For the time being, Vertiga eyed the maître d'hôtel. It was a good question. A very sobering question. "Crusade," he repeated. Next to the question itself, it was this wording that made him think about it in a different way. The lady infront of him usually was very specific with her choice of vocabular. "It's the first time someone calls it that way. I often try to find a more fitting word for what I do. Adventuring? It sounds unserious, maybe even childish. But maybe it is exactly that. Or maybe it is an Odyssey, or simply a journey like those of Sinbad." He couldn't hide a smirk. Finding himself at a loss of words because of the question, he reached for the glass of wine and took another sip. It took a while before he faced Isabelle again.
"I will admit, I do enjoy these romantic thoughts. The adventures of Captain Vertiga of the Starship Apahanta. Or the romantic idea of returning to Curacao, settling down again in a nice little villa close to the beach. With a pretty woman at my side. Not necessarily growing crops or raising children, I am not the kind of man to enjoy that. I'd probably just add another few pretty women to the picture instead, maybe a few hoverbikes and..." He lifted the glass slightly. "... a good supply of your finest exports from Burgundy."
Turning the glass while being lost in the thought, he sighed. "But being a realist, I know I can't bail out of my history, mon amiral. There is a bounty on my head, and as long as that is there, settling down is no option, no matter where or when. I believe the sad truth is that I will be bound to the Apahanta for the rest of my life. It is the only thing that can protect me in a very dystopian universe, where a human life's value equals the value of a bullet." Once more, he exhaled audibly. As much as he loved his ship, the idea of it being his home for the rest of his life, instead of his homeworld Curacao, was somewhat irking. "For the same reason, even if I prove my value to you and your crown, settling down as a citizen of Gallia is no perspective either. The Order has agents everywhere, and I wished, I really wished I was just being paranoid and melodramatic."
His gaze lowered to his hands on the table. "That's the reason why I don't intend to cause anyone any trouble anymore. Three years ago, when the Apahanta's journey began, I didn't care much about my own life. Now I do. Mostly because I am surrounded by people who count on me and give me a reason to keep going. I want to protect them, and they protect me. And while it isn't as ideal as being able to live on Curacao again and doing things the way I did them before the Apahanta, living on my ship, being able to go anywhere anytime and for no reason, is definitely not the worst life."
Ezrael smirked at her in his usual charming way. "And you, mon amiral? What comes after the war? Retirement back home or continuing your role in the theatre until your smokes do what Bretonia and Liberty weren't able to?"
