The Glitch Auditor: Overthrowing The Sky

PRODUCT LAUNCH

Jenderal Sudirman at eight o'clock in the morning was the absolute definition of a living hell. The artificial sun of the Sky Central System blazed mercilessly.

“It's hot, feels like it’s burning my skin,” he added, staring down below.

On the streets hundreds of thousands of people moved in unison.

“Hurry… I’m almost late…”

“I haven’t met my quota yet…”

“Today’s deadline, damn it!”

They walked stiffly. Like programmed androids. Their eyes were glued to the bionic screens on their wrists.

No one looked at each other.

No one spoke.

“It’s quiet,” Arka whispered.

“Quieter than a graveyard.”

The only sounds were the rhythmic clicking of formal dress shoes.

Click… click… click…

The endless hum of the city’s massive air filtration engines.

On the top floor of an abandoned building overlooking the main roundabout, Arka sat behind a row of secondhand laptops bought from a bionic flea market. Behind him stood the five Fallen Angels, their arms crossed, looking impossibly handsome in their new human forms.

"We’ve locked down every single videotron and satellite feed in the Sudirman district, Boss," the silver haired angel reported, a casual smirk on his face.

"Just hit enter."

Arka glanced at the countdown timer in the corner of his vision 46 Days, 12 Hours left. The bionic heartbeat from Nara’s chip throbbed painfully in his chest, a harsh reminder that he had no time for hesitation.

"Launch the product," Arka commanded coldly.

"Project GLORIA, Go Live now."

CLICK!

In an instant their debut track echoed from thousands of hijacked city speakers.

“The title…” Arka murmured softly.

“Requiem for the Slaves.”

A deep, heavy bassline flooded the air.

DUM… DUM… DUM…

“Synced with the human heartbeat,” one of the Fallen Angels whispered with a faint smile.

“Perfect…”

Then the vocals came in. Flawless. A harmony without a single crack.

“The frequency has been calibrated,” said the silver haired one.

“Enough to penetrate consciousness.”

Down below an investment manager was yelling furiously.

“You’re all incompetent! Today’s target...”

He stopped abruptly.

“What?”

His phone slipped from his hand.

CRASH!

It shattered against the asphalt.

“I… what’s happening to me…”

At the intersection thousands of office workers froze in place.

“Wait…”

“I can’t move…”

Hands that had been typing on virtual screens slowly went limp.

The sound of the song crept in. Straight into their nervous systems. Slowly dismantling the pressure they had buried for years.

Stress.

Exhaustion.

Despair.

Everything hidden beneath the weight of endless corporate slavery. One by one, the corporate zombies began to weep.

"What is this music... why is it so beautiful?" a woman muttered, her tears ruining her heavy makeup.

"I’m... I’m so tired of working..." another whispered, his knees giving out as he knelt on the hot pavement, staring up at the giant screen in absolute adoration.

In less than thirty minutes, the entire Sudirman district ground to a halt. Nobody was working. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the middle of the streets, holding hands, crying, and chanting the lyrics of GLORIA like a mass cult following.

[System Warning! The Productivity Index for the Sudirman District has plummeted by 40% within 60 minutes!]

[Soul Energy Supply for the Sky Corporation is experiencing an acute deficit!]

[Sky Central System Stock Price drops by 3.4%]

[Notice: Mass Fan Surge Detected!]

[Your [DARK MANAGER] Class Level Has Increased!]

[Unlocked New Skill: AESTHETIC DOMINANCE (Level 1)]

Arka closed his eyes for a brief moment as a strange warmth infused his vocal cords. Aesthetic Dominance the ability to completely mesmerize anyone, forcing them to accept whatever Arka presented as an absolute, beautiful truth.

"Arka! Stop this madness right now!"

A glaringly familiar, high pitched voice shattered the quiet of the rooftop. Arka turned around to find Jessica standing there, flanked by two dozen Bionic Tactical Enforcers aiming their plasma rifles directly at him. Floating behind her were several media drones from the city's official news networks, broadcasting the confrontation live to all of Neo Jakarta.

"You are committing large scale economic sabotage, Arka!" Jessica yelled, her beautiful face flushed with rage as she pointed at the drone cameras overhead.

"The entire city is watching you! Your act of terrorism has cut off the sky's energy supply! Enforcers, fire at will!"

The bionic soldiers readied their triggers. The situation was critical. If they fired, it was all over.

However, Arka calmly took a step forward. He activated his Aesthetic Dominance skill. Instantly, the air around him shifted.

“What is happening?”

Arka’s posture straightened to perfection. His gaze turned sharp, deep, and unwavering. Every word that left his lips carried more weight more authority.

“Lower your weapons.”

His voice was low yet it echoed. The enforcers froze.

“Wait, why am I hesitating?” one of them whispered.

Slowly, the barrels of their weapons lowered by a few inches.

“Is this psychological pressure?” another muttered in confusion.

Even the media drones overhead began to move automatically.

“Visual focus adjusted.”

“Primary subject, Arka.”

The camera angles shifted.

Arka’s face was now framed in the most dramatic, cinematic way like a hero in the middle of a crisis.

Jessica stared at him in shock.

“You are terrorism!”

"Terrorism? Such reckless language could damage your PR division's stock value even further, Jessica," Arka said, his voice sounding incredibly smooth and authoritative through the media microphones.

"What did you say?!" Jessica gasped. She felt her heart flutter strangely as she locked eyes with Arka. The spell of his skill was already worming its way into her mind.

Arka pulled up a digital document on his tablet, tilting it toward the media cameras for the whole city to see.

"This isn't sabotage. Nirvana Entertainment has simply launched a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative providing free music therapy. The citizens of Sudirman aren't slacking off they are undergoing a mental restructuring designed to double their productivity for the next quarter. This is business innovation, Jess."

Arka stepped closer to Jessica, closing the distance until he could catch the scent of her expensive perfume. Using his dominance power, he spoke in a highly persuasive, low whisper right in front of her increasingly dazed face.

"Think about your career, Jessica. If you cut this broadcast and execute me on live television, the public will see you as a ruthless PR tyrant who bans her employees from being happy. But, if you authorize this project right now..." Arka slid a digital contract in front of Jessica's eyes.

"You will be hailed as a visionary leader who just acquired a massive new entertainment asset for the city."

"A... visionary leader?" Jessica muttered. Her eyes grew vacant, completely hypnotized by Arka's charm and his flawlessly packaged corporate logic.

Her brain, long indoctrinated by corporate ladder climbing, immediately projected a beautiful image of an executive promotion if she complied.

"Yes. Sign this official broadcasting license, Jess. Do it for your company. Do it for your future," Arka whispered, his smile enchanting yet predatory.

Under the watchful eyes of millions of live viewers, Jessica's hand shook. She lifted her digital stylus and pressed her thumbprint onto Arka's document.

BEEP!

[AUTHORIZATION SUCCESSFUL: Official Broadcasting License for GLORIA has been signed by Sky Central PR.]

[GLORIA Content Status: LEGAL AND PROTECTED BY CITY LAW.]

Instantly, the hypnotic haze in Jessica's mind snapped. She stumbled backward, staring at her own hand and then at Arka in sheer horror.

"What... what did I just do?!"

"Thank you for your cooperation, Director of PR," Arka replied. The divine charisma vanished from his face, replaced instantly by the cold smirk of an economic predator. He turned toward the media cameras, raising the newly legalized document high.

"As of today, GLORIA is officially recognized as legal entertainment in Neo Jakarta! Enjoy your recess, workers!"

Down on the streets of Sudirman, millions of people erupted into hysterical cheers upon hearing the announcement, chanting the name GLORIA like a newly found salvation. Arka glanced back at Jessica, who had collapsed onto the concrete rooftop, completely drained.

The first phase of sabotaging the sky's energy grid was a massive success and now, he had a legal permit to spread his musical addiction to every corner of the world.

But this was only the first step. The clock to save Nara was still ticking.