New Dawn [Flashback/Completed]

[Raphael Eneas]

A raven haired man with messy locks of hair sat on the porch of an average two story house. In his hand he daintily clasped a wine glass half full of red wine. Raphael was a much younger man. He was in his twenties, roughly. At this point in his life he was contemplating his options in life. There was the allure of One Piece, but there was also the childhood dream of becoming a marine. Both had their own pros and cons about them.

The marines were disciplined and respected. They were the law keepers of the ocean. One could gain fame and fortune if they tried hard enough. Unlike a pirate, Marine's weren't wanted nor were they viewed poorly. There was also the con that not everyone made it into the ranks of the marines. Some got stuck at the lower tiers until the ends of their days, nameless and penniless. It was a reality that his young self didn't even take the time to contemplate. Now that he was older he thought long and hard about it.

Pirates were, in fantasy, a group of like minded men and women who only wanted to enjoy life and have adventure. They weren't bound by the rules of the marines. Any young child could be easily entranced by the thought of not being bound by the rules of adults. The idea of going out and making a name for ones self. Like with his childhood dream of being a marine, he learned that there was major downsides to being a pirate. Just as with the marines it was a hit or miss for fame. Then you add in the fact that pirates were eternally hunted down by the marines.

Both sides had their pros and cons. Both sides were quite similar. Raphael took a sip of wine as he leaned back further in the wooden chair that he sat upon. Currently, he was in the prime of his life. It was now or never for deciding his future. If he waited waited too long then he would be left with absolutely nothing. He'd just be a boring old man running a shop. Sure, he could be a marine or a pirate at an older age, but if he waited too long to make his decision it would be harder. He had to take into account the time that it took to reach a high standing in either career path.

Raphael was stuck at a crossroad scratching his head.

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[Raphael Eneas]

Only about ten minutes passed before the man got up and went inside to refill his glass. The distraction gave him time to pause his thinking and focus on something else. He walked gingerly through the house to the kitchen. The building was his childhood home and was given to him by his parents as well as a good sum of money. He lived comfortably and worked as a clerk at the local grocery store. A light sigh escaped Raphael's mouth as he poured another glass of wine and headed back outside.

When he was back outside he would seat himself back down in his chair and take a sip of wine. He stared out at the sky. The sun was steadily descending making way for the moon to take it's shift. He certainly had a lovely home and his life on the island was quite nice. Easily one could fall for the monotony, but underneath it was a loosely held together sham. He was living off his parents money and if he didn't play his cards right he would end up penniless in a matter of years. It was one of the reasons for the urgency of his decision.

"Ah, the difficulties of life." he said to no one in particular. Though there was the sound of life and nature the man felt as though there was a deep silence enacting it's pressure on him. It was the feeling of such a weighty decision. Honestly, if things were more black and white it would make things so much more easy. At the same time, though, that would take from the excitement of life. That's what Raphael wanted. He wanted excitement. He'd take another sip of wine.

This realization didn't make his decision any easier. Both marines and pirates had excitement. It was just a matter of who had a more exciting life-style. At first thought a pirate did, but that wasn't giving the marines enough credit was it? No, no. The structure of the Marines made it less exciting. His younger self tried desperately to defend it's dream of being a world class marine, but the logical adult side realized that the fact that a pirate could do what he wanted when he wanted added to the excitement. At least, the chance of excitement. While a pirate could go on an adventure whenever he pleased, a marine had to follow the commands of their higher up.

With another sip of his wine, Raphael decided he would set out to be a pirate.

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[Raphael Eneas]

The man now had a goal. The only thing to do was to figure out how he would go about making his goal a reality. First, he'd need to get off this island and find a crew to join. No no. That wasn't right. He wasn't going to join a crew. That would be no better than joining the marines. Raphael decided to be a pirate for the sole reason that as such he'd be able to choose his destiny and go out on an adventure whenever he pleased. If he were to join a crew he would be under the command of someone else. Exactly why he wasn't going to join the marines.

The only option was to become the captain of his on crew. A difficult task. Far more difficult than simply joining one. He would have to acquire funds, a ship and a crew. The man figured the first two could be easily dealt with if he sold his house and gathered up the remainders of his parents money. It was all falling into place wonderfully. The only hard part was finding a crew. On this island it would be difficult due to the obvious lack of people. He'd be better off going to Illusia.

No, Illusia wasn't right. He'd need to find men who weren't afraid to get dirty. An island with a reputation for having lowlifes. Even then, that would be difficult. He needed loyal men, not dirty cut-throats. It was difficult, but he would do it. The simple solution was to start out at the easier Illusia and then move onto the more dangerous islands when he exhausted his chances on other islands, or maybe he should do the reverse.

Now that he was contemplating definite plans for the future, Raphael felt the weight lifted off his shoulders. He was heading for a set goal now. It brought a smile to his face. The man let his mind wander from the serious topics to fantasies of him pillaging and looting with a band of strong pirates. He fantasied about finding One Piece and becoming powerful and well renowned. He closed his eyes and took another sip finding that he already finished his wine. No matter. The man stood up and stared at the skyline once more.

The sun was ever nearer to the edge of the world. Tomorrow would be the start of a new dawn. Raphael smiled to himself as he returned back inside to get another glass of wine and to begin his plans more thoroughly.
[END THREAD]

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