Birds of a Feather

Chapter Fifteen - Too Late...?

Cell X... A fatal poison had just spilled onto my bare arm. It's poisonous to humans upon skin contact.

'My head feels heavy... Am I going to die...?'

"But my point, and the real question is... How did the dolphins survive with that poison in their bodies? How do you think they did it?" He asked us.

"It just wasn't poisonous to them?" I guessed.

"No..." Asher said quietly. "They had another chemical element which neutralized the poison."

"Yes, that's right." Peter said. "And that could be the antidote."

'Antidote... Will it neutralize the poison in my body...?' I thought noticing my mind grow hazier now.

My body felt heavier and I slumped against Asher... I quietly listened to Peter and Asher talk.

"It could save her life." Peter said.

"But... Can we really get an antidote made this fast?" Asher asked. "Or is there already a finished antidote in this lab?"

"The chemical that neutralized the poison in the dolphin was found to have the potential for future medical treatments by a research team." Peter replied confidently. "If they finished the antidote, it has to be in this lab!"

"...So, we just have to search here then?" Asher murmured.

"That research team opposes the scientists I work for, though." Peter smirked. "So doesn't it all seem ridiculous? If they have time to develop an antidote, they should just clone the dolphins, extract the poison from their bodies and make tons of money off of it."

"Why...would...the poison make them money?" I asked starting to have a hard time speaking.

"There are plenty of countries who would want it." Asher replied bitterly. "Then they could do anything... Make weapons with it, or use it in some other ways..."

"Oh..." I murmured.

"But that's not important right now." He said in concern. "First we need to find the antidote to save you."

Asher picked me up and placed me in one of the lab chairs. Then he powered up the largest computer in the lab.

"This must be the main computer on the server." He muttered. "I should be able to access all the machines in the lab from this one."

"But...there'll be too much...data in this lab..." I said worriedly. "How will you...know which one has...to do with the...antidote...?"

Asher smiled reassuringly at me, "For something as important as this, the files will be labeled clearly to avoid confusion. If I can't be accessed from the outside, there's no reason to hide it..." He said calmly. "...There's a folder marked 'X'. This should be it."

"Whoa, you're amazing!" Peter said in awe. "You found it just like that among all those files... Huh? Hey, what's wrong?"

Asher's frozen, staring at the screen.

"...Asher...?" I mumbled.

"...It says this folder was created by Dr. A. Wilder..." He murmured.

"I-Is that..." I trailed off.

'One of Asher's parents?'

"Is the data...in the...folder about...the antidote...?" I asked.

"...Yeah." He confirmed.

'The team of researchers who oppose the scientists the White Raccoon works for...'

"Asher...your parents were...the team who developed...the antidote...!" I said smiling. "They took...over G-Pa's research..." I coughed a bit. "They stood against...the scientists...who wanted to clone...the dolphins...for profit...and realized there...could be an antidote..."