Karyu decided that he had really had enough with the petty wars, between zany cultists and the pompous gentry that give them facile justification by their insulting conduct toward their own poor. The truth was a simple one: the people were not poor entirely because of oppression by the nobility, although that had not helped very much. They were poor because the people were trapped in a self-destructive manorial economy, having been forced into it by general fear of anything far beyond their own villages, not to mention outside the kingdom.
Everyone knew that the Dragon Riders did not really need to be served and waited upon by hundreds of beaten serfs. It was just a stupid system, and more resources were being invested in controlling and intimidating the serfs than were really being invested in getting anything done. In the end, it was just despotism for its own sake, and not very much was really gained from the peasants weeping and kissing the feet of the Dragon Riders' mounts.
During the past several weeks, though, Rebecca had begun to open Luke's house to all manner of unusual people, from all walks of life, ranging from some of the more eccentric landowners, craftsmen-turned-inventors, and some unusually bold peasants. What many of them had in common, though, was a shared sentiment that the conventional way of things in the kingdom had been getting to be tedious and dull.
Yes, it was time for many of the more freethinking people and dragons to take to the trade routes and do the work of corsairs. Knowing that Luke had become intensely loyal to King Adam, though, Karyu had the foresight to suggest getting an official--although secretive--commission from King Adam, which would give Karyu and and an elite team of his followers the official authority to wage a private war, along valuable trade routes, against brigands, foreign militants, and other mercantile threats against King Adam and his allies. Instead of living as mere lowly pirates, they would help make sure that legitimate merchants were conducted safely to King Adam and his allies, even while raiding the vessels of those that traded with his enemies. All of this, though, would be done in the utmost of secrecy.
Bartamus Millerson and Teach were skeptical about the commission, though, not liking to be beholden to anyone.
"Are you sure you won't join our cause, Bartamus?" Luke pleaded to his brother.
"You are my brother, Luke," Bartamus said, "and I will not harm anyone in your company if I don't have to. I will help you if I pass by your flight and find you in danger. However, I will not swear fealty to King Adam. He is no blood of mine. If keeping my little brother out of danger happens to help King Adam's interests, then he had best, for his own sake, not think anything of it...because I won't."
With that, Bartamus and the golden-scaled Teach kited quickly off on their way, and two piratical dragons, one purple and one orange, appeared from their nearby hiding places to join him on his departure.
Left behind were Luke and his mismatched band of buccaneers, with many of them accompanied by dragons not yet large enough to carry their own riders. The largest and oldest of the dragons, though, could carry three riders at once, and their fledglings could fly on their own.