Chapter 104: Reconnaissance Mission
Cassian activated a holographic display, showing the intercepted Dominion transmissions. "The proof is here. The timing of their movements matches the details he was given."
Varrin's face went pale, but he straightened, his voice steady. "This is a farce. You're trying to frame me."
Cassian stepped closer, his voice low and menacing. "You betrayed your oath, Varrin. Did you think your treachery would go unnoticed?"
A single shot cracked through the air.
Varrin's body jolted, his chair tipping back as he crumpled to the floor. Blood pooled beneath him, his eyes still frozen in that moment of realization—of knowing, too late, that he had been caught.
The council recoiled, some leaping to their feet, others going deathly still. Cassian, however, barely acknowledged the corpse. His gun was already holstered, his expression unreadable as his gaze swept the room.
Elder Seraphine was the first to rise, her sharp eyes flashing. "Chancellor, this is madness! What if the leak came from elsewhere? You cannot—"
Cassian cut her off with a glance, cold and steady. "No one else had that specific piece of misinformation." His voice was quiet, yet it carried across the chamber. "Everyone here received slightly different details, but only Varrin was given the false delay in avian deployment. And that is precisely what the Dominion acted upon."
The other elder, the one who had been part of the earlier strategy discussions, shook his head. "Perhaps he spoke carelessly. Perhaps—"
"Perhaps nothing." Cassian's voice didn't rise, but it was sharper than the gunshot. "His betrayal cost lives. Do you think I would act on a hunch?"
The chamber fell silent again.