Project Hybrid

Project Hybrid, as its rather unimaginative name suggests, involves the hybridization of human DNA with animal DNA.

However this was expanded upon when it was brought under the goals of Project Sahelanthropus.

Project Hybrid was led by Doctor Rachel Fowler and Doctor E. Teller under the supervision of Director General Grace Lionheart.

History
NIA Section 7 implemented Project Hybrid for a number of goals.

The main goal of Project Hybrid was to design and produce either a genetically augmented and intelligent animal fighting unit or a genetically augmented human. The former using an animal as the base for the weapon and the latter using a human.

Due to its highly illegal and unethical nature all research was done under the close supervision of NIA Section 28.

Neither goal was achieved and the project was ultimately shut down in the late 4060's. However the program was restarted with a different goal in 4110 under Project Sahelanthropus.

New Goals
The project was restarted by Director General Grace Lionheart who saw its potential to create a different type of Synthetic Soul using a hybrid.

The details of its use and what the exact goals are, are one of the NIA's closely held secrets. With not even Fleet Admiral Mountbatten knowing of its existence.

The Mech Project
When the Mech Project began Project Hybrid was quickly restarted and given a wider goal. It not included the hybridization of Human and Animal DNA to create new brains for Type 3 Synthetic Souls.

Experiments
Project Hybrid was a success in creating Human-Animal hybrids, however these were only for the process of making Synthetic Souls using the Hybrid Brains. Their original goal of making Super Soldiers was a secondary goal at this stage and was ultimately cancelled when the primary goal was proven a success.

An unknown number of female human subjects were recruited from an unknown set of parameters. These "Mothers" were taken to NIA Blacksite 13 and given a number of genetic alterations to better suit their bodies for the implantation of the hybrid embryos. These Embryos had been designed specifically for each of the individual pilots of the Mech Project.

These "Mothers" were surgically connected to a number of life support, feeding, diagnostic and monitoring equipment that essentially made the "Mothers" living incubators. Once connected, the "Mothers" were implanted with an embryo that was then allowed to gestate and grow for several months to maturity. Depending on the exact animals used to make these embryos, the gestation period could last anywhere from a few weeks to several months. However most if not all of the mature hybrids violently tore their way out of gestation either through the stomach of vaginally.

Almost imminently after their birth, the hybrids were sedated and their brains extracted, memories wipped, scanned and then digitally cloned. The digital clones were then conditioned and "trained" to fully integrate with their Pilots.