2026-11-04 00:49:31
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The First Blood Debt
The first warning came before Marcus had finished arranging the evidence. A sharp knock sounded against his door, followed by Darius's voice, and when Marcus opened it, he found his companion holding a folded notice with an expression that suggested the morning had already taken an unpleasant turn.“We have a problem,” Darius said, stepping inside. “The inquiry panel has moved the hearing forward, and Sorn has requested permission to challenge the authenticity of every document you intend to present.”Marcus slipped Ashford's statement beneath the movement records and took the notice from him. The hearing was supposed to take place later that morning, which would have given them time to organize the evidence and anticipate Sorn's defence, but the sudden change suggested that someone wanted the matter settled before they could prepare.“He knows what we have,” Marcus said.“He knows enough to be worried. If he convinces the panel that the records were altered after leaving his office,
The Order Behind the Order
The administrative designation on Ashford’s document continued to trouble Marcus, especially now that he had compared it with the disputed movement order and the transfer record. The references connected several officers to the same operation, but none identified the person who had initiated it, and Marcus was beginning to suspect that the missing authorization was not an administrative mistake but a deliberate attempt to conceal whoever had issued the original instruction.Darius entered carrying the movement register and placed it on the desk. “I found another entry. Sorn's office processed an instruction through the same restricted channel three days before Ashford received the disputed order.”Marcus examined the marked page. “Then Sorn was involved before Ashford.”“Or someone used his office without telling him.”Marcus closed the register and reached for his coat. “There is only one way to find out.”They found Captain Edric Sorn in the eastern administrative building, where he
The Witness at Risk
The revised movement schedule arrived before Marcus finished reading the inquiry notice. Someone had moved the eastern detachment’s departure forward by two days, and the new order carried no name from an officer accepting responsibility for the change.Marcus laid it beside the original register. The route remained the same, but the departure time had changed without explanation. After the last ambush, he knew better than to dismiss another irregularity involving the eastern road.“Who delivered this?” Marcus asked the dispatch clerk.The young man glanced at the inquiry notice before answering. “It came through the command office, sir. I was told to enter it immediately.”“Who gave you that instruction?”“I was not given a name.”Marcus studied him. The clerk's fingers tightened around the edge of the desk, but fear alone proved nothing. He might be hiding a secret, or he might simply understand what happened to people who questioned orders from above.“Leave the original schedule h
The Missing Hand
The inquiry officer had barely crossed the threshold when Captain Edric Sorn slipped a folded paper beneath the movement register, but Marcus caught the movement and reached across the desk before the captain could cover it.“What's that?” Marcus asked.Sorn kept his fingers on the paper. “A routine transfer note, Commander. Nothing that concerns the inquiry into your decision.”“Then you won't mind showing it to us.”Sorn glanced at the two guards behind the inquiry officer before slowly withdrawing his hand, and the officer snatched the paper, unfolded it, and frowned at the unfamiliar reference code written across the top.“Where did you get this?” the officer demanded.“It came with the movement order,” Sorn replied, his voice stiffening.Marcus turned toward him. “You told me the reference was missing from the register.”“It was missing from the copy entered into the register. I never said the original didn't contain it.”The distinction was irritating, but it revealed something
The Cost of Interference
Darius pushed through Marcus’s door with a sealed order in his hand. He placed it on the desk, his expression serious enough to make Marcus put down the report he was reading.“The eastern supply detachment moves before nightfall,” Darius said. “The route has already been approved.”Marcus broke the seal and scanned the document. “Approved by whom?”“The order came from above our command, but there’s no name attached to it. Only the authorization seal.”Marcus read the route twice, then spread the accompanying map across his desk. The detachment was expected to escort six supply wagons along the eastern road, through a stretch of terrain where the ridge narrowed toward a rocky passage.“Who selected this road?” Marcus asked.Darius folded his arms. “It’s the approved route.”“That wasn’t my question.”“I don’t know who selected it. I was given the order to bring it to you.”Marcus tapped a point on the map. “The official report places Nolan’s ambush farther east, but his account puts
The Evidence That Lied
Someone had withdrawn the request to examine the disputed document before the records office even opened.Marcus Voss read the notice twice, then glanced at his adjutant, who stood beside the desk holding a second message. The original request had come from an office outside the usual review process, but the withdrawal carried the same reference number and had been processed before the records clerk acknowledged the first message. Marcus placed both notices on the desk, disturbed less by the withdrawal itself than by the speed with which it had been approved.“Who authorized this?” Marcus asked.“The notice does not identify the officer, sir,” his adjutant replied. “It only says the request has been suspended pending further authorization.”“Preserve both messages and find out who handled them. Do not contact the requesting office until I give you permission.”The adjutant saluted and hurried away. Marcus slipped the notices into a folder, secured it beneath his writing board, and rea
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