Redden’s fingers tightened their grip. “You are pressing your luck. You know that, don’t you?”

Railing grinned. “She told me she wanted us to come with her to Bakrabru because she’s expecting trouble along the way. Raiders. Gnome pirates using flits. Apparently they’ve drifted down out of the Northland, tracking vessels in our shipping lanes. There have been reports of them along the eastern shores of the Myrian. Her father hasn’t heard the reports yet or he wouldn’t have agreed to let her go. Obviously, Mother hasn’t heard or she wouldn’t have agreed, either. Mirai has been busy covering up some stuff, it seems.”

“Nothing new there. She’s always covering up something.” Redden relaxed his grip on the railing. “But that’s okay. I’m glad she decided to take us with her. I think we need to get away for a few days. See something new. Have an adventure.”

“Maybe get in a fight?” Railing glanced over.

“Maybe.”

“Almost as much fun as crashing a Sprint.”

“Almost.”

“So Mirai thinks we might get attacked?”

“She thinks it’s certain.”

Railing gave him a solemn nod. “I hope she’s right.”

They left it there, staring out at the world below, lost in their separate thoughts. A few minutes later, Redden moved away.

They spent the night anchored just east of the Duln Forests, not quite into the Tirfing, but safely onto a stretch of flats where they could keep watch. The night was clear and bright with moonlight, so it was easy to see anything approaching from some distance away. They took turns at the watch post, much of the time all three of them awake and talking about everything from airships to Federation politics.

By dawn they had eaten and raised anchor and were flying west again toward their destination.

Three hours later they were under attack.

It happened all at once, just as they were entering the airspace over a rugged clutch of lowlands dotted with heavy woods and riven with deep ravines and twisting rock formations. The lowlands stretched far enough north and south that trying to fly around would have taken them well out of their way, so Mirai simply pointed Quickening’s bow toward what she believed to be the narrowest part of the unfriendly lowlands and increased speed, intending to be over and past before they could be challenged.

But the Gnome raiders were waiting, hidden in the ravines under cover of trees and scrub, and their flits were airborne and winging toward the transport in minutes. Redden, standing forward on the port bow, spotted them first. Yelling a warning to his brother and Mirai, he leapt to man the forward port rail sling. Railing, standing on the starboard side, was quick to seize control of the rail sling opposite his brother, and Mirai accelerated the Quickening further.