The correction reached one city in time for its evening bulletin and missed another station’s repeated report.
At the surface hospital, the deputy kept a simple record of which outlets had acknowledged the updated account. It was incomplete, and she said so when she reported underground. A quiet response from a city did not prove everyone there had accepted the correction. An abusive call did not prove the whole population believed the accusation.
The immediate task was the patients.
The surface escort leader used Sera’s checked instructions to prepare a possible return group. The council still controlled the passage. The gate remained unreliable. Each opening needed fresh local authorization, a scout at the mechanism, and confirmation from both checkpoints. The escort could protect travelers on the surface approach. It could not decide that their return entitled surface personnel to remain inside the settlement.
The hospital staff reviewed each person considering the trip. Medical advice was explained through the interpreter, including risks of travel and care options if the patient stayed. One resident wanted to leave because every raised voice outside the ward made them think the entrance had been breached. Another wanted to go home but needed treatment not available at the clinic underground.
