Callisto 2.0, Susan English [i love reading .TXT] 📗

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

Naomi was making great progress in her parthenogenesis work, and was scheduled to present her findings at the next staff meeting. I was so proud of her. She was happier than I’d ever seen her. Not only was her research going spectacularly well, her relationship with Simon was also blossoming. She was spending nearly every weekend on the Moon.

On the day of Naomi’s talk, we all gathered on the observation deck as usual. Diana called the meeting to order, then Naomi stood up. We all looked at her expectantly.

“As you all know, I’ve been working on a novel mechanism for parthenogenesis.”

She caught my eye. I smiled at her and nodded. “Many of you are already familiar with the history,” she glanced at Raven, who acknowledged the remark with an upward tilt of her head, “but at the risk of repetition, let me provide a brief synopsis. In 2004, the first scientifically verified mammal conceived by two female parents was born, a tiny mouse named Kaguya. Since then, the technology has improved dramatically. By turning on the genes in the ovum which, in nature, are the purview of the donated sperm, we have been able to successfully circumnavigate sexual reproduction.

“My work has gone a step beyond—I’ve modeled my mechanism after the whiptail lizards, where the oocyte, or egg, has two sets of chromosomes, which are recombined in much the same way as with sexual reproduction. So far my work has been focused on introducing multiple sets of chromosomes into a female mammal, five or six sets, and so when the female is stimulated to reproduce, the genetic pool is vastly more diverse. The impetus for this is because higher-order species are more complex and therefore require a more robust and diverse genetic pool to avoid debilitating or fatal mutations. I’m happy to announce I’ve perfected my mechanism, which I call EVE, for all higher-order mammals.”

Everyone started clapping.

Naomi held up a hand. “Alright now, so far the technique works perfectly in my computer simulations, but live subjects need to be tested in the future.”

“I volunteer Hadley,” said Andrea, grabbing Hadley’s hand and holding it up.

Hadley jerked her hand free. “No thanks!” Hadley said, mock glaring at Andrea. “I’m not interested in carrying a baby in my body for nine months.” She shuddered.

“Aw, come on, sweetie, don’t you want a darling little baby Hadley bouncing around the station?”

Hadley rolled her eyes. “As tempting as that sounds, I think I’ll pass.”

Everyone turned back to Naomi, who smiled indulgently at the two women. She continued, explaining the mechanism in detail. I allowed my mind to wander, since Naomi had already shared the details of her discovery with me during her practice talks the week before, with me and the mice as her audience. She had a way of explaining that made her theory accessible. I had always considered mathematics to be the purest 216

expression of elegance and harmony, but after listening to Naomi, seeing the joy and wonderment on her face, I was reminded that the creation of life was an incredible embodiment of the magnificence of the Universe. I looked around the room, filled with my colleagues, my sisters, and warmth flowed through my body. Here, too, in this room, was a manifestation of something truly beautiful. I smiled to myself, happy, as always, to be a part of it all.

Hearing a few women gasp in dismay, I snapped back to the present. What had Naomi just said? I had only been half listening, but I replayed her voice in my head: I’l have to leave the station to continue my work. What? Naomi was leaving? I stared at her.

“Because, obviously, giving birth and microgravity most definitely don’t mix,” she said.

“Aw, Naomi, I can’t believe you’re leaving us!” said Tanya.

“I’ll just be a shuttle ride away, at Arcadia, where I plan on conducting the next phase of my research. Anyway, I won’t be leaving for another month or so. I’m yet to carry out a couple simulations and write up my findings.”

I blinked rapidly, my mind grappling with the information. Naomi had also explained to me that giving birth in micro-g wasn’t possible, but I hadn’t put the pieces together.

The next phase was to test her model on living creatures, and she couldn’t do that on the orbital lab. My heart sank. How had I missed something so obvious?

“You don’t seem too sad to leave us,” said Raven, crossing her arms, looking at Naomi with mock severity, then broke into a smile. “I think I know why.”

Naomi’s face took on a dreamy expression. “There is the fringe benefit of being closer to Sector One, it’s true.”

I looked at Naomi. She was like a flower in bloom, positively glowing. I sighed. It would only be a few months, but I would miss her.

◆◆◆

On Monday, I joined Naomi, Raven, and Olivia for the biology power lunch.

“Good news!” said Naomi as I settled into my chair.

“Oh?”

“Pavani accepted the position!” said Raven.

A shiver ran down my spine, and my hands felt clammy. “Oh, that’s great,” I managed.

Olivia narrowed her eyes at me. “You okay?”

“Just bit my tongue,” I lied. I took a deep breath and popped a water blob in my mouth. So strange. What was wrong with my body? “When will she come back?” I asked, examining my bowl of food balls: Moroccan couscous, made with taro flour, and veggies.

“In a month,” said Raven.

“I’m sorry I’ll be leaving,” said Naomi.

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“I still can’t believe you’re abandoning us!” I said, jutting out my lower lip and crossing my arms. “I don’t know why it never occurred to me you would have to go.”

She laughed. “Calli, you’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever come across, but often, no, most of the time, you have a way of missing the bigger picture.”

“Oh, that’s an understatement!” said Olivia, rolling her eyes. “The things that just breeze right by her.”

I smiled. “I know, it’s true. But that’s why I have all of you, to point out everything I miss.”

“A full-time job!” said Naomi, winking at Olivia, who responded with a smug nod.

“Very funny.” My smile faded. I knew, intellectually, that Naomi would be leaving, but emotionally, I hadn’t come to terms with the reality. I looked at her. “I’m going to miss you like crazy.”

“Me too,” said Olivia and Raven in unison.

“Aw, come on women. There’s this really innovative method of communication, perhaps you’ve heard of it? It’s called holochat. It’s only been around for, what? Seventy years? And besides, it’s only temporary, until Phase Two of my research ends. Imagine, in just a few months, if all goes well, we’ll have a litter of baby mice on the station, this time with more genetic variation.”

Despite myself, I laughed. The image was too cute. “I can’t wait.”

“Oh, that reminds me,” continued Naomi, “I’ll be taking a couple of mice to the Moon with me this weekend, to get them acclimatized to the lunar gravity.”

I glared at her, frowning.

“Don’t ya worry,” she said, patting my arm, “Asteria is not included in Phase Two.

She stays on the station.”

“That’s a relief. You, I can stand to lose, but Aster, well—”

Naomi punched me in the arm. “Is that so?”

I nodded gravely, then started laughing, and Naomi laughed, too. I knew she, like me, was thinking about that conversation in her lab so long ago, when I’d first arrived, about using the mice as guinea pigs.

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