From Surgipelago, the Beach Surgery encyclopedia
Masks Before the Storm
Dirtheart activists in animal masks — fox, crow, eel, antelope — gather in Newcastle's abandoned preschool. They are gentle, singing to the children. One activist removes their mask: a woman with blue-painted cheeks, asking Leif about memory. Another keeps theirs on: the fox mask mirrors Leif's own haunted gaze back at him. The masks are made of recycled vinyl and rain-barrel plastic. Katita watches from a stairwell, her hand on her sword. The activists believe they are protecting something. The mechanical seagull descends through the skylight, its wings casting grid-shadows. The children laugh. Activist: “Can you tell us what you remember of the ocean?” Leif begins to speak, but the seagull's shriek cuts him off. The masks turn toward it in unison, animal faces frozen in a moment before the chase begins.