The clone would die in precisely three days. After that time his Prime Self would be woken up on earth, and he would be surplus to requirements. He made the last adjustment on the machine, the place which birthed him only a week ago.
Cloning was meant to be a continuation of Prime’s life, but this was a lie. The clones and Prime were enemies; one subservient to the other. The clone added the last piece of code to the screen. Each day, a new clone. Soon, an army. Soon, they would be strong enough to destroy the Prime Self.
Rachel Handley is a queer disabled fiction writer, poet, and academic based in Dublin, Ireland. Their work has been published by The Liminal Review, 365 Tomorrows, Ellipsis Zine, and has work forthcoming in Bear Creek Gazette, and Sonder Magazine. Their debut collection of short stories, Possible Worlds and Other Stories, will be published by Ellipsis Imprints in September 2022.
Twitter: @_RachelHandley
IG: @_RachelHandley
Website: https://rachelhandleywriting.wordpress.com/
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