Volume I — Arc 1 — Epoch I
[Cycle 025 | Pulse 54:50:00 — Bulk follow / Steward decision → Log: buyer visit → trustee counsel → vendor ledger review → apprentice liaison → Crosspath note → steward packet prep → Channel: secure → public digest on close]
Aurelius: "A knot tied in quiet stays; a knot tied in haste frays in a week. If you buy a lot, tie it where the clerk can read the rope."
Aurelia: "Right. A bulk sale is a knot that bends more than one hand. Let trustees hold the ends, tutors press the middle, and let the steward write the promise down."
Clerk (soft): [TASK] Bulk follow roll — Mode: buyer revisit + steward addendum review + trustee counsel + tutor repeat scheduling + vendor stock audit + index update + Crosspath micro-note. Team: Magistrate Korran (steward cue), Crosspath Halek (trace & redaction consult), River Step trustees Mira & Len (liaison), keeper Tomas (index & mirror keeper), keeper Halen (overwatch), tutors Bryn & Kalen (test leads), apprentices Jorren & Nia (liaison & attest), deputies Mina & Jor (escort/witness), courier guide Morn (clerk & final). Objectives: receive buyer's formal intent for bulk lot; match mitigation terms with buyer conditions; run vendor ledger check for repeat integrity; schedule tutor repeats for bulk test; prepare steward addendum for conditional bulk release; anchor: CL-0118.bulk.follow. Channel: secure → public.
The buyer had left a neat note at the bench at third bell — polite, measured, a man who knew how to let a clerk breathe. He returned at the hour before dusk with a small purse, two city seals on his sleeve, and the kind of look that measures goods with the same calm as ink. He did not want a spectacle; he wanted a ledger line that would not pull a town's seam. The steward had asked that he come in person to speak where trustees stood near the lamp.
Buyer (plain): "I will buy the bulk if the vendor keeps the mitigation pledge, tutors run extra repeats for each parcel, trustees witness the transfer, and I may hold a single trustee-inspected sample for guild export. I ask a steward addendum to that effect."
Morn folded the note, set a wax pot to warm, and ran a quick pad check. The steward had left a small paper on the oak: a bulk addendum template, the earlier mitigation file, and the trustee rota for transfer. The lane favors paper for heavy things — a bulk is a heavy thing. Paper makes motion a neighbor's responsibility.
Morn (steady): "We draft a simple addendum: full list of conditions — vendor pledge to extra tutor repeats, trustee witness on each parcel transfer, buyer right to a stewarded sample, and Crosspath review clause for any manifest doubt. Keep the release conditional until repeats hold twice across the first two parcel moves."
Clerk: [DRAFT] Addendum CL-0118.addendum.draft — template set; mitigation link CL-0118.mit.link.
Halek watched the buyer with that patient look Crosspath men wear when a line might turn. He asked one quiet question about the buyer's export path and whether the guild would require any additional seals that might reveal sensitive tags. The buyer replied that his guild required only a steward-stamped sample for customs demonstration and that any published notes would carry the guild's redaction promise. Crosspath notes would still be needed; a city learns by pages that have the lane's guard on them.
Halek: "We will allow a steward-stamped sample for export demo but only after Crosspath confirms redaction categories that will stay withheld in any later public mention. We will require the buyer to file any publishing intent with the steward so Crosspath may attach a redaction log."
Clerk: [FILE] Crosspath consult CL-0118.crosspath.consult — export sample clause CL-0118.export.clause.
Mira and Len took the vendor aside for a calm ledger review. Vendors carry the market's risk and the day's pockets, and they also carry the town's good name when they sign a bulk. The vendor had run the mitigation slots and kept the pledge. He had two confident anchors and several repeat buyers who had test-anchored clean. His ledger showed minor variances only under exaggerated soak. Mira asked him plainly if he was ready to bind a bulk under trustee sight.
Mira: "We will mark your pledge into a steward addendum. You must host tutor repeats at the slab for two consecutive bells and agree that trustees will witness parcel transfer. Do you accept these conditions and the possibility of a narrow hearing if a named anchor shows later?"
Vendor (plain): "I accept. I ran extra slots and printed caution tags. If the buyer wants a sample, I will let him steward a piece under your watch. I sign where you need ink."
Clerk: [RECEIVE] Vendor assent CL-0118.vendor.assent — pledge reconfirmed CL-0118.vendor.pledge.
Jorren moved between bench and slab with the practical grace of a man used to folding small catastrophes into tidy acts. He fetched the vendor's tutor hashes, counted the anchors, and set two new repeat slots at first and second bell for the next day, reserve slots for the buyer's team. He checked the vendor's press temper and added a small note: a minor adjustment to soaking time that seemed to reduce the faint residual the retests had caught earlier. Tutors like small experiments; they tune a slab until it sings the right truth.
Jorren: "We will run two repeats at first and second bell. Bryn will lead. We adjust the soak by a small degree — less steep, more press rest. If both repeats hold across the two bells, trustees and I will prepare the bulk transfer under the steward addendum."
Clerk: [SCHEDULE] Tutor repeats CL-0118.tutor.schedule — first bell & second bell; Bryn lead CL-0118.repeat.slots.
Tomas updated the index while Morn set the addendum draft into the clerk's sight. He marked the vendor's file with a Conditional Bulk tag and linked the buyer's note to the file. The index makes heavy things light; one fat line in the map saves hours and reduces room for argument. He wrote the buyer's name, the lot code, the planned transfer days, and left a small apprentice note to call trustees an hour before each repeat.
Tomas (calm): "Index updated — vendor file tagged Conditional Bulk; buyer note linked; trustee call set one hour before repeats. Keeper will stand ready for pad finds."
Clerk: [UPDATE] Index CL-0118.index.update — conditional bulk tag CL-0118.cond.tag; trustee call set CL-0118.trustee.call.
The steward read the draft addendum and turned the clause for Crosspath's redaction into one line: any public excerpt that mentions export must be submitted to Crosspath for a redaction summary of withheld categories prior to publication. Korran liked lists; lists make decisions less personal. He added a second clause: a stewarded sample could be taken only after the second repeat held and only in the steward room, under trustee seal. That sealed the idea of a sample without making a public map.
Magistrate Korran: "We will sign a conditional bulk addendum: two tutor repeats must hold; trustees to witness parcel transfer; buyer may steward one sample in our room after second repeat; Crosspath review required for any later public mention. Sign here when both sides agree."
Clerk: [ATTACH] Steward clause CL-0118.steward.clause — sample & redaction CL-0118.sample.
The buyer read the clauses, nodded, and signed. He left a small civic coin with the clerk to cover steward fees and asked that the transfer be as quick and quiet as good ink could make it. Morn took the coin and folded an honest receipt. He liked the quiet of men who make commitments in pen; it is better for a town than any shout.
Buyer (plain): "I sign on those lines. I want no secret; I want a clear path with steward guard. When the second repeat passes, send me the trustee notice and I will come with the carrier."
Clerk: [RECEIPT] Buyer sign CL-0118.buyer.sign — coin received CL-0118.fee.recv; trustee notice protocol CL-0118.trustee.notice.
Halek crossed a small line in his pad and sent a micro-note to his runners: keep a dawn micro-sweep the morning of the first repeat to re-check any manifest echoes near the docks. Crosspath does not want to intrude but will step if a node shows. The vendor's crate file would remain on Crosspath's monitored list until one week after the final parcel transfer. That is the watch a lane chooses when it trades heavy things.
Halek: "We run a micro-sweep dawn on repeat day to be sure no manifest echo rose overnight. If any new ping, hold the transfer and call a narrow review. Monitor until one week after final transfer."
Clerk: [DISPATCH] Crosspath sweep order CL-0118.crosspath.sweep — dawn check CL-0118.dawn.sweep.
Apprentices had small roles in the addendum execution. Nia would be the keeper on the day of the transfer to manage mirror pads; Jorren would help the tutor manage public slots; Tomas would own the index updates and the trustee calls. The steward placed small ribbons on each apprentice's strap as a token of duty — not a prize but a visible duty that makes responsibilities clear. The bench likes visible threads.
Morn (soft): "Ribbons mark who does what. Put them on where the buyer can see a clerk is ready and the trustees can call their name. Clear duty reduces fuss."
Clerk: [APPOINT] Apprentice roles CL-0118.appr.roles — Nia keeper; Jorren tutor assist; Tomas index keeper CL-0118.roles.
As dusk fell the bench closed the clerk packet: addendum signed, repeats set, trustee call flagged, Crosspath sweep ordered, index updated, and a steward memo to be pinned under the lamp for morning's read. Morn wrote the final clerk note and let the lamp burn for a long breath. Bulk is a knot; they had tied it in ink, with witnesses, and with a watchful hand. The lane would sleep a little steadier for the neat line.
Morn (quiet): "Ink that ties is a town's best rope. Make the addendum plain, keep trustees near, let tutors test, and let Crosspath read if a city might ask. A bulk that walks under guard walks whole."
Clerk: [COMMIT] Snapshot CL-0118 — Cycle 025 | Pulse 54:50:00 ▪ Ch.140 ▪ Change type: Bulk follow executed; buyer returned and signed addendum; vendor pledge reconfirmed; tutor repeats scheduled (first & second bell); trustee witness protocol set; Crosspath dawn micro-sweep ordered; index updated with conditional bulk tag; apprentice roles assigned ▪ Anchors: CL-0118.addendum.draft; CL-0118.vendor.assent; CL-0118.tutor.schedule; CL-0118.steward.clause; CL-0118.crosspath.sweep; CL-0118.index.update; CL-0118.appr.roles ▪ Trustee sign: Mira + Len. Secure dossier forwarded. Public digest queued.
Post-Law Reflection: Heavy deals like bulk sales must move by ink and witness. Draft a clear addendum, insist on tutor repeats that prove a lot twice, require trustees at each parcel transfer, and reserve a stewarded sample for export only after repeat success. Crosspath watches for manifest echoes at dawn before the first repeat — not to scare, but to be sure. Apprentices should hold clear roles so the bench runs without confusion. Tie the knot in pen, not in rumor; a careful addendum holds a town steadier than any shout.