I woke at 3:13 AM, heart pounding, a high-pitched buzzing drilling into my left ear. It wasn’t the usual tinnitus. This felt… intelligent.

I stumbled to the bathroom, splashing cold water on my face then froze. The mirror flickered. Not the lights the mirror. It showed me, but I wasn’t moving. The reflection smiled.

The buzz spiked. Words burned into my mind: “Receiver activated.”

Panicked, I ran back to my room. My laptop had turned itself on, streaming lines of code I didn’t recognize. Then came a voice my voice.

“Unit 514 online. Transmission complete.”

The screen blinked once. Then black.

I collapsed.

When I woke again, the buzz was gone. So was my reflection. Now, every screen I pass shows me but just for a second, before it smiles.

And I never do.