Mirelle Dain stood near the front.
She noticed Aurelian and walked toward him.
"I tried telling them there was no need for this."
"And?"
"You saw the vote about the Alliance officer."
Aurelian understood.
The crowd fell quiet as he approached.
A few people looked nervous.
Others looked curious.
Many looked exhausted.
These were people who had only recently awakened into a world where everything familiar had changed.
Some had survived years under Compact control before preservation. Others barely remembered anything after entering their pods centuries ago.
Now they were watching a commander most of them had never met prepare to leave because three hundred and twelve names had appeared in an old prisoner list.
Aurelian did not climb onto anything or try to make the moment more dramatic than it needed to be.
He simply stood where they could see him.
