The success of their emergency commercial authority strategy attracted attention Dust hadn't anticipated. Three months into their Ravenshollow operations, he received a visit from someone whose arrival changed everything about their reform efforts.
Lord Commander Helena Blackwood was officially listed as a senior administrator in the kingdom's Commercial Regulation Office. Unofficially, as Dust learned during their first conversation, she was responsible for what she diplomatically called "maintaining the stability of commercial systems throughout the realm."
"Your work in Lower Ashmark was impressive," she told Dust during a private meeting at their headquarters. "Your expansion into Ravenshollow has been even more so. But both have created ripple effects that extend far beyond local reform."
"What kind of ripple effects?"
"The kind that affect kingdom-wide commercial stability and political balance. When you demonstrate that systematic corruption can be addressed through coordinated reform efforts, you raise questions about why such corruption is tolerated elsewhere. When you prove that emergency authority can bypass local institutional capture, you create precedents that other reformers will want to replicate."
Lord Commander Blackwood's visit wasn't a threat, but it wasn't entirely supportive either. She represented the kind of institutional authority that operated above the level of individual cities or provinces, dealing with problems that affected the stability of the kingdom as a whole.
"The question I'm here to explore," she continued, "is whether your reform efforts can be integrated into larger governmental strategies, or whether they represent a challenge to established systems of authority that needs to be... managed."
The conversation that followed was unlike anything in Dust's Academy training. Lord Commander Blackwood wasn't opposing their reforms, but she was making it clear that success at their current scale had political implications that went beyond local corruption.
"Reform is always a balance between improvement and stability," she explained. "Change too slowly, and problems fester until they create larger disruptions. Change too quickly, and you destabilize systems that other communities depend upon. Your challenge is proving that your methods create more stability than they disrupt."
Elena's response to Lord Commander Blackwood's visit was characteristically direct. "She's not threatening us," Elena told Dust after learning about the conversation. "She's recruiting us. The kingdom has corruption problems in dozens of cities, and traditional approaches haven't been effective. Our methods represent a new tool that could be applied more broadly, but only if we're willing to work within larger governmental frameworks."
"And if we're not willing?"
"Then we continue working independently until we encounter problems too large for independent operations to handle." Elena paused thoughtfully. "Which, given our rate of expansion, probably won't take very long."
The decision was complicated by developments in their current operations. The Ravenshollow reforms were succeeding beyond their initial projections, but success was creating new challenges that individual cities couldn't address alone.
"The problem," Dr. Whitehaven explained during one of their weekly assessment meetings, "is that we're creating islands of legitimate commerce in an ocean of systematic dysfunction. As our operations expand, they increasingly interact with institutions and markets that operate under different rules."
The specific issue was supply chain integrity. Ravenshollow's legitimate businesses were prospering, but they depended on suppliers and distributors from other cities where corruption was still endemic. This created competitive disadvantages that threatened the long-term viability of their reforms.
"We can create honest businesses," Marcus Thornfield noted, "but we can't force their competitors in other cities to operate honestly. Eventually, the cost disadvantages of legitimate operation become too large to sustain."
Vincent's perspective on this challenge was particularly valuable because of his criminal background. "When I was working for Marcus Garrett, we always understood that local operations were part of larger networks," he explained. "You could control your own territory, but you still had to deal with suppliers, customers, and competitors who operated under different rules. Success required either expanding your control or finding ways to compete despite rule differences."
"So what are our options?" Dust asked.
"Expand fast enough to create regional rather than local change, or find ways to make legitimate operation competitive with corrupt operation across multiple jurisdictions." Vincent paused. "The first option requires resources we probably don't have. The second requires governmental cooperation that may not be available."
Lord Commander Blackwood's return visit a week later suggested that governmental cooperation might indeed be available, but at a price they hadn't fully considered.
"The Crown is prepared to support systematic expansion of your reform methods," she told Dust and Elena during a formal meeting. "Resources, authority, legal protection—everything necessary to address corruption on a kingdom-wide basis. But such support comes with obligations that independent operations don't face."
"What kind of obligations?" Elena asked.
"Accountability to royal authority, coordination with existing governmental institutions, and commitment to objectives that serve kingdom-wide interests rather than local preferences." Lord Commander Blackwood paused. "In essence, you'd be transitioning from independent reformers to governmental agents with specialized expertise."
The proposition was both tempting and troubling. Royal support would provide them with resources and authority that could make their reforms far more effective and sustainable. But it would also mean surrendering the independence that had allowed them to develop innovative approaches without institutional constraints.
"How much independence would we retain?" Dust asked.
"Enough to continue using the methods you've developed, not enough to pursue objectives that conflict with broader governmental policy." Lord Commander Blackwood's answer was diplomatically phrased but clear in its implications.
Elena requested time to consult with other Brightwater Institute members before making any commitment. But even during that consultation period, events were moving that would make their decision more urgent than any of them expected.
Word came from Lower Ashmark that Marcus Garrett's organization was facing new challenges from criminal groups that had been displaced from other cities by expanding reform efforts. Instead of adapting to legitimate business models, some criminal enterprises were concentrating their operations in areas where reforms hadn't yet taken hold.
"It's like squeezing water out of a sponge," Vincent observed when he learned about the situation. "The corruption doesn't disappear—it just moves to places where there's less resistance."
Simultaneously, reports arrived from other cities where reformers inspired by their example were attempting similar transformations but lacking the resources and expertise to implement them effectively. Several of these efforts had failed catastrophically, creating backlash that was being used to argue against reform attempts elsewhere.
"We're approaching a decision point," Elena told Dust after reviewing all the available information. "We can continue working independently and risk seeing our successes undermined by failures elsewhere, or we can accept royal support and risk losing the independence that made our successes possible."
"There's a third option," Dust said after considering their situation carefully. "We can expand our own capabilities enough to provide support for reform efforts elsewhere while maintaining independence from direct governmental control."
"That would require resources we don't currently have."
"But it might require resources we could obtain if we're willing to accept different kinds of partnerships than the ones we've been considering."
The solution Dust proposed drew on everything he'd learned about building alliances with unexpected partners. Instead of choosing between independence and governmental support, they could create a network of relationships that provided resources and authority without surrendering autonomy.
"Commercial partnerships with businesses that benefit from reduced corruption. Legal alliances with professional organizations that want systematic reform. Security arrangements with military units that specialize in dealing with organized crime." Dust outlined his thinking. "Each relationship provides specific capabilities we need while preserving our ability to make independent decisions about how to use those capabilities."
"It's more complex than either pure independence or governmental integration," Elena observed. "But complexity might be exactly what we need to maintain effectiveness while preserving autonomy."
The question was whether they could implement such a complex approach quickly enough to address the challenges their success had created.