Hello everyone! Hope you're doing well! Okay, so this chapter has some mentions of child slavery so please read at your discretion. Also the Vanes are named after Charles Vane who was an English pirate in the early 1700s. Just a little history blurb for you guys. Stay in school kids!
The ship smells like dried blood and rancid water.
The interior is dingy and dark, the metal floors uneven and covered in large dents and gouges that cut deep trenches into the walkways. The overhead lights flicker intermittently, casting long, dark shadows across the walls and ceilings. The power will fail entirely within the hour but they'll be long gone by then. They're only here for one reason and that's to find Peter.
The kid had been missing for over four days now and there was a 99% chance that he ended up on a ship exactly like this one. Before he disappeared, the Ravagers had been wrapping up a job on Shar, an industrial planet with a heavy black market underbelly. It was a lawless planet, governed by codes of conduct and little else.
Yondu hadn't tried to shield Peter from Shar's corruption, the kid needed to see it and know what he could potentially be dealing with. Planets like Shar were their bread and butter, a bad place to find good work and even better pay. People didn't come to Shar unless their intentions were skewed which made for several easy job opportunities all in one place. So no, Yondu hadn't tried to sugarcoat it or downplay the kind of place Shar was. He had given Peter about three warnings before the left the ship and that was about it. In retrospect, he probably should have given Peter a weapon of some sort but he didn't exactly trust a nine-year-old with a gun in a place like Shar so he dismissed the idea. Now he's wishing he had.
Despite ordering him to stay close and not wander off, at some point Peter had gotten separated from their group and had up and disappeared. An extensive search of the area turned up nothing, no witnesses, no culprits; it was like Peter had just vanished into thin air. Yondu know that, logically, that was impossible, kids don't just straight up disappear, but with no leads to go on that seemed to be the only explanation. It wasn't until about an hour or so later that one of the Ravagers mentioned that Shar was absolutely loaded with Vanes and that one of of them thought they had seen the trademark black X on the shoulders of several people in the assembled crowd. By the time that realization had been made, it was too late, Peter was already gone.
If Peter had been taken by the Vanes (which there was almost a 100% chance that he had) it was not a good situation. The Vanes were pirates, much like the Ravagers, but they specialized in one thing and one thing only: child trafficking. It was a disgusting yet lucrative occupation that would pay several thousand units per head when delivered to a particularly interested buyer. Vanes would prowl around cities and crowded streets and snatch up unattended children to sell into hard labor. Parents would warn their children about them, cling to them a bit tighter in crowded places, and steer clear of anyone with a black X on their shoulder for fear that they would be whisked away in the blink of an eye.
Although it had been outlawed for decades, there were still Vane ships hidden all over the galaxy and with a corrupt place like Shar, a Vane ship wouldn't be too far away. They were large, hulking things, most of them retired or derelict prison ships that had been repossessed and turned into slave ships. Yondu knows the design all too well; he'd been on enough to these ships as child to recognize the outline by heart.
The inner atrium of the ship is completely empty, the walls on every side around it clustered with individual cells. There are at least twelve floors with around one hundred cells per floor and so far they had covered and cleared over half of them. They had found about sixty children so far but none of them were Peter and that was beginning to make a muscle in Yondu's jaw tighten reflexively.
They had already tracked down two other Vane ships a few days before and determined Peter was not onboard. The children they found were released and taken to a transport ship that would charter them to the nearest peaceful planet where they would be safe and could get in contact with their families. The Vane ships were then reported and disabled, leaving them completely stranded and adrift until law enforcement could arrive or they froze to death, whatever came first.
It doesn't matter to the Ravagers what happens to the Vanes after they're captured. If there was one thing Ravagers didn't tolerate it was slavery. Sure, Yondu had transported Ego's kids for years but that wasn't slavery (at least he's pretty sure it wasn't). Returning a kid to their family was one thing, taking a child from their family was something else entirely. Once again, the Ravagers may not have many morals but slavery, specifically child slavery, was definitely one of them.
As for Peter, well, that was a personal offense. It wasn't just that Peter had been taken, it was the fact that Peter was a Ravager (a scrawny, baby Ravager but still, a Ravager nonetheless) and his kidnapping was viewed as an unforgivable slight. Because Peter was a member of Yondu's crew and he didn't take too kindly to someone taking him away. He was going to find Peter and get him back on principle if nothing else and God help anyone who got in the way of that.
This was their third in three days and so far it was looking like another bust. Even with the other Ravagers spread out all over the ship, it was still a slow process to unlock each door and clear the floor. They had taken care of most of the crew already, leaving them incapacitated and sometimes still breathing in a cargo hold in the lower level of the ship. Letting them live was more than they deserved but that mercy likely wouldn't last much longer once they were sent off to prison or a labor planet for their crimes.
A low, painful groan catches Yondu's attention as he comes around a corner and he looks down to see one of the Vanes down one the ground, clutching a bleeding wound in his stomach. It's not a mortal wound, not yet, but it will be if it's not treated soon. Good thing Yondu's not in a hurry.
He comes to a stop over the injured man and plants his boot in the man's abdomen, pressing down hard on the wound. The groans turns into breathless cries and he crouches down over him, keeping his foot planted on his stomach.
"'Ey," he says, reaching down and tapping the man on his grimy face. "Eyes up here, jackass."
The man complies, his face twisted in an agonized grimace.
Yondu pulls a small tablet out of his pocket and pulls up a picture of a grinning, gap-toothed child. "You seen this kid?"
The man grimaces, coughs up blood, and shakes his head. "Don't know what you're talkin' about."
"Then yer of no use to me."
"Wait, no-" the man stammers but the words get cut off a split second later as whistle slices through the air followed but an arrow slicing through his skull. Yondu catches the arrow as it exists the man's eye socket and cleans it off on the edge of his coat.
He steps away from the body and makes his way to the next stretch of cells but he's beginning to lose hope that Peter is on this ship. He could be on another ship entirely or worse, he could have been sold already which would make the chances of finding him again even more remote. If the brat ended up in the hands of a buyer they might never get his location and even if they did-
"Hey, cap'n," Kraglin's voice cuts the the comm unit on his hip.
Yondu snatches the comm from his belt and holds it up. "What?"
"I pulled up the ship's inventory an' it looks like there's a kid matchin' Quill's description still onboard. Catalogue summary says Terran male, approximately ten cycles in age, small stature. Warning: approach with caution, very combative."
Yondu almost smirks. "Yeah, that sounds right. What level?"
"Ninth level, looks like," Kraglin tells him, the quiet chatter of the ship's catalogue system echoing in the background. "Cell 947."
"Got it," Yondu says, snapping the comm unit closed and returning it to his belt. The only use the dead Vane holds for him now is his key card which Yondu takes and drops in his pocket as he walks away. He doubts he'll need it but it can't hurt to take it anyway.
He leaves clearing this level to the other Ravagers and makes his way to a nearby staircase, following it down until he reaches the ninth level of the ship. The screen displays on the outside of the doors show that nearly all of the cells on this level are empty. All except for the screen outside cell 947. A red light above the door indicates the cell is occupied, the readout matching the description Kraglin had found earlier. Pulling out the key card, he swipes it through the lock and steps back as the door slides open.
The room looks empty at first and Yondu tamps down the flicker of disappointment at another dead end. He steps in the room, expecting to find yet another empty cell and no sign of Peter. What he's not expecting is to almost get stabbed.
There's a soft shuffle of movement and then what might constitute as a battle cry and the Ravager captain barely has time to side step as Peter lunges at him. The kid has something in his hand, something sharp and probably made out of metal, and he was hellbent on driving it into the gut of whoever came through the door. Yondu would be proud if he wasn't trying to avoid getting impaled.
"Whoa! Knock it off, brat, I'm here to rescue you!"
The fight drains out of Peter almost immediately and he visibly sags when recognizes the Ravager captain. "Yondu?" he asks like he's not entirely convinced of the other man's existence.
"Yeah, brat, it's me. Don't stab the guy here to get you out," Yondu snaps, the clipped tone of his words covering up the consolation he feels at seeing Peter still alive and still in one piece. The kid looks a little worse for wear, there are noticeable scrapes and bruises covering his face and arms, but overall he looks unharmed. He feels some kind of emotion about that but he doesn't have a word for it.
"Did you make a shiv?" he asks, nodding to the makeshift weapon in Peter's hand.
The boy nods and drops it to the floor. It's a large chunk of metal, sharp and serrated one side, and it would make for a decent improvised weapon. "Pried it off the underside of the bunk," Peter tells him, gestured toward the metal bed frame in the corner. "I was gonna steal a key card and get outta here."
Yondu nods in approval. "Atta boy."
Peter offers a tired, wobbly smile at the praise which quickly turns into a grimace. He drops to one knee in pain, smothering a whimper as he does so, one hand going down to his left ankle.
Yondu frowns and steps into the room, crouching down next to the boy to see what's wrong. A thick metal cuff is looped around his ankle, the sharp edges cutting deeply into the skin and causing blood to well up around the metal. Yondu has seen these before and the sight of it on Peter causes his jaw to clench.
It's a Breaker Cuff, used almost exclusively in slave trading. Once applied, the cuff would tighten with each detection of movement, the purpose being to force its wearer to be still and not try to escape. If left on for prolonged periods of time, the Cuff would tighten to the point of broken bones and deep nerve damage, eventually cutting off circulation altogether and making complete amputation all but inevitable. And since Peter is stubborn and doesn't know when to quit, the cuff had probably been constricting continuously for the past four days.
Judging the amount of dried and fresh blood covering the edges of the cuff and the ugly discoloration around Peter's ankle, Yondu guesses the kid's ankle is definitely fractured if not completely broken by now. If left it on any longer it was just going to get worse.
Peter, for his part, it trying desperately to put on a brave face but failing miserably. He's obviously in pain, biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, and he looks pale beneath the bruises and dirt that cover his skin. He's not crying (Ravagers don't cry) but there are tears in his eyes that he's fruitlessly trying to blink away.
"Alright, hang on," Yondu says, pulling a gun out of his pocket and adjusting the blast level. The key card won't work on something like this otherwise he'd go for the less dangerous option. Like their name implied,really the only way to remove a Breaker Cuff was to break it completely. "Cover yer ears, boy, this is gonna be loud."
Peter does as he's told and clamps both hands over his ears as Yondu takes aim at the control panel for the Cuff and fires. The blast is bright and loud for about second but it destroys
the panel and causes the cuff to go slack around Peter's ankle. Peter can't quite suppress the yelp of pain as the cuff falls away, ripping skin and causing a fresh wave of blood to begin streaking down his leg. His ankle begins swelling immediately, a deep, agonizing throb shooting up his leg and causing his vision to go white.
"Whoa, whoa, hey. Come on, brat, no passin' out, alright?" Yondu mutters, reaching out to steady Peter as he sways to the side. The rest of the color has drained from his face and he's shivering all over, from pain or shock or both, it's hard to tell. Yondu strips of his coat and drapes it over Peter's bony shoulders before scooping him, coat and all, off the floor and balancing him on one hip. "Come on, let's go."
Kraglin is at the top of the stairs when they round the corner, his gun resting loosely on his hip. "Ship's cleared, all the kids have been taken to transport" he informs his captain, eyes lingering on the coat-clad form of Peter Quill bundled against Yondu's side. "He alright?"
The Ravager captain glances down at the boy in his arms and nods once. "He'll be fine," he assures, clearing the last of the steps before readjusting Peter against his hip. The boy doesn't weigh that much but he's heavy and boneless from pain and exhaustion so that makes it more difficult. "I'm takin' 'im back to the ship. Finish up here."
Kraglin nods and jerks his chin toward the center of the ship where they had imprisoned the Vanes in the cargo hold. "What d'ya wanna do with them? Enforcers'll be here in a few hours."
For a moment Yondu doesn't answer, his expression dark and unreadable. Finally, he adjusts his hold on Peter just enough to reach into one of the inner pockets and pull out the kid's Walkman. He doesn't know why he grabbed it when they left the ship, it's not like the stupid thing was going to help them locate Peter any faster, but for some reason it seemed important to have it with him when they left the ship. He's glad he has it now, though.
He passes the Walkman to Peter and watches as the boy fumbles with the headphones. "Put those on, boy," he tells him shortly, the conversation clearly not up for debate.
Peter does as he's told and fits the foam pads over his ears.
"Good," Yondu says with a slight nod. "Now I want ya to turn that music'a yers up real loud, loud as you can get it, and close yer eyes. Don't open 'em til I tell ya, got it?"
Peter nods again and presses play on the Walkman, the soft drum of music filtering through the headphones. He turns it up as high as it will go and presses his face against Yondu's shoulder, squeezing his eyes shut tightly.
Satisfied that the kid can't see or hear anything now, he turns back to Kraglin. "Burn this place to the ground," he says gravely, crimson eyes narrowing as he speaks. "We're not callin' enforcers on them, we're gonna make an example." He nods toward the center of the ship where the remaining Vanes are being held. "No mercy, no quick deaths, no survivors. I wanna leave a callin' card for the rest'a the galaxy so they know what happens when ya take someone from my crew."
Kraglin nods once in understanding. He can only remember seeing his Captain in such a cold, murderous rage a few times before and when it happened it was best to just nod and follow orders. "Aye, cap'n," he says, hoisting his gun back up and repositioning it in his hands. "We'll meet you at the ship when it's done."
"Good."
Yondu turns and makes his way back to the loading dock connecting their ships as the sound of screams and gunfire erupt behind him. The noise washes over him in dull waves and it's easy for him to tune it out. He glances down at Peter and sees the headphone are still covering his eyes and his eyes are shut firmly.
Being a Ravager was a brutal, violent occupation, a lesson Peter would need to learn as he got older but it wasn't something he needed to see right now. Yondu was content enough to shield Peter from it for now but he would show no mercy toward the Vanes. They took his boy, slapped a Breaker Cuff on him, and that was just unforgivable. He wanted this ship to burn to nothing but ashes and then he wanted those ashes to be cast into the nearest neutron star.
But he has other things to attend to now. So he tightens his grip on the Peter, exits the ship, and keeps walking as his crew lays waste to the Vanes in the cargo hold.
Yondu keeps a photo of Peter in his pocket, how cute is that?
Thanks for reading guys! More to come soon!