Yes, well. He has not conceded the secondary objective, even if Asadi is determined to insult their joint skillsets by continuously deriding the very idea.

"I don't spend much time contemplating fiction," Rush says stiffly. Eli had been exceptionally fond of employing manifold references to items of pop culture he should have known full well would land entirely beyond the scope of anyone's interest, particularly Rush's own.

The night air is cool and clean, breeze catching loosely at his hair, and in conjunction with the sweeping, glittering crest of building tops, it is not unreasonable for him to be reminded powerfully, briefly, of San Francisco.

He turns his mind from the distraction.