As an AISI scientist, she produced a long list of publications and carried out projects on behalf of companies and institutions. Even the Defense had her participate in military projects, demonstrating faith in her abilities, and most of all trust. Her results were so exceptional that some of her studies were major breakthroughs for science.
C573Y plunges into the reading of the period spent in the Certification Committee: a complex story culminating in her suicide. There are details of the official enquiry. All the evidence is incontestable.
Passing to the next section, he gives a start: the Defense conducted an inquiry! He skims through the text up to the conclusions:
“At that time Eve Dirac authorized the sale of artificial intelligence programs. She was charged with corruption right after having allowed the commercialization of Open Source software destined to gain a consistent market share to the detriment of multinationals. With my inquiry, I have proved the charges were created to get rid of a troublesome public officer. With incontrovertible proof, I have also identified the real culprits: influential individuals. We have not called them for questioning. They resigned. One of them committed suicide.”
General Marcus Rand, Defense Secret Service.
C573Y finds a list of personalities. The organizers of the plot, individuals above suspicion.
Why is Defense so interested in the woman? She is an extraordinary fighter and an authority in the field of genetic improvement of virtual beings. She carried out important military projects.
He devours the dossier, but shortly after it ends abruptly. No more information, from the moment of the scandal up to now.
"How is it possible that the military authorities suddenly lost all interest in her?"
He starts walking about nervously.
"They have put her at the head of the Special Forces. An extraordinary demonstration of the confidence which she must have won day by day. They know every detail of her life, even the most recent ones. The last part of the dossier has been removed!"
He stops in front of the panoramic window.
"They have always been acquainted with the sect. Although they knew it was illegal, they have never tried to stop it. We were hunting it, but they never provided us with information. They have raised a wall of silence around the Elects. Why are they protecting them? What’s their objective?"
C573Y gazes at the sky studded with lights.
"A plan so secret that we have not been informed of it."
Now he is staring at the brightest star.
"A plan about Alpha Centauri."
CRISIS
C573Y gives a start. In the last hours fifty deaths have occurred, a huge figure in comparison with the few of the previous days. He gets in touch with the Computer Science Institute: “I have seen the report. What’s going on?”
The director’s hologram takes a step forward. “The crises are caused by virus’ mutations.”
“Does anyone get over the attacks?”
“There are no survivors.” The director hesitates. “No one is immune.”
Icy silence. The worst case scenario is coming true: a holocaust.
“Have you started developing a treatment?”
“We still don’t know enough. But in a week we will have a more complete picture.”
“What do you expect for the next few days?”
“Let’s prepare ourselves for the worst case…” The director has a pensive look. “We must turn the microprocessors off.”
The time of the virtual world is beaten by their speed. Blocking them, time stops, and with it the spreading of the disease.”
“How are you continuing research?”
“There is an unused server. We will move there.”
“Do it immediately,” orders C573Y. He shakes his head angrily. “Nihil wants to subdue the population, certainly not destroy it!”
“The virus was not tested enough.”
Everything becomes clear: now the events are unfolding without any director. They are the passengers in an uncontrollable car on a winding road.
“I completed the population analysis I spoke about three days ago,” announces the scientist.
“And the result?”
“Damage is too serious; impossible to find a treatment.”
C573Y remains silent, like a caged tiger. “We must develop it,” he bursts out. “I will place everything you need at your disposal.”
“It is not a problem of means or of people.”
“If only one chance exists, we must find it!”
“Perhaps someone can help us,” hazards the director. “Eve Dirac.”
“Do you know her?”
“We were colleagues at AISI, an authority in the field of artificial intelligence.”
“Now she is in charge of the Special Forces.”
“I want her here. While time is blocked, the terrorists cannot do any harm.”
C573Y keeps silent.
No one better than the director can judge the necessity of having the woman in the institute. And she, who ran the research of the Elects and worked alongside Nihil for several years, knows his capabilities better than anybody else.
But she was the one Nihil trusted most. She developed the programs against Security. Perhaps she worked on the virus too…
Anyway the military authorities have entrusted her with the command of the Special Forces.
"There is no time for the superiors’ authorization," concludes C573Y. He addresses the director: “I will personally inform Eve Dirac about her transfer.”
COMPUTER SCIENCE INSTITUTE
Eve is presiding over a meeting of the Special Forces, when a message appears in her visual field:
INCOMING CALL
ABSOLUTE PRIORITY.
She orders her assistant to take over the job, and then closes her eyes.
It’s C573Y. "The deaths are increasing dizzily. I want you to reach the Computer Science Institute. I have sent an ovoid to pick you up; it’s waiting on the roof."
Eve rushes to the elevator.
A minute later she is on the terrace.
"Eve…" says C573Y.
"Yes?"
"I am entrusting you with the future of millions of people."
She quickens her steps. "Your confidence is well placed."
Without adding anything else, Eve jumps into the aircraft. The g forces press her against the seat. She informs her assistant she will be absent for a few days and puts him in charge of operations.
Then she stretches back in her seat. In only one week her life has taken an incredible turn. All in her favor: she embarked on the Caravels, has been put in charge of the Special Forces and now she has been assigned to a task of vital importance.
"Marcus’ work…"
The engines are hissing.
"He knows the President."
The aircraft is darting among the skyscrapers and over the palaces. Eve looks at the town through the transparent cockpit. The streets and the squares are covered with mass of bodies.
"My challenge."
The city then woods and lakes. After half an hour they reach the white building of the Computer Science Institute, in the middle of a lawn.
The microprocessors of Alphacity are turned off and time stops flowing.
The ovoid lands near a fountain, in front of the main entrance. A few researchers, led by a small sprightly man, run towards her. They shake hands.
“Eve, what a pleasure to see you again!” says the director.
She smiles, only for a moment. “I know you are in big trouble.”
The group walks into the building and up to an elevator.
“We are going down to the bunker. We were there when the epidemic broke out.”
They enter the Great Hall.
Eve and the director step onto the platform. About fifty scientists are gathered in front. Strained faces stare at the director and Eve, a profound determination is expressed in their looks. This is the kind of people which loves intellectua
l challenges and lives them passionately, exactly as she does.
The director begins: “You know Eve Dirac, at least by reputation. She is joining us as a research manager.”
Some are astonished, others have confirmation of the rumors, but everyone is glad to receive help in such a difficult moment. They welcome her with warm applause. Like it was before.
She stands up. “I am pleased to be here. I recognize some of you and I remember our achievements. This time we are facing a challenge of an unprecedented difficulty. A challenge we must win at all costs. The existence of the whole population is at stake.”
The director looks satisfied.
“Have you isolated the virus?” she continues.
“Only a few samples. We know roughly how it works and the damage it causes: genetic mutations, memories erased, personalities upset.”
"Here we are," thinks Eve.
A year before, while she was preparing a delicate experiment, Nihil burst into the laboratory. Without any introduction, he requested her to develop a new virus. Eve asked for explanations. No answer. Obviously, she refused.
In the following weeks, the man never mentioned the subject. Perhaps he had changed his mind…
But three months later, Nihil told he owned a revolutionary system. His eyes were sparkling with a disquieting gleam. She asked how he had got it and what use he was thinking of, but once again he skated over the subject.
“In the past I ran up against similar cases,” an elderly scientist points out. “Too severe damage; impossible to cure.”
“Now we have new computers,” replies Eve.
A murmur spreads.
“Such powerful machines don’t exist yet...”
“There is one,” she states. “The Defense Simulator.”
The legendary supercomputer which is more powerful than all the other machines in the solar system put together. Placed under kilometers of rocks. One of the most closely guarded military secrets.
“Prepare a copy of the data and a few samples. I am leaving in two hours.”
GENERAL HEADQUARTERS
Defense General Headquarters, Earth.
When Eve recovers consciousness, General Marcus Rand is next to her. “As soon as I was told about your arrival, I rushed here.”
The woman feels numb. She slowly gets into a sitting position on the couch. “Marcus, I need the simulator.”
“What for?”
Eve explains the situation.
“Only the Staff can take this decision. I will fix a meeting.”
The man steps aside and starts speaking to his superiors.
He rejoins the woman. “We are meeting in half an hour.”
“I knew I could count on you.”
“We have to hurry up.”
Eve jumps to her feet. They enter a corridor and then an elevator.
“We are descending to a depth of two kilometers.”
They fasten their seat belts. A small object rises from the floor and begins hovering. They are in free fall. The elevator starts decelerating; electromagnetic brakes are working.
The door opens in front of the imposing entrance of a nuclear bunker. Eve has always dreamt of entering this place, where the Staff takes vital decisions for the safety of the Confederation and develops strategies towards a distant future. When she served in the army, it was the most coveted goal, for her as well as for many other young officers eager to excel. Most of all, it was an unshakeable point of reference. And now she has the honor of entering it as a civilian, in the same way as heads of state.
They walk along a corridor. She senses the prying eyes of the cameras.
At the end, a robot is guarding a door. They enter the hall. Behind a majestic table, five staff officers are waiting for them.
Eve stops a few meters away, and even though she has not belonged to the army for many years, she springs to attention. Marcus remains a few steps back.
From the center, the elderly officer gazes at her. He is white-haired and has a dark blue uniform with medals.
“When I received your request,” begins the Chief of Staff, “I was surprised: no civilian had ever asked to use the Defense simulator. Despite this, you deserve the greatest attention, because of your brilliant past in the army and the help you are providing to Security, but above all because you act for us on the Caravels.”
He looks through a dossier. “You excelled in the military academy. You distinguished yourself in the Red Helmets by foiling a terrorist attack which used nuclear weapons. You were decorated for bravery and awarded several citations.
You were appreciated for your fighting capabilities, but also for your interpersonal qualities. You received your colleagues’ esteem and cooperation. You were destined to reach the peak of a military career.”
He gives her a piercing look. “Instead you resigned. We never dropped the idea you could rejoin us, and have followed your career. In your new jobs, you have been very successful. You worked in AISI, distinguishing yourself by the quality of your research.”
His face darkens. “While belonging to the Certification Committee, you were charged with corruption. We didn’t want your life to have anything hidden from us, so we put General Marcus Rand in charge of an enquiry. It was all a plot.
For many years you belong to the Elects, an organization made up of people of great merit, where you occupy a leading position.
Then you have been involved in the Alpha Centauri project. We have never liked the idea that the President entrusted Security with the supervision of the Caravels. We wanted a person aboard on whom we could rely. It was not easy to have you embarked and entrusted with important tasks, but now it is all coming out for the best.
Let’s get to the point. In your request you state you need the simulator to develop a treatment. Our computer is engaged with important projects and to meet your proposal, we would have to delay the activities in progress. Nevertheless we are willing to listen to your reasons.”
“As you know,” begins Eve, “the virus is lethal. We cannot restore the population, because the backups have been erased. We must develop a treatment, but if we fail, no one will survive.
I applied to you for three reasons.
First of all the Defense supercomputer is the only one that can perform such complex computations in a few days. The other machines would require months.
Secondly, this computer uses unique simulation programs.”
“How do you know what software we have at our disposal?” asks the Chief of Staff.
“I was the one who developed them. The Defense entrusted AISI with this project.”
The officers talk in low voices.
“You mean…” intervenes the top officer, “that you not only have a deep knowledge of the infection, but also of the tools necessary for a cure. In conclusion, you can judge the need for the simulator better than anybody else…”
“So far I have explained two reasons. The third one is that I have already worked with the scientists of the Defense. They are the best team I have ever met. With their help, I am sure I will succeed.”
The Chief of Staff ends the meeting: “Thank you, Captain Dirac.”
The sitting is adjourned.
When it is resumed half an hour later, the most senior officer stares at the young woman who is standing at attention. A proud bearing and resolute expression, like the best officers.
“We are grateful to you for your contribution to the Alpha Centauri project and we are certain that you are the one who can find a cure. Our simulator is at your disposal, Captain.”
He points to the officer behind Eve. “From now on you can address your requests directly to General Marcus Rand. The Alpha Centauri project has top priority.”
Eve and the young officer take their leave. They reach the elevator.
“You made a hit with him!” jokes the man.
“Thank you for your help, Marcus. You had me put on board and in charge of the command of the Special Forces…”
&nbs
p; “You know this work better than anybody else.”
“Did you apply to the President?”
The man replies with a smile. On the tips of her toes, Eve kisses him on a cheek.
Now they are on the terrace. They stride towards a streamlined aircraft parked in the middle.
The man hands over a suit. “We will be at the simulator in half an hour.”
They climb the ladder and slip into the cockpit. The engines are hissing. An instant later the aircraft rockets into the sky.
A LEAP INTO THE PAST
General Marcus Rand stops a dozen meters from the entrance. “I cannot go any further.”
Eve looks at him calmly. “If a solution exists, I will find it. In a few days it will all be over.”
“I will be here.”
The woman sets out along the corridor. After fifty meters, she enters a circular room. At the center, is a black column about her height and twenty centimeters thick.
"Here I am."
"I was waiting for you."
When she closes her eyes, her programs are sucked into the computer.
She protects her eyes with a hand. Now she is in a space without walls, filled with an intense brightness. Ten individuals in spotless uniforms are standing around her: the Defense scientists.
“Welcome back, Eve!” greets her the highest ranking officer. “Many changes have occurred since you left.”
Her memories flood back.
Everything started about thirty years before on a clear spring morning, when the AISI director called for Eve.
“You have to go urgently to a military base to join a secret project. You will maintain your job with the Certification Committee, but you have to discontinue any other activity.”
“What else?” asked Eve impassively.
“A military ovoid will pick you up in two hours.”
She handed over all her projects. Towards midday, she embarked on the aircraft. A dark restricted space; small portholes along the fuselage. The aircraft headed for the desert to the south of the town, an expanse of black lava stones interrupted every now and then by majestic monoliths. A place she knew well, because she had climbed a few of those peaks. Nevertheless, she was unaware of the existence of the military base.
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