Damian sat in silence, the violet smoke curling upward from the cigar still resting between his fingers. The weight of Loth's words pressed against his chest like a physical thing. Earth was reduced to the heavens playground and his friends in labor camps.
Corbin's vessel evolved beyond the normal capabilities of a seed because of his fusion with Gilbert. Even worse, every memory of Twenty, cut deeper than any blade. It pained him that his people were suffering because of his weakness.
Loth watched him for a long moment. The solemnity on her face slowly softened. She saw the way his jaw tightened, the distant look in those violet eyes that still flickered with residual crimson.
