"They have their weaknesses, Wells." His voice rose. "Do you think I’m any less desperate than the Cataclysts? Ask your friend Ryumin if I know weakness when I see it, or if I lack the will to exploit it. The Investor Peace: yes, I had a hand in that. It gave me what I wanted. I was a whole man. You can’t know what that meant to me—" He broke off, sweating even in the cold.