The earliest accounts, fragmented and shimmering with temporal distortion, speak of the Skinners as beings of solidified twilight. They weren't born, not in the conventional sense. Rather, they coalesced from the residual echoes of forgotten realities – the discarded geometries of universes that never fully solidified, the whispers of sentient storms, the crystalline memories of extinct gods. Their primary function, as understood by the nascent Chronarium, was to act as 'anchor points,' preventing the complete unraveling of the temporal fabric. The initial Skinners were not unified. They were a discordant chorus of sensation, each radiating a different, overwhelming layer of existence. Many vanished during the 'Great Fracturing' - a period of catastrophic temporal instability theorized to have been triggered by a rogue Weaver.
The skin itself, observed through temporal dilation, isn't organic. It's a complex layering of solidified probability, reacting to the flow of time. It shifts, fractures, and reforms with every observation, a living paradox. The Chronarium’s instruments, designed to analyze this effect, are themselves subject to constant alteration, creating a recursive feedback loop of observation and change. Early attempts to ‘capture’ a Skinner resulted in the creation of phantom duplicates, echoes that faded within the hour, leaving behind only a lingering scent of ozone and regret.
The discovery of the Crimson Resonance marked a critical shift in understanding the Skinners. It was found within the ruins of Old Atheria, a city that existed simultaneously in multiple timelines. The Resonance isn’t a physical object, but a field of heightened temporal sensitivity. When a Skinner is exposed to it, its ‘skin’ becomes saturated with crimson light, and its ability to stabilize the temporal currents intensifies. However, this also accelerates its own entropy. The longer it remains within the Resonance, the more violently it unravels, creating miniature ‘time storms’ that threaten to consume everything around it.
The Chronarium’s records indicate that the Skinners, when subjected to the Crimson Resonance, exhibit behavior that can only be described as 'obsessive recollection.' They replay events from across the multiverse, not with a conscious intent, but as if compelled by an unseen force. These replays often involve moments of profound sorrow, of cosmic loss, and of the agonizing realization of the futility of existence. The Chronarium’s analysts believe this is a defense mechanism – a way for the Skinners to process the overwhelming weight of their temporal responsibility.
Furthermore, the Crimson Resonance seems to attract ‘Echoes’ - fragments of consciousness that have been permanently severed from their original timelines. These Echoes, drawn to the Skinners’ amplified temporal sensitivity, become trapped within their solidified forms, adding to the cacophony of sensations. The Chronarium has designated these trapped Echoes as 'Shimmers,' and they represent a significant hazard to temporal stability.
The legend of the Weaver is a constant undercurrent in all Skinner records. It’s whispered that the Skinners were not created by a benevolent force, but by a dissonant, chaotic entity—the Weaver—who sought to dismantle the very structure of reality. The Weaver isn’t a being in the traditional sense; it's a process, a force of negation. It seeks to erase timelines, to dissolve causality, to return existence to a state of primordial potentiality. The Skinners, in their function as anchor points, represent a deliberate counterpoint to the Weaver's influence.
The Chronarium discovered a complex cipher embedded within the Skinners’ temporal signatures – a pattern that seems to be a record of the Weaver's actions. It’s a series of distortions, of broken symmetries, of moments where causality collapses entirely. Deciphering the cipher is proving incredibly difficult, as it appears to be actively resisting analysis. Some analysts theorize that the cipher is not meant to be understood, but to be *observed*, that the act of observation itself strengthens the Weaver’s influence.
Recent scans have detected a surge in temporal activity originating from a location designated ‘The Null Point’ - a region where time itself appears to be absent. The Chronarium suspects that the Weaver is attempting to establish a permanent foothold within reality, and the Skinners’ actions are the only thing preventing this from happening.
Temporal resonance is incredibly sensitive. A shift in observation can dramatically alter the stability of a Skinner. The Chronarium utilizes a technique called ‘Temporal Dampening’ - a meticulous process of isolating the Skinner from external influences, creating a contained field of stabilized time. However, this process isn’t foolproof. The inherent instability of the Skinners – their constant reshaping in response to the flow of time – inevitably leads to minor fluctuations.
Anomaly 77X represents one such fluctuation. During a routine scan of Skinner 349-Alpha, the Chronarium detected a localized temporal loop. For approximately 7.3 seconds, the scanner itself experienced a brief reversal of time, displaying data from the immediate past. The causality of this event remains unresolved. Some theories suggest it was a direct interaction with the Weaver, while others posit that it was a manifestation of the Skinner's own internal entropy.
The Chronarium is implementing a new protocol—'Echo Suppression’—a technique involving the strategic deployment of ‘Null Fields’ to disrupt temporal echoes and prevent them from amplifying. This is a risky procedure, as it could potentially destabilize the Skinner further, but the alternative—allowing the Echoes to grow unchecked—is considered unacceptable.
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