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Contemplation, realizing the "new star" is a ship, hopes for aid, but Nomad explains the Night Brigade are mercenary commanders of the dead—precise, ruthless, and not sympathetic to locals. He orders Beacon to slip back under cloud cover and run dark while the enemy surveys, stressing their limited time before reaching the mountains and sunrise danger.

Balancing the schedule against rising risk, Nomad pushes a rapid engineering plan. He proposes patching the proven engine prototype instead of redesigning, adding an external boiler slung beneath each ship and routing water from existing towers. A variable inhibitor on the water line becomes a simple throttle to control thrust.

Engineers press for more testing, but Nomad insists on speed: install lateral thrust and begin fleet-wide modifications while he performs a stress test himself. He uses Auxiliary to model the configuration and aligns tasks so fabrication and installation can proceed immediately.

As the Night Brigade’s capabilities loom, Nomad warns Contemplation to comply fully if they approach, promising to leave to draw danger away. After a tense exchange—her blessing, his hope for no divine interference—Nomad mounts a battery hovercycle and races into the shadows to test the retrofit under real stress.