That night, when we were in our room after dinner, I told the others about my plan. I expected them to be shocked, but I was surprised by how well they took it.
“We could tell there was something on your mind lately. I’m a little surprised that you’re going for the pirate life, but I’m not completely shocked,” Bepo said.
“I’m leaving the island in a week. So my question is, what do you guys want to do?” I asked, as casually as I could manage. “I’m not forcing you to do anything. You could stay here and have dinner every night with the old man, working your jobs in town. But…if I’m being honest, having you guys around would be a…huge help…” I thought I was being slick, but I really stumbled over my words. Apparently the lines I’d rehearsed in my mind were a lot more embarrassing out loud than I realized.
“I’m going with you! I want to go out to sea!” enthused Bepo after a brief pause. “I’ll stick with you, Law. I was thinking that I’d study navigation, get better at fighting, and then someday I’d go looking for my brother, but I’m so weak-willed that I know I’d never make the decision to get on with it on my own. So this is my time! I’m going with you, Law! I want to accomplish my desires.”
I chuckled a little. It felt good to hear Bepo reveal his innermost thoughts to me.
“I’m in, too!” said Shachi.
“Me too!” added Penguin. “We were heading down a rough path after our parents died, but thanks to you and Wolf taking care of us, our lives are so much better now. And hearing you talk about your plans made me excited! Just thinking about what might be waiting for us outside of this island, on the other side of the sea, makes my heart pound! I’m coming with you, Law.”
“I agree with Penguin,” said Shachi. “When we finally won that fight against Boakeno, it felt like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. It was terrifying, and we were one wrong step away from death, but it made me realize that I can achieve great things if I try hard enough. So I want to go on an adventure. With you, and Penguin, and Bepo. I want to feel alive that same way again!”
The words they said seemed like they came from the heart. I had no choice but to take their feelings at face value.
“Then here’s to our crew,” I said simply.
“What are you going to do for a boat?” Penguin asked.
“I’ll ask around in town.”
“If we’re in the market for one, we might as well buy a big huge ship! One that holds like a hundred people!” Penguin enthused.
“We don’t have the money for that. We’re leaving with just four. A small boat will do fine,” I insisted.
From there, we argued about our ideal pirate ship.
“But, Law,” Shachi said to me quietly, “this means Wolf will be all by his lonesome.”
“Yeah…but that’s just how it goes. He has his own goals to accomplish. Saying goodbye is a part of life.”
“I guess you’re right…” he murmured.
Despite my own assurances, I too felt a nagging regret. I didn’t want to let it hang over my head. So I went to Wolf’s room and told him right then that we were all leaving together.
Wolf just said, “Oh,” and nodded. I went back to our room and went to sleep without giving it any more thought.
For the week after that, we continued with our usual daily routines. We woke up and ate breakfast together, then Wolf left for his lab and we went into town. We explained the situation to our employers and worked as hard as we could to show our appreciation for their support. Then we went back home at night, goofed around and had fun like we always did, and went to sleep when we got tired.
Throughout that time, no one mentioned anything about pirating. The closest we got was when I mentioned that I’d purchased a cheap wooden ship to sail in. Wolf, Bepo, Penguin, Shachi, and I laughed and chatted and bickered over silly things like usual, enjoying the time we had left to the fullest.
✦ ✦ ✦
The day before we were set to leave, Wolf summoned us to his lab. We had completed our final shifts at work, said our goodbyes to the people who’d given us those jobs, and then headed for the lab.
“There you are,” Wolf said.
“Why’d you ask us here? Oh! Let me guess… You’re going to perform some weird experiment on us before we can go to sea…” Penguin speculated.
“You fool! What kind of mad scientist do you take me for? Now stop with your joking and come here!”
Wolf led us down the stairs and into the cave. When he turned on the lights, the yellow submarine was there, just like it was the last time. Despite having blasted up through solid earth and into the temple, the hull still looked pristine.
Then I noticed that one thing looked very different about it. On its side was a large skull and bones—the symbol of a pirate.
“Wha!” I gasped, taken aback. “What does this mean, Junker?”
“You were up late last night,” Wolf said, “sitting at the table and talking about which symbol you’d use for your flag.”
“H-how did you know?”
“Hmph. You think I wouldn’t notice all the pages of crumpled-up sketches in the trash? It was obvious. I also couldn’t miss the page that had big red writing on it saying ‘Final Design.’”
“Aw, sure, but why did you paint that symbol on the submarine?” I demanded.
Wolf grinned at me. “A pirate ship’s gotta have its Jolly Roger, right?”
“Huh?”
“Law, Bepo, Shachi, Penguin, I want you to have this ship,” Wolf said. “I designed and built it in case I wanted to go out on another adventure someday. But I want you to use it instead. I’d rather that you take it along as part of a dream I couldn’t fulfill on my own. That way my idea can live on through your adventures.”
“You’re sure?” I asked him.
“Hmph! If I heard that you went out on a wooden ship and got yourself drowned, I’d sleep badly for weeks! But it’s also on a whim. It’s just a thing I want to do,” he said.
It was a favor that was much too large for me to ever repay. I didn’t know how I was going to make it up to him, but I decided to accept Wolf’s generosity.
“All right, fine. It’s not nice of me to refuse the last wish of a dying old man.”
“Hmph. I’ll live for another fifty years, brat! You boys just make sure you don’t wind up as fish food on your voyage!” Wolf said, laughing in that distinct way of his.
Shachi, Bepo, and Penguin got into the submarine, their eyes sparkling.
“This is the greatest masterpiece of a genius inventor, so you’d better treat her well. Master the use of the Invincible Flower Stamp on your way to being great pira—”
“Listen up! We’re calling this the Polar Tang!” I said, talking over Wolf to reveal the name I’d come up with.
“That’s awesome!”
“Wow!”
“What a great name!”
They all loved it. Except for Wolf.
“How dare you! You can’t give my Invincible Flower Stamp such a frivolous name! Oh…whatever. It’s your ship, you can do what you like with it. Hmph…the Polar Tang. I guess it’s not such a bad name coming from some snot-nosed kid.”
He smiled, both resigned and secretly pleased.
“We’ll make good use of it, Junker.”
“You’d better. Show the world what a genius I am,” he said. We held out our fists and bumped knuckles.