Chapter 24: Perfect World

“I can’t believe we did it.” Ferral said, still in disbelief. “Believe it, my son,” Victor replied, “We’re paving the path to peace. You should feel proud.” As the two talked, a female scientist came walking over. “Sir, we’ve confirmed the cure will be a hundred percent effective,” She said, “However, it’ll take a few days to create more.” Victor nodded, “Of course, no rush.” He turned his attention back to Ferral. “So, what’s next, son?” Ferral collected himself before answering. “Well for starters, taking a mental break.” Victor chuckled, “Of course. And it is getting late, though I’m sure you’re not used to the time difference yet. Why don’t you get some rest, and tomorrow we’ll talk some more.” Ferral nodded, walking out of the room and back to his bedroom….

Back at Central City, Leona and the tiger woman held a private meeting in one of the locker rooms. Leona had told the other lionesses to go ahead and that she’d meet them at home. “So, what did you want to talk about?” The woman asked. Leona crossed her arms and leaned against one of the lockers, “Earlier you asked about who Ferral was. Why?” The woman didn’t respond. Leona continued, “It almost seems like you know him, or at least know about him.” The woman nodded, “Truth is, he’s the reason I entered this tournament.” “But why? What’s your connection to him?” The woman sighed, detransforming to her normal state. “My name is Everett,” She replied, dropping the Russian accent, “I’m Ferral’s….” She stopped, her face slowly turning red, “His….Uhhh….Ummm…..” “His girlfriend, right?” Leona asked, “Yeah, he’s talked about you. Extensively.” “H-He does?” Leona groaned, “Oh yeah. It’s always: She’s so beautiful. She’s so smart. Like, just fuck her already.” 

“By the way,” Leona turned to Everett, “Ferral said you were a normal human. So why can you transform like us?” “Well….it’s funny. When the world found out about experiments, I was fascinated by all of you. I thought you were special and amazing feats in human evolution. So, I worked day and night for three years to become just like you guys. However, I wasn’t fully able to get it right, so I ended up like what you saw today.” Leona started chuckling which became loud laughter. “I’m guessing Ferral doesn’t know this?” “No. I was gonna tell him, but when he told me he didn’t like being an experiment, I decided to hold off.” “You’re pretty strong for a fake, you must’ve had a helluva training regimen.” Leona continued to laugh…...

It was early morning where Ferral was, so he got up and snuck to the room where his clones were. When he went inside, they were all sleeping. Ferral flipped the switch and the sound of the holes opening awoken them. He walked in the middle of the room, the five getting up and walking toward the front glass. “Good news, guys. The cure is complete.” “That’s great to hear, Ferral.” 9321 responded. “Yes, good for you.” 9322 added. Ferral looked at the two with surprise. “Woah, when did you guys learn to talk like that?” “From our first encounter. We are you, after all.” “Wow, you guys learned to speak better just from our one conversation.” The two nodded. Ferral looked behind him, “What about you guys?” He asked the other three. “They’re currently able to talk the way we did before you arrived.” 9322 responded. “Wow, I knew I was a faster learner, but seeing you guys really puts it into perspective. Saves me a lot of trouble.”

“We were given very little human interaction,” 9321 started, “We only learned to talk from hearing bits and pieces from security and scientists that came in here.” “I see. So, if you guys are clones of me, do you have all my memories?” They shook their heads, “No. We may be made of your DNA, but we’re completely clean slates.” 9322 said. Ferral nodded, “Well if that’s the case, how about I give you guys names? I’ve always been good at that.” Ferral sat on the floor cross-legged as he started brainstorming. The other watched him, almost studying Ferral. “You talk and act so nice,” 9322 said, “But your eyes are filled with the same pain and hate that ours do.” Ferral looked at her, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” “She’s saying that despite how you act on the outside, you share the same darkness on the inside that we do.” Ferral got back up, “I don’t have any kind of darkness. I may have made mistakes and said some things that I didn't mean. But that’s it.” “You’re eyes don’t lie,” 9321 said, “We can see all the pain, anger, and hate you still hold. Trying your hardest to suppress it, afraid of what would happen if you let it consume you.” They were right, but Ferral didn’t want to admit it. Despite what he tried to feel, Ferral still held anger toward humanity for what they’ve done since experiments were revealed. He sighed and walked out of the room. He made his way to the roof and sat on one of the ledges, looking out of the ocean.

He hated humanity. All they did was fight, cause pain, and act like it was normal. Why? They hated each other for such ridiculous reasons. Race, gender, beliefs. Why? There was good, but was outweighed by the bad. How could they be the apex species of the world when all we do is harm themselves? But not just themselves, but the world itself. Does humanity even deserve to live anymore? Maybe. Maybe not. Why? Should humanity just start over? Maybe. Maybe not. Why?

While Ferral was deep in thought, Victor came walking over and sat beside his son with his back turned from the ocean. “Something on your mind, son?” He asked, snapping Ferral back. “Oh dad, it’s you. No, I’m just thinking about stuff.” “What kind of stuff?” “Just….stuff. Life.” “I see. You know, I often think about life too. Why humans still exist or how to better our race from self-extinction.” Victor’s words caught Ferral’s attention. “Have you come to a conclusion?” He asked. “Indeed I have. Man is cruel, destructive, and greedy. We engage in pointless wars, killing ourselves for power-hungry fools. But it’s not just war, humanity itself is flawed and failed. Has been that way for centuries.”

“But there’s still good in man, right?” Ferral said, “There’s still some light.” “Yes, but for our long? How long before we’re all consumed by our flaws? That’s the reason I joined in the creation of experiments. You see, this organization was founded on the belief that mankind was doomed. We’d kill ourselves off, and so a new group of humans would be created to supplement our failing race. This new group would know equality, community, and true peace. Something current man could only dream and make false promises for.” “So, I’m just like all of you. But, I don’t want to see regular man die, despite how I might feel inside.”

“Which is understandable, my son. However, they WILL kill themselves off. It’s in their nature for self-destruction.” Ferral looked down in despair. “But, what if I said we could end their suffering?” Ferral looked up, “What?” “With any goal, there must be sacrifice. And a path to peace requires a large toll, but the end result will ultimately be worth it.” “I don’t understand, dad.” Victor got up, Ferral turning around and joining him. “We can help them. Save them from themselves, that’s why you and your friends exist. To achieve true peace, we must sweep away the old to make room for the new. You, my son. I know how you feel, but you must understand that what you have…what you are is the next step for mankind.” “What’re you saying, father?” “Join me, my son. In a righteous crusade for the betterment of man, and bring about a perfect world.”

Ferral didn’t respond at first, still processing the information. “Now, unfortunately, the old being current man will have to be….wiped away. But, it’s a small price to pay for our race’s salvation.” “You…want to kill off…humanity?” “Not kill, my son. Save. You and the other experiments will pick up where current man left off, but without the pain, hate, and suffering. You will be the terrible swift sword.” Ferral thought about it. It sounded insane but made sense at the same time. However, “My family. Ms. Clare, and Mr. Buck, what about them? Can’t they live?” Victor shook his head, “As I said, for one to truly achieve their goals, sacrifices MUST be made. It’s the sad truth.” “But….But what if we revive them? You said you were working on reanimation, right? Maybe, we could bring them back and turn them into experiments?” Victor nodded his head in agreement, “Well I suppose. Yes, that’s a possibility.” “And, bring back all the good people too, right? It could be a whole redo on the human race.” Victor smiled, “Now you’re thinking like my son.”

The more Ferral thought about it, the more it made sense. It was the only way humanity could be at peace, and the fact he could still keep his family and other friends made it better. “Yeah….Yeah, you’re right!” “You see it now, don’t you? Together we can achieve the perfect world for man. One void of pain, hate, violence.” Ferral was on board, and yet, something ate at the back of his mind. “Could we get every experiment on board with this idea?” “Oh of course. If you can see it, they can too. It would take some convincing, but I assure you, it will all work out.” “Yeah! Does this plan have a name, father?” “Huh? Well, that’s never really been thought of. But, for the sake of argument, we’ll call this grand place Project Clean Slate.” Ferral looked out to the sea, and as the sun rose, he felt a sense of pride. He would finally be rid of his pain, and so would all of the world.

While the two talked, Dr. Atlas watched the two on a small tablet while a beetle drone flew above them. “Oh no,” He whispered, “Victor, you’re not really going to do it?”