A bad mutation, in other words, may pass from generation to generation, and then, what about the fate of humanity taking their voyage on Imagine? Dr. Sato’s staff had publicly wondered with Tom if there needed to be a broad ship population agreement on the matter anyway—not exactly to Dr. Sato’s liking. Nevertheless, they had recently become aware that some donors onboard were willing to let the technology be tested on them if it was thanks to CRISPR and SATI that they might live forever.
For the time being, the medical staff assured Tom the leg would mend and that she would be up and walking in a cast and on crutches within a week. She was susceptible to the pain and suffering of being a mortal, after all.
Chapter 36 – Cryo Test Subjects
Tom Burns, The Imagine, Rocky Mountains, CO
The next day, to Tom’s surprise, Dr. Sato told him that she had other news she wanted to share with him.
“We are going to be moving the animals on board soon.”
“What animals? I thought this ship was not going to have any animals. I already let one tortoise on board, but that’s it. What animals are we talking about, and why do we need them?”
“First, we are moving around a hundred mice and guinea pigs on board. We need them for our research. I hate using animals to test for finding cures for diseases too. We will make every effort to keep these animals alive until they die of natural causes. However, for us to test the cryopreservation unit, there need to be test subjects to make sure it is working properly. We intend to put a mouse to sleep, or stasis, and then see if we can awaken it. Once we awaken it, we need to check all its vital signs to see if it is functioning as it was before we put it to sleep. If the first mouse dies or does not behave properly, we need to make adjustments. Same with the guinea pigs. I would much rather use a mouse or a guinea pig as a first test subject on board and not a human being. Would you like to be the first subject to test the cryo process? I don’t think so. We have to make sure it is working perfectly. Do you agree with me, Dr. Burns?”
Tom said, “I understand your concerns, but I thought we were ready to use the cryopreservation system.”
“Yes, but we have not done it in space. I don’t know if we have to adjust for gravity or other factors as we are flying at such a fast speed. We cannot test it until we leave Earth.”
“Where will you keep these mice? We can’t have them running around the spaceship. Also, how will we guarantee they will survive the launch? I don’t have spacesuits for mice. The suits don’t come in sizes that small.”
“Hilarious, Dr. Burns,” she said. “For the launch, I have arranged a special incubator cage where we will keep all the mice and guinea pigs. We keep a few there now.” She watched as Dr. Burns registered that they’d been testing on animals already. Of course, they had been. He just hadn’t considered where, but in any case, they were still firmly on terra firma. “A proper oxygen flow will be set up so they can breathe during the launch until the all-clear is given. They will never leave the restricted lab area.”
“Okay,” said Tom, “any other animals you intend to bring with you? How about some dogs?”
“Wow, you can read my mind, and yes, we are bringing ten different kinds of dogs on board. Each pair of dogs will have one male and one female so they can mate and reproduce.”
“You have to be kidding me. You mean we are setting up a puppy ward? I do not think we can have dogs in everyone’s room,” Dr. Burns said. “Who will train them?”
“I am not kidding about this. We need dogs and cats on board for many reasons. Would you like to hear them?”
Tom had a puzzled look on his face and wanted to leave, but said, “Go ahead.”
Dr. Sato said, “First of all, once we have success with the mice, we need another animal to test on the cryopreservation system. We will not test the dogs until they reproduce. I actually hope not to test them if all goes well, but we cannot predict what will happen.”
“Next reason,” said Tom.
“Dogs are man’s best friend. They can also be very therapeutic when people pet them.”
“I understand that people like dogs and dogs like to be pet, but dogs also poop outside. Where are they going to poop on the ship? I can’t imagine a hundred dogs running around this ship pooping all over the place. Who is going to clean it up? I don’t want my ship to smell like dog-poop or have people complain about stepping in it. Once we clean it up, what are we going to do with it? We can’t store it until we reach a planet, as we could have a ton of it before we land. They also bark a lot. In fact, some dogs bark an awful lot. Is this going to be a major problem?”
Dr. Sato started to laugh. “Calm down, silly. The dogs will be cared for by my staff. I did take the liberty of hiring a veterinarian to care for them. We have ordered plenty of dog food, and Luis has promised me he will cook up some bioengineered dog food for them. I intend to train them to poop in certain areas or in one room. During the launch, we will keep them together. We have developed, with Bob Jackson’s assistance, a special helmet for each dog and cat to regulate their oxygen. We will let the crew know that if they want to play with the dogs and cats, they can do so at certain hours. We certainly plan to limit the number of dogs and cats running around, but they have to reproduce. They only live twelve to fourteen years normally. Our research on them will also allow them to live longer. In short, we have thought of just about everything to make this work.”
“Thank you for telling me all these things about the dogs and cats. I know I cannot convince you to leave them here on Earth. Any dogs or cats left on Earth will likely perish the same as humans, and I guess we owe it to man’s best friend to make sure they continue to be so. Please make sure to put tags on them and give each one a name. That is all I have to say right now.”
“Would you like me to name one dog after you?” Dr. Sato asked.
Dr. Burns looked at her and made a face. “I certainly hope you do not name a dog after me but that is your choice. Are there any more animals you want to tell me about? How about some elephants or giraffes on board?”
Dr. Sato laughed again. “No elephants or giraffes will be on board for the entire trip. I can promise that. We do have DNA of almost all species of animals on the planet except for some of the more dangerous ones. Depending on the planet, we may not be able to clone some of them. The conditions may not be feasible for every animal to live on a new planet.”
“I am glad you are feeling better, and I made you laugh. I can see your mind is still as sharp as ever and you are starting to put the accident behind you already. I guess I will go and work on some other things.”
As he walked away, he was thinking to himself, what if the animals were the only ones left on the ship, could the dogs take over? Then a new movie could be made entitled, “Planet of the Dogs” instead of “Planet of the Apes.”
Chapter 37 – Wyoming Payload
Dr. Sato, The Imagine, Rocky Mountains, CO
Dr. Sato watched Dr. Earl Kintain and his entourage exit the plane that brought them to the undisclosed cave. Marvin had been eager to help ever since the accident had happened and it disappointed him that Dr. Sato hadn’t been able to acquire the necessary material for her DNA research.