1 Prologue

The ocean dwells in lonely life and storm, but for a perilous few it was their livelihood, passion and their way of survival. The large wooden Pirate ship crashed into the waves as it glided across the black marble like ocean. The full moon above glimmering on broken ripples, each with a thousand years of stories to tell. The stars overhead, billions of them creating a brilliant and awe inspiring canopy which looked down on the Captain as he wondered what many different worlds were above him. Captain Gant A.K.A Black Water, a fitting name for the legendary pirate king who loved to sail at night, stood at the helm of his great ship the Black Mist. His gaze reverted to the dark horizon that lay ahead. The wind was a soothing cold, a small comfort that he often appreciated.  A recent kiss from the sea left a taste of salt in his beard.

Most of the crew onboard were asleep, either down below in the crew quarters or scattered around the top deck out here in the cool of the night. The only other awake apart from Black Waters was the first mate Gregor, he walked up behind the captain "Tis a peaceful night Captain, an encounter has not been seen in many days."

Black Water turned and smiled at Gregor revealing his gold tooth amongst the other decaying few. "Aye, Gregor. Other factions have steered clear of our mighty band of miscreants." Black Water looked up at the neverending stars. "Do you not wonder if our destiny lies out there?"

Gregor was confused and unsure how to respond. "No captain, what more can a man ask for than wind being in his hair and the open waters to travel at our pleasure."

Black Water motioned to the sky with his hand. "But these great sky ships that we have come to battle more often than not. What if they could go higher and up into the sea of stars. Heard whispers from the crew I have about such things."

Gregor smiled with admiration. "Should you wish captain, at your side I will travel to the unknown."

Their conversing was cut short, Gregor heard a faint rumble emanating from the dark horizon, a sound he was all to familiar with. "Captain, a steel eagle approaches from the west."

Black Water and Gregor moved to the port side of the ship and looked ahead to the endless black seas and sky full of twinkling lights, they noted three stars that stood out much brighter than the rest in perfect horizontal alignment.

Continuing to grow in size the three lights were not the natural beauty that the captain pretended them to be, for only a brief moment. "Wake the crew." Black Water refused to yell when he had a first mate at his disposal.

As the trio of lights expanded, their sound rose to a deafening crescendo, a subsonic rumble that sounded much like a controlled continuous thunder. A metallic cylinder centre with wings on either side blitzed past over head, the sky giant was fast and loud. Black Water followed the craft with his eyes and smirked with excitement and anticipation as he saw his crew muster on to the main deck. He loved a good battle. "Man the blasters ladies!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.

The Black Mist was all but a remnant of its former self, now equipped with tactical advancements, the most useful being a favorite among the crew. Three, directional pulse blasters found their home on this old pirate ship at the stern, port and aft areas, each with a cockpit of their own.

Bronson Gage, a young African American man in his late twenties jumped up into the port gun. He hovered his hand above the touch screen next to the controlling joystick and his circuitry tattoos spoke to the cockpits computer. Diagnostics flared out all across the windshield revealing all the information he needed. He waved his hand next to his ear, a circuitry tatt behind his ear glowed light blue. "Captain, I'm in port. It's a class twelve Roseneck."

Black water tapped his ear, it began to glow. "Aye, take them out when they come around. We needn't be losing to them again."

Gage shook his head. "I know we lost a few good crew last time we went up against them but Roseneck's a bigger faction than us. We shouldn't fire until they do."

Black Water reached into his dirty old black jacket and whipped out a clear handheld device made out of special glass-tech that displayed ship diagnostics and a radar to track enemy factions. He saw only one sky craft on his Glass. "It be a lone Roseneck. Long gone we'll be before the mothership finds us!" Black Water loved to shoot first and think later.

Gage sighed. "Yes sir." He tapped the touch screen and slid his finger from bottom to top creating a subsonic hum that raised in pitch in time with his slide.  Gage could hear the sky craft circling around. His windshield display beeped in three short pulses. "Got a lock!" The sky craft flew into his view and he immediately squeezed the joystick sending a massive blue pulse beam towards the sky craft. The craft quickly swerved just missing the beam. "Ahh, missed it!" Gage tapped his ear. "Tiny! He's coming around!"

Ormin 'Tiny' Korvestindra was a large burly space Viking who was tough as nails. His massive body was squished into the cockpit of the blaster at the stern of the pirate ship. His long brown beard was resting on his big belly. "Yeah I've got him!" he had a deep growling voice. Tiny's windshield display beeped. He cleverly squeezed the joystick before he could see the craft. A blue pulse shot out from the blaster. The sky craft flew straight into the devastating beams path causing it to explode on impact. "Yeah baby! Hahaha!" his laugh was jolly yet cocky all the same.

Bronson Gage yelled out through the comms. "Hey man that's my line!"

Tiny noticed three camera drones whiz past him in formation. They separated and hovered around both sides of  Black Mist. "Ha! Shoot down the drones and I'll let you have the line back!"

High above in an orbiting ship resembling a stadium, the audience of 23,000 erupted in cheer.

YEAAAHHH!!! They all screamed in unison as they watched from the massive viewing screen that rapped around the centre of the entire donut shaped orbiting ship, as captain Black Water's crew destroyed the Roseneck's sky craft.

A young man in the audience turned to his reptilian looking friend next to him and yelled over the cheering "The Roseneck's didn't stand a chance against the Gamma Faction!"

The reptilian punched his human friend in the arm "No way you knew! The Gamma Faction has just been assembled! No one knew if they would even fight together!"

"Ouch!" he rubbed his arm. "They are the best team out there now! It sure does make the tournaments more interesting!"