Artoria had noticed the beast's appearance and stopped her horse. "Shit!" She thought and jumped off Mere, landing gracefully in the snow.
"Time for round two I suppose," she muttered and held out her right hand.
At this point, Law had turned around to watch Artoria. He raised his brow in both curiosity and amusement. Sebastian had said that one of Artoria's main weapons was a broadsword, yet he saw nothing like that on the young woman's figure. The Supernova didn't even see anything that represented pistols either. When she raised her right hand he became even more curious. "Devil fruit?" He thought as a bunch of electrical sparks began emitting from her hand, the sound of the snapping bought the attention of Amarok, Sebastian, and the rest of the Heart Pirates.
"Whoa, is that a devil fruit power?" One of the crewmen asked. Law looked back at Sebastian who just kept his mouth shut,
"Not sayin' anything..." He muttered, not wanting to get into any trouble. Law rolled his eyes and focused back on Artoria, who had now summoned a broadsword out of thin air.
"That has to be a devil fruit." Another crewmen said, others were nodding.
Artoria gripped the handle of her sword and with a flick her wrist, a surge of electrical sparks coursed down the blade. Artoria began to run towards Amarok at full speed. Swinging the heavy, electrified broadsword behind her, she arced it and began to bring it down upon the wolf's head.
"She's very fast..." Law observed as he watched as Amarok caught her blade in his mouth. Dangling from the hilt of the sword, Artoria released her left hand and held it out towards the wolf. In another flash of light, a pistol appeared in her hand. She fired an endless amount of rounds into Amarok's throat. Blood started ricocheting off the bullet wounds and onto Artoria, creating a stark contrast between Artoria's pale complexion and the crimson blood. The growls Amarok let out allowed more blood to flow out of the wound and onto the snowy ground, that didn't stop Artoria from continuing to pump lead into the wolf's throat.
Having enough of that, Amarok whipped his head in the direction of the tree line, letting go of Artoria's sword in the process. Maintaining her grip again, Artoria maneuvered her body so that her feet would be the first thing to touch the trees. The force that Amarok had sent the young woman at, made her hit countless trees, stopping a good 30 feet from the tree line.
With Artoria out of the way, Amarok focused his attention at the rest of the group.
"Don't ignore me, you oversized flea bag!" Artoria howled as she charged out of damaged woods, her sword grazing the top layer of snow. At this point her tights had become ripped up and her coat had received tears on the back. The skirt portion of the coat was becoming progressively more tattered as result of being thrown into the trees. Amarok lunged towards the noble, Artoria reacted quickly and jumped onto the muzzle of the beast. Amarok's head snapped up in an attempt to throw her off. Artoria stabbed her sword through the top of the beat's jaw to secure herself, this caused a howl of pain to erupt from the giant canine. Amarok began shaking his head more violently to attempt to get rid of the swordswoman on his muzzle. It only cause Artoria to sink her sword deeper into the wound as she put more pressure onto it. More whines and whimpers were heard from the beast as its pain was intensified. Artoria was now sitting on the beast's muzzle, her legs were firmly wrapped around her blade, causing the sharp edges to bite into her skin. Mixing her blood with Amarok's. In a swift action, Artoria let go of the blade's hilt with her left hand, summoning the pistol from before. This time she took aim at Amarok's right eye, and with a series of rapid firing she proceeded to blind the wolf. Another earth shattering howl escaped from Amarok as he flipped onto his back in attempts of squishing Artoria. As the wolf was in the process of flipping over, Artoria dismissed her weapons and attempted to jump off. Her wounded thighs gave out on her and she toppled over with the beast, effectively crushing her and knocking her out. After sensing the pain had seized, Amarok flipped back up and dashed back into the forest.
"Artoria!" Sebastian hollered as he jumped off the driver's seat and rushed to the noble's side. "Stay with me girl," he whispered and picked her up, bridal style. All the while Law and the rest of the Heart Pirates had watched the battle intently.
"That was pretty cool." A crewmen had said, "Do you think she's going to be alright Captain?" he asked, looking at the man in question.
"It's tough to say, those thigh wounds look pretty bad…if she doesn't get treatment soon she might die." He said.
"It's tough to kill her." Sebastian muttered as he set Artoria up next to him, her head resting in his lap. "When she fought Amarok last, her whole…actually never mind. I already told you too much." He muttered and ushered the horses to continue their journey up the road, Artoria's horse kept pace with the wagon at its side.
"Sebastian-ya, I'm a doctor. It would probably be for the best if I take a look at her wounds now." Law said, glancing at the sleeping noble before looking back at the straight-faced driver.
"No can do Mr. Trafalgar."
"She might die from blood loss." Law stated bluntly, the driver shrugged.
"Under orders." He stated, "From Artoria herself." Before Law could give a rebuttal, Sebastian pulled out a Den Den Mushi and began to call someone.
"Hello?" An old voice croaked over the receiver.
"Ofuri, Artoria had a run in with Amarok. Her legs are all cut up. We're still on our way with the Heart Crew. Mr. Trafalgar Law here is a doctor as well and has asked to treat Artor…" Sebastian's message was cut off by Ofuri's ragged voice,
"You know what the young mistress has said."
"I know but he's insisting."
"Continue to deny. Artoria will be just fine." Ofuri said and hung up.
"Sorry Mr. Trafalgar." Sebastian muttered Law shrugged his shoulders and turned his back to the man,
"If she dies, it's not my fault." Law stated. The rest of the trip was uneventful and quiet. Law quietly wished that Artoria was conscious, he wanted to ask her about her powers.
The sun had fully set and snow was falling at a quick rate as the wagon pulled into the circular driveway in front of the Vicinity Manor. As soon as the wagon had come to a complete stop, a horde of people came rushing out. Two rushed over to Artoria and whisked her away. Others started undoing the various buckles and belts that were attached to the horse team and lead the team to some stables. Another took Artoria's horse towards the stables as well. The Heart Pirates unloaded from the wagon and were approached by an older man in a suit.
"Welcome Heart Pirates." He said and gave a swift bow. "Please follow me, would you like to be shown the rooms first or receive a meal?" He asked, Law looked back at his crew. A majority of them shrugged and shuffled awkwardly about.
"Show us the rooms first, then the meal." Law decided for his men. The old man nodded and began walking into the building.
"You'll have to forgive the mess." He said and opened the main doors that led into the foyer. Law was about to question why would there even be a mess in the first place, but when the doors opened he understood. There were books everywhere. They littered the coffee tables and end tables, even some of the seats had books stacked on them. "Artoria is researching the beast, and other things." Ofuri explained and began to walk through the small foyer and into the much larger main room, followed closely by the Heart Pirates. "She asked us not to touch the books." He added,
'An answer to a question I never asked.' Law thought, looking down at the man.
The group began to ascend the stairs on the east side of the room, then went up the second set of stairs that branched off to the left of the first set, finally group took an immediate left entering a corridor. Law spotted some more books and rolls of paper as they walked farther down the corridor, on the right were three doors, and the left side was open to the large room from earlier.
"The last door at the end of this hall leads into the bedrooms." Ofuri stated as he opened the door. Past the door were approximately five doors, then the hall took a turn to the left which most likely lead to more rooms. "Each room has two full beds in them." Ofuri described as he and the group walked through the hall, "as you can see there's five rooms here, but farther down the hall there's five other rooms including Master Artoria's." Law nodded and looked back at his crew,
"Pair off into these rooms." He ordered, "I don't care who's with who," he added. Ofuri lead the pirate crew further down the hall and soon everyone had paired up and situated themselves in their rooms. In the end, there were more rooms than people. So Law, Bepo, and Jean Bart could have their own rooms if they wanted.
"Whose room is this at the end?" Law asked as a couple of men entered the room their words were hushed.
"That would be Master Artoria's." Ofuri said. Law didn't say anything and entered the room he would be staying in.
Ofuri followed Law into his room, when Law turned the question the old man. Ofuri said,
"Dinner would be ready in a few minutes. I shall send someone to summon you all. Artoria most likely will not join you guys." He said and left the room, the door clicked shut behind him. Law frowned, Artoria caught his interest but due to her injuries that she had obtained. She would most likely be bed ridden for the next few days. Someone knocking at his door interrupted his thoughts.
"Dinner's ready." Law made no noise as he opened the door, startling the poor young maid. "P-P-Please follow me sir." She stuttered and walked down the hall. Law looked behind him as he watched a few men walk out of Artoria's room. They seemed uninterested in the pirate captain as they walked right by them. Law was able to pick up parts of their conversation before they sped walked out of ear shot,
"Artoria's ability is amazing!"
"I agree!"
'They must be talking about her devil fruit power…could it be to summon weapons? That would be an unusual one…quite useful to me though…' He smirked, somewhere in his mind he couldn't help but think that he's seen her somewhere before. "Hey." Law said, startling the maid before him, "does Artoria have a devil fruit power?" He got straight to the point.
"I-I…I'm n-n-not sup-posed to…"
"To tell me, right." Law sighed, having enough of this woman's stuttering. "Could I see Artoria after dinner?" He asked, the maid shook her head violently.
"NO! Absolutely not! Unless invited in, Artoria does not like her personal space intruded upon!" She said, her stutter now gone. A bead of sweat dripped down his face, very well he'll have to wait later then.
"Very well then…How long until the log pose sets on this island?" He asked,
"A-About a week." The maid stuttered in a low voice, Law rolled his eyes. Unless repeating orders the maid constantly stuttered. Hearing the chattering of his crew broke his concentration, it seemed that they were approaching the dining room. Two of his crew were loudly cooing and flirting with the maids.
"Shachi-ya, Penguin-ya. Please don't cause any more trouble for Artoria's staff." Law sighed, the two men in questioned stopped their squabbling and began playing with their food in embarrassment. The rest of the evening was uneventful, other than Law informing his crew about when the log pose will be set.
Ofuri had walked into Artoria's room with a tea tray in his hands. Artoria was currently wearing a sports bra and a pair of comfy shorts, her entire stomach was bandaged as well as her legs and hands. Artoria was sitting on one of her sofas in her sitting room a book settled on her lap. Her legs were propped up on the table in front of her and on the end table beside her was an empty tea cup.
"Master Artoria. Trafalgar Law request permission to enter your library." Artoria let out a hum and flipped the page she was finished reading.
"He may enter it." She said not sparing Ofuri a glance as she flipped another page.
"He's also been asking if you ate a devil fruit." He said as he replaced Artoria's empty cup with a full one as well as setting a plate of tea cookies down as well. Artoria let out a small laugh,
"I suppose he would be. He did witness me fight Amarok." Artoria looked up from her book and gave the man a small smile. "I shouldn't be walking around but perhaps you could go grab it for me. I need the book on the Sapphire Head. I believe it's within my father's collections, in his old office." Artoria requested, Ofuri ruffled the noble's long white hair with affection.
"I'd be glad to grab it for you, Artoria." He said. Ofuri had always been like a grandfather to Artoria, ever since she was a young girl. Her father had always been busy with his expeditions and her mother died when she was young. So Ofuri and the house maids have always taken care of her.
"Thank you Ofuri." She whispered and went back to reading, occasionally taking small sips from her tea. Ofuri bowed and then left the noble to her reading. As he opened the door Law was leaning against the opposite wall, and amused smirk on his face.
"She allowed you to enter her library." Ofuri stated and walked out of the bedroom quarters. Earning a hum from Law, who staid leaning against the wall until he deemed it time to follow Ofuri to the Library.
"Is she assigning you to watch over me while I sit in there? So I don't steal anything?" Law asked in an amused tone,
"No." Ofuri stated, "She just assigned me to retrieve a book for her while I'm there. Other than that, you will be by yourself. Why? Should we assign someone to watch you?" He asked. Law's smirk increased,
"No. It's surprising how trust worthy she can be." He said and he put his hands in his pockets. 'I'm still curious as to who she has sailed with though…and what connections she has. They could be other nobles…' He thought, his face paling at the thought of having to interact with snarky nobility. 'Or they could be some of the Four Emperors…or the Warlords…' His smirk returned to his face.
The trip to the library was silent for the most part, Law was mentally mapping out the route. The duo entered the first door that you arrive in front of when you go up the second set of stairs, this corridor is a mirror image of the bedroom quarter's hall. The library was situated at the final door in the hall. As Ofuri opened the room Law inspected the room, it was floor to ceiling bookshelves with a desk that was at the far end of the room, and facing away from a bay window that over looked the backyard. 'Impressive maze,' Law thought as he walked towards the windows. As he walked further into the room, he noticed that there was also a second level that led into an office. Ofuri walked into this office and soon emerged with a book in his hands.
"'Legends of Demonic Artifacts'?" Law smirked, "Now what would Miss. Artoria want with a book like that?" He taunted, Ofuri said nothing as he exited the library. Leaving Law to scowl by himself. One of the things he hated most in this world was being ignored. Deciding to ignore it, he began to start at one wall and work his way around. He wasn't looking for anything in particular, but he thought that she could have some sort of medical books. He briefly regretted not asking Ofuri if Artoria even owned any medical books. He soon got over it as his eyes grazed over a title of a medical journal he hadn't had the opportunity to read yet.
'Perfect.' He thought and grabbed the journal along with a couple other journals by the same guy and made himself comfortable at the desk. Hastily scribbled notes didn't go unnoticed by him when he sat. His fingers gently picked up the piece of paper as his grey eyes scanned over the sloppy hand writing. It was obvious whoever wrote this was taking notes on something.
"Sapphire Head. New World. Dr. Vegapunk? Contact: Whi-" That's all he could make out on the paper.
"Sapphire Head?" Law muttered to himself, not hearing the words before. Giving a shrug he put the note back and began reading the medical journals.
"He seemed curious about why you would be needing this book." Ofuri reported handing Artoria the book in question.
"I'm not surprised." She muttered, "He probably doesn't know about what I'm looking for anyway. He's a rookie." She smiled but a yawn broke out of her mouth. "But I guess I'll have to save my searching tomorrow morning." She muttered, rubbing her eye with the back of her right hand. "Make sure it's pancakes for breakfast tomorrow, please!" Artoria smiled up at the old man.
"Of course Master Artoria." He said with a bow. "Would you like someone to bring up your breakfast?"
"That won't be necessary." Artoria said, "Good Night Ofuri."
"Good Night Master Artoria." With another bow, Ofuri walked out of her room. Leaving Artoria to prepare herself for bed.