Free Luca by Jacob Whaler Page B

center. “With the technology we have, we were able to synthesize the DNA strand, at least part of it. And then the strangest thing happened.”
    Qaara sits in silence, eyes focused on Mercer, waiting, lips barely parted.
    Staring into Qaara’s pupils, Mercer can’t help but be drawn in by her boundless curiosity. Perhaps this is a woman he could accept as an equal, one that would love him back as he deserves. Perhaps he could tell her things he’s never told anyone else. Make a life together.
    Create a new world together.
    When it’s time to start Project LUCA.
    “What happened?” Qaara’s hands rise, palms up. “What did you discover when you synthesized the DNA sequence you got from the data in the green jewel?” She points at Mercer’s hand.
    “It broke the machine.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “I mean it broke the machine . After hours of doing nothing, the DNA sequence did something totally unexpected. It produced a substance, a molecule, that ate through everything it touched. Dissolved it. Turned it all to soup. Titanium-plated equipment turned to mush. We couldn't stop it. We barely had time to analyze the molecular structure before it ate through our sensors, through the outer wall of the containment vessel, through the floor and through meters of bedrock below. Luckily, it finally stopped.”
    “So that’s when you called me?” Qaara nods her head. “To figure out what this killer molecule is? How it works?”
    “Exactly.”
    “But you also said something about . . . what was it? LUCA? Last Universal Common Ancestor. What’s that got to do with this puzzle?”
    “Good. You’re listening. This is where it gets interesting.” Mercer leans forward, elbows on knees. “We analyzed what was left of the molecular substance after it turned everything it touched into soup. It wasn’t just any kind of soup. Call it primordial soup. Something started forming in it after a few hours. Something alive . A basic cellular organism."
    “The LUCA?”
    “Exactly.”
    “How can you be sure your samples haven’t been contaminated? I find it hard to believe in spontaneous generation. Wasn’t that theory disproved centuries ago?"
    “Check the memory cube if you like. It’s got all the procedures. The experiment was performed multiple times under careful controls. At first I couldn’t believe it either, but it’s real.”
    Qaara presses her shoulder blades into the back of the chair, arches her back into a yoga stretch and points at the collection of dots in the hologram. “OK. So this molecule you’ve given me breaks down any material it touches and somehow transforms it into a cellular organism that you say is basically the starting point of evolution. Like resetting life. That’s all very interesting. But there’s still a piece or two missing from the puzzle. What does the Cloud have to do with all of this?”
    “I thought you’d never ask.” Mercer folds his arms across his chest. “The company launched a probe into the Cloud ten months ago, just to get a sample and do some simple analysis.”
    “What did you find?”
    “Are you sure you want to know?”
    “Tell me.”
    Mercer’s eyes go again to the holo of the floating molecule. “The Cloud is full of that DNA.”

9
    INSPECTION
     
    Morning, at last.
    After the Voice and the storm and the beating, the sun finally rises in the east. The first hints of dawn break through the slits in the wall of Luca’s cell. Cicadas cry in waves of sound that rise and fall like the slow inhale and exhale of a colossal beast just beyond the fence.
    Leaning on the rough interior of the concrete wall, Luca makes it to her feet. Water sloshes between her toes. The stench of mold pours off the soaked futon.
    She remembers the plant.
    Trembling fingers lift the corner of the futon to find the small plastic container submerged, the tiny green stem floating limp.
    Carefully, she lifts it from the water, still alive, cupping it in her hands.
    Her shirt is