Atlas leisurely puffed on his pipe, savoring the sweet taste of the Torian blend of tobacco. In his not so humble opinion the Torians grew the best tobacco and was well worth the rather high price. Though, considering he rarely paid for things, that really wasn’t much of a concern for him.

Atlas smiled to himself as he ran his dark eyes over the small assembly of men. The majority of them were injured in some way or another with bloodied bandages hanging from their battered bodies. That wasn't particularly surprising, all things considered. What was surprising was how many had managed to make it back alive. He blew out a ring of smoke and watched it dissipate into the air before speaking.

"So, who would like to explain to me just why exactly the Priest is still alive?" Atlas’s voice was quiet, but cut through the group like a razor.

It was an unfair question, considering he knew exactly why his men had failed. He had all but set them up for failure. Still, it wouldn't do for them to know that. All they needed to know was that they had failed him, and that the threat of punishment hung heavily over their heads. On this ship, he was judge, jury, and executioner.

His men began to shift around awkwardly and a few of the more nervous men quickly dropped their eyes to the floor. Atlas slid his eyes to his second in command, his first mate Raphael. He was a tall man, with broad shoulders and dark skin that Atlas had met in a Gorin prison. His shaved head was covered in a thick bandage from where he had taken what appeared to be a shot to the head.

"Or," Atlas took in a deep lungful of smoke and let it our through his nose. "Would you care to explain why you are all still alive?"

He punctuated the statement by slamming his fist on the table. Atlas was not a man to lose his temper easily and it made any outburst that much more terrifying. Every man in the room save Raphael flinched. Atlas appreciated that about him. No matter what, Raphael never gave any sense of alarm. No matter how often Atlas lost his temper. Or threatened to kill him.

It was mostly for this reason that Atlas actually hadn't killed him. That, and the fact of the matter was, replacing a first mate was time consuming and rather boring. Building up any sense of trust was tedious work at best. A first mate had to be both smart and loyal. The problem with smart people in the realm of piracy, however, is that they often realized that the best way to advance their position in life was to simply kill their captain. Atlas knew Raphael wouldn't do that, not without giving Atlas a fair chance to fight for his life.

Atlas had no doubt in his mind that Raphael's rigid sense of integrity and honor was going to be the man’s undoing. On that day, Atlas might even be sad. If only for the briefest of moments.

The other men, however, were not nearly as important to Atlas. He could replace them within a week. Probably less, if he put some effort into it. Or made Raphael do it.

It would likely be the latter.

Raphael took in a deep breath and drew the attention of every man in the room as he prepared to speak.

"Many guards," Raphael said in his usual deep, somber tone.

"That's all?" Atlas asked, unimpressed but not surprised. Raphael had always been a man of few words. Though Raphael understood Voyan well, Atlas was never quite sure how much the man spoke. As long as he could carry out orders, however, Atlas didn't much care.

"House large," Raphael continued. The men around him nodded, but kept their gazes averted from Atlas. "They were prepared."

"And that is reason enough to fail in a simple assassination mission?"

“Yes.” Raphael nodded.

"Well then, I suppose nothing can be done, at least not at the moment." Atlas sighed. "How many did we lose?"

"Five," Raphael said. "Four dead. Left Hans."

"Why did you leave Hans?" Atlas leaned back in his chair.

"No legs," Raphael answered.

"No legs?" Atlas said.

“No Legs.”

“What happened to his legs?”

"Cut off. Slowed us down. Left Hans."

"Well, that is the life of a pirate." Atlas gave a grim smile and reached out to pick up his wine glass. He lifted it up to his men. "To the brothers we lost, I suppose."

"To the brothers," the crew echoed back. Most of them were still tentative. Worried that Atlas was still not appeased by Raphael's answer. One of the more worried crewmen suddenly stepped forward.

"Captain Atlas, sir!"

Atlas dragged his eyes to the man. "Remind me your name?"

"Dosin, Sir." He answered. He was a thin fellow with straw like hair and sun baked skin. "We did manage to capture a guest of the priest!"

"Oh?" This was news to Atlas. He looked to Raphael for conformation and received a single nod. Atlas looked back to Dosin. "Continue."

"He was walking the ground, sir. We knocked him out so he wouldn't raise the alarm. I made sure to grab him when we left. He was wearing fancy clothes and he speaks good. He's a noble. I'm sure of it," Dosin said excitedly.

"A noble." Atlas nodded appreciatively at his mind began to turn. Perhaps he could turn this failure into a windfall after all. "What Kingdom?"

"I think he's a Romiat, sir," Dosin said. "He wouldn't stop screaming after we got him on the ship, so I shoved him in a barrel below deck. Figured it would keep him quiet for a while."

"Well, go get him out and make sure he isn't injured. Well, make sure he isn't dead, at least. Find out his name and title. Can't sell back a dead noble. Not for a good price, anyways," Atlas said as he stood up and turned his head towards Raphael. "It seems fate is smiling on us, Raphael. I was already planning on returning to Romiatii for supplies and now it seems we have a ransom to plan as well. Make the necessary preparations."

"Sir," Raphael nodded, rising up from the table and heading above deck.

Atlas looked over the rest of his men and narrowed his eyes. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get to work!"

There was no hesitation as the men scrambled to their position and away from the burning scrutiny of Atlas Silver.

xXx

"How are things?" Jiana asked as she stopped next to Servilia's desk. She picked up a folder and flipped through the files.

"Quite well currently, Mistress," Servilia said without looking up from her work. "The Dumas government has sent us a rather considerate finders fee for solving that business with Sani after I allowed Nathan and Romeo to turn in the poison to the authorities."

"That is good to hear."

"I also made sure to pass along information of its development to certain information brokers in the other Kingdoms as well. I have no doubt Dumas will be watched closely. I'm expecting that they will formally contact the other representatives and inform them of their discovery soon. Until then, I will keep an eye on them, just in case."

Jiana nodded. "And the booster? What became of that?"

"Galen is analyzing the notes and the sample that I was able to retrieve from Azalea. After he is done, and we are sure Nathan and Romeo are fine, I will have the remaining serum destroyed along with all traces of its development. I don't believe it would be good to have that information hanging around."

Jiana said. "That is likely for the best. The chances for abuse of that serum far outweigh its benefits. You did well, helping the boys out. I am very proud of you."

"Thank you, Mistress."

"How is Lexi's assessment coming along?"

Servilia reached out and tapped a large binder without looking up. "I've retrieved all the pertinent information. All that is left is for you to go over it, and Lexi's final interview, of course."

Jiana picked up the binder. "Where is Alexis currently? I saw she took a Hunting request."

"She was in Voy, but apparently her target got away. Nasty bit of work, that one. Atlas Silver. Pirate. He's very dangerous, but Alexis should be able to handle him. Luckily, his notoriety makes him easier to track. He will be in Romiatii by tonight and Alexis should arrive by the morning. Likely sooner, knowing her."

"True," Jiana said. "And the boys?"

"I have Romeo and Banksy on R and R. Just a precaution incase they have a bad reaction to the booster or the poison. Galen is also keeping a close eye on them, but so far there is nothing of note to report."

"That is good to hear, but be sure to dock their pay for that job. After all, this wasn't a guild approved request they took." Jiana smiled.

"That's cruel," Servilia laughed as she made a note. "I saw you sent Cross out as well, but I don't have any information on him. A personal request?"

"Yes. I've sent him to collect the Master's medicine."

"Oh." Servilia tapped her pen against her desk a few times. "Are you sure Cross was the best choice for that? I don't mean to question your judgment but…"

"Last time things were different, I believe," Jiana said lightly. "Cross should return within a week or two. He travels much faster than he used to."

"That's a short turn around for such a long trip," Servilia said, peering up at Jiana with a questioning gaze.

"I suppose that all depends."

"On what?"

"On whether or not he enters the Dark Forest." Jiana tapped her fingers against Lexi's assessment. "I will read over this and get back to you. I believe we should give Alexis her final interview as soon as possible. I'm sure it is weighing heavily on her mind."

Servilia wanted to press for more information on Cross, but knew the matter was already closed. She gave a small nod. "Yes, Mistress."

"And Servilia," Jiana said.

"Yes, Mistress?"

"Don't worry about Cross," Jiana said with a reassuring smile. "I wouldn't send him out unless I believed he was safe. The same goes for any of you."

Servilia returned the smile with a nod, her nerves somewhat settled. "Of course, Mistress."

"Now, the day is young. Why don't you take the rest of the afternoon off for yourself? You've been working hard enough for two guilds. I don't want you to get sick cooped up in the building all day."

"Thank you Mistress," Servilia said as she crossed her arm across her chest. "Maybe I will take Makina shopping. She apparently found a large amount of gold coins hidden in Cross's room that she is anxious to spend."

xXx

Hours of travel often allow for long periods of quiet reflection. It can be almost calming to simply wait for the trip to come to an end with nothing else to do but sit and think.

For Lexi, the journey could not have ended soon enough.

Immediately after leaving the temple, she had contacted Servilia, along with her own impressive number of information brokers, and gotten word of where Atlas Silver would likely be headed next. A excruciatingly long train ride and two overpriced horses later, Lexi found herself in a small port town on the edge of Romiatii, just far enough away from the Voy border for Atlas to be safe from any repercussions from the Voy military.

After the incident, Servilia had informed her, the bounty had been increased substantially. She had also wisely reminded Lexi that alive was far preferable to dead when it came to bounty hunting.

Dead criminals rarely were able to give information on their accomplices.

Lexi reminded herself of this fact repeatedly as she snuck through the deserted harbor, her feet barely leaving a sound on the worn, sunbaked wood. In the moonless night, she was nothing more than a shadow wisping across the dock and onto Atlas's ship. This feat was made quite simple by the fact that the security was quite lax. Or, to be more precise, there was no security. No sentries stood guard. No men patrolled the exterior. The only thing remotely resembling a guard that Lexi could detect were a three drunken pirates playing some sort of dice game near the bow of the ship, the light from their single lantern barely able to reach beyond the table.

According to Lexi's sources, Atlas himself was not currently wanted in Romiatii. Combined with the fact that Romiatii held no great love for Voy, Atlas often abused the strained relationship to hide out in this port after jobs, using the country as a cover of sorts. The comfort he, and his men felt, was clear, and Lexi was prepared to take every advantage that comfort would allow her.

Like a shadow, Lexi approached the three gamblers, stopping just within earshot. She pulled her scarf into a more comfortable position and made sure her hair was safely tucked into her hood as she assessed the group. Two had their backs to her, while the third's eyes were set firmly on the dice he was shaking between his grimy fingers.

"This is it, boys," he said, shaking the dice with more vigor. "A seven here, and it's two weeks of swabbin' the deck for ya, and Li, I'll be taking ya sword as well. Don't worry, I'll take good care of 'er"

"James, just roll the blasted die already," Li snarled, slamming his fist on the small table between them with enough force to knock the lantern over. The lantern bounced once before the flame fizzled out and left the ship in complete darkness.

"Ah, now you've done it," James grumbled as he threw the die on the table in disgust. "Witty, you got a light?"

"Ah, somewhere on me," Witty mumbled as he patted himself on the chest.

"Don't worry," Lexi said as she lifted up the lantern and snapped on a new flame. "I've got it."

Witty looked at her through cloudy, bloodshot eyes. "Who're you?"

Lexi placed the lantern down on the table between the three bewildered men before grabbing Witty by the back of his head and smashing his face against the table with enough force to crack the wood. Li and James moved to stand up, but Lexi was already over the table. Her fist snapped out and caught James in the throat as her knee came across and crashed against Li's cheek, knocking him to the deck without a sound. Spinning with her momentum Lexi landed on the other side of the table and kicked out James's knee before giving him another quick jab to the temple and knocking him unconscious.

Staring down at the fallen pirates in the dying light of the lantern, Lexi spotted the die. She spared the unconscious Li a glance. "Seven. It appears you owe him a sword."

Drawing her own, Lexi turned away and headed into the depths of the ship. While the small outburst of violence had improved her mood marginally, she still wasn't finished. Not until she had Atlas Silver confined behind bars.

Or dead.

She didn’t really care which at the moment.

With a heavy boot, Lexi kicked in the doors of the captain’s quarters and stormed into the large, luxuriously decorated room. Atlas, seated at a gilded writing desk, did not so much as flinch at the intrusion, instead choosing to continue writing in his ledger before putting the pen down and turning to face Lexi.

He was far cleaner now, with his long dark hair pulled back away from his handsome face and an elegant, navy blue coat hanging over his shoulders. He slowly rose up from his chair, holding up a hand when Lexi lifted up Nightmare to point at his heart.

"Now dear, let's not be hasty," Atlas said lightly as he produced the shackles and tossed them towards Lexi. They bounced along the carpet and came to a rolling stop at her feet. "I believe those are yours. I'm sure retrieving them is the only reason you've come this far. You may leave now, unless you wish to join me for dinner, that is. It's late, I admit, but I could have one of my men whip something up for us. I'm sure I have a nice bottle of wine around here somewhere. What do you say?"

"You almost killed me," Lexi said.

"That is debatable," Atlas said as he moved away from his desk and to his bar. He opened up a small cabinet and pulled out a bottle. He popped the cork and took a small sip. "Yes, this will do. Anyways, as I was saying, that is debatable. You see, the temple was empty at the point in which I set the bomb. Your decision to enter it was your own. As was your decision to attempt to defuse the bomb. You would have been quite safe had you simply left. Also, I would like you to consider the fact that you have cost me a considerable amount of gold. Honestly, do you know how hard it is to be a reputable businessman when I fail to keep-"

Atlas was cut off as Lexi launched Nightmare across the room. The large, black blade narrowly missed Atlas's head and embedded itself deeply in the wall behind him.

"Ah, now this is truly an impressive weapon." Atlas clicked his tongue and put down the bottle. He ran a finger across the flat of Nightmare's blade before grabbing the hilt and giving it a considerable tug. When the blade did not budge and he gave an appreciatory nod. "You are quite a woman, Miss Midnight. But I fear you have made a mistake by failing to kill me just now." Atlas drew a pistol hidden behind his jacket and held it up lightly. "You see, all I must now do is fire this pistol. Whether or not the bullet strikes you is of no consequence to me. The noise will be more than enough to alert my men to your presence and I assure you, you will not be able to get through all of them. At least, not without grievous injury."

Lexi narrowed her eyes. "Then it would be in my best interest not to let you fire your pistol, wouldn't it?"

"Quite so, but I am here and you are so very far away over there," Atlas grinned. He cocked back the hammer and rested his finger lightly on the trigger. "While I do love swords, guns can be so much more effective. It's a shame you don't carry one."

"A blade suits me just fine," Lexi said softly as she eyed Atlas's pistol, specifically the cocked-back hammer.

"So, how shall we proceed from here? Would you care to leave, or shall I cause a scene?" Atlas asked. He relaxed his posture and lowered the gun slightly.

Lexi seized her chance.

Her hand swung up and launched a small throwing knife towards Atlas. Spurred on by a small tendril of shadow that burst from Lexi's palm, the knife hissed through the air at unnatural speeds and struck Atlas's pistol. The blade sheared through the hammer of the firearm just as Atlas pulled the trigger, his eyes widening in surprise.

The hammer now removed, the firing mechanism continued to swing down, and do absolutely nothing. Atlas lifted the pistol up to his frowning face and investigated the now useless firearm.

"Ah. That is probably not a very fortunate turn of events for me,” he mused.

Atlas was quickly proved right as Lexi launched across the room and struck him in the chest with her foot. He was thrown back into the bar. As he tried to push himself back up, Lexi easily pulled Nightmare free from the wall and pressed the flat of the blade against Atlas's neck until he began to choke.

"Alright, alright," Atlas wheezed. "I see you are not in a playful mood."

Lexi relented and pulled away, but only just. "If you attempt to escape, I am going to kill you."

"I'm sure," Atlas grimaced.

Lexi pulled away and grabbed Atlas by the shoulder. With a rough shove she pushed him to the floor, just a few inches away from the shackles he had thrown to her earlier.

"Put them on," Lexi said as she pressed Nightmare between his shoulder blades for emphasis.

"Ah, irony is such a fickle love of mine," Atlas sighed dramatically as he picked up the shackles and cinched them into place around his wrists. He held up his hands and looked up at Lexi. "Happy?"

"Up," Lexi ordered.

"You should think about being more gentle. You catch more flies with honey," Atlas grumbled as Lexi pulled him up to his feet. He started to move towards the broken doors when the ship lurched to the side. Lexi instantly swept Atlas's feet out from under him and pressed Nightmare against his chest.

"What did you do?" Lexi hissed.

"Do? Nothing," Atlas said with a small shrug. "Although, I did tell the men if anything should happen, they should launch the ship immediately and without delay. That was because we are currently ransoming a Romiatii Noble and I expected the alarm would be raised rather quickly. So it may be that. Or they may have discovered you. Or maybe it's a healthy mix of both? How exciting!"

Lexi let out a deep breath through her nose and pulled Atlas to his feet. She had to get off the ship. Now.

"Not so pushy, you'll ruin my coat. This is Rydel velvet you know. It was extremely hard to steal this quantity of material," Atlas said, as Lexi's grip grew tighter and they entered the open-air deck of the ship.

They were noticed almost instantly.

"Captain!"

"Ah, Raphael," Atlas called out. "It seems we have a visitor. This is Midnight. She will be leaving soon. How are things?"

Raphael dragged his eyes from Atlas to Lexi and back to Atlas before answering. "Gave message."

"And?" Atlas pressed, acting oblivious to the fact that Lexi's sword was ready to strike him down as she shuffled them towards the edge of the ship. The dock was already beginning to slide away from them and the distance was growing with every second. Atlas's men slowly moved to surround them, forcing Lexi towards the bow of the ship.

"Father was angry," Raphael said, drawing his sword and advancing on Lexi. She lifted Nightmare across Atlas's chest and Raphael stopped, as did the rest of the men."

"Well, don't keep me in suspense man!" Atlas said. "What did he say?"

"Military coming. Launched ship," Raphael said slowly before raising his hand.

"Just as I ordered, perfect," Atlas said as Lexi reached the railing at the bow of the ship and ran out of room to retreat. "Oh, one thing, Midnight?"

"Yes?" Lexi hissed, despite her reluctance to answer.

"Did you assault any of my men when you boarded my ship?"

"Three of them," Lexi answered quietly.

"Ah. Interesting. Raphael, did you notice three of our men dead or unconscious earlier? Why was the alarm not raised then?" Atlas asked.

"Li, Witty, James." Raphael answered.

"Oh," Atlas sighed and craned his neck to give Lexi an embarrassed smile. "You see, those three are rather… rather boisterous young men. They quite often drink themselves into a stupor or beat each other into unconsciousness over accusations of cheating. The choice to take them out was very impressive. Though I doubt you care about that now."

"Make them turn the ship around," Lexi ordered as Atlas's idle chitchat continued to pull them further and further from the mainland.

"Oh, I cannot do that," Atlas said, gesturing to his men. "You heard Raphael. The military is after us. It is likely they will be launching ships. Oh look, you can actually see them already."

Lexi tilted her head and looked towards the mainland. Atlas was not lying. She could make out ships flying the colors of the Romiatii navy. She felt a grim sense of satisfaction as the ships began to gain speed.

"You can't outrun them. They will catch you," Lexi said, her voice carrying clearly to address all those present. "However, if you allow me to take your captain, I will do my best to assist in fair trials for all of you. Turn back, now."

A snicker went through the pirates and Atlas let out a soft chortle.

"Oh, my dear Midnight," Atlas said as he gave a signal with his hand. "They're not going to catch us. You might not have noticed, but this is a rather old ship. You could almost say it is ancient."

As Atlas spoke the ship began to tremble.

"So ancient," Atlas continued. "That it was actually once inside of a museum housing many magical artifacts from the Old Time."

The ship began to inch up and out of the water and Lexi's breath caught in her throat.

"It's an airship," Lexi breathed and Atlas laughed.

"Right you are!" Atlas said. "So it doesn't matter how fast their ships are. I can guarantee not one of them can fly. Not yet, at least. So if you still want off this ship, I would suggest jumping now. The longer you wait, the more difficult your landing may become.

Lexi shook her head and composed herself. "It doesn't matter. If you won't stop the ship, I'll slit your throat right here and jump."

"That is a valid point." Atlas said before calling out to Raphael. "Raphael, would you mind bringing the hostage?"

Raphael nodded and barked out the order. In a matter of seconds a bruised up Romiatii male was kneeling in front of Raphael, the pirate’s sword hanging dangerously close to his neck. The blade glinted dangerously in the faint light of the breaking sun against the hostage's dark skin.

"Thank you." Atlas tilted his head to look at Lexi. "Now, I believe a deal can be struck here. You want me dead, and you could easily kill me before my men could stop you, and you could jump to freedom and likely hitch a ride with the Romiatii navy. That would leave me rather dead, and you quite rich in the process from the bounty that is no doubt hanging heavily over my life. However, if you do that, Raphael is going to slit…. What was his name again?"

"Sammir.”

"Yes, Sammir. Raphel is going to slit Sammir's throat and then toss his body overboard for the sharks," Atlas said.

"You're a bastard," Lexi breathed.

"Perhaps," Atlas said with a thoughtful nod. "But, these are the facts. So, what will it be, Midnight? Will you sacrifice the life of an innocent man just to kill me? Or will you save him, and in turn let me walk free? It's an interesting conundrum isn't it? I'm sure his death would weight heavily on your conscious, but if you are the famous Midnight, who I very much believe you to be, then you wouldn't want your remarkable record to be tarnished by a filthy pirate such as me, would you?

"I should have killed you before," Lexi said, pressing Nightmare against his throat.

"Yet you did not. So now, it is time to choose," Atlas said. "Please, make your decision so we can get on with our day. I do have other engagements I have to attend to, you know."

Lexi said something so low even Atlas could not hear. He tilted his head.

"A little louder, dear.”

"Fine," Lexi snarled. She lowered her blade, but kept a firm hand on Atlas's shoulder.

"Wonderful," Atlas said, inching away from Lexi and giving a nod to Raphael.

Raphael lifted Sammir up and roughly marched him towards Lexi, stopping only a few feet away.

"Captain first," Raphael said.

"Sammir first," Lexi shot back.

"Oh just let him go," Atlas sighed. "She won't risk his life. She has too much honor for that. But if she does, all of you here have my permission to fire at will and cut up whatever is left."

Though it was clear Raphael did not wish to follow the order, he did as he was told and pushed Sammir over to Lexi. He stumbled to her side and crashed against the railing. Lexi hesitated only a moment before letting go of Atlas. He took a single step away and brushed his shoulders off.

"Well then," Atlas said. "Please leave my ship."

"This isn't over," Lexi said as she put an arm around Sammir's waist and stepped up onto the railing, pulling the beaten man up with her.

"Oh, I believe it is," Atlas said with a jaunty wave. "Enjoy your swim, Miss Midnight."

Lexi narrowed her eyes before sheathing Nightmare and jumping backwards. Atlas watched her go with a smile before turning Raphael.

"Well," Atlas sighed. "That could have gone better, but it's preferable to death, I suppose. Now then, we should made for Rydel while we wait for all this to die down."

"Captain," Raphael’s eyes narrowed and he peered at Atlas with an unreadable expression.

"Yes?"

"Your neck."

"What about my neck?"

"Black."

"Black?" Atlas said. He reached up to touch his throat just as the thin rope of shadow Lexi had snuck around his neck pulled taunt. His eyes budged as the magical line yanked him backwards, over the railing, and off the ship.

He crashed down to the water with a spectacular lack of grace. As he broke the surface, he found himself face to face with Lexi, a knife ready in her hand.

"Clever," Atlas said with a bark of laughter. He turned his head towards his ship and yelled out to his men. "It appears I will be in need of a rescue. Please, be sure to free me from prison before I am hung." He turned his eyes back down to Lexi and smiled. "I will admit, you are better than I thought."

Lexi said nothing, choosing instead to turn to Sammir.

"Are you alright?" she asked, watching Atlas out of the corner of her eye.

"You saved me," Sammir breathed heavily as he treaded water. "How… how can I ever repay you?"

Lexi looked up at the nearest battleship. She could make out very large and very angry looking sailors already pointing at them. "Make sure they don't mistake me for a pirate. That would be a good start."

"I swear upon my honor, no harm shall come to you." Sammir gave her a dazzlingly white smile. "May I ask for the name of my savior?"

"Lexi," she said softly as Atlas moved to float on his back, snickering to himself in amusement, seemingly oblivious to the seriousness of his situation.

"Lexi," Sammir repeated quietly as the first ship arrived. "Such a lovely name. I shall never forget it."