"You look like you're trying to waste my time." Kayneth replied frowning, driving the tip of his blade into his lesser's right shoulder.
"Let me try again," He said slowly, pulling back his blade and letting the blood flow. He quickly cut the headphone's cord, "Information, location, where they're going to be, armaments. Or I start removing limbs, starting with your member. Get me, junkie?"
Leaning forward in her seat, Pixie broke eye contact and stared at the glass in her hand. She didn't say anything in response. There wasn't anything she could say in response. She simply nodded. Another minute of silence passed before she summoned the courage to meet Lilith's gaze once more. Staring back into those cold eyes was soul-shattering. It felt as if her heart had suddenly plunged into the depths of her stomach.
She broke eye contact once more, and sighed, "Fuck me..." She downed the whole glass in one go and got up to pour herself another.
So the girl... it was time Pixie stopped pitying herself and answered Lilith's question. Sitting down once more, Pixie sipped her drink and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her thighs. She no longer had the courage to look at Lilith, so she stared into her glass. It would be an easier story to tell if her feelings of guilt weren't clouding her thoughts.
"Ya' know, I was n' orphan too. Ol' Nan was one crazy *****." Pixie laughed. "You did the stupidest lil' thing an she'd knock yer fuckn' teeth in! That was my childhood, ya' know? Runnin' 'round with other kids, raisn' hell 'cause we didn' know any better. If Ol' Nan didn't whip us it was the Sheriff or some rich prick. That's all I knew a' the world back then."
Pixie's face suddenly lit up in a way Lilith hadn't seen before, "Then I met someone very special." She pointed to the twin cherry tattoo she had on her shoulder. The letters "P & C" were written across them. "See this one? I reckon it reminds you of the slots, but to me it carries a' whole different mean'n. Lady Margaret Maribel, er' as I called her, 'Cherry'."
Filled with joy, Pixie looked like a whole different person as she recalled her old friend, "Cherry was the most beautiful lady I'd eva' seen. Smooth, pale skin and long, curly cherry-blonde hair." Pixie laughed. "I reckon you figured it out already, but yeah, that's why I called er' Cherry! She was a noble, but she wasn't like the rest of those fuckers. Cherry was different, she cared about gutter-rats like me. She was a bit older'n me and when I was 'bout eleven she came by the orphanage an' found me lien' on the ground, bloody n' and beatn', fresh from a good ol' ass whoopn' from Nan."
Pixie burst out into laughter, "She was so mad she started reprimandn' the old hag right there in front a' the whole orphanage! She said she'd seek the sheriff on er' if she didn' get her act together. That night, Old Nan was SO PISSED she kicked me out a' the place n' told me that I should go lookn' fer my new friend if I wanted a place ta' stay. An' so I did! The next day Cherry was so worried she came into the city lookn' fer me, an' when I heard her voice calln' fer me I came run'n outta my lil' cardboard house to see 'er! From then on I lived with her in 'er estate at the base a' the tower. Her parents were fuckn' furious, but she didn' give a flyn' fuck! Cherry never took shit from anyone!"
Pixie's elated expression sank as she continued her tale, "I learned a lot from her. Nothin' 'bout this life. Stealn' killn', all that stuff I learned on my own. Stand'n up fer myself, personal stuff, stuff that really matters? She taught me all that. And yeah, she continued liven' life 'er own way and I was right there with her! But... when I was 'bout fourteen she came to me to tell me she was gonna get married. To Lord Dio Basilio of Feroxi." Pixie took a large swig of her drink. "She was hesitant, but excited. I didn' know the guy, so I was indifferent at the time, if not a bit excited. I mean, my friend was gettn' married an' I was gonna be in 'er wedding! Me! A gutter-rat from the streets at a noble's wedding!?
"I should'a known somethin'd go wrong from the start. From the moment I met him I got a bad vibe, but everyone else just ate up his charm. Truth be told, Cherry didn' buy it either. She did it anyway... was 'er duty after all." Any joy she'd displayed earlier was gone now. "Fifteen years and four months ago, she had a baby boy with Dio. She said he took after me more'n either of them. Despite the kid, it didn' take long fer me to figure out things were goin' sour in their marriage."
Pixie looked up at the ceiling as she continued, "I saw a few new bruises show up on 'er every now an' then. Dio was operate'n in Feroxi most of the time fer business, so Cherry spent a lot of the time alone with her son in Boomhower. I told her to leave 'im, but she said she didn' have a choice. It came as no surprise then that she started an' affair with a local merchant in the city. The guy's name was Ricko, he was a nice fella. The two a' them went steady fer about two years... that was until..."
Pixie clutched her scotch glass tightly and her voice began to waiver, "Dio came back from Feroxi one night before he was s'posed to..."
Cherry and Ricko had been flirting all night, so Pixie took it upon herself to entertain the young boy they'd neglected in his bedroom. Third-wheels had to stick together after all. Apparently he had been expecting her as he had dawned a scarf and hid behind the door, waiting to ambush her. She saw through his deception, however, and swept him off his feet before he could get the jump on her, "Gotcha, ya' lil' rascal!"
Sprout, as they'd come to call him, giggled as toddlers often do as Pixie threw him down onto his bed and started tickling him. A few minutes later Cherry came into the room to see Sprout passed out in Pixie's arm. It appeared she'd rocked him to sleep, "What are you doing with my son!?" Cherry questioned with a stupid grin on her face.
Pixie held up a finger to her lips in order to silence her friend and placed the boy gently into his bed, "He's a lazy lil' bastard like his mother, ain't he?" Cherry pushed nudged her shoulder in retaliation and the pair left together.
Later that night, Ricko and Cherry had passed out together in her bed while watching an old western. Having eaten burritos that night Pixie booked a one-way ticket to the porcelain god, waiting out her upset stomach until she felt comfortable enough to leave. just as she was finishing up she heard a commotion outside and promptly left the bathroom to see what was up. As soon as she caught sight of Cherry she was shoved into her closet, "Stay in there. This isn't looking good." Cherry whispered as she closed the closet door before Pixie could protest.
She placed her hand on the knob and was about to leap out until she heard a familiar voice from the other side of the door, "Who the fuck is he?!"
Oh, God...
Pixie knelt down so she could look through the shutters of the closet. What she saw before her was a confrontation she had hoped would never happen. Dio was standing in the doorway, having just thrown Ricko across the room, and Cherry was kneeling beside her lover at the foot of the bed, "How long has this been going on, Margaret!?"
Cherry held out her hands in protest, "It's not what it looks like, Dio! I swear---"
"ENOUGH OF YOUR BULLSHIT!" Dio shouted as he approached the two, his hand held high above his head ready to strike.
Ricko sprung to his feet and stood between them, "I won't let you hurt her anymore!"
Pixie would never forget the expression Ricko's words were greeted with. That day, she saw into the heart of the devil himself. Dio's eyes went mad and his frown turned into a wicked grin, "WELL THEN I GUESS I'LL JUST HAVE TO HURT YOU THEN!" Ricko was down on the ground again moments later after trying in vein to defend against Dio superior might.
As he followed after Ricko for another attack, Cherry intercepted him, slapping him hard across the face, "STOP THIS! OUR BOY'S IN THE OTHER ROOM!"
Dio flew into a psychotic fit, "YOU WERE SLEEPING WITH ANOTHER MAN IN THE SAME HOUSE AS OUR SON!?"
Shivering, Cherry stood her ground, "Y-you need to leave. Now!"
"Leave? LEAVE!? YOU WANT ME TO FUCKING LEAVE?! NO! NO, NOT UNTIL I'VE GIVEN YOU A PROPER PUNISHMENT! A WHORE'S PUNISHMENT!"
Paralyzed with fear, Pixie could do little more than cover her mouth so Dio couldn't hear her screams. Once he'd produced the knife it was over. Cherry and Ricko died in each other's arms. Butchered like animals and lying in a pool of blood almost a quarter of an inch-thick. Pixie watched the whole thing. She couldn't look away. Cherry's pained expressions, locked away in the recesses of her memories for the rest of her life.
She never called out to her but Pixie knew what she saw. As her life faded from her eyes Cherry had asked one thing of Pixie, "Protect him." And that was what Pixie set out to do. At seventeen-years-old, having never fired a gun in her life she took a revolver from the Maribel estate and followed Dio to his penthouse, where he had taken Cherry's child.
Terrified and alone, Pixie barged into his personal quarters in the middle of the night and attacked him, tears streaming down her face all the while. The night ended with Dio crumpled on the floor with two gunshot wounds to the abdomen and a partially blinded Pixie fleeing for her life with a blood-covered toddler in her arms.
By the time Pixie was done with her tale she'd already finished two more glasses of scotch. The last words to leave her mouth seemed more like those belonging to an old woman on her death bed. Reliving the events of that night had brought back that pathetic, weak little girl that could do nothing as she watched her best friend slaughtered like an animal before her. Tears rolled down her face, but beyond that no one would suspect she was crying. She was silent and still as they poured out.
"Ya' wanted to know who the girl was? Well, I s'pose I told you a lil' more'n that, huh?" No form of inflection or any emotion to speak of could be detected in her words.
Pixie told her story. Lilith's expression remained unchanged for the most part, not that Pixie would know. Lilith already knew she was an orphan, although that's where the similarities in their upbringings ended. That kind of life was difficult enough as it was, even with carers who actually gave a damn, let alone with what Pixie must have had to face.
As Lilith made the connection between Margaret, Elizabeth and Dio, a wave of realisation washed over her face.
Axel...
As Pixie continued with her story, a light shone on why Pixie was in the line of work she was, and why she hated the nobility so intensely. Lilith felt sick to her stomach as Pixie neared the end of her tale.
"Ya' wanted to know who the girl was? Well, I s'pose I told you a lil' more'n that, huh?"
The room was quiet as tears streamed silently down Meredith's face. Lilith was speechless, her eyes glistening. A few moments passed before she painfully shimmied off the medical chair, she ignored the aching in her ribs as she walked around the front of the room and stood over Meredith, anger in her eyes.
Lilith reached down and grabbed Meredith's glass, placing it on the medical table along with her own. She took hold of Pixie's hands, lifting them in silent beckoning. As she stood, she refused to look Lilith in the eye. Lilith didn't need to hear how sorry she was, the shame was written all over her. Lilith raised a hand to Meredith's chin and lifted her face. She slowly moved her hand towards Meredith's eye patch and lifted it. Lilith looked at the woman who had taken her in when no one else wanted to, the woman who had filled her with awe for so many years, the woman who was the equal of any man in a fight. The woman who took shit from nobody, the woman who treated her friends like family, the woman who raised a child when she was little more than a child herself. The woman that Lilith loved and respected more than any other person in the world. The woman who needed her now more than anyone had ever needed her.
Lilith's expression hardened as she slapped Pixie hard across the left cheek. As Meredith recoiled in surprise, Lilith stepped in and wrapped her arms around her neck in a tight embrace. She cared not for the pain that racked her body in doing so.
Before Meredith's story, Lilith didn't think there was an excuse Pixie could give her, no way to justify what she had done. Lilith's eyes remained dry as an anger burned in her heart, one desire now echoed throughout her mind more than any other, a lust for revenge she'd never thought she'd ever want, Meredith's purpose was now Lilith's. She shifted her face and kissed Meredith gently on the cheek she had slapped, resting her forehead against Pixie's, there was spark in those pale blue eyes of Lilith's, a spark that would forever burn if given the right trigger.
"We'll kill him." She'd never thought she'd hear the words come from her own mouth in such a way, her voice was threatening, filled with purpose.
Pixie had avoided eye-contact up until the point that Lilith lifted her eye-patch. She stared back, looking at her with both eyes for the first time. Then Lilith hit her. The slap stung, but Pixie was more shocked than anything else. She followed it up with a hug and a kiss, ending it all with her forehead resting on Pixie's.
"We'll kill him."
Pixie wasn't sure what kind reaction Lilith expected, nor did she know exactly what she was going to say before she said it. She'd been thinking on this for a long time and the day's events only solidified her position further. She was grateful for Lilith's devotion, truly, but she would have to disappoint the girl. It was for her own good.
Pixie placed her hands on Lilith's and withdrew her head to get a better look at what she wrought on the poor girl. Her despair was more animated now. Her voice wavered as she spoke, "Thank you, Lilith, really. But... I'm sorry Lily, but this ain't yer fight and I can' let you get lost in it. The ransom deal is ta' be yers and Sprout's last job as Maidens. Everythin' I've done up ta' this point's been fer my boy. You may see me as n' older sister, but I've grown ta' treat you like a daughter."
She bowed her head now and clutched Lilith's arms, "I can' let my children get caught up n' this nightmare! The thought'a you 'er Sprout gettn' hurt 'cause a this... it's unbearable, Lily. So, I'm askin' you this as a mother who watched you grow up into the woman you ar' today, not as yer captain: when the job's done you take Sprout n' you leave this life behind. I'll support y'all in any way I can, but I can' have either of y'all be targets."
She clutched Lilith's arms tighter, "I've already lost enough to that man. I'm sorry, Lily."
Ruffles walked slowly down the corridor until he reached Bart's cell. In his hands was a large napkin with the lukewarm remains of his steak. Hardly choice compared to what he himself had eaten, with veins of fat running through the meat. The man deserved something, but that didn't mean it had to be good. There was also a little mashed potato in there, too. Opening the door, he walked in.
Bart looked up and recognized him. The man moved towards him, and immediately started gushing, "ah! You, yes! The brave man that saved my life from that psychotic harlot--" he was cut off as Ruffles' steel toe capped boot caught him in the gut.
"Shut up. Just shut the fuck up." It wasn't Bart's fault Lilith had had to take the heat for him, but that was what it felt like. "Ain't nobody fed you since we took you?" Bart opened his mouth, shut it, and then shook his head.
"Fine." Ruffles dropped his food parcel at the Noble's feet, turned and left without a word. His next destination was Elizabeth and Jo's cell. This time, he knocked on the door. "I'm coming in."
==========================================
When the bounty hunter had left, Whiskey sat smiling idly. Getting under her skin had been much too easy. Still, the woman seemed to have expected more. Whiskey wasn't sure why. The bounty hunter's presence would only be a complication in an otherwise fairly routine job.
Almost routine. The Iron Maidens. Whiskey had never met them, but she knew their reputation well. She had a great deal of respect for the work they did, taking from the almost limitless supplies and finance the Nobles horded for themselves, and dealing it to people who actually had to get off their asses to live. It was a shame they were attracting very dangerous attention, now. Whiskey lit another cigarette and dragged contemplatively.
Lilith couldn't believe what she was hearing, she refused to believe what she was hearing.
"I've already lost enough to that man. I'm sorry, Lily."
The spark from her eyes was gone, replaced with panic. "No, no, no, why are you telling me this?" She scanned Pixie's face for clues, anything that would suggest she was joking. "You're serious aren't ya?" her voice was now a whisper. She pulled her arm from Pixie's grasp. "No, you... you can't" the panic was starting to creep into her voice. "You don't get to lay all that on me and then tell me to leave!" She took a few steps backwards, "You don't get to do that! That isn't fair!" She put her hands on her head, grabbing her hair. The pain she had successfully ignored a few moments ago now began flooding back into her body, her breathing sped up as she clutched her shoulder.
"Y... you don't..." All those feelings of abandonment as a child came rushing back into her mind. "Where would we go!? We're wanted criminals Meredith! We wouldn't last a month out there on our own!" Her mind was working overtime thinking of everything she could throw out that would convince Pixie that this was a terrible idea. "Mere... Meredith, I can't... I can't do this again, I..." Tears began flooding her eyes as both the physical and mental stress began to take its toll.
"I... I... I can't..." She fell to her knees, as the pain reached a climax, she raised a fist as if to punch the ground, but her hand fell limply onto the cold metal as she began sobbing.
Shakes screamed out in agony as the blade entered his flesh. A strung-bystander screamed as well, as if just doing so to mimic Shakes and promptly rose to his feet and sprinted out of the room.
"W-WHAT THE FUCK, MAN!?"
"Information, location, where they're going to be, armaments. Or I start removing limbs, starting with your member. Get me, junkie?"
Shakes clutched his wound and scrambled back against the wall, "FUCK! JESUS! YES, OKAY! FUCK, OKAY,OKAY, OKAY, OKAY, OKAY, OKAY! I'll tell you whatever you want! Just get that fuckn' thing outta my face! I can't think straight when under pressure like this!"
Bennie had just lit up his second cigarette when he noticed a deranged man flying out of the den Kayneth had entered. Covered in what was likely someone else's blood, the man sprinted down the street screaming. Bennie sighed, "God dammit."
Bennie took one quick drag before he put it out and made his way to the drug den, shotgun at the ready.
It appeared the two nobles were popular today. Elizabeth stood up from her bed to greet him as he entered, "Are you here to scream at us, too?" Clearly, she wasn't in the best mood.
Pixie watched helplessly as Lilith broke down, dropping to her knees in defeat. She hadn't even the strength to take her frustration out on the floor beneath her. Pixie dropped to one knee and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. There was so much she wanted to say to Lilith, but she didn't know how, "No, no, no, Lilith. I'd never abandon you'r Sprout, you know that. None of this' yer fault. I promise you."
She sighed, knowing where she had to take this. Though it had been something she'd been dwelling on for a long time, Pixie had never communicated this to Lilith. She traced her hand from Lilith's shoulder to her cheek and rested her palm on her wounded face, "Look at me, Lily." Lilith did as she was told, though it wasn't likely easy for her to see Pixie through her tears. "Elizabeth may a' been the last nail 'n the coffin, but I can't lie to you... I've been considern' this fer a long time now. You may not realize this but I've always kept the two'a y'all away from where the blood's thickest."
Pixie removed her eye-patch completely. Her blinded eye was an eerie sight. Besides the lack of coloration, it lacked the distinct sharpness her good eye had. It looked... dead, "Look at me, Lily. This eye ain't like this cause Dio stuck a knife in it. It ain't workn' cause'a that, sure. But I reckon it'd have a mighty fine glow 'bout it if not fer the shit it's seen. You 'n Sprout have been sittn' on the edge this whole time, don' you see that? You've never had to make the leap 'n ta' the abyss like the rest of us had. An' I don' want you too!
"I didn' choose this life, Lily, and even if I wanted to I couldn' just stop. Not anymore. Not after the thin's I done. The people I hurt. You n' Sprout haven't come over ta' ar' side yet, an' I... I forbid you to do so! It's a waste, Lily! A fuckn' waste! The Maiden's comprised a' the people it is 'cause we ain't got nowhere else ta' go! We already fucked ar' lives up ta' the point a' no return, but despite what you might think it ain't too late fer you!"
Pixie wiped away some of Lilith's tears with her thumb, "Please, Lily, I'm beggn' you ta' understand me. Yer the only person I can trust ta' take care'a my boy. I know it's selfish, but I've run outta options. I don' know if I can win this war, Lilith, an' I can' have you two here in the event that we lose it. I'll always be'a phone call away, sweetheart, you know that. You're never gonna be alone again, I promise you."
A lot of what Pixie said made sense. Even in her current state, there was no denying that her and Sprout had never been a part of the vanguard. Yesterday's heist was proof of that. Getting sent to the carriage with the least number of combatants, and they still managed to half fuck it up.
"Look at me, Lily."
She raised her head taking, taking comfort in Meredith's touch. She had seen so much shit, but that wasn't enough? It wasn't enough to earn her place? What kind of horrors would she have to inflict?
"Please, Lily, I'm beggn' you ta' understand me. Yer the only person I can trust ta' take care'a my boy. I know it's selfish, but I've run outta options. I don' know if I can win this war, Lilith, an' I can' have you two here in the event that we lose it. I'll always be'a phone call away, sweetheart, you know that. You're never gonna be alone again, I promise you."
Lilith clenched her fists, ordering her eyes to pull the tears back in.
"This is turning out to be one shit week." Her face softened as a smile broke across her face. "The train job, this..." She pointed at her face, "Then Cherry, and now this." She ran a bloodstained sleeve across her face, wiping away the tears. "And my scarf!" She quickly pointed to the ripped bloodstained pile in the corner, laughing slightly.
She looked up at Meredith, the smile still on her face. "I'll take good care of your boy."
Pixie smiled back, "I know you will, sweetheart." She helped Lilith to her feet and led her back to the recliner. After filling both glasses to the brim with scotch Pixie sat by her bedside once more and handed her a drink. Holding up her glass in the air, Pixie proposed a toast of sorts. "Now, as yer captain I do have'a order fer ya': get drunk off yer ass, *****!"
The two banged their glasses against one another and downed their drinks in unison. That 30-year-old bottle of scotch didn't last the night. Sadly, it wasn't the first time either of them had gotten blackout drunk in the med bay.
Ruffles leaned against the wall. "Nope. Hell, I've been dealing with the fallout of the captain's last conversation with you. Let's just say you ain't the only person I've had to doctor." He gave a pained look at the ceiling. "Really not sure why I'm even here. I guess I just... when you save someone's life, I guess you just feel kinda responsible for them. You been fed?"
"FUCK! JESUS! YES, OKAY! FUCK, OKAY,OKAY, OKAY, OKAY, OKAY, OKAY! I'll tell you whatever you want! Just get that fuckn' thing outta my face! I can't think straight when under pressure like this!"
Kayneth drew back his blade, instead pulling out his revolver and pointing it at his gut, juuuust in case he tried anything. He tapped the flat of his blade against his wrist, 'Tick Tock, you stupid Junkie.' People who knew things always tried to have a back up, but did this one? Was the headless one his trick, ace in the hole?
Junkies like this weren't exactly known for foresight.
Nor were sword wielding nobles known for patience.
"C'mon!" The unmasked Maria shouted as she jabbed Micky with her elbow.
But he didn't want to walk around a huge-ass city in the state he was in. He didn't want to present his battered face to anyone, let alone the citizenry of Feroxi. It was too dangerous. A weak smile formed on his face as an amusing though came into his mind: maybe the old man had busted his face so much he was unrecognisable. Still, it was one ugly mug. Micky had cringed when he saw it reflected in some polished piece of scrap, or whatever it was. He tried to hide his face as Maria carted him around the city, as she anxiously looked for a relatively cheap place to stay.
At least she knew that going to the Sheriff was a bad idea.
She also displayed signs of annoyance. Maria didn't know who to be more frustrated at, herself or the fool who was suddenly feeling self-conscious. She wanted to shout at him for being so petty. Of course, the guy was worried about his face, whoever had put him in the ground probably wanted it to stay that way. But still, the crowds would offer enough offer. That wasn't the point anyway! He was making it harder and that was annoying. In the end, she gave up and dragged her companion and herself into the nearest inn. She rang the bell and put on her best smile for the receptionist.
He came quickly with an easy-going stride, "Heya. Lookin' fer a room, darlin'?"
"Whaddya think?" She teased, "Just one for me and... him."
The voice of the receptionist seemed to fade away. Maybe it was just fatigue, but a short sharp shock soon brought him out of acting like such a sleepyhead. The next thing Micky knew, Maria had erupted into a stream of shouting, "What!? That much for a two-person room? Well, I'll just take a room for one and sleep on the couch!"
"Sure whatever ya say." Was the lax receptionist's reply.
Maria fished out some Carbon and dumped it on the counter. The receptionist, in turn, dumped the key on the counter and took the Carbon. After that, Maria, with all her might, pulled Micky up the stairs and threw Micky on the bed. She collapsed and sank to the ground, taking deep breaths. Micky was already out cold. She felt like sleeping as well, but not before a nice shower or something. Besides, the hard part of saving his sorry hide was over. At least for the most part. Bah! The rest could wait until both of them had gotten some rest, couldn't it?
... I guess I just... when you save someone's life, I guess you just feel kinda responsible for them...
Elizabeth lowered her guard. She recalled yesterday's events vividly, despite being half-conscious for most of the surgery. It was the most pain she'd ever experienced, but he went a long way in easing it for her. Maybe this one was different after all...
"You been fed?"
Elizabeth shook her head, "No, we were fed a few hours ago, but I suspect it has gotten a fair bit later? There are no clocks or windows in here, so it's hard to tell." She noted the man's perturbed expression and couldn't help by pry. "Are you... okay?"
Still terrified, Shakes swallowed audibly before spilling what he knew, "Th-th-the Maiden's support network's got a rat in Boomhower! I don't exactly who it is, but I know he's being protected by the banditos over there. P-p-pixie's sending two teams there to take care of it... some of her toughest, best men. I don't have names, I just know they're tough fuckers!"
Clutching his bleeding wound he shouted, "That's all I know, I swear!"
Bennie, his shotgun at the ready, entered the room to see a decapitated corpse and an old tweaker at Kayneth's mercy, "Christ, man. Did he spill anything?"
Shakes pointed an accusatory finger at Bennie, "Y-y-you! YOU PUT HIM UP TO THIS!?"
Bennie lowered his weapon and sighed, "If you wanna live you might want to shut the fuck. My boy here's already displayed how he feels 'bout low lives like yourself." Bennie looked to Kayneth. "What did he tell you?"
"Yeah... just thinking about whether I'm where I should be." There was a silence, and then as though it were dragged out of him, he added, "I never joined this crew for the money. I mean I used to work for Nobles, by proxy. I was a shipwright in Zephyr. A really good one. I joined the crew because I agreed with what the Captain was doing. Taking money from people who had more than they'd ever need and still hording more, and giving it to people who were just scraping by. And because I was tired of fixing and building for Nobles who only ever saw their ships as status symbols to be thrown away and swapped at a moment's notice. But everyone here loves this ship almost as much as I do. But I'm not sure anymore." He slid down the wall into a sitting position. "Just seems like shit's sliding out of control. And I know I don't know everything, so fuck knows how bad it really is."
"Just seems like shit's sliding out of control. And I know I don't know everything, so fuck knows how bad it really is."
Elizabeth shrugged. She wasn't sure anything she could say would hold any weight with him, but she tried nonetheless, "This may not mean much to you, as I am a noble after all, but I'd say it should be something to expect from such a venture. No matter what promises were made to you on the outset some part of you had to know that this was a gang of outlaws. These were people that would threaten innocents to line their pockets."
She sat back down on her bed. His remaining standing like that made her feel a bit uncomfortable, "I may have lived a sheltered life, but I understand that characteristic is consistent in the nobility as well. I think... I think, in the end, we humans are just greedy creatures."
Recalling Pixie's attack earlier, Elizabeth shifted uncomfortably before continuing, "Then again, your Captain is... well, I dare say she's a 'lunatic'. I'd be surprised if she were motivated by anything other than sadism."
"Th-th-the Maiden's support network's got a rat in Boomhower! I don't exactly who it is, but I know he's being protected by the banditos over there. P-p-pixie's sending two teams there to take care of it... some of her toughest, best men. I don't have names, I just know they're tough fuckers!"
Sounds like a start. But do I trust you enough?
"That's all I know, I swear!"
Kayneth's finger moved to the trigger, but Bennie intervened with his shotgun, convenient. Trust wasn't very high, but he was considerate enough to lower his pistol as well. He was faster than Bennie, and the junkie was injured. Kayneth saw he was looking at the body, half decapitated. Looked full on from an angle, but Kayneth wasn't aiming for that...
"Christ, man. Did he spill anything?"
Before Kayneth could answer-
"Y-y-you! YOU PUT HIM UP TO THIS!?"
Kayneth raised his sword, over the junkies crotch.
"If you wanna live you might want to shut the fuck. My boy here's already displayed how he feels 'bout low lives like yourself. What did he tell you?"
"Boomhower, apparently a bunch of her toughest are going there to plug a leak. Could probably get more out of him if this one says he doesn't know ANY more info that could help. Tick Tock, maggot."
Shakes looked at him and then back to Bennie, "That's all, I swear! Bennie, you know me! You know I wouldn't hold out on you!"
Bennie rested the shotgun on his shoulder and scratched his goatee with his off-hand. It was true, he did know Shakes pretty well and he'd always prided himself on his information gathering skills. Shakes was being straight with them, he was sure of it.
Bennie nodded, "He's telling the truth. He doesn't have much of a rep to keep anymore, so he's not stickn' his neck out for anyone if it means he's gonna get his nuts blown off." Bennie approached Kayneth from behind and pointed his thumb back towards the den's entrance. "Come on man, we're done here. If they really are heading to Boomhower we've gotta a train to catch."
"He's telling the truth. He doesn't have much of a rep to keep anymore, so he's not stickn' his neck out for anyone if it means he's gonna get his nuts blown off."
"Sliced." Kayneth corrected, pointing at the sword. Regardless, he put it back into his sheath, digging around in the pocket covered by his plaid cloth. He pulled out a small
"Come on man, we're done here. If they really are heading to Boomhower we've gotta a train to catch."
"A moment, please. I give you a choice." Kayneth said, pulling out a small bag. Carbon, pure and simple. He threw it, perhaps purposefully, at the wounded shoulder, speaking as he made his exit.
"Three choices, Shakes. Bury your friend, get medical attention, or more drugs. Your choice."
"Then again, your Captain is... well, I dare say she's a 'lunatic'. I'd be surprised if she were motivated by anything other than sadism."
Ruffles frowned. "No, that's not her at all. Pixie's invested in the crew for the same reasons I joined. The ideals. This is the first time she's ever flown off the handle like this. Whatever you are to her, it's big."
He got to his feet. "Anyway, I'm being sent away from the ship on a job for some reason. In the next couple of days." He cracked a grin. "Someone else is gonna have to remember to feed you guys. I'll go grab something for ya."
After making him wait far longer than he could tolerate (which is to say, at all) Bennie returned to Kayneth, a look of disappointment on his face, "Due to the heist railroad traffic has be suspended for security reasons. I managed to get us two tickets on a previously booked trip, though. Two days from now. It's not ideal, but I know Pixie and I know she doesn't like going into any operation unprepared. We have time... might even beat her men there."
Bennie examined his revolver, popping out the chamber to look down the barrel. It hadn't been looked at by a smith in some time, "We might as well make preparations of our own in the meantime. Get stocked up. Get drunk. Get your dick wet. You know, whatever you need to get your mind ready for war." Bennie snapped the chamber back in place and looked at Kayneth. "'Cause I won't lie to you: if she really is sending her best men we're gonna need to be fuck'n sharp."
Pixie had been sitting in the captain's chair of the bridge, enjoying the sunrise with a fresh cup of coffee. It may have been synthetic, but it was good enough for her. She didn't have what you'd call a "refined pallet". Once day broke across the ashlands she flashed a wicked grin to Cranston and clutched her radio. A crackling noise sounded over the ship's PA system. Anyone who was already awake knew what was to come, "This is yer Captain speaking, RISE 'N SHINE YOU NO-GOOD, COCK SUCKN' VARMINTS! I WANNA SEE ALL Y'ALL ON THE BRIDGE AFTER BREAKFAST! NOW, DON' DILLY-DALLY 'ER I RECKON I'LL BREAK YER GOD DAMN SPINE WITH'A LEAD PIPE!"
After a few moments Pixie added, "P.S. I love y'all."
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