Strobed Men

by Annie Stein

The asylums and enclaves of Mercury's refugees are accustomed to strange robed figures searching of Signs of Ascension for an emerging Keystone of Mercury. None leave as much fear in their wake as the people known as the strobed men.
The arms and extremities of the strobed men are tightly wrapped by black bandages. Slivers of incandescent light erupt from even the smallest slip between them.
Unnaturally tall and thin, the strobed men are silent. They do not speak, mutter, or even breathe. When someone draws their attention, the strobed men seem to lock them into a trance. The victims describe it as a blindingly bright flash followed by wordless interrogation.
One of the recent sightings of the strobed men was on a trans-neptunian outpost. An elderly woman with severe dementia was interrogated, and her eyes were said to be full of stars afterwards.
The Sol Sanitation Union has not confirmed any investigation into these rumours, but their janitors have been observed in the enclave.