"But how do we fight?" Kosta asked.
"You don't. I will take care of the fighting." Claire smiled gently. "Your mission is different. There are two types of threats on bionet: passive and active. Passive threats are the AI defenses. They remain dormant until an intruder appears. Active threats are psychers like us, humans who patrol the bionet. They are the greatest danger. You will know them because they may look very frightening or appear out of place. For example, if you perceive bionet as a grassy plain and you see a medium-size predator running at you, it's likely an AI defense. If you see a bovine the size of a house that's sprouting tentacles and tusks, it's likely an psycher."
Claire paused to make sure she had their attention. "If you see a psycher, do not engage. He will kil you. If you see one, and he gives chase, you must run away as fast as you can and disconnect as soon as you are able.
Remember, you can only disconnect within a short distance of the hub. Don't be afraid to lead a psycher to the hub. We will destroy it after the mission. Do you understand?"
Heads nodded.
"It's highly likely that you may see me as something terrifying as well. During the mission, I may change my shape in reaction to threats. Don't be alarmed."
"Wil you grow tentacles and tusks?" Saim asked, with a hint of humor in his eyes.
"If I have to. We will be going into a secure sector; however, a security forces laboratory is unlikely to have an active defense. It doesn't contain any of the financial or valuable data hacker psychers usual y want, so there is no need for a psycher to actively control it. The laboratory will have passive defenses instead. There are three types.
First, the loop traps. These are bionet connections designed to lock a mind into a loop in an effort to keep it from reaching its destination. People typical y see these as quick sand, swamp, iced over water, and so on. If you are caught in a loop, do not panic. Clear your mind and imagine yourself escaping. If that doesn't work, picture fal ing through the trap and landing by the hub. That usual y initiates the expel ing protocol. You will land by the hub and will have to log off.
"The second type of trap is the damage events. Fal ing rocks, geysers of molten lava, mud slides, and so on.
These are the coded defenses. They will activate when triggered but they have a limited range. If you are caught in one of these, you will take damage. Sometimes severe damage. Your mind may develop lesions or become 'bruised.' You may see something that looks like a glowing worm or a tangle of luminescent threads. Sometimes the world will abruptly darken or become too bright to see the objects. If you experience visual anomalies after a damage event, you must tel me immediately. Remember that your range is shorter than mine. I can broadcast my thoughts from a large distance, which means you will hear me but I may not hear you. If you take damage and I do not respond, you must log off as soon as possible."
She waited for everyone to nod.
"The third type of traps are the chasers. The chasers are the defense entities produced by the AI. They are usual y perceived as something alive: dogs, insects, sharks. The chasers will actively pursue you. If a large number of the chasers are destroyed, the AI will sound the perimeter alarm, which will bring a living psycher responsible for the security of the sector on our heads. This is something we want to avoid at all costs."
"Why?" Saim asked. "I mean can't you just fight him or her off?"
"Right now all of us are guilty of conspiring to alter data. It is a non-violent offense," Claire said. "If we confront a psycher, I may have to kil her. Terminating a human mind of a Rada citizen is a death sentence for everyone in this room."
Sudden silence claimed the room.
Claire was the first to break it. "This is why I need you.
Your purpose is to fol ow me until we encounter chasers. As soon as chasers find us, each of you must engage one of them and lead them away. You must scatter and take them with you to keep the AI from sounding the alarm. You don't have to fight. You just have to run and keep them occupied to let me accomplish my task without having to destroy them. Even if all you do is make circles around the hub, as long as they are fol owing you, I will be able to do everything I need to do."
"How will we know when you're done and it's safe to log off?" Charles asked.
"You will hear a signal. If you don't hear anything or if you become lost, don't worry, I will come and get you. One more thing: don't get bitten. We'l be facing Security Force chasers. Their bite will leave a mark on your mind.
Eventual y it will dissipate - usual y in a few weeks - but until then if you log into the bionet, anyone there with you will instantly know that you've tried to break the law. If you are unsure, now is the time to take a step back."
Nonna swal owed and got up. "I'm sorry. I can't. I just can't."
"It's alright," Claire told her. "Nobody here will judge you. It's fine."
The young woman backed out of the circle and went into the other room.
"Anyone else?"
Nobody moved.
"We're ready," Charles said.
Claire took a deep breath and began to dismantle the shel over her mind.
Five minutes later the last vestiges of the shel crumbled in her mind. It felt unbelievable. It felt as if she had been carrying a heavy burden, and chained to it for so long, she had forgotten it was there. Now it was gone. Claire felt light, so indescribably light.... Her mind soared like a bird, stretching, touching her team's minds, establishing a link.
The five stared at her.
"Wow," Kosta whispered.
Claire sent a focused thought. "Lay down and try to relax."
"I've heard that before," Mittali murmured.
Saim laughed nervously.
They lay on their backs, their heads toward the hub.
Tonya approached, carrying bionet cognizance units, half-bands of ornate, inert plastic, each sealed in its own transparent wrapper. Claire rose and approached Charles.
"Are you ready?"
He swallowed. "Yes."
Claire took the first unit, tore the plastic sleeve, and pul ed it out. The steel-colored half-band had three holes: a large oval space on the left and two oblong narrow openings on the right. A thin sheet of disposable plastic sheathed the inner side of the unit. Claire peeled it off, revealing adhesive underneath, careful y positioned the unit over the right half of Charles's forehead, just above the eye, and pressed it down. The plastic adhered to the skin.
Charles clenched his teeth.
"Relax." Claire dipped her fingers into the basin of liquid interface in the hub. The mix of metal and synthetic neurons nipped at her skin with sharp electric teeth.