21st Century Science Fiction (102 page)

“A force of nature?”

“An emergent phenomenon.”

“Can he hear us?”

She nodded.

“Buhle,” he said, thinking of the thing in the vat. “Clarity made the people who took it very angry. They couldn’t look at advertisements without wanting to smash something. Going into a shop made them nearly catatonic. Voting made them want to storm a government office with flaming torches. Every test subject went to prison within eight weeks.”

Ria smiled. She took his hands in hers—warm, dry—and squeezed them.

His phone rang. He took one hand out and answered it.

“Hello?”

“How much do you want for it?” Buhle’s voice was ebullient. Mad, even.

“It’s not for sale.”

“I’ll buy Ate, put you in charge.”

“Don’t want it.”

“I’ll kill your parents.” The ebullient tone didn’t change at all.

“You’ll kill everyone if Clarity is widely used.”

“You don’t believe that. Clarity lets you choose the course that will make you happiest. Mass suicide won’t make humanity happiest.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Wanna bet?”

“Why don’t you kill yourself?”

“Because dead, I’ll never make things better.”

Ria was watching intently. She squeezed the hand she held.

“Will you take it?” Leon asked Buhle.

There was a long pause.

Leon pressed on. “No deal unless you take it,” he said.

“You have some?”

“I can make some. I’ll need to talk to some lab techs and download some of my research first.”

“Will you take it with me?”

Leon didn’t hesitate. “Never.”

“I’ll take it,” Buhle said, and hung up.

Ria took his hand again. Leaned forward. Gave him a dry, firm kiss on the mouth. Leaned back.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Don’t thank me,” he said. “I’m not doing you any favors.” She stood up, pulling him to his feet.

“Welcome to the team,” she said. “Welcome to Buhle.”