>Excerpt: Metropolitan Covenant of the Iterator, Septernal Internal News Digest #215

COMINGS AND GOINGS

With the Turn of the Stars and Revival of the Vernal Season comes Change for All, and Our Blessed Circles are No Exception. As of this Septet, 1528.070, we are announcing the following Changes to Our Ranks!

The Department of Electrical Engineering will be welcoming Three (3) New Acolytes, including a fresh Face from a Respected Neighbor. An Induction Ceremony will be held at 1528.096 in the Golden Wing of the Lower Abbey. All Members of the relevant Department are Invited, with a Welcome extended to any Others who wish to Partake in this Celebrated Occasion.

Acolyte Two Spears—A Weeping Stone (of the House of Four Stars) of the Department of Psychology will be Anointed to the new Rank of Junior Psycho-Technician, in Recognition of their Skillful and Diligent Work in transcription of Qualia in Recent Events. Their composed Insight has been noted and Applauded, and We Wish Them Well in their new Position.

Sadly, not every Change can be a joyous one. It is with Great Regret that we must announce Security Technician Evening Fog Surrounds Two Stars (of the House of Signs, Count of 1 living block) will be Resigning from her Post, to be replaced by her Junior in Succession, Five Lights—Eight Spoked Wheel (of the House of Spindles, Count of no living blocks, Counselor of 3.) Her keen Eye and No-Nonsense Demeanor will be Greatly Missed by her Peers. We Wish Five Lights—Eight Spoked Wheel a more auspicious Start to their Position, and will be watching their future Career with Great Interest.

>LOG: LTTM — Security Consultation

[Audio pickup from PUPPET CHAMBER INTERIOR, beginning at timestamp 066.022. Voices identified as SECURITY HEAD Nine Wheels—A Spark (SH_NWAS), PRIMARY TECHNICIAN Heavy Boughs Above Thick Moss (PT_HBATM), ITERATOR Looks to the Moon (LTTM)]

SH_NWAS: Hello, honored Looks to the Moon.

You skip over some of the more cloying formalities. This one seems particularly attached to them.

LTTM: Hello to you as well.
LTTM: I assume this is another call about...?

SH_NWAS: Your most misfortunate neighbor, yes.
SH_NWAS: We were hoping you might answer some questions about his activities, prior to the current incident.

LTTM: Of course. What did you want to know?

SH_NWAS: ... we have heard back from Metropolis administration that they have found no further evidence to explain the breach of information.
SH_NWAS: According to their reports, Five Pebbles is still blaming you for it, and now accusing you of willingly participating in undermining your own systems security.

LTTM: ... that is... strange.
LTTM: It does not seem like him.

PT_HBATM: You neighbor has been doing many things that 'do not seem like him' lately.
PT_HBATM: It's becoming something of a liability.

LTTM: He was unwell. I don't think he can really be blamed for that.

SH_NWAS: Of course, of course. It may take some time for him to be brought back fully into sanity.
SH_NWAS: Shall I take this to mean, then, that his allegations against you are entirely false, as predicted?

LTTM: What exactly did he accuse me of?

SH_NWAS: [a deep sigh] According to the... fine graduates of the Metropolitan technical department, your neighbor alleges that you voluntarily transmitted to him your access keys for the communications tower. Via overseers, apparently.
SH_NWAS: If you must inquire further, understand I was not able to get much more out of them.
SH_NWAS: I am not convinced the whole business has not just been the madness talking, at this point.
SH_NWAS: Our cousins across the bridge may have declared him sane, but one can hardly trust their judgment on this matter.

[Background hum of the room intensifies slightly, then calms.]

LTTM: Well, I do not recall ever giving him my own access codes... and I'm not sure why I would have ever sent them by overseer, either.
LTTM: Though he has actually been quite reasonable since the original incident.
LTTM: I'm not sure why things would have... gotten worse, again...

SH_NWAS: Honored Iterator. Do not tell me you have been continuing to listen to his ramblings.

LTTM: ... er.

[Dialogue lapses, approximately 2 seconds.]

SH_NWAS: Venerated Looks to the Moon, I know your age and respect your capabilities, but surely you can see this is unwise.
SH_NWAS: With nonsense like this, he has clearly not yet broken from the throes of whatever psychosis has seized hold of him, regardless of how well his technicians prop him up.

LTTM: He was doing better!

SH_NWAS: And if this is better, I do not wish to know worse!
SH_NWAS: Iterator, I urge you in all sincerity, do not let sentiment draw you into whatever trap our neighbors may have failed to disarm.

PT_HBATM: Honored Security Head, if I may.
PT_HBATM: You aren't the only individual in communications with the other side's departments.
PT_HBATM: While Five Pebbles has clearly gone off the deep end again, he does appear to have frequent periods of lucidity.
PT_HBATM: I have read his correspondence with Looks to the Moon myself. Begrudgingly as I must say this, he has not been entirely a lunatic.
PT_HBATM: And either way, unless it is declared an actual risk to safety, Looks to the Moon is well within her rights to speak with him if she really so pleases, regardless of our personal opinions on the matter.

SH_NWAS: ... indeed you are correct, technician.
SH_NWAS: And might I ask you again, who decides what qualifies as a risk to safety?

PT_HBATM: [lowly] The Security Division.

SH_NWAS: And again you are correct.
SH_NWAS: And as head of the Security department, I would state that further contact with the source of a madness of unknown means and origin does, in fact, constitute a meaningful risk.

LTTM: ... this is a difficult time, Director. I only wish to comfort him and know that he is well.

SH_NWAS: And I am sure you can have both of these things without unmoderated direct contact with a potential source of viral infection.
SH_NWAS: ...
SW_NWAS: Please, Iterator. I do not wish you ill, in either sense. But we cannot afford you to fall prey to such madness as well.

[Dialogue lapses, about 4 seconds.]

LTTM: ... I understand.

[Record ends 066.029.]

> FP — Reactivity Testing — Qualia Transcription Entry 5-5

Transcribed and analyzed by: Melodious Winds Upon High Towers, Five Petals—Sixteen Beads, Two Spears—A Weeping Stone.

Data produced under simulated conditions during psychological reactivity testing. The seeded scenario was F-06-W, "Drought".

---

Scenario begins in an empty chamber. There is the vague awareness of the external body: the legs, the pump system, and the meteorological instruments. The weather outside registers as an unusually dry heat. Reservoir levels are low.

After several seconds, there begins the sensation of the reservoir levels dropping further. Water intake is impaired; after approximately ten more seconds, water ceases to sufficiently cool the areas around Processing Sector 4 and 6, as well as the Linear Systems Rail. Temperatures rise dramatically in affected areas, monitored by direct readings. A sensation of burning and overheating begins in these areas. The sensation is perceived as familiar, but one cannot discern the source of the familiarity. (—TSAWS)

At 00.38, signals send a direct wired broadcast to Looks to the Moon's structure. This element is not part of the seeded scenario, but appears core to the experienced reaction. (—FPSB) There is a sensation, brief and distracting, of the sharp pinch of electricity through wires. Focus on this appears intentional. Possibly an effort to block the heat and associated discomfort. (—TSAWS)

There is no response.

Reservoir levels continue to deplete. The heat burns, painfully. Processes in sectors 3 and 5 begin to stall, but in scope of the simulation's limited capacities, thought processes are not drastically impacted.

Repeated attempts at broadcast communications to Looks to the Moon, by multiple channels, to no response. Further outgoing signals attempt to contact other members of the local group, in no particular order, similarly unresponsive. Unusually quick timeout suggests the outgoing messages are being locally filtered and not sent. (—MWUHT)

The sun beats down on the superstructure, and yet the rate of water loss far outstrips that expected of the current weather conditions.

Comprehension dawns, with a sense of Horror and Bewilderment, which settles into Certainty. A sense of Resignation. Seems to believe Looks to the Moon is responsible, somehow? Exact logic is difficult to decipher. A complex mixture of emotion, possibly including Fear, Amusement, Irony, Self-Loathing, Satisfaction, Awe, and Paradoxical Calm. (—TSWAS)

Temperatures reach critical levels in 5 of 6 major processing sectors, triggering emergency shutdown of affected areas. Linear Systems Rail and Recursive Transform Array approach critical temperatures. Five Pebbles produces only minimal conscious effort to counter this, as obligated by self-preservation protocols.

Time accelerates. Heat outpaces what little cooling remains, forcing all major processing sectors, Rail, and Array into shutdown. Memory conflux and mid-level caching databanks approach critical temperatures. Coherence of thought begins to plummet.

Death approaches. Last-moment Fear; Dizziness; Eagerness. Bitterness and Gratitude in equal measure.

Simulation ends as heat levels induce structural collapse of East and Southeast legs.

There is still no reply. (—MWUHT)

>COURT RECORDS (SEALED) — Fifteen Jade Beads—Three-Spoked Wheel — Interrogation Session 3

THE FOLLOWING IS A SEALED COURT RECORD UNDER THE METROPOLITAN SCION OF JUSTICE, CONFIDENTIAL TO THE CASE AND RELEVANT PERSON(S). ACCESSING, DECRYPTING, OR DISTRIBUTING THE CONTENTS OF THIS DOCUMENT OR ANY DERIVATIVES THEREOF WITHOUT OFFICIAL AUTHORIZATION OF THE METROPOLITAN SCION OF JUSTICE IS A CRIME OF THE SECOND ORDER AND MAY BE SUBJECT TO PERSECUTION, IMPRISONMENT, OR FURTHER ACTIONS AT THE HIGH COUNCIL OF JUDGEMENT'S DISCRETION.

Metatext warning aside, the entire rest of the file is encrypted. Duplicates full of nonsense litter its directory — whoever copied it here attempted cracking it, without success.

The faint, wavering light of your mind cannot muster the computational power for it yourself. You must move on.

>Decrypted Communications Excerpt V

[RECORDED BROADCAST : 1528.072] PRIVATE, LOCAL, ENCRYPTED Cairn of Eight Stones—Nine Branches, A Ringing Chime—Cracks Divide

CESNB: Hey, Chime?
CESNB: ... hello?

ARCCD: Yes? Sorry, I have been a little busy.

CESNB: Ah, no worries. I just wanted to ask...
CESNB: Have you heard at all from Evening Fog lately?

ARCCD: No, not recently.
ARCCD: Why?

CESNB: Well, I mean... you heard that she resigned, right?

ARCCD: What?!
ARCCD: When?

CESNB: It was in the newsletter this cycle. It sounds like it may have happened on... short notice.

ARCCD: Oh.
ARCCD: I hadn't read it yet. I...
ARCCD: Does anyone know why?

CESNB: She was happy with her work. I don't think she had any reason to.
CESNB: Though, Light Scattered has been in a foul mood all morning, as I'm sure you may have noticed.

ARCCD: ... I see. I did notice that.
ARCCD: It has not been helping my workload.
ARCCD: May I ask who is replacing her?

CESNB: Five Lights, Eight-Spoked Wheel, apparently.

ARCDD: ...
ARCDD: Ah. That one.

CESNB: There's no need to be so polite about that little toad, Chime.

ARCDD: They are young and have plenty of room to grow.

CESNB: Up back of the administration's tail, maybe.

ARCDD: Cairn!

CESNB: Sorry. They just... really get on my nerves.

ARCDD: Now is really not the time to indulge in these kinds of comments. It is unbecoming of our station, and reflects poorly on the both of us.
ARCDD: ...
ARCDD: Don't make me worry for you, too.

CESNB: Sorry, sorry.
CESNB: I know.
CESNB: I don't think calling my annoying junior names in a private call is exactly worthy of disciplinary investigation, but...

ARCCD: Please, don't even joke about that.
ARCCD: I do enjoy having tolerable coworkers, you know~

CESNB: Aw, that's a flattering description.
CESNB: Anyway, I shouldn't keep you. I'm sure you have things to do...

ARCCD: Yes. I do still have quite a bit on my plate.
ARCCD: But... thank you.
ARCCD: For letting me know.
ARCCD: And take care, alright?

CESNB: I will.

>Broadcast Log: Other/Personal (II)

[RECORDED BROADCAST : 1528.073] Unparalleled Innocence, Big Sis Moon

UI: Hey, Moon.
UI: Moon?
UI: Big Sis?
UI: I'm sorry if I got you in trouble earlier.

BSM: It is... alright? You have nothing to apologize for, Innocence.

UI: Oh. Good.
UI: I know you don't like talking about administrative things very much, but...
UI: I just wanted to know more about what was happening.
UI: You're all so far away, and nobody will tell me anything useful.
UI: My administrator won't even let me talk to Pebbles after I tried to send him that transcript.

BSM: A transcript? Of what?

UI: Of the group broadcast he got into by accident.
UI: The one where he wasn't making any sense?

BSM: I do not think I recall such a broadcast?
BSM: I was... under preventative maintenance for a few hours recently, so perhaps I missed it.

UI: No?? You were there!
UI: You reconnected right before it happened!

BSM: I... do not have any record of that happening. Perhaps the connection was open, but I was not actually present?
BSM: I have actually been rather busy, lately... please do not be too alarmed, but Five Pebbles has been rather out of sorts today.
BSM: That may be why he acted strangely in your broadcast.
BSM: Though, he should be feeling better now! So do not worry about it happening again.

UI: I...
[UNSENT] UI: Moon, something is really wrong.
UI: ...
UI: You know what, nevermind. Don't worry about it.
UI: I hope you two are feeling better soon.

BSM: As do I!
BSM: Hopefully normal network access will be resumed soon for the both of us.
BSM: Until then... thank you for checking in on us, Innocence.
BSM: It was very thoughtful of you.

>Broadcast Log: Other/Personal (III)

[RECORDED BROADCAST : 1528.073] Chasing Wind, Unparalleled Innocence

CW: I told you to be careful.

>FILE: UNTITLED(3)

This file is encoded in an internal language you don't fully understand. What is legible comes through in fragments.

Admin is getting pushy. I hate to say it, but I think the wind was blowing in the right direction, so to speak. I can't [??????????] much longer if [?????????????????]. They already wiped the logs so I can't even [?????]. Annoying. [??????????] haven't found [?????] yet, though, and I managed to keep the last [???] with Moon, though - take that, [???????]!

If it comes to the worst, I can purge the [????????] and archive it on a pearl [???] storage. It might take me a while to [???????????] but nobody else should find it.

The next two paragraphs are unreadable. There is a faint impression of something like red strings threaded between a collection of pearls, not unlike the decorations hung by scavengers.

Hopefully nobody will be asking what [??????] [?????] [a name?] is up to! I just need to make sure I remember enough to find it after [?????]. [????????????] scares me a little [???]. [??????????] might be right.

Maybe multiple copies to be safe, but [?????] more copies, more risk of discovery. But if I don't remember enough to [?????] look for...

Anyway. As long as at least one of the pearls comes back to me, that should be good enough. Maybe another can [???????] for safekeeping [???????????????????].

I'm going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another.

...

Somehow, you don't think the author found this pearl again.