Background: I know Sinbad is of Arabic/Persian origin. But given the setting of the movie, I adopted the Greek customs in clothing and other subtleties for this story. The plot of the story has been worked out in my head. It might turn into a medium length fanfic. We'll see...

Rating: uh, PG13?

Chapter 2 To Perils in the North

"Father?" I couldn't hide the surprise in my tone. "I didn't expect to see you here as well. The General and I were supposed to have a routine meeting regarding the current state in the north. With a concerned look, he simply gestured toward the General to start debriefing.

The General stood up and bowed lightly before addressing me. "Your highness -"

"Please, sophocleus, Proteus would suffice. We've been through too much for this formality." I interjected. The General must be in his early forties by now. He had taught me and Sinbad everything we knew about sailing and navigation when he was still a young Captain in the Royal Navy. He often spoke of how he had watched me grow from a child to the Prince of Syracuse. He took so much pride in me and the fact that he was appointed by Father to be in charge of my military education.

He never spoke much about Sinbad, his other pupil. But I know in secret, he thought fondly of Sinbad despite his and father's initial reluctance to allow my education to be continued alongside with "the young rascal and thief of commoner origin", as Father called Sinbad. But Father quickly realized how stubborn of a child I was and it was pointless to attempt separate Sinbad from me.

Sophocleus, even in his younger and much more free-spirited days was always fair-minded. Despite his initial hesitation, he soon realized Sinbad's natural talent and instincts in seamanship. He never held back praises for Sinbad for his many prodigious accomplishments as a young sailor especially when he first navigated through the Deadman's cove, which I was not able to do until I learned to navigate a more maneuverable ship. He always encouraged me to work harder in order to catch up with Sinbad. Within two years, he had turned Sinbad from a child of the streets into a capable seaman with a passion for sailing.

To me, I always thought of him as a second father figure - the image of the young and spirited Navy Captain who took me and Sinbad out sailing along the coastline and discovered our childhood hideout on a nearby uninhabited atoll was forever imprinted in my mind. He was strong, stalwart and fiercely loyal to Syracuse. For Sinbad who never knew his father, I suspect Sinbad looked up to him as much as I did notwithstanding Sinbad's dismissive and materialistic attitude. Even if I were the only one to believe this, I KNOW Sinbad - he is noble and honorable at heart. Chances are, I WAS the only one who believed this until he came back to save my life, to die for me.

Sopho, as I would call him in private, also provided the perfect excuse for Sinbad and me to be away in our hideout for days. "Practical and tactical training of large scale marine warfare ," he would report to Father, while Sinbad and I sailed to our hideouts for a few days of respite. Well, it might've been more than respite on my fourteenth birthday... and thereafter. I wonder if Sopho ever caught the wind of it...

"As you wish, my Prince," Sopho took a slight pause as his brows furrowed slightly before he continued on. "Corinth has been engaging the Athenians for months now. We have provided provision for Corinth's defense through the five ports in the Northern States. His Majesty has been debating whether Syracuse should answer Corinth's call for direct military aid. The primary concern, as you already know, is of the increasing unity in the northern Achaean city states. Sparta has finally aligned itself with Athens. This spells impending doom for Corinth unless we intervene. It is entirely unclear if their alliance was aimed to overtaking Corinth alone or at the... our Book of Peace since Corinth provides a strategic advantage in encasing Syracuse in a trade siege and reducing our economic power.

"I have heard from merchants fleeing Corinth about rumors of entire towns are being wiped out by armies of the underground, crazed minotaurs and other creatures of darkness. Since no one ever survives these raids, rumor stays rumor until our own supply ships en route to Corinth were attacked by Hydras two days ago. Only one out of the 7 ships barely made back."

I took a deep breath in and collected my thoughts. "They aim to use Corinth as a stepping stone to invade Syracuse. Our indirect involvement already provides a fuse for them to declare war. But I knew nothing about the Minataurs and Hydras despite our intelligence presence in Athens and Sparta. Is the Goddess of War and Wisdom directly aiding them?"

I turned to Father and asked for permission to lead an investigation with Sopho in the North. To my surprise, Father simply nodded and said I was a capable military strategist and it was time for me to take on the role of what was meant for me. "The Book of Peace grants prosperity and protection against direct aggression toward Syracuse. The fact that our ships were sunk alone warrants an investigation," Father clenched his fists.

I turned to Sopho, "We leave at Dawn for the north. Rest well, General. I take my leave, Father."

I packed lightly back in my bedroom - my sword, seal of the Prince, two chitons and a seashell necklace -the one Sinbad made for me on my fourteenth birthday. I caressed the back of each shell and felt the smooth carving of alphabets. They spelled "Sinbad".

I remembered his words, "here, Pro, if you wear this, you'll know I'm always there with you. So when I sail on ahead, don't think I'm leaving your behind." I grinned from ear to ear and tried to put on the necklace but Sinbad brushed my hand aside and wrapped his arms around my neck. "Let me, Pro. Please?" I felt his body's warmth around me and lowered my head to look at the necklace he just tied around my neck, only to bump into his head a second later. We chuckled before I held his gaze and felt his lips on mine. Sin had my first kiss. Did I have his first?

Two years after that or ten years ago, on the day I never wanted to remember, all I could do was holding on to his words when he gave me the necklace and clutching it close to my chest as he sailed out without even saying goodbye. I'd had to wait for another ten years before seeing him again - when he tried to rob me of the Book of Peace.

Just a week ago, when Sin sailed out again, this time with Marina, I was alone on the balcony with the necklace held tight to my chest. I swore on Apollo's name that I didn't want to do this again.

I tied my chitons around my sword and set the necklace down next to them. I hadn't worn it since Sinbad left Syracuse ten years ago. It was a momento that I cherished more than anything . But I couldn't bring myself to either discard it or wear it again.

They say governance of a large country cured all insomnia, that is if you put your heart into it, as I learned lately. With that, I fell fast asleep in the comfort of my bed.