Nero stands in his hideout, eyes locked on frozen footage from Warzone 375.

“The three of you… You think you’re untouchable. That as long as you remain hidden, no one can infiltrate your walls. But you’re not a fortress – you’re a fragile network of secrets and denial. And networks?”

His fingers hover over the keyboard.

“Once I find a way in, I control everything.”

The footage rewinds, stopping on the first target.

“Mighty Mighty – the firewall. The unbreakable force. That’s the image you sell, isn’t it? The persona you maintain. But firewalls don’t just keep threats out; they conceal what’s within. And behind your ironclad integrity, I’ve found the cracks. Deals that contradict your virtue. Agreements that – if exposed – would dismantle everything you claim to be.”

He leans closer, a smile forming beneath his mask.

“You tell the world you’re incorruptible. But even the strongest firewalls have backdoors, and, Mighty, I’ve already found yours.”

The screen glitches, shifting to the next target.

“Red – the enforcer. No questions, no hesitation – just execution. You believe that makes you formidable, but it only makes you predictable. You’re a subroutine on autopilot, cycling through the same repetitive commands. Violence, intimidation, destruction. And predictable systems? They’re easy to break.”

He taps a key, the screen flashing erratically.

“But what happens when you’re decompiled, Red? What happens when your code is analysed and the vulnerabilities are laid bare? The world will see the flaws you thought were buried. The malware. The exploits. The critical failures. And just like that…”

Nero clicks his fingers.

“Your entire foundation collapses.”

In a flash, the final target appears on-screen.

“Ezekiel Graves – the so-called saviour. The beacon of truth. You preach salvation, promising redemption to the lost. But even the holiest scriptures have revisions. Even the most secure files have a hidden set of rules.”

Nero shakes his head.

“Your followers believe in you without question, don’t they, reverend? But what happens when they see the raw data? When the mask is ripped away, and the unfiltered truth is revealed? They won’t see a prophet, Ezekiel. They’ll see a fraud.”

The monitor flickers as Nero cracks his knuckles – his posture shifting with confidence.

“For so long, the three of you have convinced yourselves you’re in control. That as long as your secrets stay buried, no one will ever know who you truly are. But I know everything.”

His tone drops to a whisper.

“At Thunderstrike, you comply. You follow my script, play your roles, and keep the system running.”

The screen distorts.

“Or you resist. You fight back. Try to override me. And if you do?”

A final keystroke. The screen pulses.

“One command. That’s all it takes.”

Lines of code flicker across the display.

“Every dirty little secret.”

Another keystroke.

“Uploaded.”

A pause.

“Exposed.”

The screen glows ominously.

“Immutable.”

Darkness creeps into the room as Nero exhales, watching the final line of code execute.

“There will be no rollback. No restore point.”

A final, satisfying breath.

“Just. Total. Corruption.”

Nero locks eyes with the camera.

“And so to the three of you…”

A hound glitches in his place; the W4TCH_DOG5 logo.

“We pass this burden.”