Chameleon

"The ultimate destiny of man is to be free of the constraints created by the need to work for survival. Once survival ceases to be the primary concern of the mind, great works of science may be achieved, and mankind may move into a new era of prosperity and technology."

-James B. Tarre, Founder and President, BioGen Discovery Labs 1994.

Of such dreams was BioGen Discovery Labs founded by James Tarre in 1988. During the first decade of growth, the company developed many drugs and other products that advanced science and prolonged life. This was not, however, the purpose for which the company was founded, but a method for generating the revenues required for the company's primary goal of genetic research. In 2009 the prime objective of the company was realized. In early June, the genetic labs of BioGen Discovery Labs created their first life form that could hold an imprinted set of instructions and do the repetitive set of tasks it was created to do.

This discovery led to massive increases in investments from major manufacturing corporations as well as huge grants from many of the world’s industrialized governments.

Utilizing near limitless financial resources, BioGen worked diligently during the next three decades to perfect the science of task specific life creation.

By the year 2039 BioGen developed its technology to the point of generating specialized life forms. These life forms could be made to order for many tasks. They were adapted specifically for the task required, without independent thought, without morality, without personal desires or needs. Their consumers referred to these biological robots as Sims.

While many in the world benefited from such discoveries, and many humans were spared having to risk their lives in dangerous jobs such as mining and heavy industrial manufacturing, there was a byproduct of their development that the public was not aware of. During the decades of experimentation that led to the final creation of marketable Sims, many mistakes were made and many failures created. Some simply died, and others went insane. The vast majority, however, simply did not pass quality control or ceased to be needed. Function was easier to achieve than form in the early years, and yet, despite the lack of many characteristics of humanity, most of these creatures had some similarities in form to mankind. It was these similarities that brought about the World Court ruling of 2040 denying BioGen the right to destroy those life forms that did not pass quality criteria. The court had ruled that the Sims, while not self aware, were entitled to the same protective laws as other non-farm animals. In addition to forbidding their destruction, the court imposed upon BioGen the requirement that they take care of their failed specimens since they were uniquely qualified to do so and responsible for their creation.

With no other options, the company used what it referred to as its back lot, an enormous abandoned industrial city complex, as a holding pen in which they could keep their failed experiments out of the public eye while complying with the law. It was expected that these experiments would die off without handlers to take care of them. Living independently from a handler went beyond all but a few of the most complex imprintings BioGen had done. Despite this, and to the surprise of their creators, many Sims survived. Most simply adapted through the core survival instincts present in the basic genetic material from which they were created.