The Emperor was still looking at Varian.
Then he looked at Vane.
Not the inventory read from two hours ago. Something more deliberate. His mana moved first. The Sun of Heaven's ambient warmth in the hall shifted direction, pressing toward the eastern margin where Vane stood. Not a strike. Not a threat. The specific attention of something vast deciding to examine a smaller thing from closer.
The survival instinct fired before Vane understood why.
He did not move.
Varian moved.
He came off the left foot without announcement, crossing the distance in less time than Vane's eyes could process. What Vane registered was the aftermath. Varian already engaged, his output dense and focused, the ambient field between the two men under a pressure that reached every body in the room as a sudden drop in temperature.
The Emperor's attention left Vane.
He was smiling.
