The Altered Map Of Destiny

Chapter 2 : Captain apparent

          Light blinded my entire vision as I woke up in a daze, with my right hand being wrapped up into a sling. "The poisonous breath slightly corroded your skin, Sahi," Aruna said gently, "but we made a little herbal paste for you, sourced from the Indudweepan queen's gardens." I nodded gratefully, reaching out for the glass of water next to my headrest. "There," Amal grinned, "the savior of the ship has woken up from his beauty sleep!"
            "Oh, Amal," Sathya smirked, "give it a rest. Our resident strongman has saved all of our lives!" But that didn't stop Amal's smirk. "Ah, Sathya," he chuckled, "This numbskull was out for a week -"
"A week? Amal, what are you saying?" I panicked, "what about the trade fair at Indudweepa....?"
             "We got it covered," Sathya laughed, "I made Amal do a bit of the work, which is why he's cross." However, Amal wasn't impressed with that joke. "How do you two even lift those insanely heavy boxes?" He heaved a sigh, "we'd at least need three elephants to lift one box!" The entire room burst into laughter at his comment.
          "Anyways, Sahil," his expression became serious, "Captain Dharma called you into his cabin." I exchanged a glance with Sathya and Aruna, then Amal, before going to the captain's cabin - was the reason positive or negative? Was the captain going to reprimand me for being reckless, or was he going to mention a few words of appreciation, then forget the whole incident and move on?
          Nevertheless, I knocked on the door, and the captain acknowledged my presence. "Ah, Sahil," he smiled, "please, take a seat!" I blinked at him, and he chuckled heartily, getting up. He came up to me and clasped my shoulder. "Overthinking again, Sahil?" He remarked, "You're tapping your feet again!" He.... knew it?
            "How's your hand?" He asked, with sympathy reflecting in his eyes,  "you sustained a pretty ghastly wound." I acknowledged his concern with a nod, "I'm fine, captain. There's nothing time, nor the Indudweepan herbs, can't heal." Captain Dharma chuckled, bringing a vegetable roll for me, and his demeanor turned serious.
             "As you know, I'm turning sixty-five next year,"  he started off, and I nodded, "I have been searching for a successor. Last week, I found one."
"Who is it, captain?" I asked, excitement coursing through my veins, but I felt a twinge of worry. What if the new captain wasn't as efficient? I steeled myself and asked, "Captain, who's it going to be?"
"You."
I choked on my wine for a moment before calming myself down.
"But, captain," I managed to form a few words, "why me? I'm just a cargo lifter!"
"Sahil, you've proven yourself over these six years," captain smiled, placing a reassuring hand over my shoulder, "and fighting the demon was the last straw. Your apprenticeship under me starts tomorrow. Better brace yourself, boy!"