Wet File

During the Great Digital Migration, the Bureau's physical archives were relocated to underground vaults in a rush job. A catastrophic plumbing failure in sub-basement seven flooded three entire sections of records. Rather than destroy the compromised files, Bureau leadership classified them as 'Wet Files' - preserved as evidence of the system's vulnerability. Rather than admitting the failure, they maintained the files in circulation, marked with warning tags that no one outside Archives ever fully understood.

A Wet File appears normal on the outside - a standard manila folder with standard classification stamps. But the folder sweats. Moisture beads on its surface while black text runs and blurs across the paper like bleeding wounds. The folder leaves wet trails when moved, and nearby documents show dark watermarks creeping across their surfaces. The smell of mildew clings to anyone who handles it. Most disturbing: the degradation can spread. Adjacent files in the Bureau's filing system have been known to develop water stains after prolonged contact with a Wet File.

Wet File tracks players whose competitive records have been permanently compromised by the Great Flood or subsequent water damage. These players carry permanently unverifiable histories - their wins could be inflated, their losses exaggerated, or their records simply incomplete. But the real paranoia: association spreads contamination. Competing against a Wet File holder risks having their damaged data bleed into your own record, making the Wet File holder a pariah in the Containment Zone. No one wants to be next to the person whose file is actively dissolving.