Chapter 2 - The Arena and the AlliesThe campus of Saint Jude’s University was cloaked in a heavy, humid mist as Claire walked through the stone arches. Her heels clicked against the damp pavement, a steady, marching beat. She could feel the stares of the early-morning students, but she kept her chin high, her gaze fixed on the gothic facade of the Weyland Hall of Engineering.
In the lobby, her doctoral advisor, Dr. Evelyn Vance, was waiting. When Evelyn turned and saw Claire, her jaw dropped. She took in the buzzed hair, the sharp white suit, and the tense, controlled energy radiating from her star pupil.
"Claire... my God," Evelyn gasped, stepping forward and reaching out, but hesitating. "What happened to you?"
"An educational demonstration, Dr. Vance," Claire said, her voice cool and level. She pulled up her sleeves just enough to show the dark purple handprints circling her wrists. "My husband and his mother attempted to withdraw me from the program last night."
Evelyn’s eyes went wide with a mixture of horror and fury. "We can postpone, Claire. The dean will understand. We can file an emergency extension—"
"No," Claire interrupted, her voice cutting through the older woman's panic like a scalpel. "If I postpone, they win. They believe they have destroyed my research and my dignity. I am going to prove them wrong on both counts. But I need you to do something for me."
She handed Evelyn a flash drive. "This contains the live feed of my presentation, but it also contains an auxiliary program. I’ve integrated my Veritas protocol into the university’s presentation server. If anyone tries to access or alter my slides remotely during the defense, it will capture their IP, their geolocation, and their system credentials, and project them directly onto the main screen."
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Evelyn looked at the drive, then at Claire's fierce, determined eyes. "They stole your source code, didn't they?"
"They tried," Claire said. "But Veritas was built to catch thieves. Let's go make sure it does."
