"I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be," Gene says, a bit dryly. There's nothing left for him back there, but...it would be good, to get the closure. And the blame, if the Makluans actually did kill them all.

He hopes that they won't see something that makes Tony hate him forever. He's not sure what he would do if that's how things turned out. He's bared his soul, and exposed his heart, and for a sword to spear it now would be just too much for him to bear.

He would probably do what he'd nearly done upon awakening - disappear into the hinterlands of the shell, and live or die as he would.