Captain Morgan 6

The Adventures of Captain Morgan 6

Morgan Olsen

It wasn’t as if life was completely peaceful now. In fact, I was sure things would get exciting soon. There was a Voidborn somewhere in the city. I’d suspected as much when the number of voidlings appearing increased sharply the last few days. Janna confirmed as much with her long years of experience.

The little not-crabs weren’t a threat to me anymore. Bouncing axes that never failed to find their mark. Drunken steps that carried me in and out of the flow of battle. At this point, voidlings could be considered spontaneous cardio.

But they showed up so damn frequently. When I first started, I’d dress up and cosplay a pirate once a week, if that. Nowadays, I could expect to see an incursion once every two or three days. Sometimes, they attacked two places at once. The mall, park, and subway stations were especially common destinations because voidlings were drawn to areas with a high concentration of sentient souls, prey.

Janna and I now had our hands full. Rush hours before and after school were especially fraught with worry wondering where a minor rift might form next. We remained near crowded places so that we could cut them down as quickly as possible. Oftentimes, we had to act alone.

I cut down the last one of the day. I narrowed my eyes, tracking the last place my ax bounced. Sure enough, there was a ripple in the air, the slightest shift of something moving away. I hurled my second ax towards it, but all I did was leave a massive scar on a subway pillar.

“Tch, again,” I spat in annoyance. That was twice now that I’d felt something.

I’d always been lucky. My booze magic made me even luckier. Occasionally, the flow of mana, or maybe fate, pulled my axes in a certain direction that I’d not aimed at intentionally. Such moments caught my attention; they had an “offness” that I couldn’t explain.

Janna told me to trust my instincts. Well, she gave me a backhanded compliment, something about being drunk enough to tap into my innermost impulses, but whatever. 

She’d also gotten closer to hitting it than I did. With her absurd air affinity, she could feel the way air currents moved around an object. I was pretty sure she’d nicked it a few times, only for it to escape hurriedly into the crowds or the sewers.

It was studying us. It was using its invisibility to gauge our responses and learn our fighting styles.

We were at an impasse. With the two of us, we could cover two rifts at once, closing them almost as soon as they formed. The Voidborn couldn’t open those rifts faster than that according to Tipsy’s senses.

I left the cleanup to Valoran City’s finest and headed home. Janna had a much better relationship with the cops than I did. Then again, she wasn’t singlehandedly raising the rate of underage drinking across the city. Oh well, I had to test the ABV of a few of Uncle Gragas’ casks.

I was halfway towards my house when two pillars of light burst up in the distance, piercing the clouds. Pink and crimson.

My would-be leader, the literal Light of Hope, had woken up.

About fucking time.

X

Janna

I was too late. I’d gotten held up by a minor rift, allowing the Voidreaver to stalk its first prey. It was an elite enemy, one of those creatures small enough to emerge through a minor rift yet smart enough to make plans.

I’d faced them before. They were stalkers and predators that behaved like big cats. They gave off an aura of distortion that muddled the senses, allowing them to hide even from my air magic. They were some of my least favorite Voidborn, an achievement given how little I like them generally.

It’d been studying us for several days now, until finally, it felt confident enough to emerge, to go after a target while Morgan and I were both busy.

I knew why, of course. They weren’t much stronger than the usual, crab-like voidlings at first. If either of us could corner it, it’d be dead within the minute.

But Voidreavers could grow. That was the distinction between Voidborn and voidlings: Voidborn creatures had a semblance of life, a corrupted mockery that nevertheless allowed for progress. Each Voidborn seemed to have a slightly different requirement for this growth, but they all pursued this goal unceasingly. 

As for Voidreavers, what greater source of sustenance was there than the magic of an unanointed Star Guardian?

The light that came from within, the Conduit that was born of a wish, these things could not be hidden, not forever. The light welled up and shone through the cracks of our mortal forms. Others mortals, humans, vastaya, and yordles, perceived this as an indescribable charisma, a natural vivacity and love of life that drew people in.

Voidborn saw it as food. So close to their awakening, the Voidreaver would be drawn to Lux and Jinx like a moth to the flame. It might not have the conscious mind to target them specifically, but it didn’t need to at this point. They were akin to walking steaks, aged just right and grilled to perfection.

“Fuck my life,” I swore under my breath. I’d kicked the habit years ago, only for my time with the lovable drunkard to bring it back. Perhaps he wasn’t just a bad influence on the youth alone.

I arrived too late. Or maybe, just in time. The universe had a sense of humor. New Star Guardians seemed to awaken regardless of what we veterans did to stop it, no matter what lengths we went to to protect them.

I smiled as I watched Lux and Jinx shield one another. It was a bittersweet sight, dear friends, as good as sisters, desperate to protect one another. The bubble of pink and crimson shone beautifully. The universe had gained two worthy protectors, protectors now fated to live a life of unending war.

The Voidreaver’s scything claws scraped against their combined shield. Together, they declared their wishes for the world:

“Starlight, star bright, the First Star that I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might, have this wish that I wish tonight!” the two chorused. Their voices echoed with the voices of Star Guardians who had come before. And for a moment, I thought I could hear the voices of my friends and lover, my old team who gave their lives for me.

Twin lights emerged from their breasts. Lux’s formed into a white, lop-eared rabbit, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Jinx’s light split into a pair of poros, a creature native to the Freljord Cluster. Black and white, gleeful and stoic. How appropriate for the bundle of contradictions.

The Conduits awakened. Their weapons, a wand and a pair of guns, formed. The Voidreaver was blasted apart before it could grow into a true threat.

I withdrew quietly. They would need a mentor, someone who wasn’t a perpetual lush. But for now, I’d let them have their moment. The burdens of our office could wait for a while.

X

Luxanna Crownguard

I was a Star Guardian.

I was a Star Guardian.

I, Luxanna Crownguard, the ditziest, clumsiest girl in Valoran City, was a Star Guardian.

Capital S. Capital G. 

I buried my face into my pillow and screamed. “Eeeee!!!”

“Relax, Lux, take it easy~” Mimi said. She was perched on my bookshelf along with my stuffed animals collection. It was a little scary how well she blended in with stuffed versions of Tipsy and Zephyr. “I can’t believe you have toy Conduits.”

I flushed pink. So I was a bit of a fangirl, so what? They were heroes! Valoran City’s very own magical protectors! E-Even if “Captain” Morgan set a bad example for children, he and Janna deserved the city’s support. “Star Guardians are awesome! And I’m a Star Guardian now! And-And–”

“Breathe… Well, at least you seem to be coping okay…”

I rolled over to face her. My hand went to the wand at my bedside table. “I-I mean, it was super scary but you appeared for me, right? We can protect people together now.”

“That’s right,” Mimi said. She hopped down, farther than any normal bunny should be able to. For a moment, her lop-ears spread out and she glided on those before landing on my chest. “We’re going to protect everyone in Valoran City now, alongside Janna and Morgan.”

“Yeah, that’s going to be super cool!” I squealed. “I can finally get their autographs!”

“Why do you want that? Humans collect the strangest items.”

“It’s like… I don’t really know how to explain it but it’s really important!”

“But you’re a Star Guardian now. Can’t you sign your own autographs?”

I bolted out of bed, pressing Mimi to my chest so she wouldn’t fly off. “I could! What if people start asking for my autographs, Mimi?”

She looked up at me with a lazy blink. “You… sign them…?”

“I mean… Janna’s always so cool and elegant that people are too nervous to approach her,” I told my Conduit. My. Conduit. Eeeee! “A-And Morgan doesn’t stick around after he beats the bad guys so no one has his autographs. I think he threw an ax at the last person who asked.”

“Really?”

“Well, n-no… I don’t think he’d miss if he really wanted to hit someone… But still, no one asks him anymore.”

“So they don’t sign autographs? Why are you worried about autographs then? I don’t get it.”

“So people might ask me! Or Jinx! Oh no, Jinx is going to shoot the first person who asks!”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine, Lux. Take it easy~”

I buried my nose into her fur. She smelled like cotton candy. Unfortunately, she didn’t taste like it. “You’re right, Mimi… I’m just… I can’t wait to meet them. I looked up to them for years, and I’m… What if they don’t want me? What if they don’t think I’m good enough to join them?”

“They won’t. Star Guardians are busy enough without fighting themselves. I don’t know about the ‘Star Pirate,’ but Janna is a veteran who won’t look down on you.”

“I hope you’re right, Mimi…”

X

Jinx

I was a Star Guardian.

I was a fucking kickass Star Guardian. I had the bombs, the guns, and I could punch hard enough to crack cement. I knew ‘cause I tried.

And not one fucking thing changed.

I came home to a dark apartment. I brought in the mail. Bills for water. Electricity. Gas. Rent. I tossed them all aside, wishing I could do more.

Mom was out. I didn’t need to check the post-it on the fridge; I knew the drill by now. There was cold pasta in the fridge, some canned peas in the pantry. We had an egg left in the carton. I left that for mom; she needed the protein. There were two leftover cupcakes Lux baked for me so dinner at least didn’t suck too bad. Lux always knew to give me even numbers of baked shit.

I cooked myself dinner and did my homework on the dining table. Kuro and Shiro, I didn’t know Star Guardians could have two mascots, were play-fighting on the couch. Well, Shiro was watching TV. Kuro was bouncing on her head and trying to get a reaction out of her. They could amuse themselves for a few hours.

After dinner, I took a shower and headed to my room. I told myself that it wasn’t her fault she wasn’t here. It was a freak accident that dad died, no one was at fault. She just… She was off getting things done and making ends meet, whatever it took to keep me in a good school.

“I wish I may, I wish I might, have this wish that I make tonight…” I whispered to myself.

“What was your wish, Jinx?” Kuro asked. His bat wings, or ears, flapped happily. Shiro was a robot, an unfeeling marshmallow. Kuro had enough personality for the both of them.

“I wanted to blow that fucker up for making Lux cry.”

“You did! We went boom!”

“Heh, yeah. We kicked ass.”

“So why are you sad?” He settled on my chest.

“I’m not sad. It’s nothing.”

“You can’t lie to us,” Shiro said. Her expression never changed but I could hear the concern in her voice. It sounded uncomfortably like Lux. “We’re a part of you, Jinx.”

I sighed. What was there to say? I filled my life with color so I wouldn’t have to think about the shades of gray back home. Every exciting thing, every good thing, was just a pop of color, a brief firework before it all faded away again.

Lux… Lux was my best friend, my sister from another mother. She was the one who reached out after dad died. She was the one who pulled me from my funk and made me think there was more to life than moping.

“We almost died,” I said somberly. “And it’s not going to stop.”

“No, it will not.”

“Yeah… Lux isn’t going to stop. She’s all about that ‘helping people thing’ and Star Guardians have been her idols since… ever.”

“Your wish was to protect her.”

“Is that weird?” I croaked out a laugh. “I could have wished for a billion vals. Or a better house. Or a better job for mom. Or…”

“Why didn’t you?” Kuro asked. “We’d still have come, you know. Maybe not in the same way, but you’d still have become a Star Guardian.”

“I don’t know. I wasn’t… None of that even came to mind. In that moment, when that mantis-fucker was trying to eat us, I just… I wanted to blow up whatever was making my friend cry. I wanted the power to blow up all my problems.”

“You can! You have us!”

He was right, but… maybe I shouldn’t take advice from a living bazooka. “Yeah, but some problems can’t be solved with big explosions, Kuro.”

“They can’t?”

“No, they can’t…”

Author’s Note

Morgan’s wish was an anomaly, as is he in the universe. Everything about him is atypical of the Star Guardian experience.