Seris escorts the three injured witnesses into a sheltered adjoining recess, where folded blankets and a dry brazier offer privacy. She remains nearby, but keeps the guards beyond the arch.
Beneath the dripping arch, the damaged ledger page lies between Sil’Thalis and Bren, held flat by a smooth stone. The fortress review continues in muted voices beyond the gallery.
Bren
I am not going to use this page as a verdict against you. It records what happened, and I will let it remain distinct from what you chose afterward.
Rain ticks against the stone. Bren studies the torn edge, then the separate witness sheets, keeping her hands clear of both the ledger and Sil’Thalis.
Bren
What was done to you matters. What you did to others matters. Neither truth has to erase the other, and neither gives me authority over your account.
Seris Vaun
The witnesses are resting. I will keep the recess clear unless they ask for me, and the review will not reach this arch without your call.
Bren
The page can wait. So can the fortress, for a little while. If you want to speak, I will listen without turning your words into another record.