The Receda Cube

General

• Pronounced: /reh-KAY-deh/

• The Receda Cube is the main attraction at Perplex City Academy Museum

• It was discovered in the Catbite gorge in 7AC

• Perplex City Academy was, at this time, a repository for any unusual or potentially dangerous articles discovered.

• The Receda Sign seemed to indicate it was approximately 10cm^3, but a recent press article suggested it was "about the size of a bowling ball."

• After deciding that the Cube was not immediately dangerous, Academy officials placed it on public display where it remained as an uninvestigated curiosity for over 30 years

• The properties of the Cube are still somewhat mysterious...

• The Cube contains markings on the surface and it is still unknown within Perplex City whether the markings are original or later additions

• Detailed scientific analysis using a range of tools, including electron microscopy, MRI and TNI scans, as well as various metallurgical and spectrometric investigations, has provided limited information

• The people of Perplex City have determined that the Cube is not made of any known naturally occurring substance within their world.

• The Cube is also acknowledged as a beautiful artistic object in its own right.

• The presence of the Cube is also said to convey a sense of peace and harmony.

• Monica Grand speculated that it was some form of weapon.

• Hesketh Zeller died spectacularly while researching its properties.

• Susan Marchant conducted intensively early research on the Cube, and her descriptions proved eerily accurate once technology caught up over a hundred years later. In her later years she began to claim that it was a self-aware entity that could communicate directly with her senses.

• A number of religious groups in Perplex City hold it in special reverence, including The Brotherhood of the Six, who have this to say:

According to The Brotherhood of the Six

with some edits

The Cube Currently held without cause in the Perplex City Academy by those who do not venerate its ancient light. It is an incarnation of the One True Cube, which is One with the Universe. It is mentioned in the writings of the Holy Ealianos as one of the true forms of the Lord. From time immemorial, the Cube has been a secret symbol of holiness among all worshippers. It takes many forms including: the four sacred pillars of Jagesh (which are doubled at festive times, symbolizing the creation of the cube from the square) the square-walkers at the Temple of Barribant, who walk a square, labyrinthical path. the ancient monuments at Rhat-Mamar, built with cube-shaped stones and the standing stones which were unearthed in our own Catbite Gorge "Cube-shaped stones in a pattern of squares" (It is unclear what is meant here.) The Perplex City Cube itself has been worshipped by many societies and cults (although without the true writings of Gyvann this worship has been incomplete at best). Some of these names will be very familiar, although their link to the Cube has often been concealed: The Archers of Dawn, the Quadrilists, the Fire of the South, the Third Power, the Society of Elders, the Tarsians, the Kababah Clan. Those who wish to learn more about these ancient organisations should read Andrew Lencival's masterwork: The Third Power, the Archers and the City of Dawn: An investigation into the Power of the Perplex City Cube and those who have guarded it.

Religious Insight on the Theft

"The Cube is better off now, I think. The Academicians never deserved it," he says with a sly wink. --Popular musician Keenan "KT" Thoreau

Properties of the Cube

• According to the Firebox Catalog:
  • It is metallic in appearance
  • It is of indeterminate mass
  • It will react with water, liquid mercury, and acetone.

Details of the Theft

• Stolen 16-JAN-04 (267 AC), sometime before 2AM
• Security cameras and sensors were offline throughout the Ball
• Thieves reprogrammed portions of the Academy's security systems, disabling three different forms of security without tripping warning alarms
• Security personnel discovered the theft at 2am when security guard Fran Mendling failed to check in for her shift change
• Artist Aiko Entrescore's exhibit was on display during the theft.
  • it was later disassembled and its electronic parts examined, yielding no additional information.
• Through communication between Pietro Salk and Monica Grand further details of The Theft have now emerged.
  • A team of 4 security operatives, one of whom was Bernardo Holyoke were employed by a shadowy organisation
  • This unnamed, and very dangerous organization funded and organised the theft.
  • The identity of this organisation and it's reasons for stealing the cube aren't yet known.
• A comprehensively detailed anaylsis of the theft has been assembled here: Theft

Meaning of the word "Receda"

Receda has been speculated to mean a variety of things.

• In Old English, Receda is the the plural of Reced, with the meaning "Houses", "Buildings", or "Halls".
  • It appears in the text Beowulf, in the sentence "receda under roderum"
  • References:
    • "Translating Beowulf"
    • "Old English Grammar"

• In Latin, we see a root similar to receda, but not quite:
  • RECEDO -cedere -cessi -cessum
  • Meaning "to go back , retreat, retire; to disappear."
  • Given that the cube has disappeared, this poses some ideas. But only ideas, as the word is Recedo, not Receda

• In Italian, Receda appears to be a somewhat obscure legal term.
  • It is a form of the verb *recedere*, which comes from Latin and is current in Italian.
  • It is a legal term meaning withdraw. (to remove, to take back, to recall).
  • It is only found in the form Receda in specific tenses in the singular.

• Some have suggested "Receda" is Italian for other things
  • Suggested have been "disagree", "withdraw", & "broken".
  • None of these seem to hold any substance.

Possible Locations / What We Know

• From the BBC Culture Show, Michael Smith mentioned it's buried.
• Puzzle Card Number 51 seems to suggest it is not in a tropical setting, or perhaps not at a beach.

References

• Perplex City Sentinel articles (link)
• 'The Perplexcity Academy - The Cube
• The Scarlett Kite http://www.thescarlettkite.com
• Quirky Acuity http://www.quirkyacuity.com

Artist's Impression of the Cube

The Cube - By Tanner

eBay Auction Image

The Receda Trail The Receda Approach - The Receda Sign - The Receda Institute for Somnatherapy - The Receda School of Music - Receda's Revenge - Receda Resorts Monica Grand died giving us the trailhead of keywords. The Third Power lead us all over creation .. only to beat us over the head in the end. The jerks.