Hey everyone! Chapter III is here for your (hopefully) enjoyment!
An important word about OCs other people post. I will not be able to include everyone, or even most really as members of Laura's crew. But that does not mean I do not appreciate them, so I will try and make sure every OC posted appears in some capacity within my story, be it as an arc villain, a rival of Laura and her crew; or an ally. ^^
My next update should be out on Saturday night at the latest if nothing bad happens.
"Ah...much better!" Laura sighed with relief after exchanging her water soaked clothes for a clean set. Possessed of a dark blue tint, it consisted of a fur hat and overcoat like most of the outfits within her mobile wardrobe.
Stepping out of the change room with her bag in toe, Laura soon caught sight of the head chef leaning against the nearby wall; "Ah, Zeff-san! I'm ready to go now."
His eyes drawing to the large brown bag slumped over her shoulder, the elderly cook stroked his mustache in thought; "You seem to be rather attached to that bag, whelp."
"Eh?" Glancing at the duffel herself, Laura quickly smiled and offered her savior a nod of affirmation; "Yes, but it isn't the bag itself. Everything I own is in here..." Allowing it to thump to the ground, the redhead quickly began sifting through its contents.
Eventually producing a small locket from the bag, Laura held it up for Zeff to see before clicking open the golden face to reveal a picture underneath. "It is a picture of my parents, according to sensei. I never knew them myself, so this picture is all I really have to go on." She explained with a slight smile.
"Sensei?" Zeff arched a brow; "You're talking about the one that taught you Rokushiki, no doubt." He quickly deduced before snatching the locket out of the young girl's hand.
"H-hey! What are you doing?"
Quickly pocketing the golden locket, Zeff answered Laura's protest with a grin; "This, along with that bag of yours will be staying here with me until you return. Don't you even think of giving me any lip about it, either."
"Ah..." Lowering her head slightly, the young girl reluctantly released her hold over the leather duffel bag; "I suppose you don't really have any reason to trust me. Alright then, I will leave them in your care until I return!"
"It's ready, owner!" A heavily bandaged Carne stepped forward, his small obsidian eyes and pronounced lips being the only part of his heavily swollen face still unexposed.
"Kyahahaha! You look like a puffer fish!" Laura cackled while struggling to stay upright.
"YOU DID THIS!" The mummified chef roared with serrated teeth.
"Heehee...So, what exactly is ready...?" Laura questioned the cook, finally managing to compose herself.
Taking a deep breath to calm his anger, Carne proudly placed his hands on his hips; "The Sabagashira No. 2, of course!"
Seeing the redhead's continued confusion, the battered cook continued with his explanation; "It is a 'miniature battleship' if you will. It would take weeks to sail to Boaduor and back with that little dinghy of yours, and it may be too late for Emilia-san by then."
"Oh? You're giving me a better ship? Arigatou!" Laura offered a cheerful bow of thanks to Carne before darting out the exit to see her new vessel.
"O-oi! You can't keep it!" He gave chase to her with an obvious limp hindering his movements; "It's just to help you find Emilia-san...and only because owner insisted."
Floating in the water just east of the battle deck was what could only be described as a giant fish head with a small platform attached to the port where a steering wheel and paddles were located. While not a sizeable vessel by any means, it still easily dwarfed Laura's dinghy and with the waterwheels at its side would be able to travel at a far greater speed.
"Hey, don't you think its lips kind of resemble yours?" Laura giggled slightly at Carne's expense.
"ARE YOU TRYING TO PISS ME OFF?" The bruised caterer shouted, before once again reminding himself that this was for Emilia; "...It was originally built for two people, but I modified it so you could pilot it by yourself. The cannon doesn't work in this configuration, however."
"Yosh!" Laura clapped her hands together in excitement, eager to try out the cute looking ship for herself; "I'll be off then!"
"Whelp," The familiar voice of Zeff cut through the air as the elder chef suddenly stepped forward; "Make sure you bring Emilia back here. If anything happens to her then even a lifetime of waiting tables won't be enough for me to forgive you!"
"Hai, I understand!" Laura smiled back at the elder chef before flashing him a confident 'thumbs up'; "I'll definitely bring her back!"
Diligently cutting her way through the ever thickening haze that hung in the surrounding air, the Nathanial Creed faithfully carried her crew of some twenty five pirates towards their hideaway in 'Owl's cove'. Today had been a great success for the Gunwallis Pirates, for now a merchant ship that had once carried 20,000,000 beli in gold would now be arriving at the fortress city of Marika with an empty hull.
Having forced the trade vessel to surrender its cargo without a fight, Dravia was in an elated mood this day. Labeled 'The Stoneheart' by the government for his tendency to slaughter entire merchant crews should they refuse to surrender to him immediately, it was a reputation that the captain of the Gunwallis Pirates held dear.
"A toast to our great victory!" Dravia bellowed to his crew, raising his personal keg of rum high into the air with a broad grin. Standing over twelve feet in height, the powerfully built raider boasted a head of raven black hair that had been braided into a single ponytail that hung down his back. With bottomless black pits for eyes and a deep scar that ran diagonally from his forehead to the right corner of his mouth; he was an intimidating sight for most.
"Drrryaahahaha! Those pathetic merchants were practically pissing themselves in fear of us!" The captain boasted proudly, his laugh resonating throughout his crew. "They made the right choice, though; unlike the last batch of fools to defy us."
"Heh, without a doubt." First Mate Bevary responded with a slight chuckle; "Seeing that entire crew of traders hung from their own rigging must've really struck a chord with the marines to net you such a title."
Leaning back against the mast of the Nathanial Creed with a contented sigh; Dravia offered his Second a smirk in response, "If we continue to score big hauls like this, we'll have enough to buy a new ship and enter the Grand Line."
While it had indeed served them well in West Blue, the Nathanial Creed was now over 30 years old; having been brought from a retiring pirate by the Gunwallis crew for the paltry sum of 2,500,000 beli. It wouldn't survive Reverse Mountain.
"Hey, Emilia! Where is our food? Can't you see that we're celebrating here?" Dravia bellowed towards the open door leading below deck, silencing his crew in the process. After a few moments the sound of weary footsteps broke through the gentle rocking of the waves and a young blonde woman carrying several trays filled with steaming delicacies emerged.
"Heh, there she is. It took you long enough, wench! You know I hating waiting for my meals." Quickly seizing one of the seafood trays with his sizeable right hand, Dravia began to tear open the crab and lobster shells; cleaning entire crustaceans of their meat in seconds.
"Next time have our meals here on time. You were fifteen minutes late...I won't stand for such a poor performance!" He warned the far smaller human while consuming another lobster, seeming to not mind the bits of shell he swallowed in the process.
"If I had some help in the kitchen then it wouldn't take so long. And it was only five minutes late." Emilia responded with a hollowed and monotonous voice, continuing to distribute trays of food to the rest of the Gunwallis Pirates until a swipe of Dravia's massive hand sent her careening to the deck.
"Help, you say?" Throwing his own tray aside, the massive human reached down to grasp Emilia by the hair; bringing her to eye level with himself, "Where do you believe you stand upon this ship, Emilia...? Do you think you're a part of this crew?"
Throwing her down onto the spilt contents of the trays she held in her hands only moments before, Dravia watched with some measure of amusement as she wordlessly climbed to her feet and began cleaning up the scattered food; "You are our slave, wench! You do not get to make request and you do not contradict me, is that clear?"
"Yes, Dravia-sama." Emilia replied calmly, turning to head below deck once again while the crew of the Nathanial Creed cackled at the scene that had just transpired. But she wouldn't give them the pleasure of seeing her cry or quiver in fear.
She had to remain strong, for the sake of the others here. She had to find a way to free them, before she could think of herself...
"Owl's Cove...?" Laura questioned the younger girl standing before her. It had taken her only a few days to arrive at the island of Boaduor thanks to the Sabagachimacallit that Chef Zeff had given to her, but when she arrived at the coastal town of Yarrwen; nobody seemed to know of anyone named Emilia, nor did they recognize her picture.
"Yes, that's right!" Chirped the girl who had introduced herself as Ally, "It's called that because it has two mouths that look like an owl's eyes when you look at them together!"
"And Emilia Claycomb is staying there?" It was honestly a little difficult to speak to the girl, since her eyes were completely obscured by her hair which couldn't seem to make up its mind on whether it wanted to be white or black.
"Yup! Her and a whole bunch of pirates...the Gun-Walrus Pirates or something! They kidnapped her when she was shopping here about a week ago." The little girl continued with her explanation, seeming to constantly keep a hand on her jeans as if she were afraid they might slip from her waifish frame.
"W-wait, she was abducted? You should have said something earlier!" Laura's face seemed to grow even more pale than usual at this news. What if she had been sold into slavery or even killed by now?
"I didn't think it was important. But if you want to see the pirates, I can take you to the Owl's Cove! I sometimes hang out there with my friends!" The little girl offered the older woman, apparently bored and with nothing better to do.
"Honto? That would be great! Thank you, Ally-chan." Laura offered the casually dressed teen a slight bow of gratitude; "Lead the way!"
...
"There, you see? That is where they dock their ship in between raids!" Ally pointed towards the eerie looking cave with a bright smile, "Sometimes I sneak in while they're gone and poke about their camp!"
"Yosh!" Laura grinned happily, now finally making progress after her numerous failed attempts to gather information in town, "Here, have 100 Beli as thanks!" The redhead flipped the girl a coin before cautiously starting down the cliff face.
"This is a pebble you wrote on!" Ally shouted in outrage.
"Oh, just take it!" The aspiring pirate complained, ignoring the girl as she stomped off in a huff. Navigating this bluff required her full attention, one slip and she could end up falling hundreds of feet to the ground. While Geppou was good for slowing one's descent, it still had its limits. If I knew I was going to be scaling a cliff face, I would have brought a rope or something!
Gradually over the next hour, the redhead managed to make her way to the bottom where she found Ally pacing the entrance of the cove impatiently. "A-Ally-chan? How did you get down here ahead of me?"
"I took the path to the east. I was getting bored waiting on you!" She fussed.
"P-path...? Why didn't you tell me there was a path to the bottom?" Laura's left eye began to twitch slightly; all of the trouble she had gone through to climb down the cliff suddenly flashing through her mind.
"Because you gave me a rock!" Sticking her tongue out at the older woman, the teenager turned to walk into the cove.
"You..." Laura raised her hand as if she wanted to smack her, but managed to restrain herself at the last moment, instead opting to simply follow the child into the lair of Emilia Claycomb's abductors.
"It's a little difficult to see in here." Laura remarked, watching the light from outside grow ever dimmer as they pressed forward, "It's a bit creepy in all honesty."
"A lot of people use to believe this cove was haunted by those lost at sea." Ally explained while carefully feeling her way forward, "You kind of stink, by the way."
"I've been paddling a boat for two days straight without a bath, you would too!" Laura shot back angrily, "...Anyway, if those pirates use this place as their base then it will be dangerous here. You should go back to the village."
Apparently halted by Laura's warning, the little girl lowered her head to the ground as if she were lost in deep thought. "...In truth, I kind of lied to you." She admitted, placing her small hand against the rock of the cove.
"I don't play with my friends here...I have actually been searching their camp for clues about my brother."
"Your brother...?" Laura tilted her head in confusion, "They did something to your brother?"
"Those pirates...they have started kidnapping people from the village. Mostly fisherman when they go out to sea. My brother was one." She explained softly, seeming to fight against the combined emotions of anger and sadness.
"If that's the case, then why didn't the villagers just tell me where Emilia Claycomb was? Surely they must know..."
Suddenly spinning on her heel, Ally stared into Laura's eyes with a look of utter disgust; "Because they are all cowards! They were afraid that the village would be attacked if the pirates found out they were helping you."
"So that's how it is, huh..." Laura folded her arms in contemplation, working over her next course of action; "Okay then! Just leave it up to me."
"Eh...?" Ally looked up at her senior in confusion, "What do you mean 'leave it up to you'...?"
"You're from the village, right? If one of the pirates recognizes you, then they might guess that we are here to free the slaves and thus try and use them as hostages against us." Laura explained to her with a slight smile crossing her face.
"Ah...! I...I didn't think of that..."
Gently resting a gloved hand on the little girls head, Laura offered her a reassuring smile; "Just let me handle it. I will save your brother along with Emilia Claycomb."
"D-datte...how will you get to them if they are being held on their ship?" Ally questioned the Veldorian, the worry in her eyes refusing to abate.
A confident, almost prideful grin suddenly began making its way across the redheads face when the teenager posed her question; "I may not look like it, but my art is that of an assassin. If I get serious, then they won't see me until I'm ready for them to."
It had been just as she had suspected. Having returned to their hideaway only recently, the pirates making their home in 'Owl's Cove' were mostly gathered about their camp; happy to set foot on dry land for at least a short time.
Torches illuminated their section of the cove, however this afforded many dark places where their shimmering light was barely felt. It was through this darkness that Laura moved, cautiously darting between crags and clusters of stalagmites to reach their vessel undetected.
Forgoing the landing ramp, Laura instead chose to rely upon her skill with Geppou to climb aboard the Nathanial Creed at an angle facing away from the pirate's encampment. Slinking up behind the pirate guarding the entrance below deck, the Veldorian's hand shot out to clasp over his mouth while the index finger of her opposite hand imbedded itself within his temple. Shigan!
Quietly making her way down the steps, Laura's nose immediately began to detect an unmistakably familiar aroma. It was the same smell that had lead her to rashly order over 100,000 beli worth of food, and nearly gotten her killed when she attempted to leave without paying.
Baratie...! Tilting her head to the side in confusion, Laura continued to take in the floating restaurants scent; There's no mistaking it! Somebody is cooking seafood just like they do at Baratie! While Zeff had provided her with rations for her trip, they weren't hardly enough for even one of her meals! Now hungrier than she ever had been since her training with Andante, her sense of smell was at its peak!
Carefully following the heavenly scent trail through the hull of the brig, she was eventually lead to a small and inauspicious door to what was presumably the kitchen. Cautiously approaching what would hopefully be both her objective and her next meal, the redhead gently nudged the door open with her foot; "Hello...?"
The source of the smell was now made readily apparent. Simmering over a steaming grill were lobster tails, snow crabs and fish of all sorts. Carefully tending to these delicacies was a young blonde woman that slowly turned towards the door in response to her visitor; "The food is almost done. Hitting me will only delay it."
"Ano...Emilia-san...?" Laura looked at the obviously battered girl with questioning eyes. She was clearly the one from Chef Zeff's picture, but she was looking far worse for wear than the happy and smiling woman portrayed in that photo.
"...? A woman?" Emilia muttered in slight disbelief. Was she also a slave...? No, she decided; She doesn't have a single mark on her. "Who are you? How did you get down here...?" She had learned the face of nearly every wretched member of Dravia's crew in her week with them, and none were women.
"My name is Laura D. Alden, and I was sent here by Zeff-san to rescue you!" Laura offered her a quick explanation, glancing over her shoulder with a slight blush due to her rather loud outburst.
"Owner sent you? By yourself?" Emilia arched a brow, "You definitely aren't one of the Baratie chefs."
Scratching the back of her head with a slight laugh, Laura offered a quick nod of agreement; "No, I'm not...but I owe a life debt to Zeff-san, so I agreed to help bring you back to Baratie safely. I already took care of the guard up top."
"A...life debt?" Her explanations just kept sounding stranger and stranger to Emilia's ears, "Well, I appreciate you coming all of this way for me, but I can't just up and leave like that."
"Eh?" Laura had to struggle to keep her mouth from dropping to the floor, "Why can't you? If you don't want the food to go to waste I can eat it for you!" She volunteered.
"Uh, no. There are other slaves being held here. Dravia plans to sell them to finance his expedition into the Grand Line." She explained while Laura tore through the shrimp scampi, "Are you listening?"
Glancing up from her adopted feast, the Veldorian quickly nodded her head; "Aa, you want to rescue the other slaves. That's fine, I need to save the brother of a girl named Ally too."
"You know Ally?" Emilia's eyes widened slightly in surprise, "Her brother will be overjoyed to hear that she's okay!"
Laura appeared to grin happily at the news that Ally's brother was on the Nathanial Creed, but her only partially successful efforts to consume a rock lobster whole made this difficult to discern.
"...Anyway, I will lead you to where the prisoners are being held; then we can make our escape."
Finally reserved to simply stripping the meat from the crustaceans, Laura offered an approving nod; "Yosh! Once the prisoners are free I can take care of this Dravia guy without having to worry about any hostages!"
"T-take care of Dravia...?" Emilia stammered in disbelief. Did she really just say that? Her idea was to escape after they freed them, not start a fight with the Gunwallis Pirates!
"Is there an echo in here? Stop repeating everything I say, its annoying!" Now moving onto the fish, Laura seemed to continue their conversation even as she ate the entire meal that had been prepared for the crew of the Nathanial Creed.
"It won't do any good to free the slaves if we're just going to let him run about capturing more, right?" Laura questioned the startled cook.
"I...I guess not, but...don't you think you're sort of underestimating Dravia? He is wanted for 18,000,000 beli and is a ruthless killer!" She had witnessed his brutality first hand when a group of merchants had attempted to stand and fight against him. The terrible images of their deaths still haunted her.
"Don't worry, he can't beat my Rokushiki!" Laura boasted confidently, finishing off the last of the food Emilia had spent an hour preparing; "Especially when I'm all filled up!"
"That was intended for a whole crew, you black hole!" Emilia shouted in disbelief.
"Sorry! I hadn't eaten in over a day!" Laura rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. She had acted rather piggish, even for her; "Anyway, lead the way! I'm eager to get back to Baratie!"
New profiles for you to examine! ^^
Name: Emilia Claycomb
Age: 17
Sex: Female
Height: 5'7
Weight: 123 lbs
Appearance: Emilia has light blonde hair that hangs down to her shoulders and deep blue eyes. Her build is naturally light and slender, although she is moderately toned. Her skin has developed a healthy tan due to the sunny climate of her home island of Toroa, and thus she prefers light and loose fitting clothing to stay cool.
Combat ability: While not an extraordinary combatant, Emilia is nevertheless able to hold her own against the standard pirate rabble that typically cause trouble for Baratie, and can even go toe to toe with veteran fighting chefs such as Patty or Carne when push comes to shove.
Because of her strong belief that food should only be used to enrich and bring joy to the lives of others, Emilia refuses to use oversize cooking utensils similar to those wielded by the Baratie chefs. Instead, when forced into combat she prefers wielding a standard cutlass and flintlock pistol.
She is a strategic fighter and relies on outwitting her opponents to compensate for her lack of physical strength.
Name: Dravia Belgarn
Age: 42
Sex: Male
Height: 12'4
Weight: 832 lbs
Appearance: Dravia has raven black hair which he keeps tied in a waist length ponytail, and obsidian eyes. He is somewhat overweight, with a prominent belly that he unsuccessfully attempts to hide with his thick red sash. His face is marred by a deep gash that goes from his left eyebrow all the way to the right corner of his mouth, a wound he received when he once challenged infamous assassin Daz Bones to a duel; only to suffer a humiliating defeat.
Combat ability: Having sailed the seas of West Blue for over two decades, Dravia 'the stoneheart' has seen many battles and has suffered both his fair share of victories and defeats. Despite being what many would consider a 'mediocre' pirate by many of the more notorious pirates to sail West Blue, he nevertheless has proven time and again that he is not an opponent to be underestimated.
Utterly ruthless and willing to go to any extreme to achieve victory, Dravia compensates for his lack of finesse with his great size and physical strength, using his oversized cutlass to cleave through any that would oppose him.
More than anything, Dravia hates being ignored and if treated lightly by an opponent he will become enraged and began attacking in blind fury, becoming a danger to all in the vicinity...friend or foe!