Introduction

05 October 2510

Datastream from Central

SW300:LAR9X0/R/G/T/B/M

begin seq.
(42)?$░&h-$:$0$0$8$($,,$("("00
beta ipsilon
regulo-delta-delta/omega
tau hyperium
tau meson, lorem
end seq.

group4520.initiate
viable:5/nonviable:5
s723k3 unstable
allocation
£$£$interrupted
resume
resume
group4520
viable:4/nonviable:5
group9830
viable:1
£$£$interrupted
resume
resume

Chapter 1

Ten Thousand Days of Life

31 March 2538

How to Begin?

I think the best thing I can do here is tell you a little about myself. My name is Lucien, and I suppose I am what you would call an evolved human. Here and now though, I and the rest of my kind are known colloquially as "segs".

It means segregated.

Our kind of segregation isn't such a bad thing, really. We have our own world.

Anyway, that aside, I think I'm a pretty normal guy. I'm from Sector 301, where I currently work admin. I have a fairly decent life, some family, a reasonable social circle. I don't do drugs, and I don't drink anything stronger than Synth. I read, study, socialise and I work admin. That's pretty much it, really.

That's pretty much ALWAYS been it, really. I sit in my office, collating data, day after day, waiting for my ten-thousand days celebration, when all of us lowly admin segs are considered for promotion. I never considered it to be a bad life.

Today though, my world was shattered when three people came to my office, unannounced. I say came to my office, but that's not strictly accurate. You see, it was AFTER close of business and I was using a bit of free time to try and get my backlog cleared: the building was empty, and I mean empty. So I feel a gust of air on the back of my neck and turn in my seat, somewhat surprised to see three people standing before me. A woman and two guys. The woman looked like she was from Sector 300, like me, but the guys were definitely out of their sectors. One of them was a 600 and the other an 800.

At the time, I didn't even think about how they'd gotten into the building. Two out-of-sector workers and a woman in some very strange clothing indeed should have attracted a LOT of attention from Admin Security, but I'd heard no alarms, nothing. The 600 spoke first, "You are, umm, one of the Redwood family?"
"Who are you to be asking me questions? You're out of your sector, you've broken into an administrative building, and you're with another guy who's out-of-sector and a woman who's...who's...well, I don't know WHAT she is, but she sure shouldn't be here. And nor should you. I'm calling Sector Security," and, panicking like the clerk that I am, I turned and reached for my terminal. I must admit, I was expecting them to try something, but they just stood there, smiling. In my state, I wasn't really thinking clearly, but I managed to open a connection. The face on the screen was as stern as the voice that accompanied it.
"Sector Security. Why are you calling from an admin terminal after hours?"
"I was catching up on some backlog. There has been an intrusion. Two workers out-of-sector, and a woman in...strange clothing." I still couldn't make her out, that woman.
"Name," came the voice of my steely-eyed saviour
"I don't know her name. Why would you ask me that?"
"YOUR name. Not hers."
"Oh, sorry, it's just...they're right here," I could feel their eyes on the back of my head, boring into me. Why weren't they trying to stop me? Didn't they know how much trouble they were in? I just couldn't work it out. "My name's Redwood. 4525 Lucien Redwood, AdSec301."
"Thank you, Lucien." The image on the screen started to melt.
"What the? What's going on?" I mumbled.
"Turn around," came the voice from the terminal. The face on the screen morphed, changed, reformed. It was the woman. The one standing behind me. I spun around again. She had her eyes closed, but opened them as I watched. She was smiling. They were all smiling.

She stepped forward and extended her right hand, "Pleased to meet you, Lucien. My name's Hana, and these are my friends, Hiro and Micah," the other two nodded, politely, "You have nothing to fear from us. We are friends, and it's important that you trust us. We've come a VERY long way to find you, and it hasn't been easy. Please, Lucien, it's important."
"Why should I trust you?" I was tensing in my seat, ready to flee. I was closer to the door than all of them, "Huh? Tell me? Why should I trust you? You've broken in, tampered with my data terminal, probably with the central junction too. You must have killed or restrained at least a dozen people to get he..." I stopped mid sentence when I realised the 600 - Hiro, she called him - wasn't there any more. I hadn't seen him leave, and I remember thinking he must move like a cat. I didn't know where he'd gone, and I didn't care. I acted like there was something behind them, and the two turned, right on cue. I couldn't believe they'd fallen for it! I seized the opportunity, bolted upright out of my chair and leapt for the door, hoping to at least get out of the building so I could attract some attention.
No such luck. He was waiting right outside the door, smiling his chubby little head off. I stopped, frozen, adrenaline rooting me to the spot, and I swear, as I watched him, he vanished. I didn't blink or look away, it was just like that. One instant he was there, and the next he was gone. I stepped out of the door, and there he was. Then he vanished again, and I considered this my cue to step back into the office. I turned around, and there he was, blocking my path back INTO the office. Before I could react, he placed his hand on my shoulder. I felt an odd twisting in my guts, and a moment of dizziness, and I was back in my office. Hiro stepped back, still smiling, and I collapsed into my chair, staring at him. He gave a little half-laugh and said, "This is how we roll."

That'll have to do for now. I wanted to get all this down while it was still fresh on my mind, but I'm pretty exhausted. It's been a long day, and I have to get at least a few hours sleep before open of business tomorrow. I'll tell you more tomorrow about what they had to say to me. I still don't quite believe it myself, but if what they say is true, then it's important that you see it, that you know what happens next...

Received from Lucien at 18:42

-

01 April 2538

A Message From the Past

I was so exhausted when I got home last night that I forgot today was a mandatory rest day. No open of business til tomorrow!

I'm still having trouble taking in what happened last night. Three people. Out of nowhere! When I woke up this morning, I was convinced I'd dreamt it all until I picked up my terminal and saw the new software was still there. Man, I had to sit down fast! It really happened! I still can't believe it.

Anyway, where did I leave off? Oh yeah, Hiro, the out-of-sector 600 had finished showing me that I had no hope of getting away from them.

I still didn't trust them, but I'd decided to listen to what they had to say. What else could I do? Exactly.

"Okay, I'm listening," I said.

The woman, Hana spoke first, "First off, Lucien, it's important that you understand. We're your friends. We really aren't here for any nefarious purposes." At this, she raised her hand, and I instinctively shrank back, but I was stupid. She wasn't going to hit me. She twitched the collar of her strange upper garment to one side and bowed forward, head almost touching the ground. She showed me her mark. All us segs have them. I'm not sure why.

You could have blown me away with half a canister of airdust, I was so surprised by what happened next...the two guys repeated Hana's movement and showed me their marks...except they didn't have them.

"You're...Terrans?" I exclaimed, "What the hell are Terrans doing on SegWorld?"
"No, we're all evolved, like you."
"Segs? But how come those two don't have the mark? And what did that guy DO to me?"

I can't remember the whole conversation now, but she told me that they ALL had special abilities, and that I had one too. At this point, I was pretty much prepared to believe whatever I was told. Hell, they could have told me it wasn't raining outside the dome and I'd have believed them! She said she could "talk" to data systems in her mind, that Hiro could move through time and space as easily as walking, and that Micah could make physical changes in data systems by touching them. They said that where they come from, there are people like them - like us - everywhere, that the world doesn't know about them, and that they are being hunted by the agencies that DO know about them.

Micah spoke next. It was the first time he'd really said anything. "Lucien, the world you live in is a direct result of our times. My ancestors knew of segregation in our world. They were owned and traded like property, kept separate from the main population even AFTER the days of their status as slaves. It is our duty to use our abilities for the good of mankind, and to ensure that this never happens again."
Then Hiro chimed in, "Unfortunately, from your perspective it HAS happened. Successive governments in your history saw our kind as a threat because of a handful of extremely powerful, dangerous people. New laws were voted in, year after year and nobody really noticed what was happening until you were left with the world you have now. All evolved humans evaluated at birth, implanted with an electronic genetic suppression device and transported here, to another world. The irony is that the technology you now have for instantaneous interstellar travel was derived from torturing and studying many people in your own history. Three of these people stand before you. It is from OUR minds that they will obtain this technology.
"Understand that, from my perspective none of this has happened yet, but I don't know how to stop it. The precogs we have among our number cannot get a clear enough image. The psychics cannot read everybody on the planet, and they cannot find anything that will help us."
I felt like I'd fallen under a barrage of blows from Sector Security (and we all know how THAT feels!), and so when Hana crouched before me, and looking straight into my eyes whispered, "Please. You can help us," there was such pain and longing in her eyes that I knew that all they were saying was true.
"I don't know what I can do," I said, "this world is all I know. This life. I don't know about abilities or anything like that, but I promise I'll do what I can to help you."

I swear I saw her eyes moisten, but she closed them before I could be sure, and when she opened them again, they were as steely hard and emotionless as the fake security officer I'd seen earlier on my screen. They explained that in my immediate future, my whole world would be turned upside down. They wouldn't tell me WHAT would happen, but they said that events could not be prevented, that the world I live in cannot be unmade. They went on to explain that they were beginning something called a viral campaign in their world to inform the world of the existence of evolved humans, and that they were self-policing and beneficial to humanity, and that their very existence was under threat. This campaign, they said, would only get people on their side if they could understand just how bad things would get if the timeline was allowed to progress unchanged.

"This will not change your world," Hiro pointed out, " but it will allow the people in our time to build a new, better future. If we succeed then you will know you have been instrumental in bringing about a better world, where there are no Terrans and Segs. Just people, working and living together for the benefit of each other."
"What must I do then, if my future is predestined?"
"It is not predestined as such. Just some key events. How you deal with them defines your destiny, not the events themselves."
"And as to what you can do, " said Micah," we have a gift for you. If I may have your, um...what do you call it?" he gestured toward my data terminal.
"Huh?" I said, bemused, before realisation dawned. "Oh, Pidit. We call them Pidits, or terminals. It comes from the acronym for Personal Data Terminal."
"Pidit. I like that," he smiled. I handed it to him.
Hana glanced at Hiro and said "Go get him."
I panicked for a moment as Hiro nodded, solemnly, and vanished. Well, I say vanished, but really he only flickered for a fraction of a second. Something told me that if he'd really concentrated, I wouldn't have even seen a flicker. Anyway, after the flicker I sensed something different. There was someone else in the room. I couldn't see him (I say him, because that's the reference Hana had seemed to make) as such, just got an impression of a shadowy, hooded figure at the edge of my perception. It's hard to describe. It's like he was there and not there at the same time. The shadow grew to envelop the whole office, and the other three seemed to focus in on my terminal.
Then the weirdest thing happened. They all looked up at me, and I swear I heard a voice that sounded like the ever-present wind outside the dome...

he is like us, many to one, one to many, he must be unbound

...I felt a fiery, agonising sensation under my skin and in my bones, like I was burning from the inside out. Then it all went black.

I wasn't aware how much time had passed, but I guess I passed out. When I came to, I was alone for a moment, then Hiro re-appeared. I was getting used to it by this point!
"Very sorry," he gave a very fluid bow," but that was not expected. You are feeling better? It has been only a few minutes."
"Yah, little groggy, and I itch all over. What was that shadow thing?"
"Ah, that was a," he paused, as if considering what to say, "projection. A kind of multiplex. The three of us had to be here physically, but the others would have taken a great risk in travelling here with us. One of them can telepathically project, amongst other things. It's very hard to explain, but they sort of piggybacked our own brains. You'd have seen them as a single entity, we each felt one of them in our own minds. It is...an unusual sensation." He smiled.
"The gift we had intended to give you was a slight adjustment to your Pidit's, " that name seemed to amuse ALL these people, "operating system. All we are asking you to do is to keep a journal, a diary. The rest is automatic."

Apparently, my terminal can transmit through TIME!
Yup, according to Hiro, these diary entries of mine are being sent to a data system way back on 21st century Terra.

"So, what happened after that? What'd you guys do to me?"
He gave that funny smile again, which I must admit was beginning to grow on me, "Not so much do as UN-do. You will discover as you walk your path. It will be easier for you than it was for..." he stopped here, sadness and anger crossed his face together. It was unnerving. I suddenly had a sense that before me was a very powerful man, one it would be wise to be friends with. Very good friends.
We shook hands and said our goodbyes and he was gone, just like that.

I hope I'm the one they need.

Received from Lucien at 10:17

-

01 April 2538

A little about celebration.

I guess if you guys really are there, way back in history, reading this journal, I should explain some things you may not know about as I think of them.

We have a few "official" celebrations in our lives. We don't really celebrate anniversaries of events so much as the events themselves.

For instance, in a few days, it will have been ten-thousand days since I was born. That's cause for celebration. It's our second change in life. The first is when we go from education to employment. This second change is so big because it's where we get our allocation, and leave the sub-sector (and sector-mates) where we were raised.

Any day now, I'm expecting my memo from SegRec, detailing my allocation...and on that night, I'm gonna party with my sector-mates. And how! Well, I'll probably never see most of them again, so it's gonna be a BIG party.

I owe it to them, really. I've been ignoring them in favour of my job just lately. Haven't been mixing like I should. I just don't want to build any bonds that will be painful to break, you know? One of my hatchery buddies died a few months ago, and it really hurt, you know? This is like that, and I don't want to hurt like that.

But hey, I suppose everyone goes through it. New domes, new faces, new challenges. That's how it works, y'know.

It's gonna be a big party, anyway. There's over 200 of us in the same subsector group, and a lot of us will get our memos on the same day.

So, here am I with the weight of history on my shoulders, sharing the trivialities of my world.

---

Incidentally, it seems there's more to the changes those guys made to my Pidit than they told me about. I can actually view my own journal, and there's a section in my personal comms database which seems to announce new comments.

So I guess, if there's anything you want to know about me or my world, then just post a comment and see if it gets to me. If it does, I'll try and respond.

Received from Lucien at 19:14

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02 April 2538

Back to Mundanity?

Whoops.

I was supposed to be at a GO tournament yesterday! I got a rather irate message from my sector-mates this morning.

Well, you can understand how I'd forget something like that, given the events of the day before.

I still haven't spoken to my sector-mates. I don't know what to tell them. Nobody told me to keep it a secret, but I don't think I'll be telling anyone about what happened. I'm sure writing it here is okay. I don't know how it works, but those guys seemed to know what they were doing with my Pidit, so I'll just keep hoping my writings aren't being viewed by anyone who's going to report me to HumRec's Citizen Wellbeing office.

Well, you hear stories about what they do to people there. I'd rather not go into it just yet!

All this, and I still had to turn up at my job and do a day's work as normal.

I don't mind telling you, I kept expecting to be arrested at any minute! I don't know how I got through it!!!!

Still, get through it I did, and without arrest. Also without any unexpected visitations!

I have to do it again tomorrow! Urk!

Received from Lucien at 19:14

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03 April 2538

Shadows and illusions

The strangest thing.
I'm awake when I should be asleep.

I went to sleep at my normal time - only 4 hours ago.

Then I was awake with no memory of waking up. The world was strange, disjointed. It didn't seem real, somehow. There were people in some kind of room. Strange things stood at walls and floor. Everything was shrouded, shadowy. I think there were people there, but I couldn't make them out. I tried addressing them, but I couldn't utter a single sound. All I could hear was the wind outside the dome. Dome? There was SKY outside the window! BEAUTIFUL GREY SKY!

Then an instant later, the sound of the wind was coming from inside, and I could make out words.

The same...different this time...the pattern...supressed...isol...

Then everything changed and the world went black, like being asleep, except there was writing. It's hard to describe. Like looking at a data screen but in your head.

The writing flowed and pulsed, and I could make out only a few words.

datastream feed lost overseer unavailable

The writing faded back into the blackness after a few moments, the blackness lifted and I was, somehow back in my cot as if I had never left it!

What did those three DO to me? Where have I just been and why does it feel like I haven't been anywhere.

Received from Lucien at 03:00

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03 April 2538

Like a light banishes the shadow

Even stranger still!

I'm glad I wrote all that down straight away. I have to read it over to remind myself of what just happened. It's as if it just faded from my memory, yet I can still remember what happened. I just can't visualise it. Did I really travel to a strange room? Why don't I remember doing it? It doesn't make sense.

I remember once - before I'd finished my education - one of my hatchery-buddies showed up at the dorm with a carton of REAL alcy. Imagine it, the real stuff. Not synth.

I hadn't even been aware it existed before that day and, not knowing what it was and proclaiming a greater thirst than the others, I snatched it from his hand and drank the whole carton.

Well, let's not talk about the nausea, the burning agony in my throat and stomach, the fire behind my eyes or the inability to stand - all of which hit me hard and fast. Putting all that aside, the experience seems similar to my "travels" just now.

Can the mind make images that seem so real? Without sensory input?

Maybe it's the synth I drank last night? It was a new carton, so maybe they've changed the recipe or something. You'd think there'd be a warning though, eh?

Something in big red letters saying "CAUTION! May make you imagine strange things in your sleep that you cannot differentiate from reality"

I can't believe they'd make something like that - not legally, anyway.

Oh well, as confused as before, but at least I can be pretty certain I haven't been disappearing into thin air and travelling to far off lands in the blink of an eye like that Hiro character.

Was all that a hallucination too? I don't think so...if it was, then I'd have to be hallucinating that I'm writing this journal to y'all.

If writing the journal alone isn't enough to get me noticed by the guys at Wellbeing, hallucinations would.

I don't think I'll mention them to anyone!

Received from Lucien at 03:10

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03 April 2538

Ah, blessed friends

Another mundane day...if you discount my nighttime rantings. I'm sure I don't know what got into me. Hallucinations indeed.

I felt the need for a friend, even during this time of seperation, so I sent a note to Dzhinti.
She's one of my hatchery-buddies...my closest. We were named within a few moments of each other, so we've received similar allocations throughout our lives. She works within floors of me, and her dormer is just a few down from mine on the same floor. We haven't spoken much lately for the same reasons we've been separating from others, but it's an unspoken thing between us - whenever we don't want to be alone, the other will make time.

She missed the tournament too, so we're going to have a few games of GO, and maybe talk about what kind of allocations we're hoping for.

Urk! She'll be here any moment...my dormer's a mess...must clear up!

Received from Lucien at 18:07

1 comments:

Tracy-Ann said...

You're speaking from the future? How cool?!?!

You asked if there were any questions - I have one. What's GO? And what's the dome - where are you??

With interest,

Tracy

04 April 2007 20:06

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04 April 2538

Losing at GO!

I was NOT playing at my best yesterday, but Dzhinti and I at least had a pleasant evening. I felt quite positive and relaxed after. I don't recall my sleep being disturbed in any way, and I haven't had that sense of being awake while asleep since either.

No strange happenings to report today at least.

It would seem my ability to receive messages from you of the past does work after a fashion. I got a message from someone called Tracy-Ann. A lot of it seemed garbled, but I think I understood what I got.

I think you asked me about GO...? It's THE game. All us segs play it. We hold HUGE tournaments regularly. I think I said before that we don't have many official celebrations, but normally we still make full use of any opportunity to mix with friends, socialise and celebrate whatever we can think of - to be honest, there's little else to do.

I'm told the game is as old as Terra, but I'm not sure I believe that!

That leads me to where I am, where I live. I should have said more previously, after all my visitors did tell me I needed to let people know what my world is like.

Well, I and all the other segs live on a planet called SegWorld. I have no idea where it is in relation to your world, Terra. Most of us segs are hatched here. That means we're the children of Terran parents. I'll explain more about the hatching process later. It's one of the things that I know is different from Terran ways, but I don't know enough about Terrans to be able to explain.

SegWorld itself, I am told has an eccentric orbit, varying from 0.6 to 1.3AU from the primary star. This and other factors (which I freely admit I have no inclination to understand!) lead to our planet having the most violent and wild weather and temperature variations imaginable, so you can imagine we don't go outside much.

Actually, we don't go outside EVER. The surface of the planet is entirely covered with dome structures called Trantorium Domes, made of super-high-strength something or other. We don't really pay them much attention.

Within the domes are built our cities. I imagine that cities are the same the 'verse over. Buildings, streets, people, vehicles. Some domes have residential and industrial areas, some are entirely residential or industrial.

Each dome is referred to for admin purposes (this is my field of expertise!) as a subsector, with every group of 100 domes being a sector.

Sectors are allocated by genetics - it's mostly classified as "race", but there are other factors which define the sector you live in.

All hatchlings are raised in subsector 01 of their respective sectors. After their ten-thousand days, they are generally allocated a subsector and career path where they then build their social group and live out their days.

We're BIG on social groups...except in the few weeks and months leading up to the ten-thousand...I think I've already mentioned that though.

So, to save repeating myself any further, I shall retire and rest until tomorrow.

Tomorrow...Tomorrow is ten-thousand days since my hatching!

Last day in my office, where every day but one has been the same as every other.

I should get my allocation tomorrow...I wonder where it will be?

Received from Lucien at 19:18

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05 April 2538

Ten thousand days!

Urk, travels in my sleep again! Don't really remember the details.

Woke up to a chime from my terminal...my allocation memo has come through.

Had a quick look...I'm allocated to something called EnSecAg...no sector designation.

Oh well, lots of paperwork to finish up at work today...medium-large celebration at close-of-business and then that's me done with AdSec301! At open-of-business tomorrow morning, I report to Central Dispatch and then I'm off to start the rest of my days!

I wonder what Dzhinti got?

Received from Lucien at 06:03

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05 April 2538

To Lucien, from Destiny

It says not to tell, but here's my Memo.

Memorandum
SegRec300/05042538
AdSec301/4525RedwoodL

Citizen

Standard allocation is bypassed.
You are hereby allocated to Overseer training
group at EnSecAg - no sector designation

Report to 301 Central Dispatch at open of
business on 10042538

DO NOT discuss your allocation with ANYONE
in subsector 301

On arrival at Ag your designation is O391T

O3R

I really don't know what to make of it.

I've just been doing a little research. There isn't much data to be had on SegWorld's comms network, and it's heavily regulated, but since my Pidit got reprogrammed, I seem to be able to find stuff easier. I was scanning what medical texts I could find to see if I could find anything which would explain my nocturnal disturbances. Well, I found a reference to something called "dreaming"

The text says that it's something that happens to Terrans and about 2 of new-hatched segs. In segs, dreams normally fade within two or three days of hatching. Well, I've been hatched ten THOUSAND days today (!), so I definitely shouldn't be dreaming.

The text also says that dreams are supressed in segs as a side-effect of something called retrogenetic indexing.

That must be something to do with our genetic condition.

You see, there is a genetic malfunction in the Terran race and a certain percentage are what they term genetically nonviable abnormalities or GNA's for short. I don't know much about genetics and stuff, but the upshot of it is this: GNA's cannot be allowed to enter the already fragile Terran gene pool because the genetic effect has been shown to overwhelm normal Terran DNA. Within a few dozen generations of breeding with Terrans, there would be nothing but GNA's left.

Well, humane as the Terrans claim to be, they will not kill otherwise healthy offspring because of a genetic abnormality. Luckily, when a Terran files for parenthood, the monitoring process begins. Sometimes, genetic markers are found early enough, and the Terran seeks parenthood through other governmental agencies rather than risk breeding a GNA. At other times, the markers are not found until after fertilisation. In fact, as fewer GNA's are born to each generation, almost all now are not detected until after fertilisation.
Anyway, when these "late markers" are discovered, the Terran parent-in-waiting is brought in for a minor procedure. Technicians use a transfer matrix to remove the tiny GNA foetus (barely more than a dozen cells) and exchange it for a genetically viable one from the common pool.

The GNA foetus is transferred into a life-support system referred to as an "egg" for the usual gestation period. The egg is brought to SegWorld and allocated to a hatchery.

What follows next is childhood. I'll tell you more about that another time, I think.

Oh, I almost forgot. Terran parents-in-waiting are allocated only one offspring per parent. If the foetus at any point divides into two viable foetuses, one is transferred to the common pool where gestation is temporarily halte until such time as the foetus is needed to exchange for another nonviable.

Terra is a fragile world and, by all accounts the Terrans that remain there are struggling to keep what's left of their species from dying out.

So, now I must go to attend my last day at work. I must also go along to the ritual celebration at close of business, even though, for some reason I don't understand, I have five days to wait before I must report to Central Dispatch. Because I can't discuss the contents of the memo, I can't tell everyone I will still be here for a while.

Not even Dzhinti. Ah well, it will be a good celebration anyway.

Received from Lucien at 07:14

05 April 2538

Sensor malfunction!

It would seem that I cannot edit my journal entries after they have travelled back through time to you!

A sensor glitch caused a typo in the previous post. I forgot to move my finger to call up the letter "d", so "halted" came out as "halte"

Well, you know what I meant

Received from Lucien at 07:21

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05 April 2538

Celebrations and Stumbles

I'm at the celebration...been here a while...it's really jumping and everyone's having a good time. I'm making this post while Rik and Dzhinti are getting the drinks. Barry thinks I'm checking my schedule for my allocation tomorrow. It's so frustrating, not being able to tell them that I've still got five days before I ship out!

I'd decided to try and put all the strangeness behind me and just enjoy this last time with my sector-buddies. No such luck! There were already a few dozen people there when I arrived, and the Synth was flowing as freely as it always does, so I made my way over to the table and drew myself a glass. I scanned the room once and spotted Dzhinti, deep in conversation with Barry and Rik. Dzhinti looked my way a couple of times but obviously didn't see me (odd, the room was almost empty, considering its size!) until I waved. Her face lit up with a smile, and she jostled the other two, who also smiled. All three waved and beckoned me over.

I should explain at this point that I have almost as close a bond with Ng "Rik Moth" Tiy and Barry Gielga as I do with Dzhinti. The four of us were hatched from adjacent pods (Dzhinti and I within minutes of each other, the other two a couple of hours earlier) and formed a strong bond when we were still wee hatchlings. From the first moments that we could control our position within the environment, we were struggling to be together, by all accounts. The hatchery-mothers soon tired of trying to keep us apart, and allowed us to develop as a group. Don't get me wrong, we're not co-dependent or anything. In our adult lives, we have our own interests and social groups apart from each other, but any time we're all in the same place, we'll tend to favour each other over our chosen groups. We'll always be that close, even if we never meet again after tonight.

I made my way over to the others and, feeling glad just to be with them all again, my fears and worries of the last few days evaporated. I was almost literally brought back down with a thud however, when Tolly attempted to walk right through me on her way to the Synth table. We both went flying in different directions, each as surprised as the other. What was even more surprising was that we both completely failed to hit the ground. Shocked, I looked around and saw the others with equally bemused expressions on their faces. Rik had caught me, Barry had caught Tolly, and Dzhinti had snatched the full glass from my flailing hand without spilling a drop. We all recomposed ourselves and dusted ourselves down in stunned silence. Tolly made her apologies and, embarrassed, hurriedly continued on her journey to refreshment. At this point, the room - barely a quarter full - was entirely focussed on our little display, so we slinked off to a darker corner. Rik commented that Tolly must be on "the real stuff" to have barrelled straight into me like that. I said she was probably just distracted: A lot of people are getting their allocations around now, so we're all a bit distracted.

I was the first to mention the speed of their reactions, and all three looked a little embarrassed. It took a few minutes of uneasy quiet before Dzhinti spoke up,
"Has anyone else been feeling odd, the last couple of days?"
"Yah," Rik chimed in, suddenly animated, "kinda like, itchy, y'know? But not?"
"I got that," mumbled Barry, "and I feel different, too. Like, smooth, you know?"
I agreed with them on the odd, deep, itching sensation - I'd first felt it when that shadowy-figure - a projection, Hiro called it - did something to me. Had the others had a similar visit, perhaps? They went on to describe other things that have happened to them over the last few days. I want to tell them about my visit, and my allocation, but I really don't think I should. Especially not about the visit. Something tells me I should play that one very close to my chest.

Rik and Dzhinti are making their way back with the drinks now, so I shall sign off this entry here. I've set my Pidit recording audio and I'll leave it on for the rest of the evening so I can get it all down and tell you about it later - I don't want to rely on memory in case I forget anything that could turn out to be important.

Received from Lucien at 19:37

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06 April 2538

Some historian!

Transcript
AdSec301/Rec/05042538
Subjects:300.data missing

NTTIY, Ng "Rik Moth" /4521
BGGIELGA, Barry /4523
DBBHATEN, Dzhinti /4524
LRREDWOOD, Lucien /4525
UMMODENNE, Una "Tolly" /9831

NT Drinks, guys.
DB Urk! What is WITH Tolly tonight? She just completely blanked us at the Synth-table
NT She's prolly jus grindin' on her allocks, yah?
LR Keep it down guys, she looks like she hears you.
DB She got her allocation too? She wasn't in our hatchery-group?
+++autosrch...300.?.2510.9831/MODENNE
£$£$interrupted
ff been happening to you guys too?
resume
t a weird allocation memo. Anyone know what an data missing is?
resume
£$£$interrupted
connection lost

Sigh, I guess I should have paid more attention to what was going on. Don't know what happened to my Pidit...maybe those "modifications" affected the thing's normal functions, I don't know.

I don't really know what happened. I think I kind of "zoned out" myself at the same point. I don't think I fell asleep, I just got this headache and then everything seemed kind of vague.

If I try, I can remember a few snippets. Tolly came over at one point, said she'd see us all real soon. I think she left after that.

Rik mentioned something about getting an allocation override. Nobody else did. I don't think I did, but I can't be sure.

Someone said something about their Pidit acting up. And there was something about a broken chair. Not sure.

Urk! Here comes that headache again! Sleep beckons.

Received from Lucien at 00:57

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06 April 2538

Dreams

Boy did I sleep!!!

Filled with dreams! I can remember all of them! Well, most of them...some details are fuzzy. But you know what's odd? The dreams weren't like the ones I had before. They were more like a run-through of things that happened during the celebration. Except for voices I kept hearing all the way through.

The voices seemed strange...distorted. Here's what I heard:

Is it active?
Yes. I believe it has local access.
It has completed its task. The damage is done
Not true. That particular damage does not affect us, and has indeed served useful in places.
But it could be wielded upon us. The continuation. The intention.
Can it be stopped?
No. There have been too many...additions.
It will complete when?
Minutes.
Ah. So, when must the pod be hatched, do the records show?
Yes. The girl will manifest twelve years and some days after hatching.
Indeed. When will she be inhabited
At the most likely time, I think.
The unnamed one
It will name her, I think.
Or she herself.
Perhaps both. Ah, here she is now.

It was hard to tell how many voices there were. Two or three, perhaps. I wouldn't like to speculate on any of that. Maybe it's information I can use later, maybe it's just more "strangeness" (grin)

I also got a little more detail about the conversation we all sort of had last night.

The guys were talking about the fact that they'd had a lot of oddness to deal with, the last few days. ID implants not functioning, rapid rise and fall in skin temperature, akin to fever and chills, but lasting only a few minutes. Sudden, unexpected improvements in muscular strength and control. Not massive improvements, but improvements nonetheless.

Rik Moth definitely got the same allocation memo as me, and judging by the looks on the others' faces, they did too. I don't know why they didn't speak up - probably the same reason as me!

You may have noticed (if you haven't, you will as time goes on) that Rik Moth can be quite hard to understand sometimes. Well, on a planet-full of skewed personalities (part of our Genetic Abnormality, I believe), the man known as Rik Moth is a misfit among misfits! He puts effort into being lazy! He works exceptionally hard to come across as someone with a complete and total sense of apathy, whilst underneath it all, his brain is racing...not to try and outwit you, just running through possibilities to work out what is the most efficient and least energetic way of doing whatever comes next. Rik's real name is Ng Tiy (pronounced ing tie), but as he's modelled himself entirely on a centuries-ago Terran comic-book character, we gave him that character's name, too. Rik Moth, the laziest detective on Free Terra. He only takes on cases that he can solve by telepresence...and even then, he gets his assistant to operate the telepresence rig! I'm surprised the comic ever got a single reader.

Anyway, if anyone doesn't get something Rik says at any point, (or if you don't get any of my cultural references, I understand your world is very different from mine), you know how to ask me!

My dream of the conversation kind of petered out after Tolly made her odd little announcement to us.

Maybe she DID get the same allocation as us?

Heh, saying that didn't crash my Pidit this time! (grin)

I don't think I'll speculate on that, either. Hmm...wonder what'll happen if I try the other guys' Comms...will they answer? They'll know it's from me, so they'll know I'm still here, but I won't be explicitly telling anyone I'm here, will I? Ah, what the blazes, I'll try it...

Other dreams...one must have been of Sector 699, because there were a lot of Sector 600-type people, standing around, looking up at the innerdome and laughing. They were all standing knee-deep in water, and had strange, flat cone-like constructions on their heads.

Another...I saw Tolly's face in front of me, looking like she did yesterday. As I looked, I noticed her face changing, growing younger. Then it disappeared entirely, replaced with my own, growing older.

And the last...I was in a bare-metal room with padded bench-seats in rows down the sides. There were windows all along the sides, but there was nothing but blackness outside. There were people on most of the seats, but they all seemed frozen. It was not cold, I don't think, but I do remember the air having a "sticky" quality. Hiro was there. He looked straight at me, and bowed. "Welcome, Luciensan to New York. I perhaps expected you a little sooner, but you are here." He flickered for a moment, then bowed again, "You are sure you won't stay a while, we could talk?"

What a strange thing to say? I hadn't announced any intention to leave. Hiro spoke again, "Very well, my friend. I do not envy you your choices in this matter, as I don't suppose you envy mine. Perhaps we shall speak again?" He smiled, hopefully at me. I made no movement, no thought, no sound, yet still he responded as if I had. First his face dropped, then lifted, "You are right, of course. I would wish you good luck, but I believe that is the last thing you need right now."

I know it's a long shot, but can anyone out there shed any light on what any of this stuff might mean?

Received from Lucien at 11:17