As soon as everyone was settled, the lights dimmed and the first slide—bright colors, high definition—appeared on screen. It depicted a series of pink, rod-shaped bacteria, housed within a pink culture medium.

“What you are seeing here,” Scupman said, “is a Gram negative motile bacterium called Burkholderia pseudomallei. This impressive little creature is the root cause of the infectious disease melioidosis. Without proper treatment, mortality rate for infected organisms exceeds ninety percent. Vomiting, high fever, cough, and profound chest pain combine to deliver a mercilessly slow and agonizing death. This bacterium, endemic in parts of Asia, Australia, and Africa, is currently classified as a category B biological weapon agent. It is sturdy, easily obtained, easily cultured, and stable enough to be weaponized. Impressive, yes?”

Scupman flashed through a series of slides depicting different germs while speaking of the miraculous properties of each of them as if they were his brilliant, accomplished children. The more he rhapsodized, the more uneasy Lou became. It was one thing for Scupman to love his work, but another altogether to idolize the very beasties he was trying to defeat.

“Humans possess a vast array of defense systems to guard against such foreign intruders,” the entomologist went on, “and yet, despite all our impressive advances in science and medicine, we still have not unlocked the secret to the body’s abilities to defend itself. The step from genetic response to antibacterial effect remains as mysterious to us now as the origins of life itself. You may be impressed with our body’s capabilities, but I am here to tell you that frightening as it may seem, there are very few battles that bacteria are not equipped to win.

“How can an organism like B. pseudomallei remain hidden inside the human body for years, undetected by the immune system, as though a prowler has taken up residency within a burgled home, and then suddenly and without warning, become active and spread throughout the body until the victim’s life-giving blood turns to poison? This”—Scupman held up a single finger—“is but one of the questions our researchers are working to answer. For the very fate of our planet, our ultimate survival, depends on gaining access to this knowledge—of separating out the bacteria essential to our well-being from those bent by their genetics on destroying us. We are at war each and every day against an armada of microscopic enemies—enemies without consciences, whose only purpose is to multiply and metabolize; enemies genetically determined to achieve complete and total victory, even at the expense of the life of their hosts.”

In the dimly lit room, Lou could almost see Scupman perspiring from his own enthusiasm. A weighty silence ensued, nobody sure of how to respond to the man’s rant. It was Brenda who eventually broke the tension.

“Dr. Scupman, is there a genetic component that could explain why the bacteria remain dormant in some people?”