The office lights hummed. Elias realized alts.txt wasn't a log of what happened; it was a record of the paths not taken—the "alternates" of reality. And for the first time in the file's history, the current entry was waiting for him to decide which reality became the text and which became the "alt."
Rainfall in Seattle (0.4") -> ALT: No rain. Sunset at 7:52 PM. alts.txt
Elias Thorne finds alts.txt -> ALT: Elias Thorne ignores the file. The office lights hummed