Yes. Perhaps I was wrong about that. How they handle Medjed, though, an enemy they can't see or touch—no, I'm still afraid of the implications. The potential for that fight to spill onto a wider game board is immense.

[He lowers his hand to his side; it's still cupped, as if he's palmed the kiss like a magician palms a coin. Again, he meets Ren's eye with a sparkle he's had entirely too little sleep for.]

Speaking of the wider game board, what do you think the public are making of this? Are they entertained? Or would you say they're more inconvenienced by it?