Eight hours later

Freeman thought the school day would never end. It seemed to drag on forever. The more he thought about the altercation with his mother, the angrier he became.

She has no right to barge in like that. I’m getting the hell off this island the second I graduate. I don’t care if I have to work on a fishing boat, I’m getting off this island.

Freeman booted his computer with his special set of hacking tools. He used a series of color-coded boot drives and didn’t bother labeling them. Black was for encrypted data, blue for gaming, purple for reconnaissance, and red for hacking. He preferred booting from these devices because most dark web hackers knew how to detect the use of virtualized systems. Besides, he needed every ounce of performance he could muster. He logged into the special drop site that contained his special hacking instructions. He opened the message labeled “FreemanRising.”

Welcome, FreeBird,

You will find details on your first assignment. We will need you to deface a public website on the surface web. We have chosen a few suggested sites.

Happy Hunting.

The Shadow Surfers

Freeman wondered how many hacking groups there were on the dark web. The Shadow Surfers seemed new. He looked at the suggested websites. One was for a popular senator from Vermont with a radical stance on a variety of hot-button topics. The second site was for a prepper community. It looked interesting because the man who ran the community looked like an older cartoon army man action figure he’d had when he was young. The third website was a charity for crippled children, the donation page was the target. Each target had several bonus challenges. The political site’s challenge was to dox the senator’s activity on several BDSM and voyeur websites he had frequented. The bonus challenge for the charity was to install a skimming mechanism to steal credit card information. Finally, the prepper website challenge was to dump the entire database for the website.

Freeman didn’t want to get into trouble for hacking a political website, especially during an election year, and he was against hacking any websites that would hurt children.

I guess I’m hacking these preppers.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

Freeman checked the local time: 1:48 a.m.

I don’t want to wait for my audition. I need the money now. Better to hack now, I think.

Freeman prepared for the attack by analyzing the website’s referral traffic. It appeared that an article about a former general of the US Army who had started the prepper compound had been featured in a financial magazine.

I bet those clients are loaded.

Freeman found information on applying for one of their bunker packages. He sent an infected PDF attachment to the information email found on the website. When the file was opened, he would have the access he needed to do anything he needed to prove himself to the site admins. He was a worthy adversary, and he wanted to prove it. He was getting ready for bed when he heard a familiar chime.

It’s too early for compromise.

Freeman rushed back to the computer. He realized his toothbrush was still in his mouth. After setting it aside, he checked his secure mailbox. He received a reply from [email protected].

Freeman opened the email.

Thank you for your information request, Dr. Morrison. I reviewed your information and I think you would be a great asset to our community. Each bunker has a separate ventilation system and enough air, water, and supplies to keep your family alive for several years. I have sent you an invitation-only link to our private area where you can view more information. I hope you find it useful, and if you have questions, ask.

Kurtzen, Director of prepper operations

“They took the bait. I can’t believe it! I’m glad the preppers are not very computer-savvy,” Freeman said.

He dumped the database and scheduled the defacement of the website for a couple of hours in the future. He didn’t want Kurtzen to put the breadcrumbs together. The man didn’t understand computers, but it didn’t mean he was stupid.

Anyone who can bilk clients out of millions for a hole in the group knows business.

Four hours later, Freeman’s mother Susan was banging on his door.

“Freeman, you’re going to be late—again!”

“I’m coming, Mother!”

Right after I check on my handiwork.

Freeman logged into his dark web account and held his breath when he opened the message from the Shadow Surfers.

Dear FreemanRising,

We have verified your hack. Your official welcome package and payment are enclosed.

He opened the attachments. There was a PDF titled “Welcome to the Shadow Surfers” along with a link. Freeman clicked the link, added the temporary Digibit wallet, then seconds later, six Digibit coins were deposited into his wallet.

That is a bundle. What is the current price of Digibit?

After a quick check, he was $43,286.69 richer.

The playing field has now changed, FreemanRising has arrived.

Freeman basked in the glory of a win. There was nothing like the feeling he got when receiving a payment for a righteous hack. The feeling of elation was short-lived, however, when his door was thrust opened. His mother stood there with her arms crossed. Before he could respond, she grabbed him by the ear.

“Get dressed—now!”