A familiar sentiment. It's guided John's life for as long as he can remember, only the stakes have been raised a fair way. It had always been easier when he was on his own.

The mug is filled, John leaning an elbow on the table as he pours. Isaac isn't necessarily asking, but John considers his answer anyway.

"The situation on Nascere has changed," John says slowly. "We've had word that our people have suffered a decisive defeat."

He does not say: the woman I love might be dead.

"After what happened on the road, I'd thought of what I might need to do in a scenario where secrecy no longer mattered as much as I wanted it to."

He does not say: I am thinking the only way forward is to use this truth to our advantage, whatever it costs.