“Well,” Pisces said, dismissive and amused all at once. “That’s not how the story will be told. But I don’t think you should worry about that. You worry about everything else. Deal?”

Caledonia grumbled. “It’s hard not to worry about it when they look at me like . . . Like I’m . . .”

“Like you’re their leader?” Pisces offered when Caledonia failed to find her own words. “Well, get used to it fast, Captain.”

Mino drove into camp a minute after Caledonia arrived. As always, she was dressed in layers of dove and leathery brown that hugged her lithe form, with guns and blades holstered to every available part of her from her calves to her forearms. Yet, somehow, she managed to make it all look like seamless extensions of her body. Her head was shaved smooth and her smoky brown skin was gilded in dusk light. Every time Caledonia looked at the woman she was struck by her unassuming beauty and strength. This was a woman people underestimated only once.

“Captain.” Mino clipped the word around the edges.

“Mino,” Caledonia said in greeting. She’d asked once if Mino had a title she should use instead of her name, but the woman had only responded by narrowing her elegant eyes. “It’s nice to see you.”

Mino brushed past the pleasantry. “We’re sending more rations up tomorrow. Another three days’ supply.”

“It’s more than generous, thank you.”

When this exchange had first begun, Caledonia felt nervous at every turn. Now she’d come to understand that was Mino’s intention—to put Caledonia on the defensive with her own brusque nature. It was so opposite to Hesperus’s charm that for a while, at least, it had worked exactly as intended. But no longer. Caledonia held her ground and refused to let Mino set the tone of the exchange.

“Training is going well,” Caledonia continued. “We’re taking the ships through the western portal tomorrow. It’s time the crew got some experience outside the canals.”

Mino’s eyes grew wide at that.

“We’ve accomplished as much as we’re going to in the canals. The teams need practice responding to a dynamic ocean. And target practice, which we’re not doing where a bad shot might bring a ton of rock down on their heads.”

“What do you need from us?”

“Only to keep the western portal clear. I’d prefer if we didn’t stumble into battle prematurely.”

Mino nodded thoughtfully. The western ocean wasn’t Cloudbreak territory. It wasn’t really anybody’s territory, and even Bullets avoided straying too far into its stormy waters. But that meant there were plenty of rogue ships around: Gulls, Slaggers, crews like Caledonia’s.

“I’ll take care of it.” Mino didn’t sound pleased about it, but she was the kind of person who didn’t lie because she didn’t have to.