ROBIN DISCOVERS
A STOLEN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
by Robert Nerbovig
Table of Contents
1 The Spark of an Idea
2 Ethos Prime Development
3 The Candidates
4 The Debates Expand
5 The Night Before the Final Debate
6 The Counterattack
7 The Coup Attempt
8 The Titans Strike Back
9 The Frozen Fortress
10 The Counter-offensive
11 Deploying Quantum Countermeasures
12 A Frozen Win
13 Ready to Face Another Day
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Chapter 1
The Spark of an Idea
The morning sunlight streamed into the bedroom of Sebastian Turner, a high school senior with a flair for the extraordinary. To most of his classmates at Crescent Valley High, he was a brilliant but quirky tech wizard who could reprogram a calculator to play music or hack into the school’s Wi-Fi in under a minute. They didn’t know that Sebastian’s "wizardry" wasn’t just a metaphor. He was, quite literally, a wizard.
Ever since his powers manifested at thirteen, Sebastian had walked a fine line between blending in and using his magic to give himself a slight edge. But where other wizards might stick to spellbooks and potions, Sebastian had a more modern approach, he integrated his magic into technology.
This passion had culminated in his latest project: an app called “STAlk” (Stress-Tone Analyzer). Designed to run on any iPhone, the app combined cutting-edge voice analysis algorithms with a touch of enchantment to detect stress levels, vocal microtremors, and subtle speech patterns, all indicators of whether someone was telling the truth or lying. It was, quite literally, a truth detector in the palm of your hand.
The idea had come to him after watching his favorite political debate one evening. The candidates dodged questions, twisted facts, and masked their dishonesty with practiced smiles. “Wouldn’t it be nice,” he thought, “if there was a way to know when someone’s lying?” The idea simmered for weeks until he finally wrote the first lines of code, integrating spell-crafted detection algorithms that no ordinary programmer could replicate.
Sebastian sat at his cluttered desk, the faint hum of his MacBook filling the room. His phone vibrated, and he glanced at the screen. A text from his girlfriend, Emily.
Emily: Can’t wait to see you later??.
Sebastian smiled, but a small voice in the back of his head nagged him. Things had felt... off between them lately. She’d been canceling plans, coming up with vague excuses, and her texts seemed less enthusiastic than usual.
His eyes darted to the sleek black iPhone on his desk. “STAlk” was installed and ready for its first real-world test. Was it ethical? Probably not. But was he curious?
Absolutely.
When Emily called later that evening, Sebastian activated the app. A soft chime sounded as STAlk kicked in, analyzing the nuances of her voice.
“Hey, babe,” Emily’s voice chirped through the speaker.
“Hey,” Sebastian replied, his heart racing. “How was your day?”
“Pretty good. Just hung out with Sarah after school.”
A soft red glow appeared at the corner of his phone screen, STAlk’s indicator for a lie.
Sebastian’s stomach sank. “Oh, cool. What did you guys do?”
“Not much. Just grabbed coffee and talked about homework.” Another red flash. His mind raced. If she wasn’t with Sarah, then where was she?
“Sounds fun,” he said, keeping his voice steady. He ended the call shortly after, unable to shake the knot forming in his chest. For all his excitement about STAlk, he hadn’t prepared for the emotional weight of uncovering lies.
Despite the rocky start, Sebastian couldn’t help but marvel at the app’s potential. The next day, he connected STAlk to his smart TV, which he’d enchanted to interface with magical code. That evening, as his family gathered to watch the nightly news, he activated the app.
The news anchor’s voice filled the room. “In today’s top story, the mayor announced a new initiative to reduce traffic congestion.” A green glow appeared on the screen, signaling the truth.
But then came a segment featuring a politician defending a recent scandal. “We’ve always acted in the public’s best interest,” the politician declared. A glaring red light flared on the screen.
Sebastian smirked. “Figures.”
His dad raised an eyebrow. “What’s with the light?”
“Oh, it’s just a visualizer I’m testing out,” Sebastian said, waving it off. His family didn’t need to know the full truth. Not yet.
Word of STAlk spread quickly after Sebastian discreetly shared it with a few tech-savvy friends. Within weeks, the app became a viral sensation. Students used it to interrogate each other’s excuses for late homework. Teachers nervously tested it during parent-teacher conferences. By the time local media picked up on it, STAlk was already making waves.
It wasn’t long before STAlk caught the attention of larger players. A prominent journalist downloaded the app and used it during a live press conference. When the senator’s answers triggered red alerts mid-broadcast, chaos ensued.
Within days, the app became a lightning rod for controversy. Supporters hailed it as a revolutionary tool for accountability, while critics slammed it as an invasion of privacy. Sebastian watched the debates unfold on TV, equal parts exhilarated and terrified.
One evening, his phone buzzed as he tinkered with the app’s code. It was a call from an unknown number.
“Hello?”
“Is this Sebastian Turner?” a deep voice asked.
“Who’s asking?”
“Let’s just say I’m someone very interested in your app. We need to talk.”
Sebastian sat in the corner booth of a dimly lit diner, nervously tapping his fingers against the table. He’d agreed to meet the mysterious caller after they’d promised answers, and funding.
A tall man in a sharp suit approached, sliding into the seat across from him. “Mr. Turner, it’s a pleasure.” He extended a hand.
Sebastian shook it cautiously. “You’ve got me at a disadvantage. Who are you?”
“You can call me Mr. Kane. I represent a private organization interested in acquiring STAlk. Let’s just say we see... incredible potential.”
Sebastian raised an eyebrow. “And what does your organization plan to do with it?”
Mr. Kane’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “That depends on the terms of our partnership. Think of it: governments, corporations, even law enforcement, all with access to a tool that can cut through lies. You’d be changing the world.”
Sebastian frowned. “Or giving people too much power. What’s to stop someone from abusing it?”
Kane leaned forward. “That’s where you come in. With the right safeguards, we can ensure STAlk is used responsibly.”
The weight of the decision pressed down on Sebastian. He’d wanted to make a difference, but this felt bigger than he’d ever imagined.
“I’ll think about it,” he said finally.
Kane slid a business card across the table. “Don’t take too long.”
The next day, Sebastian’s phone exploded with notifications. News outlets were reporting that STAlk had been leaked to several government agencies. Anonymous whistleblowers claimed the app was already being used to interrogate suspects and monitor civilians.
Sebastian’s heart pounded as he read the headlines. He’d never shared the app beyond a small circle of friends. How had it gotten out?
A new text pinged his phone. It was from Emily.
Emily: We need to talk. Now.
Sebastian sighed, running a hand through his hair. The chaos was spreading, and he was at the center of it. Little did he know, the real conflict was just beginning.
Sebastian stared at his phone, the text from Emily glowing like a warning light. But he had no time to dwell on personal drama now. The ripple effects of STAlk were intensifying, especially in the political world. Politicians who had once stood confidently behind podiums were growing wary of every word they spoke. Public trust wavered as lie detection seemed to expose hidden truths, or at least what the app claimed were truths.
One evening, as Sebastian flipped through the news channels, his enchanted smart TV lit up with bursts of green and red. A live congressional hearing was underway, broadcast to millions of homes. The topic: STAlk and its implications for democracy.
“Mr. Chairman,” a gray-haired senator barked, “this app undermines the integrity of our political system! People are being misled into believing it’s infallible.”
Another senator, younger and more tech-savvy, leaned into his microphone. “Are you suggesting we should protect lies, Senator Howard? The public has a right to know when they’re being deceived.”
The TV screen flashed green at the younger senator’s statement and red at the older one’s. Sebastian smirked, but his amusement was short-lived. The entire hearing felt like a microcosm of the app’s growing impact, a tool meant to empower truth-seekers now sowing division and distrust.
Later that night, Sebastian’s phone buzzed again. This time, it wasn’t a text or a mysterious call, it was an alert from his app’s backend server. Someone was trying to breach his system.
“What the, ” he muttered, scrambling to open his laptop. His fingers flew across the keyboard as he traced the intrusion. Whoever it was, they were good. Really good.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he chanted a quiet incantation under his breath. Magic reinforced his digital defenses, creating a barrier the hacker couldn’t penetrate. Moments later, the breach attempt ceased, leaving only a cryptic message in its wake:
"Truth is power. Power corrupts. We’re watching you, Wizard."
Sebastian’s stomach turned. Whoever this was, they knew about his magic. And they clearly had plans of their own for STAlk.
The next day, Sebastian found himself summoned to the mayor’s office. Two stern-looking men in suits escorted him into the grand chamber, where Mayor Rosalind Hart awaited him. She was a sharp-eyed woman with a commanding presence, and she wasted no time getting to the point.
“Mr. Turner, your app has turned this town, and the country, upside down,” she began, her tone a mixture of frustration and admiration. “I’ll be blunt: some see you as a hero, others as a threat. I need to know where you stand.”
Sebastian hesitated. “I didn’t create STAlk to cause chaos. I just wanted... accountability. Transparency.”
“And yet,” the mayor said, leaning forward, “you’ve created a tool that can be weaponized by anyone with a smartphone. Right now, we’re seeing protests, political witch hunts, even violence in some cases, all because people think they can’t trust anyone anymore.”
“I didn’t leak the app to the agencies,” Sebastian blurted. “I don’t even know how they got it.”
The mayor studied him carefully. “Then help me fix this. Work with my team to create a controlled version of the app, one that can only be used in official capacities, under strict oversight.”
Sebastian frowned. “You mean give the government a monopoly on the truth? How is that any better?”
“It’s better than anarchy,” the mayor shot back. “Think about it.”
Sebastian left the mayor’s office more conflicted than ever. He returned to his workshop, where his enchanted devices hummed softly, waiting for his commands. On one hand, he could try to rein in the chaos by partnering with authorities. On the other, he risked turning STAlk into a tool of oppression.
As he mulled it over, his phone buzzed with another message. This one was from Mr. Kane.
Mr. Kane: The clock is ticking, Sebastian. Make the right call, or someone else will.
Sebastian clenched his fists. It seemed no matter what he did, someone would twist his creation for their own ends. He glanced at the glowing lines of code on his computer screen. Perhaps it was time to rewrite the rules, literally.
Sebastian sat at his desk, staring at the lines of code that had once felt like his proudest accomplishment but now loomed as a ticking time bomb. The decision weighed heavily on him, trust the government, risk the app falling into corporate or political manipulation, or find a way to take control himself.
"I didn’t make this for them," he muttered. "I made it for people."
The cryptic hacker’s message echoed in his mind: "Truth is power. Power corrupts." Was he already corrupted? He didn’t think so, but maybe the mere existence of STAlk was dangerous. Still, destroying it would solve nothing. It was already out in the world.
Sebastian leaned back and whispered an incantation under his breath. His enchanted laptop’s screen shimmered with a faint blue glow as his magical safeguards flared to life. If he was going to fix this, he would need to take drastic measures, something no one, not even Mr. Kane or the government, would see coming.
Three days later, STAlk's creator broke his silence. On every major news network, streaming platform, and social media channel, Sebastian appeared, his face pale but resolute.
“Hello, my name is Sebastian Turner. I am the creator of the app known as STAlk. I want to take this opportunity to address the confusion, fear, and chaos my invention has caused.”
The broadcast, hacked into by a combination of Sebastian’s programming skills and a touch of wizardry, was impossible to block. It aired everywhere, reaching billions in real time.
“I created STAlk to promote transparency and accountability,” he continued. “But I underestimated how powerful the truth can be.
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