The Council does not collapse.
It adjusts.
By the next morning, Helena sends the draft proposal through secure channels. The language is careful, almost gentle in tone, but I recognize the weight behind every clause.
Divine-blooded wolves will not be subject to forced registration.
However, voluntary annual field assessments may be conducted by mutually agreed neutral magical auditors for purposes of regional stability.
Voluntary.
Mutually agreed.
Neutral.
It reads less like control and more like insurance.
But insurance can still become oversight if no one watches the watchers.
We gather in the war room.
Kade reads the document once, then again more slowly.
“They’re stepping back from emergency authority.”
“Yes,” Helena confirms over the projection screen. “Marcus Thorne lost
