Then he wrote a single line in the incident report: “On Windows 11, never let the guard dog nap. The wolves count in minutes.”

He tried to push a wake command. The console returned: “Agent is enjoying a nap. Try again later.”

For the first time in its existence, the watchdog closed its eyes.

The icon flickered green.

Miles slumped against a rack. He stared at the SEP console, which now chirped happily: