r/WritingPrompts • u/Semblance-of-sanity • 1d ago
Writing Prompt [WP]Thousands of genetically engineered creatures were found when the company was shut down. You are a civilian who volunteered to foster some of these creatures and your starting to suspect they may actually be sapient.
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u/Tregonial 1d ago
GeneCorp went down like a chump not over their horrific experiments, but from their CEO being jailed for tax evasion of all things. The military lost interest in GeneCorp's experimental abominations. Thousands of creatures were suddenly unwanted without a home.
No animal shelter would take these things. Not when they could pose a threat to ordinary cats and dogs that weren't mutated as they were.
Which is where Dr. Carl Vayson came in.
He had already taken in one such entity -- a biological weapon codenamed Butcher. As a former employee who was fired for "wasting company budget on creature comforts", he figured he was one of the best people to apply as a foster. Better he tried to adopt as many as he could, lest they be euthanized.
The old lab he used to work at was already destroyed by Butcher, who was upset to learn he had been fired. Luckily, the fences were still around, and some equipment could be salvaged, so Vayson had converted it to a sanctuary for Butcher.
And now, it would be a safe place for GeneCorp's other creations that he successfully adopted. He would advertise it as a place for other foster parents to come and bring their entities here. With his new job at the National Ethics Board, he could afford to spruce up the place, maybe make a playground for these critters.
"I have new friends coming?" Butcher was curious, eyes glowing as it looked out the fence, eagerly waiting. Pacing back and forth the perimeter. "Others like me?"
"Yes, others like you," Vayson nodded, patting his friend.
"Will you play with them and read them stories like you do for me?"
"Of course I will," the scientist replied, even as he was uncertain of the intellectual capabilities of the other experiments since he did not work with them. "Wait, do you hear something?"
"Yes, yes," Butcher bounced about. "My new pals are coming."
Experiment 628, now renamed Puffy, was brought in by government officials. The surviving reports indicated Puffy had largely been unresponsive. And proven it so when it didn't react to Butcher's attempts to play with it.
All Puffy did was curl up in a fetal position and tremble and quiver.
"Give it time," Vayson consoled a disappointed Butcher.
The next one, Experiment 784, renamed Mochi, fared a little better. It was quiet, not because it was afraid, but because its vocal cords had been removed. Despite that, Mochi extended out one claw towards Butcher and they made eye contact.
Slowly, over the day, more arrived. Vayson instructed them to gather for the first time to share their meals. He had read their old files to know what they eat and prepare accordingly. All the creatures sat alongside each other and ate peacefully with no scuffle. When Vayson asked Butcher to bring his food bowl over to the makeshift kitchen to wash, the rest followed suit.
"Huh, they understood what needed to be done," the man couldn't conceal his surprise. "Interesting."
Butcher nodded and winked. "My new pals are smart."
Indeed, they might not talk now, but after some playtime, and Vayson teaching them some tricks and instructions, he figured it. The other researchers and supervisors might think of them as failures or dumb animals gone wrong, but they were smarter than they were given credit. They could bond. They displayed signs of empathy and friendship. But most of all, they showed hints of sapience that had not been recorded.
Such as the body gestures and sign language they developed among themselves. They were all different species, with Butcher being formerly a wolf, Puffy being a monitor lizard before the experiments and so on, but they made it work. Language, once a thing believed to be exclusive to humans.
"Do you want to teach me your language?" Vayson asked Butcher. "It's so fascinating, observing you all develop your own unique form of communication. How it came about because not everyone could talk or perform certain gestures I taught you."
"I can try, though you lack certain body parts to do some words. Like, you don't have a tail."
Vayson laughed. "I have a butt, and that's close enough?"
"Close enough," Butcher smiled. "So, this sapience you talked about last night, what does it mean for us?"
"It means I could write a new report detailing that all of you have sufficient intelligence to be a part of society and have rights."
This story is a sequel to this one here.
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u/TheWanderingBook 1d ago
As soon as I enter the barn, the creatures stares at me.
I smile, and they visibly relax.
"Come, breakfast is ready," I chuckle, as large creatures, each more unimaginable, than the other approach me.
I either hand them bowls, or place them at their feet.
"Bon appetite, my friends," I say, and they nod, before eating.
I leave, still smiling at them.
But once outside...
I sigh.
Getting back inside the house, I check the camera feed from the barn.
The creatures are carefully eating, looking around.
Clearly more wary, and tense than when I was inside.
And despite being only 9 of them, there are 2 clear cliques.
I frown.
"They are sapient, aren't they?" I mutter.
Seeing 2 of them, exchange bowls, makes me more certain.
They aren't just "creatures".
These ones can think.
Question is...how intelligent are they?
I keep tending to them with great care...
And they warm up to me.
They are calmer when I am around.
Then they start recognizing my steps, my clothes, and the bowls, before I even appear properly in front of them.
When I allow them to leave the barn...
They don't run.
They don't fight.
No...
They simply explore the nearest zones, before resting here and there, but always...
Always looking for me.
I think, I became their pillar, after taking them in.
"Sapient?
They are failed experiments, genetically engineered creatures, that couldn't hit the market.
That's why the company failed," a certain agent says.
I sigh.
"Didn't the company fail, because of their inhuman actions, that forced you guys to shut the operations down?" I ask.
She says nothing.
"They are smart. They understand my words, and I swear...some of them are about to talk," I say.
"Yeah, sure, as if those monst..." she starts, when Jeremy, as I call him peeks in through the window.
His long neck, stretches inside, as he stares at the agent.
"D-danger?" he asks, glaring at the agent, who freezes.
I smile, pat his head, that makes him purr, as I send him back outside.
"See?" I ask, but the agent is too shaken to answer.
Not a surprise.
This is quite the discovery.
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u/jpb103 r/JPsTales 1d ago
The fluorescent lights flickered overhead.
Haversham glanced between the lights and the pair of animals he was fostering, narrowing his eyes.
"I'll be back soon," he said, grabbing his keys. "Don't... do anything weird. Please." The door shut behind him, and the spider monkey looked over at the raven.
"I said be cool!" the monkey said, throwing his arms up in frustration.
"I'm always cool," the raven replied, smug satisfaction clear on his corvid face. The monkey rolled his eyes.
All seven of them.
"Listen, Corvix. We both like Hav. He's a good guy and he treats us well. Why do you insist on freaking him out?" Corvix laughed.
"Because it's fun? Have you heard of fun, Hominix? You should try it sometime. It's delightful." Hominix planted his face in his palm and sighed.
"What if we get sent to another lab?" He asked, getting worried. "I can't handle any more needles, Corvix. I just can't. I doubt the others have been as lucky in their placements as we have been." Corvix cocked his head.
"Would you like me to check?"
"Please don't."
The lights flickered. Corvix stared into the empty space between them, his eyes flaring with unnatural crimson light. He returned from where he had gone, and it was the raven's turn to look worried.
"I... I can't see them," he said. "I can't feel their presence. Any of them. They're just... gone."
They sat in silence for a moment, both sitting uncomfortably in this grim revelation. Hominix nodded sadly.
"It's just us now," he said, acknowledging grief as their new companion. "We are alone."
"No."
The pair jumped, snapping their heads over to the door, where Haversham stood, tears in his eyes, firsts clenched by his side.
"You have me."
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u/FreddThundersen 1d ago
...is this a reference to an old episode of the Real Ghostbusters' cartoon?
I like the characters, please keep going? :)
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u/sadnesslaughs /r/Sadnesslaughs 1d ago edited 1d ago
“Oh, that’s just taking the piss! A double power slam crusher? Who uses that meta move? Learn an original combination.” Alex screamed, throwing his controller down on the carpet.
Bundle, the creature in Alex’s care, gave a cocky huff, pushing its fluffy chest forward. “Blah blanda blah?” It asked, which only added to Alex’s already bubbling frustrations.
“Oh, I’m bad at the game? Real mature. I had one pleasure in life, and that was beating you at this stupid game. Now, I don’t even have that. I thought you were meant to be stupid.”
Alex stared at Bundle, who was still clutching its controller with glee. The small fur ball of a creature had begun showing signs of intelligence that had not previously been reported by the people who had been studying it. This assumed lack of intelligence being the main reason they believed it was fine to house them in foster homes.
When Alex had taken Bundle into his care, he had been told it was an adorable creature that had been created through mutated genetic strains of…. Well, Alex had stopped listening at that point, waiting for them to tell him how much money he would receive if he looked after it. While volunteer work often implied it was unpaid, in these strange circumstances, a government allowance was provided. Partly to pay for the creature’s food, and partly to compensate the family of the volunteer, if the creature killed them.
After all, this was a newly created creature that had barely been studied before this. There was always a chance it could have some odd quirks that they didn’t know about, quirks like being weirdly good at fighting games.
“Blah blah blah?”
“What? You think I’m a bad person because I found joy in beating a creature I thought was stupid at a game? I’m not a bad person; I’m just a sad one. There’s a difference.”
“Bahla?” It tilted its head, one tiny floppy ear swinging with the action.
“There is. The difference being I’m bad in a pitiful way, not a malicious one. I’m not going around kicking grannies or stealing candy from babies. I’m just taking petty wins.” Alex leant back on the couch, and sighed.
“Blah blah.” The creature’s three-fingered hand patted Alex on the shoulder, giving him some comforting words.
“It’s just hard, you know? I go to work, and everyone treats me like I’m a rat in a tie. My boss doesn’t even know my name. You know what he called me today? Fyired. Just looked at me and said you’re fyired. How doesn’t he know my name yet?”
“Blah?”
“Fired? What do you mean?”
“Uh.” Bundle sheepishly stared at his friend/minder, finding their downtrodden eyes a sad sight to look at. Unable to tell Alex he had been fired; he elected to find a way to cheer him up. “Blah blah blah!”
“You know what. You’re absolutely right. Why should I take this crap from him? I’m my own man. I’m a god.”
“Blah blah…”
“Ok, maybe not a god. But I’m a human with freewill and that freewill is telling me to take my phone and shove it right up his—”
“BLAH.”
“Ok, again maybe too far. How about a strongly worded email?”
“Blah.” Bundle nodded, and the two of them paused their game, making their way over to Alex’s laptop. Alex sat down, pulling Bundle onto his lap, before realizing he really had no idea what to write. So he did what he always did when he didn’t know what to write: he watched a two-hour YouTube documentary on a topic he didn’t really care about.
Bundle heroically sat on his lap, watching the video with him. During those two hours, Alex patted him, which Bundle quite liked. The creature enjoyed those soothing touches, making those two hours pass quickly for the both of them.
“Wow, who would have guessed that the person who played Hanna Montana is the same person playing Miley Cyrus now.”
“Blah blah blah.”
“No, it’s a character. The YouTube video said so. But, fine. We can check the likes and dislikes if you’re so skeptical.” Alex scrolled down, seeing two thumbs waiting for him, with the thumbs down not having a number beside it. “Oh, yeah. That’s right. They removed that feature. Guess we have to assume it’s real then. “
“Blah…” Bundle pointed to the email icon on Alex’s laptop, tapping it until Alex remembered what he was supposed to be doing.
“Right, the email.” Alex brought up his emails, deleting anything that wasn’t a promo for his favorite restaurants, or coupons for online shops. When he saw an email titled ‘termination’ from his work, he deleted it, refusing to read work related emails outside of office hours.
For a good thirty minutes, the two of them stared at the open email, with Alex only typing the emails subject in that time. Calling his email. I quit. With that riveting subject out of the way, he felt his creative juices leaking. So, he waited, hoping the words would magically appear on the email for him.
They didn’t…
“In the words of Linkin Park. I tried so hard and got so far. But in the end, it doesn’t even matter. I’ll just go into work on Monday. The idea of quitting sounded nice, but I honestly don’t even know what to write, or what I would do after I quit.” Alex lifted Bundle as he stood, before setting the creature back down on the chair. “You want pizza? Our usual order? I’ll go and pick it up. It’s cheaper.”
“Blah blah.”
“Yes, I know to tell them to make it spicy. For someone who doesn’t work, you make a lot of demands.”
“Blah.” Bundle crossed his arms, sulking.
“Just because they pay me to look after you doesn’t mean you pay me. I mean, I guess it kind of does, but it’s not the same. I’ll be back in thirty. Don’t practice any new combos while I’m gone. Ok?”
“Blah blah.” When Alex left, Bundle ogled the screen, getting a flood of inspiration. While the creature hadn’t used a keyboard before, it had watched Alex type and was certain it could mimic his behavior. Not wanting its friend to get embarrassed on Monday, Bundle typed out the best I quit letter he could think of. One full of crude remarks and comments about how much Alex hated his boss. After writing it, he waited for Alex to return.
The door swung open, and Alex walked in, carrying two large pizza boxes. “I’ve got something nice and spicy for you!” Alex went to toss the boxes onto the dining table, only to stop when he saw his laptop. “What’s that?”
“Blah!” Bundle excitedly pointed at the screen, while Alex read over the message, grinning the more he read.
“That’s so mean. I’ve never read anything so soul-crushing before. He’ll probably cry.” Alex, in a rush of emotion, picked up the fluffy creature, hugging it. “No one’s ever understood me the way you do. It’s like you pulled all my feelings out and threw them onto the page. You’re my best friend, Bundle.”
“Blah.” Bundle hugged him back, his furry face squished against the pizza boxes in Alex’s hands, suffocating in the scent of spicy chilli flakes and bacon. “Blah?”
“Yeah, we should eat.” Alex smiled, setting the creature down at the table. “Sorry about earlier. I had a rough day. It’s not your fault. I’ll have to get better at that game.”
“Blah blah.”
“You’ll teach me the combo? Thanks,” Alex said, taking the slice of pizza, ready to enjoy a night of gaming and laughs with his best friend.
Meanwhile, on Monday.
Kenny, Alex’s boss, strode into his office with all the confidence of a controlling middle-manager. He sat himself at his desk and enjoyed a smug feeling of superiority as he got to look out his window. Sure, he only had a view of the alley outside, which was nothing like the city views his superiors had. But he at least had a window, which was better than all the soulless cubicles the rest of his team got.
“Soon, the park will be yours to look at,” he told himself, logging into his computer, only to get a notification. “It’s hard being so important.” He expected an email about something urgent. Instead, he saw one from Alex, with the subject I quit.
“Quit? Didn’t I fire him?” He opened the email and read the text. The more he read, the further back in his seat he leaned, until he almost couldn’t see his computer screen. The edge of the table blocked eighty percent of his monitor, forcing him to scroll down to read the last sentence.
After reading it, he sat in almost meditative silence, going over the message in his head before slamming his fists on the table. “Is this some sort of joke? He wasted my precious time on this?!”
The message read as follows.
Blah blah blah blah blah blah Blah blah blah blah blah blah Blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah blah Blah blah Blah blah blah blah blah blah Blah Blah Blah
While Alex had gotten used to translating the bizarre ‘Blahs’ Bundle used to speak, no one else shared that same talent. Which was why Alex thought the email was such a devastating blow, even if he were the only human who could read it. Still, it got the message across, despite Alex already having been fired.
(If you enjoyed this feel free to check out my subreddit /r/Sadnesslaughs where I'll be posting more of my writing.)
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u/SourcePrevious3095 15h ago
Due to their small size, apparently tranquil nature, and low food needs, it was decided that each volunteer would house a dozen of the furry creatures. Each one was roughly the size of a field rabbit, weighing about 7 pounds each.
We didn't have a name for them, they still don't.
They were curious, always watching and exploring. Different volunteers reported Different things, but mine were the most different. I believe it is because of how I cared for them. I was retired, so I was able to give them attention all day.
I also had raised 5 brilliant children, one was the head of the World Health Organization. I'm sure she had a hand in my approval. She also visited on occasion to see how we were. They never acted the same when she was here. They just constantly watched.
Gradually, things changed. A specific one of the critters would watch me when I cooked food. A different ine would watch when I read books, often sitting in my lap. I read aloud to that one, it seemed to enjoy fantasy stories about magic.
A few of them watched together as I did laundry, washed dishes, mowed my lawn, or the other normal household chores. Always the same group of ten.
Things started getting strange after I had them for about three months. I came home after grocery shopping, one met me at the door, chirping loudly. When I walked into my kitchen, my refrigerator door was open. Everything was still cold, as if the door has just been opened. I put away the cold food and closed the door. When I turned around, my dry goods were missing but cabinet doors were open, and stocked.
A few days later, I found my computer on, web browser open, and 30 different tabs open to various Wikipedia pages.
Things were quiet for a month or more, then came my 68th birthday. The happiest and saddest day of my life.
I woke up, took care of everythingneeded to start the day, athem headed to the kitchen. It was unusually quiet as I called the critters for breakfast.
When I entered the kitchen, there was the best birthday surprise ever. A short stack of the fluffiest pancakes I have ever seen, freshly cooked, still steaming as the butter melted. On a smaller plate, 3 straps of perfectly cooked bacon, not too crunchy, but not soft either, and a small pile of fluffy scrambled eggs.
Then I saw the note leaned against my cup of coffee.
Thank you for teaching us of life, this planet we call home, and most importantly, how do communicate with you. We leave this gift of your favorite breakfast foods. We have left to join others of our kind, to teach them, learn what they learned, and fund a way to survive. We hope to see you again in the future.
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