Buffer and his XO of the HMAS Swinton sped in the RHIB over the water towards the yacht from where the epurb came from. They hadn't been far away from where the distress signal originated and they were the only available asset in the vicinity. They were tasked to check it out and help if necessary before continuing their journey to bring new medicine to a frigate which was out on the Tasman Sea.

"X-Ray ninety-eight, this is Charlie ninety-eight. We've gotten in touch with the owner of the yacht. They were under attack by pirates. The pirates have left but one female has a bullet wound. She's the only injured person. She lost a lot of blood so they hope we can help her," the captain, Lieutenant Commander Storms, told his XO.

"Copy that," the XO replied. "We'll be there in three minutes," he added.

Buffer glanced over the water and saw a nice looking yacht coming closer.

"I think they're it, sir," he pointed at the yacht.

The XO, Lieutenant Lauten, picked up a set of binoculars and looked at the direction Buffer had shown him.

"I think you're right Buff. Prepare to board. You check the helm and I'll take the lower deck," Lauten instructed.

When they arrived at the yacht they saw the threat had passed already. A young boy was steering towards them and cut the engine to come down to a grown up male who was attending a wounded woman. A young girl was pressing against a wound on the woman's arm. Momentarily she let go of it when she saw the sailors arrive but the man corrected her.

"Leah, keep the pressure on," he said.

Buffer saw the girl and recognised her although he didn't know where from until he saw the boy again. "Jim," he whispered. No, it wasn't 'Jim', but someone that looked like him, he thought.

And then he saw her on the floor. Kate. She was as pale as a sheet and the girl was pressing a blood stained cloth against her arm.

"Are you the only ones on this boat?" Buffer asked out of formality as soon as he had jumped on board. He already knew the answer and wasn't surprised to hear the man answer positively.

He still had to check the helm and one of his colleagues was checking the lower deck but when he saw that it was safe he came back to Kate and her family.

"What happened?" Lieutenant Lauten asked while Buffer came closer.

"I heard Kate scream and not much later there were gunshots. Before I knew it a man had boarded the boat and…" the man explained.

Buffer kneeled down next to Kate and smiled at Leah. "I'll take over from you, if that's OK," he suggested.

She nodded and showed him what to do while Kate's husband told Lieutenant Lauten his version of what happened. Buffer didn't hear all of it because he was much too focused on Kate and her daughter.

"Your name is Leah, isn't it?" he asked her. "I'm Buffer."

Leah had blood all over her hands but she didn't want to wipe it off just like that. Now the navy had arrived they were safe and the pirates wouldn't come back for sure. Still, her mother was hurt badly and needed to go to hospital.

"Buffer, what kind of a ship do you work on?" she asked.

Buffer chuckled. She would probably have a good reason behind her question but it didn't surprise him at all that she was interested in boats.

"I work on a patrol boat. It will be here shortly," he answered her question.

"So you have medicine on your boat? My mum needs it," Leah continued.

"What does she know about navy boats?" Lauten asked defensively.

Buffer looked at him and started laughing. "This woman here is Captain Kate McGregor. These kids probably know everything about the navy," he answered.

Lauten relaxed and looked at the little girl and the boy. "Who of you was so smart to use the epurb?" he asked.

The boy nodded and pointed at himself. "I did, sir. The pirates didn't know I was on the boat because I was hiding," he explained.

"Very smart of you. How old are you?" he asked him.

"Thirteen," the boy answered. "And my sister is six."

The father of the children sighed. "Can we get my wife onto your ship? She needs medical treatment. She already lost a lot of blood and the bullet is still in her arm, probably pressing against important arteries or nerves," he said.

"Sir, he's a doctor," Buffer added so his boss knew he was serious and knew what he was talking about.

"Can we move her in the RHIB?" Lauten asked the father.

"That's no problem, but can we hurry?" the answer came.