The ten kings left the secure chamber in the same quiet order they had entered it. No announcements were made. No banners were raised. Each ruler returned to his own guest wing with a copy of the agreements carried by a single trusted aide. By nightfall the first of them had already given orders for their retinues to begin packing.
Atlas remained in the chamber for a short time after the last king departed. He stacked the empire's copies of the documents, checked the seals once more, and carried them himself to the secure archive.
The papers were thick, the ink still sharp, the signatures clear under the wax. He placed them in the designated cabinet, locked it, and tested the latch twice before stepping back into the corridor.
David met him there.
"They held to the terms," David said. It was not a question.
