All David seemed to do these days was chase broken dreams and crazy schemes, striving for a ?better world?. The problem was, in his opinion, the people. All too bitter. When he had first been accepted at the Academy, he had been excited, filled with anticipation and dreams of his own, of how he would invent a life saving drug and a moon-machine and a?the ideas had come so easily when he first arrived. But ideas didn?t matter. Science mattered. And money. Which was why he was always out testing boring formulas that could then be sold to the highest bidder.
The receptionist at the pool had been icy and definitely bitter. Age seemed to have added a blurry edge of apathy to everything and everyone. The receptionist knew why David was here ? after all, David knew why she was here. Her job was to greet people; his job, this time, was to help people say farewell to their old life. Person ? not people. Helping people would come later, if it proved successful. First someone needed to be harmed. Chemistry liked all its equations to be balanced. She had still charged him for entry to the pool, grinning slyly as the coins slid into her tainted pocket. As if he wasn?t doing her a favour as well.
The changing rooms were empty. It was, after all, closing time at the pool. Well, it would be in ten minutes. David was anxious about being here ? he needed an excuse to clear his conscience of what he was about to do. He was going to erase a person?s life ? remove them totally from one existence and move them kicking and screaming into a fate many would call worse than death. It wasn?t hard to formulate an excuse to ?kill? Jared.
Jared was a pool attendant. The reason why there was no one around, even though it was still not time for the pool to close, was because of Jared. He always sent everyone away half an hour early when he had the last shift, so that he could have the pool all to himself. Jerk. That wasn?t his worst quality, though. There was also the really nasty stuff aimed at individuals, like the racist shouting, and the degrading way he treated woman. Many would call Jared a bully, or an animal. Jared was not even intelligent enough to be bitter. All of this played through David?s mind as he snuck through the changing rooms and out to the side of the pool.
Jared was swimming lengths, showing off to invisible crowds. David noted that he hadn?t even bothered to change ? he was swimming in his attendants? shirt and shorts. David dropped his rucksack do the ground, unzipping it, as Jared slowed to a halt, treading water.
?Hey, pipsqueak!? Jared taunted, trying to belittle David. ?Pools weren?t made for wimps like you!? While David was not in the best shape possible, he was in no way a ?pipsqueak?. He was a?David paused, realising that it didn?t matter what Jared was saying. He had a job to do.
?Yeah yeah?? muttered David, fishing a water bottle out from his rucksack. ?Suck on this.? He poured the contents of the bottle into the pool, watching as the purple tinged liquid diffused throughout the water.
?Hey!? bellowed Jared. ?What are you doing, you little runt?? What Jared didn?t know was that the liquid was in fact a chemical compound designed to stimulate a regressive reaction in living cells. At a basic level, cells affected by the compound would fuse back together in a form of reverse mitosis, returning a species to a previous stage of its life cycle. It had reduced some of the cats back at the lab that David had been sent from back to kittens only days old, capable only of mewling and squirming around. It had never been tested on humans. ?Answer me!? roared Jared. David decided he should see the full glorious affect of the compound on a creature in motion.
?You know, you're no doing an awful lot of swimming for someone who claims to be an expert.? David mentally cringed; it was a pretty bad attempt at a provoking insult, but Jared didn?t have the mental capacity to see through it.
?Huh!? he yelled, arrogant as always. ?You think I can?t swim, you little prick? Just wait till I get out of here, I?ll kick your arse!? A small smile played on Jared?s lips?he could already see the changes happening, the huge muscular arms of the macho guy rapidly dwindling beneath his now soaked shirt.
Jared started to pound through the water, gunning for David, but the changes were substantial now ? in a few seconds more Jared?s shorts had been stripped from his narrowing waist as he swam, but he didn?t seem to care, such was his anger.
?Impressive doggy paddle,? commented David as Jared?s strokes become oddly mismatched as his body regressed at an odd rate. Jared didn?t even bother to reply, determined to get his revenge on David.
Jared was aware something was drastically wrong now, however, as his strokes seemed weaker, his arms thinner?boyish, even. Jared now slowed to a halt, staring in shock at his pale, thin arms that looked like the arms of a teenager. As he watched in horror the hairs retracted, his arms and - he looked down - yes, his legs too had retreated into the chubby, hairless appendages of a mere stripling! Before he could fathom what had happened he suddenly realised his legs couldn?t keep treading water ? he was a weak, helpless little boy again!
?Help...help me!? spluttered Jared, thrashing in the water that had once been so easy for him to traverse. David reached in and pulled out the stuttering boy by his shirt. It was easy for David to pull Jared out, but it was obvious why. The shirt David was gripping clothed a mere boy, perhaps 8 years old. Jared thrashed in David?s grip, but David just grinned at the cute little boy who was succeeding only in loosing his boxer shorts.
?Let me go!? the boy squealed, sounding as menacing as only an 8 year old can. David manoeuvred the struggling little boy onto the concrete and clamped both hands down on his young aggressor?s slim shoulders.
?Well, well, well!? David said, grinning at the squirming boy. ?Look what I?ve caught!? Jared was still struggling, but he was tiring. He tried to lash out at David, but his short arms fell a long way short of their mark. ?Oh, you still think you?ve got a bit of fight left in you, eh?? David grabbed the waning boy and lifted him up above the water. Jared?s eyes went wide with fear as he peered down at the water that had cost him is adulthood. His physical strength almost, gone, there was only one way to hurt David now.
?FUCK YOU!? he yelled. David sneered, and lowered Jared?s kicking legs into the water. Once again, Jared felt an odd tingling, and his feet retracted back out of the water, his legs rising higher into his shirt.
?Do you feel so big now, little boy?? sneered David. Jared stared at the huge, menacing face of his tormentor. He could feel fear forming in his mind, and tears forming in his eyes.
?FUCK?? he began, but faltered. ?Fwuck you...!? He wasn?t even sure what the words meant any more. David shook Jared lightly.
?Down again, then.? David lowered the child once again into the water, and by the time Jared had risen out of the water his T-shirt was slipping off one shoulder. Jared was practically a toddler now, and his cute, innocent face showed the signs of a small child on the verge of a tantrum. His lower lip quivered, his eyes held tears?and then Jared began to bawl.
?Aw!? mocked David as he placed little Jared back onto the concrete. ?I guess you learned your lesson, huh?? He squatted down next to Jared. Jared stumbled on his tired legs, scared, wet and alone. What did this big man want? Jared, entangled in his drooping T-shirt, fell backwards onto his smooth little bottom and let out a surprised yelp, followed by a proper tantrum. He couldn?t have been more than 2 years old ? the wailing little boy that sat before David bore little resemblance to the massive, well-built attendant David had seen when he had first entered. He gently peeled the wet T-shirt from the boy, striping him of his remaining adult status as well as his remaining article of clothing. Jared?s tantrum settled into a pitiful whimper as he looked up at the now massive figure in front of him.
?Wha?wha are you goin to do wit me?? Jared mewled pitifully as he managed to control his sobs somewhat. David smiled down at him, affectionately, pulling out a notebook and pen from his rucksack.
?Don?t worry, little guy. You won?t be missed by many here.?
?I have fwiends!? he protested.
?They?ll get by,? mused David, grinning. ?And everyone else will get by without your sense of ?humour?.? David hung his head low, a wave of utter despair washing over him once again.
?Specimen #141? wrote David. ?Homo Sapiens? Jared sniffled, peering through blurry eyes at the notepad covered in strange symbols that he could no longer understand. ?Initial observations show expected results ? drastic physical regression and some mental regression, extent unknown.? David paused to wonder if there was some way of ascertaining a measure of mental regression, but at that point Jared began to wail frantically and make the most pitiful wailing sound. David turned in surprise?and saw the puddle forming around little Jared.
?Come on, little guy,? said David casually. ?Let?s get you diapered.? The look on Jared?s face was priceless, as he sat there trapped in the body of a very small boy with a torrent of baby pee pouring from his tiny, impotent little penis. The beauty of it was that he still remembered, could still recall being strong and proud and adult - at least he still remembered at the moment. In a few hours his former life might have been completely washed away by the chemicals.
Once Jared had finished relieving himself all over the side of the pool, David pulled out a fluffy white towel from his rucksack and pulled Jared carefully over onto it, drying him off from his last great stand in the pool ? his hardest ordeal would come next.
?Why?why me?? he moaned as he lay swaddled in the towel in David?s arms.
?Because we could,? shrugged David as he gently stroked the towel over Jared?s wispy blond hair. ?The same general reasoning that governed most of your actions, if public opinion is to be believed.? Jared clutched onto the towel with a tiny hand, no doubt feeling the loss, the regret. ?This compound could be the saviour of humanity ? diseases could be lessened or eradicated, the growth of cancer cells could be reversed?? Jared wanted to die. He didn?t want to be an experiment, not a saviour of humanity ? he wanted to be Jared again. He never really appreciated what it was to be adult, empowered with responsibilities and privileges, until now - too late.
David gently laid him down, spreading the towel out to lie flat beneath him and reached into the rucksack for the final stage of the experiment ? talcum powder, baby lotion and a clean white diaper. At this Jared immediately, and with surprising speed, clambered onto his wobbly little legs, toddling to escape the humiliation, the indignity. With a hurried stumble David turned to pursue the fleeing, naked child. The dream of many tottered onwards on tired little legs, a nightmare for one. David soon caught him as Jared broke into sobs.
?Little guy?Jared?? David spoke softly to the infant before him, finding it hard to be bitter towards such a helpless child. ?Think of who you will save.? Jared continued to whimper as he felt his legs lifted high into the air by David, a person who had seemed so small and insignificant only ten minutes ago.
He moaned as he felt the cold lotion being rubbed into the cracks and crevices of his soft bottom and over his tiny genitals, but settled into complete, eerie silence as the fragrant powder was dusted onto him. As David slid the diaper under him, laying him down onto it and pulling it up between his legs, Jared?s expression turned into a grin.
?You stupid!? Jared babbled, clapping clumsily. David smiled at him, securing the diaper and sitting the little tyke up. David figured it was probably best to humour the little one.
?Yes, little guy, I?m the stupid one.? Jared pointed to the pool, waving a chubby arm.
?Public pool?? Jared continued to grin as the realisation of what David had done dawned on him. The experiment was supposed to be carried out in an enclosed system. Not only would other people use this pool, the water would eventually be drained and go into rivers and the water cycle and?Jared giggled, feeling pleased. David just shrugged. Even if he had made a mistake it would hardly be noticed in this cityscape world of greed, bitterness and malice.
?Oh well?? David murmured. ?What?s there to loose?? he contemplated, looking down at the giggling baby boy, sitting by the pool, innocent and content.