The Sapporo Outbreak (12 page)

Hill bowed, although Tanaka and the group clearly seemed less enthusiastic about his presence.
 

Finally, Tanaka turned to address Skinner, Santos, Harper and Hill.
 

"I'd like to introduce you to Yui Sakora, WhiteStar's Head of Media Relations and your guide through the NOC. Ms Sakora will handle any questions you may have. Now I am afraid I must take my leave as I have some things I must attend to."

With that, Tanaka was swallowed up by group of Japanese businessmen, the entire group leaving through an unmarked door to the right of the elevator.

Yui Sakora stood alone, facing the group of four. Her long dark hair stretched to her lower back, her figure hugging silk dress accentuating her petite form. She was Skinner mused, classically beautiful. But she wasn't Santos.

Sakora stepped forward, and in a surprisingly authoritative voice she explained, "As Mr Tanaka has stated, I will be your guide through this state of the art facility. As you will understand, we are extremely busy preparing for the launch of iSight 3 and so please forgive me if it seems a little rushed. I will do everything I can to answer any questions you may have, and if I don't personally know the answer I will find the person who does."

She paused and scanned the group before continuing.

"You have had a long journey, and I'm sure you are tired. Therefore, can I suggest we first go to the visitors lounge on the sixth floor. There you can refresh in your private quarters before we begin today's tour. Your luggage will be waiting for you in your quarters."

With that, the beautiful young woman turned and briskly walked into the glass elevator. Wordlessly, Harper followed with Hill close behind. Santos and Skinner looked at each other, and Skinner whispered, "What do you think Charlie - want to go see where all the chocolate is made?"

Santos giggled and lightly punched Skinner on the shoulder as they walked into the great glass elevator. Santos and Skinner looked quizzically at each other as Sakura softly whispered in Japanese to ... the elevator? The doors closed immediately, and the elevator glided silently up, the group catching intriguing glimpses of different scenes as they rose. Thirty seconds later the elevator slowed to a smooth stop.

As the doors slid open and Sakura walked forward, she announced, "Welcome to the sixth floor - visitors lounge."
   

Tired, but with their interest piqued, they were all eager to get their first glimpse inside the mysterious WhiteStar headquarters.

#

3pm Wednesday, Seattle Washington (Minus 7 Hours)

Lewis Dodgson was dog tired. He felt like he hadn't slept for a week, his eyes were stinging, his body aching. The familiar throbbing behind his eyes warned of another migraine on its way.

And yet he had never felt more alive.

The last 18 hours had been spent in front of an array of computers in the front room of his Seattle apartment. Other than calling in sick, the only interaction he'd had was the constant disembodied stream of short, encoded messages between fellow ANONet members. He was running on Red Bull and pure adrenalin. There was so much to do, and no room for error.

Dodgson was leading the ANONet team -
driving
them - toward an incredibly complex synchronised assault on WhiteStar Corporation. This would be ANONet's last and largest strike against a corporate titan profiting through exploitation of personal information, and Dodgson was determined to make it succeed.
 

Over the last few months, under Dodgson's direction, ANONet had carefully embedded code in WhiteStar servers around the world. The code - when activated - would strip all controls from the iSight games, removing any ability to extract personal information. The game would in effect become independent, automatically adjusting the game's behaviour in response to the players - not directions from WhiteStar.
 

In exactly six hours, this dormant code would activate at precisely the same time as a series of tiny adjustments in the Hartec security system would occur. Together it would create a sophisticated misdirection, in which WhiteStar's monitoring software and experts would wrongly diagnose the problem. Instead of slamming the doors shut, WhiteStar would inadvertently accelerate the distribution of the anarchic iSight 3 to the world.

The effect would be a massive worldwide failure of all security, allowing any player from around the world to access iSight 3. The game's code would replicate out from WhiteStar's centres in Palo Alto, London, Zurich, Sydney and Sapporo to millions of public domain servers around the world. A series of announcements across all digital media would create the illusion that this was the official release of the game. Every iSight 2 player would be automatically transported into the hacked iSight 3 game. Anyone playing the game would be unknowingly using the new, rule-free version.
 

The numbers were awe inspiring.

Within minutes, tens of millions of people around the world would be playing iSight 3 - many without realising it. Within a few hours, Dodgson felt sure many of the half a billion owners of the new iSight 3 contact lenses would have tried the new game. By the time WhiteStar unpicked the attack, the damage would be complete. Over a billion people, either knowingly or unwittingly, would have taken part in the modified game.

WhiteStar would lose all control. The damage would be irreversible. The genie would be out of the bottle.

While WhiteStar flailed against the attack, ANONet would release to every major media outlet samples of the information WhiteStar held on individuals and the names of advertisers and government agencies who paid for it. Financial information, personality traits, sexual preferences - all of it pieced together by WhiteStar and for sale to the highest bidder. Corporations would fail and governments would fall, as a result of the exposure.

And the faceless forces that had destroyed his father with impunity, that had forced his mother to live her last days in agony, would finally be revealed.

Lewis Dodgson would have his revenge.

CHAPTER THREE

Infection

8am Thursday, Sapporo Japan (Minus 7 Hours)

Silently the glass elevator doors opened, and Sakura led Skinner, Santos, Harper and Hill into the sixth and top floor of WhiteStar's Sapporo centre. Sakura was immediately approached by a uniformed security guard, and the pair entered into a whispered conversation in Japanese.

While Sakura and the guard talked, the group scanned the area beyond. White marble tiles covered the floor while plush, expensive red leather sofas and chairs and low wooden coffee tables were dotted through the rectangular room. Paintings were hung in regular intervals and small downlit recesses revealed small sculptures. Rows of discreet lighting created a surprisingly intimate atmosphere for such a large area. The walls on either side were punctuated by six frosted glass doors - three on the left and three on the right. The lobby stretched south, and at the far end the formidable Mr Itou stood to the left of large frosted glass double doors. Itou stared across the opulent lobby at the new arrivals as if he'd never seen them before.
 

Skinner leaned into Santos, nodded his head toward the guards and whispered, "I'm going to take a wild guess that's Tanaka's place judging by our friend Mr Itou on the door. All this security for an online game guy? I guess there's nothing quite as dangerous as an angry nerd."

Santos flashed her perfect white teeth smile, and replied "Maybe it's not the nerds he's worried about. Just look at this place - I've never stayed in a hotel this nice. Maybe Tanaka needs the muscle to get a room here - I know I'm thinking of moving in!"

It certainly was unlike any office Skinner had ever seen. It felt like a late night in the lobby of a 6-star hotel than the late afternoon in a bustling global high-tech corporation.
 

Sakura's conversation with the security guard came to an abrupt end, and she wheeled round to address the group.

"Welcome to the Visitors Lounge. This area is reserved for very important guests such as yourselves. It is designed to make your stay a comfortable one. You will notice to your left and right..." Sakura waved her hand to either side for emphasis, "...there are doors. They lead to your private quarters. Your luggage has already been delivered."

Santos looked at Skinner and raised an eyebrow. "How the hell did they get our luggage up so fast" she murmured. Skinner shrugged, bemused. "Search me Eva - it's all a bit surreal if you ask me."

Before Sakura could continue an introduction she had clearly performed many times, Hill interrupted, his tone betraying some frustration with what he was seeing.
 

"Excuse me Miss..."

"Sakura" the beautiful hostess completed.

"Of course, yes I'm sorry. Excuse me Miss Sakura, but on the plans I've seen for this building, this area is dedicated to administration, and I'm more than a little surprised to see accommodation here instead. It seems a little ... extravagant. Can I ask why the centre has a floor dedicated to visitors when I'm quite sure a local hotel would do just as well?"

Sakura paused slightly as if surprised by the question and the aggressive tone in Hill's voice.

"Of course. As you are aware, WhiteStar is a truly global company. The game of iSight never stops - at this moment for example there are..." Sakura briefly looked at the floor, her eyes flickering before her chin lifted and her gaze settled on the lawyer once more.

"...Yes, there are slightly over 373 million players engaged in the iSight experience as I speak. Day and night, the game never stops, and therefore work in our centres never stops. This centre - our Network Operating Centre - is perhaps the most critical of all, and as such, visitors - media, investors, consultants, executives - often arrive and leave at odd hours. For this reason, Mr Tanaka chose to convert this floor to the visitors quarters you see here, and whenever he visits Japan, Mr Tanaka stays in his own penthouse on the sixth floor."

Hill interrupted.
 

"It's all very opulent - money I'm sure could have been spent elsewhere. Why are we - I mean the board - only learning of this now?"

Sakura responded icily, a hard edge suddenly appearing. Her eyes narrowed into the agitated lawyer.
 

"Mr Hill, if you have concerns about any administrative decisions that Mr Tanaka - the founder, CEO, Chairman and majority shareholder - has made then I suggest you or the board take these up directly with Mr Tanaka. I am sure he will give them the consideration they deserve."
 

Without waiting for a reply, Sakura turned to face Skinner, Santos and Harper - all clearly enjoying the exchange - and continued as if the conversation with Hill hadn't occurred. The lawyer's anger seemed to have been replaced by embarrassment.

Out of the side of her mouth, Santos whispered to Skinner, "Well -
that
was awkward." Skinner grinned, then both quickly turned their attention back to Sakura.

"You may have noticed that the only signs in the building are in braille. In fact, there are no visible signs of any kind in the building. Everything in the building is delivered via iSight. You will find you own iSight soft contact lenses in your room - for those uncomfortable with or unable to wear the lenses, iSight glasses have been provided."

Sakura took a moment to point out who had which room before continuing.

"The building will automatically recognise you when you first connect, and will take you through a brief tour of the system. Your iSight lenses act as your guide, your information centre and provide security. The building interacts with your lenses, and provides access based on who you are. Your rooms.." Sakura again indicated left and right, "...are currently unlocked. However, your iSight lenses (or glasses) will also act as your personal 'key' - the doors to your quarters will automatically unlock when you are within reaching distance of the door."

The four visitors listened in fascinated, surprised silence as Sakura described an entirely new application for the gaming technology.

"This building has been programmed to recognise each iSight member. The doors are locked and unlock automatically, the elevators know which floors visitors can visit. Travelling individually, the elevator simply won't stop at prohibited floors. When several people are in the elevator, should a person prohibited from entering a floor alight with others, then security is immediately alerted and will address the situation in a few seconds."

Santos noticed Harper mugging at the others, desperately hinting that he could take some credit. She took delight in ignoring Harper's silent plea for attention, instead turning back to face Sakura.

"The lights turn on as rooms are entered. The air condition adjusts depending on the number of people in the room. All signs within the building appear in the wearer's native language. As visitors travel through the building, paintings and sculptures that fit with that persons personal preference will appear. With this system, we have now stretched the iSight experience into our everyday working lives, and in the process we are proving our technology outside the gaming world. Who knows? Maybe one day soon every building in the world will be powered by iSight technology!"

Sakura observed the stunned visitors, clearly proud of the impact she'd had.

Everyone in the group had experienced the iSight game many times before - indeed Harper talked as if addicted to the game. However, no one had heard of the system being used outside of the game experience, and all were intrigued by the development. Only Hill seemed concerned by the development. Santos glanced over at the lawyer, and he actually seemed angry at the news.

Harper interrupted Sakura to address the group, "The building security system really is quite something, and we are proud to have helped build it together with our friends at WhiteStar. The lenses actually analyse and record the retina, which we use to track individuals. It's security that's almost unbreakable and requires absolutely no human intervention."