Tabula Rasa

by Filip Forsberg

  The voice was quiet for a few seconds.

  “Eighteen hundred? You must read it wrong. It cannot possibly be so much.”

  Djing did not hesitate.

  “No, no, I'm sure. The levels all day has been between a half and one gigabyte, just as it usually does. Without warning, it began to spike.” He responded quickly.

  “Who's in the lab now?”

  “A technician.”

  “Who?”

  “Elisabeth Snow.”

  “Position?”

  “Do not know for sure, but I think she works with Atlas.”

  “Which level of competence?”

  “I don’t know. I can check if you want to?”

  “Do it.” Replied the female voice.

  Djing's fingers flew over the keyboard.

  “Level two-seven.”

  “There should therefore be nothing in her duties that she would need so much bandwidth.” She said more to herself than to Djing.

  “No. It is absolutely impossible that it would be so. It is still increasing. The flow is now over two thousand gig.”

  “Two thousand?” The female voice sounded doubtful.

  “Shall I shut it down?”

  “I'm not sure. I do not know exactly what Atlas has for specifications but I have not heard anything that they would need so much.” She hesitated.

  “What shall I do?”

  A few seconds passed before the female voice responded.

  “Cut it.”

  * * *

  Elisabeth stared at the screen. It indicated that all communication was cut. Her fingers worked the keyboard. After a few seconds, she realized that it had been cut from outside the lab. Someone had discovered her. She had almost managed to send everything. Her brain worked frantically, getting out of Tabula Rasa could be done but it would be difficult.

  There were a couple of large main roads in and out and a handful of minor points where one could leave the mega complex. But in order to do that, one must be approved in the scan. And if she was discovered, it would not take long before they locked her id. And without id it would be impossible to pass the scan. She thought of Backmann. He was her contact person on the outside that she had been in contact with in the past few days and he would help her. Her brain raced. Elisabeth quickly opened a communication program on another screen, dialed the private number to Backmann as instructed to use only in case of emergency. She waited a few seconds till the holoscreen flickered.

  “Yes?” Nicholas Backmann responded within five seconds.

  Elisabeth leaned against the screen.

  “I'm made. I need help to get out.” She was breathing irregularly.

  “Ok, take it easy and breathe”, he raised his hand in a calming gesture, “I'll help you. Get to your apartment as soon as you can. We'll send someone.”

  A large stone fell down from Elisabeth's chest.

  “Thank you.” She hesitated, “I have amazing information. This changes everything.”

  Backmann nodded again against her and a weak smile pulled the corners of his mouth.

  “Good. Make sure to take you to your apartment. Help is on its way.”

  Elisabeth returned Beckmann’s nod and smile.

  “Understood,” she paused a few seconds before she continued, “and my father and his girlfriend. They also have to come. It won’t be long before he is also discovered.”

  Backmann nodded briefly.

  “Ok, transportation for three.” He winked at her and smiled.

  “And thank you again.” She finished the conversation and pushed back the chair.

  She started a cleaning program that would sweep the tracks after her. The program started and begun systematically destroying data on the servers. It would be basically impossible to recreate something after the program had cleared the servers but she was not sure. But it did not matter. It would take time for them to try to recreate something, if it would even succeed. Time that she and her dad needed to escape. She wiped her sweaty hands on her pants, stood up and looked around the room.

  She would not come back here. They had discovered that she was about to steal the greatest discovery in human history, and she had been caught. A cold drop of sweat slid down her spine, and despite the heat in the room, she shuddered. She pulled the white lab coat tighter around her. She abruptly stood up and the chair fell behind her.

  The room was moving around and she had to hold onto the desk for a few seconds while everything stabilized. The cleaning program continued. It would chew through all the data that existed on the local servers and after they were cleaned it would also clean itself. If someone were to try to restart the system after it was cleaned they would only come to a system prompt. Everything would be gone. All evidence of her betrayal. The insight that her career at Tabula Rasa was over was bitter but she did not hesitate. What she did was right. The discovery was not only Tabula Rasa`s and it was her duty to make sure it was shared with the world.

  With sadness she looked around a last time and left the cleaning program to work in silence. She got up, wrapped the shawl tightly around herself and disappeared out through the door.

  *

  Sydney, Australia.

  2048-12-27

  The sparkling heat from the fireplace filled the room with a cozy, crackling sound and the pleasant warmth spread through the room. The fireplace stood on the one of the long side walls of the large, beautiful room and an extended dining table stood in the middle. The walls were covered with various modern artwork and the parquet floor was newly sanded. The aroma of well-cooked food lay like a comfortable veil in the room.

  Lawyer Dennis Topp enjoyed himself to the fullest as he sat with his beloved wife in their dining room. Their apartment was their fixed point in life where he was safe. There he could retreat and take a break from his pressing work.

  Dennis looked up at his wife, Kathy, who sat opposite him and smiled. She was so beautiful. So beautiful that it almost hurt. When they meet almost twenty-five years ago, he had thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. A cute upturned nose and a smile that could make a man blessed with happiness. From the very first moment he saw her, he was hooked. When they met, she already had a boyfriend, but the day after she met Dennis, she had broken up with him and Dennis and Kathy had begun dating regularly. It had been a whirlwind. Both of them had been so obsessed with each other, and if it had not been for Kathy holding back as much as she could, they would have been married within a month.

  He considered himself lucky. There were probably not many in life who could say they were as happy as he was. A wonderful wife, an important job and a fantastic apartment. Life was truly a gift, and he had really won the lottery of life that all people participated in. Dennis smiled at his wife while he put the glass down and smacked loudly with his lips.

  “That was probably the best salmon I've ever eaten, my beloved wife. You've outdone yourself again.”

  Kathy Topp smiled warmly at her husband. She still became happy when he praised her cooking. It was something he always had done. She had enjoyed spending time in the kitchen and preparing all sorts of delicious dishes and pastries. At the moment she was inspired by the Nordic cuisine and Dennis had enjoyed both Swedish meatballs and Danish butter bread the last week. She laughed, it was also with her cooking that she had caught Dennis when they had begun to meet. He smiled at her.

  “What are you laughing at? Don’t you think I'm telling the truth? The salmon was actually amazingly good.”

  She stood up, took their plates and went over and kissed him lightly on the mouth.

  “My Dennis. Of course I believe it. I know that you like my cooking. I have known that since I warmed that lasagna to our first date.”

  He smiled warmly at her.

  “Yes, that lasagna was probably the most capable lasagna in world history. It's probably not so often that so much good came from a lasagna.”

  Kathy laughed and kissed him again. She sat down.

 
“By the way, how is it going with the compilation of testimonies?” Kathy took a sip of the wine.

  Dennis nodded thoughtfully.

  “It’s going pretty good actually. We expect to be ready in a couple of days and then it must be officially cleared with the prosecutor if charges can be brought.” he paused, “If we proceed, which I really hope we do, then we should count on that there will be a couple of turbulent months ahead of us.”

  “I’ll be there for you all the way, you know that. Not only because you are my husband, you’re also a knight in need for many women. Many dead women. They don’t have a voice but you can fight for their justice.”

  The past months had already been turbulent. Dennis and his colleague, Mary Thompson, had worked with something that truly was something of a bombshell. They planned that in addition to their work with the prosecutor along with a journalist, publish a series of articles describing the dark, dirty parts of John Vendrick III's career and the bloody trail he had left behind him.

  The month ahead of them would be tough but he had to do this. It was a calling that was born a few years ago when an awful event had taken place.

  In his mind it was like yesterday. A woman had contacted him and she had been desperate for his help. The woman was called Louise Dorr and was a single mother from Canada. Louise had contacted him because she had seen his name in the newspaper in an article where Dennis pro-bono work was described.

  Her story had first been too strange to be true and it took a while before Dennis accepted what she had to say was true. Louise had told her how she worked for one of the middle managers from Tabula Rasa, who was stationed in Toronto to take care of the Tabula Rasa application center there. She had worked as a sort of assistant for the man and at first it had been exciting and interesting.

  Her tasks had been to plan and book various meetings and help him with various small things that would be arranged. But after a couple of months at work, John Vendrick III had made a visit to their application center and met Louise. He had taken a liking in her and in the evening he had knocked on her apartment where she had lived in downtown Toronto. He had forced his way into the apartment and despite her pleas, he had raped her.

  Afterwards, she had been on the verge of pressing charges, but John had threatened her to ruin her life if she did, and Louise had believed him. Her boss had persuaded her not to press charges. John Vendrick III was a rising star and moved in the finest social circles. She had tried to forget the whole thing and move on with her life, but John had not let her. He had forced her to stay at her workplace and slowly but surely he had broken her. Gone was her job responsibilities and tasks. John had begun to lock her in at his apartment, and after a while she had been completely in his power.

  With psychological and physical terror, he had taken control over her. He had started to rape her on a regular basis and afterward comforted her when she cried. Louise had soon lost all perception of time and space. But one day John had made a mistake. He had not noticed a key that had fallen to the floor in the hallway, and after he was gone, she had managed to escape. Panicking and with only the clothes on her body, she escaped without any idea of where to go.

  Dennis shuddered when he thought of the fear she must have felt. He had just closed the door to his office when he heard footsteps behind him. It had been Louise Dorr who stood there, scared and with an expression on her face that Dennis would never forget. She had sold a tiny diamond ring and with the last saved money it was enough to escape. He could still see the desperate expression on her face. Dennis had helped her and Louise had told him everything. She had told her background and about the man who had done this to her. Dennis had promised to help her and helped her to find a place in a sheltered accommodation before they could find a more permanent solution.

  Everything had gone the right way, and soon they found out that Louise was pregnant with John Vendrick III's child. Despite all that had happened, she had decided to keep the baby. But that’s not how it would turn out. An early morning, Louise had taken a walk near the sheltered accommodation, but a car had run her over when she had crossed a street. Witnesses later said that Louise had crossed the street on a pedestrian crossing and the light had been green. The car that hit her had not braked, but rather it seemed to have accelerated. Neither the car nor the driver had been found but Dennis knew that it was John Vendrick III who had been behind it to avoid being involved in a scandal.

  Louise had been thrown twelve meters away and broke fourteen bones. She had still been alive when she got to the hospital, but two hours later, while Dennis stood by and held her hand, both she and her unborn child died. After that he had sworn to give Louise Dorr vindication. He had contacted various colleagues and made some inquires. The center in Toronto had discreetly gotten a new boss and after just over a year, Dennis had understood that what John had done to Louise, he had also done to several other women. And all women had died or disappeared in one way or another. Pretty soon had Dennis realized that John Vendrick III was a monster, and behind the presentable facade hid a psychopath and a sadist who enjoyed tormenting other people. Dennis and a colleague had collected a considerable amount of evidence in the last six months and they would soon go to court with it.

  Dennis had during their investigations gotten it confirmed that John Vendrick III was not the one everyone thought he was. He was a monster, a beast in human disguise and Dennis and Mary had worked as obsessed in recent months and now they would present their evidence to the prosecutor. They’d had some initial meetings with the prosecutor who assisted them. The prosecutor was known as a hard but fair man and Dennis had an optimistic attitude. They had done everything they could. They had searched and found more than six other victims who all encountered Vendrick and now would his rampage be stopped.

  Dennis smiled at his wife. He was proud of her. Proud that he had her as her wife, not only because she was the most beautiful woman he ever seen but also for her sense of justice. For her indomitable attitude that evil must be prevented, whatever the cost. He looked at the fireplace, saw how the hot flames dance in the fireplace and turned to Kathy.

  “That I'm glad over my dear.” He smiled but his smile was concerned, “John Vendrick is a powerful man. Great power. If we get a go-ahead in the meeting with the prosecutor and he really chooses to prosecute, we can expect a minor storm. Not because we will sustain the inevitable media storm but also for all the top lawyers that will do everything to crush us.”

  *

  Tabula Rasa, Madagascar.

  2048-12-27

  Offence is the best defense. Sweat beaded on Elisabeth's forehead and she used the shawl to dry it. She was sure that they were coming after her, but she could not give up. The alarm must have gone off in the control room and that was why they had shut her down. Her thoughts raced. She had to get out of there as fast as possible. It was the only possibility. She has to get out and she has to find her dad.

  She got up the metal staircase that led from the control room where she’d been. The staircase was deserted and she thanked her lucky star for that. The sterile light from the lamps gave the skin on her hands a sick, pasty look. She got up on a ledge that led to a room that she had to get past if she would manage to get out of the lab. She looked over at the door, above it shone a green sign labeled Exit/Sortie. Exit. All signs at Tabula Rasa were labeled in both English and French. She was not sure how much time she had but it could not be much. She rushed up to the door, touched the sensor softly. The door slide sideways and she walked in.

  Inside the room, the computers were buzzing as usual and the screens were all lit but no one was there. She exhaled heavily. Elisabeth tried to regain composure, but the room was unreal, hostile. She had spent endless hours in this room. Sometimes together with other technicians but usually alone. To sit down in the lab and have the data monitoring service was not the sexiest tasks you could have, but she liked it. She had liked the feeling she received when she saw data from all their satellites streaming
down to control rooms like this.

  But now the surroundings were unfamiliar. Her hands trembled when she lifted them. She clenched them hard and pulled them next to her. She stood there a few seconds, took a deep breath, and regained some of the control she lost. As she fled, she had lost the orientation where she was. Her body had gone into something that resembled shock, but if she could get out to the public parts of Tabula Rasa, her chances to stay hidden would increase significantly.

  With more than one million people in Tabula Rasa, she would have a chance to stay out of sight, and if she could get out to the main parks, she could buy some time. They were not able to track each person directly. In the beginning, when Tabula Rasa was newly built, they all had a small computer chip implanted under the skin and it gave a precise location of each person but after a while it turned out that it was not an optimal solution. After a couple of months with that system, they had seen a violent increase of paranoia and mental breakdowns of the constant surveillance.

  After the traumatic time, they had chosen to change the system. Instead, a voluntary system had been implemented which allowed the resident to decide if the system could follow where he or she was. Each person had been given a hologram bracelet, an H-band, which monitored all biological functions and communications of the carrier and its location.

  But if the carrier took off the H-band, the system lost the exact position. In the first year, it had been naively thought that almost everyone would wear it, but when only half had worn it on a regular basis, it became a requirement to wear it. It was forbidden to take it off, and the mental illnesses had increased again. After a couple of months, the inhabitants and the whole complex had experienced another traumatic time with fires and riots. Afterwards, it realized that every person needed a certain amount of freedom and that the system could not enforce a one hundred percent control. Vendrick and the management of Tabula Rasa wanted at all cost to avoid that something similar would happen again, and had gone to totally voluntary system.