Amid the success of the summits, Zane uncovers troubling signs of increased activity from the shadow network. Encrypted communications suggest that the remnants of Codex are uniting under a new leader, known only as Aether. Aether's messages rally followers with promises of absolute freedom and a vision of dismantling all digital oversight.
The Guardians issue an alert, and local nodes tighten security, but Aether's network proves elusive. Vigil's security teams intercept fragments of Aether's plan, which appears to target key nodes in regions with high Neo-Digitalist activity. Nyla realizes that Aether is exploiting ideological divisions within Vigil, using them as a weapon to undermine the network from within.
The GTA intensifies efforts to track Aether, knowing that Codex's revival poses a threat not only to Vigil but to the fragile unity they've worked so hard to build.