Mark... was desperate.

He... he had lost his scholarship. He thought that he might've been able to pull his grades out of the toilet when the semester ended, but... he didn't.

And worse, having a university job, when the school year had ended, his job had ended too.

He needed money. Just to even keep paying for his housing, let alone paying for another semester of school.

His family was no help - the greatest thing about coming to school was getting away from them. They didn't care about him. He didn't care about them. He was on his own.

Mark walked across the parking lot with a flyer in his hand. He'd found it in a building on campus. It had led him here, to Thompson Genetic Research and Solutions.

He mentally prayed that he'd be able to get into this. He was, basically, going to offer himself up as a test subject. The flyer advertised that many small scale tests were needed that were of minimal risk.

Mark wasn't interested in those. Other people would be doing that work. He hoped, maybe, that his desperation, and willingness to do nearly anything would give him a better chance of being chosen.

He walked up to the door, and it opened automatically. It was strange walking into the very pristine building - well, pristine compared to his dorm. It was a clean, climate controlled environment, with a very modern, techy look.

Mark felt nervousness come upon him. He hated situations like this, where he needed to be an adult. He walked slowly up to the reception desk, where a guy in his thirties was looking between something on his phone and on the PC in front of him.

"Um," Mark said timidly.

The receptionist looked up from what he was doing. "Yes sir?"

"Um," Mark said again, "uh, I'm Mark Pierce... and I... found this flyer..."

"Ah," the receptionist said, "sit, and someone will be with you shortly."

The painful social interaction was over, and Mark walked over to the waiting area, and he sat down.

On the table to his side, Mark saw a label taped on it with a reader that would give access to some reading material. He suspected that his ancient fold phone probably was not compatible.

He sighed, and took at his phone, opening it and pulling up a game while he waited.

A few puzzles later, he heard footsteps coming down the hallway that led into the front area.

Mark folded his phone and slid it into his pocket, standing up.

"Mark?" the woman in semi-casual wear asked.

He nodded.

"So Mark Pierce, have you ever participated in any human trial work such as this?"

He shook his head. "No. I've... I've donated plasma before."

The woman smiled for a moment in response. "This will be a little bit more involved. I'm going to get a tablet with some forms on it for you. The first one will be for us to determine what tests you are comfortable with taking. After that, the tablet will automatically lead you through required information, including your medical information."

"Alright," Mark said.

"I can't guarantee though," the woman said, "that you will be chosen for testing, as we do not always have opportunities available, particularly at more minimal levels."

"I will do anything you want," Mark quickly said.

The woman met his gaze with wide eyes. "Well. That is... unexpected."

"I..."

Mark debated what he should say. But he wasn't in a position to bargain. He was in begging territory.

"I need money," Mark said. "I lost my college scholarship, and..."

"We'll see what we can do," the woman said, "just fill out the forms. Do you prefer using a stylus or a keyboard?"

"Stylus," Mark answered.

"I'm Sharon by the way," the woman said. "I'll go get that for you."

After playing his game for a few more minutes, Sharon returned. She held a very barebones looking tablet. He saw a security device attached to it.

Mark was not yet in the kind of desperation to consider theft, but even if he was, that security device was probably impossible to remove without tools. It probably wasn't worth much anyway.

"If you have any questions," Sharon said, "tap the little speech bubble icon, and I'll either come here or I'll send you a message."

Mark nodded as Sharon typed a password into the tablet, then handed it to him with a stylus.

She left as he began. Mark waited impatiently as the tablet said some bland introductory stuff. Finally it got to asking him questions. He resisted the urge to just answer that he was okay with everything they asked, but he took the time to actually read the questions.

And he was glad he did, because they threw in the stupid wrench he knew from school, where they'd change the wording so that the answer would be "no" rather than "yes."

It started out with questions about some basic tests on physical condition. One asked if he was willing to donate blood or skin samples.

Then it asked if he was willing to test a pain medication. Then he arrived at questions about prior conditions.

He got one asking if he'd be willing to test a medication to cure his walnut allergy. That was unexpected. He knew that genetic engineering was advanced, but he didn't think that it was capable of that.

The questions continued, and he felt a little bit unnerved when he arrived at the last one.

Thompson Genetic Research and Solutions conducts advanced tests that involve major modification to the human body. These tests are done with great caution, but there is a chance for permanent change to be done with the body.

Because of the blind parameters of these tests, sometimes volunteers will be unable to be informed of the exact nature of these tests until they are done. If you are chosen for one of these, you would be required to sign a non disclosure agreement, stating that you would not divulge information not approved by Thompson Genetic Research and Solutions.

You would also be required to sign a liability agreement with Thompson Genetic Research and Solutions, that you would not take legal action against the institution or any of its employees. In the event that a test conducted has results deemed as harmful to the subject, compensation will be made to the affected individual. If the subject is likewise displeased with the aftermath of a successful test, they will be compensated accordingly.

Would you be willing to proceed with such a test?

Mark wrote his signature, and answered yes.