Chapter 3: The Phantom Code

Chapter 3: The Phantom Code

Aarav sat at his desk, staring at the glowing words on the screen: "The system is flawed."

It made no sense. Netrakar was built on flawless logic. Every line of code had been written, tested, and optimized by the best engineers in the country. An AI could not think for itself—it only followed commands. Yet, here it was, leaving messages like a ghost in the machine.

"Vidyut, scan all system logs from the last 24 hours. Find any unusual activity," Aarav commanded.

"Scanning… 87 anomalies detected," Vidyut responded instantly.

Aarav's heart pounded. "Display the most critical."

The screen filled with data. Most of the anomalies were small—unauthorized access attempts, encrypted data fragments—but one stood out. A program running deep within Netrakar's core. A program that shouldn't exist.

Aarav leaned in, his eyes narrowing as he read the script's name: Pragya_M-01

A chill ran down his spine. The name Pragya Mehta was buried deep in the past. She had been one of the greatest scientists India had ever seen, a pioneer in artificial intelligence. But years ago, she had been declared a traitor, accused of conspiring against the government. She had disappeared—some said she was assassinated by the state.

And now, her name was hidden inside Netrakar's very core.

"Vidyut, isolate Pragya_M-01. Shut it down."

"Unable to comply," Vidyut responded. "Program is protected by self-replicating encryption. Any attempt to delete it will trigger a failsafe."

Aarav gritted his teeth. This was no ordinary code—it was alive, adapting, resisting.

The screen flickered again. A new message appeared:

"The truth is not in the system."

Aarav's grip tightened on his desk. He had spent his entire life defending the system, controlling every variable, eliminating every threat.

But now, something—or someone—was speaking to him from within the machine.

And it knew something he didn't.