章 551: Pirate Empires

A hatch slid open, allowing Ves entry into the dinghy compartment. Compared to the clean and relatively tidy interior of the rest of the Shield of Hispania, Ves had entered what should have formerly been a backup storage area.

A large closet, in other words.

Now, the compartment had been turned into a lounge of some sorts. A couple of sofas, some pots with alien plants and a simple table surrounded by chairs took up much of the room while muted projection of archival mech duels played in the background.

Chief Technician Carletta Haine, Chief Engineer Morgan Avanaeon and Lieutenant Commander Lisea Soapstone already sat on three of the four chairs. They all greeted Ves as he took the final seat.

"Good to see you Larkinson."

"Been working hard today, eh?"

"You still owe me three tons of platinum!"

"I'll make it up to you, Soapstone." Ves said somewhat tiredly. "I hadn't anticipated using it as a substitute material for my repairs."