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There’d been a time, of course, when he’d thought differently. When he’d thought that every war--every battle, even--was critical. He’d thought that any point could be the turning one, for the better or worse.

It had been a man named Suresh who had ultimately changed his mind about that, a man who also happened to be one of the most fearsome individuals Dozer had ever personally known--and an unparalleled source of knowledge, besides.

“We have stepped beyond the threshold, Medan. The world watches us, always. And while many tremble at our slightest glance, many others do not. Instead, they seek to use us. To manipulate and force us to move. They see all that we have built, all that we have inherited, and they think that makes us vulnerable, because it gives us something to lose.

“But it doesn’t. And they are fools. Because we are monoliths. We do not move by the world’s will or provocation. We move when we decide, and everyone else must make way. Do not forget that, Medan, else you will soon find yourself dizzy at this new height of power.”

And indeed, Dozer had found that to be true. How many wars had there been since then? Too many to count, certainly. And they always felt like the most important thing in the world at the time. And in fairness to the people involved in them, perhaps they were.

But not to him.

No. He wasn’t going to let himself get sucked into this nonsense that Morgunov had no doubt started on a whim. Even if the rest of world didn’t see that obvious fact, he did.

“You surprise me, boy,” said Dozer. “Letting yourself get mixed up in the Demon’s messes again. When you didn’t budge from your library, I thought you’d finally learned your lesson.”

“This has nothing to do with him. And I think you know that.”

“No? Perhaps so. I thought you had a fondness for some of his men, at least. Betraying me means betraying them, as well. The rest of Abolish will not look kindly upon you as a traitor--or your followers. Are you prepared to risk their lives, as well?”

“Stop this. It is unlike you to speak of trivialities and pettiness. You are trying to throw out distractions, because you do not wish to discuss the real issue here.”