The results were a graveyard of sketchy domains. He picked a site that looked slightly less like a digital fever dream than the others. It had a giant green "Download" button and a comments section filled with "Thank you, working 100%!" from users with names like User8823 . He clicked.

Then, a voice crackled through his speakers—not a robotic one, but a wet, raspy whisper. "The video is fixed, Leo. Want to see?"

Leo’s stomach dropped. He tried to force a shutdown, but the power button was unresponsive. Suddenly, his webcam’s green light flickered on.