THE ISLAND

OF MISERY
Written by DTYarbrough

A SCIENCE FICTION SHORT STORY

Copyright 2010
All rights reserved
 THE ISLAND OF MISERY
Written by DTYarbrough

“Maya, would you bring me the samples from yesterday,” asked Juan. “One of those
vaccines has to work.”

“It seems like we're always finding a cure for some problem. If it's not medical, it's
agricultural,” said Maya. “We've been so fortunate that the crises only come one at a
time.”

“The gods are testing us,” said Juan. “One plague at a time.”

“Well, you've passed with flying colors,” said Maya. “No one has died on this island
in over fifteen years.”

“If the gods are testing us, then what are they preparing us for?” asked Juan. “I can
only hope it's not worse than the misery we have already endured.”

“There have been a few good days when we didn't have to spend all day in the lab,”
said Maya. “You should let others do more of the work.”

“No one else has learned it firsthand as I have,” said Juan. “Dream learning is not
the same.”

“And they'll never learn firsthand if not given the chance,” said Maya.

“I know you're right,” said Juan. “But when every minute counts, it's hard to stand
back and watch.”

“I keep hoping each new crisis will be the last,” said Maya. “It can't go on forever
like this. Why would the gods be so cruel?”

“There. Sample 16 is showing some good results,” said Juan. “Prepare three more
test cultures using that serum. We'll verify the results tomorrow before we test it on the
rats.”

“Then can we call it a day?” said Maya. “Come with me to the lagoon.”

…........................

Kevin sipped his coffee as he read the morning paper. "He's done it again, Brittany,"
he said. "Dr. Bruce Bennett won the Nobel Prizes for physics and medicine this time."

"He does it every year," said Brittany. "He's got more patents than IBM and more
money than Oprah."

"How does a man get to be so smart in so many fields?" asked Kevin. "Where does
he find the time?"
1
 "I'm sure he has massive research facilities with hundreds of scientists," said
Brittany.

"That not true," said Kevin. "I did a research paper on him in college. He has two
research assistants, and they're hardly more than secretaries. We have more degrees
than they do."

"From what I've read, he's quite a playboy," said Brittany. "How does he find the
time?"

"I'm going to find out," said Kevin. "This will be my biggest story."

"But he never gives private interviews," said Brittany. "And the security at his estate
is better than the White House. It uses technology that he hasn't even released to the
military yet."

"That's where you come in," said Kevin. "Isn't your old boyfriend out of prison? Do
you think you could talk him into hacking the doctor's computer system."

"If we get caught, they'll put us in prison and throw away the keys," said Brittany.
"And you know he still has a crush on me. I don't need to deal with that again."

"We're not after money or technology secrets," said Kevin. "We just won't to find
some answers. He's way too arrogant for his own good. The public has a right to
know."

"It would certainly help your career," said Brittany. "You deserve the kind of break a
story like this could give you. I'll see what I can do. We'd finally be able to pay off our
college loans and get married."

........................

"I'll go to the lagoon with you if you'll help me gather some more samples," said
Juan. "We need more varieties of sponges, jellyfish, and coral."

"All work and no play," said Maya. "When are you going to relax?"

"When the gods allow me to," said Juan.

"How can you be so sure that the gods cause all these problems?" asked Maya.

"Because new research equipment keeps showing up in the labs," said Juan. "Just
the sort of equipment you need to solve the problems. And if it doesn't show up, all I
have to do is ask for it."

"Maybe the gods foresee the problems," said Maya.

"Then why not give us the cures?" asked Juan.

2
 "When are you going to show me how to communicate with the gods?" asked Maya.

"Even I don't know how," said Juan. "You aren't even supposed to know about them.
Enrico is the only one that communicates with them. If I need something, I tell Enrico."

"Has Enrico ever seen any of the gods?" asked Maya.

"No one has ever seen one," said Juan. "They come at night while we dreamshare.
We shouldn't be discussing this."

..........................

"But you'll go down in hacker history," said Brittany. "You'll be famous among all of
your friends."

"That would be something," said Levi. "But the Feds will put me away for life."

"How did they catch you last time?" asked Brittany.

"They didn't catch me," said Levi. "I got fingered by one of the guys they did catch."

"But this time you'll be working alone," said Brittany. "You know I'd never turn you
in. Just get Kevin and me in, and we'll do the rest."

"If I'm going to do this, I'll do it all," said Levi. "Tell me what you're looking for, and
I'll get it for you."

“Where do we start?” asked Brittany as she braced her hands on the edge of the
desk and watched closely.

“We'll log onto Hackers Central and see what passwords he's used in the past,” said
Levi.

“Hackers Central!” said Brittany. “You've got to be kidding.”

“That's not the real name,” said Levi as he placed his hand on Brittany's. “I can't tell
you the real name … unless ..”

“I'm not that curious,” said Brittany as she pulled back her hand. “I'll just let you do
your thing. Call me if you're successful.”

“Just key in 1-2-3-4-17 to get out,” said Levi as he wheeled around. “I'd walk you to
the door but ...”

…...........................

As he stared at the screen, Levi thought about all the new stuff he had learned from
his cellmate in prison. This would give him a chance to try out some of the new
3
techniques. The army had taught him a lot before the crash, but he had gotten his
masters in that little gray cell. “There's enough information right here on the web to
write a book about this guy,” he thought. “But most of this is old news. He graduated
from college in 1976 and published a paper on evolution. I remember reading about
that. He had tried to show correlations between the stages of embryo development and
the evolution of man through 500 million years. It wasn't well received at the time.”

After that he worked closely with his parents in birth defect research until they died
in an elevator accident. He inherited the estate and a substantial insurance settlement.
Looks like he traveled a bit in Central America for several years until his first Nobel
Prize in 1996. After that he was on a roll, one prize after the other. The information gets
a little sketchy at this point. The odd thing is that none of his prizes are for anything
even closely related to his earlier work.

“This is where I start digging,” thought Levi. “Now what's the Spanish word for
doctor?”

…............................

As they swam in the sunlit waters of the lagoon, they couldn't help but marvel at the
diversity of sea life. Under any other circumstances this could be a paradise. Juan
pointed to his watch, and they both surfaced with their bags full of samples.

“Not bad for a thirty minute dive,” said Maya. “Have you given any more thought to
that invention. If we could carry air with us down there, we could stay much longer.”

“I've had more pressing things on my mind lately,” said Juan as he selected a nice
spot in the sun and lay back to relax. “Besides, who wants to stay down there that
long. You'd need to pack a lunch and the recovery would take much longer.”

“What about your idea for artificial sunlight?” asked Maya. “Have you made any
progress.”

“I need a few items that we don't have,” said Juan.

“Ask the gods,” said Maya.

“You don't understand,” said Juan. “I have to demonstrate how they will be used to
solve the current crisis. Otherwise my requests are usually ignored.”

“I guess the gods know best,” said Maya. “It's a shame though. Artificial sunlight
would be very useful on stormy days. I just feel so drained and depressed on those
days.”

“We all do,” said Juan. “Our bodies are very dependent on sunlight.”

“It's just as well,” said Maya. “If we had sunlight all of the time, people would
probably skip dreamshare.”

4
 ….............................

“Is he going to help us?” asked Kevin.

“He's going to try,” said Brittany. “I told him to call if he learns anything we need to
know about.”

“Did you have any luck finding a job?” asked Kevin.

“There are some part-time openings at McDonalds,” said Brittany.

“You don't have to take a job that won't help you in your career,” said Kevin. “It's
bad enough that I have to do freelance writing and reporting. We're not that desperate
yet.”

“A little extra spending money would come in handy though,” said Brittany as her
phone rang. “It's Levi. I'd better take this.”

“I'm going to take a quick shower,” said Kevin.

….............................

“He wants us to come over,” said Brittany. “It sounds like he may have found
something. He didn't want to discuss it on the phone. You know how paranoid he is.”

“Let's go,” said Kevin. “We can grab a bite to eat afterwards.”

…...............................

“What are you doing?” asked Levi as he looked at the monitor.

“Trying to get in,” said Brittany. “I typed in the code but nothing happened.”

“You didn't think I'd use the same code every day, did you?” asked Levi. “I'll just
buzz you in. Don't touch the doorknob until the buzzing stops.”

“What have you found?” asked Kevin.

“It's good to see you again, too,” said Levi. “Sit down. Make yourself comfortable.”

“Did you get into his computer?” asked Brittany.

“Well, not exactly,” said Levi. “But I may have found a way. I'm going to need your
help.”

“What do you want us to do?” asked Kevin.

“You need to get on board his yacht and install this in line with his keyboard cable.
After someone has used the computer, remove the device and use this cable to attach
5
it to this military phone and transmit the data back to me. You can use this phone to
communicate with me from anywhere in the world. But I wouldn't use it near the yacht.
They would probably detect it,” said Levi.

“And how do we get on his yacht?” asked Kevin.

“You'll need some uniforms similar to these,” he said. “Every Monday at midnight
this company sends out a crew to clean and service the yacht. Watch this video.”

“Where did you get this video?” asked Kevin.

“I tapped into the 'eye in the sky',” said Levi. “It's a bit grainy, but as you can see
they simply row out to the yacht, do their jobs, and row back to shore around dawn.
The guards hardly pay any attention to them.”

….............................

“What are the symptoms this time?” asked Juan. “Do you have any fever or pains?”

“Headaches and blurred vision,” said Elana. “And my senses of hot and cold are
switched.”

“It sounds like a neurotoxin,” said Juan. “Probably from a species of jellyfish. Are
there any sting marks on your body?”

“I don't think so, Doctor,” said Elana. “But I haven't looked closely.”

“Maya, please give Elana a full outer body examination,” said Juan. “Look for any
signs of jellyfish stings or needle marks, just in case. I'm going to draw some blood
now. When did the symptoms begin?”

“This morning when I awoke,” said Elana.

“Don't worry,” said Juan. “We'll have you good as new in no time. Is the blurriness
more at the infrared or ultraviolet end of the spectrum?”

“Throughout the whole range,” said Elana.

“Okay. Well lie back and let Maya examine you,” said Juan. “I'm going to take a look
at your blood samples.”

….................................

“We should be there well before midnight if we drive straight through,” said Kevin.
“We can take turns sleeping.”

“If this story doesn't pan out, we can look for jobs while we're in Miami,” said
Brittany. “There may be some openings for structural engineers to rebuild the
floodwalls and infrastructure damage by the last hurricane.”
6
 “And there are lots of old lawyers retiring every year,” said Kevin. “We should have
tried Miami sooner.”

“First things first,” said Brittany. “How do these uniforms look?”

“I didn't even know you could sew,” said Kevin. “They look excellent.”

“And it will be dark mostly,” said Brittany. “This will be a snap.”

“I hope so,” said Kevin. “I'm not cut out for this cloak and dagger stuff.”

“Just keep asking yourself 'What would 007 do?',” said Brittany.

“Where am I going to find a beautiful Russian spy?” asked Kevin.

…..............................

“That box jellyfish antitoxin seems to be doing the trick,” said Maya. “You'll be fine
in no time.”

“I never had any doubts,” said Elana. “Isn't he wonderful? Are you guys …?”

“Yes,” said Maya. “We are.”

“All the good ones are taken,” said Elana. “Just my luck. Well, I'll see you next time.”

“Not too soon I hope,” said Maya. “I mean, I wish you health and long life.”

“Health and long life to you, Maya,” said Elana. “The gods willing.”

…...............................

“I see some new faces,” said Maya as they entered the sleep temple. “I guess the
missing ones are trying to learn a new profession where they can get some hands on
experience.”

“It's good to spread the knowledge around,” said Juan as he lay back in his bed. “I
wonder what the new ones will bring to the dream.”

Ten beds were laid out like the spokes of a wagon wheel with the heads near the
center. As the last rays of sunlight shown through the stained-glass windows, the
dreamers drifted off to sleep. They all shared and participated in the same dream, each
learning from the others' experiences. The events in the dreams beared little
resemblance to the day's actual occurrences, yet the knowledge was somehow passed
on. Many times they would awaken with the answers to questions that had puzzled
them throughout the day.

…............................
7
 “Just try to act natural,” said Brittany. “Don't draw attention to yourself.”

“Attention from whom?” asked Kevin. “I don't even see any guards.”

“I think this is the captain's quarters,” said Brittany. “There's no one in there but
there's the computer monitor. The door's unlocked.”

“The device is in place,” said Kevin. “Where do we go now?”

“Someone's coming,” said Brittany. “Quick. Hide under the bed.”

“Shh. He's in the room,” whispered Kevin. “Don't make a sound.”

“The engines just started,” said Brittany.

“They're probably just servicing them,” said Kevin. “At least we can breathe without
being heard.”

“What's he doing?” asked Brittany. “Sounds like keyboard typing?”

“Good,” said Kevin. “We'll be out of here in no time.”

…...............................

“I think he just lay down on the bed,” said Brittany. “Is he going to sleep?”

Her question was answered in a moment as they began to hear snoring. “Now
what?” said Brittany. “The way the bed is sagging, we're pinned on this side. We can't
get out.”

“Might as well take a nap,” said Kevin. “It's past my bedtime anyway.”

…...............................

“How long did we sleep?” asked Brittany. “I think he's gone. There's no one in the
bed.”

“Listen for a while to make sure,” said Kevin. “I feel really rested. How about you?”

“Okay, I'm going to take a peek,” said Brittany. “It's all clear. Let's get out of here.”

“I'll get the device,” said Kevin.

“Look, the sun is about to rise,” said Brittany. “Perfect timing.”

“Our dingy is still tied to the ladder,” said Kevin. “Let's go.”

8
 “I don't see the shore lights,” said Brittany.

“They must have turned the boat around,” said Kevin. “If the sun is rising over there,
the shore is that way.”

As they quietly rowed into the fog they smiled at each other. “007 couldn't have
done it better,” said Kevin.

“It's getting darker,” said Brittany. “Is the fog getting thicker?”

“There's hardly any fog now,” said Kevin. “Look, there are the lights on the yacht.
Why hasn't the sun risen by now?”

“Call Levi and give him the data,” said Brittany. “I think we're far enough from the
yacht.”

“Okay,” said Kevin. “Let me attach the device.”

“Eagle one here,” said Levi. “Do you have the data?”

“Levi,” said Kevin. “What time is it?”

“It 6:00 P.M.,” said Levi. “What are you doing in the Bermuda Triangle?”

“You mean 6:00 A.M., and we're in Miami,” said Kevin.

“Hey, I know what time it is. It's 6:00 P.M. and based on the satellite you're bouncing
off of, you're somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle.”

“We slept for almost eighteen hours, and they moved the yacht,” said Kevin.

“They're moving again,” said Brittany.

“Call the Coast Guard,” said Kevin. “We're stranded in the middle of the Bermuda
Triangle.”

“I didn't say middle,” said Levi. “Unfortunately I can't pinpoint your exact location. It
would do no good to call the Coast Guard without a confirmed location.”

“Well, what do we do,” asked Kevin. “We're in a rowboat.”

“Ration,” said Levi. “Assuming there's anything to ration. And hope a ship sees
you.”

“Look under the seats, Brittany,” said Kevin. “See if you can find any food or water.”

“Send me the data,” said Levi. “Maybe I can determine where the yacht was
anchored.”

9
 “Data sent,” said Kevin. “How long are these phone batteries good for?”

“Hard to say,” said Levi. “Don't call me, I'll call you.”

“I found a medical kit,” said Brittany.

“Keep looking,” said Kevin. “I'll help.”

….............................

“What's this?” asked Brittany. “What's a desalinizer?”

“One of the first non medical items that Bruce Bennett patented. It filters and
removes salt and other minerals from water,” said Kevin. “We have a whole ocean of
drinking water now, but no food.”

“We're sitting right on top of a sushi smorgasbord,” said Brittany.

“Someone needs to tell that tiger shark that we're just a garnish,” said Kevin as he
saw the large dorsal fin glistening in the light of the full moon.

“We should row in the direction that the yacht went,” said Kevin. “That should bring
us into the shipping lanes. We'll stand a better chance of being seen.”

“How do we know they were heading for the shipping lanes?” asked Brittany.

“We don't,” said Kevin. “But if we have to choose a direction, I choose that one.”

“It's a good thing we got a good night's sleep,” said Brittany. “Or should I say a
good day's sleep.”

“You're right,” said Kevin. “We'll have to sleep during the day underneath this tarp.”

“I think I'm going to be sick,” said Brittany as the waves began to toss the little
dingy about.

“You've got to hold it in,” said Kevin. “You're going to need what's in your stomach
to keep up your energy. And you don't want to attract more sharks. Start rowing to take
your mind off of it.”

….................................

As Juan pulled the fish from the spear and reloaded the spear gun, he glanced
around to make sure there were no sharks entering the area. As he looked down at the
floor of the ocean he saw a large shadow moving slowly toward shore. He motioned for
Maya to swim for shore and quickly followed her into the shallows beyond the sand
bar. Emerging from the water, he looked back to see what kind of shark had been
searchng for a meal so close to shore.

10
 “Maya, it's not a shark,” said Juan. “Help me pull it ashore.”

“What is it,” asked Maya. “It floats like driftwood.”

“There's something inside,” said Juan as he reached for the tarp. “This would make
a nice rainproof roof for a hut.”

“There are bodies beneath it,” said Juan. “They still have pulses. Get some help. We
must take them to the lab.”

….................................

“What sort of disease causes that hideous hair to grow on their bodies?” asked
Maya.

“I think it's natural,” said Juan. “They must be of a different species from us.”

“Are there other differences that I can't see?” asked Maya. “Do they have two hearts
or something weird like that?”

“They do have a couple of small organ or glands that we don't have,” said Juan.
“But they seem to be worthless. And the surface of their brains are not as wrinkled as
ours. They would have 50% less surface area. I expect they are quite primitive.”

“They're probably aggressive,” said Maya. “Is that why you have them restrained?”

...................................

“Ha! I'm in,” said Levi. “Let's see what we've got here.”

“The encryption on the latest files is incredibly complex. This could take months.
Maybe some of the earlier files will be simpler to read. Here's one that seems to deal
with Dr. Bennett's earlier theories about evolution and embryo development. My god!
He actually tested his theories on human embryos that he created in test tubes. It says
here that a certain growth hormone stops the evolutionary process in the embryo's
development. By blocking this hormone, he hoped to allow the embryo to evolve
further.”

“By blocking the hormone for no more than twenty-four hours, he obtained
sustainable specimens with obvious evolutionary improvements. He actually implanted
two of the embryos into a woman that was unable to have children of her own.”

“The kids were name Enrico and Yolanda. They excelled in school but their aging
process slowed dramatically. These pictures seem to indicate that some form of
chemotherapy must have been used, although there is no mention of it. Bennett told
the mother that the children had died, but instead he placed them on a desert island
along with other newborns that had gone through the same early stage development
process.”

11
 “Children raising children?” thought Levi. “This guy was a madman.”

“He secretly visited them over the following years to monitor their process. He was
amazed at their problem solving abilities and encouraged their development by
creating problems for them to solve. That's where some of his earliest inventions came
from. He stole them from the children, his children actually. He was the geneological
father of all of the children.”

“A short bout with cancer caused him to turn their efforts towards medical research.
To encourage them to speed up their efforts, he actualy infected them with the
diseases and maladies he wanted them to find a cure for. They were nothing more than
guinea pigs.”

…..................................

“Who are you?” asked Kevin. “Where am I?”

“You speak our language,” said Juan, “at least one of them. You're on Misery Island.
You were almost dead when we found you. How are you feeling now?”

“Okay, I guess,” said Kevin. “Where's Brittany? Why am I restrained?”

“It's for your own safety,” said Juan. “Those tubes are critical to your recovery. We
can't have you moving around and pulling them loose. Your friend will be fine. Her
recovery is just taking a little longer.”

“Can I see her?” asked Kevin. “Is she conscious?”

“In and out,” said Juan. “She needs rest. You'll see her soon.”

“What sort of hospital is this?” said Kevin. “I've never seen equipment like this.”

“You need to get some rest,” said Juan. “My assistant will be in later to check on
you. I'm going to monitor your friend's progress.”

“Wait a minute,” said Kevin. “Don't tell me you're the doctor. You couldn't be a day
over fourteen.”

“I'll be twenty-eight next month,” said Juan. “At what age did you begin to grow hair
on your body. We've never seen anyone your age.”

“You're older than me if you're really twenty-eight,” said Kevin. “I had hair when I
was a baby.”

“This is really strange,” said Juan. “What species of human are you?”

“I used to believe there was only one,” said Kevin. “There are many races, but they
all have hair.”

12
 “Well, we don't have hair,” said Juan and there are fifty of us. “How many hairy
humans do you know?”

“About six billion,” said Kevin.

“You know six billion humans?” asked Juan.

“Not personally,” said Kevin. “But trust me. They all have hair.”

“You seem intelligent,” said Juan, “despite your primitive brain. But you are
obviously exaggerating.”

“What do you mean, primitive?” asked Kevin. “Where did you guys come from. How
did you end up on this island?”

“We have a theory,” said Juan. “But no one has reached puberty yet so we can't
verify it.”

“I know all about that theory,” said Kevin. “I mean, have you always lived on this
island or did you move here from somewhere else?”

“Enrico and Yolanda have vague memories of living somewhere else, but they
assure me that the rest of us have always lived here,” said Juan. “You must get your
rest. We'll talk more tomorrow.”

…................................

“Why doesn't he answer the phone?” Levi wondered. “Surely he didn't run down the
batteries already. I should probably wait for him to call me. If the batteries aren't
already shot, they will be if I keep making the phone ring.”

“I'll try looking at some more of the files while I wait for him to call,” thought Levi.
“The more details, the better story Kevin can write.”

…................................

“I insist you remove these restraints immediately, or I'm going to tell your mother,”
said Brittany. “I want to see an adult.”

“The doctor will be in any minute now,” said Maya. “There's no need to get
aggressive. Here he is now.”

“My god,” said Brittany. “I've been kidnapped by Hari Krishnas. Release me at once
or I'll sue.”

“Relax, Brittany,” said Juan. “We only wish to help you.”

“How do you know my name?” said Brittany. “Where's my purse?”

13
 “If you are missing something, it is probably still in the flotation device we found
you in,” said Juan. “I learned your name from talking with Kevin.”

“Oh yeah, the rowboat,” said Brittany. “I had almost forgotten. I've died and gone to
… what is this place?”

“You're are on Misery Island,” said Maya.

“Now I'm sorry I asked,” said Brittany.

“Don't worry,” said Juan. “Your misery is over now. You'll see your friend soon.”

“How is he?” asked Brittany. “Is he okay?”

“He's fine,” said Juan. “But like you, he needs rest. Try to rest and if everything goes
well, you will see him tomorrow.”

….................................

“This is interesting,” thought Levi. “The children have an advanced immune system.
They cured themselves in the early stages of the tests. Antibodies in their blood was
used to develop cures in the outside world. This was a very expensive and slow
process. Recently they have become so efficient at finding their own cures that the
whole process is changing. Many of the cures are very inexpensive to reproduce. So
the children were never in any real danger. Still it must take a cold heart to watch them
suffer while he gains all the benefits.”

“Wait a minute. Can this be right?” said Levi. “He used all of the profits from medical
discoveries to build and operate low cost treatment centers. Maybe he did have a heart
after all. Why didn't I read about that in the tabloids?”

….................................

“Good morning, Kevin,” said Juan. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better, Doc,” said Kevin. “Are you going to release me?”

“Of course,” said Juan as he unbuckled the restraints. “I was hoping we could talk a
while we wait for your friend. She should be along soon.”

“Sure,” said Kevin. “I have a million questions.”

“If you can't stop exaggerating, your answers to my questions will be useless,” said
Juan.

“I'm sorry,” said Kevin. “I have a lot of questions.”

“As do I,” said Juan. “But I'll let you go first.”

14
 “Why are there no adults here?” asked Kevin.

“No one has lived long enough to become one,” said Juan. “I think Enrico is almost
an adult.”

“But what happened to your parents?” asked Kevin.

“We never had any parents that we can remember,” said Juan. “Why have we never
seen your species before. How far did you travel to get here?”

“I don't even know exactly where I am, but my guess is there are no other islands
within a hundred mile radius,” said Kevin. “We traveled much farther than that.”

“You are not exaggerating again, are you?” asked Juan.

“If we can go to the boat and get my phone,” said Kevin, “I may be able to get some
real answers.”

“I read about telephones in Enrico's dictionary,” said Juan. “But there are no
telephone wires leaving this island.”

“Is that how you learned our language?” asked Kevin. “You read a dictionary.”

“Part of a dictionary,” said Juan. “Some of the words and pages were missing or
blacked out.”

“How much longer before I can see Brittany?” asked Kevin.

“While we're waiting for your friend, we can go to the boat,” said Juan. “That was
what you called it? It's not far. Let me inform Maya that we are leaving.”

…................................

“Here it is,” said Kevin. “In Brittany's purse.”

“Your friend was asking about that,” said Juan. “Perhaps we should take it to her.”

“Do you mind carrying it,” said Kevin. “I need to make a phone call.”

“I thought a phone would be much larger,” said Juan. “Where are the wires?”

“This one doesn't need wires,” said Kevin. “Levi, is that you?”

…..............................

“Kevin!” yelled Brittany as he and Juan entered the lab. “You are okay. I've been so
worried.”

“Brittany,” said Kevin. “I just got off the phone with Levi. You're not going to believe
15
this.”

As he told her what Levi had told him, Juan and Maya listened in amazement.

“He created all of us?” asked Juan. “Then there's only one god.”

“He's not a god,” said Brittany. “But he's not the devil I thought he was, either. He
may have actually meant well. But this has got to stop. He can't continue to treat you
like guinea pigs.”

“But we were never in any real danger,” said Juan. “At least that's what your fiend
said.”

“But you should be compensated and given a choice,” said Brittany. “This amounts
to slavery and inhumane treatment. There are laws.”

“Tell me about these laws,” said Juan. “We wish to learn more about your ways.”

….............................

“Pleasant dreams,” said Brittany. “See you in the morning.”

“Are you sure you want to spend the night in the lab?” asked Juan. “We can arrange
better sleeping quarters.”

“We'll be fine,” said Kevin. “It's only for a couple of nights, at most.”

“Okay then,” said Juan. “Let's go to dreamshare, Maya.”

“See you in the morning,” said Maya. “May you also have pleasant dreams.”

…...............................

“Doctor Bennett, I presume,” said Brittany as the doctor entered the lab. “What
brings you to our little corner of the world?”

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” asked Bruce.

“I'm your worst nightmare,” said Brittany. “I'm a lawyer and the people of this island,
your children, are my clients.”

“How do you know about that?” asked Bruce.

“That's not all we know,” said Kevin. “But I'll bet you would prefer that others don't
find out. You see, I'm a freelance writer, but I'll probably be too busy at my other job to
write any stories about you.”

”And what job would that be?” asked Bruce.

16
 “Structural engineer. I've just been hired as a consultant,” said Kevin. “Seems your
children plan on building a paradise here.”

“Should we discuss the details with your lawyers, or would you prefer not to get
them involved in all the nasty little details?” asked Brittany.

“Let me hear the terms?” said Bruce.

…...................................

“….. and of course they expect you to pay for all their legal and consulting needs,”
said Brittany. “I think you will find our fees reasonable under the circumstances.”

17