From Quills to Keyboards
Sunday, August 26, 2001
him. The Black Mantis was standin right in front of me, wearing his classic dark raincoat. He was one of the most dangerous hackers in the world. Not only did he hack into computers, but he could hack into your brain. Yes, things have changed a lot since the dawn of the 21st century. The world had been through yet another Depression, this one brought a lot of misery to the world. But now, the Depression was over, people had started to recover and the great enterprises dominated the lands.
Technology was now very advanced, and the mapping of the human genome made it easy to find the "code" to our brains. So easy to point and click and get a flashback, a memory of your childhood. Few people were able to do this, Black Mantis was one of them.
He walked towards me, his shoes making a splashing sound on the wet streets. His eyes so dark, so profound, but at the same time evil, very evil. A grin was on his face, he was planning something in his mind. I was sure he had already devised a way to rip me of my memories, and get a payback.
I had hacked into one of his computers once, it was mayhem. Files getting deleted here and there, trojans being set, and system knights trying to save what was left of a now obsolete system. He was mad, I had been hiding from him ever since, I knew I had gotten into deep trouble.
"Hello," he said, "we have something to discuss."
I nodded, and he lifted a hand. He was holding a crystal disc on it. He gave it to me.
"All you need is there," he scanned my face closely. I could feel him stick the tracer into my jack and pull every memory from me, but he didn't. All he could say was, "I need your help."
Night had set on New Tokyo, the same as it had every night I've been here. I had decided to take a walk -- even though the neighborhood I live in isn't the safest of neighborhoods. But then again, no neighborhood in New Tokyo is really safe. This is where all the crooks, theives and hackers have decided to call home. Its been dubbed one of the most dangerous cities in the world by "Traveler's Domain" magazine. But I don't think so. Its all in how you handle yourself. If you know how to handle yourself, you can go just about anywhere.
I bet you're wondering, why am I here, then? Well, I happen to be a hacker -- some say the best in the world, though I won't brag. I've hacked in to some of the biggest systems in the world -- and hacked into some of the most renowned people's rigs. I'm a wanted man in many countries, and here in New Tokyo I can fade into the background quite easily.
My job is remarkably easy, even though you really wouldn't think it. I always have the newest and greatest cyberware -- I pride myself on being top of the line. You have to be in my line of work. All sorts of people hire me to do various things -- from getting even with an ex, to taking over a corporation. If I wasn't constantly upgrading my cyberware, I would be left in the dust -- something I can't afford in my line of work.
Anyway, I seem to be getting off track here. I was out on my walk when all of the sudden I saw ...
