Ananeosi
This mid-level medical corporation provides fertility assistance, primarily in the field of in vitro fertilization and embryonic implantation procedures. Ananeosi also does cutting-edge research into genetic engineering (as much as any research can be said to be ‘cutting edge’ on Homeline, these days). In terms of operations, the company is not particularly unusual or controversial, for its type.
However, in terms of raw materials, Ananeosi is very avant-garde indeed. The company specializes in acquiring out-time genetic material for its customers. It’s not exactly ‘designer babies:’ Ananeosi is at the same TL 8/9 safetech paradigm as the rest of Homeline. But they can and do accommodate special requests, to the best of their ability.
The simplest requests involve getting a famous father (or, much more rarely, mother) for your child. It’s frankly not difficult to go to an alternate or historical echo and get sperm samples from any number of historical figures (although the exact techniques for doing so are discreetly never spelled out in the brochures), and the methods of getting biological material back to Homeline are by now solved problems. Harvesting eggs is much more difficult to do ethically (not to mention, unobtrusively), to the point where Ananeosi officially doesn’t even offer that as a service. On the other hand: I-SWAT routinely recruits historical and otherwise famous individuals from other timelines, and Ananeosi will offer top dollar for their genetic material. The contracts are sometimes legally dubious, even under Homeline’s fairly relaxed rules these days, but they still generally get honored.
A more outre type of request involves getting unusual genes. There are several worlds accessible to Ananeosi that have magic, superpowers, and/or psionics; and while Homeline has yet to prove that any of those sets of abilities are genetically inheritable there are any number of clients who are willing to take the chance. It can be surprisingly difficult to get that material, though. Worlds with special abilities and a basic understanding of genetics tend to be ones where metahumans and psions are at least wary of (or possibly mercenary about) people trying to get a genetic sample. Mages just don’t like letting people have anything that personal, for fear of hostile sympathetic magic. Still, there’s usually a way to get the right kind of (presumed) genes.
Ananeosi does generally well for itself, and is a difficult corporation to target. The company has spent the last two decades fulfilling requests of people who can afford Ananeosi’s high fees, and the company’s success rate is high enough that there are any number of rich, often powerful, and satisfied customers out there to call upon. Ananeosi also has one fairly dramatic if somewhat understated advantage: Infinity itself. The company’s been trying to work out the genetic profile of world-jumpers (which is one esoteric ability that does work reliably on Homeline), and while they’re not as far along as Reich-5 is Ananeosi has been able to produce drugs that seem to heighten and stabilize world-jumping abilities. It’s not by very much, but it’s enough to keep Infinity interested. And very, very protective.
Note: the above describes a company that is acting in a somewhat greyish manner while avoiding anything truly horrid. This is deliberate: after all, there are any number of ways to make Ananeosi frightening and obscene. It seemed imprudent to just hastily pick and choose.
This material is not official and is not endorsed by Steve Jackson Games. GURPS is a registered trademark of Steve Jackson Games. All rights are reserved by SJ Games. This material is used here in accordance with the SJ Games online policy.