Chapter 13
I lead the kids to the Designer's area where Pan was waiting and she looks at me. "Captain." She nods slightly and I nod back. "Do I need to get these guys leathers?" I nod again and she motions them over. "Rin and I will get that done, Captain."
"Good. Thanks. When you guys get your leathers, thank them. Got it?" They nod and I leave, going to get Nebula.
She was waiting for me on the ramp and we go to the meeting building together while the other Captains were landing. "You know the drill?" She nods and I give her a thumbs-up.
"Hey again, Rogue."
"Sparkles," I smirk slightly and he rolls his eyes as I go toward the door to the Captain's area.
"You and fucking Blue. I swear."
"I know. We're just Gods awful, aren't we?"
"Yes. It's glorious."
"Ain't it?" I smirk and go into the room, sitting in my usual chair while the other Captains file in.
Once everyone's there, we get started on the meeting and I couldn't care less, looking highly disinterested. "Could you at least pretend to care, Terran?" Barkley's replacement asks during his rundown and I look at him in the silent room.
"Oh, I am so sorry. Do I not look interested... Who are you again?"
"Bently."
"Do I not look interested enough in what you're saying, Ben Ten?"
"It's Bently."
"I don't care. Now, can you finish your fucking rundown of the past annual cycle so that the rest of us can do what we need to, or do you want to keep wasting time asking me to pretend to care about what you're saying? Because I'm not the one that needs to care, they are," I motion toward the Ogords and stare at him. "So, stop talking to me and get back to what you were fucking saying. Jackass." He doesn't know how to react and I lean back in my chair. "That wasn't a suggestion."
He continues his rundown and I cross my arms slightly, looking disinterested still but at least listening.
Stakar looks at me when Mainframe's done and I lean forward slightly. "Ship is functional with things getting fixed during the meeting, all new crew is getting their leathers, good crew, no one's dead among them. All I got." I lean back and no one says anything for a moment.
"Missions?"
"Gonna look through some that the Lead Tactician has found after this and should get one lined up for in a... Few solar cycles, give or take." I shrug one shoulder and Stakar just nods before Charlie gives his rundown.
Stakar and Aleta pass out missions and I raise an eyebrow slightly, having a lot of the pussy missions. "Hey, Ben Ten."
"Not my name."
"Whatever. What type of missions you got?"
"None that are too hard."
"Didn't answer my question."
"Since when do you care about that?" Another Captain scoffs and I look at her.
"That's funny, don't remember saying anything to you. I was talking to Ben Ten. Describe the missions." I look back at him and he rolls his eyes.
"Hijacking Nova Corps ships is one of them. Why?"
"How long have you been a Captain?"
"How long haven't you been a Captain?" He shoots back and the room is silent, looking at me while I smirk.
"Nice comeback. How old are you?"
"Younger than you, that's for sure."
"Obviously. Little bitch." He had no comeback and I look at the missions again.
"At least I don't have the Ogords taking pity on me and giving me pussy missions."
"Oh? Is that how it went down?"
"Yeah."
"See, I thought that these got mixed up. Cuz I ain't no little bitch. Like you seem to be."
"At least I don't have seventeen kids to take care of alongside a ship and crew."
"Yeah, that's because you can't get a woman. Cuz women don't like little boys in their father's leathers. We're gonna get along great, Barkley Jr," I smirk, still looking through the missions, and the room was silent still.
"How'd you know?"
"It's just obvious, bud. What? Daddy didn't love you until you were useful to him? I'm just guessing here, but... Stop me if I'm wrong. You join the Ravagers, get put with Daddy's crew, everyone's oblivious to him being your Daddy, Flint gets kicked as First Mate, you become the replacement, Daddy gets kicked or killed or whatever happened to him, you get his spot, and now you're... What? Following in his footsteps? I don't suggest doing that. Be less of a dickhead. Any questions?" He doesn't respond and I glance at him to see him shake his head slightly. "Good. Anything else, Stakar?" I look at him.
"No. Meeting adjourned."
"Dope. Deuces," I smirk and leave with a peace sign over my shoulder. "Oh, almost forgot," I turn in the open door and smirk at Bently. "If you need a name to call me, I'll accept Mistress." He blushes orange and I wink as I leave with Nebula flanking me. "I love screwing with people." She chuckles and we board the Shadowblade.
Indri runs over and smiles at me, dressed in a set of leathers. "Rogue! Check it out! These are so cool!"
"Obviously. And it's Captain. Not Rogue."
"Sorry. But, these are awesome!" I pat his head and get a transmission on my wrist com, answering it.
"What?"
"Captain, we're almost done with the repairs. But, it'll be a few more hours."
"Alright. Keep working and get them done."
"Yes, Cap." I end the transmission and look at Indri then the other kids as they come in, nodding slightly as I see they all have their leathers.
"Alright. You guys had a tour yet?" They nod and I nod back. "Got rooms sorted out?"
"Yeah. Indri, me, Jason, and Jay are together. Yondu, Kraglin, Charlie, and Kruthin are together. Gamora, Raziah, Keiko, and Senso are together. Lumes, Maiko, and Solstice are together. And some of the crew got some stuff set up in your quarters for the babies."
"Good. You're all Ravagers now and Ravagers have a code. Rule One, steal from whoever the fuck you want, but don't steal from other Ravagers, your own. Rule Two, no killing on the ship unless it's me or Nebula making an example of somebody. You got a problem with somebody you settle it planetside or in the gym with a fair fight. Rule Three, we steal for a living but we don't deal in slaves or kids. Or treat living and sentient, or thinking, being like cargo. Rule Four, we only go to bot brothels, not that you'll have to worry about that yet. We don't go to brothels with sentient beings because that's another form of slavery. Got it?"
"Yes, Captain," Most of them say, some of them too young to speak, and Gamora just nods.
"Good. Make sure you all have what you need in your quarters and you'll be getting started on working with the teams and personal knowledge." They nod and go to do that. Nebula had left to do other things and I check over everything from Controls to make sure it's running smoothly, which it almost is. I sit in my chair and rest my elbow on the arm of it, leaning my head against my hand as I think.
I get a transmission from Bently and look at it suspiciously then look at the Navs. "Out." They leave and I'm alone in Controls when I shut the doors, answering the transmission. "Yes, Bently?"
"Rogue. I was wondering, um... If you've got time... Would you wanna go out for a drink or something with me?" I look at him and think.
"I'll be lining a mission up for the beginning of the next lunar and annual cycle to give everyone time to get settled. So, sure. In a few hours?"
"Alright. I'll see you on Contraxia in a few hours." I nod and we end the transmission.
"Wait... Wouldn't that be a date?" I furrow my eyebrows slightly and the door opens so I shake my head to get rid of the thought, turning to look toward the door. "You guys are still here?"
"Yeah. All of the bad guys are in jail and the jails are Hulk proof to keep them from escaping," Peter says and I nod a bit.
"Cool. Congrats on that. Quick question."
"Shoot."
"What would you define a date as?" They all look at me, confused and shocked, and I cross my legs, looking at them. "What?"
"Haven't you ever been on a date before?"
"I've fought alongside Jay since I was ten. Does that count?" They shake their heads and I think. "I went on solo missions with Jay sometimes." They shake their heads again and I cross my arms slightly as I think. "Oh. I would meet Atar for drinks whenever we were on Contraxia at the same time."
"That's kind of a date. Did you get food too?"
"No. We got drinks and then went back to his quarters on Charlie-27's ship because he was scared of Gramps." Tony snorts slightly and the women kinda nod.
"Yeah, that's kind of a date. Seems more like a booty call, though," Michelle says and I tilt my head slightly to the side for a moment in agreement. "So, that isn't a real date. You've never been on a date before?"
"Guess not. Cool."
"Why do you ask?" Thor raises an eyebrow at me and I tap my foot slightly for a second.
"Let's say, hypothetically, someone asked if I wanted to get drinks with them sometime. Does that classify as a date?" Pepper looks at me and sees something, holding a hand out to Michelle slightly to shut her up.
"No, not necessarily. They might just want to get to know you over some drinks. As friends. Or allies." I nod a bit and see Vin and Val coming in.
"Cap'n," They give me the Ravager Salute and I stand to reciprocate it, looking at them.
"Got it fixed up?"
"Yes, Cap'n. We're good to go."
"Good. We're making a stop on Contraxia see if anybody wants any bots and I'll pay." They nod and go off to do that while I set a course for Contraxia, taking off from the planet. The Avengers kinda fall over and get up as we go through a few jumps. "You'll get used to it." I land on Contraxia and the crew members that want bots are coming in, remarkably less than what I remember. I give them the units necessary and they leave as I give Pepper units too, noticing they all had leathers too.
"What are these for?"
"You're the most responsible one out of all of these idiots it seems and they're units. For drinks and food if you want them. A lot of the stuff out here is better than on Terra. Enjoy." I grab the pouch of holopads from Controls and disembark with them following me. I point them toward a bar slash restaurant and they look at me. "That place has some good food, alright? Go there." They go that way and I go to a bar, getting a table.
"What can I get for you, Captain?"
"A bottle of Rhone." I give them some units and they nod, coming back with it and a couple of glasses. "Thanks." I pour a glass for myself and look through the holopads as I drink.
"Hello, Rogue," Bently says as he sits down and I put the holopad I was looking through back in the pouch with the others.
"Bently." I pour him a glass and he takes it, nodding slightly in thanks.
"I wanted to talk to you about something."
"Have at it."
"I'm not Barkley's son."
"OK. Explain, then."
"I'm Jay." I pause in drinking and slowly lower my glass, looking at him.
"That isn't funny."
"I'm being serious." I vaguely notice some other crewmembers come in with their Captains and they notice me with Bently. "When Jay died, his soul came to me. It's kind of like reincarnation, but faster," He explains and I clench my hand around my glass, finishing my drink. "So, he's not dead. He's living in me."
I take his drink and throw it in his face as I stand, the bar silent now. "I don't know what type of sick joke you're trying to pull, but it isn't funny. Now, I hope you enjoyed what you got from that glass of Rhone. Have a nice night." I grab the bottle by the neck and leave the bar with it, leaving Bently a few units to buy a drink. I walk around outside and drink from the bottle, going over to the tattoo place.
Trol smiles at me and motions me inside as I step through the door. "Hello, Captain Rogue. Where's Jay?" I don't say anything and he nods a bit. "I see... What tattoos can I get you tonight?"
"Can you give me what Jay had? The ring on a chain?"
"Of course. Have a seat." I sit down and take my jacket off so he can work on it. "Feel free to drink from the bottle as I do because I can't give you anesthesia due to having the alcohol in your system. Just let me know so I can pause."
"Can do." I down half of the bottle and grit my teeth slightly at the burn, putting my arm off to the side of the chair. "OK. Let's get this ink on." He nods and starts putting the tattoo on. I close my eyes and rest my head against the headrest, thinking about Jay.
"There we are, Captain!" He smiles and I open my eyes to look in the mirror that he was holding. "Any other tattoos?" I nod and write out 'Jay Fletch' in English.
"Can you put this around my ring finger?" He nods and I give him my hand before he starts tattooing it on. The bell above the door rings to signal someone coming in and I ignore it, not caring.
"I'll be with you in a moment, Kraglin."
"A'ight, Trol. Who ya got in 'ere wit' ya?"
"Fuck off, Krags," I say simply and he snorts.
"Ah, yes. Family. Always fun to see them interact with each other in my shop. Get your design prepared, Kraglin." He finishes my tattoo and gives me some salve. "Here you are, Captain. Apply and you'll be healed in no time at all."
"Thanks, Trol. See ya 'round." I raise the bottle at him slightly as I leave and take a swig, flipping Kraglin off as I walk through that area. He reciprocates it and I walk out to see Yondu walking toward the shop with the Ogords. I wave the bottle at them slightly in greeting and walk toward my ship. They go past me and I finish the bottle, tossing it in the garbage chute as I board.
"Let's be honest, Jay was a villain," Steve says and I lean against the doorframe to Controls. "Rogue kind of is, too." I notice the bottles at their feet and realize that he was probably drunk, the rest of the Avengers by him with the kids too.
"We're the villains in your storybook, goody two shoes?" He nods and I push myself to a standing position, walking over calmly to ruffle Indri's hair and check over the other kids, Gamora not interested in me.
"I always wondered why I liked the villains more. And I think it might be because when they get on the floor, down on their knees for her and only her, something in me stirs. A hero would sacrifice her to save the world, showing that they are indeed pure-hearted and honest. But a villain would tear the world apart if she was hurt. That is a promise. They seem selfish, manipulative, and rude to everyone around, but he treats her like a queen, his and only his, sitting beside him on a throne with her crown. I think villains are misjudged and that most of the time we don't get to see their story. For, if we knew it, the hero may not seem so full of glory. Monsters are made, not born. And any soul tortured, confused, and abused, incidentally, would not have time to mourn. So the next time I defend the villain of the tale, remember that they too were once broken and frail," I recite the poem from memory and everyone looks at me.
"That doesn't explain how you aren't villains."
"Who are the heroes?"
"Why does that matter?"
"If your only evidence for us being villains is that I fought to the death with people and killed people to protect my family and my kids, fuck you. And if your only evidence of Jay being a villain is the first time you met him, fuck you again. We got massively fucked up by the Kree when we were with them. If you've got something to say about me, say it to my damned face, not behind my back."
"Do you have any clue how many people you killed today?" He asks in a scoff and I nod. "How many?"
"Sixty-nine. No, seventy-two." He nods and looks at me, surprised I knew. "I don't go around killing people for the Hell of it. I know the number of people I've killed over the years. But, morals aren't good traits for a Ravager to have, Rogers."
"And what's that number?"
"Thousands," I say plainly and Indri looks at me.
"How do you say that like you're talking about anything normal? It's not normal to kill that many people, Rogue! And it isn't right!"
"Indri, calm down, bud," Petey tries and he glares at him.
"Don't tell me what to do!" He doesn't say anything and Indri looks back at me. "You are the only Ravager who has killed that many people!"
"No, I'm not. And I'm not gonna explain this to you again, kid. It was either the Kree dying or having to always be looking over our shoulders because they'd keep coming after us until they had us dead or as slaves."
"Then at least I'd be with Mom and Dad!" He leaves after that and the other kids look at me.
"And we could've been with our father instead of a killing machine and thief of a mother," Gamora says simply and leads the other kids out after yelling at them to go with her. I catch her by her arm and look at her as I crouch to be eye level with her.
"I know you don't like me, but you're going to respect me."
"I have no respect for murderers and mothers who abandon their children." She punches me in the face and I let her go out of shock before she runs off, the other kids too shocked to move as I contact Nebula while I stand.
"Yes, Captain?"
"Find Gamora and put her in the Brig for insubordination and punching me. Maybe a couple of solar cycles down there will get her to understand who's in charge."
"Aye, Captain." I end the transmission and look at Petey who says nothing at first.
"She doesn't need to be in the Brig."
"And she doesn't need to go around spewing the crap she does, yet here we are." I look at the time and see it's going toward 2300. "I want all of you in your quarters and your bunks. Now."
"Aye, Captain." He makes sure they all go to their quarters and I look at the Avengers.
"Get to a bunk and find teams to work on in the morning." They nod and do that, Loki hanging around. "Sorry for giving you crap on Terra when I met you. The only opinions I had formed were that you were a piece of shit. Because that's the only side of you that was ever shown. So... Sorry." I rub the back of my neck slightly and he smiles a bit at me.
"Apology accepted. Would you like a drink?"
"Yes. Come on, we can have some from my bar. If you want." He nods and I lead him into my quarters, shutting the door behind us as I turn the lights up slowly so our eyes can adjust. I go over to the bar and look through the bottles, humming softly in thought. "I don't have any Asgardian stuff, but... I have whiskey that got outlawed."
"That will probably match Asgardian drinks."
"Cool." I grab a bottle and two glasses, pouring some for each of us. "Here's to being hated by the Avengers and our families. Cheers," I scoff slightly and he chuckles, clinking glasses with mine before we each take a drink.
"How much did you hate sending your oldest daughter to the Brig?"
"It was way harder than I thought it would be," I chuckle a bit and motion toward the sitting area, sitting in my chair while he sits on a couch, one arm flung over the back of it.
"Would you like help in raising the children?"
"That's what the crew's and family's for," I joke and he smiles. "Yeah, it'd be nice to have help... But, anyone around me just wants my head on a platter, my position, or to make me feel like a fool. Gods, I wish Jay were here... It'd be a lot less to handle alone..." I take a sip of my drink and he watches me as he drinks his.
"How long did it take you and Jay to get together?"
"Twelve years. I didn't know how to bring it up and anytime he'd show any affection toward me, someone in my family would come and beat the crap out of him. That's why I kept my first relationship a secret and that turned out badly for me."
"How so?"
"Atar was an abusive asshole and I couldn't quite bring it up to anyone. Because it was hard to talk about and he was a successful Ravager while I was the granddaughter of a Ravager Captain who would've just been spewing shit to drag him through the mud. Thankfully, he got too jealous and too careless, showing his true colors in public after I turned down his proposal. Then Jay proposed, officially, the next morning..." I look at my glass and feel a tear fall, wiping it away quickly. "Ah, sorry."
"Oh, it is quite alright." He hands me a clean rag and I wipe my face quickly. "Rogue."
"Yeah?"
"Would you like to make this an occurrence that happens often?" I look at him and think about that before nodding.
"Yeah... I would... Thanks..."
"My pleasure, Captain." He finishes his drink and stands, bowing slightly with a smile at me. "Sleep well." I stand and bow slightly back.
"You too." He leaves and I shut the door behind him, finishing my drink as I smile, happy. Like when I first met Jay.