Chapter 42: The Serum Debate
Several weeks had passed since the announcement of the referendum. James and his brother, Jeff, had put considerable effort into campaigning in favour of the serum. There was almost no campaigning against the serum. Yensid Media demonstrated their complete dominance in controlling information.
Those who opposed the serum had the opportunity to voice their opinions in the national debate. This was likely to be their only real opportunity to have their voices heard.
The debate was to be between two teams. One team would argue in favour of the serum, and the other would argue against it. The team in favour of the serum included Ricardo, the Hat Lady, posing as a scientist called Trevor, and Jeff Yensid. The team opposing the serum included Etnad, Head Philosopher from the West House of Divine Knowledge; Locum; and Waldo the Third.
The debate was to be held at Yensid Media Studios in front of a live studio audience. It was also to be aired live on television and radio. The debate was to be hosted by action star Mickey.
‘Looks like I’m part of the A team,’ said Waldo as he joined Etnad and Locum backstage.
‘I’m pleased that your wisdom is shining through on this matter,’ said Etnad as he bowed reverently towards Waldo.
‘Great to see you out and about,’ said Waldo as he turned to Locum. ‘I love the wheels.’
‘It is a prototype electric wheelchair,’ said Locum. ‘My mobility has greatly deteriorated.’
‘It looks really cool,’ said Waldo as he inspected the chair. ‘I would love for you to send one over to the cottage.’
A crewmember entered the backstage area. She gestured towards the three of them to take their place on stage. The three went out on stage. The other team was already on stage. Both teams took their places behind long desks, which faced each other diagonally while also facing towards the cameras and the host.
The music played loudly as Mickey sprinted out on stage. He shuffled around for a few moments before jumping acrobatically into his seat opposite the stage. The audience applauded in joy as the music died down.
‘Welcome to the great serum debate,’ shouted Mickey. ‘Today two teams will debate the implementation of an intelligence serum that will permanently enhance the next generation of our species.’
The audience applauded loudly.
‘Should we or shouldn’t we?’ said Mickey as he waved his finger. ‘The choice is ultimately up to you. Our teams will present the reasons for and against such an important decision. The debate is very simple. The proposition and the opposition take turns to make their points. Let’s start with Ricardo from the proposition.
Ricardo stood up; he tugged down hard on the lapels of his brand-new suit. ‘Mickey, my lad, you’re looking sharp as usual,’ commented Ricardo. ‘A lot sharper than this lot,’ he added as he pointed at the other team.’
Waldo waved his fist angrily at Ricardo.
‘The truth is we need to get smarter,’ said Ricardo. ‘Everything around us is advancing and improving. Our minds are falling behind.'
‘The advancements are being made by Linap, like him,’ added Ricardo as he pointed at Locum. ‘From the look of his face, he’ll be pushing up daisies this time next week. Then, what are we going to do? Rely purely on his psychotic family!’
The audience applauded as Ricardo gestured heavily towards the other team.
‘You overwhelmingly want fairness. There are two ways to do this,’ said Ricardo. ‘We become smarter or stop the Alset family from being smarter. The former will elevate our society, and the latter will see it collapse.’ Ricardo slammed his fist on the desk as he sat back down.
‘Thank you for those powerful points,’ said Mickey as he clapped his hands. ‘Next we have our Head Philosopher, Etnad.’
Etnad began his speech by speaking in Parelic for two minutes. This was a rarely used alternative language used by the Linap. It was sometimes spoken by those high up in the House of Divine Knowledge, but very few outside of this institute understood it. All the members of the Alset family spoke and wrote it fluently.
‘I just spoke the wise and divine words of a higher power,’ said Etnad. ‘Our bodies are a gift from the higher power. We must never desecrate them. For they are intended to remain as they have been divinely given. This serum blasphemes his holiest of gifts. In doing so, we will face terrible consequences. Eternal solitude and banishment from the promised kingdom.’
Etnad promptly returned to his seat. Waldo placed his hand on Etnad’s shoulder. He appeared to be sobbing. A few in the audience lightly clapped.
‘A truly chilling warning from our esteemed leader of the House of Divine Knowledge,’ said Mickey as he grinned mockingly. ‘Next we have Pound Ball League owner, Jeff Yensid.’
‘Yeah, Pound Ball,’ said Jeff as he leapt to his feet. ‘Pound Ball is the most watched sport in the world. If it weren’t for the advancements in technology, most of you would have never even seen a game.’
‘We love Pound Ball,’ shouted the audience in unison.
‘I know you do. I know you do,’ shouted back Jeff. ‘If you want Pound Ball to continue to get better, we need more and better technology. Bigger screens, better sound, high definition, better and more cameras, and the ability to make the action larger than life. Better transportation will enable us to expand the league and the number of games in a season. All this equals more fun for us all.’
The audience loudly applauded.
‘If we are smarter, we will be able to do everything better and faster. The quality of your enjoyment will improve, and the amount of time you spend enjoying yourself will increase as the hours you need to work fall.’
Jeff grinned broadly as he sat back down. The audience rose to their feet and applauded loudly. This continued for over a minute.
‘Wow, what a reaction,’ called out Mickey as he continued to clap his hands. ‘Let’s get smart and let’s have fun.’
‘Right, next up we have Waldo,’ said Mickey as he rolled his eyes.
‘Excuse me, last time we had a scoreboard,’ said Waldo as he slowly got out of his seat. ‘So, I’m wondering how the scoring works this time.’
‘We didn’t actually have a scoring system last time,’ replied Mickey. ‘We only put on that little charade to keep you happy because you were chief at the time. Now we’re not going to bother because you’re just some rich, fat guy.’
The audience roared with laughter.
‘How dare you!’ called out Waldo angrily. ‘I’m the perfect weight for my shape.’
‘Please, we need to continue this debate,’ said Mickey firmly.
‘Let me get straight to the point. The true crux of the issue,’ said Waldo confidently as he scanned the audience with his eyes. ‘Most of you do not have the intellectual prowess of myself nor that of the decrepit blokes sitting next to me. That is not a bad thing; we need the stupid and weak-minded to serve their betters. What I truly love about my employees is their lack of ambition and their gratitude for the little things. If everyone were so smart, who the hell would serve me and my family? A robot ain’t gonna cut it for some things. Let nature take its course, and let the idiots remain.’
The audience remained silent as Waldo sat back down. Locum sighed and shook his head.
‘Yes, let’s remain dumb,’ said Mickey sarcastically. ‘After all, we were all born to serve the great Waldo the Third.’
The audience began to giggle. Waldo smiled and waved back at them.
‘Next up we have the esteemed scientist, Trevor,’ said Mickey as he lightly clapped his hands.
The Hat Lady slowly rose to her feet. ‘I just want everyone to take just a few seconds to absorb what Waldo just said,’ she said in a soft voice.
‘Yes, listen to this guy,’ cried out Waldo. ‘Absorb my astronomical wisdom.’
The audience began to grumble.
‘Nobody is born to serve someone else,’ said the Hat Lady. ‘Artificially created divergence in intelligence does exactly that. Waldo has accurately summarised why certain elite figures do not want that gap to close.’
Waldo smiled and gestured with his thumbs up towards her. The Hat Lady glared back at him in disdain.
‘Look at who sits beside him,’ said the Hat Lady as she pointed at the other team. ‘To his left, the Head Philosopher from the House of Divine Knowledge. The institute that has preyed on the gullible to line the pockets of their leaders. To his right, Locum Alset. Grandfather, blue eyes himself. The inventor of the “blue juice”, the one who made his family so powerful. The one who had a monopoly on employment. If you happened to be born in the North or Carrington Districts, you work for Alset or you starve. The greedy chiefs just sat back and let it happen.’
The Hat Lady paused. The audience remained silent.
‘Our children need a fighting chance to avoid our suffering, the suffering of their parents and grandparents,’ said the Hat Lady. ‘This serum gives them the power to rise out of poverty. The power to masterfully shape their own lives.’
The Hat Lady smiled as the audience slowly began to applaud.
‘You have seen the wonder babies,’ said the Hat Lady. ‘They are three times ahead of where even the smartest babies would be. Even more importantly, they are healthy and strong.’
A tear began to roll down her cheek as she continued, ‘There were six other babies that were also healthy and strong. Alset Company saw them as a threat. Therefore, “the guards” made sure they would not survive. Only by a miracle do these two babies live today. The new serum was only intended for their advantage. Hence, the reason Locum has forced himself to be here today. It is a last gasp attempt to thwart the tables turning on his family.’
The Hat Lady paused as she watched the audience shaking their heads as they looked at Locum.
‘It is time to put the past behind us,’ said the Hat Lady as she looked over at the other team. ‘It is time to establish a fair playing field. It will benefit all of us. Thank you for listening to the case that I and the other members of my team have put forward.’
The audience began clapping. Both Jeff and Ricardo clapped as well.
‘A very, very moving speech from Trevor,’ said Mickey as he wiped a tear from his own eye. ‘We’ll end this debate by hearing from old blue eyes himself, Locum Alset.’
‘I’d like to thank everyone in attendance, my team members as well as the three sitting opposite me,’ said Locum in a slow, methodical tone. ‘Ricardo, Jeff, and particularly Trevor have made outstanding points. Points I’m sure have convinced many that this serum should be available to all.’
Locum paused to catch his breath.
‘It’s no secret that I’m in very poor health,’ continued Locum. ‘I’m here against all medical advice because I have some important things I need to say, and I’m the only one who can say them. The blue juice has enhanced my family members’ intelligence. It has been a major contributor to their success. A success most others desire to replicate. The blue juice did not only enhance their intelligence. It enhanced other character traits. Many of the wrongs my family has perpetrated over the years have been a direct result of the influence the blue juice has had on them. I saw this happen, but I never had the courage to do anything about it.’
‘Just to keep things on track,’ interrupted Mickey. ‘The debate is about the new serum and not the blue juice.’
‘The new serum has been derived from the blue juice,’ replied Locum. ‘It will present the same problems.’
‘I have an alternative thesis,’ interrupted the Hat Lady. ‘Your family did bad things because they are just bad. The blue juice gave them the intelligence to be worse. I think you just want to make excuses for them.’
The audience loudly applauded.
‘It does not distinguish between good and bad traits,’ said Locum. ‘It made Jenna more caring. It made Demadrian more tenacious. It made Patricia more jealous. It made Hadrian greedier. It made them all more obsessed in one way or another. At least with a regularly administered serum, it could be controlled to a certain extent. If it is embedded in our genetics, what’s stopping it from taking over us?’
‘Thank you, Locum, for concluding with that nice dose of fearmongering,’ interrupted Mickey.
‘I’m sorry, I’m not finished yet,’ replied Locum.
‘Sure, continue,’ sighed Mickey as he looked down at his fingernails.
‘Look at me,’ said locum as forcefully as he could. ‘I’ve spent most of my life in this wheelchair. I’ve spent almost all my life suffering from some form of illness. The blue juice causes illness if too much is used. We have prevented this illness by monitoring the colour of our eyes. Turning green is an early warning, and turning blue indicates the onset of illness. The babies have green eyes. This is an early warning. It is quite likely they will not suffer ill health, but their children almost certainly will if they choose to breed with someone else who has been genetically altered by the serum.’
‘Sorry, time is up,’ interrupted Mickey. ‘I think we’ve all heard enough of your message of doom.’
‘If all our children are genetically modified, you will set something in motion that cannot be stopped,’ blurted out Locum.
Then Locum’s microphone was cut off.
‘That wraps up this colourful debate,’ said Mickey. ‘All sides have been given a chance to make their points. Of course, Locum wanted to hijack this debate, but I would have none of it. Now the decision sits with all of you out there. Carefully think over what you have heard. In a few weeks’ time, you get to vote. Democracy will determine our future.’
The music began playing as the participants of the debate went backstage.
Locum was waiting in the underground car park for his vehicle to arrive. He saw Trevor down there.
‘I knew you couldn’t resist coming here,’ said Locum as the Hat Lady slowly approached him. Despite the form she took, Locum was able to recognise her as Demadrian’s girlfriend.
‘The opportunity to debate the one and only Locum. How could I resist?!’ said the Hat Lady as she smirked disapprovingly.
‘You are remarkable in so many ways,’ said Locum. ‘I just wish….’
‘You just wish I wasn’t out to stop you,’ interrupted the Hat Lady.
‘No, I just wish you didn’t have to sacrifice everyone to do it,’ replied Locum.
‘Sure,’ replied the Hat Lady in a sarcastic tone.
‘I know you’ve seen it yourself,’ said Locum firmly. ‘How much greedier and more selfish has James become since you’ve known him?’
‘That came from his own arrogance,’ replied the Hat Lady.
Locum grabbed her arm. This somehow forced her to shapeshift from Trevor into her natural form. The Hat Lady diverted her eyes downwards.
‘The blue juice made that arrogance grow,’ said Locum as he pulled her towards him. ‘Now look at me. Look me in the eyes.’
She lifted her head up and looked at him with her deep blue eyes. ‘I’m tanked up on it, and I’m perfectly fine,’ she said in a bitter tone.
She pulled her arm free and shapeshifted back into Trevor.
‘I thought I was the only one,’ said Locum in a sad tone. ‘I’m so sorry.’
The Hat Lady disappeared. Seconds later, Locum’s vehicle pulled up.
Sapien Loop: End of an Era
Sapien Loop: Frozen in Time is the sequel to the book Sapien Loop: End of an Era. Sapien Loop: End of an Era is available on Amazon, in collection series on my @spectrumecons account, and in individual chapters in my @captainhive account.
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