The council did not meet in one place.
It met in fragments.
Secure rooms.
Encrypted feeds.
Men and women who had never shared a table now shared a decision.
A single frame dominated every screen.
Li Chen.
Seated.
Still.
Waiting.
"This situation is no longer theoretical," a civilian voice said.
"It never was," a general replied.
"Then stop pretending we have precedent."
Silence followed.
Scenarios unfolded.
Containment reassertion.
Permanent isolation.
Asset conversion.
Termination contingencies.
Each option collapsed under scrutiny.
Not because they were immoral.
Because they were insufficient.
"He saved a man," someone said.
"He exposed himself," another countered.
"He acted without authorization."
"He acted without malice."
The debate circled.
Grant stood in a separate room.
Muted.
Watching faces argue over a life.
He leaned toward the camera.
"You don't need to decide what he is," Grant said. "You need to decide what you are."
No one thanked him.
But several screens went dark.
Inside the facility, Li Chen was moved again.
Not dragged.
Escorted.
A larger room this time.
Windows.
Real ones.
Outside, the ocean stretched endlessly.
The System monitored quietly.
[SYSTEM PHASE II — DECISION EVENT]
[Probability cascade detected]
[User agency critical]
A document appeared on the table.
Stamped.
Signed.
Authorized beyond appeal.
Li Chen read it once.
Perfect memory sealed it.
"Conditional Reinstatement," the woman said.
Grant's voice echoed faintly through a speaker.
"Read the fine print."
Li Chen already had.
The order was simple.
Public operation.
Live observers.
Uncontrolled variables.
If Li Chen complied—
—he proved controllability.
If he refused—
—he confirmed threat classification.
The System spoke.
[SYSTEM PHASE II — CONFLICT ESCALATION]
[Compliance increases global stability]
[Compliance decreases user autonomy]
Li Chen closed his eyes.
He thought of the rope snapping.
Of Mason's fear.
Of daylight on his skin.
Of Grant standing alone.
"What if civilians are endangered?" Li Chen asked.
The woman did not answer.
That was answer enough.
Outside the facility, assets mobilized.
Not to restrain him.
To watch him.
The world leaned forward.
Grant slammed his hand against the table.
"You're using him as proof," he said. "That's not a mission."
"It's a test," a voice replied.
Grant's voice dropped.
"Then you've already failed."
Li Chen opened his eyes.
The System waited.
For the first time, it did not advise.
It deferred.
"Yes," Li Chen said.
Not loudly.
Not proudly.
But deliberately.
The System recorded the choice.
[SYSTEM PHASE II — COMPLIANCE ACCEPTED]
[Ethical debt accrued]
Somewhere far away, foreign analysts smiled.
Others panicked.
Markets twitched.
Satellites shifted.
Li Chen stood.
The order had been given.
The test had been accepted.
And whatever happened next—
—would not be contained by rooms, councils, or language.
The world had asked.
And he had answered