The Unforeseen

Strongest

Chapter 60
We stood outside the door, my heart pounding in my ears. "What if he doesn't like me?" I whispered. "Would he kick me off the ship?"
"Alissa, he let me live here while I was constantly trying to kill him." He answered, a hint of teasing behind his words. "I'm sure you'll be fine."
I looked at the door, which was ginormous. I new this was Whitebeard's part of the ship, so everything was to his size. Even still, I couldn't help but wonder how tall the man truly was. Before I let myself get psyched out, I took a breath and pushed the door open.
Sitting in the biggest chair I had even seen was a very old, but strong man. Like so many of the crew, he wore no shirt, showing his well toned muscles. Over his shoulders was a white coat, and it oddly enough reminded me of the style the navy admirals wore. His white mustache extended passed his features, curling in at the ends. Ironically he had a large spear propped up against a few different bags of medicine that were dripping into tubes. I counted four of them, going either in his arms or his upper chest. He was intimidating to stand before, but at the same time, I felt oddly calm and protected. This was the infamous pirate, Edward "Whitebeard" Newgate, the strongest man in the world, yet right now, he was just an old man.
"So you must be Alissa!" I nearly stumbled when his voice rang out. "About time I get to meet you."
"Whitebeard. Thank you for allowing me to stay on your ship." I bowed my head a little as a sign of thanks and respect.
He laughed. "Where did you find this one, Ace?"
"I'm not really sure. She just kind of showed up in front of me. I couldn't get her to leave me alone." Ace replied, hardly glancing at me.
"It was quite the opposite." I pointed out. The tension in my muscles began to subside as I listened to them joke. After a few minutes, Ace grabbed a pair of chairs from the side of the room and set them out. We reclined, but we never stopped talking. I have no idea how long the three of us talked, but I found myself disappointed when a rookie poked his head in looking for Ace.
"Sorry, but you said you wanted to know when the mirror was ready to be put up." He said to Ace.
Whitebeard raised a brow. "Should I ask?" He said to me.
I shrugged. "I wouldn't; it's Ace, we're talking about."
He nodded. "Fair point."
Ace frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
I shoved him out of his seat. "Just go do your job."
He grumbled as he left, closing the door behind him. And just like that, I was alone with the Captain of the strongest crew in the world.
A thought that had been on the back burner of my mind began to boil over, forcing itself to the front.
"Sir," I began.
"You can call me 'Old-Man'; everyone does." He insisted.
"Old-man," I tested it out, feeling a bit strange addressing him like that. "I have a... an odd question." He simply nodded for me continue.
"Say someone wanted to join your crew. What would they have to do?"
A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "Are you asking for a friend?"
I felt the heat rise to my cheeks, but I forced myself to ignore it. "You could say that."
He paused before he began to speak. "It's not easy. Your 'friend', would have to bring me the head of a sea giant. After that, they would be free to join."
My eyes widened. A sea giant? There was no way I could wrestle a beast that was bigger and stronger than any whale.
Suddenly, Whitebeard burst out laughing, a sound that bounced off the walls. "Oh, that never gets old." He grinned, wiping a tear from his eye. "I'm just messing with you. It's actually quite simple; just get the approval of a commander of your choice and prove to both him that you bring something new or valuable to the crew." He explained. "I would recommend Ace, for you, obviously."
I held my hands up to my chest. "I- I'm not-"
"I've been at this for a while, kid; I see your spirit, and I see who you are. You've got something special if you can get that hot-head to open up." He leaned back into his chair. "Now, go find him and ask for his support."
"All do respect, sir- old man, I had another in mind." I answered, rising from my seat. My mind was already running at full speed, a plan coming together piece by piece.