The first fracture did not look like defiance.

It looked like fatigue.

Across Varenth, people continued to move, continued to choose, continued to comply just enough to remain functional—but the effort began to show in places the ledger had never been trained to read. Voices flattened. Humor dulled. Decisions took longer, not because of fear, but because every option now carried an aftertaste.

Memory had weight.

And the weight changed posture.

In the lower transit ring, a supervisor ...