Chapter 1

To tell you the story of The Captain, you must know how we met in the first place, I was only only five when we did. Oh, and you might be expecting something romantic and charming my dear Readers, but our meeting could possibly be the most unromantic event you'll ever read.

It was during a time when my mother was still alive and my father was the kind and warm-hearted person I loved, though someone who was a bit shrewd even with his business handling. He was a man of opportunities as he was a man of ideas. He took me and mother to a Duke's house to discuss of future plans together that my young mind had a hard time understanding.

It was in the middle of their boring meeting (their complicated words had made me sleepy) that the door burst open and first laid eyes on him. He was a boy only a year or two older than I, he has curled dirty blond hair, an absurdly long nose but it looked dashing on him instead of strange, his face smooth, his green eyes remind me of a storm and there was a certain beauty in it that took my breath away.

He looked shock at me - no, at us. His mouth agape and eyes wide as saucer. I was sure he was thinking of a quick apology but his father, The Duke joyfully introduced us to him and he to us.

Finally he masked his face into a polite smile, extending a hand to me as we introduced to us with our real names.

He offered to take me to the garden and I obliged him shyly. His garden wasn't that different to my own but it was always nice to spot the small differences and appreciate the beauty of nature. But nature could be dirty, just as it is beautiful, so as much as I love nature, being pushed into a puddle of mud while wearing a new dress I got yesterday wasn't appreciated.

I looked back in shock as The Captain had without a second thought, decided to push me in and looked proud for it too.

Yes, readers he pushed me in. I never expected him to be a bully and thought he might have accidentally knock me over. Instead, he declared to me in these very words I remembered to these days, "Listen here Pipsqueak, you might be more wealthier than others, but since I'm a noble, which means I'm richer and better than you, so you'll have to listen to me!"

I know, it's quite unbelievable when I had just told you what a hero he was, but he had always been a man (or a boy in this case) of arrogance.

Remember, he was still young. He has grown and matured a lot since then.

Back to when we first met, to me who had been pampered and spoiled all my life it was a situation inconceivable to me. I was shocked and froze with my jaw dropped, staring at him, I wanted him to look at me and tell me everything was a bad practical joke but he didn't even want to meet my eyes.

I couldn't believe before then I had wanted to be friends with him.

Fury coursed inside me at that time and to show that I was not one who deserved such treatment, got up and pushed him back.

He got pushed into another puddle of mud as well and the result satisfied me even more when I told him what a meanie he was.

I turned away from him and thought that was it. We would go to our parents and I would tell them but then I felt mud being thrown at the back of my head and gaped at him again. I could have cried out at my parents at that point but his smug look made my rage boil again and I didn't want him to have the last laugh. So despite how unladylike it was, I scooped up a handful of mud as well and threw it at him in retaliation.

I was surprised that it hit him right in the face and couldn't contain a giggle. His shocked look beneath the covered mud only made me laugh more. Then his demeanor changed instantly. To my surprise he was smiling, his eyes glinting in mischief and challenge.

And so the mud war began. We ran, we laughed, we screamed, and threw mud at each other until the rose garden became a mess. I feel a little bad for making the gardener cry that day.

What surprised me most was that I ended up from being upset to an uncontrollable glee. For the first time I acted wild and free, and it was liberating.

We part ways that day with identical smiles that day and my perception for him changed from an adversary to a friend before soon becoming an irreplaceable precious person to me.

Father wasn't amused by my action that day. He scolded me. Telling me I shouldn't act like a commoner and deciding I should stay away from the boy.

But I pleaded him not to, that I wanted to see him again, and had Mother try to soothe and reason with him, I remember thinking that day that I would never have a proper friend.

A few times we met afterward and I learned more about him every time. He was funny, witty, had a genius mind, he was arrogant at times and a powerful mage, but most of all he was compassionate. I noticed overtime The Captain would have a faraway look on him whenever he thinks of the bigger picture. At a young age, he already managed to have many things accomplished and gaining money independently.

Many thought The Captain was perfect and expected him to be so, but I knew his flaws and I knew he needed someone to remind him of that or he'll end up truly thinking he can do anything and no man should think like that.

My first trip with him, he had lost a dear friend. He needed someone so I came to him. We talked and was silent until he decided he wanted to run.

Not forever, but only for a day.

He asked me to run with him and I did.

It was reckless for a pair of kids to run without direction and without supervision. But I had long since wanted to run from my home. Ever since my mother died, my father had become much more shrewd and cold. He couldn't even remember my own birthday afterward. So that's why I didn't even hesitate when I took his hand.

I asked where we would go.

He told me anywhere we wanted.

I didn't think it was possible at the time, but I was proven wrong as he was soon known across the land as someone who makes the impossible possible.

'The Miracle Worker' they would call one of his titles.

He took me to the back hill of his mansion. Running up, until he showed me something out of this world. It was a red box but not just a normal red box. It had the word Telephone Booth, but no phone was there and the box was the size of a small guard post.

Instead, when he opened the door and got me inside, I was greeted by the cross interior of a ship and a living room. While the middle of the ship has a coffee table rooted at the floor and a bean bag instead of chairs. The walls were the most complicated I've ever seen. There were various buttons, switches, and levers of all size and colors. In the middle of what later we called 'The Control Wall' - where he sets the coordinate to our destination - was the handle of the motorcycle that was to be a steering wheel. Something he rarely used but was incredibly useful when it was. The pillars around were covered with colored vines and flowers and there was the distinct smell of scented candle that remind me of lavenders.

A window screen just above the steering wheel looked out to our surroundings which at the time was the thick forest that hid the mysterious and wonderful Red Box.

When I first stepped inside, this was what I said "It's bigger on the inside."

"I know." The Captain for some reason was ecstatic from my words. He then began bouncing to the Control Wall and fiddling with the switches, with exaggerated twirls and hops as he did. I looked around at the ship once more, trying to discern if this was really reality or just a dream. I knew The Captain had always been brilliant, but to build a ship when he's not even old enough to drive a simple four wheeler magic vehicle just seemed preposterous to me.

Had I been told such a thing beforehand, I would never have believed it.

So even after tripping and falling on top of the bean bag chair, my eyes never left the ceilings filled with light lacrimas and engine rotors.

He told me then its ship's name - I'm sorry, his name was TORRI. Apparently it's short for Totally Remarkable Rune Intelligence. I thought it was weird that he would keep calling the ship a he, thinking he had an attachment or because he was just weird and delusional. With time though, I realized that TORRI, despite being a ship, is sentinent and I assure you'll agree with me by the end of this book.

Impossible you might say, but through the years of traveling with him, I've seen far more impossible and strange things.

Moving on, after introducing me to his ship. TORRI politely offered me a cup of tea even though I refused. You see...since he's a living ship he could control everything within it. The walls would shift and turn for when he provided me a hot cup of tea.

Finally, after adjusting whatever he had been doing. The Captain looked me in the eye and asked "Anywhere in the world is at your fingertips, where do you want to go?"

"Surprise me," I said with an eager smile blooming on my face.

His smile matched mine and his hand reached out for a lever when it froze and he looked back at me with mischievous glint in his eyes, "Oh and just so you know. I never did a test drive of this ship. So apologies in advance if we crash land."

That caught me by surprise and I paled, my smile fell and I was about to stop him from doing something stupid but he just laugh maniacally at me before he pulled down the lever.

That was the start of our adventure.