SCORES OF STUDENTS IN UNIFORMS walked towards the direction of the university's cafeteria hall for their lunch recess. Reeves ambled with his buddy Joe among the hungry herd, flocking over after their Math class. The red-haired Joe was a taller Intersexual and was slightly hefty framed — making the pint-sized Reeves looking much smaller, as he moved beside him.

Reeves was looking feisty — today was Thursday — the day which he kept looking forward to...

"Come on man, let's go over there."

"Why? What's with you, and that place? Please let's eat here, at the cafeteria, dude."

It was Thursday — for Reeves, it is that same shitty fish and chips for lunch — a menu created by their in-house British nutritionist who happened to be the sister of a once-famous, but now dead TV male celebrity chef from the pre-Medusa era. She was hired to give the Wesleyan students a bit of palate variant, and an appreciation to food culture.

"No, we grab the food, as usual, Joe — and, we head to the wall."

"Reeves!"

Reeves was then interrupted abruptly by a woman's voice — calling his name from behind him. Both the boys turned to see the psychiatrist Winnie Sherlock pacing over...

"Now what?" Reeves mumbled inwards.

"Hey, what happened just now — you scored only 20% out of the 50 questions? You were the only one who flunked in the group — explain that now to me!"

Sherlock pretended that she was unwitting of Reeves' chicanery — of knowing about the one-way mirror — and, his ruse was in fact spotted by her own boss earlier...

Reeves shrugged, and he was tongue-tied a second — he subterfuge a suitable excuse...

"The test questions were tough, I guess, Miss Sherlock."

The woman found his excuses to be parochial...

"Cut the bullshit, smarty pants! The next lowest guy before you passed, and scored 55%, — and many others were 70% and above — but you, you got only 20% — now how is that possible?

"Are you trying to screw things up here!!?"

He had admonished himself to study hard in the past, to become part of the top ten per cent of the brightest students in the IIRC — it now seemed like he was a lab-rat, to their inordinate experimental system...

So Reeves was trying his best to be dropped off as a test subject, and he wanted to be among the below-average students like his buddy Joe here — but now, he was found out...

"No Miss Sherlock, like I said — this advanced test series is too tough for me — and I think I can't cope with it."

Winnie Sherlock pointed a finger close to Reeve's nose to further censure...

"You are lying again to me now!

"I want you to re-sit tomorrow — and redo the same test, all over again. Go hit the books, and this time you better stop fooling us — and, get those damn answers correct too!"

Sherlock warned, and walked away...

"Fuck! I hate doing these damn tests. I don't know why they keep picking on me to do it?"

Reeves fumed inwards, Joe replied back...

"Coz you are one of the good students, dude — now, how come you flunk this time?"

Reeves felt like punching Joe in the mouth because he was not the one, who had to do these additional tests in the IIRC advanced test series.

Another group of boisterous Intersexuals came from behind, laughing out loud. They were the loud-mouths from his class — Kiki and Hank were the ringleaders of these misfits. Reeves took a glance at them — he despised their annoying presence in gym class earlier...

"I am sick of this place. Come, Joe, let's go to the wall. I can't stand to be with these kinds of people here anymore..."

"What kind, bro? They are all the same Intersexuals, to me — are they not our kind?"

Joe teased back, but Reeves vexed and riposted...

"Wrong, they are the same kind as you, fat-ass — the stupid domesticated type!"

***

Reeves and Joe were in the line, to be served with their fish and chips lunch. The cafeteria was noisy with over two hundred boys chatting aloud. Their metal cutlery clanking on the ceramic plates, when they ate, it sounded like clashing swords at a battlefield.

"Come on, let's eat here, Reeves."

"No!"

The noise in the cafeteria was getting into his head — he needed to respite elsewhere — Joe sighed, kept finding an excuse. "The tartar sauce, I can't eat the fish without lots of it, okay?" Reeves grabbed a plastic bottle from above the service counter and passed it secretly below to Joe...

"Here, put it in your pocket."

Joe looked around nervously before he slipped the sauce bottle into his tight pants pocket while reminding further...

"So you are bringing the ketchup for the fries, right bro?"

Reeves ignored him, and ordered back again...

"Get lots of napkins — I will get the damn fish, and you grab the fucking fries."

The sound of high-heels was distinctively heard and was approaching near. It got louder, and all the Intersexuals boys looked up — to detect the facility director, Tina Martin walking into the door.

Over the counter, two Latina cooks too were hurrying each other in Spanish, to start preparing brewed coffee, and putting it on a clean tray for Miss Martin...

She only drank a latte for lunch.

The cafeteria was now dead silence — except for the IIRC director's footsteps. Everyone ate proper and was quiet.

"Your coffee, Miss Martin."

"Thanks, Rosa."

Tina Martin picked her tray with a cup of coffee and walked past those standing in line waiting, for their food to be served. She recognized Reeves from the test-room earlier and smiled at him when she went past him. Reeves gave her a surprised look.

Joe poked his back in fervour and whispered back...

"Dude, she smiled at you. Damn bro, is that love at first sight for the Cat-woman?"

Tina Martin sat at her usual table, facing the serving area of the cafeteria with a senior behavioural scientist, Ira Kirby beside...

"Did you see the preliminary proclivity-scores, Ira? We fared quite well, and in fact, better than some of the top girls' school."

"I think it is just a stroke of luck. This is just preliminary, and we need to run more tests to determine the accuracy of the scores," the older woman responded.

Martin looked up and noticed Reeves now walking away with the tray of food from the serving counter — with the bigger built Joe following him.

"But from the way, as I see it — we can soon reach our goals...

"With lots of past theories of the possibilities that the new-breed may all grow up with learning disabilities, especially, with Klienefeller's syndrome or Muller's ratchet — well, those days are over — we have passed that worrying stage to finally knowing that — these new-guys are really as intelligent as their female counterpart gender."

Tina Martin stated in positivity while stirring her cup of latte.

Kirby undermined her with a derisive joke...

"Don't be too sure of that, Miss Martin — genetically, they are still predominantly male, and maybe their stupid-genes will kick in soon."

This was now the golden age for women in general, since the post-Medusa — to those like Ira Kirby — it was best to keep their new-breed competitors in their place.

.

Tina Martin observed Reeves did not join the rest of the students at the long tables — he was now with Joe at the clearing area, where dirty trays were disposed of after their meal.

'They are certainly not stupid — and, these two fellers were up to something...'

Both Reeves and Joe started to pack their food into the layers of paper napkins before they looked around for any spying eyes. A minute later, Reeves then opened a side fire escape exit door nearby — they both facilely left the cafeteria unnoticed...

Tina Martin was distracted at that moment, from where her colleague's bias statement was coming from — she cogitated that Ira Kirby who was an advocate feminist of the neo-superior, sex dominance ideology — that had been the mantra to many women today — but, to Tina Martin, the work in IIRC should be endured and conducted truthfully with quantifiable results in their studies...

"I hardly see them as lesser in intelligence — and that is why it is of my best interest to study the new-breed species thoroughly. It is also my goal that the IIRC should spearhead these studies into the next level — because what will be ultimately fascinating, is whereby, when all these fellows..."

Martin drank, gazed up — and realized that both Reeves and Joe were not in the cafeteria — she cleared her irritated throat of the latte's froth and got back to complete her sentence...

"...they will soon come of age, and will then contribute their semen to the sperm banks. When the future women populations are inseminated — then, this is when our real paragon research ensues — where it will be our discovery, to determine whether the female children fathered by the Intersexuals are of even of higher intelligence than our current female population?"

The behavioural scientist raised her eyebrows now — agreeing to where the espoused vision, of the director of IIRC, was heading, into its next phase...

"That will be a remarkable breakthrough study — we can make a long-tailed career out of this."

Tina nodded in agreement and continued...

"Yes Ira, we will be the pioneers worldwide, and is why, what we are doing here now is very crucial, so that we can be the global leaders with these studies, as our inroad race towards the further epitome steps — which will be on to the next female evolution."

***

Reeves and Joe ran with their food wrapped in paper napkins. They passed through the old Stuyvesant Hall of the university wing — that section had been abandoned, since the Medusa endemic. The lecture rooms were vandalized with broken furniture and windows, after the virus outbreak many years ago — but, there was a security post on that floor that was looking out at the abandoned wing, to keep any future trespassers away...

Even though the wing was out of bound — yet, Reeves was the first orphan of the residing students, to explore the place out of his curiosity. He had since dragged and assimilated his buddy, Joe here for several Thursday afternoons — to have their fish and chips lunch at their secret place.

Joe, who was corpulent in his built, got left behind by the smaller, fast-moving and nimble Reeves. They soon came to an intersection hallway, with a rotating CCTV surveillance camera. They hid and waited for the camera to turn away before they moved out again. Joe was in haste and unwieldy in the dash, he dropped a few fries on the trail.

There were more than a dozen CCTV monitors active in the guardhouse, but the surveillance feeds were picayune to the four, female campus guards inside — they were absorbed into their bridge card game, during their shift duty

***

The fish and chips were on the paper napkin spread. Joe bitched, wiping his pants...

"Damn dude, the freaking Tartar sauce dripped inside my pants pocket — the shitty thing is gonna stink on me, in class later."

Reeves ignored him, while he bit on the crispy deep-fried Dory fish. They were sitting at the parapet of a balcony — facing the old, orange-brick wall with broken, barb-wires on top...

Outside the wall, according to Reeves was civilization — it was just a less bustling neighbourhood, with some, small mom and pop stores, with people going through their daily normal activities...

Reeves came here frequently to respite and watch the people over there — especially at the free-males out there, in the real world with families.

He then saw an Intersexual boy and his mother coming out from a store carrying grocery bags. Both of them were laughing to something the friendly butch-grocer had told them. Seeing them happy, somehow made Reeves heavyhearted.

Joe interrupted his moment of silence — and Reeves was irritated when Joe started trifling...

"Where is the ketchup for the fries? You brought it, right?"

Joe was always a revelled gourmand about ingesting — the fat boy lived to eat.

"No!" Reeves snapped back — Joe started to fuss...

"Come on, man — I told you that I can't eat fries without the ketchup."

Reeves glowered...

"Just shut the fuck up and eat the crap, Joe — just leave me, fucking alone, for a moment okay?"

Joe noticed that his buddy Reeves was looking more troubled than his usual discontent level — Joe sighed...

"What's bugging you, dude? Take it easy, man — Miss Sherlock said you can re-sit the test tomorrow."

"That is what I hate about it here — we are all just like a bunch of rhesus lab monkey-boys to them — always doing all their idiotic research!"

He pointed at the Intersexual with his mother over the wall walking to their car...

"That boy over there — hey, look at him, Joe — why can't we live our lives like those free-breeds out there!!?

"We can be doing things that matter more in life, rather than taking some stupid-damn tests like in here!!?"

Joe nodded and chuckled out.

"Okay-okay, I know where this conversation is heading into now — and boy, I have heard this a million times before...

"So, you still wanna jump over that freakin' wall — and run away, is that right?"

"Hell yeah, why not, Joe? Tell me — what is stopping us both? Is this really life over here for us — by being someone's test animals!!?"

Joe then reasoned. "Come on, we all know these tests are part of the design of our education system, for the IIRC program. Just be patient, man — we all will graduate out from here in a few years' time — and then, we will go out into the real world out there."

Reeves tossed away his half-eaten fish over the balcony in aggravation, and he stood up...

"I don't know if they will ever let us go like they had promised when the time comes — they may still hold us back in captivity — maybe for more, fucking further research!"

Joe laughed robustly at his buddy's choice of words...

"What captivity, man? Damn, Reeves — you make it sound like we are locked in cages."

"Yes, mental cage, Joe — and it is not fucking funny too if you have thought about things like these — that, they had owned us all since we were babies — so do you actually believe that they will just let us go from here, once we graduate — or whatever fuck, they have planned to do next with us!!?

"No man, they will not let us go Joe, and — and, you keep forgetting that we are all a one-time species, and we cannot breed our own kind, because of what shit the fucking virus did to us — and we also don't know how long we can live further, Joe — (and, according to that Oprah YouTube video) — maybe 40 years? 50 years, tops, okay — so tell me this — are you going to waste your time, for the rest of your live in here, doing shitty research tests for them!!?"

Joe was dumbfounded — but he allowed Reeves to ventilate a little — he saw Reeves turned away, and kicked the parapet in deterrent before he spoke aloud again...

"If that is the case, our lives are no better than that documentary, they showed in class a few weeks back — remember that farm-cows video, yeah?

"We are bred just like that livestock here — so that one day, when we are of no use to them, Joe — we will all be fucking going to some slaughterhouse!"

Joe now got into bigger laughter...

"Come on dude, nobody is gonna slaughter us, anyway what choice do we have, man — we are all just orphans here, bro — we just listen and we obey them, as long we are in here."

Reeves knew that Joe did not comprehend his analogy, he retorted at the obdurate Joe's insular for unable to grasp matters beyond the IIRC facility — and also, Joe was adamantly buying into their empty promises of future freedom, like the every one of his classmates...

"We do have a choice, Joe — and yes, the truth about our lives lies over there — beyond that wall!"

Reeves was pointing over at the old, orange, brick-wall filled with cracks and green moss, while he further articulated...

The redhead boy listened to him elucidate more thoughts...

"Maybe, there is someone out there who knows us, Joe — maybe if we get our hands on our records locked in their office, we can then trace back and find some clues — before we both escape out of here...

"Yeah, jumping that wall is the easiest part — but we are clueless now, we should first have a plan!"

"Now, that is your boner-hard plan this time, hah Reeves — we break into the admin office to get our records — is that it?"

The laughing Joe played along, while Reeve imparted more...

"Yeah man, we have to start somewhere, am I right or right? I believe when the Medusa Virus first broke out — there was a lot of confusion, and people may have got separated...

"So think about it, Joe — there is a possibility that you are not an orphan at all, as you now think you are — and maybe there is your mother, or an older sister and probably a twin of you out there — over this very same, goddamn wall."

This made Joe uneasy to the precarious idea — all he just wanted to do, was less of any kind of deep thinking but to have a heavy as possible lunch — probably, he would get to wolf Reeves' portion of the food, before they both resumed their classes later.

"These are just assumptions, Reeves, but what if, we are truly orphans — then how, we are totally fucked, you know — how are we going to survive out there, man?

"Hey! We have not stepped out of this Wesleyan grounds alone without the teachers taking us out, just like on our field trips — and hey, we are both not going out this time alone, to see some hippos in a zoo, bro — fuck no, I think this is a big risk you are talking here..."

Reeves came close to him, nostrils flared and upbraided...

"To continue staying in here is our big risk, you fat-fuck!

"Not doing anything and continue being some research monkeys for them is a bigger risk! All of us — all 278 of the new-breeds in here, would then rot and die here, in this IIRC prison forever!

"... and just talking, without us both doing anything about it — well, that is the ultimate risk!

"The truth about our lives is waiting out there, Joe! We have to take some fucking risk, to get out there — and we, just have to go for it!"

Reeves turned away again, and used both his hands to grab, his own hair at the back of his head in frustration — he then, calmed down from his bout of restive outrage...

He was now looking over the wall in sadness, where people were moving in freedom — while he felt imprisoned in here...

"You are my best buddy, please be my partner, and let's do this together — because it is a 2-man's job — and I can't do it alone..."

He turned back to Joe, with his firm hand reached out for a handshake — to infuse their precarious plan...

"Well Joe, are you with me?"

Joe looked nebulously at Reeve's stretched out a hand — and then at his forceful eyes next — he had not seen Reeves this impetus before — Joe's assumptions were that Reeves was not thinking straight, nor was speaking rationally — and seemed to be under severe duress, from all of the extra school exams that he was taking on.

So Joe had to put his indisposed foot down...

"No Reeves, I can't."

Reeves grabbed a fistful of the French fries and threw it at Joe's face in spite.

"So you are happy to get fat and die in here, Joe!!?"

The bigger boy tried pushing Reeves away, when his buddy next grabbed and yanked his uniform shirt, yelling with aggression...

"Look at how domesticated they have made you become, Joe!"

Joe countered back...

"Hey listen-you, if you hate it so much in here, then go! Just don't drag me into your problem!"

Joe started walking away...

"Yeah walk away, you fat cow — the next time, you will not fucking see me here, you hear me?"

Joe was also hurting — and he too kept on responding back some scathing remark — from afar...

"Go on, jump over the fucking wall, you moron!

"Go out there alone and learn that you are just an orphan like the rest of us here. Don't you ever fucking come back — just stay out there, in that fucking new, asshole-world of yours!"

"Yeah, I will — and fuck you, Joe!"

"Yeah, fuck you too, Reeves!"

Reeves struck the paper napkin with their lunch down, and he was next stomping on it, messy with the tartar sauce squishing out of the plastic bottle.