Chapter 2

Definitely Not Dockworkers

The explosion echoed all the way to the dock, and from his crate Basil Maze looked up and allowed a small smile to spread across his face, the explosion was followed by a series of blasts punctuated by a new plume of smoke slowly ascending into the sky from the east side of the town.

Now that looked promising.

"Captain," Maze's gaze turned slowly to the nameless Pirate as he approached. "The Vice-Captain has just got into contact. He has found the enemy and is currently engaging!"

"I'm not blind or deaf you idiot," Maze scowled at the man, who shrank away from his wrath. "I can see that from here!"

"Ah, yes Captain... I'm sorry to have disturbed you sir!"

"Use your time for better ventures, like informing me when the Commodore arrives," Maze continued, casting a glare which would have made any man shake and quiver in fear. "I do not expect to see you again until that information comes, understand?"

"Yes c-captain!" the Pirate stuttered.

"Step to it then!"

The man couldn't have left Mazes presence fast enough, much to the sniggering of the experienced Pirates that surrounded him. Basil glared at the man's retreating back for a few moments before turning back to the town and watching as another explosion went off into the distance. He allowed a small smile at the sound. It looked like Clyde was determined to make sure no one survived his little barrage.

Another explosion echoed to the docks.

A truly sinister smile stretched the Captains lips at the sound.

"Uh, is everyone alright!?"

Genrei's voice filtered into Jack's ringing ears as he opened his eyes and sat up, a metal hand reaching up to massage his aching forehead and showing blood when he looked down at it. A piece of debris must have hit him when the bomb went off, he was thrown back from the impact, managing to cross his hands together and protect himself from most of the damage.

He foggily remembered the old man grabbing him by the scruff of his neck and hauling him behind the bar, the solid oak structure weathering the follow-up explosions as more bombs were thrown into the tavern. His first thought once the ringing stopped and his mind cleared was how the hell the old man had moved so fast.

"Mori, are you alright!" Genrei bellowed.

"Yeah," the dockworker replied with a grunt. "I'm alright!"

"Naru, are you alright?"

There was no answer, and Jack looked around, "Answer if you're still breathing ponytail!"

"Owe," a feminine voice groaned as she sat up, pieces of timber falling from her form as she shook herself. "Stop calling me that!"

"Owe isn't good enough, answer me!"

"Son of a... yes gramps, I'm fine!"

"Gorou, Marcus, Clive, Tosen answer me dammit!" the old man called into the partially caved in pub.

"I'm here!"

"Me too!"

"God dammit I think I cracked a rib!"

"Where's Clive!"

A moment of silence, "He's dead, chief!"

"Shit!"

Jack rose to a knee, shaking his head to remove the sudden bout of nausea before managing to get to his feet, stumble and place a hand on the bar to keep his balance. Hollowed out cannon balls filled with gunpowder and lit by a fuse, now those were designed to kill. They were lucky there was only one casualty.

A voice echoed from the shattered windows, "I know you're in there, come out and die like men or stay there and burn! There's no escape for you!"

"That voice." Mori muttered as he stood beside Genrei, "If I'm not mistaken that sounds like Mazes Second in Command, the notorious Bombardier Eric Clyde."

"Well that explains the bombs," Genrei ground out as he lifted his metal hammer and leaned it against his muscular shoulder. The fire from the explosion was already spreading, and smoke was already filling the room, soon their only choices would be to try and punch through the Pirates out front or stay in here and suffocate.

"The side door will be out of the question," Mori continued. "He'll have someone guarding it, but there is a trapdoor in the cellar, leads all the way to the outskirts of town. The women can escape through there while we keep their attention on us."

"Yeah," Genrei nodded. "It's been a while since I've been in a fight, gonna be rusty."

A click of the tongue could be heard, "Don't forget that'll go for me too sir."

Marines, that was the first thought which flashed in Jack's mind as he watched the two men banter, no normal dockworkers would talk like that. These men were either former soldiers or former marines, and with the number of Marine ports and bases in the South Blue he was more than willing to guess the latter.

"Gorou, Marcus, Tosen while we hold them escape through the cellar, it's under the wine casks, take the girls with you and warn the rest of the village. These guys will definitely be coming for them next," Genrei ordered, and the three other men nodded before going to their downed friend, obviously meaning to take him with them. "Leave him, he's dead and he'll only slow you down."

"But chief, we can't just leave him here!"

"Don't argue with me," the old man hissed. "Just hide behind the bar and be ready to run!"

The three men looked uncertain, but eventually nodded and moved to cover behind the bar. With that out of the way the old man turned to Jack, settling a piercing gaze on him, a challenging gaze. "Are you still in?"

Jack nodded, "Yeah, I'm still in."

The old man turned to his granddaughter, "Naru, go with them."

"Not a chance," she replied stoutly, a ghost of a smile on her face as she hopped over the counter.

Genrei growled low under his breath, "This isn't a game child."

"You think I don't know that, old man?" she asked, clinks of bottles could be heard as she rummaged through the counter shelves. "You trained me to defend myself, so let me defend myself."

"When you lot are quite ready," Jack sighed, exasperated as he waited. "Those Pirates ain't going to stay quiet all day."

She slid back over the countertop, a pair of long bladed butchers knives in her slender hands. Naru gave a few practice swings before nodding in acknowledgement and spinning the one in her left hand into a reverse grip. She then turned to her grandfather, seeing him frown at her which she returned with an easy smile. "Ready."

"Good, stay close to me." Genrei allowed with a grave nod before turning to the still closed front doors and walking towards them, Mori followed him and Jack and Naru followed suit. The three men and one woman closed the distance as the same rough voice echoed through the windows.

"You know what; throw a couple more of those bombs in there, that'll speed them along!"

Jack picked up the pace, moving past Genrei, Naru and Mori. His fist was raised and reeled back for a punch on the doors. When his metal gauntlets connected the door creaked, then splintered. The hinges gave way and the heavy oak went flying out into the street, landing on the ground and skidding to a stop.

"A little over the top son," Genrei quipped as he walked past unperturbed.

Jack shrugged, "A little theatrics is good in situations like this."

The old man scoffed in reply, "I prefer action to petty words or theatrics."

"If you say so old man," Jack replied nonchalantly. "I prefer a little psychological warfare. Consider it an appetiser to the main course."

True enough his little stunt had definitely caught the Pirates attention. At least ten of them stood in a rough semi-circle around them, armed with swords and firearms as they looked at them with murder in their eyes. At the lead was a tall man, dressed in a long black coat and hefting what looked like a miniature cannon over his broad shoulders. He was about the same height and width as Jack, with short brown hair, round features and black sesame seed eyes.

"Ah, so you finally came out have you?" the man asked with a malicious grin. He walked a few steps towards them, and Jack could make out dark clothes under the coat, and a crisscross of belts holding the same bombs from earlier. "I suppose you'll want to know the name of your killer, filthy retches. My name is Eric Clyde, the Bombardier, and First-Mate of the infamous Basil Maze of the Maze Pirates!"

"So that's the Bombardier?" Jack asked, sizing the man up. He was definitely strong if he was able to heft that cannon with him, even small ones like that weighed a good bit being made of iron.

"Yeah, that's him." Genrei confirmed, widening his stance and hefting his heavy metal hammer into his right hand. "It'll be best to let me handle that one lad, help Mori and Naru with the small fry and-"

"Not a chance, he's mine." Jack cut in, strolling past the old man and right up to the cannon wielding Pirate. He stood there, a few steps from him, watching him for a long moment before allowing a toothy grin to spread across his features. "I like your coat."

The Pirate, also miffed by the sudden exchange, tilted his head. "Uh, thanks."

"I think I'll take it," Jack continued, his smile now showing a slightly sinister edge.

"Huh?"

"You see I'm going to be a Pirate Captain soon, so I might as well start to look the part," Jack added, feeling the need to explain. "And let's face it the Gauntlets are nice and intimidating, but a vest and shorts aren't. That coat will be a nice new addition."

Clyde looked at him for a short moment in disbelief, before a snigger escaped his lips, followed by roaring laughter from the surrounding Pirates. "Well, aren't you confident!?"

"Yes," Jack agreed, and in a blur of motion he moved. His right hand closed into a fist, and flashed forward, burying itself into Clyde's abdomen. There was a crack of bone and a sudden cut-off cry of pain as the tall man doubled over in pain, dropping his cannon with a loud clank and a mess of dust as it hit the ground. "I suppose I am!"

Genrei, Naru and Mori looked on with wide eyes and disbelief as the Pirate stumbled forward, Jack stepping to the side to allow him to pass, before falling onto his knees and then onto his side, rolling up into an agony induced ball. There was a moment of silence, broken by an exclamation of disbelief. The surrounding Pirates, once so full of confidence now seemed to be on the verge of panic.

"The Vice-Captain is down!"

"What the hell!"

"It's true, he's down!"

"But he's invincible!"

Jack scoffed, gaining their attention. "Is this it? Is this the firepower of the infamous Maze Pirates!?"

"What did you say!?" one of them shouted.

"Don't you dare look down on us you lucky little brat!"

"Just for that," one of the others shouted, before turning to the other three, deciding to single Mori out because he was the only one of the three not to have a weapon, and drawing his sabre charged the dockworker. "Just for that say goodbye to your friend here!"

He made it all the way to the dockworker. Genrei didn't move a finger much to Jack's surprise. He was about to try and intercept, but knew he wouldn't make it in time. Mori cracked his neck, bent his knees, fell into a stance, waiting for the Pirate to be within a few steps of him, sidestepped the thrusting sabre and delivered a fist right into his sternum. The Pirate staggered from the blow, before receiving a right straight which sent him falling backwards, head snapping from the force of the blow.

His sabre flew upwards out of his grasp, and landed in Mori's outstretched hand. The dockworker then inspected the blade, and scoffed, "It's in poor condition."

Genrei chuckled, "What did you expect from a Pirate."

Moro shrugged, absently tossing the sword from one hand to the other to test its weight, then looked at the assembled mass of jittery Pirates. "For this group of cannon fodder it should do."

Jack watched them for a moment as the three dockworkers set upon the Pirates with the single minded focus of what he thought they were, before stepping over to the downed Clyde and kicking him onto his back. The man looked up at Booth, half blinded by pain and half by fear as the gauntlet wearing man smiled with deceptive innocence down at him.

"May I have that coat now, please?"

Clyde couldn't get the coat off fast enough.

Jack happily took the coat, a smile on his face as he shrugged the dirty dark fabric onto his shoulders. He gave the so-called Bombardier a wink and then knocked him out with a well placed kick right to his face as he tried to lean on his elbows. The Pirate was out the second the back of his head collided with the dirt ground. The leader unconscious, and now with the broken nose to go with his cracked ribs he turned and eyed his allies.

Genrei was the first to gain his attention. For a man who was well on in years he certainly moved like a man half, no, a third of his age. He obviously wasn't used to fighting with something as heavy as the large hammer he had procured but he was still leagues ahead of his opponents in fighting style, downing three within a few seconds.

Mori struck him as a man still in his prime, and one who knew almost instinctively how to fight with a sword. The way that he moved, his footwork, his swordplay, his every motion was honed through years of training followed by years of firsthand experience in battle. He downed as many men as Genrei did in roughly the same amount of time.

Naru also caught his attention, for a member of the group who didn't have the training or the experience of her peers she certainly didn't let it show. She moved swiftly and elegantly, dancing around her opponents and cutting them to ribbons without any injury. Whoever had taught her, a novice, how to fight had taught her well.

"It's not a bad coat I suppose," Jack allowed, fingers pulling at the fabric as he took an experimental sniff of his new piece of clothing and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "But by the smell I'm guessing the bastard hasn't washed in months."

"You're probably not far wrong there, boy." Genrei replied.

"What did you expect from Pirates anyway?" Mori added.

The aftermath of the skirmish would tell anyone with half a brain that it didn't go well for the Maze Pirates. Men lay unmoving on the ground, their weapons scattered. Naru, Genrei and Mori stood around their own circles of unmoving half-dead men, no wounds to speak off other than some blood spatter.

"No offence old man, but when you had us running from house to house I was expecting these guys to be tougher than this." Jack surveyed the scene of destruction with narrowing eyes as he stood up and dusted himself off. "I mean this was just an embarrassment."

"Hmm," Genrei allowed, free hand massaging his white goatee. "While I do find your confidence refreshing I also find it quite irritating. These were nothing but the grunts boy, even that man Clyde was Vice-Captain in name only."

"Old man," Mori's voice brought the two men and one womans attention to the third of their group. Mori's attention wasn't on them but looking at the direction of the port. It didn't take long for Genrei and Jack to see what had caught the dockworkers attention.

White sails, towering over the timber buildings. Jack could make out three of them peering over the structures, the first one which caught Jack's attention was the central Main-mast, towering over anything manmade which surrounded it, and from seeing it he caught sight of the Fore-mast and Mizzen-mast. At the top of the Main-mast, over the crows-nest was a flag fluttering in the wind, black with a skull and crossbones, in the hollow sockets of the skulls eyes were red gems and a third vertical eye.

"That's a big ship," Naru muttered in awe, probably knowing she was stating the obvious but honestly unable to say much else.

"Galleon I'd say." Genrei added in agreement. "Three hundred tons easy, crew of eighty at least... probably has roughly around thirty guns."

"No doubt about it sir, that has to be the Regicide." Mori said as he walked up beside the old dockmaster and eyed the masts with contempt, "The personal ship of Commodore Maze, flagship of the Maze Pirate Flotilla."

"Yeah, and the number of Pirates on that dock are about to swell." Genrei saw the impatience in Jacks eyes, and decided to cut in before the young Pirate could say anything foolish. "We can't fight that many, not without help."

"Thirty, a hundred, who cares," Jack scoffed as he came alongside the old man, ignoring the murderous glare Mori sent his way. "If they're anything like this lot then we can beat them easy, might take a little more time but-"

Genrei cut him off before he could utter another word, "The Pirates you've been fighting up till now were amateur's boy, nothing but a bunch of wannabes being tested to see if they had the stones for Piracy. The crew of that ship are the true fighting force of the Maze Pirates. They are all experienced fighters, all killers and cutthroats to the last and their elites are definitely worthy of the title elite."

Jack frowned, "So the Maze Pirates are really that bad?"

"The ones under the Commodore, yes," Genrei answered, folding his arms.

There was a long moment of silence, then a sigh of defeat, "So what's the plan then? I hope you're not going to run back to your people and hope they don't follow you."

"Nope, I would never lead these wolves to our door, but we need more people if we're going to have even a slight chance of fighting them off." Genrei chuckled and then turned to Mori, clapping the younger man on the shoulder. "Head back to the village, and make sure you're not followed. Tell the Mayor that there's nowhere to hide anymore and arm the people."

Mori nodded, "What are you going to do?"

The old man smiled, and then turned to the mountain in the very centre of the island, towering over them like a vengeful god. Jack followed the old man's gaze, watching and waiting. "Me and the Pirate are going up the mountain."

"You're going to ask the Demon on the Mountain for help are you?" Mori asked.

"More or less, yeah."

"I'm going too then," Naru replied, sighing as she gave her grandfather a knowing look, "Last time you went up there was a fistfight, unlike you she actually likes me."

"This so-called Demon sounds very likable." Jack smirked. "I'm guessing she's not actually a demon though, right?"

"I don't believe so, but she is very good when it comes to fighting," Genrei replied. "As a swordswoman I have seen very few who have the skill of that woman, her ability at times almost seems supernatural. The problem is she might not even lift a finger to help."

"She'd rather watch the town burn," Mori scowled.

"Now there must be a story behind that."

"There is, not a pleasant one, but there is." Genrei allowed, eyeing his granddaughter for a moment. "Alright, you can come."

Naru grinned.

"Well then, now that that's out of the way shall we go see your Demon on the Mountain?"

The very moment the Regicide docked its landing ramps came down, landing on the concrete surface of the longest pier. A horde of Pirates rushed forth onto the pier of the town, and unlike those from before these ones had the aura of Pirates.

Still Basil Maze remained seated on his crate as several of the new arrivals moved past him. Their every step was made with confidence and strength, their sabres chipped and their pistols dimmed by years of use in combat. He did not move from his spot until a shadow loomed over him, and without even a hint of fear he looked up at the foreboding figure of his father with the same defiance as he got in return.

The Commodore was taller than him, the crown of the Captains head barely reaching his chest. His very breath was like a strong gust of wind, his eyes were scathing as red hot embers, his scarred features showed nothing but malice and his brown hair half hidden by a black cocked hat, he wore a black buttoned shirt and pants with knee high black boots, a black longcoat with white fur lining was draped over his shoulders.

Commodore Dorian Mazes scathing gaze fell upon the smouldering wreckage of the smaller Caravel, dwarfed by his own ship. He then looked back at his son. He clicked his tongue and spoke, his voice a deep gravelly pitch not unlike the rumblings of a volcano.

"What have you done to my ship, boy?"

Basil looked up at his father, seemingly uncaring of the heavy aura in the air. The murderous glare of the Commodore which would have sent chills down the spine of ordinary men was shrugged off by the young Captain, who met the glare with an impassive gaze of his own. "I did nothing. This happened while I was away."

A sniff from the Commodore, "Oh, is that a fact?"

"It is," Basil responded with a nod. "I left a handful of men behind to guard the ship, but someone attacked them. When you gave me that ship you told me I would have an experienced crew, but I don't. The dozen men I left to defend the ship were beaten by one man, one man!"

"Do not blame me for your failures, boy." The Commodore snarled in response, folding his arms under the folds of his longcoat. "I gave you that ship and crew so you can prove to me that you're ready for your own command, which apparently you aren't."

The snarl was now mirrored by his son, but he didn't rise to the bait. Dorian watched his son before turning back to the town. "So it seems there is more here than a bunch of peasants wielding pitchforks, eh?"

"It would seem that way." Basil ground out.

A sinister smile spread across the older Mazes gnarled features, "Looks like the villagers managed to flee from your assault, if the silence of the town and a lack of prisoners tell me anything. Tell me boy, are you competent enough to find where they have gone?"

Basil growled low in his throat, but nodded. "The Island is fairly small. As you know the town is in a cove, in the centre of the island is a large mountain surrounded by a thin layer of forest. At the top of the mountain is an old shrine, but it is in a state of neglect and doesn't look like it's been inhabited for quite some time. The townspeople appear to have setup camp at the base of the steps, in a clearing."

Dorian clicked his tongue, doubting that the shrine was abandoned like his son claimed. The ringing noises he heard on the way in were definitely from a bell and didn't come from the town. "And you didn't raid this settlement, because?"

"I had thirty Pirates... there are at least a few hundred people camped there and the men have armed themselves with makeshift spears and pitchforks, even a few scavenged firearms. It wasn't worth the risk."

"You had thirty?" The Commodore asked with a raised brow.

The Captain nodded, "A single man took out my ships guard... one of my men was conscious enough to give me a brief description, brown hair and iron fists."

"Iron fists, so someone with gauntlets then." the elder Maze pondered, "What an interesting choice of weapon. He should be quite easy to pinpoint with those weapons."

"A mercenary the townspeople have hired no doubt," Basil said, allowing a smile. "But now that you're here we can finish what we started, I'll take fifty men and raise that little camp of theirs to the ground."

"No, you won't." Dorian said dismissively, already turning to walk away as the smile dropped from the younger mans features. "You have caused enough trouble for one day. I will deal with this myself. You make sure the loot is stowed on the ship, do you think you can do that, boy?"

Raw fury burned in the Captains eyes as he watched his father's retreating back, his teeth grinding together as his hand twitched towards the hilt of his sword, but he relaxed his hand and took a deep breath, "Yes, father."

The old Commodores only response was a grunt as his men flanked him down the pier, one of his men presenting a sheathed cleaver which he drew from the sheath in a smooth motion and placed the broad end of the blade against his shoulder. Soon the number of Pirates following him swelled to over forty.

"Alright lads, let's do a little raiding, what do ya say!?"

A roar of agreement resonated through the crowd.

I'm a little late, sorry about that, but here's the next chapter for you guys. Thanks to everyone for the support and I hope I can keep you interested, as always leave a review if you have any ideas or would like to ask any questions about the characters or plot, PM's will do as well.