Oliver had refused to take the tube (even though it would have been quicker) and had hailed a taxi. Jack Splinter had his resolve to resist Oliver dissolved by the video clip Oliver played him on his mobile phone. It was not the best quality but what Jack saw intrigued him enough to delay going home that night. He was revising that decision when Oliver urged him in to the dark stair well under the shadows of St Thomas’ Hospital. Jack followed the route to Oliver’s laboratory with increasing trepidation. His jaw dropped when he saw the room and its technical set up. Somebody was serious in their endeavour.
“Is this legal?” Jack asked.
“It’s not official research, yet, if that’s what you mean.”
“So what does it do? what were you doing in that clip?” Jack walked around the room. He touched the surgical power chair and then ran his hand over the television.
“It does more than you could ever imagine Jack, this, is where time travel begins,” Oliver removed his jacket and rolled up his sleeves.
Jack laughed, loudly, “Are you on something Oliver? If I’d have known you thought you had invented time travel I would have stayed on the fruit machine.”
“Sounds crazy doesn’t it, bear with me Jack. Just give me ten minutes of your time. If you’re not convinced then fine, go home and I won’t bother you again.”
“How on earth could this amount to time travel Oliver, as Hawkins said the lack of tourists from the future proves its impossibility.”
“I’ve read that too, it assumes the tourists would reveal themselves doesn’t it?”
“I suppose so,” Jack replied.
Oliver slipped into the surgical chair and reclined himself. He had a venflon cannula already sited in the crux of his elbow and the syringe driver prepared. He knew he would have to establish a regressive state quickly to avoid Jack walking out on him. Lastly Oliver put on a crown of electrodes and wires on his head. The wires from the neuro-crown trailed to the portable brain scanner, more wires linked from the scanner to the laptop and a final set from the laptop to the television.
“Switch on the TV,” Oliver instructed Jack. Jack shook his head slightly, smiled inside himself at the ridiculous situation he was in, but nonetheless he went to the television and found the stand by button and clicked it on, the screen went light then black.
“Watch me first then the screen, I’m hooked up through this neuro reading crown to the TV through that brain scanner, it’s not the best but you’ll get the drift.”
Oliver held up the syringe driver, “this serum Jack unlocks thousands upon thousands of years of memory encoded in all our genes and allows me to regress back and visit other people’s lives, across history. Time across generations Jack, this is Tempus Genesis.”
Jack was just trying to work out the timing of his departure. If there wasn’t so many dark and creepy corridors plus stairs to traverse, he would have walked out there and then.
Oliver hit the release valve on the pump and took a shot of agent 42A. His regression was rapid and no less dramatic than the very first time, he allowed himself less control than he was able. A little showboating for effect.
Jack was shocked and sickened at what he saw. He gathered himself and walked up and down the side of Oliver studying the physical changes to his face, his posture, his skin. Leaving the notion of time travel to one side the visceral changes he was witnessing was staggering.
“Jesus Christ Oliver, are you okay?”
Oliver smiled, “I’m fine, watch the screen, the technology is less than a week old so cut me some slack.”
Jack turned and watched the TV. The picture was dark, made up of coloured lines and shapes, not solid images. Oliver narrated for Jack’s benefit.
“The connection with the past is so strong I can actually see the past, witness it live Jack, I developed a program that interprets the signals from my optical nerve and translates them into images that I am seeing. It’s not broadcasting exactly but I reckon it could be developed. Imagine the possibilities Jack, light shows from time immemorial. That would put bums on seats.”
“Is this a trick?” was all Jack could think to ask.
“Roman Britain Jack, I am in Roman Britain, looking out from the eyes of a legionnaire.”
Jack could make out the image and it concurred with what Oliver described, he could see several ghostly Roman soldier figures moving around a camp. Swords and shields in hand as they appeared to prepare for duty. This can’t be real he thought. But what if it was real?
“Who knows about this?” Jack said.
“A few close friends, nobody else.”
“Patent?”
“Filed, I have the IP rights wrapped up Jack. Even my friends don’t know about the broadcast possibilities.”
“I’m not sure Oliver.”
Oliver breathed out and with one exhaled breath returned to the room. His eyes rolled down and he looked at Jack. Blue static scattered across his face, impressing upon Jack the possibility that this was real.
Jack said, “It’s a lot to take in, it looks a bit too Voodoo for me. I can’t ever see myself presenting this to the CEO.”
“If you walk away from this and I take it elsewhere, and it is very real believe me, you’ll regret passing this up for the rest of your life.”
“If it was real I guess I would, but how do I know you aren’t just pumping yourself full of some psychedelic dance floor drugs?”
Oliver unclipped himself from the infusion line, removed his electrode crown and stood up. He walked to the desk with the laptop. He laid out the research evidence, his notes and reports.
“I’ve not registered this anywhere as research, no ethical approval so I know I’ve been pushing some boundaries here. But I have followed rigorous research protocols, with the right license agreement I’d be prepared to share the evidence that this is real.”
Jack Splinter run his hand through his thick silver hair.
“I still don’t know. Let me sleep on it over the weekend.”
“Of course. I trust you Jack, I want to work with you. Come back next week and try it,” Oliver suggested.
“Shit. No way, I’ve no idea what this might be doing to your brain.”
“It’s safe, the evidence of its safety is in the reports. Would I risk my own life if I didn’t think otherwise?”
“I guess not, give me the weekend. Now walk me out of here this is a seriously creepy set up.”
Oliver went to retrieve his jacket, closed down his equipment and walked Jack out and up the stairs to leave him safe and sound by the Thames. Oliver babbled through a random selection of time travel ‘trips’ he had taken as they walked and set out his vision for a time travel leisure industry, cinematic broadcasts from history and his estimates of turnover in the billions. Oliver knew he was over-selling as they climbed the stairs towards the fire exit door, but he was uncertain as to whether he would get Jack back. He worried he had put his discovery ‘out there’ too soon.
30.
Tempus Genesis Page 39
