From a certain perspective, the Twilight seemed to rest perfectly at peace, an etheric coastline: The Nine Idylls--even Volition--in close, harmonious orbit within a sea made of light and color, and tidal rhythms drawn by the pleasant waving of the distant asteroid belt that encircled the Quire System.

But unfortunately for Keen Forester Gloaming, Chief Intercessor of the Rapid Evening's newly formed Mirage Division, that perspective wasn't visible from the bridge of the Welkin Absolute, flagship of his humble task force.

As the long, ribbon-like frigate flittered through the Shore like a wind-up toy or a tapeworm, Gloaming looked beyond the rocks and towards the only thing that Crystal Palace feared: Possibility.

"K-Upside Transmission 328, Record MD-Gloaming

Crystal Palace,

As we approach the one year anniversary of our incursion into the Quire System, Dovetail synopsis confirms that the last 11 months have been aligned with guaranteed events.

As predicted, the two largest operators inside of the Mirage are in a moderate state of fracture. Combine this with the arrival of external agitators and opportunists, and this system is working daily towards their definite collapse, at which time a clean up crew can address the problem of Volition and any other probabilistic phenomena.

But, Crystal Palace, there is something I'm worried you missed. You forecasted 44 meaningful entities inside of the Mirage, and there are exactly that. You identified the existence of temporal and spatial shifts before any of our agents landed on these worlds. You told me that we would fight my daughter to a standstill and we did.

And I never batted an eye… until last week.

An operation on Seneschal. Removal of a low level deviation risk, a woman named Open Metal. Our agents chased her down a rib, out of Drifting into Marginalia, into a little automated fishing village by the western falls. They cornered her at the end of a high, long causeway, but when they went to fire, she leapt into sea, and landed on a boat, and vanished.

That boat wasn't supposed to be there. There were no "meaningful entities" on schedule,  no "temporal or spatial shifts" registered. I looked into it. It was an old man who liked to fish.

Your models account for everything except the most ordinary people. And if someone gives them the notion that they can make this work… it just might."

This week on Twilight Mirage: This Year of Ours: The Notion

Cover Art by Craig Sheldon (@shoddyrobot)

Episode description by Austin Walker

Music by Jack de Quidt

A transcription is available for this episode here.

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