The archive vestibule reshapes into a temporary federation hearing chamber. Authenticated excavation logs and casualty records span multiple displays, while Vivienne’s legal-security drone records every exchange.
remote federation reviewers
Max, your interface authenticated the disclosure and preserved the archive chain. Give your direct account, then identify every safeguard protecting the evidence.
Anna stands beneath the chronology display, ready to corroborate the awakening sequence. Winona remains beside her, arms folded, while Vivienne watches the drone’s recording indicator.
Anna
The logs match the surviving excavation data. Max can confirm the technical transfer, the quarantine breach, and the records that were concealed.
Winona
The archive has already distributed authenticated copies to federation nodes. No corporate claim can quietly rewrite the first-contact record now.
Vivienne
That is an accusation, not a custody protocol. I request a complete audit of Max’s cybernetic access before this hearing treats the archive as untouchable.
Kaelo keeps one hand near the archive controls, guarding the live custody display. Across the chamber, reviewer prompts wait for Max’s account, while every camera remains fixed on him.
✓ Quest Accepted
Conclude the custody hearing under survivor control
✓ Quest Accepted
Complete the federation forensic audit of every interface that accessed the archive
“Will the federation accept survivor custody safeguards?”
YES, BUT (Likely, rolled 65)
Max
The archive remains under survivor custody. Federation nodes hold authenticated copies, the disclosure chain is intact, and corporate access cannot alter the record.
Max’s safeguards populate the hearing displays: split custody, immutable signatures, independent federation copies, and Kaelo’s live archive control. Each measure verifies against the platform audit.
remote federation reviewers
Accepted, with conditions. Survivor custody stands, but the federation requires continuous oversight and a forensic audit of every interface that touched the archive.
A federation custody seal replaces the corporate legal marker. At the same moment, Max’s interface reserve drops sharply as the audit locks his cybernetic access into monitored review mode.
Vivienne
So the archive stays with the survivors, while your own systems become evidence. That is a costly victory, Max.
Anna
Costly, yes. But the records remain protected, and the federation cannot dismiss the awakening or the concealed casualties.
remote federation reviewers
The safeguards are recognized. Testimony continues under survivor custody, with all future access logged and publicly reviewable.
“Can the audit proceed without exposing the archive's protected contents?”
NO, BUT (Likely, rolled 72)
The audit isolates the archive interface, but its forensic probe still opens protected metadata. The hearing display flashes a red boundary before the custody seal blocks deeper access.
remote federation reviewers
No. The audit cannot proceed without exposing protected contents. The archive’s safeguards are functioning, but our current instruments require more visibility than survivor custody permits.
Vivienne’s drone captures only the blocked request and its denial code. Behind the sealed boundary, the archive preserves every record, but the audit cannot certify untouched content.
Anna
Then the failure is informative. The quarantine is not merely legal protection. It separates disclosure records from the original archive substrate.
A secondary diagnostic line survives the rejection. It identifies an independent federation forensic relay on the orbital platform, capable of auditing custody proofs without opening the protected archive.
Winona
That relay is our path. It can verify the chain, the signatures, and the access history while the original excavation record remains sealed.
Vivienne
A constrained audit, then. I will accept it only if the relay is independent, observable, and unable to copy what it cannot lawfully inspect.
“I authorize the independent relay under survivor oversight”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +0)
Max places his augmented hand on the custody console and authorizes the independent federation forensic relay under survivor oversight. The system accepts his identity and separates the relay from the sealed archive.
A transparent audit lattice unfolds across the hearing chamber, exposing custody proofs, transmission signatures, access history, and denial codes without opening protected excavation content.
remote federation reviewers
Authorization confirmed. The relay is independent, observable, and restricted to verification. Survivor custody remains active throughout the audit.
Anna
Then the archive stays sealed while its chain becomes accountable. This protects the evidence and lets the federation examine how it was handled.
Kaelo activates the live custody display. His controls mirror the relay’s activity without granting it archive access, while Vivienne’s drone records every permitted query and response.
Vivienne
The boundaries are visible, and the relay cannot copy protected contents. I will accept this audit as a valid custody review.
The relay returns a signed finding: disclosure copies are intact, custody remained with the survivors, and no unauthorized alteration or concealed access occurred. The hearing record updates with federation certification.
Quest Complete
Conclude the custody hearing under survivor control
Quest Complete
Complete the federation forensic audit of every interface that accessed the archive