“Ugh.” “What are their kind doing here?” “Mercenaries?” “No, pirates.” “There are pirates on the ship?” “Just the captains…thankfully.” “Why in the Universe would we conscript pirates?” “We didn’t. One of the Dragons took them under his wing.” “Must be desperate for-”“-quiet, or they’ll hear you.” The soldiers whispered to one another.

Crane adjusted his glasses and scowled. The pirate captains stared daggers at the soldiers, and they pretended to ignore their guests.

“Arrogant shites. What the hell are you looking at?” Bokbaard barked. Goldjack grabbed his belly and laughed. “Not very welcoming, are they?” Feng commented behind her fan, and the pirate captains made their way through the tall and wide passage.

“I am not taking orders from anyone. Meeting after meeting, parlay after parlay. There had better be a battle after this.” Bokbaard spat and they stopped in front of a pair of sliding doors.

The captains looked up and noticed the holographic sign, with the words “Briefing room” shining brightly. They stepped forward, and the doors opened with a whoosh.

“You will, so long as you represent your Lord.” a tall warrior said menacingly. She had a silver streak in her hair jet black hair and an intimidating stare. The warrior in iron armour towered over the pirate captains.

“Captain Wolfe where are the pirates? There you are. What took you so long?” a slightly shorter blonde woman asked angrily, and Feng chuckled behind her fan. “Oh, our apologies. Are you pressed for time? By all means, make this brief. We would love nothing more than to breathe the fresh air again and judging by your stature, I’m certain there is some farmwork you wish to return to.” She said snidely, while eyeing the two tall and broad-shouldered women before her.

“Ha! Indeed, we are from the countryside. And where might you be from?” a sleepy giant of a man asked nonchalantly. “Spare the introductions. Send them the mission briefing, so we may continue. They will cower in the rear or desert the battlefield at the first sign of trouble, anyway.” A bald man said angrily, and his moustache twitched.

The pirate Captains and the soldiers scowled at each other. The sliding door to the opened with another whoosh and a tall and slender blonde man brushed passed everyone awkwardly as he entered the room.

“Excuse me. Sorry. Oh? Everyone’s here already. My apologies. I was working on a new spell and got carried away. The application and implementation may need some work, but the theory is sound.” Luther reported happily and Goldjack let out a hearty laugh.

“What spell were you working on?” the Dwarven Captain asked curiously. “It’s a Warhead Spell-”“-Luther!” Avalon shouted and the slender blonde man noticed the tall blonde woman to his left. “Ava-Captain…uh…I mean, they’re our allies now…right?” Luther asked innocently and the sleepy giant let out another laugh.

“So, he’s not just a pretty face? I dare say he is more suited to diplomacy than you are, Captain Avalon. And introductions are important for those that will be fighting together. Good communication is important after all. Captain Reed Bahn, I look forward to working with you.” The sleepy giant said nonchalantly.

Holographic monitors popped up in front of the pirate Captains, and they scrolled through the dossiers quickly.

“We’re not being sent to the frontline?” Crane asked skeptically and the bald man laughed. “Of course not. We do not need amateurs getting in our way.” Dumas said and his moustache twitched again. The tall, dark-haired woman and the bald giant stared menacingly and Bokbaard scoffed.

*

“It seems like they are getting along well.” Raymond said, and Kagiso rolled his eyes. “Is that what you really came to say?” he asked, and the three-horned man stared at his brother silently.

“Is this the contrarian in you? Am I speaking to the rebellious Dragon that dragged us into trouble as younglings? I thought you had outgrown that phase. Why them? Why now?” Raymond asked, and his eyes glowed purple.

“Freedom. I need strong fighters, not soldiers. I need explorers, not conquerors. I need new ideas, courage and evolution. I chose them because they have character and I did so now, for today is the day we have crossed paths, obviously.” Kagiso replied, and his eyes glowed blue.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“They could jeopardize the mission or tarnish your reputation.” The three-horned man added, and the two-horned man laughed at his brother. “My reputation as a rebellious Dragon? And if I am not mistaken, we staked our lives on this mission’s success. All variables should have been accounted for.” Kagiso replied, and Raymond’s eyes stopped glowing.

“And if they weren't? I wanted you and Duke to survive at least.” the three-horned man said sadly. “What? What about everyone else?” the two-horned man whispered angrily. “What about them?” Raymond asked callously. He turned to his left and stepped forward. “Hurry, if you wish to finish your preparations on time.” The three-horned man advised. His eyes stopped glowing, and he vanished with a step.

*

“How did the debriefing go?” Kagiso asked shortly, and Crane scoffed. “As well as your summons, it seems.” He muttered under his breath. “Oh my, what a sharp tongue you have.” Feng replied and the spectacled Captain sighed.

“My apologies. It seems the Miliana put on quite the display. She impressed our new allies so much that she is being sent to the very rear.” Crane replied, and Kagiso couldn’t contain his laughter. "I'm glad you find it funny." the spectacled pirate added.

“Keep your sharp tongue, Crane. But make sure you have the wit and the power to match it. I almost forgot why I enjoyed travelling by myself so much. Dragons can be irritatingly secretive and dismissive." Kagiso rumbled and the pirates felt his disappointment as if it were their own. "Then let them underestimate us. We will dance to the beat of our drum.” he said happily, and the pirate Captains smiled menacingly.

Holographic monitors popped up in front of them, and a sharp pain stung the back of their necks. Goldjack blinked and found himself standing in the center of a library, beneath a cloudy blue sky.

Marauder strolled through the aisles and perused the albums on the shelves. A rattling noise startled the pirate Captains, and they followed the sound. The men and women under Kagiso found the rattling door in their mind palace. They turned the knob and cracks formed beneath their feet.

The Dragon-bone door frames, around the stone double doors, glittered and sparkled. The pirate Captains pushed the doors open and rivers of glittery water spilled out. The cracks deepened and the inter-dimensional energy seeped into the soil. Islands formed around the Astral doors and glittery oceans formed around them.

The rivers of Mana burst out of every cell in their bodies and bounced around the ships. The glittery droplets of inter-dimensional energy uploaded new blueprints to the nano-cities in every plant and mammal cell in or on the ship.

Kagiso strolled through the many mind palaces and watched as the pirates assimilated the knowledge and technologies he had shared. Their eyes shone like floodlights and the world moved at a snail’s pace.

The pirates raced up and down their ships. They ran to the supply closets and warehouses. There, they found magical planks of wood, reems of magic papers, rolls of magical fabrics, jars of magical foods and all the precious metals and equipment needed to fashion powerful weapons and items.

The Candidates watched as glittery tornadoes erupted around the pirate ships. The vaporous Mana enveloped the vessels, and the glittery storms contracted. A few sent their ghosts to infiltrate Kagiso’s fleet, and they crashed into the powerful invisible walls.

“Then the rumours were true.” “I told you they were arrogant.” “The Old Clans have no shame.” “I remember now.” “Yes, it’s him.” “Him?” “No wonder he challenged that monster.” “The Cursed Child.” “The Rebellious One.” “So, he thinks his mortals can stand on equal footing with us?” “Clown?” “Fool?” “Imbecile.” “Arrogant.” “Arrogant.” “Arrogant.” The Candidates whispered maliciously.

The pirate ships emerged from the sparkly storms, and they absorbed the glittery clouds. The Mana infused winds disappeared mysteriously and the newly improved vessels drifted alongside the formation. The vessels were covered in gold and silver decorations. Their quad barreled Dragon-bone cannons had an iridescent sheen, and their sails were made from beautiful silk cloths. A carefree laugh travelled across the skies and the Candidates eyes glowed furiously.

“Equal footing? No, they will surpass you one day.” The two-horned man rumbled proudly, and his pirates stepped out onto the decks. They were dressed in the finest magical fabrics and leathers and armed with the strangest weapons the Candidates had seen. Kagiso stood on the Shenlong’s starboard taffrail and laughed at his peers.

“Only an hour before we reach our destination. To your posts.” Raymond rumbled sternly, and the Candidates disappeared. Kagiso’s eyes glowed blue and the pirate ships activated their cloaking fields. The stealth ships vanished, and the blimps disappeared off the Whale Ships’ radars.

An hour passed by, and the pirates spent the time wandering through the well-lit wooden passages of their ships.

“I wish there was time to explore all these fine rooms.” A crewmate said to another. “There will be. Once we finish the job. Then we can explore and get into as much trouble as we please.” another replied.

The duo lowered the crates carefully and dashed out of the room at blistering speeds. The dozens of blurs raced through the passages, up and down the mast and around the ships. They checked every centimeter, while the island appeared over the horizon. The pirate ships appeared briefly, before they vanished again.

The legions lined up and waited patiently, while the rest of the crew manned their stations. Duke, Gloria, Hugo, Jabu, Laurence and Jane appeared in Raymonds command bridge and nodded. Kagiso appeared briefly and nodded as well. the three-horned man turned to his bridge commander.

“Launch the assault!” Raymond ordered and the Whale Ships blew their deep and ominous horns. They increased their energy output and sped up their approach.