"Absolutely not," Straik retorts, pausing in his pacing to glare at all of us. "If we're taking my ship and using my troops, I'm taking on the bulk of the responsibility. Fifty-fifty."
I shake my cuffs at them, because they're starting to hurt my wrists. Plus, I have to take a piss. "Can we figure out the financials later? Some of us are tired of being treated like prisoners."
The lord smiles thinly. "Very well." He nods at his guards, who approach. "I guess you're my guests, then."
"Well, kef me," Kaspar says, and flings aside the cuffs he's managed to pull off and throws them at Lord Straik's feet. He sounds disappointed. "Guess I don't need to bother with that anymore."
5
ADIRON
It takes a week of arguing before Mathiras and Straik settle on a sixty-forty split. In that time, we eat Straik's amazing food, use his fuel, and play Sticks with his crew constantly. So…I guess sixty-forty works, since the sixty is in the va Sithai favor. None of it matters if we don't find the Buoyant Star. I let Mathiras and Kaspar squabble over star charts with Lord Straik and do my best getting to know the crew. After all, if we're in a pinch, I'd much rather rely on the crew than Straik to save my ass.
Plus, they know a lot about their employer.
So I play Sticks and eat in the cantina with the clones. I get to know them and play up being the dumb, easy-going brother. It's not a hard role for me to take on. I am the dumb brother. But I'm not so dumb that I can't learn a little, and so I do my best to befriend our clone friends. I make sure everyone's drinks are full, I lose more credits than I win, and I listen to a lot of gossip.
Seems that Lord Straik is not the most colorful member of the sa'Rin family. Lord va'Rin—the head of the household—married a human, which I'd heard, and pushed Straik down a rung, inheritance-wise, when the human Lady va'Rin gave birth. I knew that much, but I didn't know that sa'Rin threw a temper tantrum after the birth of the youngest va'Rin and refused to mate the female he'd been arranged to be joined to since birth. The family was shamed by his actions and he was cast out of the good graces of society.
Which might explain why he's out here in the middle of nowhere, but doesn't explain why he's so eager to partner up with us. I know something about being the black sheep of a household. After all, me and my brothers come from a good family, but our reputation as corsairs has put a bit of tarnish on things and our sister Vanora won't speak to us any longer. Family tends to frown upon credits made by piracy, no matter how badly the family might need those credits. If Lord Straik thinks he's going to return to his family's good graces by robbing and pillaging through the galaxy, he's got a few things to learn.
And they say I'm the stupid one.
To my surprise, the a'ani army actually likes the lordling. They speak proudly of serving him, and when I inquire about them being slaves, I'm told that he's purchased all of them and freed them, and they earn a wage serving as his crew. That isn't what I expected to hear from a sulky brat of a lord like Straik, but it makes me like him a bit more. They also say he's brave and isn't afraid of a fight.
He does wear black all the time though. "I'd bet my entire pot that even his underclothes are black," the a'ani captain of the guard states. His name is Dopekh and he's become a good friend. Plus, he's a decent partner in Sticks. I'm sitting across from him with nothing but two credit chips left to my name, the rest of the pile on Dopekh's side of the table. The a'ani shakes his head, grinning. "He's a good leader, but he does have a certain look about him."
"Your entire pot?" I pretend to consider the credit pile in front of him. I don't need the credits and I suspect that Dopekh does, but I do love a challenge. "You're on. Where's his laundry chute?"
Dopekh's brows go up. "You're serious?"
I throw my sticks down. I was losing anyhow, and this sounds like more fun. "Of course I'm serious. Let's see if these underclothes of his are as severe and ridiculous as everything else he wears."
Dopekh hesitates, then a grin spreads across his face. "You think they'd have a cape?"
Underclothes with a cape? I snicker at the thought, because Lord Straik does love himself a cape. "A small one for his tail."
The a'ani laughs and then gets up from his seat, and I do, too. Then we race down the hall, heading for Lord Straik's personal quarters.