I was just talking with swordboyfriend about something and figured I’d articulate it in actual sentences. It was the concept of Royce’s lack of apology, how among all of the characters what he expects of Red - if he expects much at all - is entirely impersonal. I’ve spoken before about the ambiguity of his motives, whether he is in fact close to amoral or merely calculating.
What I found interesting was how, well, for a start there’s how he talks about Asher. ‘Expecting what - your mercy?’ strikes me as interesting. He doesn’t know Red, though one look at her says that she’s no purging saint here to right their wrongs. Asher wanted closure - punishment, absolution, anything. Wanted the ghosts gone before he parted but… Royce had no such pretence. He accepts culpability almost blandly. There’s some genuine regret in his voice at times so I wouldn’t put it down to simply not caring, not feeling any remorse.
It’s just that his mistake is bigger than him. What he feels, thinks, matters nothing any more. He knows that. When they set about on their grand plans for Cloudbank he was the first one to throw out any illusions of spotlessness, purity. Maybe it seems cold of him to admit their mistakes with such indifference but then, who is the better man - the one who admits his mistakes up front, or the one who tries to justify himself? That’s a genuine question since Royce knew very clearly that what he was doing was wrong. For, assuredly, what he thought were good reasons.
a good summary of a thing I find really fascinating about Royce.