Viral pushed the pretzel a few inches further along the white linen, draped over the dining table. Calculating the ratios of derivatives had calmed his mind long before he learned the science of Isaac Newton's monads, or Liebnez's elegant calculus. Paying close attention to the rate of release of both the salt and the pretzel's breading, he lost himself in the shrinking circle of the things he could control.

"It's unethi -- F that -- it's criminal!". The pretzel jumped when Plank slammed his fist on to the table.

Viral and his half of the Delaware Project had convened in the honeymoon suite cum laboratory. Smooshy called the meeting after hypothesizing that Agent Treyna and Officer Avril had intentionally infected Emir, a member of the faction comprising the Project's other half, with the Coronavirus.

Aleph whispered to Farooq, who translated. "It doesn't make any sense, though," Aleph said through Farooq. "Why would Monica and Avril jeopardize the constitution of the group they spent time, effort, and money to assemble?"

Alan jumped at the opportunity to back Smooshy. "Because we are the experiment," he said.

Aleph threw her hands toward Alan, dismissing him. Farooq gratuitously translated, "Pshhh."

Ever the prudent diplomat, Gyn waded into the discussion. "Aleph makes a fair point," Gyn said, "What reason would Treyna and Cliff have to be so duplicitous?"

While the members of the group looked to each other for the definition of the word "duplicitous," Viral winced at the sound of Gyn referring to Officer Avril by his good name.

After Dr. Hackman shared the etymology and meaning of Gyn's use of duplicitous, Smooshy pushed her elbows further across the table. She looked to Viral like she had just gone all-in on a World Series of Poker match on ESPN 8.

"It's consistent with her models of efficiency and resilience," Smooshy said.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Viral saw Farooq tapping his chin, presumably impressed by Ada's embrace of Torino Counterfactualism.

"Treyna's too smart to build a research pipeline without redundancy. She's got two groups following different threads to find a solution to the same problem. Why shouldn't we assume there is a third group studying us the way we are studying the virus?"

"Because it's speculation?" Plank said.

"And all this we are doing with refurbished laboratory gear isn't?" Smooshy challenged.

"We are searching for evidence to prove a null hypothesis," Plank challenged.

"Which is what exactly?" Alan asked.

Plank stumbled; Viral jumped in. He said, "To disprove that coronavirus can't be stopped by our bodies."

Smooshy snapped her fingers, loud. Dr. Hackman covered his ears. "Exactly," she said, "And what better control group than all of us, sequestered, waiting to be ravaged?"

Viral saw both Alan and Plank lick their lips like lizards.

"But we are innoculated," Farooq said, pulling up the sleeve of his black, Merino wool hoodie.

Viral heard the growing hiss of what sounded like a tea kettle. After a couple seconds he realized it was Dr. Hackman's sinuses revving up for a rebuttal.

"Aaaaaaaaaactually," Dr. Hackman began, "You all weren't so much innoculated as you were juiced."

"Like a grape?" Farooq asked.

"Like a Barry," Hackman said.

"What's the difference?" asked Gyn.

"One's a baseball player," said Hackman.

"Ugh, Americans and sports," Farooq lamented.

"He means Bonds," said Plank.

"Bonds with whom?" asked Gyn.

"Barry Bonds," said Smooshy, exasperated. "Dr. Diddler means we got juiced like the baseball player Barry Bonds, who used steroids."

"Allegedly," Plank added.

"So we're not inoculated?" Farooq said.

Dr. Hackman nodded, cleared his throat. He seemed suspiciously insecure for a white man, Viral thought. "The booster shots, Monica, er -- Agent Treyna -- gave you two days ago were samples of convalescent plasma," he said. "The NIH flew them in from Italy where they were taken from frontline nurses who had recovered from the virus. The hope is that the Covid antibodies from the nurses will help our immune systems weather any initial infection by the virus."

Aleph spoke into Farooq's ear. "Obviously the plasma didn't work," Farooq translated, "Because Emir is sick."

Viral heard the tea kettle again. "Weeeeeeeeeeell," Dr. Hackman revved, "Not all members of the recruiting class were given boosters with the antibodies."

"I knew it," said Smooshy, crossing her arms across her chest.

Gyn said she didn't follow. Smooshy went on to explain.

"It's chaos management 101," she said, "Set initial conditions, introduce a random variable, and see what shakes out. Best case scenario, Treyna and the alphabets backing her get an idea for a vaccine from our minds and a prototype for a vaccine from the collective intelligence of all our immune systems ingesting the virus, altering it, and passing it on again."

"Worst case?" Gyn asked.

Silence befell the group. Viral noticed he'd pushed the lone pretzel almost to the center of the table. Its position drew all eyes like the fire on Olympus, like the idol at the base of Horeb. In the absence of certainty, Viral had expected faith to blossom; but God's word remained wrapped inside a protein, locked behind a password in a language nobody spoke. At that moment, somewhere in America, a 23rd person died from complications of a virus the intractability and existence of which many, as in their God, refused to believe.