Dr. Aris Thorne moved with sharp, economical steps, cutting Seth off from his retreating group near the skeletal remains of an old vendor stall. Her Tech-Savants hovered a respectful, uncomfortable distance away.
"Seth. A moment," she said, her voice low, stripped of its usual academic pretense. "You see the arithmetic as clearly as I do. Individually, we are eliminated in the first phase. Magnus consolidates power. The Arbiters get their simple, controllable outcome. Our factions are erased."
Seth didn't turn fully, keeping one eye on his Free Folk. Maya was checking her blades, her movements tense but precise. Old Man Harris was muttering over a small pouch of metallic shrapnel, his hands steady. The twins, Eli and Rena, were already scouting the perimeter of the plaza, looking for any scrap of cover or uneven ground.
"I see it," Seth replied, his voice flat.
