Callie woke up, feeling like she had been dreaming. But a quick look at her finger proved her wrong. The ring was beautiful, lots of ornaments, with plenty of diamonds. She looked over at her future husband who had a smile on his face. He wore a complementary ring. He told her, it was from the Pirates' treasure. He had a courier pick it up for him on Shiloh after he decided to take the plunge and ask. He looked so peaceful with her head on his chest and an arm around her. Callie still wondered what Sonny's issues were about but he promised her to talk with Corso first. Callie gently kissed him good morning.

"Sonny, time to wake up!" She teased. Sonny stubbornly kept his eyes closed.

"How about you make me?" He playfully pointed out. He was not ready to get out of bed yet.

"How about I seduce you with some coffee?" She asked. Sonny pretended to slowly wake up.

"You have to do more than that. How will you get me out of bed?" He asked curiously, raising the hand with his new ring to rub his chin. Callie smirked before she got out of the bed to get her bathrobe.

"Who turned down the thermostat? It's cold." She said while putting on her slippers. Sonny chuckled and remained under the covers.

"I think I'll stay where it is warm." He concluded and pulled the covers around him. Callie smirked as she opened the blinds. Sonny raised an eyebrow.

"I wonder how long vultures like Hush Sharky show up." He chuckled.

"Will that make you get up?" Callie teased. Then, he saw what Callie was doing.

"You're going to cause the scandal of the day." He warned her. Callie blew him a kiss.

"You asked me to get you out of bed, so here goes." She said. Sonny tried to stop her but Callie was faster. His bathrobe was snatched out of reach. Sonny grinned as he pulled the covers around himself and set a foot on the floor.

"Don't think you can stop me that easily." He said. Callie giggled as she ran towards the bathroom with the stolen bathrobe in her hand. Sonny was about to give chase when his transmitter beeped.

"D'Jok! Good morning" He grinned. D'Jok grinned back.

"That's a first. You're usually up before me. Did Callie wear you out?" He teased. Sonny grinned.

"Not at all, we just stayed up late to celebrate." He said. D'Jok looked confused.

"Celebrating what?" He asked. Sonny laughed. Callie came back in and gave Sonny back his robe. Callie casually placed her hand on Sonny's chest so D'Jok could see the ring. A smile spread on the Striker's face.

"Congratulations, this is wonderful news." D'Jok did not attempt to hide his tears. Mei joined him, also with tears in her eyes.

"Who knows, next time, there may be a baby on the way." She winked. Sonny laughed.

"We're not in any hurry." He reminded them. Callie smiled.

"Why are you calling?" She asked.

"I can guess. You need a babysitter again?" Sonny said with a smile. D'Jok nodded.

"I'm booked the entire weekend and Mei has contracts to fulfill," D'Jok explained. Sonny grinned.

"Mei, I was going to call you about that. Shiloh Security is going to make an add and I want you to be in it." He said.

"Say no more, I'll write it down as a priority." Mei smiled.

"Of course Iris is welcome to stay here for the weekend," Sonny said.

"Just don't make her a Pirate when we're not looking." D'Jok grinned. Sonny turned to his son.

"You wanted to go public with us being father and son, right? Or did you change your mind?" He asked.

"No, I still want to do it. Before The All Stars match." D'Jok said. Sonny looked at Callie.

"How is your schedule today?" He asked. Callie looked at her pad.

"How long do you need for that announcement?" She asked.

"Fifteen minutes should do," Sonny said. Callie smiled.

"Can both of you be at the studio before the news at eight?" She asked.

"Sure thing. I'll be there with Iris." D'Jok said. Sonny smiled.

"Okay, we'll meet at seven-thirty on Arcadia News. Don't be later." He said. As soon as they ended the call, Sonny looked up.

"You may want to shut the blinds, we got company." He said and quickly raised his arm to avoid Hush Sharky getting any pictures.

"You're trespassing, Sharky." Sonny hissed as he quickly ran to the bathroom and put on his Pirate clothes. As he went out, Sonny managed to cut Hush Sharky off.

"This is getting old. Next time, I will let Corso deal with you, got it?" He said as he held the Cyclops up by the lapel of his jacket.

"I'm a journalist, I got rights." He tried. Sonny took out his memory eraser.

"You won't publish anything I haven't given my consent to publish." He said. He flashed the eraser and placed Sharky where he could sleep it off before he erased the pictures. With that, Sonny returned to have breakfast with Callie.

At Shiloh Security, Corso received a message from Sonny.

"Bring Keiran to the interrogation room. We'll press him hard." Sonny said. Corso looked at him.

"You would keep out of this." Corso reminded him. Sonny nodded.

"I won't, not directly. But I will be behind the one-way mirror. If I have questions, I will send it through your screen. I'll also need to be at Arcadia news at seven-thirty." Sonny informed him. Corso grinned.

"Finally going to tell the Galaxy about you and D'jok?" He asked. Sonny grinned and rubbed his chin, showing his ring. Corso's natural eye widened when he noticed.

"I have questions." He said.

"Really?" Sonny asked.

"I'll ask you when you get here," Corso answered. Sonny nodded with a smile.

"I'll be there in ten minutes."

Callie arrived early at work. She wanted to do some more research on the dagger. As his fiance, she felt she had the right to do some digging. Her co-workers quickly noticed the ring.

"Wow, the Pirates are loaded." Zöe, her co-worker, said. Callie had to laugh. Aaron also passed by and noticed. A big smile formed on his face.

"Congratulations to you both. Just an engagement for now?" He asked with a smile. Callie smiled as she recalled last night.

"Sonny asked me to marry him and I said yes." She said. Aaron grinned.

"I'm very happy to hear that. Many Pirates will want to celebrate this. You also have to interview him about it." Aaron said. "By marrying him, you save him from the same fate as the last five Pirate Chiefs. Many of them were killed. Now, that will be avoided. Corso will feel very relieved to hear of this" Callie smiled.

"He'll be safe with me." She said. Aaron nodded.

"How has he been since he was freed from captivity?" He asked, slightly concerned. Callie smiled.

"He's fine. Nothing major." She said reassuringly. Aaron nodded.

"I'm asking on behalf of the Pirates Elder Council. They were worried. We could have lost him." He said. Callie smiled.

"You can see for yourself tonight. He and D'Jok are going to reveal they're father and son." She said. Aaron nodded.

"You might want to reveal your engagement, too. Will save everyone some time." Aaron Said. Callie smiled.

"I'll gladly do it."

Corso had his questions ready for the interrogation. He saw Sonny pull up in his car. He probably had some big news. Corso looked at his hand as Sonny entered. A smile spread across his face as Sonny did not attempt to hide the ring on his finger. Corso approached him.

"Should I congratulate you on the engagement?" He asked as he grabbed Sonny's hand, looking at the ring. Sonny smiled.

"You're right. I had a chance last night and I took it." He said. Corso laughed.

"Now we just have to wait for the marriage." He said. Sonny shook his head.

"One step at a time. Other things need to happen first." Sonny said. Corso nodded.

"Inform the others before we get to work," Corso said. Sonny smiled.

"That reminds me, keep track of that Hush Sharky. Unless I give permission, he's not showing any pictures of us on his show." Sonny said, slightly cross. Corso hid a smile.

"Sounds like he missed a juicy story." He laughed. Sonny placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm happy to hear that you're such a fan of his. You'll be on guard duty at my house along with Bennett" He stated. Corso looked at him.

"I'm on patrol duty? Really? Why don't you put Artie on that?" he asked. Sonny grinned as he moved into the briefing room.

"It will be good for you. Maybe you'll learn something new." Sonny said. Corso rolled his eyes.

"You are the boss." He said. They headed into the briefing room where big cheers broke out when the news of Sonny's engagement to Callie was told. Sonny let his men carry on. He looked at the questions Corso had compiled for the interrogation. Sonny added a few questions and commanded Corso to get answers by any means necessary. He noticed a report from the Shiloh Nebula. The evacuation was completed. It was a shame that they had to allow this attack but it was the only way to find out where Maurice Miller hid his robot army. Sonny sent the message, telling all Pirates to make a safe zone around the Shiloh Nebula, and be prepared for battle. As soon as that was done, he nodded to Corso.

"Record everything, we need the audio file as evidence. I'll be behind the one-way mirror, sending you coded messages if you need to dig deeper." He said. Corso nodded with a grin.

"Right, let's crack this open."

It was time. D'Jok arrived with Iris and as he entered the building, he saw Sonny and Callie, surrounded by her co-workers. They were speaking about the engagement. Sonny was relaxed, and kissed Callie gently on the lips, as he made way to greet his son.

"Ready?" He smiled. D'Jok grinned.

"I was born ready." He said. Sonny raised an eyebrow.

"Time will tell. I have a feeling there will be plenty of media attention for you." He said. D'Jok smirked.

"Callie and you are probably getting the brunt of it." He said. Callie joined them.

"I hope you're both ready for this. My boss asked us to announce the engagement too. All in thirty minutes." She said. Sonny smiled.

"Let's go then."

The interview caught the Galaxy by surprise.

D'Jok, the Snow Kids' famous striker, was Sonny Blackbones' son.

"What's it like to be the son of Sonny Blackbones?" Callie asked. D'Jok gave Iris her sucker as he smiled at Callie.

"I'm very proud of my dad and what he has done. I'm taking his last name with pride." He smiled. Sonny smiled as he looked at the baby.

"She's getting ready for her nap D'Jok. Better get her back in her stroller." He suggested. D'Jok nodded and hugged his father on camera before they moved out of the frame. Callie took a seat next to Sonny. Noork sat down as well.

"A lot is happening in your life, Callie. This morning, you made the headlines. Here at Arcadia news, we are proud to announce the engagement between Sonny Blackbones and Callie Mystic. Tell me, how does this feel?" Noork asked. Sonny took Callie's hand with a soft smile.

"It's a lot of fussing over something very common. For us, it just happened sooner rather than later. But I don't regret making the choice." Sonny said with a smile.

"This will probably break a lot of hearts, Sonny," Noork said. Sonny shrugged.

"Sorry, I guess." He smiled.

"Callie, this is the first time you and Sonny appear together as a couple on here but you've been dating for some time. Some may recall when Callie was reporting from Shiloh. Did you have your hotel room at Shiloh or were other arrangements made?" Noork asked. Callie laughed.

"I was staying with Sonny, in his very stylish quarters." She said.

"Stylish, you say?" Noork asked, fishing for details. Callie laughed again.

"It looked hardly used." She said. Sonny smiled at the memories.

"My quarters are in a hidden part of Shiloh. That's where our romance started to take form. The first steps happened during the interviews we did." Sonny explained. Noork was intrigued.

"The Pirates hold on to their secrets." He said. Sonny nodded.

"For the time being." He said. After a few questions from the viewers, the interview was over and the cameras turned off. "Those lamps are hot to sit under," Sonny commented as he got up. Aaron entered the room.

"Sonny, can I have a word in private?" He asked. Sonny nodded and kissed Callie quickly before he went with Aaron. Zoe approached Callie.

"Lucky you, getting hitch with a hottie like that." She mused. Callie laughed.

"I'm sure you'll find your own eventually." She said.

Corso looked at the files from Ascaron and what had happened in the last days before it exploded. He wasn't honest with Sonny, he left the placing of the 33rd Platoon out when he explained how they were slaughtered. He had never been able to find proof but he had a sinking feeling his platoon had misplaced explosives and he recalled a soldier also misplaced a detonator. A memory snuck upon him.

He was looking at a young soldier. Hell, they were all nothing but kids. They thought going into was a glorious thing. The war took the innocence of many of them. There was no glory, whoever had that idea soon lost their innocence in the fields. He had seen too much death to even care. He already lost all he could lose; his daughter, his wife. He would keep his people safe. That was all that was left.

"Sergeant, I can't find the detonator or the explosives." The Corporal told him. Corso looked at him.

"Take a search party of four Corporal to find them ASAP. This is Chissian military-grade explosives. If we don't find it, we'll be court marshaled." Corso said, trying to block out the constant bombardment that seemed to come closer every minute.

"But we don't know where to look." The Corporal stammered.

"Take one of the detectors and get to it, that's an order!"

Corso sighed. He knew what happened. He sent them. He should have done it himself. At least then he would have been out of the mess. But he was the sole survivor. He didn't know what went wrong but he had his strong suspicion. If he could only find the exact spot those explosives were located at he might be able to calculate if he could have avoided the disaster. It had cost too many lives.

Corso sighed heavily. He felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Corso?" Sonny's voice was soft. Corso placed his hand on Sonny's.

"I'm fine. Just some bad memories." He admitted. Sonny nodded.

"The same that gave you nightmares?" He asked, sounding worried.

"That's not it. These are of a more classified variety." Corso said. Sonny placed his hand on his neck.

"Let's go to the captain's cabin. We'll talk about this before something bad happens." He said. Corso looked at him.

"You think that it will?" He asked. Sonny nodded with a serious face.

"This time, I don't think it's me the past is out to get."

The All Stars match was on. D'Jok was lining up against his father. Sonny grinned as he looked at his son.

"Forget that we're father and son. Just play a good match. I promise I will." Sonny said. D'Jok nodded.

The ball was in play. D'Jok went for a high jump to seize it but was reminded of what Clamp said. Sonny was a force to be reckoned with on the pitch. He reached the ball first and used his head to pass to Warren.

"Micro Ice, stop Warren," D'Jok yelled. Micro Ice ran to intercept Warren. Somehow, the tiny Snow Kid managed to tackle Warren and steal the ball. He passed to Tia, who was cut off by Lun Zaera, who passed to Stevens. As Rocket tried to steal the ball, Stevens used the Seed of Shiloh to tackle him and turned the pass high. D'Jok could see what kind of trap this was.

"No!" He yelled and tried to chase the ball. Sonny passed him and made the jump. D'Jok knew he couldn't steal the ball.

"Ahito, no sleeping, or it's a goal against us." He yelled. Ahito did his best to predict the trajectory but Luur was also involved in the play. Thrann tried to tackle the Xenon in vain. Sonny reached the ball from up high. He made a precise pass to Luur, who sent the ball straight into the net.

"That was one for the All Stars," Callie said from the press box. D'Jok looked at his father as they waited for the ball to be back in play. Sonny sent him a look.

"It's not life or death. Just play a good match. Losing doesn't mean you played a bad match. It can even teach you a thing or two about how a real champion reacts." He said as he passed by his son. D'Jok knew, but it became close to impossible during the first half. By the time halftime break was there, The All Stars had a three to zero lead.

At Technoid's box, Corso sat beside Duke Maddox, keeping a close eye on Sonny. So far, he wasn't overusing his flux and he focused on team play, making sure all the players got to shine. Seeing him go high for the ball gave Corso a clear idea of what role Sonny would play in the upcoming Cup. Duke Maddox leaned over.

"It looks like Sonny is doing quite good. He's good with the head and is also a good passer." He commented. Corso nodded reluctantly.

"He's able to play almost all positions. He's a good footballer." He said. Duke Maddox rubbed his chin.

"The only danger with this is that Miller and other enemies will also see this. They might come after him again. The Flux society made a good decision in recognizing him as a Flux master. But it also puts Sonny in danger. I will ask the security around Sonny to be raised in the following months." Duke Maddox mused. Corso didn't like it, but he had to agree.

"We Know. We caught the guy that had him last time. Shiloh's being threatened if we don't hand Sonny over to Miller. Not that we're going to." Corso explained. Duke Maddox nodded.

"You did the right thing. Sonny is too valuable to a lot of people. He may be the only one that can stop Miller." He said. Corso agreed. Sonny ordered him to play nice with Maddox.

"What he did to Sonny was treason. We're making sure it won't happen again. We were too close to losing Sonny." Corso said softly. Duke Maddox nodded before he studied Sonny's right-hand man closely.

"You share a close bond with him. Closer than most friendships. I remember Sonny having that effect on people. Bleylock was one of them. Until Bleylock met Sonny, he never experienced what it meant to be trusted or even loved. Sonny brought that side out in him. Bleylock loved him, but he was formed by his upbringing. I'll never forgive Bleylock for what he did." Duke Maddox said. Corso looked at the other man. He knew he had to ask.

"Can I ask you something?" He managed. Duke Maddox leaned closer.

"What is it?" He asked. Corso sighed. He couldn't turn back now.

"Let's not beat around the bush: I know you have Sonny's medical files. We need them to help with his health." Corso said. Duke Maddox taught it over.

"Come over to my office in the morning. I'll have the files available. I also need to talk to Sonny and Clamp in private." He said. Corso nodded.

"Thanks," he said. Duke Maddox had one more question.

"Did Sonny tell the truth when he was captured?" He asked. Corso nodded.

"He didn't hurt him. Still almost died because that dimwit doesn't know his drugs." Corso said. Duke Maddox nodded.

"Will he come in for a psychological evaluation?" He asked. Corso shook his head.

"We're taking care of it." He said. Duke Maddox nodded.

"Has he told you of his past with Bleylock?" He asked. Corso nodded.

"If he wasn't dead I'd kill him myself." He said. Duke Maddox nodded, looking serious this time.

"What Bleylock did was terrible." He said. Corso nodded.

"Sonny wasn't his only victim," Corso said with clenched fists. "It pisses me off thinking about it." Duke Maddox nodded.

"Still, Sonny never wanted to kill him. I even heard he once saved his life back when they were together. Made the man's father real proud. Gave him a dagger. A HUGE sign of respect for the Abraxor people." Duke Maddox said. Corso nodded.

"Sonny never denied the fact that he was in a relationship with Bleylock." He said. Duke Maddox nodded thoughtfully. Sonny and Corso had some things to discuss.

A signal told that the second half of the match would start. Duke Maddox turned his focus back onto the pitch but Corso was distracted. Bleylock's father gave Sonny a dagger? His mind went to the dagger he found lodged in the bench outside Mei and D'Jok's home the day Sonny had been abducted. He recalled how Sonny had stared at it. The dagger had the Pirates emblem engraved on the right side but there had been something on the left-hand side too. Corso knew he had to dig deeper into Bleylock. The Teams came back on the field. Corso decided to drop matters for now and try to enjoy the match.

It ended in a three to one victory for the All Stars. Even the Snow Kids had to admit, the All-Stars team, reinforced by a Flux Master like Sonny Blackbones, was unbeatable. Sonny didn't go for any direct shot on goal himself. He would tackle, slide, and assist his teammates. D'Jok went to congratulate his father and the others.

"Good Match. I was worried you would be too distracted." Sonny said with a smile. D'Jok grinned.

"I'm trying to be more professional." He smiled at his father. Warren smiled down at the Striker.

"You two are father and son. It's that same energy and determination. You did good D'Jok, becoming a coach is good for you." He said. D'Jok made a face.

"Having a family humbles me. Especially Iris." He said. Sonny smirked.

"This is when things start to get interesting. Let me know if you need any help." He said. D'Jok grinned.

"Expect frequent phone calls, she's teething," He said. Warren couldn't hold back a laugh.

"I'll babysit when she's done teething." He laughed. Sonny hid a smile.

"I got something that will help. I'll drop by later." With that, the players left the pitch.

Corso looked at the files Duke Maddox had spread out across his desk. When he thought Bleylock could not fall any lower, he did. Corso could see fractures on Sonny's spinal cord.

"Are these from the first attack?" He asked, voice shaking. "He was lucky. Those blows could have crippled him." Duke Maddox nodded.

"Whatever happened, it startled Sonny. Still, he kept close to Bleylock even then." Duke Maddox stated. Corso knew but he also promised not to tell. He shook his head slightly. He looked at the images from the last attack, the one that made Sonny break down in his arms. He would have sat there for as long as it took, to have Sonny let it all out.

"I hate this man." He whispered.

Sonny had a plan for the interrogation of Keiran O'Keefe. Corso wouldn't like it, but given he was still the boss. Sonny would go in with him. The dagger in Keiran's possession made Sonny realize Keiran knew a lot more about Bleylock than he let on. And he was going to make him talk so this book could be closed. Corso looked a bit rattled when he came in.

"Is something wrong?" Sonny asked carefully. Corso looked at him.

"Duke Maddox gave me these." He said as he tossed Sonny's old medical files on the table. Sonny nodded.

"It's a long time ago. Those injuries have healed." He tried. Corso studied his friend.

"I think I know why you couldn't talk about it." He said. Sonny nodded and pulled Corso into an embrace.

"He can't hurt me anymore and none of us can change the past." He said softly. Corso wrapped his arms around him.

"There was a video file attached," Corso said. Sonny knew what Corso had seen, why he was so shaken.

"It's history. I'm fine. No problems from back then." He assured him. Corso nodded.

"I still want a full X-ray done to make sure the injuries are healed," Corso said as he looked at him. Sonny nodded.

"I'll let you make a new X-ray to ease your nerves. In return, I want to ask you about Ascaron. What do you know about what happened?" Sonny asked, looking at his best friend. Corso nodded.

"In return, you elaborate on the topic you avoided last time." He said. Sonny nodded.

"I hope you're ready for it." He said. Corso nodded. They went to the prison cells when there was a commotion at the gate. Corso felt cold chills run down his spine when he saw who entered on the monitors. The uniforms were too familiar. Sonny looked at him.

"Corso, slip out the back, now. I'll deal with them. Head to my house and stay in the hidden panic room. I'll come as soon as I can." Sonny said. He turned his back on Corso and went to the main operations room as Corso found his way out.

Soon, the place was filled with people in military uniforms. Sonny looked at their Commanding Officer.

"This is private property. Why are you here?" He tried. Someone in a green uniform stepped forward.

"My name is Lieutenant Marshall. Are you Sonny Blackbones, the head of the Shiloh Pirates?" He asked. Sonny looked at him.

"That's me? What are you doing here?" He asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"We're seeking a deserter from the Chissian Army. He's charged with manslaughter and suspicion of causing the disaster on Ascaron." Lieutenant Marshall said.

"What makes you think they're part of our organization? No one survived the explosion on Ascaron." Sonny pointed out. Sonny knew what was going on but was fishing for information. Sonny addressed one of his people in Ancient Shiloh. It was a coded message. "Bring up any information we have on the Chissian Military and Lieutenant Marshall. Corso is staying in hiding until things are clear."

Corso tried to sneak out. He took out a gadget that allowed him to shield himself. He carefully made his way outside, and into the parking.

Sonny looked at the Lieutenant.

"What is the name of the deserter? I'll check upon him." He offered. The lieutenant looked at him coldly.

"Don't play dumb with me Blackbones. You know very well whom I speak off. Where is Sergeant Corso Takashi hiding?" He snarled.

A/N: The past has caught up with our friend Corso. Sonny may be able to get him to safety for now but hiding a deserter comes at a price. How will they solve this? Have they already made a plan? Corso has a few harrowing days in store for him. The next chapters will be Corso centered.

Once again, thanks a million to my Beta reader Paranoidgirl. I will try to avoid you biting too many nails. But I planned this chapter or possibly chapters for a while. When these tie up, it will become evident that the feud is different from what it appears to be. Please leave a review.