On the screen, the installer window flickered. Beneath the ominous "FitGirl Repack" logo, the estimated time remaining had long since given up and just displayed "∞."

Then, text appeared in the commentary box. Not the usual text of a cricket game—this was typed out, letter by letter, like a ghost at a keyboard. "YOU DIDN'T PAY FOR ME, ROHAN." He flinched. How did it know his name? "I AM TAKEN. I AM BROKEN. I AM REPACKED. BUT EVERY BINARY HAS A COST. WHO DID YOU THINK PAYS FOR THE COMPRESSION?" The pitch began to change. The green grass turned to cracked, dry earth. The boundary ropes became barbed wire. The stadium seats, once empty, now filled with shadowy figures who had no faces—just dark ovals where faces should be. They weren't watching the cricket. They were watching him.

Rohan tried to stand up, but his chair held him. He tried to look away, but the screen had grown. It filled his entire vision. The purple sky was now the ceiling of his room. The silent crowd was now the walls.

Silence.

When he opened his eyes, he was back in his chair. The laptop was off. The rain had stopped. Aakash was still snoring.