Sira v3.1 (tablets) by Harald Hagen

SIRA Tablets The placements of the following text fragments should be such that most players will encounter them in the order that they are listed, so as to retain chronological sense. A few are context-specific, but most can be placed anywhere near the area. Character Limit: [140] 1

“Blood of Kin” The first tablet. Players must pick this up before exiting the train. Provides the Kinsman’s blood type, which is essential to the Hunter’s quest. G. W. MCALLISTER (ID: SK27-A) / ACTIVE / 37, 5'7", 174 / BLOOD: AB+ // S. T. JACOBS (ID: SK70-C) / WOUNDED / 35, 5'5", 161 / BLOOD: O2

“Normalcy” Found early in the train station. Sets up these tablets as fragmented accounts of a once idyllic past. Day 1: I'm so glad I took the job. I love the city, even if it is crowded as hell. Life's going to be great from now on-- I just know it! 3

“Greywood Station” Found in train station. References why there is medical equipment on the train. SIRA, Central District - Greywood Station: Medical Express Route (Transfer Patients ONLY) runs every three hours starting midnight. 4 “The Question”

Found in train station. Adds hope and, more importantly, cites a meteor shower. On my way to meet her at Eastfield Park for the meteor shower. Heart's pounding. But tonight's my chance. She's gonna love this ring! 5

“Precious Stones” Found before leaving station. It presents an obscure reference to a precious new stone, later revealed to originate from the meteor shower. MEMO TO ALL EMPLOYEES OF SCOVOSKA JEWELERS: Special shipment coming in soon. Very rare merchandise. Tell anyone and heads will roll. 6 “A Bright Mystery”

Found in the hex area. Poses a possible link between supernova and meteors. The sky's been lit up for six days now. But where'd this supernova even come from? Did the meteors come from the same star?

2 7

“Warmer” Found in the hex area. It is the first reference to a temperature change of any sort, but is shown to be far too slight. Day 164: It's too cold up here. Some say it's getting warmer, but I don't feel it. I think I'll go home this weekend. 8 “Say Nothing”

Found in the hex area. Touches on the heat wave, emphasizing again its smallness in magnitude. PRESS CONFERENCE POINTS: Acknowledge (slight) heat wave. "Looking into it" etc. Remind public to stay hydrated. No questions. Thank/leave. 9 “Benign”

Found in the hex area. The strange nature of the meteors are introduced. Two important characters are also named. Prof. Reinhardt: It's confirmed. The meteor rocks are benign unless exposed to high energy reactions. Now testing hypothesis 4. -M. Stevens 10 “A Team”

Found in the hex area. Re-uses the two scientist characters and cites the inception of a special taskforce. Stevens: Hypothesis 4 can wait. The sun is unstable. The government is putting together a team. And you are on it. (You are welcome.) -F. Reinhardt 11 “Recruitment” Found in the hex area. The TRINITY Project is outright named, and hints at the kind of project it is. A CALL TO MINDS: Do you want to be a part of the TRINITY Project? If you are an experienced and brilliant engineer, visit a booth today! 12 “Rumors”

Found in the hex area. The TRINITY Project is revealed to a global initiative. Rumors are everywhere. My friends in Tokyo, Berlin, and Moscow say they've seen the same "CALL TO MINDS" fliers around. What's it mean? 13 “Sirian”

Found immediately in the hospital entrance. This Kickstarter reward subtly foreshadows the new enemy type soon encountered: the medical bot. S.I.R.I.A.N. (Surgical Instrument-Ready Intelligent Automaton Nurse), Series KS-6000, Model #547. Manual Updates Needed.

3 14 “Trinity”

Found early in the hospital (newsstands if possible). The world’s efforts to save itself are given a name, and its multi-phase approach is introduced. HEADLINE: As Global Heat Wave Continues, World's Governments Unveil The TRINITY Project And Its First & Second Phases Of Energy Gathering 15 “United”

Found in the hospital, near the one previous. The scale of the project is explained. ...in what is now called the most successful social media campaign in history. The world now stands united in facing the Sun's expansion... 16 “Pray”

Found in the hospital. This tablet builds on the religious element but also states outright that the meteor rocks entered the Sun, presenting a possible explanation for the heat wave. Praise Be that there aren't more of these strange meteors in the Sun. Praise Be that we still have time. Praise Be. 17 “Burns”

Found in the hospital. Demonstrates how invested people are in TRINITY, and introduces phase 1’s form, ‘Sunfields.’ These burns are nothing. As long as this city's Sunfield gets done, phase 1 will be that much closer to completion. That's all that matters. 18 “Beauty” Found in the hospital. Again suggests the scale of the project, and emphasizes again the rising hope of the times. Hundreds? Thousands? Millions? I don't even know. These Sunfields and Light Basins we've built... They're just so beautiful. 19 “6 of 7”

Found in the hospital. The progress of TRINITY continues through phase 2, and the people’s faith in the project is shown to be at an all-time high. HEADLINE: TRINITY Team Celebrates Completion Of The 6th Solar Lens Station And Sets A Date For The Last, As Public Anticipates Phase 2's End 20 “Countdown”

Found in the hospital. The scale is reeled back in for a smaller microcosm moment, as the final moments of phase 2’s completion nears. Kyle: Can't make it to your party tonight. But I'll be counting down same as everyone, man. One step closer to saving the world. -Jon © Arsenic Playground. All rights reserved. SIRA - Tablet Text | version 3.1 | Updated: May 24, 2012

4 21 “Amiss”

Found in the hospital. The first hints that something has gone wrong are given here, on the night of the Calamity. I was supposed to video chat with my parents in Delhi tonight. Could something have happened to them? 22 “Disaster”

Found in the hospital. The text length is abruptly shortened to emphasize the unexpected, and the self-initiated disaster begins. Oh god. It’s over. It’s all over. 23 “Quiet”

Found in the hospital. What have we done? It's so quiet now. Everyone's... 24 “What We May Never Know”

Found in the hospital. The mystery of phase 3 is mentioned, and the energy-gathering nature of the first two phases is restated. If only they told us what phase 3 was about. If only we knew why we were gathering so much energy. 25 “By Our Hand”

Found in the hospital. This is probably the most direct statement of the backstory, specifically naming us as the harbingers of our own destruction. We should never have built those satellites. TRINITY KILLED US ALL. 26 “Except One”

Found in the hospital. A final message presents one of the conflicts of all remaining survivors: do you believe the man who brings hope in a time of hopelessness? The signed abbreviation is intentionally obscure. Is it George McAllister? Or someone else? No voices on the radio. Except one. Says he knows what needs doing. Says he can save the few of us left. And I want to believe him. -GM