Cloud to Cloud

Episode 4: Thrown into the Fire

Safety and security of millions of users depended on Evan. It was little different from his military service. Evan entered the building. His mobile device emitted an alert as each door recognized Evan's security level, confirming identity with an imperceptible flicker over his retina. Scans had greatly improved over the past four years, allowing more expedient ingress and egress during emergency situations.

"Evan." The receptionist seated in the security offices lobby leaned over her desk. "Are we still on for lunch this afternoon? I booked a booth at that new cafe off Central."

Evan responded with a quick tilt of his head and little more than a brief pause to his step. The receptionist rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the infrared keyboard illuminating the stark surface of the desk.

Evan wove within the lab-like maze of cubicles lining the security floor of ITower's GlobeNet offices. He passed busy cube workers chattering via headset to customers across the United States and the world. Physical boundary lines meant little in the age of ITower's Infostrada empire.

He caught snips of complaints and client requests, ignoring names and unimportant personal data. He could gauge his day by clips of half-heard conversation.

In terms of global control of big data and the Cloud in the Infostrada war ITower had won, but in so many ways, Evan and others like him were still fighting. The industrial revolution drove humanity into an era of mass construction, movement, and expansion in the physical reaches of the globe. The digital age had created a new space to explore and control, a new era more akin to the golden age of exploration and colonization.

ITower controlled all cloud access and the data stored therein, yet a constant battle of code, passwords, biometrics, and grid maintenance was required to retain a seat of power.

Few employees raised their heads from the business of consulting GlobeNet clients to notice to Evan, and fewer still enjoyed making eye contact with the young man.

Evan remained a soldier, albeit a far more well-paid one in the private sector. Hired gun might be a more suitable title.

Evan's reputation for being less than friendly to cube rats was far reaching. Dealing in office politics was not in his job description since moving down the hall, and into deeper levels of Infostrada security.

A light above the keyless entry handle framed the door to Evan's office in a faint glow. It blinked green as Evan approached, activating the inner circuitry of magnetic locking mechanisms. Passing the couch against the wall, Evan allowed the door to close and latch behind him. He strode into the sparsely decorated space and glanced through the glass door to ensure the light had returned to it's previous red glow.

He tossed his jacket onto the dark leather couch. The windowed wall across the room overlooked the sprawl of the desert city. Adjacent, a nearly wall sized LCD screen rotated a multitude of certificates, awards, video clips of presentation ceremonies, and event photos, a constant reminder of how far Evan had come since military dismissal.

It meant nothing.

Propping his mobile device into the docking station at the corner of his desk, and his body into the plush seat of his chair, Evan sighed at the enveloping silence of the office.

"Video screen, image night lights." Evan ordered.

The rotation of honors flickered to a cityscape at night, complete with lights and passage of time demonstrated by subtle changes.

"Smart glass, transparency zero. Color grey." As the words left Evan's lips the large window became opaque and the glass shifted to match the walls of the office.