"Well, what are the names of the others?" Rigel asked.
Billy replied, pointing with his chin to the taller one. "That's John, the one who brought you here is Jonas, and the shorter one is George."
"John, Billy, Thomas, Jonas, and George, right?" Rigel said, pointing from tallest to shortest.
Everyone nodded.
"How old are you?" Rigel continued.
"14. " John, the oldest, spoke first.
"13. " Billy spoke right after.
"13 as well, sir." Thomas said next. He was shorter than Billy, but it could be genetic.
"11. " Jonas spoke, lowering his head, afraid of Rigel's gaze upon him, after all, he was the cause of all this.
"9. " George spoke next, his voice still sounding milky, for a moment Rigel wondered if taking him to become a pirate was really a good thing.
However, he thought about that time, apart from the attack by the Black Pearl that night, he could end up dying out there, in the end he shrugged, he wasn't a moralist, besides, he just wanted people to pilot the ship.
"Alright, gentlemen, I'm happy to say that you're all pirates now, part of my crew." Rigel smiled, unconcerned by the bewildered expressions of his new crew.
"Pirates?" Billy asked again, more rhetorically than anything else, but he still wanted Rigel to say it was just a joke.
"Exactly." Rigel jumped out of the barrel, patting his backside to brush off the dust.
"B-but sir... we're just... just..." He wanted to say they were just children, but looking at Rigel's height, which was even a little shorter than Jonas's, he was speechless.
"Well, don't worry too much. As you can see, I'm a Wizard, so what if we're children?" Rigel smiled at them. "With me as your leader, are you afraid of not becoming rich? Or are your desires limited to just wandering around these alleys?"
The group paused for a moment, remembering what had just happened, their eyes still burning from the bright light, swallowing the refusal they had been holding in mind.
Among them, John, who had already considered being a pirate, seemed to be seriously considering the idea, they lived by begging, working when there was work, and committing petty thefts whenever they could.
Now they had the chance to live a good life, a pirate's life like in the stories.
Even Captain Norrington's constant execution of pirates seemed far from his mind at the moment.
Looking at Rigel's diminutive figure, knowing he could use the mysterious magic, he felt it was an opportunity.
So John was the first to shout. "I accept, Captain!"
Billy looked at John in shock. Usually, John listened to him, after all, he had the best ideas. But this time, the idiot rushed to enlist quickly, without giving him a chance to think.
Billy soon realized that John wasn't the only one, Thomas had a pirate father, and he had even sailed with them for a while. His mother died young, and his father had no one to leave him with, but Thomas never resented his father.
He could have left him to beg in the streets while pretending he'd never had a son, that was incredibly common, but he didn't. He took care of him, and even though he died on the gallows, he still managed to send him away before he died.
He had always thought about getting revenge on Norrington, and now an opportunity seemed to be opening up before him.
"I accept as well, Captain!" Thomas shouted secondly, much to Billy's anxiety, but he didn't dare try to stop him either, after all, who knew if the wizard would get angry and cast a curse on him.
Jonas and George, the youngest, seeing the older ones agreeing, soon followed suit, leaving only Billy, with all eyes on him.
Billy knew he couldn't refuse now, not only was it a Wizard making the request, but his friends had already set the example. If he refused now...
Billy forced a smile and said. "I accept as well, Captain."
Rigel smiled and nodded. "Well, thank you for your trust. I promise you all a future of wealth, but if any of you betray me..."
Rigel waved his wand slightly toward the Barrel that was sitting there. "Depulso."
The barrel was sent flying, breaking against the wall with a loud crash.
The five swallowed hard, quickly pledging eternal loyalty.