Tombstone Estate

[Doc Holliday]

Secret Laboratory, Tombstone Estate

It was some rare quiet time for John as he worked in his laboratory after returning home from a trip to Cambridge. Dressed in a smock, he found time to complete some work he had spent much time on.
He reached into a cage where a rat was kept and pulled her out.
"OK, Dora, time to see if all this research has paid off," he said to her as he stroked her back. He hated using lab animals but he saw no other way to test things. He then took a small syringe full of a greenish-yellow liquid and before he injected Dora, he apologized, "Sorry, Girl." With that, he injected the animal with the liquid. Putting it down, he began to pet her and gave her a treat.

She was strangely comfortable sitting there as he held her, Dora munching on her treat. He knew it would take at the very least, several minutes for the formula to work so, Dora in hand, he rose to get himself a cup of coffee and some Kusari cookies provided by his wife. After a short snack, he held the rat to his face and smiled, "Now, Girl, you have been addicted to cardamine long enough. Time to see if that worked."

He put her on a scanner and as fast as he put her there, took a full scan of the animal. Then, taking an empty syringe, he drew a blood sample. Giving her a few more strokes, he placed her back in the cage with several treats, locked the door and began to study the readings and sample. He finished the final sip of his coffee and looked skyward, "Eris, let's see if all this work was for nothing." He sighed, "Let's hope not."

He had began his study of the mysterious drug that gave the Outcast Nation such a vial reputation as well as their big edge in a fight when he first began studying medicine. Why was it so addictive? Why was it so genetically altering? These were but a couple of the questions he had. He studied both the liquid and it's natural form. He had cured two former Outcasts, at their request, of the drug's grip but, as he said, "anyone can succeed a time or two." Now, he wanted to be the one who could do it upon request.

He had also learned that in some cases, the alterations and damage done to the body by it would gradually return to normal. This was the hard part as well as the most deadly. Too fast a change meant an often painful death. But, in controlled amounts, the results were successful. In one case, a once sterile female gave birth to a healthy child. Still, he kept his studies private, never telling even his own wife of his results. For the wrong people to learn of this work would surely put his own life in jeopardy.

Nanites and even alien organisms, kept addicted to cardamine, were injected into a patient. They sought out the drug in their new host, eating it, taking it for themselves and leaving the host free of the drug's grip. After the organisms cleared the host, they would gradually die from not having more of the drug themselves. Their remains became a sort of anti-body and stay with the host.

For now, the time had come. He took a slide of blood and placed it under his microscope. As he studied, he smiled a bit. Platelets, red and white blood cells, nutrients and....dead nanites were present with NO cardamine. "So far, so good," he said.

Then, he ran the scans of Dora. Again, he began to smile, "Not a sign of the drug...anywhere." He also found that healing had taken place. Satisfied, he turned off his computer. He then retrieved Dora from her cage and placed her in a cage with another rat, Samson. "Now, let's see if you two can reproduce. That would be my final victory."

With that, he removed his smock and hung it over his chair. He secured the door to the lab behind him and with a look of satisfaction, went to have dinner with his wife and daughter.

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