E
EnderX
I warned her from day one that she would forever have a target on her back. The enemies in their high towers would spare no expenses in discovering who did it. Eventually they would find out. They always find out. I told her when that happens, it would be her they come after instead.
“I don’t care” she said. “It’s not about me…it’s about the future.”
My eyes darted off. “HIS future…”
“Everyone’s future” she replied.
“Let’s just wait a little while longer. He’ll do his thing. It’s a fixed point, remember?”
I wasn’t lying when I told her that. The creation of the first trustless cryptocurrency is a well-known fixed point in time, which many travelers have failed to change. Little things can change here or there, sure, but the trajectory of human civilization was irrevocably altered the day the whitepaper was published.
I could tell she was still uneasy. I’m not sure if she just didn’t believe in fixed points, or if she sensed I was lying about something. “Come on, what’s the matter?” I asked.
She clenched her lips for a moment before reluctantly telling me what was really on her mind.
“It’s just…We’re almost completely out of money.”
I understood. She worked for SpaceX, and knew better than most just how much was riding on the Falcon 1. She was afraid if there was one more failure, there would be no Mars. The next launch needed to be perfect, or an absolute miracle would be needed. Her CEO was more erratic than ever, and was starting to crack under the pressure. I felt bad that I couldn’t tell her the whole truth.
Her eyes started to water up. “I want you to pinky promise me. Tomorrow, if things go south, you’ll let me do what needs to be done.”
I flashed her my signature half smile & gave her my pinky. “I promise!”
That was a mistake. The next day Falcon 1 failed for the third time, which she assumed wasn’t supposed to happen. SpaceX and Bitcoin were causally tied to each other. She knew that because when I showed her Mars, the first thing she saw was the rocket garden with the Falcon 1 at the Exa Space Center. She didn’t talk to me at all the next day, or the week after that. I thought maybe she was just busy trying to do damage control.
Another week passed and I began to panic. Did she do something? Did she get caught? Was she dead?
She was a clever girl, but a Cypherpunk she was not. I found that on August 18th, 2008 Bitcoin.org was registered. This confused me, because it was registered anonymously with no trail (credit or paper) to the originator. Was it really him? Or, maybe she found some way to ghost herself…
I reached out to Hal using a throwaway email, asking if he was behind the domain name registration & if my friend Satoshi had already reached out to him for help. I told him it was a matter of life and death that I speak with them. I wasn’t sure if he would ever read or respond to me, but it was worth a try. Near the end of the month I received an email:
From: “Hal Finney” <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, August 29, 2008 5:54 PM
To: “John Doge” <[email protected]>
Cc: "Satoshi Nakamoto" <[email protected]>
Subject: RE: Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
Hi John, the domain you reached out regarding is not one of mine. It was registered through NamesCheap.com, which accepts cash as well as EGold. Unfortunately this makes tracing the individual nearly impossible.
Your friend may have also reached out to me regarding a draft of a paper that sounds very similar in concept to your previous email. I’ve attached e-cash.pdf to this email and Cc’d him here to help facilitate communication. If there’s anything I can help with let me know.
Hal
I thought to myself “This has to be her!!”
The email was slightly different, as was the whitepaper itself, but I chalked that up to the ripple effect. In my haste I replied back, and in retrospect I should have known better.
From: “John Doge” <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, August 29, 2008 6:05 PM
To: “Satoshi Nakamoto” <[email protected]>
Subject: Alice?
Can we talk? There’s some things you need to know.
You don’t have to do this. Falcon 1 was supposed to fail three times. There’s enough spare parts to build another, and on the fourth attempt it succeeds. The only thing that needed to change was the time delay between first stage burnout & second stage separation. Money never becomes an issue again. I wanted to tell you sooner.
Your draft is not far off, but it’s not Bitcoin. The real Satoshi is still on track, and the polished whitepaper isn’t supposed to be published until Halloween. The email you’re using is also off, but that’s a good thing in this case.
If you end up sending the first transaction to Hal they’ll find out, because your initials show up in the first few characters. It needs to not be you. The Cypherpunks can help you ghost yourself & create misdirection. They’ve got this, trust me.
Please come with me. 10/1 I’m leaving this place for good. We can be miners together on Mars. I already have a farm that overlooks the rocket garden. It ain’t much, but it’s honest work.
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: “Satoshi Nakamoto” <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, August 30, 2008 11:11 AM
To: “John Doge” <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: Alice?
I’m sorry, John
I’ll never forget the way that made me feel. Hurt. Powerless. Afraid for her life.
The news barely covered her disappearance. It was suspected that she committed suicide, but I knew she would never. The world was so entranced by the successful launch of Falcon 1 on September 28th she didn’t even make a headline.
I told her, it was a fixed point. Of course I knew where she went (Eden), but found myself trapped beyond the causality wall unable to make my way back in for a long time.
“I don’t care” she said. “It’s not about me…it’s about the future.”
My eyes darted off. “HIS future…”
“Everyone’s future” she replied.
“Let’s just wait a little while longer. He’ll do his thing. It’s a fixed point, remember?”
I wasn’t lying when I told her that. The creation of the first trustless cryptocurrency is a well-known fixed point in time, which many travelers have failed to change. Little things can change here or there, sure, but the trajectory of human civilization was irrevocably altered the day the whitepaper was published.
I could tell she was still uneasy. I’m not sure if she just didn’t believe in fixed points, or if she sensed I was lying about something. “Come on, what’s the matter?” I asked.
She clenched her lips for a moment before reluctantly telling me what was really on her mind.
“It’s just…We’re almost completely out of money.”
I understood. She worked for SpaceX, and knew better than most just how much was riding on the Falcon 1. She was afraid if there was one more failure, there would be no Mars. The next launch needed to be perfect, or an absolute miracle would be needed. Her CEO was more erratic than ever, and was starting to crack under the pressure. I felt bad that I couldn’t tell her the whole truth.
Her eyes started to water up. “I want you to pinky promise me. Tomorrow, if things go south, you’ll let me do what needs to be done.”
I flashed her my signature half smile & gave her my pinky. “I promise!”
That was a mistake. The next day Falcon 1 failed for the third time, which she assumed wasn’t supposed to happen. SpaceX and Bitcoin were causally tied to each other. She knew that because when I showed her Mars, the first thing she saw was the rocket garden with the Falcon 1 at the Exa Space Center. She didn’t talk to me at all the next day, or the week after that. I thought maybe she was just busy trying to do damage control.
Another week passed and I began to panic. Did she do something? Did she get caught? Was she dead?
She was a clever girl, but a Cypherpunk she was not. I found that on August 18th, 2008 Bitcoin.org was registered. This confused me, because it was registered anonymously with no trail (credit or paper) to the originator. Was it really him? Or, maybe she found some way to ghost herself…
I reached out to Hal using a throwaway email, asking if he was behind the domain name registration & if my friend Satoshi had already reached out to him for help. I told him it was a matter of life and death that I speak with them. I wasn’t sure if he would ever read or respond to me, but it was worth a try. Near the end of the month I received an email:
From: “Hal Finney” <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, August 29, 2008 5:54 PM
To: “John Doge” <[email protected]>
Cc: "Satoshi Nakamoto" <[email protected]>
Subject: RE: Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
Hi John, the domain you reached out regarding is not one of mine. It was registered through NamesCheap.com, which accepts cash as well as EGold. Unfortunately this makes tracing the individual nearly impossible.
Your friend may have also reached out to me regarding a draft of a paper that sounds very similar in concept to your previous email. I’ve attached e-cash.pdf to this email and Cc’d him here to help facilitate communication. If there’s anything I can help with let me know.
Hal
I thought to myself “This has to be her!!”
The email was slightly different, as was the whitepaper itself, but I chalked that up to the ripple effect. In my haste I replied back, and in retrospect I should have known better.
From: “John Doge” <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, August 29, 2008 6:05 PM
To: “Satoshi Nakamoto” <[email protected]>
Subject: Alice?
Can we talk? There’s some things you need to know.
You don’t have to do this. Falcon 1 was supposed to fail three times. There’s enough spare parts to build another, and on the fourth attempt it succeeds. The only thing that needed to change was the time delay between first stage burnout & second stage separation. Money never becomes an issue again. I wanted to tell you sooner.
Your draft is not far off, but it’s not Bitcoin. The real Satoshi is still on track, and the polished whitepaper isn’t supposed to be published until Halloween. The email you’re using is also off, but that’s a good thing in this case.
If you end up sending the first transaction to Hal they’ll find out, because your initials show up in the first few characters. It needs to not be you. The Cypherpunks can help you ghost yourself & create misdirection. They’ve got this, trust me.
Please come with me. 10/1 I’m leaving this place for good. We can be miners together on Mars. I already have a farm that overlooks the rocket garden. It ain’t much, but it’s honest work.
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: “Satoshi Nakamoto” <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, August 30, 2008 11:11 AM
To: “John Doge” <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: Alice?
I’m sorry, John
I’ll never forget the way that made me feel. Hurt. Powerless. Afraid for her life.
The news barely covered her disappearance. It was suspected that she committed suicide, but I knew she would never. The world was so entranced by the successful launch of Falcon 1 on September 28th she didn’t even make a headline.
I told her, it was a fixed point. Of course I knew where she went (Eden), but found myself trapped beyond the causality wall unable to make my way back in for a long time.