The photon weapon hummed in Arthur's hands, energy cells glowing brighter as it prepared for sustained combat.
Outside, dimensional portals flickered and died one by one. The defective demons that had already entered stayed, and those that wanted to, no longer could.
Gates frowned as he watched the last portal seal itself.
"Arthur... this is bad for us. Your merge information was inaccurate. We're going to lose a lot of credibility from those who saw the video."
Political ramifications. Of course.
"The military will take advantage of that and move public opinion against us."
Arthur's jaw tightened.
The timing discrepancy hadn't been his fault, but perception mattered more than truth in the information age.
Fifty minutes became forty-five. Five minutes of hell that I couldn't predict.
"I couldn't have predicted that demons would bypass universal laws," he muttered with a frown on his face from the unpredictable variable.
"Not one minute early, but five."
