Chasing the Storm
"Shit! Close the sails! Close the sails!"
"Its no good! The winds too strong, its going to break the mast!"
"Forget it! Everyone below deck!"
"But Captain! We-"
"I said get below deck!"
"Yes Captain!"
"..."
"C-captain! L-look out!"
"What? ...shit!"
"Captain Kid! Captain Kid!!!"
"No! Boss! Wh-what do we do?! The mast knocked the Captain into the ocean!"
"W-wait! I see him! He's tied himself to the mast!"
"We need to.... we need to rescue him!"
Endless storms of fire and smoke crossed before Kids eyes. Everything was blurred, the fire cold. Like ice. Smoke twisted and curled through the flamers, like serpents slithering through tall grass. It looked alive. The fire spread across his skin, deep reds, yellows and oranges mixing together as it touched his body. Smoke lapped against his forehead. He broke into a cold sweat.
Was he dreaming? Was this all an illusion? He couldn't think. His thoughts slurred together into an intangible mess. Flashes of memory burst through his conscious. Clearly, vividly. The brilliant white bursts of the lightning. The crashing waves, a bitter green blue, consuming his ship. Clouds, blacker than the wings of a crow, hanging above like a fierce deity smiting them with a torrent of pelting rain. Winds howled, breaking rope and sails, beating relentlessly on his ship.
All of this flashing through his mind as he tried to gather his thoughts. He saw many events, all out of order. He saw the mast of the ship, moaning from the strain of the wind break at the base, falling on him.
Kid struggled to cling onto his scattered memories. He was aware of his mind clearing, like clouds drying above a desert. A hand stroked his face. He couldn't see it, but he felt it. It felt so far off, but so real. He clung onto the feeling. His sole life preserver in a world of of cold fire and living smoke.
The hand left, or did he leave? He couldn't tell, he only saw the fire die away. Fading into darkness. And he was alone.
Kid was flung down underwater, he couldn't breath, he couldn't move. The water pushed him down, deeper and deeper into its cold depths. He felt cold, chilled to his very core. The surface was far away, he couldn't swim to it.
He reached out, hoping to grasp on to the fading light fluttering across the surface above him, but his arm wouldn't move. His fingers and toes grew numb, the feeling spreading all through his limbs. He started to, vaguely, recall a memory of his childhood. It suddenly became real.
A warm blue sky hung over the earth like a curtain, the clouds rippling through it, like the folds of a airy dress. The earth was heavy with the scent of summer, warm and muddling. The sound of insects calling out to one another filled the air. Their rhythmic, random words making it hard to hear one's own thoughts.
Kid, age ten, sat at the end of a plain wooden dock, extending ten feet into a long lake. His feet kicked the water, creating tiny waves. His face in that same goofy expression he had every time he thought about his dream, that he'd run away from home to become a pirate. He thought about what his first ship would be, a sloop-just because it was fast. Heavy foot falls resounded off the wood plants of the dock. He turned around to see Francis run up to him.
"Gosh parents are annoying." Francis whined extravagantly, running his fingers through his long blond hair. "They want to know every little detail. I had to lie to them about you. You know how it is."
"Yeah..."
"You thinking about being a pirate?"
Kid smiled, Francis could always tell what he was thinking. "Yeah, I'm gonna ditch this hick town and find me a crew. Get a good ship and sail all four blues. But before that, I'll become the Pirate King. I'll conquer the grand line. I'll be a better, grander pirate than Gold Roger ever was." He was shouting now.
"I'm going to be your first mate right?" Francis said excitedly, picking up on Kids enthusiasm. "I'm first mate right!?"
"I wouldn't want anyone else." Kid punched Francis playfully in the arm.
Francis smiled and they sat in silence. Just imagining. They knew their fantasy so well, they had talked about it so much. So many nights, staying up well past their bed time, building forts from blankets and chairs. In the summer if the weather was good, they'd camp outside under the stars, dreaming of adventures that out number the stars.
"Ohh, thats right." Francis yawned dreamily. "I'm supposed to teach to how to swim today." He yawned again, louder. "Gosh its hot, could fall asleep any moment." The blond haired boy closed his eyes, all thoughts of swimming lessons vanishing. Kid smirked mischievously and unexpectedly pushed Francis into the lake. Francis blond head burst through the top of the water, he spit water from his mouth, staring at Kid wide eyed.
"What'd you do that for!" He yelled, pushing blond hair from his eyes.
"For trying to get out of my swimming lessons!"
And Kid jumped into the water.
Kid was suddenly thrust into the present. His whole body numb, he let himself slide deeper and deeper into the calm blue. The surface was gone. Dark blue depths surrounding him on all sides. It stuck him how calm it was so far down into the ocean. The surface was chaos, ruling every aspect of those who braved the waves. He wondered if this was what death was like. Quite, tranquil. Away from the storm.
Blue melted to black and that was the last thing he remembered dreaming.
Kid awoke, feeling strange. Staring straight ahead at a wooden wall, light flickering across it sporadicly. He later realized that he was laying on his back, staring at the ceiling. He sat like that for a long time, unable to recall anything. He knew certain things. He knew his name. His ship.... then nothing.
He wondered where he was, he wondered why he thought of that. He knew of only two places, the lake where he learned to swim, and the ocean. A blurred figure sauntered past him. He tried to speak but his mouth was dry and heavy.
The figure came back, moving closer. It was a woman, wearing a light gray dress that hugged her waist, widening at the hips, giving it a bell like appearance. Everything about her from the chest up was too blurred to make out.
Her hand moved to his face, stroking his check. He knew the feeling of her touch from somewhere before, but he couldn't call upon the memory of it. Her hand was warm and comfortable. It felt good against his cold skin.
He didn't know when he slipped away, leaving no vestiges of that warm place, that warm hand. Darkness consumed him.
"Good morning Eustass."
"Mother..." Kid started up at the face of his mother, he was ten years old, and his head only came up to the bottom of her waist. He wished he was taller.
"What would you like for breakfast? Toast? Eggs? Or maybe pancakes. I really like pancakes, my mother made them all the time when I was a kid."
She tried to ruffle his hair but he jumped back. She looked started by his reaction and stared at him with sad gray eyes. This terrified Kid. His mother was never this kind. She never offered to make him breakfast, never tried to touch him.
"Okay, I'll make pancakes." She said quickly, talking to the air. Eustass Kid tried to make a dash for the front door but his mother saw him and barred his way. She fell to her knees, grasping his shoulders, her eyes filled with pain. "Please don't leave." She said, practically screaming, tears streaming from her gray eyes. "Don't leave me Eustass, don't leave me. I know I've been a bad mother but please, let me make it up to you!"
Marian Kid bust into uncontrollable sobs, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. She lifted the neckline of her gray dress, using it to blot her eyes. Kid felt no pity for the woman prostrating herself before him. He hated her, and nothing will change that.
"Where's dad." He said firmly, noticing how his mother jumped at the mention of his father.
"Gone." She whispered, gently cupping her hands around his face. "He left and he's never coming back."
Kid slapped her hands off him. His skin burned where she touched him. "Bullshit!"
"Eustass.... Eustass." His mother cooed lovingly. "My dear child, my wonderful Eustass. It's just us now, your father won't hit me anymore. And I only hit you because your father hit me. Don't you understand my beautiful baby boy? It was all his fault, but now he's gone... now, now we can be happy! We can be a happy, loving family just like everyone else."
"It's too late for that you bitch!" Kid pushed her aside, his trembling figures struggling to grasp the doorknob. His mother clung onto him desperately. He fought her off, punching and even kicking her. She screamed and cried, begging him not to leave her. Finally Kid opened the door. His mother reached over him to close the door. Kid slapped her across the face, stunning her for three precious seconds. Kid ran for it, running with all his might. His mother didn't follow.
Kid dreamed of a storm. A violent storm that shocked him to the core. The storm was always there. Always happening, never ending, growing stronger each and every day.
The storm washed over his ship, the hungry waves snapping, their powerful maws claiming his ship for their own. He tried to fight it. He felt like he was fighting the same storm every day since he was a child. A storm that tormented all his living days.
Each day was a struggle. Each day an effort to stay alive. To stay a step ahead of those who wanted him dead. Life's tempest throwing more difficulties upon his lap, increasing his suffering.
The wind howled and raged, pulling at his hair and clothes until it felt like his own skin was peeling away. Rain fell in torrents from above, making the deck slippery and each step treacherous. The mast moan and creaked and with a might snap Broke off, falling right on him. He jumped away in panic, but lost his balance. The ship pitched left and right forcing him over the edge of the ship.
The mast followed him down. Broken rope, manipulated by the wind, lashed through the air like whips. A rope snapped across his arm. He didn't feel the pain right away but then it came all at once, just as he hit the water. The mast landed beside him, remaining buoyant in the vicious water. A rope, during the fall, had wrapped around his leg, and before all his strength left him he reached for the rope, pulling himself up.
His head cleared the surface and he gaped for air. A wave crashed over him and he was forced under again. He pulled himself up again, refusing to die. He grabbed the rope, lightning flashing directly above him. His crew shouted to him but their voices were lost to roaring of the waves and claps of thunder. Kid tied the rope around the mast then to his waist, securing himself tightly to it. He knew so long as he was tied to the mast he was safe.
Thunder screamed, lightning spreading its spidery fingers across the sky. Endless waves washing over him, filling his mouth and ears and nose with salty water. Kid started to choke. Every time he spit water from his mouth more came back inside. The ocean tossed and turned him, breaking against him with powerful force.
Everything inch of his body was soaked to the bone, he felt his legs going numb. Far, far back in his mind, thoughts of hypothermia resounded.
"I wont die like this!" He shouted into the storm with all his remaining might. "Throw your worst at me! I'll show you bitches! Who's ever running this crazy show called life, I'll show you! You can't kill me! I'm going to become the next Pirate King! I won't die like this!!!"
I won't die like this...
"Hey." A soft voice prodded, pulling him away from the storm. "Wake up Eustass. Wake up please."
His eyes flustered open, and focused on a round, soft face. Thin pink lips pulled into a smile, a small pudgy nose and dark gray eyes shimmering in the dim room. Kid couldn't fathom who this woman was or why she even bothered with him.
He was a feared pirate. The rookie with the highest bounty. The man who killed anyone who dared to laugh at his dreams.
"I'm glad to see you're awake Eustass. You've been sleeping for a long time."
"Water..." Kid mouthed slowly, making only the faintest of sounds. His mouth was so dry and cracked, it hurt to move his lips. The woman nodded, and turned away from him, disappearing from sight. He noticed she wore the same gray dress as the woman from his dream.
She came back moments later, holding a small green cup to his lips. He drank deeply, ignoring the water that dribbled around his lips. He drank five cups total, feeling unsatisfied but content nonetheless. The woman smiled at him and picked up a folded towel from a table beside him. She gently rubbed his forehead.
"You've been having many nightmares Eustass." She said soothingly, her smile sad. "Such hardships for a boy so young."
Kid realized all too quickly who she was. "Mother..."
"That's right." Kids mother smiled at him, stroking his hair absentmindedly. "Such a handsome man you've grown up into. I'm so proud of you. You're a man of your dreams."
"Shut up." Kid growled, unable to move his body. His arms and legs felt like lead weights.
His mother shook her head at him. "Now is that anyway to treat me Eustass? The woman whom you killed?"
Kid's eyes widened in shock.
"That's right my dear." His mother kissed him on the forehead. "That day, the day you ran away, your father was going to kill you. He had so much debt you know, or I supposed you didn't know. You were probably too young to understand that sort of thing yet." Kid watched with horror as the woman known as his mother told him everything he never wanted to hear.
"So he said that we had too many mouthes to feed. He picked up his knife and started for me. He was going to kill me Eustass. Me! The woman who carried his son in her womb for nine months, the woman who raised that son, you my dear Eustass.
"So I begged and pleaded with him. I said that he should kill you instead. Children were much more costly than a wife was. He stopped and listened me. I explained to him that if I was gone then there would be no one to cook his meals or clean his clothes, all tasks a child is terrible at. I said I could have another child for him when he had the money again.
"He accepted my logic but felt a bad for you. He wanted to give you a week to live, and telling me to make it the happiest week of your life. I told him that a week was too long, a day was good enough for you. He agreed.
"I was going to make you pancakes my darling, darling Eustass. I've always loved your name, did you know that? I named you myself when you were born. Eustass was the name of my uncle. I was going to name my next child Eustass too, and tell him all about their older brother Eustass."
"He killed you... didn't he." Eustass cringed every time her fingers stroked his cheek, his skin burning with every touch.
"Yes." She said sadly. "He was drunk when he came home. He didn't want to hunt after you so he killed me instead. He said he could easily find another wife. And as I was choking on my own blood he said he loved you more than he ever loved me. Oh Eustass, how could you make your own mother suffer so. Why did you kill mother?"
Kid didn't think, he jumped from the bed away from his mother. She screamed and lunged at him. Kid had no control over his body, his stiff limbs refusing to work the way he wanted them too. He willed his body to move to the door, reaching it before his mother. He hurried through shutting the door tightly behind him. His mother screeched from the other side, her fists pounding on the door.
Kid remembered his devil fruit powers and looked around the familiar living room of his childhood. He saw the iron oven in the tiny kitchen. He reached for it, making sure to keep pressure on the door. A crawling, prickly feeling creeping into the tips of his fingers and fading away.
He swore loudly, trying again and again to pull the iron stove to him. The metal wouldn't budge. Sharp, gray metal pierced through the door, missing his fingers by centimeters. A long, twisted dagger cur through the door, carving out a hole showing his mothers eye.
"Come here Eustass honey. Let mother kill you, then everything will be alright."
Kid left the door, is hands grouping for his weapons. He had nothing. His dagger, his gun, both gone. The door slid open and mother stood in the open doorway. Pointing the tip of that dagger to his throat, promising to kill him.
Kid would never giver her that chance. He ran to the kitchen, pulling drawers and cupboard doors off their hinges in search for any weapon. His mother screamed as she dug her dagger into his side. He didn't feel the pain he expected to feel. Only chilling coldness.
His mother attacked again, cutting the knife across his arm. He grabbed her wrist, ignoring the frigged coldness on the fresh wound. He twisted his mothers arm, pulling her in front of him. Kid's fingers wrapped around her neck and squeezed. Her eyes bulged and her mouth gaped for air.
She died, slowly and painfully under his hands. Kid felt nothing, watching the light fade from her gray eyes. She wasn't his mother, he told himself. She wasn't real. His mother died long ago. His father killed her.
His fingers slid off her skin and she fell to the floor with a light thud. Tired he trudged to the front door. His whole body uncomfortably warm. He opened the front door, pausing for only a second. He walked through, feeling as though a great weight was lifted off him.
"Captain!" Killer's voice woke Kid. The captain sat up sharply, scanning his surroundings with weary suspicion. He jumped from the bed, looking wildly around the white room. It was different, somehow. The walls, no longer wooden but white. No dim candle light to muddle his senses. With a start he realized he was in his own room. On his ship.
"What happened... how did I?," said Kid, clutching his head between his hands. "I... I don't understand...".
"There was a storm captain." Killer explained. "The mast feel and knocked you out and into the water. I dived in after you and the crew fished us out from the water. It was horrible, wind and waves coming from all directions, rain pelting us... You've been sleeping for over a week. The crew was starting to get worried until you started talking in your sleep. We knew you'd be okay after that, that it'd only be a matter of time until you woke up."
Kid said nothing. He got up to look out the small, round window in his room, the only window. It was as large as his head, and gave him limited view of the sea.
The world outside was calm, surreal almost. The hazy distance merging with the pale ocean, blurring the line between sky and sea. In all his life, Kid had never seen the ocean so calm, so flat. And not a single could in the sky.
"I think..." Kid said slowly. "This is the most peaceful... I've ever felt in my life."
"Captain?" Killer didn't understand. He didn't understand much of what went on in Kid's head any more. He used to know every thought but now, it was like trying to read a closed book.
"Nothing... it's nothing." Kid shook his head, not quite understanding it himself. It was a strange, new feeling to him. He lost the turbulent feeling that ruled over his life. The feeling of being on edge all time, that everything was wrong and corrupt. The paranoid feeling that the world existed just to make him suffer.
It wasn't lost, he decided, just... gone. The storm, had settled and in its wake left a calmness he had never known.
End.