Meaning can be shared.
Meaning can be argued.
Meaning can even be ignored.
But the moment it is enforced, it stops being meaning at all.
It becomes a weapon.
⸻
The order does not use the word enforce.
That would be too honest.
It uses standardize.
Jason reads the directive three times, eyes burning.
“They’re deploying validation teams,” he says quietly. “Not to shut things down. To decide what’s real.”
Zane stands at the gate, the heir calm against his chest, the child’s small fingers curled into the fabric at Zane’s shoulder as if anchoring the world in place.
“Validation of what,” Zane asks.
Jason exhales.
“Records. Births. Care. Education. Aid,” he says. “Anything not registered gets reviewed. Anything reviewed can be nullified.”
Zane nods once.
“They’re enforcing meanin
