Chapter 26: Broken Code – 404

Mateo stared at his legs, breath shallow. The hall was quiet except for the chief’s voice: “Raise your head. I have something to tell you.”

Mateo looked up. “Can you tell me?”

The chief’s eyes were grave. “He’s back.”

Mateo’s mouth went dry. “Who’s back?”

The chief folded his hands. “You know who.”
Mateo’s eyes widened. “It can’t be”

“How do you know?” the chief interrupted.

“I” Mateo swallowed. “I just… I felt it.” He glanced down at the dagger in his palm. “The dagger. How could”

The chief cut him off. “You should go. Find your friends. One more thing: those daggers they hold they aren’t ordinary. They spy on anyone who touches them.”

“How is that possible?” Mateo asked. The single dagger in his hand had always felt strange, as if it knew more than him. “There was only one. It depended on how many people were present. The one who solved the puzzle first would control everything.”

The chief’s expression tightened. “That dagger is the most powerful thing anyone has ever seen. If used right, it could even kill me.”

Mateo’s fingers tightened around the metal. “But if someone looks upon you,won’t they be pinned by gravity?”

“It’s not the right time to explain,” the chief said. “Go.”

Mateo bowed and slipped out of the void. He returned to the Animus world with one thought burning in his chest: in the name of great Yar, I will bring them back.

One by one, thirteen bodies stirred. “Kamill,uhh, damn it, my head is calling me,” someone muttered. They blinked, dizzy. Ofurd summoned his IF and asked what had happened.

“You were revived,” the IF answered.

“Who?” Ofurd tried to recall details but could not. “I couldn’t see who did it.”

Ofurd’s IF hummed and then displayed a line of text: 404 error.

Every player’s IF flashed the same message: 404 error. Confusion erupted, then horror, as the IFs began to combust like fragile machines. Small explosions scattered blue sparks. Mateo cursed. “Useless IFs… they’re down. This is bad.”

Back in the real world, alarms shrieked. The examiner slammed a desk. “Forty-five IFs destroyed!” he barked, and the facility’s emergency lights flooded the corridor. Furious, he grabbed an employee and struck him. “You had one job!”

A heavy boot crashed into the door. “Hi,my good man. Did you miss me?” boomed a familiar voice.

Ivore stood in the doorway with a dozen men behind him. The examiner straightened, stunned. “What are you doing here?” he demanded.

“I’m here to take the Animus,” Ivore said simply.

Nad, the old man who knew the devices, stepped forward. “I only know how to activate them,” he told Ivore.

Ivore’s face hardened. “Tell me everything I need to know.”

Nad nodded and explained the rules again: one day in the Animus equals one year outside, players feel pain and hunger, and deaths have consequences. He paused, then added quietly, “You have my grandsons among you, yes?”

Ivore’s jaw tightened. “That kid,he had potential. They killed a lot of our men, including my blood.”

Nad’s face was drained of color. “Who killed them?” he whispered.

Ivore pointed. Enam, Oen’r, and Haare stepped forward. Nad’s hands trembled as he listened. Then Ivore smiled, and Nad dropped to his knees, grief and fury twisting his voice.

“Tacrc?” Nad choked. “Tacrc was my grandson?”

Ivore did not answer with words. Two of his men lifted heavy canvas bags and handed them to Nad. He opened one, then the other.

Tears blurred the edges of his vision. Heads were gone. Nad’s knees gave way.

Ivore watched the old man’s shock like a judge watching a verdict sink in. “We found the bodies ten to fifteen minutes after the deed,” he said. His men began placing the corpses gently into the Animus units.

Enam, Oen’r, and Haare stepped forward to help. Oen’r said quietly, “If you need anything, Nad, we’ll do what we can. Tacrc was a great man.”

Nad pressed his palms together, voice raw. “No matter what it takes… I will destroy you.”

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