View it, code it, jam, unlock it (for everyone)
The upcoming tech convention has been in the news for weeks, and they've been planning for even longer than that. Marcus has already helped Sitara plaster the sides of the buildings with an eyeline to the convention grounds; Wrench has a crate full of things that Marcus can't even imagine the purpose of; and Josh has a dozen companies and fifty individual names he wants to investigate. Marcus himself has his most comfortable shoes, freshly charged headphones, and back-up batteries for the jumper and quadcopter.
He puts on his best Young Upstart clothing that morning when he heads out, grabbing a Brand Name coffee on the way to better blend in. He spends the first part of the day among the open displays set up outside the convention center. They're all open to the general public so people can see what each company has on their agenda for the coming year, and Marcus knows they'll have it all locked down as tightly as they possibly can to keep DedSec, Prime_Eight, and anyone else from getting an opening. It's the best place to start blending in, though, as well as giving them their first look at the names Josh has on his lists, and their channel is full of commentary on each display Marcus passes. He drops a few pings on networks and individual cell phones as he goes, too, starting their longer game of getting into the closed networks inside the building.
Marcus stops in front of Galilei's table to thumb through one of the display tablets, looking at the plans for some of their upcoming launches. It's all things they already know about, but his position puts Tidis's booth in scanning range, and Marcus knows they need to keep tabs on the robotics company after how they embarrassed them before.
He's just about to move on when he has Josh's voice in his ear. "Wait, Marcus, go back."
Marcus stops a little awkwardly and turns back around, smiling at the woman behind the card table as he reaches out to take a magnet. "See something?" he mutters.
"I thought..." Josh returns a moment later. "Nevermind. Keep going."
"Okay..." Marcus drawls a little but does move on, only slightly unsettled by their near brush with whatever it was.
The morning passes, and people start heading inside for the first of the panels. Marcus has no interest in the keynote, but it's one they could actually get a pass for, and he'll really take anything that will get them through the door. He falls in line behind a man a few inches taller than him, sliding into the seat next to him once they get into the auditorium.
"Snooze time," Wrench complains in his ear, and he can't help but chuckle.
"Huh?" his seatmate asks, and Marcus waves his phone a little.
"Uh, stupid meme, you know how it is."
The man chuckles, now, grinning as he nods. "Yeah, meme for every occasion, right?" He has a slight Southern accent that marks him as an out-of-towner, and Marcus adjusts a little.
"Always. You oughta see some of the ones I get in my group chats. Some of them shouldn't even see the light of day."
The other man nods again, his curly brown hair bouncing slightly with the motion. He's wearing a vest, tie, and dress shirt, but with jeans and Chuck Taylors, not that different from ninety-nine percent of the other people in attendance. "Yeah, no, I have to ban some from the servers every now and then. Sometimes you just need a break from someone taking an arrow to the knee."
Marcus laughs outright, now. "Absolutely, man. So, uh... sorry to ask, but you're not from the area, are you?"
"The accent gives it away, right?" he asks, waving a hand at Marcus when he pulls a face. "Originally from middle Tennessee, though I spend most of my time in New York these days. I have a computer repair service and teach computer science at one of the local colleges. I'm out here to scope out whatever Silicone Valley's got up its sleeve to take back to my kids, you know?"
"I do know," Marcus agrees. "I'm, uh... born and raised in the area, but I still keep an eye on what's going on."
"Good plan." His seatmate pauses, glancing toward the front of the room as the lights go down. "Well, let's settle in for whatever this is," he adds with the same amount of disdain Marcus and the rest of Dedsec have for the dog and pony show. A moment later, though, he leans over again. "David Laney, by the way. Good to meet you."
"Marcus Halloway," Marcus returns. "And likewise."
--
The keynote is absolutely the snooze fest Wrench declared it would be, but it does at least give them some new things to look into. He and David exchange a few more pleasantries on the way out of the auditorium before the other man excuses himself to "the little nerd's room".
"Alright, so what am I looking for?" he asks the party line as he drifts along with the crowd.
Ten minutes later, he's slipped "backstage" into the green rooms provided to those with presentations. He's just dodged past security when a door opens just in front of him. Marcus manages to backpedal to keep from running into the slim, half-crouched figure that ducks out of it. They have a hoodie up over their head, a half-mask not unlike his own pulled up over their nose and mouth. They register surprise when they see him - but in that same instant, they shove Marcus back and turn on their heel to sprint in the other direction.
"Shit," Marcus hisses, ignoring the chorus of concern in his ear as he struggles to keep his balance.
"That! It's the same signal I caught earlier!" Josh says over the rest of the ruckus, and Marcus fumbles for his phone, starting a trace - that cuts out a moment later, his signal blocked at the receiving end.
"Shit!" Marcus says again - but then there are boots behind him, and he turns and ducks into the open door, pulling it closed just as a herd of Umani goons go trooping past, as alarms start to sound around him. "There's someone else here!"
He puts on his best Young Upstart clothing that morning when he heads out, grabbing a Brand Name coffee on the way to better blend in. He spends the first part of the day among the open displays set up outside the convention center. They're all open to the general public so people can see what each company has on their agenda for the coming year, and Marcus knows they'll have it all locked down as tightly as they possibly can to keep DedSec, Prime_Eight, and anyone else from getting an opening. It's the best place to start blending in, though, as well as giving them their first look at the names Josh has on his lists, and their channel is full of commentary on each display Marcus passes. He drops a few pings on networks and individual cell phones as he goes, too, starting their longer game of getting into the closed networks inside the building.
Marcus stops in front of Galilei's table to thumb through one of the display tablets, looking at the plans for some of their upcoming launches. It's all things they already know about, but his position puts Tidis's booth in scanning range, and Marcus knows they need to keep tabs on the robotics company after how they embarrassed them before.
He's just about to move on when he has Josh's voice in his ear. "Wait, Marcus, go back."
Marcus stops a little awkwardly and turns back around, smiling at the woman behind the card table as he reaches out to take a magnet. "See something?" he mutters.
"I thought..." Josh returns a moment later. "Nevermind. Keep going."
"Okay..." Marcus drawls a little but does move on, only slightly unsettled by their near brush with whatever it was.
The morning passes, and people start heading inside for the first of the panels. Marcus has no interest in the keynote, but it's one they could actually get a pass for, and he'll really take anything that will get them through the door. He falls in line behind a man a few inches taller than him, sliding into the seat next to him once they get into the auditorium.
"Snooze time," Wrench complains in his ear, and he can't help but chuckle.
"Huh?" his seatmate asks, and Marcus waves his phone a little.
"Uh, stupid meme, you know how it is."
The man chuckles, now, grinning as he nods. "Yeah, meme for every occasion, right?" He has a slight Southern accent that marks him as an out-of-towner, and Marcus adjusts a little.
"Always. You oughta see some of the ones I get in my group chats. Some of them shouldn't even see the light of day."
The other man nods again, his curly brown hair bouncing slightly with the motion. He's wearing a vest, tie, and dress shirt, but with jeans and Chuck Taylors, not that different from ninety-nine percent of the other people in attendance. "Yeah, no, I have to ban some from the servers every now and then. Sometimes you just need a break from someone taking an arrow to the knee."
Marcus laughs outright, now. "Absolutely, man. So, uh... sorry to ask, but you're not from the area, are you?"
"The accent gives it away, right?" he asks, waving a hand at Marcus when he pulls a face. "Originally from middle Tennessee, though I spend most of my time in New York these days. I have a computer repair service and teach computer science at one of the local colleges. I'm out here to scope out whatever Silicone Valley's got up its sleeve to take back to my kids, you know?"
"I do know," Marcus agrees. "I'm, uh... born and raised in the area, but I still keep an eye on what's going on."
"Good plan." His seatmate pauses, glancing toward the front of the room as the lights go down. "Well, let's settle in for whatever this is," he adds with the same amount of disdain Marcus and the rest of Dedsec have for the dog and pony show. A moment later, though, he leans over again. "David Laney, by the way. Good to meet you."
"Marcus Halloway," Marcus returns. "And likewise."
--
The keynote is absolutely the snooze fest Wrench declared it would be, but it does at least give them some new things to look into. He and David exchange a few more pleasantries on the way out of the auditorium before the other man excuses himself to "the little nerd's room".
"Alright, so what am I looking for?" he asks the party line as he drifts along with the crowd.
Ten minutes later, he's slipped "backstage" into the green rooms provided to those with presentations. He's just dodged past security when a door opens just in front of him. Marcus manages to backpedal to keep from running into the slim, half-crouched figure that ducks out of it. They have a hoodie up over their head, a half-mask not unlike his own pulled up over their nose and mouth. They register surprise when they see him - but in that same instant, they shove Marcus back and turn on their heel to sprint in the other direction.
"Shit," Marcus hisses, ignoring the chorus of concern in his ear as he struggles to keep his balance.
"That! It's the same signal I caught earlier!" Josh says over the rest of the ruckus, and Marcus fumbles for his phone, starting a trace - that cuts out a moment later, his signal blocked at the receiving end.
"Shit!" Marcus says again - but then there are boots behind him, and he turns and ducks into the open door, pulling it closed just as a herd of Umani goons go trooping past, as alarms start to sound around him. "There's someone else here!"