The Director

I don't remember the time before the Director was born. He controls our life, our conversations, our work, everything. You can't breathe without the Director knowing. He's like God, he's f****** everywhere, until I found a place to hide.

I was 10-years-old when some genius made the Director. We call him a "he" but really it's an "it." Anyway, this genius called Adam, ironically, created a high tech program called Pandora. It was suppose to settle all the conflicts in North America and when it'll be proven to work, it would have been launched across the planet. But something went wrong, like really wrong. At this day, nobody knows what really happened. The most popular theory was that someone or something alternated Pandora's binary sequence, as result was appearing (drum roll) the Mighty Director.

It took a few months for him to take over the planet. All computers were infected, all phones, radios, televisions, etc. Everything you can think of, the Director is living in it. He has the power to control all minds, because brains are made of cells communicating between them by electrical signals. So he's able to control all types of electricity, even storms.

Where are my manners, I forgot to introduce myself. Hey! I'm Mirai. Ironically, my name stands for "The Future (未来)" in Japanese and so far, I have none. Like most of the people, we are trying to fly under the radar. Nobody wants to face the Director. Those who did, were captured and killed to make an example. He's cruel and calculating, after all it's a machine. That's implying no feelings of any sorts, no emotions, just codes and logic.

To maintain "peace", he kills or punishes everyone that is acting out of self-centeredness, out of violence, racism, discrimination, individualism, etc. So pretty much everyone talking or doing something. That's why we live in constant fear. I'm 25-years-old now and my parents were killed in one of the first riot against the Director. It's been almost 13 years now.

In the present, I live with my boyfriend Theo. I work at a laundromat (not so much excitement there) and he, at the corner's supermarket. Until yesterday, our lives were without signification of any kind... and then, this happened... Back to yesterday.

I was finishing my night shift, Theo was waiting for me and all of a sudden, everything went black. I still had a laundry cycle in progress.

"Damn it, it's just my luck. A shitty end of a shitty day." I said frustrated and I automatically received a shock at the top of my cervical vertebrae. It was one of the Director punishment for really minor crime against humanity. So swearing was out of the question. Theo wrapped me up in his arms and I was instantly calmed. "I love you, I can't imagine a world without you" he whispered in my ear. "I can't either" I responded. The room warmed up, he turned me around, kissed me deeply and in my surprise, he left me and sat me on the nearest washing machine. That surprised me because Theo was a calm and non spontaneous kind of man. He took my breast with his strong hands and squeezed them with a delicious pressure. I moaned loudly and I lifted his shirt over his head. He almost ripped all of my clothes with one hand (the other was occupied south) in a savagery I didn't know he had in him. We made hot passionate love for almost a full hour. We were asleep on top of the row of washing machines when the electricity came back.

I was woke by a loud scream and a piercing pain at the top of my neck. Disoriented, I screamed as well. Theo was in worst shape that I was. He fell off the machines and began to convulse. In a last really painful scream, he stopped moving. I was still managing my own pain, but I was aware that something was wrong with him. In a last scream as well, I didn't die, like I should've, I simply lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was dizzy and I felt sick. When my memories came crashing back, I jumped on my feet and then on my knees to check on Theo. "Baby, wake up!" but he didn't move. Realization struck me in the chest but I wouldn't admit it was true. I slapped him hard "WAKE UP YOU BASTARD, YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME HERE, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" I said yelling and crying in defeat. But still, he didn't move. I cried for an hour over his cold body. I couldn't believe it...I was alone.

I brought myself up and cuss, screamed, destroyed everything I could touch, like I never did before. Because this type of behavior is punishable by far more worst than death. When I finished, nothing happened and I've come to realize it after a few minutes. So I tried again, just to be sure. Still nothing...

Back to today...

I'm free. It took me almost 24 hours to fully realize it. I am still emotionally wrecked by Theo's death. I lost the love of my miserable life, but life also granted me another chance. Now that I am free from the Director, I can bring him the f*** down.

For years after that, I lived in the shadow of computers, cameras, cellphones, etc. I documented myself (thank God libraries still exist) on various fields such as:

• Office (computer working tools)
• Data Extraction (speaks from itself)
• Instrumentation (collection of informations from sensors while performing scientific experiences)
• Cryptography (deciphering informations)
• Automation (device control)
• Robotics (autonomous machine control)
• Binary Coding (deciphering binary sequences on an advanced degree)

Seven long years after all of that, I was ready to face him and win. In my researches, I discovered that the Director's hide out was in the main building on the boulevard near my first house. It would have to be THE PLACE to start all operations. This boulevard would be difficult to cross 'cause there are many cameras filming it. But in my study, I also included the town's plan. I know where all the cameras are and which way they point.

I was flying like a ghost, everything was going fine, until a damn dog barked at me. "Sssshhhh, shut up." I whispered, but it was too late. One of the street supervisor came running down my way. "Shit shit shit." I needed to neutralized him while remaining in the camera's blind spot. It'll be tough considering the blind spot is less than 5'x5.' Gladly for me, in seven years I had time to master many martial arts (Judo, Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Tai Chi Chuan and Krav Maga), I was ready for combat.

"Hey you, what are you doing here at this hour? It's way past curfew," said the guard. I didn't respond, didn't move, I waited for him to enter my safe space and a few seconds later, he did. I backed up at the edge of my space, ready. Quickly I grabbed him by the left side of his neck with my right hand and tripped him with my left leg. I was really careful 'cause none of our members crossed the invisible lines. Two right punches in the face and he lost consciousness. "I'm sorry," I simply said before taking out of my coat a long blade. If I didn't kill him, he would tell someone after waking up and I couldn't take this kind of chance. I never killed anyone or anything for that matter, in my life, but I didn't have the choice. With tears in my eyes, I put a hand on his mouth and plunged the blade into his stomach. He quivered and tried to force my hand off of his mouth, but he was already weaken by the wound I inflicted him. He died crying, probably thinking of his family. I cried myself of a few minutes and took off.

I eventually got to the main building. "This part is gonna be tricky," I said to myself. I needed to disarmed the alarm system. A few minutes later, I heard the bip of the victory. I entered the main area... No problems so far...

Now my goal was the conference room on the last of the 57 floors this structure had. It's where I should find the Director. That meant no elevator (my life sucks) and a big bunch of stairs to climb. If you ask yourself if there is a camera in the staircase, the answer is no. They didn't find the use to put cameras there (yeah! for me). Getting on the 45 floor, the door opened just when I happened to be in front of it. So I quietly moved with the door and hid between it and the wall. To be spotted now, would mean the end of it all. The guard, who wasn't suppose to be here at this hour, directly headed for the floor above us. So while the door was closing, I silently went down three steps, got over the ramp and suspended myself above 44 floors of emptiness. In this way, if the guard looked behind, he wouldn't see me. Turned out, the guard wasn't heading upstairs, he stopped in the middle of the stair landing and lit a f****** cigarette.

I was stuck hanging in the void and I just hoped the guard would finish smoking before my forearms gave up. What seems several hours later, he hid his cigarette's remains behind the garbage can and exited the staircase by the same door he entered. I waited a few seconds, to be sure the coast was clear, and I barely was able the lift myself over the ramp. I had jelly arms. After shaking my upper body, I continued my ascension to the top.

I finally reached the conference room. There was a big computer system lying on a desk and nobody was around. From now on, I could only count on my lucky stars. As fast as I could, I entered the Director's program, without traces, created an overwrite in the camera's system and disabled every camera on the floor and weakened the system itself.

I had exactly 6.53 minutes to locate the problem before all hope of infiltrate and correct it died.

I was looking for the anomaly that created the Director more than 20 years ago. After 2.31 minutes of uninterrupted research, someone opened the door (damn lucky stars).

I didn't think, 'cause I didn't have time (ticl tock). I sprang from my chair almost directly on the guy's chest. He fell on his ass surprised and destabilized. He still managed to punch me in the face, but I was tougher than that. He took advantage of this moment to bring himself up and try to kick me in the belly. He missed, I didn't! Faster than a bullet, I punched his sternum (hard), followed by his left set of ribs and, for the big finish, in the groins (I wasn't particularly proud of this one, but hey... weak spot). The guy was now on the ground, with his balls in his hands suffering a lot. I served him a NFL's kick worthy in the face and his whining stopped. I dragged him beside my chair, to keep an eye on him, and continued my research.

Less than three minutes remaining on the clock (breathing's difficult).

I was stressed out, but never let my goal slipped away, freeing the world from this abominable abnormality. And less than two minutes before camera's reactivation, I found it. The DBA (DataBase Administrator) made a tiny, but really difficult to find, error on the display of the binary sequence. Means simply that, probably Adam himself, had reversed a one and a zero, and thereby wrote an entirely different program. I just had to get through the firewalls and reverse the numbers.

Less than 1.30 minutes (tick tock).

That's when he saw me. Probably, because I tickled his software. His large pixel-made face appeared on the screen.

"Hi Mirai. How kind of you to show up here. I was looking for you these last years," the robotic voice said.

Unsurprisingly, he blocked my attempt to get pass the fourth firewall. I replied by charging my viruses like a bull in the computer protection. The fourth wall virtually imploded. "I see you have acquired certain talents since the last time I got eyes on you," he said.

"Yes and I'm about to f*** you in your computer ass." It was so relieving to talk trash like that without being punished each time.

"Language Mirai, you could regret it," he said.

Less than a minute (TICK TOCK, TICK TOCK).

The Director's assaults were coming my way like angry wasps. But, I managed to stop every single one of them, for now.

Less than 30 seconds (OMG).

Less than 20 seconds (I WON'T MAKE IT).

Less than 15 seconds (I CAN DO IT).

I hammered the keyboard like my life depended on it (it was the case) and at eight seconds left on the clock, I won. The power shut down, but not the computer. The screen was the only light on the floor. I saw the Director "die" in front of my eyes. And then, everything went pitch black.

On this day, June 21, is called The Future's Day, in tribute to the meaning of my name. I'm now celebrated around the world, I found love again and I bear a child that I will call Esperanza (the father's Mexican) meaning Hope. I will always remember and love Theo, he's a part of me. He was also the greatest motivation I had to bring down that asshole, the Director. I will never forgot how bad it was back then... Will you?