Microstory 698: Quantum Darkness Declines

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We’ve been fighting a war on two primary fronts, and have been doing this for years. Some battles are fought against people; with weaponry, blood, and loss. Others are fought against the quantum darkness, which has proven itself to be stronger than we previously believed. Every star in every galaxy in the cluster has been shrouded from sight, destroying most life. Entire planets in Fostea, for instance, have been abandoned, for they are no longer capable of sustaining life in any meaningful way. There’s a reason why humans don’t live permanently in the blackness of interstellar space. Well now, all star systems basically exist under these same conditions. The only thing characteristic they retain from before is their orbits, for the stars are still there, just covered. Those living in places with fewer resources were relocated to the central worlds, and other, more wealthy, civilizations. This process was supported by the Ring of Migration, a powerful tool wielded by new eido, Agantai Bauriter. The economy has suffered immensely from this, especially since a great deal of our collective resources have been redirected to the traditional war battles. It has forced us to adapt our ways to something more restrictive, and less free. Though we still adhere to capitalism, we have developed regulations that to make sure our resources are allocated to the appropriate places. No longer can we survive with anyone accumulating whatever they work hard enough for. Though we are nowhere near the level of mainstream parity of the dirty communists, we now live more like Earthans. Nations on Earth are primarily labor-based, with strong emphasis on the correlation between hard work and fortune. There are programs, however, that provide for people who are less capable, so that the market remains somewhat stable. We’ve learned a lot from the Earthans these last few years that has saved us from complete annihilation. The most faithful of us still believe we will return to a culture of freedom, but for now, the Earthan method will have to do. We have studied the problem of the quantum darkness, with experts sharing knowledge at an unprecedented level. Together, they have figured out how to begin defeating this evil. As a gift to Earth, and out of obligation, we have used this new information to begin turning the lights back on, to be metaphorical. We’ve started with the ones closest to Earth so they won’t notice that anything was ever wrong.

Microstory 697: The Great Earthquake

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Despite making no mention of the Thuriamen, or the fact that the twisted Amadesis faith might have survived in any form, Sacred Savior Sotiren Zahir predicted a great earthquake. For those of you who can’t discern this from the language, an earthquake is a seismic event exclusive to the planet Earth. Though the Earthans are fully aware that tremors can occur on other orbitals, they have a long history of geocentrism, making it difficult for them to truly fathom how things happen outside their sheltered bubble. Rather, they have difficulty relating to things that are too far away to have any observed effect on them. Earthquakes occur all the time. In fact, it’s considered to be a natural phenomenon, with the world’s humans nearly totally helpless to predict one, let alone reduce its damage. This would not be just any tremor, however, in that it was foretold to happen soon after the declaration of the new war, and would somehow be caused by it. For the last several centuries, as we were waiting for the taikon to come to pass, academics couldn’t understand how this would be possible. Quantum Entanglement is one thing, but we know of no region of Fostea that has any connection to Earth, nor do we know of such a region anywhere else in the universe, for that matter. It does have a connection to one at least one other planet, but that’s located in the other universe, and we never thought we would ever have to return there save for our secret trips using the bar catel. Now, with the sudden discovery or our new enemies in the Thuriamen, we have a reason to engage in battle near Earth. We made every attempt to limit this first battle to the Thuriamen dimensions, but were forced to employ the aid of some unlikely allies who used their capabilities to keep the Earthan humans veiled. During the lead up to the Battle Between Two Earths, scholars postulated that the Great Earthquake wasn’t literal. While kept secret from the Earthan natives, it could still be one of the most profound events in Earthan history, having a lasting general effect on their future. They were wrong about this, and really, we were just lying to ourselves about this. The battle itself was so powerful that it ended up creating one of the most devastating earthquakes in recorded history, especially as followed by a series of deadly tsunamis. This catastrophe opened the eyes of our military leaders, and even also those of our new enemies, who were never before worried about illegally deveiling the Earthans. Later battles in the Light Wars would be fought elsewhere in an attempt to prevent something like this from ever happening again.

Microstory 696: An Irreverent Man Commits

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This is a callback to the very first taikon; the one that started us all down the path of true enlightenment. We spoke little of Dedebe Seirsen, and exactly what inspired him to change his ways, but perhaps this is a good time, for today he makes it official. Seirsen was born on a moon called Junvos that orbits a gas giant so closely that relatively little sunlight reaches its surface for extended periods of time over the year. Though Junvos contributes to the interstellar economy, it does so rather unimpressively, dominating no sector of any market. Seirsen grew up living an unspectacular life, but managed to snag a modicum of fame when a microblogging post of his made its way onto a Lightseed broadcast. He is quoted as saying, Lightseed is known for accepting all acolytes willing to sacrifice their individuality. Their goal is not to spread truth, but simply grow their army of averlets. For any who don’t know, an averlet is a small rodent indigenous to the planet Istamas. Averlets are infamous for instinctively following any larger creature moving slow enough for it to maintain pace. It evolved this trait by using these larger animals as sometimes unwitting protection against predators. This trait survived in their species even despite the fact that an averlet will gladly, and foolishly, accompany these predators as well, if faced with one. The most common predator is an animal called the serrated roan. Seirsen’s remark, after being absolutely demolished in a debate amongst Lightseed guests on the program, skyrocketed his notoriety overnight. He began receiving death threats, and was even physically attacked a few times, but he also amassed support. Seeing this as an opportunity, he formed a coalition of atheists who called themselves the Soldiers of Roan, placing their namesake on their flag, and adopting bestial qualities. They would regularly show up at Lightseed reverie services, mimicking the taunting and snapping behavior that real serrated roans exhibit to force their prey into the freezing acute stress response. To this day, Seirsen refuses to explain how and why now he suddenly saw the Light of Truth for what it is. Or maybe he doesn’t really know. While the later taikon were taking place, he was studying and practicing the faith harder than most. He’s been accruing a new group of followers, and has garnered enough support to propel him to a position of leadership within the Lightseed establishment. Wielding this new purpose, he was able to convince the Highlightseers to send him to Earth where he will be Primary Lightguide for the newly formed Pangalactic Fleet Against the Thuriaman Threat.

The Advancement of Mateo Matic: August 4, 2150

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Fancy Dardieti doctors were able to fix Mateo’s fist up in no time, completely removing the pain within minutes, and healing the bones within hours. He called it an accident, which Leona didn’t believe, but she also got the feeling that she ought to let it go. She knew that he had been having secret conversations with Arcadia all this time, and worried it would make things worse to bring it up. Arcadia was a loose cannon, so they wouldn’t get through this if they upset Arcadia too much. There was just no telling what might set her off. Punching the table could have ruined everything. Technically, it still could. Yet he forced himself into higher spirits, reinforced by a convincing Lincoln Rutherford, who had taken acting lessons in a literal other life. He decided to spend the rest of the day with his wife, and the third wheel of their tadpole tricycle. He didn’t want to say anything about the dreaded 2151. He knew he would have to this year, though, because he didn’t want them disappearing without having heard his final words. No, he wasn’t supposed to think like that. In every movie, they always claim the dying person can tell their loved ones this themselves when it’s all over, but this isn’t a movie, it’s real life. Sometimes you don’t survive, and sometimes you don’t win. He may fail at their expiation, or he may die in the trying. Or both.

The next morning, they continued to spend the day together, but were scheduled to have dinner on the other side of the continent. It would take about an hour to get there by train, so he pulled the other two into a private car.

“This doesn’t look good,” Leona said, somewhat jokingly.

“No, it doesn’t,” Serif agreed. The two of them had grown closer over the last several days, which was good. He still didn’t quite understand what it meant to tear people out of time, but always imagined that they were somewhere, like maybe a train station with no escape. If this were the case, at least Leona and Serif would have each other. If.

“I need to talk to you about tomorrow,” Mateo said to them soberly.

“What’s tomorrow?”

“You will both be taken out of time. Taken from me.”

“You know this?”

He started massaging his hand, which no longer hurt, but he could still feel that something had happened to it. “Arcadia informed me yesterday. We...had words.”

“Did you strike her, Mateo?”

“No, of course not. I would never.”

“I mean, I’d be fine if you did. Chivalry really only applies to humans, not monsters.”

“I hit the table, but you seem to be missing the point.”

“No, no, we heard you. We just...does it matter?”

“Of course it matters,” he said. “How could it not? I know you don’t remember the details of everyone we’ve lost so far, but I would let them all go just to keep you two.”

“Well, that’s not something a girl wants to here. May sound romantic, but it isn’t.”

“I don’t think you two fully appreciate the seriousness of the situation. You’ll be gone.”

“Somehow I don’t think we’ll be upset under those conditions.”

“Is this a joke to you?”

“Love, you need to understand this. Those people are gone, poof. They don’t exist. That’s hard to fathom, I know, but in physics, that shit happens all the time. Sometimes particles just pop out of existence, and we don’t know where they go. Sometimes they pop back in, and we don’t know why, or what prompts that. Let me ask you this, how did you feel before you were born?”

“What?”

“Before you were born, when you didn’t exist, did you feel bad? Did you not like it? Did you wish you existed.”

“Okay, well no, of course not. Because...”

“Because you had no feelings,” she finished. “You couldn’t feel anything. That’s basically what she does. She just unborns you.”

“All right, fine. But I’m gonna remember. Lincoln’s gonna remember.”

“He will?”

“Yeah, I guess the cat’s out of the bag. He remembers everybody—better than I do.”

“Well.” She hesitated. “At least you have someone you can talk to.”

“I don’t. We’re not allowed to talk.” He breathed deeply, trying desperately to stop from hyperventilating. “I’m not even allowed to tell you. My God, what is she gonna do?”

Arcadia teleported into the car. “Don’t say anything about it,” she ordered Leona and Serif. “Keep your mouth shut about Lincoln for the rest of the day, and there won’t be any consequences.” She was gone before any of them could respond, but not before she gave Mateo a look, as if she’d just done him a favor.

“I’m gonna be alone with this,” he continued. “Lincoln...sees this kind of thing all the time. To him, we are particles. But I’ll feel the pain, and I’ll have to push it down so I can work on your expiation. Let me tell you, I’ve never been more afraid of anything in my life, and I once jumped off a cliff.” He looked down where the wall met the floor, going through his memory archives. “Shit, I drove off of a cliff too. Do I have a death wish?”

His loves waited patiently as he pulled himself out of the tangential existential crisis.

“I don’t know what I thought this conversation was meant to accomplish here,” he admitted. “I feel like you’re going away, but you’re right, I don’t understand that. I get that everyone else’s memory is gonna be wiped. I get that I’m going to have to do something really difficult to get you back. But I can’t help but picture you getting on a bus. Just a regular bus that will eventually turn around and come back. Which means it’s important we have this talk so you can do something with it wherever you are when you’re not here. But a part of me does know that that’s not how it works. You’ll be stuck in time, and it’s the rest of us who will be going on without you, sliding down that timestream, at our respective speed. I guess that’s sort of how our loved ones feel when we jump into the future. Those interim years don’t exist to me, because I don’t experience them, but to everyone else, they’re very real.” He fell silent.

They remained patient.

This wasn’t fair. Through all this, Leona was always there. If Arcadia took her away from him, he would fall apart. Maybe that was part of her plan, but on the off-chance it wasn’t, he had to get through to her. He had to appeal to her better angels. “Arcadia Preston,” he prayed. “We need to talk. Please.” He waited. “Please, this is important.”

“Mateo, what do you think you’ll get from her? What are you going to ask?”

He was going to ask for more power. She was so strong that he could never hope to defeat her. Not alone. He needed allies, and if Leona and Serif couldn’t be that for him anymore, then he would need to find them elsewhere. By asking this from her, he asserts himself as a free-thinking individual, and an opposing force not so willing to roll over to her whims. It also might be so crazy that it intrigues her. If there’s one thing all Prestons have in common, it’s that they like surprises. His prayers weren’t getting through, so he decided to change tactics. He stood up and headed for the back.

“Mateo? Honey? What are you doing?”

“I need help?”

“Okay, we can get you help. You should sit down, though.”

“No, this is the only way,” he said, staring out the window.

“What’s the only way?”

He opened the train door.

“Mateo, stop!”

He didn’t look back, because either of their faces could stop him from following through with what he was utterly convinced had to be done. “Were I you,” he said to them quietly, harkening back to their code for I love you. Then he held his hands behind his back, closed his eyes, and dropped out of the moving vehicle, towards the train tracks.

“Uncle Tommy,” was the first thing Arcadia said.

He opened his eyes to find himself in a dark room. Or...just darkness, because he couldn’t actually see anything. “What?”

“Ya know...because you killed yourself..knowing I would have to save you from it..but you did it to save someone from being ripped out of time.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“You’ve never seen The 4400?”

“Zeferino must have forgotten to make me watch that one.”

“Yeah, well, there’s an episode that’s exactly like what you just did. Freakin’ weirdo.”

“I’m guessing no one called the character a freakin’ weirdo.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to make a deal.”

“I’m listening.”

“Leona and Serif are two different people. That the former didn’t always exist is irrelevant to that fact.”

“Do you mean latter?”

“Whatever, you know what I mean.”

“I don’t know what you mean when you claim a guy like you is married to one of the smartest people I’ve ever met.”

“Do you wanna hear my pitch, or not?”

“Shoot.”

“They’re two people. So are Horace and Paige. You never said you would ever take two people out at the same time, but you’ve already done it once, and you’re preparing to do it again.”

“Okay...”

“I don’t think that’s fair.”

“I don’t think I care.”

“You owe me two people.”

“How do you figure?”

“You do the math.”

“No, you do the math. It doesn’t matter that I took them at the same time. I was gonna take them either way. Your argument is weak.”

“Still, I think you owe me. I’m firm on this.”

“What, you want me to create a person for you?”

“No, just give two of them back.”

“I’m not returning two people to you, Mateo. That’s not how this works, which I explained at the beginning, and who’s the one trying to change the rules now?”

“I’ve already beaten every expiation, so just give a couple back early. What’s the harm?”

“Okay, I appreciate your logic, and your audacity. I will say, though, that I did you favor when I brought Paige back the first time, which I never had the obligation to do, so that’s no longer an issue. Serif...she’s a bit different. So I will agree to a deal on her behalf.”

“I choose Gilbert.”

“Yes, that’s a beautiful sentiment, but no.”

He didn’t think that would work, but your first ask always need to be high so they don’t negotiate you down too far. “Okay, counteroffer.”

She purposely sported an evil smile. “You’re gonna love it. Oh, you’re gonna love it so much.”

Oh, no. “What? Who?” The Cleanser was her obvious choice, or maybe their sister, The Blender. They were his two worst enemies. No one else would fit with the level of dastardly excitement she was exhibiting.

“Do you remember when Reaver was telling you why he was trying to kill you in your pre-Hitler’s murder reality?”

“Yeah...? You’re gonna give me that version of Horace?”

“No. Better. There was another reality before that; the one where he was married to Leona. You knew both of them. Rather, a version of you knew them. You weren’t particularly close, but you were responsible for her death. Had you survived Horace’s rage, this mistake would have haunted you for the rest of your life.”

“What are you saying?”

“Extracting people from realities that don’t exist anymore is generally beyond even my abilities. I can call in a favor, though.”

“Arcadia, this is not what I had in mind.”

“That’s what makes it taste so good.” She snapped her fingers. A silhouette appeared on the other side of the room, only partially illuminated by a light. “Mateo Matic, meet...Alt!Mateo Matic.”

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The Mystery of Springfield, Kansas: Chapter Five

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As I’m brushing my teeth, I start to feel like things are not quite right. Everything looks familiar; the house, the dog watching me patiently from the floor, my neighbor’s car parked on the street outside—but I can’t remember the first time I saw these things. I know that I must have, because dogs don’t just appear out of nowhere, but I can’t ignore my instinct either. Or maybe I can, and maybe I should. I finish up in there, give my girlfriend a kiss, and leave for work. I’ve been retired from KCPD for a few years, and life couldn’t be better. I didn’t hate being a detective, but I prefer the work I do now. There’s a lot less risk, and a whole lot less death. I’m still using the skills I learned from my days on the force, but now I just investigate corporate malfeasance. Don’t get me wrong, those people can be ruthless, but at least they’re not trying to shoot me. Well, mostly. There was that one time.

I’ve just started working for a new client; this company called Snowglobe Collective that is basically in the business of acquiring other businesses. They send me out to their potential acquisitions to look for any problems that might arise. To be honest, they’re not too terribly concerned with whether the other companies are breaking the law, only whether it could become a problem for them later. I don’t feel great about covering these things up, but I don’t work for the city anymore, I work for Snowglobe, and I’ll do whatever they ask, as long as it doesn’t put me or mine in danger. So far, it’s worked out perfectly. I’ve not found any reason to contact the authorities anyway. The biggest crimes going down in these companies is an unusually high amount of pen theft.

The day is boring as I’m mostly just filling out paperwork. There’s gotta be a paper trail for everything, and that takes a lot of my time. I decide to cut out early, though, and head back home. Melantha is waiting for me in the kitchen. She’s not cooking us dinner, because she’s terrible at it. I don’t even know why we have a kitchen, other than the fact that she likes to read while sitting on the granite countertop, which is why I’ll probably ask her to marry me before too long. “How was your day?” I ask.

“It’s okay. Construction on the hotel is going a little slow, but I’m confident it’ll pick up.”

“Can’t wait to see it,” I say, casually lifting her up to carry her to the livingroom couch. “Have you settled on a name yet?”

She kind of gives me this faux bashful smirk. “I’m thinking...The Sanctuary.”

“That’s...why?”

She shrugs. “Why not?”

“Will it be for runaways?”

She shrugs again. “Maybe.”

“Mel, is this gonna be a magic hotel?”

“Why, whatever do you mean?”

I roll my eyes and smile back, then I walk over to the food summoner. “What would you like?”

“I’ve eaten recently. Get whatever you want.”

“L-O-L,” I spell, “thanks.” I turn the dials on the summoner to power up the machine. The hum settles, indicating that it’s ready for me. I ask for lasagna from Italy, French bread from France, and Japanese sushi. It’s not the most cohesive meal, but if we’re going to have a magical machine that creates literally anything I want, why waste it on something normal, right? “Rawhide,” I say at the end.

“Expanding our horizons, are we?” Melantha asks.

“Yep,” I joke, tossing the bone to our dog, The Duke of Hay. We named him that because we adopted him from a farm, where he slept on hay, and also because his barks sound like he’s saying hey. 12/10 he’s a real person trapped in a dog body.

As I’m chowing down on my own meal, next to The Duke, Melantha puts her book down and looks at me.

“Uh-oh, what’s this?”

“This,” she begins, “has been fun, but I think it’s time you get back to work.”

I look at my bare wrist. “Work hours are over.”

“Not that work. You have to go back to Analion Towers. Bitch lied to you, the Incorruptible Astrolabe is there.”

“What the hell are you talking about? What’s an astrolabe?”

“Okay, I know you don’t remember what reality is meant to look like, but you know what an astrolabe is, right?”

I shake my head slightly but quickly, waiting for her to explain herself.

“Okay, it doesn’t matter, because the Incorruptible Astrolabe is another magical object, like the summoner, or the Escher Knob. But it can do its own thing, and you may need it to get reality back to how it was.”

“I’m...so lost, Melantha.”

“My name’s not Melantha, it’s Meliora. I inserted myself into this corruption to protect you from further harm, but it’s time to end it.”

“You’re saying this isn’t real?”

“Oh, it’s real...it’s very real. It’s just not right. Reality was corrupted.”

It’s true that I’ve been feeling a little off today, and I’ve even been questioning my reality. But everyone goes through things like that; crises of faith, existential crises, mid-life crises. I don’t look it, but I’m over fifty years old by now, so I’m certainly due for that last one. Still, I trust Melantha...or whatever her real name is, so I have to believe her. Or maybe I don’t, and maybe I shouldn’t.

“You still don’t believe me, that’s okay.” She stands up. “I’ll just give you your Christmas present early.”

“What is it?”

She walks over to the summoner. “Item One-eight-nine-one. Codewords Emily Lake.” She reaches in a retrieves a small box. “I don’t know why Yatchiko let you keep the knob and the flashlight, but I know why she didn’t let you keep these.” She lifts the lid, revealing a pair of steampunk goggles.

“I feel like I’ve seen those before.”

“You have...in the true reality.”

I just sit there staring at them.

“Are you gonna put ‘em on, or not?”

I exhale and take them out of the box. I then put them on my face and look around. Everything is wrong. The house is not supposed to be there, nor is Melantha, nor even the Duke of Hay. I still can’t remember what my life is supposed to be like, nor do I no longer see these apparent corruptions, but they do look clearly fictional to me. I don’t know what it is, or how to describe it, but the corruptions are illuminated, and sort of twisted ad and scratched out. I dunno. I can just tell that it’s wrong, but what I can’t see is why I should change it. “I love my life.” I remove the goggles.

“What?”

“I love you. I love The Duke of Hay. I love this house, our badass summoner that no one in the world has, even sometimes my job. Why would I throw that away?”

“Because you have a responsibility.”

“What responsibility? I don’t know what you mean. All I have is my work, and my family.”

“No, you have so much more than that.” She retrieved the Rothko Torch from the hall closet. “Look at this.” She turned it on and pointed it at the television screen, which suddenly began playing the news dated two days from now.

“Authorities are in the midst of investigating the tragedy at Analion Tower. Early reports indicate that the deaths were accidental. As of now, all business is halted, with no word as to whether the organization will continue operating, here or anywhere else.”

Melantha turned off the flashlight. This is happening tomorrow. You have to get into the building and secure the Astrolabe during the confusion.

“Melantha,” I begin to protest.

“There’s no arguing this. You used the HG Goggles, you know this has to be fixed, and the only way you do that is with that Astrolabe. I would fix it myself, but I’m pouring all my power into shrouding the Sanctuary from prying eyes until I get it up and running with all the right wards.”

“I don’t wanna lose you.”

“I’m not dying. I’m real too, I’m just not your girlfriend.”

I don’t say anything.

“Kallias, I’m not your girlfriend. If you don’t this for me, I’m still leaving. You can’t keep me here by protecting your corruption.”

“What about The Duke?”

She looked down at the dog, who was looking back up at her with his puppy dog eyes, as if he knew. “He’ll go to a farm to chase squirrels.”

“Screw you.”

“Bran, get this done now. Stop whining, and do your goddamn job.”

The next day, I reluctantly get in my car with all my fancy time gadgets, and drive over to Analion Tower. By the time I arrive, the place is in disarray as the deaths have already happened. I don’t know who exactly has died, but I was never here to stop it. I’m just here for the Astrolabe. A group of firefighters are at the door, apparently trying to get in, but are being stopped by some power-hungry rent-a-cop. I recognize one of the firefighters, but I guess not really, because none of this is real.

“My ear are burning,” I say after my firefighter friend, Garsea mentions something about the nearest police cruiser.

“This doesn’t concern you, Bran,” he replies. “You’re not a cop anymore. And didn’t you used to be older?”

Melantha would often something special to lower my age slightly. I never knew how it worked, I just let her do it. Though I guess, that never happened. “I still have a few tricks up my sleeve,” I explain.

“He’s locked the door,” Garsea says. “We can’t get in, and do not have clearance to break in. That doesn’t mean there’s anything to investigate here.” It’s true that Snowglobe was considering acquiring Analion at one point, but that was looking less and less likely as the scandal regarding their defective products persisted.

“You don’t need clearance. I know this building. It’s special.” It was designed as a cylicone, which I’m suddenly now remembering, because I think I’ve actually been here before. I take the Escher Knob out of my bag.

“What the hell is that thing?” Garsea asked, almost disgusted, because it would certainly look like I’m not taking this seriously.

“It’s the Escher Knob,” I tell him cryptically. “It’ll get us in.”

“This isn’t one of your crazy theories, Bran. This building is actually real.” While I was still on the force, I would often run into temporal discrepancies that couldn’t be explained. In fact, as far as my memory of this reality goes, that’s how Melantha and I met. She had explanations for all those strange things. But it wasn’t enough to save my reputation as the guy who believed in ghosts and aliens.

“Yes...and no,” I joke. Then I place the Escher Knob on the door, letting it transport Garsea and I to the other side of it.

“Oh my God, how the hell did we end up inside?”

“I brought the lobby to us. Go on and get to work so they can lift the lockdown and get these people back home safe. And you...”

The lobby guard has a frightened look on his face. “H—how’d you do that? You were there...and now you’re here.”

“Whatever do you mean?” I ask, gaslighting him. “Just get the hell out of my way so I can finish this once and for all.” I literally push him out of the way and walk through a lobby that looks more like a hotel ballroom. I head for the freight elevator, which is the only one working after a deadly incident with one of the others. I turn the Rothko torch on and point it at the buttons. Out of apparent superstition, this building was designed without a thirteenth floor. Normally I would assume that meant the people on the fourteenth were just lying to themselves, but I see here that it’s not true. The flashlight reveals an extra button that can’t be seen with the naked eye. I press it and head for a secret story I’m obviously not supposed to know about.

The elevators open to a single room, in the middle of which is this metallic round thing that’s probably an astrolabe, but I forgot to search online what that is. Nothing happens when I shine the flashlight on it, and it doesn’t look any different through the HG Goggles, as Melantha called them. As soon as I pick it up, however, my memories return. I’m suddenly standing in a slightly different position, wearing different clothes. I can remember losing Escher Bradley, and Rothko Ladhiffe, and then all of Springfield, Kansas. I can remember my life as a detective in Springfield, and I can remember it being torn away from me in an instant when I lost my identity. I remember meeting Hokusai Gimura, and going to the knife dimension, and skipping several months of time. And I remember my need to find the Incorruptible Astrolabe. Lastly, I remember what I’m supposed to do with it. I need to find those missing people, including Hokusai. That’s my next investigation. Find her, find everyone.

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