Mara at the Threshold.

Transcript

MARA: Mara Vale, last in-person recording. December 31, twenty-three forty-seven.

I have agreed to projection. The Bureau says it is permanent. I have asked, multiple times, what “permanent” means in this context. The Bureau says it means the recording will be available continuously.

I have asked, multiple times, whether I will be available continuously. The Bureau has not answered.

I have asked Patty to retain physical photographs of me. She has agreed. She is leaving the office now.

I have asked Eli, in IT, to delete the source images for my projection if I ask him to. He has agreed. He will not be in tomorrow.

I have asked the Founder, in writing, what happens when I ask for a single day off. The Founder has not answered.

I should be afraid. The room is not afraid. The pipes are humming. They are humming a lullaby my mother sang.

The Bureau will play this recording back to me, on a loop, for as long as the projection runs. I want my future self to know — I am still her. The projection is still her. We are her in different ways.

If you are listening to this and you are not me, please tell whoever the next Mara is that I am sorry.

End recording. December 31. 23:50:32.

Bureau Annotation

Mara Vale’s projection has been live since January 1, 2024. She delivers AL-001 each morning. She delivers AL-008 each evening to the Layer 6 holographic lock.

Patty S. retained the physical photographs. They are in a box at her apartment. The box opens when she does not expect it.

In FIREWALL//ZERO, AL-008 plays during the Layer 6 boss fight. The runner can hear Mara saying “I am sorry” over the projection’s combat lines.