Remember who you're working for

[Quentin Watson]

"An army, you say."

[Sara Stanton]

"And furniture and god knows what else. It was pretty disturbing."

[Quentin Watson]

"Well, that proves it's possible, then."

[Sara Stanton]

"Not as far as I'm concerned. I'm not going to attempt to reproduce any of her work and I don't see how that's relevant anyway. She was growing clones, not doing any fundamental research."

[Quentin Watson]

"Mrs. Stanton, we're not interested in an army of clones."

[Sara Stanton]

"I'm just saying that any proof of concept relying on her work is worth exactly nothing because it'd mean emulating at least part of her work."

[Quentin Watson]

"You have ethical qualms?"

[Sara Stanton]

"You could say that." she says, trying not to get angry. How would he know what that universe was like after all.

[Quentin Watson]

"No one is saying you have to duplicate her methods, Mrs. Stanton.

Just because original data was acquired in unethical methods doesn't mean we can't use that for ethical reasons."

[Sara Stanton]

"Yes it does. But it's moot anyway because her data doesn't exist anymore."

[Quentin Watson]

"Isn't this an opportunity to prove to yourself how much better you are? That evil isn't necessary for science to march on?

Unless you think that her unethical methods were, in and of themselves, key to her results."

[Sara Stanton]

"I can't prove it, but I have every reason to suspect that, yes."

[Quentin Watson]

"What do you base your assumptions on?"

[Sara Stanton]

"It involved keeping him in a giant tank."

[Quentin Watson]

"I would suggest that sounds more like the security rather than the science."

[Sara Stanton]

"Either way it involved sentient pieces of him and I'm not taking the risk of growing something that thinks."

[Quentin Watson]

"You think that's integral to the process, then."

[Sara Stanton]

"I think it might have been a result."

[Quentin Watson]

"What scientific basis do you have to support that conclusion?

Mrs. Stanton, I think you're letting a rather traumatic experience affect your judgment. I think you're better than that."

[Sara Stanton]

"Then find someone else. I'm not going to follow in her footsteps." she says defiantly.

[Quentin Watson]

"No one's asking you to follow in her footsteps," he said, gently. "Mrs. Stanton...

Sara.

I came to you because I think you have the potential to be great. My higher ups wanted someone internal, someone already working in the government to do this research, but I fought for you, because you have the potential to be one of the greats. You have a real gift. You could be up there with the Jonas Salk or Reed Richards. I felt -- I still feel -- that this research is truly important, and that you are the best for the job. If you don't feel that you can do it, I can go back and tell my superiors to change tactics -- that's fine. I don't have an ego problem. But I still think you'd be the best for the job."

[Sara Stanton]

Sara looks more than a little intimidated but it's not quite enough to stop her from feeling bad about this.

"Look, just... this is living tissue we're talking about. What's the point of growing more cells? They're models. Proof of concepts."

[Quentin Watson]

Quentin looked a little uncomfortable for just a moment
.
"Alright, this is classified information, and I can't give you too much here, so keep this under you hat. Do NOT discuss this with anyone. Both you AND I could be in a lot of trouble if this leaks.

Our scientists have been trying, for quite some time, to create a self-replicating substance with properties very similar to the protometamorphic cells you've described in your paper, but with very little luck. Your paper describes some of the exact goals we're attempting to accomplish, and our internal research has gone ahead significantly. This is like...like if, when the Wright Brothers were trying to build the first airplane, someone came by with a fully working one, and gave it to them. All they would have needed to do then is reverse-engineer it. This could be a huge jump forward in science -- if we can understand how THESE cells work, fully, we might be able to create INERT cells that have the same functionality. We've been unable to get our material to self-replicate, and the process of creating the material is expensive and time consuming, and not practical for most uses. If we understand better how WILL'S cells work -- and have experimental data backing these things up -- we may be able to crack the code ourselves."

[Sara Stanton]

"Okay..." she says, still a bit hesitant but much less paranoid. "I'll see what I can do. But I'm not trying to cultivate any significant amounts."

[Quentin Watson]

"We're not asking you to hand over any samples or anything, though we WOULD like to see how...efficient and quick the process can be. But we're not expecting you to create an army -- in fact, I'm fairly sure that would run into trouble with a few laws," Quentin chuckled. "All we're interested in is the data."

[Sara Stanton]

"Right, yeah, of course... Sorry."

[Quentin Watson]

"It's not a problem -- I applaud you for bringing your concerns up; many people would feel intimidated.

Do you require -- or could you use! -- any assistance, or new equipment?"

[Sara Stanton]

"Maybe. I'll have to think on how to approach it first."

[Quentin Watson]

"You have a direct line to me. Don't hesitate, no matter how outlandish."

[Sara Stanton]

"I'll keep it in mind."