Ciphertext – Chapter 25: Friendship

Luciel awoke in a completely different location. His head was still dizzy and heavy and as his gaze panned across the room, every object seemed to blur into the next. A sweeping blue haze emanated from several points all around him. Screens, lots of screens. Even without his usual vision, there was no mistaking that exact colour of light. He patted his pockets to try and dig out his glasses, at least that might help a little.

But something felt strange.

It took him a few seconds before he realised that he wasn't even wearing his jacket, only a long-sleeved top and …

… my boxer shorts?

This didn't look good. He panicked as he considered what might have happened to him. The last thing he remembered was trying to grab onto to Mr. P, begging to be taken to Eun-ji, before falling to his knees and passing out on that cold, hard surface.

And now he was here, wherever that was.

Feeling around on the floor, Luciel noticed that his jacket was actually scrunched up just beside him. He searched for those glasses, which were still cracked from the earlier impact, and slipped them back onto his face. It seemed amazing that the glass hadn't shown any signs of falling through, and he was grateful for that. As he took another long glance at where the blinding blue light was coming from, he saw several figures slouching in their seats, typing adamantly, their eyes fixated on what was in front of them.

He adjusted his glasses downwards slightly so he could see more clearly over the crack. "What … is this place?" he muttered to himself, disconcerted by the overbearing atmosphere.

"Oh. You're finally awake, my little Defender of Justice?" came Mr. P's now unmistakable voice. He came over and kneeled down in front of where Luciel had propped himself up against the wall.

Frowning, Luciel cut straight to the chase. "What the hell am I doing here … and where is Eun-ji?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" teased Mr. P, the blue light emphasising the unnerving leer that was spanning his face.

The man's lack of detail angered Luciel. "Listen, boss. I didn't come here to joke around. I'm serious. I want her back with me alive or you will feel my pain!"

"Oh, how about that? What a hero, Agent 707! You finally emerged from behind your screen and now you're trying to prove how much that little slut means to you, even after she attempted to seduce your friend Zen? Ha! Don't make me laugh. Heroism, romance – it's all so pathetic."

Now, the temperature gauge was reaching boiling point. "You even know that much about what happened? In that case, I think you're the pathetic one, trying to ruin me by targeting her. If it's me you want, then challenge me directly but don't involve innocent people in your twisted games!"

"You're a dangerous man for women to be around, so just face up to your responsibilities and don't go around breaking their hearts," he scoffed, mockingly. "And by that I mean that you should just give up before you've even started."

"And have you ever tried …" Luciel began, " … to love someone?"

"That's such a stupid question. You read my handbook when you first started working for me, didn't you?"

Luciel knew exactly which book he was referring to. It was a kind of hacking bible published by the man himself. "Mr. P's Hackers Guide to Healthy Lifestyles? The one that tells you to suppress all your innermost desires and devote yourself entirely to the good cause of ethical hacking? Sexual feelings only move the goal posts further and further away. You know what?"

"What?"

"That's all just bullshit! I can be a great hacker and still be in a relationship. Those two things aren't even correlated. It's just that I never tried to pursue anyone until now."

"Hmm? But isn't 'love' what got you into this predicament?"

"I hate that you watched me prancing around the apartment naked. I hate that you saw Eun-ji naked. I hate that you didn't turn off the camera … What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Oh-ho-ho. Well, hang on a minute. Let's rewind the CCTV shall we? What about your spy games?"

"I already repented for that. I'm only a man … don't you see that? I can't be the only person in the world with inappropriate thoughts. Anyway, since I was interested in her from the beginning, before any of the others knew about her, my feelings were always going to be stronger." Luciel felt himself grow cold and his face turn pale as he checked on his lower half. "I just want to know that ... you didn't do anything to me while I was unconscious, right!?"

Hearing this, Mr. P laughed so hard he had to cover his mouth and even choked a few times as he tried to catch his breath. It was a severely forced guttural laugh. Regaining his composure. "No. You think I'd go so far as to sexually assault you? Don't flatter yourself 707." He took Luciel's chin in one hand, observing his electric red hair and quivering yellow pools. "That new look is so 'dangerous' it's certainly what you might call 'cute', but me? I'm married to oclHashcat and Wireshark."

Not knowing what to make of Mr. P's comments, Luciel balked. "I'm not interested in you either! You think Iwant that kind of attention from you anyway? What planet are you living on?"

Mr. P looked at his watch as though it would tell him the answer. "Last time I checked I was living on earth, unlike you, always dreaming away in your RFA spaceship. In any case, you're the one who brought it up, not me."

"Then tell me, what am I supposed to think happened when my trousers are missing?"

Mr. P shrugged. "I don't know. I'm sure your imagination will fit the pieces together. But all I'm saying is your trousers were annoying me, so I removed them." He put his hands onto Luciel's shoulders and sighed. "Look, you still don't recognise me, do you … Saeyoung?"

"I don't like being called Saeyoung," warned Luciel, gritting his teeth in annoyance. "Anyway, why would I recognise you? We've never even me- ", but as he took a closer look at the man's facial features, memories suddenly came flooding back into his mind. It was all too surreal to take in and he didn't want to believe it.

Surely, this can't be happening …

Mr. P stared right into Luciel's eyes. "It's me, your neighbourhood friend Tom … you know, Tom Park. It's been fifteen years since your family moved away from Busan so I'm not surprised you didn't know it was me. Feels weird to be reunited like this, doesn't it?"

Luciel felt a strange pang of nostalgia. They used to attend the same primary school and their parents had been good friends, until they lost contact following the move.

"Oh my god, T-Tom, it's really you? But it just doesn't make any sense. Why wouldn't you tell me sooner? Whose arm did you pull to get the new contract in North Korea? What's with this base being inside a shiny corporate hellhole?"

Tom sighed. "You ask too many questions Saeyoung. It's not good to ask too many questions."

"But I need to know, because it involves me … and now her too. Like I said, if you want something from me, don't beat around the bush and just come out with it! She isn't like us hackers, so I want to know that she's alright."

Wherever you are, just hang in there okay Eun-ji?

A menacing expression surfaced on Tom's face. "That's what I'm saying. She isn't like us, and that's exactly why we have to get rid of her. If she means a lot to you, then this is your duty."

"No," asserted Luciel, "there is no 'we' in this game. I'm willing to help you with anything else, but I won't help you kill anybody, especially not her." His heart was starting to feel the strain of the idea. He couldn't lose her, not now.

"Who said anything about murdering her? You know that's not my style. Even when it comes to the work we do in North Korea, everything's under the radar."

"So you just damage them a bit and leave the limbs of their self-respect dangling by a thread?"

"That's right. Killing them would be too easy, and that's not the job of a hacker. Let the professionals take care of the dirty business while we crunch the data. Isn't it so simple when you look at things that way?"

"What … are you telling me?"

"Listen, Saeyoung. I can't tell you any more than that. It's confidential between me and the client."

"But I'm working for you, Tom. Why can't you just be more transparent about things? Sure, I know how to cover my tracks when I take cybersecurity risks, but I also like to know what I'm getting myself into. Who the hell are we even reporting to on this?"

Tom grabbed Luciel by his shirt forcefully. "We're entering another part of the contract starting from January. I can't reveal the details to you, but basically … you sign it, or you die by my own hands." He squinted and brought his face in closer so their noses touched. "Because you're the only man I'd gladly kill if you refuse to do this job. I need your mind Saeyoung. No-one else can do this."

Luciel cringed and writhed beneath the man's firm grasp. "If we go any further than what we're already doing, given the current political climate, I'm out!"

Tom looked bemused. "Is that your final answer?"

Luciel said nothing and just glared into the unforgiving eyes of the tyrant before him.

You can't phase me, you bastard!

Tom let go of Luciel's shirt and threw him mercilessly to the ground. "If that's really the way you want to play it, then let me assist you." He stood over the red-haired hacker and pinned him down. Luciel tried to resist, but Tom had obviously gained more physical training that he was capable of.

"What the fuck are you doing to me Tom!?"

"That's Mr. P to you … Saeyoung. I'm already sick of hearing you call me 'Tom'. It makes me sad to think that we were ever friends in Busan."

"That was a long time ago Tom! What did I ever do to you?"

"Don't call me Tom! You put me through a lot of shit even when we weren't in the same city anymore. You won all those hacking competitions and had yourself a nice time travelling abroad on your prize money for a year, and you forgot about me! We were going to go to University together and start our own company. What happened to our dreams?"

"This is all stuff you'd planned by yourself when we were seven years old! Of course things were going to deviate from how you wanted them to be!"

"You promised!" Tom yelled, now imprisoned with rage. "Do friends go back on their promises?"

Now he was just being immature. "Things don't work like that. We were naïve when we were children – we would believe anything," tried Luciel.

"But you don't understand …" said Tom. ".. what it would have meant to me."

Luciel was confused as he tried to take in the man's last comment. Still straddling him and keeping him pinned to the floor, Tom casually ran his fingers through the hacker's soft red hair. Then, he took a suspicious-looking object from his pocket and removed a lid. The sharp blade of a knife glinted against that harsh, blue light.

Shit. This does NOT look good! Tom, what happened to you?

Speaking in a markedly lower tone, Tom stated his main intention. "Starting today, you will become my finest, handcrafted tech slave. Just like these guys," he noted, pointing towards the line-up of captivated zombies hammering away on their computers. "They're so loyal, so committed to my cause.

Tom brought the blade to Luciel's throat and just held it there. Luciel took shallow breaths as he felt the point against his skin. Talking would have been useless at that moment.

"This is filled with a combination of numbing agent and sedative. It's what I used when I took Eun-ji away. It'll make you feel good, I promise."

Then, as if right on cue, the door flew open and several men in black suits stormed into the room. The brainwashed hackers continued with their work as usual.

"Stop right there! We are a squad of highly-trained bodyguards sent by Mr Jumin Han on behalf of the RFA. We are equipped with cutting-edge personal weapons and have the authority of the South Korean government to use them against you Mr. Park!"

Luciel felt himself calming down upon hearing who they were. He didn't like that Jumin had got involved but in that moment he couldn't deny that he was grateful. A few seconds later and he would have become as good as braindead.

WAIT WHAT? … THE AUTHORITY OF THE SOUTH KOREAN GOVERNMENT?