Sera dismissed the outer attendants with a glance.
The chamber she used for private counsel sat deeper inside her territory than the holding court, walled in layered material that swallowed sound and muted outside probes. Only one other figure remained with her - a lean, grey-eyed subordinate named Veyth, whose armor bore her mark in restrained script. He had served her long enough to speak without ceremony and long enough to know when not to waste her time.
"Report," she said.
Veyth inclined his head. "The nine remain inside the assigned radius. Power output is fluctuating as they adapt to local density. No breach attempts. No external contact from their side. Secondary probes from minor Houses have increased by two since the last interval. All deflected."
Sera paced once along the length of the table. "And the residual signatures?"
