"Robert Oz?" Mitch exclaimed, and his expression didn't seem happy. "I know you"

"Not for fame, I presume" the man murmured as soon as he entered. "Mr. Morgan, Miss Campbell, Miss Hardy, it's nice to meet you. As for the two of you, it's nice to see you again" he said looking at Ian and Alan.

"We're glad to meet you, Mr. Oz" the two of them replied.

"Do you know each other?" Mitch asked surprised.

"Yes, it was a long time ago. After all, we were both biologists. We did some research together, and I introduced him to Ian" Alan explained. "Then he began to take an interest in genetic engineering and we moved away"

"Oh… I understand" Mitch said, but suddenly Jamie exclaimed, "Wait a minute! So you are THAT Dr. Robert Oz? The one who was expelled from the scientific community for having theorized the possibility of an awakening of the cognitive abilities of animals?"

"My reputation precedes me apparently" Robert grumbled. "I guess you haven't heard much good about me"

"You're right" Mitch murmured with a scornful look. "Miss Jersey, do you really want to rely on this charlatan's words?"

"Moderate your words. This man is my father"Jackson growled. Even if he didn't have a good relationship with his parent, he was still his father, and he didn't like people talking to him like that.

"Stop it, everyone" Jocelyne interrupted in a tired voice. "Doctor Morgan, I would ask you not to start biased on the theories of others. Regardless of the past of the present one Robert Oz, he is the only one who here has an explanation for what happened, so it would be better to listen to him before drawing conclusions, don't you think?"

Jocelyne's words were able to restore calm. As the girl had imagined, Dr. Oz's bad reputation didn't help. Fortunately she had managed to spark the interest of the scientists before introducing Robert to him, or probably half of them would have already turned off the video call. "Doctor Oz, please explain to them what you told me"

"Yes, miss Jersey" Robert said, then began to explain: "I know the scientific community portrays me as a charlatan and a deceiver, but I would ask you to put your prejudices aside for now and just listen to what I have to say. As some of you may know, twenty years ago I started studying the brains and neuronal connections of living things; during my work I have vivisected dozens of animals and discovered some interesting things. Now, to cause an evolution of cognitive ability to a level equal to ours, it would take tens, perhaps even hundreds of millions of years of evolution, and we are talking about the most intelligent animal species; for less intelligent ones, such as fish or amphibians, it would take even billions of years. However, I found that certain proteins were able to accelerate this process to the maximum; introducing them into the brain, they caused a disproportionate growth and development of neurons, especially those of the prefrontal cortex, the area that we normally associate with thinking. It was a crazy and uncontrolled growth, which led to the creature's immediate death, but it was still proof that through certain stimuli even the most primitive and ancestral brain could improve"

"I know what he's talking about. Your studies were quite famous at the time" Alan said.

"I know it. However, I began to theorize that it was possible to go further. That there might be a way to ensure that these proteins combine and begin to act harmoniously, thus preventing an uncontrolled growth of gray matter, but acclimatizing with the wishes of the host and therefore improving it according to his preferences. I thought that it was possible to create what I call the Mother Cell, that is a superconcentrate of these proteins that was able to merge with the host and act on his body and mind, but that the host was also able to control. The Mother Cell would not only have empowered the individual, but would also have been able to multiply and infect other creatures, could have modified DNA and donated abilities that we would define superhuman, and even could have replicated biological and molecular processes to create in seconds. objects and utensils simply from surrounding molecules" Robert explained. "To make you understand, imagine giving this Mother Cell to a penguin. The main interest of the penguin is to survive, and to survive an animal needs intelligence, strength and agility. The Mother Cell would act on the basis of this need, improving the body and making it stronger, more agile and more resistant, but it would also empower the mind; initially only to be able to hunt and protect itself better, then as the mind would become more evolved the penguin would begin to desire greater intelligence not just to survive, but to discover the answer to those questions that it would inevitably begin to ask itself. And so, over time, we would have a penguin of enormous size, perfectly suited for hunting and killing and possessing an intelligence of a human or higher level. And at that point what do you think would happen?"

Even though some, like Mitch, had skeptical expressions, their eyes were still full of attention. "The penguin would end up understanding that it has a single predator against which it can never simply adapt: the humans. And since the ultimate goal of every living being, intelligent or not, is always survival, the penguin would begin to consider a way to get rid of this predator. Then it would understand that humans are not only its predator, but that of all its species; it would also be smart enough to realize it needed a large army to fight. And so the Mother Cell would begin to metastasize itself with which it would infect the other penguins, making them more intelligent and giving them new abilities, all based on the wishes of the main host, that is, of course, the first penguin. And then the penguin, in its intelligence, would realize not only that penguins alone cannot win against humans, but that humans are not only their predators but also those of all other animals; therefore it would choose to unite everyone against the common enemy. Still, the penguin would realize that it cannot win with brute force alone, but that it needs weapons and defenses, which it could create using the Mother Cell. In a time that we could define as infinitesimal, we would have an army of animals armed to the teeth and endowed with abilities unknown to us, whose sole objective would be to eradicate us, their common enemy, from the face of the planet, or at least to undermine us from the position of dominant species"

The scientists listened carefully. It was inevitable, because what Robert Oz was describing was very reminiscent of what had happened in Flagard City: animals with particular abilities and inexplicable intelligence, whose goal was to distance themselves from humans. "So you think the dinosaurs could have obtained this Mother Cell?" Sarah asked.

"Yes, but not naturally" Robert replied.

Sarah didn't understand: "What are you talking about?"

"About why I lost my professorship, why I was discredited by the scientific community and why I was held up as a charlatan" Robert answered. "In short, if the question ended with me theorising such a thing, no one would say anything to me, would they? We would speak of a theory not proven yet, based on scientific facts, and there would only be a big debate between those who believe in it and those who do not. So why did I lose the right to call myself a scientist? Easy, because I made the mistake of all the scientists who have been discredited in the past: I stepped on a big shot. I'm sure you understand me, professor Malcolm"

Ian sighed deeply. Yes, he could understand, because the same thing had happened to him because of Ludlow. In the face of power, science yielded. If anyone had wanted to discredit Robert Oz it would not have taken long; it was enough that he had a good capital to invest.

"The big shot I stepped on" Robert continued. "It's the Reiden Global"

"The Reiden Global!?" Jamie exclaimed almost jumping from his chair. His gesture surprised the others not a little, with the exception of Mitch.

"Everything is fine?" Jocelyne asked.

"She hates the Reiden to death" Mitch explained. "In the past, when she was still a graduate student, she worked part-time for a news agency and was looking for a sensational scoop. During this time she became quite suspicious of the Reiden"

"I have my reasons. What they do is absolutely incorrect!" Jamie growled. During his time as a part-time journalist he had been able to learn a lot about the giant multinational that ruled the world market. Not only were they some of the main causes of pollution on the planet, financing activities that destroyed entire environments, but they also delighted in experiments that were nothing short of amoral on animals and sometimes even on humans. In the past, for example, the Reiden had tried a drug that was not thoroughly tested on some people, condemning almost all of them to illness; not only that, the multinational also produced energy drinks considered harmful by many, products to increase mental abilities, even some illegal drugs. Unfortunately, the Reiden was very rich and had contacts in all governments of the world, which were happy to pave the way and consequently the multinational always came out clean. Jamie therefore had no doubts that the Reiden was hiding far more dangerous experiments, even if she had no evidence to prove it.

Robert cleared his throat: "Er. As I was saying, some time ago the Raiding contacted me proposing to finance my research, provided that I did not reveal the content of my work to anyone. I refused, but the Reiden didn't give up and began offering me more and more money, even offering me a million dollars for a single month of work. I became suspicious and decided to understand what was happening by sneaking into the Reiden laboratories, and I discovered that they were conducting research to produce the phantom Mother Cell. I tried to warn the authorities, but I had underestimated the power of the Raiding; those bastards destroyed my career and discredited my name, passing off all my theories as madness and causing my complete meltdown"

"If I remember correctly, at that time you talked about animals becoming intelligent, saw one in person, and presented bogus evidence..." Mitch murmured.

Robert shook his head. "All false. The interviews and videos were all fake. I was trying to explain to the world how the Mother Cell works, and they turned the omelette over and pretended to be a fool who believed that animals could become intelligent. After all, the best way to cover up a lie is to mix it with the truth. And clearly between the two versions, people have chosen to believe the most likely one, the one of the Reiden. I admit that my behavior also contributed to my meltdown… at that time I had become paranoid, fearing that the Reiden would try to kill me or my family, and from the pressure I started drinking and throwing myself at work. It was natural that people saw me as a fool. Even my wife and son chose to distance themselves from me"

Behind him Jackson sighed deeply. It was clear that Robert Oz's tale was awakening unpleasant memories in him. However, he held back and said nothing.

"Even if what you say is true" Mitch said with a hint of bitterness in his voice. "Why on earth would the Reiden want to create the Mother Cell?"

"Isn't it obvious? Any person with a minimum of power would want the Mother Cell" Robert replied. "Imagine what you could do. Not only could you make yourself stronger and smarter and create whatever you want, but you could infect other people with metastases, and instead of improving their intelligence you could make them more docile and controllable. You could create a collective mind with you as the center, where you no longer have to worry about democratic trifles like elections, trade unions, strikes or workers' rights. It would be the perfect dictatorial system with zero chance of rebellion. I know many governments that would pay gold to possess such power"

The people in the room felt a shiver on their backs at that prospect. If the Mother Cell had really existed, indeed, whoever possessed it would have ruled the world. And nothing attracted humans more than absolute power. It was highly unlikely that the Reiden was looking for it for benevolent purposes.

"All this time I have continued to investigate, and after some time I discovered that the Reiden had temporarily suspended the research, since there is still no technology capable of producing the Mother Cell" Robert continues. "However, following what has happened in recent times, I think it is possible that the Reiden has finally found it. I don't know how they did it, since with current resources we shouldn't be able to do it, but I'd say it's the only explanation for recent events"

The other scientists looked at each other uncertainly. Indeed, although there was no proof of the existence of the Mother Cell, it appeared to be the most realistic hypothesis at the moment. As surreal and unlikely as it was, it seemed the only possible explanation. "And do you believe that the Mother Cell infected the dinosaurs?" Ian asked in a hoarse voice.

"I told you, only one was enough. A single patient zero who first used the Mother Cell to improve himself, and then everyone else. I always thought it would all start with dinosaurs: they are the most successful group on the planet and therefore are the perfect vectors for rapid propagation of the Mother Cell. Apparently I was right" Robert replied. "I don't know how the Mother Cell ended up in the hands of a dinosaur. There may have been some escape from a laboratory, or an unexpected experiment... but it is clear that one of them must be the bearer"

"Speaking of predictions, what do you think will happen?" Jamie asked. Her gaze betrayed her concern.

"Currently, dinosaurs have already reached a stage of intelligence that allows various different species to communicate and coordinate a mass escape. At the moment they have limited themselves to moving away from humans, but it won't be long before they learn to see them as their absolute enemy, assuming they don't already" Robert explained. He too seemed tense. "The only hope is to be able to track down the dinosaur carrying the Mother Cell and eliminate it before it learns to create weapons and tools that can stand up to us. If we fail to do so, we will be faced with a disaster of epochal proportions. Try to imagine all the fauna of the planet, well armed and capable of infinite strategies, turning against humanity. It would be the end of our civilization"

The others swallowed imagining a similar scenario. It was the very definition of the word apocalypse. Humans were certainly not omnipotent: if animals had obtained the same level of scientific and technological knowledge then humans would have fallen off the top of the food chain in no time. Animals were creatures that were far stronger, more agile, and better suited to combat than humans; the only thing that prevented them from exterminating humanity was the intelligence gap. However, if they had surpass it, then the entire current human arsenal would have become useless.

In the end, it was Ian who spoke. "Now I think I understand the reason for the history lesson" he said. "Miss Jersey, you are asking us to be the tenth man. Since the whole world considers Robert Oz a charlatan, you want us to investigate the matter, assuming that all his theories are true"

Jocelyne nodded. "You don't necessarily have to think that Dr. Oz's theories are true, I just want you to assume that the possibility of dinosaurs becoming intelligent exists. I want you to investigate the mystery starting from this precept. If you accept in exchange, I will finance your research for the next three years"

The scientists' eyes opened like balloons. Struggling for funding was something all men of science had encountered in their lifetime. It wasn't easy to get the rich to drop the money. So the hypothesis of not having to worry about funding for three consecutive years was very tempting. For Jocelyne it was not a problem to keep that word: despite the research costing millions, for the Jersey family it was a paltry amount.

Scientists agreed that a thorough investigation even before Jocelyne's proposal was appropriate, but after it any doubts had dissipated. "Well, what I can say? I don't see why I shouldn't accept" Alan replied with a half smile on his face.

"Yeah, I think so too" Sarah said.

"If my woman is present, consider me aggregate. Besides, you wouldn't do anything without me" Ian confirmed.

"Believe me, professor Malcolm, if you want to be absent no one will scold you" Mitch grumbled, and then he added: "Anyway, I'm in too"

"And me too" Jamie added.

Jocelyne beamed. "Thank you. If you know of any other people who could help us, please contact them. Robert Oz will be at your disposal for any further inquiries about his theories, and will obviously investigate in turn"

"We get to work immediately" the scientists replied. One after another, all the scientists closed the video calls and disappeared from the screen.

Being able to finally relax, Jocelyne slumped in her chair. She still felt the tension, but she was glad that some of the most brilliant minds in the world had agreed to support her.

"Miss, do you still need our presence?" Jackson asked, pointing to him and his father.

Jocelyne shook her head. "No, you can go back to work. Both of you" she replied.

"Do you think we'll be able to do it?" Robert suddenly asked.

Jocelyne sighed deeply and her gaze became concerned. "I hope so. If dinosaurs are really becoming intelligent then we are on the verge of the disaster. If we don't find the Mother Cell before it's too late, the world as we know it will cease to exist"