Let's recap the grid, as it's been a while.
MERCURY | SHARK | COVER | POUND | SLIP |
ANTARCTICA | LASER | DUCK | PRINCESS | PLOT |
SPIKE | PHOENIX | GLOVE | SCREEN | RAY |
BED | SOLDIER | QUEEN | CALF | DIAMOND |
PARACHUTE | LOG | FORK | DATE | MISSILE |
The lack of an unlimited clue surely means that our previous Sci-fi inclinations weren't going to get us to the right place, and were probably going to produce a red or a black. Mercury felt like a safe guess from Sci-fi, but none of the others feel all that certain. I'd much rather we guess something tied to Engagement. If we get it right, we only have 2 words left and there will probably be a clue for them. If we get it wrong, there are lots of ways of helping us:
3-clue = find these three, ignore our previous preference
2-clue = guess these two plus our favourite previous word (probably the other Engagement one)
unlimited clue = 1 related to this clue and our two previous preferred words
All assuming we get another turn, anyway.
So I prefer Soldier or Princess, no particularly strong preference between them.