2012-05-22
Explanation
This comic is a long-form poem presented in the style of an illustrated epic, telling the story of a hacker who stumbles into the source code of reality itself. The narrator describes hacking for 40 days and 40 nights (echoing biblical language), discovering a mysterious database of fundamental numbers, and changing them "just for sport." This triggers a reality-breaking cataclysm: the walls tremble, the ceiling rips apart, the sun grows large and red, and the hacker's body begins to decay.
In a moment of panic, the hacker manages to restore the original numbers, halting the apocalypse. The narrator then goes outside and whistles nonchalantly, shrugging off the near-destruction of reality. The poem ends with the hacker reflecting that humanity isn't yet ready for this power, hoping that someday, "when humans are more wise," someone will hack the truth machine properly. The comic plays on the archetype of the reckless but talented hacker who stumbles into something far bigger than they can handle, blending it with religious and mythological motifs. The final panel, "Welcome back," suggests the whole experience may have been a cycle or loop, or perhaps simply the mundane return to normal life after an almost world-ending adventure.