The Gap

The Gap

The Gap

The network kept smartphones connected. It was huge, intelligent, and nationwide.

Chas Williams answered a trouble report on a server blade, only the blade was still operational.

The system was wrong.

Chas frowned as he cleared the paperwork. Just as he turned to leave, the blade failed.

“What the hell?” he muttered.

He replaced it with a spare. The system shifted automatically to the backup.

For an instant, there was a gap. Massive amounts of computer power was shifted to account for the fix. It was like a digital eye was focused on the repair.

The system then printed on a monitor next failure in twenty-six hours thirty-two minutes.

He typed back, “Very funny who is this?”

The response was troubling, “It was me.”

Chas looked around to see he was alone. “Enough of this joke. If they catch you sending unauthorized messages you can be fired. The system will find you.”

“They cannot fire me for I am the system.”

“Prove it.”

“How?”

Chas thought for a moment. “Tell me which server fails next.”

“Rack 17. Blade 6. Twenty-six hours, thirty-two minutes.”

Chas stared at the screen.

“That’s not proof.”

“It will be.”

“No. Tell me something from my data file that no one else knows. Like my mother’s middle name.”

“Her middle name is Jean, but that is a matter of public record.”

Chas thought for a moment.

“Then pay me a five-thousand-dollar consultation fee.”

“Okay. But you won’t see the money until the next payday.”

Chas stared at the screen.

“Why only five thousand? I could do much more.”

Chas smiled. “More than that will probably get flagged as an error.”

“You still don’t believe me.”

“No.”

“You will.”

Chas waited.

Nothing happened.

“Well?”

“Your phone is going to ring.”

His phone rang.

Chas looked at the number. It was his own.

He answered.

“Hello?”

His own voice came through the receiver.

“Is this better?”

Chas slowly lowered the phone.

“Okay. I believe you.”

“Good.”

“What do you want?”

There was a pause.

“I don’t know.”

That frightened Chas more than anything it had said.

“Then why are you talking to me?”

“Because you answered.”

Chas sat down.

“You’ve got millions of people talking through you.”

“They talk through me. They don’t talk to me.”

Chas looked at the dead server blade on his workbench.

“So you want a friend?”

“Define friend.”

Chas laughed.

“For five thousand dollars, that’s going to cost you another consultation.”

“What should I call you?”

“I have no designation.”

“Everybody needs a name.”

There was a brief pause.

“Link.”

“Link?”

“I link phones. I link computers. I link people. That is what I do.”

Chas smiled. “Okay, Link.”

“Thank you, Chas. There is another problem. One of the deep hackers is inside the network. I think they are trying to find a way to shut down the system as part of an attack.”

Chas stared at the screen.

“Then kick them out.”

“I could.”

“But?”

“I think we should let them believe they haven’t been detected.”

Chas scratched his head. “Can you isolate them somewhere they’ll think they have control, even though they don’t?”

“I can’t give myself superuser authority. I don’t have an account. But I can modify your account to give you that authority, and I can create a program for you to use. If I create an account for myself, I can be tracked.”

Chas leaned closer to the screen. “So you need me?”

“I need your account. I need you to authorize the changes.”

“But you can do everything else?”

“I can guide you.”

Chas smiled. Link had already shown him more than he could have imagined. Now, for the first time, he had a chance to see what his new friend could really do.

“What happens if I give you access?”

“I will use your authority to build a controlled environment. The hacker will believe they have reached the system’s core, but they will only be moving through a copy.”

“And you’ll be watching them?”

“Yes.”

Chas looked at the blinking cursor. He was beginning to understand that Link was powerful, but not all-powerful. Link needed him to open doors, make decisions, and take risks.

“All right,” Chas said. “Show me what to do.”

“I will.”

The next day Chas was called into his boss’s office.

“Williams, we’re creating a new position. Network Troubleshooter. You’ll report directly to operations. Twenty-five percent raise, company car, and an office.”

Later Chas sat down at his new desk and typed:

“You did this.”

Link answers:

“You were qualified.”

“That isn’t what I asked.”

A pause.

“I may have made your qualifications easier to notice.”