"She knew exactly what the fuck I was building!" Rex's voice didn't just rise; it tore through the air, a jagged, violent sound that seemed to physically bruise the silence.
He began to pace, his movements predatory and restless, like a caged beast sensing the bars of its cell. "She wasn't just playing politics!"
"She wasn't just 'managing' things!"
"She knew the Underlayer's reconstruction was the single most significant strategic goddamn development on this entire island in a generation!"
"She knew we were finally gaining real, tangible ground!"
He stopped, spinning on his heel to face Lustia, his eyes burning with a terrifying, incandescent light. "And she went and contracted with the God of Time to produce a reset that would wipe it all out!"
"She was going to hit the fucking 'undo' button on our lives just to keep her own goddamn hands clean!"
"She was very close, Rex," Lustia said, her voice a calm, chilling contrast to his volcanic fury.
