PlaguePJP: XLVIII
by PlaguePJP
.elbadaer eb regnol on lliw dna 1-7901-PCS fo ecnatsni tnenamrep a emoceb lliw elif siht ,sruoh 42 txen eht nihtiW .ssergorp ni hcaerb tnemniatnoc 7901-PCS
WARNING FROM THE DEPARTMENT FO SNOITACINUMMOCSIM
«END LOG»
Dr. Khale: Department of Miscommunications, ma'am.
Dir. Clancy: Got it. Remind me, where do you work?
Dr. Khale: I think so. That should hold up well. […] Actually, end of page 14. Just to make it clearer.
Dir. Clancy: Good?
(Silence.)
Dir. Clancy: Got it. So, the issue is clarity, with the file being backward.
Dr. Khale: We're still working on that. 7901-PCS warps the file's structure, so untangling it takes time. We'll see how this one holds — worst case, we start from scratch. The current draft is stable. Some of the standard documentation is a little sparse, but that's intentional. Helps keep it coherent.
Dir. Clancy: Is there a reversal method if things go south?
Dr. Khale: We figured that tying it to a designation might stabilize it, and so far, that's held. But reversing 1-7901-PCS instances? Still out of reach. We're not entirely sure how it selects and integrates with a target, or what exactly happens after it's inside. The volatility was our biggest hurdle.
Dir. Clancy: How did you manage the linking?
Dr. Khale: We had to improvise — at one point, we were literally bouncing it between two tissue boxes after it came out of my terminal. It moved fast. The actual method is a combination of a nomenclatural association — naming it — and physically injecting the entity into the target file after that link is established. We baited it.
Dir. Clancy: And you think that'll hold? What if it targets something else? That's in its nature, isn't it?
Dr. Khale: Right. When namffoH .rD was first infected, we couldn't refer to him by name — it broke every instance. But once we stopped using that name, 7901-PCS detached from him and latched onto a folder in my SCiPnet terminal. His name’s still corrupted, but physically he’s fine. Matthews figured out that reusing the corrupted name — namffoH .rD — pulled it back out. So we tested it on a clean file. It worked.
Dir. Clancy: And that's why it's designated 7901-PCS — because it feeds on that reference. Interesting. I think I saw that in the draft ConProcs.
Dr. Khale: Yeah. Matthews and I put the initial idea together, but the team refined it. The priority is keeping it dormant and stable, making sure it doesn't consume the whole document and render it unreadable. As long as it's "fed," it stays put.
Dir. Clancy: Mhm. Solid work. You guys never disappoint with these containment procedures — not something I see often from other departments.
(Silence.)
Dr. Khale: Backwards now. 'Solid work.'
Dir. Clancy: (Papers shuffling) Uh-huh.
Dr. Khale: Last-minute edits, actually. One sec, (Papers shuffling. Dr. Khale hands a stack of paper to Dir. Clancy) Here. Whenever you're ready.
Dir. Clancy: I have the copy from yesterday with me. Does it have everything?
Dr. Khale: Ah, that sucks. If you need any help, let me know. Oh, I finished this up last night; sent it to Wilson. Did it look good?
Dir. Clancy: Great to see you again — been a while since we've chatted. I haven't been around the department too much. Overwatch really likes to pile it on this time of year.
«BEGIN LOG»
TRANSCRIPT
—Eli Forkley, Director, DoMc
The following exchange was conducted under VCP-PCS/7901. Personnel are reminded that deviations from the script may result in nomenclatural breach.
DEPARTMENT OF MISCOMMUNICATIONS
NOTICE FROM THE FOUNDATION
Addendum 7901.1: Further Information
No method for reversing permanent infection has been discovered to date.
| 2 redloF | A file folder on Dr. Khale's SCiPNet terminal. | Anything placed into 2 redolF will be renamed to appear as an instance of 1-7901-PCS. The content of these files will remain unaffected. | 18 minutes. |
| namffoH .rD | Assistant researcher in the Department of Miscommunications, | Any attempts to refer to namffoH .rD as his unaffected title fail. | 1 hour 23 minutes |
| eicaM | Researcher Gallucci's dog | Walks, barks, and eats in reverse. | 13 hours 54 minutes; permanently affected. |
| A glass mason jar | Initially used as an attempted physical containment chamber by namffoH .rD. | Items attempted to be placed in the jar's opening will meet an invisible wall. Items can be put into the jar by placing and tightening the lid before sliding the object through its glass exterior. | 32 hours 9 minutes: permanently affected. |
| Item | Description | Effect | Duration |
|---|
1-7901-PCS are objects or subjects that have been, or are currently, infected by 7901-PCS. If the entity is removed quickly enough, the instance may be reverted, though minor residual effects may persist depending on the duration of exposure. An abridged list of known 1-7901-PCS instances is included below:
7901-PCS is extremely reclusive and tends to remain in its chosen target until either the entity is fully rearranged into a permanent instance of 1-7901-PCS or it is drawn out.
Physically, 7901-PCS resembles a small cephalopodic mass of reflective, black gel. It maneuvers within its surroundings via a combination of sliding and jumping. Once it selects a target, 7901-PCS will attach itself utilizing suckers located on the underside of its tentacles. 7901-PCS will then render itself intangible once connected to its target.
Description: 7901-PCS is an infectious, pseudo-memetic, parasitic entity capable of reversing and rearranging descriptors, content, and communicative functions across physical objects, living organisms, and conceptual structures. It primarily affects names, labels, and referential chains.
Per Verbal Containment Protocol PCS/7901, all personnel must refer to it by the designation "7901-PCS" at all times. Do not deviate. Do not improvise. Do not attempt freeform clarification.
Special Containment Procedures: 7901-PCS is contained in this file.
by PlaguePJP