He leaned forward slightly. As if on cue, a translucent screen shimmered into view–automatically syncing to the central surveillance array.
His eyes skimmed the upper corner of the alert.
-----
[Layered-Shift Protocol Activated – Northern Region / UCv1 / Cadet Zone 12]
-----
He didn't wait to finish reading.
The chair creaked as he stood–and then he was gone. No sound, no motion, no trace... Only a faint shimmer in the air where he had just been. And the glowing mail still hovering mid-air.
Its subject line remained:
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[Notice: Tyler Sherman – Unique Cadet 12 – Departure Authorized.]
Permission Granted: By Order of Select Council Members.
-----
The room pulsed once with residual energy... then silence returned.
---
Northern edge of Unique zone–Black wood forest.
Leo stood like a statue beneath the canopy, his black attire blending seamlessly into the surrounding gloom. His golden eyes scanned the twisted forest–slow, methodical, unblinking.
