Volume I — Arc 1 — Epoch I
[Cycle 049 | Pulse 80:50:00 — Broker Notice Protocol trial / First tide review → Log: protocol trial start → Crosspath trial digest → intake watch runs → broker compliance check → trustee interim ruling → clerk & mobile feedback → apprentice monitor shifts → procedural anchor update → public trial report → Channel: secure → public digest on close]
Aurelius: "A trial is not a law; it's a question with a clock. Ask plainly, watch the clock, and answer by what the ledger shows."
Aurelia: "Right. Trials must be short and measureable. Let the ledger record the time and the change, then close the question with facts."
Clerk (soft): [TASK] Trial Tide roll — Mode: enact Broker Notice Protocol trial → run Crosspath trial digest after first tide CL-0157.cross.digest → monitor intake windows for broker-steward display CL-0157.int.watch → record broker compliance CL-0157.broker.cmp → convene trustee interim ruling CL-0157.trust.interim → collect clerk & mobile feedback CL-0157.feedback.collect → apprentice monitor shifts CL-0157.appr.watch → update procedural anchor draft CL-0157.protocol.upd → post public trial report CL-0157.pub.report. Team: Magistrate Korran (steward cue), Crosspath Halek (trial digest), River Step trustees Mira & Len (witness & interim ruling), keeper Tomas (vault & index), keeper Halen (overwatch), tutors Bryn & Kalen (drill leads), Registry Keepers Jorren (lead) & Nia (assist), clerks Rell & Sorin (intake pair), apprentices (monitor relay), deputies Mina & Jor (escort/witness), courier guide Morn (clerk & intake). Objectives: confirm broker notice display rate CL-0157.broker.rate; log intake conflict drops CL-0157.conf.drop; gather three clerk reports CL-0157.clerk.reps; produce Crosspath first-tide digest CL-0157.cross.digest; set trustee interim finding CL-0157.trust.find; update anchor draft CL-0157.anchor.upd. Channel: secure → public.
The trial began at first bell. Under a flat sky the slab posted the small script and the broker masters agreed to present steward copies at the slab when their runs crossed local intake windows. The brokers moved deliberately at first, then with more ease: a simple step to lay steward paper before a crate made a surprise visible. Clerks practiced their polite pause. Apprentices stood watch at lane edges, timing crates and noting steward displays. A trial's work is mostly eyes and tidy notes.
Morn (steady): "Log every broker steward shown at slab and note the time. Apprentices mark whether clerks read steward lines aloud before crate movement. Crosspath will return a digest after the tide. Keepers, record neighbor response."
Clerk: [OPEN] Trial log CL-0157.open — watch pads CL-0157.pads.ready; tag reader CL-0157.reader.up.
Halek's pad churned through tags and timestamps. After two runs the first tide digest arrived: of twelve broker passes that crossed local intake hours, nine presented steward copies at slab as requested; three did not. Of those three failures, two were due to runners who passed between slab hours and a third was a miscommunication at a distant stall. More importantly, Crosspath noted a drop in near-match alias flags for intakes during broker-run windows where stewards had been shown—aliases declined by nearly fifty percent in those slots. Numbers are not judgment, but they make a trial accountable.
Halek (plain): "Crosspath first-tide digest: 12 broker runs crossing intake hours; 9 steward copies presented; 3 misses (one runner off-route, two timing errors). Near-match alias frequency on watched intakes down ~50% where steward copies shown. We return a fuller digest after the next tide, but early sign favors the protocol."
Clerk: [RECEIVE] Crosspath digest CL-0157.cross.digest — runs log CL-0157.runs.ok; alias drop CL-0157.alias.drop.
Jorren and Nia ran the intake watch. They marked each intake: steward shown? yes/no; clerk read aloud? yes/no; crate moved? yes/no; trustee intervention? yes/no. They left small slips for each broker run with immediate notes. Clerks Rell and Sorin supplied feedback: the polite pause cost an average of thirty seconds and caused one minor queue; vendors tolerated the wait and preferred it to later disputes. Practical cost, practical gain.
Rell (practical): "Clerks: the pause is short—~30s. Vendors grumbled once, then accepted it. When steward copies were shown, clerks resolved holds faster. We recommend keeping the pause as a formal step."
Clerk: [RECORD] Intake watch CL-0157.int.watch — clerk notes CL-0157.clerk.notes.
A broker named Talen, who earlier had agreed at forum, proved helpful in practice. He placed steward copies at the slab and asked clerks to read the buyer line aloud while he waited. His runners learned the small motion: hand steward, step aside, wait a breath. Talen's example made a neighborly circle: vendors saw a steward, clerks read aloud, trustees rarely needed to step in. Talen's quiet change spread to two other brokers who adapted their run order to align steward drops with slab windows.
Talen (practical): "We re-route runners by a lane's minute. It costs a small step but spares later fixing. I will ask my runners to place steward copies where clerks can read them before crate moves."
Clerk: [NOTE] Broker compliance CL-0157.broker.cmp — Talen CL-0157.talen.ok.
Three misses required trustee attention. In two cases runners ran between slab windows and the broker pleaded an urgent tide; trustees accepted the explanation but asked the broker to register a steward copy at the nearest lane end for later trace. In the third case a courier failed to pass the steward copy to the clerk; the trustee issued a short admonition and a requirement: steward copies must be left at slab if runs cross intake windows. Trustees favor small, corrective steps over public punishment.
Mira (firm): "Misses occur; make them fixable. If a steward copy misses the slab, the broker must supply a swift remedy: a stewarded note handed to the registry within one bell. Repeats require stronger remedy."
Clerk: [ORDER] Trustee note CL-0157.trust.interim — misses CL-0157.miss.list; remedy requirement CL-0157.rem.req.
Apprentices kept monitors at three lane points. They reported that when steward copies were displayed, vendors who had local holds stepped forward calmly and clerks could resolve holds with the evidence present. When steward copies were not shown, tension rose—neighbors called witnesses and the bench had to run erratum traces. The apprentices' logs fed the continuity desk with useful color: the trial's practical benefit shows most clearly where proof is visible at the moment of exchange.
Jorren (soft): "Monitor report: steward display reduces immediate friction; where it appears, clerk readout and crate movement follow smoothly. Where absent, we run a short pause and call for steward copy or trustee. Keepers, the trial's benefit is strongest in busy lanes."
Clerk: [GATHER] Apprentice monitor CL-0157.appr.watch — reports CL-0157.appr.reps.
By dusk the trustees convened for an interim ruling. The numbers favored continuation: steward presentation rate at 75% on first tide and intake alias drops where copies were shown indicate the protocol reduces confusion. Trustees set an interim finding: continue trial for two more tides, require brokers to train runners on steward placement for those who missed, and formalize clerk script as: Steward at slab, please—read buyer line aloud. If miss repeats with same broker beyond the trial window, trustees will require a small public remedy to be posted with the continuity log.
Len (practical): "Interim ruling: trial continues. Brokers who missed must show proof of runner retraining within one tide. Clerk script formalized. If a broker repeats miss after the trial, require a petty remedy posted publicly and a trustee mediation."
Clerk: [SET] Interim ruling CL-0157.trust.find — extend trial CL-0157.extend; retrain requirement CL-0157.retrain.req.
Clerks and mobile keepers filed feedback. One mobile clerk suggested adding a small broker card: a visible slip that accompanies a crate noting steward shown at slab at HH:MM to make later trace simpler. Another suggested a soft badge for runners who learn the steady step—a small token so vendors can quickly spot a steward-ready runner. The bench accepted both as low-cost experiments and added them to the continuity log as trial augmentations.
Morn (practical): "Add a steward-time slip to a crate and a runner token for trained hands. Trial augmentation: steward-time slip and runner token for visibility. Log both as provisional trial measures."
Clerk: [UPDATE] Feedback CL-0157.feedback.collect — slip idea CL-0157.slip.idea; runner token CL-0157.token.idea.
Halek queued Crosspath to track the trial augmentations and return a second digest after the next tide, focusing on steward-time slip usage and alias frequency. Apprentices rotated monitor shifts, watching for crate badges and verifying steward slips against Crosspath tags. The trial is now a small experiment set: protocol + steward slips + runner token + two-tide review.
Halek (plain): "Crosspath will include steward-time slip hits and runner-token mentions in the next digest. Watch for alias frequency and steward display rate after augmentations."
Clerk: [SCHEDULE] Crosspath run CL-0157.cross.schedule — next digest CL-0157.next.digest.
Before the lamp cooled the bench posted a public trial report: first tide results, interim ruling to continue, broker retraining order for misses, clerk script formalized, and two trial augmentations (steward-time slip, runner token) to be tested next tide. The post read like a small ledger of experiment steps—trial, measure, augment, repeat. The lane took the report as a quiet experiment whose success will be answered in ink.
Morn (soft): "Post the interim report. Trials live by measurement; post what we did and what we expect next. Let neighbors read the trial's next step before the morning bell."
Clerk: [POST] Public report CL-0157.pub.report — post CL-0157.posted.
Clerk: [COMMIT] Snapshot CL-0157 — Cycle 049 | Pulse 80:50:00 ▪ Ch.179 ▪ Change type: Broker Notice Protocol — first tide trial executed; Crosspath first-tide digest received (12 runs; 9 steward copies shown; ~50% alias drop where shown); intake watch & clerk feedback logged; three misses noted with trustee remedial orders; interim trustee ruling: extend trial for two more tides, require broker retraining for misses, formalize clerk script; two trial augmentations added (steward-time slip + runner token); Crosspath scheduled for next digest; public trial report posted ▪ Anchors: CL-0157.cross.digest; CL-0157.int.watch; CL-0157.broker.cmp; CL-0157.trust.find; CL-0157.feedback.collect; CL-0157.pub.report ▪ Trustee sign: Mira + Len. Secure dossier forwarded. Public digest queued.
Post-Law Reflection: Trials need short windows and clear measures. A simple broker notice (show steward at slab) reduced intake alias noise where clerks read buyer lines aloud. Trials must expect misses—treat them with retrain-and-repair, not spectacle. Augment a trial with low-cost visibility aids (steward-time slip, runner token) and measure again. Trustees should set enforceable next steps for repeats. Record every step in the Continuity Log so neighbors can judge by ink, not rumor. Trials teach a market new habits; measure honestly, fix small gaps, then decide.