The Cross Heart Adventurers had split up to sightsee, their meeting point the execution platform of the former pirate king. Luna had come across a flea market, digging through the many clothes on display.
Hearty laughter interrupted her shopping, eyes latching onto a crowd of pirates marching down the streets. The woman at the shop sighed, hiding her money in her shirt. "As expected the town is filled with pirates."
"They look more like idiots than pirates."
Luna turned to face Hana who stood not too far from stall. Their eyes met and for some reason all they felt was hostility. Hana eyed Luna's skimpy dressing, the elastic of her bra top sticking to her chest while Luna eyed the rose in her hair and immediately identified her as a member of the Russ Clan.
"Typical witch, always thinking you're the sexiest thing on the planet."
Luna flipped her hair. "Don't be jealous because you don't have a body like me."
They glared at each other, their eyes burning holes into each other. Before they could argue more, a loud shout interrupted them. They turned their head shortly to see the head of the pirates, glaring down at a silver haired man and a dark skinned girl behind him.
His white jacket flapped on his body, his beret neatly placed on his head with vice-admiral written on it. The pirate trash talked him, spit flying out of his mouth.
"I don't know if you're just stupid or haven't realized your position," Aiya said. "But either way, we're taking you in."
The pirate and his men brought out their swords, not backing out in the slightest. "We won't be intimidated by the navy."
She stepped forward, but Alek raised his hand. "Don't worry Aiya, I'll deal with this."
His unusual silver eyes glinted in the sun, the ground beneath them beginning to rumble. People all over the island felt the tremor, an unshakable weight falling on their shoulders. Alek clenched his fists, a giant arm of sand as big as the island shadowing over the pirates like an umbrella.
Before they could react, the sand slammed into them, smothering them and filling the whole space with sand. The sand slowly cleared away, the immobile bodies of the pirates hidden beneath.
"You overdid it," Aiya commented.
He laughed, tying the pirates up. "Oops, I honestly thought I was holding back."
She sighed. "I'll call people to get their bodies."
"I can always count on you darling."
"That's sexual harassment, vice-admiral."
He just laughed, waving at her before walking away. Luna breathed. "He was so strong."
The old woman at the shop smiled. "That's Vice-Admiral Alek, this is his hometown. He comes here around festival time to help stop pirates every year. No pirate can escape here once he comes to visit."
"I've heard of him," Hana mumbled. "One of the four vice-admirals of the navy and one of the greatest members to come out of the Aile Clan in recent years."
"If that's the power of a vice-admiral, I wonder how strong an admiral is. Considering he was holding back I don't think I have a basis to judge," Luna said, staring at the back of the retreating vice-admiral. "Looks like the seas will have a lot in store for us."
.....
Aline hummed, strolling down the food market with Shinzo and Octavius not too far behind her. A camera hung around her neck, her fingers taking up the object any time a cute boy passed.
Octavius and Shinzo ignored her, Shinzo looking through their accounts book and Octavius munching away at doughnuts. A shout interrupted their tour, the three spotting four people surrounding beat up pirates.
A girl with short black hair brushing on her bare shoulders sat on the bodies of one of them, a blade in her hand. Three boys stood with her either stepping or kicking them.
Aline walked towards the crime scene. "Did they attack you?"
The girl tilted her head, her peace sign earrings dangling. "Yeah, but we easily handled them. They're not dead if you're worried."
"I'm not really worried."
Shinzo rolled his eyes. "The world is not safe of brutish women."
Aline and the girl reacted at the same time, swords pressed to Shinzo's chest.
"Who are you calling a brute?"
Shinzo clicked his tongue. "You relate to this stupid cook, enough said."
Aline bit back and the two started arguing. Octavius walked past the two, facing the strangers. "Forgive my crew, they're um… a little weird."
A boy with slick blonde hair, green dancing at the tips laughed. "Our crew is a little off the rails too."
"My names Octavius and the two arguing are Aline and Shinzo."
The boy smiled. "I'm Noel, the girl just now is Aika." He pointed at a boy with swords strapped to the side of his white and dark blue floral Yukata and abnormally bright orange hair. "This is Genki." The boy bowed while Noel moved on to the last boy who had black cropped hair and one dangling gold earring. "And this is Botan."
They all exchanged greetings, Aline and Shinzo disbanding their argument.
"So why are you guys here?" Aline asked.
"We came to this island to shop for supplies," Genki said, eyes glinting angrily with clenched fists. "Until we lost our stupid captain."
Noel sighed. "Our captain is the… adventurous type."
Aline smiled softly. "Trust me, we understand."
"We can't afford to lose him on this island," Botan spoke up, putting his hands in his yellow jacket. "I can't believe that idiot."
"We would help, but we're scheduled to meet our own captain in a little while," Shinzo said.
"That's too bad," Noel said. "I would have liked to talk more."
"If we meet up again, we wouldn't mind helping you," Octavius said. "We may not look like it, but we're people of our word."
Noel smiled. "Then we'll be counting on you."
After a few more words, the Cross Heart Adventurers walked away on their way to the execution platform.
"They were nice," Octavius said. "I hope we meet again."
Aline smiled. "Yeah, me too."
.....
The bell on top of the door jingled as he stepped in, the place practically empty. Only one customer in a cloak sat by the bar table, so Paolo slid beside him.
"Can I get the directions to the execution platform?"
The person beside Paolo had spoken at the same time as him, their heads moving simultaneously. The two burst into laughter, their in sync actions making the bartender smile.
"Just look for Street A, it's at the end of that street," he explained to the two boys.
Paolo smiled. "Thank you." He turned to the person in the cloak. "Why are you going to the platform?"
He grinned, his gray eyes gleaming underneath his otherwise hidden face. "Blanco is my role model because I'm going to become the next pirate king."
Paolo chuckled, the revelation igniting his love for dreams and people who dreamt. "Do you want to hear stories about him?"
The boy nodded enthusiastically. "Yes please."
Paolo started his story, telling him everything the pirate king had done. From all the stories Sapin told him to all the books he had read. The boy listened attentively, drinking in everything Paolo told him.
Paolo sighed. "The pirates of this era are disappointing. What happened to pirating for freedom? That's what Blanco was after, the freedom to move around the sea without any laws dragging him down. He gained his title for dragging every pillar in the world down and proving to everyone he had conquered the seas."
"One day, I hope to grab that title with my two hands. I want to change the world in a way no one has. I want to chase a freedom I will never get by becoming an adventurer." He clenched the fists of his outstretched hands. "Like Blanco, I'm going to go on an adventure around the world and make my name spread far and wide."
Paolo smiled at the intriguing boy, leaning on his palm. "I like you."
The other boy laughed. "I like you too."
Paolo called the bartender over. "Can we get a drink?"
"Coming up sir."
In a few minutes, two cups of beer were placed on the table. The two picked up the small cups, facing each other.
Paolo stretched his cup. "To greatness, freedom and adventure."
The boy did the same thing, his cup hitting Paolo's. "To greatness, freedom and adventure."
.....
The boy from the bar walked out, stretching his limbs with a smile. His friend had left a few minutes earlier, so he took one last drink before he left. The wind blew at his hood, the gray hair with a black headband falling out of it.
He yelped, looking around the street with anxious eyes. He sighed with relief at empty streets before putting the hood back on. Before he could start moving, a loud shout brought him to attention.
A blaze of yellow flashed through his vision, a fist punching his head. He yelped, rubbing the spot before glaring at his abuser with tears in his eyes. "Botan!"
He placed his hands on his hips. "How could you get lost, do you realize what position we're in now?"
"I'm sorry, I was desperate to find the execution stand."
"Leave the navigation to me." Genki said, arms crossed. "Your lack of directional skills is nothing to sneeze at."
Botan sighed. "Did you get there?"
He smiled. "No, but I met someone interesting instead. He was so cool and told me stories about Blanco."
Noel smiled. "We also met pretty interesting people."
"See getting lost has its perks."
Botan narrowed his eyes. "Don't go doing it though."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Anyways, If you want to go to the platform, you'll have to go tomorrow, it's getting dark and I heard a navy vice-admiral is in town," Genki said.
The cloaked boy sighed. "Fine, but I wish you guys could have met him. Now that I think about it, we didn't exchange names."
"If he comes for the festival, you can do it," Botan pointed out. "For now, we need to leave."
The boy nodded, the five of them walking down the street. The cloaked boy looked at the sky, a smile on his lips.