"What do you mean?" Braz cocked a brow.
"We’re supposed to take out this Elise, aren’t we? How do we go about doing that?"
The man— I just noticed that he was probably in his 30’s, despite his youthful personality— leaned his back on the edge of the boat, shrugging. "Don’t know. But I’ll do whatever Ginah tells me to do."
"You mean your Captain hasn’t told you any of her plans?" I glanced between him and Ginah who was still standing off in the distance. Kai had broken off from talking to her, and was heading below deck to do whatever a quartermaster was supposed to do.
"Yes!" Braz said, almost over eagerly. "She hasn’t led us astray so far, and she took us all in even though most of us have been misfits all our lives. Especially me! And she made us better men than we were before!"
I tilted my head to the side. "Aren’t you guys… pirates?"
He raised a finger, still grinning. "That’s why I said ‘than we were before’."
I looked at the man for a moment, as he held that pose. Eventually, I decided to let the issue drop, and ask the more important question.
"What exactly did you do before—"
I was interrupted by a cheer. We had finally entered the dimly lit cavern, and our ship finally came to a stop at a beach of glittering white sand. A few dozen more pirates were waiting at the beach for us, and they threw their hands up in the air and they whooped and hollered as Ginah addressed them.
"We’re back, boys! And we’ve got Jack and Lisa with us now!" Ginah loudly exclaimed. Then she cast a sidelong glance at me for a moment, before adding, "And we’ve got others too to help us bring down the Elise. So we celebrate tonight!"
I stared down at the very many cheering faces standing at the beach, before looking over at the other two larger ships also anchored next to us. I frowned.
"Who are these guys?"
"Them?" Braz turned to face me. "They’re the rest of our crew."
"...wait what?"
As it turned out, Ginah’s Crew was not just the small ship of pirates I had assumed they were. They were almost four times as big as I initially thought they were, which in retrospect, was a foolish thought.
They were pulling hit and run tactics against the Elise, which meant they would only bring a select few trustworthy elites with them, which explained how good of a fighter each of the pirates seemed to be. And considering that they were preparing to assail The Lightbringer’s Vessel— a mana powered ship— before they realized it was tailing us, it only made sense that they took a smaller, faster boat to keep up with it.
I carefully walked down the gangplank as Gennady, Lisa, and Jack followed behind me. There was, of course, cheering as we came down— as the pirates welcomed us ‘new allies’ into their ranks. Apparently, the Elise was really disliked around here, and anyone joining their fight against the criminal organization was accepted with open arms, a slap on the back, and a drink on them.
Gennady, who had just woken up from a nap, wasted no time before he was downing some ale and mingling with our new acquaintances.
The party hadn’t started yet.
I followed Ginah as she led us to some hastily set up structures that were supposed to be where I was going to be sleeping in. We walked in silence, as my first interaction with the pirate Captain did not exactly leave a good impression on her, even if she had changed her mind slightly since then.
Finally, I decided to break the silence.
"How long have you been a… pirate?" I asked.
"About five years," she said, continuing past a group of her crew calling out to her. She grinned and waved back, but otherwise did not say anything.
"And why did you become a pirate?"
"Is this an interrogation or something?" Ginah sighed, shaking her head.
"I’m just curious." I folded my arms, as we finally came to a stop at a small wooden building. "I’ve been told that you’re considered a ‘good’ pirate, but I’d like to know what made you become a pirate in the first place, since it’s not the most noble of jobs."
She paused, looking me over for a moment. She rubbed her temples as she answered.
"The world is not so simple, Melas. And especially not in Laxis." That was all she said. "Go on. This is where you’ll be staying."
I looked at the small house that was built like a small dormitory, before realizing that it was a shared sleeping quarters. And a large one at that.
"Don’t worry," Ginah reassured me. "Only women and children will be sleeping here… you’re a girl, right?"
I nodded hesitantly in response. Then she relaxed.
"Good. Just wanted to make sure since you’re hiding behind a mask and all."
"How am I supposed to maintain my privacy if I’m sleeping with others?" I ask, drawing my lips into a thin line.
"The answer’s simple: you don’t. Sorry, can’t do anything about it. Not unless you decide to build yourself your own room."
"But—"
"Listen," Ginah cut me off. "We’re low on supplies and on manpower, compared to the Elise. This isn’t the most luxurious lodgings, but you’ll have to make do if you really are willing to work with us."
I narrowed my eyes.
"Compromises require both sides to make concessions, not just me," I stated flatly.
She halted midtep— she was already about to leave, but my words made her turn around and stay for a moment longer.
"I am aware," she said.
"Then what do I gain out of this?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "Other than giving up my privacy and identity to a bunch of strangers, of course."
"We’re giving
