Hermes had feared it too, which was part of why he'd never formally submitted her design for consideration. Whether or not she was successful in her mission, she was far more likely to be seen as a selfish indulgence of his own curiosity and deemed to have no place on the star. And perhaps they would have even been correct in their assessment of his reasoning. But a creation should not bear the punishment for the recklessness or flawed reasoning of their creator; this he firmly believed. Yet it was a belief shared by no one else, and should his 'pet project' have come fully to light, it would be innocent Meteion held to account for his failings. And this, he could not allow.

But here, amid this dream of Elpis and other, stranger places, they need not fear such censure. Here it was only the two of them. And he would hear the report he'd so long awaited.

Even if that report brought grim tidings. Tidings that pained him to hear. That not all stars would harbor life or even be able to had been something he'd expected. Not all could be as hospitable as Etheirys, and not even all areas of Etheirys were equally so. Yet to hear that this was more the norm than the exception, and that those stars that did harbor life had destroyed themselves... No, no, she'd said it was a long tale. There had to be more. More than the darkness she now described.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm, though if he were being honest it was more for Meteion's sake than his own. Though he couldn't entirely keep the bleakness out of his voice as he replied simply, "Go on."