108 - You Have Those?

“Programmer Datrus, may I speak with you a moment?”  Dagdohva stood, her hands behind her back and under her secondary veil, wrung together. It had taken a full sleepless night to work herself up to approaching her supervisor.  The full night, unsleeping, and long conversation with Yasna.

“Of course, Dagdohva, is there something I can help you with? You’re doing very well as the editor for the Rimsiders, Third Ring.”  The information had proved so voluminous that every ring of the city had been divided into twelve tracks and twelve sectors and Dag was the editor for an entire sector. Datrus looked up from the new miniature of the next box he was designing, a smaller, lighter version, with more features for the everyday reader.

“There is something I have noted in the flood of information.  There is a great deal of misinformation about the founders... Gregori and Petra.”

Datrus blinked at her.  “You mean they weren’t mythical?  You have this information?”

“I... have.”  It took every bit of her will to say that. Yasna had checked and double checked and triple checked her memories, sifted out of the chaff of her wild, buggy, chaff-filled dreams. “It has been checked.”

“Dag... please forgive my familiarity here, but if you have the code that validates the existence of our founders for our readers! It would probably make your name!” His mouth fell open, then snapped shut as he realized it made him look less than dignified.

“I was hoping to write what story code I had.”

He was now blinking at her quite wildly instead of gaping his mouth at her.  “My... my... dear... woman!”

“It wouldn’t interfere with my editing work –“

“No, no! Dagdohva! Write this history.  Write it and distribute it!  This is eight hundred years lost information!”  He flapped his hands at her as if he were trying to wave her out and back to her desk as fast as possible as if the breeze from his fingers could rush her out faster.

She made the minor salaam and nearly danced back to her desk. I was hoping! I was hoping he’d let me do that! I will be able to pull all those memories and records out and put them in order and be able to make that memory space available to me!  Oh I will be able to archive it and that way I won’t be stumbling over those thoughts and wondering if they are mine...