Page 14 of Pirate By Parrot

A being with flared-out ears and a soft-green complexion filled the viewer. “Specialist Norel, you are found and very much alive.”

Annabelle nodded and leaned forward. “Yes, and I am eager to get back to the Citadel.”

“Impossible. Your debt load for search efforts is extreme. Unless you can come up with seven hundred fifty thousand credits, we can’t take you back.”

Mel blinked and whispered, “Ves, how much did Norel make in a year?”

“Fifty thousand.”

“Fuck me.”

Annabelle’s eyes were streaming. “You don’t understand what happened. What they did to me.”

“We understand that you were abducted while on duty, which meant we had to send a replacement. Then, there were the efforts to locate you and the reward offered.”

Mel paused and whispered to Ves, “See if the reward is still standing.”

There was a pause and a whisper, “Yes. To be collected by delivering her alive and well to the Citadel or any Sector Guard outpost, even Guardian bases.”

“Who pays more?”

“Guardian bases. The Imperial court supplements them. They are paying over a million for her safe return.”

Mel chuckled. “Neat. Ves, are there any functioning vessels on this station? Something that fits me?”

“Why do you ask, Mel?”

“Because Annabelle wants a home and deserves to be somewhere she feels safe. So, we bring her to a safe place, collect the reward, pay off the Citadel, and she is a free woman.”

“Unusual train of thought. You want to free her.”

“Once we pay off the Citadel, she will be free to choose her path, and with her basic skills, she can take a position in planetary defense or in law enforcement.”

Mel watched as Marko waddled up to the seat where Annabelle was begging.

“Fuck off, you poxy cow!”Marko slammed her beak down on the console, and the connection was cut.

Annabelle looked at the bird, and Marko looked back at her.“Ask the tall bitch!”

Annabelle looked around, smiling through her tears. “That would be you?”

“That would be me. Ves is making a few calls, and we are going to get you a reward for being alive and a place that you can call home and get some healing.”

She stood up. “Come on, we are going to discuss my plans over food. You have been out for a while, and Ves does a particularly nice herb soup. Hope on, Marko. Time for snackies.”

The bird thudded to her shoulder, and Annabelle stepped toward her. Their little trio headed off for some food.

Mel explained her musings and left Ves to work on getting them some transport.

“So, you just asked the station for transport?”

“Yeah. I mean, he’s a space station. He has to have a vehicle stashed somewhere, and I can’t image creeping around in a standard shuttle. I am kinda hard to fit in the back seat.” She ordered food for all three of them, and since Marko’s came out first, she set her bird on the perch near the dispenser and put the bowls in the loops included on the perch. Marko hopped around happily and nibbled away.

“Were the stands and such always here?”

Mel laughed. “No. Marko started making demands as soon as she was in here. Getting me out was one, and making herself comfortable and getting snacks was another. I have a bedroom, the common spaces, and a gym to work out in, and Marko has everything else: perches in every room and a supply of snacks she can summon at will, but she prefers to have them summoned for her cuz she’s a pretty girl.”

Annabelle looked at the tray that Mel brought her. “Wow. This is a lot.”

---