Aaron addressed the group in the Alt-TOR-net hangout.

“The dominoes are all all in place. Thank you all for your focus and perseverance. This is a payoff that's been a long time coming. Yet I feel as positive as I ever have about anything, that our insanely thorough – read complicated (laughs and nods from the crowd) – mousetrap ...no RAT trap... will meet and quite likely exceed our expectations. I can't thank you all enough for your contributions to this undertaking. Once this begins, we will have no further contact – for everyone's safety. I only wish you all good luck, godspeed, a happy life, and maybe I'll see you at the reunion when and if the statute of limitations for what we're about to do expires. (more laughs and solemn nods)

“The first domino is actually just 126 bytes of code to a traffic control system in Nogales, but my ...partner in crime...” Aaron nodded at me and grinned, a delighted and mischievous twinkle in his eye “The Lady Eve... convinced me that the beginning of the rebalancing sequence – which she also helpfully named 'operation gordian knot' should be more symbolic.... more.... “ he glanced at me and I knew what he wanted.

I stepped in front of the camera, placed my arm around his waist and said “Ceremonial. A little bit of performance art. If you're not capturing this stream already, you should start now!” I smiled and handed Aaron 'the Gizmo'.

He smiled at the theatrical absurdity of it, but I think he was a bit tickled to have this little bit of ceremony, that - if all went well, they could one day show on cable news and future history classes as 'the moment change began'.

It was a deliberately absurd prop: An old Staples “Easy-Button” Painted with a yellow circle and slash, fitted with a usb cable to Rootkid's hackbook. The crowd laughed out loud when Aaron held it up to the webcam, and with a flourish worthy of a Vegas magician, ceremoniously pushed the 'Not-Easy' Button and declared “Time to reboot the world”.

“It has begun.” he smiled to the hangout. “No stopping it now. I strongly recommend you begin your disappearance protocols right now. It will take them at least 20 minutes to notice anything is up, but once they do, they will be swift, brutal and sloppy. You need to be so far gone that they can't even get you by accident with their inevitable carpet bombing. So be well, stay stealth and see you on the other side.”

No one really knew how long it would take for the goons to notice something was up. The hack really was a slow boil. The comandeered devices began seeking and attaching to each other. The model was suggested by Lisa the medical researcher, and modeled the formation of the brain in a living embryo. Pathways would form and bond and increase exponentially... not just for communication but for shared processing. The purpose was twofold. To find and exploit “leaks” ...communication channels that could bypass the traditional routing system and circumvent any attempt to thwart the process by shutting down routers that could dam off compromised parts of the network. Second was to apply massively parallel processing to change the keys on all the goon's resources. In essence, to lock them out of their own systems and to decrypt and distribute their files – the digital evidence of every one of their dirty tricks and blackmail to the subjects of those files. Not making them public, Just handing control of the information to the victims it had been used against. And releasing general records of their sordid operations to news organizations and legitimate law enforcement agencies across the globe.

The call was unexpected. Bill Lynch was never surprised, but he was going to have to get used to it.

“Just checking in on the ...search for your misplaced item.” Preston Thatcher inquired with a hint of a smile in his voice. Lynch was unused to being addressed with anything other than respect or fear, so the snide tone of voice went completely unnoticed.

“Things are always progressing but that's none of your concern. I told you earlier, when you need to know something I will contact you.” he hissed with menace.

“Riiiight....” Thatcher replied with a gleam in his eye, trying his best to sound like the passive-agressive boss from 'Office Space' and betting that Lynch had never seen it. He was now certain his encounter with the Lady Eve had indeed been completely off the radar. His confidence was bolstered. “You see, the thing is.... technically.... I'm the director... and you're a division chief.... so.....” and he held the vowel waiting to be interrupted by his volatile subordinate. He didn't have to wait long.

“Don't pull that org chart bullshit with me!” Lynch roared. “You're just another political hack playing musical chairs, and you may think you can fuck with me because technically you're my boss” ...Thatcher could hear the air quotes... “but long after you return to being an ordinary civilian tar...” the words were so conjoined in his experience, Lynch had to catch himself mid-phrase. “...long after you're just another face in the crowd, I'll still be here... running this. You do NOT want me as an enemy”

“Why, Mr Lynch, an ordinary ...civilian ...whatever...” he grinned “might interpret that declaration as a threat.” He paused as long as he dared. “But we're all professionals here and I understand that it was a candid tactical assessment.” He waited for a response, but just heard hard breathing on the other end, so he went on. “I understand the ramifications to having you as an enemy. I also understand, unlike so many.... that not everyone is your enemy....” he paused again. Still no response. “Aside from enemies, you also have …tactical assets...” That was met by a snort from the other end of the line.

“So, keeping in mind that we both have a keen interest in the situation with your ...missing asset... being resolved, I'm trying to be a good administrator and keep on top of the situation... So, nothing to report?”

Lynch had checked his rage and returned to his stock, menacingly icy demeanor. “Nothing warranting escalation up the ...command tree...” Thatcher smiled as he imagined the bitterness of those words in Lynch's mouth. “We'll contact you when the situation warrants.”

Feeling uncharacteristically cheerful, having gotten all he came for and knowing that Lynch was utterly unaware of the shifting power dynamics, Thatcher was upbeat and magnanimous. “Good to know. I'll let you get back to things until I hear from you then. Carry on.” Lynch merely hung up. Thatcher was certain at that moment, that it had been their last direct conversation. He sat back, steepled his fingers and wondered what disruptive mischief the Lady Eve and her cohorts had up their sleeves.