"Okay, Liam," he whispered. "Let's see what you've been so scared of."
He lay down in the pod, his heart hammering against his ribs.
The familiar white interior closed around him.
On the side panel, next to the emergency release, was a small, discreet port he'd never noticed before, covered by a rubber flap.
He opened it. It was a standard USB-C port.
His hand trembled slightly as he inserted the drive. For a moment, nothing happened.
Then, the entire pod went dark, and a single, sharp, synthesized voice echoed in the small space.
[ERROR: UNRECOGNIZED HARDWARE DEVICE. SYSTEM INTEGRITY COMPROMISED. FOR YOUR SAFETY, A FULL SYSTEM LOCKDOWN HAS BEEN INITIATED.]
Red warning lights began to pulse softly around him. A new menu appeared in his vision.
[To proceed, please enter secure Diagnostic Mode for a full system scan and hardware verification. Estimated time: 3 hours.]
"Three hours?" Ethan groaned.
"I've got a match in thirty minutes!"
