"And when will they relinquish them? Once we are both eliminated, or just I? Perhaps once Gaia is brought to smouldering ruins, from the heavy hand of a madman." He caught that Larsa was coming to their defense, and he found it irritating, To the point of making that sense of betrayal stick forever. "I have no cause to think otherwise of him. See for yourself what he and his allies choose to do in the coming weeks. I assure you, for all their kind words of friendship, they trust neither of us."

And Vayne didn't trust them either.

"However, you are correct. I intend to have duplicates of the nethicite made, as the materials become available, regardless of the braying of disgruntled betrayers. To do otherwise... the risk is far too great. Enough blood has been shed."