Excerpt:

Jonah sighed and clicked the TV over to the World News Network, where the president was in fact speaking. “-remarkable progress, and though the repercussions of such an action would be severe, but this is a time that calls for serious action against this type of behaviour, and I will not stand idly by while our world is consumed this way!”

Luna gave the screen an odd look. “What’s he talking about?”

“Not sure,” I responded, leaning forward a bit. Even the gene-bot behind us was silent - I get the feeling he was told there was a speech, but not what it was about. “Who’s the woman behind him?”

“Doctor or something is my guess,” was Luna’s reply.

“Doctor Helen Barringer,” the Hunter piped up. I shot him a look and he shut up, but I recognized the name. She was one of the head doctors on the President’s medical cabinet, and was renowned for her work in the genetic field. She’d been one of the leading researchers that helped created the genotype race.

“With the help of Doctor Barringer and her brilliant team of researchers,” the president continued, “perhaps there is a day on the horizon where we will all be able to look up the rising sun and know that the darkness will no longer hold the fear so many of us still feel. However, I’m going to let Doctor Barringer come up and explain her newest creation, if she wouldn’t mind.”

All of the patrons of the bar had gone silent and now were just staring at the television, shocked just like I was, I’m sure. What was going on? Not living in fear of the night? It didn’t make any sense. Barringer stepped up to the microphone and cleared his throat, making the squeak in her voice all the more evident. “Thank you, Mr. President. It is my deepest privilege and greatest honor to finally unveil the work my research team and I have been completing the past several years. It has taken a great deal of generic engineering, and some of the finest scientists from all over the globe have taken part in this, but now we are prepared to unveil our work. Of course, the actual physical representation of our work could not be moved here for today, but we have a miniature replica of what we have created.”

She nodded to someone off to her left, and the camera panned over to show a young man as he pulled a cloth off of a table. Underneath was a replica of…well, what it really looked like was one of those tower fans, or air purifiers. It was a tall cylinder with slots on all sides, and from the replica of a little human figure next to it, probably stood close to 3 stories tall. “What you see before you is a rendition of the figure we have created to release the biological formula we have developed. There are structures like this in every major city all around the world, in one form or another, and then the master controls are kept in a hidden, secure area. When the proper sequence is activated at the master control panel, a biochemical formula will be released simultaneously at all of these locations around the world. The formula is a chemical agent designed to be inhaled, and will move through the respiratory system directly into the bloodstream and into your core nervous system. At that point, this formula will begin targeting the genetic profile of the individual, and will begin breaking down partial sections of the individual’s chromosomal pattern.”

A wave of concerned mutters arose from the crowd on the screen, as well from the patrons of the bar. Something they were going to release that broke down people’s genes? “Are they planning on killing off the entire population?” Luna hissed into my ear. “Why is the President announcing mass genocide?”

“Unless…” I was starting to get a feeling for where this was going. No longer afraid of the night. There had long been a rumour going around that the vampiric and lycan conditions, once attained, were kept locked into our bodies through genetics. They’d never found proof of this - mainly because no vampire or lycan wanted to be submitted to their genetic testing - but I’d never heard if they’d finally figured it out. I suppose capturing test subjects wasn’t outside the realm of possibility, what with the Hunters and all…

“Now, don’t misperceive what I’m saying. Not every individual will be affected by this particular strain. There are a set of genetic pieces found on the sixteenth and twentieth chromosomes, respectively, that are particularly targeted. Only individuals with irregularities in these areas will be affected.”

The bar went silent again. Barringer was still talking, but I couldn’t hear it anymore.

“Twentieth…” the Hunter said slowly. “That’s where the lycan virus pays, isn’t it?”

“And the supposed vampiric traits,” Luna said softly, looking at me. I looked at the Hunter.

“Know what’s on the sixteenth, Hunter?” I said, my voice gravelly. He shook his head, but then his eyes widened. “Yeah. All your special genetic tricks are stored on the sixteenth chromosome. That thing she’s designed, that…that bomb is going to blow everyone but the purebreed humans off the Earth, and the fucking President’s endorsed it.”