Bao shifts underneath me, and I almost lose my footing on his skull. I want Swift to object, to deny it, but she looks about ready to throw herself into the sea, and there’s something dark rising in me, urging her to do it. Santa Elena may have been the one to land the final strike on Durga, but because of Swift, Durga’s last hours were spent in utter agony.

And of course Santa Elena wouldn’t let me onto her ship without making sure I knew that. Not if I’m going to be one of her precious trainees, not when she has a chance to pit us against each other and see who comes out on top. She stands tall, hands on her hips, soaking in this moment, this victory, and I can’t help but admire her for it.

“Is there anything else?” she asks.

There used to be. But my conditions about Swift and shipboard politics and guaranteeing Swift’s safety fall away until there’s only one thing left standing.

Me.

And as the fury within me comes to boil, I know for sure that I’m ready to take on whatever the captain can throw at me.

“That’s everything,” I declare, and loft the Otachi over my head. “What do you say?”

Santa Elena shrugs. “I say you’re untested. I say everything remarkable about you comes from that beast under your feet. But you’re the only one with the guts to ask for it,” she chuckles, glancing back over her shoulder at the crew. “And there certainly aren’t any ships behind us. That tells me that maybe you’ve got a hint of potential in you. If you don’t, it’ll be fun to see you fail. Drop the Otachi.”

No going back now. I click the device to Bao’s homing signal, and it begins to ring in my hands as the lights flare skyward. For a moment, my fingers curl tighter around the device, but I grit my teeth and force them open one by one as I swing my arm out over the side of Bao’s head. The Otachi slips from my grip and plunges into the inky waves.

Bao must be hurting badly—he rolls slowly after it, heaving in a deep breath through his blowholes. I leap to the side, throwing my arms up over my head as I dive into the water and start swimming for the Minnow’s hull. The NeoPacific swells beneath me. Bao’s massive body slips under the water, and just like that, he’s gone.