The Mishaps of Piracy
Chapter One: Arrival
A figure sat atop the sails, eyes watching the rising red sun, and he thought, The sunrise is so beautiful, even in the East. The young man tilted his head back, allowing access to his neck for the ocean breezes, bringing with it the pungent, salty scent of seawater. "Morning, Cap'n!" He looked down, grinning cheerfully at one of the newer members of his crew.
"Good morning to you too, Lavi!" he shouted back as the wind whipped their hair across their faces. He thought of the moment he saw the flamed-haired man, how he knew the man would just be perfect for the job of a pirate. Yes, after all, Lavi certainly looked the part, what with the eye-patch.
"See anything good up there?"
Allen squinted at the distance, smiling. "I do believe I see land," he calmly replied. "Fresh wine and meat for the next few weeks. How does that sound?" Lavi assented two thumbs up before heading downstairs to wake the others. He heard the redhead shouting, the groans and complaints. He smiled; the familiarity was music to his ears. He watched as the crew of the Crowned Clown shuffled up tiredly, yawning widely onto deck. The ragged men and women brightened though, cheering with laughter as they spotted the strip of land in the distance. "Gentlemen!" he shouted. They turned their attention to their albino captain. "And ladies," he nodded to the few women among the gathered crowd. "We reach Japan today!"
Allen slid down the main post half-way, jumping down the rest of the way delicately on his leather booted feet. "How long until land?" he asked the man at the steering wheel. Komui glanced off into the distance, his dark brown eyes calculating.
"I believe about a little less than 10 minutes now, Captain Walker," Komui replied.
Allen's eyes gleamed. "Excellent," he sighed, leaning against the railing, resting his cheek against his palm, which was propped up. There wasn't much to talk about between him and Komui, not since the incident anyway. What made Allen so relieved was that Komui was still civilly polite and kind, and decided not to start up a mutiny. His eyes darted in the now quiet Chinese man. It was almost as if Komui had completely forgotten about it.
"Captain," rang Komui's voice, and he looked up into the concerned brown eyes. "You were spacing off," he told him. "Is something the matter?"
"No, not at all," Allen replied uneasily. He hated thinking about her. It just brought back unnecessary problems. Komui uncertainly returned back to steering. "Five minutes everybody. Move!" Allen shouted orders; the members hastily scurried about to obey their young captain. Allen couldn't hear any seagulls here, instead, the distant, nearly inaudible voices of an unfamiliar language. It was the first time he had been to the Orient, and he admitted, he was definitely excited. China, India, and Japan, but he was visiting Japan first. He laughed softly with glee. The treasure must be bountiful.
The waters, still slapping at the sides of his beautiful, large ship, docked. He leaned over with his waist touching the rail, peeking curiously at the Japanese men helping his crew to board. There were many things he found different, comparing them to the West. Everyone had either black or grayish white hair, and dark colored eyes. He shook his head. How dull. There's no variety. He sighed, closing his eyes. Then again, he had liked-no, lovedher, and she looked just like these people.
He descended into the busy streets, with Lavi, Komui, and a good section of the Crowned Clown, nearly swallowed up by the huge crowds of the streets. One of the good things about the Orient was that he wasn't all that short here. He looked up into the clear blue sky, cloudless. The breezes swept over him again. He smiled. Today was going to be a good day, he just knew it.