As the file decompressed, his monitor began to flicker. It wasn't a software glitch; the light in the room itself seemed to pulse in sync with the hard drive's hum. When the extraction finished, a single folder appeared. It was titled simply: WTAE-49104-LIVE . Inside was a video file. Elias hesitated, then hit play.
Outside the windowless room, the server fans roared to life, beginning the long process of uploading the rest of him. gf120622-wtae-49104-gg-part1-rar
In the video, the "other" Elias leaned toward the camera and whispered something. The audio was muffled, but the transcript appeared as a subtitle at the bottom of the screen: "Part 1 complete. Initiating Part 2." As the file decompressed, his monitor began to flicker
Elias reached for the power cord, but his hand wouldn't move. He looked down and saw his skin beginning to pixelate, turning into the same grey, grainy texture of the corrupted file. He wasn't just watching the archive; he was becoming it. It was titled simply: WTAE-49104-LIVE
Elias froze. He recognized the coffee mug on the desk. He recognized the fraying hem of the man’s sweater.