Valek smiled. “Good. First, send Kade a reply, asking him not to come.” He pointed at the unopened letter on the table. I had forgotten about it. Sealed with wax, the message appeared to be secured. Valek shrugged. “I was bored.

I had hoped to hear everyone discussing how much they missed my altruistic qualities, my legendary skills as a fighter and as a lover." He leered. "Instead, you're making plans for tomorrow. Interesting how life goes on in spite of itself.

I hate a mystery. I would have let the identity of the Commander’s successor remain a secret, as I have for fifteen years, but tonight’s opportunity was too tempting. With eight drunken Generals sleeping it off, I could have danced on their beds without waking them." - Valek

Your path is clear,” said Moon Man. “You need to find it.” And the best way to find something you had lost was to return to the last place you remembered having it. In my case, I needed to start at the very beginning.

Maximum damage. It was the beginning of the end. Either we would fail or not. At least we could say we tried.

Riley squinted. He ran his fingers along my neck. When he found the collar he explored the surface and tried to tug it. "No seams. It doesn't fell like metal. The colour is amazing". "Why?" (Trella) "It blends in. It matches your skin. Didn't you know?" (Riley) "No mirrors in my cell." (Trella) He gasped with mock horror. "So cruel! How did you ever survive?" (Riley)

When the effort fails, is it worth the cost?