"Charlotte Raven will serve as scouting lead for the day," Sheila said. "Her focus is short-range route assessment connected to the Southern District, the central structure, and nearby safe movement. Scouts do not move beyond assigned boundaries without reporting."
Charlotte smiled from near the side of the crowd, looking far too pleased at being publicly named useful.
"Liam Hunter will support scouting as needed," Sheila continued. "He will not be fixed to one team. He will function as a free-response asset, moving where he is most useful or where I assign him in an emergency."
That drew murmurs.
They were not loud enough to become disorder, but they were immediate. Some students looked toward Liam. Others looked at Sheila. A few faces tightened with the familiar discomfort of seeing him given freedom no one else had. The reaction was not surprising. People liked structure until structure admitted that not every weapon fit the same rack.
Sheila did not let it grow.
