Once upon a time, Rogue would never have come to the conclusions she'd drawn about this man. In her early life as a mutant, she'd been innocent and naïve, not fully understanding the stakes at play and the truth about humanity. It hadn't taken long for the war to change that, though. Everything about her had changed during those long years, everything except the compassion she still felt for people.

The wall dropped away from her fingertips as she let her arm fall, and she took a few moments to think over what he'd said. He was being held against his will, probably forced to do his work to the gain of some powerful entity. But was the self-interest he spoke of layered? Was he not only doing this because of whatever they had to hold him there, but also to something of his own gain? Was his helping her involved in that as well?

She took a slow breath and quietly asked, "Is there anything I can do to help you?"