Timeline Arbiter arrived Singapore facility midnight—not the dramatic manifestation of crisis interventions past but quiet materialization in the facility's observation deck where Timeline 48 gathered following Rodriguez's summons. Dimensional signature calm, presence measured, nothing in the Arbiter's appearance suggesting emergency.
Which made the words more striking rather than less.
"Something is changing in the void network that I don't fully understand. That fact alone warrants telling you directly."
Timeline Arbiter rarely admitted incomplete understanding. Three centuries of Coalition history contained exactly two documented instances of Arbiter expressing uncertainty rather than guidance. Rama filed that away before responding.
"Tell us what you do understand."
