A short story detailing Brutus' childhood and his development into a cold-hearted Stoic. This ability to emotionally distance himself is what allows Brutus to eventually stab Julius Caesar in the back without any visible remorse.

Dulstrum was all gothic spires, shingled roofs, stone blending to wood, wood blending to stone, the black accents on white, and the white accents on black. It was ghost-breath on the winds and vampire-shadows in the corners, an antediluvian splotch...