Page 63 of Undercover Infidel
—acquisition rather than elimination?—
—within 48 hours?—
—ensure complete neural mapping before integration?—
“They’re talking about you,” Con said, leaning closer to read the fragments. His shoulder pressed against mine. “They want you alive.”
I shivered despite the warmth in the vehicle. “For the neural interface.”
“The component Kestrel mentioned was failing.” Con’s expression hardened. “They think you can solve their problems.”
“These fragments of text mentioning me specifically have to come from high up. From Janus directly, perhaps,” Isaid.
While he didn’t speak, Con’s expression darkened.
I swallowed, trying to focus on the implications rather than the personal threat. “If they’re having integration issues, it means they’re even further along than we thought. Neural mapping suggests direct human-machine interface capability.”
“Which aligns with what we know about Orlov’s previous research,” Con agreed. “The question is how far they’ve progressed with autonomous decision-making.”
I relayed our findings to Dr. McLaren through secure channels, transcribing the intercepted fragments verbatim.
“Hold position,” came her response after a brief pause. “Continue monitoring but maintain cover at all costs. I’m running analysis on the transmission pattern.”
An hour later, Dr. McLaren contacted us directly, her voice tight with concern.
“I’ve identified unusual electromagnetic signatures around the facility perimeter,” she said. “They’ve implemented a detection grid that wouldn’t appear on standard scans. Your current monitoring approach would have triggered their systems within the next hour without adjustment.”
She transmitted the modified parameters that, when implemented, rendered our surveillance invisible to the facility’s defenses. Her expertise proved invaluable—we would have been compromised without her intervention.
“How did you spot that?” I asked, genuinely impressed.
“I developed countermeasures for similar systems at SIS,” she replied. “Orlov’s signature is distinctive—he layers defensive measures in patterns most people wouldn’t think to check for.”
Con looked at me, eyebrow raised. I nodded, acknowledging that Dr. McLaren had once again proven herself an essential ally.
As afternoon approached, I focused on the facility’s power systems, mapping the energy fluctuations through thermal imaging and electromagnetic detection.
“Look at this,” I said, highlighting anomalies in the data. “The electromagnetic shielding extends far beyond the standard requirements for AI research.” I indicated specific readings on the display. “And these power storage units…” I pointed to spikes in the information. “They’re designed for massive energy accumulation and release, not just AI processing.”
Con studied the screen, eyes narrowing. “What in the bloody hell are they building in there?”
I cross-referenced the patterns with known weapons systems in my mental catalog. “This configuration suggests integration with broadcast technology.” I pulled up a schematic, sketching potential layouts. “They’re not just processing information—they’re preparing to transmit something. The component arrangement indicates a signal amplification and directional propagation.”
“An amplified signal?”
“Capable of affecting electronics across considerable distance,” I confirmed, running the calculations. “Jesus. This is bad, Con.”
“Strategic deployment. Global implications,” he replied.
“Precisely.” I felt a cold dread settling in my stomach. “If they’ve solved the neural interface issue, they could potentially link human control to a system capable of affecting the electronic infrastructure worldwide.”
We documented our findings and transmitted the data back to Dr. McLaren for analysis. As the daylightbegan to fade, movement near the facility’s main entrance caught our attention.
A gaunt figure emerged, flanked by security personnel—Viktor Orlov. Through our high-powered lens, I observed him consulting with the technicians beside a delivery vehicle. His hands gestured as though he was explaining complex concepts, pointing to specific components being unloaded.
“Tag, Bennett—do you have visual?” Con asked through the comms.
“Affirmative,” Tag replied.
