A/N: Wow – three chapters in one day! And they said it couldn't be done… Mwaha! *Ahem* Thanks again for all the wonderful reviews, guys. Y'all rock! There will be plenty of Silver in this story, I promise… (honestly, what kind of fangirl would I be if I neglected the poor cyborg?) I just thought I'd drive you crazy by giving you more Fletcher first. ;)

   *****

V.  On the Etherium

   *****

The initial euphoria of launch had somewhat evaporated, and Aubrey and Jim were sitting in the captain's stateroom discussing their course.

"What if we stopped at Avalon IV?"

"Probably not a good idea, lad.  Last time Ah was there, they were still rebuilding from the hurricanes…"

Jim sighed and ran a hand through his hair.  They needed to stop and get information before continuing.  Their last informant had been a bit confused herself, and they had ended up in a system devoid of any life at all.  The crew was still just as chipper as ever, even if they were a bit restless.

From Aubrey's explanation, they were a crew that worked well under pressure and loved a good dogfight.  At the moment, it felt like the R.L.S. Redemption was a mere pleasure cruiser.  So when the crew wasn't eating, sleeping or working, they were sparring.  Jim had participated a few times, and had managed to overpower some of the riggers, but every single roper on the ship had managed to get the better of him.  Even without the substantial weight difference, Aubrey's crew was conditioned to fight, and had probably done so for the better part of their lives.  And though the Academy had taught him wonders in the hand-to-hand combat department, these guys knew how real pirates would fight, and were more than happy to show Jim a few of the dirtier moves.

At this moment, Jim was sitting across from Aubrey, nursing a swollen knee from his last encounter with one of the riggers.  Fletcher smiled as he rolled up his pant leg to allow the ice pack better access to the bruised area.

"Now ye know why Ah hired two medics."

Jim grimaced.

Aubrey looked down at the holomap her navigator had given her to check over.

"Wait a minute…"

Jim looked up.  "You find a good system, Fletcher?"

"Ah did indeed. Though not really a system –"

Her first mate stood up slowly and hobbled over to look at the map.

"That's an asteroid belt…"

"Aye.  But there's a GP station in thi' belt if Ah'm not mistaken."

Jim looked puzzled.

"GP. Galactic Patr-"

" Yeah, I know GP, but what I'm wondering is if it'll be safe for us to stop there.  I mean, I know you're friends with the Admiral and everything, but – "

Fletcher stood and pressed a button at the bottom of the map, effectively shutting it off and returning the room to the soft light from the etherium, rather than the harsh blue of the holomap. She tossed the map onto one of her shelves and turned to give Jim one of her trademark cocky grins.

"Ah'm friends wi' everyone, Mr. Hawkins."

Jim returned the grin and followed her out of her stateroom, up to the bridge.

"Mr. Digland!"

"Aye, Cap'n!"

"Change our coordinates to 357, and get us t' Asteroid 89 ASAP."

"Yes ma'am, Cap'n!"

   *****

Less than 38 hours later, they docked at Asteroid 89, and the captain and her first mate made their way down to the station's entryway.

As Aubrey reached out for the door handle, it opened, and standing inside were three GPs armed to the teeth.  Jim automatically moved for his flintlock, but Fletcher placed a hand on his shoulder, stilling his arm.

"State your business!" The voice was slightly mechanical, and Jim nearly groaned aloud at the prospect of having to deal with a droid.

"Max, ye old windbag, put yer peashooter down an' give me a proper welcome."

"Aubrey?"

She laughed. Jim cocked an eyebrow. Only Fletcher had the ability to laugh in the face of three heavily armed GPs.  Well, he imagined Silver could possess that talent, too…

Whoa. Where'd that come from?

The GP in the center, the only one that had spoken, and who Jim assumed was Max, removed his helmet and revealed a dark-skinned human man in his early to mid-thirties.

The other two lowered their weapons as Max strode forward and embraced Aubrey, laughing as he did so.

"You dirty spacer – where you been? It's been forever!"

Aubrey clapped him on the back before pulling away.

"Ah know, Ah know… Ah've been teachin' at th' Academy."

"No shit!"

"Aye! In fact, let me introduce ye t' m' new first mate – and one o' m' best students – Jim Hawkins."

"No shit! The Jim Hawkins, huh?"

Jim was completely taken aback. "Um… You've heard of me?"

"Heard of you?! Are you kiddin'? The kid who made the trip to and back from Treasure Planet, and survived a mutiny led by John Silver? Boy, you're a hero!"

Jim grinned and shook the pre-offered hand. 

"Well, thanks…"

"Listen, Max.  M' crew is a bit restless and –"

"Who you got this time? Spence there?"

"Of course."

"Tell him I say hey!"

"Of course. But listen. Ye haven't heard anythin' about the Revenge lately, have ye?"  At a look from Jim, Aubrey prodded on, "Or anythin' about Silver?" When Max gave her a quizzical look, she added, "We think he may be th' cap'n of th' Revenge."

Jim silently thanked Aubrey for her wits.

Max pursed his lips, thinking for a moment before he shook his head.  "Nah. Sorry Aubs, but I really don't think Silver would go for that sort of high-profile sailing this soon…" He gestured to the walls, where a small holograph of the cyborg stood, glaring at the company.  "We've got his face up everywhere.  We were actually hopin' that the next time you came around you might have some info for us…"

Aubrey shook her head. "Sorry lads. But even if Ah did, Ah'm staking m' claim on that one. He's worth quite a bit t' a lot of people 'round th' 'therium. Ah just happen t' know where he'll fetch th' highest price."

Jim clenched his fists and tightened his jaw.  Even if Fletcher was only putting up a front for the sake of the GPs, she was very convincing.  It hurt Jim to think that they could talk about Silver like that.  He looked again at the glaring holograph of the friend and father-figure he had known so well.  He focused again on the conversation when the subject shifted to the Revenge. 

"Now, you know, Fletcher… We just might have a teeeeensy bit of info on the vessel you're lookin' for…"

Aubrey smirked and set her paw-like hands on her hips.

"Do ye? Well, Ah might just have somethin' in return for ye and yer boys if ye do…"

"The usual?"

"Depends on the information…" She turned to look at her first mate.  "Jim, if ye could be so kind as t' get back t' th' Redemption and find th' case Ah was showing ye earlier?"

"Aye-aye, Cap'n."

As Jim turned to go, he could hear the captain and the GP talking about the Revenge.

   *****

When he returned, Aubrey was looking grim.  He set the case down in front of the GPs, and watched the captain curiously.

"Ah thank ye kindly for th' information, lads.  Take th' whole thing."

"Aubrey, never let it be said you drive a hard bargain."

"Well, ye gave me more news than Ah was expectin'…"

"Good luck, girl.  May the suns be always in your sails."

"An' may th' enemy's fire miss its mark."

They smiled, and though the goodbyes were a bit tenser than the hellos, they promised each other that they'd meet again to catch up in the future.

   *****

Later, on the deck of the Redemption, Aubrey filled Jim in on everything he'd missed.

"The Revenge is how big?"

"At least half again bigger than m' Redemption, with twice as many cannons."

"Whoa. Fletcher… I know you're good, but that sounds like suicide."

"Ah know."

"Then why go after it?"

"Jim, why are ye asking me that?"

Jim smirked.  "Because going after the Revenge… it's a challenge for you, isn't it?"

"Right."

"They all said it couldn't be done by one ship alone, but you wanna prove them wrong."

"Smart lad.  Sound familiar, does it?"

"Yeah. Sounds like me."

Aubrey smiled at Jim and let her head fall back to gaze up at the vastness of the etherium.

"Ye dinnae like it when Ah spoke of Silver th' way Ah did, did ye?"

Jim leaned on the rail and looked down at the hull of the ship, his mood suddenly gloomy. "Not really, no."

She chuckled softly, turned around, and leaned back so that her elbows and back rested against the rail of the ship.  "Ah am truly sorry, lad… but when tryin' t' get information, ye have to know which button t' push."

"Ah, so the bribery wasn't enough?"

Aubrey had the decency to look slightly ashamed. But she recovered quickly, and shrugged it off.

"It ain't bribery if ye get somethin' in return!"

At least Jim chuckled at that.  She sighed and looked over at the young man gazing off into the twinkling abyss of the etherium.

"Ah am sorry, Jim lad." She looked back at the deck of her ship, evaluating every last inch with her eyes. "Th' two o' ye must have had quite a bond…"

He nodded, still watching the stars float past.

"Yeah. Yeah, we did."

The silence between then was quite comfortable, but Jim wanted to continue.  He finally turned away to look at Aubrey.

"He was like a father to me, you know?"

She nodded.

"He taught me so many things that were worth knowing…" He paused, searching for the right words. "When I needed a father most… I got Silver…"

She smiled.  Would this young man ever cease to amaze her? He had gone through hell, and emerged victorious.  She had heard the stories of Silver's betrayal of the boy.  Yes, word travels fast when you know the right sources. And now to be speaking to him here on the deck of the Redemption, describing a cold-blooded pirate as the father he had never known… It tore her apart.

"We'll find him, lad."

Did she just say that out loud? She shook her head slightly. Well, no going back now.

"What?"

"We'll find him. Before th' Patrol does. Ah promise."

"You promise?" 

Her lips twitched upward slightly, betraying the beginnings of a smile.

"Ah promise."