Inside The Nexus.
"Commodore," the surveillance technician murmured, handing over the compiled Surveillance Logs. "The Sterling Sovereign and The Panacea have both vacated the suite."
"This covers everything from the moment the Sovereign entered the suite to the conclusion of the auction. We've run a secondary sweep," the technician continued. "From the activation of the bug until now, there is zero abnormal content. No coded language, no encrypted signals, and no indication of covert operational coordination."
The shadowed figure of Lucius Vael remained perfectly silent.
Accustomed to the silence, the tech kept reporting. "Ms. Panacea's departures for drug synthesis and the later appraisal were both organically prefaced in their conversation. Their time in the suite was spent almost entirely discussing pharmaceutical profits and auction items."
He hesitated for a fraction of a second. "Based on the audio... The Sterling Sovereign is exceptionally indulgent with her."
"Whether it was her aggressive bidding or her accepting our subsequent requests, he never made a genuine move to stop her. Even right before they separated, his main priority was pressuring us to return her to him immediately."
"At least from the audio logs, their relationship matches the dynamic they've been projecting."
One was money-hungry and dangerously spoiled.
The other was endlessly wealthy, indulging her with virtually zero boundaries. On paper, it was flawless.
The Commodore raised a solitary hand from the shadows.
Getting the message, the technician cut his report and quickly backed out of the
room.
Silence blanketed the control center once more.
The surveillance screens shifted soundlessly.
A woman in a flowing black gown was trailing Director Kaelen toward the now- cleared auction stage.
The dark fabric swished fluidly with every confident step.
She tilted her head slightly, half-listening to Kaelen, a lazy, careless smirk playing on her lips.
She looked absolutely nothing like the mastermind who had just flipped the entirety of Project Zero-Transit completely upside down.
The Commodore locked his gaze onto her figure on the screen, his eyes narrowing into calculated slits.
He didn't speak. He simply stared at her projection for a long, quiet eternity.
For some inexplicable reason, the longer he looked, the more familiar she felt.
It wasn't her face, nor her voice.
It was her operational rhythm-the way she could execute utter devastation, seamlessly manipulate everyone into her desired positions, and act as if she was just passing through.
The way she washed her hands of the blood and stood immaculately on the outside
of the blast zone.
It was just... far too familiar.
A moment later, a breathless, barely-there laugh echoed from the shadows.
"The Panacea..."
Just two words, completely devoid of readable emotion.
...
Back on the main stage, the area had been entirely locked down for the sealing of Specimen Fourteen.
Besides top-clearance personnel, the perimeter was an absolute dead zone.
As Serena approached, she swept a quick look over the room, immediately noticing
that the majority of the original medical team had been gutted and replaced.
One delicate brow arched upward.
Director Kaelen was quick to explain,
"Given the recent incident with Caleb
Thorne acting as a mole, the
Commodore has temporarily dost
faith in the primary medical division."
Serena gave a light scoff. "You can't trust your own staff, but you trust me with this?"
She laughed. "I'm pretty sure I'm a complete outsider here."
"You're joking, Ms. Panacea," Director Kaelen said with an appeasing smile. "The Commodore and everyone present witnessed your absolute brilliance tonight If it hadn't beer for you, we would have remained completely in the dark."
"The fact that the Commodore is handing the medical sealing over to you signifies
our total recognition of your skills and our trust in your judgment."
"Right now, putting Specimen Fourteen in your hands gives us infinitely more peace of mind than leaving it with our own medical team."