Twenty-Three

The swarm fixates on being rejected by Dafyd, replaying the kiss and its humiliation despite trying to lose itself in the Carryx archives. With Else, Jellit, and Ameer’s voices commenting, the swarm decides experience differs from memory and begins improvising a painful physical transformation of Jellit’s body, starting with the pelvis.

Meanwhile, Dafyd tours the labs with Brun amid the lamb sacks, confronting fetal losses and Tonner’s prior protocol tweaks. Pressed by looming Carryx expectations, Dafyd names Brun de facto lead and orders deletion of Tonner’s Soft Lothark side project data.

Dafyd questions the Deep Lothark through symbolic dialogue. They distinguish the loyal Soft Lothark from the clandestine Deep Lothark that preserves Lothark memory on skin, awaiting a distant remaking of the Stone-Mind. They warn that, despite their reach across Carryx worlds, open revolt would be annihilated, and confirm there is only one Sovran.

In the visualization group, Farad Morse is elevated to acting head after Tonner’s removal, securing continuity. Dafyd then seeks Uuya Tomos’s help to frame a memorial for Tonner, aiming to control the narrative. Uuya advises a voluntary service centered on Tonner’s complex humanity and insists someone other than Dafyd speak to avoid scandal overshadowing the message.

Returning to the Deep Lothark discourse, Dafyd learns the Sovran unified Carryx moieties into a single, expansionist will, making war their essence and alternatives unthinkable. Dafyd stops short of asking how to kill the Sovran, recognizing the peril of the thought even as the need sharpens.