Videodrome: Days of O'Blivion by Lee McGeorge Page A

it’s serious.”
    “What do you mean,
serious?”
    “I don’t know, but
they’re sending a chopper to take us to Home Base for a briefing.
The helicopter will pick us up from your lab in about two hours.
I’ll come over and meet you there. One other thing. Consec Security
are coming to the lab. They’re going to lock the place down and
want all of your research notes and equipment. They’re going to
move everything down to Pittsburgh so they have everything under
one roof. They say they can control security better there.”
    “Why do they need to
control security?” Brian asked. “And what is this health risk.
We’re in the middle of something here, Barry. We can’t just drop
everything and...”
    “...this is from Consec
Leader himself,” Barry interrupted. “In two hours we’ll be brought
in and given a full explanation.”
    The call ended.
    A health risk?
    Brian looked around the
workshop. The thing that caught his eye first was the hacked signal
generator that produced the Viper-Sig.
    They wanted to take
everything to Pittsburgh?
    His gut didn’t trust
this. Untested partners suddenly claiming a health hazard. Locking
up everything and shipping it out… No… You have to earn trust and
so far his relationship with Consec had yet to attain that level.
He packed the Viper-Sig generator into a box and pushed it through
the building on a porter’s trolley.
    “Hey, I just got a call
from Barry Convex,” Peter said as he passed him. “He told me to
pack everything in boxes and that a removal crew are taking the
whole lab to Pittsburgh.”
    Brian didn’t stop to
talk. “Yeah, I heard. I’ve got to run an errand first.”
    He dumped the Viper-Sig
generator in the trunk of his car.
     
    ----- X -----
     
    The Homeless Mission
was on Bathurst and Adelaide, a building just as grimy and
dilapidated as the street dwellers who relied on it. Each day at
six, an evening meal was served of watery soup, but that didn’t
stop the derelicts congregating around the entrance at all
hours.
    Brian went to the side
door and pressed the buzzer.
    A woman’s voice on the
intercom. “Hello?”
    “Bianca, it’s Father. I
need to speak with you. It’s urgent.”
    The room was dark woods
and plain walls. Bookcases filled with a combination of leather
bound encyclopaedias and reference books coupled with Bianca’s own
specialised texts on sociology. She was wearing a grey trouser
suit. She always wore a grey trouser suit in one form or another.
Brian rested his box containing the Viper-Sig generator on her desk
and took a seat.
    “I haven’t seen you in
six months,” she said. Her tone was cold. “Are you still angry at
how I spend Mother’s inheritance?”
    Brian shook his head.
“No. In fact, I’ve made a lot of money recently. Many millions; and
I’d like to give some to you. I’d like you to put it to use
here.”
    Bianca took the seat
opposite. “But you hate the homeless?”
    “I don’t hate them; I
was worried that you were more concerned about them than yourself…
Look, I don’t have a lot of time to go into this. The reason I came
is I want to leave that.” He pointed to the box.
    “What is it?”
    “Technology.”
    “And why do you want to
leave it here? Is it stolen? Dangerous?”
    Brian paused for a
moment. “It’s an electronic device, but the technology within has
the power to change the world; I mean that literally. Whether it’s
changed for good or evil depends on who is using it. I was
partnered with a venture capitalist firm to develop it but I’m not
sure I can trust them. The situation has changed and I’m concerned
that I don’t understand what is happening. I’d like to leave it
here with you until I understand things better.”
    “Is somebody going to
come looking for it?”
    Brian shook his head.
“No. Nobody knows it exists, not yet.”
    “So, how long do you
want to leave it for?”
    He shrugged. “I don’t
know. I’m going to a meeting now that should clarify