Both men looked at him.
Carrow's restraint snapped.
"No."
The word struck the chamber like a gunshot.
Eli did not raise his voice.
"Explain."
Carrow leaned forward, palms flat on the table, eyes locked onto Eli's.
"You are the command node of this region," he said. "Remove you, and Deoxy loses cohesion. Pirates test our defenses weekly. Synthiss probes the outer sectors constantly. Your presence alone deters escalation whether you realize it or not."
Voss remained silent, watching.
Carrow's voice tightened.
"If you die in another frontier, this region collapses before a replacement even leaves the Core."
"I will not die," Eli said.
"That is not a variable I can plan around," Carrow replied instantly.
Silence stretched.
Voss finally spoke.
"Lieutenant, you are thinking tactically. The Empire is thinking strategically."
Carrow shot him a hard look.
Voss folded his gauntleted hands together.
"If the Warden personally answers a frontier call, it signals two things. First, that Deoxy is stable enough to spare its ruler. Second, that the Zenith line remains committed to imperial defense."
"And if he dies?" Carrow demanded.
"Then the Empire sends someone else," Voss said bluntly. "They always do."
Carrow's jaw tightened.
"Have either of you ever stood on an actual battlefield?" he asked, voice low. "Not against beasts. Not pirates. Against Synthiss warforms. Against Velion soldiers."
Voss said nothing.
Carrow continued.
"Their first targets are telepaths. Then communications go dark because EMP strikes hit before the first shot is fired."
He lowered himself into his chair, gaze distant.
"Your troops look to you for orders. Sacrifice others or be sacrificed. And before you decide, something you never even saw turns your head into paste."
The chamber felt colder.
"What happens next," Carrow said quietly, "you never know."
He looked back at them.
"So tell me, Defense Administrator. My lord. What do we do when the Viscount and Warden of Deoxy dies in battle?"
Voss did not hesitate.
"As I said," he murmured, voice barely above a whisper, "the Empire sends someone else."
Eli stood.
The movement snapped both men's attention upward.
"I will lead the deployment," he said. "Select an elite detachment. Large enough to project strength. Small enough to preserve our defenses."
Carrow rose as well, fists clenched.
"My lord."
"This is not a discussion."
Not loud.
Not angry.
Final.
Carrow froze.
Voss inclined his head slightly, acknowledging the order.
Eli continued.
"You will remain here, Lieutenant. Deoxy requires a commander who understands its operational structure."
Carrow blinked, caught off guard.
"You are not taking me?"
"I need someone I trust to hold this region if the situation escalates," Eli said. "That responsibility falls to you."
Carrow closed his eyes and released a long breath.
When he opened them again, the resistance had not vanished, but it had been locked behind discipline.
Slowly, reluctantly, he bowed his head.
"Understood."
Eli placed both hands on the table.
"Begin preparations immediately. I want readiness within seventy two hours. You are authorized to use credits from the beast harvest to increase personnel, especially for hunting operations."
"Yes, my lord," Voss said.
Carrow nodded stiffly. "It will be done."
Eli's gaze moved between them.
"This deployment will define how the Core sees Deoxy. And how Deoxy sees me."
Neither man disagreed.
Medical Wing
"I thought someone arriving unconscious and in pain counted as a priority patient," Ilya muttered.
He sat shirtless on the edge of a reinforced examination bed, one side of his torso darkened with bruising beneath adhesive bandages.
Dr. Selene did not look up from the tray as she prepared a syringe.
"Yes," she said calmly. "But you are neither a Viscount nor a Warden."
Ilya clicked his tongue.
"So the chain of command applies to medical care now."
She flicked the syringe, expelling a thin stream of liquid before turning toward him.
"The Viscount was impaled through the torso by an apex organism," she said. "You were thrown into a wall."
"Tail whipped," Ilya corrected irritably. "There is a difference."
"Not medically."
She stepped closer and pressed the injector against his side.
"Try not to move."
"Wait."
The needle drove in.
Ilya sucked in a sharp breath as the fluid burned beneath the skin.
"Just because the father and master were close," he muttered, "does not mean the son and apprentice have to be."
Selene withdrew the needle smoothly ignoring him.
"If that tail had struck twelve centimeters higher," she said, pressing firmly against the injection site, "you would be confined to a bed for five months."
Warmth spread from her palm as her mutation accelerated circulation and suppressed inflammation.
"And now?" Ilya asked.
"Five minutes."
She stepped back, disposing of the injector.
Sensation was already returning, pain receding to a dull pressure.
Selene moved toward the door.
"Now, if you do not mind, I have other patients."
She left without waiting for a reply.
A moment later, there was a knock.
"Come in," Ilya said, pulling his shirt on.
Carrow entered.
"How are you now, Commander?" he asked.
"Will be back on track in no time, sir."
"Good. You will be going to Goliath."
Ilya did not hesitate. "Yes, sir. But why?"
"The Empire has ordered an infantry detachment."
"They have plenty of speedsters. Why me?"
Carrow met his gaze evenly.
"Your mission is to keep our Warden alive. He will be leading the deployment personally."
Ilya's expression sharpened.
"Understood. Do we know what is happening in Goliath?"
Carrow shook his head.
"Possibilities include a Velion incursion, Synthiss military, or activity from the Awake."
Ilya swung his legs off the bed and stood, flexing his toes against the floor.
Mutantless fanatics with incomprehensible power and tactics that defied conventional logic were the one who are known as The Awake.
He rolled his shoulders. The stiffness was already fading.
"When do we leave, sir?"
Carrow studied him briefly.
"Seventy two hours. Transport departs with the main detachment."
Ilya nodded once.
"I will be ready."
Carrow turned toward the door, then paused.
"Commander."
"Yes, sir?"
"If the situation deteriorates…"
He did not finish.
He did not need to.
Ilya met his eyes steadily.
"The Warden comes back alive," he said. "Understood."
Carrow inclined his head once and left.
The door closed with a soft metallic click.