Page 21 of Duty and Desire
Scarlett’s mind raced as she worked through the layers of the attack. She knew she had to outthink them and anticipate their next move before they could execute it. She began setting up traps within the system—digital honey pots designed to lure the attackers into revealing themselves. It was a risky strategy; if the attackers realized what she was doing, they could switch tactics, making it even harder to stop them.
“Come on, show me where you’re hiding,” Scarlett whispered, her eyes narrowing as she watched the data streams.
One by one, the traps sprang. The attackers took the bait, sending packets of data into the decoy systems Scarlett had set up. For a moment, she felt a flicker of hope. Maybe she could contain this before it got worse.
But then, the main system alarm blared, and Scarlett’s heart sank. The attackers had found a way to bypass one of her traps, breaking into a critical subsystem that controlled communications. If they gained control there, they could cut off the base’s ability to coordinate its defenses, leaving everyone vulnerable.
“Damn it!” Scarlett hissed, her frustration mounting.
She quickly rerouted the communication channels, creating a temporary backup system to keep the base connected. It wasn’ta perfect solution, but it bought her a little more time to track down the source of the breach. Scarlett could feel the pressure building, the weight of the entire base’s safety resting on her shoulders. Every second mattered.
“Okay, okay, think.” Her brain worked overtime to find a solution. “They’re fast, but they’re not infallible. There has to be something they’ve overlooked.”
Scarlett’s eyes scanned the code, looking for any anomalies, any pattern that didn’t fit. And then she saw it: a small, seemingly insignificant piece of code that didn’t belong. It was well-hidden, buried deep within the normal traffic, but Scarlett’s trained eye caught it.
“There you are.” She exhaled, her fingers flying over the keys.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she found the breach’s point of origin: an unprotected access point buried deep within the system. Scarlett isolated the threat, cutting off the attackers and sealing the vulnerability. The relief that flooded through her was almost enough to bring tears to her eyes.
“We’re secure,” Scarlett announced, her voice strained from hours of tension.
Scarlett slumped back in her chair, the adrenaline slowly ebbing away, leaving her drained but triumphant.
“Status report!” Ros barked, her voice cutting through the controlled chaos of the command center. Officers and technicians scrambled to provide updates, their faces taut with concentration.
“Communications are stable, General Carson,” one officer reported. “But the power grid is under heavy attack. We’re diverting resources to reinforce it, but it’s touch-and-go.”
Ros clenched her jaw. The power grid was the lifeblood of the base; without it, they’d be plunged into darkness, both literally and figuratively. She knew Scarlett was down in the cybersecurity wing fighting tooth and nail to keep the grid stable. The thought of Scarlett alone and under pressure twisted Ros's stomach into knots.
She pushed the thought aside. She couldn’t afford to be distracted—not now, not with everything on the line. Scarlett was one of the best engineers she had ever known. If anyone could pull them through this, it was her. Ros had to trust that Scarlett would do her job while she focused on hers.
“General, we’ve got reports of increased insurgent activity on the north perimeter,” another officer informed her, his voice tinged with urgency. “They’re testing our defenses, looking for a weak spot.”
Ros nodded sharply. “Send a reinforcement team to the north perimeter. Double up on the patrols and make sure the turrets are fully operational. We can’t let them breach the fence.”
The officer relayed her orders. Ros’s gaze flicked to the map on the central screen where red dots that indicated insurgent positions seemed to be multiplying by the second. They were everywhere, pressing the base from all sides. It was clear that the cyberattack was just one prong of a larger, more coordinated assault.
“General, there’s an issue with the south gate,” another voice called out. “The automated defense system is glitching, likely due to the malware. We’re trying to reroute.”
Ros felt a cold sweat break out along her spine. If the south gate failed, it would create a breach large enough for the insurgents to storm the base. She could almost see it in her mind—the flood of armed men pouring through the gate, overwhelming her soldiers and reaching the command center. Reaching Scarlett.
“Get a team down there now,” Ros ordered, her voice steely. “If the system can’t be fixed in time, they’re to defend the gate manually. We cannot let it fall.”
The officer nodded and moved to carry out her orders, but Ros couldn’t shake the feeling of impending doom. The insurgents were too close, their tactics too precise. They knew exactly where to hit, and they were hitting hard.
“General Carson,” a technician called out, pulling her from her thoughts. “We’ve got an anomaly in the command center’s systems. Looks like the malware’s trying to breach our firewalls. It’s targeting our operational controls.”
Ros’s blood ran cold. If the insurgents gained control of the command center, they could cripple the base’s defenses from within. Everything would fall apart :communications, power, automated defenses, everything they relied on to keep Fort Independence secure.
“Divert all resources to protect the command center’s systems,” Ros commanded, her voice tight with urgency. “Lock down any non-essential functions and isolate the compromised sectors. We cannot lose control.”
As the team scrambled to follow her orders, Ros’s mind raced. The insurgents were relentlessly attacking on all fronts. She needed to stay one step ahead and anticipate their next move before they could execute it. This wasn’t just a physical assault; it was a calculated strike at the very core of the base’s operations. And it terrified her in a way that bullets and bombs never could.
The command center hummed with tense silence as the final lines of code flickered across the screens. Ros stood rigid, her hands gripping the edge of the console in front of her, knuckles white with strain. The entire base seemed to be holding its breath, waiting for the outcome that would determine their fate.
“Come on, Scarlett,” she whispered under her breath, her eyes fixed on the screen that tracked the progress of the cybersecurity team. They were close, so close, but the insurgents’ malware was insidious, slipping through their defenses like water through a sieve. Ros could only imagine the pressure Scarlett was under, the weight of the entire base resting on her shoulders. The thought made Ros's heart ache in a way that was almost unbearable. For what felt like an eternity, nothing happened. The dots on the screen representing critical systems continued to flash red, teetering on the edge of collapse. Ros’s mind flicked through the worst-case scenarios: power failures, loss of communication, the base’s defenses falling like dominoes. She could almost see the insurgents closing in, their victory handed to them without a single shot fired.
Then, suddenly, the red dots began to turn green.