Crowned by Code - Chapter 4: The Countdown ~ (2/11) The First Hurdle

Selena followed Darius to a private briefing room, where Athena displayed a detailed map of Erevania’s communication infrastructure. Red indicators flashed over critical nodes, each representing a vulnerable entry point.

"These are the primary targets," Athena explained. "Several nodes have already been probed by unauthorized entities, suggesting an imminent breach."

Selena crossed her arms, frowning. "If Viktor’s involved, this is only the beginning. He’ll escalate once he sees our response."

"Which is why our response has to be flawless," Darius said. He turned to Athena. "Can we reroute critical communication traffic through secure, isolated channels?"

"That is feasible," Athena replied, "but it will require significant resources and time."

Darius leaned forward, scanning the map. "What if we isolate the most vulnerable nodes and redirect their traffic through secondary routes? Would that buy us time?"

"It could," Athena replied, "but those routes are not designed for sustained high-volume traffic. They may fail under prolonged strain."

Selena tapped her fingers on the table. "What about staggered rerouting? Shift traffic in waves to avoid overloading the backups. It’ll take some fine-tuning, but it might hold."

Athena’s holographic form flickered slightly as she processed the idea. "A viable solution. However, it will require constant monitoring and adjustments."

"Then we do it," Darius said firmly. "Kara’s team can handle the monitoring. Make it happen."

The briefing continued for another hour as they dissected potential attack vectors and defensive strategies. Selena scribbled notes furiously, her mind racing to keep up with the rapid exchange of ideas.

"Athena," Darius said, breaking a momentary silence. "If we had to take one node completely offline to protect the rest, which one would it be?"

Athena’s eyes glowed faintly as she analyzed the network. "Node 14. It is a critical junction but has the highest redundancy. Taking it offline would reduce overall efficiency by 18%, but it would shield the remaining nodes from cascading failures."

A heavy silence settled over the room.

Selena’s expression darkened. "Wait. Node 14 supports emergency medical services. Are you factoring in civilian casualties?"

Athena hesitated for 0.3 seconds—an eternity for an AI. "Projected increase in emergency response delays: Approximately 12.7%—with a margin of error that remains unpredictable due to volatile human behavioral responses."

Athena continued. "Adjusting calculations... Human panic variables remain volatile. Recalibrating models... Recalibration complete. This outcome is preferable to full system collapse, which would result in a 72% failure rate across all emergency sectors."

Arden Pryce, who had been silently analyzing the projections, stepped forward, her tone sharper than usual. "That’s not just a number, Athena. That’s real people trapped in life-or-death situations without help arriving in time."

Athena’s tone remained steady. "All calculations prioritize net survivability. Disabling Node 14 prevents a cascading failure scenario affecting the entire network. Maintaining it online increases systemic risk by 72%."

Selena exhaled sharply, shaking her head. "So you’re saying it’s better for emergency services to operate at reduced capacity rather than fail completely. That’s cold, even for you."

Arden’s jaw tightened. "If we do this, we need a workaround. Otherwise, we’re looking at city-wide chaos when people realize emergency calls aren’t being answered fast enough."

Darius clenched his jaw, feeling the weight of the choice pressing down on him. "Athena, can we reroute emergency signals through an alternate channel?"

Athena processed for 0.4 seconds before responding. "Redistributing emergency communication traffic through civilian satellite uplinks would reduce projected fatality increases by 46.8%. However, these uplinks lack encryption, increasing vulnerability to external interference."

Arden’s expression hardened. "So either we let people die, or we give Viktor an open door to hijack emergency signals."

Athena’s gaze flickered. "Risk assessment indicates a 38% probability of external interference within the next 72 hours if emergency channels remain unsecured."

Darius gritted his teeth. "Which means we’re not just solving today’s problem—we’re opening a door to a future one."

Selena exhaled sharply. "That’s a hell of a choice."

Darius rubbed his temple. "Can we reinforce encryption on those satellite uplinks before rerouting medical traffic?"

Athena’s response was immediate. "Encryption updates would require an estimated two hours. However, real-time attack projections suggest hostile interference may occur within ninety minutes."

Arden shook her head. "That’s not fast enough. If Viktor realizes what we’re doing, he’ll use it to spread misinformation—or worse, delay real medical responses on purpose."

Selena’s gaze snapped to Darius. "We need to decide now. If we wait, we risk losing everything."

Darius inhaled deeply, forcing himself to think through every angle. The logical choice was clear, but the ethical cost was impossible to ignore.

Finally, he straightened. "Alright. We shut down Node 14."

Selena opened her mouth to argue, but Darius raised a hand. "But—we do it on our terms. Athena, start rerouting medical traffic through the satellites immediately. Encrypt what you can in real time. Arden, coordinate with infrastructure teams to reinforce response units in affected areas. If we move fast enough, we can minimize the damage."

Selena hesitated, then nodded. "Fine. But this better not blow up in our faces."

Darius exhaled, his voice heavy, "We’ll do what’s necessary. Right now, let's make sure that 18% doesn’t cost lives."

The tension in the room was palpable as they wrapped up the discussion. Darius looked around, his gaze lingering on each team member. "We’ve got less than forty-eight hours to turn this around. Stay sharp and stay focused."

As Darius and the team finalized the cyber defense strategy, a sharp ping broke through the tense atmosphere.

"Hey, journalist," Iris’s voice cut in, laced with its usual dry sarcasm. "Unless you suddenly stopped caring about breaking news, you might want to check your datapad."

Selena blinked, snapping out of her thoughts as she felt the device buzz against her hip. She grabbed it, her expression darkening as she scanned the incoming alerts.

"Public sentiment is destabilizing faster than expected," she muttered, catching Darius’s attention.

Athena’s voice materialized between them. "Misinformation is spreading across digital networks. Unverified reports of infrastructure failures have reached critical mass, leading to increased unrest. Emergency misinformation suppression protocols activated. Processing real-time falsehoods at 43% efficiency—expected containment threshold dropping."

Darius ran a hand through his hair, frustration evident. "So we’re stopping the real attacks, but the perception of disaster is spiraling out of control."

Selena nodded. "People are panicking, and we’re not giving them anything to hold onto. We need to go on record—fast."

The panic wasn’t contained to Erevania’s networks anymore. Across encrypted channels, The Liberators seized the moment, their message spreading like wildfire: "See how quickly the system collapses? Erevania was never meant to be ruled by machines."

Back in Haven Point, Athena’s gaze settled on Selena. "A controlled public statement would mitigate rising tensions."

Iris chimed in again. "Oh, fantastic. I’m sure everyone will sit down, sip their tea, and calmly listen to reason while the world is allegedly on fire."

Selena exhaled sharply. "People are already questioning whether AI rule is even working. If you can’t control the flow of information, what makes you different from a flawed human government? Let me do my job. If the public is going to panic, they deserve real information—not just digital speculation."

Darius exhaled, rubbing his temple before nodding. "Fine. Get the story out—but keep it grounded in facts. No speculation, no theatrics. The public needs clarity, not more chaos."

Selena gave him a pointed look. "I report the truth, Darius. If the truth is messy, so be it."

Darius smirked faintly. "Then go make a mess."

Selena exhaled, steadying herself. "Alright. Get me a studio. It’s time to go live."