Volume I — Arc 1 — Epoch I
[Cycle 021 | Pulse 48:50:00 — Visitor vet / Supervised record → Log: chronicler arrival → steward vet + supervised demo → apprentice note show → Crosspath guard → trustee escort → Channel: secure → public digest on close]
Aurelius: "A man who carries a pen can lift a lane or lay a trap. Let him sit where wax cools and let trustees watch his hand. A record must be given, not taken."
Aurelia: "Yes. Share craft with calm. Give paper under seal; give words under watch. If a town teaches, it should sign its terms first."
Clerk (soft): [TASK] Chronicler roll — Mode: visitor vet + steward copy hold + supervised demo + apprentice show + Crosspath vet + trustee escort + record seal. Team: Magistrate Korran (steward cue), Crosspath Halek (trace), River Step trustees Mira & Len (liaison & escort), keeper Tomas (index), keeper Halen (overwatch), tutors Bryn & Kalen (demo), apprentices Nia & Jorren (lead), deputies Mina & Jor (escort/witness), courier guide Morn (clerk & intake). Objectives: vet chronicler credentials; allow supervised note if steward copy lodged; run apprentice demo for chronicler under trustee seal; redact any sensitive tag or manifest detail; anchor: CL-0110.chronicler.vet. Channel: secure → public.
He arrived at noon with a wet cloak and a small roll of bound paper at his belt, a quiet man with eyes that had read long lines. He called himself a chronicler, a maker of maps and men's acts, and he said he traveled to collect simple practices for a city compendium of small ports. He did not stride; he asked. The steward's hand likes such manners, and Halek's tracer went slow and patient to town lanes that had seen many buskers and fewer honest men.
Chronicler (plain): "I write for a ledger of lanes. I mean to note craft, not to sell scandal. If you will let me record, I will leave two sealed pages: one for your steward, one for the city archive. No public print without your word."
Halek folded the man's line into the thin roll and asked for guild seal or a city note. The chronicler produced a stamped ribbon from the same guild class the scribe had once worn; his mark matched a traveler's muster rather than a summons. Halek did not smile; he only asked the steady question any Crosspath man loves: what will you carry and to whom will you show it?
Halek: "We let secrets stay closed. Show your seal and name the people who will read your draft. If your intent is teaching, we allow a steward copy first and a trustee to hold the record. No open print without steward consent."
Clerk: [REQUEST] Chronicler creds CL-0110.chronicler.req — guild muster; reading list; two witness names.
The chronicler unrolled one small page and let his ink show a plain line: A lane that folds keeps law small. He pledged that any public copy would not name men or reveal manifest tags, only the motions of fold, seal, and witness. That eased Halek a degree, but Crosspath asks for steward sight before any note leaves a bench. Magistrate Korran called for a steward copy, a trustee escort, and a supervised demo if the lane would show its fold.
Magistrate Korran: "We will allow a field note if the steward keeps a sealed copy. Trustees will watch the demo and redact manifest or shard tags. Let the workshop show craft, not case. Keep the lane's name quiet."
Clerk: [DECIDE] Steward hold CL-0110.steward.hold — steward copy first; trustee escort CL-0110.escort; demo supervise CL-0110.demo.sup.
Morn set a small lamp on the slab and arranged the apprentice team. Jorren and Nia would lead the demo: fold a mirror trip, seal with wax, pin witness, log the trip code in the little index. The chronicler would sit under trustee sight and draft the motion by hand; the steward would receive a sealed copy at close. Tutors Bryn and Kalen agreed to show the adjusted press sample and to withhold any manifest or pallet detail. The rules were plain: show motion, not men.
Jorren (steady): "We fold by top line, band snug, wax press quick, pin witness. We do the steps twice. If you write, do not ask for names. We bind craft, not case."
Clerk: [SCHEDULE] Demo slot CL-0110.demo.slot — apprentices lead; tutors stand; trustee witness CL-0110.trustee.wit.
The market gathered like it does for useful work — not to stare but to learn. The chronicler seated himself on a low stool with a blank sheet. He watched the apprentices' hands as they moved: Tomas read the index to find a micro-slip, Nia matched mirror code to pad, Jorren folded the linen band and set the wax. Mina and Len pinned witness. The chronicler's pen moved but never faster than his eyes; he copied motion, not names.
Chronicler (soft): "I will draw the fold as a sketch, note steps, and leave the steward a sealed copy. I ask only for the pattern, not the person. If you ask me to redact, I will.
Halek kept a quiet pen. He watched more than he spoke. A man who records craft can help a lane teach others, but he can also hand a map to hands that twist a tool into a lever. Crosspath's vet meant that anything the chronicler recorded for public use must pass steward review and Crosspath redaction. The steward agreed to that filter; the chronicler accepted.
Halek: "We will read your draft before you move it to public. Anything that names a tag, manifest, or a man will be held. If your note keeps to motion and habit, we sign a steward copy for the archive."
Clerk: [ATTACH] Crosspath vet CL-0110.crosspath.vet — redaction clause CL-0110.redact; steward review path CL-0110.steward.path.
The apprentices ran the demo twice. Each fold was method and small talk: the wax flowed warm under Morn's hand, the pin clicked, the mirror trip got a neat code. The chronicler drew a small sketch of the hand fold and wrote a short line on witness protocol. He left a sealed page for the steward and another bound to show the guild scribe in the city if the steward passed it on. Halek marked the steward copy with a tracer ribbon and the man left with a clear pledge.
Chronicler (bow): "Thank you. I leave a steward copy sealed and another for the guild once you permit. I will not print names. If the steward asks redaction, I will follow his hand."
Clerk: [RECEIVE] Chronicler steward copy CL-0110.chronicler.recv — sealed for vault CL-0110.vault.recv; guild path CL-0110.guild.path.
After the chronicler left, the apprentices leaned close and asked small questions about phrasing and what the chronicler might show in the city. Jorren said: keep the key steps plain and the rest locked. Tomas added: the index will help any clerk who reads a long note. The steward's review would guard the lane's life while the lane's craft might yet help others keep peace.
Jorren (soft): "If you share craft, share the fold, not the fail. Let other lanes learn to press wax, not to hunt a tag."
Clerk: [NOTE] Apprentice advise CL-0110.appr.note — redaction principle posted CL-0110.redact.prin.
Halek filed a short tracer brief for Crosspath: chronicler credentials checked; steward copy lodged; redaction clause set; no manifest or shard detail shown. He added one line of counsel: allow a single steward copy to pass to guild archive only after Crosspath redaction if public use is wished. The steward had already signed such a term; the lane's craft could travel as map, not as weapon.
Halek: "We let craft travel but we filter what might harm. A map without men keeps trade safe."
Clerk: [FILE] Crosspath brief CL-0110.crosspath.file — chronicler vet done; redaction rule applied CL-0110.redact.file.
Night closed with the bench stacked with small slips and a new steward packet: the chronicler's sealed page, apprentice notes, trustee initials, and the clerk's short memo. Morn wrote his final line to the steward: Chronicler demo held under trustee watch; steward copy lodged; Crosspath redaction clause set; apprentices led demo; index shown. He set the memo under the lamp and folded his hands for a breath. A town can share what it owes to itself — craft, habit, care — if it keeps watch while it opens its door.
Morn (soft): "Teach, but guard. Let the bench give a map, not a torch. If a man records your hand, keep a steward copy and redaction path. Skill grows when shared with care."
Clerk: [COMMIT] Snapshot CL-0110 — Cycle 021 | Pulse 48:50:00 ▪ Ch.131 ▪ Change type: Chronicler vetted; steward copy lodged; supervised apprentice demo run; Crosspath redaction clause set; trustee escort present; chronicler guild path noted ▪ Anchors: CL-0110.chronicler.vet; CL-0110.vault.recv; CL-0110.demo.sup; CL-0110.redact.file; CL-0110.trustee.wit ▪ Trustee sign: Mira + Len. Secure dossier forwarded. Public digest queued.
Post-Law Reflection: Share craft, not case. Let a lane teach its motion but not its men. Take a steward copy first, bind a redaction path, and show steps under trustee sight. A map keeps trade safe when pen meets paper with care. Teach hands, seal notes, and watch the page that leaves — that is how a town gives a gift without losing its shield.