Colt did not enjoy his ride back to the outpost. He was loaded into one of many crowded ships in a small fleet that was headed to the other side of the island. Nearly everyone from the base was being sent to the outpost, since that was the direction the Bloody Manta was headed in. The Authority was ready to put up quite the fight for Goldtown, but Colt knew that Captain Rave's crew would be doing the same. He wondered who would come out on top. It didn't really affect him in the slightest, so he was genuinely interested to see if the Authority would be able to defend against the upcoming raid.
The return trip from the Authority base was not nearly as long as the journey to get there had been. The collection of ships navigated around the island to get to its other side. It moved fast and didn't have to worry about many obstacles, so it took hours to get to the outpost rather than days.
Despite the shortness of the trip, Colt was very uncomfortable during the ride. He was handcuffed and sitting in the middle of three armed officers, all of whom were giving him the death stare. He didn't really appreciate this, and thought it was a bit overkill. He wouldn't have tried anything anyway. Or so he thought. He might've considered diving into the sea if he'd had the chance, but a pair of handcuffs alone was enough to dissuade him from that idea.
Upon arriving at the outpost Colt's request for a front-row view of the action was denied. Instead he was taken down to the outpost's basement and placed in—you guessed it—a holding cell.
The cells at the outpost looked pretty similar to the ones at the base. The only difference was that instead of a long hallway of cells, there were only about three that Colt could see here in the outpost. He himself was in one, and the other two he could see were empty. Perhaps this was a temporary prison until the prisoners could be transported up to the base.
Colt looked around his new cell disappointedly. He'd thought that returning to the outpost would be pretty interesting. He thought that he'd at least get to witness some fighting. If only the outpost hadn't had any available holding cells. But it didn't really matter. He guessed he'd just have to sit back and wait for the fighting to be over.
"Hello?"
Colt called out into the dark basement of cells. There was no response. No one even came down to tell him to shut up.
So the service here was a step down from the cells at the Authority base. Colt hadn't thought that possible until now. But at least there was someone on standby to bring him food or shout at him. This place didn't even have that.
So he just sat down on a small, rough-looking bed that the cell contained and waited. He even fell asleep at one point, since the cell was so quiet and empty, but was woken by the deep sound of rumbling echoing across the walls.
He sat himself up and tried to figure out what exactly the sound was. Had the Bloody Manta arrived yet? Or was the noise just the sound of the Authority setting up camp and preparing for what was to come?
Either way, he knew that something big was about to happen. The town could be getting swamped with pirates right about now, for all Colt knew. Or alternatively, perhaps Captain Rave was discovering that he finally bit off more than he could chew. Maybe Colt was simply hearing the sounds of a standstill, with neither side able to gain any ground.
Man, he wished he were anywhere but rotting in a cell. In hindsight he should have left the island as soon as he'd left the fisherman's shack. He shouldn't have bothered doing chores for the man or trying to get information from the Authority. He should've just bolted and gotten away from the island as soon as possible. What in the world had made him linger so long on an Authority-occupied island? Dumbest decision he'd ever made, which was saying a lot, since he'd made a good number of dumb decisions.
Eventually the noise of rumbling was replaced by a newer, closer noise. Footsteps, Colt recognized. Someone was coming. About time, too. So the Authority wasn't going to forget about him and let him starve after all, it appeared.
Colt didn't get too excited, though, as the footsteps drew closer. Whoever it was might be coming to feed them, but they could also be coming to torture him for information. It all depended on how desperate the Authority had become. Was spending the time and manpower to interrogate Colt going to be a worthwhile trade? Colt was determined not to make it one, no matter what happened. The only way he gave up any information at all was if he got his hands on the contents of the Authoritary Archive. It was a good thing he was so stubborn.
The footsteps stopped descending, and the person who came around the corner gave Colt a great surprise. It was not someone to feed him, nor someone to torture him. At least, so he hoped. It was the last person he'd expect to visit him.
Shelly was standing before his cell, staring him down. She had a look in her eyes that Colt couldn't quite identify. She'd never been the easiest person to read, but Colt wasn't getting any signals from her at all. Because of this, he didn't react either. He just stared back at her, waiting for her to make the first move.
She put her hands on her hips. She'd changed outfits, he noticed. She had replaced her black leather outfit, that had gotten rather dirty during their trek through Gold Forest, with a white camisole and some thick pants. She looked as if she was ready for a fight. Colt just wondered whether it was with the pirates of the Bloody Manta or him.
"Something I can do for you?" Colt asked, deciding to break the silence after all.
"Yes," Shelly replied shortly, still not showing any emotion whatsoever. "You need to give us information about these pirates."
Colt smiled a little. So now they wanted information after all. Shelly, and everyone else, was a little too late for that.
"I don't need to give you a thing," Colt replied simply.
Shelly shifted a little. She was starting to look irritated. "You said that Goldtown was in danger. A couple days later a pirate ship is spotted coming toward the island. You knew the attack was going to happen, and you know a lot more than that, don't you?"
Colt narrowed his eyes. "Where's your brother?" he asked. "You see, unlike you, he didn't seem too fond of the information I have."
Shelly blinked. Her confident facade faltered a little, then returned a moment later. "It's not relevant. Tell me about the pirates."
"It's not relevant," Colt replied, setting his jaw. Two could play at that game.
"My brother has a lot on his plate at the moment, and doesn't seem to think you're worth the trouble."
"And you disagree?"
"I'm beginning to agree more and more," she replied flatly, then, "You're one of them, aren't you? That's how you knew when they were going to attack. You came here to warn us in return for the information the Authority has on Captain Finch. Then you were planning to help them destroy the island and sail in search of the lost captain."
Huh, Colt thought. Not entirely true, but not a bad conclusion to come to. He admitted it did hurt a little to see Shelly looking at him like that. Like he was the scum of the earth. Like he was... evil, like she'd said before. Especially since she had probably been one of the closest friends Colt had ever known just a few days ago.
But it didn't matter anymore. She could think whatever she wanted about Colt, it didn't make a difference. His plan had failed, which meant he didn't need to keep up his appearances around her anymore. He didn't have to actively work to control what she thought about him, like he had when they'd been on the journey. She could think he was a saint or she could think he was the devil himself. It didn't affect Colt in the slightest. It shouldn't affect him, at least.
"So?" Shelly prodded. "Am I right?"
Colt just shrugged. "Close enough, I guess. Don't see how that helps you any, though."
"That part doesn't help me at all. But what you tell me about the pirates and their captain will."
"Why would I tell you anything?" Colt asked. "I'm just an evil pirate. That's what you said, right? An evil pirate, just like the rest of them."
Shelly blinked. She was still staring at him with a disgusted expression but this time it was more thoughtful. It was as if she was trying to analyze him, figure him out.
"Because..." Her facade faded for good this time. She put her head in her hands, thinking for a moment. "Because it just doesn't add up! Why did you carry that fisherman's barrel all the way up to the base if you're so evil? Why didn't you just kill me rather than letting me tag along, if you were going to raid the island anyway?"
"Needed some good company?" Colt suggested.
But Shelly continued to shake her head. She seemed on the verge of tears now. "I don't believe that," she said. "I don't believe that at all."
Colt stood up from the bed and walked over to the bars. He looked into Shelly's tired eyes and could see tears starting to well up a little, despite her fervent efforts to blink them back and hide them.
She was hurt, he thought. She was hurt by his betrayal and by not knowing what exactly caused it. Maybe it had helped to write him off as simply being pure evil. But now she knew it wasn't that simple, and was trying her best to get to the bottom of it.
The friendship they'd ended up forming went both ways, Colt realized. He didn't just consider her a friend because of his life of loneliness. Shelly considered him to be a friend too, and then he'd gone and broken off that friendship. And she still didn't know exactly why.
"Fine," he said eventually. "I'm not a part of the group of pirates attacking the island. Not anymore, at least. I ended up on the island by accident, after being left for dead by them. I knew they were coming here next, so I went to the Authority base to trade what I knew for some information I needed. I didn't know it would take so long. The plan was to be long gone before the pirates showed up. Meanwhile, the Authority would have a fighting chance to defend against them. Things didn't exactly go to plan, obviously, so here I am. Happy?"
Shelly stood there for a moment, looking at him as he took all of this in.
"That's a pretty dumb plan," she finally said. "But... it does fit. So I was wrong about you, then."
Colt tilted his head. "Not really," he said. "I'm still a pirate that was part of that evil crew until I got here. It doesn't change much."
Shelly was about to respond but just then a loud crashing sound came from above. She glanced up, looking worried, then focused her attention back on Colt. She gripped the bars of the cell.
"Look, people are dying. The pirates are invading the island and outmanning us completely. I have to do something! You've got to help me!"
So the attack was further along than he thought. "No information I could give you can help you now," Colt said, being fully honest for the first time. "Not at this point. Knowing more about Captain Rave won't stop the man from taking everything this island has."
"You're probably right," Shelly muttered. "But we can't just sit here while the island gets raided. We need to do something!"
"Like I said before, I don't have to do a thing," Colt replied. "I don't owe this island anything. I tried my best to warn them, but they locked me up rather than listen."
"The island didn't lock you up, the Authority did," she pointed out. "Why should you hold a grudge against the entire town and island for that?"
"The Authority is on the island," Colt retorted. "That's enough reason for me. Just because the town itself didn't try to lock me up, doesn't mean I owe it a thing. I really am sorry, but you're on your own."
Shelly leaned in toward the bars. "I don't think so," she said. "I need to cause those pirates some trouble, and I don't know anyone better at causing trouble than you. You might not care about the town, but I can get you something you do want: information on the lost Captain Finch."
Colt raised an eyebrow. That changed things. "I'm listening."
"My brother doesn't want me to, but I'm planning on helping the Authority fighting these pirates myself. It may not be enough to help, but it sure can't hurt."
Shelly stepped back and looked at Colt. She hesitated for a moment, then said, "If you help me fight them, I'll get you everything the Authority has on Captain Finch."
Colt considered this. Risking his life was much higher a price than simply giving up information. But the other deal was well out the window, so this was the best he was going to get.
"How do I know if I can trust you?"
"Will being able to trust me affect your decision?" Shelly asked.
Colt thought about this. "Not at all," he said. "Fair point. You have yourself a deal."
Colt stuck a hand through the bars, but instead of shaking it Shelly dropped a tiny bronze object into his hand. The cell key.
"Stole it from an officer," she explained.
Colt smiled a little as he twisted his hand so he'd be able to place the key in the lock. He turned the key once it was in and the door to the cell swung open.
"Let's go, then," Shelly said, turning toward the stairs that exited the outpost's basement.
As soon as she turned her back, Colt wondered if he'd be able to make some sort of escape. Just bolt out of the outpost before Shelly even knew what was happening. It was a fleeting thought, and Colt dismissed it as quickly as it had come.
As if she suspected he would try something like that, Shelly turned back before she reached the steps and eyed him a little.
"By the way..." she started.
"I'm not going anywhere, remember?" Colt said, repeating his line from when they'd first met. "Running away didn't work too well for me when I broke your necklace, and I doubt it'll work much better now."
Shelly nodded, looking convinced. "And don't you forget it."
With that they took the stairs and climbed out of the basement. The outpost was basically deserted, but there were loud sounds indicating quite the fight happening right outside. Shelly stopped at the front desk and said something to Rita, the receptionist. The woman searched beneath her desk for a moment, then retrieved Colt's cutlass and gave it up to Shelly, who handed it back to him.
Colt was extremely glad to have his sword back. He brandished the cutlass where Rita could see it.
"I'll be taking this," he told the lady. "You see, you're not authorized to use it."
And then he and Shelly walked out of the outpost, and into the fight.