Meanwhile, Shining Pirates Fleet, Wilderness Island
~Castor’s Perspective~
I walk onto Averill’s ship, the Shining King. I walk into the captain’s quarters. Averill’s there along with some other captains. They all turn to me as I walk over to Averill.
“Cassius?” Averill asks.
“Dunno,” I respond. “Had something to do apparently. I’m in charge while he’s gone.”
Averill nods as if he expected this.
“Why are you here then? I thought the plan-”
“About that,” I interrupt. I hand him the papers Arianna showed us. Averill’s face darkens as he looks through them.
“Where did you get these?” he asks me.
“Quick question,” I reply. “Does Captain Evergarde have a job that involves handling sensitive information?”
Averill’s eyes widen as he realizes what I mean.
“Captain Evergarde,” he says coldly. “Come here.”
A nervous-looking, ginger-haired man walks over to us.
“Yes sir?” he asks.
“You mentioned the possibility of a spy within our ranks. Well, I think we found them.”
Averill whips out a flintlock and points it at Evergarde. Everyone freezes.
“I had my eyes on you the moment you joined. When you suggested the possibility of a spy, my suspicions grew. The missing documents did not help your case.
“The Shining Pirates are built on trust. Yet you chose not to build any sense of camaraderie with your fellow captains. Well, my suspicions proved to be true, you traitor.”
Averill looks at Evergarde in disgust.
“No last words? Very well.”
Averill shoots Evergarde in the head with a loud bang. Evergarde falls to the floor, dead. He turns to me.
“I’m guessing Cassius wants us to attack the Emerald Skull Pirates now?”
I nod.
Averill turns to the captains.
“Prepare your ships. We leave at dawn.”
The captains nod. Averill looks at Evergarde’s body.
“Castor Aaio. Take that traitor’s body and throw it to the fish before returning to your ship.
A few hours later
I lean on the railing. Alex, my lover, walks up behind me and hands me a glass of rum.
I observe them quietly. They seem to be a bit happy. But just to be sure…
“Are you feeling blue or pink?” I ask.
“Blue,” he responds.
“Alright. Great.”
Alex takes a sip of rum before looking up at the moon.
“Can’t believe Cassius isn’t here,” he begins. “He was always there when we did something big.”
I nod.
“Yeah, same,” I reply. “You do realize that I’m now your leader, right?”
“Fuck you,” he retorts, raising his middle finger at me. “Don’t use your power for dirty things.”
I laugh.
“No intention. Speaking of which, since we’re alone, let’s talk about something.”
Alex looks out for a few moments.
“Nah. Let’s shut up for once and just enjoy this moment. We’re not Avery and Arianna.”
“That wasn’t a request.”
“Don’t give a shit. You may be captain while Cass is gone, but right now, you’re my boyfriend. Don’t you dare think otherwise.”
We laugh and clink our glasses together as the moon shines above us.
End of Chapter XXXII