James Axler – Stoneface

Clearing her throat, but not lowering her ZKR, she said, “Very impressive. Do you have a name?”

The creature’s eyes narrowed a bit. When it spoke, its voice had dropped an octave. “Let me think. I was called Uni, since I was part of that program. That’s not my real name, though. I can’t remember what it was. Is.”

“What program were you a part of, Uni?”

“The Unisex program, of course. You really aren’t very bright, are you? Maybe I shouldn’t eat your brain, after all.”

Mildred smiled a slightly wan smile. “That’s a start in the right direction. What was the purpose of the Unisex program?”

The reply was immediate, as if recited by rote. “To be fruitful and multiply.”

“How many of you are there?”

“Just me now. Listen, I think I’ll go back to my median nonstate. It takes a lot of effort to maintain one gender without the proper nutritional values.”

“Please do,” Mildred said, shuddering.

Tendons and muscles writhed, Uni’s frame quivered, the shoulders narrowed and the primary male characteristics were absorbed back into its pale flesh. Mildred watched, no longer quite as fascinated, but no less sickened. Though genetic engineering wasn’t her field, she possessed more than a layman’s knowledge and could theorize about the process that had produced Uni. A developing embryo had been tampered with to artificially induce a bizarre form of consciously controlled hermaphroditism.

She could only guess at the purpose behind the experimentation. Since she had seen no females in the Anthill, it was probable that the Unisex program was designed to provide the complex with a stable population of organ donors. Uni and a few others like it could mate, give birth, switch genders, mate and give birth again. Only a few of the hermaphrodites would be needed to guarantee a controlled supply of offspring. However, she was pretty sure the program was a failure, that the Unis had been sterile in both genders. As it was, Uni’s very existence was impressive. The Anthill geneticists had apparently invented a new biochemical coding system to substitute for DNA.

As interesting as Uni and its history was, Mildred couldn’t afford to spend any more time with it. She had to find her way back to the upper levels and reestablish contact with Ryan. She needed to keep moving, not surrender to the desire for rest, or her injured muscles would lock.

Backing away down the corridor, Mildred said, “I have to be on my way, Uni. Nice meeting you.”

“You have to go so soon?” Uni’s eyes glimmered with disappointment. “I haven’t talked to anyone in a long time. Feels like years. Maybe it has been years.”

It shuffled toward her, and Mildred said pleasantly. “Stay back now.”

Uni followed her as she walked backward. She didn’t want to shoot the lonely monstrosity, but she couldn’t devote her attention to what lay ahead of her if this thing dogged her heels. Though she pitied it, Uni was obviouslyin its own wordsunbalanced.

“You can’t go that way,” Uni piped. “Door is sealed. There’s only one way topside.”

Hesitating, Mildred scanned Uni’s face, looking for indications of deceit. It was a futile exercise. “Can you lead me out of this damn place?”

Uni ducked its malformed head in assent. “You betcha. Follow me.”

Mildred stepped forward, then paused and hefted her pistol. “Do you know what this is?”

“Sure.”

“Tell me.”

“A gun, right?” Uni sounded puzzled. “A revolver?”

“That’s right, and I’m an expert with it. If you fuck with me, I’ll blast your unbalanced metabolism into its component enzymes and amino acids.”

Uni regarded her solemnly with huge eyes, then cackled gleefully. Opening the door, it beckoned with long fingers. “Come on, come on.”

Grim-faced, Mildred followed Uni through the door into a room that was the exact opposite of the rooms she had seen above. It was filthy. Rusting pipes crisscrossed at all angles along the ceiling and walls. There was a cracked and dirt-filmed porcelain toilet affixed to a wall. The floor tiles were layered with ancient grease and layers of grime, in the shape of treaded boot soles. A long row of dilapidated metal lockers lined one wall. A few of the doors gaped open, revealing rotting military uniforms hanging from hooks. The place had been abandoned a long, long time ago.