The remainder of the fight wrapped up rather quickly. By the time Derrin rejoined the Valencians, the other pirate leader was dead at Silas's hand. Most of the remaining enemies died quickly or fled.
Derrin paused on the soldiers. There were now only eight in the group. A few of them were also severely wounded. Despite this, it had been an overwhelming victory.
The ten of them had killed over twenty pirates, including the stronger leaders. That was nearly a tenth of the total numbers the pirates possessed in the beginning. All it took was blood and death. Derrin gave the Valecians time to collect their dead and set about searching the camp for anything useful.
Silas joined him a few minutes later, but the man refused to speak. Derrin wasn't sure if it was the dead men he was thinking about or him, the rogue Montrelan. He had never been good with people.
Most of the tents were empty of anything valuable. The pirates on the surface were clearly not of the wealthy sort. They confiscated some rations and other supplies from a few of the tents. Anything they couldn't carry got burned.
There was no use leaving it for the pirates. Derrin found himself standing back over the man he had killed at the start of the fight. They had cleared everything else out besides the bodies. Usually, it was left to the other soldiers to search the dead men. However, this kill felt far more personal.
It had been a while since he was truly in so much danger. Had the man been any more skilled, he would have died or been forced to run. Either way, this pirate had been a truly honorable opponent. It fell onto him to honor the dead man. As such, it was his responsibility to search the body.
Derrin flipped the body over, and his eyes fell on the man's face. Now up close, he could clearly tell the Gaelic features of the man. They were tarnished by the blood pooling down his nose and mouth as well as the shattered neck, but it was still clear. He briefly wondered how the man had ended up in this place. It was his job to wonder such things, as he had been the man's killer.
Reaching down, Derrin searched the man's belt. He didn't have any expensive belongings either. He found a few spare coins and other minor belongings, but left them. On the belt, he removed a simple shockblaster. It was of a strange make, and he guessed it to be Gaelic as well. The pirate hadn't used it even once during their fight. He had truly been an honorable combatant.
He flipped open the gun's chamber and froze.
Inside, he found a metallic-looking item. It was similar in size to the typical cores, but instead of glowing with the familiar warmth, it held an ominous quality. The surface glowed silver and felt tainted. Derrin knew what it was instantly. He had spent most of his life hunting the item's makers after all.
It was a gearborn core.
Derrin rose and glanced across the clearing. The other soldiers were still busying themselves in the camp. Clicking the gun shut, he made his way over to the next corpse. He flipped the man over and grabbed his weapon. The glint of silver filled his vision as he dropped the shockblaster onto the ground. Rising unsteadily to his feet, he moved to the next corpse as well.
"Hey, what exactly do you think you're doing, Montrelan?" Silas's ragged voice called.
Derrin ignored him and searched the next man.
Another gearborn core.
He moved to the next one.
Another core.
A hand grasped his shoulder, and he turned to face Silas's angry face.
"I asked what you think you're doing?"
"Look at this," Without giving the man a chance to reply, Derrin placed the open shockblaster in his hands.
Silas's eyes narrowed, but he took the weapon. Glancing down, he flicked the central chamber open. The gearborn core glinted in the firelight. The soldier didn't move for a long moment. When he did, his eyes had turned deathly serious. The snideness had vanished, replaced by uncertainty and tension.
"How many?"
"Everyone that I have checked."
A cold chill ran through Silas as he stared down at the silver glow. It wasn't unheard of for gearborn cores to be in circulation. According to Red, Ayjax possessed one of his own. He even suspected that there were some present within the fort itself. The Montrelan secret force had possessed a number of them as well.
However, they were never plentiful enough to give out so freely. Each man in the camp had possessed one of them. Each of their weapons had been primed with the deadly power held by the gearborn and their cursed creations. To be able to give out this many cores so freely hinted at a wealth that far surpassed even the Valencian military.
Derrin didn't think these cores came from a wealthy person or company, though. For one group to have this many gearborn cores in their possession…it was simply preposterous. The Valencians would never have allowed it to happen.
It was simply unthinkable.
"This is serious," Silas said, his vision focused on the core.
Derrin was certain he was relaying the find back to Zara. She hadn't told him exactly what her powers were, but she had alluded. He knew enough to know that she had marked each of her soldiers with her power. Whatever it did exactly, he didn't know. He did know that it allowed her to receive information from them, though.
"Why haven't they used these weapons before?"
Silas glanced up at him, "Who knows, but this is bad news. If they have access to this many, then they have an incredibly strong backer. Whoever their backer is, they likely have an interest in this island."
"There is another possibility," Derrin said somberly, having already considered the numerous possibilities.
The Valencian glanced at him. Derrin had been uncertain before, but he was starting to get a very worrying suspicion.
It hadn't ever happened before. Despite this, the current evidence all seemed to be pointing towards it. Everything they had just witnessed all hinted at the possibility.
"What is it?" Silas asked gruffly.
"It is possible…" Derrin hesitated, trying to decide whether he truly wanted to say it or not, "…that the pirate's backer isn't who we think it is."
"What are you saying? Spit it out, Montrelan."
Derrin looked him in the eyes, "With everything we just found. There is one clear possibility, despite how unlikely it sounds."
He hadn't wanted to say it because saying it seemed like it would make it the truth. In the end, he did say it, though.
"The pirates are being backed by the Gearborn."