"You guys are what?" I asked as calmly as I could manage.
"We're priates."
"Space pirates."
"Well, yes, I suppose so."
I didn't speak, I couldn't speak. After everything I'd learned today, this somehow, was the most shocking news of all.
"Who do you steal from?" I asked, genuinely curious.
"Steal is an ugly word, we prefer 'changing of ownership'."
"Right," I said, unconvinced, "And who do you 'change ownerships' with?"
"Mostly the rich, sometimes the army, it all depends on the situation."
"So you guys are like Robinhood space pirates."
"Robinhood... is that not an old Earth legend?"
"They don't tell the story of Robinhood any longer?" I asked, dejected.
"No, much of Earth's history has been forgotten... but if I am honest with you, I am somewhat of an Earth enthusiast myself."
"What?" I asked.
"Tell me, what was it like having cars that did not fly? Did you enjoy the now ancient food only native to the great planet Earth? What was 'Einstein' like? Did you know him? They say he created lightning!"
The captain was suddenly charged with energy, and questions were spilling out of his mouth without pause. I was unprepared for the sudden inquires, but one thing caught my attention.
"Created lighting? Lightning was a natural phenomenon, you must be thinking of electricity. And besides, Einstein had nothing to do with that, it was Benjamin Franklin who discovered the properties of lighting could be converted to electricity for the convenient use of mankind, and Thomas Edison who made his theories a reality."
The captain sat back in his chair and sighed in awe, "This is amazing. You know so much, did they teach all children these things?"
"Yes," I said.
"Fasicnating," he breathed.
"Look," I started, "I'd be happy to give you more lessons on Earth some other time, but right now I'm quite exhausted. Is there any chance I could get a room to rest in?"
The captain was staring into space (quite literally), and it took him a moment to comprehend what I had said, but when he did he responded with a most generous, "Of course."
And with that, I was led from his quarters, and to a room not far from his. When I entered, I no longer had the energy to rejoice over the lavish furnishings, but in my head I still appraised them with the utmost respect. The theme in this room was quite similar to that of the captain's quarters, but the color scheme was purple instead of red. It gave off a very royal feeling.
To the left was a large bed with silk coverings and a dark oak frame. I was overjoyed at the sight of it, having truly missed my comfortable bed. This one appeared to surpass my simple mattress however, and my suspicions were confirmed when I laid down on the sleeping place. It was the most comfortable bed he had ever laid in. He would have abandoned his manly pride and giggled if it were not for the am still standing inside his door.
"Uh," I said, "Is there something you needed?"
"I am standing by in case there was anything ya needed young master," was the man's repsonse.
Young master? I couldn't help but laugh, "Aren't you a pirate, shouldn't you act a little bit more like one?"
"The captain has told me to treat ya with proper respect. He is very fond of you because of your knowledge of Earth I believe. Besides that, we may be pirates, but we always receive our guests with the proper civility."
I thought for a moment, then responded, "So, did you steal this ship then?"
The man didn't answer and I laughed again.
"Alright, but could you leave me alone for now? I'd like to rest, and that's hard to do when somebody's watching over me like this."
"As you wish, young master." then he excited the room.
I called after him, "And stop calling me that!"
After he was gone I sunk into the soft reprise of my silken mattress and drifted into a deep sleep.
____________________________________________
I was suddenly awaken by the sound of shouting, and I shot up from my place in bed.
Then the door to my guest room swung open and the man from earlier was at my side, "Ya gotta hurry young master, we're being raided."
"Raided? Isn't that supposed to be your job?"
The man didn't answer and simply dragged me to my feet. As they ran along the corridor, he shoved a gun into my hands.
"Woah, woah, woah, woah!" I said, "What're you expecting me to do with a gun?"
"It's to defend yarself obviously," he said calmly.
I checked the barreling and found once again there was no rifling.
"Okay, but I've never shot a gun before, not to mention this gun has no rifling, so how the hell am I supposed to get even near an accurate shot?"
"Ya talked about 'rifling' with the boss too, I'm not sure what ya're talkin' bout, but I don't think laser guns need it."
"Laser guns?!" I shrieked.
"Yeah," the man said, rubbing the inside of his ear in annoyance.
My childish side was giddy with excitement over this new toy. That was before I realized the severity if the situation.
"Wait, you mean," I gulped, "I might actually have to kill... another person?"
"It's highly likely."
"No way!" I yelled, trying to shove the gun back to him.
He didn't take it, "Look, lad, if ya're goin' survive on this ship ya gotta take measures to protect yarself."
Before he could finish, I interrupted with, "Then I don't want to be on this ship!"
"So ya'd rather join the war then?"
"What?"
"That's what would happen if ya left. Ya ain't rich, boy, so you've no way of paying yourself out. Any young man or woman, healthy and fit, is automatically enlisted in the army at age eighteen. That description fits ya just perfectly don't it?"
"Yeah," I responded absentmindedly. My heart had sunk into my boots when I heard his words. Basically, no matter what I did, I would have to kill to survive. I was no longer in the war-free, peaceful country of my past. I was in space, fighting alongside space pirates, and holding a laser gun in my left hand. This was an absolute nightmare.
"Chin up young master," he had reverted to addressing me formally again, "We're almost there." He then nodded his head in the direction of the large room up ahead. The same one in which the captain had held a gun to my head. One I was now realizing must have been a laser gun. I almost laughed at the irony of it all.
When we rounded the corner, my already sunken heart fell into a deeper despair.