“Uh, shit, right.” I clear my throat, rubbing the back of my neck. That didn’t occur to me while I was busy focused on making a dramatic statement, but there’s no helping it now. “Well, let’s get this done fast, then. We don’t have much time as it is, so listen up good.” Nobody pauses what they’re doing—no time for that—but all eyes remain on me. “We’re going to be outnumbered on there. More than usual, I mean.” The Red Baron’s crew has always been bigger than ours, but we’ve never gone against them with such small numbers. And never without Momma, the planner of the family, and the one who knew their ship almost as well as ours. Without her, we’ll be half-blind.

And yet, when I think back to the last time we fought the pirates, and how willing Momma was to put us all in danger to protect the cargo… for the first time, I feel a glimmer of relief that she’s not here. If Momma was still our captain, we never would’ve had this chance to save Nibiru and prevent the war. We would be long gone already, safe but likely hating ourselves for it. Now, we have a chance to do things our own way and redeem ourselves for all the wrong we’ve done. A chance to save the system.

Just knowing that we’re trying, that we all chose to be here of our own free will, fills me with pride. But still, panic prickles in my chest as I think of the odds stacked against us. I clear my throat and turn to Corvus. “You know I’ve never been much of a fighter,” I say, and leave the not-question hanging in the air. As badly as I want to, I can’t bring myself to ask outright—not when I know exactly how much I’d be asking. I can’t deny we could use Corvus’s expertise, but I can’t ask that of him after everything we’ve been through.

Corvus meets my eyes. He’s silent for a long moment, his face stony. Finally, he nods.

“I’ll take it from here.”

I want to ask if he’s sure, to give him an out if he wants it, but the rush of relief chokes the words off in my throat. Stars, am I glad this responsibility isn’t mine. I’ve fucked things up enough lately.

“Like Scorpia was saying, we’re outnumbered, and also likely out-equipped. We’ll also be fighting on their territory, and sans the element of surprise, since they’ll see us coming before we hit.”

“Last time we got lucky with the night-vision trick, but we can’t pull the same shit again,” I say when he pauses, deep in thought.

“They’ll also know what we came for. They’ll be organized and ready.”