“Hey, lassie! Have we decided what to do with our prisoners?” Jethro was scowling when Navi bounced on board.

His question brought her up short. Of course! They still had the failed boarding party secured in a cabin.

“I don’t like them, Navi,” Casey ran over to bury her face in the mechanic’s flowy pants. “They scare me.”

“I know. I don’t like them either.” Navi frowned. “But we’re stuck with them for a little longer.” Jaehyun came up the gangplank after her.

“It would be much easier on us if we simply turned them over to the authorities,” he said, moving past the group. “There is a greater chance of them finding out something they shouldn’t have.” He said, gesturing in the direction of Ifanta’s cabin.

“All right,” Navi agreed. “I just thought that maybe we could ransom them or—”

“And waste valuable time and resources?” The pilot whirled. “We have just been accepted for the Imperial Thunderdome! Time is of the essence!”

“We’ve been accepted?” Jethro’s eyebrows shot up. “Congratulations, lass!”

“What happened?” Lamond came out the kitchen chewing on the ever-present jerky.

“We’re going to Lambasca for the Thunderdome!” Jethro crowed.

“Jaehyun, how could you?” Navi whirled on the pilot as the news trickled to the others. “I didn’t even get the chance to tell them.”

“Sorry,” he shrugged. “But we’ve got bigger fish to fry. Have Lamond, Estelle and Jethro assist you with getting that lot to the authorities. We need to be on our way.”

Navi scowled. Instead of being repentant, Jaehyun looked distracted. He had vanished into his cabin. As much as she wanted to confront him, he was right. The competition was still a month away. They needed to build upon their newfound notoriety prior to the competition and ensure that the ship was outfitted for the upcoming challenges ahead.

She stomped down to the hold where their captives were awaiting their fates. Apart from being securely chained together—courtesy of Jethro, they had been treated well with Estelle and Lamond being their only contact with the crew. When she drew the door open, the four scrambled to face them. They had secured to the walls by their wrist via impossibly small cuffs. (Jethro reasoned that few of them would attempt to break their wrists in an effort to escape. He was right.) Oddly enough, none of them tried to escape. Instead, it seemed like they were waiting for something during their three days of captivity.

“What’s going to happen to us now?” Their leader apparent spoke up.

“What do you think?” Navi snapped. “You’re getting out of our hair so we can get back in the air. Take them!” The others moved to loosen the prisoners.

“Wait!” The woman raised her voice. “We’d like to make a deal.”

“I don’t deal with pirates!” The bitter laugh came out before Navi could stop it. “You don’t have anything that I would want to trade for.”

“What if I could guarantee you safe passage through the Via Delta territory if you release me?” The woman kept her eyes fixed on Navi.

Now Navi looked at her. She was a tall, powerfully built, middle-aged woman. She was from the Honora region like Jaehyun. She had ivory-colored skin and hair like a black, silken rope twisting down to her waist. The hardness of her expression told her that this woman was worth more than she thought.

“How would you do that?” She asked the prisoner. “And don’t give me a sob story. I need something concrete. Time is money. Don’t waste either of mine.”

“Navi, you can’t--!”

“Captain, wait--!”

Captain? The mechanic held her hand up to silence Jethro, her eyes narrowing. “Just, how would you do that?”  

_____________________________

“We don’t deal with pirates!” Jaehyun thundered.

Navi scowled at him. “This opportunity might change that. It would open up an entire region of safe travel for us!”

“That’s only if she can regain command of her crew. You don’t know how many of them will support her after this coup attempt!”

“She didn’t ask us to help her regain control of her crew—just to let her go. We aren’t losing much by opening the door for her,” Navi folded her arms stubbornly. “And we would save time by not having to run to the authority.”

The pilot suddenly got busy, making his coffee. “Jethro, what do you think?” He refused to look at anyone. Jaehyun had started acting peculiar, but she could not put a finger on why. It had something to do with their entry to the Thunderdome. She mentally filed that fact away for later.

The rest of the crew turned to the big blacksmith. He turned red under the scrutiny. “Well…”

“We should take a prisoner,” Ifanta said suddenly. “Leverage will help ensure the pirate keeps her word and we can get free labor out of the deal.”

Everyone looked at the fairy with conflicting emotions playing across their faces.

“We don’t have the manpower to keep a prisoner in check and still take care of business,” Lamond frowned at the fairy.

Ifanta sniffed, rising grandly. “Excuse me, but we don’t need the manpower.” She made air quotations. “We need magic—which I have in spades. One of our captives is a half-elf. Choose him. I’ll be responsible for him.” The intensity of her expression took Jaehyun aback.

“What do you need a half-elf for?” he asked, wondering if he truly wanted an answer.

Ifanta began to pace across the galley floor. “You may not be aware, but I’m not here on your tin can because I choose to be. I owe a debt.” Her glance flicked over to Navi who remained expressionless. “I also have my own mission. He can help with that.”

“My responsibility as captain takes precedence over personal vendettas. Your mission is not my priority.” Jaehyun placed his spoon down, and facing the fairy. “Now that I am aware that you have a mission, how likely is it to endanger the lives of my crew?”

“Not at all,” she answered breezily. He did not change expression and stared her down. “It shouldn’t,” she amended. “One half-elf can’t do much. Besides, as a being of partial magic, I can bind him to ensure that he will never cause harm to the crew.” Her tone grew soft and pleading—quite unlike the usual haughty Ifanta. “Let me take the boy as leverage. He’d only be with us a little while and we can be on our way. What is the problem?”

Jaehyun felt much older than his thirty-four years. Prior to his current existence, he had been a law-abiding citizen. Even as the pilot of the True North, the crew had been careful to maintain their legitimacy in the eyes of the law (although he was certain that some of their deliveries were not exactly legal.). Magic, an aspect of life he had never considered, was making thing more difficult by the second, and now his crew was talking of taking a prisoner. “We are a delivery ship, Ifanta. I was not taken on as captain so that I could start catering to the whims of the crew.” He turned to Navi who was silently considering him. “I’m no expert, but I do know that trusting a pirate is risky business. We are on our way to the Thunderdome and—hopefully—better things. Is this something you really want to have hanging over our heads before we’ve even made it to the winners’ circle?”

She thought for a minute. “He’s right. Taking prisoners is a terrible idea.” Jaehyun sighed in relief. “I’m all for letting the pirates go, in the hopes that we gain allies and a clear travel path. A prisoner adds in more variables than I care to handle. Besides…” She looked at Ifanta. “…we have a goal of our own. It was in place long before I met you. I’m not willing to jeopardize that.” Ifanta looked down, struggling to mask her emotions. “I’m sorry. I’m sure you’ll have other opportunities.”

“Oh, no. I completely understand,” the fairy said, taking a deep breath. “But, supposing they volunteer--of their own free will, and through no coercion—magic or otherwise. Would you reconsider?”

“No,” Navi did not need to wait to answer. “We will then owe the pirates. I’d rather be the debt-collector than the indebted.” She looked to Jaehyun. “I’m going to release them though. IF they are telling the truth, then we have free passage through this region. If not, we won’t be any worse off than if we had handed them to the authorities.”

He searched through his feelings and found that the original issue of releasing the pirates did not weigh on him that heavily. “Do what you will,” he shrugged. “It’s your ship.”

“Can’t you just ask the kid your questions before he goes?” Joe asked. “I mean, that should be easy enough.”

Ifanta turned her golden eyes on the apprentice. An icy chill crept over him. “Yes, it should be that simple; however, you have to realize that we are an endangered species. Even so, none of us can truly trust each other. It is not enough to converse once.” She turned back to look out the window. Joseph felt the warmth returning to his limbs.

“Well, that’s the only chance you’re getting,” Navi said, interrupting them. “We’re leaving in five.”

_____________________________

“You have my word that if the True North comes through this region, she will have no harassment from the Red Hand,” Captain Geneva Choi bowed. Her three colleagues stood with her at the end of the gangplank.

Jaehyun resisted the urge to say something, letting Navi handle this transaction.

“That would be excellent—assuming you recover from the coup,” Navi nodded. “Would you answer one more question—call it payment for your hospitality?”

“What is it?”

“Do you know where we can find an alchemist?”

Captain Geneva blinked. “I know of one in Dalkin. The rumors surrounding him are…entertaining. You’d do better finding a qualified magician.”

Navi smiled. “Thank you and have a safe flight home.” She turned back towards the ship.

“Ms. Sitara!”

Navi turned back. The captain was looking at the ground, wrestling with some inner conflict. After a second, the struggle vanished from her face as she looked back up at them.

“I’ll tell you this for free. It won’t only be us pirates coming after the True North.”

“What do you mean?” Jaehyun strode back down the gangplank. “Are you saying we weren’t a random target?”

“No,” The Captain looked up. “They released the list of those competing in the Thunderdome. Your ship was on it.”

“So?”

“So, a bounty was placed on the True North.” Navi and Jaehyun exchanged alarmed looks. “It is easier to make it to the winners’ circle if there are less competitors. Bounty hunters, pirates, other competitors and even minor nobles backing favorites will be coming for you. Be on your guard. Good luck!”