Origins (Book 4 of Alfireán age)

Mr. Brockovich

Alf blinked in surprise. The tablet showed an immense labyrinth of rooms and corridors dug beneath the ocean. If he wanted to explore the whole place, he'd be here for a long, long time. I don't think I have time for that, he thought as he chose to stick to the highlighted route on the tablet.

Following the blue line, Alf left the reception room and strode down a long, slanted hallway leading underground. As he reached the end of the corridor, he entered into a dark, rounded room with hallways branching off in different directions. The tablet's dim light cast an eerie glow on the white walls, each marked with faded numbers, while his booted feet clanked against the hollow metal floor. Reaching out, Alf rubbed his hands against the flaking paint, and a shiver ran down his spine. This place was as old as the dragons... if not older.

Suddenly, the tablet pinged, and a hand-sized holographic arrow appeared above its glass surface. Well, that makes things easier, Alf thought as he followed the green arrow down the hallway to his left.

Breathing in the stale air, he made his way deeper into the laboratory.

With each step, Alf's imagination ran wild. He half-expected a slimy creature or a lion-headed chimera to come charging down the corridor. But, thankfully, none ever did. Only the echo of his footsteps, and the sound of his own breathing, accompanied him as he marched on. Eventually, the arrow on the tablet guided him to a plain door. He peered at the numbers, now faded beyond recognition, and cautiously opened it.

A rush of air enveloped Alf, bringing with it the pungent smell of old chemicals. Large vats, similar to those he had seen on the tablet in his dream, lined the dusty room. And the lights overhead, just like in the rest of the lab, flashed briefly then died.

Slightly disturbed by the scene, Alf took a few steps into the room and approached one of the large capsules.

To his surprise, it suddenly lit up.

Alf jumped backwards, only to realize the light was coming from the tablet, not the capsule. The tablet shined brightly as it projected an image onto the cloning vat. Initially, it displayed three blurry figures floating in the glass cylinders. Then the image

expanded, and a narrow-faced man Alf recognized as a younger version of his forefather came into view.

"Date M.E. 254," announced a brisk male voice from the tablet. "Today, I may have either made the most foolhardy purchase of my life or a life-changing investment. Following the government's seizure of the dragons' lair, quite a few interesting oddities appeared on the black market. I was able to procure one such oddity: a jar of human modified embryos. Their caretaker attempted to destroy them with a toxic concoction, but I managed to save three of them. Using my advanced knowledge, I've accelerated their growth, and I'm eagerly waiting to see what they turn out to be."

Alf frowned as the hologram faded, replaced by the green arrow on the tablet. He didn't know much about the original Mr. Brockovich, but he had always been told he was a righteous man, a man among men. Yet, this revelation – involving genetic modification and black market dealings – seemed to contradict that image.

Deeply unsettled by the news, Alf left the room and followed the arrow down the narrow, chilly hallway.

After several turns, he arrived at another door. It creaked open with a rusty groan as Alf turned the knob. Inside, he found a stark room with a floor-to-ceiling glass wall. He frowned and stepped in. Then pressing his face against the dusty glass, he peered into the adjacent room with broken beds and decayed stuffed animals littering the floor.

The tablet lit up again as it projected another hologram through the glass. The room sprang to life in the projection, with beds neatly arranging themselves, and a holographic scene unfolded. A little girl with brown hair could be seen sleeping beside a white pony, with another curled up beside them.