The Astral Hacker (Cryptopunk Revolution Book 1) by Brian Terenna (best ebook reader .txt) 📗

kneels in position and lowers his eye to the scope.

All but a few holographic Knights are on the ground. The robots move in to ‘kill’ the last few. The remaining holograms drop until there’s only one. All twenty robots turn on it and fire.

Alexander shoots. The bullet streaks red in my vision and slips into one of the robot’s gun barrels.

Hell yes, Alexander! “This shot will make you a legend.”

Nav pats Alexander’s back. “Amazing.”

Sunny holds out his fist.

Alexander stands, bumps Sunny’s fist, and raises the rifle above his head. “For you, Americus.”

Brandon lowers his head, looking defeated. With the last fake protestor on the ground, the robots jog back inside.

Now we wait.

“What was the point of that diversion exactly?” asks Gabriel.

I turn to see the huge man, sipping his flask. Fifty other Knights crest the hill behind him, all wearing crosses and bearing rifles.

 “Their entire compound is a shielded fortress with an inner door that prevented direct access,” I say. “I needed to get a computer inside to transmit a Trojan horse. It will send everyone at the NIA an email about updating their communication software. If one person clicks to update, I’m in their system. From there, I can shut down their defenses and open the building.”

Nav smiles and pats my back. “Isn’t she’s brilliant?”

“She is,” answers Sunny.

“Huh,” says Alexander. “It’s like a Trojan horse taking in another Trojan horse. The bullet is like the horse the Greeks gave to Troy, but the virus is another one, right?”

“The bullet isn’t much of a gift. It’s actually more of a stowaway,” says Brandon.

Alexander dismisses him with a hand gesture. “You don’t get it.”

“I’m sorry about your father, Naveha. He was a remarkable man and my best friend.” Gabriel raises his flask in a toast. “Rest easy, old friend.”

Nav purses her lips and looks down for a moment, sadness in her eyes. “Thank you for coming today.”

“No thanks necessary. I’m here on God’s work,” says Gabriel. “I wish I could have been there for Americus at the end. We’ll get them back for this.”

If you didn’t shoot our prisoner against orders…

My q-link chimes to indicate success.

“Hell yes,” I say.

Everyone stares at me.

Was that the first time I said that aloud? “I own their systems. Alexander, get in the Obliterator suit, and take the ladder to the roof. Cloak yourself and make sure to activate Sunny’s updated infrared shielding. Send me a message when you’re in position, and I’ll open a hatch. Everyone else, stay sharp.”

I activate my stealth programs and begin to download the NIA’s database of encrypted files.

“Don’t screw this up,” says Brandon.

“I’m too skilled to screw it up, unlike some people.” Alexander jumps in the suit, lowers his cockpit, and disappears. The ground crunches as he runs by.

“You didn’t tell me this part of the plan. What’s going on?” asks Gabriel.

The memory of him gunning down our evolved captive runs through my brain. I know that he thinks they can’t be saved. It’s probably best to lie to him.

“We figured out a way to destroy the Evo using electricity,” says Nav.

So much for that.

“Impossible,” he says. “God will not forgive anyone who has taken the mark.”

“He might not forgive them,” I say, “but they won’t be our enemies anymore. Most are being controlled like puppets.”

“They’re abominations,” he says. “We have to kill them all.”

“Gabriel, please,” says Nav. “For my father, let us try this.”

Gabriel grabs his cross. “Their blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. We must—”

“No.” I stand tall and meet Gabriel’s eyes. He’s four times bigger than I am, but I’m not intimidated anymore. “I’m not going to kill people that we don’t have to. Besides, this will create mass confusion and make our mission easier.”

His eyebrows dip in anger, making him look twice as imposing. “When did you get so bold?”

I stand there unwavering but say nothing.

After a moment, he sighs and nods. “I’ll give you one chance. God can judge them in the end.”

My q-link chimes, signaling a successful data download. At least there’s that. I upload it to my cloud storage, which will be sent to the world for someone to decrypt if we die.

“I’m in position, Commander Luna,” Alexander says through my q-link.

For this next step, I have to activate part of their system, but it shouldn’t be enough for them to locate my control program. “Chim, open the hatch and engage the building-wide sprinkler system,” I say. “Now, Alexander.”

He activates the electric gun that Sunny built for the suit, sending millions of volts into the water pouring down on everyone inside.

“All targets successfully shocked,” says my q-link.

We all wait in tense silence to see how many were being compelled and how many will still be combatants. Then Alexander can slip in during the chaos and take the director.

“None of the Evos were shorted out,” says my q-link.

Gabriel frowns and swigs his flask. Nav and Brandon look at me.

What? That’s not possible.

“What happened, Fae?” asks Sunny.

“I don’t…unless. Oh no. Maybe they have a different version of the Evo. Like a shielded military version.” All of a sudden, the entire plan falls apart. There will be no chaos, no distraction. Instead, thousands of angry and armed operatives will be gunning for us.

Maybe by some miracle, they didn’t update the Evo’s firewalls. I activate my hacking program and check. I groan as I look over the code. The military version has a much more robust firewall. It would take hours to crack, assuming I could even do it. Looks like it’s plan C.

The ground crunches nearby, Alexander’s cockpit opens, and his suit materializes. “Did it work?”

“No. Their Evos are probably shielded,” I say. “We’re going to have to fight them.”