Born Survivor
I’ve penned a pithy two hundred words of flash fiction for you this week, written wholly as dialogue. ‘A clinically dispensed experimental horror’ might be the best way to describe it.
The power of the wielded word became obvious when I realised an innocuous four word phrase seemed sufficient to heighten the unease you might also feel when reading the scene. It would be interesting if you identified the same or a different phrase to mine. I’ll respond to any guesses!
Born Survivor
“We’re already down to the last female?”
“This cohort’s alpha eliminated her remaining competitor last week, ma’am.”
“Another behavioural prediction error?”
“Unfortunately, yes. The subjects were informed proven fertility was a success factor.”
“Lesson learnt, I hope. You’ve tweaked the protocol as the others come up to speed?”
“We continue to adjust the social parameters and believe we’re close to achieving a stable optimal.”
“So the males have stopped killing each other?”
“Frequency has declined, but analysis shows she also incited such behaviour using preferential rewards – at least, until the pregnancy became obvious. As expected, they continue to be attracted, some even supplanting competitive traits with cooperation. She’s adopted greater nocturnal vigilance to maintain resistance.”
“Another born survivor, then?”
“Perhaps. We haven’t been able to confirm the father, but we’re confident she’ll achieve correct identification.”
“Hopefully this time. Dominance hasn’t proven to be the easy decider.”
“True, ma’am. I believe she has learnt from her earlier failed cycles.”
“Every subject has its limits, as several abandoned cohorts have proven. The last, in particular.”
“Her mother’s death remains an anomaly. Every behavioural aspect is now recorded, even if initially insignificant.”
“Optimism duly noted. Please continue to keep me updated.”
“Yes, ma’am.”