He absorbs all that information thoughtfully. It sounds like a steadily-turning wheel, a self-sustaining system, a snake eating its own tail. The wins and the resources go into training more children to kill, who then go on to win, and bring back more resources to make the next child even better-trained.

The Vidals' own life had followed a feedback loop, too, but one with a downwards trajectory. One debt incurring another and sliding them even further into that pit of obligation, until the only way to climb out was to get your hands dirty too. Muddy. Bloodied.

"I've never seen a dolphin," he admits after a pause. Station boy. Space-raised. "I've only ever seen them in the archives. Photos and videos of them. They seem like they have fun; is that an odd thing to say?"

One of the geese honks aggressively at him; Reyes shoos it away again with a boot.