MAX HEADROOM: 20 MINUTES INTO THE FUTURE

DYSKENESIS

"What's on the agenda for today?" Edison asked Murray as he walked into the control room.

"No story right now," Murray remarked. "We got news of a new disease, but until we know more I think we're just going to let Markus and his controller handle it."

"Sounds good to me," Edison said, knowing about Murray's discomfort around hospitals. "Does that mean I get the day off?"

"No," Murray said. "You can have the morning, but I want you back here in an hour."

"What am I supposed to do with an hour?" Edison asked.

"Go bother Bryce," Murray suggested. "You'll probably come back with a ton of new information. I doubt any of it will be useful, though."

"Murray," Theora chided. "Bryce is very intelligent."

"I think he means most of our viewers are as smart as he is," Edison explained.

"Pocket money," Murray warned.

"Okay, okay," Edison laughed. "I get the message. I'll go and see what he's up to."

Edison had barely got off the left at Level 13 when he heard Max calling for help. Rushing to the sound, he saw Max in his transport box crying out in a near panic. And with good reason.

Bryce was on the floor in the middle of a full-blown seizure.

Edison ran over to the stricken genius and restrained him, carefully. He held onto Bryce until he felt the boy's shaking and thrashing subside. Then he looked at him carefully. There was no sign of brain damage; both pupils were even and properly dilated for the amount of light in the room.

And there was no sign that he'd had a stroke.

Edison wondered if Bryce's attack was in any way related to the new sickness Murray had mentioned. Or was the young genius afflicted with something else. He had read through Bryce's personal file before and there had been no mention of epilepsy or any other brain disorder.

So what the hell had just happened?

"Bryce?" He asked. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

Bryce wiped a little drool from the corner of his mouth and shook his head.

"I'm okay, now," he said.

"Bryce, you just had a bad seizure," Edison pointed out. "You're far from okay. When's the last time you had an exam?"

"Not long ago," Bryce told him. "The doctor says I'm fine. I just… I…"

"Bryce?" Edison asked. "What…"

Bryce began to twitch again, erupting into a second seizure.

Edison caught him as he fell, holding him as he thrashed about, making sure he did not get hurt.

Eventually, the seizure calmed, but Bryce did not stop twitching. His arms jerked spasmodically as he lay unconscious in Edison's arms, his head lolled to one side, eyes closed, breathing erratically.

Edison carried Bryce over to the bed. Then he called for an ambulance, certain this was beyond the scope of the Network Physician.

The vu-phone sounded just after he was finished.

Edison clicked the answer button. "Murray. Bryce is sick. I don't know what's wrong, but I'm staying with him until the ambulance arrives."

"Ambulance," Murray repeated. "Is it really that bad?"

"He just had two seizures in the span of five minutes, Murray." Edison said. "He's unconscious at the moment. I just hope…"

Theora walked in at that point and Edison fell silent.

"You hope what?" She asked. Seeing the troubled look on Edison's face she asked. "What's wrong?"

"Bryce isn't feeling well," Murray supplied. "We were just hoping he gets better."

It was true, if not understated.

"So do I," Theora said.

Before Edison could disconnect the call, the paramedics arrived.

Noticing this, Theora turned to Murray, her eyes boring into him.

"Okay, Murray. What's wrong with Bryce?"