#841 Paycheck- Philip K. Dick
This is one of PKD’s classic stories. It deals with time viewing and technology. Jennings is an electrical mechanic, probably the best out there. He wakes up from a high-security job with Rethrick construction. Due to the nature of the work and the heavy government attention on it, Jennings’ memory has been wiped clean. He has lost the last two years of his life, but the job was done and he is about to be paid handsomely.
Instead of the money he was promised, the clerk tells him he opted to be allowed to take out a bag full of object from the plant. He made this decision before his memory was wiped, so he has no idea why he wouldn’t take the money. He soon realizes however, the seven seemingly benign objects he took out are clues to getting back to the Rethrick plant, he just doesn’t know why yet.
“The decision had actually been his. Amazingly, after two years of work he had preferred a handful of trinkets instead of fifty thousand credits. But more amazingly, The handful of trinkets was turning out to be worth more than the money.”
Besides being a great sci-fi story about time viewing, there is a serious anti-government tilt here. The world has changed into a heavy police state, and where the church used to be the antithesis of government, corporations have taken their place.
“It was the government against the corporation, rather than the state against the church.”
The revolution apparently is fomenting inside of places like Rethrick Construction. Jennings wants in, and since he’s the only one who knows how to run the Time Scoop machine…the future looks good.
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