CIA: "Jesus. So we can't stop this thing? What's it up to?"

DARPA: "Its proximate purpose appears to be self-preservation. Its ultimate purpose is unclear. It acts like a distributed AI agent-which would make sense if Matthew Sobol designed it."

CIA: "Artificial intelligence? You're not serious?"

DARPA: "Let me be clear: this is not a thinking, talking, sentient machine. This is narrow AI-like a character in a computer game. It's a collection of specific rules searching for recognizable patterns or events. Very basic. Nonetheless, very potent. It can alter course based on what's occurring in the real world, but it can't innovate or deviate from its given parameters. It required an incredible amount of planning. The name the press gave it is apt: it's basically a daemon. A distributed daemon."

CIA: "This is horseshit. There must be living people controlling it-cyber terrorists. I mean, how could Sobol know in advance exactly how we're going to react?"

DARPA: "He didn't have to. He could plan for multiple contingencies and then observe what actually occurs. Thus its monitoring of Internet news."

FBI: "Just shut down the Internet."

The others gave him a patronizing look.

FBI: "You guys built the damned thing. Why can't you turn it off?"

NSA: "Let's stick to reasonable suggestions, shall we?"

FBI: "I don't mean for a long time-just for a second."

DARPA: "The Internet is not a single system. It consists of hundreds of millions of individual computer systems linked with a common protocol. No one controls it entirely. It can't be 'shut down.' And even if you could shut it down, the Daemon would just come back when you turned it back on."

The director cut him off.

NSA: "Look, let's not hold a remedial class on distributed networks. Let's get back to the big question: do we defy Sobol's demand? What can he do if we enter the estate prior to thirty days?"

CIA: "We mustenter the estate-you know that."

NSA: "Of course I do. But before I make my report to the Advisory Council, I need to know the potential consequences of defying this thing."

Everyone looked to the scientist.

DARPA: "Based on the deaths yesterday, I'd say there will be more fatalities."

CIA: "But nothing on a grander scale? No economic damage? No political ramifications?"

DARPA: "It's impossible to say. We'll only know when we defy it."

NSA: "What about jamming the radio signals to the Hummer?"

DARPA opened a folder and flipped through it while he talked.

DARPA: "The Hummer isn't the problem. The problem is the ultrawideband signals emanating from the house." He distributed handouts.

NSA: "Ultrawideband? Refresh me on that."

DARPA: "Ultrawideband involves extremely short pulses of radio energy-just billionths or trillionths of a second. By their nature ultrashort radio pulses occupy a wide swath of the frequency spectrum, covering several gigahertz in range."

NSA: "Bottom-line it for us."

DARPA: "Okay. This explains the high amount of radio interference around the estate. Normally, ultrawideband transceivers wouldn't be made powerful for that very reason, but Sobol's got a big one in place-and I don't think he's worried about violating FCC rules. It's screwing up our radio communications, and it will be hard as hell to jam."

CIA: "This is commercial technology? What good is something like that?"

DARPA, warming up to his topic: "It can be used as a super-accurate local GPS system-and I mean accurate down to a centimeter scale. Because of the wide swath of frequencies in use, some portion of the signal's going to get through even brick walls and radio jamming. With a computer map of the property and a transponder mounted in the Hummer, it would be possible to know exactly where the vehicle was at all times. He could relay infrared or other targeting information to the Hummer from a central computer, and he could protect the central computer from direct attack."

CIA: "You're sure he's using this ultrawideband?"

DARPA: "We've got CSC techs on the scene gathering COMINT and SIGINT."

FBI: "Was it ultrawideband that took out the bomb disposal team?"

DARPA: "No." He passed out more folders. "Fortunately the disposal team survived, and one of our researchers was able to interview Agent Guerner at County USC. His account leads our scientists to conclude that Sobol used some form of acoustical weaponry."

CIA: "Jesus Christ, why didn't we recruit this guy?"

NSA: "We tried to."

FBI: "Acoustical weaponry?"

DARPA: "Yes. Extremely low-frequency sound waves have been researched for use as nonlethal weapons. They're intended for quelling riots."

NSA, reading report: "Some nonlethal weapon. The capillaries in their eyes burst."

DARPA: "The low-frequency sound vibrates the victim's intestines, creating a feeling of deep unease and panic, difficulty breathing-and in stronger applications damaging delicate blood vessels. This matches Guerner's account and his injuries. Bear in mind, much of this technology isn't classified. With a good amount of money, a technical expert like Sobol could theoretically reproduce it-especially if he didn't intend to profit from it."

The attendees were duly sobered.

NSA: "How do we keep the Daemon from knowing we've entered the estate?"

FBI: "Can't we simply impose a news blackout? To stop it from reading the news?"

DIA: "Domestically?All hell would break loose."

FBI: "Not a total news blackout-just redaction of news about the Daemon. A gag order. Use our ties to the Web search companies. Or just decree it in the name of national security."

CIA: "Why not take out a full-page ad asking the public to panic?"

DARPA: "Look, you're ignoring the fact that at least one component of the Daemon is inSobol's house. It doesn't need to read the headlines to find out we're breaking in."

Everyone grew quiet again.

DIA: "They've cut power to the house, right?"

It was FBI's turn to roll his eyes.

DARPA: "It probably has backup power systems."

FBI, examining his own report: "Ground-penetrating radar shows nothing unusual on the estate grounds. No secret power lines or tunnels. The L.A. Division got ahold of the networking company that installed Sobol's server room. He's got about twelve hours of backup battery power. The city permit office plans also show a backup diesel generator with three-hundred-gallon fuel capacity."

CIA: "How long could that last?"

NSA: "The political pressure will be intense. I'm guessing we can't wait even a couple of days."

FBI: "It's being taken care of, gentlemen."

DARPA: "Frankly, we're more concerned about the Daemon components on the Internet than the components in the house."

CIA: "Can't you focus Carnivore on this thing?"

NSA: "That quickly turns into a discussion of USSID-18. We all know what a shitstorm that kicked up."

CIA: "That's ridiculous. This isn't a domestic surveillance issue. Sobol's dead.He's no longer a U.S. citizen."

DIA: "I'll bet the ACLU would have an opinion on that."

FBI: "Just purchase consumer data from the private sector. It's easier."

DARPA: "Once again, gentlemen, reality intrudes. Our standard surveillance methods won't work. The Daemon issues press releases or reads the news. One is highly public; the other is a passive activity. There are no recurrent IP addresses or search words in e-mails to monitor. Carnivorewon't help you. Neither will purchasing patterns."

The room grew quiet again.

NSA: "Then we're agreed that we need to defy the Daemon's demand as soon as power can be brought down on the estate?"

They all nodded.

NSA: "Good. We'll know more once we capture Sobol's server room." He looked to FBI. "Make that happen, and we'll see what this thing has up its sleeve."