[...he'll apologize for this later, Robert.] No one deserves war, Robert. No one deserves the Malnosso, no one deserves this place. And your...your sobbing isn't going to change that.
[Giles takes several deep breaths before he replies.]
No. You can't. You and every other damn villager who isn't on the list, every one who's going to have to watch their friends get taken.
There's nothing any of you can do except be ready to help those who get back and look for those who die. And not get knocked on the head by the droids trying to be a hero.
[They aren't just taking my friends, they're taking the two people who mean the most to me... But Robert doesn't really have the ability to say this, and anyway, he knows he's being selfish and irrational. It's hard not to be, not when the whole thing makes his stomach crawl.
He could never be a hero. He's too weak to be a hero.
He's letting everybody down again.]
...
P-Please... I, I kn-know you can fight, but... pl-please... t-try to be careful...?
If, if n-not for me, then... th-then, then for Helios...
[The irony will not be lost on Giles in three days' time. Nor will the guilt.
But now? Now there's only desperation. Determination, not to let any of his friends be taken from him, even for a week. And, even though he'll never admit this to anyone, a glimmer of hope.
The odds of him, of all of them, surviving this war are still leaps and bounds better than the two that took his life.]
Thank you, Robert. We'll be all right, but I'll never say no to good wishes.
[And he'll leave Robert to hurt, while he takes the time to settle his mind and prepare for a return to hell.]
Th-they're t-taking... H-Helios, and y-you...?
...
Oh gods, Giles, th-they're taking... D-Don, too, and... a-and...
[He dissolves into tears again. How can he even possibly weather this latest storm Luceti has thrown at him?
He knows that Giles can fight, but the knowledge isn't comforting right now. It's war. War is everything terrible about violence put into action.]
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This isn't the first time I've been in a war, Robert. [It's the third, as a matter of fact.] I'll be fine.
It's not as though uncharted territory is going to be much of a concern for me, is it?
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But not very.]
Y-You don't deserve this... Helios and D-Don don't deserve it... Nobody d-deserves this barbarism...
[Robert sobs brokenly again.] I... I-I cannot do anything... I just lost Vivi, what if...? [He doesn't finish that statement, but...]
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It's true, it won't change anything. But what else is he able to do?]
...
I... c-can't do anything else.
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No. You can't. You and every other damn villager who isn't on the list, every one who's going to have to watch their friends get taken.
There's nothing any of you can do except be ready to help those who get back and look for those who die. And not get knocked on the head by the droids trying to be a hero.
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He could never be a hero. He's too weak to be a hero.
He's letting everybody down again.]
...
P-Please... I, I kn-know you can fight, but... pl-please... t-try to be careful...?
If, if n-not for me, then... th-then, then for Helios...
[Take care of him for me.]
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...and I won't let Helios be hurt, Robert. I promise.
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... Not that they have any way of knowing...]
...
Th-thank you, Giles...
... G-Good luck, with everything...
[And Robert will leave Giles alone here, for now at least. He's sure that Giles needs time to prepare... and Robert needs time to hurt.]
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But now? Now there's only desperation. Determination, not to let any of his friends be taken from him, even for a week. And, even though he'll never admit this to anyone, a glimmer of hope.
The odds of him, of all of them, surviving this war are still leaps and bounds better than the two that took his life.]
Thank you, Robert. We'll be all right, but I'll never say no to good wishes.
[And he'll leave Robert to hurt, while he takes the time to settle his mind and prepare for a return to hell.]
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