The download bar crawled. When it finished, a strange icon appeared on his desktop—not the game’s official crest, but a simple, pixelated crown. He double-clicked.

On the screen, behind the King, Leo saw a blurry image of his own bedroom. He saw the back of his own head. And then, he saw the King’s hand reach out from the edge of the monitor, casting a very real, very physical shadow across his keyboard.

His speakers emitted a low, distorted hum. The screen didn't launch a game window. Instead, his wallpaper began to peel away, pixel by pixel, revealing a live feed of a dark, stone room.

The text box scrolled one last time: If you'd like to continue this, let me know: Should Leo try to fight back with his technical skills?