"The battleship came out of nowhere." "No hails, no attempts to communicate." "It just blasted our freighter to pieces." "Thirty-seven casualties." "And you have no idea who they are." " None." "But they certainly know us." "This makes the fifth attack in three months, same modus operandi." "I just wish the bastards had the guts to show themselves." "Have all the attacks been on freighters?" "Every one of them." "Cargo?" "Nothing out of the ordinary." "Mostly, the ships were carrying fertilizer:" "Ammonium Phosphate." "It's our main export." "Inaris is a volcanic wasteland." "Aside from a few mines, we don't have anything people want." "This could be someone's attempt to destroy your economy." "Only one problem:" "We don't have any enemies." "You do now." "Captain, I know you weren't expecting this when we invited you to Inaris, but we don't have the resources to stop these attacks, and hundreds of our people are already dead." "You have to help us." "Please." "Look, I appreciate the gravity of the situation, but we can't just go running to the rescue every time some disadvantaged planet is having trouble." "Since when?" "Yeah, I thought the Inari were all revved up to sign your charter." "They are." "So, this should be a no-brainer." "It's right up our alley." "We have no idea how long it could take." "We're due back on Sintii for that summit with the and the Enkindites." "In two weeks." "It's not like we don't have a little time." "Yeah, and it's not like Inaris has a lot to offer." "It's a volcanic rock with a toxic atmosphere." "There's no redeeming value." "Except for the women." "Talk about volcanic!" "So they tell me." "I'm afraid there isn't much upside." "Ok, who are you and what have you done with the real Dylan Hunt?" "Do you remember, Mr. Help-Thy-Neighbor, Captain Idealism?" "That guy woulda jumped at this." "Yes, well that guy didn't know the Magog were coming.See, now we have to temper our idealism with pragmatism." "Prioritize." "He kinda has a point there, Beka." " Thank you, Mr. Harper." "Ok, look." "I, I see what you're saying, but those freighter pilots I used to be one of them." "Hauling rocks from one end of the galaxy to another, just trying to make a living." "They don't deserve to be shot at, and they certainly don't deserve to die." "All right." "Rommie, are you recording this?" "Because this is like "Freaky Friday" or something." "It's like somebody reversed the polarity on your brain waves." "All right." "All right." "We'll go, and we'll see what we can do." "Trance Gemini?" "It's Trance, right?" "That's me." "You obviously have quite a gift with plants." "Oh, it's not so hard." "All living things have the same basic needs." "That is exactly the kind of attitude we need on Inaris." "For what?" "The past few decades have been difficult for my people." "I'm afraid we've become somewhat xenophobic." "It's been a long time since we've welcomed members of other species onto our world." "So, how come you're not afraid of me?" "Some of us want to see changes on Inaris." "We believe that we could benefit from interacting with people different from us." "Changing people's minds won't be very easy." "No, it won't." "But maybe if we had someone like you to help." "How?" "I have some friends at one of the top universities." "If you would consent to be their guest for the duration of this mission," "I'm certain they could find a way to put your talent to good use." "And while you were there, well, maybe you could start changing people's minds for the better." "I don't know." "This could be a really great opportunity." "I haven't really had the chance to be a real diplomat before." "These people don't like outsiders, Trance." "Well, that's just because they haven't gotten to know one in a long time." "And you think you can change their minds?" "Don't you?" "It wouldn't surprise me at all, but.." " But, you still don't want me to go." "Even in the days of the Commonwealth, Inaris was considered a backwater world." "These people were unpredictable." "After three centuries of struggle, I'm just not sure they can be trusted." "So why don't let me go and I'll find out." "What?" "Nothing, nothing." "It's, uh, it's just YOU as a spy." "They'll never know what hit them." "Our facilities are state of the art and draw many of our world's top researchers." "That's what Major Whendar said." "What area of research are you in, Professor Logich?" "I'm what you might call a cross-disciplinarian." "Does that mean you get to study all sorts of things?" "Well, in its simplest terms, yes." "Suffice to say that meeting an offworlder like you is the culmination of my life's work." "Well, I'd be happy to help you however I can." "I appreciate your enthusiasm." "Here we are." "I hope it's too your liking." "It's perfect!" "Do you think there's any way I could get something to eat?" "Professor Logich?" "Hello?" "Pitiless as the sun" "I can't believe we're actually gonna see the command deck of a High Guard ship." "You'll have to forgive Lieutenant Gadell's enthusiasm." "We study Argosy Fleet Operations at the Academy, and being on the Andromeda, well it's like stepping into a legend." "I hope we live up to your expectations." "Since our last battle with the Magog, we've had to repair a good portion of the ship, especially in Command." "Harper and Rommie made me promise to stay off it the last two days, which I'm guessing means things are probably still a little bit messy." "Then again, maybe not." "Huh?" "Huh?" "Admit it!" "I rule." "I mean, as familiar as you've become with my infinite spectrum of multi-faceted, multi-purpose multi-talents, this is still so much more, shall we say, butt-kickingly amazing than you even dared to dream of!" "Am I right?" "It's, uh, it's beautiful." "Very impressive, Mr. Harper." "We took the chance to implement some design changes the Argosy was developing before the Fall." "It should be more efficient, and I do love redecorating." "It's incredible." "Thank you." "I see you are a man who appreciates fine bodywork." " Hello." "Harper." "Seamus Harper." " Down, boy." "Engineer extraordinaire, at your service." "Harper, this is the Inari Military Attaché, Major Whendar, and her aide, Lieutenant Gadell." "You're very lucky to be in command of such an amazing vessel, Captain Hunt." "Both Gadell and I hope to use our time here to become more familiar with her." "That is an excellent idea, Major." "Harper, I, uh, well, I know that you've got a lot on your plate, but I'm sure our guests would appreciate it if you gave them an overview of Andromeda's key systems." "Right this way." "Come on, let's get started." "Watch your step, here." "The rings can be a little tricky, but we kept it as part of the original Vedran charm." "Our biggest challenge, aside from..." "Am I mistaken, sir, or did you just grant complete strangers unlimited access to this ship?" "Why, yes, I did." "That way we can monitor them closely and see what they do with it." "There's something not quite trustworthy about them, don't you think?" "Your occasional bouts of deviousness never fail to surprise me, Captain." "It's ok." "I'm not sleeping." "Are you ill?" "No." "Just bored." "Then, with your permission, I'd like to get started by asking a few questions." "I thought I was supposed to be helping your people get used to strangers." "In a manner of speaking." "Well, I'm no professor or anything, like you, but I don't see how I can help them when I'm locked in this room." "Oh, the security measures." "I forgot to mention them." "Oh, forgive me, I they're purely for protection, only." "Whose protection?" "Mine?" "Well, of course." "Changing my people's attitudes to outsiders is going to take some time." "We thought you'd be safer this way." "I'm actually really good with new people, Professor, so you don't have to worry." "Oh, but I do, don't you see?" "I mean, your condition is, is it's my responsibility." "Frankly, there are certain factions, if they, uh, discovered your presence." "They wouldn't be very happy?" "Precisely." "Now, the questions?" "I don't know how you've kept such a good sense of humor after everything that's happened to you, Captain Hunt." "Well, I have had over three hundred years to work on it." "Please, call me Dylan." "Well, I'm honored that you've taken the time to show me around personally, Dylan." " I know how busy you are." "I had a feeling that any tour Harper gave you might be a little incomplete." "Let's just say I'm about as familiar with his handiwork as I think I'd like to be." "And I'd hoped to use this mission to become acquainted with, well, let's just say some more important things." "What's in here?" "Oh, it's, uh, one of our machine shops." "We had some rad-leaks after a recent battle, and Harper hasn't had a chance to repair it yet." "Oh, that's too bad." "All right, keep it moving." "Nothing to see here." "I don't see what my childhood has to do with anything." "Childhood is the key to everything, my dear." "To understand you, we must understand where you come from." "What if it's really hard to talk about?" "Well, then all the more reason that you must." "All right." "My parents weren't very nice." "Nobody in my family was very nice." "In fact, they were..." "Violent?" "If we deserved it." "We?" "You you, uh you have siblings?" "Depends what you mean by that." "And this, uh, this violence was acceptable on your world?" "On my world, they did very bad things to children who were disobedient." "Very bad things." "Such as?" "Do you think I could get something to eat?" "Now?" "Yes." "I'm feeling kind of weak." "Like I might faint or something." "Well, of course." "I'll have my people prepare something for you right away." "Ok, this is bad." "Make that very, very bad." "What is it?" "Well, unless we got the coordinates wrong, this is where we were supposed to rendezvous with the Inari frigates." "And this debris just happens to look like the remnants of them." "You're right, Beka." "This is very, very bad." "And this is three-inch thick composite plating." "Or at least it was." "Now, let's run down the list of people we know who have weapons that could do this sort of thing." "Nobody, that's who!" "That pretty much covers it." "That's my list." "Some sort of continuous beam plasma cannon?" "And powerful." "At least a few dozen gigawatts." "But not much of a range." "They would've had to cripple the target ships first." "Yeah, and then close in and set their weapons to "deep-fry"." "Major, how can you not know who's doing this to you?" "We've eliminated the usual suspects:" "Nietzscheans, Magog, Restors." "Beyond that, your guess is as good as ours." "Oh, great." "So now we can invite some new scary super-villains to the "People Who Suck" party." "You look concerned." "Well, I didn't realize your people had such hearty food requirements." "My people?" "Well, someone with – well, if you'll forgive my saying so – such an attractive physique." "Oh." "Thank you, Professor." "That's very sweet." "Would you like some?" "Excuse me?" " Would you like some?" "N-no!" "I mean, no thank you." "I don't eat when I'm working." "It distracts me." "Yes, me too." "But, sometimes I find a good distraction is, well, good." "So, where were we?" " You were, uh, telling me about your world." "Oh, which one?" "Well, the one you were born on." "Oh, I wasn't born on any world." "I was born in space." "But, I thought..." "All right, ummm," "Well, let's talk about, uh, let's talk about the world you were raised on, then." "But there are so many." "But, you were, uh, you were telling me about, uh, we were talking about your culture's, uh, acceptance and cultivation of violence as..." "Are you all right?" "Trance?" " Yes." "I'm just." "Maybe you should sit." "Yeah, I think that's a good idea." "I'm sorry, Professor, I just feel..." "How do you feel?" " I feel funny." "I think I ate too much." "Just relax a moment." "Then we can resume our chat." "You were right." "Rebecca Valentine's an amazing pilot." "And brave." "Flying alone out there with a hold full of ammonium phosphate?" "How did you convince her to bait your trap?" "Let's just say she's not exactly the stay at home type." "How are you feeling?" "Stuck." "An unfortunate necessity, I'm afraid." "You drugged my food, right?" "My associates thought you might be more forthcoming if you were able to relax." "I didn't expect it to put you to sleep." "Yeah, now that you mention it," "I do feel pretty well rested." "Thank you." "Can you undo these thingies now?" "I promise I will stay relaxed." "I have questions that need answers, my dear." "Until I am certain of getting those answers, you'll remain as you are." "What do you need to know?" "To begin with, I want to know why when I scan you, I'm unable to detect anything remotely resembling life-signs as we know them?" "Your machine is broken." "Second, I want to know your true purpose aboard the Andromeda Ascendant, and how the rest of the crew fits into your mission." "That is actually two separate questions." "And third, I want to know where you come from." "All right, but I have already told you." "You've told me nothing!" "Now you're gonna give me some answers, and everything you tell me is going to be the truth." "Captain, incoming message from Beka." " On screen." "Looks like your trap is working, Dylan." "There's a big, nasty ship headed my way, and he's not making any attempts to be sneaky." "Battle stations." "Tyr, maximum PSL." "Rommie, smart missiles on standby." "Standby?" "!" "Why aren't you activating the missiles?" "This is an intelligence mission." "We still haven't made contact with the bogey." "One of your own people is in grave danger!" "Beka's already headed home." "And as for firing on our enemy, I will make that decision if, and when, it's necessary." "I don't think I follow you." " Maybe you're not trying hard enough." "Well, maybe you're not trying hard enough to make me understand." "There are people outside that door who could, uh, encourage you if you need it." "You want me to be clear?" "Fine." "We're not real." "None of us." "Not me." "Not my parents." "We're all just fake - fake people." "But your readings unusual as they are, they certainly don't suggest any sort of synthetic origins." "Not to your science." "But believe me, it's not like we just evolved or something." "Someone designed you?" "Yes." "And I'm very ashamed of it." "In fact, I've never told that to anyone before." "No one?" "I mean, surely your shipmates, they're." "No." "They just think I'm some wacky purple girl with a mysterious hidden past." "I know they think that what I'm hiding from them is something really, really important or really, really dangerous." "And that makes me feel special." "But if they only really knew what my creator really had in mind..." "Come on, tell me." "Tell me what your creator designed you for." "Sex." "We're sex slaves, designed to bring pleasure to the universe." "Good work." "Thanks." "Fortunately, the debris field gave me enough cover to shake 'em for a while." "So, what are the drones telling us?" " That we're in trouble." "Enemy missiles, incoming." "Tyr, return fire on my mark." " I'd love to comply, but circumstances dictate otherwise." "There's too much radiation around the targets." "We can't get a lock." "Rommie, active sensors." " Active sensors deployed." "Active sensors?" "!" "But won't that give our position?" " Absolutely." "But it's also the only way we'll be able to see them back." "Beka." "Lemme guess." "Crazy Igor, right?" "Technically, it's Ivan, but close enough." "All ahead full." " Here we go." "Dylan, I think I know who we're dealing with." "Look at the rad-signatures." "I was afraid of that." " You know who we're fighting?" "Yes." "Hopefully, I'm wrong." "I've got a composite image from the sensor returns." "On screen." "Impressive." " Rommie?" "It's them." " Look, now's our chance!" "Fire on them!" "Beka, break off." "Evasive maneuvers." " But..." " Now!" "Andromeda!" "Initiate Contact Protocol Red-Fifteen!" " Contact Protocol Red-Fifteen initiated." "Dylan, they don't really seem like the protocol type." "Never mind." "Dylan, incoming message." "That protocol is not valid." "Our treaties with the Commonwealth expired when the Commonwealth expired." "If you continue to protect the Inari, you will die." "Beka, get us out of here." "I'm only gonna ask you this once." "What the hell did you people do to piss off the Pyrians?" "The Pyrians live on Venus-like worlds under extreme pressure and heat." "They're technologically sophisticated, expansionistic, and more than a little anti-social." "And they were never part of the Commonwealth?" "Barely even acknowledged our existence." "Their interests were so different from ours that there was very little contact except for the occasional clash over real estate." "Real estate?" "If the Pyrians are so alien, then why would they care about the same worlds that we do?" "Raw materials." "We terraform worlds to suit our requirements, the Pyrians pyroform." "Our first battle was over Brahma." "It was a planet similar to Venus." "We ultimately agreed to give it to them when they signed a treaty." "Our Inari guests seem strangely quiet." "I don't know what to say." "I'm still trying to absorb all this." "And I'm still waiting for an answer to the burning question of the day." "What did your people do to provoke the Pyrians?" "I understand your frustration, Captain, but we didn't even know that it was the Pyrians until you told us." "I mean, if you want me to guess, based on what we've just learned here, I'd say it's because Inaris has a volcanic atmosphere, ripe for pyroforming" "No disrespect, Captain Hunt, but why are you interrogating us like this?" "I thought we were supposed to be allies." "I don't know what your definition of an alliance is, but in mine, one of the parties doesn't spy on the other, or withold vital information." "You wanna talk about hiding things?" "Let's talk about Machine Shop Five." "Beka, Tyr." "Dismissed." "Now, as to Machine Shop Five, what's going on there is none of your business." "You haven't even told your own crew." "You're building Nova Bombs, and they don't even know about it." "They're building Nova Bombs?" "!" " Ask him." "There are a trillion Magog on the way." "I wasn't planning on going after them with slingshots." "Uh, command to Dylan." " Go ahead." "The hot-and-bothered brigade just came out of slipstream." "On my way." "We have more immediate problems." "I suggest you try to act like allies, or at least until we've achieved our common goal." "Oh, and what would that be?" "Survival." "Funny, Tyr." "I didn't know this was your battle station." "Whoever told you that sarcasm was a desirable feature in a ship was sadly misinformed." "The Pyrians are just over one light-minute out." "Missile tubes one through forty are loaded and ready." "Wait until I give the word." " Maneuvering thrusters on-line, full power." "I wish Rev was back from his retreat." "We could use a little help from upstairs." " You're not convinced this will work?" "Fact is, even in the old days, fully loaded, crewed, and armed, the Andromeda was only an even match for a Pyrian Torch ship." "In case anyone hasn't noticed, we're not fully loaded, armed, or crewed, and the Pyrians have had three centuries to improve their technology." "Not the best pep-talk you've ever given." "Oh, you want a pep-talk!" "Ok, uh, do your jobs, don't screw up, and we'll get out of this alive." "Maybe." "Hello, Professor." "It's ok, I don't bite." "How did you get free?" "Does that really matter?" "Well, I suppose not." "So, your superiors must be pretty mad at you by now." "You'd like that, wouldn't you?" "No, I wouldn't." "You know, your sweetness would be a lot more convincing if we hadn't already met your predecessor." " Predecessor?" "Oh, bravo." "A performance of the first magnitude." "Perhaps you really have duped your shipmates after all." "You mean, someone like me was here before?" "Fifteen years ago." "Until then, my life well, all our lives were were different." "Very different." "What happened?" "He was just like you." "Same features, same shade of skin." "He shared what is perhaps your most distinguishing feature, your tail." "I was one of those assigned to study him." "He was almost childlike, playful." "He had a an innocence that was just so inviting." "It was the perfect disguise." "No one could have predicted the level of chaos and destruction he was capable of." "So you think I'm here to pick up where he left off?" "Quite frankly, we haven't the faintest idea why you're here." "That's why we lured you to this planet." "That's what I'm supposed to find out." "You think I'm just like him." "He fooled us all of us." "By the time the civil war he incited was over, half our population was dead, our natural resources destroyed." "We were shattered." "So, what is it?" "Have you come to make matters worse, or just to gloat over the ashes?" "Any answer to our diplomatic overtures?" " None." "Lieutenant Gadell, if you don't mind, I could use your help with something." "Major?" " Of course." "Since we all may be incinerated in a few minutes, I'll cut to the chase." "I know you're hiding something, Lieutenant, and I think you owe it to Captain Hunt to come clean." " You've been watching me?" "!" "Elevated pulse and respiration rates, adrenal secretions thirty-two-point-five percent above normal." "Brain function." "All of those symptoms are consistent with situations of extreme jeopardy." " I hadn't finished yet." "My scans are very precise, Lieutenant." "I can differentiate between many related but distinct conditions,like fear,anxiety, and guilt." "Well, I'm not sure even the truth will make a difference now." " That's not your call to make." "Despite what my scans detect, I believe you are a good man." "So is Captain Hunt." "Let him try to help you." "It seems to me you have nothing to lose." "I'm glad you finally decided to cooperate, though I honestly fear these tests may not provide us with the data that we require." "Amazing." "Some pain?" "No, just an itch." "You're trying to figure out how to kill me, aren't you?" "We're trying to develop biological weapons to defend ourselves against your kind to launch a full-scale assault." "No offense, Professor, but your backwater rock is hardly worth the effort." "And believe me, if my kind wanted to destroy you, it would take a lot less than a full-scale assault." "Is that what he wanted to do, the one who came before you?" "To destroy us?" "Like I told you before, I do not know who that was or what he wanted, but most likely he was just bored." " Bored?" "When you have seen and you have done as much as we have, the universe starts feeling a little small and stagnant, so you learn to make your own fun." "Are you telling me that everything that we've been through the wars, the famines, the deaths were all diversions for a monster?" "!" "May God forgive me." "The Pyrian Torch ship has opened fire." "Launch missile strike on my command." " Wait!" "Dylan, we've lost maneuvering." "Andromeda, status." "No major damage, but their warheads are AG Mass Packets, and they're scattered all over my hull." "They're weighing us down." "Wrapping us up until we're paralyzed." " And that's when they'll come in and torch us with their flamethrowers while we just sit here, waiting." "That's it!" "Whendar, I'm sorry, but these people deserve to know why they're dying." " Gadell." "Captain Hunt, the Pyrians have been ambushing our ships because they want to destroy the ammonium phosphate before it reaches their worlds." "Something tells me this isn't about fertilizer." "Actually, I suspect that the Lieutenant is about to tell us that, for the Pyrians, ammonium phosphate is something very different." "It's a drug for Pyrians, a highly addictive and fatal one." "The Inari economy is based on harvesting the ammonium phosphate and selling it on the Pyrian black market." "Gadell!" "What the hell are you talking about?" " Give it up, Major." "I won't go along with this anymore." "We knew all along who was conducting the attacks." "We never thought you'd recognize them." "You just wanted us to kill them for you." "So those Pyrians are interdictionists and we are the criminals." "And in about thirty seconds, they're gonna interdict us to death." "Well, we've stung them." "That much firepower, and we've "stung" them." " They're breaking away." "I think we bought ourselves a few minutes." "Good, let's use them." "Dylan, I'd like the chance to explain." " How you'd justify lying to me and my crew and using us to do your dirty work?" "Believe me, you will get your say." "And so will I, once we get out of here." " Captain Hunt!" " He's just doing his job." "Harper, report to command." "Beka, with me." "Major, Lieutenant, walk with us." "You don't like hurting people." "I do what I have to." "You haven't always done this kind of research." "No." "When the war started, I joined MediCorps." "I traveled our world, researching remedies, giving aid to the less fortunate." "Then why are you here?" "The government called me back in." "Took some convincing," "but they gave me a recording of the battle where my son was killed." "I played it over and over again." "I memorized every every expression of fear and pain on his face, the flashes of sorrow and regret when he realized he wasn't gonna be able to live the life he planned for himself." "Almost no one gets to live the life they plan for themselves." "That's true." "And now, because of what someone else did, someone I don't even know, I won't get to either." "What are you going to tell Captain Hunt?" "You wandered off by yourself (against our advice, of course), were spotted by an angry mob, and by the time security intervened." "Good plan." "That's a good plan." "You're a good man, Professor." "Your superiors will be proud of you." "It's not much, but at least you'll be a little more comfortable." "That's good." "You wanted to know about my people?" "Here's a lesson." "Is it my imagination, or do the Maru and I get sent on a suicide mission every time the Andromeda gets into a jam?" "Don't be ridiculous." "You'd never survive a suicide mission." "No, just crazy, risky, virtually impossible ones." "Anyway, looks like you got your wish." "The Pyrians have veered off the Andromeda and are now following us." "Good." "Open the pod bay doors." " I just want you to know I have the greatest enthusiasm for this mission." "The pod bay door?" "!" "Captain, what are you doing?" " Giving the Pyrians what they want." "The ammonium phosphate." "Light it up." "Firing point defense lasers." " No!" "Wait!" "I'm receiving a hail." "If you think the destruction of your cargo will deter us, you are mistaken." "You have my apologies, Captain." "I didn't understand the nature of what we were carrying." "But now that I do," "I'm on your side." "And to prove it:" "Major Whendar, you're under arrest for conspiracy to transport a controlled substance." "You can't do this." "You have no authority over me." " Watch me." "Captain, you may not recognize Protocol Red-Fifteen, but I do." "I have a criminal in my custody who's violated Pyrian law." "Do you want her or not?" "We will contact you shortly to make arrangements." "What about him?" " Yes, what about him." "Somehow, I don't think the Pyrians will want to prosecute one of their best informants, do you, Lieutenant Gadell?" " I doubt it." "You're an informant?" "!" " How did you know?" "Space is big, cargo ships are small." "You obviously had a lot of information you weren't sharing with Major Whendar, which made me think you reported to someone else." "How could you work for them?" "You know how badly our people need the ammonium phosphate trade to survive!" "And the Pyrians want it." "The Pyrian addicts want it, not the Pyrian government." "They've asked us to stop the shipments, but our government is controlled by mine owners who'll kill anyone who speaks up against them." "We both know whose fault this is, and it's not ours." "It was that purple thing, just like the one allied with Hunt." "Trance?" " A male one, just like her." "The civil war he started took half our population, destroyed our land, blew up our infrastructure, and plunged us into depression." "The ammonium phosphate trade is the only solution to our problems." "Hold on." "What happened to this purple guy?" "He disappeared." "No one's ever been able to figure out what exactly he was after, or why he did what he did." "Trance, we left her with them." " She'll get what she deserves." "And so will you." "Beka, plot a course to Inaris." " Right away." "But what are you?" "Like I said before, you would never understand." "But I will tell you one thing:" "I am not the one who came here and started a civil war." "And I am also not the one who took an innocent person and tortured them." "But your shipmates..." "Do they know what you really are?" "They know as much as they need to know that I am their friend." "But if you tell them what happened down here..." "I won't." "And neither will you." "So what happens to us?" "Are we gonna be your little toys, too?" "No, I'm not that bored." "The universe is a mess." "I've got plenty of things to keep me busy." "You enjoy the chaos, don't you?" "Just like he did." "It keeps life interesting." "According to our greatest spiritual texts, chaos is just a manifestation of evil." "Are you implying that I'm some sort of devil?" "Are you?" "You'd better hope not." "So, nothing happened, huh?" "They asked me some questions." "I answered them." "No big deal." "Well, we are all glad that you're back." "So am I." "You know, the Inari aren't a very happy people." "It's just too bad that we can't help them." "We do the best we can, Trance." "Sometimes, you have to let people work out their problems on their own." "I guess they told you about their civil war." "Yes." "Did they talk to you about it?" "From the way they described it, it sounded pretty horrible." "That was it?" "They just described it to you?" "A little bit." "But, I think when they saw how much it upset me, they decided they had better not talk about it any more." "That was very considerate of them." "You're mad at them, aren't you?" "They should have been honest with you from the beginning." "I can't make alliances until I know exactly who I'm dealing with." "Or at least until I know I can trust them." "Aren't those the same thing?" "Usually." "But there are those few rare exceptions." "I'm glad you're back."