Chapter 137: The Resonance of Truth
The Imperial delegation descended the mountain as different people. Lord Nicanor moved with a pensive slowness, his gaze turned inward, no longer cataloging resources but examining his own motives. Commander Vale walked beside him, her usual strategic assessment replaced by a raw, thoughtful silence. The junior acoustician who had cried out did not speak at all, his face pale, his hands occasionally trembling.
The network's Conscience watched them go, the tense standoff replaced by a fragile, hopeful exhaustion. The immediate threat was dismantled, but a deeper work had just begun.
"We have given them a mirror," Elara said, watching the last of the imperial party disappear down the trail. "Now we must wait to see if they have the courage to look into it every day."
We have seen so many stories and situations turn very quickly to ignore what is happening right now.
