Business for the Emperor. I don’t think he ever saw the Imperial City as people and lights—to him it was just power and opportunities.

Timothy Zahn, The Last Command [Amazon, Bookshop, Publisher, Local Library]

Hermetic quote Zahn The Last Command business emperor city people lights just power opportunities

Consider also:

  1. “The whole Rebellion was a highly illegal action bordering on treason, sweetheart,” he reminded her. “When the rules don’t work, you break ’em.”
  2. “You may also be surprised to find that some of the things you write on the list will actually come to pass, almost without your making any conscious effort to make them happen. If you acknowledge the power of the imagination to foster changes in perception and performance, it’s easy to see how having a Someday/Maybe list out in front of your conscious mind could potentially add many wonderful adventures to your life and work. We’re likely to seize opportunities when they arise if we’ve already identified and captured them as a possibility.”
  3. “The would-be initiate must bring with him a certain measure of courage and fearlessness. He must positively go out of his way to find opportunities for developing these virtues. His training should provide for their systematic cultivation.”
  4. “These things are symptoms of political inefficiency. In a properly organized society like ours, nobody has any opportunities for being noble or heroic. Conditions have got to be thoroughly unstable before the occasion can arise.”
  5. “If every life seems at times ‘unsatisfactory’ and ‘inadequate’ it is only due to the cry of the immortal soul longing for larger opportunities and fewer limitations.”