CHAPTER 1

Vagabonds and criminals litter the whole world, from the most infamous to the most discreet.

But there is one name nobody has unheard of, one name everybody fears; a pirate, a thief of the seas, hunter of gold and jewels, destroyer of anyone who dare block his path. He follows the scent of treasure like a hound after a piece of meat, hungry and relentless. But this man's primary senses are far superior than any normal being's, may it be human or animal. This pirate is gifted with powerful sorcery, of magic most deceitful; this pirate is gifted with the power of Change. He possesses the power to change into a fire-breathing dragon of onyx scales and golden eyes.

"BULLSHIT!" was exclaimed with a hearty laugh the same time "That's stupid, eh?" was said with a small grin.

Gilbert Weillschmidt slammed his beer on the table, chuckling at his companions' reactions.

"Whaaat?" he whined. "You don't believe me?"

"NO." was the unanimous answer laced with snickers and chuckles.

"BULLSHIT!" Gilbert laughed. "That legend is true, I tell you!"

"Come on, Gil. Can you imagine me or Matt turning into a bird?"

"No—"

"Al, a dragon's not a kind of—"

"Exactly! So how do you suppose can a man turn into a dragon?"

"—but you would make a fine parrot." Gilbert finished.

Silence ensued.

Then two burst out laughing.

"Bastards." Alfred F. Jones hissed at his friend and his half-brother but his insult went ignored as the eldest of the three raised his glass in a toast.

"To Alfred the parrot!" Gilbert cackled.

"To Alfred the parrot." Matthew Williams seconded, although he did in a much lower volume.

They drank in unison while Alfred looked on, sulking; Gilbert downed his drink in three messy gulps while Matthew opted for a slower, surer pace.

"Hey, don't look so down, we're just kidding—"

"He knows that—"

"It's not like anybody can stand your noise either, Gil!" Alfred cried out, jumping to his feet. He took a sip from his own glass before leaning closer to his companions as if to let on a great secret.

"Ludwig complains. A LOT," he whispered then waggled his eyebrows for effect.

Gilbert only averted his eyes. "Well…He just can't take my awesome so—"

"That's good! At least now I know I'm not alone in suffering because of a loud older brother."

A duet of "MATTHEW!" echoed throughout the inn.

"See? Who knows, maybe someday you two can team up and spy on this legendary pirate wearing parrot feathers and nobody'll notice the difference, eh?" the youngest commented, sniggering.

Gilbert and Alfred finally shut their mouths to frown like children, much to Matthew's amusement. They were so predictable.

"WAIT!" Alfred interrupted. "If this pirate is as mighty as you describe him to be…and he can change into a dragon or whatever…then…then why is he a pirate?"

The other two blinked.

"Huh?" was Gilbert's intelligent response.

"I don't quite get your question, Al."

"Why is he a pirate?" the taller blond repeated. "I mean…if he can change into a dragon, why not conquer the world that way? He breathes out fire, has huge claws and stuff…"

"See? You do believe the tale!" Gilbert pointed out excitedly.

"It's the opposite, Gilbert. He's questioning it." Matthew corrected and motioned for his brother to continue.

"Why would he bother changing back into a human? Why not stay as a dragon forever?"

The red-eyed man shrugged. "I don't know. He has his reasons. I'm not into details anyway, you know. It's an old story; people just kinda pass it around—"

Matthew snorted. "An old wives' tale, you mean."

"Or sailors'." Alfred added, smirking.

"But!" Gilbert raised his hand to silence them both. "This, for a fact, I know."

He lowered his voice to a whisper, leaning in the way Alfred did earlier.

"This pirate and his crew has robbed from and sunk over twenty merchant ships just last summer, and they did it not with a fleet but with just a single ship made of iron."

"Iron? That's impossible! And how does it sail? It'll sink!" Matthew whispered back hotly.

"Nobody in his right mind would make a ship out of iron, not even our crazy superiors in the navy! That's super heavy, dude!"

"Jones, keep your voice down! I don't know how they did it, but they did it and there are survivors, witnesses to that!" Gilbert argued back, still trying to keep his volume low. He was being too serious, too far from his usual annoying exuberance, for the brothers not to listen to him carefully. When they nodded in unison, the red-eyed man continued.

"The higher-ups are going bald plotting this son-of-a-bitch's downfall yet he slips through their fingers—OUR!—the navy's fingers like grease—"

"—or something else slimy, like a snake!"

"Snakes are not slimy, Al!"

"Stop interrupting me!" Gilbert hissed.

Matthew rolled his eyes and Alfred mumbled an apology.

"So they decided to fight the public's fear of him with the most powerful weapon available: GOLD." Gilbert paused, trying to build the tension.

"Our navy has offered a reward of 500,000 gold coins to anyone who can capture this man alive."

With that, the red-eyed man stood up and produced a piece of paper from inside his jacket and slapped it onto the table before him, right under the brothers' noses.

"Lieutenant Alfred F. Jones and Lieutenant Matthew F. Williams—"

"My middle name's not F—!" "His middle name's not F—!"

The younger men never got the chance to wonder how he inserted a nonchalant "whatever~" in his dramatic "Meet our new target!"

Commodore Gilbert Weillschmidt grinned manically and moved his hand away from the paper ever so slowly, revealing the face and the name of their most formidable enemy as of yet.

"Pirate Captain Arthur Kirkland!"