Audio book version of this story can be found here.

The Space Colony Ark drifted through space, orbiting Earth. Its purpose was to provide a place where the best and brightest of scientific minds could conduct experiments and make discoveries. Their work was to benefit all mankind on the planet they circled. Up here, they could do their work without interruption. The man who led everyone on board was Professor Gerald Robotnik. For years, everything seemed to go smooth.

But then tragedy struck. Gerald’s granddaughter was born but at the age of two years, she was diagnosed with a devastating disease known as NIDS. The acronym stood for Neuro-Immuno Deficiency Syndrome. It was a fatal disease that was extremely rare and had no cure. It affected the ability of the immune system to fight off illnesses. Rather than attacking any bacteria or viruses that entered the body, the immune system would turn on the muscles of the patient’s body. It left the patient weakened and susceptible to getting sick very frequently. The destructive disease cut short the lives of its patients. Most didn’t make it to adulthood. There was no cure. The rarity of the illness ensured that finding a cure was arduous.

At first, Gerald felt helpless. He loved his little granddaughter and she was so young. No child should lose their life. She was sent to the Space Colony Ark to live in Gerald’s custody. The space station would provide the most sterile environment she could have, extending her life and reducing the chances of her getting sick. It was unknown how much longer she had left.

Then Gerald realized that he is of the greatest scientific mind in the world and had an entire space station of crew and equipment. Surely he could be the one who could find the cure. There was nothing he was lacking.

Or was he?

Over and over, Gerald attempted to find something that would free his little granddaughter from the grasp of this deadly disease. But it was a dead end at each turn. In the meantime, Maria was growing and so was the illness. It was chipping away at her health and she became sick more often, requiring more medical attention. Each day that passed, Gerald became more desperate. He needed a cure before it was too late for her. It was a race between Gerald and NIDS. It felt like something was missing to make this work. But what could that ingredient be?

As another attempt failed, Gerald’s hands scrubbed his face. He was weary from constantly working and dividing himself between several projects. But his mind raged that he must continue for Maria’s sake. He turned his head to the door and through the window, he caught the sight of Maria skipping by. A small smile formed on his face, thinking of how Maria still found the strength to behave as a normal teen. Then the smile faded. He felt bad that he hadn’t been spending much time with her as he should. The Ark was filled with adults that were all too busy with their work. Anyone her age was a unicorn. Gerald was the only adult who had time for Maria and he’s chipped that away. Maria was growing sadder each time he told her that was he was too occupied to be able to spend time with her. It pained him to see that sadness.

Pacing back and forth in his lab, Gerald reviewed his notes attached to his clipboard and flipped through the pages. Behind him was a large tube filled with blue tinted fluid. Inside, floating in the liquid, was an unconscious young adult, or at least appeared to be so. There was a bureau to one side of the room with a rolling chair behind it. The other side of the room had several large computers and monitors. The screens displayed various stats but all of the signs were weak.

Gerald sighed and slapped the clipboard on top of his bureau before sitting in the chair. He removed his glasses and grasped his head. Setting his elbows on the desk, the aging man closed his eyes tight, “All these years… Still nothing… I just don’t understand…”

Was he going to lose his beloved granddaughter? It looked like he was going to lose this attempt, too. He was running out of time. He needed answers. “What am I going to do?” Gerald asked himself.

“Professor Gerald…” a deep, raspy voice spoke.

Gerald shot to his feet and looked around the room. He should have been the only person in here but there was someone else? “Who was that? Who’s there?!”

The voice didn’t sound familiar at all. He looked at the boy floating in the tube but dismissed the idea. There was no way the voice came from his experiment.

Then a large form emerged from a shadowy corner. No legs but it could float. Two, large horns protruded from its head in opposite directions. It didn’t look friendly in the least. Ugh, three eyes? Where did this thing come from? It certainly wasn’t any of the projects the Ark created. How did it get on the Ark without being detected? Extending a large, clawed hand, this beast spoke with that raspy tone, “Professor… I’ve been watching you. I’m impressed by your work.”

Gerald was leery of this alien beast. Something didn’t feel right. Alarms were going off in his head. Should he alert security? Trusting this thing would be a bad idea and yet he couldn’t contain his curiosity. “Who are you? How did you board the space colony?”

“How I arrived is not important,“ the three eyed beast waved his hand to dismiss the subject, “I am Black Doom.”

That wasn’t an ominous name at all…

“I come from the race known as the Black Arms. Our Black Comet was making its passage by your planet as it does every fifty years. I’ve been observing you and I know what is missing to make your project a success.”

Gerald’s mouth fell open. Could it be? Was the answer he needed throwing itself into his lap?

Outside the room, a boy younger than Maria with two different coloured eyes peeked through the window of the door. He was curious as to what the old professor was up to. Instead of making a fun discovery, he found a monster talking to the old professor. A monster like this was aboard the Ark?!

“Just think,” Black Doom floated to the tube with the boy inside and patted the glass, “This project coming to life, an immortal, ultimate life, that would save your granddaughter. All you need left is my blood.”

The multi-colour eyed boy’s mouth fell open and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. This couldn’t be! The professor was working with this monster? That would mean that this experiment was one not to be trusted. If they use the alien’s blood, the experiment would become evil. He stepped away from the door, staring at it. He needed to get out of there. Quickly he turned around and ran off.

“What do you say, professor?” the alien asked.

As desperate as Gerald was, he wasn’t a stupid man, “What’s the catch?”

Black Doom chuckled before replying, “I want you to gather the seven Chaos Emeralds for me.”

“The Chaos Emeralds? What would you need those for?”

Black Doom chuckled again, “Nothing you need to worry about.”

Gerald didn’t like that answer, “I don’t know about this…”

Black Doom held out his palm, “Do you want to save your granddaughter or not? This is the only way. This offer won’t come around again for fifty years. And she has very little time…”

Gerald would be long dead before then. Was this really the only way? He would be helping this monster with whatever nefarious plans it has if he accepted. But Maria would be cured. Gerald plucked the framed photo of his granddaughter from his desk, looking at it. The girl was so young and barely begun to live. She didn’t deserve this disease. If what Black Doom offered was true, Maria would be saved.

“…I accept,” Gerald finally answered. Whatever it would take to save Maria. “Excellent,” Black Doom chuckled, “Excellent… You won’t regret it…”

In the back of Gerald’s mind, however, the danger of the situation remained. Alien army… Gerald had a nagging feeling that grave danger was afoot. He would have to add a few extra things to this project that he hadn’t previously thought of doing. That made four purposes for the project. Hopefully, it could handle them all.

The professor turned to the boy in his capsule and frowned. So many experiments have failed up to this point and this one was currently struggling just to remain alive. The last experiment survived but was a complete disaster. What will happen if I add alien technology into the mix?

Almost as if to read the professor’s mind, the large alien regarded the boy with a sense of stoicism, “What I am about to give you, will be precisely what you need to get the job done. You will find your specimen to be much stronger.”

"I can't say I know what it is you're giving me... But I have concerns. What will my specimen truly become?"

“There is plenty of your own kind’s DNA there. Think of it as upgrading your kind.”

“But will this thing allow me to cure my granddaughter?”

Black Doom cupped his hands together behind his back and turned to the professor. There were no smiles on his face but then again, Gerald wasn’t sure if this being was capable of it. Most animals were limited on their facial expressions compared to humans so it was possible it was the same for at least some alien species. The beast went on to answer the professor’s question, “Not only could you cure your granddaughter, but you could cure any illness you wish.”

Imagine… Using this project to help untold amounts of people. People wouldn’t have to suffer from disease and the spreading of such things would drop drastically. It would save so many lives.

There were no proof of the claims the alien was making. But what the alien said had to be true. If he expected Gerald to uphold his end of the bargain, then what he was providing had to do as promised.

It was a small chance, but Gerald was willing to take it. Time was running out. Even if there were consequences for accepting the alien’s help, it would be worth it. “Whatever it takes to save her…”

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