Forget It (ONC 2024)

Chapter 8 - The choice

"I've saved three memories: the day I told Ravi, the day he approached me about developing the idea, and my meeting with him and the founder, which went quite similar to yours, except you were far more composed." Arch rubbed his heels together. "I didn't realize they'd threaten you too."

I scoffed. "Why wouldn't they? If they're ready to threaten Arch Kenton, their prodigy, what do they care about a nobody like me?

"You're not a nobody, Selene. You're amazing. I've always thought you were, and when I asked Ravi about a timeline for your project, I believed someday it would lead to you getting that recognition that you deserve. Here, see it for yourself."

With a shaky hand, he popped the chip in the device, and it projected a date from 8 months ago, Arch's full name and the phrase 'unaltered memory captured June 27th, 2070'. The memory's date and the capture time were six months apart.

Inno-Tech lab's sterile eggshell-coloured walls and stainless steel tables were projected into my living room in 3D, with Mr. Singh standing in a white coat, observing us. My past self was there with Gina and a few coworkers as we put away the various parts of a prototype. I turned to Arch with a bright smile and my hair smooth and calm for once and asked if he was coming with us for supper. He said he'd catch up, but the memory's focus stayed on me until I shot him a slight wave and whatever he did made me smile again. Arch stood and walked toward Ravi, who was staring off as if taking digital mental notes.

"Mr. Singh, I had a question when you're free."

Ravi and his bushy eyebrows looked at us or Memory-Arch. "About this project?"

"No, about more of a personal project, one a friend is working on."

He smiled in that warm way Ravi used to appear in my memories. "What is your friend developing?"

"She or I rather was curious on her behalf how long this type of product would take to get to market."

"What type of product is it?"

"Memory enhancement."

"In what sense?"

Arch rocked on his feet and the video focused on his and Ravi's black shoes. "It records them, so they're easier to access, especially for those with conditions that speed up memory loss."

"Like a personal memory cloud. That's clever. Will it be fully specialized for those with conditions, or can it be broadened to everyday consumers?"

"I imagine it can be broadened."

There was the beginning of the death of Remember-All. Arch had probably meant well, trying to make the product more appealing to develop, but not realizing the lengths Inno-Tech would reach to make this marketable and appealing to those who needed it the least.

Ravi stroked his goatee. "And this is your friend's idea, Selene, I presume."

"Yes, she doesn't know I'm talking to you about it, but she's worked quite hard on it during her personal time, and I wanted to see what the odds of it making it to market would be. It's impressive, from what I've seen, and I've been telling her it's perfect for the Innovative Ideas Pitches."

"If it can get through development and human trials, the odds are high enough, but it will take a considerable amount of time and investment. However, if she were to take on a well-known partner like yourself to lead the project, investment would rise and the time to market would decrease."

"That's not what she's interested in. How long?"

"On her own, ten to fifteen years after the pitch is accepted."