They had rescued the man at sea only to find that he was wearing a familiar uniform, and her crew had been suggesting to throw him right back in it but Amelia had had him brought below deck, and everyone was under orders to forget what he was as he was not to be harmed and simply left at the nearest port.
When she came downstairs to see him her men were attempting to interrogate him in a very literal way, as in simply asking questions because not allowed to do anything more. They had tied his hands for safety reasons, but they had also left a blanket for him to dry himself up, and Amelia bit back a smile.
"I want a word with him alone," she started, and the two crewmen there jumped to stand straighter. "You'll wait outside, thank you."
Her men straightened up and obeyed immediately, although still worried - she knew them well enough they worried about her being identified as more than pirate captain. She closed the door behind them, now alone with the navy officer.
"They call me Captain Endurance... but that's just a moniker, my name is Amelia," she started, walking to the man who right now was somewhere between a rescue and a prisoner. She carried a tray with her as well, with a glass of water and some leftovers, and intended to sit right in front of him. "You may have noticed my men haven't lifted a finger against you and it will stay that way as long as you don't force them to defend themselves. I understand this isn't a pleasant situation for you, so I want to at least assure you that we don't intend to harm you in any way. No point in saving someone from drowning if you are going to hurt him after," she explained in a soft, calm tone, which tended to not invite aggression from men, putting the tray down between them as she sat comfortably, "My intention is to take you to the nearest port and let you go, then you'll be free to... well, find your people and send them after us or whatever else you are meant to do. But we are still in open sea and you have nowhere to run, you can only wait to reach land, so I hope you'll cooperate with me to make this journey go as smoothly as possible. You'll even be free to go above deck, I just need you not to fight us."
She leaned forward to make the next deal, “That said, I have here water and you should have some. Assuming you may not be happy if hand-fed, If I free your hands do I have your word you won’t attack me?”
