The clock above the council desk struck two bells after midday. Outside, the bells of the river watch chimed in distant harmony—three strokes, marking the river’s drop to twelve feet above mean. The emergency had passed its peak. But the air inside the chamber remained heavy with the smell of old paper, cold stone, and the bitter residue of Sorell’s defense.
Councilor Vesk turned to the petitioners’ bench.
“Candidate Rook,” Vesk said. “You have heard the testimony of Examiner Hest, the settling of Senior Engineer Korr. The statement of the respondent. The council acknowledges the physical evidence of the snapped collar and the secret bypass lines. However, the College High judge has lodged a specific counter-charge regarding the operations of the Courtesy Workshop itself.”
Master Davin Sorell leaned forward over the gallery stone railing. He cleared his throat with a wet, dramatic rumble.
“Exactly, Councilman,” Malcor said. “The academy records indicate that on the eighth day of the crisis, a secret crossing from the unknown foreign district occurred in the Ferry Museum gallery. During that operation, a heavy-duty fluid accident occurred, resulting in severe physical trauma to a foreign subject. The College asserts that the entire Courtesy Bridge protocol is an unregulated, dangerous hazard operated without safety standards. That Candidate Rook hidden the risks from her own crew.”
