The cascading, corrupted data on the projector screen was a digital apocalypse. The beautiful, intricate interface of the Football Coaching Game, Ethan's entire world, was dissolving into a meaningless waterfall of green and black code. The guests at the party, his friends, his family, just stared, a confused, murmuring silence falling over the room.
execute: protocol_zero
The game's over, Ethan. And you just lost.
Daniel's words, cold, emotionless, and utterly final, hung in the air. Ethan just stared at him, a feeling of profound, gut-wrenching, and absolute disbelief washing over him. He hadn't just been out-played. He had been deleted.
Then, a new voice cut through the stunned silence. A voice of pure, unadulterated, and very, very angry, fury.
"Daniel. What have you done?"
It was Sarah. She was standing by the door, her face a mask of pale, horrified disbelief. She wasn't looking at the screen. She was looking at the man she had just asked to move in with her.
