Chapter 31 · Into the Magma Chasm

"Tell me that timer is broken." Cassian slammed one hand against the engine-bay hatch as the deck kicked under his boots. "Brant. Tell me now."

"It’s not broken." Brant’s voice came through the heat-stuttered comm. "It’s counting down."

Cassian dropped through the hatch.

Heat punched him in the face. His coat smoked at the collar. Below him, the engine bay shook around a cracked pressure chamber, its pipes glowing dull orange beneath layers of soot and salt. Three charges had been bolted to the chamber wall. Red numbers crawled across the nearest detonator.

00:01:48.

Brant stood beside it in a battered heat suit, one brass arm hooked around a valve wheel. His real hand was pressed against the bulkhead, fingers spread for balance. The brass limb had been polished so many times it still shone through the grime.

"You said we had five minutes," Cassian snapped.

"I said we had five minutes before the chamber split." Brant twisted the valve. It screamed. "The explosives are a separate problem."

"Why are there explosives in my engine?"

"Because your engine was trying to eat the ship. I improvised."

"You improvised a bomb?"

"I improved a bomb. There’s a difference.