[Hythlodaeus's eyes close, mouth tightening into a thin line as he processes Emet-Selch's words. Another uncomfortable silence stretches between them.]

I don't know that I can condone your actions, [he finally admits] but neither can I condemn them.

Seeing those souls through your eyes in that nightmare, I can see why you would think of them how you do. No matter how they may look now, their state following the Sundering of our star was nothing short of horrifying--and I have yet to even live it.

To want to make them whole and bring back those that were lost is completely understandable. But to sacrifice new life for it... It sits ill with me. Not that I side with Venat's decision either, lest you wonder. To seek the preservation of what life was left is laudable, but to do so in the way she did...

[He shakes his head.]

I suppose what I'm saying is... I understand Azem's decision to try to find a third path, even if they were unsuccessful. But it seems there were no kind solutions left for anyone in the wake of such unprecedented disaster.

[He stares down into his cooling tea as if it might hold an answer that satisfies them both. There is none. There may never be one.]

As for myself, you need not blame yourself for any doubts that I hold. 'Twas inevitable, I think, given my... situation.