The Ninja Pirate

      When recent rumours of a Stealthy Mynci claiming to be the famed ‘Ninja Pirate’ stealing from various merchants started circulating in the area, I knew that it was not the real deal, but an imitation, mainly because of the stories that I had heard when I was younger. As a Stealthy Vandagyre, I worked alongside the various members of the Imperial Guards, mainly by gathering information and reporting them to those on the front lines. Given the circumstances, this new threat was worrisome, especially to those unaware of the stories from the past.

      That all changed when I indirectly heard that the Cyodrake’s Gaze had been attacked by a band of ninjas on the way back to Shenkuu. Knowing that the famed trading ship had been attacked, I went directly to my superior, a Stealthy Korbat, in order to convince her as it seem likely it was another attack by the so called ‘Ninja Pirate’, based on what I had heard. After all, someone had to interview the crew on the attack and see if the attack was linked to some of the others.

      “Lady Hinoka, if it’s all right with you, but I would like to ask the crew of the Cyodrake’s Gaze about the recent attack on the ship and see if it’s related to the various merchant attacks. Someone has to get to the bottom of this mess sooner rather than later,” I asked her upon my arrival, remembering to bow. She turned around to face me, bowing back.

      “Your timing’s perfect, Kaze. I was actually planning on sending you out anyways as you’re the one Neopian within the Imperial Guards that knows more about the storied Ninja Pirate. These attacks from the imitation have got to stop.” I nodded and headed off for the Gaze.

      As soon as I arrived near the Shenkuu Lunar Temple, where the Gaze was docked, I spotted Captain Tuan, the Blue Gnorbu captain, near the ship, as if he was waiting for someone. At that point, I decided to uncover my face before talking to him. I was not exactly sure if he was going to be spooked if I approached him, given the circumstances, so I’d thought it would be better to err on the safe side.

      “Ah, you must the Imperial Guard member sent here to talk about the attack on us,” he replied as soon as he saw me approach the ship. I nodded.

      “I’m here to confirm if the attack on your ship was done by the same Neopian responsible for attacks on the merchants here, Captain Tuan. If it is the same Neopian, well, all the more reason to stop this madness. Attacking someone like you isn’t something we should be taking lightly, given your status and clout, as you and your crew opened our borders to the rest of Neopia.”

      “Of course, you have my full cooperation, as does my crew.”

      As soon as the good captain mentioned a Mynci skull and crossbones flag when they were attacked by an unknown ship, I knew that it was the same Neopian, owing to the fact that the merchants attacked also mentioned the same flag. Although I had no reason to suspect that the rest of the crew had conspired with each other with regards to the attack, I still confirmed the facts with them.

      By the time I was interviewing Hoban the Yellow Aisha, I had pretty confirmed the same story from the crew, namely that they were attacked, but not goods stolen, just neopoints, just like what had happened with the other merchants. However, as he was the navigator, I knew that he would be able to tell me the general direction the ship went after the attack on the Gaze.

      As expected, Hoban provided me a direction as he showed me a map of where the attack occurred as they had been ambushed from behind. Although it was heading southwest from the Gaze, it was leaning more towards the south after making a slight turn. That information gave me a relative idea of where the base was located, but I knew it was going to be tough finding it as I needed more information first before I could narrow down the exact location.

      Upon my return to the Imperial Palace, I quickly confirmed to Hinoka about the attack on the Cyodrake’s Gaze and what my next step was after giving her information on the general direction the ‘pirate ship’ took. She then pulled out an old map of Shenkuu and the surrounding area, studying it carefully before replying. I wondered what was going through her mind, but I soon had the answer.

      “As far as I know, there have been rumours of the old Imperial Palace being located in the mountains somewhere before an avalanche partially destroyed it and forcing the relocation to its current location. I don’t see it as a coincidence that the base of operations for the so-called Ninja Pirate is within the same area as the palace itself, based on what you told me. If you’re able to retrace the steps of at least one of the merchants, it might help you.” I nodded.

      I knew that none of the merchants previously attacked were likely to talk about the incident, however, I was familiar with the various trading routes as the majority of them passed through some Vandagyre villages and settlements, including my own village. While I also knew that none of the villages would have witnessed the attack, it would at least confirm which route was taken by the merchant. At that point, I decided to visit my home village.

      I flew to my home village as it was quicker than taking the trading route walking. When I arrived, I went straight to the village elder, a Spotted Vandagyre who was blind. I took a seat and waited for him to speak.

      “Kaze, welcome back. I know you’ve been busy with your work with the Imperial Guards, but you’re only here because of business. It’s about the recent merchant attacks, no?” he told me, slightly catching me off guard. I replied that it was.

      “Given circumstances, I can’t say that I’m surprised. It’s no mere coincidence that there has been an increase of attacks not only on merchants, but on the villagers as well. A couple of nearby villages as well have also reported an increase. Your adopted sister, Yuki the White Vandagyre, is coordinating efforts to determine who is responsible, in addition to gathering information. She’ll be back in a couple of days.” I thanked him for his time.

      It actually took a little bit longer than expected for my adopted sister to return, owing to the fact that she had taken the liberty to perform some reconnaissance from the village that was attacked. Like the village elder, when she returned, Yuki was not surprised that I had been assigned to deal with the recent merchant attacks. I told her what I knew about the incidents.

      “At least we know that the original Ninja Pirate went after the corrupt and greedy nobles, not merchants and ordinary Neopians like us. That being said, the villagers have confirmed the same flag used on the attacks on the merchants, so it’s more than likely we’re dealing with the same Neopian responsible.” She then pulled out a scroll from one of her pouches before revealing it to be a sketch of the surrounding area.

      “Other than the Neopian responsible, the various attacks, merchants or otherwise, all have something in common, the general location. With a few exceptions, most seem to be coming from the east, hence why I decided to scout the area, see if there was any usual activity nearby.” I sort of had a feeling at what she was hinting at.

      “Yuki, you wouldn’t to have spotted the location of the old Imperial Palace by any chance?” She pointed to a specific spot on the crude map.

      “While I can’t confirm if it was, as there were other places that were destroyed by avalanches in the past and I was too far away to get a good look, I did pass by some ruins. I initially thought that it was a dig of sorts until I saw the poorly disguised ship as they left the same flag flying out in the open.”

      I thought about heading out and confronting the group, but Yuki stopped me as she told me that she sensed a blizzard heading towards us, and to a lesser extent, the ruins. Even with my survival skills, I knew it was too risky to head out as there was a high risk of getting lost in the storm. It would be better to wait it out, which would give the merchants and the villagers a bit of respite, even if they were going to be stranded for a little bit.

      It took a couple of days before the storm subsided. With the fresh snow on the ground, I knew that there was a high risk of an avalanche occurring near the area, so I had to confront the group as quickly as possible and try to get them to stop what they were doing. As much as I wanted to have the Imperial Guards involved, again, due to circumstances, time was not on our side, so I turned to the one Neopian I knew could help me out.

      “I may not be working behind the scenes like you do, Kaze, but I’m still a fledgling ninja, so to speak. Of course I’m willing to help you out, no matter what the circumstances are,” Yuki replied.

      While I was not expecting a fight to break out, I concealed some small weapons like some kunai just as a precautionary matter. As she mentioned previously, Yuki was not a traditional ninja as she brought her famed Kazeriu Bow, but she was still efficient and deadly.

      When we arrived, we saw that the ‘crew’ was struggling to clear the snow away from the flying ship and the ruins, leaving them distracted. Yuki decided to stay behind and kept a close eye on them while I silently flew off towards the entrance. A quick glance around the site confirmed that it was indeed the site of the former Imperial Palace, largely thanks to the size.

      As I made my way into the throne room, I noted that there were far fewer Neopians than what I had expected, even with the majority of the crew helping out clear away the snow. It was clear that they were doing it for the intimidation factor, just like the original Ninja Pirate.

      I ended up catching the Ninja Pirate completely off guard as upon my stealthy arrival, he loudly cursed his oversight, while at the same time, calling for the remaining crew to help him out. I ended up defeating all of them with a piece of wood that I had found on the floor. As soon as I was finished, I pulled down my mask.

      “Who are you and what do you want?” the Mynci menacingly growled.

      “Did you think that the Imperial Guards were not aware of your attacks on the merchants and the nearby villages?” I calmly replied, deciding to reply with another question.

      “Those merchants, especially the Cyodrake’s Gaze, and those villages deserved the attacks from us. They were corrupt. It’s fitting that the old Imperial Palace is used to usher in a new era,” he loudly replied, causing me to silently wince for multiple reasons.

      “If you’re referring to the fact that the merchants opened up our borders, and subsequently, the Vandagyre population, to the rest of Neopia, that’s where Shenkuu’s opinions differ,” I replied, again remaining calm as I did so. It was at that point that I decided to drop the revelation.

      “I wonder how the actual Ninja Pirate would react to your actions, seeing as the actual one did indeed go after the corrupt, but also the greedy nobles, not ordinary citizens. Take Lady Kagero the Royalgirl Mynci, for example. She was known to heavily tax her citizens in her region in order to evict them from their homes so that she could build her opulent manor. The manor was never completed as she ran out of funds, courtesy of the Ninja Pirate stealing those funds and redistributing them.”

      Partway through the conversation, it was apparent that this version of the Ninja Pirate just wanted to preserve the status quo as there was no actual reason why he attacked the merchants and nearby villages, other than to intimidate them into submission. At that point, getting him to change his ways was out of the question, but I could still take him to the Imperial Guards and let them decide his fate just to put everyone at ease.

      As I began walking towards him, I felt some rumbling that was getting louder, forcing me to change my plans. Of course, as I was a Vandagyre, the Ninja Pirate refused to take my hand. I sadly left the area, allowing the remains of the Palace to be swallowed up by the avalanche as I flew away. Although it was not the outcome I had hoped for, the avalanche did end up indirectly stopping any future attacks.

      Fortunately for me, the Neopians working to free the flying ship were around when they retrieved me. Then we set course for Shenkuu, as there still were some things that needed to be done. Yuki came up to me.

      “Kaze, I know that you’ll be busy with your work with the Imperial Guards, but I think someone has to work with the historians to tell the story of the Ninja Pirate, just so something like this doesn’t happen again. The rest of Shenkuu, and possibly Neopia, deserves to know the tales, even if they may be inaccurate,” she told me. I nodded in agreement.

      “I take it that you’ll be staying in Shenkuu for a little bit?” She smiled.

      “Then let’s make it happen.”

     The End.