Veyrath brought the elite team's captain to the core room before the restricted report finished transferring.
Neither man arrived armed. Sanctuary's ordinary rules made weapons unnecessary outside the Arena, and the meeting concerned whether they would carry weapons somewhere else.
Max gave them the report without shortening it.
The missing attacker had belonged to a group that concentrated on damaging terrain rather than advancing quickly. His companions burned young trees, cut elevated roads, and drove metal spikes into exposed roots. Edrin's defenders interpreted the destruction as an attempt to slow reinforcements.
The interpretation remained reasonable. It was no longer complete.
Merrit had examined the image of the broken clasp and sent a preliminary conclusion. The object inside the case had probably been designed to remain dormant while hostile power or observation surrounded it. Delayed activation allowed equipment to survive searches that detected active magic.
