He waited as I composed myself. “I could do as you suggest and turn the ship around,” I said. “I could go back and hide on Imperial. But what does that say to the people of Gaelung? I’d be taking their folk hero with me and abandoning them to their fate. You can make a difference in that fight. Ragan can too. And if I can get Nisong to meet me, if she is a construct, I could end this all. I’m the only one who can. Taking this ship back to Imperial would be selfish and cruel. Is that what you expect of me?” Jovis looked startled at that and I sighed. “You can judge me all you want. I am not a tyrant.” I threw my chopsticks down and did my best to rise from the bench with dignity. Instead, another wave outside swelled, sending me tumbling toward the wall.

Jovis reached out, caught my arm and steadied me. For a moment, his touch softened me. And then I got a hold of myself, shrugged him off and made for my room. Life and its morals were certainly easier when you were a smuggler. He thought he had all the answers. But when had he ever dealt with politics?

“Lin, wait.”

I whirled, daring him to touch me again.

He lifted his hands, giving me space. “Maybe…” He sighed, pressed his lips together. “Maybe I just don’t understand all of this the way that you do. I’m sorry I called you a tyrant. I’ve done questionable things that I thought were necessary at the time, and I think I might have even been right. At least, I rarely questioned myself. But I guess I thought – if you were Emperor, you wouldn’t have to do the same. You could just wave a hand and make the right things happen.”

The hallway was too small. “That’s what the Emperor would have you believe,” I said with a wan smile. “Because if we don’t believe we have power, no one else will. Smugglers and Emperors – we are all just mortals in the end. I wish it wasn’t true.”

He frowned and opened his mouth to say something.

Another wave hit and I tripped over the hem of my pants. I put out my hands to stop myself, only to find them brushing against Jovis’s chest and shoulder. He caught me again, his hands landing briefly at my waist before cupping my elbows.

“I know this must be frustrating for you – trying to keep the Empire from falling apart. There are too many things to keep track of, and the last thing you need is to be answering to a small-time smuggler.”