The Reincarnation

Dr. Persey was slowly realizing why the environmentalists were so upset about the extinction of animals. The leopard before him was a magnificent, majestic creature. Its eyes were like nothing he had ever seen – golden globes that brimmed with intelligence and ancient knowledge. The animal was graceful, yet powerful; strong, yet agile.

Licking its whiskers like that, Dr. Persey thought, it looks like a great big Hannibal. He wondered what kind of Other it would create. It couldn’t have gotten its soul back in the traditional sense, of course – assuming it even had a soul – they were extinct. A strange thought popped into his mind: Nature finds a way.

He wanted to pet the leopard and stroke its chin, but thought better of it. He turned his attention away from the cat, realizing he did have a lot of more important things to do. He would call the press in the morning, though, he told himself.

Wow, he chuckled, I’m going to be a star.

The leopard, meanwhile, closed its eyes and fell asleep.

In the MCA Biotechnology Lab, the Beast opened its eyes and woke up.

Today I get to share you with the world, Amanda thought as she prodded the Beast into its travel cage. Amanda thought it looked a little sickly today, but it was still scary. A little too scary for her taste, she admitted to herself. Still, the Church would be pleased. And surprised – nobody knew she had finally gotten it to live, even though she only expected it to survive for three and a half years.

She blew a kiss for every head – Jesus, it had taken a while to get all the heads to live – as she watched the truck pull away with her latest creation.

“Have a safe trip,” she called out.