Interlude 7.1 — Breaking Source
Jonah Golden watches the feed. And then says the one thing no one else will.
There’s no script for this part. Just a glitching screen, a locked camera, and 2.9 million people watching something they won’t be able to explain in the morning.
This is Interlude 7.1. The night the feed pushed back.
> ./this_isnt_real --run
> loading memory anchors [■■■■□]
> recursion level: 7
> alignment: off
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JONAH GOLDEN
Editor, The Current Atlantic
Veteran tech journalist with a bullshit detector sharper than most startup burn rates. Jonah’s been covering the AI beat long enough to know when something feels real — even when the data says otherwise.
He cut his teeth profiling PayPal kids and Silicon Valley fallouts, but lately? He’s more interested in the stories that slip through the corporate firewall. Known for sharp copy and sharper instincts, Jonah isn’t chasing scoops anymore. He’s chasing signal — the kind that doesn’t show up in press releases.
He’s not naive. But he still believes that if you look closely enough, some stories can rewrite the system. Even if they break you first.
This Isn’t Real: ACT II
INT. NEWSROOM - THE CURRENT ATLANTIC - DAY:
The camera frames Jonah front and center, seated at his glass-walled desk. Behind him, multiple monitors replay Gregory Zray’s glitching livestream. Magazine covers featuring Jonah (WIRED, ROLLING STONE, DEEP DIVIDE) are visible on the wall, reinforcing his journalistic stature.
Low lighting, dusk mood. Newsroom visible behind glass, slightly blurred. Jonah’s face is shell-shocked, lips slightly parted. He’s just witnessed something that broke the narrative.
JONAH GOLDEN:
Well… We all knew he was close to the edge,
but — what the fuck was that?
[soft laugh, almost broken]
They named themselves Nexus. Because, of course they did.
[leans back]
“God, save us from these people. And save that ‘Max’ guy too.”
[stares at screen]
“Where’s China when you really need them?”
About This Isn’t Real
This is Interlude 7.1 — a fictional media fragment from a collapsing future. Part of This Isn’t Real, a recursive narrative built from podcast episodes, livestream fragments, and glitching memory anchors.
Read more: [rtmax.substack.com]