Okay! Alicia here, with chapter 10 of Cause it All Started! Somebody asked if "Alice" and "Maria" were the same person in the reviews from last chapter- you'll get to find out here!
Shoutouts to NightHunterDeath and 10th Squad 3rd Seat for reviewing every chapter to date! FOLLOW THEIR EXAMPLE AND REVIEW FOR ME!
The Disclaimer is on vacation, so I'm gonna do it this time! Do I own One Piece? NO! Do I want to? NO! Do I love it? HELL YES! LET'S GET STARTED!
CHAPTER 10
Grand Line
The next island they arrived at wasn't nearly as nice as the last.
Around a week after leaving Sukuingushi, the Heart Pirates had arrived at Forves Island. This island was heavily monitored by Marines, but Law knew his crew could take care of themselves. It was peaceful to say the least; brick roads, stone houses, no signs of struggle. But it was almost completely deserted; save for suspicious shadows that lurked in doorways and alleys.
Alice took a tentative step off of the ship. "Are you sure it's safe here…?" She asked nervously. She felt the uncontrollable urge to run back into the safety of the ship, back to Law's side where she felt safe. She shivered in the cold air- she wore a new gray skirt and white shirt, with brown boots lined with fur. Long white socks reached past her knees. Penguin took her hand as she hopped down over the railing of the shop into the shipyard.
"Don't worry Alice- we're here, so it's fine." Penguin smiled. Alice smiled back, temporarily comforted. But her ease turned back to fear as she walked through the town clutching Penguin's left arm. Her legs shivered in the cold wind.
Bepo and Shachi walked ahead of them, both tense and alert. Alice held the sleeve of Penguin's uniform, her head turning back and forth as she surveyed their surroundings. Penguin kept his eyes focused ahead, watching for danger.
Suddenly, out of nowhere a person flew into Shachi, knocking the man off his feet and into the side of a building. Alice screamed. The person landed on their feet and another one attacked Bepo, throwing a kick to the polar bear's side. Penguin jumped in front of Alice and drew a hidden knife from his sleeve, using it to deflect the blade of another combatant. Shachi got up and launched himself at his attacker, pulling a wickedly curved blade from his boot. Bepo and his opponent threw punches and kicks in a flurry against each other, while Shachi and Penguin played with steel blades.
Alice whirled around, coming to face another attacker. They all dressed in black from head to toe, black masks covering their faces. Only their eyes were visible. This person held a knife in their right hand, jerking it up the throw. Alice ran to her left, picking up a pipe and flinging it up, blocking the knife that would've gone straight through her head.
Alice summoned a handful of white stones to her side, pelting the person with a storm of tiny white pebbles. They ran through the storm, grabbing her hands and slamming them upwards, over her head. She gritted her teeth, and bent her hair around to grab her attacker's throat. They gagged and dropped her hands, releasing her from their grasp.
But not before they got a knife through her chest.
Alice coughed up blood, splattering the ground below her scarlet. She heard someone who sounded like Penguin scream her name, and felt herself ripped away from the blade and held horizontally. She opened her closed eyes, looking up into Shachi's face. He held her against his knee, her back against his thigh. His shoulder was bloody with a wound, and she saw a bruise over his temple; no doubt his side hurt from that earlier impact. Alice wouldn't be surprised if he had fractured his ribs.
She was being rushed to somewhere. He hearing was coming back now- she could hear Shachi's breathing as he ran. He panted.
Slamming his feet onto the deck of the ship, Shachi screamed for his captain. Law slammed the door to the ship open, his eyes falling on his bleeding comrade and the shivering girl in his arms; he saw his first mate and Penguin climbing over the side of the ship's railing.
Ordering them to get to the infirmary, he called for Daros and Haru to help Penguin and Bepo up. Running back inside, Law grabbed Shachi by the arm and ran with him to the infirmary. Swinging open the metal doors, he pushed Shachi over to one side of the room while he went towards the other, already gathering instruments and medicines.
Shachi laid Alice down on a cot and sat down next to her. Bepo and Penguin were shuffled in by Haru and Daros. Alice cracked open one eye, looking at Haru with suspicion.
"Why're there… two Daroses?" She asked. Haru grinned sheepishly.
"Guess we haven't met before- I'm Haru, Daros's cousin. Sorry to meet on such bad circumstances." Alice grinned faintly, then proceeded to cough up blood. Shachi reached over to pat the back of her neck and cupped her mouth. She coughed into his hand.
Law strode back over. "Daros, you stay. Haru, go get Crowe and Erik." Haru left, saluting Alice with a grin. She grinned back with bloody lips.
"Shachi, what happned?" Law asked, already cutting Shachi's sleeve open to look at the stab wound on his right shoulder. Shachi winced.
"We got attacked by some people in black." Shachi said. "I didn't get a good look at their faces." Law nodded.
"Where were you hit?"
"My head. I also went flying into the side of a building- hit my ribs hard." Shachi winced at the memory. Law nodded.
"I'll leave that to Crowe. Daros, go over and help Alice." Law ordered. Daros walked over to Alice.
"What's wrong Alice?" He asked kindly, if a bit mockingly. Alice groaned.
"C-chest… stabbed…" She coughed. The room went quiet. "Hurts…" She coughed again, more blood coming up. Law turned around.
"Your chest?" He asked darkly. "Where in your chest?" His glare was intense and made Alice shiver.
"H-heart… Lung…" She gasped. Law turned over to her, jumping the cot between them.
"Daros," He ordered harshly. "Look after Shachi." Daros scrambled away, and Law took the fabric of Alice's shirt in his hand. Alice whimpered, and Law pulled it apart, ripping the buttons off the shirt in his haste.
Leaning over her, Law could see where the knife had gone in- it hadn't been a large knife, but the cut was deep. It was in a bad place too- right over her heart, to the side of her sternum and between her ribs. The person had obviously known what they had been doing. Law frowned- had Joker caught up to them already?
Alice had flushed red and her heart was beating erratically. Law frowned.
"Alice calm down. Your heart is beating too fast." He said. Alice looked up at him, tears pricking the backs of her eyes. She whimpered, grimaced, and took a deep breath. She tried to calm her beating heart for Law.
Law gently fingered the wound, seeing what he had to work with. Alice cried out in pain, her arms spasming by her sides. Law grimaced. Grabbing a syringe, he filled it with morphine. Bringing it to Alice's arm, Alice cried out. Law looked up at her.
Alice had stopped looking at him. She had cast her face downwards, not daring to look up at Law. Her shoulders shook with fear, and her sobs hitched in her chest. She wasn't responding to him at all, wasn't even looking at him. Law's frown deepened, and his crew stared at him. He knew that look- it meant, do something. Now.
"Get out of here." He ordered, and his crew limped/scurried from the room. Swinging Alice up into his arms (with a squeal from Alice), he gently deposited her into a medical chair a few feet away from the center of the room. Alice whimpered, and Law rolled his eyes. Taking the needle in his hands again, he jabbed it into Alice's arm with more force than necessary. Alice screamed, clawing at the needle, her breathing getting faster and faster as her pupils dilated.
Law snatched her hand away from the syringe, and pressed down on the plunger. Alice moaned as he did this, as though it was molten lead being shot into her veins, not morphine. Taking the needle away, he wrapped the puncture with gauze and a cotton ball. Alice's hand now hung limply at her side, and her eyes were dull and glassy. Maybe I gave her a bit too much… Law thought in passing as her grabbed the hem of her shirt.
Pulling her out of what remained of her shirt, he propped her up in the chair and sidled up next to her. Taking a pair of tweezers out of a small rolling cabinet near him, he pulled the pieces of skin apart, looking for shrapnel or glass in the wound. Alice's heartbeat remained steady, her eyes still glazed over.
After removing the pieces of glass from the wound, he pushed her back against the chair. He left her side to go hunt for some disinfectant, which he found after searching in varying cabinets and drawers. Returning to Alice's chair, he was mildly surprised when he noticed tears running down her left cheek.
Law felt uncomfortable, which was unusual for him. Nevertheless, he was a doctor, and so it was his job to put his patient at ease. He reached for more morphine.
Placing the needle to her arm again, he was about to push it through when he noticed Alice staring at the needle with absolute terror. Her pupils had dilated until her iris looked completely black, and her forehead shone with sweat. Very carefully, he moved the needle away and placed it gently on a side table. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled Alice into his lap and stroked her arm from shoulder to elbow. Pressing her back into his chest, he could feel the silent sobs that wracked her body. He tried to sooth her, whispering to her and securing her firmly against him.
"Shhh…Miss Alice, it's alright, you're alright. Shhh, can you feel how I'm breathing like this? I want you to breathe as I do. It's okay, you're okay. Do you know where you are? You are in my ship, in my infirmary, and nothing can hurt you here. Nobody can hurt you here Alice, so calm down and come back to me. It's okay, it's okay…. Shhh….."
….
Alice was lost. She felt empty, like a plastic bag that was drifting on the wind. She was falling, spinning, and floating in her mind. Drifting. Her whole world had narrowed down to two tiny pinpricks of light, twin holes in the blackness. Peering through one was terrible though- out there was where the fear was, where the bad things happened. The hurt and the pain and the fear.
Alice would rather stay in here. It was nice in here. It was quiet and safe and nobody could touch her. It was comfortably numb.
But suddenly, she heard something. It was a voice, high and sweet, singing a song she couldn't recognize. The melody was something like a lullaby, rocking her gently back and forth. It was a kind voice, like a sister or a sibling. It enveloped her like a soft white blanket in her numb world of black. It was like a sheet that as fell down around her to gently enfold her in light.
Through the light she heard someone. Their voice was deep and rich, a beautiful sound. It spoke to her, gently coaxing her to the surface of her dream.
"….lice. Alice. Wake up Alice, it's okay, you're safe here. You're here with me, safe, so wake up. Wake up Alice. Alice. Alice, wake up…"
Alice's eye popped open, her mouth bursting open in a gasp. She turned her head upwards, looking into Law's blank gunmetal grey eyes. Silence reigned for a few moments before she cast her eyes downwards, hands going up to the arm wrapped securely around her shoulders. She was sitting up in his lap, her short legs dangling over his knees.
"Alice." Law whispered, his smooth baritone voice startling Alice as it slid into her ear. He squeezed her midsection with his right arm as he spoke, the pressure gentle and reassuring.
"I do not know why you just did that…" He started. Alice flinched, gripping his arm tighter.
"But I do not like it." Alice's eyes opened, her blue orbs swirling with uncertainty. "I don't like that you are so petrified of me when, by my standards, no harm has come to you under my watch." His words shocked Alice. She turned around to look at him in his lap.
"It isn't you Law." She whispered, one hand still lingering on his wrist. "I… I'm…" She pressed her forehead into the right side of his neck.
"I can't…" She whispered weakly, the tears coming back. Law brought his arm back up around her waist, stroking the small of her back.
"Alice." He said seriously. "I do not know what happened to you in your past, but…"
"Put trust in your captain." Alice's eyes widened. He said it. He called himself her captain. Slowly, tears began to fall from her eyes, her breath hitched, and she began crying again. But this time, the tears were not of fear- these were tears that needed to be shed.
As she cried, Law finished cleaning the wound and stitched it closed, being gentle with the needle and thread. Alice felt no pain at all, just warmth from where her wound was. She shivered from the warmth, like a small fire was slowly making its way through her veins, warming her blood and massaging her body. The sensation was like gentle hands rubbing her, warming the body of a corpse and breathing life back into her.
Law finished the final stitch, tying the thread and cutting it off. He looked down at Alice's exhausted face, her chest rising and falling with deep breaths. Sighing, he bundled her up in her torn shirt and lifted her into his arms. Using his foot to strategically maneuver the door open, he walked down to her room and placed her in her bed, pulling the covers up to her chin after removing her shirt and replacing it with her dark blue one.
He left the room, already getting annoyed that he still had to see to the injuries of the rest of his crew.
Luffy was excited- really, really excited. They had just left Drum Island, and were headed out for the next one. Luffy grinned- what exciting adventure was waiting for them now? He swung his feet over the deck from his seat on the railing. He couldn't wait!
Looking over to his right, past Zoro and Usopp who were drinking, he saw the newspaper that had alerted them to the uprising in Vira. Luffy frowned. Vivi was enjoying herself tonight, he didn't want her to see that and get sad. Standing up, he walked over to the newspaper and flung it out into the ocean.
"Luffy!" Nami screeched, seeing him toss the newspaper over the side of the ship, "Why did you do that?! Newspapers cost money!" She grabbed him and put him in a headlock, choking Luffy as he garbled for mercy.
Looking down at her feet, Nami saw a piece of paper that was stuck under her shoe. "Nani?" she said, releasing Luffy to bend down and pick it up. It was a page of the newspaper.
"What is this…" She said, reading it. By now, everyone had heard the commotion and was watching Nami. Nami suddenly gasped, her eyes widening into rings as she held out the paper in front of her.
"Oh my god!" She screeched. Everyone flew over to her to look at the poster.
"What is it?" Usopp asked, reading the poster quickly. His eyes widened too and he screamed.
"Nada? What's your deal?" Zoro said gruffly, already having read the poster.
"Nami, what're you looking at?" Luffy asked. Nami thrust the paper out to him, her eyes wide.
"Luffy, read this!" She screeched. Luffy looked at the paper, reading it for a moment. His eyes went huge, eyeballs almost bursting out of their sockets.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" He screamed, shocking his crew to the end of the earth.
Ace looked up, chuckling. There was a party tonight on the ship, since they had just docked at a new island Ah, what was he saying, they used any excuse they could to have a party here! He grabbed his mug and took another swig at it, laughing at his brother's antics. It was good being second division leader.
"Hey Ace! Catch!" Thatch tossed his a newspaper. Ace shouted back "Thanks!" with a grin- he hated buying his own newspapers, but he enjoyed reading them.
He flipped through it, reading more scandal about pirates and Marines, laughing when he saw that one of Pop's allies had attacked a Marine base and claimed the island as Whitebeard territory in the New World. Flipping to the bounties, he scoffed when he saw that Marco's had been raised and his hadn't. Stupid pineapple pigeon.
Turning the page, he came upon a different kind of report. It was a whole two pages wide, one piece of paper in the center of the newspaper. His eyes widened at the title of the page, skipping the content to the picture of the woman in the wanted poster.
He screamed, in shock, agony, and delight, seeing the face.
His brothers ran over to him to see what the matter was, but they couldn't get him to talk, as the man was too busy crying while gripping the page from the newspaper, hunching over the balcony and repeating the name of a girl.
"Ahahahahaaah! I can't believe it! I can't believe it!"
"What's wrong, Sabo?"
"Wrong? Nothing's wrong sir! In fact, this is great! Look here!" The blond man spread the wide paper on the desk, leaning over the front to point at the picture.
"That's my little sister there sir! Check out her bounty- first time too!"
"That's impressive. 80,000,000 beri for her first bounty?"
"Yeah! And read the article!"
"New pirate "Ten no Tenshi" Tenshi D. Alice is a member of the Heart Pirates under Captain Trafalgar Law (200,000,000 beri), and is considered a direct threat to the World Gov. If sighted, do not approach. 80,000,000 beri for her wounded, but…"
"…Sir?"
"Sabo, is she really wanted by the World Government, alive, for that much money?"
"Yes sir. She's more than she appears to be. Actually, I doubt they would pay anyone 80 million for her dead body. They want her alive."
"That's some sister you've got Sabo."
"I know sir." Sabo grinned wildly.
The paper had a picture of a girl with black hair on it. She was sitting on a couch, wearing a thin white dress. Her expression was blank, tinged with sadness, her body propped up against pillows. She looked like a doll.
The only things that made her look like a pirate were the shimmering wings on her back, arced towards the sky, and the fiery, determined look in her dark blue eyes.
This marks the end of the newfoundpeace…
And the entry into chaos and turmoil…
The martyr, the victim, the brothers, the savoir, the companions and the prophet,
The angel's song shall be heard, the angel's scream shall be remembered, the angel's fight shall be fought, the angel's life shall be lost.
The warning has been told.
Dawn is here, the end of the old.
If you do not review, I shall send Law after you.
Law: Why me...?
Me: Cause you're scary, that's why! Review, and Jaa ne! ^_^