Anton regarded Akito for a few moments longer, regarded the way he folded in on himself and cast his gaze down. He remembered the boy's console broadcast just after the Snakes' representative, about his attackers and his fear and indignation. Chances were it was to do with one of them, then.

With a sigh Anton put a hand on the boy's shoulder and squeezed gently. "It's difficult when you feel responsible for the suffering of others," Anton said quietly. "But there is a difference between being responsible and being only tangentially relevant. Whoever it is you're afraid for ... and however much you may be culpable for their current circumstance ... their fate is now out of your hands, and you do no service to anyone to sacrifice your integrity in the hope of helping them. Integrity is all we truly own. Without it, what are we?"