Three months after the lattice went wide, Forge-9 was supposed to be proof that the bloom worked. The industrial colony produced twenty percent more refined alloys with fewer accidents. Output quotas were met early. But the workers paid for it in ways the reports never showed clearly.
Echo fatigue hit hardest in the mid-shifts. People finished their rotations competent and coordinated, then sat in the mess halls staring at nothing.
Couples argued over small things that never mattered before. Sleep came shallow. The low-level connection that made teams move like one machine also left everyone carrying pieces of everyone else's stress.
A policy summit was called in the central factory hall. What started as a meeting for sector reps turned into a three-day assembly when day-shift crews refused to leave.
They packed the floor, sat on crates, leaned against support beams. Civilian voices outnumbered the officials two to one.
