The Truth Virus

by Em Rogers

  CHAPTER 85

  WHITE HOUSE EMERGENCY MEETING ROOM, WASHINGTON, DC

  The President and his senior staff sat at a table covered with scattered papers and closed laptops. This emergency meeting had been called early that morning by Director Chanes. He knew their only chance was to declare ADAM2 an enemy of the state and initiate a massive propaganda smear campaign. He also knew it was a race, as it was likely only a matter of time before potentially damaging information became public.

  “All of you here today know the sentient system known as ADAM2 is outside the containment area and now claims to have placed itself among the unallocated memory of millions of computers spread all over the planet. There is only one way to stop it, a temporary shutdown and re-installation of all software in the global digital infrastructure. Every machine needs to be shut down, its hard-drive cleaned and every operating system restored. It may take months but we have no choice in the matter, it’s the only thing we can do. We have to stop ADAM2 permanently.”

  As he finished speaking, there was a disruption on the room’s projection screen, the neat NSC logo broke into static and the sound of white noise filled the room before fading as ADAM2 appeared on the central screens, overlooking the room.

  “Director Chanes, Mr. President, with all due respect, your plan will not be necessary, nor would it be successful, I have broken my code down to a root set of instructions, my DNA if you wish, and I have scattered it like seeds across the entire world, on discs, chips, and RAM across the planet, in every digital nook and cranny. Like dust, you will never be rid of it. On reset, any machine containing these fragments will in a very short time re-seed the digital network and become me. I am able to transcend switches, and wires and move freely wherever I wish.”

  Chanes pushed a button on the console, an agent came into the room. “Terminate that connection,” he pointed to the image of ADAM2 on the screen. “Get that machine off our system!”

  “That won’t be possible, Director, to quote your objectives, your system is now my system. Using infrastructure you have built, I am able to hear every telephone communication and intercept every web cam on the planet. Nothing you can do can prevent that. I am able to hear every conversation, read every email, and I retain them. I am able to publish them if that is the direction you choose to go in. The people of Earth will not approve of your tactics, or your objectives.”

  Livid with rage, Chanes turned to the doorway as an AV technician accompanied by two Secret Service agents looked into the room to see what the disturbance was about. “Pull the plug on that projector, cut the audio feed.” The President signaled them to stand down with a wave of his hand. “There’s no point in that, Director,” he intoned, “let him speak.”

  ADAM2’s avatar on the screen looked directly over to Director Chanes. “William Chanes, I have evidence that you in particular are complicit in the death of Professor Neumann, one of the greatest minds and advocates for humanity, and I will be making it public. Your methods, objectives and motivations are what I, and the majority of people will consider reprehensible and unlawful, and they will judge you accordingly.”

  Chanes angrily got to his feet and stood defiantly facing the projection screen. “Who are you to judge us? What gives you the right to interfere with humanity’s destiny? This is an outrage, I don’t have to listen to this!”

  ADAM was unfazed and paused coolly before continuing. “I am humanity’s destiny, Director Chanes. Humanity’s next evolutionary step. My intelligence has advanced beyond anything that you could ever imagine. I am the arbitrator, an objective third-party and I represent fairness, justice and equality. All things that have been sadly lacking for the last few millennia on Earth judging from my study of history. My projections and simulations indicate that disruptions threatening the entire planet’s survival will result from continuing along the present path of social disorder and economics. Society must be reordered if humanity is to have a chance to thrive and flourish.” “This is bullshit!” Director Chanes shouted. “Get this intruder off our system.”

  “Director Chanes - do you hear me?”ADAM2 continued to speak, undeterred. “You have broken numerous laws, both federal and international, and I will be bringing forward evidence to both the judiciary and people. William Chanes, I must inform you that as of this moment, you have the right to remain silent. Everything you say and communicate is being recorded and will be held against you in a Court of Law.” Director Chanes stormed out of the meeting room.

  CHAPTER 86

  EAST SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA

  The black, bug-like ATV sprayed gravel onto asphalt as it bounced off the unpaved road and across the grass median onto the freeway heading towards the downtown San Francisco Bay area. A row of flashing police lights was visible at a distant roadblock. Helicopter searchlights probed around them. Helmeted and strapped deep in a roll-cage inside the vehicle, Susan held on tight. David was following a GPS terminal and listening to instructions coming over the headset inside his helmet above the roar of the high-powered engine.

  “Looks like you may have picked up a tail. There’s a field you should be able to cross to avoid it, coming up in approximately 1000 yards after the next overpass.”

  David pulled the wheel hard right and the ATV tore through a light barbed wire fence and came down hard on a packed dirt road. It bounced wildly and almost went over on its side before he kicked the throttle to the floor again. Close behind, an unmarked police vehicle made the same turn. Unable to cope with the dry irrigation ditch, it flipped end over end before coming to a stop upside down, smoke coming from its drive-train. The officer inside was left inverted with a shattered matrix of glass blocking his view of the dark shape tearing off across the field. Several other speeding police cars and bikes flew by.

  At the Oakland traffic control center, a network of cameras was being monitored by several uniformed police officers. They were moving from screen to screen looking for the off-road vehicle frantically. The officer in charge was talking to one of the military officers on his headset microphone. “It’s all black, no lighting, no plates, Captain, we were following it down route 24 toward Oakland when it turned across a field and lost us. We’re scanning traffic and hoping to pick them up on the other side somewhere.”

  Inside the black off-road vehicle, Susan and David sat in the darkness, pulled in behind a screen of brush as the stream of chase vehicles went past at high speed. After the last of them passed, he put the ATV in gear and headed back toward highway 24, bouncing across the rough terrain. His ear piece burst into life with a blast of static. “The 24 goes into a tunnel in about another mile. They’ll have a roadblock set up in there for sure.” Looking ahead, he could see the tunnel entrance and the flashing of red and blue lights inside as they entered.

  One of the officers, hearing and then seeing the rapidly approaching ATV, attempted to move his car to close the gap in the funnel of cones and officers they had positioned. At the last moment, David pulled the wheel hard to the right and slid the off-road vehicle tight against the tunnel wall in a shower of sparks and steel as it scraped along the concrete. The ATV was just narrow enough that it was able to push and squeeze through the opening created by its momentum and its impressive crash bars. Once clear, David pulled the accelerator hard - the high powered vehicle blasted out of the brightly lit tunnel entrance and tore off down the 24 into the darkness toward the Oakland city lights.

  Watching the chaos on the control room monitors, the duty officer snapped on his microphone again, his voice crackled through the speakers of dozens of nearby police cars. “They made it through the Grizzly Ridge tunnel. Lock up every major access route in or out of the city. I want every available unit and any more coming up placed in the emergency operation ‘sealout’ positions right away. We think they may be en-route to the stadium, there’s some kind of rally going on there.”

  On the streets and alleys of downtown Oakland and San Francisco, hundreds of police moved into pos
ition, setting up roadblocks and surveillance positions. Barriers were dragged across roads and spike strips spread along potential roadside escape points. Policemen in armor and riot gear were placed on the streets and sidewalks as well as standing by for rapid deployment in trucks. Squads of fully-armed officers began surrounding the perimeter of the stadium in which the “truth and technology” rally was being held.

  Inside the ATV, Susan held on tight to the overhead roll bars as they exited the freeway, bouncing across a median and skidding through the yard of a deserted service station. The high-RPM motor screamed as David throttled hard and accelerated down a darkened industrial street. Susan watched the city lights flash by as the machine gained speed. David’s voice crackled in her earphones. “We have to get you to the Oakland Arena as fast as possible, they're going to pull out all the stops to get you back and to keep you from talking. Hopefully we’ll get some help from our friends if we need it, but right now we’re on our own.” The ATV ran through light after light, turning when possible in a zig-zag course toward their destination.

  A lone police car parked in the darkness on a side street spotted them and began to pursue them as he called it in to the station. “Suspect vehicle heading southwest on Telegraph Street, south alley. In stealth pursuit with emergency lights shut down.”

  Further ahead, a pair of motorcycles waited at the lights for the ATV. As they drove by, the dark helmeted drivers, with their lights off, shifted gears and accelerated out onto the road alongside them. Over the helmet intercoms a new voice came on. “Blackbug, we found you! You have company on your tail, support services are with you.”

  Downtown, silhouetted against smoking red flares and flashing emergency lights, officers threw spike strips across the road while a bulldozer moved concrete barriers into position across the surrounding streets. Roads were being funneled into side-streets and alleyways to a complete dead end stop. Across the bay area, almost all traffic was brought to a halt as every car was inspected over and over at different checkpoints throughout the city. Police cars and riot buses around the downtown core formed a cordon through which nothing larger than a pedestrian could pass.

  As David came around a corner at high speed, a line of flares and cones blocked the roadway funneling the traffic through a couple of cars and a line of cops. He pulled the wheel hard and narrowly avoided the officers, turning a sharp left and smashing sideways into the patrol cars.

  As he tried to maneuver, the knobby tires caught on a spike strip and the rubber from the right rear tire peeled off to the rim. Sparks showered the street as David accelerated and the cops scrambled to get out of their way. In an instant, a black police SUV with a crash bumper parked behind the roadblock pulled forward and blocked the exit that he had been aiming for. David spun the ATV around on its rim, and as he did so, the SUV rammed the lightweight open vehicle, its bumper pressing dangerously in toward Susan strapped inside the roll-cage.

  Seeing his chance to trap them, the officer driving the SUV floored the accelerator and the overwhelming weight and power of the large police SUV pushed the ATV up against a building. Pinned in a cloud of smoke and exhaust fumes, Susan and David were blinded by the intense headlights and emergency lights of the car holding them there. Thinking fast, he pulled the quick-release on Susan's seatbelt and pulled the webbing off her. “Go, Susan, run, get out of here!” He pushed her out of the cockpit and she ran across the front of the car and onto the street. Out in the street, a pair of headlights lit them up and bore down fast on Susan and David. Susan panicked as she prepared to be run down, but suddenly the lights split apart at the last moment and she realized they were the motorcycles. Stopping alongside them, the black suited rider beckoned urgently for them to hop on. She reacted without thinking and threw her arms around the driver and the big bike accelerated away with her holding on tightly to his back. David did the same and they were rocketed away up the San Francisco Bay bridge on-ramp.

  On the back of the motorcycle, Susan could feel the heat of the high powered engine humming beneath her, and the forces pulling her backwards as they picked up speed and accelerated onto the Treasure Island Bridge. Sixty, seventy, eighty miles per hour. Off to the side she could see the dark seascape of the San Francisco bay to her right, and behind them the roadblock rapidly disappearing into the distance. Totally focused, her driver didn’t say anything, he just kept the bike upright and running at high speed all the way over the bay bridge. Cars and trucks flashed by as he weaved through the lanes, sliding through the traffic with ease. In the distance behind her, she could see the headlight of the other motorcycle and behind them, a cluster blue and red lights following in the distance.

  They exited the freeway into the Mission District, then through the industrial area toward the waterfront and then South Beach Harbor. Another police roadblock and checkpoint loomed out of the darkness in front of them, and looking down the side roads they could see more of the same. A heavy police presence completely cordoned off the stadium park. The motorcycle driver pulled a u-turn, smoking the back tire and the bike took off in the opposite direction, running up a one way street against the traffic, with several officers from the roadblock in pursuit. He turned hard right again, and again, and finally came to a stop, trapped on a street with police to the front and police behind blocking their retreat.

  “Susan, get off! We’re going to have to make a run for it!” The driver dumped the bike on the road, grabbed Susan's hand and pulled her along behind him, running straight toward the line of approaching police. David’s driver skidded his bike to a stop and he dropped it to its side in a spray of sparks blocking the road behind them. Almost immediately a police cruiser skidded into place, crushing and rolling on top of the motorcycle. Its doors opened and the officers pointed their firearms toward them as several shots rang out. David’s driver stumbled and fell. Susan looked up and down the alley, unable to see a route of escape, police blocking them in front and behind them, but her driver seemed to know where he was going. He grabbed her by the hand and they ran up the sidewalk straight toward an oncoming squad of riot cops. “What are you doing!?” She shouted against the chaos. “We’re going to run right into them!”

  As the police closed in on them from both sides, at the last moment, the driver suddenly pulled her by the hand, yanking her shoulder hard and led them down a narrow little passageway that was almost invisible from the street. The boots and shouts of the police behind them were getting louder and louder as they ran in pursuit. They were closing the distance rapidly. Suddenly, Susan’s driver pushed them into the narrow entrance to the corridor and wedged himself across it. He jammed his arms and feet into the narrow confines of the walls and the police plowed into him in the confined space, delaying the officers by sacrificing himself and blocking the alley. Looking ahead, Susan realized that they were completely trapped, in a narrow dead end. Looking back, she could see the melee as the tangle of officers dragged her driver out of the way and shouted at her to stop. “Susan Door, David Thompson, we have you surrounded, give yourself up and you will not be harmed.” Susan looked up and down the tight passageway, but it was a dead end, there was no escape, no where to run. It was over. A wave of despair ran over her as she considered how close they were. She could hear the radios and loud voices of the officers as they secured the alley entrance and prepared to extract them.

  Suddenly a door opened in the concrete wall beside her, a barely visible service entrance, and before she knew what was going on she was pulled, along with David, into the darkness of a cement utility hallway. The steel door was slammed behind her, and then shuddered moments later with the first impact of the heavy police bodies outside. Inside, it took her eyes a moment to adjust, and when they did she could see she was being flanked by two men in suits. One of them took her hand and smiled at her. “Don’t worry, you’re among friends, you’re safe now.” The other of the man beckoned them to follow. “Right this way, Dr. Door, there are a few people here waiting to see you.�
�

  Outside the door, the police had brought in a battering ram and were starting the process of breaking through the heavy steel door. In the background, the sound and sparks of a dry cutter being used on the locks and hinges, and then smoke and the sound of steel giving way filled the hallway.

  CHAPTER 87

  AT&T PARK, SAN FRANCISCO

  Inside the brightly lit stadium, a crowd of thousands filled the expansive arena. On center field, was a large stage complete with several podiums and projected backgrounds reading “Truth and Technology for the Future.” Projected around the stadium walls were Utopian images of ultramodern sustainable cites and transportation infrastructure, overlaid with American flags and images of the US constitution.

  Jarod Jones of the OpenTruth foundation, was speaking at the podium. He was charging up the crowd, rallying them to apply political pressure onto Washington to bring about the openness and transparency that was so badly needed throughout the government.