I like that Pike avoids conflict whenever he can. And him not immediately knowing what to do at the end is so him. I’m confident that none of the cast will be killed off. Just unnamed red shirts.
They seem to be bookending the season with flashbacks to Pike’s expedition to Rigel VII. His decision to withdraw there cost people their lives and led to Zak corrupting the local culture. Now he’s back under fire, under seemingly unwinnable odds, and forced to make the call to leave people behind again.