The Southern Trade Route caravan registered on Day 288 of Year 808 arrived at the Fort Kael receiving station on Day 312. All seven crew members were present. The animals were present. The wagons were present. The cargo was not.
The forty-two crates registered at departure — wool bales, preserved provisions, and a consignment of iron fittings for the Archive maintenance division — were absent from the wagons. The wagons showed no signs of forced unloading. The cargo restraints were intact. The wagon floors were clean.
The crew were interviewed separately. All seven gave consistent accounts: they had loaded the cargo at the southern depot, departed on schedule, and travelled the full route without incident. None of them could account for the absence of the cargo. None of them had observed it being removed. The lead driver stated that the wagons had felt the same weight throughout the journey.
A search of the route was conducted on Days 313 and 314. No cargo was found at any waypoint. The southern depot confirmed the cargo had been loaded and the manifest signed. The XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX at Marker 31 was noted in the search log but classified separately.