This, my good fellows, is a sort of sad and morbid chapter. I sort of borrowed the idea in Salvaging the Mutua a bit. Don't worry, though. It's still different than the story so there for it's only the idea of it that I took. Everything else is mine. I give credit to the writer of Salvaging the Mutua for the small bit of idea I took. As do I for Treasure Planet, Silver, & Pokemon- for the power of moving objects & teleporting things with your mind. Read if you will & don't kill me with criticizing reviews! Oh, And I give thanks to those who have.
The life on the ship got harder for everyone. Aria had to clean the deck twice as hard and make sure she kept stock of the inventory of the items that were readily available. Silver sometimes had to shout orders at Bisk and threaten to smack him with one of his bear like hands if he didn't get the job done right. The twenty year old reptilian didn't quite get the memo that what Silver or Captain Maria said was law on their ship sometimes. The helmsman, Din, a twenty-nine year old lion felid, was crazy when he drove, to make things worse. Aria had to tie the mop and bucket to her lifeline so she wouldn't lose them when mopping the deck. Everyone insisted on letting Silver drive the ship because he had more control even if he was a treacherous pirate in the past. This earned a very annoyed and angry response from the cyborg, who would claim no treachery was involved with him on this voyage.
They drifted through space at cruising speed. Maverick had fallen asleep at his post, so Silver took over in watch, even if he was watching Vister as well. Din took energy pills that made him jittery and awake, which aided him in staying up. Silver was leaning over the edge, his cyborg ear listening to what Vister was doing which seemed, at the moment, sleeping. He was smoking his pipe, idly looking out into space, which was now filled with asteroids.
Something caught his robotic eye, and was now focusing all his attention on that. Wreckage and a light coming off of a ruined deck was waving about frantically, meaning that somebody was moving it. He zoomed in, the metal around his eye peeling back into a flower like shape, and saw a wolf canid waving around a lantern, obviously seeing the Wrath. "Ahoy! Wreckage off ta port," he yelled out, awakening the crew. They jumped up and looked out. They could barely see the dancing light of the lantern, but they knew they had reached their destination. Crazy Din had a smile on his face that was wider than the Karen Abyss as he started to steer the boat frantically over to the wreckage.
Aria, who had awoken to her grandfather's yell, was clinging on for dear life like the rest of the crew. Crazy Din was insane enough to steer like a mad man in the Belt. Even though his driving was erratic and he lived up to his name of "Crazy Din", he was one of the best maneuvers out there, so not many a crew complained. Thanks to Din's driving and Silver ordering Vister to have it going at top notch, they reached the wrecked vessel within a matter of minutes.
They used a plank to get to the wrecked ship, remaining at hovering speed. Maria decided to go aboard with Silver, Aria, and Maverick while Bisk and Rea stayed with Crazy Din and Vister. Maria wanted to check it out for herself. She needed to gather the full story on what had happened to that vessel. "What is your name, sir," Maria interrogated the wolf. The wolf bit his tongue at the sight of Silver and didn't say anything. Silver caught this glance, knowing his first thought of him was "pirate". "I ain't pullin' nut'in, lad. Trust me on this one," he said, flashing a smile at the canid.
Finally he spoke. "I was steering the ship when I had lost control of it. I tried to regain control but some strange force threw me off. I was knocked unconscious afterwards by the same force. When I awoke the ship was a total wreck. You need to check the captain. He's been locked in his room for days." Maria looked him over. He was thin for a wolf canid; malnourished, in fact. "Maverick, escort this man to the Wrath. Make sure he gets some food and water," Captain Maria ordered in clarity. "Oh, and be sure to tell Rea to come back with you. We'll need her assistance," she added in, receiving an "Aye, Captain," from him.
They headed to the captain's quarters of the ship. Captain Maria tried opening the door but it was jammed shut. She couldn't even get her bone key to open the lock. After watching his daughter do it the mediocre way, Silver pushed her aside. "Step back, an' watch how a real pro brakes in ta a room, lass," he warned, activating his laser cannon. Soon all that was left of the door was splinters and shrapnel. They spotted a beam nearly crushing a young man of thirty on the ground. Aria ran over and placed a hand on his chest -the part that wasn't trapped under the beam- which was really thin from undernourishment. She felt his chest rise and felt his heart beat, as if he were saying "I'm alive" to her. "He's still here," She said to the people she was working with. "Oi, Silver! I need some help," she yelled as she strained to lift the heavy wooden plank that had fallen onto the man. Silver responded and lifted it with most of his strength, with a little help from Maria and Aria.
The thirty year old had brown hair framing his face at the side. His chin was a tad sharp and there was a scar on his cheek that both Aria and Silver recognized. "James Pleiades Hawkins," the two announced looking at the young captain. Silver knelt down beside Jim and shook his head with sorrow. "T'ere ain't nut'in I can do fer 'im. At best, we have ta get 'im back to the Wrath an' treat his wounds," he stated wisely, his voice shaking. "Sorry dis had ta happen to yeh, lad." Silver placed a hand on the unconscious boy's shoulder, doing his best at keeping his sadness under control.
Rea stepped in the room in time to see Silver stand up. "Rea, take t'is lad to the Wrath and treat 'im, will yeh? We'll search the rest of the ship," the ursid stated looking back to the cabin boy whom he had come to care like his own son. Rea nodded in understanding. "I'll come back with help," she stated, knowing that without any other assistance they'd be a while. She took out one of her compact stretchers and put Jim on it, hauling him back to their own ship.
Renald and Bisk came over along with Jark, Rea, and Vince, leaving Crazy Din over on the boat, watching Vister. Even though Din was nuts at the wheel he was also good at watching things, noting the changes he saw in his head, in which he could tell if they were good or bad.
The group split up, only shouting when they saw someone or something. Aria, Silver, and Maria checked the galley of the ship. They found someone, but unfortunately they were too late, not to mention it was a relative of Maria's. Her uncle on her mother's side, a regular human cook, lay dead on the ground. She knelt and wept over the body. "Why... I could've made it to help, but why...," she asked with sorrow.
Since Aria had brought a stretcher with her, she began to pull it out. "Aria... No... He's dead. I'd wish for a proper burial but since we're out in space we'll drop his corpse into its depths," Maria stated. She looked to Silver who had his head bowed and his hat placed on his chest in respect for the dead man.
"You use to do this when a crew member was shot, even if it were from your own gun the death had caused, right, Dad," Maria inquired. Silver was taken aback for the fact that she had only regarded him as "Silver" or "Mr. Silver" for the whole voyage. That and the way she said it. Instead of it being authoritative, it sounded like a young girl, asking her father a question. "Aye, it be a rule on my ship. Even if the crew member was shot by the cap'n, a proper- eh...'burial' service is required. It was jus' so dat we didn't have ta smell their corpse and while we're at it, we might as well send 'em off properly," Silver informed. They nodded in understanding at this logic.
They took the body over to the rail of the ship. "May he rest in peace," Maria stated as she dropped her uncle over the edge of the wrecked ship. "A moment of silence fer 'im t'en we get back ta work," Silver said in reverence. They bowed their heads, taking minute to honor the captain's relative.
Soon, they had rescued five injured people- minus the wolf canid- and had discovered the rest of the crew, slaughtered and dead. "Mutiny...," Maria said as she traced the wound streaking down a young man's chest. Aria shot a look at Silver who gave a purely shocked expression. "I definitely haven't seen dis man in me life," the cyborg protested his case. The two laughed in amusement at his reaction, knowing he hadn't planned any treacherous act. They turned grave faced, the truth sinking in at the fact that they had a dead man on their hands. They took care of him like they did Maria's uncle. A small and short memorial for the fallen was held almost every time they did. And as to lighten the mood, Silver began to joke that if they kept that up they'd be there for an astronomical month! This received a dark glare from Maria, who lightened with a chuckle when he realized why he made such a remark.
The eight of them gathered together on the main part of the deck to discuss their findings. Bisk, Rea, and Vince had found a little girl in the wrecked longboat bay of the ship, scared out of her wits. The rest of the people they had found were dead. Jark and Renald only found bodies, murdered by someone, from what they said. "Let us interrogate the remaining crew. They may have some answers," Maria ordered as they got back onto their boat.
Their time was wasted getting leads out of them. They all claimed that they didn't see their assailant. Only the captain could know of him, then. Maria thought. She walked below deck and looked over Jim Hawkins, who looked like he had gained some weight from Rea's force feeding techniques. By this time they had reached out of the asteroid belt and no longer had to sleep on deck.
Silver was sitting next to the boy's hammock and keeping an eye on him, making sure he was well. He didn't say a word when Maria approached. "You think he'll ever wake," she inquired. Silver sighed heavily. "Don't rightly know. He's well enough to. He's got more meat on his bones than when we found him. Could wake up ta-day or tamarra'...," the ursid stated, unsure.
He saw the boy shiver. "Now t'at there is a sign he'll wake soon. The lad's shiverin' to the chill on the ship," the cyborg cried out cheerily, as he took off his coat and laid it over the boy. Maria knew that the Etherium was warm where they were at the time, so her eyes widened. "Chill? It's a warm night, Silver. What chill," Maria asked madly. Silver looked at his daughter, figuring out that they weren't alone.
"Bronk," they said in unison, horrified that he had returned. "Bronk, yeh stay away from 'ere! Yeh leave all o' dis crew alone," Silver yelled out, standing up from his seat. A person appeared behind Maria. "Fufufufu... You always knew when I was around, eh Silver," the shaggy black haired man asked with menace. Silver's robotic eye glowed a fierce red at him. "Yeh tried killing me daughter yeh blasted fiend! Yeh messed wit' 'er head, fooling her into marryin' yeh. Then wha' do yeh do? Yeh try ta kill 'er off because of yer insanity," he roared angrily. Bronk gave a sour look. "I'm not insane, you old fart of a pirate," he yelled out. "I never was. Now I have a chance to kill the very person who ruined my life." He was speaking of when Silver had left him, unconscious, on a moon like planet after learning of the man's treacherous ways.
"So, it was you who had saved me from a near death, father," Maria asked. "You happened to have been around when he was close to killing me? But how-?" Silver remained glowering at him and he put himself, as any parent would over their kids, in front of the captain to protect her from harm. "He was at the same tavern as I was that night..." And Silver began his story.
It was a rainy night, as you know. I was sitting at a table drinking rum with fellow spacers and telling stories of my adventures. Me being the active and secretive listener that I am, I heard as I was telling the story about when I had made a run for it from several former shipmates, someone mention your name, Maria.
"Maria... gonna die tonight that lousy wench. She don't care for me," said he. I paid no attention for "Maria" was a common name. I continued my story when I heard him say the full name aloud. "Maria Lera Silver will die tonight for sure. She hates me for my power. She would rather have me dead but I'll kill her first." My story was cut short as I stood to confront him. The shaggy haired fiend known as Bronk didn't seem to care I was there. I had heard him mention his name a few times.
"Wha' was t'at yeh said, lad," I asked, staring into his black cold eyes- which were actually a dark blue, but that's beside the point. "And who might you be, hmm? A pirate trying to earn his bread," he replied coyly. I tipped my hat in sarcasm; almost no respect for him. "The name's John Silver. Mentionin' 'bout killin' me daughter isn't quite restin' well wit', me yeh know," I informed him. He glowered at me, trying to burn holes into my head with his glare, but I returned a more dangerous one back.
"Go back to telling your feeble story, old beggared. I've got no beef with you," He stated, sipping on some rum. "If yeh touch my daughter, yeh half brained twit of a man; you dare ta harm 'er, I'll give yeh a reason ta deal wit'' me," I growled out, hoping my threat was enough to keep him from doing any harm. He rolled his emotionless eyes at me. "Pfft! Yeah, like I'm scared of you, old man." He glanced at the machinery that replaced my arm, leg, eye, and ear and continued. "Like some guy with a harmless robotic limb gonna hurt me," he stated as he slammed his mug down on the table and placed the money he owed there.
"I'm out… got some loose ends to tie." With that he left the bar, but I followed suit leaving my pay on the table I was sitting at. I used my longboat- tattered thing, you see- to follow him, but not to close or he'd be suspicious of me. He docked and then disappeared from my vision, although his disappearing act didn't work at all, due to my robotic eye. I followed, hiding in the shadows of the house he entered.
As he approached the bedroom of the house, I heard him mumble, "Time to die, Maria Silver, time to die." I realized as he loomed over the bed, that he was serious about this. Quickly switching to a gun, I shot a blank at him, making him think he was shot after I had knocked him out with the weight of my hand. As I hauled him out of your house, Maria, I heard you stumble out of bed, making me fearful that you'd mistake me for a thief, not that I ever wasn't. I fled quickly away.
Silver sighed, catching his breath because of how long his story was. Bonk took this as a chance to attack him, right when he least expected it. Problem is, with a man like Silver, he recovered quickly, giving the man enough of a chance to block it with his metallic arm. He glowered fiercely at Bronk. Bronk's eyes were no longer as black. In fact they were rolled into the back of his head, which wasn't a good sign for the three of them if you counted Jim.
Silver went flying back into the wall with a sickening thud, as did Maria. The two stood up only to be struck again by another blow from the invisible force. They both sank to the ground clutching their sides in agony and gasping for air. Before they could recover, another unseen force of energy hit them, putting them both in almost enough pain to faint. Silver growled low while Maria yelped a bit in pain. The cyborg, being an ursid one at that, tried to focus on protecting his daughter, but the pain and blows kept hitting them both for either of the two to help each other.
As Bronk was about to finish the father and daughter off he heard another voice reach in his thoughts. "Stop," the telepathic voice said with grand seriousness. "Leave those two alone or I'll come after you!" Bronk smirked and replied with his telepathy. "And who are you? Another psychic human with a third eye like me, hmm," he asked coyly. Then the same voice came, this time out of telepathy. "I am Aria Marianne Renita! Leave my family alone or I'll draw the trigger on you." There was a gun to the man's side as she said this. Bronk looked over to the girl and realized that she was his daughter. "Aria. Funny seeing you all grown up! You wouldn't be able to kill me, by the way. Your young psychic mind is too weak and-"
Aria scoffed. "Is not! Been practicing through being a cabin girl under my grandfather's watch! Learning how to focus makes my powers stronger and it keeps me from… oh I don't know, going insane like my father before me. Something you never got to experience," she snapped. Again, Bronk smirked. "But that old fart don't know nothing about psychics! How would he train you if he didn't know nothing," he asked, pointing out the obvious. Aria rolled her eyes. "Please, he knows enough to teach me how to focus on a task which is very similar, if you think about it, to focus powers on an opponent."
The gun was tossed out of her hand by his psychic powers. Aria smirked and picked it up using her own. Even if the pain was causing his vision to blur, Silver watched in amazement at her handy trick. Looks like all that work I gave 'er paid off. She learned how ta use her powers well. An' ta t'ink I can't understand deh half of how they work! He thought, biting his tongue as he looked to Maria who was doubled over in pain. Poor lass…
Bronk glowered at her. "You're dead, Aria Marianne Silver," he stated, the last word in foul emphasis. Aria's nose scrunched at the sound of her mother's maiden name, when she was hit with an unseen force. She stopped herself from being thrown with her own powers. She hovered in the air and disappeared. Bronk was puzzled for a moment and glanced around to see where his daughter had gone. A searing pain ran through his back as a laser beam shot through it. "Gaah," He yelled out as he dropped on the floor, paralyzed.
"Okay, that, I kind of borrowed from Renald. He taught a bit about the nervous system, since his daughter is the ship's doctor. Rea never has the time. And I borrowed a few notes from old Silver. He taught me that a fight is easier won if your opponent doesn't know where you are," a smirking Aria said, hovering in the air behind him.
"Now to finish with you, Dad," she said darkly. She picked up his mostly limp body. He tried to use his powers but it was no use, his daughter was too strong to break free from due to her so called practice. She dropped him over the edge of the boat. "Goodbye forever, Father," she said as she watched his body fall, his yelling echoing out in space.