Duty and Obligation - Sean Benjamin - Bog

Pirate Flotilla One has enjoyed much success lately. They have an impromptu truce with the Goths. The Sunrise Grange is in disarray after their blockade of the Agra planets has been broken. Four Marbellan destroyers are in shipyards being overhauled prior to joining Raferty Hawkins' group and forming a fourth squadron under the command of Llewellyn Terrant. A permanent pirate settlement is being negotiated with the residents of Agra 5. Raferty Hawkins will not be the one to break the de facto truce with the Imperial Navy. He is content to have his ships avoid the Goths while patrolling with Royal Navy ships in the enforcement of Measure 200, the law against Aurora Empire entities profiting from slavery. Flot 1 has always fought against the trafficking of slaves and this new law gives them the authority to hold people accountable for their actions, even if these people include the powerful Cunningham family headed by Douglas Cunningham, the Defense Minister. In addition to this assignment, Rafe will use this lull in operations to clean up old business. First on the agenda is the Brie light cruiser Fusilier. Two years prior, that ship ambushed and destroyed the unarmed Redemption and then tagged her two escape pods. Since then the Bries had kept Fusilier close to home but her time is up. Shane Delacruz is tasked with delivering justice on behalf of Redemption. Hawkins will be pursuing another mission on Bolindale, the planet where his mother and her group were killed and the group's children had their first fights for survival and revenge. This mission is for Killian O'Hare and has been put off for far too long. The aftermath of the battle will allow Raferty and Killian to revisit their own history and, maybe, change their course. The crew of Flicker has their own unique challenge. They will go to the home planet of the Goldenes Tor and kill a member of the royal family to ensure the Sunrise Grange can not recover from their Badlands setback. These four amateurs will have to learn the art of assassination through on-the-job training in hostile territory. Pirate Flotilla One is scattered across the quadrant on a variety of tasks but these are people who know how to adapt and overcome. After years of holding on, events finally seem to be going their way. However, this is the Badlands.