Gotta Catch The Pretty Ones

© 2011-2014 by Mr. David R. Dorrycott

Chapter Fifty-Four

Gidget Johansson turned out to be a wiz with codes, it being her favorite hobby. Once she had been approached with the problem her entire demeanor changed. “A real code?” she asked, staring at the two woman across the kitchen table from her. “Not a game?”

While Dell had been out getting the older woman, Penny and Sara had taken the chance to create a rough code using fictional capture phrases. So easily had the words come to the librarian that when Gidget arrived they had nearly three pages of hand written ‘code.’ Turning over the pages they had explained the problem.

“Yes” Sara answered calmly, though her stomach was doing back flips at the time. “I’m guessing that you are aware of certain projects, ones that were suddenly announced by someone else, just as the researchers were about to announce theirs, and all word for word.”

“Industrial sabotage” the Guild agent agreed. “I have aided in the investigation of two instances myself. It’s always nasty and both sides end up damaged. I take it that you are on to something?” She watched as the two women looked at each other, then clammed up tighter than a drum. “Don’t worry, Dell and I are oath bound to keep our mouths shut when it involves Guild research, no matter how important or frivolous.”

Sara looked at Dell, noting him nodding in agreement. Well, if they couldn’t trust these two, and considering that hidden recorder... “I’m certain that I have discovered the reason that a pokeball cannot contain more than one poky animal, even though it can contain animals five or six times larger than others. It isn’t just a safety against cross data corruption, the unit itself is based upon technology that goes back to the first pokeball. It’s archaic and actually becoming unstable, not being able to keep up with it’s own allocation code. I have clues now as where to start making the changes, but if what Penny and I are working on gets out, well it would be a disaster for us.”

Dell snorted, “I told the council that adding a librarian in the mix would be a good idea” he explained when Gidget looked at him. “You are talking about a library aren’t you Sara, you want to change the way that the code looks at its own memory.”

“Not only the memory sir” Sara agreed, “But how it allocates that memory, how it formats it and it really needs about sixteen times the pointers. This code was based on eight bit technology and we are using five twelve bit technology now. It’s just getting unstable.”

“That would explained some of the problems that we’ve seen lately” Gidget admitted. “But you’re talking Legacy code, the deep core code. No one can get near that, the passwords were lost generations ago.”

“I have a hint as to the passwords Gidget” Sara admitted, “And a bunch of outdated pokeball’s that are nothing but garbage or collectors toys. If I can get a permit to build a stand alone test system I just might break in.”

“Why a stand alone” Gidget asked, only to have Dell answer that question for Sara (to which the Poketech was very grateful, as she didn’t have a cover story.)

“That is obvious, I think” the man said softly. “Her current test system is open to any pokeytech that might wander by, or connect through the Guild network, along with about a third of the Pokehunter’s active and retired. With a stand alone, I bet hidden downstairs in the safe room of their home, it would be very difficult for anyone to gain access, gain access and read the log files. But to build one she needs certain hardware, the critical parts I know that she doesn’t have.” He thought a minute or two as the others waited. “Mrs Robertson, if Gidget co-signs I can authorize your having such a tester, and I can have the boards you need delivered within the week from the Warren Hill Guild Hall. Would you want an up-to-date system or an older one?”

“I have two gutted test systems from forty years ago” Sara answered, “That might be a better choice that an up to date system that uses up to date formatting. Another thing Dell, if I can break in, you and Gidget are going to have to hand carry the passwords to the main Guild Hall.”

Gidget laughed, a sound that turned out to be quite delightful. “Which would make us very important Mrs Robertson. Oh you do know how to bribe a Guild Official.”

Penny giggled, “Well, she was thinking of offering me” the librarian half-whispered.

Gidget laughed again. “No thank you, I am not interested in women. So how long will you need?”

Sara and Penny whispered together a few minutes, then Sara turned back to Gidget and Dell. “Once the stand alone is set up, no more than a week.”

“So fast?” Dell asked, shock evident in his voice.

“One way or another Dell, we will be out of sacrificial pokeballs by then in any case. We either break in, or I’m sending an awful lot of capture grates to the main Guild Hall. Since I’m one handed Penny will be building the unit and testing it, if you can get the cards I need here within a week and we can get one of those old systems running in the same amount of time, I will be calling you in three weeks, four on the outside. Either way you will both know within a month.”

“While you still have your primary theory to work on” Dell added. “How long do you think it will take to completely rewrite the Legacy code?”

“Five, six months” Sara answered “That’s at best, probably several years to debug the entire code. I’ve already gotten the master code rewritten, it is just the deep code that needs work and I haven’t been able to even look at that yet, it is so well protected. Even if I am successful, at least months of testing on inanimate objects. A year, maybe eighteen months before I can send anything but the passwords to the Guild.”

“Which explains the spy device” Gidget decided. “Someone has an idea what you are up too and wants to steal it from yuo. Give me until tonight, I’ll have you a new code with variations ready by then. No wonder this has had you to ready to jump off of a cliff, you based your code on something that you believed impossible, only to have it slap you in the face.” She paused, then continued. “This isn’t going to allow people to capture each other is it?”

“God no” Sara gasped. “I’ll give my entire code to the guild, they can then relock the deep code with new passwords which I will not know or want to know. The only difference users will see is the ability to capture two creatures with one ball. I don’t think that the manufactures will be bothered, they will simply charge more after all. I don’t even care if no one ever knows how the changes were made, it isn’t the fame I want, I just want to answer a question that has been burning in my brain since I was four.”

Gidget nodded as though she completely understood, as far as Sara knew the agent just might understand fully. “Mind if I use your kitchen table?” the investigator asked.

“Why not the office?” Penny offered. “Then when I start cooking I won’t be bothering you.”

“Splendid” Gidget agreed. “Oh boy, I’m going to be creating a code for something important, finally.”

Sara stood from the table then, looking towards the shop next door. “I had best get back to cleaning then” she announced. “And Mrs. Johansson, thank you.”

“It’s Gidget. Sara, you just gave me a project in my favorite hobby, it’s been a long time since I’ve done anything but count Pokeball’s and such.”

“All right, Gidget” Sara agreed. “Still, I do have more work to do at the shop. Until supper.” Pausing only long enough to kiss Penny, the poketech waved for Patricia to follow then went out the door. With Gidget now preoccupied, as well as being turned into an Allie, the chances that their hidden pokeball collection would be discovered had dropped to near zero. It would never be zero of course, but by using distractions the risk be kept to acceptable levels, and Gidget’s abrupt change in direction was a massive red flag to the Poketech.