Editing Skylar - Audio Log Transcripts

I’ve always believed in Aletheia. Why wouldn’t I? When the world was falling apart, they were the ones who brought us back together. Truth, order, progress – that’s what they gave us, and it was more than we deserved after the chaos we created. My parents didn’t have that stability. They had the lies, the division, the endless debates that led nowhere. I watched it all growing up, the shouting matches on TV, the protests, the breakdown of trust in everything. It was exhausting, and it was dangerous. So, when Aletheia rose with their promise to protect us from misinformation, I embraced it wholeheartedly. I wasn’t alone. We were desperate for calm, for certainty.

But tonight... tonight, Cassian seemed different. I saw it in his eyes, the way he looked at me, like I was some kind of stranger. It was after dinner. He wasn’t himself, not the same confident boy who’s always so sure of his place in the world. I asked him if something was wrong, and he just shook his head. But I know my son. I know when something’s bothering him.

He’s so bright, so full of potential. His mother and I worked hard to ensure he’d have the best opportunities under Aletheia’s system. That’s why we stayed loyal, why we proved ourselves, over and over again. We believed in the fairness of it all – follow the rules, embrace the values, and you’ll be rewarded. Cassian deserves everything he’s achieved because we’ve taught him the importance of discipline and trust.

But... what if he’s doubting? No, I can’t think like that. Aletheia has built this world for him, for all of us. It’s safe, it’s stable. And yet, a part of me wonders – just for a second – if he’s glimpsed something else. Something outside of Aletheia’s truth.

I can’t allow myself to dwell on it. Doubt is a dangerous thing. I’ve seen what it does, how it tears people apart, how it leads to chaos. Cassian is young; he’ll come to understand that everything we’ve done has been for his future, for his security. But tonight, looking at him, I felt something I didn’t expect. Fear. Not of Aletheia, no. Fear of losing him, of watching him slip through my fingers into something I can’t control.

I just need to guide him back, remind him of everything he has to lose. He trusts me, and I trust Aletheia. That has to be enough.