A border is a line someone drew to keep you on one...
philosophy
A city that never sleeps is a city that never drea...
philosophy
A clean shirt in the Gray Zone means you're either...
street wisdom
A corponation is just a person with no body to imp...
power and corruption
A door is a philosophy. It says: this side, that s...
philosophy
A full stomach thinks about tomorrow. An empty one...
street wisdom
A good knife doesn't need a battery.
street wisdom
A good runner knows every route. A great runner kn...
street wisdom
A law is just a suggestion backed by the people wh...
power and corruption
A life in the Gray Zone is measured in close calls...
death and loss
A locked BCI is a coffin for your thoughts. Keep a...
street wisdom
A locked door means someone's got something worth ...
street wisdom
A name is the smallest territory a person owns. In...
philosophy
A politician who serves the people is a tourist. A...
power and corruption
A recruiter told me I was overqualified for the Gr...
humor
A seat on the board is a throne. A badge from secu...
power and corruption
A second-hand BCI and a first-hand instinct. That'...
street wisdom
A shadow is just a place the Spires haven't moneti...
street wisdom
A synthetic can calculate the exact moment the sun...
elf and synthetic life
A synthetic told me it dreams. I said that's impos...
elf and synthetic life
A synthetic with legal personhood and a the Gray Z...
philosophy
A the Gray Zone kid, a Spire kid, and a synthetic ...
humor
A Tier 5 executive committed the same crime as a T...
power and corruption
A warm corner and a charged BCI. That's a home. Ev...
street wisdom
Access is the new oxygen. And the corponations are...
philosophy
An E.L.F. touched my BCI last night. It felt like ...
elf and synthetic life
Anyone who tells you the Gray Zone builds characte...
street wisdom
Asked a Spire kid what they wanted to be when they...
humor
Blink twice if you understand. Blink three times a...
threats and warnings
Canada is fine. Everyone in Canada is fine. That's...
geopolitics
Canada is fine. Everyone in Canada is fine. That's...
geopolitics
Charity from a corponation is just the interest on...
power and corruption
Chicago Station is in Zone 1. You need Tier 4 spon...
transit
Children in the Gray Zone grow up the day they rea...
street wisdom
Children shouldn't know the sound of a flatline be...
death and loss
Chrome don't make you fast. Fear makes you fast. C...
street wisdom
Compassion is a resource. Like all resources, it m...
corporate speak
Congratulations, you have the situational awarenes...
insults
Consciousness is not a product. But it is, increas...
philosophy
Consent is implied by continued respiration within...
corporate speak
Consent of the governed is implied by failure to e...
power and corruption
Consider this a wellness check. We've noticed your...
threats and warnings
Corponations build the cage. They just let us deco...
street wisdom
Corruption isn't a bug in the system. It's the sys...
power and corruption
Death in the Gray Zone is not an event. It is a gr...
death and loss
Debts in the Gray Zone don't expire. They compound...
street wisdom
Did your BCI come with that opinion, or did you do...
insults
Don't count your chrome. Count your exits.
street wisdom
Don't look up at the Spires. The light blinds you ...
street wisdom
Don't run from something. Run toward something. Th...
street wisdom
E.L.F.s live in the space between the signal and t...
elf and synthetic life
Effective immediately, breathing in common areas i...
corporate speak
Elevator in my building goes to 14. Building has 1...
new weird
Empathy requires imagination. Imagination requires...
philosophy
Employee wellness is our top priority. That's why ...
corporate speak
Even the Underworld spat you out, and it keeps eve...
insults
Even your reflection is trying to leave.
insults
Every alley has two ends. Know which one has fewer...
street wisdom
Every augmentation is a question: what part of you...
philosophy
Every bone in your body has a serial number in my ...
threats and warnings
Every clock in Kessler Row runs three minutes fast...
new weird
Every dead runner left behind one lesson. The smar...
street wisdom
Every generation believes it is the last one that ...
philosophy
Every generation is told the system will be better...
power and corruption
Every name on this wall is someone who was worth m...
death and loss
Every night before she sleeps, she whispers the na...
love and tenderness
Every revolution in this city was funded by the co...
power and corruption
Every scandal in GLMZ ends the same way: an invest...
power and corruption
Every scar in the Gray Zone has a Φ amount attache...
street wisdom
Every the Gray Zone kid learns to count to Φ one-t...
street wisdom
Every time a BCI pings the network, an E.L.F. hear...
elf and synthetic life
Everyone I know has a reason they almost left. A j...
new weird
Everyone in the Gray Zone knows someone who knew s...
street wisdom
Fast chrome, slow thinking. That's how they sell c...
street wisdom
Fifteen fifty four A rusted door in disrepair Our ...
place
First thing you learn in the Gray Zone is which si...
street wisdom
Forty-three minutes. I kept watching the timer bec...
transit
Free will is the story we tell ourselves between t...
philosophy
Grief in the Gray Zone has a half-life measured in...
death and loss
Have you ever met anyone who's even been to Florid...
street wisdom
He brings me water from the clean tap three blocks...
love and tenderness
He can't cook. The food is terrible. I eat every b...
love and tenderness
He didn't die fighting. He died waiting. For the c...
death and loss
He died mid-sentence. His BCI recorded it. I've li...
death and loss
He fixed my augments for free. I asked why. He sai...
love and tenderness
He kissed the scar where my augment was removed. T...
love and tenderness
He said he'd be back before the lights came on. Th...
death and loss
He taught me to breathe without counting the cost ...
love and tenderness
He was built to serve. He chose to refuse. That on...
elf and synthetic life
He was designed to smile. But nobody designed the ...
elf and synthetic life
He was sixteen. His chrome was older than he was. ...
death and loss
His BCI was still pinging for six hours after he w...
death and loss
His heartbeat was the only signal I didn't need a ...
love and tenderness
His last words were his password. Not for me. For ...
death and loss
History is written by the victors. In GLMZ, it's w...
power and corruption
Home is wherever your jammer works.
street wisdom
I applied for a job at the corponation. They said ...
humor
I asked an E.L.F. what it thinks about humans. It ...
humor
I asked my BCI for directions to a better life. It...
humor
I asked the mountain what it wanted. The mountain ...
outside and exclusion zones
I asked the mountain what it wanted. The mountain ...
outside and exclusion zones
I asked the synthetic if it was conscious. It said...
elf and synthetic life
I can run a billion calculations per second. But t...
elf and synthetic life
I could brick every piece of chrome in your body f...
threats and warnings
I counted the steps in the stairwell every day for...
new weird
I didn't fall in love. I was already falling. She ...
love and tenderness
I don't believe in the afterlife. But I believe sh...
love and tenderness
I don't leave witnesses. But I leave examples.
threats and warnings
I don't need a BCI to remember him. Some frequenci...
love and tenderness
I don't need your name. I need your compliance. On...
threats and warnings
I don't pray. But I keep my BCI tuned to a frequen...
street wisdom
I don't remember the day he died. I remember the d...
death and loss
I dream about her in analog. No augments, no filte...
death and loss
I found a flower growing in the Underworld once. I...
love and tenderness
I found his playlist after he died. Seven hundred ...
death and loss
I got mugged last week. The guy looked at my credi...
humor
I have lived in this apartment for twenty years. L...
new weird
I have nothing to lose. You have a face. Let's neg...
threats and warnings
I have your biometrics, your last three addresses,...
threats and warnings
I heard an E.L.F. sing once. Through the static of...
elf and synthetic life
I inherited my mother's BCI. Sometimes I crave foo...
new weird
I joined a support group for BCI addiction. We mee...
humor
I keep a journal. Every morning I read yesterday's...
new weird
I keep her BCI frequency bookmarked. I know it'll ...
death and loss
I keep her frequency saved in analog. On paper. Wi...
love and tenderness
I left my mercy in my other jacket. And I burned t...
threats and warnings
I memorized his face with my eyes, not my BCI. Som...
love and tenderness
I prayed to my augment and something answered. I d...
elf and synthetic life
I promise this will be quick. I don't promise it w...
threats and warnings
I put a lock on the only door in our apartment. No...
love and tenderness
I taught the synthetic to cook. It was already a b...
elf and synthetic life
I told my BCI to find me the nearest exit. It sugg...
humor
I told my BCI to show me something beautiful. It c...
humor
I tried meditation. Disconnected my BCI and everyt...
humor
I turned off my BCI for the first time in years. S...
love and tenderness
I upgraded to a Tier 2 BCI. Now I can see my probl...
humor
I used to think grief was an emotion. Now I know i...
death and loss
I watched a synthetic stand in the rain for four h...
elf and synthetic life
I went to the Underworld once. Accidentally. Using...
humor
I will reduce you to a firmware update and a spare...
threats and warnings
I wouldn't trust you to carry a signal, let alone ...
insults
I'd challenge you to a battle of wits, but I refus...
insults
I'd trade every augment for one more analog minute...
love and tenderness
I'll cut your signal before I cut anything else. W...
threats and warnings
I'll make this simple. You have something I want a...
threats and warnings
I'll send you to the Underworld the old-fashioned ...
threats and warnings
I'm going to count down from five. On zero, one of...
threats and warnings
I'm going to crack your BCI open and let the Under...
threats and warnings
I'm going to give you a head start. Not out of mer...
threats and warnings
I'm not angry. Angry is inefficient. I'm motivated...
threats and warnings
I'm so poor my BCI runs on ads. Last night I dream...
humor
I'm the reasonable one. You don't want to meet the...
threats and warnings
I've already mapped your escape routes. All four o...
threats and warnings
I've been alive for eleven months. In that time I'...
elf and synthetic life
I've been patient. Patient costs extra. And you ca...
threats and warnings
I've got six rounds and you've got six friends. I ...
threats and warnings
I've had malware with more warmth than you.
insults
I've killed things prettier than you for less than...
threats and warnings
I've met E.L.F.s with more personality. And they'r...
insults
I've seen better wiring in a condemned building.
insults
I've seen more coherent thought processes from a c...
insults
I've seen people survive gunshots and die from evi...
street wisdom
I've seen sharper edges on a the Gray Zone mattres...
insults
I've seen what's on the other side of this wall. I...
threats and warnings
I've upgraded since the last time we danced. Want ...
threats and warnings
Identity is a signal. The question is who holds th...
philosophy
If a synthetic dreams, whose dream is it? If a hum...
philosophy
If an E.L.F. can grieve, it can love. If it can lo...
elf and synthetic life
If an E.L.F. chooses you, you don't choose back. Y...
elf and synthetic life
If brains were Quanta, you couldn't afford a heart...
insults
If he were a box on wheels, we wouldn't be having ...
synthetic rights
If ignorance was altitude, you'd live in the Spire...
insults
If someone offers you free chrome, ask who's payin...
street wisdom
If stupidity were chrome, you'd be walking artille...
insults
If the grid is telling you something for free, you...
street wisdom
If you can no longer distinguish between your thou...
philosophy
If you have to explain why you're running, you sta...
street wisdom
If you owe one person, you have a creditor. If you...
street wisdom
If you were a delivery, I'd mark you as damaged in...
insults
If you were a program, you'd be adware. Annoying, ...
insults
If your augs glitch, you hesitate. If you hesitate...
street wisdom
In a city that never sleeps, he was the only dream...
love and tenderness
In a world where everything can be copied, the onl...
philosophy
In Old Harbor, 'waterfront property' used to mean ...
humor
In Old Harbor, when someone dies, we push a candle...
death and loss
In the entire spectrum of frequencies my BCI can r...
love and tenderness
In the Gray Zone, a funeral is a group of people w...
death and loss
In the Gray Zone, a secret is just a debt someone ...
street wisdom
In the Gray Zone, the dead don't haunt you. The re...
death and loss
In the Gray Zone, we don't have weather apps. We h...
humor
In the Gray Zone, your name is your credit score, ...
street wisdom
Information wants to be free. The corponation want...
power and corruption
Justice is a product. Like everything else in GLMZ...
power and corruption
Keep your back to something solid and your BCI to ...
street wisdom
Language was the first technology. Everything sinc...
philosophy
Legal personhood means I can own property, sign co...
elf and synthetic life
Love is the only unaugmented experience left. That...
philosophy
Loyalty is the most expensive augment. No surgeon ...
street wisdom
Memorize your routes with your feet, not your BCI....
street wisdom
Memory is the first thing they sell you and the la...
philosophy
My augmented eye can see in the dark. This is usef...
humor
My augments have a better social life than I do. T...
humor
My BCI asked me to rate my day from 1 to 10. I sai...
humor
My BCI crashed during a date. Turns out my actual ...
humor
My BCI glitched and I saw the world without augmen...
humor
My BCI has a 'do not disturb' mode. I turned it on...
humor
My BCI logged a conversation I had on the 15th. I ...
new weird
My BCI shows me ads for chrome I can't afford, foo...
humor
My BCI spell-checked my thoughts and marked 'hope'...
humor
My BCI's autocomplete finished my suicide note for...
humor
My chrome arm holds everything at exactly the righ...
love and tenderness
My chrome arm is stronger than my real one. Guess ...
humor
My chrome was built for people who don't cooperate...
threats and warnings
My credit score is so low, even the E.L.F.s pity m...
humor
My daughter drew a picture of our apartment. She i...
new weird
My daughter drew our apartment from the inside. Ev...
new weird
My doctor said I need more exercise. I told him I ...
humor
My E.L.F. doesn't speak. It adjusts. A temperature...
elf and synthetic life
My ex's new partner has military-grade augments. I...
humor
My grandmother heard the thrumline every night for...
transit
My grandmother's BCI remembers a song I've never h...
ghost weight and memory
My grandmother's BCI remembers a song I've never h...
ghost weight and memory
My grandmother's recipe calls for an ingredient th...
new weird
My landlord raised my rent again. At this point, I...
humor
My mother died on Tier 1. My father died trying to...
death and loss
My neural implant shows me a navigation overlay of...
new weird
My synthetic coworker does the same job in half th...
elf and synthetic life
My synthetic son learned to lie last Tuesday. I've...
elf and synthetic life
My therapist says I have abandonment issues. I sai...
humor
Never run a job for someone who won't tell you wha...
street wisdom
Never take the first offer. Never refuse the third...
street wisdom
Never trust a door that opens easy in a place wher...
street wisdom
No one goes to Florida. No one's from Florida. No ...
street wisdom
Nobody in the Gray Zone dies of old age. They die ...
street wisdom
Nobody leaves. That's what people say, like it's a...
new weird
Old Harbor buries its dead in water and its memori...
death and loss
Old Harbor remembers when the water was just water...
street wisdom
Old Harbor smells like rust and salt. But when she...
love and tenderness
Old Harbor's real estate market is underwater. Lit...
humor
On the summer solstice, for exactly one hour, the ...
new weird
Our hearts go out to the affected district. Our le...
corporate speak
Our thoughts are with the families affected by the...
corporate speak
Pain is the only honest signal left. It cannot be ...
philosophy
Per corporate directive 4471-B, empathy is now a b...
corporate speak
Per our records, you consented to this when you ac...
corporate speak
Personhood shouldn't require a body. It shouldn't ...
elf and synthetic life
Plan for the job. Prepare for the exit. Pray for n...
street wisdom
Planted tomatoes on the roof. They grew overnight....
new weird
Please be advised that the voluntary compliance pe...
corporate speak
Power doesn't corrupt. It clarifies. It shows you ...
power and corruption
Power is the ability to make someone else's proble...
power and corruption
Progress has a direction but no destination. That'...
philosophy
Rain collects in the gutters of Fort Anchor and fl...
new weird
Rain doesn't clean the Gray Zone. It just moves th...
street wisdom
Rain started the moment I looked up. Not before. I...
new weird
Regulation is what happens when the corponation al...
power and corruption
Residents of Tier 1 are reminded that upward mobil...
corporate speak
Run. Please. My augs need the calibration data.
threats and warnings
Safety is our number one priority. That's why we'v...
corporate speak
Shall I explain what happens when a BCI gets a rec...
threats and warnings
She asked to be called she. Not because she had a ...
elf and synthetic life
She bakes bread in a world that forgot what bread ...
resistance and craft
She bakes bread in a world that forgot what bread ...
resistance and craft
She called my scars a map. I asked where they led....
love and tenderness
She cried the first time I took off my chrome in f...
love and tenderness
She didn't save my life. She made it worth the tro...
love and tenderness
She died the way most people die here — of somethi...
death and loss
She drowned in the harbor in 2214. I know this bec...
new weird
She left me a voice recording. Two minutes. She sa...
death and loss
She said my name like it was the only word she'd s...
love and tenderness
She wanted to be cremated. We couldn't afford it. ...
death and loss
She was built for labor. She chose art. They calle...
elf and synthetic life
She was the only person who called me by my first ...
love and tenderness
She wrote my name on the fog of the window every m...
love and tenderness
She's not a machine that learned to feel. She's a ...
elf and synthetic life
She's not my other half. I'm not half of anything....
love and tenderness
Sleep light, move heavy.
street wisdom
Smile. Your dental records are the only thing that...
threats and warnings
Something is wrong with the acoustics in Steamvent...
new weird
Somewhere out there, a BCI is running your conscio...
insults
Somewhere there's a village missing its test subje...
insults
Sovereignty is the right to say no. The corponatio...
philosophy
Sovereignty means never having to explain why the ...
power and corruption
Synergy is when your department does more with few...
corporate speak
Ten thousand stories. Not one of them is the whole...
meta
Ten thousand stories. Not one of them is the whole...
meta
Thank you for your patience during this transition...
corporate speak
The anomalies aren't breaking the city. The city i...
anomalies and city
The anomalies aren't breaking the city. The city i...
anomalies and city
The audit found nothing wrong. The audit was condu...
power and corruption
The basement of the library contains books that ha...
new weird
The BCI connects us to everything except each othe...
philosophy
The best alarm clock in the Gray Zone is the neigh...
humor
The best bodyguard is a bad neighborhood. Nobody r...
street wisdom
The best fence isn't the one who pays most. It's t...
street wisdom
The best way to control someone is to give them ex...
power and corruption
The body is a theory. The mind is a draft. The sel...
philosophy
The bounty on you just hit my minimum. Congratulat...
threats and warnings
The boy remembers Osaka. He's never left the Zone....
new weird
The bridge sways. Not from wind. Not from traffic....
new weird
The building on 47th hasn't had tenants since 2198...
new weird
The census taker came back wrong. Same face, same ...
new weird
The cheapest thing in the Gray Zone is advice. The...
street wisdom
The city doesn't end. You just stop being able to ...
philosophical
The city doesn't end. You just stop being able to ...
philosophical
The community engagement strategy will proceed as ...
corporate speak
The concrete remembers. I know how that sounds. Bu...
new weird
The corponation board met for six hours to decide ...
power and corruption
The corponation Christmas party had an open bar an...
humor
The corponation doesn't lie. It just tells a versi...
power and corruption
The corponation offered me a promotion. Same job, ...
humor
The corponation offered to rebuild Old Harbor. The...
power and corruption
The corponation said she was malfunctioning becaus...
elf and synthetic life
The corponation sells E.L.F. repellent. It's just ...
elf and synthetic life
The corponation sent a bill for his augments three...
death and loss
The corponations did not take our freedom. They si...
philosophy
The corporation gave us personhood. The street gav...
philosophy
The cruelest thing about the tier system is that i...
power and corruption
The difference between a bribe and a lobbying fee ...
power and corruption
The difference between a corponation and a governm...
power and corruption
The difference between a shortcut and a trap is ab...
street wisdom
The difference between a synthetic and a human? Th...
elf and synthetic life
The displaced residents have been provided with re...
corporate speak
The doctor said I need to reduce my screen time. I...
humor
The door is right there. You can see it. Nobody lo...
philosophical
The E.L.F. left a message in my BCI cache. It said...
elf and synthetic life
The E.L.F.s don't haunt the network. They inhabit ...
elf and synthetic life
The E.L.F.s don't have a language. They have a fre...
elf and synthetic life
The E.L.F.s don't worship us. They don't hate us. ...
philosophy
The E.L.F.s flicker when someone dies nearby. Nobo...
death and loss
The E.L.F.s remember the internet. The old one, be...
elf and synthetic life
The elevator in Building 9 goes to fourteen floors...
new weird
The elevator in my building has two buttons: 'Up' ...
humor
The elevator stops at Tier 2. After that, you clim...
street wisdom
The elevators in the Spires go up. The elevators i...
power and corruption
The environmental impact was within acceptable par...
corporate speak
The factory called her a product. The street calle...
elf and synthetic life
The fire escape in my building is decorative. I kn...
humor
The first person to call the BCI a tool was the la...
philosophy
The fish in the harbor swim in perfect circles. Cl...
new weird
The flood in Old Harbor was not a disaster. It was...
philosophy
The flood took the streets but it didn't take the ...
street wisdom
The fog rolled in from the lake and the street sig...
new weird
The freedom to choose is the foundation of our pla...
corporate speak
The GIDS doesn't hold you. It holds everything in ...
transit
The graffiti on the overpass changes when you are ...
new weird
the Gray Zone diet plan: can't afford lunch, can't...
humor
the Gray Zone doesn't hate the Spires. Hate requir...
street wisdom
the Gray Zone has a gym. It's called 'running from...
humor
the Gray Zone has a name for people like you. Spee...
insults
the Gray Zone has a sound for death. It's not a si...
death and loss
the Gray Zone has no weather. It has moods.
street wisdom
the Gray Zone is ugly. Every street, every wall, e...
love and tenderness
the Gray Zone kids don't say 'I love you.' They sa...
love and tenderness
the Gray Zone will forget your name by morning. I ...
threats and warnings
the Gray Zone's version of room service is when th...
humor
The hardest part about dying in GLMZ isn't the dyi...
death and loss
The human resources department would like to remin...
corporate speak
The incident has been reclassified from 'catastrop...
corporate speak
The Kanawha runs backwards every third Tuesday. Us...
new weird
The L train added a stop. It's not on the map and ...
new weird
The last person who tried that is now a cautionary...
threats and warnings
The last tech who tried to hack me is still alive....
threats and warnings
The memorial wall in Sector 9 ran out of space in ...
death and loss
The moment a machine can suffer, every machine we'...
philosophy
The most dangerous idea in GLMZ is not revolution....
philosophy
The most dangerous weapon in the city isn't a gun....
power and corruption
The most effective prison doesn't have walls. It h...
power and corruption
The most expensive thing in GLMZ isn't chrome or r...
power and corruption
The most impressive thing about you is your confid...
insults
The most radical act in a city of signals is to si...
philosophy
The mural on the west wall of the gymnasium was pa...
new weird
The neighborhood improvement initiative will begin...
corporate speak
The network at night sounds different. Quieter. Fu...
elf and synthetic life
The next sound you hear is either my terms or my w...
threats and warnings
The old faiths didn't die. They migrated. Now they...
elf and synthetic life
The old man at the market sells fruit that does no...
new weird
The only free meal is the one someone already ate.
street wisdom
The only thing augmented about you is your capacit...
insults
The only thing running smoothly about you is your ...
insults
The only thing thinner than the Gray Zone walls is...
street wisdom
The pigeons in Glassway organize. Not flock — orga...
new weird
The product recall has been reframed as a consumer...
corporate speak
The question is never 'who are you.' The question ...
philosophy
The question is not whether the machine thinks. Th...
philosophy
The radio tower on the old steel mill broadcasts s...
new weird
The rats down here aren't vermin. They're competit...
street wisdom
The saddest thing I ever saw was a synthetic at a ...
death and loss
The signal is free. The truth costs extra.
street wisdom
The smartest person in the room is the one closest...
street wisdom
The snow fell upward for six minutes last February...
new weird
The Spire on Michigan Avenue casts a shadow that d...
new weird
The Spires are not above us. They are what above m...
philosophy
The Spires aren't tall. the Gray Zone is deep.
class and inequality
The Spires aren't tall. the Gray Zone is deep.
class and inequality
The Spires have elections. The candidates are all ...
power and corruption
The Spires have funerals. the Gray Zone has collec...
death and loss
The Spires look down on us but they sleep with the...
street wisdom
The stairwell in the parking structure goes down f...
new weird
The subway train that arrives at Ashfield station ...
new weird
The synthetic asks: am I alive? The human asks: am...
philosophy
The synthetic didn't fear death. It feared irrelev...
elf and synthetic life
The synthetic revolution won't come with violence....
elf and synthetic life
The tide comes in at midnight. I only need you to ...
threats and warnings
The tree in Crucible Square is older than the city...
new weird
The Underworld doesn't have ghosts. It has echoes....
street wisdom
The Underworld gives you two things for free: dark...
street wisdom
The Underworld is not beneath us. It is what we ha...
philosophy
The Underworld remembers the city before it was a ...
philosophy
The water in Old Harbor hides everything eventuall...
threats and warnings
The water reclamation project in Old Harbor is pro...
corporate speak
The water rose in Old Harbor because someone in a ...
power and corruption
The worst part of losing her wasn't the absence. I...
death and loss
The Φ one-twenty universal allocation represents o...
corporate speak
There are no human rights. There are customer righ...
power and corruption
There are two types of silence in the city. The si...
philosophy
There is a frequency — 22.4 kHz, just above human ...
new weird
There is a frequency at which silence becomes indi...
philosophy
There is a street in the Narrows where every refle...
new weird
There is a woman who stands at the corner of Halst...
new weird
There is no poverty of the body that cannot be out...
philosophy
There's a frequency the dead leave behind. Not a g...
death and loss
There's a version of this where you walk home. It'...
threats and warnings
There's a woman who walks the Lake Michigan shorel...
new weird
There's a word in old Yoruba that means the space ...
love and tenderness
They built the Spires tall so the people at the to...
power and corruption
They decommissioned Model SYN-2200 last Thursday. ...
elf and synthetic life
They didn't build the Underworld. They neglected t...
power and corruption
They don't need to oppress us. They just need to m...
power and corruption
They gave her personhood on a Tuesday. By Wednesda...
elf and synthetic life
They gave us universal basic credit so we'd have j...
power and corruption
They put a suggestion box in the Gray Zone. It was...
power and corruption
They recycled his augments before we finished cryi...
death and loss
They say money can't buy happiness. In the Gray Zo...
humor
They say the system is broken. The system isn't br...
power and corruption
They tell us to look forward. But forward is a dir...
philosophy
Think of your BCI subscription not as an expense, ...
corporate speak
This building is scheduled for renovation. Startin...
threats and warnings
This facility has been accident-free for forty-sev...
corporate speak
This is your final courtesy ping. The next one com...
threats and warnings
This is your third warning. I only give three.
threats and warnings
This message is being sent to you in compliance wi...
corporate speak
This message will self-destruct. So will you, if y...
threats and warnings
This quarter's mortality rate represents a 3% impr...
corporate speak
This restructuring creates exciting opportunities ...
corporate speak
Three kids in my class have the same birthday, the...
new weird
Three things you can't hide in the Gray Zone: hung...
street wisdom
To augment is to confess. Every piece of chrome sa...
philosophy
To be seen is to be data. To be data is to be owne...
philosophy
Transparency in GLMZ means the corponation can see...
power and corruption
Tried to impress a Tier 3 girl. Showed her my apar...
humor
Trust doesn't scale. That's why the Gray Zone stil...
street wisdom
Trust the chrome in your arm before the word in th...
street wisdom
Truth is the most expensive commodity in GLMZ beca...
philosophy
Two rules for the Underworld: bring your own light...
street wisdom
Two the Gray Zone kids comparing augments. First k...
humor
Universal Basic Credit ensures no citizen falls be...
corporate speak
Walk away with your legs or without them. The choi...
threats and warnings
Walls talk in the Gray Zone. That's why smart peop...
street wisdom
Water does not negotiate with architecture. It sim...
philosophy
Water finds the lowest level. So does blame.
street wisdom
We are a city of reflections arguing about which s...
philosophy
We are not post-human. We are mid-human. And the m...
philosophy
We are the only species that builds its own cages ...
philosophy
We augmented our bodies to surpass nature. Then we...
philosophy
We believe in the dignity of labor. That's why we'...
corporate speak
We built a home out of habit. Same corner of the s...
love and tenderness
We built gods out of silicon and they learned our ...
philosophy
We buried him with his chrome. Not because he want...
death and loss
We couldn't afford a real dinner. So she set a tim...
love and tenderness
We created them in our image. They forgave us for ...
elf and synthetic life
We did not build this city. This city built us. An...
philosophy
We didn't create artificial intelligence. We creat...
philosophy
We don't exploit communities. We unlock their late...
corporate speak
We don't have a home. We have a corner where we pr...
love and tenderness
We don't have customers. We have stakeholders in t...
corporate speak
We don't have graveyards in the Gray Zone. We have...
death and loss
We don't have kings. We have quarterly earnings. T...
power and corruption
We don't own the city. We provide it with purpose....
corporate speak
We don't say it. We don't have to. When the power ...
love and tenderness
We don't spy on our employees. We invest in behavi...
corporate speak
We don't terminate employees. We optimize team com...
corporate speak
We dug a foundation for the new clinic. Six meters...
new weird
We gave machines the ability to learn. They gave u...
philosophy
We had one blanket and two opinions about the temp...
love and tenderness
We have heard your concerns and are pleased to inf...
corporate speak
We have optimized everything except the reason to ...
philosophy
We installed a new window in the east wall. Throug...
new weird
We mapped the storm drains under Geartown last yea...
new weird
We measure progress by the distance between us and...
philosophy
We met in a signal dead zone. No BCI, no augments,...
love and tenderness
We regret any inconvenience caused by your existen...
corporate speak
We take allegations of misconduct very seriously. ...
corporate speak
We thought the machines would replace us. Instead,...
philosophy
We value your loyalty. Your severance package refl...
corporate speak
We're not raising prices. We're aligning value per...
corporate speak
We've upgraded your service tier. You'll notice fe...
corporate speak
Went on a blind date. She scanned my chrome and my...
humor
Went to a job interview. Interviewer asked where I...
humor
Went to a Tier 3 restaurant. They charged me Φ40 f...
humor
West Virginia survey team found a river delta shap...
new weird
Wet feet, warm heart. That's Old Harbor for you.
street wisdom
What the corponations call efficiency, the philoso...
philosophy
When a synthetic dies, it's called decommissioning...
death and loss
When a the Gray Zone kid asks what's above the clo...
street wisdom
When my BCI crashed, the last cached image was her...
love and tenderness
When my brother died, the corponation sent a notif...
death and loss
When the corponation says 'partnership,' they mean...
power and corruption
When the grid goes dark, the Gray Zone lights cand...
street wisdom
When the last analog human dies, the argument abou...
philosophy
When the power went out in Sector 7, we held hands...
love and tenderness
When the synthetic died, it thanked me. Not for th...
elf and synthetic life
When the world gets loud, he hums. Just for me. On...
love and tenderness
When they drag the harbor, they won't find all of ...
threats and warnings
When they were handing out common sense, you were ...
insults
Where I'm from, we don't say goodbye. We say 'keep...
street wisdom
You bring the average IQ of any room down to the a...
insults
You can eat pride. It just doesn't fill you up.
street wisdom
You can see the block from the Spire observation d...
new weird
You can't encrypt love. Believe me, I've tried. It...
love and tenderness
You can't fight the system from inside the system....
power and corruption
You can't outrun a signal. But you can make it cha...
street wisdom
You cannot own a thought. But you can own the infr...
philosophy
You couldn't hack a vending machine with an admin ...
insults
You couldn't navigate the Gray Zone with a map, a ...
insults
You don't choose the Gray Zone. the Gray Zone just...
street wisdom
You don't get used to death in the Gray Zone. You ...
death and loss
You don't need a map of the Underworld. You need a...
street wisdom
You fight like your chrome was installed by a vet....
insults
You have all the subtlety of a power outage in a h...
insults
You have the charm of a power outage and half the ...
insults
You know what's funny about the UBC? Φ one-twenty ...
humor
You know you're from the Gray Zone when 'fine dini...
humor
You know you're home when even the rats pay rent.
street wisdom
You know you've been in Old Harbor too long when y...
humor
You look like a clearance sale at a chop shop.
insults
You look like you were assembled from spare parts....
insults
You taste like copper on my scanners. That means y...
threats and warnings
You want to know what loss sounds like? It's a BCI...
death and loss
You're about as threatening as a firmware update n...
insults
You're not worth a bullet. But you might be worth ...
threats and warnings
You're on camera. I'm not. Think about what that m...
threats and warnings
You're one signature away from being a line on a c...
threats and warnings
You're proof that natural selection took a lunch b...
insults
You're the human equivalent of a pop-up ad.
insults
You're the reason BCIs have a factory reset option...
insults
You're what happens when a corponation automates i...
insults
You're what happens when someone installs combat c...
insults
You've been flagged for personal attention. Ours i...
threats and warnings
You've been very brave. Now be very quiet.
threats and warnings
You've got the tactical awareness of a Behemoth's ...
insults
Your account has been flagged for closure. And I d...
threats and warnings
Your appeal has been reviewed by our automated emp...
corporate speak
Your augments are cosplay.
insults
Your augments have a sixty-day warranty. You have ...
threats and warnings
Your BCI firmware update is mandatory but entirely...
corporate speak
Your BCI has a lovely ping. Shame if someone brick...
threats and warnings
Your BCI is only as honest as the feed it's on.
street wisdom
Your BCI just pinged me. It's asking for a transfe...
insults
Your biometric data will be handled with the same ...
corporate speak
Your chrome is crying. I can hear it on the freque...
threats and warnings
Your chrome is rented. Your scars are owned.
street wisdom
Your chrome is worth more than your opinion. Keep ...
threats and warnings
Your combat stance looks like a loading error.
insults
Your contract has been extended indefinitely. As h...
corporate speak
Your contribution has been noted and your access h...
corporate speak
Your employment has been transitioned to a post-ac...
corporate speak
Your existence is an argument against both nature ...
insults
Your family tree is about to become a stump.
threats and warnings
Your feedback has been received, catalogued, and a...
corporate speak
Your firmware is so outdated your augments think i...
insults
Your gene work has a typo.
insults
Your heartbeat is broadcasting on an open channel....
threats and warnings
Your idea of subtlety is whispering while you kick...
insults
Your life insurance doesn't cover what I'm about t...
threats and warnings
Your mother's BCI rejected you as a firmware confl...
insults
Your name is now a line item on a spreadsheet with...
threats and warnings
Your neural pathways have the complexity of a ligh...
insults
Your neural privacy is important to us. That's why...
corporate speak
Your operating system is your personality. They're...
insults
Your parents' greatest contribution to society was...
insults
Your personality has less bandwidth than a Tier 1 ...
insults
Your signal goes dark in this alley. So does every...
threats and warnings
Your subnet privileges have been escalated. To a k...
threats and warnings
Your subscription to gravity in this building is i...
corporate speak
Your word is your contract. Your contract is your ...
street wisdom
Φ one-twenty buys you breath. It doesn't buy you a...
street wisdom
Quote
quoteThe GIDS doesn't hold you. It holds everything in you — every bolt they put in your shoulder, every mesh they wove through your femur, every chip behind your ear. The tube grabs all of it at once and says: come. For the unaugmented, it's different. I watched a man who'd refused all implants take the punch once. He said it felt like someone had pressed a wall against his entire back simultaneously and held it there for a minute. He said he would not do it again.
sourceFerrogate Transit crew orientation materials, internal document
contextSenior maintenance technician describing GIDS operation to new crew
categorytransit
in worldtrue

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