The Mailstrom
Discovery
The Mailstrom was found on a lithograph given at the listening party to those who pre ordered Year Zero (open the image in the highest resolution possible and look at the top left corner).
Website Content
Following a link in the main page leads to this page which provides the premise that the Mailstrom is a brute force means of evesdropping on communication that goes through Consolidated, the sole system of internet service available in the near future of Year Zero.
On this page we can find the following example login info:
wreckage: gallows shard: Y3RG7J
This is a page discussing informants and a possible link to Trinity Episcopalian, it is unknown if there is another website hidden in the meaning of this email communication at this time.
At the Minneapolis Listening Party, some buttons were given out. Four buttons have been reported to date, containing another wreckage/shard retrieved from The Mailstrom. The following combination was found on two of them:
wreckage: gasoline shard: UUu891
This is a thread between a mother and representatives at the Bureau of Morality regarding access to her child.
Those who attended the San Diego listening party obtained three more codes. There were two buttons that matched each other:
wreckage: tumbrel shard: AD44Us
This is apparently spam or junk mail. One program advertised is CitizenKing Max, which helps people boost their citizen points, which are needed in order to have an "Administration-approved character." The next program discussed is called ChildAssist, which is approved by the US Bureau of Morality, and it helps parents improve their child-rearing score.
After each program is advertised, something called the NeroMod GX, is discussed. This devise can be used to modify any Nerochip of the third, fourth or fifth-C generation. Also it says that the NeroMod GX is the most preferred modification device by most celebrities and heads of state, implying that all citizens have the Nerochip. As a sales pitch, any citizen that purchases one of the programs advertised gets a free NeroMod GX.
Chicago listening party attendees received buttons that contained the following codes:
wreckage: wretched shard: Ypq2QQ
This is a letter of confessional from a soldier to a pastor. The soldier talks about his station in the Middle East and his growing aggravation with his surrounding and himself. Soldiers are given pills to keep them "hopped up." The author goes on to tell of how a boy, apparently working for the enemy, reported their position with a hidden GPS unit on his bike, so the soldier shot him. Yet he didn't shoot him, the pills did. Pills are creating a loss of free-will.
Also, this e-mail leads us to believe that other terrorist attacks (or climate phenomena) has caused the abandoning of other US cities like Detroit, New Orleans and St. Louis. Also, Yüksekova is a province in Turkey, and Urmia is a district and city in northern Iran.
Dallas attendees received buttons that matched to the following code:
wreckage: fratricide shard: 774HZx
This is a letter sent out to a group of people. The group is likely rebelious and illegal indicated by abbreviations of names and a note to have the e-mail deleted as soon as it is read. The sender, Dorothy, gives information about a future meeting that will be held at Stonewall. Dorothy then speaks about to members of the organization C.U., who has just been arrested, and S.K., who's father is in the hospital from dehydration and has had his citizenship account "re-established". This is followed by a quote from the bible Matthew 5:44. The letter also includes the declaration, "God is the God of all."
Direct quote of Matthew 5:44 (King James Version): But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.
(source obtained from here.)
wreckage: wetwork shard: c276e4
This is a response to a question by an unknown individual from an unknown individual. The page lists ways to absorb liquids into the body without ingesting parepin. Methods included are: collect rainwater, drink milk, avoid icecubes, and drink only mexican beer.
wreckage: bitter shard: BGtg57
This is an advertisement to hunt the last black bear from a company or organization called Omega Man, to someone with the name Bob. It is stated in the advertisement that to become an Omega Man you must kill the last remaining animal of a species, so far there have been Omega Men of Lynx, Snow Leopards, and Orangutangs.
The film "The Omega Man" stars Charlton Heston who is a member of the national rifle association.
The broken text in the background of this shard is "A Seperate Peace" by John Knowles
"...I felt fear's echo, and along with that I felt the unhinged, uncontrollable joy which had been its accompaniment and opposite face, joy which had broken out sometimes in those days like Northern Lights across black sky..."
wreckage: slander shard: Yr4893
This lead brings you here. It is a message from a Mindy Abington to a substitute teacher explaining how students are to write a summary about an incident involving a chinese child who died from staying up for 5 days at a backdoor cyber cafe.
wreckage: flense shard: E5PPvv
Leads to here. It's an e-mail between Brent Trunks, BoM, Director Federal District 45 and Kimberley Tellalian, BoM, Director Federal District. BoM being Bureau of Morality. It entails a series of messages exchanged between Dale Hajdik, BoM, Federal District 45 and Kathleen Novak discussing a fellow student of Kathleen's that is suspected of subversion. The entire event comes to a head when Kathleen, sends her fellow student and ex-boyfriend, Heath Duncan Sandleben, to boot camp (as most young subversive citizens are). As a result she attempts suicide at the school they attend.
wreckage: pliers shard: Ji3p09
The entry takes you here. It is a letter from Blake Bessarion of the Denver Animal Society discussing the mauling of Misha Delmore. Bessarion is discussing that the mauling of a 6-year-old child was caused by the systematic abuse of these animals on a large scale by the government. Dangerous dogs not allowed to be owned by citizens are used frequently by the government, including the dog that mauled Misha (it was let loose by police).
wreckage: corrida shard: MKs742
Takes you here. A letter from someone with the moniker: WildSpirit85. It talks about the presence not being a sign of the end of the world, but of a new beginning.
The broken text in the background is taken from the play "Equus" by Peter Shaffer. "There is now, in my mouth, this sharp chain. And it never comes out"
Hindu teachings typically end with the words Om shanti shanti shanti as an invocation of peace, and the mantra is also used to conclude some Buddhist devotional ceremonies. Source
wreckage: atropine shard: gH319x
Entry leads here. It's an advertisement for Green Bay. Present-day Green Bay is cold, but in the world of Year Zero, the climate is warm enough to be a viable spring break destination.
Buttons
At the Year Zero listening parties, buttons have become available that have codes for either the wreckage or the shard. Here is the complete list of buttons. New finds are highlighted.
| Button Detail | Wreckage | Shard |
| Robot Head (wreckage) / Molotov Cocktail held by robot (shard) | gasoline | UUu891 |
| AIR Flag (white on green) | sickle | not seen |
| SPEAK TRUTH (red on black) | not seen | I682fg or L682fg or 1682fg |
| YOU HAVE A VOICE (white on green) | spore | not seen |
| YOU WILL BE HEARD (black on white) / AIR Flag (white on red) | bitter | BGtg57 |
| ART IS RESISTANCE + AIR flags (black on red) / ART IS RESISTANCE (red on black) | slander | Yr4893 |
| ART IS RESISTANCE (white on black) / ART IS RESISTANCE (white on red) | flense | E5PPvv |
| Police Baton | not seen | blE34c or b1E34c or biE34c |
| Angel's Hand with Sickle (wreckage) / Angel (shard) | wretched | Ypq2QQ |
| AIR Flag (from mural, more detail on appearance, please!) | tumbrel | AD44Us |
| Speakergun held by robot (from AIR site background image) | not seen | tP366K |
| AIR Flag (white on black) | not seen | vC99iT |
| AIR Flag (red on white) | infarction | not seen |
| AIR Flag (red on black) / AIR Flag (white on grey) | fratricide | 774HZx |
| AIR Flag (grey on white) / AIR Flag (black on red) | wetwork | c276E4 |
| AIR Flag (white on blue) / AIR Flag (blue on white) | pliers | Ji3p09 |
| Blue AIR Flag on purple background | not seen | MKs742 |
| Pig cop (from billboard) / Chip held by crying angel (from billboard) | atropine | gH319x |
| AIR Flag (black on white) | needle | not seen |
| Background from artisresistance.com | venom | not seen |
| Background from artisresistance.com | not seen | D3i8Na or D3l8Na or D318Na |
| Hand with bottle (from billboard) / AIR Flag on back of dude (from billboard) | corrida | MKs742 |
| AIR Flags (orange on black) | regret | not seen |
Hidden Numbers
24.1.1 on the main page.
Image File Names
The file names for the images that comprise the body of each e-mail message appear to be random numbers, but are in fact written in "leet-speak" with names appropriate to the subject of the e-mail (for example, the first image in the "fratricide" e-mail is named "fr4_7ri_cid3_01.jpg").
Confirmed image files associated with unfound e-mails:
sickle - 5ick13_01.jpg, 5ick13_02.jpg, 5ick13_03.jpg
spore - 5p0r3_01.jpg, 5p0r3_02.jpg, 5p0r3_03.jpg
Hidden Text
A quote from the beginning of 1984 by George Orwell composes the broken text.
"It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. Winston Smith, his chin nuzzled into his breast in an effort to escape the vile wind, slipped quickly through the glass doors of Victory Mansions, though not quickly enough to prevent a swirl of gritty dust from entering along with him."
