Somewhere around the mid-late 2000's, when Scratch was still being developed, news spread across Massachusetts that a corrupt MIT employee was fired due to tampering with Scratch files and altering them for unknown reasons. Soon after the news spread like wildfire, the employee was planning on getting revenge on MIT and everyone who poked fun at him. Many years later, Scratch was fully released to the public and started to gain popularity afterwards. The corrupt employee took this as an opportunity. A virus was then created and was disguised as a "scratch extension" that would promise users that they would gain access to some supposed "2008 prototype" files that generally contain an "early version" of the Scratch Cat and other sprites. This virus was put on a website and was linked to many users via an email to trick them into thinking they would gain access to these secret files. Though what they get in return is nothing but an odd looking version of the Scratch Cat sprite and a couple of backdrops - very disappointing. Once the user is distracted, the virus fully reveals itself and completely bricks the users device, along with transforming the Scratch Cat sprite into a monstrous beast in attempt to shock or scare the user. When the virus started spreading on the news, the police managed to track down the person who created the virus and arrested him. Nothing was known about what else the corrupt employee was planning. ---------------------------------------------------------------- 2008 prototype "full form" inspired by the fanmade 4th phase by @mr_tacoscratcher
