"I hope so," Ajax says, voice quiet. He kneels, places his hand on the floor.

The stars turn back what must be years, to a particular alignment of the celestial bodies. "The sky I was born under," he explains. "When I was five years old, those who studied the stars told my parents it meant ill for me. That it would be a miracle if I reached adulthood."

"My mother cried at the news, my father was stone faced for a minute or so. Then he said it mattered not, as he had seven older sons."