Saving Adam

From the coldness of the night, the pod awakened and out came Thomas. His legs were wobbly and his eyes were foggy from travelling many months, possibly years on this barbaric voyage. After finding his balance in his metallic chamber, he took comfort watching the crashing waves churning outside. For a moment, Thomas imagined himself still at home, not worrying about the mission at hand. Like all things in nature, this thought soon vanished with the sentient alarm bell, Isaac, bringing him back to reality.

“Good Morning Thomas!” Isaac said, “I hope that your slumber was restorative.”

“More or less,” replied Thomas “Can you compute our targeted arrival?”

“Certainly... we will land at Kokkino in exactly 23 hours, 54 minutes, and 12 seconds. In the meantime you should consider walking about the deck. I’m sure other travellers will wake up shortly” Isaac suggested. “No thanks,” Thomas muttered, “I’d rather just stay here and review my collected works from Blegaia. After all, that’s why I was brought on this expedition.”

Thomas was many things to many people. He was an engineer, writer, technician, but most Blegaians know him as a renowned biohistorian. A career that evolves like its ever-changing subjects. His most famous work was titled “The Rise and Fall of Scissors: How Humans Design Disasters,” a piece that requires ten volumes to complete.

“Isaac?” asked Thomas, “Do you mind transcribing the third volume of The Scissors into a synthesized audible documentary? I’m afraid my eyes are still adjusting from the long empty travel.”

“Certainly... ... ... the documentary of The Scissors Third Volume will commence on the wall to your left, enjoy Thomas!” Isaac explained.

“Most citizens of Blegaia were told early in their life that to understand society we had to turn our heads up and contemplate life beyond the sky. Hopeful thinking, but nonetheless, wishful thinking. What really allowed us to understand society, perhaps control society, was not romanticizing about nature, but experimenting on nature. Our nature. Back in the common era, human beings sought for a way to read ourselves, to read our biology. With its invention, the rise of the first Enhanced Genomic Revolution (EGR) became apparent. The technology quickly launched an uproar across every nation. It seemed that its mechanical birth led to more and more ethical deba- ”

“Pause Isaac,” demanded Thomas. “I changed my mind, this volume may be a bit too broad to complete before our arrival. I think, I think I would prefer a shortened documentary, something that showcases the next three EGRs.”

“Certainly... .... .... the condensed documentary of the remaining EGRs will begin shortly on the adjacent wall. It’s run-time is estimated to be 1 hour, 34 minutes, and 40 seconds,” Isaac computed.

Before playing the new film outlining his life’s work, Thomas took a moment to stare at the window of his chambers. The ambient moving waves seemed so peaceful when he first woke up from his pod. They were gentle yet monstrous, like the tsunamis of the past. However, he soon realized all too well, that these were not the waves of his home or any home. These were simply a reflection of the wave, of the real thing. It was an optical illusion nothing more, something to make his journey easier to cope with. Thomas rubbed his watery eyes back and forth for awhile before clearing his throat and saying “Alright Isaac... let’s start the film.”

EGR II

Two generations after the advent of human bioengineering, political committees around Blegaia agreed that to protect us from the chaotic fates of nature, we needed to shield ourselves from all pathogens. All scientific efforts went into establishing and designing the tools necessary for this grand immunization project. The trials were initially problematic, given that some people fell ill from primary treatments. Regardless, 50 years later on Kokkino, the global aim had been accomplished: all diseases that were ever able or will be able to cause devastation upon humanity were erased. Every human had now possessed the genetic material to combat any infection of the past, present, and future. And so, the second EGR had come to a close with disease prevention and eradication.

EGR III

With the continuous split of civilization from Kokkino and Blegaia, people struggled to reach a consensus on the next major project to solve. After some reasonable negotiation across both regions, The People decided to improve the physical structure of humans. Longevity seemed grim if the mere vessels that carried life always broke down. We strengthened everything; bigger muscles, stronger bones, better eye-sight, and less hair loss. Medical care slowly became irrelevant. Society now included professionals that only explained the betterment of each tool to the general public. The biotechnology to enhance each person was suggested at first, but over time it became a mandate to exhibit a certain amount of the vast physical improvements on the human body.

Technology had always been pedalling forward all this time, but The People had to remain patient for the change they wanted, for the edition they so desperately craved.

Thomas took a slow deep breath as he anticipated the next revolutionary section. Although he was the author of The Scissors, he applauded and marvelled at Isaac’s ability to render his writing into a compressed film. It gave him a sense of novelty in the face of the darkness ahead of him. A part of him imagined a simpler life during the common era, where people prided themselves on tackling conflicts. Now, each conflict felt like a fabricated ploy to expand the desire for perfection. Thomas shifted in his seat and watched the screen resume the next act.

EGR IV

Once the technology across Kokkino and Blegaia was advanced enough, The People had the opportunity to finally augment the one thing they all dreamed of: The Mind. The revolution for mental improvement mirrored that of the previous physical one; scientists devoted all efforts into the genetic project, while delivering multiple achievements. We started with preserving memory, then moved onto increasing memory capacity. Dictionaries had to be re-written for what was deemed appropriate terms for humans and computers. Years later, The People found the tools necessary that allowed us to read and write our own intelligence. It became clear that almost every person was equipped with the biology harnessed from all EGRs across human history.

For the first time, humanity had successfully triumphed from the shackles of nature. We had mastered our defensive, physical, and mental limits, and created the perfect human. We have evolved ourselves without the perils of the environment pressing down on our back. Most people believed that all was complete in the story of human bioengineering. However, a small portion of scientists grew hungry with their new mental feats. They sought to compose a new revolution, but what can be done to perfect perfection? These people, those that still remain on Kokkino, for the first time in nearly a millennium turned outwards, not to contemplate the stars, but to share their perfection with other creatures on their planet. They sought to augment the biology of nature to their liking. They were met with severe backlash for the first time since the first EGR. It was acceptable to alter some lenses in our life, but reshaping all the lenses of all the species and ourselves was punishable by law.

To avoid outright war, the people who disagreed fled to Blegaia, what was once called Earth. Meanwhile, the rebellious outlaws stayed on Kokkino to expand their perfection on nature anyway they seemed fit. During the common era, Kokkino was referred to as Mars. To this day the people from both planets have lived in divided yet mutual peace. Some Blegaians reckon that we are living in a new EGR wave, potentially the last and most important. Saving humanity and nature from ourselves.

“The compressed film has completed Thomas. Was the entertainment to your satisfaction and enjoyment?” Isaac asked.

“It ‘certainly’ was,” Thomas replied sarcastically.

A jolted knock came from Thomas’ chamber seconds after. He opened the door and Sergeant Maximus appeared nervously.

“Good evening Commander Thomas, I’m sorry to interrupt but I’m afraid we’re nearing Kokkino and the crew requires you to unlock your final manuscript. It’s password-protected both physically and electronically.”

Sergeant Maximus handed Thomas the book titled “Saving Adam.” It was meant to be a biological fail safe, a defense mechanism, a blueprint to follow incase some humans made efforts to extinguish the very things that made us human. Commander Thomas pulled out a rusty key from his pocket and clasped it into the heart-shaped locket binding the book. Despite his genetic enhancements, he still latched onto the few elements he believed transcended biology. After writing “Saving Adam,” Thomas agreed that it should be kept in a secure vault away from tampering.

The book only saw light of day 2 months ago - five years after publication - when an interstellar call from Kokkino came to Blegaia. The message was clear and to the point.

“Join our new ways to improve nature and remove Homo Sapiens, or your fate will be tied with theirs. We will grant you save passage across the black seas and upon your arrival for negotiation. We expect representatives from Blegaia to arrive here in exactly 1 months time.”

Thomas contemplated his role in this delicate matter during the remaining time left aboard the Genesis starship. He never imagined life, his life, to be so grandiose that it could influence the nature of nature. That his work could define and defend the nature of man.

“Isaac? How much longer until our arrival?” asked Thomas.

“We will be landing at Kokkino in exactly 1 hour and 27 minutes... Godspeed Commander,” announced Isaac.

Thomas closed his chambers’ door and opened his book for the first time in what seems like a lifetime ago. The heart-shaped locket was merely a decorative piece if anything. The electronic password was the main security measure used against corruption. However that locket, Thomas believed, served a crucial reminder in telling people, from both Blegaia and Kokkino, what is worth saving.

Thomas began reading - properly this time - the passages stored within “Saving Adam,” as the Genesis starship embarked on what may very well be the last and greatest chapter in human history.