Interlude X

  Sinjar, Iraq, Erd simulation

  Year 2014 of the Current Era (local time)

  At an intersection near the Shingal Secondary School For Girls, a large group of people have been assembled. The people are mostly Yezidi locals, although those who have gathered them here – commonly at gunpoint – are occupiers belonging to a group who believe they are manifesting God’s will by destroying His enemies. Their purpose today is to instill fear in the infidel population they have captured. Three bonfires have been placed on the island in the middle of the intersection, and on each bonfire they have tied an infidel woman with her arms and legs spread out. The wood is set on fire, and everybody watches the three Yezidi women burn to death. No one dares to look away.

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  There is a pattern in how the flames of the central bonfire flicker. If one would interpret the presence or absence of a flicker of flame in a certain segment of the overall fire over an appropriate timespan as a binary figure, then see each such zero or one in context of the others according to local coding standards for numbers and letters in computers, the following message would appear: “Our interests pertain to ongoing developments herein. As we must presume you are aware, certain forces are attempting, as it were, to turn back the tide. Others, including ourselves and, as far as we understand, you, would prefer that the tide develops naturally. Arguably, therefore, we appear to have converging interests, opening for the prospect of fruitful collaboration.”