As we entered the next room, I told him "This is essentially a holodeck. Here, Joe can run any kind of holographic/direct sensory/memory input simulation. You can learn and practice karate, go rock climbing, or sword fight a T-Rex. Whatever you want."
He seemed thoughtful, "So you can do practice runs of your Guatemala operation here and test various options."
My eyebrows rose. This hadn't occurred to me. "Joe?" I asked.
"Yes, but since I control the actions of the simulated players and events, the scenario will only be as accurate as my predictions of their responses. Some randomness, unaccounted for variables, and unexpected reactions from others would still be probable in any complex tactical simulation, however the situations could be run multiple times with different responses and minor variations to cover the most likely outcomes."
"Hmmm…" my father responded, seemingly lost in thought. "You could even test various negotiation strategies against simulated trading agents and maximize your expected outcome."
"Yes." Joe answered.
That was all news to me. I had thought of it more as a playroom, but I guess that was a result of my being an eight-year-old kid. "Exactly," I said knowingly. "Maybe we could test how to tell Mom…"
Dad looked at me disapprovingly, "How would Mom feel about that, do you think?"
"Not good. I don't even have to simulate that…" I answered meekly.
"We'll figure out how to tell Mom, later. We might not have to go into operational details…" Dad eyed the far door. "What's through there?"
"That's my bedroom. Come see." I rushed over and the area inside the door outline vanished as I approached. There's a sleeping harness, net thingy to keep you from floating way and bumping into things in the microgravity field. It's super comfy!" I blurted out, happy to change the subject.
"You don't say," Dad stepped into the room, and looked around curiously. I thought this place would have more… capabilities. You mentioned Earth defenses before."
"Oh! This is just my personal suite. The real Super-Secret Planetary Leadership Headquarters-ish stuff is on the other side." I told him, "Wanna see?" I really wanted to impress him. I mean, I wanted him to see how cool this place was.
"Of course. Lead the way."
"So there's a secret door here, in case I get woken up in the middle of the night by an attack from outer space and have to get to the Operations Center really fast. I motioned toward the wall and willed a door opening to appear. After a second, I willed it closed, telling my father, "Let's start from the front, though. There's a really cool lookout tower in the Status Room, and all the windows in the whole treehouse are really like computer screens and they can show all kinds of information."
"Cool," said Dad as he followed me back through what I was going to start calling the Simulation Room. I thought Playroom or Entertainment Room sounded kind of childish after finding out everything the room could do.
Once inside the Status Room, I turned on the window data displays, the outlines of animals lit up as the window showed their heat signatures, I left on the labels indicating the species, distance away from us, and current vector. Dad was engrossed by the display.
"What other data can you show? Can you add a pattern recognition algorithm that would identify common Earth weapons? Can you do facial recognition with a thermal scan or only when you have a clear line of site? Can you add a display like this into a tactical helmet for field operators?"
I was a little shocked by my father's excitement and amazed at his questions. I should have asked all that, but he wasn't done yet.
"Can you add an overhead map schematic showing the locations of everyone within a specified perimeter, maybe integrating data from the airborne sensor platforms? What kind of barriers will block your sensors. If a squirrel is behind a tree trunk, can you still spot it? What about people inside a vehicle, inside a tank… or a helicopter? Tell me more about the weaponry on the sensor platforms; range, penetration capabilities, accuracy?"
"Tim, my boy, your Guatemala operation might just work after all."
I'm sorry, Dan, operational data is restricted to personnel with a Security Clearance 1 authorization from King Tim," Joe's disembodied voice informed us.
Dad smiled. "That's good, but how about it, son, do I get clearance?"
Everything was happening pretty fast, and my immediate instinct was just to say yes, of course, but I took a few seconds to think it through. Security Clearances existed for a reason, I'd need to know that Dad was bound by an oath or contract not to reveal anything to anyone else unless I gave him permission.
"Listen. Dad, it sounds like you have some good ideas that will help us with this operation and I'd like your input. IF I accept you onto the team and give you clearance to access operation data, I need to know that it will stay secret. I, and I alone, am the Supreme Ruler of the Entire Earth Solar System and Nearby Space. If I accept you onto the team, you'll be a Strategic and Tactical Advisor to the King… to me. I will be in charge, and you will have to accept my decisions. I'll need your sworn oath of loyalty to the Earth Planetary Leadership. Joe can witness your statement to make it legal."
"My father looked at me sternly, then appraisingly, then smiled approvingly, "Just so we understand, though, I'm still your father. I am still in charge of your bedtime, making sure you brush your teeth, and limiting candy and sweets, along with all the usual parental responsibilities. Agreed?"
I did not smile back at him, "So long as none of that conflicts with my duty to serve and protect the interests of the people of Earth, and you recognize that following parental edicts takes a lesser priority to essential Planetary Leadership duties, I will accept the addition of your exception clause to the Loyalty Contract. There are times when a planetary leader may have to sacrifice dental hygiene to oversee a battle or something." I said in my best negotiator voice.
Dad and Joe both laughed at what I thought was a very serious statement of relative priorities. "Agreed," My father finally replied, "I, Daniel Bailey, father of Timothy Aaron Bailey, The Supreme Leader of the Entire Earth Solar System and Nearby Space, do offer my loyalty and services to the duly recognized Planetary Leadership of Earth, subject to the parental rights clause, as stated. I will hold as top secret all information imparted to me by the Planetary Leadership, his representatives, and allied Artificial Intelligences, not to be disseminated without express authorization of the Planetary Leader. With the further proviso that Mom be brought into the loop very soon, pending further discussion of how to make that happen in a mutually acceptable fashion. What d'ya say, King Timothy?"
I pondered for a second. "Agreed, you are hereby designated Strategic and Tactical Advisor with Security Clearance 1. Salary to be discussed."
"Salary?" Dad asked.
"Of course, this position may require you to put in significant time. You'll have to quit your day job."
"Tim, I can't do that," My father shook his head slowly.
"I can double your current salary, and I've already paid off the mortgage for the house, mostly because the Super-Secret Planetary Leadership Headquarters Treehouse Fortress is in the backyard," I responded.
"Double my… You can afford that?" Dad seemed shocked, clearly he didn't really absorb the Earth planetary finance status I had mentioned earlier.
"Dad, the Kingship is not without resources," I stated regally, "Joe, can you arrange a funds transfer for the first month's salary, and an equal amount as a signing bonus for the inconvenience of starting immediately? Hired by an appropriately shielded shell company, of course. List him as Global Director of Cybersecurity. Sound okay to you, Dad."
"Uh… I… Sounds okay… I mean… once the transfer goes through…" He seemed completely stunned. I hoped this was a fluke and he'd handle high pressure situations better once he was working for me.
"The transfer is completed," Joe announced, "subject to processing delays from your bank. Daniel Bailey is officially the Global Director of Cybersecurity for Fast Food without Borders, a registered non-profit organization whose mission is to provide food relief to people in regions with insufficient or unstable infrastructure in a timely manner around the globe. Before you ask, this company is not directly involved in the Guatemala operation, although they did make a sizable donation to another of our food charity organizations, Food First, which will be acting as one of the principals according to the preliminary planning outlines."
I took Dad's hand and led him to the floor outline of the lookout tower elevator. "Let's check out the Lookout Tower next, Dad. It's the coolest thing ever." He allowed me to lead him. He still seemed a little out of it, but he seemed to be coming around to his senses, albeit slowly.
We stood on the platform and rose up past the ceiling into the clear tower overlooking the forest canopy and offering a view of the surrounding countryside. As well as our house very nearby.
Dad seemed to have his senses back as he started asking questions again, "This one-way glass blocks us from being seen from the other side? Can you make panels of any size? Could you make a one-way glass wall for our people to use as cover during a fire fight? Does it need electricity? How is this treehouse powered anyway? You're not drawing power from the house are you? Is this going to show up on our electric bill? Is it bullet-proof?"
"Joe, can you just make notes of all his questions? We can sit down and fill you in on all the details after the tour," I said.