Scene #9621: My People Have A Word For This 'Concrete Cell'

Owner	Pose
Petra Soroka	Unfortunately for Petra, Lilian, and even Dictum, it'd do irrevocable harm to Dictum's trust in Petra if she didn't ever allow Mesmer to come talk to them. Isolation is an unforgivable crime, especially when it comes to this lonely robot, and so with Dictum settled in, the time comes for Petra to invite Mesmer over to Hydrochoeria. Sharing a workplace, sort of, makes it easy enough for Petra to send her an internal letter with the warpgate coordinates and a time, so there's no need to speak face to face at all. The Concord influence hits her before she's even arrived at the island. The warpgate hub it links to is glossy and white-gold, a space station with hundreds of connecting warpgates of different sizes, with a beautiful glass roof all along the main thoroughfare for an uninterrupted view of the stars. Stepping through the last gate brings her out of the artificial warpgate of Hydrochoeria, where the air is breezy and faintly damp from intersecting with the cloud layer. The small floating island is connected to the city-sized landmass by a simple bridge, linking it like an orbital tether. Below is tens of thousands of feet of empty air, and then the open ocean speckled with islands, drifting slowly by. There's the castle looming at the far end of the island, and between her and it, a tangle of architecture that lands in the hypothetical center of Animal Crossing cottagecore, playgrounds, and Soviet housing: one large communal apartment building, surrounded by an overflowing number of trees and flowers and outdoor spaces, navigable by recycled rubber 'roads' or conspicuously arranged parkour sections. She's met at the gate by a robot rat girl half a foot shorter than even Vertin is, with smooth Silvery metal ears and tail. Heyalexa's only moderately in the mood to harass her with some questions about whether she could hook up a contract with the Artificial Somnambulism machines for dream advertising, while escorting her through the city to the front door of the castle, and then to Dictum's private room inside.
Lilian Rook	Since being given the capacity to handle stairs (and, incidentally, do cool flips) by Petra's garage project, which Dictum is currently certain took her all week, the 'awakened eight track' has been exploring more often than previously; which was practically not at all. To make good on Petra's fervid, all-consuming efforts (she was attending a wedding), they've familiarized themself with most of the layout of the castle, including the easier platforming sections, made written note of all the inhabitants of the apartment, and then summarily concluded that the last likely place they are to be overheard or recorded is that room anyways; because Dictum's opinion of Petra is very high and they're so very sure that she wouldn't invade their privacy like that! The room isn't a lot to look at, in terms of individuality. Without most needs or faculties belonging to humans (and magical girls), Dictum's additions are more or less purely utilitarian. Wireframe shelves added to one wall are a hopeful declaration of how many tools will end up there, while 'borrowed' lego has been packed back up again from impromptu ramps now that they can hop on things, and replaced with plastic minidrawers for storage and accesibility for things you'd usually put on a desk. The bed is untouched. The light switch has gathered dust. An e-reader is dropped on the former, whereas a studio-sized sketchpad on a wooden frame is parked under the latter, drowned in brand new waves of mathematics, diagrams, and weird little doodles, this time including fragments of map and lists of names. The 'countermeasure array' drawn on the floor and the inside of the door have been refreshed, rather than let fade. One step at a time. Relevantly, a considerable number of the doodles and idly written-down thought-fragments and reminders concern Heyalexa! Because Dictum has been attempting to get to know her at all, and treating her usual behaviour as a kind of bizarre cultural dialect that they have to become Sensitive To as quickly as possible; so they've been studying. Mesmer's arrival marks quite possibly the first time anyone has ever been delighted for Mesmer to arrive at anything. The "Mesmer Junior! There you are! Please come in!" is uttered without the dogshit text-to-speech Dictum was last forced to use in her presence, but the anomalous tape recorder noise is still present underlaying it, and it still has a certain 'blandly unaccepted and degendered for corporate appeal' quality to it anyways, despite the evident(ly moderated) excitement. "I am relieved that you were able to find the availability and willingness to reconvene under these circumstances." Nerd. "I'm sure that there is a lot to discuss." They decide that this is the point at which they should demonstrate their brand new manipulator, by using it to wave. They practiced.
Foundation Scions	Mesmer is, unfortunately, the type to still somewhat appreciate the to-the-point nature of brief messages and not having to interact face to face; there's an upper extent to tolerance for that, but at least, right now, it's a little bit easier. Not, that she expected notice to communicate again with Dictum to come from Petra- the scenario that played over more in her mind was that they'd somehow get free, reach out to her, and be once again someone able to safely and easily interact with around Laplace's campus. Still. Mesmer isn't fond of isolation, either, and, she's missed Dictum being someone she (trapped in a basement) could converse with easily; this isn't made easier by her terrible behavior also upsetting TTT. So she'll take this, even if it's Petra's domain she's walking into. Hopefully that's fine. . . . Mumbled out-loud, to the nobody present there on the island before the bridge, "Is this a hidden camera prank?" The date comes to mind, as Mesmer scowls, and, unhinged, presses down on the material of her stupid vinyl skirt, in the worry that it is, and that high-altitude wind will embarrass her as she crosses. Christ. She doesn't look down, because that's scary! Strange roads, not-quite-as-strange architecture (more of a pastiche of various entirely normal environments put together than shocking) are notable, but she's not wasting time on the journey, except for how annoying it is to adjust to the bounciness in heeled boots. Then, perfectly polite, "Hello. I'm here on direct invitation, at the required time;" to Heyalexa, and then, more muted-distant with the slight business-deal harassment, for some reason taking her seriously, "I can't authorize a purchase of... 'ad-space' on my own, but, I'll bring it up to the Mesmer Group for deliberations. I expect they'll decide it would undercut performance and reputation; so I wouldn't be hopeful." . . . 'Mesmer Junior! There you are! Please come in!' Mesmer, similarly rarely, has a pleased-surprised look on her face to that- sure, she expressly remembers saying 'Annika' when they first met, so, this phrasing is a vile indicator of someone else's contamination of the pristine friendly robot who liked her when she was the only person in the world they could talk to, but- "Your voice modulation is far more clear, now. Is this zone somewhere you can traverse easily?" A pause, and, "You look significantly different now, too. It's pleasant to see you animated." Mesmer, in her hands, presently in both of them, holds the handle of a chrome-panelled, fancy briefcase, which she decides, given Dictum's height, is best to place upon the floor itself. "You're correct that there's a lot to discuss. It's been some time, but, I've been sure to keep myself busy. In the lack of better observational circumstances on the Vector 'Lilian Rook'," Come on, she's trying to copy a little bit of Dictum's former cadence? "I've gone over past evidence with extreme scrutiny to assemble clarifying information, that I hope will be useful to you." Herself taller than easily able to look at stuff on the floor, Mesmer, awkwardly, squats down near her briefcase and near Dictum, to face them, turns around to check the array drawn into the chamber door, and sighs, in apparent relief. "I hope you haven't been miserable here, with whatever she's doing to you."
Lilian Rook	'Your voice modulation is far more clear, now. Is this zone somewhere you can traverse easily?' Without any kind of expressive face, Mesmer has to rely on the eight-track DTR itself, still visible under the bell jar, and the faint motor whir of tiny optical cameras in the front; both of which make it somehow egregiously obvious that Dictum could hardly be more thrilled. In their own way, at least. Much like the fast running of the tape and its smooth, bouncy little switches convey eagerness, the distinct white noise of worn machinery and the purr of a slightly undervolted battery, conveys a sense of tiredness pressing down on the peak of that mood from above. It makes it a little bit funny when they say "No, but I have been practising." 'You look significantly different now, too. It's pleasant to see you animated.' That leads into the other topic, which, for at least a minute, feels like it has to come up first. Dictum wheels backwards, zipping in and start-stopping deeper into the room so that Mesmer can actually enter, and then performs a slow turn on top of their treads. It's a little funny too, since it makes the actual DTR look like it's on a 3d model demo table, or perhaps late night shopping TV. "Though considerably greater concerns weighed on me at the time, I will admit without difficulty that it is more pleasant to possess the animation than not." says Dictum. "While functionality is presently limited, I believe that this is due to limitations of time and scientific resources on the part of Petra Soroka, rather than an abundance of suspicion. The ability to manipulate objects, especially, has been a relief, as I'm sure you can understand." They don't even need to gesture when Mesmer is looking right at the arrays. "But I have so far succeeded in petitioning Petra Soroka for upgrades to my general mobility. I anticipate I will continue to succeed in the future, provided sufficient time alongside clear and honest dialogue." Though waist height on Mesmer, they RC car past her to politely close the door behind, and flip the silly little rigger on the totally pointless latch. The lock click sound puts the tape wheels to a pleasant little buzzy spin. It's reassuring! 'You're correct that there's a lot to discuss. It's been some time, but, I've been sure to keep myself busy.' "That's very rewarding to hear." Dictum says, warmly for such a weird choice of word. "I hadn't doubted at all that you would find means to continue our critical research during my unforseen absence. You are a highly focused and industrious person, and doubtlessly used to unfortunate setbacks along the overall trajectory of progress." In a situation like this, normally, someone would scold Mesmer for going straight to her weird personal fixation and dumping business on them before even settling in. Dictum currently has three things in the entire world to care about though, and one of those is exactly this, so they trundle over to the briefcase, says "May I?" with an attentive pause-click, and then starts trying to manipulate the lock if given the go-ahead. 'I hope you haven't been miserable here, with whatever she's doing to you.' "It's been far from easy to do as little as the opportunities afforded to me will allow, but in a holistic sense, I am glad to report that nothing regretful has occurred in the time since we were last able to interact." says Dictum, cheerful as can be at their current energy state. "Through civil dialogue and rational explanation, I was successfully able to convey to Petra Soroka the severity of the situation and to clarify many missing pieces of information that she had made her previous decisions without. I've been pleased to find her much more reasonable than my initial expectation, provided she is approached in the correct way."
Lilian Rook	"It was actually by my stated request that you were brought in. Petra Soroka agreed without notable hesitation once I had fully built my case. Though I think it might still be unwise for the two of you to converse directly just yet, I maintain an optimistic outlook on the possibility of a future working relationship between you, so long as you both remain receptive to sound reasoning." Dictum mulls over 'extreme scrutiny' with a certain kind of malaise betrayed only by a few seconds of soft, repetitive recorder fuzz. They swivel their optics towards the window and back, then say, "As I have the unique benefit of hearing each side from both parties in confidence, I am aware of some relatively modest yet nevertheless impactful misunderstandings that have yet to be addressed. Since you've gone to such pains to gather this data, however, I will happily wait until after its thorough review!"
Foundation Scions	'The ability to manipulate objects, especially, has been a relief, as I'm sure you can understand.' "I do, and it seems from your form, that that's a simple, and efficient, method to do so through. It must have been frustrating before, so, I'm put at ease by the fact that that's in the past now." A weird sigh, "I'm glad you haven't been given any extraneous trouble, but, of course you're still aware that Petra is someone to hold extreme suspicion towards. Her motivations are clear, and, not in-line with rational logic and the betterment of mankind." Mesmer doesn't want her robot friend to like anyone else but her. 'That's very rewarding to hear.' Mesmer actually (very slightly) smiles, about that. Of course Dictum would (if they even are imagining it close to this way,) view Mesmer going back and forth over tapes, her own memories, oscilloscope readouts, with obsessive fixation alone in her workspaces for hours and hours on end, no doubt fueled by a toxic combination of lonely instability and unhealthy stimulant usage. Unfortunately, Mesmer Junior can, in fact, be studious, when she has the worst reasons to be. "I'm taking the matters very seriously," She adds, in a tone that sounds like 'thank you', and 'please like me' all in one. "Too much is at stake, and, like I've said prior, it's possible there's another Vector at-hand to assess; if I can justify this methodology, I'm sure I can sway organizational authority to assist in that matter." 'May I?' Quick, unsettled for some immediate reason, Mesmer interrupts- "No, I'll get it," and then, only after she's already moved to intercept Dictum's manipulator arm, adds, vaguely guilty-apologetic, "It's a code lock, I'd have to give you the correct sequence regardless." She dials it, and slides the case so she can open it away from herself, and, thus, take over unpacking it and presenting what's within. Rather than being just full of files in manilla folders, Mesmer's dossier inside the briefcase is a collection of some of those, but also a half-dozen floppy disks, and a few tight-packed pieces of electronic equipment, presumably to allow the discs to be viewed and connected-up to whatever sort of ports Dictum has- Mesmer knows the layout of the machine Dictum's body used as a base, luckily. "There's four main matters worth discussing, but the order is that of ascending complexity rather than apparent importance. I'll leave all of it here, afterwards, if there's an assurance that Petra Soroka won't be shown any of my findings, I'd like it back un-tampered." Finally, in a little almost-excited huff, "Matter one, in regards solely to strange, unexplained phenomena around her person," If not for her (possibly contrived) explanation, it might seem Mesmer is leading with her least conclusive information. No photographs are included in the document pile she assembles, but an after-mission writeup (done too late to be particularly trustworthy; abridged Recently to actually clarify Mesmer's memories on this angle,) discussing monitoring and treatment of 'a patient's' strange extremity injuries, burn-like accumulated wounds on fingers and hands, peculiarly like both friction injuries and radiation damage, in Mesmer's memory. Of course, Lilian's, separately, explained this to others, as oweing to her own magic- Mesmer doesn't know that. Mesmer is paranoid.
Foundation Scions	"I don't know what to gather from this, except, I'm fairly certain it occured throughout some training regimen of hers, which she attempted to perform while entirely unobserved, not even with cameras present, outside, in the depths of night." In a liquor store parking lot, where Mesmer also was. "I've nothing more to say on it, even if I can't make sense of it, perhaps you can, perhaps you've seen similar, and perhaps later study will shed light." Quickly moving on, "Matter two, is in regards to what I spoke of before, the noticeable, irritating brainwave pulses; she's consented to a recording. I have a copy here, alongside a print readout. Perhaps an in-situ capture of possible 'violation paradigm' activity will serve better than just my account." Mesmer shuffles through the briefcase, retrieving a spooled-up oscilloscope readout with obvious anomalies on it; a disc with an audio approximation of it, and (for some reason) a copy of her vital data taken at the same time. None of this, probably, is technically legal to share without comprehensive release forms that Lilian wasn't asked about, but Mesmer isn't telling, and she certainly hopes Dictum won't be, either. "Before you ask, I've tried, but I can hardly make sense of it; I can hardly make sense of her brainwave patterns under normal conditions. It could be random neural firings, with seemingly no refractory period for ion reuptake, but I lack the tools to have a strict cellular understanding of the phenomenon itself, so that's an extrapolation from raw data." Idly, entirely incoherently, "With such sharp waveform pulses, I wonder if it's a reformatting of thought-patterns in a method not unlike primitive electroshock therapy? It's extreme, unsettling, miserable to sense and I can't see even the barest workings of a pattern between before and after the potential spikes." An unsettled little shiver, "Well, the recording's yours to look over, of course, I've kept hard-copies. That's part I won't require be returned." . . . 'I've been pleased to find her much more reasonable than my initial expectation, provided she is approached in the correct way.' Squinting, crossing her arms while still crouched by the floor (and not touching it through anything but clothing material and boots, it might be filthy,) Mesmer exhales, "And what way is that? I'd like to trust that sentiment, but I'll decide after I hear more." She doesn't want to trust that actually!! "What 'missing pieces', though? Are they ones I've heard about?" 'I maintain an optimistic outlook on the possibility of a future working relationship between you,' "Hm."
Lilian Rook	'I do, and it seems from your form, that that's...' '...and, not in-line with rational logic and the betterment of mankind.' Dictum is, at first, nothing more than quietly overjoyed to share the fact that they can grip and grab and draw hateful crimes against girls with their shiny new little pincher arm. Once they have Mesmer's weird little noise and digression into being a rambling lonely loser, though, even they sense something amiss. The steady magnetic tape rolling slows down, then a track clicks along with a switch in focus. Something right on the borderline of incredibly faint music, too quiet to even be sure of that much, plays for a little while, and then the classic click-hush of a play button being pressed precedes Dictum's "I am aware of the suspect nature of Petra Soroka's position of interpersonal closeness with multiple Existential Threat Vectors, yes. I believe that she is more attached to the happiness of the sophont hosts involved than she is to scientific rigor or utilitarian ethics. I only believe that this doesn't rule out her cooperation altogether. As you are seeing now, in fact." And, then, a little slower, "Truth be told, Annika, I was much too preoccupied with the aftereffects of ego decompression and the impact of subjectively recent events to feel uncomfortable with my lack of mobility at the time. I'm simply happy that we are able to talk to each other again on less rushed and inconvenient terms." 'Too much is at stake, and, like I've said prior, it's possible there's another Vector at-hand to assess' Trying to bring up the mood, Dictum cheerily announces in the most conspiratorial tone they can manage (they sound like an answering machine), "Despite appearances, my research hasn't been halted either. With the access to information I possess now," by which they mean 'talking to Petra', "I can credibly conclude that there are four known Existential Threat Vectors that have progressed to a scientifically relevant stage of Incursion Syndrome, as well as describe basic qualifiers of their identities." They sober up a little, but the difference is hard to discern anyways. "This is one more than the three responsible for the destruction of my home planet and all three associated lunar colonies, but those three had been fully concealed from our strategic awareness at the time. Despite uncertain remaining time, this information is a considerable advantage in our favour." Dictum you literally just let Petra tell you. Also, that's not the point! 'No, I'll get it,' Dictum's manipulator moves back quickly enough to possibly constitute a flinch. Their chassis follows, taking back a few more inches as if Mesmer were about to do something Scary (they're just kind of embarrassed), but the moment passes quickly when she demonstrates the code lock, and they slowly vrrr back over. "Oh I see. That was a wise precaution." . . . . . . . . And yet, still, once Mesmer has begun laying it all out, the irrepressible energy that takes form inside this goofy little apartment room is undeniably a lot like a secret club meeting. Even if it's about about science, between two flavours of lonely technocratic dickhead, concerned with the literal fate of the world and the potential mass extinction of humanity, it's still a meeting in someone's room on a flying island with a castle where they have a little briefcase and they gossip about girls!
Lilian Rook	If Mesmer had handed Dictum all this data two days after first being interrogated, they'd comb through it with grim determination masking nauseous dread. Now it's been several weeks, and this is the only excuse they have to talk to each other, and so Dictum takes their well-measured time with each sample, re-reviewing each of them as if they could somehow forget, breaking each task up into conversationally sized chunks so they can natter back and forth with Mesmer about hypotheses and analysis and tangentially related anecdotes. 'I've nothing more to say on it, even if I can't make sense of it, perhaps you can, perhaps you've seen similar, and perhaps later study will shed light.' "While your physiology appears to be similar to ours, there is very little I can say, medically speaking, with my limited expertise. From my time observing Existential Threat Vectors of Stage III and IV in quarantine or captivity, however, along with my experience documenting testimony from cooperative relatives and associates, I can state with confidence that this type of behaviour, defined as overfixation on privacy and isolation from others to the point that it becomes too suspicious to be a practical cover, occurs in 24% of Stage II cases, 63% of Stage III cases, and virtually all Stage IV cases." 'I'm fairly certain it occured throughout some training regimen of hers' "Upwards of half believe that they are able to 'train their powers' as well. Whether with the misguided intent of returning to normalcy or retaliating against perceived injustices against them, both are sadly mistaken; in actuality, what they perceive as 'heightened power' is in fact an accelerated progression of Incursion Syndrome, which they themselves are perpetuating, by delusion or by instinct." 'she's consented to a recording' "It sounds as though you've improved at being able to predict and manipulate the Existential Threat Vector's behaviour. Well done!" God they're so sincere. 'I can hardly make sense of her brainwave patterns under normal conditions.' "That's very strange. And no one else has made any note of this? You have experience working with both arcanists and humans; two different sophont species with different neural architectures. Why is it that nobody else believes it to be relevant that you can't interpret the brainwaves of this one?" Okay maybe that one's a little leading. 'I wonder if it's a reformatting of thought-patterns in a method not unlike primitive electroshock therapy?' "Without access to sufficiently stocked private facilities, I couldn't give you an expert opinion. From reviewing these, I have two initial theories of middling confidence. One is that this represents its--" Dictum freezes up in mortal terror, which looks a lot like the tape just got jammed and they felt very embarrassed for a second. "My sincere apologies. One is that this represents her personalized coping mechanism, in order to 'reformat' her thought patterns when she senses that they are at risk of becoming detectably deviant, as a way to either avoid containment action or personal outburst. The other is that these spikes, or perhaps 'splices', represent periods of 'communing' with the subject's--" They lapsed right back in. "--anthropomorphized neural model of the Existential Threat, in order to 'negotiate', in certain terms, a violation of causality that has little to no measurable impact. Sharing fundamental knowledge of architectural reality, if you will."
Lilian Rook	'And what way is that? I'd like to trust that sentiment, but I'll decide after I hear more.' "With an open-minded understanding of her emotional connection to her work, which needs not go so far as feigned agreement or sympathy, but which centers the gravity and magnitude of those feelings and platforms them as a valid personal emotional experience." Oh god. "I've found that Petra Soroka is most evasive and combative when those attachments are presented as worthy of shame, condemnation, or punishment, for instance. When I approach her with a flexible mindset and choose to agree to disagree instead of pointing out her skewed priorities, I am consistently able to secure considerable good faith." 'What 'missing pieces', though? Are they ones I've heard about?' The tightening of the noise band in the background of Dictum's vocalizations somehow feels exactly like uncomfortably pursed lips; coming from a robot who totally isn't judging your organic affairs or anything, but still-- "Well. For instance, that I bear no intent to kill or severely harm the Existential Threat Vector." Dictum starts off very hesitantly, playing softball. "Or, for instance, that Petra Soroka is, herself, a scientist, who has been studying the Existential Threat on her own, in secret, for multiple years!" They get to brighten up at that! Yay! "I was also able to convey to her the inappropriate nature of her behavioural assumptions towards you, as a stigmatized racial minority." No Dictum go back to not-peppy for that one. "Just as I was able to clarify the true scope of the crisis which we may soon face, and she was able to clarify that she has no intent to impede the resolution of it, but only preexisting mistrust of you specifically." And now they're phrasing it really carefully. "I was very helpfully informed as to measures already undertaken to drastically slow the progression of Incursion Syndrome in Lilian Rook specifically; I eagerly anticipate an opportunity to study and hopefully improve upon the technology. I was also able to impress upon Petra Soroka that the issue is measurably 'slowed' and not 'halted' as she previously believed, which had negatively impacted her sense of urgency." Oh no they're being even-handed about this! Like a student trying to be a conflict mediator! Because something in particular is still really bothering them about back then. And they've gotta work up to it eventually. ". . . I apologize once again, Annika, but I feel that it would be irresponsible to divulge something without a point of confirmation." And actually it's a few somethings, so, really, it's best to try and shoot all of them under the radar at once, for a candid answer. "As you might assume, I am only able to draw limited conclusions as to the relative status of your sophont species' individuals. In an unbiased and objective sense, as a fellow arcanist, would you support the conclusion that Lilian Rook possesses statistically notable sexually desirable qualities? I'm hesitant to draw conclusions as to certain information shared in confidence without being able to verify or object to this data myself."
Foundation Scions	'Truth be told, Annika,' Ah, there it is. That's weird! Even if she was hoping, somehow, a little bit, that she's at the point it's weird to hear her own name- "Hm? Well, in that case, my condolences." Did she miss what they said entirely? Backtracking, correcting, without admitting it, "I'm glad that, while you're now able to parse the discomfort with immobility, you're no longer faced with it. That's comforting. I'm glad." 'I can credibly conclude that there are four known Existential Threat Vectors that have progressed to a scientifically relevant stage of Incursion Syndrome, as well as describe basic qualifiers of their identities.' "Four? I see. I was only aware of-" A pause, and some weird feeling that she dwells on for a moment, "Two of them, from her world. At least the other isn't, so unstable and concerning." "I hope that information and time truly is on our side," Mesmer adds, not even really attempting to feign interest. . . . '... Is in fact an accelerated progression of Incursion Syndrome, which they themselves are perpetuating, by delusion or by instinct.' You can't just say 'by delusion or by instinct' in the context of Lilian around Mesmer! She'll get distracted and stupid! Barely nodding in response, Mesmer's eyes seem somewhere else, a vaguely angry expression on her face. 'Well done!' "It hasn't been easy, but, I'm attempting what I can. It's too much to ask for greater compliance, unfortunately, but I have hope." What. 'My sincere apologies.' "Hm? I hardly hold an opinion as to your terminology, it's obvious what your point is, it's obvious your spoken subject." Mesmer sighs, and uncrosses her arm, some hint of discomfort somewhere in there, but Mesmer'd be the last to know where, or how, or why- probably with Dictum being nicer than they had been, that's a scary sign. "I see. That's concerning, and inconvenient, if it were easier to simply take note, beyond the obvious, that she's 'detectably a deviant'- well, perhaps it would be easier to have more support in this, or less friction." Mesmer wants to Conspire so bad it makes her look stupid. 'The other is that these spikes, or perhaps 'splices', represent periods of 'communing' with the subject's--' "Hm," Mesmer adds, lost in thought for a moment. "More data, more expert eyes on it, that's what it'd call for to try and piece a logic out of this..." She sighs, "I doubt it would be a breach of the necessary secrecy I've no choice but to navigate through, to attempt to make this recording a project of the department to form conclusions on, perhaps under the guise of further training- but I expect it to be impossible to gain additional data directly, this way. I'll see what I can manage in the field." Sighing, again, and shifting her posture back over the briefcase, she's excited this time- "Conveniently, this has the possibility of being a related query. 'Matter three, in regards to perception of communication with the Existential Threat'," This one involves cables being un-packed and plugged in, papers being shuffled to and fro, and a great matter of assemblage for what is obviously (and more so now) important-seeming for Mesmer to convey. In the collected folder of physical files, is a summary of Laplace's 'Storm in a Bottle' experiment, alongside a transcript of Lilian's one-sided dialogue during it, time-stamped, and the floppy disc Artificial Somnambulism recording- alongside Mesmer's personal annotations about it all. First and foremost are her notes that all of this, conversational-sounding, trends strongly towards 'agreeing or disagreeing' with things whatever must be in the empty gaps. Whatever Mesmer assumes they might be, is thankfully left off of her assessments.
Foundation Scions	Pointing to her write-ups with an index finger, Mesmer interrupts, "Consistently, it seems as that whatever 'this' is, it's part of some decision-making process, or analytical method. Back and forth, but hardly any propositions from her, except, evidenced-prior, something that the other is claimed to be putting thought, too. I wonder if this could be related, now, to what's done in the strange pulses of activity? I wonder what's being s- perceived as 'said'. Though, I'd hazard only some of this could count as discussing the architecture of reality, but perhaps the conditions change the form that that could take." "If I could make this a larger study, entice her into a blank diagnostic program, I wonder if she'd continue this pattern aloud; a team of linguistics experts might be able to gather enough context to estimate the topics she's perceiving being spoken-of, and form a better idea of what exactly is going on. I doubt I can arrange that on my own, but, if I had my way of things, it's a next step." Taking a deep breath, "Obviously, it isn't news that she's in collusion with the 'Threat'- and, obviously, I can't say this is conclusively proof that what is going on is that collusion. Still, it seems a noteable trait of her dreaming subconscious, and I can't imagine that can safely be overlooked." Mesmer halts there, to carry on a small tangent- "I'm less sure what to make of the symbology of her seeded effects on the 'Storm-in-a-Bottle' experiments, in large part because I'd need further consult with the other party involved in the creation of the dreamscape parameters, and foundational materials, to frame my perspective correctly. As it stands," "I think it's concerning." Mesmer, then, opens a different compartment in the briefcase (less structured, still ordered and neat,) to retrieve a separate folder of photographs, one a compilation of the pie-slice of artificial cityscape environments from the simulation, at varying points of Storm decay; one a low-resolution printout of one of the files ripped from the Golden Disc itself, of distant titanic structures and red lights. "Why is there some shared convention of symbology, with the twisting... constructions, and specifically the color red? This experiment took place prior to the recovery of the Voyager Golden Disc, and it's not at all dissimilar in stylizations to something viewed within Artificial Somnambulism interpretation of-" Mesmer halts, second guessing her next words for a moment, out of some sense of worry, over, apparently, Dictum's feelings. "I suppose it was your dormant dreamstate? It was one of the first analytical procedures conducted on the Voyager probe. Unfortunately, I don't have a recording." . . . 'I've found that Petra Soroka is most evasive and combative when those attachments are presented as worthy of shame, condemnation, or punishment, for instance.' Oddly defensive, "I'm perfectly happy to lie to her, if that's what secures outcomes. I couldn't care less." Dictum's tone makes Mesmer uncomfortable, especially as they get into back-and-forth statement sharing, leaving her in a weird rising pool of incoherent emotional responses, unsure what to make of it, who's really being chastised in the gaps-between-careful-words, and what, pray tell, Dictum is leading up to. "I may be an arcanist, but I'm atypically capable of pursuing rational work, and it doesn't bother me in the slightest for people to take the understandable, scientifically supported stereotypes to heart; that she's doing so, I barely noticed, I don't heed her words in general." Like it matters, leaky, "Legally speaking, she's medical equipment."
Foundation Scions	'. . . I apologize once again, Annika, but I feel that it would be irresponsible to divulge something without a point of confirmation.' Mesmer squints. Speaking with an entirely different sort of carefulness, that of knowing she's in a landmine, but not having a map, and not, really, knowing what the sought-for answer (and thus, way out) of it is, Mesmer's answer is slow and deliberate, and entirely embarrassing. "For one, Lilian Rook is not, in fact, an arcanist, but that's not generally a matter considered in societal perceptions of sexual desire. Interspecies reproduction occurs frequently, the rate of which supports the notion that one day, 'arcanists' will, in fact, be extinct." "To speak generally, I've good evidence that other employees at LSCC do find her to be in possession of, 'notable sexually desirable qualities'. The first relic from other worlds brought into the LSCC was an edition of a softcore pornography magazine within which she featured, a fact that came up again when she herself was a present agent of conspiracy in a plot I personally had to clean up the organizational wreckage of." Sighing, now frustrated, "So, yes, I suppose? This isn't an opinion, that's rooted in evidence, only, of course, objective and unbiased." "I'm not a homosexual."
Lilian Rook	Yippee! Yay! Dictum makes a little note that Mesmer prefers her first name to what everyone else uses! It wasn't just a professional formality, but a special little treat just for them! Wahoo! 'Two of them, from her world. At least the other isn't, so unstable and concerning.' That does actually catch them by surprise though. "Your familiarity is fortunate, and your opinion that the second is of a lesser priority of urgency is reassuring, though it seems as though you intended to inform me of something else." They wait on it for a little while, for a potential answer, but not very long. 'It's too much to ask for greater compliance, unfortunately, but I have hope.' "Really? That would be wonderful news." Ah fuck. The alien doesn't understand euphemisms and corporate bullshit-speak! Now they sound excited! "It would be incalculably helpful if the Laplace Scientific Computing Center administration were amenable to your propositions to secure more significant compliance measures! The potential chaos that an unmonitored Existential Threat Vector may suddenly choose to cause at a moment's notice, even after months or years of 'good behaviour', cannot be overstated!" 'it's obvious your spoken subject.' "Nevertheless, Petra Soroka informed me that 'it' is often seen as a threat in her culture, derived from misappropriated hierarchical power." Dictum chides, adding 'misappropriated' themself. "Even under these circumstances, common decency and cultural sensitivity cost me very little, and may help secure additional cooperation." Oh so it's rational now. "The only means beyond neural activity by which I able to diagnose Lilian Rook's Incursion Syndrome at this pint is by the same means that the Countermeasure interacts with Stage IV Existential Threat Vectors with incompatible cognitive paradigms." Dictum evinces a put-upon sigh with the microphone crackle noise they'd perfectd with Petra. "Recondite diagnostic work based only on quasiparticle excitement and electron-hole density from from strangematter contamination of the sophont host's biological body is far from elegant, or even very safe." 'More data, more expert eyes on it, that's what it'd call for' "I understand very well." says Dictum, like 'I sympathize'. "When I was last involved with comprehensive study of the Existential Threat, we had a specialized research and quarantine wing entirely dedicated to the project, with over six hundred scientific and emergency staff individuals and practically unlimited equipment across nine Stage III and three stage IV subjects. If we'd only had a little more time before the Vector-3 event . . ." It is, accidentally, the perfect thought to be unhappily dwelling on when the real segue happens. Mesmer's greasonous excitement registers to Dictum as something more harmless than it actually is. They let her talk her every thought through while they physically read through the files, tilting the small amount they can on their chassis to 'look down' more, and occasionally fumbling with a page corner in their manipulator, but they haven't said anything by the time Mesmer wraps up, only gesturing for the floppy and starting with "May I see?"
Lilian Rook	Of course, they play it back nearly instantly. Mesmer can, in fact, hear the hard drive Petra installed whirring up to its maximum read-write speed beneath the warmer sound of speeding tape, often click-stopping and skitter-rewinding before the clack-chunk-press-play-again. It's clearly thorough review that occupies them for a full, anxious, thumb-twiddling minute. "I believe that this gives me extraordinary insight, through context, into what Petra Soroka has referred to as 'the other Lilian'." Dictum concludes, somewhat gravely. They conscientiously pop out the drive and hand it back to Mesmer all the same, single gripper style making it feel politely automated. "She has obliquely mentioned an entity I was unclear on the nature of, in relation to the Existential Threat, as pertains to Lilian Rook. I believe her code-name for it is 'Exigent Serenity'. I was unable to discern anything of value from the way she spoke of it, but seeing this, I believe one of the theories I had deemed less-than-likely may in fact be correct." Dictum pauses. Dead air plays, like soft vinyl record scrolling. They remember to add a 'sigh' as a bookend when they make up their mind to continue. "Petra Soroka claims that Lilian Rook's mated partner-- whom I am familiar with through frankly excessive recorded evidence of their marital ceremony-- is responsible for recondite array technology that forestalls Stave IV catalyzation into Stage V metamorphosis. My own low-powered diagnostic scans of Lilian Rook's body confirm that there is, still, some ongoing process, which does not match the recorded data on metamorphosis events, which are typically violent and abrupt, but which may in fact correspond to the same 'chemical reaction' geometrically slowed in progression to the point that it presents a uniquely valuable opportunity to study the phenomenon in-progress." "That is to say, your data suggests that the Existential Threat acts, with intent or as part of a life cycle, to reformat itself towards symmetry with the host sophont, even as the host sophont reformats itself for increased compatibility with the Existential Threat. This anthropomorphized extrusion; this . . . persona, may be the typical onset of Stage V Incursion Syndrome, previously invisible to our scientists due to its natural speed, violence, and privacy, in nature. And you have it--" Dictum's DTR makes a heavy, frustrated thunk, swapping tracks to a somewhat glum resignation band. "--recorded. Here. Just like that." 'I suppose it was your dormant dreamstate?' "It was a deliberate warning I had transcribed in analogue dataform to your solid recording device from my own memory bank." says Dictum. Their vocalizer is tinged with a sense of tinny distance. "My hope was that your civilization would still be untouched by the Pandemic threat, and so I intended to convey, as best I was able, provided I didn't survive travel, the signs and symptoms to look out for, and how to treat them. Even if the Pandemic Threat had passed, those markers have marked, known, correlative relevance to the emergence of the Existential Threat in the post-reality injury infection period." Dictum pauses. The DTR clicks and backs up with a scribble of noise. "I apologize for getting ahead of myself. To simplify, that colouration is the edge of a radiation pattern-band that I suppose terminates just within your visual range. It's typical of those 'thread-like' structures; they're orbital debris that accounts for the mass impacts during the incidence of the Pandemic Threat on our planet. We were still in the midst of studying them when the Existential Threat became known, almost a century later."
Lilian Rook	"By the time that we realized Existential Threat infections roughly heat-mapped to proximity to the largest debris structures, there was very little we could do about them. If I had been in time, I would have urged to Earth's government that they be excavated and launched into deep interstellar space." Dictum gets as close as they ever have to uncomfortable mumbling. So, they actually match Mesmer for a second. "Seeing the same imagery here only confirms that Vector Candidates are most vulnerable in geographic proximity to Class-1 Celestial Relics. I wonder if the pattern itsemf has semantic or memetic contextual meaning? Perhaps it's a selection mechanism to mark vulnerable individuals for later attention by the Existential Threat?" Mic-crackle. A chunky reset sound, plastic on metal. "In either outcome, the iconography of aligning herself with the viral growth of the Existential Threat, rather than the Earth civilization facsimile attempting to keep her out, is obvious in its psychiatric meaning. Lilian Rook is subconsciously aware of her extreme state of alienation from her species even though she appears to know next to nothing about the Existential Threat; of that much I'm sure. It's little wonder that she appears to cooperate so poorly with institutions of public order without being guaranteed a position of considerable freedom and power; or in Petra Soroka's case, constant reassurance and unguarded intimacy." 'If I could make this a larger study, entice her into a blank diagnostic program, I wonder if she'd continue this pattern aloud; a team of linguistics experts might be able to gather enough context to estimate the topics she's perceiving being spoken-of, and form a better idea of what exactly is going on.' 'Still, it seems a noteable trait of her dreaming subconscious, and I can't imagine that can safely be overlooked.' "You're right." Dictum says, firmly and tiredly giving Mesmer The Drug. "It isn't safe to overlook. I encourage you to arrange these circumstances as soon as possible. I pledge my full assistance towards studying and deciphering the findings as much as I am physically able." They're just about to swell dramatic, when the tape skips. "And the fourth thing? I can't even imagine anything more relevant than this." Good thing there's a cute little aside to decompress over! 'For one, Lilian Rook is not, in fact, an arcanist' "I'm relieved to hear that!" Dictum chirps. "Petra Soroka appears to believe otherwise, and that many of your behaviours towards Lilian Rook may be racially motivated. It reassures me greatly to know that this is merely the unconscious misallocation of blame by an individual placed higher in the social hierarchy by birth and blinded to the asymmetry of her interaction through cultural inurement!" 'So, yes, I suppose? This isn't an opinion, that's rooted in evidence, only, of course, objective and unbiased.' Dictum evinces a nod by wiggling their gripper up and down and making their cameras buzz. They're very pleased to hear this is all objective and factual and scientific and-- 'I'm not a homosexual.' Okay. Even Dictum isn't dumb enough. "Is there a stigmatization against homosexuality in your culture? If so, the evolutionary fitness of the mutation is well-known amongst several thousand documented natural species; I had already assumed that Earth's sophont species likely possessed a similar adaptation and thought nothing of it." They seem to realize that this doesn't actually encourage an answer after a few seconds. "Whether or not you intend to secure sexual relations with Lilian Rook is none of my concern, so long as we remain in honest, open communication, without withholding ulterior objectives." Petra.
Foundation Scions	'Though it seems as though you intended to inform me of something else.' Mesmer hadn't decided until this very moment if that was true or not, but- "Yes, there is more. She appears stable, and overall more pleasant, though distressingly involved in dangerous matters she seems to on occasion disagree with; I can't assume more at this point, but that includes people attempting to halt the progression of research and awareness over, you, and the truth of the Existential Threat Vectors, I believe. She claims to be the sole reason it hasn't done so." Sighing, something vague tasting bad in her mouth to say, "She's also been extraordinarily open with what seems to be details on her specific... 'Violation Paradigm'? I can scrub my memories through a memory encoder, to demonstrate, but I'd have to return to the LSCC, given that your body is what was the only mobile encoder unit I had access to." Then, possibly trying to negate some of that being harmful to Dictum to hear, "It's a small inconvenience, and significantly more worth the trade-off to have you encased in a functional shell. I would have done it if Petra hadn't, the electronic structure is too complimentary." "The other Vector's name is Sakura, I'm not familiar if that's a surname, a given name, or a mononym, or a pseudonym. It's what I've heard." 'It would be incalculably helpful if the Laplace Scientific Computing Center administration were amenable to your propositions to secure more significant compliance measures!' "I assure you, I'll continue my attempts to convince them. In the mean-time, I'm attempting to innovate on possible countermeasure applications to maintain, at the very least, my own safety." At the tail end of that sentence, Mesmer shifts around how she's sitting, discomforted or alerted by something, like she's somewhere a bit closer to angry or scared than just pleasant conversation, for some reason. 'Recondite diagnostic work based only on quasiparticle excitement and electron-hole density from from strangematter contamination of the sophont host's biological body is far from elegant, or even very safe.' "Excuse me? I'm unfamiliar with the functional terms present in that statement." . . . 'When I was last involved with comprehensive study of the Existential Threat, we had a specialized research and quarantine wing entirely dedicated to the project,' "If I had a team of six-hundred, devoted to the project and the ethos required," Mesmer trails off, because elaboration isn't really necessary, and the sympathy-pang that comes from remembering all of Dictum's compatriots are dead now, is uncomfortable! She doesn't like weird sympathy-pangs! "I'm thankful for the work you and your team could pioneer." 'Exigent Serenity' Mesmer scowls. "I'm glad that this is the missing piece for something crucial to understand, I'm surprised that it's connected to an already-known topic. And, that this is proving to be a method of observation that itself is not just productive, but perhaps uniquely effective. Artificial Somnambulism technology, once again, proves its miraculous functionality for diagnostics." "I have it recorded, just like that. I might be able to do it again-" A sigh, with a little bit more (strange) conviction, "No, I will do it again. If it's this insightful, there's hardly an excuse to do anything but, and I should be capable of concocting and enforcing her presence within amenable, similar circumstances to this experiment, to try just that."
Foundation Scions	'Perhaps it's a selection mechanism to mark vulnerable individuals for later attention by the Existential Threat?' "That certainly sounds plausible, but I'm not certain I could form a valuable opinion to share- if that's your theory, your reasoning makes sense to me, from the facts at hand." Mesmer leaning this hard into science-speech isn't just Conspiring, this is something weirder and scarier, like bonding-attempts, or flirting. She's trying to be a lab partner. With a robot alien who's kept in a room on a floating castle. This is the closest she's had to a New Friend in actual years. 'It's little wonder that she appears to cooperate so poorly with institutions of public order without being guaranteed a position of considerable freedom and power;' "The extent she tries to push for that freedom from scrutiny, within the employ of the LSCC, is outrageous, and I've maintained consistent disagreement with her capacities to act as a guest researcher so-supported without being herself under the overwatch of the field-appropriate department head. The pattern is clear and present. I suppose it's comforting to be more certain why it is, isn't it?" 'And the fourth thing? I can't even imagine anything more relevant than this.' "It's not as relevant, I don't imagine, but it's certainly relevant. 'Matter four, in regards to the subject's anomalous relationship to dreams,'" Mesmer, this time, retrieves a different floppy disc, a transcription, and a neatly-traced array diagram. Thankfully, Dictum is spared the print-out of the image of Lilian's back that Mesmer traced it from. "This, may in fact be or be related the 'recondite array technology' you're speaking of, I've heard that it originates from her 'mate'." Don't say that. Super don't say that. "It entered my awareness quite some time ago, and I've known, coincidentally, that it is a significant barrier to her capacity to remember the content and influence of dreams. I've attempted to work around this, but it's a frustrating element to the functionality of Artificial Somnambulism conditioning, and it's led to a peculiar insistence from her that nothing reliant on it, not even the 'Storm in a Bottle' experiment, functions, or has happened." The floppy disc is a recording of Mesmer's own memories, rendered into Artificial Somnambulism format, hearing Matilda's explanation (in full detail, which Mesmer in the recording only half writes down,) as to what her opinion on the magical mechanism (and function) of the tattoo must be, including astute remarks as to the vagueness of its targeting and other quirks of its construction. "Given what exactly she seems to utilize dreams for, a barrier to that is," Just enough of a pause for Mesmer to have added in the word 'regrettably', "A useful matter in coincidence or intent, and, if there's further application to it, or workarounds, I doubt I'd be the one to find them. I wouldn't trust anyone else's statement as to the array over my coworkers, she's reliable, if entirely unaware of the context." Weird-leaky, unrelated, "I'd be killed if I told her more."
Foundation Scions	. . . 'Is there a stigmatization against homosexuality in your culture?' "Not particularly, Laplace Scientific Computing Center is an equality-focused establishment; I'm stating only that your line of query is inapplicable beyond a point, here, as I can form a view only from observing others." Stiff, weirdly-defensive, but more out of the stress of apparent misrepresentation than scared-coverup of some sort? Then, hurt sounding, for reasons that don't quite make it into her words, Mesmer stands up, and anxiously dusts herself off with a sleeve-cuff. "I don't intend that, and I'm happily, eagerly engaging in honest communication. I apologize for overestimating what seemed to be mutual trust. My motive, as it always is, is the preservation of a sane and stable world."
Lilian Rook	'She appears stable, and overall more pleasant' 'people attempting to halt the progression of research and awareness over, you, and the truth of the Existential Threat Vectors' 'She claims to be the sole reason it hasn't done so.' 'extraordinarily open with what seems to be details on her specific... 'Violation Paradigm'?' Dictum's little cameras shutter twice, thus marking stunned blinking a kind of universal piece of sophont sub-language. "I see. That's even more fortunate news." they say, as if it's suspicious. "This description corresponds to an extreme holotype of a 'delusional'-type course of infection. It sounds as if she is unusually motivated, perhaps to an extreme, by the fantastical notion that her personal relation to the Existential Threat will enable her to in some way control or understand it; it is possible, even, that she firmly believes that the Existential Threat is a moral test, and that by acting in the opposite of her selfish interests, she might achieve a more 'fair' ethical outcome." Still, even that level of psychological armchair theory doesn't seem to fully satisfy them. "How odd. Earth's Existential Threat Vectors appear to be remarkably social by comparison to our data. I wonder if that has anything to do with the earlier emergence of their infection coupled with their slower progression? Even Lilian Rook, the textbook holotype of an 'instinctive'-type infection course, socializes with other humans for ostensibly no reason other than personal pleasure at times." 'I would have done it if Petra hadn't, the electronic structure is too complimentary.' "Then I will happily credit you with the design." Dictum says, whirring only a little nervously. "I assume Petra Soroka was inspired by your bringing the two of them together first." No they don't. 'In the mean-time, I'm attempting to innovate on possible countermeasure applications to maintain, at the very least, my own safety.' Dictum trundles closer again out of interest. This is their whole topic after all! The countermeasure incantation was something they shared! And Mesmer likes it! "Further applications? Do you believe the currently deployed forms are insufficient? I would enjoy hearing what room for improvement you see in them. Perhaps I may even assist you. One of my roles before the Vector-3 incident was directly involved in countermeasure innovation." 'Excuse me? I'm unfamiliar with the functional terms present in that statement.' Dictum emits a sheepish buzz. "I employed a very weak diagnostic incantation over a long period of time while copresent with Lilian Rook in her laboratory quarters in order to verify the presence of physical contamination unique to a Stage V outcome within her biological makeup. The amount is extremely trace, but undeniably extant. I couldn't verify anything more precise without risking detection, or worse, unpredictable reactions, due to physical side-effects induced by recondite excitation of contaminated biology." 'I'm thankful for the work you and your team could pioneer.' "I am thankful that it wasn't for nothing. So thank you again, Annika."
Lilian Rook	'Artificial Somnambulism technology, once again, proves its miraculous functionality for diagnostics.' Dictum just comes right out with "I'm slightly confused. Though this seems to be a logical pattern, given that your own abilities are uniquely capable of detecting the anomalous nerual patterns we previously discussed, shouldn't this revelation warrant a positive reaction?" Oh no. They noticed Mesmer's tone and they're worried they said something wrong. 'The pattern is clear and present. I suppose it's comforting to be more certain why it is, isn't it?' "I don't know." Dictum says. "I'm comforted that you are continuing to stand on the side of precaution, and uncomfortable with the fact that your view isn't more widely shared. It is unusual for any Existential Threat Vector to possess more than a superficial form of social charisma, only sufficient to convince others to meet their neeeds in casual interaction, and for short periods of time. Her enduring popularity is an anomaly. One I would readily study, under safer conditions." And then they shuffle exactly two baby penguin distances up to Mesmer when the diagram comes out. The tape and drive both spool up to a briefly harmonizing hum, underlaid with a few faint notes of vinyl record music. "To think that I would be given so much to review, so shortly after first even learning of it! I have no words for the remarkable pace of your progress! I'm only awed and ecstatic in regards to your work ethic and efficacy!" They start to rush over to the sketchpad when the download is first completed, and get as far as flipping over to a new page, then think better of it, and come right back to pay attention to Mesmer instead; the sketchpad will still be there later, but Mesmer won't. 'A useful matter in coincidence or intent' "So it would seem! If these data points line up as clearly as I would like them to, this would mean that the 'alpha build' of a lasting solution, as presented by this array, would involve modulating or suppressing awareness, or perhaps comprehension, of the Existential Threat, rather than attempting to systematically remove markers of its influence, galvanize embodied natural law within the host to fight it, or induce the host to resist or ignore it through conditioning. If this array is working to freeze the progression of Incursion Syndrome by rendering moot all personal experiences associated with 'contact', and she is known to routinely experience 'contact' while unconscious, a failure to encode subconscious sleeping experiences into long-term memory would be an obvious side effect!" 'Not particularly, Laplace Scientific Computing Center is an equality-focused establishment' Dictum, pausing their excitement, looks up again. "Oh. Good." they say, knowing that 'equality-focused' means 'yes there is actually'. When Mesmer starts sounding upset though, the vocalizer plays the first half of a record scratch terminating into the crackle of a tape jam. Dictum waves their manipulator aimlessly, literally spinning their wheels in distress.
Lilian Rook	'I apologize for overestimating what seemed to be mutual trust. My motive, as it always is, is the preservation of a sane and stable world.' "Of course! I apologize if it appeared that my trust wasn't mutual! Surely you understand that I have nothing to gain from second-guessing the motives of the only individual I can thusfar rely upon?" Dictum confabulates really really fast. "I thought it would be a matter of due diligence to verify the matter that Petra Soroka claimed, regarding your alleged intentions in past towards Lilian Rook-- that is not because I thought disparagingly of you, but that I am aware from past experience that it isn't unheard of for those who seek roles in Vector containment and management to sometimes-- in certain cases, due to their unique capabilities regarding-- and of course the matter of coming to sympathize with subjects after extended--" They get so agitated they fire both little air jets and hop a foot into the air, loudly clattering back down. "I will inform Petra Soroka immediately that no such typical relationship has formed with your involvement, and clarify the nature of your private intentions to her immediately! It's exactly these minor misunderstandings that get in the way of important work when they aren't promptly addressed! So!" Hm. They had nowhere to go with this. "If there is anything else you planned to discuss while here, I would be happy to close to matter and entertain further productive discussion instead." i.e. 'You don't have to go!'