Chapter 8 — Parallel Calculations
Beijing — Strategic Orbital Command.
China did not request data twice.
After Helix delayed sharing full compression logs, the request changed in tone.
From cooperative. To technical. To precise.
Now it was silent.
Inside a secured chamber, Chief Systems Director Liu Wen reviewed anomaly overlays.
Two compressions. Two deviations. Nonlinear drift curve.
"Helix is withholding harmonic variance layers," Liu said calmly.
An analyst nodded. "Their public data excludes micro-phase telemetry."
"Which means they detected something beyond expected tolerance."
Liu folded his hands. "And someone predicted it."
He had read the advisory mathematics.
Elegant. Minimal. Correct.
China did not fear Helix.
China feared unknown actors.
"Prepare independent resonance simulation," Liu ordered.
"Without compression field?"
"Yes. Indirect mapping. We do not repeat their mistake."
Helix Headquarters.
Dr. Aaryan received encrypted notice.
China requesting shared raw sensor logs under scientific transparency protocol.
General Voren frowned. "If we share everything, they will replicate."
"If we refuse," Aaryan replied, "they will assume weaponization."
He paused.
"Share partial telemetry."
Voren's jaw tightened. "Selective transparency?"
"Strategic transparency."
Helix sent modified data.
Not falsified.
Filtered.
Rishikesh.
Vansh noticed the shift instantly.
China entering modeling layer.
New simulation nodes active. Data requests accelerating.
He activated the interface.
2.3 seconds.
Strain immediate.
Projection branches multiplied sharply.
If China runs independent resonance simulation: Coherence drift accelerates indirectly 0.0015% within 60 days.
If China avoids physical compression: Short-term stability maintained.
Probability China attempts data reconstruction via AI inference: 72%.
He ended activation.
So the instability had become multipolar.
More actors. More variables. Higher entropy.
His advantage was never brute control.
It was simplicity.
The more players involved, the harder precision becomes.
Beijing.
Liu Wen studied the partial Helix telemetry.
Missing segments obvious.
"They are filtering," he said quietly.
"Should we escalate diplomatically?" an advisor asked.
"No," Liu replied. "We escalate computationally."
China's quantum inference AI began reconstructing omitted telemetry layers.
If Helix hid resonance spikes, inference modeling would reveal pattern edges.
Liu leaned back.
"If there is an unseen stabilizer, they will intervene again."
An advisor blinked. "You believe that?"
Liu's eyes were steady. "Intelligence leaves shape. I see shape."
Rishikesh — Night.
Vansh adjusted posture slowly.
China's inference modeling would amplify noise.
More sensors. More pattern recognition. Higher detection probability.
He recalculated exposure risk.
From Helix alone: 18% within six months. With China active: 29%.
Acceptable threshold was 35%.
Margin narrowing.
He needed diversification.
He accessed three unrelated markets.
Energy storage. Agricultural logistics. Satellite insurance derivatives.
Small shifts. Statistical fog.
Not to hide action. To dilute correlation density.
India — Strategic Advisory Complex.
Kavish Rao reviewed China's inference activation.
"They are reverse modeling Helix."
An analyst nodded. "If they replicate compression independently, instability risk doubles."
Rao remained calm. "Offer shared stability framework quietly."
"Would that not expose our predictive edge?"
"No," Rao said. "It positions us as stabilizers."
He paused.
"And watch for third-party advisory signals."
India had noticed the pattern too.
But unlike Helix or China, India did not hunt it aggressively.
Sometimes invisible allies are more valuable than exposed ones.
Helix.
Aaryan observed China's computational activation through shared orbital network metrics.
"They're reconstructing our hidden layers," Voren muttered.
"Yes," Aaryan replied.
"And that means our stabilizer will be pressured."
"You think they will intervene again?"
"If they are rational, yes."
"And if they are cautious?"
"They will adjust noise instead of compression."
Aaryan's eyes sharpened slightly.
"Monitor global derivative smoothing patterns again."
Rishikesh.
Vansh sensed the tightening net.
Multiple state actors. Multiple inference engines. Sensor density increasing.
He activated the interface briefly.
1.4 seconds.
Energy cost manageable.
Projection clarity reduced 13% due to background instability.
If Compression 3 proceeds under global multi-observation: Controlled oscillation must be sharper. More visible. But less traceable.
Risk of detection rises to 33%.
Still below unacceptable threshold.
He allowed himself a single calculated thought:
Escalation accelerates evolution.
He would not retreat.
He would optimize under pressure.
Global coherence drift: 0.0062%.
Slow but undeniable.
Three superpowers calculating. One corporation testing. One physicist hunting. One bookstore owner stabilizing.
The duel had expanded.
And Compression 3 was 19 hours away.