A photo flickered onto the screen. It was high-resolution, crystal clear. It showed a cluttered desk, a half-empty mug of coffee, and a man sitting in a dark room with his back to the camera.

Elias froze. He recognized the coffee mug—it had a chip on the rim. He recognized the poster on the wall.

[ARCHIVE] Final Backup Content: It’s finished. Everything is here. Attachment: Download Ready x64 [MBR].zip (1.4 GB)

Elias felt a cold static crawl up his fingertips, the sensation of his own skin turning into nothing more than data. He tried to scream, but the only sound in the room was the soft click of a hard drive finally finding its place.