EVENTS:

Eigla did bring some Flesh from oldPeggy along, though it's mostly mincemeat at this point. She passes 2 units of Flesh over to Klimt.


Twohead: "She's, she's using big words, so I might get this wrong.

The tar, it's supposed to be... Oil? Oil. But, I'm broken, too. She says I make it from the things I eat, and from myself when I don't eat. The pipes, are... Rusted. So, it goes up. up to my eyes.

And, she says she's undead, but she's very weak. She wishes she, could be... Mortal. Mortal, again."

"Oh.

I, I would like that. Myla first, th- oh.

Myla. Myla says, she says- Uh. Says her pattern, is detaching from her flesh? She, can think, but, only I can hear, and not forever? She says she's a... prisoner. A prisoner of herself.

She says no one can help. She wants to rest, but fears for me. I'm, too dumb to survive alone. Alone?"

The second head perks up, coughing up more tar before speaking.

Myla: "Darkness.

There is... Only.

Darkness."

EVENTS:

Twohead: "Myla says she still doesn't trust you. She says you hurt me, t-though... Though I, can't remember.

She also says she, she, doesn't think, anything you do, will be... Better than, than what she did with a - pattern? Pattern interface, once.

But. I, I'd like to try."



Meanwhile Eigla looks at the locked door and thinks. There was a key, once. She threw it away, but-

...

She remembers crying. Slamming the door. Running towards a window, and then-

She looks out through a gap between the shutters, out onto the storm. She didn't have much a throwing arm back then, but still...

EVENTS:

Twohead looks confused.

Twohead: "It's a- She, she says it's a tool, for changing undead minds. Putting patterns in bodies, ch-changing memories. She says she tried it before, when her body was still her own, but it didn't- didn't fix it.

Eigla gauges the snow's depth. Currently knee-deep, and quickly worsening.

EVENTS:

Curie pauses for a while, then speaks with an even flatter tone than usual.

Curie: "Performing Archive search, breadth-first. Processing.

Multiple results found. Sorting by relevance. Activating text-to-speech.

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT.

Other than the discovery of the Mold itself, the development of the Pattern Interface System is the major contributor to the efficiency of modern nechromantic techniques.
By manipulating undead cells to produce specific RNA sequences according to electrical input, it became possible to encode and decode information on a per-nucleus basis without the need for complex, time-consuming manual gene-matching. Similarly, it allowed a direct interface to be estabilished between Mold cells and neurons, allowing the fungal matrix interpret and in some cases replace normal logic systems.
The N-field equation forming the basis of the system is as follows: Let there be a consciousness sequence S of length L, encoded on- "


What follows is a long-winded, exceedingly technical explanation of how to zap information in and out of a zombie, with theoretical examples and references to different scientific works.

Curie: "The most common use cases for a PIS are when first reanimating an organism, and when retrieving it from stasis. A simple modification to the neural probe system found in most cryopods lets the occupant's Pattern be downloaded and stored for later use, avoiding the programming degradation associated with long-time storage.

END TRANSCRIPT.

Unit's notes: At the time of Unit's creation, it was not known to be possible to store an individual's personality and memories in a Pattern alone. The discovery, and subsequent reverse-engineering of Judith and other rogue OPERATORS, allowed for the creation of a new series of substantially more intelligent undead constructs. It was one of Le Refuge's main technological advantages over the neighboring settlements.

Still, it was not without it flaws, when compared to the original. Many of the finer details were still unknown. Unit cannot tell if the method was later perfected."




Having had enough of her monologue, Rosa and Eigla leave the room, walking out into the storm to dig for the lost key.

Visibility is awful, and the manor's yard is very large. It is certainly folly to try and find anything in-

Rosa smells old blood amid the snow, immediately diving into it. A few moments later, she emerges, proudly holding an old, rusty key between her sharp teeth.


Well, that was... Unexpected.