Order of Magnitude

LIV: Research

      Dr. Moon studied the maps on his desk, cross-checking them every now and then with the display on his computer's monitor. He took a big bite from his jelly donut, and pulled up another set of data read-outs. The numbers seemed to be adding up. Moon smiled. He knew where he could find BTOF-Delta. And more importantly, he knew how to take care of him.

      The scientist wiped crumbs of pastry from his mouth, and raised a tape recorder to his lips. "Certain animals, such as worms and ants, burrow into the ground to live. The reasons that they do this are varied from species to species, but predation is a common factor among all of them. They have less of a chance to get eaten by superior creatures if they make their home under the ground." Dr. Moon took a significant pause, gathering his thoughts carefully. "Up until now, we have considered parvs an animal of somewhat higher intelligence. The popular consensus was that they were in the same group as chimpanzees or dolphins: smart, able to solve problems, and demonstrated the ability to communicate. Unfortunately, their size and propensity towards scavenging off of humans has led to them being viewed as pests. To the educated, the concept of stepping on these creatures was just as barbaric as stepping on a sentient ant. Science has done much to expose this barbaric behavior, but the unwashed masses are hard to dissuade." Another pause. "Now, over the past few weeks, it is clear that parvs demonstrate a much higher level of intellect than we have given them credit for. The coordination of these attacks across the country are nothing short of strategic. The behavior of these creatures in this time-frame has been nothing short of eye-opening.

      "We have always known that parvs make nests in the sides of hills or near rocks. They can often be found in residential neighborhoods in decayed trees, under bushes, and often in the walls of the houses. They craft crude weaponry from sticks or sharp bits of metal which they use to hunt or climb. Up until now, they have been doing well like this. Maybe even too well, considering the size of their population in some nests.

      "Now back to my initial point, about worms and predation. Parvs have been doing well on their own. There has never been a recording of these creatures burrowing underground like their baser contemporaries. We have never thought to look underground for parvs. But after-" Dr. Moon stopped talking. He had almost admitted to losing BTOF-Delta. "After recent incidents, the idea that the group is eluding capture by hiding under the dirt has been tantalizing.

      "After communicating with Dr. Nova, she has agreed to send me information about the movements of the Oligochaeta in the area. She has been running a continuing experiment about the underground movements of these worms. I compared them to the data she collected over the last 5 years. As one can imagine, there were a lot of underground tunnels in the area. But the interesting thing to note was that there was a long continuous tunnel that started near the Burger World. This tunnel had several ports of exit, most notably in my own lab, and near the homes of two victims of parv-related attacks.

      "Using these findings, I am proposing a hypothesis that these creatures have an underground nest. And not only that, but that this is the nest of-" BTOF-Delta. "The terroristic parvs. If that is the case, then my solution would be to flood the chamber, starting with the tunnel in my lab, with a noxious gas. Then we could study the entire colony in peace, and maybe bring some relief to the citizens of this city."

      Dr. Moon was interrupted by the sound of the phone ringing from across the room. He switched his tape-recorder off and sighed. Just as I was getting to the good part, he thought as he lifted the receiver from the cradle. "Hello?" he asked, not even bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice.

      "Good afternoon, Dr. Moon."

      The scientist instantly stiffened. "Dr. Reno," he said in a much more cordial tone. "What can I do for you, sir?"

      "This isn't easy to say. You've been a good worker for over ten years."

      Oh no, they found it. They found BTOF-Delta! Dr. Moon didn't know what to do. His greatest nightmare was coming true. For a fleeting moment, he considered confessing and hoping that the justice system would be lenient on him. "I can explain," he began.

      "There is no adequate explanation," Dr. Reno interrupted. "With Sloane in office, our services aren't in such high demand."

     "I don't understand."

      "We've been fired. Budgetary reasons. I'm sorry, Dr. Moon, you're out of a job. We all are. Pack your stuff up and clear out as soon as you can. I'll contact the rest of the team and tell them the news."

      "I... I don't know what to say."

      "I understand. If you want to use me as a reference for your next career, just let me know. But as of tomorrow that facility will be closed indefinitely. I'm sorry." The line went dead. Dr. Moon slid the receiver back into the cradle and sat down on a nearby desk. For the first time in his professional life, his mind wasn't on parvs.