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Cmnd. Return 
Not so far off future - April 25th Maryland Elizabeth Rider placed the crumpled 'Science and Technology Weekly' magazine back on the coffee table from which it had come. She had lost track of time, due to her being as absorbed as ever within the writings of black ink on white paper, and the pictures of the newest and latest gadgets and circuit boards and whatnot. But this issue was an exception - it was a few months old. Had it been new, she could have been occupied for hours on end. But she had not expected to find the newest material strewn about where she was now... Despite the endless phone calls, the spontaneous chatting, and the whirring of printers printing, Elizabeth could still hold her own, a lone ranger unaffected by happenings else where. And that was actually the kind of person she was. Liz, her preferred name, was a unique child of sixteen. She never led a normal life before, and wasn't ready to start. In this day and age, there is a feared criminal above all else. It is not a criminal who can touch you on the shoulder nor use a gun or knife, but one who can alter your life completely without ever being seen. The criminal was a hacker. In the land of computers, one person hinders all others. Hackers, the low, vile, despicable persons, too cowardly to show their faces, but powerful enough to render a country useless. Or so was the image. Now, more than ever, hackers are treated with no respect or dignity. What good they once may have done is now forgotten, lost in a digital maze. Little know about the heroic exploits of such computer 'nerds' bent on toppling society. And now, more than ever, more and more steps are being taken to prevent a hacker from being born. All hackers, no matter what their cause, are treated the same. It was almost a war now : Hacker against society. Society against a hacker. People against people. The stereotypical message spread like a worm. Its spark was known by few. But once it grew, it grew into people's minds across the world. Many didn't even know the slightest thing about a hacker, only to know that they should be despised. And it all started a long time ago. Rumors and alterations of the story are numerous, but each has one thing in common: the words, 'The Tombrolo Scandal.' And Liz heard of these things and took her place, not exactly agreeing or disagreeing with any message, but rather, sitting back to listen and learn. And LIz, like so many others her age, had her own computer... Liz sat up from the old couch in the lobby, grabbing the pizza box that held her dinner, and threw it away in the trash. It was a common routine for her; she had done it countless times. She used to be bored, but now she didn't know what to feel. The same old smell of the building, the same old voices, the same old walls... this was no home to live in, because it wasn't a home at all. Liz's parents were long divorced. Her mother lived far away, not heard from for years. And her father was always busy. Not just regular busy; the kind of busy where you just can't get away. Her dad, Hector Rider, had held several governmental jobs. He had been a mayor once, but dropped out of the second term to become the governor, but dropped out of his second term again. He had always had big expectations, and now, he was running for president. Liz didn't know what to feel anymore. Having her dad running for president was quite an experience, but not one she wanted to live through. Her dad never had time for her, aside from ordering her something every other night when she had to stay at the convention center, where her dad kept track of his campaign. That, and apologizing and saying that better things are to come, soon. Always soon... Deep down, Liz wanted her dad to lose and they could come back home and her dad get a normal job, but she had given up. She knew he would win, somehow she just knew. Liz went to high school, and was in 10th grade. She had no friends to speak of, as she was too anti-social to make any. But she was popular. Popular in the sense that almost everyday, some student would come up to her and say 'Aren't you that guy's kid who is running for president? Oh, my God!' Liz's tactic was to simply turn away and say nothing. But Liz found her refuge in talking with her numerous friends online. Using TIM, an instant messaging communication service, she had accumulated over 80 friends over the years, none of whom she knew personally. She knew them well for internet friends, though, and vice versa. She always kept her dad's status out of the conversation, though, and never released her last name. Hackers never ceased to amaze Liz. She usually got targeted by them once a week, but had never taken any damage. She learned fast and strong. Liz built her own anti-hacker software, the simply clever 'Furry-Wall.' She spent hours on end to develop the program, which performed a simple task : to deny connection from hackers. She has never revealed how it is actually done, but so far, it has never failed. Liz decided to install the program on all the computers of the employees whom worked in Hector's party. She didn't get much praise other then 'Aw, what a cute little program with a cute little name!' and the like. No one quite knew how well it worked, though. But Liz did as she monitored hacker attacks that were blocked and never went through. Her dad had no idea what else she could do... Liz had a unique mind. If the time was a different one, she may have been a hacker herself. Able to think fully in code, she could program anti-hacker software that she kept low-key. She had no intention of becoming a hacker herself, but she possessed the skill, buried deep within. Liz thought she knew hackers as well as anyone, but she was still missing something. She still had no knowledge of any 'good' hackers. That would change... Sleepy on this Friday night, Liz went to her dad, who was typing at a computer as usual. Most of the lights in the center were out, and most of the people had left. Liz approached him and told him that an hour had passed. "Oh, it's already time? Man... I'm almost done here sweety, we'll go in.... 15 minutes, okay?" Hector responded, not even bothering to look up at his daughter. "Fine... whatever." Liz replied, leaving the office room. Half an hour passed before Liz was awoken from a short nap on the lobby couch. Her dad apologized as usual, and he grabbed his things and headed out. A quick look at the clock told Liz that it was 11:05 at night. She was supposed to meet someone two hours ago, a person claiming she had an important message to give. Liz leaned her head against the car window as the lights of the highway bounced about in the vehicle. "Sorry about that, something important came up,' Hector said. Liz answered by murmuring. "Look, uh, maybe we can watch a movie tonight? I'll warm up some popcorn! It'll be fun. What do you say?" he asked, trying to lighten the mood. "Dad, it's eleven at night. I'm tired. I'm going on my computer for a bit then going to bed. Alright?" Liz replied sleepily. "Oh, uh... alright then. Maybe we can do something this weekend," "Sure..." Liz said with no emotion. No one else said a word. The whole series of events were all too common. Liz knew what to expect. In the morning, this conversation wouldn't even matter. At long last, home. Liz grabbed her backpack and headed to the door, waiting for her dad to open it. Hector closed the car door and approached the house. He scuffled around a bit, trying to find his key while dodging the swings of his briefcase. The door was opened, and Liz stepped inside. The house was large, and all the lights were on like they always were. Wooden floors, covered with rugs and tables, covered the first floor. Scuff, Liz's big black dog, lay on the couch by the fireplace. Hector sighed and turned to the right, toward the kitchen. Without haste, Liz dropped her backpack at the front door welcome mat, and walked to the left, to find carpeted white stairs. She stepped down them to a blue door. Inside this blue door lay Liz's computer room. She didn't sleep in here, and her father never came down here. The area used to be a basement, but was remodeled later on. At one wall lay a futon, complete with a furry zebra-stripped coat; at the other, there was a series of shelves layered with computer books with one small TV. The last wall held a massive desk, where wires and paper were mixed with old disks and soda cans. A giant LCD monitor stood tall on the desk. This was Liz's true home, her cave, her one safe spot. Liz locked the door behind her and walked past the boarded-up basement windows, to take position in her giant leather chair. Everything in here was a present from her dad. He thought buying all these things for Liz would make her happy. Well, Liz was content, indeed, but only with the items she had, not her dad's judgment . She placed the blame on him for giving her this life instead of a life of quality family time, but there was nothing to do now. She found her life situated around her computer work and studies. Liz awoke the computer from its slumber by pressing a key on her optical keyboard, a keyboard that uses optical light to transmit a keyboard directly onto the desk. When Liz typed on the desk, the light read where she pressed a key and fed it to the computer. It was even programmed to make a small artificial sound upon each key impact. Liz cozied herself in and took hold of her wireless mouse. She opened up TIM and signed on under 'RabidRaccoon,' her name on which she talked to others. Her list of friends popped up. To her relief, the person she was supposed to meet was still on. Liz sighed and tapped on her mouse while waiting for her friend to begin a conversation. It only took a few minutes for her to make contact. And thus, Liz began a TIM conversation that would change her forever from someone she knew well, a person who had the screen name, 'K8tieEmEks'... Liz adjusted her wire-frame glasses and read carefully the message that she had just received from her friend. It read : K8tieEmEks : Hey Coon... listen. Or read heh. There's something you gotta know... There's something happening in the hacker world. When I send this, I will sign off, for my own protection. But, we will continue when the time is ready. I will give you information piece by piece. They may not make sense at first... Look, Coon, I once knew someone. Someone from a long time ago. I met him at a message board... turned out he owned it. We chatted, got to know each other... And i haven't heard from him since. But something odd happened a few days ago. Another friend contacted... a friend from many years ago also. She said to forward this message to you. She then signed off, as I will. It seems that we have all been attached to some sort of chain... I g2g. Look, be on often. Be on as much as possible. This may be important. But it's all too weird... As soon as the message had popped up, K8tieEmEks signed off, leaving Liz unable to respond. Without anything to do, she simply copied the message to a page in her notepad program and closed the message box. It wasn't uncommon for Liz to get these types of messages. They were usually just spam, or a joke... but this felt different. Liz knew something was up... But where would she get any future messages? Could this whole thing be a prank? Feeling woozy, Liz turned off everything in her computer room and headed out. The sound of a TV blasted through the house when she stepped back into the main area. Liz's dad was on the couch, rubbing his head while a late night talk show host was making jokes and whatnot. Liz had always felt separated from her parents, but now more than ever. She kept thinking about that message she had read, and its meaning. What possible importance did Liz have? Especially that in a 'world of hackers?. Was she supposed to stop some scheme? Tired of worrying too much about it, she simply took off her cap and socks and fell into bed, which lay upstairs. Liz was awakened early morning by some scuffling about outside her door. She got up and opened it to find her dad, walking about, opening closets and trying on ties. Peering at the clock, Liz learned that it was seven in the morning on a Saturday, not the greatest moment to get up. "Dad, what are you doing, what's going on?" she asked sleepily. "Oh, sorry, Liz. I know it's early, but it's an important day. Mr. Wing is coming by the office, you remember him, right?" he answered. "Of course... that one guy helping you with your election..." "Yeah, that's right. He wants to see you," "Dad, can't this wait. Just two more hours..." "No, sorry. He's very busy, you know. He wanted to stop by and see you," "What for?" "Something about that program you made..." Liz stopped leaning against the door and stood up straight, with slight interest. "Really? What about?" "I'm not sure. But look, how about this. We spend just fifteen minutes there, and I'll take you to that, uh, restaurant you like so much for breakfast. Promise." "You mean Code Adobe?" "Yeah... yeah, sure. Darn it, where are my good socks?" he said as he walked to his bedroom. Maybe this day would turn out alright... if there was one place in town Liz belonged, it was the Code Adobe, a 24-hour restaurant that served good food, and provided internet service for laptop users. Basically, a cyber-cafe, but larger than most of i's counterparts. "Grab your laptop then, dad," Liz yelled out. She was currently saving up money for her own laptop, but still had a while to go before she could afford it. Sure, she could buy one right now, but she wanted the best available. With an allowance of fifty dollars a week, she could afford such a device. Liz placed her dad's computer on her lap while in the car. The ride lasted its usual time. Liz again found herself wondering about that message...she didn't know whether to take it seriously or not. She wondered, just who was this friend of Katie's? Before she knew it, they were at the center, and Liz got out of the car and proceeded to the front door. Inside, it was less crowded than usual because of the weekend, but people were still here. 'A campaign never ends until it's over,' Liz thought. Few phones rang, few computers had users. The common smell of the building still loomed. Mr. Wing, a taller man than Liz's dad, approached Liz. He was a longtime friend of her dad, but now seemed to be in it more for the money. "Hey, Hector! What's going on, eh?" he said cheerfully. "Oh you know, the usual. Running for president," he laughed, as Mr. Wing looked down at Liz, who was clutching the laptop in her arms. "Wow, Elizabeth. You sure have grown fast, haven't you?" he said, in his bombastic way. "I guess...." "You still making computer programs?" "Kind of..." Liz said, not looking up. "Good, good. Okay, Eliza. I'll get to the point," he said, as he folded his arms and leaned against a wall, "I've found a company that wants to buy your program. They'll pay you a handsome sum of money, I assure you," Liz's eyes grew wide for a moment. "Really?" she asked, "Um... what company?" "That, uh, one company. The one that sells computer products with cute lil' names..." "You mean 'Panda Products?'" Liz said, bitterly. "Yeah, that's it! That one." "Yeah-huh," Liz added. "Okay, look. If they buy it, this campaign will get a good amount of money. I mean, you'll be able to keep a good few bucks, too. You'll be able to buy that laptop your dad tells me ya want." "Yeah-huh," "And check this out, Hector. In their commercials, they'll say at the end, well, when they advertise furple-wall, they'll say 'Produced by your friends in the Rider campaign'! What do you think of that, Hector? Great, huh? We'll really have the advantage over the competition, eh?" he added, while laughing like a moron. "Yeah, maybe. What do you think, Liz?" dad asked. Liz said nothing. "Liz?" dad asked again. Liz looked up. "No," she said sternly. "Wait a minute, no? But Liz, this would give us some good cash. It might just win us the election-" "No! I'm not selling my product that I worked hard on to a company that takes nothing seriously! Their products are crap, dad. Trust me. And they all have these cute little names... the world of computer programing isn't cute! Nor are issues dealing with hackers. And Mr. Wing, it's called Furry-Wall for heaven's sake! You can't even get the name right! I made this program to help you, dad. I made it to help your campaign from hacker attacks. And I barely got thank you. You don't even know how much protection my program's giving you! And now, you just want to sell it? You want to sell it to a company that would probably dumb it down to a point where it won't even work properly?" "But, honey... we could really-" "Money. That's all you want is money. That, and winning this election. I thought you didn't pay attention to me a year ago, but that's nothing compared to this. You try, dad. But you don't try hard enough. You just don't have time for me..." "Liz-" "Forget it. I'll be in the car. Take your time. I don't care," And with that, Liz turned and slammed the front door behind her. "Whoa," Mr. Wing said, "What's wrong with her?" Hector said nothing, and gave Mr. Wing a slight glare before heading to his office. "What'd I say?" Mr. Wing asked, while shrugging. Liz was waiting in the car, scrunched down on the leather seat, very peeved. She was grasping the laptop tightly. She felt that she wasn't appreciated by people who knew her personally... only those whom she had only met over the internet were her true friends; the only people she could relate to. Liz felt as if she were caught in a downward spiral in her real world, as if she were being trapped forever in the cyber-universe. Not at all an uncommon feeling for 'her kind'... And there was another, once like her. There was someone out there that she could truly relate to, even though she was yet to find this person... Liz's dad started the car up and gave his usual apologies. Liz said nothing and sat, staring out the window, still clutching onto the laptop. So off the car went, silently running on its hydrogen fuel cells. Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at the Code Adobe. Liz's dad pulled up to the parking lot and parked the car. He sighed and looked down at the wheel. Liz unbuckled the seat belt and exited the vehicle, her dad getting out slowly. The outside of the Code Adobe had a retro look, like a '50s' diner. Inside, everything had a more futuristic look, with sleek colors and bright chairs. The floor had a black and white checkerboard pattern, while fans on the ceiling had a blueish tint. The windows were large ovals that viewed the outside world. The atmosphere usually remained the same - light 'Techno' music filled the air, mixed in with chatter and a sonata of computer noises. The people here were mostly teens, most with funky outfits and dyed hair. The waiters were all young adults too, and spoke slang like they breathed air. Liz felt right at home. But it was an odd feeling. She always found herself wondering why it was common for computer 'geeks' to dye their hair and wear such outfits nowadays. It was been so commonplace, but Liz wore normal clothes and had light brown hair. She never thought about changing any of it. And many of the people here had piercings or tattoos... Many of them were hackers... Many of them may be criminals... But it didn't matter to Liz. She treated everyone like her own kind. Many people here, including herself, were regulars. It wasn't often that you would see a stranger. Now and then, a family would come in. The usual type of family - kids, normal parents, maybe a grandparent. Mostly those who just got to town off the nearby interstate. They usually sat down and ordered something, but always looked eccentric about the people around them. Liz never saw such a family more than once... Liz got past the revolving doors in front and proceeded inside to the waiting booth. Thomas, who was only a few years older than Liz and had dyed hair himself and was the usual seater, shuffled over and grabbed a menu. "Liz, what's up?" he said in his usual tone. "Not much, man. You?" "Just chillin', Lizzy." Liz ran her fingers across her laptop. "Yo, where's the old man?" Tom asked, while leaning on the booth. "He's coming," Hector entered and breathed deeply. "Hey, what's up, Mr. President?" Tom said while smiling and chewing his gum. "Uh... look, could you just show us to our table and not goof around this time?" "Sure, Bro," he said while grabbing another menu, "Follow me, man," Liz's dad rubbed his coat and glanced at Liz, as if to say 'I don't want to be here and you know it,' He followed a good distance away from Liz while walking to their seats. Several of the people sitting gave Liz a 'What's up?', or a welcoming gesture as usual. Liz took her seat at a booth in the corner, her dad took the other across from her. "Okay, like, what do you want?" Tom asked. Without looking at the menu, Liz asked for a cappucino and a breakfast burrito, while her dad asked for coffee and french toast with bacon. 'You got it, Mr. 'G,'" Tom said as he collected the menus. "Uh... actually, it's Mr. R..." "Whatever, dude..." Tom replied as he walked away. Liz's dad took off his glasses and sighed while Liz turned the laptop on and plugged a cable from the wall into the computer. Wireless internet services were abundant, but Liz, like many others, preferred the more classic way of going through a wired network. The radio waves in the air were so clogged with traffic, trying to get a good connection in this time was a nightmare. The very technology that brought the internet into a new era made the older technology seem more dominant... But by using the internet trough wires, you were much more liable to 'catch something', or so was the term when a hacker or virus got into your computer. But Liz's 'Furry Wall' had yet to fail. Its simple yet ingenious programming had yet to be cracked. And since only a few used it, hackers would pay little attention to it. Liz was suddenly checking message boards, chatting with friends, and watching the news on TIM's News Broadcast System in a matter of minutes. Her dad just sat and stared at his daughter, wondering what exactly she had become. Liz took a sip of her drink without even looking at it, keeping one hand on the keyboard. "Liz, I uh... want to talk. Are you listening?" Liz simply murmured 'Mmm-hmm' without any other action. "Liz, you've uh, you've grown up fast. I'm not quite sure I know you all that well anymore. I mean, I know that your at the age that you really don't want to talk about anything to your parents, but... you're different," Liz looked up for a moment than looked back at the screen. "Liz, i'm not sure about the types of things you do on your computer. I don't know if you own a web site, I don't know if you talk to friends who you know nothing about, I don't know if... you do illegal activities," "No, dad. I don't do 'illegal activities'. If anything, I stop hackers from performing activities..." "Yes, Liz... so you've said, but-" "Here's your breakfast," Tom interrupted. "Thanks," Hector replied. He began to cut his toast when his cell phone rang. He took it out and began talking, but had difficulty doing so. The many voices in the diner coupled with sounds from the kitchen inhibited him from hearing, so he said 'Hold on a moment," "Liz, I'm going to the bathroom so I can talk to Mr. Wing. I'll be right back," "Yeah..." Liz replied as she ripped off a piece of her burrito. The many conversations occurring on her TIM took a pause and Liz sat up and flexed her neck for a moment. Then she looked around. Something was amiss. Three strange men were sitting across from her, at the counter. They wore sunglasses and almost looked like FBI agents. A flutter ran through Liz, which was a natural reaction - a small phobia of any law enforcer she saw. Assuming it was nothing, she went back to typing, unaware that the three were looking at her behind her back. Suddenly, a chat window opened up, started by 'K8tieEmEks'. Liz took focus and read closely the message she had received, and again, her sender had signed off. At first, she didn't take in what was wrote in the window, and she read it again. It read, 'Liz, get out of there. I can't tell you anything now, but they're after you. You should know who I'm talking about. Get out now!'. And that was it. Liz looked up at the men again, not appearing suspicious. She looked down again at the message, and again looked up. She then took action. She swiftly pressed a hot key on the computer which quit all programs and shuts the system down. She quickly folded up the laptop and got up. Liz turned a corner and opened a door to find herself in the women's bathroom of Code Adobe, a bit shaken up. She walked slowly over to the sinks and leaned against the wall, hugging the laptop tight. Two girls her age, also regulars, were conversing in front of her. They finished their talk and proceeded to the door. One of them stopped for a moment and said, 'Hi, Liz!' Liz gave a slow response, saying 'Hey...' as the two stepped out. Liz waited for a minute, thinking all of this was her overactive imagination or K8tieEmEks was just pulling a joke. But that wasn't like her, Liz thought. "What's going on?" Liz said to herself quietly. She swallowed and stepped out of the room, peering out first. The men were no longer there, and she could see her dad's back. Liz walked out casually and sat back down at the table to finish her meal. Whatever happiness or comfort she had the Code Adobe had suddenly vanished. Liz stayed off the computer and stayed quiet as she finished her meal. Her dad paid the bill and Tom said a final 'See ya all later,' to them. Liz waited for her dad to unlock the car door. While she leaned on the side of the car, she spotted a black car with tinted windows speed past and make a turn for the onramp onto the interstate. She found herself feeling insecure, not knowing what these strangers - if they even existed - wanted from her... Date : May 23rd For a month nothing happened. No odd messages from K8tieEmEks, no mysterious men in black coats, and nothing else out of the ordinary. Liz had began to forget about those incidents which took place on those days and began to continue her anti-hacker program studies. Liz, now out of school and ready to start summer vacation, sleepily rested on the couch in her large living room. The lights out, the time late, her dog asleep on the floor. Lightning flickered outside, followed by a slight thunder. Liz's dad had been gone all day to some important meeting, leaving Liz alone at home. Her body stretched out on the couch, Liz watched the news with little interest as different hot topics came onto the big screen TV. Sometimes they were talking about the success of the Mars mission. Humans landed on Mars almost ten years ago, and after the first crew returned to Earth, it was decided to send another crew in. More followed afterwards, and they were already talking about possible colonization. 'If they want somewhere to live, why not just choose the moon? It's much closer...' Liz thought to herself. Then came the topic about the new Magnetic-Fusion powered cars. These cars had the ability to soar through the air like helicopters using magnetic technology. They came with many more safety devices than the currently used vehicles that traveled on the ground. It was promised that traffic would be a thing of the past, and that the airways would be much easier to enjoy than any roadway. 'So then they'd have to invent flying traffic signs, flying buses, flying semi-trucks, flying fire trucks... ha, that's funny,' Liz thought to herself. Then news broke out that another hacker attack had occurred and the cult blamed for it was the 'Yumazki,' a new hacker cult that had just been created only two weeks ago, but was responsible for over twenty attacks in Asia. 'It's madness,' Turn Software's (the company that ran TIM and other products) founder said at a press conference, 'We must stop these cults in the tracks. Never since IMX's rise to fame has the threat of hacker attacks been greater. They take advantage of the system, they take advantage of cross-continental communication programs to exploit their insidious deeds. Turn Software will not be held responsible, but we will keep an ever-constant watch upon those who wish to cause terror through the cyber-network,' he said before stepping down from the podium. 'Why not just -' but Liz's thought was never achieved as a faint sound suddenly started up from an unknown location. At first, Liz just lay there longer, but the small beeping sound got to her, and she muted the TV and got up. With the TV off, she could home in on the sound source. She stepped over Scuff and walked through the darkness. The sound grew louder as she stepped past the stairs and the light from her computer room came into view. Liz paused for a moment, leaning against the banister, then continued onward. Her bare feet touched the carpet of the computer room as she entered. She stared at her computer screen. Nothing was wrong with it. The download window was still there, displaying the download percentage of a 500 megabyte file containing program tools for her software, along with nearly two gigabytes of new music. She had started these downloads about a half hour ago, and the screen told Liz that they were almost done. But then it struck Liz that she could no longer hear the beeping sound. It had eluded her for the moment. She stood for a minute, waiting to see if it would come back, but it didn't. Liz walked back to the living room and looked at the clock. '1:42 AM', it read. Her dad sure was taking his time. Grogginess swept through Liz, so she turned off the TV and proceeded to the computer room again, walking down the stairs and into the lower portion of the house. She simply stuck around until the downloads were complete. Too tired to listen to her new music or test out the program tools, she simply signed off TIM and shut down the computer. Liz yawned and exited the room, turning left, then right to walk up the stairs into her bedroom. Nearly a decade ago, there were several major operating-system developers, each competing for more power and money. Eight years ago, they finally signed a pact of compromise after the bad economy of the year. Each company merged and produced a new operating system, which was a hybrid of all the previous company's products. The program, simply called ScyTech, was a perfect operating system with few flaws. It quickly rendered all others obsolete. Of course, this led to strengths and weaknesses. The biggest weakness was the fact that all computers were now practically the same and ran on the same network. Without a diversity of systems, hackers could easily cause much more damage than when systems were more unique. But the government was quick to spot the weakness, and began developing the most high-tech anti-hacker, anti-virus software in history, far out-performing previous safety guards. For a while, computers were very safe. But times changed and the world was now plunging into a slowly looming chaos. The government could seemingly not make newer, stronger software faster than elite hackers can break the code. While ScyTech software was doing a fine job at keeping lone novice hackers out, expert hackers were becoming rampant. They usually left a trace or a 'hollow area' in the network that allowed the more petty hackers to rush in and claim success. The problem was not as big as it was over a decade ago, but it was slowly growing. And Liz was just a lone knight trying to do her small part in preventing hacker domination. Though she never got to the root of the matter - why hackers hack - she knows them only to be dangerous. And like the rest of her generation, she had grown up believing all hackers are bad, and that she must do anything to stop them. Like her similar others, Liz felt alone... Liz awoke suddenly. She had heard something that had echoed inside her. She lay awake in her bed, her pulse quickening - the natural reaction of the body when it is asleep and suddenly wakes the mind. A beep. A beep was heard. It was distant, and Liz wasn't too sure she heard it all together. Was she still dreaming? Liz sat up and looked at her glow-in-the-dark clock in the corner of her room. It was 4:05 in the morning. Surely her dad was home by now. Had he made the sound? Another beep. Maybe it was a smoke detector. Maybe it was her dad operating the microwave downstairs. But she dismissed the ideas. This beep was heard before. She knew what it was. Just a short interval. One split second sound then silence for fifteen seconds. She sat up, counting for about two minutes. Gathering the nerve to investigate, Liz left her room and proceeded downstairs. She looked around in the living room. All was silent and dark. Faint blue lights from outside barely filled the living room. The beep again. Fearfully, she proceeded to her computer room. Her pulse quickened again as she breathed slower. As she turned the corner, she saw a faint light being projected onto the floor. It wasn't the brightness of her computer monitor, but there was something on. Liz swallowed hard and turned the corner into her computer room. Her green 'tower' light was on. She looked at her monitor. At first she didn't notice anything. Another beep. She got a little closer, squinting at something in the lower left corner of the screen. A slight white light... 'Nonsense,' she though, 'I... I turned this off. I must... I must be dreaming,'. One last beep came from her speakers. This one different from the others. It was longer, and full of more dread. As Liz got closer to the small lettering on the screen, she stepped back in disbelief. 'All files successfully deleted'. The words read. They stuck there on the screen, leaving Liz in a daze. Regaining though, Liz dove for the power cord and yanked it out of the wall. She sat there, quivering. It was like a nightmare. She was stuck in a nightmare. 'Sleep paralysis,' she thought, 'It's. Just. Sleep paralysis,'. But if it was, how could she be thinking that so consciously right now? Breathing deeply, she calmed herself, thinking none of this really happened. She plugged the cord back in and felt the slightest bit of hope rise. She stood there, looking at the screen as it booted up. Then it flashed 'No Operating System or Crucial Items found.' Liz took in what she read. For a moment, nothing happened. Then she suddenly collapsed face-forward onto her futon. She rubbed her eyes and tried to hold back her tears, but they still came. Sniffling, she came to realize that she wasn't crying because she just lost a year's worth of data, but because she had been the victim of a hacker attack. She felt like she had just lost a battle for the first time and this was the pain of defeat. But then she felt something else - fear. She knew that someone was after her. She knew someone was doing this only to her. She lay on the futon, trembling. She had made a copy of her files on a disc just a week ago, and basically had pretty much everything. With a few hours of patience, she could be up and running again. Liz knew that there was something... perhaps something that happened in the past week. But she was too tired to think anymore, and before she realized it, she was asleep again, this time on the futon as the light from her monitor lit the room only so slightly. And she slept under the stars; those letters on her screen... Liz awoke the next morning, feeling achy and tired. It seemed like all that had happened last night didn't happen at all, and for a moment, Liz dismissed it all for a dream. But peering back at her computer monitor, she was back in reality. She groaned loudly and got up, rubbing her eyes and stretching. A small amount of sunlight poked through the boarded-up windows. She knew what she would be doing all day - reinstalling virtually everything. That being the only thing on her mind, she sat down on the floor by her desk and started shuffling around, looking for her most recent back-up disks. The disks were basically very small CD's that were inserted into a plastic cube. Eachwas meant to be popped into a drive and read. Each one held about 30 gigabytes of information. After just beginning her search, there was a knock at her door. It opened and Liz's dad walked in. Liz looked up from her position. "There you are. I've been looking for you, Liz," he said. "Wha-why?" It was then that she noticed one of her dad's hands was behind his back. "Well, I thought you might want your present," "Present? For what?" Liz's dad looked oddly at her. "Uh, it's your birthday. Have you forgotten?" "Birthday? It is? Oh, Oh! It is, isn't it?" She had completely forgotten amidst the chaos that had ensued. Hector exposed his hidden hand and there emerged a present, wrapped in white paper. He handed it to her. "Hope you like it," Liz examined the gift and bounced it in her hands once. She had completely forgotten about last night's trauma for the time being. The package was somewhat heavy for its size, and it made no sound. "Go ahead, open it," Liz hesitated and then tore open the package, exposing its contents. She suddenly grew excited when she saw what it was. The gift was a 12-Inch screen laptop named the 'Aqua Trance,' a new model only a week old. Liz suddenly remembered how much she had wanted one, and for the moment, her agony turned into happiness. The computer came complete with a very sharp foot-long screen, well crafted keys, high quality speakers, and over 300 gigabytes of space - about 100 less than her desktop. Without further hesitation, she slowly opened the box, without even looking at the back of it, which was full of detailed pictures and specifications. She carefully slid out the titanium casing, painted with a light blue. After removing the styrofoam, she slowly opened the case and gawked at the perfection within. The keys were unlike any other, very elegant and easy on the eye. The screen was clean and dust-free, something she had always admired new screens for. On the back were all the necessary ports and connections. The computer used a newly developed wireless technology too; using highly-compacted radio waves, it was able to connect with a nearby station. As long as the station was within three miles, Liz could access a network which used wires to connect to the internet and process requests. Unlike completely wireless networks, this one had no slow or downtime. It was still able to connect to the satellite wireless network, though, in case there were no stations nearby. And it all came in one little perfect package.It was love at first sight. "So, do you like it? Did I get the right one?" Liz looked up and nodded happily. "It's perfect," she said, "Thanks. Thanks a lot," "Well, I knew how much you wanted one. And Liz, I took the whole day off, so we can spend some time together. I know it's tough on you, tougher than usual these past days but... the election won't go on too much longer," Liz closed the laptop and looked up. "And... what if you become president?" she asked.. "Things will be.. much different, you know," "Yeah... they will," "Come on, Liz, I'll take you to your favorite place," "Alright, one sec," Hector left the room, leaving Liz alone to admire her gift. She quickly realized why she was on the floor in the first place. She scrambled around some more until she found her latest backup package, which contained numerous disks. She was about to insert them into her computer's drives, when she found herself looking at her new laptop pondering. Liz decided to wait on the big computer, and instead, install everything onto her new small and compact laptop. So she grabbed her shoes and left the room, leaving the computer alone and useless. It didn't even come to her thoughts that she had been operating most of her life's usual basis on that machine. She must have spent more than eight months worth of hours on the computer, and she just left it there without further consideration... Liz found herself sitting at a table in the 'Code Adobe.' Few people were here, but everyone took notice to her new 'toy.' Tom commented by saying, 'The Aqua, eh? Man, those things ain't cheap. I'm still saving up for one by working here. I bet that took a bite out of your wallet, eh, Mr. Rider?' "Yes, thank you, Tom. Please bring us our food, hmm?" "Yeah, whatever..." Tom said as he walked away. "Liz, listen. I've got some important things to do soon. Actually, I'm going to be on the road for a whole month. And I know that you're not really into these things, but I think you'll have to come with me," "A whole month? But dad, what-" "It's for my campaign, of course. But after this, things will be settled down for a while. You really have no idea how hard it is to run for such a job. I'm nervous about it, you know. I've been nervous about it since it started, but it's almost over. There won't be that much to do soon." "I see..." "Yeah, I know, it's been hard. I know how you feel," Tom brought the food and set it down on the table. "Talk more after we eat, alright?" Liz said. She popped in the last of her backup disks, which began downloading its information. A few bites into her food, it was already done. A few minutes of tweaking the computer's settings to her likings, and it felt just like home again. She immediately got on TIM, having the thought of telling everyone the day's events. She was about to, but then a name caught her eye. On her contact list was the name 'Reality Xcapement.' Liz was startled. She had never met this person, much less put his or hers name on her contact list. Not to mention that this person was on now, ready to communicate. Suddenly, the revelation came back to Liz that something was out there, controlling her, manipulating her. After taking a chug of her drink, she slowly double-clicked on the mysterious name. A blank window popped up. Struggling for things to say, Liz just put a 'Hello?' down and sent it. Five, ten, fifteen seconds passed and nothing happened - no response. Maybe it was just some sort of glitch or something, she thought. Liz looked up at her dad, who was reading the newspaper. She looked back down hastily when a beep noted to her that there was a response. Liz read carefully. Reality Xcapement : Sorry for the slow response, I had to perform some checks on ya. Rabid Raccoon : Who... who are you? Reality Xcapement : You should be asking yourself who you are... Rabid Raccoon : Ha, funny. Come on, I don't have time to play around... Reality Xcapement : What is time, exactly? Reality Xcapement : hmm... Rabid Raccoon : Ok, well, it's been fun and all but I think you'll block you now. Reality Xcapement : Wait. Reality Xcapement : Hold on. Rabid Raccoon : ? Reality Xcapement : Sorry about that, It's just that I have an important message for you. Rabid Raccoon : From who? Reality Xcapement : K8tie. Rabid Raccoon : K8tie?! Reality Xcapement : Yes, your friend. She says that all plans are final. She just needs to talk to you one last time. Tonight. Rabid Raccoon : Look... Rabid Raccoon : I'm getting sick and tired of all this. Rabid Raccoon : Do you have any idea what I've been through recently? Reality Xcapement : yes... Rabid Raccoon : I got people deleting my computer.. Rabid Raccoon : I feel like I'm being stalked... Rabid Raccoon : And I feel like I have no control. I don't know K8tie anymore. I thought I did, now I don't I dunno what kind of prank you all are trying to pull but... Reality Xcapement : I know, Liz, I know Rabid Raccoon : Who are you? How did you know my name? Reality Xcapement : I have good connections... Reality Xcapement : Just hear me out, ok? Rabid Raccoon : ... Reality Xcapement : I don't know what's going on, either. I'm just a pawn in some bigger scheme. I'm simply a messenger. Reality Xcapement : K8tie only needs a yes or no from you. You will find out everything tonight. Be on. Rabid Raccoon : Tell me something I need to know. Anything. Reality Xcapement : She says there's something big going down in the hacker world. I don't know what, though. Rabid Raccoon : I've been told that. Reality Xcapement : Just be on, she says. Rabid Raccoon : Fine. if this is some joke, I've fallen for it. I don't care. And tell me... how old are you? Reality Xcapement : My... late 20s. Rabid Raccoon : Are you kidding? You sound a lot younger. Reality Xcapement : I'm not kidding. Look, I gotta go. Rabid Raccoon : Wait... Reality Xcapement : Yes? Rabid Raccoon : Can you at least... tell me your name? Reality Xcapement : ... Reality Xcapement : It's Roger. Rabid Raccoon : Roger? Reality Xcapement : Yes, goodbye. With that, the stranger signed off, leaving Liz with more questions than answers. 'Maybe... maybe I will find out tonight,' she thought. Her dad paid for the bill and the two headed back out to the car. Liz was in a trance-like state. 'Am I supposed to be some kind of hero? Some kind of savior from the hackers? No, I'm... just a simple kid. A kid who makes programs... no way, I don't believe it,' A thought which looped in her mind... Liz arrived back home that night, having been tired out from going out to dinner and a movie. She had not spent so much time with her dad in over a year... Her desktop computer lay dormant in the corner. She opened her laptop once more and kept it open on her lap as she lay down on her futon, dimmed the lights, and turned on her TV. She rarely watched the news anymore, as she was sick and tired of seeing two guys talk about the presidential campaign at their desks, discussing why Hector Rider was bad, or why Hector Rider was good, and so on for hours. Liz just flipped to the movie channel to watch whatever was on at the moment. She put an 'Away Message' on, which would also mute all application sounds made by TIM, and watched the TV sleepily. She fell asleep before she knew it, leaving her computer on a screen saver. An hour later, she suddenly awoke and quickly checked her messages. There were the usual gaggle of messages from friends, but nothing from 'K8tie,' who was not on at the time either. Liz worried that she might have missed her, so she identified herself as active again. 'K8tie' suddenly signed on when she did this. K8tieEmEks : Glad you're on, Coon. Not much time to explain. It's now or never, it's your choice. But we need you. We've tried many people, and no one has ever wanted to join. The people we try... the people we test, none of them want to help and we are running out of time. RabidRaccoon : What are you talking about? You're really starting to aggravate me... K8tieEmEks : I apologize for that, Coon. Look... I can't tell you everything now but... there's a hacker who needs you. RabidRaccoon : Is that it? K8tieEmEks : Yes but... RabidRaccoon : It's all coming together... all this time you've just wanted me to join some hacker cult. You want to exploit my skills to do harm... K8tieEmEks : No. No it's not like that all... Coon, this is for good. I know it may not sound like it, and you may not believe it but... there are good hackers out there. RabidRaccoon : Ha, right... K8tieEmEks : Coon, I'm not pushing you to do this but what if I could truthfully tell you that you could save many lives, that you may even help... save the world as we know it. RabidRaccoon : lol i've heard that one before K8tieEmEks : Coon... Liz... please... K8tieEmEks : Think about it... K8tieEmEks : Think about everything. The men you saw, they were after you... K8tieEmEks : There's a purpose for everything A shiver ran down Liz's spine. For a brief moment she thought, 'What if this is true,' but she shook it out of her head. She wanted to believe it, but just couldn't. She decided to play along for now... K8tieEmEks : Liz? RabidRaccoon : Fine. i'll go along with the gag. K8tieEmEks : Thank you for trying Liz... most haven't even gotten this far. RabidRaccoon : So what type of heroic deed am I supposed to be doing, now that i'm your last hope lol K8tieEmEks : Just a second... K8tieEmEks : Hook your computer up to a printer please RabidRaccoon : uh... ok K8tieEmEks : Thank you... K8tieEmEks : I can only show you the path, start you on your journey... K8tieEmEks : Just as he did for... RabidRaccoon : Who? K8tieEmEks : Never mind. Incoming. Realizing what she meant, Liz turned on her wireless printer and put a piece of paper in it. The printer activated itself and fed the paper through. The paper came out the other end in a matter of seconds, full of colored ink. Liz grabbed it and looked. It seemed to be a brochure for a computer camp. RabidRaccoon : Oh, this is my big adventure. You're sending me to a summer camp in Cumberland? K8tieEmEks : Heh, not quite... K8tieEmEks : Tell your dad that you've decided to go to this camp. It's a month long. Get it? He's gone for a month correct? RabidRaccoon : You scare me... K8tieEmEks : Tell him they picked you out and 9 others to come to this camp, all expenses paid. RabidRaccoon : Uh... K8tieEmEks : Liz, you're not actually going there... RabidRaccoon : Oh, I'm not, eh? K8tieEmEks : Your first stop is in Roanoke, Virginia. RabidRaccoon : Virginia?! K8tieEmEks : I'm sorry this is coming so fast... K8tieEmEks : but our type usually don't have the choice to linger around... K8tieEmEks : Take a bus to Roanoke. Go to 104 Green Drive. There you will meet someone... she will guide you further. This is all I can say. She is not expecting you. You can back out at any time. As of now, you and I are the only ones who know what you're doing... supposedly. RabidRaccoon : K8tie... K8tieEmEks : I have done my part, Liz. I will not wait any longer. Go or stay, it's your choice. We will not meet again. Not until... you succeed. It's been nice knowing you, Liz. Godspeed. And with those words, she signed off, leaving Liz in a trance. Had this conversation really happened? What if it was all a trap of some sort? And Liz had never heard of 'good hackers.' It all seemed unreal... Liz closed her laptop and gazed through the small opening in the her computer room that provided a glimpse outside. She kept telling herself that it had to be a joke. She was no hero. She would stay home... But before she knew it, Liz had shown the paper to her dad, gotten a yes, packed her backpack, carried her laptop under her arm, and was waiting at the bus depot... The only thing she left at home were answers, taking the questions with her... It was early evening when Liz's bus departed for her mysterious location. She had stepped inside the sleek double-decker bus, taken a small elevator up to the upper level, and took a seat on a comfy seat with blue padding. The windows were tinted; the roof above her was full of switches for lights, radio, or air conditioning control. These newly modeled busses, which came out only a year ago, had all the comforts of a jet-liner's first class section, along with internet access, of course. A businessman sat a few rows in front of her, an elderly woman sat in the front of the bus, and a small boy was sitting near his older sister, who looked about Liz's age. Liz sat way in the back, as if instinctively. The lower level had about ten or twelve people on board, making the passengers few and far in between. Riding such a bus wasn't cheap, of course, but the luxury it provided over economy busses was well worth the price. Liz began feeling more nervous as time passed. She could be traveling to somewhere very dangerous. She could be in over her head. She was leaving home for a month as well - something she had never done. And she had lied to her father. What would happen if he were to call the camp, or find out by other means what she had done? She felt like a runaway waiting to be caught. But she felt this strange protective barrier around her. So far, it was if someone else was help guiding her and keeping her safe. Hackers - she knew there was at least one hacker doing all this. The bus's engine revved up and with a jolt, it began moving. The driver came on the speaker and announced tonight's destinations. The final stop would be Roanoke, where the bus would then turn and return to Liz's hometown, leaving her stranded in a mysterious town. She only had one suitcase. It was filled with $200 cash to help keep Liz able to pay for goods if needed. She obtained the money by telling her dad that it was a technology fee for the camp. 'Well, i'm a liar and a thief now," Liz thought, 'I'm halfway to 'hackerdom.'' A few changes of clothes and computer gear made up the rest of Liz's carry on luggage. And that was it, aside from her laptop... Bus transportation had become very popular recently, and none other as much as the new 'Express Bus' transportation method that was sweeping the county. These buses, one of which Liz was riding, could ride through town like any other bus, but also had the ability to utilize a special section of highway. Specially designed highways across the country had a small section that used magnetic rails that worked in conjunction with the busses. Similar to early 'Bullet Train' technology in Japan, these buses hit speeds of about 100 miles an hour or more, as they tore down the highway at high speeds. Motorists on the main portion of the roads had grown accustomed to seeing these busses operating, and they were quickly overcoming the already failing train systems in America that had been used for so long. When a marked town approached, the bus would veer off back into the normal highway and entered the town as normal, dropping off passengers, getting back on the highway, and continuing along its determined route. 'Express Busses' were providing a quick way to get around, at about the quarter of the cost of riding an airplane. Liz's ride to Roanoke would take two and a half hours, counting in stops in between. She had only ever used an 'Express Bus' once before. The bus pulled out of town as the city lights began to flicker on. Liz went ahead and turned her computer on, as well as plugging it into an internet port to her side. She opened up TIM. It had been weeks since she had any casual discussions with her friends, and she thought this would be a great time to. It might be her last for a while... The bus pulled off into the highway and slowed its speed as the driver announced they were about to enter the 'Magne-tram.. Liz looked out her window. A gate was waiting to be opened. This was the time when the driver made any final checks before taking off. A few minutes later, he announced that they were departing and to enjoy the ride. Liz spent time telling her friends that she would not be home for awhile, but didn't say why. She didn't reveal anything about this new life she was developing. She had many people to talk to. With a sudden bolt of energy, the bus took off, its engine becoming more quiet, while the wind outside grew louder. The landscape began moving quickly. The outskirts of Liz's town vanished quickly, and it was then she felt alone. Talking to old friends lifted Liz's spirit. She spent about an hour in a chat room, chatting with people she had once talked to all the time. Eventually, the chat room died down as people signed off. Liz looked outside. Distant city lights were racing by. Liz realized she wasn't aware how many times the bus had stopped in towns, and that she had lost track of all time. She also realized that the lights above her weren't on, casting an eerie darkness in the back corner we she sat. Liz turned off TIM and looked at her computer's clock. It was ten after nine. With the sudden feeling of hunger, Liz got up and stretched. The bus rode so smoothly that walking around in it felt like walking around in a building. When she got up, she looked around. There were only two people up here with her now - the small boy and girl her age. She was asleep, while the boy was attentively playing a handheld video game. Liz looked at them for a second before taking the elevator down to the lower level. She left her computer on and plugged in at her seat. About a dozen people were down here. Some listening to music, some asleep, some reading the paper, a few on computers. Everyone was neatly tucked into their seats, awaiting their destinations. Everyone had their overhead lights on, making the bottom seem much brighter. Liz walked up to the small snack bar, behind the driver's room. A cash register lay on top of the desk. Behind it were racks holding assorted snacks, and a small fridge rested near it. Nobody was at the bar at the moment. Liz took out a ten dollar bill. A young brown-haired man, sitting on a seat near the bar and reading a paper, looked up. "You wanna buy something?" he asked. "Yeah," Liz replied. "Okay, just a sec," He put his paper down and got behind the small counter, pressing a button on the register. "What can I get ya?" "Um...a bottle of Coke and a bag of chips." "Sure," He grabbed a bag of chips off the rack and opened the fridge for the drink. He placed the items on the counter. "That'll be five-fifty," Liz handed over the bill and he gave back the change from the purchase. "So, eh, what's a kid like you doing out here by yourself? Where ya going?" "Roanoke," Liz replied. "You look familiar, like I seen ya somewhere," Liz said nothing. "Call me crazy, but you look like Hector Rider's kid. Heh," Liz simply smiled as she grabbed her food and proceeded back to the small elevator. The elevator began moving upwards, but all of a sudden, it stopped moving. The small light inside it turned off for a moment. When the light came back on, the elevator groaned and proceeded to the top, leaving Liz slightly shaken. When Liz exited the lift and walked back to her seat, the lights in the upper part also turned off for a moment. They pulsated slightly afterwards. Liz sat and checked her computer. It worked fine, but when she tried to get on TIM, she got an error indicating that the server could not be detected, meaning internet access in the bus was down. Liz looked up and turned her light on. The driver came on the speaker. "We seem to be experiencing some electronic interference, everybody. This is fairly common when using the Magne-tram and should cease very soon. We apologize for any inconvenience," Liz stretched her neck to look over her seat. The boy was now turned backwards, his hands over the seat edge. He was staring at Liz with curious eyes, his mouth hidden behind the seat. Liz gave a small smile back and scrunched back down into her seat. A minute of silence passed. Liz was looking outside her window with fatigue and boredom, not expecting anything unusual to happen. Then out of the blue, a small humming noise came. It grew louder quickly and soon turned into a high-pitched ring. Liz looked around nervously. The ringing ended and was concluded by a small popping sound - the type of sound when a light bulb burns out. For the moment, nothing had seemingly happened; all the lights were still on. Cautiously, Liz removed the line from her computer that was hooked up to the bus and providing her with internet access. Just then, the sound of an electric current whizzed past Liz. She could even feel a slight tingle from it. All the lights began to flicker and turn off, one by one. The electric sound grew louder and the lights turned off more quickly. The speaker from which the driver had spoken through now began emitting a static sound. Liz grew nervous and scared. Something was happening - something that wasn't supposed to happen. Once again, deep inside, she felt that feeling that she was being stalked... The bus stopped with a sudden jolt. Liz grabbed her computer so it wouldn't be thrown forward. Everything ceased motion and sound. All the lights were off, there was no sound, and it was very dark inside the massive vehicle. Liz looked outside. Car lights were flashing by on the main part of the highway while the bus didn't move an inch. Liz looked across the aisle. The two kids were gone from their seats. She stood up and grabbed her laptop and hastily walked down the steps to get back to the bottom of the bus. The driver was scampering about, trying to calm everyone down. Liz glanced around. The lights suddenly began to flicker again, and eventually turned back on. The driver announced that he was going to radio back to the depot to make sure everything was alright. "It seems that we have experienced an electrical surge which shut down our systems. As you can see, our backups are kicking in and we should be back on the road in no time. Please remain calm and we should have this problem fixed very soon," Liz sat on the steps, observing what was going on. She peered toward the second floor - it was still dark. She decided that maybe it was just a random occurrence and wasn't anything involving her. She sighed and tapped her fingers on her computer, A few minutes passed. During that time, the engine had been turning on and off as well as other systems like the air conditioner. It seemed like all the systems would be back up and running in a matter of a few moments. Then there was a new sound. It started in the background and grew louder and louder. Liz indicated what it was - a helicopter. She had ridden in them before when her father was an amateur pilot. Deep down, Liz hoped that the helicopter would pass by and continue, not stopping above the bus. But it did. Its loud rotating blades surrounded the bus. The people on the floor were looking out the window, trying to figure out what it was. Liz stood up, once again feeling shaky. She stepped backwards a few steps to get out of sight. Then time stopped as an event took place - an event that Liz thought she could only see in movies. The doors of the bus burst open with force and two men dressed in black ran in. Liz recognized them immediately - they looked exactly like the men at the 'Code Adobe' that Liz had seen, the men who looked like FBI agents. But Liz knew they weren't. And this time they toted handguns - which were fully exposed. Liz hurried back up to the second floor and huddled near the entrance. The men downstairs spoke firmly and quickly. Liz listened with petrified fear. "What do you want? Who are you?" "We're looking for someone. No one move, no one gets hurt," they exclaimed. Liz heard people gasping and a few scream. "Just remain calm, we'll leave in a minute," They spoke so peacefully and without anger that it scared Liz. She knew she had to react immediately. She knew who they were looking for. She grabbed her computer and ran to the other end of the bus, thinking she would hide under a seat. Her heart was racing now. But then she saw something hit a window. She could barely hear it over the chopper's engine but investigated anyway. She stepped up to a window on her left as another object hit the window. She peered down to see a woman parked to the side of the Express Bus barrier in a red convertible. She had a shoe in her hand and looked prepared to throw it. Cars honked in annoyance as they swerved around her. She started screaming as loud as she could and Liz could just hear her. Mixed with hand gestures, she was apparently trying to tell Liz to use the emergency latch to bust open the window. Liz couldn't see her face very well in the dark, but she soon realized that it was the same girl she had seen earlier with the small boy. Liz realized that she must be trying to help somehow. She pulled up the latch and smacked the window hard to send it crashing to the ground, where it broke in half upon hitting the barrier. The girl began gesturing to Liz to jump in the car. Liz shook her head, thinking it was insane to do so. The girl began gesturing faster. She must have been trying to save her from those men. The chopper's gusts were hitting Liz's face as searchlights from it came into view. She had little choice at this point. The men's footsteps grew nearer. She had to jump in, even if this person wasn't a friend. She was about to but remembered that she had left her backpack at her seat. Liz singled to the girl to wait for one second. Liz ran as quickly as possible, crouching for a moment, and grabbing her backpack. She began to run back again when a voice behind her spoke up. "Liz, wait." She turned around. There stood one of those men. He wore sunglasses and was holding a handgun by his side. Liz, too scared to run, walked slowly backwards. The wind from the opening grew stronger. "Liz, at last. We've been looking for you," "Wha-what do you want?" she asked nervously. "Liz, you're a quiet girl. You don't want to be involved in any of this," "In-in what?" "Come, Liz. I'll take you home. You don't need to worry about hackers or saving the world anymore. There is no danger. I'm just here to ensure that your mind doesn't get wasted in the wrong crowd. The hackers - they've been looking for you," "I don't believe you. Who are you?" "I'll tell you Liz. Just come with me?" "No." Liz could feel panic taking over. The man followed her slowly. She was almost near the opening in the window. "Liz, I don't want you to hurt yourself," "Go away," Liz was parallel to the open window. She looked at it. Her follower looked at it to and must've realized the situation. "Wait, Liz. No," He grew closer. Reaction took over and Liz got on top of a seat, leaning over the window frame. She told herself that she could make it. "Wait, Liz. No, wait!" He began running toward her. With no other choice, she grasped onto her laptop and flung herself out the window without a second thought just as the man was about to grab her. Before she knew it, she had landed. She was lying in the back of the car, facing up. He feet were touching the metal rim of the car and were in pain from the impact. She could still see the mysterious man looking down at her. "Get down," the driver ordered. Liz wiggled her feet free and rolled to the floor of the car, sliding her computer under the driver's seat. The driver suddenly took off at high speed, dodging a few cars and staying toward the right section of the highway. The tires screeched aloud. Liz peered upwards from the car floor and looked behind her as the bus grew smaller. She briefly thought that she was safe. But to her dismay, the helicopter turned rapidly and began to pursue her. Its nose pitched downward as it gained speed. Liz turned and looked at the driver. She turned around for a moment and Liz was sure it was the girl she had seen earlier. "Are you okay?" she asked. "Yeah, I think," "Careful, we're not out of here yet. I'll get ya where you need to go, just hold on," "But who are you?" "A friend," She had a modest complexion and short black hair. Her skin was only a few shades darker than Liz's. The car swerved to the left, throwing Liz in that direction. She got back up and looked behind her again. The helicopter was in hot pursuit. Liz never saw it coming, though - a shot fired and ricocheted off the back of the car with a metal ping. Liz screamed and ducked. "Why the hell are they shooting at us?!" she yelled. "They want you. Liz." "Why?! What the hell did I ever do to them?" "This isn't the first time this has happened. But I'll make sure it's the last time. You'll learn later. For now, let's just get out of here," Another shot fired; this one hit the front passenger seat. White fluff came out. Liz knew this couldn't be happening. "As soon as we get to an overpass, we'll be alright," The car continued to barrel down the highway at high speed, swerving left and right each time a shot was fired. The chopper never got off their trail, hovering just a few yards behind them. Cars were blaring their horns as some motorists swerved to avoid being under the machine. "There's an underpass coming up. Just a little longer," Another shot fired. This one took Liz by surprise. She heard it whiz by her ear and she panicked, ducking down once more. The bullet made a metal ting. She searched about and saw her laptop. A used bullet lay on top of it, smoldering. Liz picked up her computer and the bullet fell off, leaving a small dent in her computer's titanium casing. She let loose a big sigh of relief. Liz lay on her back and looked up at the stars. The car slowed down rapidly as it approached the underpass. "Hold on," the driver said. The car swerved to the right and actually ran off the road and arrived between the pillars that held the structure up. The chopped went upwards to avoid the traffic and hovered above the underpass. "Are we hiding here?"Liz asked. "No, that's not safe. I've got to get you to the closest hotel," "Is it in Roanoke?" "Yes. You'll rest there and find who you've been looking for tommorow," "But how do we slip though?" "Watch my paint," Liz sat up in her seat and looked at the red paint. At first nothing happened. Then, slowly, the red paint began to change color. From purple to blue. "Wow, how does-" "A complicated system that can pump different pigments into the car's shell. There's actually a layer of glass above the metal. Obviously, this is a very expensive car. It was banned because it could be used by criminals to escape pursuit by changing colors, but I got my hands on one," "That's amazing," "Watch your head. I'm raising the roof on the car as well. We will slip away unnoticed," The roof raised and covered the car, completing the disguise. "You can buckle your seat belt for the rest of the trip," she said. When the roof covered the car, the drive got back onto the road and drove at normal speed. As it left the underpass, Liz looked up to see the helicopter. For a second, Liz thought that it might follow them again, but it didn't. It grew smaller as they left the pilots confused. Liz leaned back and sighed, her heart finally slowing. They arrived at the hotel where Liz's protector paid for a room for one person. She then proceeded to the exit while telling Liz to rest up and proceed in the morning. Before she left through the front door, Liz walked up to her. "What's your name?" she asked. She turned around. She was just a bit taller than Liz. "We'll meet again, Liz. I'd give you my last name, but it's not safe to do so right now. It's Emma," "Emma..." "Liz, you were very brave tonight. I know it's been a struggle for you, but you're doing well. Soon you'll be in safety's hands. We're watching you, Liz. We'll get you there," "Okay, Emma. I guess this is goodbye then," "Get some rest, we'll meet again," And with that, Emma had gone. Liz stood there for a moment, fingering her card-key before proceeding to her room. She didn't exactly know what had happened that night. She didn't want to waste time comprehending it. All she felt now was fatigue. And without a second thought, she promptly collapsed on her room's bed for the night. Liz awoke in her room. She was home. It was all a dream. She felt happy and relieved that none of the events had actually happened. Sunlight came in through her window, illuminating the darkness. She decided to go downstairs and see what there was for breakfast, so she stepped down the stairs and into the kitchen, where her dad was reading the paper. The table was full of food, so Liz sat and began to eat. "Hey Dad, what's up?" she asked. There was no response. Her dad's face was hidden behind the paper. Liz shrugged and continued eating. After taking a spoon full of cereal she looked up. The newspaper her dad had been reading changed somehow. She took another bite and looked up. This time, the paper was black and the letters were green. Liz looked at the phenomenon. "Dad, what are you reading?" "Something about you," his voice was harsh, "You've been in the news, Liz. You've been very, very bad," "Dad?" Hector lowered the paper to reveal his face - it was that of one of those men who had been chasing her. "Dad?!" Liz quivered. He began laughing maniacally and put the paper on the table. When it touched the table, the green letters on it came off in an ooze, spreading across the table as if infecting it. Liz screamed and backed away from it. The ooze of black with green letters began to follow her so she ran from it. She found herself in her computer room, cowering in fear on the couch. A blanket of darkness enveloped the room as the ooze crept across the floor. It quickly covered the carpet and then climbed up the desk towards Liz's old computer. It slithered inside it and her computer began to melt, turning into a blob of bubbling plastic. Liz awoke. It was still dark as no light was coming through the curtains. She placed her hand on her head and groaned before reaching over and turning the clock towards her. It was half-past six in the morning. Knowing that no more sleep would come, she grabbed her stuff and headed out, without even changing clothes, which still had patches of sweat. She checked out of the hotel and took out a slip of paper with her destination's address scribbled on it. Liz determined that wasn't too far away, so she began walking. She walked across the road until she got to the suburbs of Roanoke, stopping along the way at a fast-food restaurant for some cinnamon rolls and a coffee. Liz paid with money from her backpack. She took the opportunity to check her e-mail. Luckily, there was a Radio-Com station in the city so she got speedy internet service. There were no important e-mails, however. Emma said that she was being protected, but Liz felt alone again, only relying on her address for help. So she continued walking. She walked until it was noon when she believed that she was finally in the right neighborhood. She stumbled upon the house. It was medium-size, painted a light yellow, had two stories, and a garage in which two cars were parked. She checked the address once more to confirm it was the right place. Feeling nervous, she looked around to make sure there were none of those men nearby - or a helicopter. Liz stepped up to the door, not knowing who was behind it. K8tie only said that she was a friend, whoever she was. Liz patted her faithful laptop which she always kept by her side, rubbing a finger on the newly-made dent. Liz stepped up to the door as leaves blew at her feet. She glanced around one last time and knocked quietly. The door was wooden with an arc-shaped window and bronze parts. Liz peeped inside it to see an ordinary-looking house, making her feel that she might be at the wrong place. Footsteps grew close and after a few lock clicks, the door swung open. A woman wearing wet, yellow rubber gloves stood there. She looked as if she were in her mid-twenties or so, with brown hair and blue eyes, and looked nothing like a hacker. Of course, Liz was only acting on a whim since she had never actually seen a hacker. Liz thought perhaps that she may be a relative of who she was looking for. "Can I help you?" she asked in a hesitant voice. Liz felt dumb as to what to do next. Was she supposed to say, 'Hi, i'm looking for a hacker. A computer friend told me to see you.' "Yeah, hi. Uh..." Liz swallowed. "Is this about Girl-Scout cookies or something?" "No, I was just looking for someone." "Really, who?" "A friend told me to come here... um, I know this sounds weird but i'm looking for a computer hacker," She said nothing for a moment, then sighed. "Look, there are no computer hackers here. You shouldn't ask such questions. You should go." She began to close the door but Liz blocked it with her arm. "What do you want?" the woman said, a little more aggravated. "I've been all over the road, please, I got to talk to you," "Who sent you?" "An internet friend who calls herself Katie-Em-Ecks," She suddenly became still, and looked straight ahead as if in a trance. "Katie MX..." "Yes, she sent me." "Then you must be... Liz." "Yes, i'm her." She looked down at Liz and opened the door. "Sorry about that, Liz. I... wasn't expecting a teenager." Liz stepped in and dropped her backpack on the floor. "Who were you expecting?" "Well... judging by that program you made, I thought you were at least 21." Liz laughed a bit. "I guess I should watch the news more," she added. "I stay away from cameras," Liz informed, "You wouldn't have seen me." "Well, Liz. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I know it's been a hectic road here, and you still don't have any answers for all this but... well, we'll talk. Come with me for a second." She walked to the right, where a kitchen was located. Liz followed. Inside, dishes were being watched in a sink and a baby was eating in its high-chair. The woman went to finish the dishes. The stack was small. "Sorry, Liz. Just let me finish here," "It's okay," Liz replied while looking at the baby. "So, Liz... how's the trip here been?" "I was almost gunned down by a helicopter," Liz said in an almost humorous tone. "Oh... geez, i'm glad you're alright." Liz patted her laptop once more, still clinging to it near her side. "That's a nice computer, by the way." "Thanks, it's a birthday present." "I'm almost done here. Would you like some coffee? I bet you don't drink any, do you?" "Yeah, actually I do. I'll have a glass." "You're pretty grownup for your age, aren't you?" Liz said nothing. The woman went to the coffee maker near the fridge and poured some into two glasses. "So, Liz... I won't get you into trouble or anything, but do you hack?" "No. I only make anti-hacker programs," "Do you think all hackers are bad?" "I used too, but I'm not so sure anymore," "Well, you're one step ahead of most people," She grabbed the glasses and pointed toward the living room. Liz went in and sat on a green couch, located behind a small table. "Well, Liz. I want you to know something straight off. I was once a hacker. And when I think back, it wasn't a glamorous life at all. Always fearing being caught, always fearing reprisal from your enemies. The majority of the public didn't know the difference between hackers and crackers, and we were all treated the same. They didn't understand that hackers meant no harm. That they only stepped over the boundary when they actually steal, or cause other harm. And they become crackers..." "I... I see," "And now... now it's full blown. People are hunting hackers like they're all vicious criminals. What they don't understand is that they aren't that different from us. They use computers, so do we. They don't cause serious harm, nor do we. We only have a gift - the ability to dream in code... the ability to go above authority and go some place you're not supposed to. It's an art, that's all it is. But now, we're all treated the same. Our love for challenging the system is displayed as an evil act of crime. I though that after that incident... it would change. But we may have just made it worse," She put her cup on the table and leaned back. "So... who are you exactly?" "I was a person with the love for a simple challenge, but that's gone now. Sometimes I fear going on the computer these days... just checking my e-mail, going to websites... I feel like i'm being watched all the time. I've tried to forget the past, but it's too difficult. I fear for you, Liz. You're a good kid. No matter what happens, no matter what it seems like, just always tell yourself that you're doing something to help others," Liz hesitated before asking her question. "You're... you're Melissa Diagol, aren't you?" She looked surprised. "How do you know who she is?" "I know my history... I know about the whole IMXXX ordeal," "But Liz, you learned about that and you still thought our type were bad?" "I wasn't sure what to think anymore," "I thought that I had done something that I would be famous for - in a good way. But... it was just a few months after that the investigations continued. They wouldn't stop... I knew they were monitoring my activity all the time, so I stopped my art. And it was forever lost... I don't know if they are still out there," "Who?" "FBI agents. At first, at least. I... I'm not sure anymore. Everything kind of fell for me apart when they left, my friends that is. I became so fearful of being watched, that after college I moved away and got married, mainly just to change my name. And it was difficult for me to get a job, of course. Everyone thought that I'd do something bad if I worked on a computer, so for the first five years of my job, I wasn't even allowed to work on one," "That's awful..." Melissa's mood changed from depressing to a little more cheerful and hopeful. "I know my talk hasn't been inspirational or anything, but i'm just telling you the risks you'll be facing down your difficult road. I'm just here to point you further down the way. I must tell you though, I'm glad that you've gotten this far." "Melissa... whatever happened to Tony?" "Tony... yes... He just vanished, Liz. I'm not sure what happened to Tony. We contacted each other for a few years and then he just stopped. I worry about him sometimes..." "I see," "Well, Liz. I'd stay with you longer but you have places to go. You got a plane to catch," "A plane?" "Yes. To Seattle," "Look, this is getting crazy. I'm supposed to be at some computer camp in my state." "Don't worry about it, Liz. Everything is under control." "But what's at Seattle?" "Another address. I know nothing more about it." Liz sighed heavily. Melissa took slip of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Liz. "That's the plane ticket. I've scheduled a cab pickup." Melissa pulled another piece of paper out. "This is the address. I hope you have no problems finding it. I have no idea what is there. Oh, and one last thing," She pulled out a mini-CD in a case and handed it to Liz. "Only put this in you're computer when you know it's time. That's all the message said when I got it in the mail from someone with no return address. It will destroy itself when it's program has been run. I only hope that you know when to use it. And that's all, Liz. You must now continue your journey into the Windy City, where I'm guessing you'll be at your final destination. I've done all I can," "Thanks, Melissa. Thanks for everything," "Good luck, Liz," Liz got up and proceeded to the front door. But she turned around once to ask a final question. "Melissa?" "Yes?" "All this time I've been told that I'm being protected by someone. I've met several people along the way, but I feel there is someone else... someone watching over me," Melissa patted Liz on the shoulder. "I guess that you have a guardian angel, Liz." Date : May 26th Liz found herself in a large airport with windows on every side which gazed ominously to the mile-long pavement outside, populated by only a few planes. All about her were business people or families awaiting access to their summer vacation. Many gave Liz an odd eye - she didn't fit in very well. Liz squirmed a bit in her red chair, shuffling her feet on the blue carpet. She was slowly becoming paranoid about being around so many others, something she usually didn't do unless it was a chat room. She assumed that everyone around her knew where they were going, but Liz did not. A strange feeling came over her, as if she were being kidnapped in a unique way. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes, trying to think if she had actually accomplished anything yet. So far she had been chased, approached by a bevy of strangers, been shot at, and undoubtedly get into big trouble with her father. An announcement came through, informing that flight '554 to Seattle' had just arrived. A little while afterwards a giant vehicle parked outside the massive windows. The planes used now were fairly new. After the almost total-collapse of the airline market which began a few months after the Mars Mission, almost all of the current models were scrapped, recycled, and rebuilt into colossal flying machines capable of holding almost one-thousand people. They looked similar to the old super-sonic jets which were now seemingly ancient, but they were much longer. They sported a blueish chrome hue, their wings slowly extending horizontally from the cockpit. Their tops were laced with solar panels and they had no wheels - only extendable stands for mounting when not in movement. Using magnet technology similar to the Express Bus's means of getting around, they could easily remain perfectly still by using powerful magnetism against the Earth in a contained space - evidently the same technology would be used in flying cars, which were inevitably going to start coming out within a few years given the rapid expanse of technology recently. The machines had three floors for three classes, and internet access for all, naturally. Liz had spent an unusual amount of time studying the aircraft, simply because she had loved planes as a kid and still did today. The idea was to let a large group of people board a single flight that would get to the destination quickly, usually stopping along the way to let passengers out or in, before continuing. Almost like a flying train... Liz closed her laptop and stood up, peering down at the aircraft's behemoth-sized fuselage, with rows of tiny windows scattered about. Under the craft, men were scurrying about getting ready for the next flight. Some were obviously refilling the hydrogen-powered fuel cells, while others were gathering baggage. After a few minutes, the lady at the ticket desk announced that boarding had begun. Liz gathered her belongings and pulled out the crumpled plane ticket. She was one of the first people in line, beating elderly people or young adults with several kids. She handed the ticket to the woman, her hands shaking slightly. She was cleared, making Liz feel slightly more confident. Before she entered the extended hallway leading to the craft, she took one last gaze out the window of the east coast... Emma or Melissa, or who ever got Liz the ticket had been kind enough to get her first class. Liz dashed up the steps after entering the plane, passing another floor along the way, until she arrived at the luxurious first class section located atop the plane. In the center of the oval-shaped room was a large glass pillar with moving images on its surface. There were many of them, all scattered about, curving along the pillar. Each showed different visuals, from common advertisements to the history of the 'Sky Streak', the brand of jet she was riding. Inside the pillar was an aquarium with pretty rocks, where live fish swam elegantly. The first class section was large but had a sparse amount of seats, many of which were couches. A mini-bar was in the back, right besides the bathrooms. Various potted plants had been placed for an even more modest look. The whole area looked like one large lounge, full of accommodations galore. People began arriving, many taking whichever seat they chose. Liz scrambled to a seat in the corner, a lone seat near a plant. As more people piled in and took seats on couches or chairs, Liz observed how everyone seemed like a rich businessman or someone else with a high-ranking job. Liz had no doubt that she would be the only minor in the whole section, and that everyone would look at her with an odd eye. Deep down, she hoped that someone else her age would come up to where she was... Trying to look inconspicuous, Liz opened her laptop and buried herself in it. She shut her window half-way and got comfortable, still hoping someone like her would seep into first class... Before long, the pilot announced that they were about to take off. There would be an in-flight movie along with lunch, and that with stops, their final destination - Seattle, would take about four hours to arrive at. It seemed so long ago that she had met Melissa, and even more so when she had jumped into a stranger's car and had been shot at. She had a terrible feeling. What if her stalkers would attack the plane during the flight? Liz did not want to feel responsible for any casualties. She had the sudden urge to get off the plane, but it was too late. Liz peered out the window and onto the ground some fifty-feet below. They were pulling out. Curious, Liz opened her window all the way. They had stopped pulling out and were now taxiing the runway, awaiting take off. The runway had been obviously shortened, as construction was taking place at the end of it. 'Sky Streaks' did not require much room to take off. In fact, in the case of an emergency, they could fire off a large magnetic pulse that could shoot them off into the air using a lot of energy. The engines went down to simmer as plasma-screen displays were lowered from the roof. They displayed a flight clerk on a white background, showing the passengers how to use the emergency devices, and how to buckle their seat belts. French and Spanish subtitles lined the bottom of the screen. The clerk at last smiled, wishing everyone an enjoyable flight, before the displays disappeared again. Most of the people on board were busy looking at newspapers, grumbling, and tapping their watches. Some spent this time to gawk at Liz. The engines let loose a sudden flare, and moments after, movement began. The speed picked up quickly as a vacuum-cleaner sound blared all around them. One last engine blast, and the craft was airborne, the ground shrinking quickly. Liz covered her window and leaned back in her chair before accessing the internet wirelessly. She followed her usual routine. The friends she talked with probably had no idea that she was taking a plane to Seattle... An hour passed and a stewardess approached Liz and asked what she wanted for lunch. Craving something succulent, she ordered a pasta and a soda. Liz closed her laptop and tapped a button on her chair's armrest, causing a table to sprout out from the bottom of it. The sudden noise caused more people to take another shot at her before returning to their previous activities. Liz filled herself up on her lunch, eating every last noodle. She hadn't realized how hungry she was. Gazing around, she noticed darkness outside. Many people had started putting their overhead lights on. Liz opened her own window. Rain began splashing onto it, and lightning could be seen in the distance. Light turbulence shook the plane the slightest bit. Liz checked the plane's location on her computer. They were over Illinois, and approaching their first stop, which was Chicago. In the distance, a few sky-scrapers loomed over the horizon. The craft landed in Chicago as a bevy of rain came pouring down. About half the people in first class left for this stop. The pilot announced reassuringly that the plane was meant to take this kind of weather, and that it would be alright to continue onwards. A few minutes passed and the jet was again in the air, with a few more passengers in first class. Liz became tired and took a small nap. She awoke about fifteen minutes later to see that a familiar face was gazing into hers. The figure was standing above her and smiling slightly. "Emma?" murmured Liz. "'ello!" Emma said cheerfully. Liz adjusted her glasses and sat up in her chair. "Emma, what are you doing here?" "I came to see you," "Oh..." Liz said stupidly. "I trust that Melissa helped you?" "A little..." "Yeah, I know how it is. But like I said, you'll know everything soon," Liz said nothing for a moment, and then asked, "Would you like to sit?" "Oh, sure..." Emma sat on the chair near her. She was still a small bit taller than Liz. "So... you're enjoying the flight?" "Yeah... where were you? Did you get on from Chicago?" "No, no. I've been on as long as you have. I was just checking some stuff out. You know they have a small video-arcade on the second floor..." "Oh..." The older people in first class were again looking at Liz and her friend. "Snobs..." Liz said softly. "I know... like they've never seen kids before," "Maybe it's my appearance..." "What do you mean?" "Glasses, high-tech computer, Pi shirt..." "Oh... eh, I don't get it," Emma said with a laugh. "Nor do I," Liz laughed, "I dunno... whatever," A few minutes passed. The sound of rain and the low hum from the plane formed a soft ambient sound. "Emma..." "Huh?" "Are we in... any danger. I mean, what if they are around... you know who," "Oh, they aren't. We're safe here. For one, there are too many people around, secondly, they couldn't get past security with all their, er... equipment," "Weapons..." Silence for a few moments. "Emma, who are they? What do they want?" Emma sighed. "The ones that are looking for you... they are a cyber-terrorism group whose HQ is somewhere in Japan. They are trying to capture you, but they seem to want to kill you if an easy capture is not possible... it leads me to believe something but I'm not sure. I haven't got all the answers myself..." Liz was shocked to learn this. It was more serious than she thought - more serious than the FBI being on her tail. "And... do you know who we are meeting?" "Haven't a clue. He just guided me as he has you. I was told to meet and protect you... I suppose that we'll all know the truth soon..." "Emma... who was that kid who was near you on the bus?" "Oh, he's my cousin. He's a fireball he is..." "Where is he now?" "Arcade, I suppose... it's hard to keep a watch on him." "Why do you have to watch him?" "He... has nowhere else to go, Liz..." There was a certain sadness in her voice that told Liz to end her questions. Silence fell again. It was broken by an in-flight movie, shown on the plasma-displays. It was some romantic mush film, so Liz turned away and focused on watching her own movie of choice on her computer. Liz spent the rest of the trip making light conversation with Emma, who she was beginning to like a lot. She became more sociable very quickly. They talked about current events, had a few jokes, and had a good time. Liz almost forgot about her grand adventure... As the plane arrived in Seattle, the skies had cleared up and sunlight poured through.They left the airport in haste, as the spunky cousin of Emma, whose name was Fredrick and was eight, tagged along while playing more of his electronic game. Wanting to waste no more time, they took a taxi directly to the mysterious address. Liz didn't even have time to look at the beautiful city - a city which she once wanted to visit so badly. The air was moist, and the grass was green and springy. A cool wind splashed about Liz as she entered the cab. It wasn't a long ride to their destination. The area had the appearance of an abandoned warehouse. Its windows were mostly broken, its paint chipped. Liz and Emma stood on the sidewalk, gazing at the decrepit building. "Ugh... right out of a bad movie," Emma said. "Well, this is the right address... Let's check it out at least," Liz replied. "Come on, Freddy," Emma asked her cousin, who was paying all attention to his game. The interior was no different. Scattered with debris and dust, it looked as though it was all a big dead end. Very disappointed, Liz looked around one last time. Emma was now leaning against a girder, tapping her foot in impatience. Than Liz saw something - a camera that was cleverly posted in an old tractor. She could barely see it. Only the light reflected on its lens caught her eye. No sooner had she seen it than a large creaking sound began. Suddenly, the floor under Liz moved. She jumped backwards as a small set of stairs opened downwards, revealing a hidden hallway. "Wow," Emma exclaimed, "Now it really feels like a movie," "I guess that we... go down," Liz suggested. Fredrick has now turned off his game and pocketed it, looking interested. The three of them walked slowly down into the dark hall. When they were all in, the stairs sealed themselves again, and lights came on all about. The ground they were standing on was black marble. Ahead of them were two sets of glass doors that opened. Liz and the other two quickly walked past them, and they closed shut behind them. They stepped down again, this time a flight of twenty steps. They emerged in a new, larger area. The next hall was full of nooks and crannies. All the walls were made of black marble. Various machines hummed silently. Liz identified the stacks of metal cases as super computers. They were scattered about the cubicles. The lights above them flickered slightly. "Wow, look at this place," Emma announced, "It's... so..." Liz walked forward, to a pair of metal doors which were slammed shut. Emma followed, as Fredrick began walking up to the super computers and examining them. "I bet something important is behind there," Emma suggested. The lights above the metal doors suddenly turned off, and with a loud groan, the metal doors slid open. The small room behind it must have had at least fifty monitors in it, ranging from tiny to large, each displaying something different. A large, blue chair was turned to them. Liz could make out a pair of hands hastily working on them. Before Liz could look anymore, a calm voice broke through. "Greetings, I'm glad you arrived," it said. "Are you the one... who sent us?" Emma asked. "Yes, and you arrived just on time," "But... where are we?" Liz questioned. "Why, you're in the Cyber-Angels, Liz," the voice said, its user still turned toward the screen. Liz could barely make out a small reflection on one of the monitors. "The Cyber-Angels... I've... heard of them, yes," Emma replied. "I'm glad you know your history," the voice replied. "Angels?" Liz asked. "Yes... they were once a hacker organization that protected people by hacking themselves... to take down the crackers. But... I thought they disbanded years ago after that controversy that some of its members were up to no good... we all know about how anti-hacker propaganda has increased rapidly over the years... but anyways, if they were now some secret organization, I would have at least expected there to be some more people present... somewhere," Emma finished. Liz looked at her. She had now briefly recalled hearing about this group... "Yes, well," the voice said strongly, "I regret to inform you that I am the only one... left." "Only one..." Emma said, full of grief, "You mean, you've sent us here, we think we were going to find a regiment of people - people that could help us and instead we find one person in the middle of a secret underground-" "One person can do a lot of things," the voice interrupted, than saying more slowly and knowledgeably, "With a person's very finger tips... they could decide the fate of the world in an instant. It has almost happened many times... it's happening as we speak. But these people... they have never succeeded," "Hackers? There are mass amounts of hackers out there trying to destroy the world?" Liz asked. "In one form or another..." The person's hands began typing again, monitoring activity. "But... who stops these people?" Emma asked. "Hackers..." He replied. "Wha-what?" "Hackers... good hackers... Liz, Emma... you have no idea about the Earth's situation. Everyday people try things as petty as stealing a couple million from the stock market, or something as small as deleting a personal enemy's computer files. They don't realize that it could all bring the downfall of our society... We are corrupted. Computers are fuel for the plague. But we cannot live without computers, and thus, the battle never ends. It's a war - man versus man, but it goes on silently... as the ordinary person sends an e-mail or visits a website everyday - a battle has been won... while some lost." "So... there really are good hackers out there?" Emma said, as though she had actually not been sure of herself before the meeting. "Determines what you consider good, Liz. Some are crackers, who wish to cause as much harm as possible to anyone and everyone. Some are self-described 'Hacker Revolutionists', people who are trying to alter the fabric of society... Then there are a select few - a very select few left out there that do this sort of thing for the thrill of it... to put their skills to the test. I know my place... I am a simple warrior..." "The Cyber-Angels... who were they exactly?" Emma asked. "They were a group of anti-hackers. They were one of our earliest armies against our nemesis..." "But... how are you still here?" "The Angels..." he said mournfully, "Like any other anti-hacker union, we were disbanded after that series of events that really brought the world to attention to our 'type'. Before long, we were all considered people gone wrong. It wasn't long until the Angels themselves were faced with questions and suspicion. Almost all the public thought what they wanted to think, and we didn't stand a chance against them. The Angels Core was forced to resign... Who knows what got into the government's head those final days. They seemed to quickly have forgotten how much we had protected them. It had become stereotypical to hate hackers... With no other options, they installed the most complex anti-hacker software into these super-computers. They chose their highest-ranked member to remain as the sole defender. The computers protect the US from almost all attacks, foreign or domestic, while I prevent the computers from being hacked themselves, and against the strongest attacks. I find myself constantly re-writing their software to keep them strong, but I must be careful. One wrong letter in their code could produce great weaknesses," For a few moments no one said anything. Fredrick's game noises had even ceased, as he had turned off and was paying attention now. "How many others like you are out there?" "Only three in North America, well hidden, living secret lives that literally no one knows about. But we don't know who we are - I have no way of communicating with the others. I don't know if I'm the only one to have seen this rising problem, but I cannot risk doing nothing. I sent for you, Liz..." "Why me, though?" "I found traits in you that were very similar to my own when I was around your age." "Did you hack?" "Yes, very often." "But I don't..." "I know, Liz. But there's something more than that. You possess the same skills I did, though you have never actually used them in such a manner." Something in the back of Liz's mind spoke to her, but she wasn't sure what it meant. "Who... are you then?" Emma asked. At long last, the figure's chair spun around. He wasn't very tall for a fully-grown man, his brown hair was slightly messy, and his hands were tinted light red. He had a sleepy expression on his face, his eyes were wide. He also had a lightly-trimmed set of facial hair. He looked as if he were in his mid-30's or so, even though he looked more withered than he should. It looked as if he were almost glued to his chair. "I am Tony Mondez, Liz," he said in a slightly weakened voice. Emma suddenly looked shocked, while Liz stood curiously, trying to recall his name. But she remembered it. 'Tony Mondez... this is what happened to him,' Liz thought, 'This is why he vanished...' "Tony," Liz whispered, "I... thought it may be you." "Yes, Liz. I am the sole protector here. I sent for you and now we have met in person... There isn't any turning back now." "Tony!" Emma had shot out, "I know about you, Tony! My cousin told me all about you when I was a little bit younger." "Yes, Alex Bobolio was a dear friend of mine..." "Alex who?" Liz asked, "I never heard of him\.," "He taught me almost everything I know today, Liz. He was my tutor, as I will be yours." "Oh..." replied Liz, not thinking of what to say. "I'm assuming Alex is happy with his new life?" Tony asked Emma. "Oh, yes. He's enjoying the rest..." Emma replied. "Where is he?" Liz questioned. "He's living in a private villa on Italy's southern shores." "Yes... I happened to meet him before he made that decision... He visited me one day in Paris. He looked sad and worn down. His youthful spirit had gone. He announced that he was ridding computers from his life. He said that he had completed his objectives, and had nothing else to do. I didn't talk him out of it. I know now how much being on a computer... trying to protect others from hackers all day is. It's like getting your life energy sucked out of you. I agreed with him, and wished him a farewell. That was the last time we ever met... it was five years ago. And after what happened... I don't blame him. But he gave me a gift. He said that he uncovered the item from one of his father's old chests. He said it brought him good luck when he wore it, improving his thinking speed and protecting him. But I have no use for it..." Tony opened a side pocket that was attached to his chair and pulled out a purple piece of fabric which was neatly folded. He placed in his hands and nodded at Liz. Liz stepped up to him and gently took the item. She grabbed one side and let it open. After it unraveled, a glorious silk coat emerged. Its exterior was a dull shade of purple, while its inside was purple-hue colored and very smooth. Liz, without thinking, slipped it on. It was a small bit over-sized for her, but it felt great. "You look good," Tony smiled. "Is it... for me?" Liz asked. "Only if you believe in superstition. Or have a good fashion sense..." Liz smiled. She was beginning to trust Tony. "Tony... are there more of your type?" "Yes, a few in each country all around the world. We each do our part..." "Tony... I... feel sorry for you. Living your life in solitude like this and always working... How do you sleep?" "Cat naps..." Tony answered, "It's tough, yes, but I know I'm doing something right... even if the rest of the world doesn't think so." Liz sat down on a chair, having just realized that her muscles were hurting from standing for so long. The conversation had lightened up a bit from its beginning. Liz would be the one to darken it again... "Tony?" "Yes?" "What... did happen five years ago?" Tony's small smile faded. "The day that the world as we know it almost ended... And it's all true. But I think that it's proper that you all know what did happen... let me tell you." "Colleagues from all around the world had heard of the demise of the Angels and all other organizations in America. They knew they had to act fast - for they could be next. Our pitiful government thought that the people they had protecting us would be all we would need. In reality, they account for thwarting only two percent of all attacks. They believe that they are preventing every attack... they believe that they are something they aren't. Their super-computers are outdated. They only update their software once a year... I can barely stay on top of things myself, but still, I'm doing a far better job than they are." "A massive attack was inevitable then..." Emma said. "Indeed, we thought it would be madness; attacks coming from all sides. But at first, all was peace. As we packed our final bags, we had a small hope that perhaps the government could protect us just fine. A few days passed. Three of us stayed behind for one more week to ensure that the country would be fine, communicating with others like us around the globe. Then it happened..." "It was four in the morning when we were struck from all sides. Massive attacks came in from Mexico, Canada, Asia, and Europe. We worked like crazy, deflecting all of the attacks on the US. I'm sure that there were many more, all helping to defend ourselves. What they wanted we knew not, but it was obvious that many - if not all of these attacks were being broadcast from a single source, and the assault did not target any systems; they were not destructive, but instead, they seemed to only be focused on breaking through us. Then, all of a sudden, they stopped at about one-thirty. They just ceased on their own. We checked and double-checked all of our systems, and nothing was amiss. We communicated with our allies, and they too, had no damages. It took us a day to figure what had actually happened... Liz, you know a lot about space exploration, what can you tell me about the G.S.D.?" Liz, so involved in what Tony was saying, took a moment to realize that she had been spoken to. "Oh! Uh... yes, the GSD... they're that Global Space Defense thing... they protect Earth and now the Mars colonies with satellites and things like that..." "Right... and they had stolen one of their satellites." Liz sat up, now scared. "Stolen?" Emma said. "Yep, stolen. A mother of a satellite carrying six nuclear warheads. Apparently, the government thinks that a space-station that can fire nuclear devices at any country they please will be something that will protect us... They must have gotten into the GSD, one of the most highly-secured facilities in the world, and had their test-device stolen right from under them, and it was now orbiting the Earth. It couldn't have been a madman, we thought, or destruction may have already occurred. We could only sit there and monitor activity helplessly. There was nothing we could do. But then I noticed something - whoever had stolen the device had sent one last command to it. Fearing the worst, I stepped away from my computer and ran outside, not knowing what to expect. Dark gray clouds covered the afternoon sky... and then suddenly, a bright light burst through them, as if a massive lightning bolt had gone through. I found myself back at my computer, amazed to see what I found out... Now of course, the government didn't want anyone to know about an armed war-machine floating above Earth, so they never released any information..." "But what did you find out?" Liz asked. "I found out that the last command given was an order for the machine to self-destruct..." "The hacker sent that command?" Emma said, wide-eyed. "Yes he did... I didn't know what to think after that. Of course I thought he may be someone who's out to disable our defenses, but no further attacks ever came... The Angels were completely removed a few days afterwards... except for me, who stays behind, secretly... doing my part." "Why'd he destroy it?" Liz asked quickly. "I think... it's because the device did not suit his needs..." "What?" "Sintax wanted something different." "Syntax?" "Yes... Sintax, with an 'I', is the one name he goes by. He's the head of a so-called hacker-revolutionist party' in Japan." "Japan..." Emma whispered. "Actually, he's part of two groups... rival groups fighting one-another constantly, causing more bloodshed everyday. Originally a cyber-terrorism section belonging to the Yakuza, they broke away to form their own Union. But then that Union broke in half. What started as wanting dominance in Japan now spread worldwide. One group, the group Sintax belongs to, aims for world change, while the other wants to bring about the destruction of all who oppose them... once they get into power, if they ever really do... This is all I know. Several of my people died getting this information," Liz slumped back in her chair. Something had just sunk into her. This wasn't a game, it was much more. She had just realized exactly how serious things were. Everyday that had passed during her life was another day where something terrible could happen. Liz now found herself wanting to give anything to go back... to go to the Code Adobe, to talk to her friends in her room... but at the same time, she wanted to push forward, feeling that there was truly something she could do. They all said that they called upon Liz because there were few left who could help them. But why her? She wasn't even an adult, and she couldn't hack at all. "So... about the satellites," Emma said slowly. "Sintax wanted a special weapon... and he is slowly gaining control over it. Security improved greatly after that attack, and I guess Sintax is having a hard time now. But he has gotten a brief hold on that weapon... just once, and only for a moment, but he did take it silently before losing control of it. Remember the bus, Liz?" Liz sat back up. "Yeah... we got fired by something..." "An Electro-Magnetic-Pulse, actually. What Sintax had his hands on was a satellite that disabled anything electronic... And it made me think, Liz. I monitored the whole attack, I saw where it was aiming. When I found out it was over the east coast, I began fearing for you. But you're safe..." "Safe..." Liz murmured. "I can't be sure but perhaps... Mr. Trombolo was in cahoots with Sintax..." "That dirt-bag who was in charge of IMXXX?" "Yes... it was never reported worldwide, but he hacked into similar technology on board a space shuttle that was headed to Mars and fired it at Washington. Not only did it cause a temporary black-out, it also deleted a targeted computer file, briefly..." "So you're saying that Sintax could practically use this satellite as a global hacking tool? One that there would be no defense against..." "Exactly. But like I said, it's hard for him to get access and every time he does, they are undoubtedly making it harder for him... he may be trying to actually trying to buy his own satellite. It's a very ambitious project, and we would have a good deal of time before it happens... time I will use to train you, Liz." "Are you sure about all this?" "Well, no... I can't be sure of any of it, not even if Sintax actually exists, but I can't take any chances." "So... you're going to train me, and then send me to Japan and try to prevent this?" "That about sums it up, I'm afraid... I need to stay here for obvious reasons. But, Liz, it's not like you'll be in any danger. When I'm through with you, you'll be an expert. You'll go there with my best equipment, and you'll work with several others. This won't happen for a few months, but you will eventually travel there... But Liz, I must ask if you accept your mission. If you succeed, we may topple the hacker empire and bring an end to the war, seeing as how seventy-five percent of hackers are connected through Sintax, whether they know it or not, because Sintax controls more of the internet than many know..." "I... I'll give it a try," Liz said reluctantly. "Thank you, Liz... Emma, thank you for your service. You may go for now, but Liz, you will meet her again," Emma gave her goodbyes and left with Fredrick, leaving Liz alone with Tony. Liz rubbed her new coat, feeling off balance. "Well," Tony said, "You have your answers now..." "Tony? Can I connect to the internet here? I have friends I'd like to talk to..." "I'm afraid not, not without me monitoring your activity which would be a wrong thing to do... This building goes through about fifty direct attacks a day from various groups, I wouldn't want anything to happen to you..." "Well, I have my firewall," "Right, your 'Furry Wall'. We'll have to see, Liz... You wanna get some dinner so-" A beep on the computer made Tony turn around, his slightly cheerful attitude left him, and he began typing furiously on the computers, ignoring Liz. After a few minutes, Liz got up to look around. She needed time for some deep thoughts... The Angels' building was large and sparse. Numerous empty halls littered the compound, many with doors that led to empty offices. There was even a lecture hall within a glass room, which still retained its large wooden table and chairs. There were no windows to the outside world, and many of the walls were actually made of rock. The building was full of so many secrets, and this kept Liz searching for more. After all she had been through to get here, she wanted to look around at this place she may call home in its entirety. Just when she thought she could go everywhere, she encountered a lonesome locked door, at the far end of a dark hallway. The door was a black metal, and had no knob or security console. Liz knocked on it, and it made little sound - signaling that it was thick and heavy. She pressed her hand against it. There was a slight vibration from the other side. She stood pondering how to get into this door and what may be behind it. It may have been ten minutes she stood there before Tony's voice came through on a PA system. "Liz, could you come to the HUB for me? That's eh... where I am, that place. Thanks," She slowly backed up, before dashing back to Tony's location. There he sat in his chair, his eyes gazing ominously into the computer monitors. "Tony?" "Oh, sorry. Didn't see ya," He said, surprised, "Well, you want to get some dinner?" "Like... out?" "Yeah, I usually have Italian today," "But... what about the system and everything?" "Oh, it can take care of itself. I can't explain it, really, but eight o' clock here wields the least amount of attacks. I guess they're giving me a break." Liz already knew who 'they' were. "Plus, I got a portable monitor that tells me how the system is running. The restaurant is only five blocks away, as well. It'll be alright." "Is this the only time you go out?" "Yes... only time," Tony said with a slight bit of sadness. "Then what about lunch?" "Oh, my assistant brings me something," "You have an assistant?" "Well I wouldn't call her my assistant... more like a bodyguard of sorts," Tony laughed. "Who?" "Emma," "But wait... I thought that she had never been down here," "She hasn't, until now," "Then how-" "I'll show ya," "So she has been working for you... for a while," "Yep. She knows when I eat, and she also monitors this place, so it's pretty secure here." "So... you sent her to come and get me?" "Yeah... there was really no one else to send. Emma is like... you know, one of my only friends... She monitors this place while I'm gone, but only informs me if something has gone wrong. She has never been down here herself. She's just lived around the city for a few years. Enough chat, let's eat. I'll tell you more about her later. When we get back, i'll give you your first lesson." Tony was a unique person. He obviously hated the fact that his life was reduced to this deep down, but he always maintained a humorous side, and tried to keep a bright outlook on everything. Liz put her long, purple coat back on, and cleaned her glasses. She was thinking about bringing her laptop, but didn't. She would much rather spend time talking to Tony and learning more about everything that needed to be known. After shutting down dozens of switches, the two headed back up the stairs and onto the elevator. Tony was wearing a long, brown trench coat that hid most of his body. He was checking a monitor within the elevator to see if anyone was hanging around upstairs. "The last thing you want to do is gain the attention of some ruffians by emerging from a floor, Liz," he laughed a bit, "I may be a fighter, but I fight with my fingers only." After he made sure the coast was clear, the elevator went upwards. The walls, which were composed of rock, moved downwards. It felt as if it were a mining elevator and that they were emerging from a cave. The hatch at the top opened and Tony and Liz were back inside the warehouse. It was dimly lit. Moonlight barely seeped past the dust-encrusted windows. Tony walked ahead of Liz, to a large tightly-sealed crate. He took out a key, unlocked it, and ripped open the sides. Liz watched as he stepped inside. A few moments later, a red car came speeding out of it. Liz recognized it; it was the color-changing car that rescued her on that one night, a few days back. The car pulled up to Liz. "Hop in," Tony said. Liz said nothing as she opened the car door and sat in the front seat. "I think you've seen this car before..." "Yeah..." Liz replied. "Alright, let's go. It's a short drive." "How do you keep this car here like this?" "I just hide it in the crate," "Oh..." Liz said dumbly, expecting a more complex answer, "Ever... change its colors?" "It can change to any color between blue and red. Sometimes I do, yes. It's hard to stop the flow of pigments just in time to get your favorite, though. Mine is a purple color, like your coat. Though right now, the car is red, obviously..." The car drove out from the warehouse, and onto an empty road. Tony turned right at a fork, which led further down the slums. He parked for a moment at a blue mailbox on a sidewalk, which was covered with graffiti. "That mailbox is almost directly above the central terminal down there," he pointed toward the ground, "Emma would put packaged food for the week in it, and it would arrive to me via elevator. I would then send a good sum of money back up to her. She did this for a few years, before she even knew me. I built the mailbox myself." "Oh, I see," Liz said, lacking words. Tony sped off again before doing a U-turn. They went down the street that eventually took them back to the main road, where Tony drove a short distance to a parking lot for the Italian place. Before they got out, Tony looked into the sky. "You know, when I first met Alex, he took my to an Italian restaurant. I guess I'm doing the same with you, eh? Who knew that trends could last like this. He took me there so that I could learn about him, and so that he could learn about me," Tony looked at Liz and smiled slightly, "I guess that's what we're going to do, as well," Liz could only reply by smiling slightly herself. She wasn't sure of how Tony had ben using Emma, but she felt that he must have had some reason for not revealing his identity earlier. Liz and Tony were in a dark corner of the place, and had just received their drinks. Neither one of them had talked yet. Tony was bobbing his straw around in the drink. "So Liz... um... how does it feel to be a potential president's daughter?" "Oh, um... it's alright," Liz replied quietly. "Come on, tell me the truth. I bet you hate it." Liz replied by nodding slowly, then took a drink of her soda. Tony sighed. "I uh... well. I was hoping to get you before your dad became president - if he did, that is. It'd be nearly impossible to get you out here otherwise. With security and all..." "Yeah..." "Look, Liz... I'm sorry about all this. You're only sixteen, you don't need this, do you? I mean, you must have lived a pretty stressful life, and I'm just adding to it. First, you feel that no one understands you and that you get no respect for your program you made - which is very ingenious. You probably aren't very popular at school, and your dad is too busy to spend any time with you. And now, you have the weight of the world on your shoulders. I know that I'm probably hurting you, but I went through what you have gone through. That's why I wanted you... we're so alike. Even if you've never hacked, and you grew up thinking that all hackers were insidious villains, I know that you have the skills that I had." Liz said nothing, but wiped her eyes with her shirt. "Are you alright, Liz?" "Yeah... yeah, I'm fine," "You ask the questions first, Liz," "Oh... alright. Um... how old are you, exactly?" "Twenty-seven, almost twenty-eight. But I don't look my age, do I? I'm an old man to the computer world, which is dominated by teenagers it seems. I was once there..." "Tell me about your... family." Tony looked at the floor. "I haven't seen them for years... I don't know what they're doing, I don't know how they're getting along. I always felt divided from them. I had a sister, too. But I look back and I'd give anything to spend more time with her, and my parents. They grew so scared when I ran away from home, and even more when I was in court... My sister is in college now, actually, I think she's a junior or senior... I haven't talked to her for so long," "Do... do you ever plan on going back?" "It is my belief that once this Sintax person and his war is over with, that crackers such as himself and all other major organizations will fall. I've studied him for quite some time... and it is my belief that he's providing major funding for these organization. Have I told you that yet? Maybe I have... but yes, when he is gone I shall let the governments of countries protect us, and I'll retire... doing what I do is so taxing and tiring. And the government has gotten better at stopping attacks... maybe it'd just be easier for me to move to Mars," Tony laughed. "So who's Roger?" "He was my best friend back in high school... After the whole IMXXX incident we really didn't talk much. But if weren't for him, we wouldn't have been able to succeed on that night..." "Alex?" "Alex Bobolio was the one who called me much like I have you. He needed my assistance, too, but he was much less secretive about it. It took me a good while to trust him. I hope that you can place your trust in me." Before Liz could reply he added, "And Melissa... she was someone I had known online for a while. I got her tangled up in my mess deeply and I can't forgive myself for that... I hadn't spoken to her for years. But I had to inform of her of your arrival, and so that she could guide you further. Liz, you will face many hardships, that's a given. But you must realize that you are one of the few people who has the power to stop something like this. All I know is that Sintax is planning something large-scale, and that only direct and near-immediate intervention can prevent it," Liz paused for a while. The two's food had arrived, and Liz was starving. She gobbled down her meal before Tony had finished. "Tony?" she suddenly asked. "Hmm?" "What's behind that black door?" Tony had only answered with 'I'll show you when we get back,' before paying the check and driving himself and Liz once more through the slums and back to home. Liz said nothing the whole journey back, as she cradled her laptop in her arms. Once back inside, the two were once again within the inner sanctum. It was if though nothing had chanced since they left. The only life the large room with marble tile could breathe was with the ambient flickering of flowing text on the numerous computer terminals. Tony scuttled toward his work station and began checking for important log messages. Liz sat silently in a small chair in the corner of the room, feeling fatigued. It only took Tony a few minutes to ensure that everything was alright. "Well," he told Liz from across the room, "All systems are alright. They deflected a couple of attacks just fine... oh, and your dad left a message on the machine," "Hmm?" Liz perked. "Your dad, he called. Got the computer camp machine. The message was redirected here," "Oh, of course," Liz replied, once again a little clueless on how Tony managed to operate so many things all the time. She stepped over the desk and found the button that Tony was pointing at, located on a computer terminal. She was about to push it when Tony shoved a pair of headphones toward her. "Uh?" "It's your message, Liz," Tony answered. Starting to feel like she was making a fool of herself, she picked up the headphones, which used an old-fashioned jack instead of a wireless receiver. Liz found the port quickly and tuned in. It was good to hear her dad's voice again, even if it was usually a rare occurrence in the first place. "Hi, Liz. I called your room but I guess you weren't there... maybe eating dinner with a new friend? Well, I managed to finally get a day off work today, and I knew you'd be expecting a call. So... I hope it's going well for you. Um... well, I cleaned up the house today. I must say that your bedroom is quite clean. How often do you actually go up there? Anyways, the dog seems to miss you too, so he can't wait for you return in three weeks or so. Well, I hope that you have a good time at that computer camp of yours. I'll call again later, bye Lizzy." Liz took the headphones off and stared longingly at the floor. "Liz? I'll... show you what's behind that door now." Liz looked up at Tony and put her laptop on the desk. Tony opened a bunch of file cabinets and scrambled around in them for a bit before pulling out a metal key. "I think this is it. Let's go, then." Tony got up and Liz followed. He proceeded to give her a small tour of the facility, pointing out all the empty offices and meeting rooms. None of which he needed anymore. He told her that he hadn't even been down the hall for half a year, and it showed - the whole area was covered with dust which Liz could plainly see now that all the lights were off. The two continued further down the halls until the low hum of the central base died and was slowly being replaced by a new one. After a flight of steps, Liz saw again the mysterious black door made of solid steel. The undying vibration of the machinery behind had not ceased. "Okay, now where is it?" Tony asked, as he felt about the walls, "Ah, here we go," He pushed down on a hidden panel, which opened up when he released. The part of the wall lifted upright to uncover another small panel. This one had one keyhole in the middle of a silver plate. Tony quickly took out the key and turned it within the slot. One last panel emerged. This one was a keypad comprised of nine digits. "if I don't get this right, a really loud alarm goes off. It's annoying," Tony said light-heartily. He entered the code '4567'. Liz looked at him oddly. "What? It's harder to guess than 1-2-3-4. Plus, I'm lousy at remembering codes," Tony protested. Liz smiled a small bit. The code was accepted with a chime, and all three panels reverted back to their hidden original hiding places. The black door let out a loud grinding sound as it slowly opened. The sound of gears hard at work could be heard through the walls. Eventually, the large black door opened and a smell of old machinery whipped through the air. The humming from behind the thick door was now blaring loudly. The room behind the door was dark until Tony stepped in and flipped a light switch. But instead of a massive ominous room, the area behind the door was another smaller windowless room, complete with a single panel or fluorescent lighting. Liz stepped in slowly. The small room was covered in dull, gray paint and had no instruments or dials. The small room was shaking, as if a small earthquake was rattling it. The black door was starting to close again, and Liz observed that it was at least two inches thick. Instead of asking what to do next, she stood in wonder until the door closed. The sound was more contained now, and bore the noise of a laundromat. Tony sighed and proceeded to the other side of the room, where a door knob was poking out. He turned it and pushed the wall in, exposing a hidden door. "Go look inside, Liz," Tony said over the dull roar. She stepped forward and walked a few steps into the darkness. Her feet were now on a metal grating, as she determined from the sound of her footsteps. Ahead of her, shinning through the darkness, were hundreds upon hundreds of lights. Like colored stars in the sky, they alternated between blinking or pulsing, or just remaining still. They ranged in colors from green to red; to orange to yellow. All of them seemed like part of a symphony. The lights streamed downward into an abyss, and above her, they flattened out and ran over her head, in different directions. "Quite a spectacle, uh?" Tony said, as he walked to the right of Liz and hit a switch. Wall-mounted lights warmed up, flickered, and turned on starting from the area where Liz was standing and proceeding downwards. Liz could now see that the lights were all part of a massive, gray column. Like a rocket silo, the area she was standing on - the metal grating - circled around the column, leaving a little space between the platform's guard-rails. She could see how the column was throughly attached to the ceiling as the lights simply continued along the top of the silo. Below, the column ran downwards for about thirty-feet before hitting the floor. There were no visible platforms the whole way down, but there were several ladders. Liz grasped a rail, which, no surprise, was vibrating in conjunction with the other parts of the room. Tony was looking around the column, his hands in his pockets. After he circled around it, he approached Liz and place his hands on the rail next to her. "What... what exactly is this thing? Liz asked, but almost sure knowing the answer. "It's the mother." "Hmm?" "It's the CPU of the computer world. You know how everyone thought that there was some main database for the information-super-highway? Some central unit that processes every request of every computer on Earth that has internet access? Well, then they find out that there's not - there's only thousands of separate servers owned by different companies and whatnot that process those requests, that there is no central hub. Well Liz, there is. And you're looking at it." "Wow... eh... really?" "Yes. This monster has been around since the late 1970s. Can you believe that? I can't imagine what it looks like inside of it..." "The '70s? Wouldn't this be like, really, really outdated?" "It slowly is," Tony sighed, "Which is a problem. You see, the internet has been around for many decades now, but it was used only by the government for its first few. Ever since it was introduced to the public, and the internet blossomed, it's been under more and more stress. This compound used to be an old government headquarters, and it's my job to ensure that this machine lives for as long as we need it. You see, mass-market computers always seemed to use better and better technology. Everyone thought that it was because they had been developed and discovered, but in reality, new technology had only been released to the public and other government agencies. This machine is more advanced than anything out there. Any PC, any super computer - anything. Every computer that has internet access... their information will eventually end up here, stored deep within this thing's memory. Memory, RAM, clock-speed... it makes no difference to this computer because it always has room for more. It basically has every virus, worm, hack attack, e-mail, website, or instant message in history stored in its database. I did some calculations and it seems to me that this machine could exceed approximately 700 Terabytes of hard drive space, but that's just a guess." "That's really amazing... and you have to guard this thing all by itself?" "It pretty much guards itself. It's protected by about a thousand different connections - and that number isn't figurative. Besides that, it's power by a nuclear reactor and is in no way connected to an external power source." "A nuclear reactor?" Liz said, slightly shocked, "What if it melts down or something?" "I know, I know... but back when it was built it was the most logical way of powering it. I don't know how to install hydrogen cells for a power source, because I'm not an electrician or whatever... and it's not like I can just call someone out here to install a system. The other thing is is that the reactor powers this whole compound. I don't like it, either, and I don't exactly feel safe. The reactor itself is buried underground. A water-channel that flows in from the ocean keeps it cool." "And what's all this about it becoming outdated?" "Well, technology is finally starting to go past the limit we previously thought. In a few years, your basic home computer will be more powerful than this. Well, not one computer but a bunch together... well, you know what I mean. If the technology exceeds this mother computer... it could easily overload. If this thing went, no one would notice it at first but eventually the world would take the toll. All servers around the globe are connected to this mammoth." "And Sintax... he... is trying to get access into this, isn't he?" "Very most likely. And I think it's because he had some involvement in its construction. Maybe not him, but a family member or a close friend... he has to know about this; his plans just point too much to this central unit." "Tony... is there any way to access this computer directly?" He nodded and walked over to a panel with a latch. He opened it and pulled out a small monitor, which remained attached to the wall. It was only six inches across or so. "This?" "Yeah. This monitor takes voice commands and also has a touch screen. I've almost never used it, but it's the only monitor for this whole system. I suppose you could dig anything out of that you want, but so far, I haven't needed to." "What if it contains information on Sintax?" "I've searched before, but found nothing. I suppose searching again wouldn't hurt... but since he's a master of hacking, I doubt I'll find anything." Tony began touching the screen. "Could any of this information leak out?" "If someone had the skills to bypass a thousand connections... I suppose..." "Found anything?" "Not much... I don't know his real name, so it's difficult knowing what to search for. I'm just trying 'Sintax'. All I'm getting basically is a lot of e-mails and message board conversations where people have misspelled syntax..." "Um, Tony? How-" "Wait! I think I got something good this time, I'll check the file," Liz stood, waiting for Tony to give more good news. But something suddenly happened. Something Liz instantly knew wasn't supposed to happen. Upon a push on the screen from Tony, a heavy rumble went through the metal grating, and the lights in the silo flickered. "Tony? What was that?" Liz asked nervously. "I'm... not sure." He replied, a slight quiver in his voice, "But I - I lost the monitor. It just blacked out when I tried viewing the file." "You don't think-" An alarm began to echo through the complex. Flashing red lights coveted the room. "WARNING! COOLANT MALFUNCTION IN SECTOR 3-A. COOLANT PROGRAM HAS CRASHED UNEXPECTEDLY. BACKUP SYSTEMS HAVE FAILED," came a loud, computerized voice. "To-Tony?!" "I don't believe this!" Tony shouted, "That rat-bastard! He must have gotten through and planted a virus! I can't believe I opened that file... what was I thinking?! He made a program to shut down the program that controls the reactor's cooling system. That program is within this computer!" "Is - is there anyway to get it back up?" "We can't do it here," Tony yelled while beating on the monitor with his fist, "The monitor's out. We'll have to use the one in the hub," "How will you access the system though?" "I'll have to... well, hack into it. Luckily I'll only have to go through maybe 500 connections... then I'll have to restore the program... this isn't going to be easy, Liz, but I think I can do it. Without that program, that coolant is just going to sit there. After what's being used now dries up, we'll have about five minutes before the reactor melts down. If it does... it's possible that this whole silo could turn into a giant, smoldering crater that spews radioactivity," "You gotta be kidding," Liz said, with a lack of words. "We have about twenty minutes. Come on, we have to hurry," Liz followed Tony back to the black door, which he pulled open himself and ran through. Liz followed closely. The red lights were still about, and the alarms seemed to be getting louder by the minute. After what seemed to be the whole twenty minutes, the two were again in the hub and Tony was typing away madly at his computer terminals. Liz could only stand, walk around, and hope for the best. The subtle and warm white light that had blessed the hub was now replaced with a constant red blinking. As five minutes passed, Liz could tell that Tony was growing nervous. Sometimes, he was typing with one hand and wiping sweat off his forehead with the other. He was also talking to himself, or thinking that Liz could hear him over the alarms. After fifteen minutes, Liz was pacing around the room. What would happen if Tony couldn't get the situation under control? Would they just run and hope for the best? According to Tony's calculations, the reactor was out of coolant now and would soon overheat. The compound began to shake as if an earthquake was taking place in all of Seattle. Loose pipes began to unhinge from their positions and fell to the floor, blasting out clouds of smoke or water vapor. Tony was running out of time, and Liz began to panic. Wanting to help - wanting to do something, she ran over to Tony. But a pipe above her had rattled loose and before she could get out of its way, it knocked her unconscious. She fell to the shaking floor. The last thing she saw before she blacked out was Tony's desperate figure pumping out commands onto his computer... Liz awoke in a bed, surrounded by a dark room, with a blanket over her. He head was throbbing and was resting on a large pillow. A door at the end of the room was left slightly ajar. Her glasses were not on, so everything seemed fuzzy and out of focus. She moaned with pain as she sat up in bed. An ice-pack flopped onto the blanket in front of her. She hadn't even known that it was there because of the pain. She tried to recollect what had happened as she observed her surroundings. It was obvious that she was in an old office, perhaps Tony's bedroom. She could barely make out her violet coat, which hung on a chair. She suddenly remembered something about the reactor melting down, and Tony trying to prevent it. Realizing that Tony had succeeded because the base still stood, she collapsed on the bed and gazed up at the ceiling. Images and spots appeared before her eyes, and she wasn't quite sure she was awake or asleep. A dark figure walked in the room. "Toe... Tony?" Liz said weakly. "Hey... how ya feeling?" Tony asked calmly. "Head... hurts... but... everything?" "Everything is fine... for the moment," Tony sighed, "I'm still going through system checks... just in case parts of the machine got overheated or something. Lucky for us no radiation leaked out... But to no surprise to me, all files on Sintax were destroyed, not like there was much in the first place. But I have hardcopies of those," Tony said as he walked over to Liz, his hands in his pockets. "How'd... he..." "Liz you're very tired and you need rest." "But how'd he get in?" She managed to sound out. "I... have no idea. It makes no sense whatsoever. I mean, to get into that computer through a thousand connections, plant a virus...and it's like he's mocking me. He could have just activated the virus instantly, but instead, he set it so it would activate when I searched for files... He's insane." Anger arose in his voice, "And now this... your training is going to get behind schedule because tomorrow we have to spend a few hours at the eye center..." "What? Why?" Tony pulled a shimmering object out of his pocket and place on the desk near Liz. She focused her eyes on it and found out what it was. Her glasses, which she had worn for five years, lay shattered, their frame bent. Liz picked them up and dangled them above her before placing them back down at the desk. She lay back down and pressed the ice patch against her head. "I can view a computer screen just fine without them." "That's not the point... you won't be able to concentrate when you're hacking if the rest of the world doesn't focus in right. All your senses must be totally in-tune if you want to successfully decode. You got hit on the head by a pipe, but you're a lot better than yourcould be. Sigh... I'm sorry for all the trouble I'm putting you through. Goodnight..." Tony said before hastily leaving and closing the door behind him. Her mind confused, Liz fell asleep quickly. But she awoke again at around 3:15 in the morning and grabbed her laptop from the desk. She opened it and turned it on. She felt as if she were sleepwalking in a sense, and she didn't know if she was dreaming or not. But when she saw her desktop, she remembered that she wasn't connected to the internet and could not where she was. Liz suddenly snapped out of her trance, but kept her computer on. She found herself looking through old photos, which made her feel homesick. She was about to shut her computer down when suddenly TIM opened up by itself. Because she wasn't connected to the internet, her buddy list didn't show up. Liz proceeded to quit the program, but before she did, a message popped up. sInTaX : Liz... hello. In complete shock, Liz slowly replied - her hands trembling. RabidRaccoon : Helol? sInTaX : So I meet you at last. RabidRaccoon : Hwo is this posisble? sInTaX : I have my ways. Now don't think of going to run and get Tony, I will be off in a moment. RabidRaccoon : How are you doing this? sInTaX : I am the ultimate hacker, Liz. Nothing gets by me. And I know about you. I've been watching you. But perhaps you already know that. TIM will now close, and will destroy any logs of this conversation. When you wake up in the morning, you won't know if this was real or a dream. Goodbye for now. Just as he said, TIM closed by itself. But besides that, her computer also shutdown. Liz sat up in bed for ten minutes, completely aghast to what had occurred. She slowly closed her laptop and placed it on the floor, giving it a small kick to scoot it under the bed and crept back under her covers. Liz never mentioned the quick conversation the next morning. After breakfast at a coffee-shop, the two headed down toward the local eye center. Liz remained quiet all morning. "We'd better get something similar to my old pair... or dad will go ballistic," Liz exclaimed. "Yeah, but I don't see any like your old pair... but you always said that your dad never really notices you, right?" Tony replied, looking through the shelves of eye-wear. "So get something you really want, something that would really look good on you. I'm paying for this, remember?" Tony said heartily. Liz ended up picking out a pair with small, narrow lenses and an ultra-thin wire wire frame. Tony exclaimed that they looked nice on her and paid for them. Tony drove them back to the base in a hurry. "Two hours with no one around is dangerous, you know. I'm taking a big risk taking time to train you... but I know that I must." Tony showed Liz toward one of the many meeting rooms in the compound. When the lights flickered on, Liz was surprised at the number of computers in the room. There must have been at least one-hundred, ranging from all different sizes. Tony flipped another switch, and they all came on simultaneously. "This will be our training room. We will spend two hours a day in here of hard hacking and coding exercises, then you spend the rest of the day with me in the hub, working along side me. It will be tough, and I will be hard on you. But I know that you have the abilities to succeed. I knew this from the moment I discovered you. Then, at the end of the month, you will be given a test. I will lower the security at this base by fifty-percent, which will allow in strong direct attacks. You will spend five minutes deflecting these attacks." "Tony, I can't do that!" "Yes, you can." "No! You can't lower security like that! This whole base could easily be destroyed, and than nothing will stop Sintax!" "Liz... if you don't have the ability to stop Sintax at all, then it makes no difference. If you fail that test, then I. too, have failed in my lessons. After you pass your test - which I know you will, you can go home for two weeks... After which, your plane to Japan will be leaving," "Tony... I just don't think I can become as good as you..." "You can, Liz. You will become confident in your skills - I promise that." "Tony?" "Yes?" "It was you that deleted my computer files, wasn't it..." "...I had to. I feared that they almost got to them first... Listen, when you go to Japan... you must let go of my protection, because I will only be able to defend the U.S. for so long. I fear that Sintax's master plan is going into effect in just two months. You must prevent it. And remember, Sintax, despite all of his capabilities, is still human; he has his limits. As do you. I don't know whether or not Sintax is involved in those gang wars in Japan, and it's your job to figure it out. The Paper Fans and the Blue Dragons could either be friend or foe in helping to defeat Sintax. Now, let us begin your training..." The first two weeks were hell for Liz. At times, she thought that she had done something correct, but fell into despair when she had been informed otherwise. Everything she knew about computers and writing code had seemingly gone out the window. Her fingers ached with pain after every lesson, as Tony repeatedly tried to hack into her computer station in the room. Liz had to prevent the attack, than retaliate by shutting down Tony's computer. But with the massive amount of connected computers in the room, connected through LAN, it was nigh impossible for Liz to get a lock on. But every lesson was a small success. Every attempt Tony made to get into her computer seemed to take a little longer. It may have just been a few extra seconds of blocking Tony's attacks. But it was beginning to come more natural for Liz as time wore on. And then, on a Saturday, she managed to deflect Tony's attacks entirely and shut down his computer within forty-five seconds, leaving Tony in bewilderment. "You... did it, Liz. Congrats. And now, we'll move onto the second lesson," It all came so fast. The second series of lessons focused on accessories and other instruments for hacking. Creating programs, and knowing when to tell you're being hacked, by reading the slightest alterations in a code while viewing the operating system's console. The third and final lesson had Liz sneak around the base as if it were Sintax's headquarters. She had to plug her computer into three ports and hack into systems within in a minute. Never being a good athlete, Liz found this challenge the most difficult. The hacking itself wasn't too difficult, but what was really hard was dodging security cameras and finding the correct ports to specific systems about the base. This was done by plugging in an ethernet device that tested the connection. All Liz had to do was hold a button on the small device until it found out if the connection would work or not. But if she spent too long on a port, the alarm would be raised. Every time she failed, Tony switched the port connections around. She had to first open the main security gate. Afterwards, she had to shut down the security cycle of the compound - this lasted only a minute. During that time, Liz would have to rush into the hub and delete a file on Tony's computer. She didn't have to go up against Tony himself, but the program he installed on the computer. What made matters worse was that during several of her runs, a major actual attack on the base would occur and her test had to be canceled. The base Tony constructed was very elaborate, and though the test angered Liz many times, she couldn't deny its engaging challenge. When Liz did finally complete the test - within three days of her final exam, she collapsed on the couch in the hub area. Tony came out from hiding, and gave Liz a big smile. "Just one final test to go, then. I'm sure you'll pass. But keep in mind, it will be unpredictable. I've taught you everything I know... It's up to what you want to do in your three days... you could rest, or you could practice some more. It's your choice." During her whole training period, Liz had not touched her laptop once. She had not communicated with her friends at all, and she felt as though she had left that world behind her. Her dad had called once, and during the short time they talked together, Liz told him that she was having a good time and had learned a lot about computers. 'At least I'm not lying...' Liz thought. She spent her three days practicing, which she had to force herself to do. She had learnt just how vulnerable so many of the big companies were. It came naturally, just as Tony had said, for her to gain access into almost anything that wasn't closely guarded. She felt as though she had become one with the digital world. She felt as though when she typed, codes and commands spread from her fingertips and through the keyboard. She surprised herself with her abilities, sometimes scaring herself. When Liz asked why she got a two week break instead of going after Sintax right away, Tony replied by saying that she needed time to realize what was precious to her. Liz understood what he meant, but not yet in its entirety. When Liz beat her final exam with flying colors, Tony was overjoyed. Liz found little challenge in preventing any attacks from going through. But she wondered, what if the attacks she blocked were weak and easy to defeat? She didn't want to dwindle on this thought, so she accepted the fact that she had succeeded in everything Tony had thrown at her. After the pair's victory dinner at the most fancy place in town, it was time for Liz to leave for home for the time being. Her confidence was unmatched. Liz was given time to say her goodbyes to the base, for it was likely that she wouldn't see it again. When she returned to the hub with her laptop in hand, Tony was waiting for her with car keys. "Well, my apprentice... you have proven yourself. I now grant you two weeks at home for rest... Soak in the rays - remember what's important to you. If you can't remember those things, it is doubtful you'll fail. I'll drive you to the airport, and you can catch a flight home. Take a bus home from there, and you'll be back in your bed around two in the morning. I'm sure you can tell your dad about your time at computer camp..." Liz smiled. "We'll meet again, Tony," "Oh, Liz... Could I have your disc Emma gave you for safekeeping? Remember that it could save you when you're in trouble." "Oh, sure..." Liz reached in her purple coat pocket and handed the small disc to Tony. "Thanks, Liz. I will contact you when the time comes. Let's go. You got a plane to catch," As she caught the final glimpse of the warehouse which concealed the Angel's headquarters, Liz thought back to where she was when she arrived and where she had come. Tony was one of a kind. He was a best friend. And after all she had been taught, she truly believed that she understood why Tony had chosen her... June 1st The trip back home was uneventful. Throughout her flight home, though, she felt alienated from the others. After a month's training in hacking, she felt different. Maybe it was a feeling of a superiority or loneliness and indifference. She had once feared hackers, and now she was one herself. Her skills scared her at times. It was late at night when the plane touched down. The flight had been delayed by an hour, and Liz was very tired. As she trudged around the baggage claim area, waiting for her lone suitcase, the people around her began to fade out, almost as if they were all monochrome in characteristic. There Liz was, wearing a ruffled green shirt with a pi symbol, a long purple coat, and holding a small laptop tightly by her side. Did Liz really not fit in anymore? She never really had to begin with, but the feeling was more potent now. She knew things no one else did. She was surrounded by adults with no sense of the imminent danger. They all shared the same view she had once; computer hackers are all the scum of today's society. It made her feel sick - that she was bound by the real truth and could not express her feelings to anyone but a select group of people. When her baggage arrived, she grabbed it and hurried off to a bus right before it left. It was near capacity, but she found an empty seat in the very back. Liz didn't know what to do now. She was such a different person; could she really just go back to her old life and chat with her friends like she had learned nothing? She had to remember what was precious to her, Tony had said. But what was? She never had many friends, her dad was always busy on his campaign, and she didn't know any of her online friends personally. Tony was right, she did have to remember what was precious to her, and this might take time. And she had only two weeks. Liz saw her house for the first time in a month as she stood in front of it, on her gravel driveway in the moonlight. The lights inside were still on, perhaps her dad was still awake and waiting to greet her. This cheered her up slightly, so she proceeded to the front door and opened it with her keys. Scuff ran up to greet her in his kindly ways. When he recognized her, he let loose with howls and tail wags. Liz dropped her stuff by the door and bent down to pet the dog. He licked her hands several times before heading back to the living room. Liz stood back up and slammed the front door. As she approached the living room, her dad's voice grew louder. It was obvious that he was talking on the phone. Solemnly, she stepped in to see her dad in an easy chair. He was busily talking on the phone, and there was a desperate tone in his voice. When Liz gave him a small wave, he looked up, cracked a small smile, and went back to talking. Liz could tell that he was nervous when he rested his head in his hands, but she didn't care. 'Probably slipped five-percent in his ratings, that's all he cares about' she though before heading downstairs, angrily. Her office room was just how she left it. The door had been closed and inside, the air was stale and musty. It must have not been occupied once during her whole absence. She turned on her small TV, collapsed on her futon, and turned on her computer. It was two-thirty in the morning. If her dad had actually stayed up this late just to greet her, she would have been very pleased, but instead, he had stayed up this late talking to his clients. After going through mounds of e-mail and checking up on her favorite websites, she began to drift off. Her orange tabby, Lulu, had curled up near her and fallen asleep. Liz stroked the cat gently. Sintax had not instant messaged her for the whole hour she had been on, and confident that he never would, she turned her computer off and began to doze off. But she was awakened at three-thirty when her dad came in the room. Liz became fully awake when he showed up. "Hi, Liz..." he said slowly, "How was camp?" "Oh... it was good. I liked it... yeah." "Sleeping down here tonight?" "Yeah, I think so," "Well I'm glad you're back home... it's been kinda weird here without you..." "Oh..." Hector crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway, looking at the ground longingly. He sighed deeply. It was then that Liz realized that something was indeed wrong. In all the times that Hector reported his little losses in the campaign, he had never looked depressed about it. Liz's pulse quickened. "What's... what's wrong, dad?" she asked nervously. "Liz, honey... I just got done talking on the phone with Doctor Lopolski, of Washington D.C.'s hospital. It's your grandfather... he's not well. The cancer has spread faster than his team first predicted and they'reputting him on life support," Liz was speechless. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. Hector's father had been one of her most loved people in the world. When she was young, she would spend many weekends with him at his house. He had worked in the computer business when he was young, and helped computer technology soar from its birth. But he had been a heavy smoker. He would sometimes spend all night writing programming code, and going through several packs of cigarettes. Those days took their toll when he was diagnosed with lung cancer about five years ago. Liz began to cry quietly. How could she have forgotten what was precious to her? Her grandparents, her friends, her own dad. She had been selfish and self-obsessed, and when she realized this, she felt terrible. Liz got up and hugged her dad tightly. "Liz... we'll go visit him tomorrow, alright? I'm sorry to give you bad news when you just got home." The next morning, they headed for the hospital in the capital. Liz gazed out the window, with few thoughts, as her dad never took his eyes off the road. The radio played music softly. Liz had been to Washington very few times despite the fact that she lived an hour away. Liz hated hospitals. She hated them ever since she got a broken leg from being hit by a car when she was four and had to spend a week in one. They were miserable places, probably the least enjoyable places to Liz in the world. If being around many people was something Liz didn't like, being around many sick and ailing people was something she abhorred. Light rain covered the capital as she and her father entered the giant hospital building. Liz's grandfather was on the tenth floor, by himself in an empty room. Despite his age and his illness, he still remained the same charm that Liz had when she was happy - a mellow sense of humor and an optimistic ego. "Is that you, Elizabeth?" he said joyfully while coughing and smiling. "Hi, grandpa," Liz replied, smiling back. "Hello, dad," Hector added. "Well... you came to visit me," ee replied in a cracked voice. "How are they treating you?" "Like crap. And what's with all these new computers they're using around here? When I made 'em they were nice and simple..." "Yeah, they're pretty complicated now aren't they?" Liz agreed, not quite knowing what he meant, but believing that he was correct. "Oh, Liz... we need to go back to my house and do some more computer things..." "Dad, you're going to stay here for a while," "Well they got me hooked up to all these things... and there's that hospital smell, it's bad. And I get no decent TV channels in here..." He coughed. "Dad, you need rest," "I don't need any rest..." "Yeah, you do. Look, you might be here for a while... Do you want me to get your laptop from your home?" "Yes... but I don't know if they'll let me use it," "I'll talk to them," "If they want me to live so badly, they need to let me at my computers!" "I know what you mean..." Liz replied quietly. They must have spent several hours at the hospital before leaving. Liz once again remembered how much she loved her grandfather. He was one of the most intelligent people she had ever known. Hector took his daughter to the Code Adobe that night for dinner. It would be two weeks before Liz would leave home for Japan, and she wanted to spend every moment of it doing things that really mattered. She could feel herself slowly becoming a warrior. She knew that if she never gave up, Sintax would fall. June 13th A car horn went off outside, waking Liz from her slumber in her bedroom. It was midnight as Liz glanced outside. Down below was a taxi. She knew instantly who it was for and why. But she had been expecting a ride the following day, or at least during sunlight. Instead, she was being forced to sneak out of her house in the middle of the night, when she wouldn't be prepared. The taxi driver was waiting patiently while reading a magazine. With no choice, Liz grabbed a suitcase, threw in some clothes, and tucked her laptop under her arm. She went to her desk and wrote a note to her dad. It read, 'Dad, something came up - gotta go. Don't know when I'll be back, but I will return as soon as I can. This has nothing to do with you and me, so don't blame yourself. Your loving daughter, Elizabeth.' She stared at the note for a moment and felt a little sick. She realized that writing her full name was too formal, and might scare her dad. So she erased the other letters and just left 'Liz.' She placed the small note on the bed and rushed out of her room, only to return a second later for her velvet coat. After jogging downstairs and petting Scuff, she unlocked the front door and was prepared to open it when she remembered that the alarm was set to go off if the door opened. Jumpily, she dropped her stuff and typed the code into the security box, opened the door, and retyped in the code. She grabbed her belongings and rushed outside. The taxi driver, a stout, mustached man wearing a small brown hat, put his magazine down and waved to Liz. She took one last look at her house and got in the back of the taxi. "I assume you know where to go, right?" "Yesh, the ahport," he said in an accent Liz couldn't quite identify. "I could really use some coffee..." The driver took a cup from one of his cup holders and handed it back to Liz. It was still piping hot. "He shaid you would probhaly need it," He replied. The taxi sped off. Liz looked at her house above the rim of her paper coffee cup. She was leaving it again, but this time she was running away from home. The two weeks she spent with her dad were like the last in general; he was busy very often and away from home, and Liz had spent long days in her downstairs work room talking to friends and catching up on everything she had missed. But they did manage to go to the 'Six-Flags' in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area. While Liz opposed noisy attractions like theme-parks, she admired the attempt her dad was making to get things back to normal. Her spirits did rise slightly, though, and she had almost forgotten that she was on a mission to 'save the world'. But now she was off to a country she had always been interested in but had never been to. She could be in great danger and come in between two deadly gangs at each other's throats. And her job was to uncover the truth about the little known Sintax. During her two weeks of being back at home, there had been no out-of-the-ordinary occurrences. There were no mysterious TIM conversations, no sightings of men in black coats, no destruction of hard drives. This also had contributed to the thought that perhaps none of this would actually go through; that no one was in danger and everything would remain the same. She had also not practiced hacking since she left for home. But she trusted Tony, and she knew that there was no turning back. The lights of planes landing and taking off grew and shrunk in the distance as the airport drew near. Liz grabbed her items and tried paying the cabbie, but he explained that he had already been paid and drove off, leaving Liz stranded. She knew that she was in for a long night. Her flight would be taking her almost clear across the world. Stopping in Los Angeles and than proceeding to Tokyo, it would be a ride of almost perpetual darkness because she would be traveling away from the sun. The flight would take eight hours to complete, counting in the hour wait at LA. She boarded the colossal supersonic 767, a plane which dwarfed her previous jetliner. Because she didn't purchase the tickets herself, she had no idea where she was sitting. After asking a stewardess. Liz found her seat on the third floor, in the back. Tony had evidently found her a perfect seat - stuffed in the back and not close to anyone else. The seat she was given could fold out into a small bed. Above her was a dome of plexiglas, which offered a view into the night sky. Clouds would soar by, but the moon and stars would linger. The dimly lit, relatively small third floor held only about a dozen other people, most of whom were settling in for a night's sleep. Many of them would probably just sleep through the stop in the city of angels. Liz's chair was in a box, similar to a box seating area in a theater. On one side was a small TV, on the other was an area to plug a computer in for internet access. The coffee Liz drank would keep her up for at least two hours, and with nothing to do, Liz thought that she might as well practice her skills. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard our flight to Tokyo, Japan. We will first be stopping in the LA International Airport to refuel and pick up some more passengers. After an hour, we will proceed to Narita Airport. Those stopping in LA will be alerted, so feel free to sleep. In flight movies are available at a low price. Thank you, and enjoy the flight," Liz took a deep breath to meditate on her journey. Already, she had seen a number of Oriental stewardesses, and the sides of the fuselage had been painted with scenes of Japanese gardens and bamboo patches. The plane rumbled and shook as it went down the taxiway, turned, and sped up rapidly as its quad-engines hummed aloud. A sudden left upwards, and Liz was 30,000 feet away from her house already. She turned on a small lamp in her cubicle and shuffled about her computer bag. Everyone else in the room was trying to sleep. A stewardess walked around the area, checking on everyone. Noticing Liz, she approached her and asked her in a friendly manner if she'd like some Japanese tea. "No thanks," Liz replied. After several runs of a program created by Tony that simulated a server to hack in to, Liz grew bored. She found that she was always winning, even on the harder difficulty levels. Her own skills surprised her, even though she considered herself a tad rusty. Then suddenly, as she quit the program, TIM opened by itself. Liz already knew what was happening as it had happened once before. And right on cue, a message came up. But time had passed since her last conversation, and Liz was not as nervous anymore. She typed clearly and forcefully. sInTaX : So we meet again, Liz. RabidRaccoon : What do you want? sInTaX : I see that you're coming to visit me in Japan. RabidRaccoon : Perhaps... sInTaX : Ha. Well Liz, I look forward to meeting you. RabidRaccoon : The feeling's mutual sInTaX : You've grown up some, haven't you? RabidRaccoon : Tony taught me everything her knows. Tony's the best hacker, programmer there is. sInTaX : I beg to differ RabidRaccoon : How is it you're doing this? sInTaX : I have the power, Liz. Tony can't do what I do. He can't even compare. If he's so intelligent, why'd he open my file with my little worm? RabidRaccoon : It was a simple blunder. And how'd you manage that? sInTaX : I have my ways, like I've said. My skills are beyond your comparison. They're not human, if I say so myself RabidRaccoon : Sintax, you don't scare me. sInTaX : I can. If I wanted, I could turn this plane's engine's off. You'd go crashing to the ground, and then what would Tony do? Liz swallowed as her hands began to shake slightly. RabidRaccoon : You wouldn't do that. sInTaX : Oh? RabidRaccoon : You've had plenty of chances to stop me, and you haven't yet. sInTaX : Heh RabidRaccoon : That worm or whatever, it could have destroyed the base. But Tony managed to secure it. If you're as good as you say you are, you could program something that would destroy the base instantly. sInTaX : You're right, I could have. But that would be messy and too openly destructive. I'm professional about my work. RabidRaccoon : And so is Tony sInTaX : Ha. Yes, let us praise Tony. A poor boy that came from a slummy town, went on a little chase to stop that fool, Tombrolo, and barely escaped prison. Liz, Tony is nothing special. He sends his lackeys to do all his work for him. He's weak and lonely. He tries to protect the U.S., but he is only human like us all. Machines and computers are taking over. They will soon outpower him and his friends. There is no stopping this. Remember, there is nothing holding me back. I simply must use my skills along with ingenious plans. What are you fighting for, Liz? I'm planning a revolution. I'm planning to make the world a better place for us all. RabidRaccoon : No. I know about you revolutionists. And how dare you talk about Tony that way. sInTaX : You know nothing of my plans. Come to Japan, watch the revolution with me. I won't fight you. I'll even let you join me if you wish. It's no use to resist because once my plans go into effect, not even I can stop them. RabidRaccoon : Maybe you can't, but I will. sInTaX : Ha. You really want to believe that you're some sort of movie hero, don't you. I'm telling you, Liz, you cannot stop me. There will be no heroic moments. There will be no grand savior. Everything is going to change, and there is nothing you can do to prevent it. Goodbye, Liz. RabidRaccoon : Going so soon? Don't you want to stick around and chat? Your last message was not sent because of an error. Liz watched as her computer shut itself down. Before it turned off, the words 'Compliments of your friend' appeared, followed by a black screen. Liz's TV screen turned on all of a sudden, making her jump. She recognized the movie immediately; 'Hack Code' was one of Liz's all time favorite movies since it first showed a few years back. It was about a group of teenage hackers who bring about the destruction of the world as the film progressed. At the end, the group are amidst a giant hill of destroyed computers, created by the lone survivors in hatred of them. They are left pondering their lives and what they accomplished. She had seen it at least a dozen times, and was about to turn it off, but instead folded out her bed and watched the film on her small monitor as she drifted off. Sintax had provided for her, and this made her ponder just how much he knew about her. She even dwindled briefly on the idea that perhaps Sintax wasn't as sinister as she thought, but dismissed it quickly. Liz awoke and checked her watch. It was almost six in the morning at home, but the sun was nowhere in sight as the plane continued westward. She walked over to a side window and looked down. No lights could be seen, signifying that they were high above the Pacific. She had slept through the LA landing and would arrive in Japan within a few hours, where night was beginning to settle in. She returned to her bed looked up through the observation dome. It was very silent. Aside from the low humming and occasional stirs of the passengers, nothing broke the silence. After waiting around for an hour and playing simple computer games, people began to arise. A stewardess came in with a breakfast cart, handing out packages of food in styrofoam containers. She came by and placed one on Liz's bed. "Coffee, milk, or orange juice?" asked the Japanese woman almost as short as Liz. "Oh, uh... coffee is fine," The breakfast package contained two slices of bacon, a cup of scrambled eggs, a croissant, and a hash-brown. Not being a big breakfast person, she consumed half the meal. "We will be landing in Narita within about two hours. It's a beautiful airport," "Thanks," Liz replied. "So what are you doing here all alone?" she asked while smiling. "Um... business," "Oh, business, then? For your age?" "Yeah, computer business with some friends," "Oh, I see. Well, good luck with everything," "Thanks," Liz gazed up at the observation dome and as time passed, the sky got a little lighter. She knew it wasn't the sun. A little later, light began to pour in through the windows. Liz stood up and looked out the window. Through the light rain drops on the window, she saw more lights than there were stars in the sky. The city was inhabited by almost eighteen-million people. It now owned the world's tallest skyscrapers, many of which were interwoven with midair bridges. The city was beginning to form a multi-complex megatropolis of the future. If flying cars were to be developed, Tokyo would be the first to see them in mass use. Bullet trains sped through the major portions of the city, and many buildings had depots that were located half way up. One side of each skyscraper was dedicated to ads that were broadcasted from projectors. The famous radio tower had even been upgraded, becoming a very monumental structure. The plane turned along the coast, offering a panoramic view of the city. It was nothing Liz had ever seen before, and the city was like something out of a science-fiction novel or movie. Narita airport was located some thirty miles away from Tokyo, meaning Liz would have to take a bullet train to her hotel. But she suddenly realized that she had no idea where her hotel was in the massive infrastructure of buildings. She assumed she would find out as she gathered her things and the plane touched down. The airport was indeed a marvel of design. Large silver-plated arches rimmed with glass were strewn from every angel. The bustling of people on cell phones and the walls covered with monitors made her feel insignificant. As she was looking around for somewhere to go, she spotted from the corner of her eye a familiar face - Emma. She was waving to Liz. "Liz, you made it! How do you like Japan so far?" Emma asked when Liz met her. "It's great, really," Liz replied. It occurred to Liz that she fit in quite well. Not everyone was a Japanese business man. Many people were from different countries, some of which even looked like Liz. "We've been here for about a week now. I came here to get you. The suite is really nice," "Tony is really going out on a limb for us, isn't he?" Liz questioned. "Yeah, well... He says we deserve the best," Liz noticed Fredrick, who was sitting on a corner chair and playing his games. "We have much to discuss, Liz. But for now let's go back and rest. You're probably worn out, I'm guessing," "Yeah... I slept the way here but..." Liz yawned. "I already ate dinner, but you just ate breakfast... it takes a while to get used to," "I bet." "Come on, Freddy," Emma asked. The three scuttled toward the bullet train station and rode toward the magical city of lights for their final leg in the efforts to prevent the worst. "Things are really active here. Tokyo is like no other place you've ever seen," Emma explained during the ride to the city, "There's always people, no matter where you turn. The city truly is something out of a movie now. Airships even circle the city, laden with flashing banners. The city was the first to receive a neuro-net computer system... like a CPU that has access to everything in the metropolitan area. It controls traffic lights, advertisement rotations, everything. I don't know of we're moving into the future or taking a step backwards and making ourselves more vulnerable... Oh, this is yours, Liz." Emma pulled out the small disc that Tony had kept safe for her. "Thanks." "Any idea what's on it?" "Nope." "Hmm... well look, Liz. Tomorrow I want to give you a tour of town. You got to know the area. Tomorrow night, we'll do research on these gang wars." "Alright," "Liz..." "Yeah?" "I'm glad Tony chose you." Liz didn't reply. The train slowed to a stop. The station was just as busy as the airport. Like a swarm of bees, there was never any ending to the sounds or movement. "Come on, Liz. We can find a bus to the hotel," Emma managed to exert. Navigating through the crowds, the three secured a bus. Liz observed the surroundings as the bus drove through the Ginza strip, the major downtown area of Tokyo. The setting sun in the west created shadows that contrasted the bright lights which penetrated the city. "Most of the people here speak fluent English. Japan has really become a melting pot of all different minorities, like America. You'll find that Tokyo is a lot like New York in ways, but a lot different at the same time," Emma explained, "But you should stay off the streets... I mean, entirely. They're seedy as all hell. Just stay above ground." "This really is a futuristic city... You know, in all the movies... the lower levels are always crime-ridden," Liz added. "Yeah, but it's mostly got to do with those gang wars. The Paper Fans and the Blue Dragons have really gone at each other's necks recently." "How bad they can really be, though?" "Don't fool yourself. We're in major stuff here. These two gangs are violent, bloody, ruthless... They used to have hacker wars but major grudges have really heated things up. Now they're barely ever on their computers... I've been doing some research, not much, but some..." "What about Sintax?" Emma sighed. "I don't know... Tony thought he was the leader of the Dragons, but I just don't know. There are just some things that don't fit. We got a week, Liz. We have to stop Sintax on the day he wants to launch his plan, so that we know what it is... It's risky but it's the only way to find out what exactly is going on. We got a lot of work to do," "Emma... How are we supposed to stop him... There's just the two of us," "Let's talk more at the hotel..." The bus arrived in front of a high-class hotel, complete with red carpet. The rain had grown into a downpour. "It rains quite often here, as you'll find out. Mostly due to the industrial sectors. Come on, let's go inside." Liz followed closely behind Emma, who was holding her cousin's hand. Liz gazed upwards. She was surrounded by skyscrapers with flashing lights on all sides. Two men in tuxedos greeted Liz and the others at the door. Inside was a room like Liz had never seen before. It was similar to a mall, but much more elegant. The stairs on either side curved upwards and were made of glass. A huge, crystal chandelier hung down from the top of the tall room. Behind the staircase was a large fish tank which scaled the wall. It was at least twenty-feet tall, and featured many exotic and rare fish which Liz had never seen before. The floor was white marble and the walls were a blueish glass color. The room was enormous, and Liz had to look around a few times to see that there was a sushi bar, arcade, cyber cafe, and an American restaurant built in with the hotel. "Wow... this place is amazing..." Liz stammered. "You won't find a place like this where you live, Liz. Watch the fish tank, too. There's holographic ads on it which appear periodically. And this cyber cafe will come in handy. We can really crunch numbers in there, I'm sure. Japanese tea beats coffee any day, but they do have the classic stuff," Liz continued to follow Emma as she waited patiently for people to move. They eventually reached the elevator, which was also a beauty. It was large, marbled, and had a small television set displaying local news. "Are the rooms small?" Liz questioned. "Most are, but ours is a suite like I said... It's got two bedrooms. Plus. we're on the 50th floor - the top. The view is like nothing you've ever seen..." "Tony sure is treating us as well as possible." "Yeah, he probably had to do a good deal of hacking to set this up," "I don't think he hacked for this... I think he's paying for this with his own money," Liz whispered. "What makes you think so?" Liz shrugged. The elevator came to a sudden stop and the doors opened after a long journey upwards. The group stepped out into a long, elaborately decorated hallway. Murals telling of ancient Japanese stories were painted with precise detail on the walls. After a short walk, Emma stopped at a door and pulled out a keycard. She slid it in a panel similar to a credit card-reader and the door, which had no door knob, opened by itself. The suite was indeed large and extravagant. The large living room had a very large plate of glass for a window, which bent to form a half-circle. The curtains were pulled back, exposing a starry night. But the stars were all different colored. Many of them were red and blinked, many were still and yellow or white, some were pulsating blue. The TV was a sixty-inch flat screen. The sofa was a silk-covered futon, and the carpet was premium quality. The suite felt like a small palace. "This is really going overboard," Liz muttered. "Nah, suits me," Emma replied. "Well look at all this stuff... I thought my house was fancy," "Well soak it in, we're only gonna be here a week," "Where are the computers gonna go?" "Follow me." Liz dropped her luggage at the door and tagged behind Emma. She arrived in a room between the two bedrooms. It was small, confining, and had only one small window. It was Liz's type of place. Two computers were hooked up and running. "That's the room's computer. It came with with the place. It has no hard drive, so it's internet access only. We'll stick to that for casual internet surfing. Our computers are solely for, well, you know... hacking. Must of the information we'll gather is not public, you know." Emma's laptop was a large 17-inch black and white computer. Liz felt a little jealous at first, because the design was so beautifully constructed. "I know it looks nice but it's two years older than your model," Emma commented. Liz patted her computer with her hand, running a finger on the dent. She placed it on the available desk and opened it. "Looks great. Hopefully we can get a lot of work done here," Emma implied. "Emma?" came a small voice. Liz and Emma turned around. Fredrick had pocketed his game and was yawning. "Yes, Freddy?" "I'm going to bed," "Alright, where you wanna sleep?" "Liz can pick first," "Oh, um... Uh, futon is fine with me," Liz replied. "'kay I'll take the small bedroom," Fredrick replied quietly before turning into the left bedroom and closing the door. "Guess you'll get the futon." "Yeah..." "You wanna watch TV or something? I know I'm too tired to do anything productive," "Sure... Um, is Japanese TV as weird as they all say?" "Yeah, it's pretty strange. But it's also strangely addictive to watch. We can view American channels as well anyway. We got over 500 channels to choose from." The two turned off the lights and flipped the TV onto the news. Liz changed into her favorite pajamas, a shirt which covered her knees and a pair of light sweat-pants. When she went back into the living room, Emma had also changed and was munching down on a bowl of popcorn. The futon had been opened and Emma was resting on pillows which leaned against the wall. "Popcorn... I always have it right before bed," Emma explained. "I see..." Liz climbed into bed and made herself comfortable. "Controller is right near you... it controls lights, the TV, air conditioning..." "Thanks," Liz replied. The news was being shown by two eccentric anchors. Liz glanced outside as a blimp passed by, sporting an advertisement for hair gel. "Emma..." Liz murmured during a commercial, "Tell me about your cousin," "Fredrick?" Emma replied. "Yeah, he's so quiet... This is like, the first time I've seen him talk," "Well," Emma sighed, "You see, he's actually Alex's son... So he's a second cousin," "Alex has a son? Well why can't Alex take care of him?" "Liz..." Emma said a little coldly, making Liz feel bad for asking such a question, "My cousin, Alex, is always on the run. It's been months since we've last spoken. When I found had Tony had ties to Alex, I thought I could get in touch with him, but Tony said that he hadn't heard from him in months, either. I hope Alex is okay... He didn't want Fredrick growing up to be a hacker, but our family has this computer gene going through us. I can't explain it... We all want to program, or code... I got Fredrick those games to stimulate him. Alex can't take Freddy with him, it's just too dangerous. You understand, Liz?" "Of course I do..." "I worry about him sometimes. He's really good at games, he beats me at them all the time. But he's so shy and soft spoken," "Well, So am I..." "True..." "Where do you live, Emma? When you're not spending your summers stopping evil hackers?" "We move around often. Fred's been to at least three schools now... We mostly stay on the west coast. Alex told us for our own safety, we need to keep moving. But I haven't ever felt as if I was being stalked or something..." "What's it like having him around? I never had a younger sibling..." "He basically stays close to me and says little. I never leave him alone at home... But the hotel is much safer and I know he'll probably just stay put and play games with the TV on or something..." Liz had nothing else to ask and the two remained silent for a while. Beginning to doze off, Liz picked up the controller and pressed a button which caused the curtains to close. The Tokyo skyline disappeared, making the room feel much smaller. "Well, I think I'll go on to bed, too," Emma informed, "Night," "Yeah, night, Emma," Emma left for her room. Liz touched another key, activating a stereo in the corner of the room, which silently played a variety of music. She turned off the television and settled in. It had felt like an eternity since she left home for Japan. Her dad was probably weary of her disappearance by now. How would he feel? How would he react? Liz longed for home but was amazed at Tokyo. She had a job to do now. Somewhere, in that city, was Sintax. He was scheming, plotting, and hiding. It was up to Liz and Emma alone to stop him. Liz imagined the dangerous encounters she might face and grew nervous. But then she remembered what Tony had told her. As long as she passed his test, and as long as he was around, no harm would come to Liz. That thought strengthened her for the days to come, and she slowly fell asleep in the large city of the future. Liz awoke and noticed a small note on the night table, written by Emma, which read, 'Left at six, down in cyber-cafe. Freddy can sleep and be alone, he'll be fine'. Initially thinking that it would be nine or so, it was actually seven according to the clock on the stand. And yet, sun was pouring in through the curtains. Liz knew from then on that she would dislike the mornings while she was here, having a reputation for being a late sleeper. She got up and opened the curtains. It seemed that the activity in Tokyo had not changed a bit since night; the city was still bustling with activity. Liz changed and checked on Fredrick, who was silently sleeping in his room. Five minutes from waking up, she grabbed her computer and left the room. She proceeded to the cyber-cafe and located Emma, who was in a corner booth and gazing longingly at her computer. The cafe was decorated with blue and red, was full of flat screen TVs, and crowded for the time of day. It was nothing like the Code Adobe that Liz knew so well. "Hey, Emma," Liz said, taking a seat opposite of her. Emma was leaning on her elbow, typing with one hand with a glazed look in her eyes. A hot cup of tea in a fancy glass was half empty. "Hi..." "So... doing research or something?" "Just sifting through news articles. I've gone through every article about the two gangs written in the past two years, but I haven't gotten much information... nothing useful, at least," "Well I'm sure that if we collect enough data, we can compile them and get something useful..." "Yeah, I know. I've kept everything but I'm really looking for anything on Sintax. So far I've found nothing... Well, there is one reference to him but it's not much," "What?" "It's from a small article about six years back," "Six? Though you've only gone through two years though," "I did, but this is all I got when I searched for Sintax - the first thing I did. Now I'm going through all these articles about the Paper Fans and Blue Dragons for any reference to some 'ultimate hacker'. What I found was this." Emma turned her laptop around to show Liz her findings. The screen had a newspaper scan which did indeed have a date which labeled it as a pretty old article. 'Japanese Police Force claims 'Ultimate Hacker' is only fiction' was the title. Its subtitle read, 'After investigation, .olice determine Friday's attacks were the result of a Paper Fan attack, not a single hacker' Liz went on to read the entire article. 'The thirty-point drop of stock belonging to Salzo industries on Friday was the result of a hacker attack from the Paper Fan gang, and not the Blue Dragon's rumored 'Ultimate Hacker', explains police chief Yiu Makishi. 'There is simply little pointing toward the Blue Dragon's responsibility in this attack. Not only does this rule out some super hacker, it also shows us that no super hacker exists. The super hacker is said to have the ability to get access to anything in a matter of seconds, and block any attack from an opposing force. Salzo industries is under hard allegations that it is supplying funding to the Dragons, and therefor it is not likely that the Dragons are behind this,' "Six years ago... that was a year before Sintax hacked into the satellite and Tony began doing heavy research on Sintax. What is Salzo, by the way?" Liz asked. "It was a computer industry located right here. They were producing computer programs at first, but soon began working on new technologies. Last I heard they were developing very smart robots or something..." "You doesn't really seem to have a good reason in this article though to disavow this super hacker... I mean, his explanation is really lacking," "I know, it's what is making me wonder. Maybe the police force are being manipulated or something. Having a shield pulled over their eyes." "Is Mr. Makishi still the head police chief? We could talk to him, perhaps." "Yeah. but I doubt we'll get any good leads. He still refuses to believe in Sintax." "Have you done any research on connections between the Dragons and Salzo?" "Some, but all I get is 'further allegations', or 'Evidence found that Salzo is supporting...'" "So nothing solid?" "Nope," Liz leaned back and sighed. "I know it may seem that we are going nowhere fast, but we do have some time. The newspaper is the first place to look for this sort of stuff," "I'm sure we can get much more on the internet though..." "Yeah, but we got to start big and work our way down. When you work on cases like this, you be patient and take small steps," "Cases? You mean you've done stuff like this before?" Emma looked up and leaned back herself. "Liz," she said with a sigh, "I'm a detective in training... I never told you that have I?" "A detective?" "Yes, one in training. This is my third case I've been assigned," "But I thought Tony assigned us here..." "He did but..." "But what?" "His mission is completely different from the one I was assigned," "Really?" "My division assigned me to Japan in hopes that I could unravel a theft." "Of what?" "An experimental program. The file was on a high-security computer but it somehow got stolen, and the original file was destroyed," "What was the program?" "I don't know, but it was being made by ScyTech..." "ScyTech? You mean that anti-hacker organization?" "Yes, and I have a strong feeling that one of the rival gangs is involved... My division found out that the source of the theft was in Japan, so they sent me here. But I've veered off course of my objective..." "Maybe not... we need to find out what they were developing," "That's one of the things I've been focusing on, but it's difficult... since all of the file's plans and everything were deleted. Of course, it puzzles me that Sintax would want an anti-hacker beta program, when he has enough power to stop opposing power in their tracks..." "Maybe there was something in its coding that he could use... that he could alter," "The whole thing confuses me... Before I was assigned to this case, I received minor computer hacking training, which I had to keep secret. Of course I was a bit nervous when they taught me... after all, hackers are despised like nothing else these days... Then Tony contacted me. I guess he knew that the case I was studying could be a vital key in this whole mess," "So right now we should find out what that program was exactly. There is after all a chance that it may not be anti-hacking software," "If we don't find anything, we'll have to get the information straight from the source," "What do you mean?" "It's impossible to get into either gang's database, as each runs a closed network. We'll have to sneak in and get access ourselves," "That's suicide! We're a pair of young computer nerds, not some thrill seeking action spies!" "Hey, calm down, Liz. It's not as hard as you may think. The Paper Fans are notorious for letting information leak and being sloppy about it. I think we should see what they got. If I get five minutes, I could download enough information to learn everything there is about the Fans," "Can't we convince the police force to help us out?" "They don't want to get involved... They claim that they're waiting for a specific moment to take action. They don't know when that will be, though." "Where exactly are these hideouts?" "I'll tell you later." "You know where both of them are?" "Yeah." "It's all too confusing..." "We just need to find out what each gang and Sintax is up to," "Do we even know if Sintax is a gang leader?" "Antanio Alvarez" "What?" "Antanio Alvarez... the leader of the Fans. Everyone knows the leaders, Liz. They're famous around here..." "Dragons? What about them?" "The only name known is Luther Mckinge. Whenever you hear news about the Dragons, he's the one labeled as the leader. Sintax really keeps hidden... Very few want to believe that he exists," Liz leaned back again. "So what are we going to do now?" Liz asked. "Well, we got half of one day of enjoyment while we're here... I've been looking forward to it since I arrived," "But what about the case?" "There isn't much we can to today anyway, besides more research but we can save that for tonight. We don't have a plan, and we need to find out the best place to get into the Fans' place. Let's get Freddy and take a tour of town, hmm?" "I dunno..." "Come on, Liz. Tony wants us to do something for ourselves. If you feel guilty about it, we'll stay up all night doing research," "Well... alright. I guess I should get the feel for the town," Emma closed her computer, and the two left the cafe and headed back to the room. Fredrick had been watching television for almost a half hour. Emma explained that they were going for a spin around town, and he hastily got ready. The time that Liz and her friends spent around the city was like no experience she had ever had. She had been to New York and Chicago a few times, but they were nothing like Tokyo. It seemed as if there was an arcade on every block and a flashing banner on every building. Walking was the fastest way to move around as the streets were usually crowded. The noise was never ending and the people came in all sorts and varieties. There were always about a hundred different activities happening at once as the three walked down the sidewalks. They began lunch in the sushi bar at the hotel, where Liz tried eating raw fish for the first time. It was better than she expected. Afterwards, they left the hotel and stopped in at an arcade. Liz had never seen any of the games before. They went to a mall, which had an indoor area similar to a river. Bridges covered the gaps of the river, which was filled with coy and cut the mall in half. One of the toy stores had shelves packed full of expensive games for Fred's handheld. They spent perhaps an hour there. Liz didn't want to buy anything using Tony's credit, but she couldn't help herself when she was in the computer store. She spent a good deal of money on an Aqua Trance casing. It was plastic with a chrome coating and blue patterns. It was also useful for covering up the dent. She also bought two t-shirts with computer symbols on them, similar to her Pi shirt, which she wore four days a week if not more. The clothes store was full of the most expensive, and most unique outfits that Liz had ever seen. After spending half the day at the mall, the three got on tour bus, which spent forty minutes going through town. It made Liz feel like a tourist, but she didn't mind. As the sun began to set, Emma led Liz to a restaurant that she and Fredrick had eaten at before. It was high atop a skyscraper, and provided perhaps the best view in Japan. It was inside a large dome and featured in an indoor pond. It was around eight when the group got back to the room. It had been a long, exhausting day. Liz had truly begun to make close friends with Emma and her cousin. Emma was right; Liz's spirits had risen, and she felt a little less intimidated by the city. It was now midnight and Liz found herself in the cramped workroom area. She spent most of her time looking through old 'Science and Technology Weekly' magazines, and occasionally performing some minor tasks as instructed by Emma. She also took a glance or two out the small window. She suddenly remembered her home, and her dad. What could he be doing? Liz thought about calling him for a moment, but decided not to. Perhaps a later time. An hour passed. Emma had spent the whole time going through news articles and was growing tired when she suddenly made an announcement. "Well, that's it. I've gone through all related articles dating back to fifteen years and I simply have not found enough to prove anything. We should start planning for tomorrow night... when we have to do the sneaking in thing... I'm just really surprised at the lack of information about the gang wars... I'm beginning to doubt that there is any Sintax... I mean, do we have any proof of his existence at all? Nothing... Not much anyway," "Well, I-" Liz started, "I uh..." "What?" "Nothing, don't worry about it," "You were going to say something about Sintax," Liz put her magazine face down on the table. "Well..." Liz murmured, "Sintax has contacted me twice through TIM..." she said silently and quickly. "Really? Liz, why didn't you tell me about this sooner? I mean... but no, that couldn't be possible... he wouldn't do it through TIM..." "Well to be honest... both times I had the program off and it started automatically... When I think about it, it might not have been TIM... the conversation windows did look a bit off," "Do you have logs of these?" "No, I searched my whole computer and found nothing..." "It can't be through the TIM network, I mean... I couldn't see Sintax doing something like that... What did he say?" "Not much, other than personal things... Like he knew where I was and everything..." "When did these conversations happen?" "Once while at the base, once while coming here on a plane... Both times TIM started up by itself and Sintax talked to me..." "If this is true, then I think Sintax is truly scared of you... maybe your skills, maybe something you made, I don't know," "But those men he sent after me..." "After the bus event, you never saw them again did you?" "Well, no..." "Hmm... I wonder why he stopped..." "Maybe those weren't his men," "Yeah, perhaps..." "I really don't know..." "Liz, let me see your computer. Maybe I can find out what this program is," "You mean what he's talking to me with? It's TIM... I think," "Let me look," Emma spent what seemed like an hour going through files and coding, but found nothing. "It boggles me..." she explained. "Well maybe it's for the best, maybe I should let him talk to me..." "Remember that Tony said he had to delete the files on your computer because someone else was going to get them first?" "Yeah..." "Well, why don't they go after your laptop?" "Maybe... the file or whatever they wanted isn't on it..." "They wanted a file..." "Yeah, but I don't know what it would be," "If Sintax is behind all this after all, it sure seems that he isn't doing much to stop you anymore, does it?" "Aside from the virus at the base..." "That may have been really old... We don't know how long it's been sitting there," A long silence ensued as Emma continued on her computer. "Well, Liz... tomorrow night we're going to take some information from the Fans. I've worked it all out. Their hideout - their main one is actually in a small room in an apartment located practically on the edge of Ginza. We'll discuss the plan in the morning, I don't want to stress you with the details. You should get some rest," "A small apartment room?" "Well, they have men scattered all about. It's even possible that the gangs could be looking for us, I don't know. With that thought in mind, we'll get in by staying off the streets. It'll be tough, but this is something you trained for, remember? We may only have basic stealth and espionage techniques, but they should suffice." "Can't believe we're actually doing something like this." "Neither can I, but it's the only way to progress. You can go on to bed if you want, I'll finish up here," Emma said, exhausted. Liz slowly left and closed the door. She opened the futon and settled in. She didn't fall asleep for an hour, and during that time, the light under the door of the workroom never dimmed. "Bye Fredrick, we'll be back soon," Emma explained as Liz left with her. Emma shut the hotel room door and ensured that it was locked tight. She adjusted the strap holding the duffle-bag which held both computers and other needed appliances for the mission. The tension was increasing. Tony had taught Liz hacking, not much on sneaking into bases. Despite the few lessons she learned about using stealth, she didn't feel prepared. Surely Emma, being a detective in training, had acquired some skills in the art of espionage. "Emma?" Liz asked while they walked silently down the hall, "Do you think we'll be safe? I mean... how many times have you done this sort of thing?" "Well," Emma sighed, "Never... been I have been trained. The few cases I've been assigned were all with an experienced partner, and they've been easy... This is really out of my league... what we're doing, that is." "I just don't know... I've never done anything like this before... At home I just spend all night in my room, on my computer..." "I understand that, so does Tony..." A sudden wave of sadness spread throughout Liz. She had become homesick, scared, and weak in a flash. It seemed as though everything Tony had taught her was gone instantly. "Emma..." "Yeah?" "I uh, I don't feel well," "I know what you mean... Neither do I. But come on, we gotta get this over with," Liz nodded and the two continued to a glass door located in the mini-lobby of their floor. Outside this door was a bridge, suspended in the air, hooked in between the hotel and another building. The bridge had a glass roof and was decorated with carpet and potted plants. The few people that occupied the tunnel were mostly in benches resting or drinking. The skyline outside moved slowly along as the two trudged across the bridge. Upon entering the next building, a banking building, they arrived in a similar lobby. This lobby has three bridges going in different directions, one of which Liz and Emma had came from. Emma proceeded to a large map in the center of the lobby "Yeah, we take bridge 'J-7'," she told Liz, "From there, we take M-6 which will lead to City Center Tower... Then it's just a matter of continuing along several other bridges. According to my readout, we should eventually find ourselves on top of the Fans' central hideout." The pair walked along another bridge. This one led to a much taller building. They always remained on the fiftieth floor of each skyscraper. "What do you think about all these mid-building bridges?" Emma asked. "They're... cool," Liz said with a lack for words. "I have a feeling that where we are going, they won't be as nice... Probably open air, old, and decrepit. But these bridges provide the fastest and safest way to get around," Through the cloudy night sky, Liz could begin to see a gigantic tower come into focus. It was the tallest building she'd ever seen. It dwarfed all of those around it. And it was also very wide on all sides. Various towers jetted from all sorts of angles from the building's sides. It only got bigger as the two approached. "That's Tokyo's City Center Tower, tallest building in the world. About seventy-percent taller than the Petronas towers. The building isn't only the city hall, it's also one of the biggest banking hubs in the world. The building is almost its own city. Within, there are apartments, business, and factories. About ten-thousand people live inside full time," Emma explained. Through the light rain drops gathering on the tunnel windows, Liz could make out at least fifty bridges from all different heights, connecting the tower to the buildings around it. "Of course, this would be a prime target of Sintax..." "Perhaps," Liz added. The City Center lobby was full of activity, unlike the other skyscrapers they had gone through. Some people were sleeping, some were in arcades, and some were conducting computer tasks. Flashing billboards and advertisements were strewn up in every corner. "Emma?" "Yeah?" "Do you really think that there may be people looking for us?" "I dunno, but if there were, they'd probably be on the streets," "Well there's so many people here... What if one of them worked for a gang or something?" "Ugh, you're right. I hadn't thought of that," "Let's get some parkas. It is raining, and they may disguise us. It's all we have," "Okay but we gotta be at the base in fifteen minutes. That's when they usually change guard shifts," "Emma... Do you have any weapons on you?" Liz asked nervously. "No... not much. I do have an EMP blaster though. Since almost all guns work electronically, I can disable them, as well as security systems... But hopefully we can get out of there without getting shot at," The two proceeded to the nearest store and picked up some rain gear. They covered their faces as best as possible. Emma led Liz to an elevator, which took them down twenty floors. The floor was another lobby area, but was much less crowded. "This way, I think," Emma pointed to a door. They found themselves on an older bridge. It needed maintenance desperately. It had no cover, and its guardrails were rusty. The bridge was covered in litter and was completely vacant. Upon stepping outside, Liz's glasses fogged up. She took them off, wiped them, and put them back on. Her parka reached down past her violet coat, to her ankles. The hood covered just enough of her eyes so that she could see. "Face the ground while you're walking," Emma instructed, "My hand is on my EMP weapon. Just stay calm and we should get by with no suspicion. I dunno if there's any guards around, but it's possible," Liz nodded and they walked slowly across the bridge, sometimes stepping in puddles created by the various fractures in the structure. Liz looked over the side of a guard rail and saw moving lights many feet below. She quickly averted her eyes. Upon reaching a small covered area with a bench, Emma took out a small PDA and checked an electronic map. She pointed to another bridge, this one perpendicular to the one they were on now "We need to get over there. The bad news is, that bridge is closed and there's no admittance through a building... We'll have to alongside that walkway," Emma pointed to a utility bridge the ran across the building and turned the corner. It had fencing, but it was falling apart and looked dangerous. The footing area may only have been three feet. "Are you crazy?" Liz asked. "Don't worry, it looks tougher than it is. Just hug the building and we'll be fine," Emma reassured. They walked along the bridge until they were above the ridge. It was about a ten foot drop to get into a small, fenced in area. "I'll go first," Emma suggested. She breathed deeply and jumped over the guard rail, landing on her feet and hands. She stood up and waved to Liz. "It's alright, you can make it. Throw me the duffle-bag," Liz picked up the bag and tossed it to Emma, who caught it. Liz took a breath and proceeded to the railing. She was about to jump but her glasses fogged up once more. She wiped them off again, but it made her nervous. Her legs were shaking when she jumped down, and she slid on the concrete and fell backwards upon landing, but luckily Emma grabbed her. "You okay?" Emma asked. "Yeah... yeah, I'm alright," Liz said as she regained her footing. "Alright, let's go," Liz slowly followed Emma along as she slid along the wall, being careful to avoid the holes in the fencing. The deluge of rain was making it harder to keep balance. After what seemed to go on forever, Liz finally saw the bridge on the other side. The narrow ridge ended and was replaced by a larger fenced area. Emma spotted a ladder connected to the bridge and proceeded to climb up it. Liz followed and ducked along with Emma on the outside of the railing. "There's one guard at the door; he's a Paper Fan alright. He should leave soon," "What's he dressed like?" Liz asked. "Um... he's in a black uniform with some Japanese lettering, he wears sunglasses as well. The people that came after you were tuxedo-like suits, though - wait, he's moving. Come on, let's go." The rain covered up the sound of the footsteps as they snuck past his back and found cover behind a pillar. Emma took out her PDA again and switched modes. She moved it around slowly. "Just as I thought, there's a camera by the entrance." She took out the EMP blaster and hit a switch on it. "I set it to a program," she explained, "This program will hit the camera and instead of shutting it off, it will generate a frozen frame of the entire scanning area," "Well, let it go," Liz said. Emma pointed at the camera, closed one eye, and fired. It was followed by a high-pitched noise. "That should do it. I only got power for fifteen more shots, though. Come on, quickly," The two scuttled hastily toward the entrance. Emma grabbed Liz and led her to the right of the entrance and turned a corner on the outer-wall. They were once again on a ridge, but this was one was much wider. Liz peeked around the corner to see another guard taking place of the one who had just left. "Now what?" Emma asked, "We can't go in the front," "That would have probably been a bad idea anyway. Look!" Liz pointed. Emma turned to see a vent. She ran her hand in front of it. "There's circulation going on," Emma explained. She took out a screwdriver from the bag and began to unscrew the screws holding the vent in place. While she was doing this, Liz crawled over to the other corner and looked over. There was a small robot going along on the ground with a camera attached. It was scanning in all directions and was moving quickly. Liz hurried back to her friend. "Emma, we got a robot sentry approaching," "Alright, almost done," Emma assured as she pried open the vent covering, "Get in," she said. Liz crawled in and turned around. The vent was cramped, but it did allow enough room to turn if needed. Emma shoved the bag in and turned around to close the vent. Liz could make out the small robot drive past the closed vent. "That was close. Let's go. As long as this vent leads to a computer, we can jack in." "I thought you said that the central hub would probably just be a small room." "Yeah, it should be. If it were full of computers, it would have to be ventilated." The two crawled slowly through the vent system, making sure not to make any sounds. Emma provided light by holding a small flashlight in her mouth. The system was small but went off in many directions, forming a difficult maze. After about forty minutes, they finally had a good idea on where to go. After arriving at a dead end, Liz spotted a smaller vent that wasn't similar to any other vent area. Emma opened it and took out her computer, as well as Liz's and turned them both on. The screens lit up the area. The area that they were in went up quite a ways vertically, providing a good deal of room. "This will probably lead to the central room." "Yeah, but we can't fit through there, Emma." "I know, that's why I have a special device." Emma took out what appeared to be a firewire cord on wheels. It also had a small metal piece attached. "This is a Python, it's something my team uses. It's a firewire cord that can bend and be driven via the micro-camera on it. it can go about thirty feet," "Oh, cool." Emma took a cord and hooked it into both her computer and Liz's. "I need you to monitor the data coming in. I need to use my computer as the viewfinder for the camera. Just make sure the data isn't faulty or anything, got it?" "Yeah," "Alright," Emma took out a spool of cord and hooked the end of it into her computer. She opened up a program and a screen came up, broadcasting what the small camera saw. Emma used the control keys to maneuver the small device. It did indeed resemble a snake. Emma guided it along within the small vent until she eventually reached a light source. She only had ten feet of cord left, though. The camera suddenly fell through a hole and was dangling from it. But in the room below was a whole area of computers. The room may have only been twelve feet in every direction, but it was packed full of at least thirty computers. They even covered the door. "I wonder how long it's been since anyone has even been in here," Emma wondered, "It sure is dusty." The room was lit by one dull light in the corner, which cast shadows on the walls. "That computer is closest. Try to find a firewire port on that," Liz pointed to a small computer. Emma spooled out more cord from the cable and the input device landed softly on a desk. It crawled toward an available port but sopped short by about five inches. Emma scooted toward the vent opening as far as she could get, and rotated her computer so that the port was closer to the vent. Doing this allowed the cord to barely make contact. "Alright, we're in. I'm going to start the download. However, this will probably start and alarm or something so we won't have much time to get out of here. Alright, get ready." Emma tapped 'enter' and a download commenced, immediately followed by an alarm. "Warning! Unauthorized connection made!" Looking at the camera, Liz could see droplets of moisture forming on the lens. "They're flooding the place with gas," Emma explained, "We just need one more minute," "Why won't the computer shut itself down?" "Pythons come installed with a small program to prevent that from happening. How's the download going?" Liz looked at her screen. A download bar was about half full. "Good, we need to hurry, though." "Alright, almost there." The alarm continued and the door began to open, knocking the computers blocking it to the ground. Footsteps could be heard outside. "We're never getting out of here," Liz protested. "We will, we will," Emma said quickly. Through the camera, Liz saw two men with gas masks burst in and look around. Liz could tell they were confused after finding out that no one was in the room. "Alright, I got everything I need. Let's get out of here." Emma simply yanked out the Python cord, leaving it in the vent system, and tossed everything back in the bag. They departed, scurrying quickly back through the ventilation system. Luckily, they got back to the entrance without making any wrong turns. After checking to see if anyone was directly outside, Emma kicked open the grating and helped Liz out. She peeked around the corner and quickly looked away. "They're out there. We gotta use the fire escape, come on." Without stopping, Emma jumped from the railing onto the fire escape below. Liz followed. "Hey! Down there!" came a voice. Emma and Liz looked up to see a Fan aiming down at them with a gun. Emma quickly took out her weapon and fired a blast in his direction. He hadn't even seen it. "Let's go," Emma implied. Liz followed her. She looked up the guard again, who was bashing his gun against the railing, trying to figure out why it hadn't fired. "They're down there! Stop them!" he yelled. Shots rang out but they hit the metal steps above Liz and Emma. They soon came out of range from the people firing at them and came to a ladder. Emma went first ad Liz followed down the ladder. They were now about half way up from the road. The old skyscraper they were on faced no other tall buildings in this direction, so the view was pretty much completely an ocean of low buildings and moving lights on roads. Another series of steps. The shouting above was growing louder, and some shots were still being fired, but it was impossible to hit either one of them. The final ladder was approaching when Liz picked up the sound of rotating chopper blades. She patted Emma on the shoulder and stood still. "What?" Emma asked. Searchlights from a helicopter had turned the corner of the building. The chopper was quickly in front of them, and had them pinned down. It fired a warning shot to tell them that they were armed. The lights on the black machine blinded them. "Stay where you are! You will not defy the Paper Fans!" But Emma was a quick thinker. Liz could see that she was setting the EMP gun for something. "I have thirteen shots left. If I can combine the power from each one, it may be enough to bring down the chopper," She whispered. Liz nodded nervously. It seemed as though none of this was really happening, and Liz had fallen into somewhat of a trance. "I repeat, do not move!" The pilot blared through a loudspeaker. Before they could react, Emma took out the blaster and fired directly at the helicopter. At first nothing happened, but after a moment, parts of it began to erupt in fires. It began to spin out of control as its engine lapsed in and out. It lost control and began to veer to the left until it was out of sight. "Whew," Emma managed to sputter out. "Look!" Liz said, pointing up. The gang members were now rushing down the fire escape themselves, eager to stop Liz and Emma. "We're going to need a fast way out of here-" Emma began. "What?" "Look, down there! Is that... my car?" Liz looked down. Emma's color-changing car had just pulled up, its hood drawn to hide the driver. "I really... dunno, but let's get out of here," Emma said. "But who could be driving?" Liz asked. "Who cares, I'm getting out of here." Emma went about half way down the ladder and jumped off, toward her car that was parked in the alley. Liz hastily followed. Emma was standing at her car, surprised. "What? Who's driving?" Liz asked. She walked up to Emma to see Fredrick in the back, but no one in the driver's seat. Without further hesitation, Emma got into the front as did Liz. Emma turned around to Fredrick, who was laying on his back and playing a game, like he always had. "Get your information?" he asked. "Yeah... yeah, but what are you doing here? Did you..." Emma asked, breathless. "Drive here? Yeah, thought you'd need some help," "But how? You can't even reach the pedals," "I've been working for months programing a game to work with this," he said, waving his game system, "The program allowed me to get into your car's controls. I know that you never wanted me to be a hacker but... I worked hard on this..." Emma sighed. Then smiled. "Good job, Freddy, I'm proud of you," A gunshot hit the pavement outside. Emma turned around, went in reverse, and screeched down the road back to safety. So maybe Fredrick wasn't so innocent after all. The hotel, despite its never-ending activity and ominous size, had never seemed so protective. Upon coming to a screeching stop in the car garage, the group of three rushed down to the hotel, being careful to stay in the shadows in case anyone was following them. To Liz, it felt too easy. Perhaps the Fans had far grander plans than to worry about whether a couple of kids got hold of some important info? Liz's heart was still beating at a rapid pace even after Emma turned and locked all the locks on the door. She was sweating heavily and moved in a nervous fashion. But all the while, Fredrick had slipped off into his room calmly and collectively. Liz and her friend stood at the door, still trying to get a recollection of what they had just done. Emma started laughing. "Whew. Wow... I can't believe that we just... that was crazy!" she said excitedly. "Emma, our lives were at stake back there and-" "I know, I know. But this is the first time I've you know, done something like this. What with the gunshots and all. I mean, we train for it at the uh, place but, well, heh. I mean what with the helicopter and everything, yeah..." "Yes... you did good handling the chopper," Liz agreed. "Now let's find out what we got here." "Oh, okay, yeah..." Emma said. She looked around for something. Liz wasn't sure what. "Eh... where's the bag, Liz?" Panic swept through Liz. "You mean you don't have it?" she questioned, peeved. "I did a minute ago... I think," "Emma!" "Yeah, don't worry I'll find it. Um..." "You left it outside the door!" Fredrick's voice informed them from inside his room. Emma sighed, opened the door, and grabbed the bag which was sitting just outside. "Uh, sorry, Liz..." "It's alright, it's okay... let's just go," "Yeah, computer room." Liz followed Emma to the small, cramped room and closed the door.. She went to the small window and closed the blinds. Emma set up both laptops near the hotel room's computer and turned them on. She then pulled the two chairs out. Emma, now back to her regular cool self, finished wiping off the sweat, and straightened out her shirt. She logged into her user name and went directly to her downloads folder. "Wow, two-thousand files here... where to begin?" Liz sat at her computer and logged in herself. She linked the two with a wire and made a copy of the downloaded files. "Well, Liz... we're going to be up for a while. I mean, this isn't the gang we want info on the most, but there's probably enough info her to prove something. I'm gonna order some coffee to be delivered. Want some?" "Three cups for me," Liz replied, gazing at the screen. About half of the files were image files. Many were of spy shots taken of Blue Dragon members, or diagrams of buildings. Some files were writable programs. There was no doubt that there were enough hacking programs to shut down the entire city if they wanted to. Many files were documents, which were mostly written records of gang-related events. Some contained instructions for various forms of hacking. many others were simple logs of conversations between gang members. Oddly, Liz and Emma learned that when the gangs talked to one another, that they were very casual and pleasant. Seldom did they see any fighting or slinging of bad words. They learned much about both of the gangs from what they downloaded, but disappointingly, no worthy notes on Sintax other than Paper Fan speculations and rumored sighting of the mysterious hacker. Alvarez himself never even mentioned Sintax while speaking with Mckinge, the proclaimed Blue Dragon leader. Perhaps the Fans also didn't believe that Sintax was real. Emma searched by going up from oldest files to newest, and it was a slow process. Three hours had passed and Liz was repeatedly drifting off on her desk. "We should have gotten information from the Dragons, but that would be almost impossible..." Emma regretted silently over and over. "Emma, we did the best we could. I'm sure we'll find something good in the more recent files." "Why don't the police do something about these gangs? We got enough info here to place hundreds of crimes on the Fans... if they're gone, then the Dragons won't have anyone to fight, and there'll be no more wars," "Maybe that's what they want..." Liz said, half-asleep. "Hmm?" "Maybe that's what the police want. Maybe they want the Blue Dragons to be occupied with their enemies so they don't focus on the city." "You may be right... Someone is covering up something here. Sintax... where are you? Who are you?" Liz fell asleep, only to be awakened an hour later by Emma. "Liz?" "Yeah... yeah, what is it?" "I think I found something... big," "Sintax." "No... not Sintax but... I think he may be launching his plans sooner than we thought," "Why do you think that?" "I just got done reading all the files and... The last batch, the two gangs... they were talking about a final battle..." "Final battle?" "Yeah, to end everything. They're going to gather - every member, every last one of them - at this old industrial site and... Well it won't be pretty," "What?" "Liz, they're going to fight till one gang emerges victorious. No hacking, no computers, just straight up combat," "What? Why? Why are they doing this?" "One last fight... one last battle to end the gang war," "But, Emma... it doesn't make any sense... I mean, they're just going to send everyone out there... and... kill each other?"" "We've got to do something, warn the police, anything," "They probably already know... They probably don't want to get involved," "But that's not the part that interests me," "Huh?" "If this truly is the final battle between the Fans and the Dragons, than it would be wise for Sintax to launch his attack during it, or soon after. If Sintax really does exist, I'm beginning to doubt that he's the head of anything. I think he's a rogue, working by himself, and that this whole gang thing is a coverup; a mask to hide his true intentions. I strongly believe that Sintax will make his move in two days... we have to stop him." "Geez, oh, man," Liz said as she slouched down in her chair, "So what if... this whole gang war thing is just an entirely other story, one that we weren't supposed to get involved in. We could have been on the wrong lead the whole time," "No, Liz. These gangs - they have something to do with Sintax. Something... the evidence adds up and yet, the same evidence negates itself... God, nothing makes sense anymore," Emma looked at the floor, "Who are you, Sintax? Who?" she said quietly. The next morning, Liz and Emma met at the lobby's cyber-cafe and agreed to simply start off by informing the police. They didn't have any idea what else to do. How could they possibly find Sintax now? There was no time to sneak into another gang headquarters, as their preparations for the final bloody war would lead to higher security. The only thing they could do was somehow locate an exposed Sintax during the battle - which would be suicide. There was no easy way around it. "Tony," Liz suddenly spoke up. "Tony?" "We have... to call Tony. Tell him everything. He'll have the answer," "But we can't just dial into the base at Seattle," "No but... I think I remember Tony telling me this pay-phone number to call. He said that he would drop by this one phone at exactly nine at night, wait for two minutes, and then leave. He would only do it once, and only on this day..." "Are you sure?" "Yeah, pretty sure, I would have told you sooner but I didn't really have time..." "Well that's pretty convenient of him," Emma said, a tad sarcastic. "Emma... he doesn't have time to talk for long, or to get away from the base. He'd have tons of things to monitor and protect... the danger grows more every day," "Yeah, you're right... Well, nine for him would be what for us... Um, five hour difference I think... Four. Yeah, four in the afternoon we call him," "Alright," Liz said, "He better be there." The two left for the central police department, leaving Fredrick alone. Emma told Liz that it should be a quick process. Either the police did or didn't want to get involved, and that would be that. But hopefully, they could get some answers. The sun beat down on them. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and this made the night before seem ever more distant. Liz held onto her laptop securely as they made their way to the police department. They were surprised at what they saw. The police department rested on a small hill like a mansion. It was surrounded by long, tall fencing and was a far cry from the lumbering, mingled skyscrapers that made up most of Tokyo. The outer entrance was covered with security cameras at every corner. When they finished the path leading up to the giant building, two police officers came out and observed them closely as they approached. Liz looked down the hill to see a parking lot full of squad cars. So many in fact, it looked like a supermarket lot. One of the officers approached Emma. He was dressed in a fine, blue coat with silver buttons. His hat was small and adorned a badge. "Can I help you two?" he said calmly. "We need to see a high-ranking officer or chief," Emma replied, trying to keep her cool. "May I ask what for?" "We think we have some important news concerning the gangs," At this, the officers looked at one another oddly, as if not knowing what to say next. "I assure you that we have men on the case, young lady. You should not get involved in such matters," "Do you know about the face off they're going to have tomorrow?" "Face... off?" "Yes, they're going to have a violent battle to see who emerges victorious. You have to do something," "Do you have proof of this?" "Yes," Emma said, pointing to Liz's computer. "Just who are you?" "I'm a detective from America. I was assigned here to investigate the latest Salzo stock theft. Since we are very sure it was the Fans, I was sent here to investigate their involvement," Emma finished. "Really now. Who is she?" He pointed to Liz, who strengthened her grasp on her computer. "She's uh, my partner," Emma lied. The two officers, both very curious on what was happening, turned to each other and exchanged a few words. "Alright, you can speak with the chief," one of them informed. "Thank you," Emma replied. The department was bustling with movement. Cops were talking with people on computers, and folders were being traded constantly. Liz couldn't tell if it was like this every day, or if something had come up recently. The two were directed to the police chief's office, a large room filled with books and computers. Two cops had just left the room. A man, not very tall or bulky, sat at the desk, sifting through papers. Without looking up, he politely asked the two to shut the door and sit down. "So, I heard that you to ladies have some info about the Fans, then?" "Oh, yes, sir," Emma replied. Liz noticed the copper name plate on the desk. She signaled to Emma to read it. The name 'Yiu Makishi' appeared in big letter below the smaller, 'Tokyo Police Chief'. So Mr. Makishi was still the chief after all these years. Had his view on Sintax changed any? Liz wondered. "So you are American detectives? You look a bit young to me," he commented. "Well, we're... in training, you see," "Aha," "We retrieved some info on the Fans that you may be interested in..." "I see. And how did you go about getting this info?" "Well... we snuck into their base and extracted it from their computers," The chief raised an eye in surprise. "You two?" "Ye-yes," "I'm impressed. But that was foolhardy of you, you know. You could have been hurt," "I know, we almost were, but the info we got was worth it," "I'm guessing that you brought down that chopper?" Yiu suddenly questioned. "Well, yes sir... We had to," Emma replied. "I'm impressed," Yiu commented, "But it started a fire that shut down the main road for several hours." His tone changed, "I can't have some kids running around Tokyo and getting involved in these gang wars," "But Mr. Makishi, there has to be something we can do. These wars are tearing the city apart!" "Do you not think that we have been trying? They're violent and defensive, even more to my force. We have been unable to make significant impact on them. If they truly are going to wipe each other out... than at least we'll be able to focus our attention on one gang," Yiu sighed as he got up and leaned at his office window. "There's just not much we could do... They are hackers, they could shut down the city if they wanted. They always sent threats to us to stay out of their business... We cannot get involved any further. I will not risk my men. If they want to kill themselves, then that is the way it has to be. I knew this day would come eventually... Look, I appreciate you two gathering this data. I'd like to make a copy of it for the archives," Emma looked at Liz. Liz nodded in response and opened her laptop at Yiu's desk and accessed the information. "Oh, Blue Trance... I got my niece one of those for her birthday. They are very nice, yes?" Liz nodded and smiled. "The data's ready," Liz said quietly. Yiu took out a USB device from his desk. It was a storage device - Liz could tell it was a twenty-gigabyte model. "If there is more than what can fit on here, I will get another," Yiu exclaimed, noticing the dent in her computer, "Hmm, what's this?" "Oh, I dropped the computer..." Liz replied. "Looks more like a gunshot to me," he argued, "When did this happen?" Liz and Emma looked at each other. To Liz's surprise, Emma answered truthfully. "It happened when I first met Liz. Oh, I'm Emma and this is Elizabeth. Er... Liz," Emma extended a hand, "Anyways... Liz was being pursued by these men in black suits, and she had to jump off a bus into my car on a highway in America... we got shot at and her computer was hit," "Who were these men?" "I-I think they were Blue Dragon members," "Why would they be all the way in America, then?" "We're still not sure..." "I don't think they were, not probable at all. Any other people they may have been?" "Well... we think that they might have been men who work for... Sin...tax?" Yiu looked up, his face held no emotion. "Sintax?" "Ye-yes," "Sintax is not real. He is not a real person," "Well..." "And how did you meet Liz like that? I thought you two were partners," "Oh, oh yeah. Well she was on her way to meet me for the first time and I got a call by her saying that men were after her..." "Your story doesn't make a lot of sense," Yiu groaned. "I know but... sir, might I ask why you don't believe in Sintax?" "He has something to do with my uncle... Or so my uncle said," "And who was your uncle?" Emma asked, her eyes widened at this new lead. "A gifted scientist. One day something killed him. Right in his lab. A note on a computer screen read, 'Sintax did this'. I wanted to believe in this person at first, but when the reports came in of what he did... all this super-hacking, I no longer believed in him. I want to find out who really killed my uncle. And I want him to stop hiding behind this false name. That is why I despise 'Sintax..." "I'm... very sorry," Emma explained, "Did... did your uncle work for a company?" "Yes, Salzo Industries," Somehow, Liz knew he would say this. "Could Salzo have been a partner, or an employee?" "I don't know... Please, I do not wish to talk anymore today. Thank you for the information you provided but could you please leave now?" Yiu asked quickly and silently. "Yes, we will. Thanks for your time," Emma finished. Liz grabbed her computer and the two left with haste. "Well what now?" Emma asked. "At four, we get a call from Tony," "He better call..." They spent the rest of the afternoon in the hotel room, trying to sort out just who Sintax could be. Yiu has provided some interesting details - Sintax could have been part, or jealous of Salzo industries. But if Sintax had killed a lead scientist, why would he support Salzo? This could only mean one thing to them - that Sintax was not his real name and that he was a partner who killed Yiu's uncle to gain control of a project. Nothing else fit. "We should have gotten his uncle's name and done research," Emma said, "But I guess it's too late now," "We could just do a search for history on Salzo," Liz suggested. "I already did. I got every piece of public information on that place. That murder was never released to the public. Yiu is our only link to Sintax right now, and he doesn't believe that he exists. It'd be hard to get anything else out of the police chief..." They spent the rest of the day killing time by doing casual research on their computers, but as the day wore on, they found nothing. The time was a quarter until four now. "Liz, are we going to this phone?" "Yeah, I guess we should try," "Well alright. I don't think he'll call though..." "Maybe it won't matter..." "Huh?" "Maybe there really is no Sintax, and no grand plan. Maybe there was just a miscommunication and Tony got an impression from some false data." "We can't take that chance, Liz. Something will come up... You'll see. When Tony calls, we'll come up with something together. I know we will," Liz and Emma found themselves at a pay-phone tucked away in an alley. It was hardly noticeable. It was if Tony had been at the exact spot before, and had marked the area for such a call. But no call came at four, and five minutes had passed. "How much longer?" Emma asked. "Give him time, he's notorious for being late you know," "How much time did he say we'd ha-" At that moment, the phone rang. The two of them were too surprised at first to pick it up, but on the third ring, Liz grabbed it. "Hello?" "Hello, Liz," Tony's voice came through, "I'm glad you decided to meet me here," "Tony!" "How's Emma doing?" "She's fine, we're fine," "You know I wish i could see files of your progress, but knowing what Sintax was capable of, it wouldn't surprise me if he had the whole city tapped. Look, I don't have much time. Got any important questions?" "Yes... we just don't know if... Sintax is real. We're not sure who exactly we're chasing anymore, Tony..." "I know, I know. He doesn't seem real but I know he is. I just know. And I have a strong feeling that he's going to pull his plan off within a few days-" "No, Tony. Tomorrow. He's going to do it tomorrow," "Why do you think that?" "Tomorrow, there will be a final gang war between the two. If he's going to launch his attack, it will be tomorrow. We know, we got the information," "You're... probably right, Liz. Look, I got to go. I can't help you anymore. I'm sorry but I just don't have time," "Wait, Tony!" "Liz, just remember these two things. Your disk, the one I gave you, has the power to stop whatever he may launch. You will know how to use it properly. Secondly, do not be afraid to sacrifice the pillar...Trust me." And without a goodbye, he hung-up, leaving Liz with more questions than answers. "He... didn't really help much, did he?" Liz shook her head and placed the phone back on the booth. "He said... don't be worried about sacrificing the pillar," "The pillar?" "Yeah..." "i think he means... maybe the giant computer that is the central computer in Seattle... You know what I mean?" "Oh... yeah I do now, that huge thing..." "But sacrificing it? What did he mean?" "I have no idea..." It was late at night in the hotel room. Liz was sleeping on the futon as usual when a knock came at the door. In a dream-like state, Liz got up and looked through the peephole. She could barely make out a figure. Making sure that the chain was hooked up, she opened the door as far as it could go. "Tony?" Liz asked, sleepily. The figure was about Tony's height. "Liz..." came a mellow voice, "If you want to stop Sintax, come with me. This is your only chance," Liz wasn't sure what to make of what was going on, but she decided to take the risk. She realized that she had slept in her day clothes, and could leave right away. She grabbed her coat and computer and went back to the door. "How do I know that you aren't working for them?" "Either trust me or don't. But if you don't, his plans will be unstoppable," "Can I take Emma?" "No. She is unimportant," "Unimportant?" "Yes. Please, come..." The voice was ominous, but not offending or frightening in any way. Liz opened the door. She could now see him in half-light. He wore a hood over his head, but Liz could see his face aside from the sunglasses that he wore. A long blue robe covered his body. He was about Liz's height. "So, Liz," he said, "You truly wish to stop me. Perhaps I can make you think otherwise," Liz wasn't quite sure what to think of it all. She and Emma had been doing research just to prove Sintax existed in the first place for months now, and then all of a sudden he appeared at her door and requested to speak to her. It was all too surreal and came too sudden. Liz didn't know whether to go back to her room and tell Emma that Sintax was with her, or to call the police, or to simply follow along for the time being. But she felt no imminent fear of the mysterious stranger. He did wear a dark blue cloak over most of his body, and covered his eyes with sunglasses, but he didn't seem dangerous or eluding. "Liz, I'm not really a bad guy, you know," he said quietly as they approached the elevator, "I just have simple desires. I have ideas that I want to express. But I have to resort to drastic measures to implement them," "Who are you, exactly?" Liz asked. "I'm a computer genius. A hacker of the highest regard. I have so much skill, I could easily crush the Earth's governmental systems in one blow. But I wouldn't do that. I've been looking for you, you know," "You sent men after me when I was back home..." "Yes, yes... the bus incident. I failed to capture you before you met Tony. Once you were in his hands, there was no way I could get to you. Tony is the one person whose skills almost match my own. Liz, I meant no harm to you.. I only wanted you to meet me. I just had to use force because Tony wants to believe I'm some tyrant." "How did you stop the bus?" "With my personal satellite," "I thought so... and you... actually got funding for that?" "Yes," "I bet you stole money... or just overtook the satellite," "No, actually. I stole nothing to make the orbital piece of hacker hardware," "And what about that virus you planted in the super-computer?" "I planted that years ago. It also acted as a worm, and transmitted information to me. By the time Tony discovered it, I already had everything I needed. It self-destructed like it was supposed to upon discovery," "How can you say you're a good person, Sintax? After all that you've done," "Sometimes you must seem like the villain to achieve the status of a legend or hero..." "And just what are you trying to do?" "That is what you will find out later. I want you to join me, Liz. You are the only who has the power to stop me," "I thought that you said only Tony could-" "Tony only rivals me. You possess something far greater than any skill Tony has. This makes you more powerful than him," "Me? I'm not half as good as Tony..." "If you believe that, than you have yet to discover your skill. But it is your skill that I wish to reap," "And what makes you think I'd want to take part in your sinister plots?" Liz said, defensively. "Liz, Liz... My ideas are not evil, simply... misunderstood. They're not wanted by our political leader because they're too... damaging. But I assure you, what I am doing is for the good of mankind," "I trust Tony," Liz replied. "Tony is a blind fool," Sintax said, grabbing her arm. But he let go a moment later. His grasp was odd. It seemed strong, but controlled. Liz could have sworn she felt each bone in his hand. "Sorry..." Sintax replied, "I shouldn't do that. I don't want to hurt you. Liz, whether or not you wish to join me or stop me, the only way you'll have a shot at doing either is to come with me. I promise you that I will only show you the truth and nothing more. My plan will be unleashed in less than twenty hours. There is no way to prevent the launch. Not even I can. It is hopeless to resist, and if you manage to do something rational with me, you'll lose all your answers..." "Alright, Sintax. I'll come with you," Liz said, hesitantly. "Good girl. Let us go to my base of operations," "Sintax... are you really the leader of the Blue Dragons?" "You could say that... but then again, you could say I'm the leader of both the gangs..." Liz had no idea what he meant at first. She also hadn't realized that they were already in the hotel lobby. Liz had been dragged away from the safety of the hotel room, and it was made by her own decision. Liz followed Sintax closely outside. He turned into a large alley at the side of the hotel. Nothing happened for about a minute. Then Liz heard a distant sound grow near. She looked up and saw a helicopter descending from the sky. But it looked as if it wouldn't be able to fit in between the alley's walls. "Is that going to land?" Liz asked. "Yes. It's my personal helicopter. It has no rotors, you see. It uses magnetic pulses to hover in the air. It's the same technology that will be used in the flying cars that will come out in a few years. Technology is amazing, isn't it?" Sintax replied. And to Liz's disbelief, the chopper managed to squeeze into the alley way and land. It ran very silently because it had no spinning blades, and created no air gusts. It was a relatively small machine as well. The front cockpit window opened. The pilots were the two men who had been pursuing Liz months back. They still wore their dark suits and their emotionless faces. "You only have two bodyguards?" Liz asked. "Yes, but they're highly trained and can carry out any task. They're the only men I can trust," It was becoming more evident that Sintax was indeed in a different league than the two gangs. A door opened behind the two pilots and Sintax guided Liz to the room behind it. The room was about half the size of the computer room in the hotel. It had two chairs and several computers, as well as two small windows. Liz, still clinging to her computer, sat in a chair and looked out the window. She now realized that she was in over her head, but there was no way to go back now. The door for the small room shut and the helicopter bolted upwards at top speed. Liz could see outside that they were already at the height of most of the skyscrapers. The nose of the craft dipped down some, and it sped off. The buildings became a blur of lights. In the horizon, she could make out a line of sunlight beginning to break through. The trip seemed to have lasted a very short time. As the sun's light began to create long, ominous shadows throughout the city, the city itself seemed to slowly vanish. Their speed decreased more and more and they finally stopped in midair and began to lower towards the ground. Liz looked out the window. She could barely make out the city's massive buildings. They had traveled quite a ways from Tokyo and were now in some old industrial area. Looking down, she saw a large complex of collapsed buildings and pipes mixed together with rundown warehouses. It was an old factory that covered several acres, and was protected by a tall fence. As they got closer to the complex, Liz realized that they were descending into a giant, old furnace. The helicopter lowered into the giant hole surrounded by concrete as the minute sunlight faded away once more. Liz quickly caught a glimpse of some letters, which were composed of peeling paint. 'Salzo Industries Plant 42,' they read. Suddenly, the chopper landed on metal, as indicated by the sound created. Whatever they landed on acted as an elevator. It lowered the craft further down into whatever waited below. Computer lights began to pop up as they went lower. Eventually, the elevator stopped and Sintax showed Liz out. The pilots slowly left the cockpit and closed the frontal window. Sintax flipped a light switch, and the darkness of the complex lit up. Liz could now see just how massive the area was. The most noticeable feature was the rows of shelves that held boxes with pictures of computers and odd designs. "What is this place?" Liz asked. "This is my underground warehouse, Liz. It's not my base of operations per se, but it certainly holds the future's most valuable asset - the only computer that will run after the revolution," "Revolution?" "You will see, soon Liz. Come. I wish to show you around. My base is similar to Tony's in Seattle, you will learn," Liz followed Sintax nervously. The bodyguards remained close behind. They walked through the aisles of computers until they reached the door at the end. "So, Liz. What's it like having your dad running for president?" Sintax asked suddenly, "If he does get elected, he will become an important player in the new world, as will you," Liz didn't reply. Behind the simplistic metal door was a room full of stairs. The two trekked up them until Sintax stopped at a door, located half-way upwards. Liz kept following her nemesis through the door. She found herself in a small room with a large window. Outside the window was a gigantic empty factory. "This is a one-way window, Liz. I just wanted to show you the beginning of the final gang war battle. Look around," Liz could now see opposing gang members standing across from each other completely still. Some were on catwalks, some were in between machine parts, but most were on the ground. They looked as if they were waiting for an order. Liz looked back to Sintax, but he was not there. He had suddenly left Liz alone in the small observation room. She stayed where she was and looked back out to the decrepit factory. She then spotted two brightly decorated characters approaching from both of the sides of the factory. The figure on the side where the Paper Fans were was tall and slender. He held a samurai sword with one arm and was pointing it at the ground. He lifted it into the air, causing the fellow Fan members to stand up and ready their weapons. Liz looked to the other side, where a bald, sturdy man lifted a pair of nun-chucks into the air, signaling his team's readiness into action. These people were evidently the two leaders. Luther Mckinge and Antonio Alvarez... They then spoke to each other in some sort of battle chore, but Liz could not hear through the glass. After about five minutes time, they charged at each other without warning, both teams heading toward an inevitable clash in the center of the factory. Not wanting to view any of the horrible bloodshed, Liz averted her eyes and turned away, becoming more terrified. Before she turned, though, she noticed that the leaders of the opposing clans were no longer there. Moments later, Sintax emerged once more in the small room. "How's the battle going?" he asked calmly. "I... don't know... I can't watch it..." Liz replied, nervously. "Pitiful pawns they are. You mustn't blame yourself, Liz. Or I for that matter. This was going to happen sooner or later," "And you don't even care?" "There is nothing I can do," he replied, staring coldly into the battle scene outside, "They do this to each other with honor, they have no fear..." A long pause followed. "Humans are funny creatures, don't you think so?" Sintax pondered. "Huh?" "They all strive to be better than one another. They do this by destroying themselves. Each country, each political leader... All striving for the same thing : superiority. They can't all settle their differences, they can't all be a whole, and thus, war is born. And war continues until one side is beaten down. But it's not just the countries... It's the individuals. Robbing, murdering, being hateful towards each other... All because we all want to be the best... That's why I've always admired computer programs. They are commanded to do whatever their creators bid them to do. They are clean, organized, and each program can coincide with each other. Together, they can block viruses and hacker attacks. But if they aren't designed to work well together, they fail and an attack can go through, which can wipe them all out. What do you think, Liz? Are humans poorly designed in this aspect?" Liz said nothing. The two stood there for a few minutes when Sintax sighed and signaled to Liz. "Come, Liz. I will show you where I operate," Once more, Liz found herself following Sintax and was more confused than ever on his exact intentions. She followed him a series of stairs to a large, blue door. The room behind it was full of rooms. Their walls were made completely of glass. On these walls of glass were holographic displays. They were computer screens, Liz made out, but the oddest ones she had ever seen. The pictures on the screens all seemed to be connected to one another, and the pictures on them were ever-moving at a fast pace. "There is only one central computer in here. It is connected to all the monitors," "But how do you operate this computer? It all looks so confusing," "I've gotten used to it, I guess," "If this is all a closed network, how do you carry out attacks?" "I don't really carry out attacks... I just send worms to gather information for me and wait at certain outside points where I can retrieve them later. But I use these to transmit information," Sintax pointed to a small satellite dish object, which had a wire running through to a central, very large computer. "I can use these to fire concentrated beams of information if I need to. The nearest computer picks up the signals and carries them through the vast networks. They are designed to not retrieve any information whatsoever. Basically, I cannot be touched by anyone on the outside world, but I can send out anything I want to the outside," "Sintax... how did you talk to me on my computer?" "Heh heh... I implanted a program on your computer... Your laptop there. It would open your chatting program and run a script that could interact with you. Then the next time you hooked your computer into the network, it would send that information to me. I have never really talked to you before, Liz. You've only been talking to a program," Liz was amazed at the never-ending abilities of Sintax. "But how'd you get a program installed on it like that?" "Oh... When I discovered you, I sent the program to your old computer. Apparently you made a backup a short time before Tony deleted your hard drive. And when you restored that information on your new computer, the program carried over. The program is undetectable as well because it simply spreads its code little by little on your individual files in very small bits. When the program is run, it gathers those code bits up and creates a temporary program. Quite something isn't it? I have a lot of tricks up my sleeve..." "I must admit... You truly are a master of what you do, Sintax," Liz said, emotionless. "Yes, yes... Thank you, Liz. And you are more skilled than you believe... That is why I need you. Come, let us watch the revolution unfold from the rooftop," "What's going to happen?" "I will explain it all to you on the roof, my apprentice," A shiver ran down Liz's back. Apprentice? But she didn't know what to make of the comment. Little by little, she could feel herself losing her grip of the mission, and seeing Sintax more of someone to look up to... Perhaps... his ideas weren't bad. Perhaps he had only good intentions that Tony misinterpreted. But she thought again of Tony... and what he had accomplished in his life. How could she not believe in Tony? An inner struggle was brewing. And when Liz fully knew of Sintax's plan, the struggle would probably end - with one side the victor. The wind blew strongly on the roof top. The sun was overhead, and Liz could make out the faint sounds of the battle below. The roof was small and ordinary. Except for a few pipes and the building that covered the stairs, it was open to the air. Sintax walked slowly towards an edge and opened his arms toward the sun for a moment before placing them back at his sides. Liz crept up toward him and leaned over the edge. Down below was an old parking lot with knocked over lamp posts and faded yellow stripes. "Just fifteen minutes," Sintax exclaimed, "Fifteen minutes... not long now," "Sintax... what will... happen?" "Ah, Liz... My grandest of plans. Years in the making. Perfectly executed in every way, not a flaw... Soon, the world will be a better place. For the first few days, there will be panic. There will be madness and violence and misunderstanding. But this is what happens when there is change. It will all be for the better in the end. They will understand this. They will treasure the change... everything will be better. And you, Liz. With your skills and your father in hand, the three of us can turn the world into a place of good once more," Liz had no reply. She had heard all this before. But this time, her fear of what was to happen grew quickly inside. Perhaps she did not want an explanation now. Perhaps she shouldn't try to stop what was going to happen. Sintax said it himself, it was now unstoppable. Maybe she would just sit back and view from the roof this change... "The A-worm, Liz," "What?" "The A-worm. My greatest piece of engineering. When it launches, it will spread through major servers across the Pacific undetected until it hits its target and its program runs. It will begin right here in Tokyo. The closed connection of my base will, for the first time in it's life, be connected to a major network. From there, this small little worm will stop in Russia, before making a turn into Alaska. And from Alaska, it will turn towards its final target in Seattle..." Liz immediately recognized the target. "When it hits that target, it will suddenly begin its program and become detectable. All of the defensive bases it has touched will launch counter-measures, which will only open themselves to the assault of the worm. It will spread like a flash-plague through every network in the world. Its goal : to wipe out everything. All computers across the world will lose their information, wiping out any and all records of the past. Power plants will shut down and there will be no electricity or water. All electronics will be fried and unusable, even if they are not hooked up to the internet. How? Because the A-worm is programed to steal satellites - one of the first things I experimented with. These military satellites will fire electromagnetic waves, and anything electronic will be rendered useless. We rely so much on computers to help us live, and without them, people are scared. They will believe it is the end of everything. But that is when I will step up with a solution. My computers, the thousands that you saw on those shelves, will be given to all for free. And I have factories throughout the globe producing more as we speak. These factories will be the one thing not targeted, and my computers will survive the revolution. They are all the same - none is superior over the other, and each is the most advanced computer constructed - except for mine, of course. Nations will have to work together to survive, and world peace and unity will ensue, under the guidance of a single chamber of world leaders. All will at last be at peace... That is the truth, Liz. The gang wars were just a coverup to protect me while I initiated this plan, just as you thought. And my plan is just. You can think otherwise, you can still try to stop it, but it can't be stopped. Not even I can prevent the launch of the worm now," Everything became so surreal then. Liz had to take five minutes just to take it all in. She thought about the benefits of this plan. And the benefits just kept popping up in her head. "Liz... eight minutes remaining. Soon, Liz... soon..." Sintax repeated. But then she thought about the bad things that would happen, about the horror that would run through people's minds. There would be deaths and chaos. What if the world leaders blamed each other, and could never again agree on anything? The revolution was too sudden. It could not work as Sintax had planned. If Sintax truly cared about the world, he would not bring about an apocalyptic revolution such as this. There were flaws. These flaws sparked a thought in Liz. Sintax was indeed, evil. His intentions were not righteous as he had said. The same computer for everyone... so called unity... one single network would be created. And Liz found out, just then, that Sintax could do anything he wanted. He would become in full control of everything. He had no use for fellow leaders. If he made a decision, he could carry it out instantly across the world, affecting everyone immediately. He could very well have the power to make the human race destroy themselves, or enslave them. Slaves... that's all that humans would become. Yes, there were differences between nations. And these differences caused hate and fear. But what Sintax was doing would not solve anything. It would not give the world a chance for peace. The world could find unity itself. It might take centuries, but Liz knew that someday everyone could put aside their differences and fight as a whole, otherwise, humanity would not survive. The world was destined for either destruction or unity, and through Liz's eyes, Sintax's ideas would only bring about destruction. One last thought boosted her fighting spirit a little more - her grandfather. He was on life support. If the world went even one day without electricity, he would die. Sintax was a murderer, she thought. Sintax would kill her grandfather - someone very dear to Liz. She knew she had no choice but to stop Sintax. "Five minutes, Liz. Five minutes..." "Sintax, I've decided..." "Decided on what, Liz?" "That I'm going to stop you. I will prevent this attack," "A foregone conclusion... Very well. As I said, you can try all you want, but this attack will commence in four minutes. There is nothing you can do," "We'll see about that," "And when it does take place, I'll gladly be your friend again. You won't even need to apologize," "You're not my friend. I'm going to save the world from your rule. I'm going to save my grandfather..." "How do I affect him?" "He's on life support. You'll kill him," "Oh... I am sorry for your loss, then," "No you're not. You don't care about anyone," "Say what you will," "Goodbye, Sintax," Liz said coldly as she headed towards the door for the stairs. "Ah, Liz. If you're going to my operation center to hack into it or just smash my computer or something... keep in mind that it will only destroy any chance that the world will re-cooperate after the attack," Liz slammed the door and ran down the steps towards Sintax's office. She had no idea what to do now - no plan, no defensive strategy. But she did have the disc Tony gave her so long ago. He had exclaimed that it had the power to stop any attack, and to only use it when nothing else could be done. It certainly seemed that the time was now. She turned on her computer half way down the steps and basically slid on the floor to Sintax's mainframe. She pulled out an ethernet cable and found an available port in the machine. When she did this, the glass monitors around her displayed a warning screen which reported an unauthorized access. The connection closed immediately. But Liz knew what to do. She opened up a program Tony installed on her computer which cracked the access code and tricked the mainframe into thinking that there was no computer hooked into it. Liz took out the disc from her coat pocket, rubbed the casing with her fingers, and then broke the protective casing by smashing it on the floor. She inserted the mini-disc into her computer, not knowing what to expect. Time stood still as the program written on it began to load. She sat, completely shocked, to see what the program was. On her screen lay the Furry Wall setup screen, complete with her squirrel mascot. Was this some sort of a joke? Liz didn't quite know what to make of it. Did Tony really believe in Liz so much that he saw her simple program as the ultimate defensive weapon? Liz's pointer was hovering over the selection, "Make remote connection". Tony had said to sacrifice the pillar if needed... Did that mean it was completely open to connection? If no connection could stop Sintax's worm, than it might as well be. It all became so clear what Tony saw in Liz... Liz had the ability to create a simple program that did a simple task perfectly. It could deflect any attacks... Perhaps, no matter how powerful. Perhaps, even an apocalyptic worm... But the worm had so much power, that the pillar could very well destroy itself in the process. But then there would be no central computer anymore... The computer kept the world protected for many years, and it kept the world organized. But maybe Tony was right. Computers were becoming so advanced, that it was only a matter of time before the pillar was outdated... The pillar might very well be so already. Maybe the defensive systems of the governments were indeed strong enough to protect themselves. Maybe it didn't matter anymore. Maybe stopping Sintax would prevent many of the attacks from future hackers. Tony had complete trust in Liz and there was something he saw in her. With no other alternatives, she commenced a connection to the pillar in Seattle. There was only a minute left until Sintax's attack. To her amazement, access was granted without any hesitation. She began to install the program directly onto the pillar. It would take thirty seconds. Suddenly, Sintax's two bodyguards came in. Liz was sure that they would stop her, and she froze in fright. But instead, they simply walked past her and looked onto a computer screen which showed a map of the globe. Tokyo's location was lit up in bright red. Liz then saw Sintax walking down the stairs. He looked at Liz, smiled, and stood with his henchmen. "It's drawing near," he informed. Liz looked back at her computer screen. It was amazing that they were just allowing her to plant this program that could stop the attack. Or perhaps they already knew that it wouldn't succeed. The program was installed successfully and Liz shut her computer down and folded it up. She walked slowly towards Sintax. "Liz, ten seconds left. I guess you tried something down there? One last defensive maneuver? I assume it didn't work... Well, then you may stand here with me and watch the attack commence. The world revolution is now..." Liz watched the map, her whole body shaking. 'A-worm - launched!', a computerized voice informed. "Ah, finally..." Sintax said with a smile. A pinging sound began on the map. A red line ran from Tokyo up to the Russian coast near Alaska slowly. It stopped, and a dot was formed from which another line emerged. This one stopped in southern Alaska. Another dot formed and another line slowly traversed towards Seattle. "Almost there..." Sintax muttered. The line exploded into a final dot in Washington State. "Yes, it is done," Sintax said calmly, "It will only be a few moments now..." Liz believed all was lost when that last dot appeared. But something Sintax said boosted her confidence. "What's... going on? Shouldn't the attack have had-" 'Warning! Incoming attack! Unable to close connection...' Came the voice again, this time with red lights and alarms. Liz noticed a blue line going over the red lines, perfectly following the one previously made. "Don't just stand there! Go close the connection!" Sintax commanded, panicked for the first time. His men rushed off behind Liz. The redirected attack kept coming, going along the same lines as Sintax's. Sintax stared at the screen, completely bewildered. Liz slowly stepped backwards and snuck away, determined to get out of the building. Sintax suddenly turned around to Liz, infuriated. "Liz! How dare you... how dare you do this to me. After all I've done... after all I've wanted to help this world, you go and do this! You weren't supposed to do this! This wasn't supposed to happen. You will pay for this, I'll show you all. You and that pitiful man called Tony will not get away with this! You cannot stop me, I am invincible, you little fool!" Sintax suddenly took out a pistol from his pocket and aimed it at Liz. She reacted quickly, and ducked behind a glass monitor. Sintax fired his weapon, shattering the glass. Liz got up and ran to the door, but it was locked. A shot rang out, followed by a metal ping. Liz looked at her computer. For the second time, it had deflected the bullet. Acting quickly, she knocked over a metal table and got behind it. "Come on, Liz! I'll give you a chance! We can do this again, you and me. I realize the full extent of your power and I know I can wield it. Let us make another revolution together!" Liz huddled behind the table, trying to think of a way to stop SIntax, when suddenly the whole base shook from a violent explosion. The attack had hit. "Those worthless fools! They failed me! Damn you, Liz! Everything will be destroyed! This whole base will be obliterated! No... I will live. I will go on. You will die here, but I will escape. I can manage by myself," Liz could hear Sintax's gun dropping to the floor. The compound shook once more, and several computer monitors shattered. Liz waited for a moment before standing up. Sintax was slowly walking away though the smoke and sparks of the room. Fires began to erupt from the computer terminals. There was something Sintax had just said that made Liz suddenly realize the truth... it all added up. Every piece of evidence now stacked on top of each other. There was no way Sintax could be... Thinking quickly, Liz ran up behind Sintax and grabbed one of his devices for sending concentrated information waves. He turned around and looked oddly at her. She held the device point blank at him, and his face suddenly turned from curiosity to fear. "Liz, no!" But it was too late. She pushed the button on the back of the device, sending a blast of a-worm, now infecting only his base, right into him. Sintax was thrown backwards. He just stood there for a moment. "Liz... why..." He began to convulse. His arms flailed around and his legs hit the ground so that he was on his knees. Liz stood there in disbelief what she had just done. Parts of Sintax began to fizzle like television snow. Odd deranged sounds were emitted from his body. His appearance suddenly shifted to that of Antonio Alvarez's, and back to Sintax. Sintax and Antonio were the same person, as Emma and Liz had once thought... Sintax's normal form appeared one last time perfectly, froze, and vanished. What was left behind was a metal skeleton. A central orb where his head was was covered in flickering, dying lights. From the orb extended a pair of robotic arms, and a small central body. There were no legs, but a holster for his gun to one side of his metallic frame. The whole system hovered for a moment before coming to a crash on the ground. Liz picked it up. The frame was very heavy, and Liz only had enough strength to roll it over. On the back was a small panel with embedded information. Black words on the panel gave all the information Liz needed to fully understand the mystery behind Sintax. 'Project Number 42. Developed by Toloro Makishi, of Salzo Industries' It all became clear. There was once a gifted scientist, the father of police chief Yiu Makishi. He worked for Salzo labs and worked on developing robots and programs. His greatest work was a project named Sintax. A super intelligent program given a robotic body meant for good, it somehow developed a rogue sensibility and murdered its creator - the one person who knew how to stop it. The experiment had the ability the form its own human body using holographic technology. It wanted control over humans by destroying the old world and making a new one under his control. With everyone using the same computer on the same network, he had total power, and the ability to do anything he wanted. Tony was right all along. Liz wanted to bring Sintax's body to Tony for further analysis, but there was no way to escape the building while trying to tow it along. All she could do was take the registration panel on the back of the 'head'. She grabbed a tool which could be used as a screwdriver off the floor and took care of the screws holding the panel in place. She pocketed it and ran towards the roof, knowing that the other way out was locked. The compound continued to shake and it felt as if it couldn't take another quake before the infrastructure gave way. But the roof seemed to have no escape. Liz began to panic. Sintax was gone. Her mission was complete. She couldn't lose now. She wanted to go home more than anything. A blast of wind hit Liz from above. She looked up. A helicopter was hovering overhead. On it was an American eagle. A rope ladder dropped down to her and she grabbed on, tucking her computer under her arm. Half way up the ladder towards safety, the building below her collapsed into a flaming pile of ruble. She continued upwards without a moment to spare. The inside of the chopper was full of familiar faces. Emma and Fredrick were sitting to one side, while to her surprise, Tony and her father were on the other. Tony was smiling his quiet smile at her. June 17th Smoke was beginning to rise from the building below. "We gotta get outta here, guys! Everyone secure?" the pilot asked. "Yeah," Tony answered, "We're fine." Liz didn't know what to do first. She went with her first reaction. She walked up to her father, who was dressed in a business suit, paused, and hugged him as tightly as she could. She began to cry. She held nothing back anymore. "Dad... dad, I'm so sorry for leaving," she sniffled. "It's okay. It's alright, baby," he replied, patting her back, "I'm proud of you Liz. Very proud. There isn't anything you could say that would make me angry." The helicopter landed about half a mile away from the burning old factory. A group of investigators was gathered up, each one talking over each other's voices. Some were American, some were Japanese. Yiu Makishi was answering questions coming from the people of both sides. "Who?" Liz asked, releasing her arms. "Well, Liz. After Emma informed me that you went missing on an emergency call, I informed your dad. Word spread pretty quickly and before you knew it, your dad and I were on a plane here with a bunch of people who wanted to know where these attacks came from. I assure you that we're sorting it out." "So my dad knows everything..." "Yes." "And what about... the base?" "Well I think that the pillar killed itself trying to deflect Sintax's attack, but it worked. Your little program worked. Don't worry about the base in Seattle... We got everything under control. It's tough saying goodbye to it and all but... I was really only planning to stay there a few more months anyway. We're going to work together now... The anti-hacker agency that is. Hopefully I can get some good word around about us white hats, what do you think, eh? But Liz... You performed better than I ever imagined. I must congratulate you," Liz hugged Tony happily and whispered 'Thank you for everything' in his ear. "Liz..." Emma said, "You go, girl," she laughed. Liz wiped the tears from her eyes and laughed herself. "I've always hated that lame phrase..." "Yeah, me too," Emma agreed. "Good job, Liz," Fredrick said aloud, smiling. "Thanks, Freddy," Liz replied back. "How's your computer?" Emma asked. "It got another dent from a bullet..." "That thing has saved your life three times over, Lizzy." "Yeah... you're right," "Come on, Liz. Let's go home," Hector said gently. The five of them stepped out of the chopper. Hector walked his daughter to the limousine, holding his arm around her shoulders. A cameraman and an American reporter suddenly approached the two. "Excuseme, Hector-Rider couldwepleasehave a moment with you?" he asked very quickly. Before he could respond, the reporter commented to the camera. "We're here live where an attempted hacker attack was foiled by presidential candidate Hector Rider's daughter, Elizabeth Rider. Sir, it's not every day that a candidate's daughter saves the day. Do you think this will get you some good publicity in your election?" he said, shoving the microphone to Hector's face. "I'm dropping out of the election, friend," he replied coldly, "I'm going to spend more time with those really important to me. Thanks and goodbye," Hector walked off, Liz smiling. The reporter stood shocked as Tony, Emma, and Fredrick walked by the camera. Tony walked up to the reporter, and grabbed the microphone. "You know," Tony said into the camera, "One of your 'evil' hackers just saved the world. Why not keep that in mind." He said cuttingly, "Thank you, reporter," Inside the limo, its route being the airport, Liz took out the panel she got off of Sintax and gave it to Tony. "So he was indeed a program... I had these thoughts but I never suspected... Well, just goes to show my age, I guess. Technology is surpassing me," "So, Mr. Mondez... you're going into the hacker defense department?" Hector asked. "I guess I am. My job should be a bit easier from now on... This is kinda like retirement for me," he laughed, "Oh, and Emma. I told your office about your charades. They sounded impressed. I think you got a good chance of getting in now," "Really? Wow, thanks, Tony," Emma replied. "So Liz... what do you plan to do with the rest of your summer?" Tony asked. "Rest..." "You earned it. What about after that?" "I'm thinking about going to a tech college... develop more programs and such," "Good, good. Hey, you make something nice, send it my way, okay?" "Sure thing, Tony," "Liz... I'm sorry for not being there enough for you. What you did... all of this... it truly shows me how much you have grown. You could easily become famous for this, you know," "I know, Dad... but I don't want that. I just want to be a normal kid again... But maybe... a little less computer time. Dad... you sure you don't want to be president? It really looked like you were going to win..." "It's alright. I'm not cut out for presidency... It's too demanding. I got enough to worry about looking after you," he smiled. Upon arriving in Seattle, the groups parted their ways and said their goodbyes, promising to keep in contact as much as possible. And so Tony worked along with the hacker defense agency, being sure to get a good word out about the good guys. He kept in contact with Liz as much as possible. Because he worked in Washington D.C., near Liz's home, the two could sometimes meet and Tony would show Liz around the department. Tony also got to spend the holidays with the Rider family. Emma graduated her training session with honors and became one of the lead detectives. She kept in touch with Liz over TIM and sometimes by phone. Emma got married the year after. Fredrick spent much of his time with Emma's husband. Alex, his father, strived to visit his son as often as he could, but his work in Italy kept away most of the time. Hector Rider later remarried a shy, lovely young woman who had the same passion for computers as Liz did. She and Liz would spend hours talking about programming and computers. Hector founded a small company that distributed computer protection software, developed mostly by Liz and his wife. And as for Liz, the shy, quiet, computer loving teen, she would go through college and create the software for Ridersoft to protect computers nationwide. Liz designed the web site for Ridersoft, and kept in close contact with her friends, especially K8tieEmEcks, the one who began her on her journey many months back... Major hacker incidents slowed to a crawl with the fall of Sintax, just as Tony had predicted. Few knew of Liz's efforts, and she liked it that way. But the few that did know of the girl named Elizabeth Rider knew of her talents, her friendship, and her ability to protect others from people who want to cause harm through the vast networks and internet connections. Liz was not alone. She had powerful friends. And together, they forever changed the future and the way that hackers are contrived. Liz could still be found on her couch, in her small computer room, reading either the latest issue of 'Science and Technology Weekly', or a crumpled issue printed months back. To her, it was a never ending journey of exploration and understanding. She was part of a family, at last. Special thanks goes to Dark Sim, who made the little chapter select at the top, and GW Duo 2099, who made the kickass flash page for this story. And remember, if you're a hacker, be a white hat! Oh yeah, I will make one exception. Steal my story without my permission, and I'll have Liz hack your computer so much that it melts down, turning your entire family to radioactive slug mutants. You have been warned >:) Ciao! |
