Gremlin arrives at the municipal compliance annex with his evidence kit still ready from Siren’s Rest. A municipal accounting contractor waits beside a sealed records cart, while a frightened witness grips a signed delivery manifest.
Municipal Accounting Contractor
The cart contains the records authorized for review. The public packet was assembled from those files, and no substitution occurred after certification.
The Frightened Witness
That is not the whole chain. One invoice sequence was deliberately omitted, and this signed delivery manifest proves the materials were promised for the failed housing milestone.
The witness extends the manifest without crossing the evidence boundary. Its delivery number, sponsor reference, and receiving signature are visible beneath the annex’s fluorescent lights.
Municipal Accounting Contractor
That document was not included in the review packet because it was categorized as a supplier-side record, not a municipal invoice.
The Frightened Witness
The sponsor paid against that delivery. Meridian’s commitment appears on the same chain, and the materials never reached the unit inspected by Gremlin.
The sealed cart remains untouched, but the manifest places a new document beside the public review. Its signatures and delivery number await authentication, while both witnesses watch Gremlin for his next move.
✓ Quest Accepted
Authenticate the signed delivery manifest
✓ Quest Accepted
Establish the omitted invoice sequence
“I’ll scan the manifest’s signatures and delivery number without crossing custody.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Investigation, rolled +1)
Gremlin activates the evidence kit at arm’s length, keeping the signed delivery manifest in the frightened witness’s hands and the custody boundary unbroken. Its optics sweep the visible signatures, delivery number, sponsor reference, and receiving mark.
Gremlin
The delivery number carries a valid receiving signature and matches the sponsor reference.
The kit compares ink pressure, signature geometry, printed timestamps, and the manifest’s paper fibers without contact. All visible marks belong to the same document and show no substitution or later overlay.
The delivery number resolves against the municipal contractor’s certified records. It identifies a materials shipment promised for the failed housing milestone, with the sponsor reference linking payment to that delivery.
A second comparison finds the receiving signature absent from the unit’s delivery log. The manifest is authentic, but the promised materials were never recorded as arriving at the inspected property.
Gremlin’s evidence kit seals the scan results as a non-contact examination, preserving the manifest’s position, custody boundary, signatures, delivery number, and authenticated discrepancy for the next lawful review.
Quest Complete
Authenticate the signed delivery manifest
“I call Alexei to supervise the proceedings to discourage foul play from the contractor”
SUCCESS (Legendary Persuasion, rolled +1)
Gremlin
Alexei, supervise these proceedings. The manifest is authentic, and I want the contractor’s review kept honest and fully documented.
Alexei answers through the annex channel, then arrives in her hard suit with her heavy-duty taser pistol secured at her hip. She takes position beside the evidence boundary.
Alexei
I am supervising. The manifest stays with the witness, the scan remains separate, and no one changes the review scope without recording it.
The municipal accounting contractor straightens beside the sealed cart, suddenly aware that every explanation will be heard, timestamped, and compared against the authenticated discrepancy.
Municipal Accounting Contractor
Understood. I will reopen the supplier-side classification and identify who excluded this delivery number from the public packet.
Alexei records the contractor’s commitment beside the manifest scan. The frightened witness keeps hold of the original while the sealed records cart remains untouched.