by Tom Wheeler
“GENCI?” interrupted Crane.
“France’s high-performance computing organization. They have a supercomputer that reaches speeds of 22 petaflops, called Jean Zay, that Capucine worked on. It’s part of Macron’s work to move France toward becoming one of the premier AI countries, although he doesn’t include androids in his publications on neural implants.”
“Nor do we.” A pause ensued. Crane wanted details, but not when he was unsure why they mattered. “Isn’t she a bit young to have that education and work experience?” he asked.
“She started college at 15,” responded Wesley.
“I’m intrigued about Dominika, but still don’t understand the connection.”
“There are too many similarities to ignore. A video was taken in Russia of a meeting between Dominika, a Russian Foreign Intelligence Service agent, or SVR operative, and Anna Politkovskaya,” said Wesley.
“I thought Anna Politkovskaya was killed.”
“That’s the point. The only person still breathing after that meeting was Dominika, which is why we kept our eyes on her.”
“If she’s suspected, why hasn’t anything been done yet?” Crane probed, trying to sort out the information being presented.
“Dominika never surfaced, and there’s been no further evidence that Capucine is Dominika.”
“Maybe Dominika is dead?”
“That’s what we started to believe, particularly since we lost track of her. Then we saw the video,” said Wesley.
“Who saw the video?” Crane asked. “You do realize you’re dumping a lot of information on me, right?”
“Homeland. Niki Stech’s team saw it and contacted me.”
“You still haven’t said what Capucine has done. Nor does it sound like we know where this video came from. Your evidence appears obscure.”
“Have you ever read the French magazine Nouvel Observateur?”
Crane rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. “Of course not,” he said.
“There was an article that talked about Russian spies in France. Part of it referred to Dominika being involved in high-tech espionage. It’s true that Peugeot is a car manufacturer, but, like Phoenix, they are working on advanced artificial intelligence—”
Again, the general interrupted him. “Like the rest of the world, although I’m still not connecting the dots to Capucine Foushé.”
“Capucine works for Peugeot and was at CEDRA training; advanced robotic training.”
“As was Mason,” said Crane.
“Voilà!”
“You think she was stealing secrets?”
“Is stealing secrets,” Wesley corrected. “Unless Mason is . . .”
“What about Mason?”
“Nothing.”
“It doesn’t make sense for someone of her intelligence to be stealing information,” Crane said.
“Or she’s the perfect candidate, because she knows exactly what to steal.”
“From whom?”
“Mason Thomas—her boyfriend. She even changed hotels midway through the conference.”
“So?”
“To Mason’s hotel.”
Crane sighed.
“All right, you’ve got my attention,” said the general, now sitting on the edge of his desk. “If Capucine is Dominika, then Mason is in a honey trap. Is that what you’re saying?” Crane took another deep breath.
“That’s my suspicion,” said Wesley.
“Geez, Wesley, this isn’t what I needed to hear before going to the Joint Chiefs.”
“I’m sorry, sir. The only solace is the president is going to tell them about secret androids they’ve never heard about. This will be the least of your concerns when that cat leaps out of the bag,” Wesley said. “Don’t worry, sir, I’m on Capucine. I just wanted you to know.”
“That doesn’t help. This sounds like the evolution of a huge cluster—”
“I know, sir,” said Wesley. Crane disconnected and turned to stare out the window before heading to the meeting with the Joint Chiefs. He compartmentalized the former discussion—the only way to maintain his sanity—although he now wondered if Russia wasn’t an even greater threat than he’d suspected.
Crane headed to the White House.
39
Joint Chiefs
September 7
Situation Room, White House
Washington, D.C.
The 14 members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff convened by President Tense sat around the polished brown conference table in the Situation Room of the White House. Several staffers, including NASA lead scientist Dr. Dhilan Hannah, along with press secretary Rick Zeerborne, were also in attendance.
“So the damn and ‘outrageously ludicrous’ article in the New York Times was accurate,” barked the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mike Engel, staring at President Tense with a choleric look on his face. “The United States of America has an android in play,” he said, standing up.
“Two,” replied the president sheepishly, the air thick with tension as chatter broke out. Most faces were slack-jawed, showing their bewilderment. “Although ours aren’t robbing banks.”
Engel looked directly at the president before voicing his exasperation at the subterfuge that plagued Washington. “What the hell has the Congressional Oversight Committee been overseeing?”
“To be honest? Nothing,” answered the president. General Crane sat silently at the table. The tension was so palpable you could take a bite.
“Eisenhower approved the first US space mission,” Tense said, “Kennedy landed men on the moon 50 years ago, Nixon authorized the building of the space shuttle, Reagan implemented the space shuttle program and was the catalyst for the space station, Bush built the international space station, and Crumpler wanted to send an android to Mars. Among other things.”
“Right, like creation of the Space Force,” Engel said pugnaciously, shaking his head. “Mars. So this is about legacy?” he asked as he sat back down.
“I was as shocked as you, but perhaps it is to our advantage,” said the president as the others squirmed in their seats, looking at one another across the table.
“That’s what dictators believe,” said the Homeland secretary.
“What does it even mean that we have androids?” asked Engel, sitting forward in his chair. “And what the hell are these people doing in here? No offense, gentlemen,” he continued, looking the strangers in the eye.
“Thank you for asking,” said the president. “I’d like you to meet Dr. Dhilan Hannah. Dr. Hannah is the lead developer of the androids.”
“I thought you looked familiar. Aren’t you working on Robonaut?” asked Engel. The only parts of his body that moved were his neck and lips.
“Yes, sir,” responded Dhilan.
“Yes, sir, what?” asked Engel in admiral-like fashion.
“May I?” asked Dhilan. The president nodded.
“Thank you, Mr. President. Ladies and gentlemen of the Joint Chiefs, I’d like to introduce you to Jerome Maximillian and Nero Tarek.”
Jerome and Nero stood up from their chairs. “Jerome, Nero, would you introduce yourselves? Jerome, you first,” said Dhilan as the Joint Chiefs glared at the two men, obviously wondering who they were and what they were doing in the room.
“Good afternoon. My name is Jerome Maximillian. I am an android,” he said, gazing straight ahead.
“My name is Nero Tarek. I, too, am an android.” The Joint Chiefs’ eyes narrowed, their foreheads crinkled. Their heads rotated toward Crane.
“The president is on life support, a nuke has been detonated on our land, the country is as divided as ever, and you’re making a joke. Have you lost your mind, Chesty?” asked Engel, his eyes intensely focused on General Crane.
“These are the two androids
that rescued Agent Rae, the holy grail of the next-gen weapon defense system,” Dhilan said. “This is not smoke and mirrors, ladies and gentlemen; these two men are machines. Jerome, would you turn your head to the right?” Jerome complied.
Dhilan pinched the back of Jerome’s neck, lifting the silicone and hair from his head, revealing his computerized brain.
“Oh my God!” said vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Stacy Florcruz, jumping from her chair as oohs and ahhs followed from the group, who stared at the mechanical brain in disbelief.
Engel slid his chair back, and he and Florcruz approached Jerome, studying him as if he were the first alien being they had ever seen. The others stretched their necks to observe from a distance. Florcruz pressed her fingers into Jerome’s cheek. “Oh my God,” she repeated. “Why aren’t they hard?” she asked. “I mean, I can see that they’re robots, but—”
“It’s a form of Soft Systems silicone,” said Dhilan.
“Can he feel?” she asked.
“Yes, actually. We send biological signals through the robot’s appendages, with receptors that respond to pressure, touch, and temperature, just like skin. Without these sensors or the flexibility we built into their hands, they would not be able to use their hands as the same tools as human hands. They have to be able to feel.”
“Holy Mother of—” said another one of the secretaries, whose jaw was practically on the floor.
“The United States has an asymmetric advantage, as might be obvious,” said the president, standing up as some of the others also rose from their seats, mesmerized by the androids’ likeness to human beings. Chatter filled the room.
40
Shock and Awe
“While I would feel exactly as you do about the secrecy,” said President Tense, pausing, “without trying to make excuses, it is my feeling that these two androids would not have been completed had we continued to let the Congressional Oversight Committee do their jobs. Until President Crumpler made these a priority, they were a pipe dream held up by bureaucrats who had no idea what we were building.”
“This redefines shock and awe,” said Engel. “But excluding Congress from what might be the most dangerous weapon in the world, because of bureaucracy, is not only a slap in the face of democracy, it could be the beginning of the end as well,” he said, as if unable to determine how he should respond. “Checks and balances are the only things that keep us from being Russia, China, or even North Korea.”
“Remember Reagan’s ‘Star Wars’ initiative?” asked General Stacy Florcruz, interrupting nonchalantly while continuing to stare at Nero.
“The Missile Defense Agency is active,” responded Chairman Engel defensively, with a look that made it clear he didn’t appreciate the question.
“Doing what, exactly?” asked Florcruz, locking eyes with Engel as the national security advisor nodded.
Engel’s forehead wrinkled, as if he was considering her point.
“Don’t get me wrong, I agree with your concerns, but what started as a brilliant strategic defense initiative to protect America from a nuclear attack using . . . ,” said Florcruz, pausing as if to redact some of her own words, “. . . became an underfunded pipe dream by Reagan because politicians decided to call it ‘Star Wars’ and made it sound like a huge waste of time and money. It became an underfunded R&D organization that didn’t build anything. Instead it searched for ice on the moon.”
“What you see before you is what can happen when the politicians are taken out of the process,” President Tense opined.
“Except we were left out of the process,” said Engel. “We would be jumping up and down if you had left only the politicians out . . .”
“I didn’t leave you out,” said the president defensively.
“You were his vice president,” said Engel with intensity.
“I wasn’t in the loop,” said the president, causing further moans but taking a bit of the heat off himself.
“What the hell are we doing here if the president of the United States leaves the military out of the design of our most prolific weapons?” asked Engel.
“I’m not sure I would refer to them as weapons,” said President Tense as Crane’s eyes narrowed, since that was exactly what they were. “Although they certainly could be.”
“What the hell would you call them?” asked Engel.
“Assets,” the president said. “Listen, I’m as concerned as you are about the risk to our democracy, but this is done. Unless you want to render this technology useless and sideline it while we go through the typical red tape, I’d say we forget how we got here, figure out how to avoid it happening again, and be thankful we achieved another marvel in science.” The press secretary was leaning forward in his chair, appearing as if he wanted to say something.
“Yes, Rick?” the president prompted, taking a deep breath.
“You don’t owe us an explanation,” said Press Secretary Zeerborne. “Congress will cover that, but this opens up a Pandora’s box regarding the escalating advances in technology.”
“It may be too late,” remarked Engel. “Nobody hit the brakes.”
“What exactly are you asking?” asked General Crane.
“Saying, is more like it. Once you release the genie from the bottle, you may never get her back in,” said another member of the Joint Chiefs as others nodded.
“What is to prevent our enemies from hacking these androids and using them against us?” Engel asked.
“There are three levels of encryption,” said Dr. Hannah. “Only the president has the cryptographic key.”
“No offense, but there are hackers known to penetrate the DOD,” said Zeerborne. “I doubt your encryption will stop them.”
“If that were the case, Secretary Moneo wouldn’t continue to harass Apple to change the encryption of their phones so they could be hacked,” retorted Dhilan, who was well aware of the DOD’s current frustration with Apple’s claim that it was unable to help them crack the phones of the Diablo 8-16 terrorists.
“So, what are their capabilities?”
“Dr. Hannah?” said the president to Dhilan, giving him the floor.
Dhilan slowly stood up. “An average human being can store 100 trillion facts while handling some 15,000 decisions per second. Nero and Jerome can store 100 quintillion facts, handling over one million decisions in seconds,” said Dr. Hannah stoically.
“I don’t mean to get technical, but can you explain that with a tad more detail?” asked Chairman Engel, sitting with arms folded across his chest.
“We developed a chip that took the processing power that used to take up an entire room and put it in the size of small cards.”
“What kind of cards?” asked one of the other secretaries.
“Playing cards.” All the men and women had looks of shock on their faces.
“How many times stronger, faster, etc., are these men than real ones?” asked General Florcruz.
“One hundred times stronger than the average man, 10 times faster, and their senses are 100 times more sensitive,” Dhilan answered. “They can hear a conversation a half mile away, given normal interference, and can reach speeds of 40 mph.”
“We’ve finally built the six-million-dollar man,” came a voice from the table.
“Billion-dollar man is more like it,” said Crane. “When fully armed, they also have the weaponry of a Black Hawk.”
“Not possible,” responded Engel, his arms across his chest.
“Mr. President?” asked Dhilan. The president nodded. “Jerome?” said Dhilan. “Please display your Gatling gun.” Jerome stuck his arm straight out, revealing his built-in weapon.
“That’s a—” said Crane, interrupted by Engel.
“XM556 Microgun,” said Engel. “Holy mother of God.”
“Don’t worry, it’s not loaded,” said Crane.
> “And you don’t think this is a weapon?” asked Engel, looking at the president. “I suppose ‘asset’ is easier to swallow.”
“How much and how long does it take to build one of these androids?” Florcuz asked Dhilan. Dhilan looked at Crane.
“One billion dollars, one year, with current resources,” Crane answered.
“If funded, how many could we build in a year?” she added.
“Fifty.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, as we have already seen, these androids have the ability to gather intelligence and initiate intense rescue or reconnaissance. We also believe we can use them as undercover assets,” said President Tense, referring again to the rescue of Agent Rae.
“Undercover assets?” asked Engel.
“Assuming the identity of someone else,” said Dhilan.
“I’m confused,” one of the other chiefs admitted.
“Send one of them into the field, assuming another identity,” said Crane.
“You’re telling us that Hollywood’s Mission: Impossible is now real?” asked Florcruz, as Dhilan nodded.
A brief silence came over the room as everyone appeared to be adjusting to the news.
“I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say we’re in shock at what we have developed, but we don’t have time to deal with the political fallout from this,” offered the press secretary. “As was already mentioned, Congress will take care of that. It’s your job to understand how to best utilize these assets.”
The meeting ended on a positive note, although it appeared everyone needed time to process the news that the world now had real androids roaming hardly distinguishable from human beings. Crane recalled his own initial reaction. He had been incredulous, until he’d met them. Watching them in action was almost like watching a sci-fi movie rather than reality.