Greatest character insight .... in Domes of Fire:
"Heard a story once," Sir Ulath said to him in that disarmingly reminiscent fashion that always signaled louder than words that Ulath was about to make a point. That was one of Sir Ulath's characteristics. He almost never spoke unless he was trying to make a point. "It seems that there was a Deiran, an Arcian, and a Thalesian. It was a long time ago, and they were all speaking in their native dialects. Anyway, they got to arguing about which of their modes of speech was God's own. They finally agreed to go to Chyrellos and ask the Archprelate to put the question directly to God himself."
"And?" Bevier asked him.
"Well, sir, everybody knows that God always answers the Archprelate's questions, so the word finally came back and settled their argument once and for all."
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"What is God's native dialect?"
"Why, Thalesian, of course. Everybody knows that, Bevier." Ulath was the kind of man who could say that with a perfectly straight face. "It only stands to reason, though. God was a Genidian Knight before he decided to take the universe in hand. I'll bet you didn't know that, did you?"
Bevier stared at him for a moment, and then began to laugh a bit sheepishly.
Ulath looked at Sparhawk, and one of his eyelids closed in a slow, deliberate wink.
....despite my favoritism for Ulath, I think this was a great little bit of development. It showed a lack of prejudice that Bevier and Sparhawk had upon coming into the Styric capital, and his attentiveness to his friends and the ability to diffuse their prejudices with simple humor.
