The Amber Wing hangs at the minefield's near edge, engines whispering against the dark. Lahani's projected navigation lanes narrow to threads between dormant warheads.
Lahani
A lane just opened. Not from motion, from a signal. Something on the warship is pinging the mines in sequence.
Across the engineering display, Ranuko's thermal readings climb. The shim holds, but the return estimate stays amber. Then a second data stream surfaces inside the military upgrade, hidden beneath the navigation protocol.
Ranuko
That handshake is authenticated with the Captain's old authority key. It is not a distress call. It is a docking command.
The command projects a safe corridor through the mines, ending at the derelict's powerless docking collar. Its final instruction is blunt: preserve the relay, deny return access.
Lahani
If we follow it, we can reach the warship. If the upgrade closes the corridor behind us, Amber Wing may be stranded on the far side.
✓ Quest Accepted
Establish a viable return lane