sweat that rolled from his shiny forehead repulsed him.
‘My patience is wearing thin with the pair of you,’ Mr Cheon droned with a contemptuous smile, ‘should I start looking for replacements?’
‘No, sir.’ Both men bowed their heads again, knowing they were a couple of words off being unemployed.
‘I’ll leave you to carry on playing with your monkey,’ he chuckled before spinning on his Italian Oxfords to haunt the next group of lackeys.
If looks could kill, Chubby-Cheon would have dropped dead on the spot as Yoongi gave a one-fingered salute to his back. What he wouldn’t give to do that to his face, followed by a verbal lashing on where he could shove his job.
‘Wanna see something cool?’ Yoongi asked once they were alone, eager to brush off the foul mood that enveloped him.
‘Why does that make me nervous?’ Namjoon’s chocolate eyes peered up at him from under the black rims of his glasses.
Yoongi fought back a smile; it didn’t take much to put his friend into a state of concern. He’d seen him grow apprehensive over a barista getting his coffee order wrong.
‘Stop being a pussy, and follow me,’ he whined, taking hold of his sleeve and pulling him to his feet.
Yoongi kept a firm grip on his arm until they reached the door, and with a quick sweep of the floor, he slipped out and darted to the stairwell. He turned to the pair of eyes scrutinising him from behind and gave him an encouraging nod for him to keep up.
‘Why aren’t we using the elevator?’ His buddy questioned whilst trying to keep pace with him as they descended the steps.
Yoongi couldn’t contain his smile any longer when they reached below ground level. The corridor was illuminated with emergency lighting and resembled the set of a cheap horror movie, but he knew the maze of walkways like the back of his hand.
‘Don’t freak out,’ he whispered, looking up to his impatient friend that towered over him.
Yoongi knew Namjoon would flip out the moment he saw what was behind the door, but he needed to do something to get their careers back on track. He took a deep breath, twisted the door knob, and felt for the switch to brighten the lightless room buried in the heart of the facility.
‘Are you crazy?’ Namjoon hissed as the light flickered to life, giving them a glimpse of Yoongi’s secret. ‘You’ll go to jail if they catch you doing this!’
‘Calm down.’ He shrugged him off and whipped off the white sheet covering the tank in the corner of the room. ‘I’ve been coming down here for three months and haven’t seen a soul.’
Namjoon shot over to the vessel and pressed his face against the glass. ‘Thank God it’s empty!’
‘You didn’t think I’d do something without you, did you?’ Yoongi took a place beside him, running his hand over the large chamber.
He could handle the project alone, but he and Namjoon had spent years with the shared dream of being pioneers in the field. No way would he leave his best buddy behind.
It felt like a lifetime ago, but when they were fresh out of university, an offbeat, ageing scientist took a shine to them and introduced them to the world of human cloning. They spent their days with the mad professor who’d taken them under his wing and given them a job in his private research facility.
Between the three of them, they created life.
The first attempts were successful to an extent, but their clones never lasted more than a month or two before expiring. Mr Jang decided they should focus on creating an enhanced growth supplement, along with an artificial womb. His theory was that, if he could speed up the growth past puberty, then the clone would have a higher rate of survival.
Many late nights were spent perfecting the procedure, and with Mr Jang’s DNA, their mentor’s double reached the age of twenty-five in approximately three months inside their chamber, using the carefully concocted potion of hormones.
It was a sad day when the old man passed away. His estate was inherited by a family that never visited. More than the funding and progessive experimentation, they missed his guidance. His demise left them with no choice but to find a job, and they were lucky enough to be taken as a team at CIN Tech.
Yoongi had taken it upon himself to find a way back into doing what they loved. For months he had been sourcing equipment from different departments, and constructed the artificial womb they needed to clone a human life.
With every day that passed at CIN Tech, Namjoon became more and more withdrawn, but as he watched his friend inspect his mis-matched equipment, he began to see a fire in his eyes again.
‘Have you thought about the consequences if anybody does come across your makeshift lab?’ Namjoon lectured through gritted teeth. ‘I want this as much as you do, but doing this illegally in the basement of a government facility is not the way to go about it.’
‘What if we nail it?’ Yoongi stood his ground.
‘Do you really think they’d let us take credit for this?’ Namjoon spouted as he rubbed his temples. ‘We would be handing over a lifetime of work on a plate.’ And then for extra effect, came face to face with him. ‘Oh, and we will go to prison.’
‘I don’t see you coming up with a plan!’ Yoongi retaliated. ‘You just gave up after Mr Jang.’
‘Yes, and I still haven’t got over having to kill it to lay beside Mr Jang in his grave.’
‘But, we did it. The clone was perfect. And we can produce another in a few months.’
‘I’m not visiting you in jail, Yoongi,’ Namjoon said as he covered the machine up, ‘and how do you plan on getting your clone out of the facility?’ Opening the door, he motioned Yoongi over with a curt flick of his head. ‘Have you thought about that?’
‘I hadn’t thought that far ahead.’ Yoongi was hit by a pang of dejection as he considered Namjoon’s words. He was so caught up with the aspect of continuing their groundbreaking achievement, that he hadn’t considered the repercussions.
‘Let’s come back tomorrow to pack this gear up.’ Namjoon smiled, resting a hand on his shoulder as Yoongi hit the switch, leaving the room, and his dreams, in complete darkness.
‘What if-’ Yoongi stopped and smiled but was met with an exasperated eye roll. ‘Listen to me, Joon. Some rich big shot will invest in us, it’s a no brainer. Especially if we can integrate the A.I programme we developed.’
‘I want no part of it.’ Namjoon clenched his jaw, and confirmed his stance on the matter. ‘I’m not going to let you do it either.’
‘But this was our dream!’ He fought, trying to chip away at the man’s stubbornness.
‘We haven’t used A.I before.’ Yoongi scurried to keep up when Namjoon strode ahead. ‘I don’t know if I can kill another clone. To me, it's as good as taking a human life.’
‘There’s bound to be a few hiccups along the way.’ He countered, trying to defend their work. ‘Part of being a scientist is overcoming the obstacles.’
‘If,’ Namjoon stopped, swiveled, and held his index finger to Yoongi’s chest, ‘and I mean if I decide to do this, I’m not comfortable doing it right under the nose of the government.’
‘I knew you’d come around.’ Yoongi’s cat-like mouth turned up a fraction, satisfied that Namjoon was almost swayed by the idea.
‘I wouldn’t be against cloning myself to work this shitty job,’ Namjoon bantered as they ascended the last flight of steps back onto their level.
The ping of the text alert echoed in the concrete shaft and both men dug inside their lab coats to retrieve their phones.
‘It’s me.’ Yoongi mumbled as he opened the message from the unknown number.
‘I know that look, Yoongi.’ Namjoon held the door handle but didn’t open it, instead he narrowed his eyes that were full of suspicion. ‘What's going on?’
‘Nothing,’ he assured, but couldn’t help leaving him in suspense. ‘Yet.’
The text message was from Kim Taehyung.
In all honesty, Yoongi didn’t expect to hear from him. He assumed that he had one too many of the overpriced whiskeys to recollect after handing his phone over and asking for his number.
He had, however, thought about the encounter many times and was intrigued by the offer. His words stuck with him, for after he almost outed himself on the illegal experiments, Taehyung seemed all the more interested.
What did he mean by his line of work goes beyond number crunching?
Yoongi was excited, but also nervous. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but Taehyung had always made him a little anxious with his short answers and unreadable visage.
After today’s anti-climax with Namjoon, he was certain that meeting with Taehyung was the right thing to do to at least see what he had to offer.
As Yoongi followed Namjoon into the lab, he decided he would let him in on it if anything actually transpired. For now, he would go at it alone, and so eagerly tapped out a reply to confirm the business meeting in two weeks time.
Noxa Lounge.
He hoped Taehyung was buying again.
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