Truth & Code: The Future is Black and White

Keys to the Kingdom

Block 7,907,220

Arman wakes up feeling refreshed. Despite a brief negative thought about his rebuffs at the soccer field the day before, he feels great and is ready to see what the last couple days of training as director have for him.

Quiet frankly, he’s unsure what more he can learn that he hasn’t already known. He feels like a walking historical record and blueprint for SO-Land’s operation.

He’s excited about what lies ahead.

Home AI has already prepared the mood for him as he prepares to get ready, eat and leave for EMC.

A slightly red hue of light filters throughout the house. A slight hint of the smell of smoke fills the air. He’s always loved that smell, and it reminds him of his time growing up in the country and their times as a family camping in the Arasbaran forest. A time when he always thought he was invincible, running around the woods and getting lost in play for hours on end. He always made it back to camp and felt as if he owned the forest. He missed that time but was fond of the memories as he readied for the day.

Home AI already anticipated his breakfast for the morning. Haleem, a spinach omelet, porridge, toast with butter, honey, black tea, and milk was prepared and waiting for him. His eyes lit up when he saw the porridge and honey. He grabbed a piece of toast and slathered it in butter, and dripped honey on top. He had a particular method of honey application. This was a serious matter. First, he would layer honey in a circle from the center of the slice of toast out in a successively wider swirl until he reached about one centimeter of the edge. Then, he would patiently wait until all the lines of the swirls coalesced. If they didn’t, according to his internal clock, he would repeat the process until satisfied. Lastly, he had to make sure that at least on two edges, honey was spilling over. Only then would he dare to take a bite. He constantly struggled between taking a drink of tea or milk first. Usually, tea was the favorite.

“Wow, I feel well rested. I’ve eaten breakfast fit for a DIRECTOR,” He says director with a little more emphasis to himself; I’m ready for the day. I’m ready to seize the day.”

Such confidence was rare in SO-Land, but he was the director of EMC energy enforcement.

As Arman was preparing to leave the house, he thought he would travel by AV today to the plaza. But, no sooner had he opened the door than he saw a sight he had never seen before. There’s an AV in its usual pickup spot in front of his house, but it’s emblazoned with “Director EMC.” He knows this will stand out in a city full of uni-color white AVs.

“Wow, I was not expecting that.” he thought.

He approaches the AV, and the door opens in sync with his stride so that by the time he is at the side, it’s one continuous motion to get in. It would be a short ride, so he decided to sit on the bench seat. The mood from inside the house has been transferred to the AV.

The AV takes off, and Arman is now excited to see what lies ahead.

The AV doesn’t stop in front of the EMC plaza. Instead, it veers to the left of the building and enters an underground entrance cleverly disguised by the building design and landscaping. This is the first time he’s noticed this. As the vehicle descends about 10 meters over a run of about 30 meters, he feels increasingly secure by the surrounding concrete structure.

The AV stops at a frosted glass double sliding door. The door to the AV opens, and Arman exists. As if in a choreographed dance, the door to the AV closes as the frosted glass doors of EMC open. The EMC door opens in sequence with his cadence, and again he enters the building in a graceful stride without interruption. The precision soothes a part of his psyche.

This is the first time he’s been to this part of the building, so EMC AI guides him. Next, he’s taken to a room he’s never been to before.

He thinks, “Great, no more didactic lessons for me. It’s time to get to work!”

As the door opens, he sees Darian with a giant smile.

“Hey, Arman, it’s great to see you again! I thought you disappeared!”

“Hey, Darian, you too! I felt like I had disappeared. This has been intense, but wow, pretty excited about this opportunity!”

“Today, Arman, you will be commissioned as Director. We have brought you here to fulfill the commissioning process.”

“What? Who’s they...”

“Arman, patience. You are about to learn about all of that. However, you are not here because of your patience. But despite it.”

“Gentlemen!”

At that word, the lights come on, and Arman and Darian find themselves in a small room with chairs and desks arranged in a horseshoe pattern.

Remarkably, every man standing is wearing the same suit as Arman. Arman thought it was just a thoughtless purchase weeks ago during his training. At this point, he realized through AI guidance that he was steered toward the purchase and that his choice was correct based on what he saw before him. He belonged in this room with these men at this time. The exception to the rule was Darian. He wore the typical EMC uniform.

After the lights came on, each man sat down in a chair behind a small desk. Each desk had an embedded SO-Land console. Arman noted that each console was equipped with a user input device. He wasn’t necessarily surprised by that, but he noticed it immediately.

In an instant, lights came on; Arman had counted eleven men in the room, excluding himself and Darian. So it was twelve men wearing the same outfit.

“Darian, you may leave now. Thank you for your service.” One of the men said.

In no particular order, it appeared; another man welcomed Arman.

“Arman.” another said, “today is your commissioning as the director of EMC enforcement. This is the most critical role within SO-Land EMC and one of the most important roles in all of SO-Land. You are not here because of your wisdom. That’s what we are. You are here because of your skills, temperament, and drive. In the seventy years of SO-Land in the twenty-second century, no man in your position has failed at his duty, this duty. Know that SO-Land AI has chosen you, groomed you, and now trained you to do what you need to do. We will complete the final step and provide you with your final instructions.”

Another man proceeded, “Arman, every man in your position lives their entire life from this point on until they die in this position. This is a position for the lonely at heart, but you already know that SO-Land AI will meet every need or desire you have. Whatever resource you need to fulfill your mission will be provided, barring any expense.”

Another man proceeded, “Arman, your job is to protect the SO-Land energy infrastructure at any cost. If SO-Lands energy infrastructure is breached in any way, it will spread like cancer and destroy all that we know and love and hold dear in SO-Land.”

And another, “Any one of us may come and go, but there is always ‘Eleven.’ We are, in effect, your conscience. When on any mission for EMC, any one or all of us observe your actions, and SO-Land AI with EMC AI provides us with data. You must act. We must hold you from acting if needed.”

And yet another, “Arman, as the new director of SO-Land EMC, you will be given authority to eliminate any threats to SO-Land’s energy infrastructure. This means that you can use SO-Land’s AI to manipulate any violator’s social credit score, DM, and that citizen’s direct access via their glasses or communication device as needed. Arman, you may also use lethal force if needed.”

Arman could feel his heart rate starting to race. His breathing was beginning to shallow, and he could feel the heat rising on his neck above the shirt collar. He was concerned the EMC AI or his glasses would alert the men to his condition, but he quickly darted around the room and did not notice any monitoring devices. He had left his glasses in his office the day Darian told him to take off and play soccer. This started to calm him a bit.

Thoughts were racing through his head. “Shit, this is a fucking big deal!” He instantly thought of targeting the bastards on the soccer field from yesterday but quickly dismissed it.

He didn’t quite understand why he should control someone’s DM. It seemed as if it was “fake” anyway. People would use it to pay for things, but everyone he knew always had enough DM for what they needed. He doesn’t ever recall it being a problem for himself, either. The only time his DM affected his behavior was when it was AM as a child; that was a long time ago.

“And what the fuck? Lethal force? What does that even mean?” He thought.

He had never even heard of the use of lethal force anywhere.

“What are these guys talking about?” he continued to question.

His heart rate was slowing, and he could feel the heat receding from his hairline, but the beads of sweat that formed on his back and chest were starting to merge and drip. He could feel the sweat roll down his spine. He could feel sweat pooling in small lines under his chiseled pecs.

The perfect ambient temperature was helping to dry things up, but he felt exposed.

One of the Eleven asked, “Arman, do you have any questions?”

Arman thought, “Why don’t you ask if I’m ok? Fuck yeah, I have questions.”

“Yes, I do.”

“Very well, proceed.”

“First of all, gentlemen...”

Before he could continue, each of the Eleven raised their hands. One of them said, “We are not gentlemen. We are ‘Eleven.’ We are Eleven in singular and plural and will always be addressed simply as ‘Eleven.’”

“Yes, Eleven,” Arman said.

“Eleven, please explain lethal force. I understand what the phrase means, but I do not understand what it means in action to use lethal force.”

One of the Eleven said, “Yes, we know that. During your training, you were given historical vignettes and videos to watch. Watch them, and then you will understand what lethal force is. If you need lethal force, it will be provided by SO-Land AI, EMC AI, or both.”

“Any other questions?”

“Eleven, how will I know when I need to talk to you and how will I know I am talking to you?”

“SO-Land AI and EMC AI will ensure we are always available when you need us. Their sophisticated algorithms can predict when we are needed and the best means of communication. Likewise, we will continually monitor your activity.”

“Eleven, I know video communication is strictly forbidden outside of work and our Circle...”

Eleven interrupts, “Arman, you are logical and methodical. This is good. As director, your SO-Land communication device, glasses, and any SO-Land console you use or have in your possession will always have video communication capability.”

“Eleven, to what extent is SO-Land and/or EMC AI available for me to use?”

“Arman, E V E R Y available means are at your disposal. You are now physically here in Tehran. If you need to project force to Ayon in the Northern SO-Lands, you can direct SO-Lands AI to do what you need it to do.”

“Eleven, thank you! I am honored to serve you and SO-Land.”

Eleven all raised their hands.

“Arman!” one of the Eleven yelled.

“You do not serve us. That is blasphemous. We all serve SO-Land!”

The door opened to the room, and Arman needed no order to leave. EMC AI guided him to his new office from this location. He had never been here or to the new office location.

The perspiration was beginning to dry on his body by the time he got to his new office. It was expansive. It was a little challenging to compare his own home with his new office since it was multi-layered, but he was sure this office was larger than his home.

As he surveyed the expansive office, he noted there was a bedroom with a new change of clothes and undergarments on the bed. He had a full bathroom stocked with every item he used at home. The shower was an open corner shower with the glass of the building windows on two sides. The glass was frosted up to waist level. It provided an expansive view of Tehran from this location. EMC plaza was the tallest building for several kilometers in any direction.

He wasted no time, turned the water on, and it immediately came out at his desired temperature of 38.61 degrees Celsius. He took his clothes off, dropped them in a pile at his feet, and stepped into the shower.

There was always a system he followed for bathing. He lathered his hair first. It was always first. With the excess lather, he cleaned his butt. Next, his groin. As the shower warmed his body and the soap was sitting, he would shave his chest, abdomen, and armpits. He occasionally had to shave his upper back. Once complete, he would lather again and wash his body proper. He favored a green tea and mint shampoo and body wash. He wanted to feel clean, smell clean and look clean. He always believed confidence started from the inside out. Had he not already prepared for the day with his ritualistic Tai Chi and meditation, he would have done that before the shower. This was a clean-up job after his near miss with the Eleven.

After his shower, he toweled off and put on black thin blended wool and cotton socks, black fitted silk boxer briefs worn just above mid-thigh, black straight pants with no break, and a black leather belt. Some days he wore an undershirt. Today he would do without. His shirt was a shirtsleeve white linen fitted shirt with a standing collar, crisp.

He always used a natural, odorless deodorant. His cologne was a warm, woody amber fragrance with hints of cinnamon, citrus, and vanilla.

As he exited the bathroom, he slipped on his black leather loafers.

Half of the morning was already gone.

He approached his desk on the other side of the office and checked for notifications; there were none.

He decided it would be time to review his homework.

He began to review the SO-Land EMC enforcement videos. There was a cluster of videos in the early twenty-second century, but they gradually decreased in frequency over the later part of the first half of the century. It appears the last major lethal force incident was over twenty years ago.

He decided to start at the beginning.