Most dangerous
Is that temptation that doth goad us on
To sin in loving virtue.
This cannot be.
After all these days of petty piracy inside House Space, the times grew tiring and strange. I command my ship like a true captain, a pirate captain. With pure absolution and undeniable power. Women, men, wealth and pure satisfaction akin to that right from the questionable places of sin.
I am between the hammer and anvil. There is a time when, in the end, you have to finally choose between the warring factions. The place for independence diminishes and either side seeks the vengenful mercenaries and petty pirates to join their cause.
Given the choice, the Junker are friends of many pirates. But then, they grew more and more resigned towards the Corsair - or at least I hear so. The Hogosha are the ones who deal strongly within the Sirius when it comes to artifacts. And, after all, the Outcasts dislike the Junkers that bear a huge amounts of the shiny violent-gold trinkets. Even I, time to time, dealt both with the Orange Dream and Violent Trinkets.
But now, the times grew strange and risky. The independent piracy is slowly dying. The unlawfuls seek the cannon fodder and the skilled brigands. Even the Junkers have trouble in choosing their side - caused by the Corsair deals with Hogosha. Myself, I hate the Nomad reverance made by some Maltese familes, yet they are the most influential. However, given the activity in Bretonia, Rheinland and systems between - it seems that it is the Corsairs to slowly grow into possition of an upper hand.
It is matter of time for the ones like me to choose between two criminal powers that grow stronger and stronger, convincing many to join the either. The pacts are made, the deals are broken, the same blood spilled in the name of family domination.
Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind;
The thief doth fear each bush an officer.
The mistakes were made.
My vessel had crossed the very unstable area in the Lower Omicrons and I was caught by The Corsairs. It's needless to say on how they may treat the ones who trespass their borders - especially if they are criminals not in the service of the Empire. This said, I had a very little to say.
They spoke their own language I could not understand. Two of my crewmen were outright killed in a very barbaric way - an axe to the head, with the latter rolling idly. Only later I could realize these two were criminals sought so hard by the Corsairs - and only a good mood of one of these strange people helped me out and rest of my crew.
I could not speak the whole Corsair language, their bird-like fast like a whip steam of words. It took them a long while to realize I'm not familiar with their chat, except for catching a few very obvious words, such as 'corsairo' or 'muerte'. Since then, I counted the very lasy minutes of my life... But then, something changed.
One of these barbarians came closer to me. He took my face in his hands and twitched my head in all possible directions. "You look like some sort of Kusarian and Libertonian mule," the man noted with a low pitched voice. I tried my best not to tremble, but it was a great unknown if my head wouldn't join the other two. "So I assume you can speak the Libertonian language, yes?"
"Y-yes," I mumbled with a stutter, to which the Corsair brute laughed with an outburst. I flattened myself even more, unsure what to say further.
"Mutt," the Corsair noted. "If you were flying the GMG colours, we'd already play with your pod outside. Bastardo, you don't even know how lucky you are. What's your name?"
"Lynx," I darefully reply, although followed with a loud gulp.
"Lynx? En serio? Are you named after a damn cat!? PHAH! That's the most amusing thing I've heard in this entire weak, so I won't kill you - and I'll even spare your crew." The man's words lit up sort of hope inside my almost-dead soul. I had heard about the Corsairs before, their brutality being way beyond status of legendary. But now? I can't really recall what I was thinking at that moment, but it was likely praising all the possible gods over there. "There's only one thing, however. If you want to be let alive - you have to oath the eternal loyality to the Corsair Empire, Gato.
The sudden change of mood made me hear my own heartbeat. It wasn't really I could really choose between the death and service, so I had to choose the latter. "I will be grateful to be in... service of the... Empire..."
I only hoped it wouldn't lead into a... fate worse than death.