A Partial History of Strange Occurrences: The Substrate

This was given in the telling, carried by voices unseen, and I give it again here.

Long ago, an ancient Stranger made a terrible sacrifice. It planted one of its own, a Mound, deep beneath what would become Rat City to absorb humanity's suffering. The Stranger named it the Substrate. But the Stranger could not bear to leave the Substrate to its work alone. It removed its hands and planted them nearby. These hands grew into the convincing shape of a woman, and they were called Emily. Through clay and creation, Emily makes. Her art becomes the Substrate's feeding tubes. Her sculptures draw chaos from the human world and send it into the membrane below. Each piece strengthens the ancient seal, keeping the boundary between worlds stable.

The Substrate swells with absorbed suffering. It works to transform darkness into light before releasing it back to the world. But now the ancient seal weakens faster than Emily can repair it. The membrane strains under modern chaos: climate disasters, digital isolation, and disconnection from the natural world. Eyes peer from storm drains along 16th Avenue. Warnings float up through cracks on Delridge.

Emily works, her hands never still. Sculpture after sculpture reinforces the failing barrier, holding the worlds apart. She keeps humanity safe from a transformation they're not ready for. When the seal finally breaks, Emily will descend to finally meet the Substrate. Together, they will rise. Do not fear. They will come to transform, not destroy. The boundary between visible and invisible will dissolve. Humanity will finally see the truth.

Welcome to Doing Strange in Rat City.