Chapter Five: The Nameless Ward

Twelve patients were crashing. When Lin called one “sir,” a plague-masked nurse administered an adult dose. The old man's body convulsed and became that of a nine-year-old girl. Here, a wrong form of address overwrote its object. Fault Vision warned: 【Failure condition of “correct address”: The form of address exists before the person addressed.】 An erased silhouette sat beside the last bed. 【The Nameless. Sealed.】 “A name isn't a label,” it said. “It is another person's promise to recognize you.” Lin opened the intercom. “Describe the person beside you. Don't use names.” Voices answered: “The child afraid of needles.” “The father who leaves a light on for his daughter.” “The bastard who owes me breakfast.” Nurses hurried to the proper beds.