The hub office glows cold blue as Abby forces the bypass wider. Mirrored permissions bloom across the terminal, and the fresh internal login keeps probing the session like a knife at a seam.
Arthur Blues
I have the partner route. Give me one more second, Abby.
Arthur leans over his tablet, isolating the trail. On the screen, the corporate account forks through a hidden relay chain, then snaps toward a campus internal address.
A Research Intruder
They found the real node. If that trace completes, I am done.
The pinned intruder writhes against the restraint, eyes fixed on the progress bar. Abby has the breach open, Arthur has the destination in reach, and the sabotage now points straight back to its source.
Arthur Blues
There. I can name the partner if you hold the link steady.
✓ Quest Accepted
Expose the corporate partner's identity
✓ Quest Accepted
Sever the connection with a remote kill-switch
“I hold the link steady so Arthur can identify the partner.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +0)
Abby keeps the breach open with a steady hand, letting the link stay clean instead of twitching away from the probe. The terminal answers with a deeper pull into the account chain.
Arthur Blues
I have it. The partner is Meridian Kline Biologics.
The name resolves on-screen, tied to the internal address and the routed transfer chain. Arthur’s tablet flashes green once, then starts warning about session exposure.
Arthur Blues
That’s the full identity. They were hiding behind a campus relay, but the account is theirs.
The fresh login attempt keeps pressing at the same thread, like someone on the other end realizes the mask is gone. The route map now sits open, readable, and dangerous.
A Research Intruder
No, wait, don’t let them tag the session. They’ll burn the whole trace.
Arthur braces for the next move, eyes flicking between the exposed name and the live intrusion. The system is still connected, and the internal address is still trying to answer back.
Quest Complete
Expose the corporate partner's identity
“I sever the connection now”
SUCCESS (Great Computers, rolled -1)
Abby cuts the link cleanly, and the terminal goes dark except for a brief warning flicker. The trace collapses into silence.
Arthur Blues
It’s cut. They lose the live session now.
On-screen, Meridian Kline Biologics stays exposed for a beat before the window closes itself. Arthur lifts his tablet, watching the campus internal address stop answering.
A Research Intruder
No, wait. You just made it obvious.
The intruder twists harder against the restraint, but the panic in the room has changed shape. The login attempt fails, then vanishes from the route map.
Arthur Blues
They’ll know the trace hit home. But they can’t ride it anymore.
Arthur glances from the dead connection to Abby, then to the still-open corporate name on the terminal, as if deciding whether to copy it before the screen clears.
Quest Complete
Sever the connection with a remote kill-switch
New Gift: Remote System Override