Seris arrived alone.
No guards.
No banners.
No velvet.
She stood at the edge of the workshop doorway and waited.
Ace noticed immediately.
He always did.
The Stillness Before
Ravenna felt it before she saw it.
"That's her," she said quietly.
The apprentice looked up from her notes.
"The system-builder?"
"The optimizer," Ravenna corrected.
Ace hopped down from the table.
"…Huh," he murmured.
"She actually came."
The Conversation
Seris stepped inside.
Her eyes moved fast.
Too fast.
Cataloging.
Evaluating.
Failing to relax.
"You broke my work," she said.
Ace tilted his head.
"No," he replied gently.
"I showed people how to see it."
Her jaw tightened.
"You weaponized doubt."
Ace flicked his tail.
"You industrialized obedience."
Silence.
Heavy.
Seris's Confession (Accidental)
"I kept people safe," Seris said.
"They were fed. Employed. Efficient."
Ace nodded.
"Yes."
Her voice cracked.
"And they thanked me."
Ace said nothing.
Ravenna watched Seris's hands.
They were shaking.
The Mirror Question
Ace picked up a shard from the broken reliquary.
Held it out.
"Why did it scare you?"
Seris didn't touch it.
"…Because it asked for names."
Ace smiled faintly.
"That's usually why."
The Real Fear
Seris finally looked at him.
"If people stop trusting systems," she said,
"they'll trust nothing."
Ace stepped closer.
"No," he said softly.
"They'll trust each other again."
That scared her more.
The Offer (Last One)
Seris inhaled.
"Help me fix it," she said.
"Centralize review. Add safeguards. Authority."
Ace shook his head.
"You still want a center."
She swallowed.
"Yes."
Ace placed the shard down.
"Then you haven't noticed yet."
The Bell Rings (Once)
Low.
Clear.
Seris flinched.
Ace didn't.
"That sound," he said,
"means something's been wrong for a long time."
Seris closed her eyes.
For the first time—
She didn't argue.
End Beat
Seris left without a decree.
Without a threat.
Without certainty.
Ravenna exhaled only when she was gone.
The apprentice whispered,
"Did we win?"
Ace hopped back onto the table.
"No," he said.
"But we made winning irrelevant."
Outside—
People were already fixing things.
Without asking permission.
And that was the most frightening outcome of all.