foolish Idea

"Have you heard doctor?"

"Heard what Alice? You know how much I detest unreasonable information. Tell me what you know already."

"It's the Mutants."

"What about them?

"..... They've been declared as threats to mankind. They're to be killed or captured on sight using any means necessary."

There was no expression visible on the face of the middle aged man even after receiving such an information. All he cared about was the data in front of him and how to process it into valuable information.

"And?" Came a cold inquisitive voice.

"Isn't your son the leader of the Mutants? According to the article I read this morning he's been captured by the Borion government, the date of his execution is yet to be fixed."

The reply to her words was a light chuckle which was followed up by series of orders.

"Confirm if the Valves in the storeroom are still good for reusing, then get me my lab coat"

Without any signs of opposition, Alice left to carry out the duties as she was tasked. Ever since she was saved by this mad scientist, she had dedicated her life to serving him. At first he had refused her help, but she was adamant and finally managed to change his mind.

Casmir Alaric wasn't the best man out there and Alice could only wonder how his first family coped. The man she worked for was obsessed with science and experiments, so much so that if she wasn't there to remind him that he needed rest, this scientist would probably be dead. It has been a year since he saved her, but she could swear he barely knew anything about her besides her name.

Alice didn't mind, in fact she didn't care about grooming her relationship with Casmir, all she wanted was to help him achieve whatever he was working so hard for. She couldn't stop him from working everyday, she would fail even if she wanted to. The science that man was obsessed with was the same one that had saved her, she was definitely grateful that he was obsessed with it.

Alice surfaced minutes later bearing the lab coat in her hand, and the news of the valves in her mouth.

"One of them has been destroyed, but the remaining four are in good condition. Shall I carry them into the lab?"

"In a minute." Casmir replied as he threw the coat over his shoulders, all while his eyes remained glued to the screen of his system.

The smile on the scientist's Face was a rare one, he rarely showed any emotions, not to talk of smiling this broadly. The only time Alice has seen Casmir show emotions were moments when he's under the influence of alcohol. He mostly lamented about his past life and how he was a bad father and a mother. Most people would probably forget what the did when they were drunk, but Casmir's braincells were different from your average person. Without any reminder, Casmir was able to recollect everything that happened while he was drunk, and it somehow always managed to affect him mentally.

It was only through these lamentations that Alice even got to know anything about the scientist. He was very strict when it came to his family and past life, and would never reply any meaningless questions.

"You're smiling..." Alice paused to make sure she wasn't stepping beyond her boundaries. When she was certain that his reaction wouldn't be toxic, she proceeded to complete her sentence. "Could there be a reason behind it? Have you managed to find your son?"

"Prepare the valves and send them to the lab." Was the only reply she got. She should have known better, someone who as emotionally cautious as Casmir Alaric couldn't possibly tell her about his emotions so freely. With time she'll definitely find out more about this scientist.

Casmir watched his assistant disappear from the corner of his eyes before he finally turned towards his system. This was a classified operation, something he couldn't share with any random individual. Ever since he left Tantra he has been researching Ostrians and the possible way to stop them. For two straight years he has worked tirelessly without rest, and now he has a arrived at a point of breakthrough.

His theory was almost perfect, but there was no means to rest it out. If not for Alice he probably would have died in one corner of the house by now. Casmir couldn't leave the house, he was a wanted scientist, a criminal who is responsible for the deaths of thousands. Even if he was free to leave this place, he still wouldn't. The guilt to face people that his actions could still potentially kill wouldn't let him. While leaving Tantra, Casmir vowed to not show himself to the world until he was certain that he could cure it.

Aside from his inability to leave the house and procure certain equipments, Casmir still lacked a fundamental ingredient to test out his theory- Ostrian DNA. He had a few, but that wouldn't be enough. Before he could consider giving the world a potential cure to their problems he had to make sure that his cure was the real deal.

With limited resources and no means to acquire more, Casmir has decided that he was going to create the specimen he needed himself. Using the little Ostrian DNA he had left, he was going to mutate himself and then use his own body as a specimen. If by chance he's to die to this foolish decision of his, then he'll have Alice locate one of his former partners and relay everything to him.

Casmir was confident though, the Mutations wouldn't affect him that much, and after years of study he had come to perfect gene mutation. The risks of him becoming a mindless monster were lower now that he had more experience and skills, also the risks of infection was almost zero.

It was definitely a stupid idea, but this was one of the little sacrifices he has to make in order to amend for his mistakes. With this experiment, he was going to become an Ostrian, or rather a Mutant.