The interior of the Enclave radiates a timeless authority. My first impression is that feels sacred like a church in its authority, but I change my mind quickly as I examine it further. The entryway is a cavernous space with walls and ceiling made of the same material as the exterior of the building. The walls are etched with vast glyphs that my SMI can only partly interpret as pieces of Enforcer history, upholding the SSA’s Protocols where economic and political influence are insufficient.

  Massive pillars rise to support the ceiling which is designed with symbols and pictures that depict the unity of the SSA behind a shared mission of advancing sapient prosperity and defending the Universe from creatures warped by Mana. Between the pillars, shifting patterns on the polished floors form geometric designs that I recognize from my time using Omnipresent as representing different parts of the Universe. The effect is powerful, but it doesn’t feel like it’s meant to diminish the individual or ask me to supplicate before it. More museum than church.

  Four guards with very high Mana pools eye us as we enter and take it all in, but they leave us alone. The air smells faintly of minerals and ozone and there’s a meditative stillness that blankets the room even in places where people are moving around,

  “I’ve never managed to gain entry into one of these places before,” remarks Taiwo to nobody in particular. I was lost in my own first experience of this place; now that I look, Taiwo seems fascinated while Kael is unaffected and Aelara… who knows?

  “This is the Hall of Protocol,” Kael says. “It is meant to remind us of the vastness of the SSA and to keep proper perspective when it comes to the Protocols and the application of them, so we don’t get mired in meaningless violations that seem important because they are close. There are many unconscious biases that Enforcers, and particularly HIgh Enforcers, need to constantly be on guard for.”

  I can completely see his point and I wonder if that’s part of the design of the way the SSA Enforcers work, as agents of the SSA who have no particular assignment other than to enforce the Protocols when they encounter violations of them. Making assignments rather than letting them operate as ‘free agents’ would introduce the biases of whoever was making the assignments centrally. If Enforcer selections are made well, a distributed system might be a lot more effective even if some efficiency and transparency is lost.

  Kael gestures to a wide opening to our right and leads us in that direction. Alien designs over the door are something my SMI can interpret as a sign that marks whatever’s beyond the opening as the ‘Sanctum of the High Enforcer’. We are the only ones headed in that direction and from this angle it looks empty. I pull up my minimap and see the building is remarkably busy, but only a few individuals are in the area we’re going.

  As we pass through the opening Kael pauses and turns back to Taiwo and Aelara.

  “As this part of the Enclave is for High Enforcers only, you must wait for us here. If you require sustenance or anything of that nature while you wait, the attendants can source it for you. There is also a Shop orb.”

  “Thank you, Kael,” says Aelara as we enter what seems almost like a hotel lobby with a desk, concierge, and restaurant. Orange and black octopus-like Galactics with many tentacles dressed in blue uniforms await any instructions from us attentively without approaching us. There are no other visitors in the area.

  I look around while Kael gestures to one of the areas so Taiwo and Aelara know where to wait. The furniture is minimalistic and durable with alien textiles in muted tones, not at all as comfortable as what I know Taiwo has in his Inventory, or what I have in mine for that matter. Taiwo eyes the Shop orb and I’m sure is tempted to check in on everything he’s left behind.

  “How long do you think you will be, Kael?” Taiwo asks.

  “At least a thousand UTUs, perhaps more.”

  Taiwo nods and moves away. I follow Kael to a strange Galactic version of a reception desk. Behind a sleek, semicircular desk that looks to be made of dark stone, the Galactic looks like all the other staff. At least a dozen tentacles operating independently emerge from a soft, bulbous central body covered in smooth, leathery skin. It’s clear these Galactics are built for land as they have no additional equipment or assistance and their limbs look powerful. Each one is tipped with a split that they use in a fluid, deliberate way to tap things out on a data pad built into the desk, handle notifications, and arrange objects simultaneously.

  “Greetings, High Enforcer,” the two Galactics behind a pair of desks say simultaneously. Kael motions me over to the one on the left whose head is slightly elongated and has particularly slanted eyes which make it look like he’s intently focused on whatever he looks at.

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  “Greetings,” replies Kael. It’s polite, but I note he doesn’t take any note of this particular one. Just an invisible servant of the SSA. “We need an Initiate check in.”

  “Initiate?” asks the clerk.

  “Initiate,” replies Kael firmly.

  “Apologies, High Enforcer. You may go through. Follow the light blue track and Keeper Coderkoll will assist you.”

  “Fortunate,” muses Kael.

  He motions to me and then maneuvers his massive bulk smoothly around the desks and up to a square door about four meters to a side. Kael is too big for us to go through together comfortably so I stand behind him and to his right slightly. A warm glow surrounds us and I automatically trigger Perfect Focus to slow down my perception of time and double my speed, then tense and immediately send my Mana Affinity out to probe what’s happening. The world crawls by as Kael’s body starts to shift position in relation to me and I can sense a combination of Mana and technology is scanning us. It’s not intrusive or hostile at the moment so I wait before triggering a bunch of offensive Skills and unleashing hell on everything around me. Objectively it doesn’t last long, but with Perfect Focus active and me on a hair trigger to explode it seems like a long time before the scans dissipate. I release Perfect Focus as the door infront of us splits down the middle and each panel slides aside to let us pass.

  I glance at Kael to take his lead on when it’s time to go through the door and see he’s watching me carefully.

  “What?” I ask him.

  “I begin to understand,” he replies and returns his attention to the hallway beyond the door then steps through.

  “Understand what?” I ask him as we step through and the door closes behind us. On the floor is a luminescent light blue track about an inch wide that turns down another corridor about twenty meters away. Kael just grunts and continues down the hallway. Our footsteps thump faintly on the polished floors and I decide not to follow up my question.

  The Enclave is obviously a large structure and it takes us a few minutes to take all the twists and turns that lead us to our destination, a bright yellow door where the light blue track finishes. The door and more recent hallways are a stark contrast to the dark, earthen colors of the hallways where we entered and I wonder if we’ve entered a different part of the Enclave, perhaps for a different purpose.

  I can feel Kael pulse his Mana and the door opens, I assume having read his Mana signature. Before we enter he addresses me.

  “Once your Mana signature is registered here, you should have access to all the places your Clearance allows. Basic facilities will likely only use the Mana signature, but more advanced and high security facilities will have other identification measures since a Mana signature can be copied with the right Skills and resources. Very rare, but possible.”

  As Kael turns to enter the room I interrupt him.

  “Why the illuminated path on the floor?” I ask, curious. “If you can go anywhere you need to with your Mana signature, why not just get an updated minimap and go wherever you need to in the Enclave?”

  “The Enclave doesn’t allow it. The face to face check is part of the security and ensures that whoever you’re visiting is informed of your arrival. If we had deviated from the path that was assigned to us, first drones and then other measures would have been deployed to investigate, depending on the location. Of course, as High Enforcers we are entitled to investigate even our own SSA colleagues and we have the Levels to back it up, so nothing would come of it. Consider it a polite formality to comply with the procedure which works for most people. If you really wanted to, with your Clearance you could walk into anywhere in the SSA and be entirely within your rights to be there.”

  I consider that. It sounds crazy and I’m not sure it’s something I want to spend a lot of time abusing. No doubt if I can gain Clearance Tiers then I can lose them as well through bad behaviour. As I’m thinking I follow Kael into the room.

  “Can I lose Clearance Tiers?” I ask him.

  “You certainly can,” another voice says from my right inside the room. Next to a set of notification screens is a golem made from bronze like-material that’s smooth and polished but worn and pitted with the kind of wear that might indicate centuries of service. It’s squat with thick, segmented limbs and a rectangular torso engraved with designs that I suspect are a combination of circuitry and runes interwoven together. The golem’s four legs are built for stability rather than speed and wrapped loosely around the entire golem is a single black chain about an inch thick. I pull the strange creature’s basic Status since I’m trying to follow Kael’s guidance and to be polite.

  Keeper Coderkoll, Protocol Sentinel - 1st Generation

  [SSA Protocol Enforcement Enablement] [Onboarding Specialists]

  “How can I lose Clearance Tiers?” I ask the Keeper.

  “Mostly… abuse of the Protocols yourself. Occasionally politics and retribution can have you docked, or a recognized case of restitution can force the SSA to downgrade your Clearance, but there aren’t many individuals or organizations in the Universe with that kind of clout. Even in complicated circumstances there is a high burden of proof. High Enforcers in particular are far more likely to lose Clearance Tiers by getting killed than through a downgrade, but it does happen. Don’t get too overconfident young man. That’s the biggest cause of High Enforcer deaths by far.”

  I can feel Mana radiating from the golem even without activating my Affinity. It’s not clear to me whether that’s because it’s powerful, or old and broken down, or both. Or something else entirely.

  “Advancement for all, Keeper Coderkoll,“ intones Kael.

  “Advancement for all, Kael Vrynn,” intones back the Protocol Sentinel mechanically, and I wonder if I’ve accidentally joined a cult.