Spilling Guts

Part 112 - Test Prep

After checking him over, Rachel had left Will to his usual room in Med Tech. Rather than stay in Doctor Hayman's wing at Saint Albert's, he lay in bed with the Sleepy Beenie re-glued to his head. Between naps he had been going through enough tissues to wear down his nose to a painful red tint.

Thankfully, his lungs were still clear, no respiratory distress from a cold. For now. The only people that had seen the inside of Med Tech more than Will was Nate and Franklin during allergy season. She hoped it would stay that way.

Rachel brought up a stack of patents and Will's tablet to keep him busy. Per Will's request, she also brought a notepad, metal ruler, pencil, a bottle of glue, and a pair of scissors.

Whatever keeps him happy and oblivious, thought Rachel. The update between her and Hayman earlier that morning had added a sense of urgency.

"I reviewed last night's scans," said Hayman through a crumbly breakfast muffin while walking from the Hospital to Watch Two. "William woke three times. The attacks are happening quicker, and lasting longer."

Rachel sighed around a pebbly mouthful of granola bar. "We need to get this to work."

Balcuwitz, by way of a map and a crayon, joined them in Rachel's lab as moral support and minder of the giant molds in the corner. Cetz had given Rachel and Hayman carte blanche to do whatever was needed to help Will, and then went back to his rounds, staying out of the way of minds on a mission. By four in the afternoon, they had their first neurological test set up in the BT lab. All they were waiting for was the go-ahead from Grant in the Hive so they could turn on the BT.

Considering how many parts there had been, and how complicated, getting the test ready in less than a day had been a miracle.

Probably because I had help, thought Rachel. Balcuwitz is right. I should delegate more often.

The test had been part scientific set up, and part arts and crafts. Rachel had Nate and Franklin 3D print a neuron map of the human brain in copper, complete with hair thin wires, and rubbery tubing towards a pair of eyes. It had looked like a giant sprig of broccoli dried out and ripped of all its dark green bits. Then, the tree of neurons were suspended in a Jello mold to simulate the soft tissue of the brain. Over that went a thin layer of plastic, and then a layer of pink latex.

The wires coming out of the end of the "spinal cord" were connected and programmed to put off the same electrical currents as a working brain. Thanks to the previous scans, they could use Will's working, walking, talking, pattern as a baseline.

A recreation of the human brain suitable to test how Grovic's Device worked in real time. Rachel and Doctor Hayman rigged up the BT-10 with the brain analogue and a poly-sonogram. Never too much data.

"BT-10 ready?" asked Hayman, eyeing the data screens in the observation room.

"Cetz told Grant to do whatever I told him," said Rachel. "We're good to go."

"Go where?"

Rachel spun her chair around. Louis stood at the doorway of the BT lab. He never came to the BT lab voluntarily. Unless he was escaping his inbox.

"To the hopeful end of a long night," said Rachel, flipping the power switch for the BT-10, warming it up to hum. "Pull up a seat, we're about to start."

Balcuwitz shifted over a folding chair. "We're about to test the neurological effects of Grovic's device on a working brain analogue of Agent Rowe."

Louis, stared through the observation window of the BT-10. "Ya'll have the Devil's Neckbrace hooked up to a Halloween novelty Jello mold pretending to be Will?"

"A map of neurons suspended in a jelly conduit," said Hayman. "It's easier than finding a real brain. You must be Agent Louis Patriarch. Doctor Neil Hayman." The doctor held out his hand. "Your report was quite a motivator."

"So I've been told. But we've yet to find anything that works." Louis shook the hand briefly, and then squinted at the bright pink jello brain. "You couldn't have used ballistic gel?"

"Not quite the right consistency," said Hayman. "The pink color was accidental.

Rachel gave a Louis a brief once-over, wanting to question his being here when he apparently asked for the day off. Black clothes, wearing tinted contact lenses, looking worn.

Best not ask. Being here means I don't have to catch him up on the results afterwards, thought Rachel.

Hayman turned his chair back to the data screen for the polysonogram. "Let's put a jello mold to sleep."

Rachel rechecked the list. "Brain analogue running."

"Check."

"Polysonogram?"

"Check."

"BT..." Rachel flipped the switch on the control panel. The whole lab vibrated as the BT-10 chamber activated. The BT screen lit up, different layers of scans coming in live. "Check. Grovic's device...?"

Hayman slid a button on a tablet. The Devil's Neckbrace, clinging to the curve of the gelatin test subject, woke up, tiny beads of red glowing in the joints. "Check. Now we wait."