To New Beginnings [Oscar Levine]

[Oscar Levine]

“I know… lovely, isn’t it? But, as far as I’m aware, she has been receiving lower doses now and then since we sold her. The same bodily guarantee can’t be promised on other products after some years, but that’s easy to correct if necessary~”

This body, or rather his body, had once been absolutely perfect, when Tobias still lived in it. Now, the right hand was severely damaged by deep cuts from glass, and the once fair skin had tanned. SETH had remarkable probabilities indeed, with this one setback; once you took it, you could never return to what was before. Modifying his body – while he lived in it - with the substance had never been a manner of discussion.

[Victor Adler]

Adler remembered. It had been an issue with SETH from the very beginning; it was the ultimate means to achieve beauty, but it also completely reset everything the mind had memorized over the years, leaving the user of it completely helpless. As far as he knew – and as far as Oscar informed him – there had been no development in that field at all for the last twenty or so years. Which made it even stranger, come to think of it, that he gave his son some doses… Small, granted, but still large enough to prevent him from free thinking. Something… wasn’t right there. But it wasn’t Adler’s concern. He shrugged, not caring, and focused on the matter at hand instead.

“I’ll consider it”, he promised, returning to the earlier matter they had discussed. Discussing Emerich – and Jenny, in the long run – without him being present didn’t feel right. “Perhaps your business can offer me something…”

[Oscar Levine]

"You can just come by my office at any time when you've decided" repeated Oscar, still smiling, and still with that certain glow of enthusiasm in his eyes. "We can at least promise you something that doesn't make you look bad in front of others."

Oscar knew about Adler's sense of pride; it was the very structure of his leading scientist, the bonemarrow, or the cerebrospinal fluid. How comments about his work, occupation, or the company he kept often was more effective - IF pushing the right buttons - than hitting him with a stick if you wanted something through.