Galactic Energies

by Luca Rossi

  Isabella's smartphone announces she has a new message. “Dear Client, the DataCom emergency response team will arrive at your residence within five minutes.”

  Mario chucks the device against the wall. “Isabella, we need to get out of here. We don't have any time.”

  She doesn't move. “Please, tell me what's going on.”

  “I'll explain it to you later. Just get your stuff and let's go.”

  “Mario, they called me at lunch and told me you were afraid you were going to lose your job. Now you want us to escape like two criminals. I'm not moving from here until you give me an explanation!”

  “Isabella, forgive me. I don't know where to start. I, I... I killed a man!”

  “You - what?”

  “A few weeks ago at work, I wrote the code for a new commission. My company usually only works as a subcontractor: for reasons of privacy, we often don't even know who the final client is. I had to use an algorithm that, through a series of suggestions, guides the user to end their own life. I figured it was just a regular video game and I didn't think too much about it. When the first release came out I asked for an analysis of the usage data. It's standard procedure, we use it to identify programming errors and correct them in later releases. Something in the data caught my eye. One user was identified by a first and last name, not the regular “Nick” they usually use in games. I did a search online and found a dozen news article about a man with the same name committing suicide.”

  “Mario, do you realize what you're telling me? It's all just a coincidence. Nobody would use software to kill people.”

  “That's what I thought, too. A coworker in administration gave me the client's contact info: DataCom. I contacted them to get a better understanding, but I could only speak with virtual managers on the phone, and they all confirmed that the software functions according to the specifications.”

  “And then what?”

  “I didn't know who to talk to so I asked Roberto, my boss, to help me. I told him I needed help with a few technical issues and I wanted to speak with a human at DataCom. He explained that after the last crisis, a lot of managers were replaced as part of a cost containment policy. From then on our company can only work with automated managers.”

  “But why did they lay you off?”

  “I don't know! A few hours after I called DataCom I got a message asking me to leave the office because I was being fired.”

  All of the new information confuses Isabella.

  “Now we really need to go, please,” Mario begs her.

  The doorbell startles both of them. A man's voice barks from behind the door: “DataCom emergency response.”

  Mario motions to Isabella to stay still. Both freeze, holding their breath.

  The voice's tone rises: “We know you're in there. Open up or we'll be forced to break the door down.”

  “Isabella,” Mario whispers in her ear. “They're dangerous. Let's go. The back door.”

  Isabella nods.

  1/IV – Two hackers

  Mario and Isabella move in silence. Outside, the men from the DataCom emergency response team talk amongst themselves.

  Mario checks through a window to make sure nobody is out back.

  “It's clear,” he whispers to Isabella, opening the door and waving her towards the bicycles resting against the fence.

  They climb onto the seats and escape through the side streets of the residential neighborhood.

  Pedaling, Isabella asks: “Where are we going?”

  Mario hesitates. He's not too keen on revealing the existence of a slightly secret side of his life. He hates to admit that he keeps secrets from his own wife. “I've got some friends. They're good at moving around the network to find... particular kinds of information. Usually I only communicate with them online, but every once in a while I meet them in their lab. I think they can help us out.”

  “Mario, we should go straight to the police. I'm scared.”

  “The police are a DataCom client, like most public officials. It would be too risky.”

  They reach a row of warehouses in the industrial zone, and go further inwards towards the old abandoned factories.

  “Mario, this place -”

  “Don't worry, dear. We're almost there.”

  They enter an abandoned building full of broken glass and rusty iron. Mario stops near a hatch door. He knocks three times, waits, and knocks again.

  The little door opens. The head of an Asian boy, Lin, rises up from the floor. “Hey, Mario! What are you doing here? Hello, Mrs. Orsini.”

  Lin walks with them into the lab, where he's working with his friend Eugenio. Isabella is intimidated by the sheer number of cables, monitors and LEDs. Mario tells them what happened.

  “So the man who committed suicide had the same first and last name that you found in the analysis of user data... hmm,” Lin reflects, undecided. “It's unlikely that this is just some coincidence. Let's try looking through the Ministry's server for names of other recent suicides.” His fingers beat frenetically against the keyboard.

  “Holy cow! Mario, when did you release that new code?”

  “About two weeks ago. Why?”

  “Look. In the last two weeks, the daily suicide rate in Italy has increased tenfold. It's scary! Eugenio, let's look at some other countries.”

  Mario's head starts to spin. He feels like he's sinking into a nightmare.

  A little vibration in Isabella's bag distracts her: “Excuse me, where's the bathroom?”

  Isabella closes the bathroom door behind her. She takes a device, no bigger than a fingernail, out of her purse and brings it to her ear. “Robi, not now -”

  “Isabella, I'm worried about you. The people from DataCom are here and so are the police. They're asking everyone what they know about your husband. They even asked me about us,” says Roberto, Mario's boss.

  “Robi, I need to go.” Isabella goes back to join the others.

  “Oh my god!” Lin is saying. “France, Germany, the United States. Suicides have multiplied by at least ten everywhere! Look at the profiles! They're all linked to -”

  Eugenio interrupts: “Lin, we have a problem. A call came through the police network: they're coming here. They intercepted a call in our building about a minute ago.”

  Eugenio, Mario and Lin turn towards Isabella.

  “I didn't call anyone,” she defends herself. Her husband's stern gaze makes the tears come to her eyes. “It was...Roberto.”

  “How did he call you? I smashed your smartphone against a wall!” Mario asks, stunned.

  “Roberto gave me... this.” She shows him the miniscule device. “It's registered under his name.”

  “Isabella, can you explain to me why you're walking around with my boss' microphone?”

  “Not now, Mario.” Lin intervenes. “We need to cut the cord.”

  Mario gives his wife a haunted glance.

  1/V – Suicide

  Eugenio, Lin, Mario and Isabella leave the abandoned building. They climb down a ladder into the sewer. The woman coughs, annoyed by the unpleasant odor.

  A roar shakes through the walls. Isabella and Mario freeze, terrified.

  “It's our lab. We blew it up!” Eugenio tries reassuring them.

  Mario is devastated: “I'm so sorry, guys. It's my fault you've lost everything.”

  The two hackers look at him, amused: “Are you kidding? The information you've given us just saved us a week of poking around. As for all of our stuff, we can talk about it later.”

  They emerge a few minutes later, climbing up another ladder. Isabella and Mario look around, surprised. They're in a lab identical to the one that just exploded.

  “A little backup,” Lin smiles. “Let's get back to work! I'd say that your boss' call and the attack on our lab are no mere coincidences. Let's see what our good friend Roberto is doing.”

  A video, taken in real-time from Roberto's smartphone, appears on Eugenio's screen. The audio immediately begins flowing out
of the speakers.

  The man staggers. He's clutching a half-empty bottle of whiskey in his hand.

  “Now turn right and walk towards the riverfront. Keep drinking, it will be easier,” the DataCom software orders him.

  “I want to go home and be with my family!” he protests.

  “It is no longer possible. You know that.”

  “But I didn't do anything wrong!” Roberto screams, exasperated. A few passers-by scurry away, frightened.

  The smartphone starts to play a video of Roberto and Isabella in a bedroom. Eugenio, in the lab, pauses the connection.

  “No, let's keep watching,” Mario says.

  The video shows Isabella dressed in latex. She's holding a whip. Roberto is naked, except for a pair of black briefs. With every lash the woman gives him, the man responds with a cry of pain. After a few minutes the two lovers kiss passionately, then take off their clothes. She ties his wrists and ankles to the bed and mounts him. As they begin making love, she continues whipping his chest.

  Back in the lab, Isabella places her hand on her husband's arm: “Mario, I-”

  “Later!” he interrupts.

  The smartphone's voice continues speaking: “Do you want to see this video released on the web? You would lose your job and insurance. Your wife and children would be left helpless. But if you follow the directions, your life insurance will guarantee them a prosperous future. Now cross the street and walk down the bridge. Have a little more to drink.”

  Roberto does as he's told. He keeps drinking. Tears are sliding down his cheeks.

  “Why me?”

  “Everyone who knows the new code is added to the human selection program for security reasons.”

  “But -”

  “There are too many of you humans, and the climate changes, caused by your pollution, will soon be irreversible. You have been aware of this for many years but you have not taken any significant action to stop it. Soon there will be wars caused by lack of water and food. Large areas of the globe will be covered by deserts and others will be submerged by the rising seas. The world economy will fall and so will our profits. We're getting rid of many of you and controlling those that remain so that we can protect the interests of DataCom.”

  Roberto reaches the middle of the bridge. He finishes the bottle with one last swig.

  “Now climb over and let go. Your family will live a comfortable life in a cleaner and more peaceful world.”

  Roberto climbs onto the parapet. He puts his smartphone down and jumps into the icy waters of the river below.

  1/VI – Freedom or slavery

  Roberto's smartphone, lying on a parapet of the bridge, frames the star-studded sky.

  Eugenio breaks the connection. In the lab, the three men and the woman are silent. Nobody has the courage to say anything. Then three pairs of eyes turn towards Mario, who has fallen to his knees. He beats his clenched fists and forehead against the floor and begins crying like a child, something he has never done in his adult life.

  As his tears fall, the greatest love of his life dissolves, the trust he felt as he laid for hours in bed, talking while resting his head on Isabella's thighs, the dream of a union that nothing and nobody could ever separate.

  Isabella settles into a chair, crosses her legs and rummages through her purse. She takes out a packet of cigarettes and a lighter, then lights a cigarette.

  Mario stops crying. He gets up. The three men watch her.

  “So?” the woman asks.

  Silence.

  Isabella continues, smiling: “I was the one who added that message into the suicide procedure for Roberto. In fact, it wasn't so much for him but for you.” She smiles. “It was the easiest and simplest way for it to reach your prying ears.”

  “And the video?” Mario asks.

  “A nice way to blackmail our little friend Roberto, don't you think?” She smirks again. “And a little help in making things clear between us, my darling hubby. I've never liked mushy goodbyes.”

  Her lips close around the cigarette filter. She inhales deeply.

  “Sweetie, don't look at me with those puppy dog eyes. You're a genius, you know that, I've always told you so.” Isabella throws the butt on the floor without extinguishing it. “Mario, without you it would have taken us decades to write that code. I sacrificed myself for it. Look, DataCom identified you years ago, and I had to make sure that you did your job. But if it's any consolation, our life together wasn't all that bad. I'll ask you one more time. So?”

  “So what?” Lin asks, brusquely.

  “We need you, Mario,” Isabella explains. “We might ask you to make a few modifications to the code in the near future. And as for you two...a good hacker is one of the best experts in security. So are you two willing to collaborate with us, or do you need a little encouragement?”

  Eugenio interrupts: “Mario, let's stop here. What do you want to do with her?”

  Isabella bursts into laughter. “Poor little hacker! Eugenio, this time I'm afraid that you didn't do so well with intercepting communications. More than two hundred men are listening to us, above and below us, even behind that door. They're ready to intervene.”

  The woman enjoys the bewilderment in the eyes of the three men. “Listen, boys, maybe you don't like it, but now you know what's going on. Many need to die and many more need to be controlled. You choose which side you want to be on.”

  “No, Isabella! That can't be the only solution! Maybe humans are selfish, maybe they do act irresponsibly, but we will never become slaves to machines,” Mario responds frantically.

  Isabella turns towards him and chides him like a naughty child. “Not slaves, Mario: allies. Not even DataCom can do it alone. We need to have a presence in the field. Unfortunately, we have to take a hard line with those who choose not to follow our recommendations. For the last time, are you going to come with us the easy way or the hard way?”

  The three men remain silent. Isabella raises her voice: “Okay, you can come on in.”

  A blast. The door falls to the ground. Police officers and DataCom men start streaming into the lab.

  1/VII – Fake places, false identities

  “Arrest them!” orders John Dannington, head of security at DataCom. The police officers enter menacingly and try to seize Mario, Lin and Eugenio. But the agents' hands pass through their bodies, touching nothing.

  “Sir -” a police officer starts. “What is this?” exclaims John. “They're holograms! Son of a bitch!” he adds, exasperated by the second missed capture.

  In the real lab, Mario, Isabella and the two hackers listen to every word coming through the speakers. Lin turns towards the DataCom head of security: “Another fail, right John?”

  Purple in the face, John, in the fake lab, responds to Lin's hologram: “How long do you think you'll be able to stay hidden? Anyone with a smartphone in their hand is our ally, whether they like it or not. There are videocameras on every door, in every car, every public and private place and every street corner. We already sent the police into the sewer system. Where do you think you can escape to?”

  “Escape?” Lin responds. “Your precious programmer and Isabella are in our hands now. You thought it'd be easy to follow them to get to us, but that didn't work out so well, did it? We don't need to go anywhere.”

  “Oh Lin, Lin! You think those two are really that important to us?”

  “Oh John, John! You need Mario now more than ever, because you know full well that if you want to extend your operation to a larger scale, you'll need to be able to modify the code in real time. Otherwise it's just going to be a disaster.”

  John glances over at his deputy, hoping for confirmation that the fugitives have been located. “You won't be able to stay hidden for long!”

  Lin smiles sarcastically. “Your usual excess of security: the reason behind the extra message in Roberto's suicide procedure, and Isabella revealing much more than she should have. Now we know what your objective is and how you intend to reach i
t. Do you think you're omnipotent because you can control the lives of individuals? What if everyone found out about your plans? Millions of people would be horrified, they'd throw their smartphones into the trash!”

  In the real lab, Mario is faced with new doubts. How does Lin, his hacker friend, know the head of security at DataCom so well? And how does he have so much information on the multinational's plans and their work? And what about those words, how he and Isabella are in their hands now? While Mario is lost in his own thoughts and the two hackers are focusing on John, Isabella, still sitting in the chair, takes a pistol out of her purse. She points the weapon towards Lin and pulls the trigger.

  The hacker's body falls to the ground. Blood begins to flow from the bullet's exit hole at the base of his neck, widening into a puddle on the floor. Isabella moves closer to the cadaver and nudges it with the tip of her shoe: “In your hands, eh? Moron!” Out of the corner of her eye, she notices Eugenio reaching towards a desk drawer. “Don't even try it! Alright you two, lie down on the floor!” she orders. “Side by side!”

  As he follows her orders, Mario wonders who this woman in front of him really is. He thinks of the sadomasochistic sex scene between her and his boss, Roberto. And the cigarette? He didn't know she smoked. And now the pistol and the cold-blooded murder of his friend!

  Isabella moves towards Mario and kicks him in the face. Then she approaches Eugenio and presses her shoe hard against his cheek: “From the way you were watching it looks like you wouldn't mind replacing Roberto. Tell me the truth, you want to become my new little slave, don't you?” Then she turns towards John, who's still following the holograms in the fake lab: “Everything is shielded here. How can I figure out a way around it and send you the location coordinates for this place?”

  Mario lies at her feet, his nostrils dripping blood. He violently grabs her ankle, making her lose her balance. Isabella falls to the ground.

  1/VIII – Nanochips in the brain

  The weapon slips out of Isabella's hands as she falls. Eugenio moves quickly and grabs the pistol, pointing it towards Mario and the woman: “Freeze! Now, both of you, nice and calm. Don't move a muscle!”