She shows this to the Proto. 

:You need to stop: 

.

.̵̛̮̝̖̝̫̱̰̥̥̼̍̀̌̓̿̀͛̓͗͐͗̚͝͝ͅ|̶̘͋̔̍͆̉̈͆́̄͠͝Ǫ̸̛̼͎̳̙̳͇̦̣͇̫͔̆̍͑̒́ẖ̸͖̖͉͈̗̖͍̝͆͘͠͝.̷̮̘̪̈̓̓̀̄̿̿̐̀̾̏̚*̶͈̱̠͒͌̆̏͊͒̿͐̔̎͝

It stops.

Communication! She's so pleased about it! 

It feels like she should give it some sort of reward, so she brings over a third rabbit cage, and cautiously opens the doors and shoves them together so the rabbits can lick each other without escaping. And she pushes some Healing-energy into the infected rabbit. :Resources: she offers. 

Then she turns her Sight back on Julie's lungs and starts trying to undo the fine-scale tissue damage. 

The protomolecule chews on rabbits.

A while later, Leareth wakes up. 

He still feels terrible, and now he's an unpleasant combination of very thirsty and very nauseated, and his head feels fuzzy, but he can - mostly, sort of - think again. 

He reaches out to the Proto with Thoughtsensing.

Start with something simple.

It's so beautiful. 

....Focus, Leareth reminds himself. He drags together all the concentration he can muster - he needs to be clear with this, he has it fully formalized in math in his notes but he doesn't have his notes with him. 

and he pushes across all the accompanying, underlying math of the simplified, idealized scenario...

>̷̯͈͕͉̳̫̹͐̒͘|̸̢̨̥͓̹̞̩͔̥̭͇̙̥̪́̐͑̔̃͗c̴̬͚͍̤͙͙͍̓̓̔͜o̵̧̡̧̻̙̥̯̜͕̯̦̩͈̤͍͛͐́͆̆͊n̸͙̺̋̓̋̔̈́́̓̊̉̚̚f̷̛̟̥̞̟͉͙́̆̇̑͊̿͂́̈́̈̈́͆͘u̸̡͉̪̗̞̮͎͂̇͒̈̀̾̐̾̐̚ś̶̢̢̯̱͖̤̮̲̈́̓̄̾̊͘̕͠i̸̧̧̠̰̠̻͙̥̫͖̫͒͝ȍ̶̢͊͊̃͒̆̂͂̓̕̚͜͠ņ̷̢̛̫͍͍͉̥̦͍͇̘̼̍͂̈̂̏́͜!̵̧̧̱̦̮̮̠̟͌͗͊͐̉͊̍̌͒̾͗̚!̷̨̧͔̙͚͙͍͚̖̰̹̯̙̹̈̎̂͜͠!̸̩̘̪̩͇̊̈́̿̆̋̇̇̒̐̃̋̇̎͑͜͠*̴̨̛̭̝̣̲͈̬̬̝͔̻͔̎̒̉̂̽̓̽͑́̇̆̂͑͜ͅ

Leareth has only the vaguest of guesses about where the confusion is, but - not pure-math enough, he's guessing, not sufficient clear that he's just talking about a, a set of axioms and premises and the numbers that fall out of particular patterns... 

He needs to concentrate very hard for the next part, and it's making his head hurt, but: 

And the fully specified, fully deterministic mathematical rules:

The simple simulated world is an infinite, two-dimensional orthogonal grid of square cells, each of which is in one of two possible states, live or dead.

Every cell interacts with its eight neighbours, which are the cells that are horizontally, vertically, or diagonally adjacent. At each step in time, the following transitions occur:

Any live cell with fewer than two live neighbours dies.
Any live cell with two or three live neighbours lives on to the next generation.
Any live cell with more than three live neighbours dies.
Any dead cell with exactly three live neighbours becomes a live cell.

There is no immediately obvious response though the protomolecule seems to be thinking.

(There is an immediately obvious change of behavior in the protomolecule in Leareth's blood, to Healing-Sight.)

One of the other Healers immediately grabs Shavri, who grudgingly emerges from Healing-trance working on Julie's lungs, checks that Julie is generally stable, and then slips over to Leareth and goes in as close as she can on some of the Proto swimming around in his blood. What's it up to now? 

It is diligently implementing Conway's Game of Life for some reason.

Shavri doesn't know what that is! ...Is it causing more or less or the same amount of disruption, by doing this. 

It's sort of early to tell, but possibly less? It's forming little crystal structures but its numbers aren't increasing on net, and the structures don't get very big or very disruptive.

She is super confused, but she'll leave it alone! 

Leareth has no idea that this is happening, since none of the Healers have informed him. 

He thinks for a while, and then starts trying to pull together a complex tangle of concepts, not all of which are fully rigorously-defined-in-math in his head - but most of them are - 

- and he pushes across quite a lot of other context, the details of exactly how this can be implemented in magic - the tiny example version isn't good for much, but the concept scales... 

There's a long pause. Eventually:

:̶̨͓̭͎̯͙̜̼͖͇̼̺̣̤̺̇̽͆̑.̶̺̂b̶̧͉̩̖̯̞̥̩̩͙͈̻̏̏́͑į̷̖̓̈́̿̍͛̇̈́̅̈̚͘͝g̴̰̒̐̓̅̆ğ̴̨͖͖̭̭̈̏͜e̷̻̠̍͛͌͒͆͋͋̽͛̈́͂͛͊͋͝ȓ̷͍̦̳.̴̺͊*̴̡̛̘͎̼͚͇̩̌̔͆̊͜ͅ

:- What do you mean by 'bigger'?: Leareth has no idea if this is an observation or a question or a request or something else entirely.

He flashes back the memory of when the Proto showed him his own mind captured entirely in math, in nodes-and-linkages. :Bigger: 

.̷̧̛̺͈̜̠̮̰̝͑̅̅̐̃̈́͐̀̈́̀́̌̇͂̑̎̍̓̈́͒̄̅̾́͗̕̚͝͝*̴̧̨̨̰̻͚̠͙̘̥̝͉͈̪̪̞̐̃̑̏͊̊͒̇̀̓̔̓̉́̀͂̚̚͝͝͠d̷͚̪̭̪̩̲̙͆͜i̴̗̻̥͎̊̇̀̊̀̓͌̌͌̆̔̂r̸̹̞̙͜͝ē̶̦̹̟͑͛̓́͐͋̌͆͐̈́͐̓͘͘c̷̺̪̤̪̪̪͕͙̲̓̃̈̉̒̔͌t̷̡̨̡̛͔̪̠̜͔̙͙̫͉̳̲̜͎̩͖̬̀͜͝ï̵̧̻͎̩͍͔̖͖͎͈̲̭͉̙̱̝̞̱̞̜̙̬ͅv̷̢̛̛͙͙̭̘̪̣͕̬̯͉̟̲̰̟̟͈̫̓̆̎͛̈̓̓̅̋̇̆́̂̌̆̽͗̃̀̈́͜͝ė̶̖̰͚̮͓̭̰̤͍̈̈́͑͝͝͝:̵̨̛̟̤͚͕̫̼̝̱͎̭̰͆̓̈́͒̉̉̀̋̇̈̏̑̀̈́͜͠ ̵̧̡͖̟͉̻͍̗̬̺̞̝̳̦̜̠̟̾̈́́͆͂͂̀̿͋̔̀̿̈́͝t̷̢̢̛̬̥͚͎̳̬͇͔͉̩̗̦͍̼̦̲̺̃̃͌̇̇̀̐̿̄̀̾͐̂͆̆̔͗́̃̏̃́̿̚̕͝͝͝h̷̢̡̡̨̛̻̣̱̖̺̦̗̳̙̖̬̲͍͍͈͇̞͖̦̬̐́̓̃̄̄̍̓̓͑͊͂̄̏̾̅͑̽̒̐͘̚̚͝͝e̸̛̜̗͈̟͇̣̲͓̭̲͇̩̪̎̉̐̎̏͋̈́̈́̆̄̅̐̃̓̎͋̈́̾͘̕͘̚͝͝͠͝ ̴̡̨̡̭̾̔̏̚W̶̝̥͚̥̺̯̩͕̦̟͕̪̌̆̽͘͝ǫ̶̢̤̩̜̪̱̮̙͕̤͙͈͔̭̘̞͎͉̳̫̫̼̦͖͇̺̀̂̉͗́r̵̢̙̟͙̝̓̇́͆̈͝k̸̡̨͉̺̞̼͓̤̥̰̗̹̰̘͚͎͚̟̮̝̏̔̂̓̚͝ͅͅ.̶̧̡̛̹̰͎̭̮͇̪̠̝̻͔̝̰̣̮̮̦̟̫̝̘̰̙̠͚̼̞͑̅̐͗́̈̑͗̓̃͠͝ ̶̦̬̟̗͓̩̘̤͇̳̪̭̰̻͇̰͖̱̣͍̥̰̞͓͂̅̔̿̓̌͂́̄̏̀̆̂̑̈́͊͘͜͜͠ͅẗ̸͍̝͈́͊̒̓́̍͂̍͛̿̒̃̋̂̍͘͠͠ờ̷̻̽̅̈͂̐̎͊̀͐̿͆͂͒̌͂͗̈́̊̉̍̅̚͘̚̚͠͝ǫ̸̛̖͇̙̖̗̱͙̼̮̱̺͈̞͚̼̃̾͆̈͑͊̽́̀́̃̋̑̃̓̊́͛͌̉̽̚̚̕͝͝͝͠͝ ̵̧̡̲̙͖͚̖̟̱͍̫͍͎̘̜̫̻̗̋̄ͅs̵̢̢̡̝̖͇͙̰̘͓̖͇͚̮͎̺̲͕̤̭̝̤̯̬̼̞̱̒̆̀̇̎̓̎̅̄̓̽̈́̐̃̓͋́͊̀̈͘͜͝ͅm̷̨̛̫͓̗͓̹͉̪̘̟͇̉͑̂̽̎̉͋̿̽̌̎̆͆̆̕̚̚͜͝͝ã̵̫͙̞̰̖͈̺̖͉͉͖̮͎͈̄͋̋̋͂̐̋͋͊͗̚͝ľ̷̢̧̛̪̤̳̜̝̘̘̠̟̂̇̑͌̀̒̓͐̂͒̿́̂͑͊̈́̒̂́͒̚͘͠ͅl̵̢̫̰̤̙͇̞̟̬̘̖̽̊̆̉̒̃̅̈́̍̉̑́̌̆̀̽͋̆̈́̚̚̚̕̕͜͜ͅ ̸͖̼͙͔̜̻͍͈̦̺͓̲͕̩̌̓͛̆̏̎́͐͋̓̒̈́̆͗̋̈́̕͘t̶̨̠̪̯͕̰̮̯̠̯̥͓͎̼̰̝̺̳̅̀̋̒̂͒̒͒͊͑͋̾̑͌̒͊̌̂̄́̒̍̾̈́̒̑̚͘͠͝ͅờ̵̧̢̨̛͓̦̩̫̯̬͔͉̰̝̖̺͖̥̺͎́̅͊͆͌̈́̐̍͐̇͒̏̋̎̚͘͜ͅͅ ̷̨̺̲̝͔̗̯̘̹̖͔͈͖͓̮̘̥͋̾̃͊̍̊͊̇̐͌̐͐͌̃͘͠͝͝͝ͅi̸̢̧̧̧̖̪̙̱̯͎͖͎͕̝̻̼̖̖̱̟̲̹̭̜̰̻̦̘̳̊͑́̋͑̅̋́̀̓͋̍̀́̔̅̓͂́̉̃̀̓̀͐̈̃̽͘͠ṃ̶̯̰̳͖̪̜́̇̀́̃̌̽̒͆͋̎̑͒̂̐͂͑̀͒͗̓̃̔͑̆̄̌̚͝ͅp̴̛̖͛̿̓̉̏͋̂́̈́͛̅̍̍̊͑̉̾̋̃̿̏̕͠l̸̢̡̛̛͖̠̣͙̹̙̬͈̭͉̤̹͎͇̫̥͚̻̙̬̗͎̱̘͔̝̉́͂̾̍̌̿̌̉͊̊́̿̌̕̚͜ͅė̵̡̨̧̹̞̩͍̯̭͕͙͈͇̥̯̟̭͙̦̋͌̅̇̆̂̍̔̋̚͝m̴̛̛͍͍͙̎̍͑͋̐͛̀̍̐̏̓̓̆̀͌̾̇͂͘͘̕͠͝͝͠e̸̺͉͈̜̟̘͇̱̫̥̺̱̝͈͈̜͖͎̖͛̅͊͂̓̌̏͛͋̇̓͝͝ņ̶̡̢̫̖̮͇̻̯̖̜̠͖̙̻̤̣̮̀̊̃͋͗̓̔̊́̏̆̎͛̾̾̈̈́̓͛̕̚t̶̨̟̘̯͍̖̻̖̠̻̝͇̩̤͈̻̭͍͇̗̜̜͎̫̳̲́̏̋̉̌͑̒̓̑̊͗̈̽̇̎̈́̿̿͘ͅ ̷̡̗͕̱͖̥̘̮͓̰̖̥͎̹͚̻̮̖̣̳̜͂́͆̎̎̋̐͛́̔̂̿̒̈́̓̀̎͆̀́̚͜͠ͅͅd̸̛͍̜̪̺̫̦̭͓͖̙̱̣̱͓̤̠̠̲̻̹̻̄̀į̶̢̨̨̩̘̜͇̯̤̻̣͕͕͗̇͒̎͌̿̈͂́̑̓͛̅̀̇̐́̊̌̇̓̚͝͝r̸̨̘̆̾͊̊́̓͗́̿́̌͊̌̕͘͝ͅe̴̢̨̩̪̬͓̥̟͉͖̯͓̯̦͈͂̀̄͒̓̀̉̉̓̾̆̕͝͠ͅć̸̢̢̡̨̧̧͖̭̩͈͔̮̘̥̫̞͈͆̎̎͌̈́̈̀̃̊̾͌̅͛̃̓̃́̀͂̆̋̚͘͝͠ṯ̴̘̠̙̞͎̫̖̱̱̈͋̎͂̌̆̍̍͌̏͛͑̕i̸̡̢͈̪̭͚̘̯̭͕͔̬̜͍̞͎͚̟̩͙̰̠͚͍̪̝͕̒̋̀̅́͂̐͂̐̑͐̚v̷̰͎͎͎̝͓̺̟͚̼͍̬̜̹̩̮͚̬̅̓͂̃̋͂̂̑̏͜͠͝ȩ̸̧̣͍͍͇͓̲͕̩̺͖͖̼̣́͛̈́͋̿͆̔͊̿̓̅̓̍̃̄͆̀̋̈̂̾̽̾̎̚̕̚͠͝.̵̛̹̠̬͎̞̼̤̪͇̰̘͚̯̠̩̣̓̈́̎̂͂́̅̐͗̓̓̕͝͝͠ͅ ̴̢̡̜̘͇̳͇͙̭̱͍̝͎̱̹̖̗͚͓̞̭̬̙̠͈̼̱̯͆̅̒̅̈͋̈́̾͆̾̈́̑̀͋̚̚͜͝ͅb̸̧̺͇͎͔̠̜̱̟̹̰̜̗͖̖̱̥̝̳̥͉̓͒̀̈́̽̓̋̾̋͌̚͜͠͝i̴̢̨͔̳̟̗̒g̸̼̟͖̮͎̯̏͐͒̒̿͘͝͝ḡ̶̟̰͓̟̩̅̑̿̈́̓̔̿̉͐͒̓̅͂̐̌̓̐̍̉̔͛̔̑̕͜͠͠è̵͎͉̦̠̫̘̫̓ŗ̴̡̭̟̙̲̬͎̹̞̰͉͓͖̟̳̪̜͕̀̀̋͛̾̎̀̂͝͝.̷̨̹̦͍̫̬͇̫̲̳̈̾̈̐̐̅̕ ̷̧̢̛̳̳̝̥̯͎͈̳͍̘̜̣̭̫̝̲̠̫͙̙̦̻͋̾̆̆̉̏̒́́͒̕͝͝͠ͅḑ̷̨̙̲̤̣̳̙̱̹͓͈̫̪̭͎͕̯̹͋̀͂̋́͋̃͌͘̚̕ͅi̸̞̖̇͒͐̇̀͑̉̇̃̊̆̽̑́̌̂͊́̉̄̈́̽͌̓̐͑̎͘̚͝ŕ̵̭̯̝̗̾̀̓͗̀̈̂̏̈̆͐̓͗̀̀͊̿̋͐̓̋͑̍̕͘͘͠ͅê̵̡̛̤̗̺͈̘͔̻̯͔̹̪̟̬̟̳̤̘͙͚̗̂̈͗́̑͒̎̓̈̇͐̐̂̀͂͆̋͐͘͘͜͜͜͝͝͝ͅc̴̨̢̛̩̰͓̠̫͙͙̫̬͉͔͈̻̱̣̤̭̗̱̣̾̃́̐̽̑̎̃͋͑̃̌̆͂̊͘͝ͅt̵̢̛̲͈̩̭̬̝͈̫̜̺̪̯̩̯̞͇̋͋̋̐̏͐͒́́̑̄͗́͛͐͛͛̿̕̚̚͜͝͝i̶̛̺̊͋͊̅̇͒̓͋̅̐̌̌̽̀͛́̆͝͠͝͠ͅv̷̨̨̘̮̰̣͇̙̳̳͆͗̎̓͐́̍́̐͠ͅͅe̸̢̩̭͙͕̻̻̠̭̍̑͗̀̑͒͒͘͜͜͠͝:̶͓̮̪̺̰̻̘̯̫̝̆́̆̉̿͛͑̔͐̏̋͂̒̽̌̈̋̑̑̕ͅͅ ̸̧͈̳̹͇͓͖̺̬̦̤̩̤͓̝̞̟̱̦̺̈́̾͆͗̅͗͂̀̌͌͒̍̉̓̃r̴̡̜͕̭͍̦̲͔͚͍͙̲͉͍̙̬̯̙̮̭̥͔̙̹̥̀̎̑̾͑̂́͌͜͠ͅͅe̷̡̮̗̫͓̭̱̗̺̘̦̼̥̝͂͂̈́͂̒̊͑̋̔̈p̷̡̡̧̢͉̜͈̖̪̠̞͎̯̺̘̳̺͚̱̰͎̠̬̤̪̠̍͌͂̓̃̓͗̐̆́̄̊͜͜͝ͅõ̶̧̢̨̯͖̤̙̟̬̦̳͕͇̠̥̯̤̜͖̦͖̖̭̩̊͗͂̔̾͐̿͗́̍̑̒̄͘r̶̢̨̡̨̨̨̨̫͓̗͚̺͚̼̠̞̬̙̤̲͊̋̉͗͆̈́̊̊͒͗͆͋͂̕ͅͅt̷̡̨̧̩̰̖̻̘̻͉͎̰͚̩̥̖͖̙͉̤̞̟̖̣͔͕͇̻̻͊̌̇̂͐̀̌͗̋͐͋̓̐̽̆̍͊͒̉́̆̀̆̏̚͝͝.̶̧̧̛̗̼̼̲̼̖̣̱̪̹͓͉̈͆̑͛̉́͑́̈́̍̚ ̵̧͍̖̹̼̼̺̱͍͕̻̻̲̦̩̿̆̅̑́̌͗̾̃͌̃̕͜ẗ̴̢̧͎͎̦̘̟͈͙̖̬̬͚̬̗͓͉͓̖͙͍́͊̓̄͗͜͠ͅo̶̢̢̝̳̳͓̦̲̘̲͉͚̬̺̗̩͊́̓̓͛̌̀̈́͂̈́̂͒̀͂̓̀̊̽͐̐̒͆̽̚͜͝͝͝o̵̻͇̐͌͌̐̒͘ ̵̧̜̱̭͓͚͎͔̦̲̳̖͚͇͚̔̃̈́̄̃̏̓̎͒́́̆̊ͅş̷̬̟̗͙̭̪̪̖͖̠̖̎̊͂̔͂͂̀̄̒͛̂́͋͌͌̇́̀̀͘͠m̴̨̡̛̛͍̺̮̯̫̪̫̝̯̀͂͋̌̽̔̈́̈́͑̔͌͂̎̋̑̽́͂̕̕ą̵̡̢̳̳̜̦̰͖̭̟̳̰̖̮̪͔͎̰͉̞̖͖͈̱̘̫͔̭̠̃̈́͊̏͊̇͋͝l̸̢̧̊l̴̡̛͖̯͚̘̞̲̱̭̺̪̈́̏͐̇̎̔̈́̈́̓̾̓̐͑̎̀͂̎̾̿̚̚̚͜͜͠͝͝͝ͅ ̵̧̦̼̰̱̰̣̳̼̙̹̟͙̦̠̱̹͓̄̌́̔̽͌͋̾͋͛͑̒́̈̔̅͝͝͝t̵̺͎͍̫̆̇̂̀͂̿̌̍̂̊̔̅́͗̍̓̒̃̈̎̚͠ō̶̳̽͊̐͋̏̈̓̂̃̒̀͒͂̓͒̀̔͛͐͒̌̄͐́̄̅͘ ̷̗̤̘͕͕̦͚̤̳̣͔̦̻̖͒̂̕͜i̵̧̨̧̛̥̦̼̪̞̗͙̹̰̮͎̳͙͔͉͙̖̖̽̐̑̈́̓͆̆̀̄͗̀͘̚͜m̸̧̨̡̛̛̘͔͚̗̝̞͔͈̫̞̟̭̰͔̻̼̙͓̥̱̦̠̮̽͒̓̃͌̆̈́̓́̂̂̎̿̊͐̽̾̒͛̈̈̊̀̍̕͜͜͜ͅṕ̸̥̪̱̭͚͇͈̬͚̟̿̈́̊̌̀̄͘ͅͅͅl̸̛̞̗͖̲̗͚̀̋͊͐̎́̂͊̾̆̾̌̈́͑̓̌̌̚͘͝ë̴̡̛̟͚́́̀̌͊́̐̓͛͑̌̋͊̋̍̐̓̀͒̔͒͊̌̍̔̆̿̄͘m̸̡̨̹͕̥̮̤̖̘̜̻͈͍̲̬͒̃̈͐̇̇̈́̽̽̒͂́̏̇̓̾͛̊͆̈́͐̕͝ͅe̶̜̬̥̥͔͕̫̯͚̰̜̜̫̗̓̅͑͂̈͌̃͒̐͠͠͠n̴̨̢̜̙̰̥͚̝͙̦̻͓̣̱̒̓̓͋̒͠ţ̷̻̰͖͔͚̲̤̬̘͈͖̗̩͈͚́͋̄̎̿̀̒̑̃̽̑̐̒̓͘͝͝ͅͅ ̸̡̰̘̮̦̳͉͚̻̮͉̹̫͓̫͙̗̾͐̅̇̈́̈́͑͊̾̓́̓̐̈́̈́͜ḑ̶̨̛̝̣̣͍͎̬̞͓̬̝̫̜͖͈̗̣̦̾͊͂̐͌̈́̎̽̇͋̓̓͋̀̈͐̐̀͒̚̚͝ͅį̸̨̧̭͙̻̮̻͔̺̜̞̞̰̻̝̣̠̝̻̤͔̳͇̭̰̳̉̂̀̿̓̅̈́̄̽̓̓̆̀̃̆̅͐͂͘͜͜͠͝͝ͅŗ̵͉̆̍͆͛͋̇̾̋̎̿̀̍͊̓̋̕̕̚e̶̡̛̞̰͇̮̗͇̝̬̜̙̊̈́͒͋͋̿̋̉̀̌̽́̐c̶̨̛̠̟͕̠̟͕̙̱̗͕̖̹̮̺̘̪̭̭̿̌̀̇̈́̀̏͆̏͆̇͂̀͂̇͐̄̔͝͝͝͠t̵̡͈̳̼̦̺̰̳̣̟̞̰̭̩̤͎̲̞̙̎͌͒̂̋̈́̇̔̂͛̄͑̓̾͛̂̾͌͌́͆̈́̕͜͠͝ͅį̸̡̥͖̻̗̻̻̥̞͍̝̼͕͙̼͓͙̠͋̈́̃͊͂̈́͋̽̌̔̏͒̆͐̉̈̑̽̐̃́̒̑̑͘͠ṿ̶̡̢̛̮̜̹̮̜͙̜̙̜͙̪͓̰̙̣̳̙͓̳̹̓̇͊̔̐͛͗̃͑̐̀̔̕͜ę̸̛̛̛͇̭͖̩̺̦͚͈̞̳̘̤̠̫̩͚̣̳͎͎͖͇̬̗͙͍͛̈͒͆́̀͋̓̿̈́̊͒̀̅̋̉̈̈̉̑̓̐̚͘͘̕͜.̴̡̧̨͎̼̤̺̥̜̮͙̖͚̝͊̆̆͘̚ ̸̡̧̧̠̼̟̦̥̠͖͖̙͈̬͇̰͔͖̫̤̮̖͙̠̿̽͊̎̅̉̔̇̈̈͗̌́̔̚b̸̪̲͈̋̂̔͋̔̆͗̈́̈́͛̐̾̀̂́̄̽̉̀̿̚͘̕̚͝͠͠i̵͈͛͂͂́̒́̉̍̀̾͊̈́̀̑̈́̋́͆͠͠g̴̛̛͍̰̰̑̏̔͑̈́̽̅͋̂̀͗̍͗͛͆̓̌͌͂͛̂̾͠ģ̵̧̨͎̖͍̝̹̖͇̟̭͚̩̬̟̩̭̞̠͓̲̼̗̖͑̈́̍͛̈́́́̀̎̇͆̆̇͜ͅͅę̶̡͙̦̺̺͇̞̤̞͍̀̒ͅr̶̝͍̠̮̹͚̍̅ͅ.̴̢͔͉̖̪͖̦̙̝̜̬̝̏̔̊͐̎͌̀́͊͆̊͗̂̽̔̎͒̀͜͠ ̶̢̛̫̪̯͖̻͙̔͋͋̃͜ḑ̴̯͉̤͍͙̖́̈͊͐̓̒̒͑͋̑́̿͆̌̔͐͗͐̚͝͝ͅi̴̡̛̛̪̙͈̪̫̗̱͖͓̫̻̥̫̎̈́̎̈́͊̆̅́̌̒͗̈́̃̍̇̏̄́̆̓̚̚̚̕͝͝͝r̴̪͓̗͆̀̅̌̐̃̈́͂͛͂͛̑̒̅̏͒̈̓̎͌͌̈́̆̽͝͝ͅẻ̴͇̱͎̜͕̺̤͙̇̌̀̍̎͑̈̀̂̔̄͋̓̑̊̏̈́̆̕͘͘͜͜͝͠c̴̡̥̟͔͓͖̻̺͆͒͗̀͐́̽͑̅̄̈̑̎̑̉̉̇͋̌̄̿͊͂̕͝͝͝ṱ̶̨̡̡̢̯̳̜̗̮̺͓͇̠̳͕͕̙̈́͂ḯ̵̡̨͚̞̤̮̯͚̰̙̹͎̤̗̟͔̣͎̤̈́͂͊́͆̽̀̽͌̋͐̽̊̇̓͑̊͛͛͊̋̽̈́̚͘͠͠͝v̶̯̙͎̬̫̽̇̃̃́̄è̷̢̧̧̧̡̛̛̜̻̰̭̞̪̲͎̯̂̎̋̿̈́͒̾̋̎͂̓̍͝:̵̢͚͚̝͕̆̌͋̒̏͛̽̿̒̀̿̈́͛̾̎̎̈͘ ̴̛͕̣̤̟͈͖̓̏͋̈́̑́́̅̒̌̃͑̃̂̑̃͌̕͜͝͝͠l̶̜͇̽͌́̎̌̒̿̑͊̉͋͐̽͌̓̑͛̋̌͊͊̆̄̄̏̒́͘͝ę̸̧̨̧̛̛̱̬̬̬̯̙͍͙̙̳̜͎̪̗̗̱̱̗̣̯̖̹̥̤̩̟̅̎̄͐͊͑̓̉̈́́̐͆͑̈́͌̆͑̋̌͝ä̵̛̬̝͍̣̼̠̳̫̗͔̰̭̙́̉̈́̉̑̎̃̽̌̋̉̃̈̃́̂̈́̔̄̀̕͠͠͝͝r̸̢̧̧̨̢̦̮͈̭͖̗̲͈̮̥͕̠͍͔͕̩̩̘̞̱͔̹̅̍̉̊̉͌̃͂̃͗̓̏̑̀̊̓͌̐͒̎͘̚̚͝ͅͅń̵̛̫̩̱̪͙̠̣͎̦͈̪̝̲̓̊̓́̎̈́̍̏̒͂͊̆̏̎̈́̕͜͝͝͠͝͠?̷̨̛̬͔̺̙͓̦̝̲͔̻̣̮̹̮̖̘̫͙̮͎̲̞̟̼̥̪̇̅̌͛͆̄͠?̸̛͎̞̟̪͎͕̤̖͒͊͆̅̒͒͑͐̾̒̎͐̅̄͋̍̈̕͜͝?̸̘̼̦̮̰̫̯̺̉́͒̑̈͐͛̏̇͗̆̐̑̈́̄͋͛̐͑̅̾̆̿͊̿̕͝͝ͅ ̵͉͕͖̦͍̙͊̽̅͂̑́̎̔̂͆́ṱ̵̡͔̝͇͔͔̭̞͔̲̙̗͕̲̬͛̑͊͑̉͗̆͂̉͆̔̒͑o̶̲̙̻͎̰̲̮͇̮͍͕͊͆̈́̏̒̓͐́̄̅̓͘͝ͅö̵̧̧̧͔̠͙͙̜͎̲͔̤͓͖̯̠̖̈̔̈̽͜͜͠ ̷̛͖̝̜̭̮͇̱͇̄͗͋͒͗̑̔͒̋̏̈́͐̈͌̃̑̋̀̍͗ͅͅs̸̢̛͓̥͉̞̺͕̖̈́̍̎̇͐͐͊́̀̆̏̐͗͆̿̀͂̽̈́̇̿͝͝͝͠͝m̵̧̧̻̼̝͙̠̭̮̟̘̮͇̫͎̩̠͙̬̱͍̂͆̀͑̏̓̐̈́͒͛͌̍̌͘͘̚͜ã̵̡͎̯͉̫͙̈͌͛̅̓̓̄̓͊̍̈̓͆͗͑̕̚l̴̨̰̠̮̝̫̯̝̩̽̋̾͋̃̍̓͜l̸̮͇̮̤͚̦̟͚̤͒̓̔͋́̇̂͒͘͘ ̷̧̨̘̞̞͇̝̼̞͚̩͍͇̫̈́͑̒͜t̶̨̡͖̫̦̻̞̝̘͈͖̮̬͙̫͕̭̫̱̣̣̺͎̮̪͎̟͎̲̼̆̊̆̀̆̑͒̉̊͘ó̵̪̯̯͖͚̣͓̝͋̃̃̔̈́͑̔͊̃̈́̐͊̿̅̏͐̉̏́̏̎̏̿͑͆͗͜͠ ̸̢̬̱̮̪͓͓̫̒̀̓͂̒̋̑͝ḭ̴̧̡̨̻̼̤̥͕̦̤͖͎̞͎̬̭̫̠̝̲̼͓̙̖̇̐̾͌̉̌̈́̎̔̈̍̇̋̒̓̈́̓͑̌̕͝͝͝ͅm̵̡̖̪͔͉͍̯͔͇̗̺̫͈̖̈͆̈́͜ͅp̶̨̡̬͖̯͈̈́̀̊͊̌̑̀̾̽́͑̔̊̎͗̀̿͂̀̆͑͐̕͠͝l̶̡̨̛̤̖͓̜̫̹̗̖͈̟̓ȩ̵̢̧̛̦͔̩͍̣̼̣̩̘̰̞̞̳͓̪̠̰̯͈̰̀̎̓̎̇̉̉̀̅̽͝m̶̞͔͍̫̤͎̟̩͙̠̥̣̫̥̱̳̫̦̗̪͙̬̒̇ͅę̸͓͍̯̮̤̽̄̾̂́̂̾̅͊̌͛̀̎͆͑͝ǹ̷̨̡̡̧͓̦͔̟̱̞̙̟̦̱̗͕̫̠̜͉̠͇̣͂̅̒͋̐̈́̍̒̇̎́́̒̀̍͂̓̉͛̚͘̚͜͠t̵̨̲͖̩̤̲̳̺̚ ̵̡͓̩̦̖̦̬̟̀̃̔͐̽̇̈́͋̉̑͑͜d̸̢̨̢̤̭̱̖͖̲̰̹̼͚͈̄͋͒͊͘͜͝͝i̶̯̫̪͈̰̬̼̘̠͙͎̹̞̞̼͖̐̒͂͊́͑̍͑̿̂̀̋͂͐̅̆̉̕͝ͅͅŗ̵̢͍̮̯̣̜̗̂̈́͒̓̎̇͊̒́͋̿̄̉͗̃̂̈̑̈́̎̀̍̎̎͛̉̕̚͠e̸̢̧̨̮̝̮̩̱͍̦̫̝͙̜̼͖͓̯̯̹̥͌̒̎͆́̉̓̈́̅̌͑̌̾́̕͘͘͠͝ͅc̶̛̛͇͖̰͖̝͙̟͊̓̓̾͒̽̎̌͑̈́̇͆̋͌̄͛́̿̄̀̕̚͘͠͝t̸̨̛̩̣̪̹̬̭͓̙̯͉̬͔̮̩̺͙̩̗͈̟̹̑̊̒́̿͆̅̇́͋̊̑̍͘͝í̶̡̗͓̜͙̠̹͉̗̜̘͚̔͆̍̌̒̋͝v̸̡̨̧̢̪͉͍̟͕͕̰̺͔͖̱̤̬̖̰͓̀͐̉̑̍̓̍͊͋̊͒̓̓̂͗̀̈̇̏̍̀̊͒͌̈́̈́̚͘̚͠e̸̡̨͇̗̣̖͖̠̝͓̺͈̭͓̬͇͖̤̥̤̳̊̏̓͋̕.̷͙͙̹̝̹͈͙̱̦͉̹̝̗̱͙͋̓͘ ̴̢̨̛̻̗͎̥̭̗͎̼͔̰̪̲̩̘̙͊̔̑̅̈́̈̈͗̀̋̾́̋͂̌̓͘͝ͅb̸̢̹̩͕͇̙̦̫͓͖̠͕͎͙͉̠͇̫̝̜̗͔̣́͒̑̾͐͆̄̆̌̈́̑̿̓̎̐̋̈́͒̑̒͂̏͆̄̚̕̚͘͝͠i̶̜͕̜͒̓̿̀̉̃̽̌̀͌̄͊̀̚͝͠ģ̸̜̣̰͈͉̣̼̦͙͉̪̫̺̯̖͂̂̒̈́ģ̸͙̮̱͓̹͖̤̙̃̂̂̈̿͋͒̿̔̂͒͂̒̑̓̊̓̈͗̓̇̄̿̕̕͘̕͜͝ͅȩ̵̡͍̪̠̗̻̲̼͈̼̰̝̃̓̕r̴̢̡̖͚͎̯̝̩̙̞͔̠̫̬͚̦͖̯͓͚͍͉̀͊͑́̆́̉͊̇̑̉̌̈́̾̔̔̂̒̓̆̓͌̆̏̀̀̕̚͜͜͝͠.̶̧̢̨̖͎͙̲͈͔͈̬͓͈̝͈̘̣͔̭̞̫͎̝̬̄͑̈́̐̇̒̓ͅ*̷͓̜̰͚̥̱̬̹̤͍̙̝̟̫͓̖̥̮̄̐̏́̏͑͠͝|̶͖͓̈́͒

:...Oh, you need to be bigger, to - understand...?: 

:̷̤̠̙͎̦̮̫̑̆̆͑͊̄̾͆̾̌̆̕͝`̸͕̜̬̮̯̳̞̞̥̖̰̘͆̍̔͐̈́̏͋̂̾̎̇́͂͝͝ͅͅt̷̛̜͇͈̝̅̀̄̑̈̽͠ǫ̵̺̱̥̜͉͇̻̻̖͖̯̣̝̇̉̄̃̈́ṑ̶̙̘̝̣͔̳̹̰̳̮͕̦͇̫͛̃̆̈̀̋̄͘.̴̢̨̫̊̋͌͌̐̑͗̄͝͝͠͝͝s̸̡̡̛͍̮͍̫͈̹̦̀͊̉̾͂̀̐̂̓̿̈̐̏̎ͅm̶̢̞͔͕̪̯̙̙͎̆̂̂̇̏̂̓͆̕͝a̶̞̍͐l̵̢̛͕̖̫̟͖̬̞̯̲̻͙͑̈́̒̆̕ḽ̷̯̃͐̈̆̅:̸̧̦̩̗̈̀ͅ*̵̱̦͙̖̯͍̯͉̜͖̒̊̾̈́̂͌͆͋̽̽͌̋͝ͅ

And then a sort of question, the automata game shoved back at him: is this still what I should be doing?

:Doing?: Leareth asks blankly. :It is - just an example...: 

Confusion!

:You can stop: 

After a long pause, trying to force thoughts through the glue in his head: 

:- How many more resources do you need, to be big enough. Twice as many? Three times, ten times?: 

.̴͇̪̗̥͖͔̓̓͗.̶̧̤̟̰̳̲̜̼̦̫̪̩̂̿͐̓̀͛̄̃́͆͝͝ͅ|̸̧̬̮̺̤̫̅̐̀̽̀̕͝3̶̡̧͇͖͈͔͓͚̮͚̫͗́̍̆̾̂͌̓̍4̶͎͚̣̲̭͇͕͌͐͌͘ͅď̴̪͎̝̱͎̖̅͑̄͋͗̚ͅở̴̛̛̟̤̩̟̭̩̿̀̇̌̓̈͗̅͑̈́͝ṳ̵̙̫͇̣̭͉̜͓̹̙̣̹̇͘͜͝b̶̭̣͇̹͕͓̪̓̑͐̿̊͆͊̒̏̋͜l̸̛̳̲̝̺͈͐͊͊́̑̆̍̃̽͊̅̅̌ͅi̶̗̥͍̜͎͒̐͐͂̚n̷̝̙͙̼͙̫̾́͋̈́̄̌̈̓̓͘̕͘͠͝͝ͅg̴̛̼̠̞̟͚̟̰̖̱̯̖̀͑̆͌͒̎́̀̾͆̈́̂͝͝s̸̫̠͓̗͎̩̪̼̖͍̓́͋͋̈́̏̕͝ͅ ̴̨̫͕̼͖̭̙̭̰͖̦̮̣̣̭̀̀̿̈́͌̊̈́͘o̸̯̍̈́̉͊̅̃͛̈́̈́̊̊͜͝f̶̡̨̟̼̱̖͗͋̾̏̊̓̾̇̾ ̶̱͙̘̤̙̘̭̘̞̜̪̠͔̤̠̀̏͐̎͆̍͗͘c̶̢̻͖̫̜̭̤̤̦̜̬̱̖̻̓́͑̈ͅú̸̢͚̯̗͚̰͙͍̼͎̖̙̂̐͛̽̌͋̎͠͝ͅͅṟ̵̣̙͚͐̓̒͆̈́͐́̀̽͝ṙ̸̛̭̀̋̇͆̉́̄͝e̸̺̮̭̹̟̓̏̄̽̃̅̈́͆̔͒̕̕̚n̴̢̝̹̎̅̆͐̇̎̿̇̌̏́̀̒̏͝t̶̪͈͈̟͔̜̟̲̺̥̻̤͍̼͂̿̓ͅ ̷̧̣̺̍̊͐̉̾͋́̒̋̔͊̚͜͝ṙ̶͔̱̦͓̦̺̤̩̫̗̭͇̘́͆̅͊̌͂ȩ̵̣͎̼͚̜̠͆͋̏̊̓s̸̡͍̞̬̺͈̞̓̕ͅǫ̷͖͇͕͖̎̆̏̎̚ͅu̴̦͉̗̪̙͖͈̙̿̾r̷̻͈̦̤̪̗̖͚̖̜̙̍̏c̸̡͉̹̭̞̪̳̬̒͑̆̂̈͠ͅë̵̥̟̠́̌̌̀̅͐̓̅͝s̴͎͈̩͙̊͗̌̐̏̍͌͗̐̎̈͘͝͠.̷̞̝̱̬͖̱̮̮̘͕͉̼̫̰̐̋́̒̐̈́̍̾͌̍*̵̨̨̨̹̼̳̠̬̼̤̅͋̾̀̆͋̌͆̃͐̚