“I’m listening.”
I swallow. My throat’s dry. “Cadet Kazimir and I… We were involved. Personally.”
His expression doesn’t change. Not even a flicker.
“How long?”
“A few weeks. It wasn’t— It didn’t affect my evaluations. I stayed objective.”
“You didn’t disclose it.”
“No.”
“Because you knew it would disqualify him.”
“Yes.”
The silence that follows is cavernous.
He exhales through his nose, like he’s tired. Like he’s already heard every version of this from every officer who ever thought they were immune to consequences.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve just done?” he asks, voice low.
“I do,” I whisper.
“Why now?”
“Because I can’t let him fly that mission. Not when I know what it is.”
Another pause. He stands. Walks to the viewport behind his desk.
The light outside is fading. Golden, like the war doesn’t exist. Like we’re not quietly feeding our best pilots into a machine built to consume them.
He doesn’t look at me when he speaks.
“You realize this forces a retraction.”
“I know.”
“He’ll be removed from First Ray consideration. Effective immediately.”
My hands shake. I clench them into fists. “I know.”
“You’re sacrificing your career.”
“I’m aware.”
Still, he doesn’t turn.
“Why now?” he asks again, quieter this time.
“Because he matters,” I say. “More than rules. More than my pride. More than what this system tells us to value.”
He turns back to me.
His face is unreadable.
But he nods.
