[ Rau laughs. It starts mild and restrained, but that's just too ridiculous and hits too close to home, and it snaps into a genuine, tempestuous laugh. ]

That man was a paradigm of humanity. Ignorant, insatiably selfish, chasing the mirage of immortality.

[ And to be the vanity project copy of such a man, deteriorating excruciatingly before twenty, all to fund a happier dream -- well. Damn Al Da Flaga, and damn himself along with him. ]

What destiny would I have in a better world where we met earlier? What righteous fate was stolen from me by unhappy circumstance? [ Rau leans forward, reaches out with his free hand, and slips a crooked finger lightly under Gil's chin. ] To be one of your toy soldiers, blissfully following orders? [ He pulls the hand back with a small, derisive wave, dismissing the idea. ] Even Talia barely tolerated that.

[ Invoking her is a cheap but deliberate shot. ]