Trial of Primacy Arc (Patreon)

So, those who frequent my Discord probably know that I've come up on a bit of an issue with the current book. As far as I'm concerned, it's a good problem to have, but it does force me to make some choices, and soon. So, let me explain.

Basically, we're at about the 40-50% mark with the Trial of Primacy arc as outlined. That means that if I keep going the way I'm going, following the outline, this arc is going to be somewhere around 225-300k words (depending on how elaborate I want to get with the challenges). That is well over the estimate (and my publisher's preferred length of around 175k words).

With that in mind, my two choices are this:

1. I can expand on this arc a bit, incorporating some elements I have planned for later books so that I can reasonably split this arc into two volumes. I know where I would split it (there's a mid-book climax that would work perfectly for that), but it would mean staying in the Trial of Primacy arc for about 20-30 extra chapters, across two books that would end up being 165-185k words each.

2. I can cut down on some of the plot points going forward. That would mean paring down on some of the challenges and probably leaving off alternate POV chapters (back on Earth) that I've planned. Those chapters would still happen, just not in this book, so you wouldn't miss out on any Miggy/Carmen chapters. They'd just happen at a different point.

I think there are benefits and pitfalls of both choices, but I'm fairly certain I can make either of them work. So, I'm a bit torn.

That's why I thought I'd ask you all for a bit of information. I'm not saying my choice comes down to the results of this poll, but I will say that it would be a lot easier to cut some of the fat off the Trial of Primacy if you all aren't enjoying it.

So - here's the question:

What do you all think of the Trial of Primacy?