“So what are you going to do?”
Visela looked up at her helper, pushing her glasses up and setting her lab notebook down on her desk shared by other scientists who have become caught up in underwater research. The labspace was conveniently close to Eldura University and, if successful, could even be incorporated into the university for its own building. It may be small PAX FRUITS for anyone else, but for any aspiring scientist, especially a young one, getting a few publications in a journal with high impact ratings and getting one’s own research department was close to an unfathomable dream.
“Well the experiment was supposed to end a few weeks ago. But I simply need more data. And I don’t really feel like simply starting anew and getting test subjects. I mean, we’ll have to, but… time is everything. And I want to do this soon, cause Vekaiyu seems compelled to throwing research money at anything military related.”
“Perhaps we could sell this tech as a military item?”
She shook her head. “No. This is for progression of the Vekaiyun people. I don’t want to use this for war. It’s not meant for war.”
“But if we can-”
“Look,” she began as she poked him with a pen, “it’s not for war. Scientists shouldn’t be trying to develop bombs or find new ways to kill people. That’s what mercenaries do. Scientists should be seeking ways to better society. And I am compelled to follow that credo.”
“Okay, okay. But what are we going to do? We can’t keep that one person longer than we should.”
“Why not?”
He gave her a funny look. “You’re contradictory. You speak about the ethics of science in one breath, then suggest doing something unethical in the next!”
Visela shrugged. “Doesn’t have to be unethical if you can convince the person to take on longer time in the project, or have some sort of accident with the controls that would prevent the subject from being freed from it. Just saying.”
He pretended not to hear the last statement. “I mean we have a group of prisoners to test this stuff on.”
“And they will be tested. Maybe in time we can study an entire colony. But I need data now, don’t you see?”
“Yes of course.”
“I waited so long to finally give back to my nation something great, a good contribution that can be used positively by anyone who wishes to do so. I just can’t see it not work, especially with all these so-called scientists pandering to the military with the hopes that one day their works will be used to kill thousands or millions of people. I can’t do that. Science isn’t about that.” She watched as her helper nodded sympathetically. “We’ll figure something out.”