Zone 5's suppression field had dropped enough for Varn to enter with reduced output. Not combat-capable—his Void Path null-zones ran at forty percent of their normal strength, which made them useful for observation but not for field positioning. He came anyway. He wanted to see what Stage 4's activation looked like from as close as he could get.
They entered zone 5 at the seventh hour. Kai filed the navigation permit under the standing order. Varn filed a zone observation permit, the first he had filed for zone 5 interior in six weeks.
The creature was at Stage 4's substrate position.
