On a small island in the middle of the vast Notvein ocean, there stood a small town near the coast on the west side of the island. There was a small port where many ships would stop to resupply and repair anything that was broken on the ship.
The island was called Buis Island and was a beautiful place with a tropical landscape. Much of the island had been left untouched, the town and port being the only man-made sites. The centre of the island had a great forest filled with much plant and animal life.
The trees appeared in various colours, green, purple, and blue. Its canopy was marked by the various coloured trees and made a beautiful view. A mixture of insect and animal noises, most of which were herds of larger animals, added life to the forest, and were accompanied by the occasional splashes of frophols jumping on water puddles.
The forest bordered the town and many of the townsfolk used the forest for food, firewood, and other things.
Two siblings walked into the forest, both holding axes and each carrying a bag. The boy had an eye patch that covered his left eye. His skin was bronze and smooth. He had curly brown hair and wore old clothes with patches all over them. He looked around fifteen years old.
His sister meanwhile looked nothing like her brother. She had smooth milk chocolate brown skin with bright curly orange hair and a cute mesmerising face. Her bangs reached above her orange eyes which were bright and full of life. She looked around twelve years old. Her clothes were also old and were filled with patches but that didn’t seem to bother her.
Once they entered the forest where huge palm trees stood, the brother said, “Keira, we’re going to chop up some wood today. I spotted some ships in the harbour and a few looked like they needed repairs. I believe we can make some good money if we get a lot of wood for them. ”
“Okay Lux.” Keira replied, placing her bag on the floor. “Do you think those ships hit a storm?”
“They probably did, thank the sea god Katos. We’re lucky the sea gets choppy this time of year.” Lux said, walking over to a nearby tree. He felt the trunk and hit it a few times. “This tree looks like it's in good condition. It will make us some extra Cuis if we chop it down right.”
"Let's get this done," Keira exclaimed as she held her axe.
"I'll start on this one and you keep an eye out for where the tree tilts. ,” Lux said and Keira nodded in agreement.
Lux swung his axe several times at the tree, sweat soon appearing on his face as he continued. Keira stood back watching the tree to make sure it wouldn’t fall on her brother. After a few more swings, the tree cracked a little and Lux moved away quickly.
The tree swayed a bit more before it finally fell down. Lux quickly hacked the trunk into smaller pieces
“I’ll continue with the rest. Could you chop the tree to pieces?” Lux huffed as he grabbed a flask of water from one of the bags.
Keira nodded and carried the tree pieces effortlessly. She placed it a few meters away from Lux and smiled. She picked up her axe and began to chop the tree into smaller pieces for Lux’s bag. In thirty minutes she was done and waved at Lux.
“Lux I’m done!”
“Your chopping skills have increased but are not like mine.” Lux bragged before cutting another tree down in one last swoop.
It crashed down to the ground with a loud bang. A few birds flew out of the forest in fear at the sound of the big tree falling.
Keira pouted as she crossed her arms and stared at her brother before yelling, “The one who cuts the most wood in an hour wins!”
“You’re on.” Lux replied, accepting the challenge.
He began to chop down trees and chop them into firewood and so did Keira. After an hour of cutting the wood from the tree, they both had a huge pile of wood but Lux had more wood than Keria, so she pouted upset about the loss. Lux laughed and patted her on her head in comfort.
Keria stopped pouting and got up. “It’s great how even though we cut those trees down, they’ll just grow back to their full size in a week!”
Lux got up and dusted the dust off his clothes which were full of splinters and wood pieces. “Yeah, let’s get going. It’s getting late and we need to sell this wood today if we want to make some Cuis. I heard there would be rich ships visiting the docks, maybe one of the ships I spotted this morning are them. The shipwrights would definitely need a lot of wood, especially with what I saw.”
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Keira tied her wood with some twine rope and carried the large pile with ease. They had cut more wood than what could fit in Lux’s bag. Lux picked up their bags and they walked towards the town.
The town was quite a normal town, nothing extraordinary ever happened. Ordinary folks walked about doing their various jobs. After passing ramshackle buildings huddling together like frightened animals, the siblings reached an open space where the buildings were further apart but seemed better maintained than the ones they passed by. This place had more good looking homes, shops, and a few inns for sailors and merchants passing through the island.
Getting closer to the coastline, the air was filled with a salty scent as they walked down the town towards the port.
“Hey Lux and Keira, you two selling wood today? No green cakes.” a middle-aged woman asked, leaning on her window sill.
“No, but I’ll definitely make some green cakes tomorrow,” Keira winked at the woman.
The woman sighed before smiling again. “I look forward to your cakes dear. Make sure to stop by.”
Once they reached the docks, sounds of fishmongers trying to sell their goods could be heard along with sailors bargaining with merchants. A few turned to watch the siblings carry the huge pile of wood with ease.
A group of sailors passes by the two, each one wearing thick leather jerkins and carrying a sword on their back. The heavy stench of months at sea hit the siblings, making Keira want to gag.
As Keira and Lux continued along the docks, they reached a large wooden pier where several fishing boats and ships bob up and down. Several men could be seen working on ships and boats swiftly and Keira beamed upon seeing a middle-aged man among the men. His dark hair was tied back in a loose ponytail, revealing a handsome face marked by deep lines around his eyes.
“Uncle Jay,” Keira yelled, placing down the pile of wood.
“Oh, kids it’s you.” Jay turned and smiled at the children. In his hand were a large hammer and some nails. “Got anything good with you?”
Lux leaned on the pile of wood and stated with a serious voice, “As you can see here this is some high-quality wood we’ve got here. And as our regular customer, we wanted to give you the first pick. .”
Jay smiled and patted Lux on the head., “Sure sure. Does 200 Cuis sound good?”
Lux smiled brightly. “Of course.”
He placed down his hammer and nails and picked out a wallet from his pocket. He pulled out the money and gave Keira two pieces of paper money with a hundred Cuis written on each one.
“Thank you so much Uncle Jay. It’s nice doing business with you.” Lux thanked Uncle Jay with a smile.
“We really needed this wood and you always get good quality for me.” Jay said, patting the pile of wood. “So thank you, guys, for your hard work.”
Jay then turned to instruct a group of men and women to carry both piles of wood away. They quickly carried the wood away and went back to their duties.
“Brother with this amount of money we can finally buy new clothes!” Keira beamed, holding the money in her hands before placing it in her pockets.
“Hey you two, have you thought of working at the docks?” Jay asked, turning to the siblings.
“Yeah, but they said we’re too young.” Lux said with a sunken tone.
“True you could die if you fall off a ship, but you both aren’t normal. You’re special like me. Blessed with super strength! Gah, Gah, Gah!” Jay laughed loudly.
Lux and Keira looked at each other for sometime then at the docks and ships before looking back at Jay.
“Then we don’t mind,” Lux said to Jay.
Jay smiled brightly, placing his arms around both siblings, but as he was about to speak a large huge blue and grey ship appeared at the docks. Everyone stopped in their tracks as they stared at the shop.
“What is that ship?” Lux asked as he stared at the ship mesmerised by its unique design.
It was extremely large and a huge grey sail could be seen. The anchor immediately dropped and the front of the ship immediately strands formed into a staircase.
“Wow the marine finally showed up after all those years,” Jay said sarcastically and rolled his eyes. Despise could be heard in his voice. “Government dogs must be here because they need something from us.”
Keira looked at Jay nervously and at her brother who stared at the ship with a determined look.
A large burly man around seven feet tall came down from the staircase. He wore a white uniform with an insignia of a Phoenix with claws. On his clothes was a large white coat. He had long bushy hair and wore a mask hiding his face.
Following behind him were a group of men and women who wore a black uniform with a tie on their necks and a cap. They saluted as they stood behind the burly man.
The burly man took in a deep breath and boomed, “People of Buis Island. We’re from Marine 67 and we’re scouting people to join the marines. Anyone who wants to join can come on board!”
He raised up an ID which was glowing proving his identity. Keira watched the marines curiously and saw people walk to the ship.
“I'll join.” Keira heard a voice say and it made her shudder.
She saw her brother raise his hand. He walked towards the marines but Keira immediately grabbed his hand tightly, pulling him back.
“Big brother, why are you leaving suddenly!?” Keira asked, tears flowing down her cheeks.
Lux crouched down as tears too flowed down his face, “Your big brother has to leave so he can catch mother and father’s killer and bring them to justice. This is the only way I can find that disgusting pirate.”
“But I don't want you to leave. You can’t leave me behind.” Keira cried while holding her dress.
“Don’t worry your big brother will come back. And I would always send you letters.” Lux promised with a bright smile and patted Keira’s head.
“Jay could you please look after my little sister for me while I’m gone.” Lux asked, looking up at Jay.
“Sure, I could use the extra hands since peak season will be happening soon.!”
“I’ll definitely. And I’m even sure Keira can handle herself.”
He got up and walked up to the marines and bowed. They examined him and allowed him to pass through. After a while of no one joining, the marine got into the boat and began to sail away.
Keira watched the seas silently as she watched the ship ready itself to leave.
She walked towards the sea and jumped inside. She tried to swim after the ship but it was too fast as it began to leave port.
“You took away my parents, now my big brother!” Keira yelled at the sea as she cried after swimming back to land. “What more do you want to take away from me?"