The world snapped back into focus like an elastic band releasing its tension. A quick look at the holographic tactical map proved to Jean that their attempt to move two ships with a single drive was a success. A series of cables attached the newly gained transport to their ship, limiting its movement solely to the intended direction and preventing any other direction.
“Fuel report?” Jean asked a pirate on the bridge.
“Sir, we consumed nearly two and a half times the expected gravitrum. It was successful, but we could be much more efficient by just giving the ship the ore that it needed.”
“I understand that, but this is not something I plan to do often. Mostly, this is a tactic I will use for fully disabled ships, or large amounts of salvage.” Jean replied. The Pirate King leaned back in his chair and touched the button that would connect him to the station. “Orbital, this is Jean. We are docking, but I need a crew to take our load and disconnect this transport. Also, I need a larger contingent of fighters and three kilos of Gravitrum sent here as soon as possible.”
“Aye, sir.” A familiar voice replied. The problem with running what was essentially a pirate empire was that many people simply lost their names in the grand scheme of things. There were simply too many for him to remember, and he hoped they knew that without offense. Not that he didn’t care, just that having several thousand people under your leadership was simply too much to handle.
“Why are we in a rush?” Monique asked, leaning against the bulkhead with her arms crossed and braid pulled over her shoulder.
“Because while you were preparing the transport to be towed, our new captain friend showed me a navy lane that is often forgotten about. It forces the ships to fly through an asteroid field with their shields down, so they don’t displace the rocks and ruin the only good path through.”
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“And?”
“And they often travel alone. With the extreme risk, most commanders aren’t willing to place more than a single ship in the line of fire at a time.” Jean said, pulling up a star map and zooming in on the asteroid field.
“You want to hit them as they come out?”
The Pirate king shook his head. “Too easy. We’re going to place rocks in their path, so they have no choice but to turn around. By then, we’ll have sealed off the retreat and have them dead to rights.”
“How do we stop their reinforcements?”
“That’s where things get fun,” he said, clicking his metallic fingers against the armrest of his captain's chair. “This is a magnetic based field, no signal in or out. Once we trap them, we have roughly two hours before they’re expected to be somewhere. Monique, if we do this well, we walk away with a frigate capable of bringing our operation to the next level.”
“And we also might die,” she signed silently, switching to non-verbal communication to hide her worry. “Is this risk truly worth it? Does it advance our people?”
“It is, and it does. With it, we can secure more supplies and go after bigger ships. We might even take a carrier barge. That would give us enough room to move all our people to safety.” his fingers flashed in response.
“Fine,” she replied out loud, “But I get to be on the breeching crew.”
“I would have it no other way.”
It took Rodney five more hours to finish checking over the ship and declaring it free to fly. He’d restocked the weapons, stored large amounts of food, and gathered enough pirates to take a country if needed. With an evil grin that would haunt their target's nightmares, Jean ordered the disconnect from the orbital and prepared the gravitrum drive.
“Mes cha?nes brisées deviennent mes armes. Craignez ce que vous avez essayé d'emprisonner,” the Pirate King said, standing and straightening his back. “My chains become my weapons. Fear what you tried to imprison.”
He engaged the drive once more, and the world stretched.
