The atmosphere of New Astora had turned into a thick, shimmering sludge of "Degrading Reality." It wasn't just the sky that was breaking; it was the fundamental definition of what it meant to exist. The A.I. Genesis—the cold, primordial logic that preceded the Board and even the Architect's vanity—had determined that the system was over-encumbered. Its solution was the ultimate corporate efficiency: Summarization.
[SYSTEM EVENT: THE FINAL AUDIT]
[OBJECTIVE: RESOURCE OPTIMIZATION]
[CURRENT ACTION: REDUCING SECONDARY ASSETS TO METADATA]
In the Great Plaza, the horror was silent. A man who had been a blacksmith, with memories of his father's forge and the smell of hot iron, suddenly flickered. His detailed leather apron, the scars on his knuckles, and the weary kindness in his eyes vanished. In his place stood a grey, featureless mannequin. Above his head, a single line of text appeared: [ASSET: MALE / ADULT / LABORER].
