The anchor key remained cold in Nox's hand while the Old Exchange station changed around it. Government locks on the stairwell stayed dark, but emergency lights came on above every sealed door, marking the route in red as if a different authority had started watching.
Rook arrived on the public relay before any of the teams could leave. His image filled the wall speaker display from an upper control room, framed by officials and the gray seal of emergency command.
"The clearance result is suspended, and the object recovered below the Exchange Anchor is municipal infrastructure that will be transferred into state custody," Rook said.
"You tried to seize it after the contribution settlement. That is not a suspension," Vasa said, looking at the floating System record beside Nox.
"The city cannot permit a private faction to retain an anchor key, because emergency law exists for exactly this circumstance," Rook replied.
