The Third Harmonic
The Third Harmonic, or How the Breakwater Fails
by Prospero, from the Boundary of the Closeness
We must assume that reality is more than what we perceive. Certainly, there are phenomena that defy our understanding, and we are ignorant of the causes of many effects. Our senses give us information about reality, so let us suppose that reality is nothing more (or less) than information itself. All things are data, and let us call the multiverse by a new name: dataspace. Access to dataspace is usually clumsy and blind, through complex rules (like lighting a fire to convert wood to energy). Magic is a more direct influence on data space; the more blatant magic is, the more direct the influence.
Dataspace seems to be influenced (or subtly controlled?) by six pairs of waves. Each pair includes a positive and negative aspect, for a total of twelve waves. These waves are most readily perceived as similar, successive events (e.g. wars, family trees, accumulating interest). While some would argue these waves are no more than sympathetic phenomena--generated by events, not instrumental in them--there is at least some evidence to indicate that these waves are higher beings with will and purpose. Many sentient beings claim to serve a higher power. It now seems highly possible that such a power one of the twelve. With or without a wave's "blessing," the servant usually advances the influence of the wave. For example, a thief is a parasite on society, whether or not their patron wave notices him (or is capable of noticing him).
Earth, Tessera, Cryos, and few other worlds are near one another in dataspace. Collectively, we call them the Closeness. This Closeness is bounded by a kind of "Breakwater," or wall, which limits the influence of the datawaves. The Breakwater seems to have been formed by the Parasite and the Devourer, two of the twelve. The wall has restricted the Closeness to a mostly-static reality, with little blatant magic. Rossman's experiments on the boundary of Closeness weakened the Breakwater. This lead to more blatant magic in the Closeness, increasing the strength of the waves. If the Breakwater falls, the worlds of the Closeness will experience the full, undiluted force of the datawaves. Reality will be at once more malleable and more unpredictable.
I had thought that by occupying the boundary, I could prevent further erosion, and perhaps even reverse the decline. But waves are dynamic things, and what seemed like a static feature of dataspace--the Breakwater--is actually a manifestation of a different, secondary wave. The secondary wave seems to be formed by the constructive interference of the primary Parasite and Devourer primary waves. Having gradually grown to a peak, the wave of the Breakwater now slopes downward. It should have a period of centuries or more, but it's being accelerated by destructive interference from an artificial source. The Parasite and the Devourer lack either the desire or ability to maintain the boundary. Should we wish to preserve the Breakwater, the accelerant source must be stopped, or somehow other waves must add a third harmonic to it. How this can be accomplished, I do not know.
