Kael's screen glowed faintly in the dark as Ardent continued its silent operation.Every second felt heavier than the last. The system was moving through NovaNet's digital fortress with the quiet precision of a shadow.
It bypassed layers of encryption and authentication, imitating NovaNet's internal communication packets so perfectly that even the company's own firewalls recognized it as one of their own.
To the outside world, nothing unusual was happening — just the usual network chatter.But beneath that illusion, Ardent was dissecting one of the most secure infrastructures ever built.
Progress indicators flickered across the dashboard.
{3%... 18%... 41%... 72%... 100%}
ARDENT SCAN COMPLETETarget: novanet.comMode: Adaptive SequenceElapsed Time: 5 minutes, 02 secondsResults: 18 vulnerabilities identifiedAction: Generate report and recommended patches.
Kael's pulse quickened.This was it. The moment of truth.
He opened the report window, scanning the categorized results.
{Results:Critical Issues: 4High Risk: 6Moderate: 8}
He clicked the first dropdown — Critical Issues.
The page expanded instantly, and his eyes widened.
He leaned closer, the words forming shapes that sent a chill through his chest.
{
Unauthenticated Command Injection in Cloud Resource GatewaySeverity: CRITICALDescription: External endpoints accept malformed payloads capable of executing internal shell commands.Impact: Complete remote execution with root privileges.
Access Token Leakage in Session ManagementSeverity: CRITICALDescription: An exposed debug variable allows attackers to hijack user sessions.Impact: Full account control and potential data exfiltration.
Misconfigured Privilege Boundary in DevOps PortalSeverity: CRITICALDescription: Inherited permission chains allow escalation to admin-level operations.Impact: Total administrative control over infrastructure functions.
Hidden Debug Interface in AI Monitoring ModuleSeverity: CRITICALDescription: Unsecured internal console left accessible through legacy code path.Impact: Remote access to operational logs and system states.
}
Kael's jaw tightened.He let out a slow, disbelieving laugh.
"This shouldn't even be possible," he murmured.
NovaNet prided itself on being impenetrable. Yet here it was — proof that even giants had cracks.
He opened the rest of the report. The high-risk flaws weren't catastrophic, but they were enough to demand immediate attention.The moderate ones were minor — still valuable, but mostly filler.
Still, the message was clear. Ardent worked. And it worked perfectly.
Then came the notification on his screen:
Mission Progress: 97%
He was almost done.Only one step remained — making someone notice.
Kael generated a professional report, trimmed down for presentation. He chose four entries — one critical, two high-risk, and one moderate. Enough to prove the system's credibility without giving away the entire arsenal.
He exported the file and saved it in a new folder, naming it Bait.
He smirked faintly. "Time to see if the shark circles the hook."
Now came the challenge — getting NovaNet's attention.
Flying to their headquarters wasn't an option. He needed to reach someone with authority and technical sense, not an automated ticket system or customer support desk.
He opened a browser tab and pulled up his bookmarked list of key cybersecurity figures.He had been compiling it for weeks, waiting for this exact moment.
He scrolled down until a familiar name appeared beside a small silver badge.
Dr. Tessa Morin — Chief Infrastructure Security Engineer at NovaNet.
She was known across the tech community for her work on advanced intrusion prevention and real-time threat mapping.Unlike most executives, she was active on public forums, responding to credible reports herself.
Kael nodded slowly. "You'll do."
He launched his encrypted mail client and began typing.
From: [email protected]To: [email protected]Subject: Urgent: Security Exposure Detected in NovaNet Core
Dr. Morin,
This message is not sent in hostility, nor with any malicious intent.I am the developer of a new adaptive scanning framework capable of uncovering system-level vulnerabilities with precision.
NovaNet was chosen as a stress test.Attached is a preliminary report summarizing four verified weaknesses discovered during a limited scan.
This is not extortion, and I request no immediate compensation.What I am offering is collaboration — an opportunity to discuss full remediation details under secure communication.
The clock on your side will determine how public this knowledge remains.
Respectfully,A researcher who believes in responsible disclosure.
[Attachment: NovaNet_Vulnerability_Summary.pdf]
He reread the message twice, ensuring there was nothing emotional or reckless in its tone, then pressed Send.
The cursor blinked on his screen for a few seconds, and then the window minimized automatically.
Nothing happened. No instant reply. No alert. Just silence.
Kael leaned back and exhaled through his nose.
"If they're smart, they'll respond before sunrise," he muttered.
If not, there were always others.
TitanCloud.Omnitek.Lunaris Systems.
Someone would take the bait.And once the first domino fell, the others would follow.
The clock on the wall showed half past one, its minute hand trembling faintly, like it might give up at any second.
Kael rubbed his eyes, exhaustion beginning to creep in now that the surge of adrenaline was fading.
He shut the laptop, set it aside, and lay down on his narrow couch, the hum of the city faint beneath the silence.
As he closed his eyes, one thought hovered above all others.
The test was over.The hunt had just begun.