SOCIETY OF THE RECORD KEEPERS

"Lower your head, Mr. Eisenwater, then point your nose at the red target on the floor and close your eyes. We can't have you breaking through the illusion, after all. As long as you sit still, there's a very low incident rate. Would you like a drink before we begin? A tea perhaps?"

"Chai, do you have that?"

"Of course. Philomena, could you prepare a tea? There should be a few chai bags left on one of the counters. Hot milk, too?"

"Oh, yes please. Thank you."

"It's no trouble. Now I've ample time to explain the process one last time before you dive in. The premise, Mr. Eisenwater, is simple. You’re going to be subjected to visions— the machine has already computed them— formed from your memories. You’ll not only see your recorded version of the event, but what could have happened had you proceeded differently. Before we begin I must also, I’m afraid, explain to you the possible repercussions of this procedure.

“One effect that tends to occur with our more… isolated guests such as you, is a profound sense of failure. Seeing how events could have turned out in spite of our own actions tends to lower our estimations of our own current abilities, or make it even easier to see our failures. If needed, we can offer counseling after the session. Of course, you may also receive more common side effects. For these you’ll be given a week of pills. Take them whether you feel the symptoms or not, as they also help bring you back to reality.

“I’m going to start slow for your first session. Something simple. I’ll begin by playing your version of the event, followed by two other ways it could have gone. From the memories we scanned at your last visit, I’ve chosen a simple visit to a diner. After the exercise is over, I’ll ask you questions regarding your experience before I put you into the next illusion. Does this sound alright so far, Mr. Eisenwater?”

“Yeah. How long will this last?”

“Oh, no time at all. No need to worry. The experience feels longer than it lasts. Ah, before I forget, you can exit the illusion at any time. Can you give me a safe word so I know when to pull you out if things are being taken too far?”

“Bye Bye Symphony. Does that work?”

“As long as you can remember it, it’ll do. I’ll just scribble it down, here… good. Ready to start?”

“Yes.”

“Alright. Let me just— here, lower the headset onto you… Comfortable? If not, I can adjust it.”

“No, no need, it fits fine.”

“Good. Philomena, we're ready to begin first recursion. Count down from ten, Mr. Eisenwater.”

“Ten… Nine… Eight… Sev

nnnn

\\\\\ \\|// /////

The Original Potential of Beacon Flow #4053-12-40/1

The Castback Café was the Cloudlight District’s finest vinyl-fi eating establishment. Ships sprawled about the vibrant pink building as it hovered in the invisible waves of the impenetrably vast darkness of the late-night Parse. The stars shining around the building were blinding as, other than the building itself, there was rarely any other source of light. These were the backroads of the discovered universe. The only people around at this hour of the night had run out of options further back and wouldn’t risk pushing any further.

Zycran pushed the large doors onward and slowly crept in, wary of the scraping of his shoes against the tile. Inside, small crowds sparsely occupied red-upholstered booths and listened to old records flipping through the jukebox and the overhead speaker. The lights were dim, but Zycran needed still to adjust his eyes from the black void he'd just exited. Slowly, he made his way through the establishment and found an unoccupied seat tucked away in a far corner.

A waiter fully clad in white appeared in front of him holding a notepad under his arm. He motioned with his hands to illuminate a menu on the face of the table in front of Zycran, before asking if he was ready to order.

Zycran stammered at his sudden arrival. “Oh, I’ll have… I want just a retro, please. Oh, and a glass of water too, thank you.” He hadn’t even glanced at the menu, his order memorised for hours now.

The waiter jotted down the order and left Zycran sitting alone in the booth. His thoughts wandered to the edge of his mind as he stared blankly at the black and white vinyl-patterned walls. His vid-set, tucked in a shirt pocket, vibrated and knocked him out of his trance. Touching his fingers to his temple, he slowly reviewed the message he had received.

Limited Sun Records Order #507264 Confirmed

Limited Sun Records

Order #507264

Thank you for your purchase!

Hi Zycran, your order has been placed!

Please note that if you have purchased any pre-order items, your order will not ship until all items in the order are available.

We will notify you by vid-set when your order is being shipped out!

For any other questions or concerns, please open a support ticket via Smartsca-n. https://limitedsunrecords.smartsca-n.com/

View your order

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Order summary

Limited Sun #202: The Album of the Misty Moon Part II: The Palm of the Councilman (CD) × 1 ₳29.99

Subtotal ₳29.99

Shipping ₳10.00

Total ₳39.99

Click here for shipping updates

The waiter returned as he was closing the message. In his boredom and despite his means, Zycran had ordered another album. The second part of a series of concept albums he adored. In this 125 minute epic, the focus was turned to the villain of the story, the priest of a small outer-moon town on the rim of Amud 1. Though he'd heard the album many times, he was excited to hold the artwork in his hands.

The waiter carried a tray and set it in front of Zycran. It carried a burger and beside it, on a basket of red checkered paper, a glistening bunch of fries were scattered. The waiter then placed a glass of water next to the plate. The plate wouldn’t have looked out of place even if displayed in the Museum of Idlaginne.

Zycran said a quick “Thank you.” as the tray was placed on the table.

“Enjoy the meal, sir.” replied the waiter as he turned on his heel and headed towards another red-upholstered leather seat.

Zycran nodded with a slight smile and replied “You too.”

When the waiter left, he quietly removed the onion from inside the burger.

He sat there alone browsing Watchkit as he slowly ate his food. The noise of families and chatter of couples surrounding him was quickly replaced by the music coming from his vid-set. His concentration was only cut when the waiter returned. Zycran fumbled with the vid-set, attempting to turn the music off before he was spoken to.

“Bill, sir?” The waiter questioned at his arrival.

“Yes, thank you.” Zycran replied too quickly, causing a stumble in his words.

The waiter motioned to the table once again, causing the balance to appear in front of Zycran.

“That’ll be ₳23.45 CDA. How will you-”

Zycran lifted his hand, which held a small metal disk resembling an old record only slightly smaller than his palm. “Disk.”

“When you’re ready.”

He placed the disk on the reader, and it spun for a few cycles before coming to a sudden stop.

“Have a good day, sir.”

“You too.” Said Zycran as he slowly sat up from the seat.

A bell rang as the door opened to the vast Parse surrounding the café. Zycran lowered his head as he stepped onto the clear pathway leading to a small, unsheltered ship-stop. The only lights in the darkness were those emanating from the pink building and the occasional ship that passed below. He waited for a crowded ship that would take him to wherever he felt like being.

- - -

“Phil, cut the signal.”

“On it. Two… One. He should be out.”

“Alright, Mr. Eisenwater, give me a sign if you can hear my voice or see Philomena’s hand waving about your face.”

“Uh, hi.”

“How do you feel?”

“Fine.”

“No dizziness, nausea, feel any tremors?”

“No, I feel fine.”

“Well, then that's the original scenario complete. Now we can switch to pre-fab one. Any loose ends to adjust before we get started?”

“I'll feed his line a small dose of— There, that looks good.”

“Look over his vitals in a minute and let me know when you’re ready, Philomena.”

“Will do. Breath is… stable. Pulse is good. Blood pressure… Yeah, his numbers are all good. We can switch the illusion now.”

“Good, good. Let's see how you'll react to a more aggressive nature then, shall we, Mr. Eisenwater? Count down again, if you would.”

“Ten, nine, eig

hhhht

\\\\\ \\|// /////

The Potential of Beacon Flow #4053-12-40/2 (Pre-Fab One, The Difficult Mr. Eisenwater)

Again, Zycran found himself facing the pink building hovering in space. He opened the door, a bell overhead chimed, and a blast of coffee air hit his lungs. Quickly, a waiter appeared and led him around the room to a small, red-upholstered booth fit for two people, had they been sitting opposite each other. He sat down as the waiter motioned with his hand over the table, illuminating the menu screen before leaving the table to return to the kitchen. Zycran quickly flicked his way about the menu.

His body motioned as if on it’s own. Zycran observed as his hands frustratingly moved from item to item, seeming interested in none of the options. It wasn’t until the waiter returned that he turned his gaze from the illuminated screen. There was a quick blur as his eyes adjusted to the dark from the side of the table before focusing on the waiters face.

The waiter waited for the dizziness to dispel. “Are you ready to order, sir?”

“Retro and water.”

“Sure.” Replied the waiter, who immediately turned on his heel to leave Zycran alone in his corner of the restaurant.

He drew his focus to his vid-set, browsing Watchkit as he waited for his order to arrive. He eyed through articles quickly, bypassing anything that didn’t immediately come to his attention.

[Elec-Stam—]

Surgeon Electro-Stammer of 35 years. Ask me what you want to know about stamming.

[Hurricane_Thunderclap—]

How do you feel performing surgery on people who weren’t able to give their

consent, such as people involved in accidents?

[Elec-Stam—]

Unless someone has explicitly signed a DNR, then there is nothing

wrong with it. Accidents happen, and it’s better to risk someone who

doesn’t want to be saved than to risk leaving someone to die who

would have wished to live.

[OoB—]

I had a nephew go under and the last time I visited him, he was not at all

himself. How does it feel to be in the pockets of the Animati, to cause pain to

others.

[Elec-Stam—]

Sometimes the procedure can go wrong, just like any medical surgery,

but it would not have caused any differences in personality. Are you

sure he wasn’t already acting that way, or might something have

happened that you aren’t aware of?

[OoB—]

Of course not, I think I know my nephew well enough to know

when things have gone wrong. All the groups are talking about it.

[KignGhid0rea—]

There is no evidence to prove that stamming can cause

any behavioural problems. Please take your

conspiracies out of this thread.

[OoB—]

Continue thread →

[Reply as Flatline_6:]

Before he had the chance to continue reading the discussion, the waiter had arrived with his order. He placed it on the table, disabling the menu display. The waiter left while Zycran slowly removed his vid-set. He picked apart the food on his tray, removing components and peeking under them, inspecting to ensure there was nothing he didn’t want. When he spotted a sliver of white, he closed the burger and shouted through the room.

His voice echoed, “Waiter, waiter!” as his arms flailed above his head. After a few seconds, his waiter arrived, huffing from the run to the table.

“Y— Yes, sir, is there anything you need?”

Zycran scowled. “The food has onions.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, do you not— let me take that back to the kitchen for you.” Once again, on his skates, the waiter turned heel and left toward the kitchen.

Zycran replaced the vid-set to his face and scrolled around Watchkit some more as he waited.

[StevenSteveTheStanMan—]

The Atom Heart of Gimcrack: Official Movie Discussion

In this thread, we share our thoughts on The Atom Heart of Gimcrack, adapted from

the book. Please be aware that this thread will include spoilers, so if you haven’t

seen the film and wish to view it with no expectations, back out now.

Director: Lictor Flaming

Starring: Rudy Brandon, Mack Steely, Stuart Lour, and Rae Bingger

Released: Oct. 23 3056

Produced by: MGM3

[MatterBlack—]

Overall, I really enjoyed the movie. Rudy Brandon did a wonderful job

portraying a depressed man entering a magical world and having to work his way

back home while overcoming his many anxieties. As a musical adaptation, it’s

important that the songs are heavy hitting and unforgettable, which the film

absolutely nails beautifully. “Under the Pages Fold”, the first song of the film, perfectly

encapsulates the emotions running through the protagonists head, and is catchy to

boot.

The supporting cast is wonderful as well. The actors, in full makeup, are able

to work well with Rudy comedically without completely overshadowing him. I can see

why they chose people from Broadspace for the film. The antagonist is also truly

scary. Many kids might walk out of the theatre after his appearance, but it is so well

done that it would be a shame for it to happen. He conveys such menace, stealing

every scene (although few) that he’s in.

The only fault I can think of at the moment is the running time. Many

components of the book had to be cut so the film could fit in the short hour and a half

timeframe. I hope that this can be fixed by amateur filmmakers adding their own

scenes into a special cut.

[Scenesteller—]

Very thoughtful review, I agree. I can’t wait to see how people

improve the length!

[Cablebox—]

Disagree. Bad movie. The book is way better. Doesn’t live up to the

original movie, either.

[Reply as Flatline_6:]

“—ir? Sir, I’ve got your burger here.”

The waiter’s voice cut through the haze and Zycran slowly removed the vid-set once again. “Oh, good. Finally.”

“I’m sorry, but the cook said he didn’t see any onions at all.”

Zycran removed the top of the burger as the waiter handed it to him once again. He pointed to the small slice. “See this, here? I don’t want that. Get me a new burger. Throw this one away.”

The waiter stammered. “O— of course. I’ll go show the chef.”

“Good. Now if I could get back to my business, please?”

[fleetingoose—]

The Skull: Critical Discussion (Classics)

Short story by PKD, it is an early example of time travel and paradoxes in literature. Though it is easy to see the ending coming right from the beginning, at the time of release, the audience likely would have found the concept very surprising. What do you think about this classic short story?

[A2B—]

I thought it was interesting. The more I read PKD for these discussions, the more it seems he is responsible for every twist in science fiction. Cool story.

[Rose3Zero—]

Fucking boring. Could see the ending coming a mile away. Choose something difficult next time.

[Reply as Flatline_6]

“—aah. Sir, I hope this replacement will suit you well.”

“I hope so too.” Zycran replied, lifting his vid-set. “Let's see here.” Zycran picked the burger apart, looking close for any trace of the ingredients he found so unsightly.

“It looks clear, thank you.”

“Of course, sir.” the waiter replied, gasping with exhaustion and delight at the thought that his time with the difficult customer was coming to an end, before timidly realising he'd gasped aloud and slowly exited the scene.

Zycran sat in a brooding silence as he engulfed the burger, now free of onion. It was only minutes after receiving his altered meal that he recalled the server to his table with a wave of the arm.

“Ah, finished? May I take your plate?” the waiter asked.

“That's why I called you here.” He snapped back.

“Would you like to peruse the dessert menu?”

“No, bring the bill.”

“Right away.”

The waiter placed the finished plate into one arm, and brought a visual of the bill into the table's display. “That'll be ₳23.45. How are you paying today?”

“Disk” he said, quickly placing it on the reader.

When the spinning stopped and the waiter had backed away, Zycran gathered his coat and stood up, arms in a stretch. With the creaks out, he retraced his steps to the entrance. He closed his eyes tight and stepped out into the abyssal black, opening them when the wind stopped for a moment.

He laid his eyes on a bright spot in the dark. A star cast it's reflection against the red-metal paint of his vehicle.

“Finally done,” he sighed. “Now I guess I have to find a damn place to stay.”

- - -

“How are his vitals, Phil?”

“Heavy breathing, blood pressure is up. He's stressed. Didn't like that scenario at all.”

“Telling of his personality, then. Good. We're on the right course. Pre-fab two, this is where we push him to his limit. Remember his code word.”

“Words. Bye bye symphony.”

“What a strange request.”

“Must mean something to him. No reason to question it.”

“You're right. Is he looking ready to go back in, yet?”

“Give him a minute to breathe that off. It hit him hard.”

“Pretty bad case it seems.”

“No, no. Fairly standard procedure. He can’t handle the displayed attitude, but there's been better. Far worse, too.”

“How many sessions do you think this will take?”

“Illusions, or appointments?”

“Appointments”

“I'd say five more. He may not improve too much after this one, but he'll gradually come around.”

“Good. Ah, his vitals are stabilizing. Shouldn’t be too long now.”

“So, Philomena, the job as expected?”

“Oh, sir, I haven’t had enough experience yet to say. It is sad though, these people that have been coming through.”

“Indeed. The process may be controversial, but it certainly produces good results— Ah, Mr. Eisenwater, welcome back. How do you feel? Dizziness, nausea, tremors?”

“No, I’m still okay.”

“Good, good. Now, I must warn you again, this last scenario today is quite shocking. If you need to pull out, force the word through your lips. Do you remember it— Them?”

“Yes, bye bye symphony.”

“We generally prefer one word as it can be difficult to speak through your physical body during the illusion, but if you’re certain—”

“I am.”

“Well, are you ready?”

“Yes”

“Philomena, get him in. Mr. Eisenwater, you may begin to count.”

“Sure. T

ehhhh

\\\\\ \\|// /////

The Potential of Beacon Flow #4053-12-40/3 (Pre-Fab Two, The Criminal Mr. Eisenwater)

Zycran stood before the entrance of the Castback Café, noticing now a slight cold against his inner thigh. His body, without resistance, pulled itself in and spoke to the man.

“A corner seat? Yeah, we have an empty one back there,” he said, pointing behind him. “Will that do?”

“Perfect.” The body replied. “That will do nicely.”

A waiter soon stood next to the booth, illuminating the table’s menu. “Can I get you anything to drink?”

“Just water,” Zyran replied. “I’m not quite sure what I want to eat yet.”

“Take your time,” the waiter said as he started to roll off.

The body lowered the vid-dset, plunged for the last time, Zycran knew.

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