"Quite a bloodbath..."
The sudden naval battle had ended. Several smaller pirate ships had sunk completely, leaving only shattered planks, broken masts, and assorted wreckage drifting with the waves.
Leaving Danitz and Sharron behind to guard their base, Lorne and Mill Walton took the pirate ship toward the Glory.
Perhaps they were mistaken for reinforcements returning from a successful raid, or perhaps the losses were too severe for anyone to spare them any attention. Either way, they approached the Glory unchallenged and climbed aboard over the side.
"Both sides took heavy losses... From the looks of it, the ship they surrounded even managed to escape."
"That ship must have been pretty powerful to trade fire with Vice Admiral Dusk's main fleet and still force its way out." Lorne frowned slightly. "If they were so evenly matched, why fight? Were they really that desperate for food?"
"Heh..."
At that, Mill Walton, who was adjusting his cuffs beside him, suddenly chuckled under his breath.
"Perhaps they simply wanted to get rid of some surplus people..."
"What do you mean?" Lorne turned his head.
"Simple. Fewer people means less food and water consumed," Mill Walton said evenly.
"It was a calculated risk. Win, and they could seize the other ship's food. Lose, and they would have fewer mouths to feed. Whatever the outcome, the survivors could hold out longer. They came out ahead either way.
What...
The cold-blooded logic left Lorne momentarily stunned.
Could such crude reasoning really work at sea? Teamwork was essential out here. Yet... it did seem very much in keeping with a pirate's nature.
"You must be a real hit with your colleagues," Lorne remarked dryly.
"Mm-hmm." Mill Walton shrugged indifferently, making no attempt to deny it.
"Come on. Let's go aboard and have a look." He pointed at