The announcement didn't arrive with force.
It arrived with formatting.
07:12
Pinned.
TRIANGLE STRUCTURAL UPDATE — PHASE ADJUSTMENT
• Pilot Implementation expanding to Dual-Lead Training Blocks
• Cross-Rank Observation permitted under certified oversight
• Variance tolerance thresholds temporarily widened
• Enforcement visibility reduced to adaptive monitoring
Temporary.
They still loved that word.
But this wasn't force.
This was concession disguised as initiative.
Lucas stared at the notification like it might explode.
"They're decentralizing," he said.
"Partially," I replied.
Arden was already reading the second page.
"Not fully," she added calmly. "Just enough to test equilibrium."
The cafeteria wasn't loud.
It wasn't stunned either.
It was thinking.
That was the shift.
When institutions soften, students don't celebrate.
They measure.
Because softened authority isn't kindness.
It's recalculation.
09:30 — Adaptive Engagement Hall
