"Alexander Jablokov - Brain Raid" - читать интересную книгу автора (Jablokov Alexander)

Brain Raid
by Alexander Jablokov

Those of you who know Mr. JablokovтАЩs fiction already will probably skip
right past these notes, but since this story is his first one to appear in our
pages, a few words of introduction are in order. Alexander Jablokov
published five novels and about thirty short stories through the 1980s
and 1990s, including A Deeper Sea, Nimbus and Carve the Sky. Then he
fell quiet for a few years, perhaps because his two young sons took up
the bulk of his creative energy, but now heтАЩs back at the word processor
and weтАЩre happy to bring you some of the results. He notes that heтАЩs
indebted to David Alexander Smith for helping contribute to the storyтАЩs
underpinnings.

****

That morningтАЩs job was a straight AI grab тАШn go. WeтАЩd identified a rogue
intelligence in a minimall on Route 222, near Ephrata, PA. A clerk at the
Intelligence Regulatory Agency, in the Department of Labor, had assigned
it the case name Donald.

Three of us from GorsonтАЩs Cognitive Repossession were going into
the Limpopo home environment store anchoring the mallтАЩs right wing that
day: Petra, Max, and me. IтАЩd worked with Max a lot. Petra was new with us.
SheтАЩd left a C-level outfit over in Philly to тАЬbroaden her background,тАЭ which
meant that she had been laid off. That probably accounted for her foul
mood, even though sheтАЩd snagged a manager title, supervising us.
GorsonтАЩs was licensed for D-level and below, quite a comedown for her. If
youтАЩre used to Carries and Chucks, a DonaldтАЩs barely worth getting up in
the morning for.

But there she was, crisp and clean, sliding right for the service desk.
My job was securing the staff and customers, then turning them over to the
hired hospitality crew. MaxтАЩs was locking down the loading dock behind the
store, where a semi was loading decorative flora and fauna. PetraтАЩs was,
redundantly, distraction and team management.

тАЬHot stuff, man.тАЭ Max was more cheerful than IтАЩd seen him in months.
тАЬWeтАЩre scoring big. I can feel it.тАЭ

тАЬCool it,тАЭ I said. тАЬEven at best, this AIтАЩs really just
consumer-debt-reduction level. Keep that in mind. ThereтАЩs no big money
here.тАЭ
 тАЬHey, not what you said the other night, eh?тАЭ He winked at me. тАЬThis is
just the first step. Things are turning around for us.тАЭ

Despite myself, I glanced over at Petra. тАЬEnough tequila, and IтАЩll say
anything.тАЭ

тАЬDonтАЩt get all hot, man. IтАЩm just looking to pay off that mortgage.тАЭ