39017mp4 -

On the screen, the file name at the top of his vision changed. 39017.mp4 began to delete itself, character by character. In its place, a new file was being written directly into his neural memory drive. It was titled: 39018.mp4.

"Elias?" Thorne asked on the recording. She turned the camera toward him. 39017mp4

The video feed began to tear. The audio dissolved into a harsh, digital screech that made Silas winch and grab his temples. Lines of code began to bleed down over the video image, green text overriding the visual of the dying research station. On the screen, the file name at the

The video quality was poor, full of horizontal tracking lines and digital artifacting. It was a handheld shot, looking out through the reinforced plexiglass of a research dome. Outside, a blizzard was raging, a white wall of screaming wind. It was titled: 39018

He realized his mistake. The heavy bass of the tavern's background music had vibrating his audio implant, making him hear what wasn't there. She hadn't said Silas. She had said "silent."

The file didn't open with a loading bar. It hit his visual cortex like a physical blow.

Silas tried to scream, but his jaw just locked into a wide, frozen smile. The low hum began in the back of his throat, and the world went white.