Thomas returned from the negotiations with Draxil in a mood that made Florian step out of his path without being asked.
That was never a good sign.
Draxil had spent three weeks opposing every reasonable request as if denial could be used as a border defense. No, nothing suspicious could be happening in their territory. No, Claudia's Palace was not a Draxil problem. No, old foundations tied to dominant-omega sanctuaries did not require outside investigation. No, Alamina and Rohan had no right to interfere.
Then, because apparently Draxil had developed a collective death wish, they had gone further.
They implied Rohan's interest was political hatred dressed as concern because Rohan and Draxil had been in conflict for over twenty years, and therefore any accusation was obviously aggression.
They accused Alamina of inventing a conspiracy to justify military entry.
