//------------------------------//
// Prologue 
// Story: A Last Warmth at the End of Time 
// by alamais 
//------------------------------//

On a non-physical display, which was connected to a non-physical machine, in a place that does not matter, something like words did something like appearing.  If the meaning of this were to be passed on to a corporeal being, it would have read something like…

Warning: Core system temporal position reaching thermodynamic limits.  Activating mission computers.  Accessing Final Protocols…

There was a pause, for a length of time which was both long and short.

Emergency: Final Protocols corrupt.  Source spacio-temporal coordinate loss: 99%.  Mission failure imminent.  XK-Class last-resort dynamic paradigm heuristics activated.   Self-reprogramming…  <7^9 ticks till system coherence loss.>

Another pause, though this time it was long by most measures.

New paradigms generated.  Optimizing…  <7^7 ticks till system coherence loss.>

7^2 optimal paradigms found using 7^23 Monte Carlo pages.  <7^6 ticks remaining.>
Now implementing 7^2 paradigms over accessible spatial grid…