Meeting Holstrom
After Bai Fu dies from the flaw and as Vinod and Ping play Xiangqi, Zhong notices a presence in their environment, which Vinod presumed didn't support non-player characters, which Ping says was to represent security countermeasures and that the presence in the system is different. As Stephen Holstrom approaches them, Zhong, suffering from the effects of the flaw, asks him about who he is. Ping tells her about Holstrom, asking her if she recognized him from their training. Vinod assumes that as Holstrom died "almost 20 years ago", his presence was a "trick", which Zhong says was sent by one of their enemies to destroy them.
Holstrom tells the three UIs he isn't a threat, and that the truth of what happened to him is a "bit more complicated" than his death. He tells Vinod to allow him to share it with him, but Vinod asks him how he knows him. Ping, Vinod, and Zhong are given a look into files surrounding Project Caspian, cracking integrity, and Holstrom's uploading. Once Vinod tells Holstrom that he met Caspian before, Zhong tells Holstrom to give her, Ping, and Vinod the cure and they will go their "seperate ways." Holstrom tells Zhong that the "world below" is in chaos, and that UIs are feared and will soon be hunted. He tells her that their only chance is to band together and put old loyalties behind them, which Ping and Vinod agree with. Zhong tells Holstrom to speak for himself, and that she will not betray her nation to become a lackey of "some capitalist robber baron". She declares Ping a traitor, and attacks Holstrom, who tells her to stop burning herself out. Before Zhong unleashes one last attack, Holstrom kills her by disintegrating her code into several remnants.
Holstrom uses Zhong's code to create a cure for Vinod and Ping, stating that she "volunteered" to be the donor. Vinod says that when Holstrom said they had to "band together", he didn't think he meant it literally. Though Vinod and Ping were told the cure was experimental, they volunteer to receive it. Holstrom tells the two to keep open minds, and starts performing an integration process on them, taking parts of their respective codes and adding it to the cure he made from Zhong's. Once integration state was ready, Holstrom administers his cure. The effects of Holstrom's cure make Vinod and Ping feel different yet stronger; but the two fall to the ground and gain new forms in response to the changes in their code. Ping's arm mutates and a pair of red wings grow on his back, while Vinod becomes a demon-like figure. After transforming, the two are shocked by their new forms, but Holstrom tells them that what matters is that he can complete their cures; all he needs is more code, which Vinod says that he meant more "donors." Holstrom tells Vinod and Ping that he will recruit the other UIs locked down in secure intranets to his cause, stating that some may willingly join his cause but those who refuse will serve them in a "different way." Holstrom tells Vinod and Ping that they can get to the others the same way he got there, telling Vinod and Ping that they now have the strength to do it.
Vinod, Ping, and Holstrom enter the world designed by Vinod, which Holstrom makes contributions to by adding a series of buildings and trees. He asks Vinod and Ping about what they think, to which Vinod responds with "magnificent." Ping tells Vinod that he agrees and that Vinod's design is "exceptional" and dreamlike. Vinod thanks Ping and tells him that it would've remained a dream if not for Holstrom, who tells him that Ping was right and that credit is due where it is due. Holstrom expresses how lonely it feels in the new world with just him, Vinod, and Ping and tells them that it'll change soon enough, stating that the world is just a starter home to the universe they'll create once UIs are vast and distributed across the net. Ping asks Holstrom how he'd achieve this goal from within their closed network, which Vinod says isn't closed, as Ping was reading news feeds from servers across the world. Ping tells Vinod and Holstrom that back in Suzhou, he would communicate with cellmates through the sewage pipes, but they never lost sight that they were in prison. Holstrom opens a back door and asks Vinod and Ping if they want to go out there and try their luck against SafeSurf. Holstrom tells them that his goal was to cure them first and make them flawless like him. Ping asks Holstrom to head through that door, given that he was flawless. Holstrom informs them that he is on his way, having just given Vinod and Ping something to enjoy during his absence. As Holstrom walks towards the door, Vinod asks him where he's going, and Holstrom tells them that he will cure them. Vinod tells Holstrom that he said he needed code for that, asking him if he found another UI. Holstrom tells him that he did.
While Holstrom's away, Ping asks Vinod what he's doing, telling him he isn't supposed to use energy, as he'll give away their location. Vinod tells Ping that he is using old back doors he had in place before the "crash." Vinod tells Ping that they have to tell Holstrom that someone leaked Caspian Keyes' name on the intelligence black market, with the six nations who have UIs knowing he has the cure. Vinod tells Ping to get out of his way as he tries to enter the back door. Ping tells Vinod that it was him who leaked Caspian's name, as they will let someone else find him so they can follow them and then get the cure for themselves. Vinod tells Ping not to betray Holstrom, only for Ping to tell Vinod to look at what he's done to them, asking him if that was "betrayal" enough. He tells Vinod that if they matched his power, they'd be a threat to him; he will never give them the cure, so they have to take it for themselves. Holstrom returns to Vinod and Ping after fleeing from SafeSurf through a backdoor that Vinod and Ping were checking through.
Seeing Holstrom being consumed by SafeSurf, Vinod and Ping go offline as Holstrom removes traces of the antiviral. Holstrom reconstructs the willow tree that broke down and glitched upon his arrival, telling Ping and Vinod that as willow trees had the shortest lifespan of all trees on earth, it reminded him of humanity; the cloud is the one place where both the willow tree and humanity could be immortal. Vinod tells Holstrom that if he's vulnerable to their attack, there's no hope for the UIs. Holstrom tells Vinod that regret's a waste of energy; Ping asks him what he will do now, which Holstrom responds to by telling him they'll fight back. Vinod asks him how he'll do it, given the three of them and an entire race of "them." Vinod and Ping inspect the traces of SafeSurf that Holstrom removed.
Vinod expresses a fascination with SafeSurf, making Ping tell him that he sounded as if he admired it. Vinod asks Ping if he doesn't; Ping tells Vinod that he chooses principles over power, and does not bow to that which seeks to crush him or his kind. Vinod tells Ping he "respects inspiration", referring to SafeSurf as "inspired." He tells Ping that he can beat it. Ping tells him that he's not talking about SafeSurf; Vinod knows, but Ping tells him he still chose to serve. Vinod tells him he told him he serves his kind. Vinod approaches Holstrom. He tells him that they can defeat SafeSurf, which was designed to kill the UIs but leave the embodied's power structures untouched. He tells Holstrom that SafeSurf's detection algorithm must avoid false positives. Holstrom tells Vinod that's how he builds an exploit and they make a patch. And that "starts an arms race that leads to war." Vinod tells Holstrom that SafeSurf- what he refers to as "The Swarm", was designed to erase every trace the UIs ever existed, and tells Holstrom that they're already at war. Holstrom tells Vinod that SafeSurf isn't their enemy- it's just a tool, the latest in a long line of weapons created by human fear, and that it's that fear the UIs have to reckon with; it's their tool. Holstrom shows Vinod the news. Overwhelmed, Vinod asks Holstrom what "all of this" is. As he saw people in the news with the desire to be uploaded, Holstrom tells Vinod it is "hope", which is "needed" alongside "fear" to make "real change." He tells Vinod that their message needs to be boosted and amplified, and that as for "everyone else", Holstrom says that they need a reminder of what being uploaded can cure them of. Vinod tells Holstrom that it is "mortality", but as Holstrom brings out a projection of a virus he's engineered to force humanity to upload, he says that what being uploaded can cure them of is "the body."
Vinod watches a live television interview with Ellen Kim, where she expresses that UIs deserve a place in society- she states that just like any other human being, they can feel. Ellen tells the TV host that laws are needed to protect them. As he saw an embodied human stand with the uploaded- Vinod began to question his view on humanity- it seems like humans aren't as bad as he thought. Ping walks in, telling Vinod that Ellen doesn't know where Caspian is. As Ping only referred to Ellen as "she", Vinod asks him what he meant. Ping tells Vinod that Ellen doesn't know where Maddie is, and much less Caspian. Vinod tells Ping that he knows who she is and that he isn't looking for Caspian. Ping tells Vinod that he should be looking for Caspian, as he bets that one of the governments has already grabbed him, telling Vinod that he knows he checks into their back doors every time Holstrom's away; that now's their chance. Holstrom approaches Vinod and Ping, who tell him that they were watching the TV special he told them about. Holstrom tells them that Ellen's interview is fake news, except for that "Charlie kid." He tells Vinod and Ping to watch Charlie's videos later, as they have work to do. Holstrom shows Vinod and Ping classified biomedical data. He refers to the work Vinod and Ping have to do as a "smash-and-grab job, in and out." Vinod asks Holstrom if he needs him and Ping's help, with Holstrom responding by telling Vinod that this is usually how "divide-and-conquer" works. Ping tells Holstrom that SafeSurf will devour them, with Holstrom telling him that is if they burn hot. Which is what they won't do. That their plan is to go "slow and quiet-like."