The team gathered in the Sub-Basement that night.
The Engineer: Arthur (Architecture & Hardware). The Coder: Zack (Logic & Syntax). ThePSU (Power Supply Unit): Julian (Raw Mana). The OS: Alice (The Ghost).
They stood around a workbench where Arthur had assembled a monstrosity.
It was a slate of slate (literally stone), inlaid with fresh copper wires Arthur and Zack had laid out. In the center was a retrieved "Mana Core"—a glowing blue gem Alice had found in a debris pile.
"Okay," Arthur put on his goggles. "Zack, you have the logic table?"
"Yes," Zack held a clipboard, looking terrified of the ghost. "If the light blinks twice, it's a 1. Once, it's a 0."
"Julian," Arthur pointed to the input leads. "Grab the handles. Do not—I repeat, do not—try to cast a spell. Just flow mana. Steady current. Think of it like a river, not a tsunami."
Julian grabbed the copper handles. "I feel ridiculous. I am a Van Thorne. I should not be jump-starting a rock."
"Just push," Arthur commanded.
Julian pushed. The mana flowed. The copper wires glowed.
The Mana Core pulsed.
"System boot," Arthur whispered.
He pressed a series of switches (primitive keyboard).
Click. Click. Click.
On the slate, a grid of tiny mana-crystals flickered. Arthur had arranged them as a primitive display screen. 7×5 pixels.
The crystals lit up.
H E L L O
Alice covered her mouth. "It speaks..."
"It computes," Arthur corrected. "Now, let's try a calculation."
He typed: 2 + 2 =
The crystals flickered. The mana drain on Julian increased.
"It's heavy!" Julian grunted, sweat beading on his forehead. "Why is math so heavy?!"
"It's processing," Arthur said. "Hold it!"
The screen flashed.
4
"Success!" Zack cheered. "It knows math!"
Arthur frowned. "That took three seconds. The lag is atrocious. We need to optimize the kernel."
Suddenly, the screen flickered again. Text appeared that Arthur hadn't typed.
> NEW USER DETECTED. > ACCESS LEVEL: ADMIN. > WARNING: WORLD_SIMULATION.EXE IS CORRUPTED.
The room went silent.
"Arthur?" Zack whispered. "What is World Simulation?"
Arthur stared at the screen. A cold chill went down his spine that had nothing to do with the drafty basement.
"I think," Arthur said slowly, "We just found out why the Ancients died. They didn't destroy the world."
He looked at the glowing text.
"They crashed it."
End of Chapter 28