His older brother, Marcus, a lanky computer science student with a permanent look of amused pity, watched from the doorway. “You know,” Marcus said, cracking open a can of Jolt Cola, “there’s another way.”

Leo ejected the disc. A crescent-shaped chunk of polycarbonate fell out onto his desk, glittering like a broken tooth.

The words hung in the air like a forbidden spell. Leo had heard the term whispered on GameFAQs and in the darker corners of IRC channels. It sounded like piracy. It sounded like a felony. It also sounded like salvation.

> SO NOW, EVERY PATCH USER IS MINE.

The text box returned:

Leo laughed nervously. “It’s a joke. The cracker put in a scare message.”

Marcus pried Leo’s fingers off the mouse. “We’re deleting that file. And we’re buying an external CD-ROM drive on eBay tomorrow.”

Leo’s hand trembled over the mouse. “What if it’s a virus?”