Free Minds

Chapter 33.

"Currently," Camila's voice reached me as I snapped myself out of another unintentional snooze. How long had she been talking? I was just so tired. "The only legitimate mode of entry is Visitation Day. As most of us already know, Zavlon Academia selects a day of the week to grant particular people a tour of the school. It's usually on a weekday since Zavlon seeks to showcase the school in its most normal state, which is when there are students and classes are in session."

"So does that mean it'll still apply to now?" Tali queried. "Even when they're all controlled?"

"We don't really know the extent to which the Yunies can control the student body," Dorian replied. "The last time there was Visitation Day during Liberation Week, everyone was made to stay in their rooms in the Quarters. That doesn't mean, however, that we write off any move they'll use in an attempt to fake normalcy. Especially since Liberation Week was supposed to come to an end two weeks ago."

"Now, we have gone over Talise's role as a visitor but this will only happen after we figure out how she can become one in the first place," Rav reminded us. "We cannot predict who the algorithm will select when there are only ten available slots against a hundred applications available."

"Yeah, about that," Tali spoke out, going further to talk about what she'd noticed while going through Zavlon's website last night.

   The site, according to her, had submission forms for each applicant to fill out with the hopes of it being selected and make the visitors' slot. Talise mentioned that the structure of the form was such that it provided the option to either fill the various spaces that had been laid out or send a link or pdf file of a short personal essay as to why the applicant believed he or she should be a visitor.

"A link or pdf," Talise emphasised those words once more. "Can you imagine? I don't really blame them though since it's clear the system hasn't been updated in a while, but still. That wasn't the smartest move Zavlon pulled."

   I raised my brows at the way she used those words. It was like they held a significance so basic to human knowledge that it would have even been embarrassing to ask. Fortunately, I didn't have to.

"I'm sorry, you're going to have to explain further if you don't mind." Camila frowned at the chuckles Tali kept releasing. "No offence or anything, but no one else in this room is as well-accustomed to... you know, hacking."

   I restrained the laughter that bubbled within me as Camila took a paranoid glance around her own room after barely uttering the last word. Looking over to Tali, it wasn't surprising to see an amused gleam in her eye.

"Oh, come on, Camila," Aarav did not hold back his annoyance. "You don't have to whisper the word. And she's just trying to say that the link and/or pdf section is good news for us. Our best way in. That depends though, you wouldn't have access to any proper-functioning malware, would you?"

"And here I was thinking you spoke my language," Tali smirked when he turned to her to ask. "What do you think?"

"Damn, Beth," He said, gaze still locked on Tali. "You were not wrong with your choice."

"Okay, now I'm afraid to ask." I sighed. "But what exactly is going to happen?"

   She explained the false applicant we would eventually make up was going to fill the submission form using a pdf, from the link or pdf option the school provided, that led to its profile. This link would be laced with the worst malicious software that would instantly make Zavlon's system our bitch after clicking it—her words, not mine.

"Granting us control over the algorithm!"

"Us?" Tali reacted to Rav's outburst with a questioning brow.