"She's telling the truth, Sarge," Sully said, her holographic screens now showing the entire internal map of the ship. "With the Artificers helping, we've got the primary thrusters at ninety percent. But we've got a problem."
"What is it?" Kane asked, joining them at the central table.
"The 'Planet-Cracker' beam," Sully pointed to a massive energy-well in the ship's core. "It's powered by a Singularity-Seed. To fire it again, we need a massive infusion of mana. More than the ship can generate on its own."
"We need a battery," Doc added, crossing her arms. "A big one."
Kane looked at the galactic map. The Consortium Home-World—Aurelia—was protected by a Dyson-Ring of solar collectors.
"We aren't just going to Aurelia to fight," Kane said, a dark smile spreading across his face. "We're going to plug the ship into their sun."
Vance let out a low whistle. "Sarge, that's not a raid. That's a suicide run. The moment we drop into the Aurelia system, the entire Golden Fleet will be on us."
"Let them come," Kane said. He looked at the Twin Fangs, now fused into a heavy, black-and-silver blade. "They've been harvesting us for ages. It's time for Earth to take its cut."
He turned to the comms-array, his voice broadcasting to every pirate ship docked to the hull.
"Hear me, Legion! We've got the ship. We've got the map. Now, we're going to the heart of the machine. We're going to steal a star."
The Mercy of Silence let out a low, bass hum that vibrated through the moon's orbit. The massive white engines ignited, turning a deep, predatory violet.
[OBJECTIVE: REACH THE AURELIA SYSTEM]
[TIME TO WARP: 10... 9... 8...]
"Hold on to your souls," Kane whispered as the stars began to stretch into white lines. "It's gonna be a bumpy ride."