The sun pressed against the window like a question, spilling gold across my drink. I nursed it in the hush of the now-empty bar, letting the warmth spread before it could reach my thoughts.
"What do you mean Sheratan died?" Their voice was sharp, cold, a blade brushing across old scars.
"It was… a cognitive hazard during an operation," I said, rolling a ball between my fingers. The motion was familiar, soothing, the kind of metronome that keeps your nerves honest.
"And Hamal?"
"They weren't with us. A member of the Church." My teeth ground together softly, despite the warmth of the room.
"Six weeks… and I'm just hearing this?" They sighed, dragging the silence along like chain links. Their cup made a soft clink against the bar.
"And their body?"
"The Church authorized the Eclipse Halo." I exhaled slowly, fingers tapping the ball with a quiet rhythm.
"I see. Sorry for your loss." They cleared their throat. "Would you like to come along on a mission in Therian?"
I raised an eyebrow. "We're just going to give our greeting?"
"No. I want to use my leave more wisely," I muttered, dragging the smoke from my cigarette, watching it curl and vanish. Logic before it evaporates.
"We can go drinking when I return," they said, adjusting their glasses, leaving with heavy steps.
I flexed my fingers, remembering the first day on the job. Best not to jinx yourself.
MEMORANDUM: OLYMPUS-LEVEL CLEARANCE
SUBJECT: THE FALLACY OF THE NARRATIVE VECTOR
SECURITY PROTOCOL: ABSOLUTE BLACK
DISTRIBUTION: AXIOMATIC PROCTORS ONLY
I. THE LOCALITY OF MEANING
Story is not fundamental. It is scaffolding for those who need perspective. Narrative exists where observers exist. Beyond the current field, there is no "once upon a time." Sequence is local, subjective.
II. THE TRANSCENDENTAL INVARIANTS
The ████████████ are not characters. Not authors. Not stories. They are structural truths, existing prior to reality.
Temporal Immunity: Time flows around them; they are unaffected.
Static Nature: They do not react. Sequence is irrelevant.
Ontological Priority: Collapse of phenomena does not touch them. Survival is structural.
III. THE ENGINE OF CONGENITY
They manifest dream-fields where reality can be observed—but even the engine obeys rules. Dream is contingent; structure is not.
Containment depends on distinction: serve the Structure, not the Dreamer.
IV. PERSONNEL CAPACITY AND DISTORTION
The asset known as █████ is dangerous, preconceptual, limited. She exists in expression, never ultimate. Attempts to manipulate her are noted—and ignored.
V. CASE STUDY: INFORMATIONAL ATTRITION
Casualty at Site-██: Not aggression, not divine punishment. The subject tried to metabolize ████████████ beyond human cognitive limits. The brain couldn't hold it. They ran out of once upon a time.
SUMMARY FOR FIELD OPERATIVES
Meaning is local.
Narrative is emergent.
Reality is dream.
Dream is contingent.
Structure is prior.
The ████████████ require no story. Keep uniform. Do not read between the letters.
Signed, ████████ Axiomatic Proctor, Southern Core
I stared at my lukewarm drink and murmured, "Ah, fantasies… fragile, but the only safety we get." I nudged the cup just slightly off-center. Let the table test itself.
The world outside continued without pause, but inside, the echo of once upon a time had thinned to nothing.