The Genesis Project

Introduction (Part 2) - Arriving Whole

They didn't have the heart nor energy to tell their father they had no desire to tail along with him and his new "assistants" that Cobblepot had set him up with to the hospital. The hours he spent at the hospital, continuing to work his job (so as to not arouse any suspicions) under the supervision of some of Cobblepot's goons, were some of the longest spans of time they'd get without being subjected to another experiment. He used to refuse to allow them to suffer injury and heal without him present, though he now had gotten much more lenient with that. Occasionally he'd request that Cobblepot send somebody to their room to run an experiment for him, typically experiments he never had the constitution to run himself (which usually involved a lot of blunt-force trauma). Their captor almost always agreed to this, as understanding their limits was beneficial to everybody. Or so Genesis was told.

Deciding it was better to simply agree, they responded, Yes, father, though they made no attempt to hide the bitterness in their voice. Maybe someday.

They never did get a chance to join their father for a "take your kid to work" day. After all, a smart businessman never lets his cash cow out of the barn.

Dr. Tityus knocked gently on the door to Cobblepot's office before slowly pushing it open. He sat at his desk filing through some papers, a large cigar propped between his lips. He glanced up at the doctor and cried, "Hector! Please, come in, come in." Setting the papers in his hand down, he gestured to the chair in front of the desk as Tityus entered the room. "I'm hoping for a good report."

"An excellent report," he nodded, watching as Cobblepot popped open a crystal bottle full of a high-quality bourbon and poured out two glasses. Tityus lifted the glass closest to him and raised it in thanks before taking a small drink from it. He released a satisfied sigh as the liquor traveled smoothly down his throat. "Not a single rejection this week. And with the former chief of medicine at the hospital retiring, I'm practically a shoo-in for the position."

Cobblepot let out an eager laugh and raised his glass out towards Tityus, who met the glass with his own in a clink. They both downed the liquor to completion. "How are things on the... business end?" Tityus asked as he set the glass onto the desk.

"Just as well as usual," Cobblepot waved dismissively, as though the sales aspect of the business was of no interest. Tityus knew Cobblepot had little to no interest in the actual success of the donations, but he knew it was a good look for his organization The Penguin Foundation. It helped the "rehabilitated" criminals running the organization look trustworthy, and it kept the focus on the good he was doing. There was no suspicion that the man who ran a charity focused on criminal rehabilitation and organ donation was selling off even more "donated" organs behind the scenes. "How long until Gene is ready to go again?"

"I say give Genesis about two hours," he corrected, pursing his lips at the nickname. "Let them finish the IV drip, get something to eat, and sleep a bit before going again. Though, with your awful food, I'd say maybe closer to three or four hours."

They sat in tense silence for a moment before Cobblepot let out a deep laugh. "You're getting bold, Hector," he mentioned, tapping the edge of his cigar onto an ashtray and shaking his head. "We need two more lungs by tomorrow. I have a few interested buyers coming in tomorrow evening."

Tityus shook his head. "No, tomorrow's Saturday. I can get you one more tonight, but that's it. We have an agreement."

Cobblepot frowned, furrowing his brows in thought. He took a deep inhale on his cigar before saying, "Yes, yes. You're right. I'll push to Sunday."

The doctor relaxed into his seat. "Thank you."

Cobblepot leaned back and asked, "So... Will you be needing anyone tomorrow?"