He froze. The software had never asked for his name. How did it know?

He thought of his grandmother’s last words before she passed: “Never look for shortcuts to the stars, beta. The stars charge their own price.”

“Free download,” he whispered, pressing Enter.

A ZIP file began downloading—slowly, like honey in winter. 10%... 40%... 85%... Complete.

“Too late. You downloaded. You opened. You belong to the chart now. Welcome to Parashara Light 9.0. Your first prediction: in seven days, you will forget your own name.”

He double-clicked.