The global outrage over Crane's "False Prophet" performance should have been a victory. It was their strongest punch, turning the world's sympathy into global revulsion. But in Aegis Haven's quiet command center, the victory had the bitter taste of ash. The Santuario district figures were not figures; they were ghosts. They were Anna's children whose lives were cut short for a television feature story. Reuben's chronic migraine, the constant reminder of the deals of the System, appeared to pulse in time with his guilt.
He'd become the Oracle, a global strategist, war player. He'd built a fortress and guided a network from a distance. And in the process, he'd lost everything that really mattered: his family, his normalcy, the instant, flesh-and-blood contact with the people he was to serve
