Blake Schwendiman's Blog and Blook

Chapter 2

Wednesday, 09 March 2022 – 6:45 p.m. IST

The last sliver of sun faded into the horizon as Sireesha Naidu stood transfixed at her office window. Her view of Bangalore was rivaled by none. It had been her hard work and her effort that afforded this luxurious perspective. As the daylight faded, her office interior lighting adjusted itself automatically. For a brief second, Sireesha caught a glimpse of her reflection in the glass.

Her dark eyes, focused and intense reflected a strength and vitality of youth. Her hands were manicured, her suit perfectly tailored for a figure that made women half her age resentful. She glanced at the reflection of her platinum wristwatch just as the tint of the window reduced to match the lighting and reduce internal glare. She turned her hand to see the watch. Five minutes, she thought.

She walked around the perimeter of her office, an enormous circular space with a full three hundred sixty degree view. The building was entirely occupied by the researchers and staff of Naidu BioGenics, the largest biotechnology and DNA research facility in India. It stood in the center of the Naidu Technical Park, a campus of ultramodern research facilities and manufacturing centers focusing on biotechnology, communications, and computer networking. Sireesha admired the park, but did not indulge in self aggrandizement. Her true goal was still years away from fruition. This development was simply a step along the path.

Moving quickly across the campus from the west, a motorcycle sped toward the central building. Dozens of the Naidu employees stopped to comment on the audacity of this rider. Not only was he completely without safety gear, the volume of the engine indicated a gasoline engine – something rarely seen in this era, especially on one of the most progressive campuses on the planet. Daniel Van Der Merwe was accustomed to the sidelong glances and the disgusted stares. His disinterest in political correctness was rivaled only by his apathy for humankind in general. He revved his bike and continued into the sublevel parking lot.

Sireesha accessed the security systems and traced Daniels movements through the building. He made his way through the external security and walked quickly to the high-speed elevators. His biosecurity implants provided the necessary credentials for access to the elevators.

“Apex,” he flatly instructed the elevator as he stepped inside. Only two people had direct access to the top floor of the building. Daniel was indifferent to the fact that he was one of them. It facilitated his employment, but represented no status in his life. He had no social circles to which this would be impressive.

Sireesha met Daniel at the elevator.

“Is everything in order?” she asked as he stepped out.

Daniel nodded.

Sireesha motioned to one of the wide exterior windows. The window transitioned from fully transparent to opaque, then brightened as a video display. On the display, a British reporter stood before an old building. The caption read Paul Davis: Live in New Delhi. The sound was low, but the reporter appeared to be discussing a recent advance in human cloning research. The building in the background came into focus. The façade of the building was a bit derelict, but the signage was new, Naidu Biolabs, it read.

The camera in the news report panned and the angle widened. It was dark outside, but there was clearly a crowd of protestors shouting toward the media and raising standards condemning human cloning. As the camera moved to focus on the reporter again, a flash burst onto the screen. Instantly the transmission cut to a central newsroom where a stunned anchorwoman stumbled to provide information. In a moment, the feed from New Delhi was restored. A frantic scene appeared. An explosion had ripped through the Naidu lab. The forward third of the building collapsed, fire rushed through the remainder.

Sireesha turned from the display. She turned to Daniel. Her eyes were stone, icy and dark. Behind her the display dimmed and the transparency of the window returned.

“That should catch his attention. The other message has been sent,” she said. No hint of emotion accompanied the statement. “Stay ahead of him.”

“I have some business here first,” Daniel responded. “Then I’ll leave for Durban.”