He nods softly at her description of her situation. That much, he had expected. Shifters were sought after, due to their strength, as well as their loyalty. Judging by the quality of her first aid work, she had been well trained, which would fetch quite a price.. '<strong>Stop that this instant!</strong>' he admonished himself.<br/><br/>He looked at her with a knowing gaze. Now he understood why, even though she had been beaten and abused, she had offered herself so freely to him when he had first found her. "But deep within your being, you want nothing more than for me to.. do something, yes?" he said, noting her self-consciousness at him touching her ear. He did not stop, however, indeed liking this little detail of hers. "That's another thing, we'll need to.. discuss." he nodded some. As she mentions about what he suspected of the collar, he frowns a bit. "All the more reason to get that thing off your neck, posthaste." he said, groaning softly. "I know you would not.. harm me. You've had plenty of opportunity to do so, even unable to shift fully as you are." he said, nodding a bit. "I guess being a hopeless do-gooder did count for something, after all." he said, chuckling softly, then whimpering in a slight pain afterward.<br/><br/>He shook his head a bit as she mentioned him wanting to possibly sell her. "I will do nothing of the sort. I may not.. want to own you, but I realize, you're my responsibility now. I said I would protect you, with my life. I intend to do just that." he reaches up and caresses her face. "Don't say that. I have seen the wildness in you. I can see the wild power within you right now. They did not take all of it from you.."<br/><br/>He grins a bit as she explains about the pirates' bodies, and their ship. "That's a good girl." he said, reaching to stroke the top of her head without much thought. He is a bit appalled at himself for treating her like a pet, but does not stop his petting. She deserves the praise, after all.<br/><br/>"However, checking their ship out will have to wait, and we need to get moving." he said, shifting his position on the bed a little. "I will need you to do something. And it needs to be done, to the letter, you understand?" he said, looking at her with a steady gaze. "I'm going to need you to use the crystal radio in the cockpit, to call.. a friend." he said, hesitating for a moment. "Actually, she's.. more than a friend. I'll explain later." he said, that wry grin back on his lips. "Turn the main dial to station 43, and say this, exactly: 'This is the Maker. I require some red jade for a fox statue.' Say the second part four times. Do not say anything else. Close the mic after you're done, so you can receive the response. Once you have it, come back to me and tell me." he said, searching her eyes as he spoke. This had to be done right, or she would think is a ruse, and avoid him instead. "<strong>Stars in Heaven, she's gonna kill me, I know it..</strong>'