Arcs of electricity crackled over the metal box. It wasn't entirely necessary, but John liked the theatrics. And if this final test was successful, he'd finally be able to show it off to a real audience. Then the whole world would see what he was capable of!
He took a deep breath as he flipped the switch to shut down the unit. One step at a time, he told himself. He reached over with thick rubber gloves and opened the top of the box, wisps of blue haze wafting into the air as he did so, and removed the smaller clear glass box inside. At first glance it appeared empty. He brought it closer to have a look at the creation inside. A tiny, winged insect hovered behind the glass.
A mosquito. It looked mostly normal, but a closer inspection revealed an electric blue stripe down its back. It was also noticeably faster and stronger, its proboscis able to pierce some clothing and its body nearly indestructible. But these were minor changes in serving its main purpose: copying mental patterns. The super-mosquito was merely a vehicle for John's true invention: a quantum nano-prion - a powerful subatomic machine. The first person bitten by this mosquito would have their entire mental pattern - thoughts, instincts, memories, their whole identity - imprinted into this machine. Then, every subsequent person bitten would be infected, and their entire mental pattern would gradually be overwritten by the original host's.
The quantum nature of his invention had another feature: as a person's mind changed, so would the reality around them - to make things less conspicuous. An infected person's body would remain the same, but clothes and possessions would change to match the person being copied. And the people around them would see it all as perfectly normal. The whole process would take less than 24 hours.
And that was how John was going to fix the world. Imagine all the wars that would end, the disagreements and problems that could be solved, if only everyone saw the world the way he did! And it would start at tomorrow's meeting with his investors. The people funding him were at their wits end - it had been years of work and he'd had nothing to show them. They were growing skeptical of his promise to deliver a revolutionary psychotherapy tool, and were threatening to pull the plug on the whole project. Well, tomorrow the revolution would begin! Once he had the money men thinking like him, he'd control the purse strings and be able to take this project to the next level!
All it would take is one tiny bite. He trembled slightly as he pulled off his thick rubber gloves. With cautious excitement, he flipped open the lid of the glass containment unit and stuck his hand inside. Now! Now was the time for the world to see his point of view! He felt a tingle as the mosquito landed on his finger, and braced for the itchy sting.
And nothing happened.
"Come on little one," he said, coaxing the mosquito by wagging the finger it was perched on. "I'm sure you're hungry after all that quantum entanglement!"
But still nothing.
"Come on, bite me." He said, a little firmer this time. But still nothing. It just sat there, occasionally fluttering its wings. Almost like it was waiting for something.
"Come on, you little pest! Bite me!" He shook his hand inside the box, and as he did the mosquito darted up and between the gap in the lid, freeing itself into the lab.
"Wait, no!!" He reached out, trying to swat at the tiny bug. But it easily darted away. Even a normal mosquito was nearly impossible to just pluck out of the air. But John tried, chasing it all over the lab. Knocking over beakers, test-tubes, and piles of notes. He knew if this thing got away it was all over. Not just for him but for--
"C'MERE!!" He leapt over the workbench in one last lunge at the insect, but it easily dodged out of his reach as he landed in a heap on the floor. Before he could get up, it was gone, flying through the tiny grate on an air vent in the ceiling.
"No. NOOO!!" John howled. His creation was gone, totally free to its own instincts. How long would it survive? Was it able to breed? There was no way to know where it would go next. It could be anywhere. But once it found its first meal, the whole world was going to change. All it would take is one tiny bite.
