It was perhaps a tad too smug to tell her Majesty 'I told you so'. Aren't you glad I am a paranoid motherfucker?
Stinger wasn't quite sure if he should gloat to a twelve-year-old. Even if she had the mental experience of her other life, obscenely ancient, more than any person he had ever known, she was… Well, she was still a child. And Stinger was way too long in the tooth to be so petty.
He did debate on it, even as he felt his feet rock beneath him due to the shot of someone who was clever with war-hammers.
An attack on the Red Hawk had always been a matter of when not if. Jupiter knew that, despite her optimistic nature. Whether or not it was by House Abrasax, or anything else, he was not sure. She sat tensely on her stupid throne, dressed in an elaborate fair, just in case the unlikely nature of capture, or even more likely, communication between the ship and the attacking miniature fleet that was on their tail. She looked like some sort of medical knight of her home planet, covered in shimmering opalescent metal, with a fine link of woven metal as fabric draped around her in a stunning, if unfunctional sight. He knew, however, like all of her clothing, all excess fabric and material was easy to strip off, and underneath she wore a thin, flexible, and highest grade body armor they could weave in her looms. It was standard fair across their newly expanded crew, despite the expense.
"Still glad to be the permanent crew of Queen Jupiter Jones of House Abrasax?" he asked, grinning savagely at the Captain Tsing.
He was surprised when the woman shot him an equally savage grin.
"Pleasure to stretch the capabilities in the finest ship I've ever had the pleasure to man, Mr. Apini."
"Please Captain, we are getting shot at together, call me Stinger!"
"Perhaps later, your Majesty, how do you fair?"
"Trusting you to get us to safety, Captain," Jupiter's voice was even, poised, even if her tan skin was a touch pale underneath her severe make-up, she even smiled to the Captain. "I know your capabilities and that of your crew. We are the safest ship in the Verse, even when we are getting shot at."
Captain Tsing beamed.
"Thank you for the vote of confidence!"