Helllllllooooooo~! And welcome back, lovies!
Chapter 4
I feel as though I may have become a monster. I abandoned my precious child to search for something very few have ever heard of. I have a good lead, but will this all be worth it in the end? This last stone won't make her human, I understand that. Maybe I'm just being selfish? No. I am the most selfish man alive, creating a child because I lost mine, how many parents have suffered the same fate, yet I act as though it was the universes personal attack on me.
~ Page 239 of Ryuuden the doll maker's journal.
Was this a dream? She wouldn't know, she'd never had a dream before. Doll's don't dream because they don't sleep. Marcy didn't sleep. Well, she did in a way, but it wasn't anything she would willingly do. While humans relaxed in sleep and enjoyed odd dreams of fantasy worlds, Marcy was simply thrown into a black abyss. For her sleeping was lonely and frightening. She was aware, but unable to do anything. It was like she was sealed inside her own body and her eyes had been sewn shut. Sleep terrified her.
So here she stood. Watching yet another sea of flickering images that playing through like a soundless movie. The images flew through her life from the day she first opened her eyes to the moment she bid farewell to her father. After that, the flow of the images became jerky. It replayed that scene several times before moving through the rest of the day. The next day froze and sputtered at a time late in the morning. The moment she met Luffy and his crew came to the front and paused. Her mind then shifted the images, reordering them so that Luffy was at her house as she returned from bidding her father goodbye and scene then flowed through the events of that day, but stopped abruptly while she was cooking dinner for her new friends. There were no images just a bright light that burned her eyes. Muffled shouting tore through the abyss behind the wall of flickering scenes, but Marcy couldn't understand a word of it.
Pastel green eyes of glass snapped open violently. They stared dully at the ceiling, while images shifted through her head until they fell into place to form a play that was compatible with her world. Once that process finished, a small flicker of life returned to the glass eyes and she sat up with a gentle smile. Her father had left to fulfill their dreams and she had made amazing, although very weird and confusing, new friends. All in one day! How wonderful. She couldn't wait till her father got back home to tell him about her new friends. She'd have to ask him if it was normal for people's arms to stretch or for someone's nose to be that long. Her father would probably want to meet them too. Maybe they would come visit her again in the future. Or maybe she could get Father to take her out to sail the seas! That would be the most amazing thing, to meet more bizarre people like the pirates she just met. Are all pirates like them, she wondered. Marcy knew some where terrible people, but maybe there were a lot more pirates like Luffy and his crew out there.
As fast as she could, Marcy changed her clothes. Tossing off the one's she was wearing before pulling on fresh clean ones. As she rushed out of the door she pulled her deep black silk hair up into a high ponytail. A few strands framed her face while a few more shorter strands decided to stick up at a bizarre angle.
Marcy ran for Gama's house, a smile stretching her mouth a bit more then usual. People turned and stared at her. Their eyes wide and jaws dropped. She usually wore the same thing. Actually she always wore the same thing and she never pulled her hair up. That wasn't what startled them the most. No, what amazed them and confused them was the smile on her face. It didn't entirely reach her eyes, but it came closer than anyone had ever seen. Marcy sprinted past them, her hair whipping around behind her like black smoke. Each of her steps making a thundering echo as they met the cobble stone road. Her astounding two hundred fifty pounds of body weight not slowing her fast run though it caused the vendor stalls that she passed by too closely to shudder. After she rounded a corner far too sharply, nearly colliding with a tree, the people turned to each other and began whispering. They weren't positive on what to make of the doll. A woman who looked to be well in her eighties grinned wide enough to stretch her sagging skin tightly across her face before she let out a witch like cackle.
"Grandma, why are you laughing?" The tiny girl holding the older woman's wrinkled and spotted hand asked with wide curious eyes.
"Pirates! Who would've thought pirates would get her to smile like that!" The child looked even more confused. The people who heard the woman looked at her with a small smile of their own. "Didn't quite reach her eyes, but it's more than I've since I was your age, Mina."
"I don't understand, Grandma?" The little girl, Mina, looked in the direction Marcy had ran. "Wasn't that the doll lady that lives in the old workshop?"
"Indeed it was." The woman nodded. "I feel like dancing." The woman grinned while the people near her sweat dropped. "Come, Mina, let's go home and blare some good dancing music."
"But, Grandma, the doctor said you need to be careful cause of your hip, remember?"
"Screw the doctor!"
A loud crash that consisted of the sound of snapping wood and cracking stone filled the air. A tremble shook the building with the intensity of a small earthquake. Sanji paused in his breakfast making to look around. Nami lowered the paper she was reading and blinked. Ussop lowered his slingshot and raised his goggles from his eyes. Old man Gama came flying past them. The three blinked in surprise. How could he move that fast if he was that old? Almost reluctantly they followed after Gama outside. Sanji placed the finished breakfast on the table before following, he was going to assume that whatever caused that tremor was Luffy's fault. It usually was anyway.
"What exactly am I looking at?" Nami questioned as she looked at. . . A bare foot sticking out of a pile of shattered wood and crushed stone. The foot twitched twice before the rubble shifted slightly. The foot wiggled a few times more before suddenly being pulled entirely into the pile of rubble. Sweat ran down the side of everyone's face.
"You think that's Luffy in there?" Ussop asked carefully watching the shifting pile of rubble.
"I wouldn't be surprised if it was." Sanji exhaled a cloud of rippling smoke. Gama came rushing over with a shovel and began to dig away at the pile. He didn't move more than a few tiny pieces of stone and wood each time. Gama began wheezing with the effort after a few moments.
"Should we help him?" Nami tilted her head staring at Gama.
"Yeah, he looks like he might die with the effort." Ussop watched as Gama tugged feebly on a portion of wood. Almost in no time Sanji and Ussop had the pile of rubble cleared. Nami sat with Gama since Sanji said he would do the work for her. From the tiny bit of remaining rubble, Marcy shot into a sitting position. She was smudged with dirt and littered with splinters of wood. Her eyes were wide, well one of her eyes were wide. The other one was sitting on the ground near Ussop's feet. He froze staring at the eye and he could swear it was staring back at him. Which it kind of was seeing as it was just an eye. He shivered. This was just plain creepy.
"Nobody move!" Marcy shouted quickly standing up and looking around. "I need to find it so don't move!"
"Uhh. H-here." With a shiver of disgust Ussop picked up her eye and held it out to her. The eye was cold and had a thin layer of that gel stuff around it.
"Hmm?" Marcy stared at his hand blankly. "What's that?"
"It's your eye!"
"My eye? But I'm not looking for my eye!"
"Then what are you looking for?"
"My shoe." Marcy held up her bare foot and gave it a wiggle. "But am I really missing my eye?"
"How did you not know you're missing an eye?" Nami shouted looking amazed and disturbed all at once.
"They're not really attached or anything so I'm kind of used to one popping out. I don't really notice it anymore. Besides I've got a whole box of them back home."
"That's just weird."
"No. What's weird is when a limb comes off!"
"Can you please just take your eye already!" Ussop shouted. He was tired of holding it and it was really starting to freak him out. Marcy snatched it from him. There was a slick popping sound and Marcy's eye was back in it's socket. The eye rolled a few times before settling into the proper place. Ussop shuddered. He wasn't sure he could get used to seeing something like that.
"Marcy~! I found your shoe." Sanji danced over to her with her small shoe in his hands. She shifted back a step. "Please, allow me to slip this on your dainty foot." He kneeled in front of her and she twitched a little disturbed.
"Sure?" Marcy lifted her foot for him. He grasped her ankle and slide her shoe onto her foot, but paused. Coursing from her ankle and into his hand was a soothing hum. He frowned. The hum held a tragic note. It trickled through his veins and buzzed through his fingers. Sanji released her ankle and stood. He stared down into her pastel green eyes for a moment. He could almost see that tragic hum shimmering in their depths. There was an innocence, a childish dependence and vulnerability that spoke volumes to him. Sanji sighed and turned back towards the door of the house.
"C'mon. I made breakfast." He glanced back at Marcy and held his hand out to her.
"Okay." Marcy blinked before clasping onto his hand in a way that a young child would grab their siblings. "I don't actually need to eat so the only things I do eat are usually sweets or fruits. I like those." Sanji smiled.
"Then I'll make something sweet for you instead."
"Really?" He nodded. "Thank you!" Sanji opened the door for her with a flourish and smile. Marcy giggled before bowing at him and hopping through the doorway.
"Did you see that?" Ussop and Nami looked at each other blinking.
"Yeah. . . He didn't go all gaga. . . Instead he did that. What do you even call that?" Nami was a little more than startled. Sanji may have been the newest member of the crew, but she was certain that Sanji swooned and flirted with all women no matter what. The way he acted then, it was almost like he was treating her like a child. Why would he do that though? Only a split second before he had been his normal flirty self and then he touched her and that happened. Maybe something happened that they couldn't see when Sanji grabbed her ankle. That was the only explanation.
"It's like he changed when he touched her." Ussop pondered out loud. "Maybe she's cursed and she put a spell on him!" Nami's fist slammed into the back of Ussop's head.
"Think before you speak." She hissed. "No, it was like he realized something, but what?"
"He probably felt her heart beat." Gama said from behind the two. Both jumped and screamed. They had forgotten the old man was out there with them.
"Don't do that!" Ussop shouted at the old man who merely blinked confused.
"Do what? Speak?" Gama looked offended. "That's a terrible thing to say to your host."
"I meant sneak up on people!"
"I'm almost 90 years old! I walk with a cane and I wheeze like a half dead cow! My joints even creak! How the hell could I sneak up on someone!?" Gama shouted waving his cane in Ussop's face, just brushing the boy's long nose with the end of it.
"That old!"
"At least I was attractive in my youth! You and your nose there will never be anything more than weird!"
"How dare you say that to me! The great captain Ussop! Why this nose-"
"Shut up already!" Nami's fist met the back of Ussop's skull.
"Why didn't you hit him too!" Ussop shouted cradling his head while Gama grinned a nearly toothless smile and made a peace sign with his gnarled fingers.
"He's an old man and he's our host. Plus, he promised to show me the island's gem mines!"
"Greedy witch."
"What was that?"
"Nothing!"
"That's what I thought."
"Hrmph. So what were you saying, old man, something about her heart beat?" Gama looked up from the butterfly he'd bent over to examine.
"Huh? Oh yes. That. Marcy doesn't have one. It's more like a song being hummed. Though it can usually only be felt when you touch her skin. When her emotions are very strong then you can actually hear it, but that's very rare." Gama made his way into his house only to be greeted with the sight of Marcy snickering at Luffy who had several large lumps on his face. "What happened?"
"Hmm?" Marcy turned to look at Gama. His eyes widened at the shimmer of joy in her eyes. It had yet to overtake the emptiness in them but that joy was slowly growing. "Apparently, Luffy ate all the food Sanji had cooked for everyone for breakfast so Sanji kicked him a few times. It was pretty funny!" Gama moved to stand as close to Marcy's side as he could without touching her and listened. "What are you doing, Gama?"
"Nothing." Gama listened harder. "Marcy, tell me. What happened yesterday?" Sanji paused for a moment in his cooking. He had to make a second breakfast and a dessert since Luffy ate all of it. That bastard. Luffy looked up blinking a few times.
"Don't you remember? You were there for most of it."
"I know, but humor an old man will you?"
"Okay. Well, Father left early in the morning and then after saying goodbye I headed back home. Then I found Luffy standing in the door to my house. I took him to the restaurant where we met Sanji, Nami, Ussop, and Zoro. Luffy did his weird stretchy thing and hurt me accidentally so you shot at him and then it was all explained or whatever and I made them dinner. . . I think."
"Nu-uh!" Luffy shouted making Marcy blink confused. "That's not what happened! Your da-" Sanji's foot slammed into Luffy's face.
"Uh? What's going on?" Ussop sweat dropped before glancing at the giggling Marcy.
"Luffy ate all the food while we were outside, but don't worry my dearest Nami. I've already started preparing another meal for you."
"Thanks." Nami waved him off.
"What about me?" Ussop asked, his stomach growling.
"What about you?" Sanji dead panned. "Also, Marcy was telling Gama what happened yesterday. She said her father left and then she met us." Sanji lit up another cigarette before turning back to his cooking.
"She still thinks her father left yesterday, but we've been added to it. That's progress right?" Nami asked. Sanji simply shrugged his shoulders while Ussop nodded. A loud yawn sounded through the room.
"Was there an earthquake?" Zoro rubbed at his eyes before taking a seat at the table. Everyone felt sweat run down their faces while Marcy let out a loud bark of a laugh. It was far from the melodic sound she usually made. It was so different that it startled everyone. They blinked at her, before joining in. Faintly, Gama could hear the slightest sound of a humming tune.
A single cloaked figure sat on the edge of the cliff. Behind him was an old workshop that had seen better days. He was waiting. Waiting for the doll to return to it's home. It was laughable, that toy being treated like a human. It wasn't. It was pathetic. It could easily be torn and broken. The figure grinned in almost a deranged manner. He couldn't wait to break that doll. His captain wanted it's heart and he would return with it. He had to swallow down his laugh, didn't want anyone to hear him now did he.
From inside his cloak he pulled out an emerald green notebook that was battered and worn. On the front was scrawled the name Ryuuden in faded gold letters. His captain had been so pleased when the figure found this book that he assigned the cloaked figure the duty of going after that man's pathetic attempt at creating a living doll and retrieve the relic with the other two stones so that they could be used for his captain's purposes. Why did some stupid doll need to be alive anyway? It had no purpose, no future. His captain did however have such a great plan for the future. There was no question on who deserved them more.
Slowly night fell. The figure waited calmly. And soon his waiting paid off. The doll in all it's useless glory wandered up the path to the workshop. A smile on it's pretty face. Well, that smile won't be there for long.
The cloaked figure vanished.
Marcy couldn't help but smile as she headed for her home. Today had been wonderful. She thought she would be lonely with her father gone, but she had had more fun today than she ever remembered having. Marcy hoped that tomorrow would be just as much fun. Suddenly, Marcy's smile vanished. She was now very much aware that someone was nearby and she was very much aware that they had drawn a weapon. She may be a doll, but her father had ensured she was trained to defend herself. He knew the evils of the world would at some point in her life attempt to harm her. He knew and so he prepared her. And then she felt it.
A horrible stinging pain blooming from her throat where a blade had just been slashed across it. Satin skin split open and reddish gel began to seep from the wound.
A laughter of pure ecstasy filled the air. The cloaked figure stood to her left with a wild grin on his face and his eyes flashing.
A tiny 'snik'ing type of sound was hidden by the laughter. Shortly after Marcy opened her mouth and a torrent of flames burst from her mouth, singeing the ground where the man had stood. The flames ended with a snap of Marcy's jaw and the man laughed once more.
She threw her body to the left just in time for her right arm to feel a grazing bite from a short blade. Marcy moved to strike at the man, but instead felt her marble skull crack slightly under the brutal force of a well aimed blow. Her body fell to the ground. She was in pain and her world was swimming. Her marble bones were beautiful, but far from useful in battle.
Another blow the same as before slammed into her head. The ground beneath her skull cracked along with her skull.
One more blow again to her skull. The marble gave way and a glass eye cracked. Several shards fell free to the ground.
Marcy disconnected her pain receptors and with a speed the man hadn't been expecting she landed a punch directly to his sternum. She felt it bend under her blow, but not break.
"Filthy piece of shit!" The man screamed before he grabbed hold of her right arm. "I'll teach you to hit me!" He brought his short blade down onto her arm at the place where her shoulder seams were. The seam split like tissue paper. The marble bone was only nicked by the blade. She swung her left hand at him only to receive a blow to the face with such intensity that she felt her marble teeth crack.
A blow was then delivered to her shoulder.
Her right arm came off and was tossed to the side. He laughed like this was the most fun thing he'd ever done. And it was. He was enjoying breaking this pathetic fool's daughter!
He wrapped his hand tightly around her throat and brought his grinning face frighteningly close to hers. His crazed eyes met a shattered glass eye and a frightened whole one. Slowly he brought his free hand up to her face and began to carve out Marcy's unbroken eye. She struggled the best she could, but one arm left her with few options.
Her eye came out and he threw his head back and laughed. With her left hand, her only hand now, she looped a finger through a seam on her left thigh. A hard tug on those stitches caused three spike like blades to split the seams on the bottom of her left foot puncturing cleanly through her shoe. The blades fell free, sticking out about a foot each. Marcy pulled her leg up and buried them deep into the man's gut. He roared in pain and anger.
Her left leg was then taken off at the knee.
"I'm going to rip that precious heart out of your pathetic chest and you know what I'm going to do after that?" He brought his face closer to hers again. "I'm going to hang your filthy body in the middle of that town down there for everyone to see!" He laughed again bringing his blade back and slamming it into her marble rib cage.
The loneliness and pain of the last fifty years suddenly flooded Marcy's body. Her father was dead and gone. Her world was shattered and now she was going to die. She was going to die before she had a chance to actually live and she was going to die alone. All alone. She didn't want to die. She really didn't. She wanted to live and have adventures. She wanted to make friends. She wanted to be happy and not so alone. Was anyone going to help her? Her world suddenly ended. She knew no more.
The man in his hand held a rusted old relic of metal. There were strands of thick twine hanging snapped from the relic.
A large hole was carved roughly in the now ruined doll's chest. The entire left side nearly gone. Massive rivets of reddish gel oozed to the ground. Her shattered eye had a single small drop of water caught in a crack just above her eye lid. That drop fell free and rolled down the doll's cheek.
The man gave the doll's body a light toss upwards. He allowed the body to thud to the ground before curling his fingers tightly into perfect deep black silk hair. He whistled a happy tune as he slowly made his way down the path to the village. Marcy's limp shattered body was dragged by it's hair after him.
As the sun began to relight the world, it gleamed off of the cloaked man's crazed grin.
