Part 431: King of the Pirates - Turn 1

King of the Pirates: Tactical Update 1

“Alright, I’m willing to entertain the idea that you may be on the up-and-up. But what about him?”

“If he’s fighting with us, you can trust him,” Jag resisted the urge to laugh at the younger Ryan’s question. The curious and strangely earnest inquiry was at odds with the icy tone she affected. She was all business and definitely the daughter of a Pirate King, but she was still only sixteen. She seemed to show an interest in broadening the way she viewed the world. Being able to classify the varying ways in which her compatriots were usefully untrustworthy rather than simply dismissing everyone around her as simply useless and untrustworthy would make her a much more valuable protégée. Jag didn’t mind teaching if it meant helping shape Susie Ryan into a leader his daughter might be able to follow some day.

The object of their discussion seemed not to hear, although “One-Eye” Susie and Jag were talking over a relatively open channel. The bright pink and orange Charger was covered head-to-toe in white stars, and stood out like a sore thumb in Tortuga’s dingy countryside. The armor plating was as cared-for as any pirate could manage, but the edges of the paint were chipping and the ceramet beneath starting to rust. A keen observer might’ve spotted the impossible thickness of those plates—Jag wasn’t sure what dark sorcery Ronald Montaigne had done to pile so much armor onto his old Charger, but they didn’t slow him down any and Jag knew the machine was one of the toughest on Tortuga.

“Independents like Randy and I have to stand out if we want to get selected for raids, so we pick bright colors and try to look as flashy or menacing as we can. I’m sure a fiery personality like you can understand.”

Susie growled into the comms, her strange Vulcan-like `Mech twisting slightly to show Jag her shoulder. An obvious reaction like that was a mistake that might’ve got her killed, and without a moment’s hesitation Jag dropped his crosshairs over her machine just long enough that she’d be sure to pick up a lock-on warning. He was already twisting away when the “Battle Cobra” spun to face him. It was menacing enough for a medium `Mech. Its armor was painted fire against a black background, with the wedge-shaped head in white like an insectoid skull and a pair of crossed white swords beneath. The left side of the cockpit had been burned and blackened, and the transplex there had been replaced with dull silver armor-plates giving the machine an “eyepatch” nearly the same shape as its pilot wore.

“Randy’s wife was a Consort. “Lucky” Liz was with the Lady Death when they tried to hit the NAIS,” Jag paused momentarily, explaining as he might’ve to his own daughter. “If he’s here now, he’s wanting a little revenge on Paula Trevaline and he’s going to beat it out of Wendy Colbane. She’s on the Council of the Damned and the highest ranking Consort left. She’s not ready to risk naming herself the Lady Death’s successor yet which is why an independent like me is free enough to make a move. Wendy’s just paralyzed right now, because she knows what happens to Pirates who try to take over after Paula Trevaline dies.”

“You say that like she’s died before,” Susie sounded angry and incredulous. She hadn’t liked Jag’s subtle reminder of her vulnerability.

“She has,” Jag replied dryly. “It was a game for her when she was younger: every time she’d catch rumors of someone looking to knock her out she’d ‘die’ in an explosion and see who tried to seize power. She started a few wars the first few times as rivals tried to seize power simultaneously only to pop up with the Consorts and slaughter everyone on both sides. Took three, maybe four tries before people wised up. Next time she tried it nobody took power—she let Tortuga linger in uncertainty for six months. Nobody would raid ‘cause everyone was worried their rivals would try to seize power in the interim; and nobody was willing to stand up and say ‘I’m in charge now’ because la Dame de la Mort.”

Susie Ryan made no reply, but the way her machine tracked the Centurion betrayed her interest. Jag continued, “When Paula returned that time, she picked a band of moderate power and annihilated them. Killed every pirate, seized every `Mech, and burned the whole city to the ground just to show the Dominions what happens when anyone so much as thinks of trying to kill her. That was pretty much the last time anyone made an attempt on her.”

“If all that’s true, then why are you helping us? Why risk it?”

Jag shut his eyes, closing out the world around him for a moment. He pictured his daughter’s face, but couldn’t quite manage to make it smile. “Because Paula Trevaline is dead. I’m not afraid of the dead.”






[n/a]








Player Status:


PTN's note: I updated the art for the Battle Cobra to make it a bit more intimidating.

Opposing Force Status:






Mission Objective:
Defeat all enemies!

Secondary Objectives:
Individual Sub-Objectives Completed (0/11)



Orders Due: Tuesday Night!

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