Chapter Four
The Lazarus Project
Prince Jason awoke with a start, cursing himself for having fallen asleep. Looking around he noticed the tray was gone and wondered how long he had been sleeping. Struggling to a sitting position, he leaned back against the wall and tried to pull his thoughts together but ended up dozing off yet again.
Hours passed before the Alterran awoke again. He gave up trying to think, struggling to a sitting position once more. The door suddenly opened and he found himself staring up at two very large men, who roughly dragged him from the room. Still weak from the extraction at tempt, he chose not to resist. "Alright, alright. I'll go quietly. There's no need to push."
His escorts ignored his protests, taking him to Legrand's real operating room where the probes would be implanted. Jason was scarcely through the door when a mask was forced over his face and he was rendered unconscious once again.
Nearly two weeks passed after the disastrous extraction attempt before the computer systems were finally back on-line. Jason had been kept under heavy sedation from the time of his surgery in order to give the probes time to heal in properly. It was only when the team was ready to make another extraction attempt that he was allowed to come to his senses, if only partially.
"I…I…know this room…" the Alterran muttered groggily, the world swimming around him. "I've…I've seen it before…somewhere…" He did not even attempt to fight as he was secured to the couch, being too busy struggling to concentrate. He became aware of someone standing off to one side, but the light shining into his eyes made it impossible to see the face. "Who are you people?" he asked at last. "What do you want from me?"
"Why, to help you, of course, your Highness," Dr. Legrand replied benignly. "Why else would you be sent here?"
"Sent?" Jason repeated the word as if he had never heard it. "I wasn't sent. I was kid napped."
"There, you see? This delusion of conspiracy—"
"Delusion!" Jason was incensed, his adrenaline level rising along with his temper. "I'm at tacked, drugged and tied up like a Christmas present. And you stand there telling me I'm imagining things!"
Legrand sighed heavily. "Your Highness, you mustn't fight the truth. You'll only make your recovery more difficult. The treatments will help you. But only if you'll let them."
"Treatments? What treatments?" Jason looked above his head just as a technician was bring ing down the helmet, its insides bristling with long spikes. In a sudden, horrifying instant he knew exactly what was happening. "The Lazarus Project!" he gasped, struggling in vain as his head was clamped into place. "No! You can't use that thing on me! I know what it does to people's minds!"
"Of course, you do," Legrand cooed condescendingly to his helpless prisoner. "It's going to help you remember where you first manifested this idea of conspiracy."
"I don't need any help remembering. I know who you are, Curtis Legrand! You can't hide from me in the dark." The prince continued to squirm as the helmet was brought into place, the pins moving into position with a snap.
Legrand leaned forward to reveal himself in the light, the look on his face sending a chill down the Alterran's spine. For the first time since his abduction, Jason felt real fear.
"I wouldn't dream of hiding from you, your Royal Highness," the Director hissed venomously. Looking up, he commanded, "Begin."
The prince let out an involuntary cry as the device was activated and power suddenly surged through him. His body went rigid and then slowly relaxed. Legrand smiled evilly down at him. How wonderfully sweet his revenge was going to be.
Looking up, the Director waved impatiently at the others. "What are you all standing around for? Begin the scan," he snapped. "Surely his adrenaline level is high enough for you to calibrate the gauges this time."
"You might've warned us the last time he wasn't human," the Chief Technician replied sourly. "I'd've run a test scan instead of—"
"I'm not interested in excuses, Inness. We're not being paid to make mistakes. We can't afford any further delays."
"We'll still have to give his body time to recover between sessions," Inness objected stupidly. "The electrochemical imbalances will—"
"Who do you think designed this system, you idiot?" the Director snapped impatiently. "Now do your job before I get someone else to do it for you."
Unimpressed by the all too familiar threats, Inness turned his attention to the main control board. Several monitors came to life as all systems were brought on-line. The recording equipment let out a small beep and the technician announced, "Ready to begin scan."
"I want two recordings," Legrand instructed suddenly.
"No problem. I can duplicate—"
"No, simultaneously. I want to make doubly sure there are no mistakes this time." Pausing, Legrand added, "In fact, run a test first. Just to be on the safe side."
Muttering to himself about the constant inconsistencies of his employer, Inness made a quick adjustment to the recording systems before beginning the test.
A small whimper escaped the helpless prince as the scan began. He had only been stunned by the activation of the helmet, not knocked unconscious as they all assumed. The delay had given him time to return to partial consciousness, something that went unnoticed by all present.
Across the room the image translator came on, its purpose being to translate the extracted thoughts into visual images the team could monitor. The screen flickered in an uncertain manner before settling down into crisp, exacting detail as the incident of a few minutes before was re played.
Satisfied that all was proceeding in a more orderly manner, the Director gave the order for the full procedure to commence.
"Are we following the original sequence?" Inness wanted to know, feeling as though he might explode when the response was no.
Legrand held up a hand before his Chief Technician could erupt. "I've already made the necessary changes. Just initiate the program."
With the flick of a few switches, the images from the Alterran's life began replaying them selves on the image translator. Years passing in a blur as the computer searched for the correct memory cluster. It did not slow down until it reached the point where Jason left for Gallifrey the first time.
A satisfied smile came to the Director's face as he watched this obvious success. The redesigned probes were working even better than he had hoped.
Virtually ignored, the captive prince moaned plaintively, his conscious mind powerless to stop the flood of information pouring forth in a swirl of chaotic images.
The extraction continued unimpeded until a single image appeared on the translator screen; the computer having come upon the Alterran's first encounter with the Doctor nearly two centuries earlier. It showed Jason digging someone out from beneath a pile of rubble.
The Director scowled at the image, cursing under his breath. "We've lost the thought stream."
"No, we haven't," Inness informed. "The computer's still—" He broke off when someone let out a shout. "Mr. Inness, look at this! I'm getting an adrenaline response. It's incredible. Some of the readings are off the scale."
At the same time the prince started to struggle weakly in his bonds, his conscious mind having latched onto more than just the memory. "Doctor…" he whispered. "Doctor, help me…"
Legrand stared at the image translator. "Whatever you do, don't lose that memory cluster. I want to know who that is." The words were barely out of his mouth when the screen went blank. His eyes narrowed in rage and he turned to the technicians in disgust. "Don't tell me you've lost it already?"
Inness looked up apologetically. "We've hit an area block. It just…switched off."
The Director sighed heavily, knowing this was inevitable. He was about to order the operation shut down when he noticed the prince still reacting to the stimulation. Pushing Inness aside, he switched the system to manual in a vain attempt to get at the memories behind the block.
The experiment came to an abrupt halt when Jason succeeded in breaking one of his restraints, his strength having been increased by the adrenaline rush and steady supply of energy. A quick jolt of power through the implants was all that was needed for his captors to render him senseless yet again.