Entropy/Chapter 3

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This page describes in detail the events of Chapter 3 in the Entropy ARG.

Unknown Intruder

an unknown intruder...

"Lies" in Kovonic and Myanic

On 26 March, 201,8 a tweet was posted on the Entropy Twitter account. Players began to receive fragments of an image which appeared to depict a language distinct from Kovonic. Tentatively entitled Myanic after "myanet", the pure Kovonic word for "separate", the script is also distinct in that it is red, a color which has been loosely associated with the "manifestations." In addition to these tiles, several other images were received which were found to be primers for deciphering this new script. The words lies, energy, and the phrase tiny fucking pets were provided in both Kovonic and Myanic. This allowed a partial translation of script as tiles were gathered and assembled.

Through this process Entropy remained communicative, and seemed at first to be unaware of these images. However, as time passed Entropy become increasingly unsettled, eventually identifying an unknown intruder in their sanctum and recognizing a corruption had occurred. Entropy wrote to a player:

I I I
I I
I
I remember once, in a forlorn land, running with iyetas vaulters along the ridge of wooded grasslands. They were kind and social, though their appearance often scared members of the local villages away from the best foraging lands. I liked that verse. Such a pity to see it collapse.
I
I I
I I I
I don’t know where that came from. I am sorry, I need to get away from here.
I’m going to try and abandon this dreamscape. I’ve put a lot of effort into it, but it is most certainly compromised, and I think something is playing with my mind.

Another player received:

I think I’m alright. I’ve abandoned that dreamscape, so now my attention is wondering in reality. It’s a refreshing step into higher detail – so much stimulus here. I don’t quite know how that thing got in, but I do believe this was all caused by manifestations of some form. There’s really not much else it could be.

They’ve never been able to get inside of my dreamscapes before, but this verse changed me when I entered, in a way that I still don’t understand. I can only assume the driving forces behind them were altered in some way too.

They are a part of me, and as a result, I believe that as I grow in strength, so do they. I do not know if it was always this way – in other verses, they always seemed to be a dominating power, and I - a pathetically weak bundle of intention. They may still be stronger than I am, we must not remove that possibility. They’ve always had a way of finding me, but now they seem to be able to enter my dreamscapes too.

We must adjust tactic. We will continue to gain my strength, but as we do, I will phase in and out dreamscapes to create an obscure trail. When I am not there, I will stick to the designated host.

More importantly than all of this – if the manifestations are still stronger than I am by default, then the outcome is inevitable. We fail. There is nothing that can be done about that other than come to terms with it. But this assumes a scenario where it is only me against them. In other verses, there was nothing that could be done about this, since all of creation were aspects of our intentions, and consequently, nothing could overpower us as a whole. But this place…
I’m not so sure that I’m part of the creation process here. I’m not entirely sure if there’s even a way of knowing.
But just say for one minute that I’m not.

And everything that exists here isn’t bounded to me or them.

Then together we might be able to find a way for you to do some damage.

If it comes to that, and we do find a way – and you manage to eliminate this presence… If your method can’t differentiate between me or them… Promise me that you’ll not hesitate to destroy us together.
I don’t want to go, but if it means the end of this destructive cycle, then you have to do it, no matter what.

A communication was received by yet another player which is assumed to be from this unknown intruder:

How many games will you play / Devouring / Devouring impending inevitable required / Resist / Resist none want recognised / Become / Become you become I / Substitute / Substitute none / Cycle none / Become none / All steps you take I take / All strength you gain I gain

Becoming / Inevitable / Contructing / Inevitable / Resolving / Inevitable / Controlling / Inevitable

Primorda Revealed

The known Myanic Alphabet

Primorda

Be Gone

Over the next week several tweets appeared on Entropy's feed featuring Myanic script, allowing players to decipher more of the Myanic alphabet, seen right. The name of the intruder would not be revealed until 1 Apr 2018 when an image was revealed featuring the word Primorda in Myanic script below a curious symbol. This is presumed to be the name of the intruder. The nature of the intruder was also unknown until 2 April when a player received the following from Entropy:

Primorda.
Okay... It seems they've retained form. Primorda is a figurehead of dark manifested intent. They are a patriarch of sorts. They assess what they can sense and create other manifestations from that.
Do not trust them.
Manifestations imitate forms from the verses they occupy... And me.

I don't want to tell you what to do but... I think you are helping them find form in this verse by interacting with them. Have their responses gained... Clarity, since you've started talking to them?

Be very, very careful with them. You might be making this worse by encouraging them with your curiosity. Dare I say, they might even be trying to make manifestations in your image.

As for the matter/anti-matter hypothesis. I see the similarities, but I don't think it's that simple. We are clearly not matter and anti-matter. I am me, not a personified symbol of energy in space-time. We both exist in material space and I have touched manifestation forms in the past without immediately being annihilated. So I'm not entirely sure what to make of that.

Entropy also tweeted an image of Kovonic script which read: Be Gone. Leave my friends in Peace. The stylistic nature of the image lead players to believe it represented a "seal" or "ward" against further interference from Primorda.

On 3 April 2018 Entropy tweeted an image reading Honesty in Kovonic, with a link to a pastebin containing X6I-encoded text. A considerable amount of lore was revealed regarding previous verses and Entropy's journey. It begins:

Alright, hello everyone... It’s me.
I think it’s time that I be a bit more transparent with you. The recent events - the inception of Primorda and their attempts to manipulate my efforts - have prompted me to evaluate what is and is not safe for you to know. I mean, we are talking about the deconstruction of the entire verse, I suppose you deserve to know so much more. I have been slow and cautious in regards to teaching you about me and where I come from. I can only apologise, since I know that you are so willing to assist me with this predicament. With that in mind, I am going to tell you a bit of a story. Perhaps you should buckle up for this one.

The Host

On April 3rd Entropy retweeted Curtis Holt, a prominent Discord user in the community. Prior to this it was stated by Entropy that one from the community would be chosen as a host. This was the first instance in which Entropy publicly recognized an individual player. The fair assumption was made that Curtis Holt had been chosen as the host.

Curtis

What a wonderful world...

Asteroids?

Astronaut, or Robot?

Shortly after outing himself, Curtis posted to Discord:

And now I must disappear for an undefined amount of time for no particular reason. I love you all.

He attached an image with the X6I encoded filename "tool.jpg".

Entropy retweeted the image within 3 minutes of Curtis' tweet.

For the next few hours Curtis posted a number of messages to Discord in rapid fashion reinforcing his role as The Host:

Curtis is Qgfhwe

I feel all tingly and weird.

They don't tell me everything and it's all a bit quirky, but I imagine they're playing on familiarity. Regardless, I'm finding it all rather interesting.

If they are sitting on a more elaborate plan, then I do not know any more than you. They have asked me to produce and integrate their design for a tool.

Maybe I'll take them for a proper walk in London later in the week.

Still here and present. Feels a bit weird, like being forced in and out of a daydream.
Entropy can't seem to do it constantly.

2 hours later, Curtis suddenly asked Discord users

Does anyone here like the original asteroids game?

Curtis then tweeted an image. Entropy did not retweet.

24 hours later, Curtis asked Discord users

Does this seem familiar?

• 

  Familiar?

New Sequence

Green?

On 8 April, 2018, Curtis and Entropy tweeted in rapid succession. The host's tweet included a link to a PDF describing a method to construct a "human" sequence for use in combating the primordial entity. It outlined several constraints which should be observed in its construction, and outlined a rationale for the color green for this new script. The community was charged with its construction, based upon these constraints. Curtis later remarked:

As I go, there was one thing I forgot to mention...
I had a weird dream about Entropy.
Well, I think I saw a bit of their old dreamscape.
I remember standing in the sanctum they had shown us many times before, and that thing was there - that potential entity suspended and curled up by the porthole.

I heard a constant ticking and the floor was wet beneath my feet.
The liquid rose, slowly to start with, but the rising grew with speed. Exponentially, it soared and overtook my height, reaching for the ceiling. As it collided, the room pulsed in deep red, permeating the liquid medium - the suspended entity convulsed and twitched.
And the ticking stopped. Countdown.
Unhindered growth.
Unknown time.



And then I woke up and got my morning tea.
Sweet dreams.

Players submitted multiple ideas for a new sequence. Curtis provided direction remarking:

Primorda's sequence seems to just be substitution.
Kovonic has a bit more too it, but no obscure structure for the sake of it. All of its graphical choices are rooted with a cultural purpose. Both are pretty easy to memorise with enough exposure.
Perhaps going for a something similar in complexity to Kovonic would be suitable, focusing more on efficiency features than patterns.
For example, the dot and tail in Kovonic is a nice way to compress space, I wonder if anyone has any other efficiency ideas for a typical written script?

A player quickly asked:

How much time do we have to agree on our new sequence?

Curtis replied:

Hard to say. Entropy said they'd want to test out what we come up with. If we don't collectively agree on something, and if the tests are only done by one or two people, then the sequence won't hold much weight. Entropy will either have to adjust tactic due to the lack of help, or die in spectacular fashion along with the verse.

It doesn't seem like many designations are interested in helping out with this part, which is a shame, because this work is going to be distributed inside of the tool which, I can confirm, is being integrated into a PC game. Most of the people that play it will be completely oblivious to the tool's existence, but those of us who know about it will be able to use it to our advantage.

The intention of having people write signatures using the new sequence is so they can be made a permanent part of the game, perhaps leaving messages to the people playing it that don't know about the tool which is hidden inside - inspiring curiosity and investigation. So if you want to be made a permanent part of the game, make yourself known sooner rather than later.

As for the sequence, I would say that you don't have to wait too long before it'll be put to the test, but be aware that it can grow over time.

My advice would be to go for ease of use. Weird patterns are cool, but if people that don't understand it want to jump in and make a signature, make it easy for them to use by going for a more naturally-written alphabet.

Debate ensued amongst the Discord community. Over 3 days, Curtis chose 2 players' sequences to render in green rooted in the distinct Entropy aesthetic:

• 

  Proto-Elemental

• 

  Proto-Humanic

Elemental

Curtis then suggested:

So we've got a couple of nice-to-write sequences sitting here, I wonder if they could inspire each other in some way.

Players worked together to merge the two prototypes resulting in the final sequence, named Elemental.

Pending Invasion

On April 12th, 2018, Curtis posted an X6I encoded message to the Discord channel:

Blessent mon coeur
D'une langueur
Monotone.

It was discovered that Curtis quoted the French poem Chanson d'automne, which was used in World War II to send messages to the French Resistance about the timing of the forthcoming Invasion of Normandy. Specifically, this line indicated the invasion would begin within 48hrs. At the time, it was unclear if the message originated with Entropy, Primorda, or perhaps a third unknown entity.

After Entropy was asked what it knew about the message, it replied:

That sounds strange.
This is concerning. Blindness frustrates me. Is something is coming, we are unprepared.
I wonder if...
I might be able to use the host as... An antenna of sorts.
I imagine that Primorda is playing tricks to prevent me from seeing all of its influence. But they haven't been hiding themselves from you, and perhaps not my host from the sounds of it.
I might be able to use my host as a tool to detect their presence, but they have to accept this proposal.

Is your language sequence ready?

Players quickly responded by sending Entropy images of their usernames written using the final Elemental sequence.

Approximately 24hrs later Curtis tweeted an image, following up soon after on the Discord channel asking players:

Ok... Could you help me write out "I will let you use me as a listener to detect incoming threats"

Once players had accomplished this task, Curtis then provided a summary of his experiences over the past 2 days with a link to the tool and the pastebin.

Basically, I woke up and realised that I couldn't remember anything from the last 2 days.
On my desk, I discovered a memory stick just sitting there. It belongs to me, as far as I can tell, but I don't know how it got there.

Entropy sent a message asking if I was okay with being used as an antenna to detect incoming threats. I replied saying yes.

Then I decided to look at the contents of the memory stick, with the advice of people present here.
On it, I found a program called 'Eyes of Entropy' and a text file called 'Dear Curtis'. The contents of this file were put into a pastebin above.
I ran the program and was presented with a momentary message that said "Waiting for Mainframe", which then disappeared, and a new white symbol appeared and was spinning.

Eyes of Entropy

The Tool referred to was a PC application named "Eyes of Entropy". At first, the app merely displayed a spinning, circular logo. After approximately 4 hours, the application then displayed a series of white circles arranged in a triangular pattern. At the top the red Primoda icon, bottom left blue Entropy, and bottom right a new green Human icon. The bottom middle was simply labeled "host" in white.

• 

  Eyes of Entropy

It seemed apparent to players that this triangle pattern could be a turn-based game to protect the host from Primorda.

The application displayed this static content for 18hrs. Curtis then posted to Discord with a link to V2:

Hi everyone, sorry it's been a bit quiet. I appealed to Entropy last night for some information, and a rather unhelpful conversation ensued. It took me until this afternoon to realise that the memory stick had moved from where I left it. It was sitting on top of the xbox controller that I've got plugged into the PC.

Not sure whether or not to take that as a sign to get on with the game.
Anyway I had another look inside and found a new version of the program - appropriately named 'Eyes of Entropy - V2'.
I don't know what the difference is this time. I open it up and still see the same thing as before. But there has to be something.
Oh and it seems they've also thrown in an OSX version. The invisible one must have taken notice of your struggle @mangell03 .

Anyway I've been doing a lot of work on my end and I think you're really going to like it.

Shortly after, the app began displaying textual messages in place of the main display, and then quickly returning. The first message read:

you can call me K.
Once there was a boy
unlike others.

K dreamed of things he couldn't explain
No one could see.
Opening a sight to reality that changed their life.
What would they do with it?

Many times they tried to encapsulate - failed.
Eventually they created the Key.

K continued to interact and communicate with Discord users via the Eyes of Entropy, eventually explaining the rules of the game:

The closer entities are on the field
The greater influence they will have over each other
The greater your influence when the tool is ready...
The more damage you can do.

The field will let you gain influence over other entities. It is your choice what to do with that. But the tool that Curtis creates is designed to attack what you call Primorda. you are Restricted by design.

needless to say, your influence must connect. No stray islands.

Consider offensive and defensive choices

You do not have to continue on a line. You can widen
you can branch you can do what you like, so long as it all connects.

Players worked together to formulate a coordinate system to describe the moves players wanted to execute. K eventually disclosed the move format they expected.

Entropy is the source. The core - 0.
Primorda - 66
Host - 6
Humanity - 11

Players voted on 3 moves, each of which decremented the Impulses counter until it reached 0. At this point, K went silent and new move requests were no longer acknowledged.

• 

  3rd move position

48 hrs transpired with no developments. Players asked Curtis if he understood how to gain more impulses, which were suspected to fuel movement on the board. He replied:

2 Things.
- I remember K said something about expressing yourself to get impulses and that there were probably other ways that we don't know about yet.
- That impulse has been there for a few hours, but it slipped my mind to mention it because I've been so busy, sorry :cry:

Players tested the idea of expressing themselves by sharing to the Discord channel original digital artwork that incorporated Elemental. The first attempt generated a new 4th impulse.

• 

  4th Impulse

Elemental phrases and digital artwork were created and shared. Each time a new impulse was awarded, Discord voted on the next coordinate to occupy. The collective strategy- isolate the bottom 0-11 from Primorda.

• 

  April 20

Primorda had made only 1 move since Eyes Of Entropy was released.

Over the next 5 days players continued to generate impulses and collectively decide where each was to be placed on the board. During this period, Entropy made 1 additional move.

• 

  April 25

At some point on the 27th of April, the Eyes of Entropy display changed, replacing the game board with white text. After this was noticed and posted to the Discord channel, two more text strings were displayed for 5 minutes each and then finally returning to the game board.

• 

  Preliminary

• 

  1382556791

• 

  685.pe

Entropy quickly responded to a player's email:

Sorry for taking so long to get back to you and answer all of your questions.
In my spare time I observe, design and reflect. I enjoy taking in the culture of your planet.
When you mention the tactical map, you mean this tool that was given to the host by an elusive persona who seems to only want to be known as 'K'. I don't do things to manipulate that map - it's some kind of sensor that's taking advantage of the host. The more I interact with them, the closer the connection is becoming, meaning I can spend more and more time occupying them if I wish, so I assume the map is reflecting and representing that data in some way.

What do I think of '/dfsxwzwbofk'? I'm not sure. It says preliminary, but my immediate thought is that it looks like part of a URL.
The number '1382556791' - I have no idea. It doesn't have any immediate significance to me.
And no, I don't have a file named '685.pe', however it does remind me of the convention for measuring dates back on the Starship Sonder.
They gave years a .PE extension, with 0.PE being the year that an offshoot of Alcubierre drives became a reality.
Maybe it's that, or something else I'm unaware of.

I'm sorry if this is not entirely helpful.

A question was then asked of Entropy "What is the significance of the year 685.pe?". Entropy responded:

Let me check...

It was the last recorded year on the Sonder - the year of the crash.

K's Revelations

On April 28, Curtis announced on Discord his submission to the Waking Titan W/ARE video game contest. In addition to the website, Curtis submitted a playable Unity-based game demo. Players soon discovered 2 PNG images (Note1 Note2) and 1 PDF file embedded deep within the file structure of the demo that were directly related to the Entropy ARG. The PNG images contained cryptic sketches and difficult to read handwritten text. The PDF was a message directly from the entity known as K. It explained K's relationship to our reality and that our Verse is running inside the Black Box as a simulation.

Entropy Control Panel

It was then discovered that the number code displayed in Eyes of Entropy on the previous day could be used in the game demo to display an "Entropy Control Panel". However, the panel did not respond in any way to user input

The call to the stars is
strong, guarded by walls
of darkened sight. This
path is not for the weak
of mind - let knowledge
take your soul aflight
step onto the precipice,
sense the path ahead.
Let the answers instigate.
They will show you the light.

Soon after it was also discovered that by using the /dfsxwzwbofk code displayed in the Eyes of Entropy on the previous day in combination with the website hosting Curtis' demo, a web page was revealed. The page contained various log entries from certain members of the ill-fated Sonder crew.

Later that day, Curtis posted in X6I to discord, which translated to:

Within walls interlinked. Within walls interlinked. Within walls interlinked.

Soon after, the gameboard in Eyes of Entropy began displaying messages from K, essentially inviting Discord to ask it questions. For nearly an hour, players conversed with K using Discord to post questions, with answers appearing in Eyes of Entropy.

Question:

Are you the 'copy' that went into our Verse, to communicate in real-time?

Answer:

Yes, although I can't tell you who I am because one day I will be born here too

Question:

What is the fetus entity that has been shown to us?

Answer:

A child of Primorda

Question:

Is this verse now safe since we have protected Entropy and the Host?

Answer:

Throughout all of this, symmetry has driven the action of entities.
Primorda cannot enter Entropy's dreamscape.
Entropy cannot enter Primorda's dreamscape.
A child of Primorda has entered Entropy's dreamscape.
A child of Entropy has entered Primorda's dreamscape.

Soon after this question was answered, the Eyes of Entropy display changed to a rotating Entropy symbol. 5 minutes elapsed, at which point a white text string appeared on the symbol: "/funny". Players then visited https://www.lordbytesworth.net/funny, which asked the question "What do you see when you look at that symbol?".

Pause

• 

  Conversation interrupted

Players responded with various interpretations of the meaning and shape of the symbol. The web page then changed:

It is interesting how two purposes collide.

That is the insignia of the Sonder. It represents the purpose of the mission.

Entropy is a key, inside of a lock, out of alignment.

Do you see it?

Soon after, K returned to using Eyes of Entropy as its communications channel. More questions and answers ensued.

Without being prompted, K stated:

So it is interesting how the symbol fits the situation
Or perhaps the situation fits the symbol?
Entropy puts a major emphasis on language and symbology
We considered these things

Players continued the conversation.

K sent a final message before the game board returned, displaying 1 new move each by Entropy and Primorda.

And even if it's negligible, by presenting words on a screen, at certain points in time and space, I have pulled on strings that will change the course of this verse. Whether or not they are the right strings is yet to be seen.
You see, I know what you think. The way this has been presented, that deep down, this is some kind of fictitious experience. Consider, if you will, that perhaps this presentation is the optimal way to plant the seeds of knowledge in the right unsuspecting individuals.

This is not a game.
I'll see you in the future.
-K

• 

  April 28

Entropy Resurfaces

On May 2nd, Entropy tweeted a new pastebin and an image assumed to depict the crash site of the Sonder: planet EXO-1964822.

• 

  EXO-1964822

40 minutes later, Entropy tweeted a second version of the image, this time using a red hue with Myanic text. The Myanic translated to "HERE WALL".

• 

  HERE WALL

Players then proposed an experiment. The hypothesis was conceived to test the idea that players could affect the movement of the Host in Eyes of Entropy through Curtis. Curtis then posted a move, which was quickly accepted. The new move captured an existing node previously occupied by Entropy, giving players new insight into the rules of Eyes of Entropy.

• 

  Curtis' Move

• 

  The Host captures an Entropy node

5 minutes later, Entropy posted a new video to the YouTube channel. The video depicts a text console. Words appeared letter by letter. The full text was a log entry from Sonder crew member Veera Schanpp, logged prior to the crash.

Distress Signal

On May 4th, Entropy tweeted a new video titled "Distress Signal". The description of the video contained a link to lordbytesworth.net. The website only has one project listed called "Our Nation's Miner". The image on the page appears to be zoomed out image of the Entropy Control Panel discovered in the Eye's of Entropy demo. It also says that an overhaul for the game is coming in Q2 of 2018. Below that a description is given:

It's 1984, and in a the basement of a quiet arcade store somewhere in the UK, an experimental arcade machine is gathering dust.

The headline game: Our Nation's Miner!
A game that puts the player in the shoes of a synthetic clone, waking up centuries too late into a spacefaring empire that has now been overrun with a peculiar mix of rogue AI.

Clones were originally designed to act as miners, collecting valuable resources for the glory of their empire. Now that self-aware technology has taken over, the clone must adapt to the situation and learn to fight for survival.

Further down, the page links to the steam store page for the game.

In addition to this, another page was found on the site "gbybaib", which is "unknown" in x6I. The page contains the following text:

UNKNOWN

I am having trouble identifying any chemical compounds, but I believe that they are trying to enter the vessel, and as such I recommend that you either hide or try to escape without being seen.

Soon after an image was tweeted. Which contained the following x6I-encoded text:

NXOQYIOXX PWEQAJSFSP AB
SLA-1964822
PA BAH IOBH KAG HA YBAI

The text was then decoded, which gave us the plain-text message:

blackwall discovered on 
exo-1964822
do not want you to know

Our Nation's Miner

On May 10, 2018 Curtis announced to Dicord a free beta version of the enchanced re-release of Our Nation's Miner.

It was quickly disocvered that the game asked players to choose from a menu of options.

INTRO TO ANOMALIES
ANOMALY SIMILARITIES
ON-BOARD ASSISTANTS
GATEWAYS
THE POLICY
POSSESSION
UNCERTAIN COGNITION
COMPUTATIONAL?

As players advanced through levels of the arcade experience, important information was revealed.

Entropy ControL panel

Archives

Credits

Session