"Your Captain Azelas is, in fact, your Captain Azelas, isn't he?"
Basch glanced at Balthier, considering his bland expression for a moment before nodding. "Once, long ago. It had been many years even before Dalmasca fell."
If Balthier was surprised to hear Basch answer so openly, he didn't show it. "I thought as much. It was not an amicable parting, was it?"
Dissembling seemed pointless now, after tacitly agreeing to the topic. "We were ever at odds; it was a matter of degrees." Basch smiled faintly, the expression as quick as a blink. "You are a far more tractable companion."