A cloned Neanderthal confronts scientific exploitation, social rejection, and the extinction history of his ancestors.
Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases
The Impossible Experiment
Two biologists remotely clone a living Neanderthal and name him William. Their purpose is to study organic and intelligence differences between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.
Key Events
Remote Neanderthal Cloning — Two biologists remotely clone a living Neanderthal for scientific study.
Location: Remote cloning setting
William Receives His Name — The cloned Neanderthal is named William. Characters: WilliamLocation: Cloning setting
Evolutionary Study Begins — William becomes the subject of a study comparing Neanderthals and Homo sapiens. Characters: WilliamLocation: Laboratory setting
Organic Differences Examined — The biologists intend to study organic differences between the species. Characters: WilliamLocation: Laboratory setting
Intelligence Differences Examined — The study also focuses on intelligence differences between Neanderthals and humans. Characters: WilliamLocation: Laboratory setting
A Divided Household
The people who created William disagree over whether he should be raised as a normal person or treated as a laboratory subject. Their disagreement leads to divorce.
Key Events
Parental Disagreement Emerges — The people who created William disagree about how he should be raised. Characters: WilliamLocation: Family setting
Normal Life Argument — One position favors raising William as a normal person. Characters: WilliamLocation: Family setting
Laboratory Subject Argument — The opposing position treats William as a laboratory subject. Characters: WilliamLocation: Laboratory setting
The Parents Divorce — The disagreement contributes to the divorce of William's parents. Characters: WilliamLocation: Family setting
Adulthood Under Judgment
When William turns eighteen, he encounters harsh reality. Bullying and derision expose the social rejection surrounding his unusual identity.
Key Events
William Reaches Adulthood — The story advances until William turns eighteen. Characters: WilliamLocation: Everyday social setting
Harsh Reality Arrives — At eighteen, William begins facing harsh social reality. Characters: WilliamLocation: Everyday social setting
William Faces Bullying — Some people bully William because of his difference. Characters: WilliamLocation: Social setting
William Is Ridiculed — Others treat William with derision and reject him socially. Characters: WilliamLocation: Social setting
Friendship Against Fate
A female friend desperately tries to help William avoid the fate associated with his ancestors. William responds by saving her.
Key Events
A Friend Offers Help — A female friend desperately tries to help William avoid his inherited fate. Characters: WilliamLocation: Social setting
William Protects His Friend — William saves the female friend who has tried to help him. Characters: WilliamLocation: Unspecified setting
The Extinction Shadow
William's struggle is connected to the Neanderthal extinction forty thousand years ago. He seeks to avoid repeating the fate inflicted by the species that raised him.
Key Events
Ancestors Become Relevant — William's situation is connected to the fate of his Neanderthal ancestors. Characters: WilliamLocation: Unspecified setting
Forty Thousand Years Ago — The ancestors had been wiped out forty thousand years earlier. Characters: WilliamLocation: Historical context
Humanity Caused Extinction — The species that raised William had wiped out his ancestors. Characters: WilliamLocation: Historical context
William Resists Extinction — William struggles to avoid repeating the extinction fate of his ancestors. Characters: WilliamLocation: Unspecified setting
An Uncertain Future — William's survival represents an attempt to escape his species' historical fate. Characters: WilliamLocation: Unspecified setting
Story Breakdown
Scientific Origin — William begins as a remote cloning experiment designed to compare two species.
Remote Cloning — Two biologists remotely clone a living Neanderthal.
Comparative Study — The experiment examines organic and intelligence differences.
A Divided Household — The creators disagree about whether William deserves ordinary human treatment.
Normal Upbringing — One position supports raising William as a normal person.
Laboratory Treatment — The opposing position treats William as a laboratory subject.
Parental Separation — The disagreement over William's upbringing breaks apart his household.
Irreconcilable Views — The opposing approaches to William's life remain unresolved.
Divorce — The parents divorce because of their differences over William.
Adult Rejection — At eighteen, William encounters hostility from the surrounding society.
Harsh Reality — Adulthood exposes William to difficult social conditions.
Bullying And Derision — People bully William and treat him with contempt.
Friendship Rescue — A female friend tries to help William escape his inherited fate.
Desperate Support — The friend urgently attempts to help William.
William Saves Her — William saves the friend who has tried to protect him.
Extinction Legacy — William's personal struggle mirrors the destruction of the Neanderthals.
Ancestors Wiped Out — His ancestors were wiped out forty thousand years ago.
Escape The Fate — William strives to avoid repeating his ancestors' extinction.
Two cutting-edge scientists give 'birth' to a Neanderthal—the first to walk the earth for some 35,000 years—in order to attempt to answer these questions. Part 'normal' child, part science experiment, William’s 'parents' struggle with the best way to raise him. As William grows toward adulthood, he is educated in the human experiences of love and intimacy. But his primitive impulses begin to emerge the more he tries to conform to human expectations, leading to tragic consequences for him and his loved ones.
