veilbreak | tverin 001

It's been a long day, so I'll keep this brief. Dust is clearing on the ground, and this is what we know:

1. 2 of the 3 large drones dispatched for the Sterilisation event has been shot down, along with numerous patrol drones. Instead of the total eradication of Xitang, it's only been partially leveled. This is a win.

2. There were no fatalities, although we had 90 injured. I want to commend our ground teams (Ground Forces, Espionage, volunteers) for your efficiency. The Veiled are being taken to and integrated into surrounding Pres Cities courtesy of Recruitment agents stationed in the area.

3. We have commandeered an additional freight plane which will be vital in future relocation efforts.

We still do not know what triggered this, but I want to stress how big of a win this is. We prevented a devastating loss. We've been a nuisance to the Architects, but this changes things.

Take this win. Celebrate it. And then get ready to double down. We're showing them we're a major player, and I can't imagine them taking this lying down.

LEADERSHIP.

Kudos on the rapid coordination. Expect blowback.

[...] Aldana, Payne. Present your case. I need you to get everyone on board before we go to the rest of the resistance with this.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I'd volunteer if I could. I've more or less outlived my usefulness as a field agent anyway. If I were really sane I'd just retire.

How did he talk you into this?

Please don't accuse me of sleeping with him. He already asked me if that's how I convinced Verin.

I would never. I give you far more credit for your taste.

Thank you. That means more to me than it probably should.

Adrián doesn't relish in the idea of killing or maiming anyone any more than the rest of us do. He wouldn't have asked at all if it weren't necessary. I think Verin understands that too.

I [...] worry that we may be too willing to accept individuals as acceptable losses in the pursuit of better outcomes.

It's a very grim prospect, but I find it marginally more palatable to ask a few well-informed volunteers to risk their safety than I do deploying imperfect technology on a large scale.

My agreement would be conditional on a rigorous psychological vetting process.

That's fine by me.

I need some time to think about it. But I don't like this, Taryn.

I don't particularly like the idea of implementing the VTP on large populations when I know Adrián could do more to reduce potential casualties, either. But that's a responsibility that will fall to me and not the rest of you, so you can all rest easy knowing your hands never touched the trolley problem lever.

Edited 2026-01-30 04:52 (UTC)

Are we certain this is the only remaining option for reducing casualties, or merely the most expedient one?

If we had all the time in the world, maybe it wouldn't be the only option. As it is it's this or fine-tune as we deploy it on populations. This seems cleaner to me.

tverin 001

Leadership

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.

Taryn/Niko.