2047: Hell In A Handbasket
Page 24
Ah, the screaming was all for Jerome he decided.
The drone views in his glasses went blank, and the drones crashed to the floor. What the crap? thought Ed. Who's blocked their command signals? Ah shit, they weren't blocked, the damn things have holes through them. Suckers lasered them.
He moved quickly to his left to peek around the goliath blocking his view and before the man could respond, he saw Jerome had thrown himself onto the floor facedown with his hands, fingers intertwined, behind his head and locked into place.
Ed didn't hear the "Terminate" command, but he did see the trooper move in front of him again to block his view, grabbing his shoulders to immobilize him. All his glasses camera could do was record the sound of the single shot to the head ending Jerome's life.
Ed's first thought was, "I got it and it'll be a great story." His second was, "Oh shit, what am I thinking? They just whacked a guy and all I can think about is what a great show this will make."
The trooper in front of him grabbed him by the shirt collar, shook him, and in the tone of forceful voice you used on a small puppy when you were training it said, "Stay."
Ed obeyed, half in fear and half curiosity, silent and motionless but still recording through his glasses as the troopers grabbed Antoine. His last view was the triumphant look on the kid's face as the troopers hauled him out.
"Did you get that?" he asked his producer back in the studios.
"Saw it but we didn't get a recording. No idea why but somebody has a hard-on for you, they were tracking your drones and blocking your visual recording at the satellite. We can see your feed but we can't record you," said his producer.
"Well, I guess that's as good a story as anything else I've got today. Why does President Gwinnett not want me broadcasting his executioners at work?" said Ed.
"Never going to see the air, Gwinnett's ratings are on a rocket ride and the big guys can't push him too far. And your story might be that far," said his producer.
"You can't record what I'm thinking either. I'm off to find two new drones and a story he can't block," said Ed. "I'll call you when I get my new gear and figure out a workaround."
30/09/2047 10:00
As
"Compromised. Go deep." There was no signature or identification on the note.
"Shit, how did that happen?"
Turning to his office systems, he commandeered the on-duty recovery team instructing them to physically pick up the three identified members of the group and get them into the holding tanks as soon as possible.
01/10/2047 08:00
The sun streamed in the big windows facing the main street and between the early heat of the day and the baked streets, it seemed hotter than ever in the Corner Spot Cafe.
Charlie had said little all morning, and the others filled in the space where he usually commented.
"You're sitting there looking like the cat has your tongue. So what's up?" said Matt, his best friend.
"It's a small thing, no big deal," said Charlie.
The others laughed knowing this signaled the opposite. It was indeed a big deal. Good events had been lacking over the last few years and Charlie was clearly enjoying this mysterious way of presenting the latest news.
"Let me guess, you're going to be a daddy again."
"Can't be. He's forgotten the basics in his old age"
"He's won the lottery and is going to share it with us."
"All of you can go wherever guys with hormonal imbalances go," said Charlie with a big grin on his face.
"Going to be damned busy there with this group for sure."
"Well, let me give you the interesting news then. You know my old Captain got a bit of a promotion recently. And you know we've kept in touch over the years. Well, I dropped him a note a month ago and just got a short handwritten reply. He wrote me to thank me for the congratulations and to tell me to hang in for another few weeks. He asked me to find a few good men and keep them in mind for when we talked next. Said it wouldn't be too long, and he'd passed my name along to his kid. Nice to know the guy still takes care of us after all these years."
"So you're saying the friggin' President wrote you a note and asked you to keep some good men in mind. That's it? Nothing else?"
"What do you want? An invitation to the damned White House? He's never broken his word yet and don't see him starting now. I'll be talking to him or Sarah soon enough."
"Well, keep me in mind for when you do." The sentiment was echoed around the table and Charlie nodded to each. He knew when the Captain promised something, it was as good as money in the bank. Given the conditions of the banks, a promise from an old friend was worth a hell of a lot more. The others might not have the same faith but a sense of things told him this was for real and there were big changes ahead.
"Hey, Stella. Got anything in the pot?" And with that, the group went back to their normal conversation, but each had been given a lifeline in one simple letter.
01/10/2047 09:00
Sarah opened a line to her father and leaned back in her office chair so the breeze from her office window would blow on her face. She quickly discovered the breeze was hotter than the room and plunked her chair back down to its four legs. It was another steaming hot day in QuellCorp's temporary D.C. Headquarters and she was looking forward to completing the company paperwork, arranging the final details and moving to the cooler north.
Her father answered her call and, without preamble, she launched her questions.
"What's to stop us from using the lasers even more than we are now?" she asked. "Think about it, we can boost your popularity ratings, eliminate a lot of thorns in our sides, clean up the majority of criminal gangs, and enforce whatever trading systems we want across the world. What's not to like?"
A few seconds of silence went by and she was about to say something else when George replied.
"In theory, I have no problem with what you're saying. We could do it. I confess though I have a problem with pushing our control too far. We eliminated security threats from New York City. Our plans are in place for the next step. What you're saying is, if I understand, you want to extend our power to control the world. Isn't that a bit megalomanic?" replied George. "Why do we need to control the entire world more than we do? America is safe and secure and we'll have all the resources we need in a few weeks. Why push it further? What's the upside compared to what we have now?"
Sarah shook her head back and forth. Sometimes her old man was so brilliant but with some ideas like this one, he just seemed not to grasp the potential in situations. He was so methodical in his planning so it was time to back down a bit. She'd put the thought into his mind though and sometimes that would be all that was necessary to get him moving. Time to back down she thought.
"I give you the world might be a step too far at the moment, but what about offering this service to other cities and towns right here at home?" asked Sarah. "You fixed New York and I'll bet you could fix the rest of the country the same way."
"Well, that's a possibility for sure," said George. "Let me talk to Harry and Jack about it and get back to you."
"OK and when you do, start with the smaller cities first. You'll be seen as working for the little guy and develop a great deal of popular support. I'm willing to bet the requests will flood your inbox," said Sarah.
She continued, "Our plans for next month are completed and there are only a few details to sort through. Fraser and his team are providing a great deal of on-the-ground information to supplement the satellite data. As far as I can see though, we're good to go for the fifth."
"Excellent," said George. "This will work out for the best. We can learn from this one and use it as a template for anything further."
"A better approach for sure," said Sarah. "Let's chat later."
"I'll let you know
how Hagin and Atkinson respond," said George disconnecting.
Sarah swung her feet up on her desk and smiled. He could be so smart and stubborn but he was like any other man when it counted. He could be led. She liked this new direction.
01/10/2047 14:00
Director of the National Security Agency, Henry Atkinson marched into the Oval Office flashing a large smile at his President. It was a gorgeous fall day, the birds were singing and the overnight rain lightened the mood and freshened the air. Washington in late September was one month the city was bearable; after summer's combined heat and humidity, Washington found its breath again.
"Mr. President, we've caught ourselves three big fish in the Anonymous movement. We don't think the biggest one is in that net but three of the main core group that's been a problem for years are now in our holding cells."
"Don't give me the details, I may not want to know. What are we going to do with them?" asked Gwinnett leaning back, locking his hands behind his head.
"Sir, one of them modified the new 23-Skid chip and inserted it into his body. He's hacked the chip to enable control of any number of internal bodily functions as well as interface with almost all external computerized systems. This is very high-level programming, Sir. Using this modification, anybody can interact with any computer in the world. In other words, it's a seamless link between us and computers."
Gwinnett sat upright, his eyes narrowed, and he looked his NSA Director in the eye to gauge the man and the information. Finding nothing but excited honesty there, he let out a sigh, smiled and leaned back in his chair. This was almost perfect timing, and if the hacker could be brought around to work for QuellCorp, there'd be fewer things beyond their reach. Gwinnett smiled to himself, he was blurring the lines again between being the President of the United States and CEO of QuellCorp.
"Will he work with us?"
"The idea was put to him, Sir, and he's not excited about it. I had him examine the alternatives to cooperation, and he's coming around to our way of thinking. Between him and that new gang kid, we should have quite the pair. The other two are useful as well but not on their level. There's only one problem."
Gwinnett nodded and raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question.
"They both say they won't work for the government but will work for QuellCorp if they're paid enough. They know you're really running QuellCorp - they made it very clear they've been hacking comm systems and gave me some interesting stuff to back up their claims. I suspect they'll be happy to remain free but they're negotiating for free rein with server space and enough budget to accomplish what they want to do. So how do we handle this? We can't just give federal prisoners to a private company."
"Why won't they work for the NSA?" Gwinnett held back the smile that wanted to fill his face.
"Sir, they don't trust the government. Plain and simple, they believe we're corrupt, immoral and totally screwed up. They don't like QuellCorp either, for the same reasons, but they think your former company is the lesser of two evils. And QuellCorp has more money for computer research so the company can afford both them and their toys. We can toss them in prison or we can give them to QuellCorp. Or at least have a judge give them parole and assign QuellCorp as overseer. Personally, I'd toss them into prison to rot and be a toy for a rather large man but it's your call."
Gwinnett couldn't hold it back any more and smiled broadly.
"OK, Henry, I hear you. You're covering your ass and playing Washington dumb. Henry, Henry, there's a new game in town and you'd better sort it out in your head. Are you tired? Pissed off?" Gwinnett finished and waited for a response.
A smile threatened the edge of Henry's mouth, "Pissed off? No. But I'm old-school Washington and you're setting up a different system here. It's taking a bit of time to get used to it. I do understand tech issues though and you're right, you want these kids and QuellCorp will treat them better and get more out of them than we will. And yes, Mr. President, I see you're heading off on a new course. It'll be interesting to see where you take us. My real two cents is that you should take them into QuellCorp and suck them dry. Bone dry." The smile won and Henry shrugged.
"Put them in solitary. Turn off all temperature and ventilation controls," said Gwinnett. Let them sit there and sweat it out for 48 hours on basic bread and water. That should increase their gratitude and make them more cooperative. Then, send them to Sarah. Give her all the details, explain the situation and tell her to make them disappear. And you make them disappear from our system. Once they're off the grid, we can deny all knowledge. QuellCorp will share their work with us and we'll both move forward." Gwinnett knew Sarah would never share a damn thing with the Feds, and once the men were working for QuellCorp, there'd be no turning them loose. They'd never leave QuellCorp's grasp. But neither Henry nor the hackers understood that yet.
02/10/2047 09:10
"The President announced today he'd support Congress in its quest to take over and privatize the police departments of all U.S. cities over a half-million people in size. After the example in New York City, Congress decided to break the back of all gang-related violence and do this with whatever force is necessary. President Gwinnett says his goal is to pacify the cities and remove the gangs. In this context, pacify means kill every gang member wherever possible and this is, once again, President Gwinnett ignoring the Constitution. But under martial law, he can kill anybody he wants. Resistance groups are springing up across the country and not all are gang-organized according to my sources. This is Ed Gordon for ZeeVid news."
Gordon took a deep breath, collected his gear and allowed himself to relax. There had been too many late nights and last-minute flights over the past few weeks as he met with resistance groups across the Mid-Atlantic. He was astounded to discover the lasers and QuellCorp hadn't killed every gang member in New York City and the survivors were angry and organizing again. The resistance groups and criminal gangs were buying anti-scanning technologies in record amounts. The U.S. was one big screwed up country and Gwinnett hadn't backed down in the face of resistance. He'd continued killing those who opposed him. There were even reports of former army troops massing out west to take control of California and Oregon. He wasn't sure how things could get worse. Many people he interviewed assured him they could and would continue to disintegrate. Ed shook his head in amazement when he considered the President's high popularity rating and how the vast majority of Americans approved of his behavior.
Penny wasn't happy with his talking to the different gangs, She'd told him it was dangerous and somebody sooner or later would kill him to stop the information flow. She was right, as usual, he decided but taking risks was part of his job and he just didn't know any other way. It was a screwed up situation and he felt very vulnerable, flack jacket or not, as he walked in and out of the danger zones. At night in his hotel room or apartment, lights left off to stop any snipers from sighting in on him, he confessed to himself he was not only vulnerable but scared shitless most days. The only time he forgot to be scared was when he was broadcasting and then he was elated having gotten yet another story. He passed from dread to delight every day and the mood swings were wearing thin.
He wondered if Penny was right and they should just head back South and be done with this big city crap. Go to our place in the North Georgia mountains, hole up and wait for all this to be over and done.
20/10/2047 11:45
Sarah sat in front of George's desk and watched him rub his forehead as numbers scrolled across his desk screen. He angled it to show her.
"Interesting. Today's security calculations show 50-percent termination rates of all known gang members in the country," said George.
With a coffee cup perched precariously on her knee, Sarah said, "You're welcome." It's always nice to be right when it comes to dealing with a father or President, she thought, allowing a self-satisfied grin to escape.
George chuckled, "OK, I admit it. You were right to move our attention from city to city in a random fashion. Yo
ur suggestion to take out smaller towns ahead of larger cities has paid off. Crime levels have nosedived across the country, look at today's data." George pointed at the trend line running across the bottom of the screen's center. "Have you been tracking inbound messages to the White House?" George flicked his hand, and the screen changed. "Look at those requests for laser strikes. We're over 50,000 emails a day asking for their town to be next. Must be a contest somewhere." George laughed. "The small towns love me but the press hates me. Can't win 'em all."
Sarah said, "We're leaving quite a few alive though and resistance is building up if Gordon's stories are true." She tilted her head making the statement into a question.
"Yeah, Atkinson told me the weakness in the system is not being fully able to identify and track the individual gang members. Phones and other comm devices are only so good once we get out of the larger metropolitan areas. What we need are those new chips inside everybody," said George. He shook his head, flipped the screen to a new view showing the next city's known targets. "If we chipped everybody, we'd know who were the good guys and who deserved targeted killing."
"I heard most of the surviving gang members had the chips removed. They cut them out themselves so hospital records wouldn't identify them," said Sarah. I guess if somebody was going to punch a hole in my head, I'd cut the damn chip out with a butter knife she thought. A quick shudder went through her.
Her father raised an eyebrow in an unspoken question.
Two quick knocks on the Oval Office door interrupted her response, and Jack Hagin bounced in. With the biggest smile possible on his face, he flopped into the other chair at George's hand wave invitation.
"Sarah, good to see you, didn't know you were coming in," said Hagin.