When Adan stepped on the rotten woods of the Oozing decks, he couldn’t stop feeling a sense of dread triggered from every corner of the Slum. Followed by his men, all tensed with the worry of a sudden, treacherous ambush, made their way across the crumbling docks and straight into the filthy streets. The rancid smell of decay, a noxious blend of filth and neglect, pervaded all the way to the town’s square, where the Stingray was waiting for them. Each creak of the planks underfoot heightened their anxiety, a constant reminder of the lurking threat.

As they crossed a square of planked floor half-sunken into the mud, Adan’s group came to a halt. Shadows of the shanty town emerged from the gaps between the ramshackle huts. Their appearance was almost spectral, their clothes dirtied and ragged, faces gaunt and pale. More than dangerous pirates, they all remind Adan and his squids of prisoners waiting for the noose. Still. the air thickened with tension. At last, one man stepped forward. His voice was authoritative despite not being Ray. “Why did you come here?”

Adan swallowed hard. “Didn’t you receive our birds?” His voice betrayed him with a slight tremor. Convincing this man to allow him to see Ray was critical. Everything depended on it. His stomach churned with anxiety, but he forced himself to continue. “The Indri hit us hard. We’re tired. Hungry. We want to join the Ray and convince him to send crews to plunder again.”

The ray chief’s lips twisted into a menacing smile that sent a shiver down Adan’s spine. “Not that we are much better here, but be my guess. Anything to leave this place once and for all,” the man drawled. “You will give all weapons, savvy?”

Adan nodded. Rifles and knives fell to the ground, the clatter resonating heavily around a dead town. The ray men advanced quickly, their hands rough and efficient as they searched each squid with practised thoroughness.

The chief moved along Adan’s line, and Adan needed no explanation to understand what he was searching for. Or better said, of who: Riko. But Riko wasn’t there. Neither was Ivy.

As they ventured deeper into the shantytown, Adan’s gaze took in the surrounding squalor. The area was dismal, as if dwellers had given up on a normal life, and all lingered around waiting for death. With the Ray ships anchored instead of sailing for prey, no coin was in hand to burst the economy of a settlement that depended solely on what the pirates spent on celebrations. Poverty and despair were palpable—hollow-eyed children, tattered adults, and an ever-present layer of grime smeared across everything.

Adan wondered if more Ray’s men were here, concealed within the shadows. Their plan hinged on drawing attention away from the actual operation, and if Ray’s forces were fully occupied on the squids, it would provide Ivy with the chance she needed. Seeing the men of Oozing so heartless and unprepared put hope in Adam. With luck, there would be a few guards on the outskirts, making way for Ivy’s raid.

They reached the main square, an open space surrounded by stone buildings, which contrasted with the wooden shacks that surrounded it. Despite the sturdiness, though, the square itself was just as filthy as the rest of the town. In the centre, a group of armed men stood behind Ray, perched on a chair with legs crossed and hands clapping slowly.

“Years,” Ray said, his voice dripping with contempt. “Years gathering a pitiful force just to be smashed by the Indri. Good job, New Kraken.”

Adan bit his tongue, struggling to maintain composure as he requested permission to approach the Finger of the southeast. Granted with a nod, he stepped forward alone and unarmed, acutely aware that any misstep could mean death for him and his men.

“Enough,” Ray said sharply. “Where are Riko and the girl?”

“They returned to the safety of the shallows.” Adan said. “There was an unexpected turn of events, it seems. Something more complicated than a simple defeat.”

“I heard the rumours. The king, uh? I doubt it, but well. I know that old, crazy fox. Can expect the unexpected.” Ray rejoiced in his seat. “Did the girl cry? Did Riko run like a beaten dog?”

“That girl cries no more,” Adan said “And the Riko never gives up. If he runs, it’s striking back with more force.”

“They tell me, why do you want to leave them for me? Why when I see so much admiration in you?”

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Adan knew excessive lying would be detected. He carefully chose his words, drawing from the lines he had mentally rehearsed since the battle with the Indri. “I admire Riko,” he began, his tone measured. “All of us who have come here share that admiration. We believe in his ideals. But this is a losing battle, and if Riko has a flaw, it’s his inability to recognize when victory is impossible. Dreams are inspiring, but they don’t feed mouths or warm shivering bodies. We’re tired of empty promises. And the King of the Blue is crazy, so are his plans.”

Ray’s grin widened, a knowing smile that acknowledged Adan’s words had struck their mark. Adan hid his. “What we consider just or unjust no longer matters,” he continued. “You grant considerable freedom to your subordinates. If we can earn our bread within your ranks, we prefer to follow your rules over chasing fantasies of grandeur. We just ask you to sail again. We know Indri crept your aspirations and resources, but we can change that.”

Adan watched as Ray fell into the trap, the desire to return to his plunders and the luxuries of their exploits engraving a grimace on his perfect face. Ray stood, all full of himself, to be the center of a mocking ceremony. His men, with exaggerated solemnity, placed a crude wooden crown on his head. They draped him in ragged cloth, a poor imitation of a king’s cape, and give him a stick as a scepter he waved as a wand. The sight was both absurd and pitiable, a parody of power that only deepened Adan’s pity for the fool’s men.

“By the blessing of the sea, I make you people of the Ooze,” Ray declared, his voice resonating over the square. “You will follow my orders and respect the code of the free pirates of the Stingray. Bow to my will and raise your pride as brothers of the Thousand Kings.”

Adan hesitated, only to pretend concern and to check the surrounding men.They had to bow to him. It was an essential part of the plan. As Ray’s men, they’d be bound by code, but Ray was bound by code to his own men as well. When the ritual was finally over, Ray swaggered back to his seat, legs spread wide, hands draped casually over the back of the chair. Smugness crept across his face as he surveyed around, basking in the fleeting illusion of authority.

“You all will surely read the rules of the Thousand folks. Our code is sacred.” Ray said. “And Bishmar will assign your captains and men to my crews. You understand I can’t just give you ships to command yet, do you?”

“Understand,” Adan said. “And there will be no need to make me read the code. I know it very well.”

“Excellent, now go.”

“Regarding the code,” Adan's heart pounded in his chest. He drew a quiet breath, feeling a rush of relief. He had made it this far. Now, with Ray finally where they wanted him, he could only hope Ivy had succeeded in her part of the plan and sneaked inside the village in time. “The code of your men states that if a captain or officer isn’t doing a good job for his people, it only takes twenty men to raise a complaint. Well, I have twenty folks behind my back and a complaint in my heart.”

Ray leaned forward, the pedantry banishing from his face. His eyes narrowed. “Speak,”

“Our complaint is about how you manage this place. Men don’t pirate anymore. There’s no prize, no money flowing. And the little they spend here, on whores and booze, goes straight into your pocket. We improve the situation, but we believe leadership has to change..”

Ray’s laughter erupted, loud and exaggerated. As his charade died away, his face contorted with anger, his eyes hardening as he stared down at Adan. “You should have read better! Complaints and demissions are for captains. I am a Finger of the Fist, and no one has the authority to dethrone me. Do you want to challenge me? All right. But you’ll have to do it after you kill all my men. I’m protected by the laws of the Fist.”

“I’m not challenging you. One of my captains is,” Adan said. Sweat cruised through his temple at the thought of Ivy’s failure.

Ray burst into laughter again, this time louder and more forcefully, the sound echoing through the room. He clapped his hands, looking around at his subordinates as if inviting them to join in the mockery. A few chuckled timidly, but Adan didn’t miss the flickers of hesitation on their faces. Beneath their uneasy smiles, there was uncertainty. His ruse to dethrone him was, after all, a legitimate idea many of them may have taught for months to do themselves. The bravado was thin, barely masking the cracks forming in Ray’s grip on power. Adan could sense it—the doubt spreading among Ray’s men, a silent undercurrent that might soon turn the tide.

“The code of the Fist says a Finger can challenge another Finger.” Adan sneaked a peek around, his hand trembling with Ivy’s absence. To his immense relief, she emerged from the shadows right before he’d had to stretch the conversation. Blood marred her face, telling her incursion was far from easy. Her subtle nod gave Adan the reassurance the plan was bound, and the fate of the Ray, written.

“So,” Adan said as his hand raised to Ivy’s corner. She tepid into the light, to be seen by all men, and feared by the one who truly mattered.

“Who gave this brat the finger? You can’t just give yourself the title!” Ray spat, his words slowing to a mutter as his brain put together all the pieces of what happened. “It’s a meeting… and Indri’s men follow…you used the King, didn’t you? Clever bastards.”

“You see, I know the codes pretty well,” Adam continued. “A finger can remove another finger and no one may intervene. And if a finger dies, it’s decided among the captains who take over. It turns out that Indri’s folks liked the crazy old man’s proposal. We indeed got our asses beaten down there, but we got a pretty good compensation for it.”