Post by Cirrus on Mar 19, 2011 9:27:58 GMT -5
The raft barely held up as the newly acquainted pair, Alek and Jack, found themselves on a new island. Jack had handled a stranger seemingly popping out from nowhere and landing on his vessel rather well, and the two had hit it off, quickly becoming amiable. Now, they have arrived on the island inhabited by the Pirate's Market, something many would call sheer luck. Alek, you see, is in dire need of a boat. Seperated from his crew, the 23,000,000 bounty head needs to get back...
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Alek left it to the momentum of his previous exploits to carry them to the shore. They were a lot closer to the island now, and as such the cyborg could see a lot more than he could before. His green eyes could make out the shapes of what appeared to be market stalls in the street and the faint noise of shouts and haggling reached his ears. Wondering what kind of place this was - there didn't seem to be anything going on other than shouting in the streets - Alek decided to ask Jack; perhaps his acquaintance would know a little more about this place than he did.
"Jack...what is this place?"
Pre-empting an answer, Alek continued;
"It looks like some kind of...market?"
The "Checkmate King" was unfamiliar with the term; back on Skypiea he had been to young to even witness any transactions taking place, let alone distinguish between a store and a market stall. Now, he was intrigued, and as such would suddenly run off with a childlike demeanour, curious of all the things he could find here. The adult in him still had some say in this however, and as Alek ran, he realised that he could possibly find a boat here.
A way back home...
Thoughts of his nakama flooded his mind, and for a brief second, the hints of a tear could be seen forming in his eyes. However, as everyone knows a king should appear strong and courageous in front of all of his subjects, and since Alek was obviously the ruler of this place, everyone was his subject. It would not do to show weakness, and crying was a weakness. A heavily irrational and masochistic credo, he knew, but Alek believed it nonetheless. And now, as he ran through the over-populated streets of the Pirate's Market, he wondered how he was meant to obtain a new vessel.
The captain of the Chess Pirates didn't have any money on him. Alek had no real way of raising it, and he was sure all of the frugal people here weren't willing to just blindly donate to a stranger. Sighing, Alek realised that there was only one thing for it. He'd have to commandeer his own ship. This was a negative solution for the cyborg, because he was a wanted man. He'd seen the bounty poster - clear as crystal - and now everyone would know his name. If he went out into the open and did anything illicit, he would have the world breathing down his neck all over again. Grimacing at the last time that happened, Alek continued on his way, only suddenly remembering that he was meant to be travelling with someone.
"Jack? You still there?"
He whispered, not daring to turn around in case doing so left him conspicuously out in the open. Alek crouched down low, his eyes darting furtively while his hands groped the wall next to him; he wasn't going to expose himself now.