Positive Infection

Here’s an exclusive prequel to The Tattoo (story F3) of Beyond the Madness of Passions

The displeased scientist shook her head at the inconclusive results. Her work as an independent scientist was far too often poor compared to her consulting work. The artificial retrovirus held the appropriate DNA sequence, which originated from a rare Amazonian orchid. A secret, pleasure worshiping society used the flower in their sexualized rituals, while they could use it to control their physical form (mostly skin).

The scientist’s goal was to use the plant in commercial dermatological applications. Her normally agreeable retrovirus was to take the plant’s DNA and insert it into a host. In her mind, it was not unlike the nanotechnology already present in many dermatological products. However, her controlled experiments, which were far from Human trials, were not working in any consistent way. She was not ready to call the work a failure, but was not yet sure how to proceed …