Under the Moon and Stars

Chapter 1

Xyx was in his private quarters, lazily reclining in his chair, feet propped up on his desk, a thick book in hand. A mere look would give off the impression of a studious man who was thoroughly engrossed in his literature.

The reality was that Xyx had been stuck on the same page for the last five minutes, going over the same paragraph five times...now six.

With a resigned sigh and a rub of his temple, Xyx finally gave up his losing battle and closed the book. It made a soft thud as he tossed it on to his bed, and he swiveled his chair so that he could face the gorgeous view of the open sea through the large glass windows.

The sea was calm and accommodating, gentle waves idly moving, the sun light bouncing off the water's surface. Xyx couldn't ask for a more perfect day to be out on the water, especially after his crew's rather rough voyage. What, with the unpredictable weather, the raids, and the substantial damage to his ship, it was almost as if the fates themselves were forcing him to return back to the familiar shores of his -

No. With another sigh, he banished that last thought. These lands were not his home anymore, not since he left it all behind all those years ago - status, title, even his name. Xyx's parents wrote him off as dead to spare them the shame of having a son run off with pirates, and word spread pretty quickly about Xyx's early demise - such a pity. His father had passed, and his mother had sold off their lands and married off his older sister to a governor of some well-to-do port city, far away from Port Royal. He had heard that his mother and sister were living comfortably with the governor, but beyond that, his family name meant nothing more to the people here. Stale news is easily forgotten.

Xyx resisted the urge for probably the hundredth time that day to check his rolled up map neatly sitting on his desk. This was the closest port, and everyone desperately needed to rest. They also needed to stock up on supplies and provisions, and fix up the ship. He continued to stare at the scene before him, no longer taking in the scenery.

What he needed was a distraction. A good distraction.

As if on cue, Cat sprang up into his lap, loudly meowing at him and demanding Xyx's attention. Xyx laughed at the impromptu interruption and scratched behind Cat's ear. "You little freeloader, where have you been all morning? I hope you weren't rummaging around our food storage." Cat chirped a happy reply and affectionately rubbed its head against Xyx's hand.

Forest green eyes shifted to the entrance of Xyx's quarters at the sound of a single knock. "Captain," called out the muffled voice.

"What now?" Xyx had told his crew not to disturb him unless something was wrong, or they had reached their destination. And by his estimates, they still had another 13 hours to go. At Xyx's response, the door opened slightly to reveal a stoic face and a bundle of light pink hair, wrestled into a somewhat tame state by being locked in a loose braid. "Ah, Toast m' boy!" Xyx spun his chair around so that he could give his second in command his full attention. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

A quick scan of the room by Toast revealed nothing but an orderly area, save for the few piles of parchment laying on Xyx's desk. Toast could never tell exactly what Xyx did in here - he always looked too relaxed to actually be working. "You're needed above deck."

A dramatic sigh escaped Xyx's lips. "Is that it? Are you all not able to do anything without me being around?"

"Trust me, I would not be down here if it wasn't important." They both knew it was true. Toast was responsible for managing the ship and all of its busy worker bees when Xyx skulked off to who knows where. But Xyx wasn't quite convinced; whatever it was, it could probably wait. Toast tried another option. "I'll make it worth your tiimmee."