[ the young man stills. it's as if, kaveh thinks, the strings of a puppet were cut, and what's left behind is not the rage and bluster of a script well-written, but the actor himself. a puppet meant to mimic the gods, by definition, is not a god. all creators have a wish when creating what they had. kaveh hands had molded clay and sundered stone for the pure wish of having a dream actualised in a world where dreams have gone to die - he has sewn for warmth and forged for safety. he has loved, and loved still. so what did the creator of a puppet meant to mimic god wish for in that moment when they had taken machinery to form?

and what did a puppet wish for?

kaveh's anger halts. it halts in the palm of alhaitham's hand. alhaitham relaxes his grip, and for the first time, kaveh allows it, that final step back. he looks. ]

... only if that is the puppet's wish, is it not? [ what did the god wish for? kaveh has only ever known the perspective of the god. he has never taken on the perspective of the palace. ] But I think we are asking all the wrong questions. Why would a puppet want to become human in the first place? What is it about humanity that attracts wishes like these?