PATIENT ZERO -The lone survivor
"An extraterrestrial mutagen. Like a CRISPR sequence, but... planetary."
"Exactly," Malik nodded at her, impressed. "The dust tried to rewrite our genome. It tried to push us to the next stage of evolution. But human DNA is stubborn. It is protected by millions of years of immune defense."
He lowered his hand, the gravity well dissipating.
"For most people, the body fought back. The immune system identified the cosmic code as a virus and purged it. They got sick for a few days—a flu, a fever—and then they went back to normal. They rejected the gift. They remained human. We call them The Superless."