The first summons didn't go to Dreyden.
It went to Lucas.
It arrived quietly at 08:12, between drill rotations.
DIRECTIVE: PRIVATE CONSULTATION — SPONSOR LIAISON CHANNEL
Location: Tower Annex, Level 3
Attendance: Mandatory
Lucas read it once.
Then again.
Zagan's voice slid into his mind, silk over steel.
They pivot.
Lucas closed the notification.
"Yeah," he muttered under his breath. "I figured."
Across the hall, Dreyden was mid-conversation with two Class B analysts, reviewing rotational lag data from yesterday's stress test.
He looked up without Lucas saying a word.
"Who?" Dreyden asked.
Lucas exhaled. "Sponsors."
Dreyden nodded once.
"Alone?"
"Yes."
That mattered.
If this were about infrastructure, Raisel would've been summoned first.
If it were about modeling, Dreyden would've been looped in.
Private consultation meant something else.
Ownership had failed at the system level.
So they were moving to individuals.
Tower Annex, Level 3
