It was early morning. Ishan stood by the window, watching the overcast sky. Clouds hovered above, but all he could think about was that chip.
He hadn't slept all night.
A message from Riya had buzzed on his phone just after sunrise:
"Let's meet him today. We can't waste any more time."
Ishan put the phone aside, washed his face, and left without eating.
They didn't speak much when they met — both understood how important this day was.
As they reached Kabir's house, a doubt crept into Ishan's mind —
Would he even listen?
He knocked on the gate. Kabir opened the door casually, slightly surprised to see both of them.
"You two? This early?"
His tone wasn't excited or annoyed — just neutral.
Once inside, Riya spoke in a calm tone.
"We need to talk. It's important. Give us a few minutes."
Kabir simply nodded with his eyes, giving permission.
Ishan didn't waste time. He pulled out a pouch from his bag and placed it on the table.
"I'll say this just once — you don't need to believe me. But analyze this chip yourself. Whatever it reveals… take that as the truth."
Kabir picked up the chip, curiosity sparking in his eyes.
"This is the thing you've been bugging me about for days?"
Ishan nodded silently.
Kabir examined it for a while and then said,
"Alright. Let's see. Coding and encryption is my zone… if there's anything strange, I'll know. But just to be clear — I'm still not buying your 'the real world is fake' theory."
Riya gave a faint smile. Ishan said softly,
"I just want the proof. The rest can wait."
Kabir held the chip and gently rotated it in his hand before pulling out a small cylindrical analyzer from his bag — a device he used to test encrypted USB drives.
"I'll start with this," he said, placing the chip carefully on the magnetic tray.
The device's screen blinked from green to blue. Kabir's face turned serious.
"Hmm..." he muttered, watching the data scroll rapidly. "Signal reflection… zero? EM signature… suppressed? This doesn't even feel passive. There's active scrambling going on inside it."
He quickly connected the device to his tablet and launched another tool — a deep trace scanner.
Ishan and Riya watched silently as Kabir's fingers danced across the screen.
An error kept flashing again and again:
> Unidentified Object: Material structure unknown.
Data architecture not recognized.
Kabir removed the chip and held it under a light, squinting.
"This… this metal isn't normal. Not copper. Not silicon. Something synthetic. High-grade... or maybe something else entirely."
He sealed the chip back inside an anti-static pouch. Then he looked directly at Ishan.
"This system isn't enough. I'll need a much higher-level setup. Advanced tools — and there's only one place I can get them."
Ishan looked confused. "Where?"
Kabir...
"My brother. Kartik."
He paused, then smirked.
"Chill guy. Lives in his own world. But his tech setup... is next-level."
Ishan leaned forward. "Then let's go?"
Riya added, "Right now?"
Kabir nodded and started typing something on his phone.
"I'll ping the others too. If anyone thinks this is just a chip… they're wrong."
He sent a quick group message:
> "Come home. Important stuff. Urgent."
Riya and Ishan peeked over his shoulder, reading the message.
A whole minute passed with no replies. Kabir kept checking the screen.
Finally, a notification popped up. It was from Tanuj:
> "Can't make it right now. On mountain training. Signal is weak. Sorry, bro."
Kabir locked his phone and sighed.
"Kinda expected. His training phase just began. Sometimes he goes out of contact for a week."
Ishan nodded slowly. "So, it's just the three of us for now."
Kabir smirked.
"Three people, one unknown chip, and Kartik bhaiya's unpredictable mood. Sounds like fun."
---
Within a short while, the trio reached Kartik's zone.
The place was a mess of organized chaos — circuit boards littered the floor, blueprints hung on the walls, and half-built gadgets filled the shelves. Screens flickered everywhere, making it look like a mini command center.
In one corner, Kartik sat with oversized headphones, typing furiously. One screen showed his code while another ran an AI simulation.
His fingers flew across a mechanical keyboard like lightning.
Kabir hesitated, then spoke softly, "Bhai… need a little help."
Without looking or changing tone, Kartik replied,
"Not in the mood. Come back tomorrow."
Kabir walked over and placed the chip on his cluttered table.
"Just take a look. This thing is… off. System can't detect it. Ishan and Riya have been chasing it for days."
Kartik gave it a glance, unimpressed.
"You disturbed me for this tiny thing?"
But even as he said it, he instinctively picked it up and headed to his scanner.
He inserted the chip — the scanner beeped.
A dull red error blinked on the screen:
> No Signal / No Format Found.
Kartik paused. For the first time, his hands slowed.
He didn't say a word. He took the chip out again, turned it under the light, observing the material texture.
Then he said, still casually,
"Use the side lab. All the tools are there. I'm busy... I'll let you know if I find anything."
Riya smiled. "So… what are you working on?"
With a faint smirk, Kartik moved his cursor on the screen.
"Robot behavior. Whether decision-making exists beyond logic. Running simulations. I'll explain someday."
His tone was calm, but his words carried something deeper.
Ishan and Riya took it lightly and walked toward the side lab. But just as they left, Kartik's expression turned serious. His eyes followed Ishan — as if he were trying to understand something else entirely.
---
In the side lab, Kabir activated his setup.
Ishan shared everything they had tried before.
Kabir began testing with his own tools — multiple code filters, decryption layers, binary scans… everything failed.
Riya observed closely.
"Kabir… the system can detect the chip, but it just can't read anything."
Kabir leaned back, frustrated.
"Seems like this chip's encryption isn't based on any known format."
Just then, a voice echoed from behind —
"So, I'm late after all."
Aarav entered, holding a compact device — the same one Kabir had requested earlier.
"I knew you guys couldn't solve it without me."
Kabir laughed. "Always so confident."
Aarav activated the device.
"This tool has high-frequency pattern matching… let's try?"
They tested it once. Twice. Still nothing.
They tried optical decoding, light reflection, even sound frequency interface — nothing worked.
---
Kartik had been watching silently. He finally stepped in, setting aside his own work.
"You guys are treating this chip like it's a video game."
He took the chip and inserted it into another device.
Running deep terminal commands, he activated an electromagnetic probe.
The screen blinked, and a strange graph appeared:
> Signal Distortion Detected: Material Not Found In Database.
Kartik said calmly,
"This chip's base material… doesn't match any known metal. It's a synthetic element. It absorbs radiation — that's why no system can detect it."
Ishan leaned forward. "So what does that mean?"
Kartik looked straight at him.
"It means this chip wasn't made anywhere normal. And unless you build a specific frequency detector… there's no way to read it."
Riya asked, intrigued, "What kind of detector?"
Kartik moved to the whiteboard and began sketching a hybrid concept.
"Ultrawave Synchronizer. You'll need radiation isolation and inverted polarity flux inside it."
"Standard devices won't work unless modified. Otherwise, this chip will never open."
Aarav looked at the board. His eyes lit up with an idea.
"I'll give it a shot. If you all help — we can build this."
.....
They had tried everything — codes, frequencies, patterns… but the chip stayed locked, like it was waiting for something none of them could yet imagine. Every failed attempt didn't feel like a dead end anymore — it felt like a warning. A quiet resistance. Ishan looked at the others — tired eyes, restless minds, but one thing in common: they weren't giving up. Kartik, still watching from behind, finally muttered under his breath, "It's not just about unlocking this… it's about being ready for what's inside."
And for the first time, the silence around them… felt loud..