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Carter stepped high over the drone that almost crashed into his leg. These little things were more or less mindless, only carrying out the commands that Sybil gave them, but none of the three entities' personalities were present therein. There were a lot of the buggers running around right now, trying to get the Sybil up and running so she could get out of there before whatever backup the pirates might have showed up.

Beside him walked Alen, now a captain in his own right and of a rather impressive vessel at that. Carter tried not to be too jealous of how quickly the kid had pulled off the same dreams that had taken him decades to achieve as he addressed Alen. "So pretty much the whole crew opted to stay with you rather than return with the merchants? How'd you pull that off?"

Alen had the decency to look a little embarrassed when he answered.

"Well, they were all more or less pirate hunters already, and a destroyer is a lot more effective for that than a retrofitted merchant vessel. As for how I ended up Captain, it was just a matter of right place and time, I guess. That and Erik had a lot to say on the matter, and I don't think anyone wanted to argue with him too much..."

The kid hesitates before adding, "But if I'm honest, I'm not sure I know what to do with the damned thing! I've basically just been along for the ride so far. I wouldn't even begin to know how to track down and pick fights with a bunch of pirates. Not to mention, these days, they don't seem to be running as individual vessels anymore. It would be all too easy to get surrounded and overwhelmed, even with a destroyer to work with..."

Carter couldn't fault the kid's logic. "Yeah, things seem to be getting rough out there. Apparently, some mastermind is running around uniting all the pirates to form a coalition. I'm guessing some of the governing bodies are gonna have to get off their asses and work together soon, or they're going to have a real mess on their hands!"

Alen nodded. "Yeah, that's more or less how we see it too, but they're not the only ones who can play that game..."

The kid was getting at something, but Carter couldn't figure out what. "What are you trying to say?"

Alen looked at the older man and nodded toward one of the drones running around on some mysterious errand only one of the Sybils might understand. "I'm saying a lot of hands make for lighter work. I know this was a ramshackle alliance we put together because our backs were against a wall, but we worked together pretty well. While a single destroyer isn't close to a match for the Sybil, it's still pretty handy in a fight. Why don't we work together? You'll get lots of scrap to keep the ship up and running and a bit of backup for when situations get out of hand like this one. We'll get the backing of one of the most terrifying ships in the void, and I'm pretty sure the Sybil can keep us stocked up on munitions and repairs for a small cut of the scrap we help you obtain."

The kid grinned. "Also, we can do something you can't. We can go to ports to trade and get supplies. Even with your ability to cannibalize ships like you do, some things are just too difficult to get your hands on. How would you like some decent fresh produce, for instance? And I'm sure there are some cutting-edge tech the residents of your ship might like to get their hands on, but they aren't likely to show up on your average pirate vessel. We can make those kinds of trades for you... For a small service fee."

Carter shook his head. "You missed your calling. You should have been a salesman, not Captain of a warship... Still, it's not a terrible idea, but the Sybil has always been a bit of a loner out here. I'm not sure they're really all that interested in making friends with other ships out here."

Alen nodded as if he'd expected that. "Fair enough, but that group of pirates out there weren't looking for us or the merchants we saved. They were here for one reason and one reason only. They were hunting the Sybil. You've got something they want, and I don't think they're gonna stop looking just because you bloodied their noses. Whatever you've done in the past won't cut it anymore. You need friends, and that's what I'm offering."

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Damn, the kid really should have been a salesman. Carter nodded. "Fair enough. You make a good point. I'll speak to them and see what they have to say. No promises, though. On this ship, I only have one vote in four!"

Alen shrugged. "That's one more than I have!"

-

Erik looked down at the pirate, Elias. It felt kind of odd watching a pirate without killing him. He turned to Vanessa. "Are you sure we can't kill him? Just a little?"

Vanessa, who was working on prepping her arm for a new hand, shook her head. "No, my lady. You chose to follow Alen and support him for Captain. Now, you must respect his wishes, and he wishes for the pirate to be kept alive to fulfill his 'part of the deal' and because he may yet have useful information."

Erik sat back and grunted. "But we never actually promised not to kill him. We only hinted at it. We couldn't be breaking our word or anything!"

Vanessa visibly sighed, which was clearly an act because, as Erik was well aware by now, she didn't breathe the same way he and the humans did. "That still doesn't address the fact we might still need him, my lady. Also, perhaps Captain Alen is more concerned with adhering to the spirit of the law rather than the letter. Something you should be thankful for if we're going to serve under him for any length of time. It means that, for once, we won't have to watch our back among our own crew."

Erik stopped and looked at Vanessa, then grinned. "You like him, don't you? Not as in like-like, but you still think he's a pretty good guy, huh? I thought you said there weren't any decent humans? 'Certainly none we should trust!'"

Vanessa's tone didn't change, but Erik knew her well enough to sense the annoyance hidden under her calm demeanor. "Yes, well, every rule has an exception. Perhaps he's too young to have learned from the rest, and maybe with some guidance, he will stay that way. Besides, I never said every human was bad."

Erik laughed. "But you sure did imply it!" He then held up his hands in surrender. "But alright, I'll stop pushin'. Besides, I think we can both agree it'll be interesting to stick around and see what's next. I bet there'll be plenty of pirate killing for us if we do!"

The pirate, who probably wasn't having as much fun as the two of them since his hands were handcuffed to his chair, shook his head. "You're insane. You do know that, right?"

Erik laughed heartily. "Course I do!" Then he leaned in and gave the pirate one of his more intimidating glares. One that showed enough teeth to bother most humans. "But that doesn't mean you can just call me that. The young Captain said I shouldn't be too rough with you so long as you don't give me trouble, but he never defined trouble or what too rough meant. I'm sure you could still talk just fine if I bit off a finger or two!"

Unlike most humans, the pirate just sighed. "Whatever. It's not like I will ever see the light of day again. He made that much clear. But if you do something like that, I won't tell you what I know about your kind."

That made Erik stop as the words the pirate said sunk in. However, before he could say anything, Vanessa was already rearing over the human, doing her best to intimidate him. "And just what do you know about his 'kind?'"

The pirate shook his head. "Nuh-uh. I'm not saying another word until you promise to stop making my life more miserable than it already is!"

Vanessa leaned in close, and Erik knew it was no accident that the normally prim and proper Vitexrā allowed some saliva to drip down from her mouth onto the pirate. "We could always just take the information from you, with pain..."

The pirate grinned, though Erik could see some nervousness behind the action. "Yeah, maybe, and I'd probably tell you everything I know too, but I'd mix in as many lies as I could to get my revenge. You'd spend the rest of your lives trying to figure out what's real and what's not!"

Erik put a calming hand on Vanessa's shoulder, for once playing the 'good alien' as he spoke up. "Yeah, alright, fine. We'll play nice so long as you give us something worth our time. Otherwise, I might just decide to disobey my new Captain."

The pirate glared at him momentarily as if trying to decide if that was good enough or if the threats were a bluff, but then shrugged. "Well, I don't know a lot. These are just some rumors I came across a while ago, but apparently, some new high-end slaves have been showing up on the market recently. What makes them so valuable is that they're apparently intelligent aliens who aren't weavers. I heard them described as big, strong, and having some sort of 'bone armor' they always wear. I didn't think much of it till I saw you. I still don't know if it's legitimate or just a coincidence, but the whole 'bone armor' thing is kinda on the nose, don't you think?"

Erik glared at the man. "If you're lying to me, I'm gonna have Vanessa make sure your death takes years, with every waking moment being more agonizing than the last... Now, tell me everything you've heard."