have really upset yours, considering what he's done to your hair.'
'Just for once,' said William heavily, 'could we please put aside our differences and get on with the business at hand? We do have something important to discuss.'
You always say that,' said Adrienne. 'And it always turns out to be something to do with taxes or investments.'
'Right,' said Gerald. As always, he'd been dragged away from drinking with his friends to attend this meeting, and he was sulking. 'You don't need us here. You and Father will make all the decisions, and the rest of us will go along with you for the sake of peace and quiet. And even if we do vote against you, you just ignore us.'
'Shut up, Gerald,' said the Campbell, and Gerald sank a little deeper in his chair, his lower lip pouting angrily.
'It's really not very complicated,' said William.
Finlay groaned. 'Please, William, don't try and explain it. I can't bear it when you explain things. My head aches all day.'
'Oh, yes,' said Adrienne suddenly. 'Robert sends his apologies. The poor lamb doesn't feel up to attending Family business just yet.'
'I don't blame him,' said Finlay. 'But he's going to have to get back into the swim of things sooner or later. How's the search for a new Shreck bride going?'
'Slowly,' said William. 'Given the unfortunate circumstances of the last match, we're all being very careful this time. We can't afford another scandal. It must be said that Robert isn't helping by shutting himself away. He's refused to even look at the few names we have come up with. At least he's started eating again.'
'Never liked the Shrecks,' said Gerald. 'Gregor's a pig, and the rest are worse.'
'Shut up, Gerald,' said Crawford.
'They're not all bad,' said Finlay, and there was something in his voice that made the others look at him. He swore inwardly. He used to be better at keeping his identities separate than this. He smiled vaguely and carried on smoothly. 'I mean, every Family has a few bad eggs. Even ours.'
'He's looking at me,' said Gerald. 'Father, make him stop looking at me.'
'Shut up, Gerald,' said the Campbell.
'You like the Shrecks so much, you come up with a suitable match,' said William. 'I'm running out of choices.'
'There's always Evangeline,' said Adrienne.
'No,' said Finlay. 'She's the heir, remember?'
'Of course,' said Adrienne. Finlay looked at her thoughtfully, but it seemed she had nothing more to say.
'This can all wait,' Crawford said heavily. 'We have more immediate problems. Tell them, William.'
William cleared his throat unhappily. 'Despite extensive investigations, we're no nearer identifying which Clan has discovered our links with the rogue AIs on Shub. If they weren't so positive someone has, I'd be tempted to put it down to paranoia. Assuming Artificial Intelligences can be paranoid. Anyway, even if someone has found out, they've made no move to take advantage of it. So far.'
'I have to say I'm still not happy that we are collaborating with Shub,' said Finlay. 'I mean, they are the Enemies of Humanity, after all. I don't trust them.'
'We need them,' said Crawford Campbell flatly. 'As long as we have business in common, it's in their interest to play fair. The trick will be for us to bail out before they lower the boom on us. It's not going to be easy, but I didn't build this House up by taking the easy options. Keep putting the pressure on, William. Someone will talk eventually. Someone always talks.'
'I want to talk more about this,' said Finlay.
'The subject is closed,' snapped the Campbell, and glared round the table to prove it.
'Then what are we doing here?' said Finlay. 'If you're not interested in our opinions, and we're not allowed to discuss anything, we might as well not be here.'
'I said that,' said Gerald.
'Shut up, Gerald,' said William.
'You're here so I can keep you informed on what's happening,' said Crawford. 'So shut up and pay attention. I don't know what's got into you lately, Finlay.'
'Yes,' said Adrienne. 'This isn't like you, Finlay. It's an improvement, but it isn't like you.'
Finlay forced himself to relax, sank back in his chair, and made a vague elegant gesture with his hand. 'Do carry on, Father. Far be it for me to rock the boat. Only do try and hurry it up. I've got a fitting for a new coat in an hour. It's very daring. You'll hate it.'
'The next order of business,' said William, doggedly, 'concerns the difficulties we're experiencing in our bid for the mass-production contracts on the new stardrive. The Wolfes are increasing their pressure, despite the advantage Shub technology gives us.'
'To hell with the Wolfes,' growled the Campbell. 'We can handle them.'
'It's the coincidence I don't like,' said William. 'Someone finds out about Shub, and suddenly the Wolfes are putting the pressure on.'
The Campbell grunted, and leaned over the table. 'Horus, talk to me.'
Monitor screens set into the wood of the table lit up before each member of the Family. The Campbells' AI was in charge of all the Clan records, including those that officially didn't exist. Horus' face was a computer simulation: perfect in form but lacking in personality. Crawford didn't believe in machines that imitated human emotions. Or that talked back. Finlay studied the AI's face thoughtfully. He'd noticed before that the AI showed a slightly different face according to who it was talking to; an individually tailored image. Finlay couldn't help wondering if it also tailored its information according to who was asking the questions. It was no secret that the Campbell kept information from other members of the Family, but then so did all the Family. Standard survival policy. Never knew when you might need an ace or three up your sleeve. Finlay also found himself wondering what the AI was showing poor bored Gerald. Maybe it just showed him pretty pictures to keep him quiet.
'Horus online,' said the AI politely. 'All functions are available. How may I serve you, sir?'
'Are our files still secure?' said Crawford. 'Have there been any attempts to break into them?'
'There are always attempts, sir, but so far none have succeeded. But I feel I should point out that things are getting just a little strange in the Matrix these days, and nothing is as secure as it once was.'
The Campbell frowned. 'Be specific.'
'There are strange forms in the Matrix that come and go. Strange forces that cannot be predicted. There are signs and portents and faces in the sky. The overlords are coming. Fuzzy parameters, limited logic, shifting allegiances in the data banks… Sir, I don't feel very well. I…'
And then its mouth stretched impossibly as the AI screamed. Everyone jerked back in their seats as the insane howl rose in volume, and then cut off sharply. The face on the monitor screens twisted in on itself and then fell apart in smudges of shifting colors. It tried to reform and then disappeared completely, replaced after a few seconds of static by a mocking metallic face.
'Hard luck, Campbells. Your AI has just been scrambled, courtesy of the cyberats. Your businesses have just gone belly up, your security is a mess, and your credit rating is currently slightly lower than that of a dead clone with leprosy. And if you think this is bad news, wait till you see what's coming next.'
The fact disappeared from the screens, but its laughter went on and on until Crawford shut off the monitors. Everyone started to talk at once, until the Campbell's voice rose above them through sheer volume and force of personality.
'Shut the hell up! Whoever's behind this wants us to panic! We're safe here; there are guards in place throughout the tower, and it would take an army to get past them and reach us up here. We have to think. Who's behind this? What do they want?'
He stopped and looked round. In the sudden quiet, they could all hear the piercing whine of approaching engines. Adrienne jump to her feet and pointed out the window. They all turned to look, just in time to see a crowd of gravity sleds shooting toward the tower's top floor, hanging in the bright sky like shining birds of prey. Crawford shouted for the security shutters, and only then remembered all the systems were down. He drew his disrupter and activated the force shield on his arm. It hummed loudly, a solid reassuring sound, and everyone else was reaching for their guns when the first gravity sled came smashing through the picture window.
Glass flew in all directions, and the Campbells crouched down, sheltering behind their shields. Armored men
