"Oh," is Felih's soft, stunned answer. The first real hint of emotion he's heard from the Exarch, and it's about him? That he was a source of hope? His ears briefly tuck back against his hair, before he finds his voice again.

"So I am to undo the Calamity that, in another time, killed me," he murmurs, trying to come to terms with such a strange idea. "You traveled through time. An astonishing feat..."

A beat, and then Felih tries pressing at the barrier again. "Would you let me touch you? Not in any inappropriate way, of course, just- being closer lets me see just how fluid the crystal of your body is, and I've never seen such a marvel..."