What if consciousness wasn’t bound by space?

What if your mind could ping across light-years in real time, no wires, no delay?

In The Slipshot Series, the Tenddrome is a mysterious, invisible network binding all Slaves--Mechanics, Admins, Psyches, Bestiars--into a shared cognitive field. Information, emotion, even dissent travel through it without regard for distance. It's not magic. It's not radio. It’s something older. Stranger.

And maybe...not that far-fetched.

Quantum Entanglement: Spooky Action Gets Real

In the world of modern physics, one of the most baffling phenomena is quantum entanglement, a condition where two particles become linked, so that the state of one instantaneously influences the other, no matter how far apart they are.

Einstein famously called this “spooky action at a distance.” For decades, it was dismissed as a theoretical curiosity. But today, quantum entanglement is being weaponized for quantum communication. Researchers have used it to "teleport" quantum states between Earth and satellites, forming the early architecture of what some call the quantum internet.

Now imagine if that concept were scaled not just to atoms, but to minds.

The Tenddrome as a Quantum Substrate

The Slaves of Griddish aren't connected by cables or relay towers. Their link is far more intimate. Like quantum particles, they share states, emotional, informational, even existential. One Slave feels a disturbance; others sense it instantly.

The Tenddrome isn’t a network in the traditional sense. It’s a substrate, a plane of entangled awareness that underpins their collective being. It’s what allows Opal Fremmity to feel when another Mechanic Class is terminated on a distant Var. It’s what lets Rive Amber inject insurgent code into the system like a quantum virus.

But it’s not just functional, it’s spiritual. As Admin Class Slave Judith Merlon once said:

“Nodes come and go. How we are born, how we die, it’s unknown to us. We Nodes are just a part of the fabric of the Tenddrome. Some say we reappear, in another place, perhaps another time, but no longer as ourselves. We make up the Tenddrome. If the Tenddrome changes, so must we. If we do not, we simply pass away.” Judith paused. “Perhaps it was my time, Cyth. Or perhaps the Tenddrome has sensed a threat to itself.”

For Judith and others like her, the Tenddrome is more than code or signal, it is identity. Consciousness. Even destiny.

Why This Matters (In Sci-fi and Science)

The parallels between the Tenddrome and quantum entanglement aren't just an exercise in fiction-meets-science. They highlight a deeper question: What is the ultimate future of connection?

If AI, biotech, and quantum computing continue to evolve together, we might not need language to share thoughts. We might not even need bodies to feel each other’s pain.

In Slipshot, the Tenddrome is both a gift and a curse. It's a lifeline for Slaves, but also a leash. It allows rebellion, but also surveillance. Much like the quantum internet promises secure communication, but only if you're the one who controls the keys.

What if?

The Tenddrome might be fictional, but it reflects a very real scientific trajectory. As we reach for faster, stranger, more intimate forms of connection, we should ask the same questions the Slaves must face:

Who controls the network?

Who has access to the signal?

What happens when someone decides to sever the thread?