“Swap with me!” Cia pleaded but Airo’s refusal was unwavering.

“Absolutely not. You lost in a fair and square game.”

“But everyone knows you have to win three out of five!”

“You already persuaded us for two out of three.”

She frowned. Of course the worst job of all would be up to her. She was to help the sailors sweep the deck. Not taking the mine incident into account, this was, according to her, the worst trip they’ve been on so far.

From time to time, she raised her head from the mop to look at her friend, who was working nearby. Of course Airo would get the comfortable job. All he had to do was to help the men lower the impermeable sheets that would protect most of the ship’s outside, and then to secure the fabric in place. Compared to the mind-numbing deck cleaning, his task seemed at least remotely enjoyable. Cia gritted her teeth when she thought of the other half of their group. The lucky two had it far better than them.

“If something comes out of the pipes, I’ll scream,” Kaili warned Jin as they approached their work stations together with two sailors. Even though the captain assured her that he just wanted her to go and check if they have no leaks, part of the dryad’s mind still couldn’t remain at peace.

“And what do you think is gonna come out? An alien?” Jin mocked her fears.

“No, you idiot! Something like filth and sludge. Yucky stuff.”

“Come on, you live in the woods. You’ve been dealing with mud and dirt on the daily basis.”

“Mud is not the same as some potentially toxic engine waste.” She gasped. “Or even worse, what if it’s a toilet waste?”

Jin couldn’t help but smirk a little.

“Hey, I saw that you little–“

“Umm… Miss?” The sailor that went with them gently grabbed her by the shoulder. “This is our first stop.”

“Heh, best of luck. Stay away from poop.” Jin gave her one more teasing grin and a wave before his own job called him elsewhere. He also didn’t consider himself particularly lucky. Checking the cargo was a job that carried a certain chance the boy might have to carry heavy boxes. As small as the chance was, he did not like the idea of it one bit.

Captain Chast stood in the middle of his room, staring out of the massive glass window. The skies ahead weren’t just grey. It was a massive wall of clouds. An enormous chunk that most likely rose up from the cloud sea.

“Tighten it properly!” the sailor scolded Jin.

“I’m trying!” he replied and pulled on the leather strap with as much force as he could and yet it wouldn’t move an inch further.

“Scoot,” the man instructed the boy before grabbing the strap and pulling it through the secured metal clasp, all with just one hand. “You need to work on your strength, boy.”

“I’m a wizard. I don’t need strength.”

The man rolled his eyes. Jin certainly had the mannerisms of a wizard. It was obvious from the moment they met that the boy thought that magic was the superior solution to almost anything.

“Alright, everything’s secured and ready?” The man asked.

“What?”

“Everything ready?” he raised his voice to outshout the winds howling outside. As they slowly flew into the stormy clouds, the inside of the ship resonated with the wailing of the horrendous weather.

“Yeah. Everything should be ready.” Jin yelled back and quickly looked through the papers he was given. All the boxes had a tick mark beside their number. “Yup. Should be everything. Now, can we get out of here? It’s getting cold and windy.”

“Sure, I… Wait.” The sailor froze and began frantically looking around. It was indeed windy. He could feel it. But inside the ship? That made no sense. Was there a hole in the hull? That would certainly mean trouble.

“What’s the matter?” Jin asked when he saw the man’s face twist with worries.

“There shouldn’t be any wind here. And it feels like it’s getting windier. I think there is a tear in the hull. It might be getting bigger, which would be a damn big problem. Wait here, it might be dangerous. I’ll try to see where it’s coming from,” the man said and quickly disappeared in the labyrinth of cargo boxes.

Jin did as he asked and simply stayed at the more open area by the entrance. He rubbed his arms in an attempt to warm himself up. It felt like the whole place was getting colder by the minute. The fact that this could mean trouble for the whole crew did not exactly help in easing the boy’s worries. To make matters worse, it seemed that the sailor wasn’t coming back. A minute passed, then another, and soon after, a fifth one. The cargo hold was not that big. Was he still looking for that hole? Or did something go wrong?

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Manuel was a rather problematic role model for Jin. On one hand, the boy, just like the wizard, felt the unceasing urge to go and check on the sailor to see if he was okay, and to help him out if necessary. On the other, however, he had a direct order to stay where he was. If he’d misjudge the danger and get himself somehow incapacitated, there would be no one else left to help them.

Two options played a tug of war in the boy’s mind. He could try to get help from others, should he manage to find someone nearby, or he could simply go there himself and save quite some time.

He did not think long. One argument overpowered all other ones. He was a wizard. Maybe he wasn’t the strongest, but his own magic could protect him from most harm. He was more than qualified enough to help.

Without a moment to waste, he ran off into the narrow pathways between the stacked containers.

“Azim!” He yelled the man’s name, trying to grab his attention. “Azim! Hey! You okay?” Nothing. There was no response coming, no matter how much he shouted. That was odd. Surely the wind wasn’t making so much noise, right?

The boy took a deep breath and yelled out again. “Azi– Ugh!” Something hit him in the back of his head. It was heavy and carried quite the punch. He stumbled forward, barely managing to catch himself against one of the boxes. His faint aura flickered, but remained active.

He turned around, his heart skipping a beat as he noticed three men standing in the corridor behind him. One was holding a wooden club. The boy’s eyes slid a bit lower. Another one of the three was pulling Azim behind him. The sailor’s head was bleeding and he seemed to be unconscious.

“What the hell?” one of them exclaimed and looked at the club in his arms.

“Kid’s got a tougher skull or something?” another asked, mocking his comrade.

“Nah, it’s gotta be the metal helmet he’s got. You have to hit him harder,” the third one remarked.

Jin clenched his fists. The howling wind began quieting down, replaced now by the rain beating against the outer shell of the ship.

“Who are you?” he asked, trying to keep his voice from trembling.

“We should be asking you that!” the armed man yelled back. “There were supposed to be only regulars here. How the hell did you get here?”

“Did you sneak onboard? Because if so, we might help each other out,” another of the trio asked.

Jin frowned. The colourful scarves they wore around most of their faces spoke clearly about their intentions here.

“You’re pirates,” the boy asked.

“Well…”

“Yeah, screw it, we’re pirates. But we don’t have to be enemies,” the talkative of the group pushed himself to the front. “Look, we never had any intention to harm any children.”

“Yeah, right, you totally just didn’t hit me with a wooden club.”

“Apologies for my idiotic friend over here. He didn’t think it through. Look, we’re just here for the cargo. If you step aside and let us take it, nothing will happen to you. You can just wait it out.”

Jin clenched his jaw. No, this was unacceptable. He could not live with something like this. This is what being a wizard meant. He had to stand up for the innocent.

The boy bent his knees and raised his fists. A thick golden aura erupted from his shoulders and wrapped around him.

“Crap, the kid’s a wizard?” the third pirate exclaimed, though they all seemed caught off guard by it.

“Nevermind. Three against one should work out fine. He can’t be very experienced,” the club wielder argued.

“But wizards can stop their ageing.”

“But not when they’re teenagers! Now shut it and get ready.”

The remaining two drew their weapons. One sword in a very poor condition, and a small dagger. Jin took a very good look at the three. The pirate with the club seemed to be the strongest of them all, judging by his build. The one with the dagger was the talkative one. Most likely not experienced in combat. The sword guy was a big unknown, but his weapon at least didn’t seem sharp. The blade was chipped and had a slightly bent edge. The aura would certainly be able to defend Jin against a weapon like that.

The boy dashed towards the man in the front. He crouched under his swing of the wooden club and delivered a powerful punch into the pirate’s gut. The man stumbled backwards while Jin continued towards his next target. He swept the legs of the man with the knife, who barely had the reflexes to react. As the weapon fell out of his hand, Jin grabbed it and threw it away.

Then came the sword. The pirate wielding it was ready and managed to catch the boy in a spot where he couldn’t simply dodge due to the limited space. Jin’s golden aura flew from his legs into his upper body, further strengthening his armour. The blade stopped against his shoulder. Before the man could launch another attack, Jin kicked him in the stomach, sending him tumbling backwards and hitting his head against a metal container.

The young wizard backed away from the trio. He smiled. They had to be the worst pirates he had ever seen. Then, just as that thought flew through his mind, he realized something. Only three pirates? Something wasn’t adding up. Surely they wouldn’t attempt to rob a vessel of this size with such a small group. Not to mention that flying through the storm would most likely require a larger ship, with way bigger crew to operate it.

Without a single doubt about his conclusion, the boy turned on his heels and dashed towards the exit of the cargo hold. This wasn’t just some small heist. More people would certainly come. Maybe they were already there, looking for things to steal. This was no time to play the hero against some three nobodies. He had to warn the others. Shouting would be useless. The rain outside was too loud for that. He had to find someone who’d relay the message further.

A gunshot briefly overshadowed the howling winds outside. A metal projectile ripped through a pipe above the exit, bursting it open. A geyser of steam shot out of the pipes and filled the hallway. Jin backed away. The heat of the steam could be felt even from far away.

“Damn it!” he thought and slowed down. His aura could protect him against many threats, but heat was not one of them. He cursed himself for not learning to augment his armour for different elements.

This was, however, no time to dwell on it. There was another pirate at the far end of the room, aiming a twin-barrel pistol at the boy. A drop of cold sweat slid down Jin’s forehead as he slowly put his arms up.

“Come on, s-surely you wouldn’t shoot a kid, no?” he tried to reason with the man.

The pirate smirked under the bandana covering his face and pulled back the pistol’s hammer. “Wanna try me?”