Chapter 12: The Iron Monger's Temptation
[Time – Afternoon – Adam's Computer Lab]
The air in the lab was still, the only sound the gentle hum of the servers. Adam was running a routine diagnostic, checking for any stray signals or digital shadows. He felt a deep sense of a quiet satisfaction. He had provided the clues, he had played his part. Now it was just a waiting game. That's when it appeared. Not a subtle message. Not a flicker. A full-on, high-priority System message, its light a brilliant, attention-grabbing blue.
[SYSTEM: Priority Quest Initiated: The Ultimate Mischief]
[Objective: Infiltrate 'Stane Industries' Lab B. Disable the main power source. MP Reward: 5,000.]
Next to the quest, a small, blinking red icon appeared. It was a new one. A warning icon. A caution sign. The System had never given him a warning icon before. He felt a cold dread settle in his stomach. The quest was too… perfect. The reward was too high. He had been so careful, so subtle. And now, a high-level quest, an open invitation to a place where he was a known ghost? It was a trap. A blatant, obvious trap. A bait to see if he would bite.
He's on to me. He knows I'm here. He knows I'm a ghost. And he's trying to catch me. This isn't the System talking. This is Obadiah Stane.
He stared at the screen, his mind racing. He could feel Stane watching him, waiting for him to take the bait. He knew that the moment he accepted the quest, his location would be compromised. He couldn't do it.
[SYSTEM: WARNING. Quest is a ruse. Target is compromised. Proceed at your own risk. Alternate Objective now available.]
[Alternate Objective: Infiltrate 'Stane Industries' Lab B. Manipulate security feed to simulate a competitor's presence. MP Reward: 250.]
The System was telling him not to go, but it was also giving him a new objective. A new, more subtle way to play the game. A way to use Stane's own trap against him. A counter-play.
[Time – Moments Later – Stane Industries Lab B]
The lab was quiet, sterile, and heavily fortified. Adam had used his [F-Rank: Phasing (Limited)] ability to slip inside, a ghost in a machine. He didn't go to the main power source. He went to the security hub. He activated his [E-Rank: Digital Mimicry] ability, a simple but effective power.
[SYSTEM: Deploying E-Rank: Digital Mimicry... Target: 'Security Feed Protocol'.]
He didn't just hack the feed; he created a fake one. He created a fake security feed that showed a single, human figure in the corner of the lab. The figure was wearing a jacket with a small, innocuous-looking logo on the back. The logo of a rival military contractor. The image was grainy, distorted, and just clear enough to be seen. He didn't even need to be in the lab. He was just a ghost in the machine, manipulating the feed to show another ghost.
He's looking for me. But he's going to find a rival. He's going to see a ghost he thinks he knows, and he's going to chase it down a rabbit hole. He'll never know I was here. I'll be gone before he even realizes he's been played.
He watched from a small, hidden camera as a security guard, a large man with a thick neck and a permanent scowl, came into the lab. The guard looked at the feed, then looked at the lab. Nothing. He shook his head, looking at the feed with a growing sense of frustration. Adam smiled. The plan was working. Stane would have his proof. He would have his ghost. He just wouldn't have the right one.
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