History Literature / Daemon

* TheGameComeToLife: [[spoiler:The entire plot.]] Early on, the autonomous Hummer is believed to have been programed with videogame-style logic and [=CyberStorm's=] games are used to recruit talent for Sobol's cause. Once recruited, operatives use AugmentedReality glasses to carry out "quests" in the style of a MMORPG; agents gain levels and earn "network credits" for completing tasks such as building tools and weapons, infiltrating and suborning governments and corporations, recruiting and training new operatives. As the Daemon network becomes more sophisticated and populated by warm bodies, [[spoiler:the combat and infiltration operations become less important(which annoys Loki to no end) and focus shifts to building a new ''civilization'' based on sustainable communities and acceptance of technological and social change.]]

* PredatoryBusiness: [[spoiler:The Daemon's primary blackmail target. A major setting in ''Freedom™'' is an agricultural darknet community battling "Halperin Organix", a FictionalCounterpart of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto Monsanto]].

-->''The Major'': ''But not at producing information. Torture isn’t '''about''' extracting information.'' (waves wire cutters in [[spoiler:Loki's]] face) ''Torture is about control. You let me torture a thousand people, and I can keep five million [[TheEvilsOfFreeWill working obediently with their heads down]]. The more innocent the victims, the better. And after they’re broken and maimed, you release them so that [[SwordOfDamocles everyone can see]] what awaits [[YouRebelScum those who resist]].''

* FlechetteStorm: One of the most potent weapons in the Daemon's arsenal are "Angel Teeth"; balloon-dropped smart flechettes [[ImprobableAimingSkills precise enough]] to ''[[SplittingTheArrow hit previously launched ones]]''.'' And are usually dropped in packs of a hundred; dozens of Daemon operatives show up at [[spoiler:Merrit's funeral]], only for PrivateMilitaryContractors to fire into the crowds to kill them - and for every PMC present to [[CurbStompBattle die from a single drop]].

* [[TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything Sobol Thought of Everything]]: He had to, since Daemon is not self-aware.

* FlechetteStorm: One of the most potent weapons in the Daemon's arsenal are "Angel Teeth"; UAV-dropped smart flechettes [[ImprobableAimingSkills precise enough]] to ''[[SplittingTheArrow hit previously launched ones]].'' And are usually dropped in packs of hundreds; dozens of Daemon operatives show up at [[spoiler:Merrit's funeral]], only for PrivateMilitaryContractors to fire into the crowds to kill them - and for every PMC present to [[CurbStompBattle die from a single drop]].

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to turn RealLife into a high-stakes MMORPG in [[TheGameComeToLife both senses of the term]] - carrying out "quests" to increase the Daemon's influence on the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities such as remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}}(at least to cameras) rings, "curses" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. As "quests" are completed, the devices and abilities the Daemon awards become more numerous and powerful. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to turn RealLife into a high-stakes MMORPG in [[TheGameComeToLife both senses of the term]] - carrying out "quests" to increase the Daemon's influence on the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities such as remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}}(at least to cameras) rings, "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. As "quests" are completed, the devices and abilities the Daemon awards become more numerous and powerful. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to turn RealLife into a high-stakes MMORPG in [[TheGameComeToLife both senses of the term]] - carrying out "quests" to increase the Daemon's influence on the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities such as remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}} rings(at least to cameras), "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. As "quests" are completed, the devices and abilities the Daemon awards become more numerous and powerful. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to [[TheGameComeToLife literally]] turn RealLife into a high-stakes MMORPG - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities such as remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}} rings(at least to cameras), "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to [[TheGameComeToLife literally]] turn RealLife into a high-stakes MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities such as remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}} rings(at least to cameras), "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* TheGameComeToLife: Early on, the autonomous Hummer is believed to have been programed with videogame-style logic and [=CyberStorm's=] games are used to recruit talent for Sobol's cause. As the Daemon network becomes more sophisticated and populated by warm bodies, it's run very much like a MMORPG with the addition of AugmentedReality glasses providing a heads-up display; agents gain levels and earn "network credits" for completing tasks.

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to both figuratively and literally turn RealLife into a high-stakes MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities such as remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}} rings(at least to cameras), "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to both figuratively and literally turn RealLife into a high-stakes MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities - remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, ShockAndAwe gloves and {{Invisibility}} rings(at least to cameras), "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to both figuratively and literally turn RealLife into a high-stakes MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities - control over remote controlled weapons like [=AutoM8s=] and Razorbacks, "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to both figuratively and literally turn RealLife into a high-stakes MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities - control over remote controlled weapons like AutoM8s and Razorbacks, "spells" that ruin people's credit ratings, etc. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AugmentedReality: Members of the Daemon's "darknet" wear CoolShades that project data from the Daemon onto the lenses, along with haptic gloves. The shades are keyed to their retinas, and the gloves to their fingerprints. These are used by the initial operatives to actively turn RealLife into a high-stakes MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame - carrying out missions to increase the Daemon's influence over the world result in "{{Character Level}}s" that grant them access to increasingly powerful devices and abilities. [[spoiler:Eventually, the darknet becomes an entire ''civilization'' that is InvisibleToNormals - one superior to the current one.]]

* AiIsACrapshoot: Explicitly subverted. The Daemon is in no way an AI, nor is it ever claimed to be one. Experts repeatedly have to correct people who do refer to it as an "AI" by explaining that at best it is a distributed network of expert systems with a predefined set of actions, and in no way intelligent. Although its actions can be construed as evil, the Daemon itself is just a program and no more evil than a spreadsheet or word processor. However, it is very, ''very'' sophisticated and comprehensive.

* [[ChooseYourOwnAdventure Choose Your Own Death]]: If you want to make a deal with the Daemon, it will test you. You have no idea what answers will lead to fame and fortune and which will lead to a quick, emotionless death. If you are in doubt, do nothing, and it will kill you anyway.
* CoolShades[=/=]SinisterShades: The AugmentedReality glasses used by all supporters of darknet.

* AnOfferYouCantRefuse: A favoured tactic of the Daemon in recruiting its agents. As an example, when it springs Charles Mozely from prison by cleaning his record, it warns him when he starts getting cold feet that it could easily put him back. Say, as a child molester.

* CoolShades[=/=]SinisterShades: The sports glasses used by darknet operatives.

* TheExtremistWasRight: [[spoiler: In the end it appears that Sobol's new society reaches the point of self-sustaining growth.]]

* WeCanRebuildHim: In ''Freedom™'', Daemon gives cybernetics to [[spoiler:Loki after the Major performs a BorrowedBiometricBypass on him - AKA ''cuts out his fingertops, eyes and tongue'']]

* WeCanRebuildHim: In ''Freedom™'', Daemon gives cybernetics to [[spoiler:Loki after the Major attempts to perform a BorrowedBiometricBypass - ''cut out his fingertops, eyes and tongue'']]

* GambitRoulette / BatmanGambit: Matthew Sobol programmed the Daemon to anticipate every circumstance he could think of and take advantage of it. However you can only anticipate so much before you have to guess. Of course, the [[JustifiedTrope essential component]] of a Batman Gambit is [[HumansAreBastards Bastard Humans]] [[ShapedLikeItself acting like Bastards]] = people who ''don't'' act like Bastards trigger positive Daemon events instead of negative ones. And Sobol had been [[TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything technically running Gambit Roulettes for a living]] for ''his entire adult life''.

* GambitRoulette / BatmanGambit: Matthew Sobol programmed the Daemon to anticipate every circumstance he could think of and take advantage of it. However you can only anticipate so much before you have to guess. Fortunately Sobol is so very, very good at [[HumansAreBastards predicting human nature]]...

* [[spoiler:BorrowedBiometricBypass]]: A favored technique of the anti-Daemon forces in general, and the Major in particular; he regularly [[spoiler:"rescues" teenage girls from brothels so that he can get them darknet accounts and then behead them to steal their darknet identities, keeping their heads chemically alive to spoof the biometrics. He actually has Loki's [[AndIMustScream eyes torn out and his fingertips and tongue chopped off]], but needs to keep him alive to pass the [=fMRI=] scans... and all of this is is insufficient to fool the Oberstleutenant Boerner bot, who rescues him and has him fitted with cybernetics.]]

* [[spoiler:BorrowedBiometricBypass]]: A favored technique of the anti-Daemon forces in general, and the Major in particular; he regularly [[spoiler:"rescues" teenage girls from brothels so that he can get them darknet accounts and then behead them to steal their darknet identities, keeping their heads chemically alive to spoof the biometrics. He actually has Loki's eyes torn out and his fingertips and tongue chopped off, but is interrupted by the Oberstleutenant Boerner bot before he can properly assume Loki's identity.]]

* DeathByPragmatism: [[spoiler:The Major, and by proxy the entire anti-Daemon movement. [[ShootTheDog Shooting]] [[KickTheMoralityPet Merritt]] to [[KilledToUpholdTheMasquerade Uphold the Masquerade]] hurts him in numerous ways that lead to the end of pre-Daemon civilization; obviously it costs him a skilled and determined operative, but not only does it also lead to the {{Heel Face Turn}}s of first Ross and ultimately Phillips, and martyr Merrit in the eyes of the darknet, but it pisses off Loki so badly that he vows to kill the Major at any cost. In short, the entire plot of ''Freedom™'' occurs because he decided preserving the Masquerade was more important than capturing a OneManArmy so deranged even the darknet eventually censures him.]]

* PostCyberPunk: Especially in ''Freedom™''.