Five Hundred Years Later


The annoying sound of the wall alarm blared out loud. In response, the tired woman in bed rolled over on her thin, nearly threadbare sheets, reached over to her nighttable top, and pressed a button. The alarm immediately cut off. Instead, a pleasant female voice, yet with a metallic ring, went out.

"Good morning, Dr. Shinza. The time is now 0100 DA. Please wake up."

The woman moaned in response to this, and turned again on the bed. She was still too tired. It didn't help that the lights in her room turned on, immediately adjusting themselves to the correct frequency and color range of broad daylight. She didn't want to get up. The female voice repeated its message after a pause, and continued to do so thereafter. The woman threw herself down face first on her pillow, and reached out to seize the sides of it with both hands and shove it up to her ears.

However, she had little time to relax or adjust. Suddenly, a hiss went out as the door to her room slid open. As it did, a young male, looking similar to her in build, stepped in the doorway and called out to the interior.

"Rise and shine, professor." The young man called in, in a playful voice. "Detek is making Goebentoo omelettes."

The woman groaned from her bed. "His Goebentoo omelettes are horrible…" She moaned back in response, making the young man snicker. However, she gave a pause after that, and then turned with a confused look to the male. Her eyes were closed, but her brow was furrowed in confusion and a bit of unease. "How did you open this door? I thought I locked it…"

"I know." The male answered with a grin. "I hacked it. It was Detek's idea. He was sick of waiting for you until 0600 DA."

The woman muttered. "Sarap…can you remind me again why I let you be my lab intern?"

The male shrugged. "I have a cute face?"

"Door close and lock. Change combination."

Immediately, the door slid shut again, sealing off the woman from the annoyance. She groaned again, but then rose from her bed at last. She sat up at first, but quickly turned her legs over the side and rose to her feet. Stretching, the woman ran her head behind her long, loose hair and raised her arms to the sky. Once she had done that, she slumped them to her sides, and with a long sigh turned and began to walk toward the bathroom.

Shinza was an attractive young woman. That was probably what had attracted people like Detek and Sarap to being her interns, rather than their interest in Biological Out-of-Place-Artifact research. It had been obvious from the day that she set foot in C'Kardendell University that she attracted the stares of other members of her species…and even some of the non-members of her species. After all, her race was known as personifying standards of beauty for numerous other races. Shinza had little interest in any of that. Her life was devoted to her work. She had just struggled to ignore the gawking and staring as she went about settling into her position at the university. From then on in, she simply sighed and accepted expressionlessly the endless love letters, Bonding Day gifts, and other displays of affection that tetered narrowly on the brink of sexual harassment.

Shinza was, like the other members of her species, defined best as humanoid, or a bipedal organism with legs longer than forearms, and a rather well-developed cranium. Like other humanoids, she was also hairless except for on her scalp, and her skin was normally a light beige, although it was somewhat whiter than normal species. Her home planet received little ultraviolet radiation, and her skin had little need for excessive melatonin. Her body was thinner than most humanoids also, as was the rest of her species, although to one of average build, she merely appeared to be very thin rather than skeletal. Also, like all of her species, she inhaled air through special gill slits along her neck, and exhaled through her main oral opening, which was also used for speaking and eating. These gills allowed her race to survive in the toxic clouds that sometimes arose and encircled her planet from the highly volatile magma interior, but they breathed clean air just as well, and they, in truth, preferred it. Her hair was light blue, which was an attractant. All of her species had hues of blue for hair, but very few had light shades like her. She had also been one of the 17 of people on her world who happened to have the trait for mismatched eyes. One was green and the other blue. Lastly, there were her ears. All of her species had extra long ears with pointed pinnas. However…hers were a precious inch longer, which, to most members of her race, was a mark of extreme beauty. It had gotten so bad at school some times, the woman had wanted to have surgery to crop them.

Shinza slowly went about her daily routine…washing up, showering, adjusting her long blue hair, and then getting dressed for her daily activities. All members of her species dressed simply, but she even more so. Her body was already too much of a natural attractant, and she wanted to give the distinct impression that she was not available by dressing as drab and unicolor as possible. She did so by wearing the basic uniform of a professor for C'Kardenell. She even supplemented it with the ancient ocular tool her world had long since abandoned: glasses. Most people like her would have had corrective lens surgery years ago, where biosythentic lenses would be inserted in place of her birth lenses. However, she stuck with the glasses for now. They made her that much less attractive in the eyes of fellow members of her species, so they were a plus.

Shinza paused in front of the mirror to inspect herself once done. She inhaled deeply once, but then turned and walked to her door. At the keypad at the entrance, her new code was already posted for her perusal. She quickly entered it, making a note of it as she did so, and then passed out from her room to the rest of the ship.

C'Kardenell had only a medium budget for research vessels, but this was one of the better ones. Shinza emerged from one door that was adjacent to two others, one for her and one for her two assistants. She walked forward and made her way to a short staircase, which led up to the rest of "A" deck. It was simple up here, but nice. The kitchen, which was made in a "theater in the round" style, rested at the top of these stairs, along with the dining area. This was perched on top of a raised platform that hovered above several other staircases leading down to the various areas of A deck. One of the staircases, naturally, led to the sleeping quarters, where Shinza now exited. Another led to the recreational computer, while the one across from it led to the aerobic area. Shinza made a mental note to go there later. She really needed to do some more exercise. Stretching in front of the kitchen and dining area, going down another staircase, was the living area. Here, there were a few benches and recliners to rest on, but most important was the ship's air filtration system. Their technology was to the point of removing filters. Now, instead, the filter was a great green tree that rose right out of A deck, surrounded by grass and flowers of various kinds. This was a good addition on the part of her people. It provided clean air, filtered carbon dioxide, and, most of all, it gave a nice little piece of home for deep space travelers to take with them.

The entire interior of A deck was made of gleaming silver metal, with the possible exceptions of the tools and appurtances lying around. However, A deck, being the highest deck in the research vessel, was also exposed to the most. All of the deck was enclosed in a giant circular area, and half of the walls weren't walls at all, but windows to the outside of space. Currently, the stars went flying by as the ship blazed through the galaxy, and it offered an impressive view. However…to Shinza, who had already been in space four months, it was more of the same, and uninteresting.

The ship had other decks too, of course. B deck was where most of the research equipment was kept, as well as the main computer, specimen tanks, analyzing equipment, and everything else they needed. C deck, below that, was the maintenance and engineering deck. There was no need to go down there. None of the three member crew were engineers, but it didn't matter. Automated engineering robots ran around down there, taking care of any possible dangers and making the ship run smoothly morning, noon, and night. Finally, there was D deck. Shinza hadn't even seen that one since she boarded the vessel at the departure from C'Kardenell. That was the docking bay and tractor beam control room.

As Shinza reached the top of the stairs, she saw her two assistants already there. Sarap was at the table, and gave a nod to her, while Detek was coming forward with a skillet, filled with purple egg-like material. Shinza frowned at it as she saw it. Not at the color…for Goebeetoo eggs, at least fresh ones, were purple. It was because Detek could make a Bloosberry Pie tasteless, and could burn a Negtack. She only ruefully sat down in her seat at the table.

"We have any Primova Coffee brewing yet?" Shinza asked as she sat down…hoping to stave off the taste of the eggs with a bit of bitter taste.

"It's brewing." Detek responded, as he came over to her and shoveled some eggs onto her plate. As he did, he looked up to her, and flashed a smile. A faux debonair look went over him. "You're looking good this morning, professor." He spoke in a somewhat flattering tone.

Shinza turned to him disdainfully at that. Detek kept his smile, knowing that he was getting under her skin by saying that. That was why he did it. Until now, however...he hadn't gotten the hint that she really, truly, didn't like him doing that. Sarap snickered a little from where he sat, and called up to him. "Well…wait a bit longer, Detek. She hasn't had any of your cooking this morning yet."

Detek wheeled around to the young man at that and pouted, making a sarcastic gesture of "hardy-har-har" as he walked over to him… and making sure to serve him up twice as much as anyone else. "Yeah, yeah…laugh it up. I didn't see you jumping at the chance to do the cooking this morning." He snorted back at the fellow assistant.

"Yeah, well…I was feeling a little suicidal since last night. So I figured what the hey. Save me the trouble." Sarap answered simply with a shrug. In response, Detek frowned even more at him, and then gave him a rap on the head with his spatual. Sarap grinned and began to snicker again, covering his head and crying out in mock alarm. Detek formed a fake pout and jabbed at him menacingly moments later, poking him in his chest, and forcing him to unshield his head to smack him away. On seeing the two young men fool around with each other, Shinza couldn't help but smile and shake her head at them. She grinned a bit and lowered her head.

"Boys, boys…what am I going to do with you?"

The two snickered, smacked each other around a bit longer, and then turned back to their own breakfasts to eat what they could stomach.

Shinza's first research project that had received a grant from the University involved the two year mission she now found herself engaged in. It was involved mostly in her major and specialty, being Biological OPAs. A basic Out of Place Artifact was a strange and wondrous item indeed…almost like things out of legends. Ever since her race had begun to explore the universe, they had run into other races that had technologies similar to theirs, either at higher or lower levels, but always based on the same scientific principals of physics. To that end, lesser developed worlds, and even ones that were on the same level, held little in terms of technological interest or achievement for their own people. However…once in a while…on some dismal, otherwise backwoods world…people would find strange things. Mysterious sources of limitless power…dimensional warping devices…a new form of energy…these were the OPAs. These strange and wondrous devices, among otherwise undeveloped people, shocked and amazed the people of Shinza's race. Whenever one was found, it quite literally reworked the physics textbooks.

Still, they were very rare…and more than 99 percent of the time, they were fakes. People usually had to rely on stories of local natives when pursuing these objects, and when they found them, more often than not the natives were actually observing normal phenomenon and had been deluded by misunderstanding it. However…for the few exceptional cases…they were the true marvels of the universe. And for those who sought these and found them…it was the biggest equivalent of adventuring left in the rapidly understood universe.

Shinza just happened to be one of these people. She loved the idea of potentially discovering an OPA. Not for the certain fame, groundbreaking research, and endless supply of grants it would ensure…though they were nice bonuses. She was simply entranced by the idea of making a groundbreaking discovery…of being the first person in her race to discover a great mystery of the universe. To find something totally and completely new… It felt like more than science to her. It felt almost like a quest…or some epic adventure to find something wondrous for her planet to behold…

Shinza was limited in her searching for OVAs, however. She was interesting Biological ones, in essence, strange and unique creatures. Although her people knew they were not alone in the universe, it had been discovered, centuries ago, that almost all known creatures they had encountered seemed to share the same genetic code. This was an interesting, and unexpected, finding, and it didn't seem to make logical sense as to why this would be so. To the chemists and physicists, their explanation was simply that, based on the electronegativies in the elements of the universe, and their own unique identities, that the elements used in proteins and amino acids were optimizing the best elements. But considering the range of potential amino acids in the universe…that didn't bode well with others. Some proposed a more radical theory…that all life had begun on a single planetoid in the universe, and that when some catastrophic phenomenon, a sun going nova, a meteor strike, etc., destroyed this planet, bacteria with DNA was scattered throughout the universe…and on landing on other worlds that could sustain it, became the basis for life there. This would have repeated itself every time a planet met a similar end. It was an interesting theory to say the least…but it was also fantastic. What proof was there of this?

In part, that was what Shinza was trying to discover. Her field of OVAs was based on finding strange, new formulas of life…strange and interesting lifeforms that came from planets that confounded the current codes, and were marvelous new examples of creatures unknown of. This field was a very small subsection of the main OVA research "circle", but it was important. Finding one of these things almost ensured a Selirian Prize in Biology, not to mention opened a whole new section in the universe's phylogeny.

Only two, up to date, had been discovered…but they were astonishing. The first was discovered and Clack'dmar III. That was the site of the universe's only multicellular chemo-respiratory organism. The second, and far more fascinating to the world of science, was located in the Colorian Nebula. There, fifty years ago, a research vessel had found a single celled organism that utilized matter/anti-matter reactions for energy. This drove biologists on Shinza's homeworld wild. It began a new theory…that life did not in fact originate on planetoids, but perhaps in the previously-thought-lifeless depths of space.

Shinza hoped to further or discredit that theory on this voyage. Her grant for this research journey had been to spend two years cycling past some of the greater and more chaotic energy nebulas in the known universe. When flying past them, and observing the random chunks of matter that were occasionally spewed out by the star-forming clusters, she would analyze the contents for nucleic acid materials or other signs of life. Hopefully…she hoped to find another one of these matter/anti-matter organisms…or a creature that was a step down from them and more toward a bacterium in the traditional sense of the word. Currently, she was on her sixth month in space. They had finished inspecting three nebulas thus far…all without success. Now, the ship was en route through a dead zone in space toward the next highest-energy cluster, and Shinza was hopeful that something would be discovered once they reached there.

Even now, she trembled with excitement at the thought of adding another member to the Kingdom "Neutrala"…

The three had barely managed to choke down half of their overcooked breakfast, however, when suddenly Sarap poked his head up. Shinza noticed this, and looked up as well, as did Detec. As they did, they soon realized Sarap was looking outside to the windows. They did as well…and noticed that the stars had suddenly stopped shooting by. Now, they merely sat there. Though they had felt nothing due to special stablizers, they knew what this meant.

Sarap frowned. "Man…what now?"

Shinza sighed, and put down her fork. It was a bad breakfast anyway. "I dunno…probably another meteor in our path. You know how the computer gets confused when we tell it to scan pieces of matter." Rolling her eyes a bit, Shinza looked up to the ceiling. "Computer, why have we stopped?"

"An unidentified mass is bearing ahead at approximately 140 kilometers, Dr. Shinza." The voice from the bedroom calmly responded.

Sarap frowened again and groaned. "If it's a meteor, just project a parabolic course already, computer. I told you that yesterday…"

"Negative." The female metallic voice answered. "Conflicts prior orders. Object is over 90 percenthydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon."

On hearing this, the three froze. Shinza's eyes widened a bit. Immediately, they forgot about their irritation at having been interrupted. The professor recognized this… That was one of the conditions that she told the computer to halt on…because it was the composition of almost all known life forms. The woman looked to the others at that, and they looked back. Were they really hearing this?

Shinza turned back up the ceiling. "Computer…run a secondary check to confirm results."

"Secondary check processed. Results confirmed to 99.9999986 percent certainty."

Detec blinked again as he gaped at the ceiling. "…You're not just fooling with us, are you, computer?"

That was a stupid question. Shinza already knew that the computer couldn't lie, and artifical intelligence had not yet been able to, or needed to, create computers with senses of humor. Yet she was tempted to ask the same question herself. She dared not expect it. Now…her heart began to race with anticipation and excitement. Wanting to sleep in and breakfast were the furthest things from her mind now…and she thought only of this. It could still be a meteor…it wasn't unheard of for them to have this strange composition… But…what if it wasn't?

If it wasn't…Shinza, again, dared not hope. It was too much. But she couldn't help but feel her heart begin to race as she listened to the computer.

"Computer…" She finally said, struggling not to call out eagerly. "Run the quaternity scan on the object."

There was silence for a moment. As it happened, Sarap and Detec leaned in close. Sarap actually began to smile, and let out a breathless chuckle of disbelief. Detec's jaw wouldn't shut as he looked up. They could hardly believe it. Was it really happening? After all the failed voyages, all the lost causes, after six months of nothing when scouting nebulas…were they actually finding something out here in deep space?

"Quarternity scan completed." The computer finally said. "Over 70 percent of molecules analyzed conform to previously known protein structures. 53 percent of those also conform to molecular structures. Does not conform to any previously known protein composition."

"Oh my god…" Detec exhaled out loud, gaping at the ceiling in shock. "I don't believe it…"

The others were the same. Shinza suddenly felt weak, and despite herself she began to breathe hard. She started to feel dizzy, and put a hand to her chest. She couldn't believe it. They had found something. A real something. Out here in the depths of uncharted space, blank and empty…where one could look for millions of years and not find anything…they had found something. A life form. Dead by now… It could even be some unfortunate crew member that had been blown out of a ship in some war eons ago before Shinza or her people existed, and the vacuum of space kept his or her body preserved in that time. But even then…it was a great discovery, monumental to history if nothing else. It could even be a particle of fossilized bacteria. She didn't care. This was it…a discovery. Some scientists in her field went through life without anything like this…and she had it. She felt her hopes surge again. There was still a chance it might not be anything…and she was almost too scared to find out. She didn't want to risk it being a let down…some flutter or even an air-lock dumped body of her own race…merciless as that sounded. She pressed for more information.

"Computer…" Her near trembling voice sounded. "Is the object unicellular or colonial?"

"Error. Neither term applies to object under review."

Shinza's eyes bulged. She turned and looked to the others. They looked back nervously as well, Sarap beginning to grin wildly. Shinza slowly turned back to the computer again.

"…Mass?"

"Object is estimated at a minimum of 400 kg."

All three gaped. That much? That big of a life form? And it wasn't colonial? That meant only one thing…it was a single organism. A single…big…multicellular organism. And on hearing this, Shinza's excitement grew nearly uncontrollable. No sentient creature in the known universe had a dry weight (for that is what it would be in space) of that high… Which meant it had to be either of an unknown race that had been in a ship accident, or…

A totally new creature.

Shinza couldn't hold anymore. Without a word, she rose from the table, knocking over her chair as she did so. Not caring, she bolted for the turbolift. Detec and Sarap hesitated only for a moment, before they too leapt up and bolted after her at top speed. Sarap whistled as they did.

"Whoo-hoo! Selirian Prize!"


Shinza would have given anything in the world at that moment for a way to get onto B deck quicker. Fast as the turbolift was, it seemed to take an eternity for it to get down to the next lower level. The doors didn't slide open fast enough for her. She squeezed out of them the moment they cracked, pressing her thin body through and running into the lab.

The main computer console, in the center of the room, awaited her. This console had not only everything she needed to work all of the data analysis, communication, and statistical testing programs, but it also had various apparati attached to it on either side of the main set of controls that functioned in specimen isolation, suspension, fragmentation, culturing, and every other scientific process Shinza could need. It was to this console that the professor ran. She didn't even both turning the chair around as she reached it. She simply leapt over the back and into the chair. It was a bit painful like this, but she endured it.

The rest of the room was filled with lab equipment. All the chemicals, specimen containers, hoses, microscopes, spectral analyzers, digitizers, measurement instruments, and other computers were gathered around her. It was arranged in neat shape at the moment. None of the equipment had needed to be used yet, and so everything was still arranged. Each section had its own rows, and several rows were built into either sides. There were counters in between each section, giving plenty of room to get things out and place them down for observation and experimentation. Everything was spotless and white, ready for the first analysis of anything that her voyage managed to find. Now, it looked as if they would finally have a chance to be used.

Both of her students were very well accomplished in their majors. Sarap was a major in organic chemistry/biology, specializing in the structure of proteins and their function. He went to a computer of his own at one of the side consoles, switching it on at once. As for Detec, he was a microbiology major. Unfortunately, he wouldn't be able to help nearly as much, it seemed. But he did know more about general anatomy than any of them, and he couldwork the programs that scanned it. Shinza had intended to find unicellular organisms on this voyage, to which he could have helped better in. Now, it looked as if they were turning up a macro-organism…or at least, she hoped she was.

As soon as Shinza sat down, three different screens on her console flared to life, immediately firing up. However, she ignored all of these. Her attention was all focused ahead. In front of her console, a wide open space stretched. This space was the configurable part of the lab. For now, it was blank, but depending on what they needed it for it would adapt itself. It could create an artificial environment for a specimen, provide a testing center for exposures to light and electromagnetism, or just provide a large area for all researchers to examine something at once. Numerous curved lines and fissures were in the floor of this part, accenting that it could easily transform and produce more technology for these purposes. However, that didn't interest Shinza either. She looked beyond it to the wall on the far side.

There were no windows in the lab…but there was a very impressive view screen, reproducing images of what the ship saw from outside. For right now, it showed only what was directly in front of the craft, which was nothing but empty space. Yet once Shinza had sat down, and once her two assistants were at work at their own consoles, she quickly called out again.

"Computer…put the object on screen in the lab."

The image blipped once, changing to a different view of the space surrounding the ship. However…far in the distance…drifting through the endless void…they saw it. They couldn't make out much at first, however. Not from the default distance. They saw some faint object, a small blot on the screen of empty space. Seeing as she gained nothing from this, Shinza shook her head.

"Magnify. Frame in 95 percent of the window."

The computer did as it was told. Another blip later…and the object filled the outside view. On seeing it, Shinza's breath caught in her throat. She reached up a hand and cupped her mouth. The other two assistants beamed in awe. The three became totally silent as they beheld this magnificent object that they had encountered.

The body was pale, but had a faint pinkish tint to it. No doubt, in earlier times, it would have been much redder…before space had dried the blood out of its body and froze the cells. That was one good thing about space. It was an excellent preserver…once it blew out all gas-containing pockets of the body. But this thing…this was no bacterium. Their suspicions were right…it was big. It must have been close to thirty feet tall when it was entire. Of course…it wasn't now. One arm was missing up to the shoulder, and the other was up to the elbow. The same for the legs, for the most part, with the opposite one missing at the hip, and the other broken off at the knee. The face seemed somewhat serpentine…but much larger. The face was crumpled, and the eyes were empty sockets from where they had long since exploded. It also had fragments around its head from where there had been a larger crest that had broken. It also had two thin flaps of scaly skin behind it, which had broken down until they scarcely reached past the creature's body.

The three were amazed. Although Shinza had before thought that this might be a creature from a different time period preserved, and not a new creature…in effect, this was amazing enough. That had never happened before…just been theorized as being possible. But now…it was here. A new life form.

"Full analysis." She finally called out to her assistants. "Right now."

Detec and Sarap were mesmerized for a moment longer, staring entranced at this new creature. But then, they shook their heads, turned down to their consoles, and went to work. Shinza herself stared at this marvelous specimen for another minute before she snapped out of it and went to her own tasks.

"Full results for protein analysis coming in." Sarap said after a moment. "Most have dehydrated…of course…but those that are left show at least 13 differences between all other known forms of life. Unable to clarify purpose of new proteins…although they seem similar in structure to chlorophyll…"

Shinza raised her head at this, gaping in surprise. "You mean…this creature…could have been photosynthetic?"

"Probably not that." Sarap answered with a bit of an unsure look. "But he seemed to utilize sun energy a lot…"

"Hmm…" Detec announced out loud, looking in puzzlement to his screen. "This is interesting…"

Shinza turned her head immediately to him. "What?"

"The damage sustained to the body seems to date back somewhere around 500 years ago…" Detec slowly responded. "But…I'm totally at a loss of the age of this guy… He doesn't conform to any age pattern I know of."

Sarap frowned a bit on hearing that, and looked back to his own screen. He typed a few keys afterward…and raised his eyebrows a bit at the result. "Well…I'll be damned…"

Shinza wheeled back to the assistant at this. "What?"

"The DNA of this creature…" Sarap slowly responded. His voice was faraway now…confused, and staring at his screen. "It…it hasn't denatured."

Shinza stared at him a moment after that, her look somewhat incredulous. "…Are you sure you're not just reading it at the wrong length? We have no idea how many chromosomes this guy has…"

"No…no…" Shinza answered, still staring in puzzlement at his screen. "The markers are all there…it's just…no loss. He has all his DNA."

"I think he's right, professor." Detec sounded from where he was. "This is strange…really bizarre. All of his cells are somewhat new. He's got DNA reading mechanisms in his cells I've never seen before. Even the ones that matured are replaced…just at a slower rate. And his DNA monomers…it looks like something switches out the old pairs for new ones… The best I can get is a carbon-14 dating on him. Assuming the atmosphere he lived in was a basic Class M planet…then…" A pause, as Detec gaped again.

"What?" The professor asked.

"Then…" Detec slowly answered. "He's…at least 4,000 years old."

Shinza looked around at this in surprise…and growing wonder. None of this made sense. In every organism that she had encountered before, or any biologist for that matter, the bodies weren't built to last. In every cell division, some DNA was lost. Cells that stopped dividing and matured gradually oxidized and died as well. The body eventually ran out. However…certain scientists had been theorizing for years on ways to stop these processes or arrest them in an organism…in effect stopping aging. The result would be an immortal. Yet those scientists had mostly died out now. There was a period of eugenics in Shinza's race's early history, but that had long since faded. Most attempts to try and stop aging ended in utter failure. Those that didn't caused unregulated cell growth…better known as cancer. Nevertheless, some refused to let go of the possibility that in some genetic code somewhere the parts that caused aging were left out or abridged. This was unproven…just a theory now…but it would mean that immortality would exist for some creatures.

And now…Shinza felt her heart begin to race again, as she stared in wide-eyed surprise at the creature. Her hands began to sweat as she trembled with a new excitement. What if…what if her new friend here…actually had done it? What if he actually was from a race of immortals?

The thought was too exciting to bear. Shinza couldn't restrain herself any longer.

"Computer…" She called out. "Recover the specimen and ship it to the lab immediately."


Thirty minutes later…the three stood in breathless awe as they marveled at their prize.

Of course, they weren't in contact with it. They didn't risk being anywhere near that. The slightest exposure to air could cause the specimen to crumble like dry tissue paper. He had to be properly prepped. When the tractor beam had locked onto the object and brought it in, it hadn't subjected it to the hold. Instead, the thing was put into a miraculous substance that biologists of Shinza's world made frequent use of. It was a sort of instant membrane, creating a sac around the creature that could then be filled with any medium they so desired. The membrane itself could then be modified or adjusted to selectively allow in any chemicals or treatments they might want to subject. For now, they went with a nice, non-turbulant, nonpolar fluid suspension. It was totally irradiated, void of any bacteria or free radicals that could tear up the delicate substance of the creature's fossilized body. However, Shinza had hooked up a slow feed of basic water into the creature, which would be selectively fused with his proteins via specialized nanites. After all…she wanted to see his true protein structure.

Now, they marveled over the great beast. The space in the center of the lab proved its usefulness now. The bottom floor had turned into a modified platform that bore the large sac that now held the specimen. Sensors were snaking out of it and around the creature. Now that it was inside, a much more complete analysis could be made, revealing many more details about it. Shinza could hardly wait. For now…she contained herself by staring breathlessly at the great creature before her. While her assistants rubbed their hands with glee at how promising this would make them as future scientists…Shinza was just fascinated with the creature itself…

She had done it. She had found a wonder of the universe.

"Based on its basic anatomy…" Detec sounded after a few minutes of analysis. "I'd say that it wasn't meant to travel in space. It has far too many organs for a terrestrial existence. Respiratory organs…wings that depend on air currents…"

"That ain't the half of it." Sarap added with a whistle. "The first few rehydrated proteins are checking in. I was right. They are responding to light. It's driving some sort of reaction. Since we brought it in here, the proteins are doing something. They don't have all the substances they need, of course, to finish whatever it is, but it is something. Maybe we should dim the lights, professor?"

Shinza didn't answer. She was too busy staring at it.

Sarap blinked once, and leaned in. "Hello? Professor?"

At last, Shinza shook her head. "Hmm?" She called aloud, turning her head to Sarap. "What? Oh…yes…well… Maybe a bit later. Just make sure it's not causing any free radicals…" She finally replied. Her voice was distant and preoccupied as she said this, only seeming to half care. She trailed off at the end, and turned back to marvel at the creature once more.

Sarap frowned, shook his head, and turned back to his own console.

"Wow…" Detec added after a moment more.

On hearing this, both Sarap and Shinza turned to look to him. "What is it?"

"I'm not the best expert in the world at anatomy…but looking at these data results…" Detec answered as he shook his head at his own screen. "This guy had a rather painful last few moments. A lot of the damage to the fossil right now is due to just wear and tear from being in space. You know…if your hand dries out completely the slightest piece of drifting debris is going to take it off. But as for the limbs that are totally gone…the way the muscle looks it appears as if something tore them out. And his bones have signs of severe trauma too. His lungs are lined with scar tissue. Worst of all…it looks like he was still alive when he went into space…which is when what was left of his lungs hemorrhaged, his eyes blew out…and he was pretty much dead."

Sarap winced uneasily at that. "Ouch. Poor guy…"

However…Shinza suddenly froze at that. On hearing the word "death" mentioned…she suddenly thought of something. So this creature died? Well…that was obvious. Nothing could survive the vacuum of space, after all. Anything of any race she knew of would have been killed almost immediately. Between the pressure, the dryness, and the cold, nothing could live in space. In fact, it was rather stupid to think of something actually living through space.

And yet…Shinza couldn't help but hesitate here. This creature…its proteins were still working. They were turning about when they were exposed to light. Even after all this time…after four hundred years of drifting in the void of darkness and coldness…a little light, just from their ship's lab, a little hydration…and they went to work again as they had before. It was amazing, really…to think that something dead for so long would do that.

And yet…was it?

Certain species of smaller invertebrates could increase the concentration of solute in their body so high that they could actually be frozen for months and then come back to life when thawed out. Seeds sitting in dry, barren sand for thousands of years bloomed readily when put into soil and water. People of her own race, subjected to blistering cold, literally froze to death only to come back to life once wrapped in insulation and placed before a fire. Life and death…under proper conditions…could be strange things. And this creature…this strange creature…whose cells were built not to age and die…who was beginning to work again in a little light…

Abruptly, Shinza got a crazy thought. Had she not been in such a giddy mood, her logic would have told her not to waste a perfectly excellent, acclaim-winning specimen on such a stupid notion. But she was…and a crazy impulse entered her head. Before she even knew what she was doing, she leaned over her console and spoke.

"Computer, search the organism for living tissue."

On hearing this, both Sarap and Detec turned to Shinza in confusion, forgetting their own things. Shinza winced a little, but continued to look up to the organism as she did. Her assistants were muddled. This creature was dead…fossilized. There was nothing left to find on it. It had been drifting in the lifeless depths of space for close to 400 years. It was a rock now. And yet…Shinza couldn't help but stare at the screen and eagerly wait.

After a moment, the computer replied.

"No living tissue detected."

"Professor?" Sarap suddenly called out. "What are you doing?"

Shinza didn't answer. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. She almost felt like smacking her hand in frustration against the table…although there was no possible way she could have expected the creature to still live. It was dead. It was better off firewood by now. There was nothing to hope for, and no reason to hope for anything from it. And yet…the woman still felt crazy. After a moment longer, she suddenly leaned forward and called out to the computer again.

"Prepare an essential nutrient injection. Subject it to ten of the excited protein cells. Report results."

"Professor!" Detec suddenly called out. "You'll ruin the fossil!"

Shinza didn't listen. She leaned forward on the console. She held her hand to her mouth and bit her finger. Her assistants looked to each other, stunned. Was she actually trying what they thought she was? Did she actually think that the rock could still live? They turned back to her, and began to step away from their consoles. Shinza didn't care. She tapped her foot nervously against the ground. Her fingers drummed on the countertop, and she continued to nervously bite her finger. This took a few minutes this time. She eagerly anticipated all the while.

Finally, it did answer.

"Warning. Fossil damage occurring. Subjected cells are now decaying."

Detec sighed and groaned. Sarap threw his arms up in an exaggerated gesture. Both of them wondered how the professor could do something so dumb. Now, they could lose a good part of it to deterioration. However, much to their surprise, Shinza tightened her jaw. Immediately, she leaned in closer, and nearly cried out to the computer.

"Prepare an essential nutrient injection coupled with high energy photons. Inject it into ten of the central cells of the main body. Report results."

"Professor, stop!" Sarap cried out.

"You'll ruin the specimen! We'll lose it!" Detec added.

But Shinza only bit her hand again and drummed her fingers even harder. Her palms began to sweat. Her heart raced again. The two assistants were getting frantic. The finding of the decade…and their professor was going nuts. She was ruining it. They would have nothing left. They only had the slightest amount of data available. But Shinza wouldn't stop. She continued to stare at the screen, and eagerly waited. Slowly…she felt herself start to pray. She didn't know why…she didn't know what about this creature made her so eager…but she had to do this. She felt herself wishing hard, and clenching her hand as she bit down and stared at it.

Live…live…live…

"Professor…it's dead!" Sarap finally called out to her. "It's rock! It's a lifeless rock! It's-"

"Infusion successful. Regular cell activities restored."

Sarap's voice caught in his throat. Detec's eyes widened again, and he forgot all about his momentary anger and warnings. Shinza stopped breathing. Her hand fell from her mouth like dead weight. She stared on at the screen before her, and the specimen above her. Her drumming ceased. Her heart seemed to stop. She couldn't believe it. No one in the room believed it. It was crazy…irresponsible…and nearly blew everything they had for nothing. There was no reason it should have worked…no scientific basis to conclude that. It was some stupid dream and fantasy that had been cooked up by a crazy thought that had traveled through Shinza's head…and if it had been wrong she would have ruined her career as well as that of her assistants.

And yet…somehow it had…and the proof was shown as the central screen on Shinza's monitor magnified a nanite image deep within the body of the "lifeless rock". Only here, the image it showed was not lifeless at all. It showed, surrounded by dark, dessicated, dormat fossils of cells…ten vibrant, living cells, getting to work making ATP…and sending out signal chemicals to one another.

The two young men were stunned into silence. Moving without a word, both of them rushed over behind Shinza, and then looked at the screen. Their jaws dropped and did not return as they saw it for their very eyes. Shinza herself couldn't believe it. It was a miracle. It was impossible. And yet…she suddenly realized that she had something far greater than just a fossil or ruin of an ancient creature on hand. She had something far greater…

Slowly, Shinza turned to the young men around her.

"…Let's get him into a new medium. I think…as impossible as it sounds…we can revive him."


To be continued...