“The report came down just minutes ago directly from a VNS spokesperson,” the man said. “And all are in agreement that the news is quite shocking. VNS have hinted at significant damage from day one, but the devastation is evidently much more widespread than even the most dire predictions. Details on just how the device managed to inflict such damage are still being withheld, but it appears to have been comprehensive and quite viral in nature. As you’ll see in the following clip from the VNS press conference, the VirtNet has become a dangerous place indeed.”

It was the man’s turn to dissolve and blow away, and this time Michael took two steps backward when he saw who was on the screen.

Agent Weber.

4

She stood behind a bank of microphones, only her shoulders and face in view. She wore a tailored suit jacket, and her hair was done up in an elegant twist, and everything about the way she held herself said that there was nothing to worry about. But those dark eyes of hers gave it away to Michael. She was scared. Terrified, even. Michael still didn’t understand why she’d betrayed him, or why she’d come to visit him in the aftermath of it all, trying to smooth things over. Most importantly, he didn’t understand why she’d want to secretly ruin the VNS and the VirtNet.

But there was one thing he was sure of: he despised her.

After what seemed like an unnaturally long pause, she began reading from a prepared statement.

“Thank you for coming today, and thank you for your patience while we’ve exhausted our every resource investigating this horrific incident. There is at least some comfort in knowing that the perpetrators of this act are confined in prison as we speak. As for the far-reaching effects of what they’ve done, I’m afraid the news is not good. Now we must move forward to rectify the situation.”

She lifted a hand to indicate something behind her, but whatever it was, Michael couldn’t see it. She continued.

“A full report has been made public, but the basic conclusion is this: the VNS infrastructure has been temporarily rendered nonfunctioning. At this moment, there can be no oversight of VirtNet activities. Monitoring, security, reporting capability, and code-safety protocols have all been damaged, and effective immediately, we are no longer in service. We want to stress that it’s our intention to return to fully operational status, but it will take some time. I’m relieved to say that it will be a matter of weeks, not months. We will work twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, until this enormous task is complete.”

She paused then, looking uncomfortably at her unseen audience for several long moments. Michael assumed she was being assaulted with questions they couldn’t hear.