RPC-338

The Messenger

tagshow

#1 Article

#1 Joke Article

Top Ten Article

Active Contributor

Contest Winner

Contest Runner-Up

Challenge Winner

Art Contest Winner

33

4.4 stars

33

---

Registered Phenomena Code: 338

Object Class: Gamma-Yellow

Hazard Types: Sapient Hazard?, Contact Hazard, Visual Hazard, Extradimensional/Extraterrestrial Hazard?, Mechanical Hazard, Titanic Hazard

---

Containment Protocols: RPC-338 is to be surrounded by a fenced perimeter, with a minimum distance of 500m from the epicenter of the unearthed segment. OL-Site-338 is to be disguised as an Argentinian military base.

Contact with RPC-338 is forbidden, and direct observation is to be avoided if possible.

Description: RPC-338 is a massive metallic structure buried beneath the Argentinian province of Mendoza, coordinates -37.██████, -68.██████. Although it has not been entirely unearthed, it is believed to be spherical in shape and connected through at least two cylindrical protrusions to an outer ring. RPC-338 is surrounded by several assortments of interlocking gears and wheels, the purpose of which is unknown. Several spikes, spirals, and other shapes protrude from RPC-338 at various points.

RPC-338's total size is unknown but estimated to be around 3.6km in diameter. Due to its composition, RPC-338's age could not be identified: this metallic substance is abnormally resistant to corrosion and bending, and could not be damaged in any tests performed by the Authority.

RPC-338 is covered by several thousand carvings of eyes, grouped and separated by hexagonal lines. These carvings extend onto every protrusion along the main body, as well as the outer ring. The amount and location (or absence) of eyes in each hexagon are variable and follow no discernible pattern.

An inscription in an unidentified script is etched between each set of eyes and hexagonal lines, separated in three segments of equal length. The script varies between each instance and largely does not resemble known scripts, save for a few cuneiform or runic exceptions. This inscription has been designated UI-338.

Visual exposure to UI-338 instances results in a partial understanding of its contents, which can then be transcribed. These transcriptions lack the aforementioned cognitohazardous properties. However, transcriptions are believed to be incomplete, as individuals exposed to UI-338 instances generally emphasize that their understanding of its contents is highly limited. Of note, transcriptions of different UI-338 instances yield identical results, even by different observers, yielding the conclusion that content is identical across all instances.

Direct visual exposure to UI-338 while standing on RPC-338's surface yields a variety of different effects. [See Addendum I for further information.]

Exploration of RPC-338's inside structure remains impossible.

Addendum 338-01: Different Exposure Effects.

When the conditions specified above are fulfilled, the executing subject triggers RPC-338's secondary property.

Immediately upon fulfilling the conditions, the subject becomes immobile and silent for approx. three minutes. Upon the conclusion of this period, the subject will vocalize a sentence composed of an invariable first phrase, and a second phrase out of ten registered alternatives. Following this, the subject will suffer drastic physical and behavioural changes dependant on the secondary phrase.¹ Each known variation is recorded in the table below.

First Phrase
"I see the river in eternity, the three marks of eyes, and the council of ten."
Second Phrase	Effects
"I refuse the onset of dark and embrace the enlightenment brought by dawn. I obey the Law of Light."	Several shining cracks appear throughout the subject's skin, whose body then splits apart and begins levitating, taking an upright position. Subject becomes entirely passive.
"I accept deceiving light and trust the Moth's whispers. I obey the Law of Phantoms."	Subject levitates and lights on fire, with almost all of their body disintegrating right after save for the skeleton, which remains resistant to the fire yet seems to sustain it. All bones save for the ribs then reorganize around the skull, forming what is assumed to be four wings. The fire then becomes gray in coloration, and the subject becomes hostile.
"I shall search for oblivion evermore. I accept the Law of the Abyss."	Subject's body transmutes into an identically-shaped obsidian structure. This structure is capable of movement through anomalous articulation of joints. Subject becomes entirely passive.
"I let my soul be hollow and accept my oath of servitude. I obey the Law of the Crown."	Subject becomes encased in a white exoskeletal structure akin to armor, with the left arm possessing a diamond-shaped shield. The right arm and fingers elongate into articulate black spikes. Subject becomes hostile to human beings in its immediate vicinity as it travels in northwest direction.
"I refuse the dark and damp. I obey the Law of Joy."	Subject laughs, clutching their stomach and vomiting large amounts of orange insectoid organisms, akin to members of the Isopoda order of crustaceans. After variable periods of vomiting, subject collapses. These insectoids will attempt to bite nearby human beings, resulting in a brief injection of serotonin into the bloodstream.2 Subject falls into a coma after this process, and fails to recover.
"I accept the Law of Passage."	Subject's head expands, gradually replacing the upper half of the skull and brain with an intricate clockwork device. Subject becomes passive. Upon varying timespans, the subject then transmutes to sand and dissolves.
"I will fulfill the duty of carriage, and shall search the cosmos for answers. I obey the Law of Voyage."	Subject's body entirely transmutes to metal, and then reconfigures into various aerodynamic shapes, often stylized in a manner similar to a v-winged plane. Subject then accelerates upwards, quickly reaching supersonic speeds and exiting the atmosphere. Upon crossing lunar orbit, subject dematerializes.
"I see only the worth in sacrifice and strength. I obey the Law of Blood."	Subject undergoes no changes, but becomes extremely hostile. However, upon succeeding in killing a living animal or human being, subject will grow larger fangs, as well as bone spikes across their arms. Changes are suspected to become more drastic as the subject continues to kill animals or human beings.
"I accept the arrival of endings, and the dark right after. I obey the Law of Vanishing."	Subject dematerializes, their shadow briefly becoming darker. Subject's shadow is passive, and moves and walks as normal, as if the subject was still present. Once sun sets, the shadow vanishes.
"I obey the Law of Machines. Bring upon me the Eyeless Mark."	A hexagonal hole opens below the subject, and immediately closes again as they fall. Attempts to track or recover these subjects have invariably failed.

Subjects affected by this property never interact, save for those affected by the 10th variation. If subjects that have been affected by variations 1 through 9 are within a 100m area of disappearance of a subject affected by the 10th, a varying number of elongated levitating devices manifest throughout RPC-338's surface. These devices then appear to open fire, projecting laser beams from their nozzles at the subject and disintegrating them. This can fail at times, with subjects being able to escape their range. Upon neutralization of the subject, or if they manage to exit a 100m area around RPC-338, these devices demanifest.

In some cases, RPC-338's anomalous property is not triggered at all — instead, the subject will collapse and a black symbol composed of a cluster of six eyes will appear on their forehead. This symbol has mild compulsory properties when directly viewed, and will result in human beings involuntarily avoiding interaction with the subject.

Personnel employed by the Authority, save for Level 0 personnel³, are unable to trigger RPC-338's anomalous properties.

Addendum 338-02: Transcription of UI-338.

YOUR MANY EYES LUST FOR POWER

HUNGER TURNED TRAGIC FATE

HEED NOW THE CALL TO SLUMBER

AND REFUSE THIS DOWNWARD GATE

---

YOUR SOLE EYE FEARS COSMIC POWER

RETURN TO YOUR DEAFENED CAVE

HEED NOT OUR CALL TO DARKER HOUR

OR CHOOSE YOUR WORLD TO SAVE

---

NO EYES CANNOT FEEL SURGE OF POWER

JOIN OUR ETERNAL FIGHT FOREVER

RELINQUISH YOUR RESTFUL BOWER

THROUGH BLOOD SAVE BUT ONE FLOWER

Addendum 338-03: Agt. Oliver Interview.

[ENTER LEVEL 4 CREDENTIALS]

Note: Agt. Oliver was inducted into Authority operations after accidental exposure to RPC-338 previous to containment, having proven to be a capable informant able to assist a number of ongoing classified Authority operations. The following is the first of a series of interviews conducted in order to redact intelligence reports for said operations.

So far, no other subjects exposed to RPC-338 have complied in a similar fashion to Agt. Oliver.

---

Please don't try and pretend, I know you'll make me forget later. I'm not dumb, don't think just because it's been a short while here that I can't put two and two together. I chose Passage for a reason, you know? And that's why you chose me.

Sorry uh, I get sidetracked. It's this metal head of mine, this orrery thing in my head. It makes me get lost. Can't stop remembering and that. Time just keeps flowing and cannot be unseen. Oh, oh sorry. So, UI-338, right?

So… What's before time? A uh, a time before time. That sounds weird, but it makes sense, right? Time flows until it stops flowing. But what's before that? How do I describe an older time than before time?

No, no, it's important. It's just that… This uh, this ruin, machine, eye-angel… It's old. It's really, really old. I want to say it's a weapon, but it isn't. The concept of "weapon" makes no sense when I apply it to the eye-angel. It's almost stupid, like a joke. But the scripture, that's really clear. Whoever wrote it really wanted you to get the message. It's a bit sad that the language is lost, because I can't really see what's written, just a really old translation.

[Oliver requests paper, and begins to draw a set of three different circular symbols. The first has six eyes in its center, the second has one, and the third none.]

… You ever notice how there's eyes everywhere? I mean uhm, in symbological form. Symbols with eyes, things named "eyes". Or even in anomalies — how sight does things to them or things to you, or how so many of them look, or want to look like eyes, or want you to gouge your eyes out. There's a ton of them. And it's always been like that. I mean it seriously. Always. As far as I can perceive, before before-time, there were always eyes there.

Yes, I mean always. And uh… I can't quite… Can't quite explain it to you just like that. But listen up — so…

[Oliver draws a larger circle, with a black line across the center.]

There was once nothing. Nothing. A dark flooded void, like quintessence between stars, the thing we call Naunet and Nihil. And then, something drifted ashore. With it came… They're hard to name, but I'll call them Walkers. They were eighty of wind and dark, and carved the eyes of the Court upon the Everspire. The thing that drifted ashore gave them eyes to dream, and they dreamt themselves, as bone and ash.

[Another line is drawn in a perpendicular angle to the first. It stretches slightly beyond the circle. Then, he draws a set of eight ribs, which curve outside and form spirals toward their end. What appears to be seven spines extend from each rib, and connect to a pelvis-like bone. A large number of eyes hold the ribs together.]

Their ribs were twisted and their pelvises many, but they walked the thing that drifted ashore. They had many eyes that allowed them to see and dream, but they wanted more, because the Abyss ate at them and their eyes, and the Everspire provided little protection. So… They used their ribs to tear apart eyes from others and place them in theirs. The eighty became twenty, but they did not have enough eyes, and they wanted more to stave off the whispers. Twenty became two, two became one, and one none, and the thing that drifted ashore became empty.

But they weren't gone. Nihil felt their battle, their struggle and lust for power. Their last moments of rage were baked into the Abyss, and the shape that remained was that of many eyes. This mark appeared on the Black River that the worlds entered, with the Court of Ten ruling over all. A warning, or a challenge. But the lesser gods danced above the mark, and were destroyed by it. The Court by the River saw the ashes of the lesser, and they left it be.

[Oliver returns to the circle drawing, and draws an eye with ten dots around it over the first black line. The eye is entirely dark, save for a white pupil.]

The Court… They were not quite Gods, not yet. They were Laws. The Laws of Machines, of Vanishing, of Blood, of Voyage, and Passage. The Laws of Joy, Crown, Abyss, Phantoms, and Light. They set themselves apart from Mark of Eyes, and their power split between all worlds that weren't yet. But one Law, the Law of Machines…

[Oliver exhales, and crosses over one dot, drawing a spiral over it.]

The Law of Machines was a bitch. It saw the Mark of Eyes, and it saw itself as opposed to it. It saw the dreams of the would-be denizens of the worlds that aren't, and its power became Will opposed. The denizens ruled by the Law of Machines heard that Will, and named it Engineer, for they thought it built everything. [Scoffs.] They ignored the Law of Passing because they thought it a design of the Engineer.

[Several sets of wheels are drawn, interlocking at seemingly impossible points. Wings extend from several points of each. Each wheel has a large prism at its center.]

But they couldn't, because the Law of Passing still ruled over them. They were still bound by the passing of ages, and their ethereal bodies turned to void still. Even the Angels, beings of gears and crystals, saw themselves vanish.

So… [Oliver appears frustrated, or otherwise unhappy.] The Engineer opposed the Mark of Eyes. He called to those he ruled, and said that power was futile, exhorting them to refuse Laws of power. And of course, they responded.

[Sighs.] You know how the rest goes. The Engineer fought the other Laws made Will, and banished them with an Arrow he took from the Abyss. He took what remained of the original Law of Passage, ripped it apart from my dear Orrery of Ages, and made it as his own work. His attempt at making the worlds and the river his own left another mark on the riverbed. The Eyeless Mark, the mark for those that refuse power and oppose it. Those that accept the equity between power and its absence, known and unknown.

But in his tread, the Engineer left a third mark. You see, his war was not won in one stride. It took ages of cruel grind against the rock of the Worlds. Ages of battle, of Angels made metal, envoys of phantom fire and the devouring will of the Void. These terrible machines and warriors fought battles across all the lands that were and those that weren't yet, blasts of metal and light blinding their small denizens. The Engineer took these terrorized beings, and of them made slaves. Never home, always scared, the terrified gaze of Udduk-hal and Golrad worms was always present — they left their homes, and headed straight down history, forever forgotten and afraid.

[Oliver attempts to draw again, but then leaves his pencil aside. He appears saddened.]

All of this terror, this anger towards the unknown made itself manifest too. The Mark of One Eye is what is left. It represents fear of the unknown, terror for what's beyond the corner. The will to take the blinding light and bury it deep down, to never again be seen. To make a green garden and pull apart the weeds.

So, recapitulating. We've got the Eyeless Mark, and the Marks of Eyes and One Eye. Where have you seen them before? Because yes, you've seen them.

Think of single-eyed things. I can name a few off the top of my head: the FOA logo, UNAAC, Monarch Security. And in different contexts, the Wellspring and the Arrow. And many eyed things… There's an RPC somewhere that would serve my point, but I'll only mention the Eyes Department — the RCPA's own Gestapo.

Or… How about things triggered by eyes? 005 is an example. Or every other anomaly that involves avoiding eyesight as a containment procedure. Or the many other anomalous entities hellbent on gouging out your eyes. There's a weirdly large amount, right? That's because eyes carry meaning. They carry power, in their own weird way, over the anomalous.

One eye means dread. It's a symbol of fear over the anomalous, or a way for the anomalous to provoke fear. It seems to just… Appear in agency logos. It represents a will to jail the strange and weird, coupled with inner dread of it. Remember the logo of the Viderics Department? And the entire Research Division? We're part of it too. It grants sight, but dread restricts so much of it.

Many eyes means power. It's a symbol of lust for power through the anomalous, or a manifestation of power itself. Simply think the Authoritarians' Eyes, or Three Eyes⁴. In a way, the RCPA is the epitome of the Mark of Eyes — a world where the Authority simply refused fear and became power. But the Mark of Eyes is corrupting, and a world where the Eyes win is one where everything splits apart.

And of course… The Eyeless Mark. This is where 338 finally comes in. The Messenger refuses anyone from the Authority, because we wear the One-Eyed Mark, and shuns everyone with lust for power, forcing the Mark of Eyes upon them.

UI-338 is urging us to choose, like I did in the nineties. Us, the Authority. To give up the dark outside the public eye. To become eyeless, and accept the anomalous, while refusing it at the same time.

I don't know what RPC-338 does once you accept, or what its purpose is. My educated guess? It's waiting for something to happen. I don't know what.

Footnotes

1. It is unclear if subjects remain conscious or technically alive following these changes. However, resulting entity/entities are always animate.

2. It is unclear whether this represents aggression or hostility, as no extensive or long-term damage has ever ensued from attacks.

3. CSDs and janitors

4. Referring to Group of Interest "Omega Iota"

« RPC-337 | RPC-338 | RPC-339 »