Ethan’s work on the Lithuanian server had revealed more than he expected—an encrypted communication channel buried deep within the logs. The messages were fragmented, but enough keywords stood out to raise the alarm: “payload activation,” “drones in position,” and “final phase.” The clock was ticking, and the stakes had never been higher.

He tunneled further into the compromised system, hoping to trace the source of the communication. Every layer he penetrated brought new challenges: dynamic firewalls that adapted to his probes, decoy servers designed to waste his time, and false trails leading to nowhere. But Ethan wasn’t a novice. He used automated scripts to force his way past the defenses, all while deploying his own countermeasures to stay hidden.

Finally, he found what he was looking for—a connection to Cobalt’s primary server cluster. The IP address was routed through a series of proxies, bouncing through three continents before reaching its destination. Ethan knew that accessing this cluster would bring him dangerously close to detection, but it was the only way to uncover the full scope of the operation.

He launched a targeted attack, exploiting a recently discovered zero-day vulnerability in the server’s operating system. The exploit worked, and Ethan gained root access to the cluster. The screen filled with directories and files, each one a potential goldmine of information. He scanned the folder names, his eyes narrowing on one labeled “Project Ignition.”

Inside, Ethan found blueprints, schematics, and deployment schedules for the drones. The documents confirmed what he feared: the drones were equipped with encrypted receivers linked to a network of hidden beacons across the U.S. These beacons, when activated, would simultaneously trigger the payloads of the smuggled nuclear devices.

The implications were staggering. The adversary wasn’t just planning an attack—they were orchestrating a catastrophic event designed to cripple the nation in a single, coordinated strike. Ethan’s eyes narrowed as he traced the source of a series of encrypted communications buried within the server logs. As he decrypted fragments of the data, his stomach turned. The messages were written in Russian—short bursts of terse, military-style directives coordinating drone deployments and beacon activation. Names and titles emerged, codified yet familiar: GRU operatives.

Ethan recognized the digital fingerprints almost immediately—hallmarks of the advanced persistent threat group known as “Fancy Bear.” The group had been responsible for some of the most brazen cyberattacks of the past decade, always operating under the shadow of Russian military intelligence. The timestamps and routing confirmed his suspicion: Cobalt Solutions wasn’t just selling tools to hostile states—they were directly collaborating with the GRU.

He sat back in his chair, the magnitude of the operation sinking in. Fancy Bear didn’t make idle threats, and these communications suggested that the Russian operatives were managing the trigger systems for the hidden payloads. Their coordination with Cobalt wasn’t a contract—it was a partnership. His hands trembled as he copied the files onto an encrypted drive. He knew that even this small action could leave a trace, but he couldn’t afford to leave empty-handed.

Before disconnecting, he planted a custom-built worm in the server. If triggered, the worm would disable the entire drone network, buying the NSA precious time to locate and disarm the nuclear devices. It was a calculated risk, but Ethan couldn’t shake the feeling that he was playing a game with no guarantees.

As he leaned back in his chair, his phone buzzed. It was a secure message from Langston. The text was brief but chilling: “They know you’re in. Move fast.”

Ethan cursed under his breath, his pulse spiking. He hadn’t been sloppy, but Cobalt’s detection systems were among the most advanced in the industry. Likely, a combination of intrusion detection systems (IDS) and behavioral anomaly monitoring had flagged his actions. His custom worm might have triggered a spike in resource usage, or his exploit had left just enough of a footprint to catch the attention of a network security tool scanning for zero-day activity.

Worse still, Cobalt likely used machine learning-based threat detection—algorithms constantly analyzing network behavior for irregular patterns. Ethan’s data exfiltration, no matter how encrypted, would have produced unusual packet flows or traffic spikes. Somewhere, an alert had pinged, and now a human analyst was likely staring at a blinking red terminal, tracing back his connection through layers of proxies.

He disconnected, fingers flying across the keyboard to sever his virtual ties before they could triangulate his physical location. “Shit,” he muttered. He had minutes, maybe seconds, before the hunters became the hunted.

Ethan’s heart pounded. He had only just begun to understand the depths of the operation, and already the walls were closing in. There was no turning back now.

[Index]

[Next Chapter]