The door opened again.
Same rank. Same face.
Colonel Talryn. No guards this time.
She stepped into the room with a precision that didn't ask for permission. Still no translator unit on her collar, but it didn't matter. Her words reached him just fine.
"You're not from here."
She didn't wait for confirmation. Just walked a slow half-circle around the space like she was giving herself time to decide what kind of threat he was.
"You're not a soldier. But you've seen combat. You don't posture like an academy graduate. But you don't flinch like a civilian."
She stopped behind him. Not close enough to touch. Just enough to be heard differently.
"You didn't ask questions when we took your weapon. You didn't resist when we isolated your team. You didn't speak when we recorded. That kind of discipline doesn't come from peacekeeping."
Merlin didn't move. He didn't look at her. He listened.
"It comes from training. But not ours."
