Big Joe had taken his place in the cockpit, swiveling the bucket seat to give him an unobstructed view of their guests.
Meg's grey eyes swelled in shock at the sight of the haystack at the controls. Compared to Harrison's sinewy frame and guarded looks, he was a hulking mountain of a man with humor dancing in his crinkled eyes. He could probably crush the air out of her with a hug and have no idea.
It was all Midge could do to keep herself from taking a deep, satisfying gulp of the air in here. It smelled of adventures both old and new, along with the familiar tang of stale sweat...and was that, urine? It was glorious!
Arturo noted the size and sturdiness of the craft, an early Aegus model to be sure, but someone had modified this thing over the years. He suspected there were probably dozens of hidden features to help them out in the event of an emergency. Smugglers took immense pride in mechanically optimizing their ships to look like rusted fish buckets with hidden firepower or speed.
Yes, this will do nicely, he mused as he eased himself onto a low metal bench in the circular antechamber connecting the cockpit to the adjoining compartments.
Once everyone was on board, Harrison swaggered his way to the center of the vestibule relishing in their attention.
"We need you to take us to Arc City Two." Arturo began unprompted.
"That's it?" Harrison asked, his eyebrow twitching at the seemingly innocuous ask as his muscles braced themselves. Only Big Joe knew the burden of a trip to that particular city sphere would mean for Harrison and the reason for his friend's well-concealed hesitation. "Why couldn't we talk about this outside? Would've saved your old bones a trip in here to have me tell you no."
"Our mission must remain a secret." Arturo continued, unaffected.
"Sorry, we're headed out in the opposite direction." Harrison loved a good haggle, but they were asking too much.
"We're not asking you, we're telling you," Olivia responded in place of her mentor, infuriated that this man thought this was up for debate.
"Is that so?" Harrison rose to her challenge playfully, watching the anger flare behind her cold azure eyes.
Olivia refused to back down, ignoring the rush of electricity that tingled in her fingers when the rogue fixed his stare on her.
"Look, don't get your panties in a twist, all I said is we weren't planning on going that way." Harrison chuckled, knowing that would rile her up more. "What's this big secret worth to ya?"
"Are you blackmailing us?" She spat back, folding her arms defensibly across her pert chest.
Harrison closed the short distance between them until he was uncomfortably close to Olivia's personal bubble.
"You'd have to have something I want bad enough, sweetheart." He replied. "Right now, we're trading."
This woman had probably never been checked a day in her life, and he was getting a perverse sense of pride at the rage that invoked. Harrison was wrong, this one wasn't just a handful, she was a headache. He wasn't in the habit of doling out favors, and certainly not to thankless princesses who couldn't keep their snotty comments to themselves.
"We can pay," Arturo repeated, his tranquil countenance (again) shaking Harrison's bravado. "Anything you want."
"Anything we want?" Big Joe asked, his eyes widening to the size of his belly.
"Anything within my power," Arturo repeated.
"Anything?" Olivia hissed, her eyes flashing to her mentor, wondering whether he'd truly begun to lose his mind.
"Within your power?" Harrison retorted. "What the hell does that mean?"
"It'd be wise to watch your mouth." Olivia's head twisted around to look down the flawless point of her nose at the two ruffians. "This is Arturo Fals-"
"I know who he is." Harrison cut her off with a snort. "He's old. What kind of power does he have these days?"
Olivia's mouth fell open, but not wanting to gape like some moronic ape she snapped it shut. Before she could clap back, Arturo waved his hand to settle her down.
"Enough to secure whatever it is you require," Arturo responded, unwavering.
He wasn't fazed by hotshot sailors or spirited attitudes of any kind, this was just a folly of youth. They hadn't lived long enough to see things from a different perspective.
Harrison didn't want to admit it, but the old man's unruffled demeanor unsettled him enough to use caution. He couldn't tell if they had placed all their cards on the table without holding back the trump that could cost him his ship, or worse, take him back aboard Arc City Two.
His eyes roved over the inexplicable group. It occurred to Harrison that the raven-haired one hadn't made a peep, and for some reason, he wanted to hear her opinion on the matter most of all.
Wordlessly, Harrison gestured to Big Joe, beckoning him out of earshot. The heft it took to lug his massive body out of his chair stunned Meg. She couldn't help but stare at the giant as he lurched faithfully after his associate.
"What do you make of this?" Big Joe whispered, uncharacteristically quiet for his Bavarian heritage.
"I don't know." Harrison sighed under his breath. "But whatever the hell this is, I'm pretty sure it gets worse."
"Better ask for something good then." Big Joe replied with a devilish grin. "Are you sure you want to go back there?"
Harrison nodded, ready to gamble big or let them go home (hopefully the latter). They were going to have to offer the moon and more to get him anywhere near Arc City Two again.
"We want all the supplies we can carry any time we want, regardless of whether or not we have something to trade," Harrison announced as they strode back.
"Done." Olivia sniffed, unimpressed with their rudimentary negotiating.
"I'm not done, sweetcheeks," Harrison answered, his lips curling over his teeth like a cat enjoying the leisure of toying with its catch. "We'll also require our own separate luxury apartments in the fanciest building on this human fishbowl to sleep in whenever we stop by, one-hundred-percent-rent-free. We'd also like an unlimited amount of credits to be transferred to us while we're here."
Harrison clearly wasn't finished; he was winding up for the biggest ask yet and relishing every moment of the anxiety this caused.
Arturo, Olivia, Meg, and Midge leaned infinitesimally forward on the balls of their feet, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"And her." Harrison stabbed a manly finger in Meg's direction.
Well Hello! And, Fancy Meeting YOU Here! ;P
Is anyone else wondering what the hell Harrison is playing at? Or WHY he wants Meg specifically? And why would Harrison want to go back to Arc City Two? SO many unanswered questions and we're just getting started!!
Rest assured, there are kismet connections that will all come together as the adventure unfolds!
The video linked above is one of my favorite artists of ALL TIME, Tom Petty. I've probably mentioned him before, but I have been a Petty fan since I was in diapers (because my dad was a huge Petty fan too.) When I was writing this chapter, I had this song on loop as it so accurately describes Harrison's entire attitude. He's not a man that backs down from a challenge (obvi.)
Question for you readers (completely unrelated to the story): What was the name and species of your FAVORITE family pet?
Mine was a rescue dog that my family adopted when we lived in the UK, his name was Rusty. He was such a sweet-hearted, dopey dog that just wanted to be nearby his family. Seriously, my siblings and I must have dressed that dog up for SO many tea parties, and he never complained once. That's a GOOD DOG. :D Sadly, Rusty passed away right after we moved back to the states, but stories of that dog are LORE in my family.