Disclaimer: Ambrosia owns Escape Velocity. I don't. Stinks.
Bluebeard the Pirate smiled as he saw a Pirate Kestrel. Another one of his allies. He tugged on his blue beard contentedly.
The Kestrel aligned itself next to the pirate Argosy, ready for the prey. There was a strange round opening below its bridge, but Bluebeard paid no attention to it. It was probably just another weapon.
A Confederate Frigate approached, oblivious to the danger. Bluebeard fired his missiles and accelerated his spaceship toward the Frigate. He flew close up to the Frigate and began shooting his laser cannons.
On his radar, the dot turned red and quickly flew toward him. Bluebeard dodged several missiles and fired more. The Frigate flew closer toward his ship and fired its proton cannons. They did little damage to his heavily modified Argosy.
In the Frigate, the pilot was glaring furiously at the Argosy. He had never expected it to be equipped with missiles. Suddenly, the shield went down drastically to 10%. Surprised, he looked at the radar. Another red dot was approaching behind him. He turned the Frigate around. A pirate Kestrel flew into view.
A Kestrel. Easy.
The Kestrel maneuvered around the torpedoes of the Frigate and suddenly paused. A bright green beam shot from the opening below the bridge.
Bluebeard watched in surprise as the beam sliced toward the Frigate.. It disappeared in a brilliant yellow explosion.
Bluebeard grinned. Here was a potentially lethal ally. He hailed the ship. There was no response, and the next moment, it turned toward him, turning its green beam toward him. Bluebeard stared in horror, then quickly grabbed his controls. It was too late. Hot flames enveloped him, and his ship disintegrated into nothingness.
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Back on Earth, the Confederate officer frowned in disgust. He had just gotten a transmission from a Frigate passing through the Levo system. They told him of a Kestrel with an unusual weapon, and in the middle of the message, the ship seemed to have exploded.
He sent two Cruisers to take a patrol sweep through Levo and all its adjacent systems to find the pirate and destroy it.
A few days later, they too had disappeared, leaving no traces.
To be continued
R&R!!!!