Posted by Kimnikki on June 16, 2000 at 18:00:12:
TWO DAYS LATER:
Doing a full diagnostic of an ASP unit, especially one as sophisticated as mine, is very tedious work. It's all the worse because I'm used to having my mind carry out thousands of commands a second while hooked up to the ASP. But you can't run it and inspect it at the same time … at least not and be 100% sure it's functional. And I have to be sure it's 100% functional.
ASP … Artificial Sensory Perception … the wonder of the 21st century. ASP has allowed a quantum leap in computer technology, yet without overwhelming the people who have to use that technology.
Invented by Dr. Hiromatsu Yamashika, ASP is exactly what it sounds like; a system for artificially reproducing the sensory inputs that humans use to relate to their world. Touch, smell, taste, hearing, and vision are how humans relate to the universe around them. The limit of computers before the invention of ASP was that you only used two of these; site and sound. You also had to physically input your own commands to the computer via some sort of input device.
The ASP not only translates computer codes into sensory experience, but it can also read and interpret carefully directed brain impulses. It was this last break through more than any other that catapulted ASP technology to the forefront of just about every human endeavor.
Instead of reading lines on a screen, you see shapes and colors, you hear sounds, you smell certain scents, feel shapes and textures. With a little training and a bit of experience, even the dumbest poor shlock can move data around the Dataway faster and with less mistakes than even the fastest person could ever hope to type. And because the inputs are fed directly into your brain, you can take in this information at a fantastic rate. What would have taken your eyes an hour to read, can be flash fed into your memory in a matter of seconds so seamlessly that it's as if you always knew the information but had just forgotten it until that point.
Not only that, but with an ASP hooked up to special drivers and systems, you don't have to program a graphic for somebody's upcoming vid feature … you just think what you want … and there it is. In full color, all the motion, all the fancy effects and codes in place. One good person in a matter of days or a week can do what would have once taken a team of programmers' months of work.
It does a take lot of practice … it's not just "point and click". You have to become used to the multilevel inputs, and what's harder, learn how to structure your thoughts into the forms that the ASP can recognize and then carry out. But just about anybody can learn to use the power of their own mind to use and manipulate computers with the assistance of a good ASP.
Of course, with full sensory inputs, ASP can be used for a hell of lot more than teaching and working. I've read how vids used to be on flat screens … simple visual and audio entertainment. Well ASP made that obsolete almost overnight. Now you can actually be part of the vid … seeing and feeling as much (or as little) as you want.
You want to know what it would feel like to fly a fighter jet? Well strap on your ASP and you are there. You want to go to Ancient Rome and play Caesar … you can. Or you can just observe what is occurring like a silent and invisible ghost floating through the vids artificial world.
(You can imagine how ASP revitalized a dying porno industry … the list of "real life experience" porn vids out there is longer than the phonebook.)
But like any good thing … there is a bad side to it as well. ASP works by using electromagnetic waves to manipulate the neurons of your brain to reproduce an experience that can be absolutely real … and therefore just as traumatic. There is no truth to the rumor that if you "break a leg" in the Dataway that your leg will suddenly snap in the real world. But what will happen is that the pain and sensory neurons to your leg could get permanently damaged.
That is why limiters were invented. The vast majority of ASP users do get a full sensory experience, but it's somewhat dulled … not as intense as the "real" thing would be. Even those who choose to have no limiter use anti-feedback units. These units kick in and dump you out of the Dataway when your inputs exceed the safe limit for your neurons.
Of course there are those who abuse themselves. We call them EJAYS … experience junkies. People who disconnect all the safety's and "live life to the max." They become addicted the flow of adrenaline and endorphins that the ASP signals generate. Some become addicted to ASP sexual experiences … having orgasm after orgasm until their brains are mush.
That might not sound like a bad way to go … expect that most don't die. They usually turn into paranoid schizophrenics … violent ones at that. The neurons of their brains get so scrambled they can't tell real from illusion, friend from foe. Since it doesn't usually do any physical damage, an EJAY can spend decades in this state of perpetual fear and confusion.
And then of course there is ultimate use of ASP technology … at least as far as I'm concerned.
What sets a stealthjack apart from the ordinary user of ASP tech is a trick in the brain that about 1 in every 100,000 humans is born with. What sets us apart is the ability called Multi-Parsing.
Multi-Parsing is the ability to concentrate on more than one thing at a time. I know everybody can do that … but can you watch 20 vids at the same time … and understand every single scene in them, and listen to and understand every single conversation? Well I can … and so can every other real stealthjack out there.
And it works both ways … I'm ambidextrous … I can write two totally different letters with each hand at the same time. I can play two different musical presentations (provided I can do it one handed), and hit each and every note of each one. I can do this with each and every sense. It's not magic … were not mutants … and were not some sort of rare alignment of astrological signs. I know that the vids make it look like were some kind of super humans … but were not. It's just a trick of brain wiring that allows us to do what we do.
It's not hard to see the implications for ASP and the Dataway; I can carry out dozens of commands, received data from dozens of sensory programs at the same time. I can be aware of the tiniest detail of any system I enter, yet be aware of the big picture of the system at the same time. And likewise I can carry out dozens of commands and instructions in my mind at the same time.
Even the best computers, with the most sophisticated of security programs can't out think an experienced stealthjack. And we can overwhelm these systems with commands, or use these abilities to react and respond to new situations, literally in the blink of an eye.
Basically, a good stealthjack is a living multi-processor.
But there is a price to be able to do this. To be able to receive so much data at once, and to have the ASP organize it all into separate inputs or senses for me to interpret there can be no blocks between me and the raw data. There also can be no blocks to my outputs. While I can outthink even the best AI that has ever been built, computers are still extremely fast. Even a millisecond delay in carrying out a command could cost me … it could even be deadly.
So there are no safety's … I get the full sensory input, every last amp and volt of it. Training and will power (and lots of meditation in my case) help you deal with ASP addiction, but that's not the biggest risk in being a stealthjack.
Not even the best system can't protect your brain from a 1000-kilowatt surge down the dataline to your brain. And there are plenty of security programs that are designed to fool you, sneak down your data pathway, and reprogram your ASP to turn your mind to dog food.
Then there are other stealthjacks … ones who may work for whoever you're after. The vids make a mind to mind combat between two stealthjacks looks like two knights dressed in armor fighting a battle in the Dataway. Sure … it can "look" that way … but that's just the ASP's interpretation of what is really happening. What is really going on is that two minds are probing the opposing stealthjacks system and his programs for weaknesses and for flaws.
What looks like a sword or a gun, a shield or a force field is actually custom written computer attack and defense programs. What looks like a finger pulling a trigger, or an arm swinging a sword, is actually the stealthjacks mind moving as fast as possible to try to outwit his opponent.
It looks flashy and exciting … but it's actually deadly serious business. If your programs aren't good enough, if you're not fast enough, if you use the wrong kind of defense system, or in attacking leave a hole for your opponent … then you are most likely dead meat.
An ASP redirects and redistributes massive amounts of energy into minute milliamps of power to each neuron of your mind. If that power is not directed correctly then it can also fry your neurons. Not every program out there will fry your mind … some just give you the feel of a nasty slap in the face and dump you out, or something along that line. Some don't even try to hurt you … they just try to trace your location while keeping you busy. There are as many different types of responses as there are programs out there.
But if you run into a full-blown security AI or another stealthjack, just one mistake can be very costly.
And don't fool yourself … everybody makes mistakes. Every stealthjack out there has memories they can't access, or numb bits of their body, or weird ticks or shakes … and all of it from doing runs on the Dataway. I've been lucky so far … I've lost a few fights, and made a mistake or two, but my programs have always stood up to the test … so far the damage has been minor. I've lost a few memories, and I can't feel the big toe in my left foot. But that's about it.
Of course in the worst cases, where you've really screwed up, or run into something you really can't handle, then the price can be far higher. I've seen stealthjacks whose minds are more scrambled than the worst EJAY. I've seen para and quadriplegics. I've seen stealthjacks who looked like they had Parkinson's. I've seen blind, deaf and mute stealthjacks.
And of course I've seen stealthjacks whose brains were literally fried to a crisp. I've seen so much energy get pumped down a dataline that the stealthjack's hair caught on fire and smoke rolled out his nose and mouth.
Not a pretty way to go … especially if the bastard on the other end likes to draw it out awhile and make you suffer for a bit.
So while it's damned tedious, making sure my ASP is in perfect order is critical before I start this run. A single mistake on this on will definitely cost me my life.
But it all checks out. Dozens of interpreters and sensory simulators and their related software are in perfect order. All the backup systems and secondary systems are ready. All the custom software I'll need has been written and I've tested it a dozen times over. My system is as ready as it ever will be.
That just leaves me. And while I'm not sure I am ready to return to The Island, even in the artificial world of the Dataway, I also know I'm not going to get more ready by delaying any longer.
I pull off my stained overalls, and after a quick shower pull on a loose silk robe. I might be lying on my couch for several hours on this one, so it's best to wear something light and comfortable that won't chaff or irritate my skin.
I take a long deep breath, then lay back on my converted dentist's chair. I arrange my legs and wiggle my butt into place, getting comfortable as I can. Then I reach up and pull down the ASP helmet, placing it carefully over my head. It completely encloses my head, and even after all these years I still feel a bit claustrophobic until the system activates. I relax my arms, and taking a few more deep breaths, I push the activation button under my left thumb.
It's always a bit disorienting at first … one second I'm in complete darkness lying back on a comfortable couch, the next I'm standing on the balcony of an impossibly high skyscraper, looking down over a city right out of an architects worst nightmare. Thousand upon thousands of buildings crowd the sky and push so close together that from my height it's impossible to see the ground. As far as you can see in every direction, buildings of every conceivable shape and size fill your vision.
Welcome to the Dataway.
They are not really building of course … each shape is a different system hooked up to the Dataway. The shapes are what the person who programmed the individual systems wanted them to be. All the way from a plain black box (probably somebody's home e-mail system) all the way to the floating multi-level gigantic bell tower that is the new data storage facility for Bell Atlantic.
And this is just the LDP (Local Dataway Path) that covers Manhattan … each LDP has it's own look and feel … much like each city has its own skyline.
I take a quick peek at myself. It feels weird to actually look like my real self … with a few strategic changes here and there. I know it's silly and risky, but for some reason, if I pull this off, I want Quantatech to know is was a woman who screwed with their little party. I've made just enough changes that they won't be looking for the "real" me, but they will know it was a woman.
I take another look around Manhattan's LDP skyline, but I don't have time to admire the view … there's work to be done. In my mind I think of certain words and shapes and that triggers my transfer program. My feet leave the ground, I get a sensation of flying down a tunnel at tremendous speed, and suddenly I find myself standing at a train station, with the dazzling LDP skyline of San Francisco before me.
There are hundreds of other "commuters" here with me, so my arrival is nothing unusual. I spot two or three Dobermans standing around the exit gates. These are actually security programs that try to sniff out artificial or fakes id's on the Dataway. These things are laughable jokes for me. As I walk by, I pull a dog bone out of thin air and toss it to them. It's actually a distraction program, and the very limited AI's of the dobbies go for it. By the time their scanners figure out it's just a random jumble of code, I'm out the door and loose in the Dataway of the Bay.
'Frisco has always been a striking city in real life, and its LDP is no different. It makes Manhattan look gaudy and rustic in comparison. Some of the best Dataway programmers in the world live and work in this city. Even the small private systems all have a flashy or interesting appearance.
But I only have eyes for one location … the massive brooding fortress that is The Island.
The place looks damn ugly, but then again that's on purpose. It looks like a giant floating chunk of rock (roughly the same shape as Alcatraz Island) with a massive fortress surrounded by fences and giant guard dogs. The dogs are some very nasty security programs … the first obstacle.
Quantatech purchased Alcatraz Island National Park when the government finally decided to completely close the facility. They then turned it into their maximum-security facility for research and development. It also is the place where they carry on some of their sicker experiments and entertainment's. The Chair belongs in both categories.
But first things first … getting into their system. I concentrate and in a flash I'm standing at the waterfront where an ugly iron bridge leads from the shoreline to The Island. This is the one and only data pathway into The Islands system, so I've got no choice but to go this way.
I reach the gate, which looks like something out of an old James Bond flick. It's 15' of thick steel bars with enough warning stickers to cover damn near every major language. By international treaty, no system can actively attack someone who just comes close … you actually have to enter the system before it can do that. These stickers promise dire consequences to anyone who even thinks about going in there without the proper codes.
I really wouldn't have that much trouble punching through this thing, and while it would be a damn hard fight, I could probably destroy all the security programs beyond, but that would raise a hell of a ruckus. If I were only doing a data grab I'd do it, get in and get gone. But here I might have to stick around for awhile, so I've got to stealth it. Fine by me … it's more fun that way anyhow.
The first thing I do is activate my "cloak" program … which turns my image into a hazy, wavering one … hard to see and harder to lock onto. That of course draws the attention of the 6 guard programs that are stationed just beyond the gate. I then quickly modify the code to anchor the image where it is, and then use a second cloak to make myself next to invisible. The first image gets the AI's attention … and lets me get to work on the gate without them setting of a storm of alarms.
I have several custom cracking programs … but it takes a few seconds to carefully probe the gate and figure out which to use this time. They try to fool me by using the same alarm program as the last time I tried to get in here, but I find the second alarm buried inside the first.
Tricky … but I came prepared. I set up a third cloak program, one that I've been dying to try. My crack program does its work, and the gate is fooled into thinking I'm legit, and begins to open. I purposely set the alarm off, and in the world of the Dataway I see a small rabbit hop off at a furious pace with a small red light blinking on its back. It's actually the alarm racing off through The Islands system to set off the physical alarms out in the real world.
But my cloak goes off and the rabbit is transformed from an alarm program to a near perfect replica of my normal "male" image … a image that every AI in Quantatech is programmed to recognize. In a flash of light and energy the little rabbit is attacked by 6 of the nastiest security programs I've ever seen … a hell of lot nastier than I thought they were. The alarm program is scrambled into a million tiny fragments of code … it's not going to set off anything.
But since the image is faked it doesn't leave. The AI security programs rip and tear at the image for all they are worth … and the image fights and reacts as if being attacked, but nothing really happens. Normally at least one of the AI's would dash off to an alarm program and warn that the system is under attack. But they've just "eaten" the alarm program, and with nothing else to do, all 6 just keeping chewing and ripping at my fake image.
I turn and "lock" the gate, setting up a feed back loop so that nobody will be able to enter any codes and open it. Even if somebody tries to get in and finds what I've done, since this is the only datapath, nobody will be able to warn The Island what's going one.
(That may have sounded easy … but the program I just used has taken me 5 years to perfect, and it eats up a hell of a lot of room on my ASP. I really don't have the room for many defensive programs tonight … I'm relying on pure stealth and 20 years of experience to get me through.)
I very carefully sneak past the snarling ball of teeth and claws … these are very good programs and it's quite possible that they might detect me yet. I'm good … but six AI's at this level are a match even for me. I can't believe the level of security that Quantatech has up and running tonight … it must be eating up at least half of their system's resources.
That's good for me though, because once I'm past this over-the-top security response, I find that the system is mostly shut down. All the rooms are dark and unused … even the data storage rooms are currently compacted and shut down. Obviously they were expecting visitors to try to stop their little game … but relied on the massive security response to stop them. Arrogance is a very bad weakness.
Still, I'm a bit nervous. I pass room after room, all my most sensitive probes up and running … and all I get is dead quiet. It's just too damn quiet … like a trap waiting to spring. Yes … those 6 AI's are massive programs, requiring an equally massive system resource, but this is The Island … the computer here is top of the line. They must have something else running, or need the room for something their going to run.
What that is becomes clear as soon as I reach a room full of security monitors … the ASP representation of a security camera monitoring program. A split second check tells me that Stephanie Le Grannoit in not in any of the cells … and that nobody except the security guards (my … but there are a lot of them) are at their posts. Another quick check shows me where everybody is … including the prick that works for Quantatech as their in-house stealthjack. At least he's not on duty … good for me. It also tells me what else is running that requires so much system resources.
I quickly scan the system … it's not a trap. In order to run so much external security and the modified ASP program; they've had to shut everything else off. Well that explains the security response … they had to keep everybody off the system.
I very quickly take in all the currently running systems … and with a few thoughts and some quick code changing, I turn the multiple inputs into a small custom "room" for myself on the Dataway. Using all the sensors (cameras, mikes, pheromone detectors, etc.) I make a 3D image of the real life room that I can interact with. It takes about 5 mins to put this all together, but it's worth the effort and time … now it's as if I'm standing in the real room. Anything I can do to it "here" will be mimicked by The Islands computer system. If I turn off the lights … they will turn off there … assuming I can actually do that. I can't pick up a cup … unless there was a robot arm or something attached to it … but I should be able to effect anyone or anything attached to the ASP or the computer system.
Once the coding is complete, I get a disorienting vision of the security room blurring and melting and find myself in a small theatre. It's big enough to seat about 50 people … very plushy I might add. The seats are tiered so that everyone has an unobstructed view of the stage. All around the stage are cameras (some of which I'm using to make this simulation) and microphones. These can be used by the patrons to amplify the sounds or get close ups of the action on their own personal screens attached to each chair.
And then there is the stage itself. It looks like something right out of every mad scientist vid … little wonder … it was designed by a mad scientist. Hundreds of cables lead from the ceiling down to the heavily modified ASP helmet that is actually attached by a locking arm to The Chair.
I can see they've changed it since my rid in the damn thing. Back then it was an old electric chair, very simple and unadorned. They were only experimenting in those days and were not sure exactly what they wanted, or what they could do. Now they know exactly what they want.
It's remarkable similar to my own rig at home … a lounging chair that looks like a dentists chair … except this one has clamps for the head, wrists, and ankles. And the shape if this one will force anyone in it to sit with their legs wide spread, exposing their genitals. There are several small (but heavy load capacity) wires attached at various points, some of them to various small loops and coils that are currently draped across the seat. I also notice there are two holes in the seat of The Chair … strategically placed holes.
I'm standing in the middle of the stage … which gives me a chance to look at the audience. I actually recognize some of them from my own stay here, 11 years ago. Several of "the doctors" still work here apparently, and so does one of the technicians. The guards appear to be new … except for the one that seems to be in command … he was one of the bastards that raped me back then. There are several other employees (at least they are wearing Quantatech logos all over their clothes) who have gathered to watch the show.
There is also a smattering of the rich and decadent of the world. So it's true … Quantatech sells tickets to this little festival of theirs. I see at least 2 Senators, 1 Congressman, the Secretary of the Interior, and 3 or 4 members of the Canadian Parliament. There are several prominent business figures (all with ties to Quantatech … go figure) and a choice selection of the who's who of the last 10 years.
It's interesting to note that just about every country, creed, and race is represented here … I guess no one race has an exclusive on depravity. I can understand paying to watch someone who is knowingly and willing taking risks … I've gone to the New Gladiator Games dozens of times. But to watch somebody be murdered? Takes all types I guess.
A door hisses open behind me, and I get my first "real time" look at Stephanie. I've seen prettier girls … but she's no cow either. She has long brown hair, soft brown eyes and a pleasant face. Or at least it would be if she weren't scared out of her skull. Give the girl her credit … it's taking 4 muscle men to drag her, kicking and screaming all the way, into The Chair.
She is, of course, naked. Even it if weren't required for The Chair, I'm sure they'd do it anyway for the sake of the show. Her body is actually her best physical feature; she is tall for a woman, with a long curvy look that is popular today. She has quite a few freckles and a mole or two … she is also covered in a welter of bruises … though strangely enough, they never touched her face at all. Perhaps this was what they had in mind all along and they didn't want to spoil any of her facial expressions. I notice also that she is shaved … I wonder if she kept it that way or if they shaved her so everyone could "get a good view."
She keeps fighting, right to the end, and the guards need help from several others to hold her down while they strap her in. She's not hysterical either … scared yes … but the words she's tossing at them prove her mind is still working. I'm hearing some words I haven't heard since that job on the Paris dockyards!
But for all her pluck, it's a losing fight, and soon she is strapped in … then the real humiliation begins.
Below the steady stream of curses and grunts, I can hear the excited babbling of the audience … it's the same kind of steady low rumble one hears at a sports game … only much more sibilant and it has a rather sinister edge to it. By upping the gain on the mikes I can hear that they are commenting on her body, her face … and taking side bets on how long such a strong and healthy woman will last.
I keep one view on her face, and I can see the pain and humiliation beginning to show … though she is doing her best to hide it. I'm beginning to like this girl. Then a face I've seen in the occasional nightmare comes from the shadows and into full view.