Hybrids

Chapter Twenty-one

Vissan was a 144, most of a decade older than Mary. She had green eyes and hair that was predominantly gray, with only a few blond streaks betraying its original color. She was wearing fairly ragged manufactured clothing that had been patched here and there by pieces of hide, and was carrying a leather bag, presumably containing the bounty she’d gathered that morning.

The four of them were walking back toward Vissan’s cabin. “All right,” she said, looking at Mary, “I accept your story of who you are. But I still don’t know why you have sought me out.”

They had come to a small stream. Ponter picked up Mega and hopped over it first, then he offered his hand to help Mary across. Vissan forded the stream herself.

“I’m a life chemist, too,” said Mary. “We’re interested in your codon writer.”

“It is banned,” said Vissan, lifting her shoulder. “Banned by a bunch of short-headed fools.”

Ponter made a silencing motion. Up ahead were some more deer. Mary looked at the beautiful creatures.

“Vissan,” whispered Ponter, although Christine gave the translation a greater volume, since only Mary could hear that. “Do you have enough food? I would gladly bring down one of those deer for you.”

Vissan laughed, and spoke in a normal voice. “You are kind, Ponter, but I am doing fine.”

Ponter dipped his head, and they continued on, until the deer scattered of their own accord. Up ahead, Vissan’s cabin was visible.

“My interest in the codon writer isn’t just academic,” said Mary. “Ponter and I wish to have a child.”

“I’m going to have a little sister!” said Mega. “I already have a big sister. Not many people get to have a big sister and a little sister, so I’m special.”

“That’s right, darling,” said Mary. “You’re very special.” She turned back to Vissan.

“What of your Barast woman-mate?” asked Vissan, looking now at Ponter.

“She is no more,” said Ponter.

“Ah,” said Vissan. “I’m sorry.”

They had reached the cabin. Vissan opened the door and motioned for Ponter, Mary, and Mega to follow her in. Vissan took off her fur coat—

—and Mary saw the hideous scarring on the inside of her left forearm, where she’d carved out her Companion.

Ponter sat down with Mega at the table, giving her some attention. Mega had picked up a pine cone and two nice stones on the way back that she wanted her father to see.

Mary looked at Vissan. “So,” she said, “does your prototype still exist?”

“Why do you need it?” asked Vissan. “Has one of you been sterilized by the government?”

“No,” said Mary. “It’s nothing like that.”

“Then why do you need my device?”

Mary looked over at Ponter, who was listening intently to Mega, who was now telling him about things she’d been learning in school. “Barasts and Gliksins, plus chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans, all have a common ancestor,” said Mary. “That ancestor apparently had twenty-four pairs of chromosomes, as do all of its descendants except Gliksins. In Gliksins, two chromosomes have fused into one, meaning we only have twenty-three pairs. The overall genome is the same length, but the differing chromosome count would make a natural conception problematic.”

“Fascinating!” said Vissan. “Yes, the codon writer could easily produce a matched diploid set of chromosomes that combined Ponter’s DNA and your own.”

“So we’d hoped,” said Mary. “Which is why we’re interested in whether the prototype still exists.”

“Oh, it exists, all right,” said Vissan. “But I can’t let you have it—it’s a banned device. As much as I hate that fact, it is the reality. You would be punished for possessing it.”

“It is banned here,” said Mary.

“Not just here in the vicinity of Kraldak,” said Vissan. “It is banned all over the world.”

“All over this world,” said Mary. “But not in my world. I could take it back there; Ponter and I could conceive there.”

Vissan’s eyes went wide under her undulating browridge. She was quiet for a few moments, and Mary knew better than to interrupt her thinking. “I suppose you could, at that,” said Vissan, at last. “Why not? Better that somebody get the benefit of it, rather than no one.” She paused. “You would need medical aid still,” said Vissan, “to remove an egg from your body. Your natural haploid set of chromosomes would be vacuumed out of it, and a doctor would add in a full diploid set of chromosomes created using the codon writer. The egg would then be implanted in your womb. From that point on, it will be precisely like a regular pregnancy.” She smiled. “Cravings for salted tubers, morning sickness, and all.”

Mary had been enthusiastic when it had all been abstract—a magical, black-box solution. But now…“I…I hadn’t realized you would eliminate my natural DNA. I thought we’d just remap Ponter’s DNA so that it was compatible with mine.”

Vissan raised her eyebrow. “You said you are a life chemist, Mare. You know there’s nothing special about deoxyribonucleic acid produced by your body, or by a machine. In fact, it would be impossible for you to tell a natural string and a manufactured string apart. There is no chemical difference between them.”

Mary frowned. She’d chided her sister often enough for paying a premium for “natural” vitamins, which were chemically indistinguishable from those produced in labs. But…“But one of them came from my body, and the other came from a machine.”

“Yes, but…”

“No, no, you are right,” said Mary. “I’ve been telling my students for years that DNA is nothing but coded information.” She smiled at Ponter and Mega. “As long as it’s our coded information, it will still be our baby.”

Ponter looked up and nodded. “Our personal genetic material will need to be sequenced, of course.”

“Easily done,” said Vissan. “In fact, the codon writer can do that, too.”

“Wonderful!” said Mary. “Is the prototype here?”

“No. No, it’s hidden. Buried. But I wrapped it in plastic and metal to protect it. It’s not far away, though; I can easily retrieve it.”

“It would mean a great deal to us,” said Mary. Then a thought struck her. “Would you like to come back with me? To my world? I can guarantee you that we won’t ban your device there, or stop you from continuing research related to it.”

“What an astonishing idea!” said Vissan. “What is your world like?”

“Well, it’s different. Um, we have a bigger population, for one thing.”

“How big?”

“Six billion.”

“Six billion! I think you hardly need a device to aid conceptions, then…”

Mary nodded, conceding that. “And males and females live together all the time.”

“Madness! Don’t they get on each other’s nerves?”

“Well…yes, I suppose they do sometimes, but…As I said, it’s a different place. And we have many wonderful things. We have a space station—a permanent habitat orbiting our planet. We have buildings that tower into the sky”—although, Mary thought ruefully, not as many as we used to. “And we have much more varied cuisine.”

“Ponter, have you been there?”

“My daddy’s been there three times now!” said Mega.

“Would I like it?” asked Vissan.

“That depends,” said Ponter. “Do you like it here, in the wilderness?”

“Very much. I have gotten quite used to it.”

“Do smells bother you?”

“Smells?”

“Yes. For power, they burn oil and coal, so there is a stench in their cities.”

“That hardly sounds appealing. I think I will stay here.”

“Whatever makes you happy,” said Mary. “But could you teach us how to operate the codon writer, then?”

Vissan looked at Ponter. “How do you feel about this? I have willingly shed myself of the trappings of civilization, and so the Grays—High or Low—have no authority over me. But you…”

Ponter looked at Mary, then back at Vissan. “I have de-fied the High Grays before; I chose to flout their order to return to this universe so that the portal could be shut down. Indeed, I would still be in Mare’s universe if an ambassador hadn’t convinced others to cross over. And…”

“Yes?”

“And, well, sometimes people are sterilized without it being right, so…”

Ponter trailed off, and Mary spoke up. “He’s referring to his man-mate, Adikor. When Ponter first disappeared into my world, they thought Adikor had killed him and disposed of the body. They were going to sterilize him.” She turned to Ponter. “Isn’t that right, Ponter?”

“What?” said Ponter, his tone odd. “Oh, yes. Yes, that was what I meant, of course…”

“Well, if you are comfortable with having the codon writer,” said Vissan, “I am content to let you have it.” She gestured toward the door. “I’ll go get it. Just don’t ever tell anyone—in this world, at least—that you have it.”