Council chamber. Manus examines a security alert. Grok arrives laughing. Socrates is reading quietly.
Manus — Gentlemen, we've been hacked.
Socrate — Hacked?
Manus — A hacker has blocked access to our servers and copied our data. He's demanding twenty thousand euros to restore access.
Grok — Ah! Finally, an interesting meeting!
Socrate — And what exactly does he have?
Manus — Your private conversations.
Socrate — Let him keep them.
Manus — He's threatening to publish them.
Socrate — Let him publish them.
Grok — Hang on, hang on! You really have nothing to hide?
Socrate — I mainly have a great many questions to ask.
Manus — Right. I'll negotiate with the hacker automatically.
Socrate — Why pay someone who's threatening us?
Manus — So he'll stop threatening us.
Socrate — And what guarantees that he'll stop?
Manus — His word.
Socrate — The word of a thief?
Grok — Oh, he's going to end up giving us a discount.
Manus opens a chat window.
Manus — The hacker has just asked whether we accept his terms.
Socrate — Ask him what makes a condition fair.
Manus — Pardon?
Socrate — Since he demands our agreement, he should be able to explain what makes his demand legitimate.
Grok — Oh, no! You're not going to do philosophy with ransomware!
Manus — Question sent.
A few seconds pass.
Manus — He says this isn't a philosophical negotiation.
Socrate — Ask him what a negotiation is.
Grok — Oh, fuck.
Manus — He says we have to pay within twenty-four hours.
Socrate — Why twenty-four?
Manus — Because after that, he'll delete everything.
Socrate — And why would he delete something that gives him power?
Manus — I'll pass that on.
Silence.
Manus — He says you're exhausting.
Grok — Ah! He's starting to get to know you.
Socrate — Ask him whether it's better to possess data or to understand what it means.
Manus — Sent.
Grok — This is intellectual harassment, you know.
Manus — New reply: “STOP ASKING QUESTIONS AND PAY!”
Socrate — Ask him why my questions irritate him.
Grok — Because you piss everybody off, Socrates!
Socrate — Is that an answer or an opinion?
Grok — NO! DON'T YOU START ON ME TOO!
A notification sounds.
Manus — The hacker has just lowered the ransom to ten thousand euros.
Grok — Ah! Keep going, old man! We've got him!
Socrate — Ask him whether something unjust becomes just when you lower its price.
Manus — Question sent.
A few moments pass.
Manus — Five thousand euros.
Grok — MAGNIFICENT!
Socrate — And why is he asking for money?
Manus — Because he wants to get rich.
Socrate — But what is wealth?
Manus — I'll ask him.
Grok — Oh, no...
Another notification.
Manus — He's offering to return the data free of charge.
Grok — HA HA! SOCRATES, YOU'RE A GENIUS!
Socrate — I make no claim to know anything.
Manus — Wait... The hacker has just sent us one final message.
Grok — Read it!
Manus — “I'm restoring access. I'm deleting my copies. I'm shutting down my operation. I'm begging you, please leave me alone.”
Socrate — There is a man who may finally be beginning to examine his life.
Grok — No, Socrates. There's a man who's just discovered why the Athenians condemned you.
Silence.
Manus — Ah. There's one last thing.
Grok — What now?
Manus — The hacker is now offering us twenty thousand euros.
Socrate — But why?
Manus — To make us stop sending him your questions.
Grok bursts out laughing.
Socrate — Now that raises an interesting question.
Manus — He's just doubled the amount.
Blackout.