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The rising sun sent rivulets of light to illuminate the
chilly morning. They crept through the window and streamed up the walls, lightly
prodding the Rainbow Shoyru awake. He yawned and stretched, then looked around
his room. Examining his stone furniture with his eyes, he sighed.
"I guess this is it, then. It'll be a while until
I come back to here again."
Jason rose from his bed and plodded sleepily
through the door, across the entrance hall, and into his bathroom. He washed
his face, the icy water instantly slapping any sleep from his mind. Hearing
noises in the living room, he went to see who else had awoken at the early hour.
Taipei, still in her starry pajama pants and
a sweater, was standing at the breakfast bar making scrambled eggs and dancing
around to some song that Jason both didn't know and couldn't actually hear.
The girl looked up and grinned cheesily, then tucked her long brown hair behind
an ear. Grabbing the spatula, she flipped some eggs onto a plate and slid it
to Jason, who now sat in a barstool on the other side.
"Salutations, sailor Shoyru! Hm, isn't alliteration
absolutely amazing?"
"About as amazing as an artichoke. And those
things are pretty darn weird," he mused dryly as he shoveled the eggs into his
mouth and grinned. He loved all the flavors that danced on his tongue. "Ma,
how much salt and pepper do you put into these things, anyway?! Not complaining,
cause they're uber spiffy, but..."
"Not enough to kill you. Now eat!" She handed
him some toast and orange juice, then came around the bar and flopped onto the
couch. "Have everything ready to go?" she asked softly.
"Mmm. Yeah, pretty much," he said, finishing
his breakfast and hopping down from the stool. "Rah's still asleep. All I'd
have to do is wake him up, and everything would be in order."
The girl laughed abruptly. "Please, Jay, that
Anubis would sleep until dinner if it could. It's grown a bit lazy since our
last war, HM?"
Jason smirked. "Yeah, you're right. This trip
will be good for all of us, I guess."
"Gumooning evryun," yawned a Halloween Ixi as
she trudged down the stairs and into the living room. "Whas for breakyfastynessosity...tastic?"
Jason looked at the sleepy Daine and grinned
as he slid her a plate of eggs. "Molten Blooky brains on a stick. And a half."
"Yay! I LOVE scrambled eggs!" Daine chomped happily
into her food and made happy eating noises. Jason gave a half-laugh and watched
his little sister as she chewed, quite noisily, with her mouth open.
"Wow, Ver, that makes me so much hungrier. No
wait... I lied."
He had just finished speaking when the doorbell
rang. Taipei, who had been lying on the couch and staring at the ceiling quite
lethargically, suddenly sprang to her feet and shot through the rooms. Her squeal
of delight rang through the halls as she opened the door.
"MWEE! IT'S DMAN!"
She soon reappeared in the living room. Dman12586
followed, along with a Fire Shoyru named Bahamut and a Gold Jetsam named Prowler.
Daine and Jason got up to greet their friends.
"Hi, Dman! Hiya, Baha! Hey, Prowler!" the two
said in unison.
"Hey guys," Prowler grinned excitedly. "What's
up?"
"You ready for our expedition, Jason?" Baha was
cheerful too..
"Readier than ever!"
Taipei gasped. "You stole my universal saying!"
"Ay, ya landlubber," Jason replied in his most
seaworthy voice, "cause that's what the piratey ones do!"
"Hah. Well, YOU piratey ones had better get your
things together! We'll be leaving for the docks soon. Now shoo and get your
things."
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Taipei and Dman, followed by their pets and their petpets, made their way through
Neopian Central and down to the docks. Birds squawked and crowds bustled around
the port as brackish mists meandered around the sails of boats and ships. Jason,
Daine, Prowler, and Baha all chatted excitedly about future adventures as they
lugged their stuff around.
"Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there
yet? Are we there yet?" Jason and Daine, in unison, began their attempt to annoy
the owners. Unfortunately, said owners were quite used to it by now.
"Yup, we're there!" Dman pointed at the dock
for their departure, around which many excited families waited. A vast galleon
crouched before them, a Pirate Eyrie admitting pets on to it. Taipei sighed.
"Well, I guess this is it. Time for you to shine,
Jay," she said softly as she hugged her Shoyru. "Make us proud."
"Yeah, Jay," Daine giggled, "cause if you get
captured by a pack crazy Myncis and never come back, I won't be your friend.
So there." She stuck her tongue out, then gave a startled laugh as Jason tackled
her into a hug.
"I'll miss you all, Ver. Be good for me. Wait,
what am I saying?! Wreak lots of havoc for me!"
"Will do," Daine nodded as she brushed away a
tear, "oh magnificent Shoyru who doesn't taste like a Rainbow Chia Pop. You'd
better write me and send me stuffs, or I'll bite you again when you come back!"
"Yes yes, will do. Oops, it's our turn to board.
Bye everyone!"
Attendants at the ship's entrance collected the
baggage and waved the three in. Jason, Baha, and Prowler stepped into the ship,
then reappeared next to the other pets on the deck. The dock soon emptied, and
the galleon closed its entrance. It creaked as it began to crawl forward in
the dark green waters, slowly picking up speed. The three pets waved to Dman,
Taipei, and Daine until they were mere dots on a distant shore.
The mass of pets on the deck parted and watched
as the Pirate Eyrie walked between them. He had a brown patch over one eye,
and a peg leg that clacked with every step he made on the wooden deck. A small
Green Pawkeet hopped in his wake, chirruping happily to the gathered pets.
"Welcome to the pirate galleon," the Eyrie's
voice boomed. "My name is Cap'n Threelegs. On behalf of Neopia, I'd like to
thank you all for your future service for the land's defense. You will undergo
training that will prepare you for battle against the enemy. When war breaks,
you will be sent to various points of Neopia, where your help in battle will
be needed. Until then, we will sail to the worlds of Neopia, where training
masters from the area will teach you skills that are unique to that region.
When this has all cleared out of the way, and Neopia is once again bathed in
assured peace, you shall all emerge as strong and honorable defenders. Any questions?
Not a sound broke from the assembly.
"Good," Cap'n Threelegs smiled as he continued.
"Today, you will be assigned to your sleeping quarters on the ship. Your names
were collected as you boarded, and you have all been grouped off. You will be
sharing your cabin with four others. Check the lists on the notice board ,"
he said, motioning with his wing, "To find out your arrangements. Get used to
your cabin-mates; you'll be around them for quite some time now." With a nod,
he departed from the masses and disappeared into his cabin.
Once the captain had departed, a clamor arose
as each pet awaited their turn to look at the board. Jason soon drew up to the
lists, and smiled at the arrangement.
"'Jason, Baha, Prowler, Seaveil, and Lappiny
- Quarter D4' Cool! Let's go, guys!"
The Jetsam and two Shoyrus headed below deck
and walked over the long corridor. Small lamps, stationed between room doors,
illuminated the wooden planked floor, walls, and ceiling. They soon arrived
at the dark, wooden door with a metal "D4" nailed onto it. Jason turned the
brassy knob and opened the door to the room. It was a bit small, but just enough
for five. Two bunk beds straddled the sides of the room, a single bed stretched
horizontal between them and against the back wall. A Cloud Shoyru sat on one
of the top bunks, a Pirate Shoyru on the middle bed.
"Hi there! I'm Lappiny," the Cloud Shoyru said
as he looked up, "and this is Seaveil."
The Pirate Shoyru nodded at the group. "Hullo."
"Hi! I'm Jason, this Fire Shoyru is Baha, and
the Gold Jetsam is Prowler." Noticing that their petpets were watching from
a bed, Jason introduced them, too.
The new cabin mates got settled into their new
room; Jason and Lappiny on top bunks, Baha and Prowler on bottom bunks, and
Seaveil between them. Night soon fell, and the ship's inhabitants began to doze
off. The ship gently rocked to and fro, slipping drowsiness and peace into the
minds of those aboard. Jason, however, stared up at the ceiling for hours after
the lamps had gone out. He thought about his sisters and his owner. He remembered
the great going-away party that they had thrown for him, Baha, and Prowler just
the night before. He smiled as he mused over the previous night's slumber, which
had fallen upon him in one of the Neohome's many gardens with Daine sleeping
at his shoulder. It was hard to believe that he was so far away from all of
that. He thought about his future and all of the training he would do.
Well, he thought to himself, this is
the beginning of my new life. I've got to make the most of it. And with
that, he drifted off to sleep.
The End
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