Chapter 69

Taravangian opens himself to his emotions after a period of intellectual control, and experiences a flood of intense feelings that lead him to justify his dark actions in Kharbranth and convince himself that total control through war is necessary to protect his family and people.

Taravangian allows emotions to overcome intellect and is flooded with intense passions: worry, confidence, passion, fear, and rage. He projects himself to Kharbranth, the city he deeply loves, and reflects on its peaceful nature—its art, library, and free hospitals. He acknowledges the secret deaths that occurred in those hospitals, where his surgeons killed patients to harvest their Death Rattles as a means to gain foresight into the future. He rationalizes these sacrifices as necessary for the greater good, pointing to Kharbranth's low crime rates achieved through exiling offenders. However, doubt creeps in; he recognizes this will not be enough. He then projects to his daughter's room where she plays with his grandchildren, and is struck by terror rather than love. He realizes that exiling criminals is insufficient protection; he believes he must annihilate threats entirely to keep his family safe. This fear expands further—other kingdoms could invade and destroy everything. He concludes that only total control of everything everywhere will guarantee his family's safety. He invisibly embraces his family without appearing to them, knowing they must not understand what he is or what he must do. He reaches a conclusion in which both emotion and intellect align: Cultivation is wrong, and war leading to his total control is the only path forward.