"T-that's not possible!" Rettio screamed, backing away from Zenith while Elez rose from the ground, leaving Madison to sit and hold her shoulder in pain. Pip was still curled up in the Dragon girl's arms, and Madison made sure to hold him and protect him the best she could.
"We'll deal with this guy." Elez smiled at Madison, before turning to Zenith and nodding boldly in his direction, signalling an alliance in order to defend Pip and their Captain.
"Yeah, he's not getting away from here," Zenith growled, slowly lifting his sword and motioning it towards Rettio. "I'll have his head for even thinking about harming you."
"Come on now," the Navy Captain began. "You two seem like reasonable pirates. Why don't we just talk this out and forget about it?" He chuckled nervously, only to watch as Elez and Zenith leaped towards him.
"We don't talk to anyone who harms our captain!" They yelled, as Zenith sliced across Rettio's thighs and sent him to his knees, before Elez smacked his jaw with an uppercut and heard the satisfying crunch of his broken bones. Rettio fell backwards and hit the floor, blood dripping from his mouth and nose as Zenith stepped over his body and began to raise his sword.
"Stop," Madison ordered, rising to her feet as Zenith and Elez looked back at her in confusion. "There's no need to take his life. He protects this city and he's a good man at heart. Leave him be." She said, holding Pip in her only good arm while Zenith and Elez rushed to assist her.
"Of course, Captain." Elez nodded, taking Pip away from her and passing him to Zenith, before Elez reached out in an attempt to support her. Madison chuckled and pushed his hands away, walking off towards the door without any help from him at all.
"Last one back to the ship cleans the deck," she grinned, darting off out the door and racing back towards the ship.
"Captain!" Zenith and Elez yelled, glaring at each other with happy smirks before quickly chasing after her.
"Can't beat me!" Elez laughed, lifting off of the ground and flying over the buildings ahead of them.
"Cheater!" Madison and Zenith whined, running after him as quickly as possible, but ultimately arriving at the ship long after Elez had landed. The Angel boy in question was laughing happily on the deck, holding up two buckets of water with mops.
"Seems like a draw to me." Elez smiled. "Let me watch the kid while you two work." He laughed, reaching out towards Pip but immediately pulling away as soon as Zenith growled at him.
"His name is Pip," he stated, holding the child close to his chest. "And I'll clean the deck. Madison can look after him down below deck; he doesn't like being out in the light." Zenith explained, causing Elez and Madison to turn towards Pip in confusion. As they looked at the small boy more closely, they noticed the way that he timidly hid his face in Zenith's shirt, scared to look out and about in the sunlight.
"Oh! I have the perfect solution!" Madison smiled, rushing off below deck while Zenith and Elez stood in silence and confusion.
"I guess I'll get the ship moving." Elez chuckled, noticing the gathering of Navy soldiers near the shipyard. The group was still a good hundred feet away, but Elez didn't feel like fighting much more.
"Yeah," Zenith nodded, walking off and following after Madison, while Elez untied the ship and began sailing off into the ocean.
"Nope, nope, nope," Madison mumbled, shifting through a fancy dresser with her good arm, while her bloody shoulder still hung her arm limp at her side.
"Need help?" Zenith asked, stepping into the dimly lit room while Pip finally peeked up and began looking around. Madison took a few moments before she replied, lifting a yellow silk cloth out from under the many stacks of clothes.
"No, thank you." She smiled, turning back towards Zenith and Pip with a small skip in her step. "I found it!" She said, holding up the long silky fabric and allowing Pip to stare at it in awe.
"Shiny," the boy mumbled, reaching out to touch it while Madison giggled and tied it around his head. Pip blinked in confusion and reached his hand up into his own hair, feeling the silky fabric that was tied over his forehead.
"Now you can pull it up and down whenever you want." Madison smiled, gently lifting it down over his eyes, before sliding it back up in order to resemble a headband.
"And the yellow colour matches your hair," Zenith smiled towards Madison.
"Yep! He's now an official member of the Nightshade Pirates!" She grinned, reaching out for Pip as the young boy smiled brightly, tears filling his eyes as he jumped towards Madison and hugged her tight. For many years Pip had been scared to trust others, but in that moment he truly felt like this was where he belonged.
"Alright, alright," Zenith chuckled. "You can hold him, but I need to fix up your arm." He said to Madison, leading her slowly towards the bed nearby and laying her down atop the smooth linen sheets. "Stay here, I'll be right back with some bandages." He said, walking off towards the doorway after wrapping her shoulder in towels to stop unnecessary blood loss.
"Okay," she smiled, turning her attention back towards Pip and slowly petting the Fox boy's hair. After many minutes of running her fingers atop his head though, she felt a soft fluffy substance suddenly appear. Slowly, she peeked up at the sleeping boy's head, only to see tiny white ears poking up from within his hair. On top of this, Pip also had a short fluffy tail that waved about in his sleep, proving that he felt relaxed and safe right where he was.
"That's cute." Zenith smiled, stepping back into the room with a small medical kit and bandages. "Pip is a familiar," he stated, sitting down at the edge of the bed and rolling up Madison's sleeve, before bandaging her injured shoulder.
"A familiar?" She asked, continuing to pet the small boy's hair, gently brushing over the ears that sat atop his human form.
"They're summoned spirits," Zenith began to explain. "Usually they can only be summoned when they are fully aged, meaning that Pip must have lost his parents and they were unable to protect him from a summoning spell."
"That's horrible," Madison mumbled, holding the child close as he slept peacefully at her side.
"Maybe so, but he seems to really like you." Zenith smiled, tying off her bandages and standing up from the bed. "Rest here while I clean the deck. Elez will make us some dinner to sit and eat as a group." He smiled, restraining himself from saying anything more.
"I'll be there." She said, staring up at him with a wide and adorable smile, allowing Zenith to smile back before he stepped away from the room and returned to his work.