I am writing this message in the great Cathedral of Barcelona for you, Niño, now newly christened Esteban.

Many years ago, a strange young man named Mendoza came to my father asking for help. He was a European stranded in a foreign land. With him was a young baby, you, only a few years old. My father, the captain of a Portuguese merchant vessel, had lost some of his crew in a violent storm and was glad to accept this unexpected help. After many adventures, this Mendoza became our friend. He even saved my life. Mendoza eventually entrusted me with this account of his life and his remarkable voyage with Magellan.

I hope Mendoza will soon come to reclaim you and this book. But, if something happens and he does not, Father Rodriguez will know the truth of how you came to be here.

Farewell Esteban, Criança do Sol (1).

A. C.

January 31, 1523

Author's Notes

1) Child of the Sun in Portuguese

I finally decided to post it. Here is it folks, the first fan fiction I ever wrote. True to my future form it is nearly a novel in length and was my consuming passion for a very long time. I started writing it six years ago or so and created it over the course of aboutthree years. I had just started college and spent hours combing the campus libraries for suitable information to make the story more real and accurate. I never stopped learning during that time, both about writing anda period in history that I love. Truth be told, I still am learning as I continue working and anyone who has read Guidelines will immediately see the differences in style and presentation, although the historical elements remain.

Anyway, I hope those who read it will enjoy it. This story has been posted on my website for a number of years, but the version will have a couple of extra features. I intend to post it slowly and clean it up as I do. While I won't change the style or presentation, I will fix any grammatical or other errors that I find. I also plan to add some notes to the end of each chapter about the inspiration for various elements, the section that are truly historical, or other information that I think is interesting or useful. This will probably only be for my own satisfaction as The Mysterious Cities of Gold is an old '80s series with a small, but very loyal,fan base. If anyone reads this work without having seen the series, I highly recommend trying to get hold of it. I think it is well worth your time. :D

Questions, comment, and constructive criticisms are welcomed and eagerly awaited.