The chamber stirred with confusion as Nara struggled to regain her composure. Most of the counselors hadn’t given Zai much thought. Next to the Empress’s death and war with the Rix, the fate of one man meant little. But the implications soon became apparent to them.

“He would have made a fine martyr,” said Raz imPar Henders, shaking his head sadly.

Even in her relief, Nara Oxham realized the truth of the Loyalist senator’s words. The brave example of the hero Zai would have made a fine start to the war. By throwing away his own immortality, he would have inspired the whole empire. In the narrative crafted by the politicals, his suicide should have symbolized the sacrifices required of the next generation.

But he had chosen life. He had rejected the Risen Emperor’s second-oldest tradition. The ancient catechism went through her head: Eternal life for service to the crown, death for failure. She had hated the formula her entire life, but now she realized how deeply ingrained it was in her.

For a horrible moment, Nara Oxham found herself appalled at Zai’s decision, shaken by the enormity of his betrayal.

Then she took control of her thoughts. She inhaled deeply, and booted a measure of apathy to filter out the emotions running rampant in the council chamber. Her reflexive horror was just old conditioning, inescapable even on a Secularist world, rising up from childhood stories and prayers. Tradition be damned.

But even so, she was amazed that Laurent had found the strength.

“This is a disaster,” said Ax Milnk nervously. “What will the people think of this?”

“And from a Vadan,” the dead general muttered. The grayest of worlds, reliable Loyalists all.

“We must withhold news of this event for as long as possible,” Senator Henders said. “Let its announcement be an afterthought, once the war has begun in earnest and other events have overtaken the public’s interest.”

The admiral shook her head. “If there are no more Rix surprise attacks, it could be months before the next engagement,” he said. “Even years. The newsfeeds will notice if there is no announcement of Captain Zai’s suicide.”

“Perhaps His Majesty’s Representatives could handle this?” Ax Milnk suggested quietly.

The Emperor raised an eyebrow at this. Nara swallowed. Milnk was suggesting murder. A staged ritual of error.

“I think not,” the Emperor said. “The cripple deserves better.”

Both general and admiral nodded. Whatever embarrassment Zai had caused them, they wouldn’t want the politicals interfering with a military matter. The branches of the Imperial Will were separate for good reason. The conduct of propaganda and internal intelligence did not mix well with the purer aims of warcraft. And Zai was still an Imperial officer.

“Something far more distasteful, I’m afraid,” the Risen Emperor continued.

The words brought a focused silence to the chamber, which the Emperor allowed to stretch for a few seconds.

“A pardon.”