Futures 3 by AA. VV

Author:AA. VV. [AA. VV.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Relato, Ciencia ficción
Publisher: ePubLibre
Published: 2007-12-18T16:00:00+00:00

Making memories

You must remember this…

John Frizell[54]

Ellie relived the moment—her break from the pack, her shot on goal, the shocked look of the goalie as the ball soared past him, just out of reach, and the deafening roar of the crowd, so powerful that she could feel it like waves drumming on her body—and shook her head. This was a boy’s memory. The other players were all male and the leg that had kicked the winning goal was hairy. Yuck.

Something cold was creeping into her stomach. A thing like this could only have come from Jamie. Jamie was probably the most irritating younger brother in the world but he was still her brother.

She knocked on the door of his room and then stepped well back. You never knew what might be on the other side.

Jamie’s room was even weirder than when Ellie had visited last. There were more computers, many of them torn open, and other machines she could not identify. Jamie was working on one that looked different. It was scuffed white instead of matt black or grey and its open top and missing side revealed rows of tiny cylinders interconnected with coils of thin tubing.

There was something that looked like a big mechanical dog wedged between two boxes of parts on the floor. She placed her feet carefully, partly out of general caution, partly because she had just treated herself to a new pair of shoes.

She gave him her best no-nonsense stare, modelled on the one Mum used on them. He flinched.

“I remember kicking the winning goal in a big football game.”

“Oops. It must have leaked out. I’ll put a towel under the door next time.”

The olfactory nerve is a direct extension of the brain so memories were administered in nasal sprays. The thought of Jamie’s bootleg memories wafting down the hall frightened her.

“Jamie!”

The dog had come to life. She pointed at it. Its head turned, tracking the movement of her hand. It had fangs.

“Don’t move. It can only see things that move quickly.”

Jamie reached out slowly and smoothly and hit a key on his computer. The dog collapsed, inert.

“Where did you get that memory?”

“Made it.”

Her stomach lurched. Only doctors and the police were allowed to manufacture memories. Even teachers had to have forms signed and countersigned before they could so much as administer a memory. This was serious stuff, worse than drugs. The police could arrest Jamie for this, would arrest him if they found out. Jamie would go to jail if they caught him.

Implanted memories made society work. Someone who was aggressive was given memories of peaceful acts, a cheat was given memories of honesty. Sometimes it had to be done many times before the person’s behaviour changed to match what they remembered. But society had to control what was implanted, not individuals. She had learnt that at school.

“We need to talk.”

“Can't talk now. Big fight comin' up.” He was loading two ugly bricks of scarred metal and plastic into a bag. They had armoured wheels and sharp things that slid out of their interiors.

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