THE TITAN EXPERIMENT

CHAPTER 26 - Open Sesame (Sarah)

Inside the glass walls of her new lab at Site B, deep under the earth, Sarah disabled the mouse on the all-in-one computer monitor and donned an eyepiece remote instead. The latest hardware was nothing more than a transparent piece of glass that channeled an image of the operating system from a small round stand at the base, which served as the tower. A hologram contained inside the twenty-inch screen showed a reverse image on the backside of the monitor. The tower base, an inch tall, and as big around as a coffee cup, housed the wireless ports for the mouse, eyepiece, and other accessories. As fragile as it looked, the computer was durable and efficient.

Using her eye, Sarah maneuvered the page up and down, scrolling at will as she combed over her research. A few years ago, the first time she used an eyepiece like this one, it took some time to grow accustomed to it, but now, she manipulated it like a pro as the lens tracked the movement of her pupil. Starting with the sample taken from the Greenland shark and its DNA tests, she studied the gene sequencing, and the isolation of the anti-aging gene. Then she reviewed the chimera she created from the barracuda cells, the Greenland shark, the immortal jellyfish, and her own DNA. She believed she had rushed the research: the concoction of the new serum, and the human trials, but the science was firm. As she retraced her steps, she imagined her formula laid out in her head in precise order, like a math equation. Nothing she could think of contradicted her theory and the outline of how the serum worked in real life.

All of her notes and conclusions scrolled up the screen as she read and re-read every word. She was about to close the file with angst when, maybe it was a bit of OCD, she used the sidebar to return to the top of the page. As the passages rolled by, a reference about the Greenland shark snagged her attention. Moving the cursor with her eye remote, she centered the page on her notes concerning the SeaLab.com article.

One line brought everything into focus.

Our research concludes that extreme cold water triggers the anti-aging genes into action, a direct quote from Sea Lab's executive director, Ian Storm.

Not only did the cold water slow down the shark's growth and biochemical processes, it activated the genes—genes that staved off disease and increased the fish's longevity of life. The frigid Northern Atlantic Ocean was the secret ingredient.

Within minutes, Sarah burst through the lab doors, passed through a security anteroom, accessed an elevator, and found herself in the room with Wolf. He rolled over on the cot and faced her. Then turned over again to go back to sleep.

"Leave me alone," he said.

"I found the key to activating the serum," Sarah replied.

His back to her, Wolf said, "I thought you were the key."

"I believe I was the missing piece, but I think I found the elusive magic words that can unlock the serum's hidden potential."

"What? Hocus Pocus. Abracadabra. Open Sesame."

"Not funny. It has nothing to do with an herbaceous tropical plant."

"What? Have you been downloading botany porn at the memory station?"

Sarah's face screwed up into a writhe of confusion. "What are you talking about? A sesame seed comes from a... never mind. I'm a marine biologist. Oceans usually meet up with tropical islands and subtropical climates at various points around the world, so it's a topic we covered in one of my classes at the sea lab on Dauphin Island."

"I forgot you were from Alabama. You hide your accent well."

"Would you shut up and listen to me?" Sarah tugged his shoulder to get him to look up at her from the bed. "The magic words are... extreme cold water."