What follows is a timestamp-ordered transcript of all of the "hacker chats" in the Metacortechs ARG. Please send corrections and comments.

 - Brian Enigma <enigma [-=at=-] netninja [-=dot=-] com>

last updated 2003-11-18


Jump to:   [carelessly.*]   [silvia.*]   [unjust.*]   [bigmclargehuge.*]   [not.*]   [texel]   [texel2]   [brutus.*]


The Carelessly.* Files, Oct 5th


Oct 4 22:36 carelessly.mp3


Oct 5 02:39 carelessly.jpg


Oct 5 03:10 carelessly.wsg


Oct 5 03:14 carelessly.gif
Whoah!  So what's with all the activity on the nodes?



Nice spot.  Cozy and clean.  Good work.


Oct 5 03:19 carelessly.lhp
sweet. 

guess we'll see if anyone else gets here. 

mello, you got it yet? 

later.


Oct 5 03:21 carelessly.kbp
heya heya heya

yeah yeah I got it, this is so cool. hey did you guys see all the craziness that happened here a bit earlier?

the server must've taken a serious whomping, seriously! whomp! ha!

i'm not talking about script kiddies, though. even though the tracebacks on those are really dumb-o. la la la, pound the server, when really, a bit of finesse and all. right, guys? heh! I so mean that! we're the best.

yep, so i'm here. is that all? baker's dozen and then some? what what what what.

ok, pizza's here!!


Oct 5 03:22 carelessly.graffle


Oct 5 03:26 carelessly.bh


Oct 5 03:32 carelessly.m_u
WAV file of computer voice saying "Okay, I'm in now. Count me down, yo."

Oct 5 03:34 carelessly.txt
texel is klaar
texel is unique
texel is verfrissend en opwekkend
texel is uitgesloten
texel is gereed
texel is een eiland met voor een ieder wat wils
texel is zeer geliefd van jong tot oud
texel is gevallen
texel is verfrissend en opwekkend texel is unique texel is klaar texel is opgericht op 6 april 1946 texel is uitgesloten texel is gereed texel is zeer geliefd
texel is about 25 km long and 9 km wide
texel is the largest of the wadden islands in the netherlands
texel is the first and largest of the islands belonging to the west friesian chain in the wadden sea
texel is part of the dutch wadden sea
texel is the biggest barrier island in the wadden sea area
texel is displayed
texel is op zoek naar een nieuwe titelsponsor die deze rol wil overnemen
texel is het mekka voor fietsers
texel is largely extensive sand
texel is a most adaptable breed
texel is the biggest and most populated of the wadden islands
texel is built
texel is beschermd natuurgebied
texel is een populaire bestemming
texel is een jaarlijks terugkerende catamaranrace
texel is a multi
texel is opgericht op 6 april 1946
texel is known
texel is anders
texel is one of the most exciting new breeds to appear in the fancy for some time
texel is not very gregarious means that optimal use can be made of pasture
texel is opgericht in 1982 en kwam voort uit een groep wadvogeltellers die de 2 jaren ervoor elke maand een telling hadden uitgevoerd
texel is a famous place to watch birds
texel is currently #2 for the 2000 olympic show jumping selection trials
texel is relative to the rest of the texels around it
texel is mainly subject to westerly winds
texel is ca
texel is very nice
texel is toerisme de motor
texel is door zijn ligging aan de noordzee en de wadenzee iets bijzonders
texel is veelzijdig en biedt voor elk wat wils
texel is one of the world's most productive meat breeds of sheep
texel is het merkbaar dat het publiek veel meer op het strand blijft om de wedstrijd te volgen
texel is a few miles off the northwest coast of the netherlands and is the largest and southernmost of the west frisian islands
texel is beperkt
texel is een bungalowpark dat bij texels belangrijkste badplaats "de koog" ligt
texel is een grote waterzaal geopend
texel is similar to a pixel
texel is a meat
texel is the largest of the wadden islands
texel is the largest wadden island of the dutch mainland
texel is about 25 km long and 4 km wide
texel is zeker nog niet rooskleurig maar ik denk
texel is uw vakantie begonnen en bent u er helemaal uit
texel is er ook veel media
texel island
texel is absoluut de moeite waard
texel is opgericht in 1969 en is een begrip in de nederlandse parachutistenwereld
texel is bij uitstek een fietseiland
texel is 25 km lang en 10 km breed
texel is a sheltie with wavy fur
texel is compared
texel is nu het hele jaar open
texel is used in rendering the scene the material information encoded in that texel is substituted with the currently computed infrared gray value
texel is the largest wadden island off the dutch mainland
texel is bekend om zijn vogels en schapen
texel is nederlands grootste waddeneiland met een oppervlakte van circa 16
texel is the largest and most populated island
texel is hˇt fietseiland bij uitstek
texel is het grootste waddeneiland van nederland met ongeveer 13
texel is a dutch island in the north sea that is famous for its birds
texel is small
texel is een ambtenaar van de gemeente texel aanspreekpunt voor de bewoners van texel
texel is a single
texel is to produce lambs for seasonal markets on the eastern seaboards
texel is it closest to? it
texel is very broken up
texel is the largest of the friesian islands
texel is zoet water een kostbaar goed
texel is an associate of permedia general resource
texel is fitting into the lamb market there really well too
texel is computed from both adjacent texels and smoothly blends between them as the texture index moves through
texel is voor mij meer dan een mooi eilandje
texel is op het eiland actief sinds 1972
texel is a breed of sheep extremely suitable for grazing any type of grassland
texel is an excellent opportunity to enjoy the beautiful dutch countryside and it even features a scenic ferry ride
texel is ambitieus maar goed mogelijk
texel is veel groter
texel is one of the west frisian islands
texel is here


Oct 5 03:43 carelessly.goo


Oct 5 03:48 carelessly.doc


Oct 5 03:54 carelessly.ypt
BUT A GRAVITY'S BORSCH-POO ON STUPID'S KITTIES STOMPS AROUND CAIRO.  
DOGMA-LUNCHEON DOES SELL INDULGENCES!  
BUT WHEN DO WE WEEP ANTIQUITY?


Oct 5 03:57 carelessly.qm2
Crossword puzzle
Proposed solution

Oct 5 04:19 carelessly.mic
Macromedia Flash video saying:
sorry i'm late
sorry i made you wait

your clues were annoying
what's with this thing?

i'm no poet
but you're no hacker

scritchety scratch

The Silvia.* Files, Oct 12th


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:35:17 GMT silvia.bh


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:35:44 GMT silvia2.kbp
those guys are crap for crap! i tell you, it's one thing to be l33+ or whatever, but it's another to be all stomp stomp stomp raaaar! about it, too. manners are not my best trait, but at least i can hold a fork and knife!
OPPOSABLE THUMBS, people!!!!
yeah! k, later!


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:35:52 GMT silvia.doc


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:35:59 GMT silvia.gif
Those nodes were nuts!

Pretty wack.  Nice patching, btw.  Gold star for YOU, now!


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:36:10 GMT silvia.graffle


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:36:18 GMT silvia.jpg
So we saw this flux and burst of activity, and then down to nothing. Well, we saw the echoes, anyhow.

Definitely not a human footprint. This is a whomp on a huge scale that I am not sure any ordinary script could pack into such a little amount of access. The whole log is massive and ... well, unbelievable. Except it happened. You guys saw it, you all saw the spike. I'm surprised this whole subnet's not toast.

(cont'd.)


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:36:28 GMT silvia.kbp
whomp! yay, heh, good word!
those logs were ginormous and stuff, i know -- i took a look right before it all went crasholah... yesssssssss we do have quite a weird thing on our hands, yes sir
it's too bad things went down like they did - some people gots no class, no ass, lots of sass
*shakes head* so, if like, we didn't do this, and the other doofii didn't do it, and wasn't human, what was it???
that's some crazy energy, there. i wonder, i wonder!


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:36:38 GMT silvia.lhp
zoiks. it's like some huge robot scuffed its shiny metal feet on the carpeting of the world and then touched its metal claw to the server.

huh. weird. ok, i'll work on my metaphors.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:36:47 GMT silvia.mic
if i could grab my nuts and sing falsetto, i'd croon like all the rest about what a freaking hero you are. oooooh, caesar! you know the CLASSICS! yer so cool! can i be like you? how many books do i have to read?

i'll be the guy over here, having FUN.

-scratch


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:36:55 GMT silvia.mp3
I'll call you.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:02 GMT silvia.txt
done gone and planted yourself somewhere new, eh?
what's your plan, Stan?
the spike seems to have left everything unscathed.  quite odd.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:09 GMT silvia.wsg


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:15 GMT silvia.ypt
ignominious vowel whispers completely, ignominious degeneration stoops awfully, dingy degeneration sullies uncomfortably, unhoped vein sighs finally, soundless entry sucks irritably, gray light whispers unholily, ignominious life capitulates dryly, soundless battle-axe overflows irritably, aggressive concubine languishes sleeplessly, sharp vortex exhales abruptly, uniform sack capitulates hysterically, perfect party falls undesirably, baleful creationism overflows uncomfortably, upright entry overflows completely, vibrant corduroy overflows caressingly, soundless language concocts completely, concrete dream shrieks expectantly, perfect condescension craves terribly, dark chivalry usurps hypocritically


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:21 GMT silvia2.bh


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:28 GMT silvia2.doc


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:34 GMT silvia2.jpg
Speaking of footprints - sorry about the switcheroo with this whole home base thing. I had thought everything was OK, but it looks like some bigfeet from elsewhere (who invited them? man!) decided to take the ball and run with it. Mom always said not to play ball in the house, and well, stuff got broken.

I cleaned and wiped as much as I could (saving the node spike stuff for myself, of course), and then broke it even more. I had to; the oafs were stumbling all over the place, tripping alarms and making a huge mess. Way to be a ballerina, Gerry Fleck. Of course, _'s got some medium-level guys, and so I hung out until they could see my present to them. I pointed at the hole, tattled on bigfoot, and left a leetle wiggle room after I gave them the fixes. So that's why we're here now.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:40 GMT silvia2.lhp
i would shake my fist in indignation, but as long as it's peaceful around here, i'm good. hrmph.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:47 GMT silvia2.mic
it takes a nerd to know one, dorko.
god, you're so smug! like anyone caused any real harm. why are you so worried about this precious network anyhow? if you wanna tiptoe through life, that's fine, but I don't have time for this. let me know if you EVER get a clue or an idea of how the world works.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:52 GMT silvia2.mp3
Three cheers for caesar!

hip hip
hip hip
hip hip

hooray!


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:37:59 GMT silvia2.txt
thanks for helping with the cleanup!


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:38:05 GMT silvia2.ypt
She drearily sings to the intense spoon
Because the quills cut before the foolish shoes.
Where does a man slide so quickly and brightly?
How are the houses?
The paper comes darkly through the clever sharks.
A hill falls.


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:38:10 GMT silvia3.jpg
Why the hostility? Are you mad I got here first? That it wasn't like last time, where you got fried and nearly got us all pinned to the wall? What's the deal?


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:38:16 GMT silvia3.mic
look, i'll play your game because i like the pipe this place is sitting on. but i'll skip the rallies and ticker tape. these pansy-ass passcodes have GOT to go. we're off the grid anyway - NO ONE WOULDA GOT FRIED. misrepresenting me is not cool, man. i bet that spike was just a bad thunderstorm in redland, i bet. smug ass!


Sun, 12 Oct 2003 01:38:20 GMT silvia3.txt
boys, boys, you're both pretty. keep it quiet, scratch, OK? omni was right - the layout here indicates more than just some thunderstorm or something. i think it'll be really interesting to keep an eye on this place.


The Unjust.* Files, Oct 16th


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:09:55 GMT unjust.jpg


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:14:10 GMT unjust.qm2
WTH!!! Total proc spike! you all see this? talk about it already? couldnt even gain remote while it was spikin!

14:58:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 0.06, 0.04, 0.02
14:59:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 7.27, 6.89, 6.63
15:00:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 7.18, 6.31, 6.92
15:01:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 7.76, 7.52, 6.87
15:02:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 7.93, 7.68, 7.24
15:03:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 7.35, 6.73, 6.56
15:04:59 cogburn logger: processor load average: 0.07, 0.03, 0.01


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:32:03 GMT unjust2.jpg
Last monday, right? Good to know I'm not the only one following this. This is what I grabbed off a box in Chicago. Does this match with the stuff we saw before? Man, if we ARE dealing with professionals, they're carrying around the equivalent of a high-grade nuke with a slightly nervous trigger finger. Bounce, Tex, Scratch, you driving on any of this?

13:58:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 0.01, 0.03, 0.01
13:59:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 6.73, 6.31, 5.36
14:00:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 5.81, 5.43, 6.47
14:01:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 6.36, 6.67, 6.24
14:02:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 6.24, 6.57, 5.98
14:03:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 5.86, 5.61, 5.91
14:04:59 wasabi logger: processor load average: 0.04, 0.02, 0.01


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:34:16 GMT unjust.ypt
We sadly build the sad fool 
Because the beasts come behind the bottom balls. 
Who do the cows come so sadly and cleverly? 
What are the balls? 
A table drags secretly above the high flowers. 
The table writes. 

13:58:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 0.03, 0.07, 0.05 
13:59:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 7.76, 8.12, 7.86 
14:00:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 7.68, 7.35, 8.26 
14:01:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 8.16, 7.81, 7.63 
14:02:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 8.26, 8.46, 8.37 
14:03:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 7.86, 7.45, 7.32 
14:04:59 redpepper logger: processor load average: 0.08, 0.05, 0.04 


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:34:40 GMT unjust.lhp
scratch, gimme the skinny on what's makin' you itch, man. I, uh, dig your predicament, i'm a fuzzy on it all, but i wanna grok this completely.


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:35:01 GMT unjust.mic
Macromedia Flash video saying:
yeah, hello? 
we coulda taken that stack too 
if Mr. Moral Cooties over here hadn't twinked on us 
this stuff is nada, zip, etc. 
[then there's a screen of the type of logging things that have been showing up, with low numbers] 
optimize your kernal better next time 
so you don't have the problem 
Can we move ON now, plz?


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:35:22 GMT unjust.txt
I noticed. Everything was fine here but grabbed a few logs from various places. 

Snagged off the some box as the last spike. Has anyone else been watching it?: 
12:58:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 0.87, 0.79, 0.83 
12:59:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 1.03, 1.07, 1.11 
13:00:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 1.13, 1.10, 1.12 
13:01:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 1.09, 1.10, 1.08 
13:02:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 1.11, 1.09, 1.13 
13:03:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 1.12, 1.13, 1.10 
13:04:59 horschack logger: processor load average: 0.87, 0.81, 0.85 

Northeast, if my notes are correct: 
14:58:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 0.16, 0.06, 0.12 
14:59:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 1.18, 0.97, 1.36 
15:00:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 1.98, 1.68, 1.73 
15:01:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 1.16, 1.65, 1.83 
15:02:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 1.34, 1.38, 0.96 
15:03:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 0.98, 1.12, 1.18 
15:04:59 brainiac logger: processor load average: 0.13, 0.08, 0.11 

From the west: 
11:58:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.06, 0.06, 0.04 
11:59:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.82, 0.73, 0.68 
12:00:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.77, 0.79, 0.75 
12:01:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.82, 0.80, 0.76 
12:02:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.84, 0.83, 0.83 
12:03:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.83, 0.83, 0.81 
12:04:59 stella logger: processor load average: 0.07, 0.09, 0.04 


12:58:59 fred logger: processor load average: 0.05, 0.03, 0.06 
12:59:59 fred logger: processor load average: 3.82, 3.94, 4.03 
13:00:59 fred logger: processor load average: 3.71, 3.83, 3.98 
13:01:59 fred logger: processor load average: 4.11, 3.97, 3.84 
13:02:59 fred logger: processor load average: 3.94, 3.76, 3.58 
13:03:59 fred logger: processor load average: 3.81, 3.63, 3.54 
13:04:59 fred logger: processor load average: 0.07, 0.04, 0.02 

Largest I've found: 
13:58:59 zig logger: processor load average: 0.01, 0.04, 0.02 
13:59:59 zig logger: processor load average: 9.82, 9.34, 9.00 
14:00:59 zig logger: processor load average: 9.74, 9.53, 8.98 
14:01:59 zig logger: processor load average: 9.68, 9.48, 9.01 
14:02:59 zig logger: processor load average: 9.71, 9.47, 8.99 
14:03:59 zig logger: processor load average: 9.06, 9.03, 8.96 
14:04:59 zig logger: processor load average: 0.09, 0.06, 0.03 


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:37:16 GMT unjust3.jpg


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:40:42 GMT unjust2.txt
Easy, C. We're all friends here....no one here is 'dangerous'.

scratch is not that difficult
scratch is coffee shops secret
scratch is just hand written chicken scratch
scratch is from toronto
scratch is here
scratch is a free
scratch is tough
scratch is la mere michele tradition
scratch is fun
scratch is larger than the last one about the size of a needle longer
scratch is now 'imminent'
scratch is a 32" tall
scratch is a feature
scratch is a shared area where students
scratch is the definitive access route for professional and bedroom dj's to enter and control the digital world
scratch is a unique and patented technology that allows real
scratch is one of those equipment that makes you wonder if someone
scratch is the name we gave to a shared folder area for the transfer of files between the various machines on our network
scratch is playing friday feb
scratch is available
scratch is back
scratch is a 3 gb disk partition maintained as scratch space for cs systems users
scratch is a prime example of a gene required for this second developmental process
scratch is just as easy as picking out a ready
scratch is
scratch is the simplest scratch to learn
scratch is probably the easiest scratch there is
scratch is now available and shipping to stores
scratch is very much like waxing a car
scratch is temporary storage
scratch is a local directory that's unique to each node
scratch is located in
scratch is there
scratch is removed
scratch is the vocal turntablist of the group that has blown the minds
scratch is an infectious love of the art form and world of the hip
scratch is able to get to the ropes
scratch is picking up chuckles off the ground and doesn't he look like a rag doll
scratch is a beautifully paced film that celebrates musical exploration and innovation
scratch is the ideal boat for water
scratch is the most amazing tool for dj's since the invention of the 1200
scratch is backed up
scratch is built on basically the same format as clips
scratch is a remarkable triumph on virtually every level
scratch is now available
scratch is not free
scratch is still at the vet
scratch is NOBLE, and well given


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:42:02 GMT unjust.mp3
leave it to texel to have it all down! what, d'ya create a folder just for this? You can add this, from Oklahoma City, I believe.

13:58:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 0.03, 0.06, 0.01
13:59:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 8.83, 8.87, 8.76
14:00:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 8.88, 9.21, 8.73
14:01:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 9.28, 8.64, 8.52
14:02:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 8.96, 8.37, 8.51
14:03:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 8.93, 9.02, 8.71
14:04:59 damocles logger: processor load average: 0.09, 0.07, 0.06


Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:43:31 GMT unjust2.mic
Macromedia Flash video containing:
CHILL!!

Thu, 16 Oct 2003 21:45:43 GMT unjust2.lhp
scratch, gimme the skinny on what's makin' you itch, man. I, uh, dig your predicament, i'm a fuzzy on it all, but i wanna grok this completely.


The BigMcLargeHuge.* Files, Oct 26th


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:11:11 GMT bigmclargehuge.mic
Quicktime movie containing:
orphan punk

off the grid

a hero for
the ages!

omg!  everybody
worship!

what's your
mission, kid?

is this your
final stop?

what are you
looking for?

i think i know


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:39:34 GMT bigmclargehuge.doc


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:41:29 GMT bigmclargehuge2.doc


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:44:36 GMT bigmclargehuge.jpg


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:45:26 GMT bigmclargehuge.txt
um ... what?


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:47:08 GMT bigmclargehuge.kbp
dun get it. oooooookey, so we're here and what? d00d, i don't got all day to be messing around with pity parties n stuph. what is up yer ass, scritchah? caesar?!!?!?! why fight? all love! ha! LOL, like that will ever happen. there be nothing here that i can see, cap'n! locked like a drum, dunno how you got in, nice job, but ??? what are we looking at?


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:48:35 GMT bigmclargehuge2.jpg


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:50:26 GMT bigmclargehuge3.jpg
Dude, what are you doing? I should pull these files, we shouldn't be here. What are you up to? Where'd you get that pic? We gotta talk IRL.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:52:46 GMT bigmclargehuge2.mic
this is the only time you've had the frikkin' rug pulled out from under you. i bet you don't like this at all, you pansy! you're sneaking around, USING us to do the sweat on this network, and it's all for YOU YOU YOU. I know what's up with you, with him, with HER, with your off-the-grid homeboy lie that you've been living. you're on the run, kid, and they're going to find you, i bet. any day now, with their smarts and their code and their ways of making you NOT EXIST. that's right, stupid, *I* am the idiot that couldn't figure it out, and yet you left that trail for me like electric breadcrumbs. yer vague as hell, sonny, but 2 and 2 makes 5 if you think for one moment the rest of us are gonna hang onto your plans as if we were just loopholing our way through the digital universe. this noble/roman doesn't work for free, bud.

i don't appreciate being used. why don't you give us all a little lowdown, a bit of the old family tree. it might do you good, mister sensitive. you could get a load off your chest. you could share. sharing time is now. out with it.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:54:54 GMT bigmclargehuge.lhp
caesar, should i feel used? i'm uh, a bit at a loss, here. you want my trust, you're gonna have to give me the skinny on the intrigue. right. hmmm.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:56:53 GMT bigmclargehuge.graffle


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 01:59:04 GMT bigmclargehuge2.txt
i'd think it'd be up to caesar to reveal what he wants to reveal. tavernpointe was supposed to be for fun, but it never really did get that way. i've been compiling all this info, and i think that even if our boy did have some sort of an agenda, what we're seeing here is an amazing pattern, a shockingly logical progression of data. i have it here - i've roundtabled it through three different sequences in different mining programs. the disc backups that i've gotten from some of you, along with my complete archives? c'mon, scratch, even if there was something more to this for caesar personally, than what we're seeing with our own eyes, you'd have to admit that it's gotten our interest for some weeks now.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:00:58 GMT bigmclargehuge.ypt
Nets pleased advance restate degrade transfuse; 
Fluke slack outwear mnemonics kill speak fruit. 
Bronze whelk plumbago fir outdistance use, 
Twill will restriction Bronx distracted boot! 
Noise hook applied production cos elope-- 
Chuck kind phi wrong clean fuse almighty barbed? 
Singe lush scale unfortunate piss assist dope; 
Flip dance exchange intense unpleasant barbed: 
It roc harpoon submersion whirr no hose? 
Cheer chair devout inclusion work rejoin-- 
Gloom mail sedan grub yard akin faun hose: 
Boot love jib subtend soak find squeeze lag coin: 
Keel t informer bus clank equip chimp? 
Slurp mist seigneur marine revetment imp!


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:02:01 GMT bigmclargehuge.gif
Ah, just shut up already, Random! ;)


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:03:50 GMT bigmclargehuge2.ypt
I am dying, slave to my eyes 
my life desolate and in pain 
light is gone 

I wish for someone to care - 
a tragic abyss given away 

only this loneliness can invite this disease


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:04:21 GMT bigmclargehuge2.lhp
y'know, i think i'm out for now. i don't think i'm being used, but i don't know what's going on. even though the whomp levels weren't out of this world, anything more than that would've fried all our boxen. and i do mean fried. caesar, i'm gone. call it an instinct of self-preservation.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:05:13 GMT bigmclargehuge2.graffle


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:07:42 GMT bigmclargehuge3.mic
what, cat got your tongue, boy? gone silent in the face of truth? why not go play some video games, where you can have all the intrigue and spies r us 2 feet in front of your nose. go BLIND for all i care - you've wasted all our time.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:10:59 GMT bigmclargehuge3.txt
way too harsh.

what's happened, though, is this: the safety in numbers i had thought was our greatest strength has now become a misnomer. we're left in the dust here, caesar, and i can't be having with all my meticulous work being thrown to the strange digital wolves that've been prowling around lately. not only is the whomp a huge blip on our radar, here in 'hackerland,' but there've been rumors of things happening in fleshspace, too. someone's cracking down and tracking down. something's rippling the surface. i feel like we're getting too close, and we don't agree on what to do. because of you, caesar, we don't even know -what- we're doing.

i am, with great regret, out as well. the chain's broken. you had a chance to tell us (or even hint at) these dark secrets of yours. we're not hip to the jive, and so we must part.

the greater good cannot abide your mystery, and that's a problem.


Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:12:49 GMT bigmclargehuge4.jpg
I guess the tribe has fucking spoken.


The not.* Files, Nov 5th


not.jpg
III, i, and I'm still here.

It pisses me off to think that I was going to fall for it - that I was going to let some doubt and fear overshadow the amazing things we've managed to do here over the past several weeks. I worked hard, man, and for what? For you all to bail on me?

I don't think so. I took a little trip, and I think it's quite clear, I was right all along. We saw something, something undeniably related to the whomp on our computers. We sat on our butts, people. We allowed this data to overwhelm us and we never really questioned it. We just sat back and said, "Pass the remote, dude."

Out there, in the open air and away from the hum of the fan, or the whirr of the processor, Random and I saw things you'd never expect, except on Ripley's Believe It or Not.

I'm back, and don't you forget it. I am not intimidated, I am not scared, and I don't really care if you stick around for the ride or not, any more. You all had your chances, and while I think it's stupid that your skills are going to waste with the scripting you'll most likely go back to now that you've left this project hanging, I am not going to hang onto the hope at this point.

If anything, I'll share a little. If it helps. So WHAT if you don't trust me? Random's golden, and he saw the same things I saw?

Are you on board, or not?


not2.jpg
Why "caesar"? Well, probably not for the reasons you'd expect.

It takes a unique freak to be a real pop culture junkie. On today's 'net, any jerko can slavishly track the progress of the latest Tarantino flick on $movie_portal_website or debate the merits of the $elves_and_orcs_ahoy trilogy in exhaustive, mind-numbing, spec-wallowing detail on some fanboy forum somewhere. This is all well and good, and there are definitely hipster silent bob type wannabes who would leech off of the realtime adulation of their fans and who are secretly checking the boards for anything the reviews didn't say. And yeah, that works for some, but not for everybody. I was looking for something.....I dunno....purer.

See, I got bored with what modern film had to offer a little while ago. So I decided to go back through the years, a decade at a time, and see what came BEFORE everyone started spending all their time focussing on the cash cow of Hollywood and what cinematographer did what - basically, when people just went to the movies to see a story, and to be entertained. And what I found, instead of this constant parade of meta-archetypes that are full of irony and self-consciousness, were several generations of real, genuine, natural badasses. Celluloid men for whom self-confidence came naturally because they KNEW that the world would be out there staring at them, not because their publicists and agents TOLD them so to pump up their ego.

In the 1970's, I found Fred Williamson. The Godfather of Harlem. Pure swagger.

In the 1950's, an embarrassment of riches. Sure, no one remembers Harold Tasker or Louis Calhern today, but look at their supporting casts! Icons all: Brando. Gielgud. Jimmy Mason. Heston (although I got SOMETHING I'd like to pry outta his cold dead fingers....)

In the 1930's, the mother lode: Edward G. Robinson. This guy resonated with me so hard it hurt. Little guy, pissed on by society, won't roll over but decides he's gonna play tough anyway. Just squirrelly little Emanuel Goldenberg, up there against the rest of the world. "Mother of mercy...is this the end of Rico?" The gangster is the perfect blueprint for today's 'net cowboy.

They don't make 'em like Robinson anymore. Name me one modern actor that has that blend of thuggish panache and pure stubbornness. Well, maybe Pantoliano. Which, now that I think of it, he was a Caesar too, once, wasn't he?


not3.jpg
Too many years of scanning network backbones by the glow of my monitor. Too many late night pizza feasts, becoming the poster child for poor diet. ItÕs too much trouble, but when thereÕs nothing else in the house, coffee blacker than the blackness of my screen. Too much working myself right up to the edge of that adrenaline rush, finding one last neglected port to worm into. Eventually it caught up with me. Yeah yeah, I know they say it's genetics, but I can't help feeling like I'm paying for living a normal teenage life.

I don't remember the first time, but I remember the ugliest. I was four hours into a marathon session of Half-Life on the 'Gamex - SO much cooler, btw, when you play it with the mod chip installed - and the next thing I knew, I was on the floor. She had her arms locked tight around me and was screaming something in my face. "STOP IT! STOP IT! PLEASE!" It was a grand mal, lucky I hadn't bitten my tongue or gouged my face on the side of the coffee table going down or something, and it's not like the two of them hadn't seen it a million times before. But it had been getting better - hell, I had been on the Dilantin for something like six months by that point which was doing NOTHING to help my acne - and I guess the 'rents never expected to see another seizure that bad.

I was laid up for five straight days. Treated like a king, they waited on me hand and foot while I laid in bed and sipped juice and avoided strobing monitors and tried not to look pathetic. All the time, I was just itching to get back online. 1337 h4x0rs have to stay wired, or our batteries run down. Scratch was just itching to give me shit for time spent off the grid, totally.

Monday I played catchup to see that my firewall had taken a solid pounding while I was playing sad little invalid. I figured, okay, what goes around comes around. The urchins probably wanted to see what the hell I was keeping on MY root for a change, and were keeping themselves busy this whole time. Little did they know that instead of the thousands of game keys and ripped .mp3s and porn archives they might expect, all they would have found was a bunch of diagrams and Metapoint slideshows for my Civil War Gettysburg battle recreation project.

Outflank. Rush. Retreat. It's like chess or football.....some people donÕt get this game, but itÕs fascinating to me. Lose the battle, win the war.

Anyway, so I scanned the attack logs on the firewall. Much to my surprise, instead of the usual sneering from Scratch and 1337 attitudes from the rest, all I saw were the closest thing you could ever get to warm fuzzies from people you would prolly never meet in fleshspace. "come back come back five and dime whatever, C!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!", said one from mello (ha ha, I am poor diet poster child, he is Ritalin poster child), " urchins are lost without you!!!!!!!!!! BACK BACK BACK NOW NOW!!"

Someday I will be ruler of the world, and I will outlaw exclamation point keys on keyboards. But at that second, plugging back in, I knew I was home again.

And it felt okay.


The Texel PaintOver posts, Nov 10th(?)


Sun, 9(?) Nov 2003 - Caesar's Post
putting my thinking ^ on

(I kept this in Draft mode because I thought I could do this on my own. I don't think I can get all of it.)

Wherever texel is, there's interference. I was able to get the first one, but there's blips at the beginning of each transmission, and so I can't be sure about the rest. texel, if I ever get to see you again, I hope you'll forgive me for cracking your machine - I had a feeling you'd cc: yourself on these.

Random, you're good at translation, wanna give me a hand?

#1:

testing (loading cryptoscript for secure transmission)


Mon, 10(?) Nov 2003 - Texel's Posts (Decoded)
testing (loading cryptoscript for secure transmission)

caesar, i'm here outside elmview ga. definitely a whomp, but somehow skewed. circumference is not as wide as expected, epicenter seems extremely unstable at outset. also seems two hours early.

things are repeating. feeling of inertia. saw an echo shadow of self approaching the site. i can see myself sending the test post to paintover. so weird! i am calm despite this. whoah, that building is no longer a single-story brick - it's glass and steel and at least 20 stories. i can't believe my eyes.

something's not right here. duration and execution of whomp is not happening as a chaotic outward ripple from epicenter - there is a systematic and organized ... rebooting of the area around me. some things are changing, others remain untouched. it is currently quite easy to side step the changes. wish had more data-collecting ability than currently. to the naked eye whomp is less anomaly, more automated.

crapola. things are escalating. cannot find way out. my echo is gone, and I am fine, or maybe the other way round. running, but whatever is effecting the area is moving faster. feeling caged, harder to dodge.

wind, rain, bright sun. hard to see. caesar, can't do much now. never should have come. will try to upload addtl data if can

sweep no more SOS hurt in g_



The Texel PaintOver posts, Nov 13(?)th


Texel is back
well, hello!

it's me.

ow.
Posted by texel at 09:44 PM


More Texel
more

i'm resting up, currently. i'm fine.

i shouldn't be fine, considering what happened, but you know, what's a broken ankle when you've just survived your very first in-person whomp?

by all rights, i should be dead, and all i can say is, how thankful am i that that thing was not meant for me? that is to say, i feel extremely sorry for whom that was meant - that was not just some ghosts, or dudes with boards out in a cornfield.

btw, i find it very curious that not only did i escape relatively unscathed, but so did my portable. mostly. unfortunately, the power supply got totally fubared (battery chamber smashed up a bit, a/c jack bent in beyond repair), so i couldn't retrieve anything off it, or tell you guys anything until now. oh boy.

Posted by texel at 09:48 PM


Texel Is Safe And Well
voila

love note from a mysterious benefactor

Posted by texel at 9:56pm


Which decodes to:
Miss Kinross is safe and well. She appears to be suffering from a broken right ankle and a certain amount of bruising, but is otherwise not seriously harmed and will recover in due course. There is no need to be alarmed.

Caesar
Right now, I am pretending that there are Powers That Be, and I am thanking them profusely.

I am so GLAD you're back!

And, wow. Guys, take a look at that file.

texel, get home when you can. You are amazing. That's all there is to it.

Posted by caesar at 09:58 PM


Bounce
:)

texel is brave
texel is a little crazy in the head
texel made us all very, very worried
texel is a slice of multi-grain toast
texel is
texel is back

Posted by bounce at 10:05 PM


Texel is All Right
And savagely she goes limping
Into the lazy nannygoats,
Laughing while they cover
Quickly in the dumbfound horses

And star-struck the kings of the cobblestreets
Hang loudly in praise of the fishwife
Scrubbing while they blaze
Finally into the seashaken downy night


The brutus.* Files, Nov 16th


Mon, 17 Nov 2003 04:49:57 GMT brutus.jpg
Guys, if any of you are still around, there's absolutely tons of activity down south again. It's been whompin' steady since yesterday: 9:20, 10:42, 12:03, 13:16....and Random, texel and I are thinking of heading back down to check it out. Another road trip, anyone?


Mon, 17 Nov 2003 05:42:32 GMT brutus.mic
Quicktime Movie saying: "Help Me"

Mon, 17 Nov 2003 07:54:55 GMT brutus.kbp
SCRITCHITY SCRITCHITY SCRITCHITY SCRAAAAAAAAAAAATCHHHHHHHHHHH where are you? where are you? Help Me. yo! i'm here for ya man but ya gotta give a guy more to go on ya know. help ya how? been trying to call but get a bunch of nothingness blank nada zilch zip ring ring ring. answer your phone man. What's up?

caesar boy, have you guys lost it? it's insanity. insanity i say. yep, insanity. after what happened to tex. man, i dunno bad bad bad. got a feeling man. bad. you hear from the screetcherscratcher? what's the word? he with you?


Mon, 17 Nov 2003 20:34:04 GMT brutus2.jpg
OK, we all here now? I've got sort of a line on Scratch - access logs to PO indicate he's using a dial-up near here, but other tracing I am trying to do is showing sporadic access points. Whatever's going on, I don't think he's staying in one place for long.

mello, you must chill. OK, so we've got some serious weirdness going on here, but texel survived just fine. Scratch is one stubborn guy - he's most likely crying wolf. He didn't believe me before, who really thinks he's since been converted to the church of caesar, huh? :P He's just mocking us, oh how clever he is. Etc. etc. etc.


Mon, 17 Nov 2003 20:46:35 GMT brutus.lhp
!!!

i dunno, dude, that was pretty wack!

scratch. please.

are you OK? i know you're a big jerko and all, but you gotta let us know you're ok. it seems like we're walking into some haunted house or horror movie. this is really freaking weird! ok, so my hands are even shaking.

please, scratch. give us a sign.


Mon, 17 Nov 2003 23:05:03 GMT brutus2.mic
alright, you wanted mommy and daddy, i brought you your precious mommy and daddy.

it's just too, too bad that whatever monsters of authority you've dredged up in your snooty scriptkiddy games are rilly glad that you've been looking so hard for them.

this is a nightmare, but i think it's so totally worth it, you toga-wearing fool.


Tue, 18 Nov 2003 03:35:55 GMT brutus.txt
ugh, rain.

ok, so we're seeing not only the time periods caesar mentioned earlier, but just a constant barrage of activity, everywhere. it's crazy - the fluctuations are not only peaking several times a day, but even the base level is much higher than normal. i'm pulling logs from some local machines here - even the cv, and it's just unreal. i also (cough) got into a local utility's meter logs, but even with a 24-hour turnaround, you can see the first several waves of this maelstrom. a few paranormal websites and message boards have also reported strange doings, which is alternately funny and frightening. i don't think they know, exactly, that this is all quite real.

speaking of the reality of these whomps, painkillers can't even dull the tension i'm feeling right now. i am not sure what scratch is up to, but i've talked it over with caesar, and we agreed that we have to proceed gently, yet firmly. what's reassuring - oddly - is the slightly more chaotic nature of the bursts. we're seeing immense power levels, but it's not ... ok, it's methodical. i can't quite explain. it's more random and experimental. i would almost say that you could begin to detect a pattern, but then the logs indicate a ceasefire for an hour or so, and then it all starts up again.

fickle data!

we're gonna see how close we can get. i've been hoping for some strange lights, or perhaps a nice cozy hotel to spring up out of nowhere so we can chill in comfort, but no dice. heh. guess i'll have to hobble into trouble.

please, all of you, be careful.

scratch, you most of all. i mean it.


Tue, 18 Nov 2003 05:48:46 GMT brutus3.mic
wtf were you into?? i met your precious parents, and ... they're coming for their boy now. look, in one day i managed to get you what you've spent months slamming your head into your schoolbooks over.

god!!!!! what were YOU thinking, you mal-adjusted emo baby? you think I was the one that messed things up? you have no clue AT ALL. i said nightmare earlier and you LISTEN to me, you punk-ass, i was not kidding. bad situation. sorry is a small word for this. i am so sorry. you don't even know.

THEY'RE AFTER US, OK? THEM.

they're going to KILL me. i needed help, and then i didn't, and now there's no help big enough to cover this mess. wtf. i can't believe this. this was a game, right? this was just you, fucking around, and there was me being better than you, EACH and EVERY step of the way. this WAS A GAME, but THEY don't care. screw you and your precious secrets.

you'd better run


Tue, 18 Nov 2003 06:23:03 GMT brutus3.jpg
What can be avoided
Whose end is purposed by the mighty gods?
Yet Caesar shall go forth; for these predictions
Are to the world in general as to Caesar.


Tue, 18 Nov 2003 20:30:42 GMT brutus2.txt
some of you i have never ever met nor seen.

all i know is the feel of your echo through your words, and your actions. seeing scratch come into the small clearing, he was instantly recognizable.

he was alone, as well.

more news when we can get it to you.

[edit]

ok, he doesn't know where they are, either. he's been looking for hours.


Tue, 18 Nov 2003 20:47:07 GMT brutus4.jpg


Tue, 18 Nov 2003 20:48:08 GMT brutus.ypt
He Arriveth, Yet Sans Nurturing Duo 

The arguing pair recall with a sorrowful tooth 
Like Semper Fi in the eye or Michelangelo trumpeting to his member 
Quickly it embarked from the front of the vanilla tank. 
He was arising himself--he had no choice 
The scratch picked up the torn wing and stapled it back on the angel 
Never created.. . Never more has been yelped 
"Dominate me with your overpowering nose!" Agatha Christie moaned quickly. 
From a height high above, the preacher grasped the orange. 
Weap bitter tears, blank face, like Caesar.. . Nothing are you, or will you ever be.


-=end of file=-