Disclaimer: I do not own Shinzo.
Playing God
A young man, around his early 20's, walked through the halls of the sterile building. He had short brown hair, green eyes, and wore a white lab coat that was slightly too large for him. He had to squint because the glare coming off the polished steel walls was beginning to blind him. When he reached the room he was looking for, he knocked softly.
"Come in," said the muffled voice.
The room was much darker than the halls and was filled with all types of scientific equipment; beakers, test tubes, Bunsen burners, various chemicals, even some specimens in their tubular glass housings. Besides him, the only other person in there was his superior, a man who went solely by the name of Professor Evans (no one ever used his first name to address him). He also wore a lab coat and had black hair and eyes, though you couldn't see his eyes because he was staring into a microscope at the moment. He did not bother to look up from the device as he addressed the underling.
"What is it now Kurt?" he asked, moving away from the microscope, just enough to adjust his glasses. He always referred to the young man using his first name.
"Sir, I…I'm having some doubts about this. About the experiments." Kurt fiddled with his own pair of glasses, moving them too high up his face. It was a sign that he was nervous.
The professor looked up, his face showing a great deal of concern. "What's wrong? The last time I heard, the specimens we've created were doing just fine," he said, pointing to the occupied test tubes around him. The creatures inside floated peacefully in the clear, life-giving liquid that made up their environment. The creatures, so far, looked like human infants with added parts; pointy ears, tails, paws, even extra limbs that looked to be bits of metal stuck onto them. "And the human and animal subjects we're testing have taken just fine to the injections and DNA reconfiguring. Project Enterra is going very well."
"Oh no sir," replied Kurt. "I don't have any qualms about the project's success. These Enterrans, as you call them, are in no danger of dying or failing on us. It's just…"
"Yes, go on."
"Sir…Are we allowed to do this?"
"Excuse me?"
The lesser scientist bowed his head, staring at a spot on the floor. The question had been in his mind for months and he had been very eager to express his concerns with Professor Evans. But now he only felt embarrassed. His superior would probably chastise him for wasting his time.
"I'm sorry. I'll leave." Kurt made his way for the door, taking a quick look at the creatures around him, the creatures he had helped to create.
"No, wait. What do you mean when you say, 'Are we allowed to do this'?"
"Well, I know this project is for the benefit of the entire human race. We need these Enterrans to find a cure for the Andromeda Virus. They're all we have so far."
"Of course. Everyone, even those without a medical background, knows full well what this virus does to people."
Kurt could rattle off the effects without a second thought, the result of hours of studying what little scientists knew about it. "The symptoms are weakness, fatigue, vulnerability to other diseases, some cold and flu-like symptoms such as coughing, and blindness in some cases. It always ends with multiple organ failure and…"
"Death. You see, we have to do this. You should know that much by now."
"I'm not saying we shouldn't find a cure. I would never say that we should let people suffer and die. It's just that…do we have to create a new species to do so?"
"You know our studies have proven that animals, for some reason, are able to resist the virus. Their immune systems can fight it off and recover from it much better than ours can. Once the first generation of subjects has reached maturity, it'll just be a matter of studying them, performing tests, and creating a cure. I make it sound much easier than it really is, but that's all we can do, unless we get some miracle."
"…"
"Think of it as combining the best of both worlds; virus immunity and human intelligence."
"But what if these new beings aren't content with being our test subjects? What if this angers them? What if humans persecute them? It could be the age of slavery all over again. And we both know the government has no precautions set up, no civil rights for them in place."
"My boy, the government funded this project in the first place. Leave the 'civil rights' and other such concerns to the politicians and their political arenas. We are scientists; it's our job to create the Enterrans, not decide their ultimate fate."
"But what if their ultimate fate is to destroy us? Because we thought we could play God? You know they'll seek independence. You said it yourself; they'll have the intelligence matching that of humans."
"You worry too much Kurt. Go, get some rest. As for me, I still have work to do."
Professor Evans turned back to the microscope and his task of studying the cells on the slide. Kurt bowed his head again. At least he had had the opportunity to discuss his fears with the professor and wasn't harshly ridiculed for it. He left, the question still nagging away at the back of his mind.
He could only hope Project Enterra led to a cure…and not sorrow.
The End.
Author's Notes: It's been a while since I've seen any episodes, but I distinctly remember it being said that humans created the Enterrans to cure some virus or something. Just a few additional notes: I don't know much about the Japanese language, so that's why these two guys have English names. Also, from what I understand, the Andromeda Virus (besides being a cool name to use here) is a sci-fi concept, where a deadly virus could originate in the depths of space and kill us all. And I'm not trying to make a political statement here; I just thought it would a nice idea to put to words. Read and review.