Sacrifice

Kalli wants to make her own decisions, something that's frowned upon when you're a young lady of noble birth in the Imkan Empire.

She's thrilled when she manages to enroll in the local University's astrophysics program; it's her first step towards independence. Her studies lead her to make friends with the Cirts, a group of outcasts who share her love of science.

Kalli knows that if her father ever finds out that she's risking the family's good name he'll marry her off to an older Count, someone her father can trust to keep Kalli under control, by force if necessary.

Kalli catches the eye of the Crown Prince and society expects her to be flattered by the attention. Instead, she sees the Prince as a self-centered prig and calls him out on it, to his face. Kalli's contrary nature and honesty fascinate the Prince and he pursues her. Even as Kalli struggles for independence her proximity to the Prince draws her into Imperial politics and the tension between the Emperor and the Cirts.

Now the girl who wanted to make all of her own decisions is going to have to decide if her new friends are worth opposing the Emperor. Because people who oppose the Emperor usually end up dead.