Marked From Birth
"The sapphire mud has been 'Transmuted.' The extreme pressure and radiation have turned the seabed into a 'Quantum-Superconductor.' The entire Western Trench is now a single, planetary-scale 'Circuit-Board.' The planet isn't just a rock anymore, Audrey—it’s a 'Motherboard'."
As the Union’s engineers began to explore the glass floor of the ocean, they realized the planet was "Recording" them. Every step, every steam-piston, and every heartbeat was being etched into the glass as a "Phase-Shifted" data-point. The planet had gained a "Memory," and that memory was starting to playback the history of the Union in reverse.