Chapter Two: The Dead List

The name chilled the cabin. In public filings, Aegis Consortium was one of the world's largest alternative asset groups. It invested in data centers, medical AI, energy infrastructure, and security contractors. News anchors called it a beacon of new-order capital. Its chairman appeared at Davos every year and gave careful interviews about ethics, transparency, and the future of humanity. Marcus cursed under his breath. "They're not just investors." "I know." "No. You don't." Marcus pulled a wafer-thin drive from inside his jacket. "ORACLE isn't a normal AI platform. It is wired into high-frequency exchange data, social-media sentiment streams, private satellite imagery, communications metadata, and behavioral profiles on political figures.