thin stick into the recipient, and when he withdrew it the tip was dark red, confirming that there really was blood inside. He wiped the cotton wool on the slide – the blood was thick and dark but, amazingly, it had been conserved in that cylinder for nearly two thousand years. Since his father had told him the story, Thomas was almost sure that there was no longer any blood in the tube, since after so many centuries it could have dried out, and in this case it wouldn’t be possible to collect genetic material.
Thomas collected a little more blood. He decided he would use an electronic microscope powerful enough to see even the DNA chain. The analysis would take a little longer, but the precision would be much greater. The microscope had been donated by a billionaire friend of his father’s and cost something in the region of five million dollars, an unimaginably vast sum for Thomas and his humble clinic. After many minutes of waiting, the result of the analysis of the blood started to show up on the computer screen. While this was happening Thomas had gone out of the laboratory to get a cup of coffee. With one eye on his coffee and the other on the computer screen, which he could see from a distance through the glass, he could see that something was appearing on the screen. He swallowed his coffee in a single gulp, burning his throat as it went down, and ran back to the computer. His main objective was to compare the DNA of the blood with his own. He could see on the screen the structure of the cells, the chromosomes and, in small print, he could read the words:
DNA sequencing complete
Pairs of chromosomes = 24
Thomas was thunderstruck. His mouth grew dry. He couldn´t believe his eyes.
‘Impossible! The machine must be broken or badly adjusted!’
Naturally Thomas knew that monkeys have twenty-four pairs of chromosomes. Humans have 23 pairs. He decided to re-do the test, this time making a comparison with his own blood. He took a hypodermic needle and drew a little blood from his own arm, then placed it under the microscope and waited for the result. Eventually the result appeared:
Sequence 1 - 24 pairs of chromosomes
Sequence 2 - 23 pairs of chromosomes
DNA compatibility = 89.786%
Thomas refused to believe it and entered the result in a database which contained all the known species of animal, to find out what species the blood belonged to. But the result was negative: after hours searching the database the computer could find no species to which that DNA belonged. Everything began to become clear in Thomas’ mind. The blood didn´t belong to any race existing on this planet. The chimpanzee, with twenty-four pairs of chromosomes, exhibits approximately 97% of compatibility with human DNA. The genetic material he was testing wasn´t human, and it couldn´t be from this planet. In fact the blood was really Jesus’, and by all appearances Jesus really existed. That story his father had told was beginning to make sense. But something began to intrigue Thomas: how did Jesus successfully procreate with a human woman? Was Mary Magdalene human or a hybrid - half human and half alien?
Various suppositions and theories began to crowd into Thomas’ head. He started to weep with the strong emotions he was feeling. He was the first scientist in the world to have the chance to analyze the DNA of the greatest and most famous of all beings, Jesus Christ; and to cap it all he was a member of his family! Thomas was beside himself, he couldn´t keep this information to himself, he felt he must share it with someone. He was euphoric; but he realized that the information was too dangerous, nobody must know.
Now everything made sense, the stories about Jesus, the way Mary became pregnant while still a virgin - of course it must have been by artificial insemination: hence the legend of the Virgin Mary. Jesus’ powers were explained. It was clear that he belonged to a race which was mentally very advanced, with