D-Day
Months later, Lauren walked into the O.R. on her own two feet. Her nurses urged her to use a wheelchair as per the hospital's protocol but after four nurses, two doctors, and a few calls, the staff found themselves a bit more flexible in their rules. Her steps slowed the further she walked, her hands never still in cleaning nonexistent debris from her gown and nails. No one was fond of the idea of going to the hospital and Lauren could be counted amongst those people. She forced herself to take deep breaths as she crossed the threshold.
The O.R. was a large rotunda, built long before Lauren's time to fit whatever massive, bulky medical equipment was needed during its prime. Now, upwards of 30 people could traverse its sterile, blue walls with ease. Tabitha stood in the middle, huddled near a large screen with Sanchez, their gazes flitting between the screen and the notes in their hands. Lauren's gaze aimlessly swept the round until a muddled noise erupted above her. She looked upwards to find a large viewing room above her. Countless people she didn't recognize stood mingling around an antsy Finch. She frowned.
Part of the deal they made to get Lauren's case fast-tracked rode on letting a group of hospital officials and representatives from the Extractions fields observe the proceedings as they happened. She agreed to the terms without much thought at the time but now, her stomach fluttered at the sight of them.
"God, I understand why they're here but could they not be so creepy and leering?" Tabitha came up beside her. She wore black scrubs, with her short curls bundled under a hot pink surgical cap. "A whole group of people, sitting around, watching your every move. The least they can do is buy us dinner first."
Lauren chuckled. "They didn't even offer us a drink. We got all dressed up for just this?" She asked, pointing to their scrubs. The two settled in comfortable silence, watching the people when Sanchez walked up.
"We're ready when you are."
The two walked over to a white chair in the center of the room. The chair, covered in the necessary protective plastic, looked like an expensive lounge chair except for the small workspace attached behind it. Lauren eased herself into the chair, relaxing as it reclined. A transparent hood rolled down to her eye level, faint lights and words flashing on the screen. Sanchez's hands glided around the console, prepping the machine for the procedure.
"Current date is November 28, 2068, local time of 06:02 Zulu time. Patient has been thoroughly prepped by hospital staff as shown by records and deemed healthy for the procedure as of 04:44 whereupon the patient was injected with nootropics. Starting brain scans now.”
Above Lauren’s head, a hologram of her brain glowed, a constellation of blues twinkling with a small orange vein slowly streaming through. Sanchez reached out for the holograms, slowly enlarging the image. "The nootropics are steadily moving through the desired cluster with minimal bleeding into other sectors. Patient responding positively to the nootropics, showing healthy brain wave activity and steady heart rate. Dr. Carver will now begin the cloning process."
Tabitha moved to the workspace behind Lauren, flashing her a small smile as she reached her station. She flexed her fingers as she reached for the hologram, enlarging the image to triple its original size. "Nootropics have successfully reached the desired cluster. The memory we will be cloning today has previously been cloned, approximately forty-one years ago, a few weeks after the memory event happened. Today's session will compare the potency of the patient's memory with the help of nootropics as well as the original cloning. Let's begin." As Tabitha typed her command, the lights engulfing her dimmed except for the orange veins.
Finch wrung his hands together as he watched the scene below him. In the O.R., the orange vein glowed with a calming pulse. Tabitha's hands stilled as she searched for the place she needed. "The memory has been located. Engaging lasers and cloning frame."
Lauren's chair gave a low rumble as the lights on her screen warned her to stay still. "Lauren, how are you feeling?" Tabitha asked, never taking her eyes off the holograms. Faint green lights crept through the edges of the clusters, slowly surrounding the orange center.
Lauren flexed her muscles. "I've been better. Could really use that drink right now."
Tabitha smiled as the green lights slowly closed in on the orange cluster. She turned her attention back to her console, typing until an empty orb appeared beside the hologram. "Starting the cloning process now." Soon after her words, Lauren groaned as the green lights converged on the orange cluster, the lights pulsing violently. She struggled in her chair.
"Lauren, what's wrong?"
"It feels like my head is frying." She forced out. She squirmed in her chair as sweat beaded on her skin.
Sanchez looked over at holograms. "We're only at thirty percent. If she's in this much discomfort right now-"
"If you stop this right now, I swear I'll kill you." Lauren rumbled.
"Lauren, we don't have to do this." Sanchez reasoned. All around her, the tension of the room grew heavy as Lauren groaned.
"It's not 'us' doing this, it's me and I say keep going." She spat through her clenched teeth. Her breaths came in loud huffs as the lights continued to pulse.
Tabitha sighed as she looked at cloning status. thirty-eight percent. "Finch is going to kill me. Continue the clone."
Sanchez opened her mouth protest when Lauren spoke. "Ramona, if you stop this, you better pray that I don't catch you."
Her protests died in her throat as she sighed. "Looks like Finch has two on his "To murder' list."
Above them, Finch stood near the window, his face flushed and his jaw clenched. The back of Tabitha's neck prickled as she ignored his harsh stare. "Patient is experiencing discomfort but wishes to continue. Otherwise, the cloning process is proceeding at usual. Current status at forty-one percent with an estimated finishing time of three minutes."
The two holograms floated next to one another, the orange cluster dimming as it seemed to materialize in the orb to its left.
Right as Tabitha announced the seventy-five percent progress, Lauren let out a soft cry as she grew limp in the chair.
"Lauren!" Tabitha cried. She turned from the hologram to Lauren when Sanchez stopped her.
"Don't touch her! Disrupting the clone now might make things worse!"
Above the O.R., the once-excited atmosphere fell silent as the observers watched, the sounds of Tabitha's reports and Lauren's groans and hisses echoing throughout the viewing room. Finch paced in his area, his fidgeting worsening with every second. "Come on, Lauren." He whispered.
The orange light died in the brain map as its duplicate glowed with a vibrant green hue. Tabitha’s hands flew across the keypad. "Cloning process complete. Shutting down all extraction equipment now." The chair whirled to a stop as the assistants in the room rushed to a gurney to Lauren's side.
"Lauren, talk to me." Sanchez pushed the hood from over her eyes, examining her body. "Heart rate is high but starting to fall to normal. Same with blood pressure. Pupillary responses normal. Let's get her back to her room."
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