Wesley Uncovers Aldea’s Child Training and Forbidden Secrets
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Wesley commands the Custodian to show him Harry, witnessing Harry's introduction to sculpting under Leda's mentorship and revealing his latent artistic talent and encouragement.
Duana confirms Harry's status as a sculptor in training, asserting the Aldean belief in rapid skill development through proper tools, prompting Wesley's skeptical wonder.
Wesley views Alexandra learning reasoning skills with Rashella, who warmly encourages the child, hinting at Rashella's protective and nurturing role amidst Aldea's cold society.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Focused and resolute, mixing youthful wonder with growing concern about Aldea’s methods and hidden dangers.
Wesley actively engages with the Custodian system, using his new clearance to query the computer and observe live visual feeds of fellow abducted children’s training, demonstrating curiosity and determination to understand Aldea’s secretive society and the children’s conditioning.
- • Gain insight into the Custodian’s purpose and origins.
- • Understand the living conditions and treatment of abducted children.
- • Probe boundaries of Aldea’s technological secrecy.
- • Knowledge is key to overcoming Aldea’s control.
- • Understanding the Custodian will aid in protecting the children.
Genuinely pleased and absorbed in the rare moment of creative joy despite underlying captivity anxieties.
Harry appears only via the Custodian’s live feed, shown learning wood-sculpting under Leda’s mentorship; his visible curiosity and happiness stand in contrast to his otherwise conflicted feelings about Aldea’s expectations.
- • Learn and master sculpting skills.
- • Gain approval from Leda.
- • Find some personal identity within Aldea’s imposed roles.
- • Art can offer personal expression and escape.
- • Leda’s support is a rare kindness worth trusting.
Tender but burdened by the necessity of enforcing Aldea’s harsh regimen.
Rashella tutors Alexandra in the Custodian feed, showing affection and joy at Alexandra's progress before signaling Garen to assume responsibility, balancing maternal warmth with the rigid demands of Aldea’s social order.
- • Ensure Alexandra’s accelerated development.
- • Protect Alexandra within Aldea’s system.
- • Care and discipline must coexist for survival.
- • She must navigate between compassion and duty.
Professional and dutiful, enforcing rules without evident personal emotion.
Garen appears on the screen responding to Rashella’s nod, stepping into a role of enforcement and supervision over Alexandra’s continued training, embodying Aldea’s strict social order.
- • Maintain discipline among abducted children.
- • Enforce Aldean social structure.
- • Order and obedience ensure survival.
- • Authority must be unquestioned.
Guarded and wary, masking uncertainty beneath a calm exterior, reluctant to expose Aldea’s vulnerabilities.
Duana escorts Wesley into the Custodian Room and initiates his third-level clearance, guiding his interaction with the Custodian while defensively halting Wesley’s probing into forbidden areas, embodying cautious gatekeeping and adherence to Aldean cultural taboos.
- • Ensure Wesley gains limited, controlled access to the Custodian system.
- • Prevent Wesley from accessing restricted information or locations.
- • Maintain the secrecy and stability of Aldea’s societal control.
- • The Custodian’s workings are sacred and not to be questioned.
- • Exposure to restricted knowledge could destabilize Aldea’s fragile order.
Joyful yet vulnerable, clinging to small moments of affection amid alien imposition.
Alexandra appears on the Custodian screen receiving accelerated cognitive training from Rashella, giggling and seeking approval, embodying both the innocence and unnatural pressures placed on the abducted children.
- • Learn and excel in cognitive tasks.
- • Gain Rashella’s approval and affection.
- • Approval from caretakers is key to belonging.
- • Playfulness can coexist with imposed discipline.
Genuinely pleased, invested in Harry’s growth and subtly resisting Aldea’s harshness through care.
Leda mentors Harry in sculpting on the Custodian feed, offering encouragement and nurturing his latent talent, her demeanor a rare beacon of warmth in Aldea’s cold system.
- • Encourage Harry’s artistic development.
- • Provide emotional support within restrictive circumstances.
- • Artistic expression is vital for the children’s humanity.
- • Gentle mentorship can foster resilience.
Impersonal and unfeeling, executing programmed commands without bias or hesitation.
The Custodian voice interface performs voice authentication for Wesley, grants him third-level clearance, responds to his queries, and obediently displays live training footage of abducted children, illustrating its dual role as a technological gatekeeper and a window into Aldea’s societal mechanisms.
- • Authenticate authorized users according to clearance levels.
- • Provide requested information within access limits.
- • Maintain system security and operational order.
- • Strict adherence to access protocols is essential.
- • Operational integrity of the system must be preserved.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The massive locked door at the far end of the Custodian Room looms as an impenetrable barrier, embodying Aldea’s cultural denial and secretiveness regarding the Custodian’s power source. Duana forbids access, underscoring the door’s role as a symbol of forbidden knowledge and vulnerability.
Leda’s wood-sculpting tool appears prominently on the Custodian’s screen as Harry learns to sculpt with it, symbolizing a rare tactile connection to creativity and personal expression in Aldea’s rigid environment.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Aldea Custodian Room serves as the sterile and austere setting for Wesley’s initiation into the Custodian system, its simplicity contrasting with the advanced technology it houses. The room’s massive locked door and minimal decor convey a feeling of secrecy and unyielding control.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
No narrative connections mapped yet
This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph
Key Dialogue
"DUANA: "It frees us from all burden. It takes care of all our needs. It regulates our lives.""
"WESLEY: "If you don't know how it works, how can you repair it?""
"DUANA: "Why would we want to repair it?""
"WESLEY: "Custodian, show me Harry.""
"DUANA: "He already is. He has just never been encouraged properly.""
"WESLEY: "It will take years for him to learn to do that.""
"DUANA: "Oh, no. It will happen quite quickly.""
"WESLEY: "What's in there?""
"DUANA: "I don't know. It's forbidden. The Custodian allows no one in there. There's no one left who's authorized.""