Glacia walks in a minute later, hands stuffed in her pockets. Her arms are tense, her movements stiff, and she sits several seats away from Captain Fallsten, who starts snapping her fingers. Glacia looks over, and Captain Fallsten taps her wrist, signaling she’s late, even though there’s still plenty of time before Michael will present the treatise. Glacia grimaces and nods, then does her best to keep her eyes turned away.

I watch her, and for a brief moment, she looks at me. The corner of her mouth twitches in the ghost of a smile, but she isn’t happy or excited or in any mood resembling the Glacia I know. She’s closed off, leaning forward with her arms hidden beneath the table. Even her eyes seem darker. Usually you can see them shine from a mile away, but now they blend in with the rest of her.

She drops her gaze before I can give her a quick smile, a sign of reassurance.

After the rest of the seats are filled, Orcher starts the meeting. “Ambassador Rafting has called this conference to discuss the Belvun Recovery Treatise, which he so diligently completed during these past two weeks. Ambassador?”

Michael gives everyone a curt nod as the assembly applauds. Then he opens a data orb to display the treatise, and a hologram expands in the center of the room, readable from every angle.

“So this is it. As you can see”—he grabs a section of text that happens to be the header of the document—“I’ve designated this treatise as ‘Treatise MTR-1’ using my initials for reference, as I learned Ambassador Lance did with his treatises.”

Father’s initials should be on that too. He was the one who proposed it, after all.

Michael highlights a section and taps it. The paragraphs appear on the panel in front of my seat for me to read.

“This is the premise.”

Michael clears his throat and reads straight from the document.

“‘Under the Belvun Recovery Treatise, Belvun shall give Undil permission to chemically test and alter biological compounds in Belvun’s native ecologic systems. In Stage One, samples will be extracted from ecosystems affected by aggressive deterioration. In Stage Two, Undilaen crews will transport the samples to Daliona for examination, so that their properties may be altered to manufacture a compound unique to Belvun. This compound, the Faustocine formula, will be modified until favorable conditions occur with one hundred percent success. When this status is achieved, Daliona shall produce sufficient quantities of Faustocine to supply Belvun’s affected ecosystems in the aforementioned Stage One, and begin the restoration of those affected regions.’”

Michael finishes and looks at Orcher, who nods his approval. “The floor is open for questions related to the premise,” he says.

A man sitting near Glacia speaks up. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t chemical experimentation cause Belvun’s current situation?”