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Chapter 10.
Become a Prey to Your Hunter
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Luffy jerked upwards. He moved as quickly as he could, jumping forward and twisting around in mid-air. He landed on his uninjured leg, between the heap of bodies and his opponent.
Lyon flashed a wicked smile.
"What is it?" he asked, showing a mocking expression. "I thought you would be happy to see me. Aren't we friends, after all?"
"What do you want from me?" Luffy growled. His eyes darted around, searching for other enemies. There was, however, no one else to be seen. "And what the hell happened here?!" the boy added, distressed by the sight of corpses.
"Oh, nothing." The violet-haired man yawned. "Just a small game."
"Game?" Luffy repeated. His voice was hollow. He felt cold, sticky blood trickle down his back.
"Just... a hunting," a deep voice clarified.
Luffy's heart skipped a beat. His eyes flashed to his right, where Vladir appeared out of nowhere. The man started walking towards him. He was carrying a small, swinging lantern, which was casting an eery, silvery glow over his figure. He was expressionless.
The boy's lurched, realizing that he didn't hear him coming.
"You see," Lyon said, not even looking at his companion, "we are only doing our job. We take what is rare and make sure it stays rare."
Luffy tensed. He prepared to attack when Vladir stepped even closer. His breaths got shallow, quickened. Fatigue and adrenaline were wreaking his body and he fought not to faint.
The bigger man stopped. There were six feet apart.
"Look," he commanded.
He raised his lantern and illuminated the morbid, bloody heap. Luffy tried to keep his eyes glued to the other male, but curiosity won and he stole a glance at the pile.
Engulfed in silvery light, animals appeared blue and swollen. Dozens pairs of eyes seemed to be set on the boy, as if cursing him, blaming...
Luffy turned around. The image, however, was already burned into his mind.
"It's a job, like I said," Lyon said, reading his expression. "We captured every exotic creature this land had to offer. And then... we killed everything else!" he added with joy.
"Seven species," Vladir filled in. "Seven beasts."
"And how much fun it was!" The jewellery-man clasped his hands and twirled around. "Wish you saw them fighting! But they never stood a chance. Vladir tracked down every single one with his ability and-..."
"Why?" The straw hat wearer asked. The bald man returned his gaze.
"For money" he answered.
"Yeah!" Lyon agreed. "When beasts we sell are the only ones of its kind, they go for higher price. And these were already exotic."
Luffy's hands curled into fists. He started violently shaking, but not from fear or exhaustion.
"You are sick," he whispered.
Lyon stopped dancing. He measured him with a long, assessing gaze, noticing the boy's rigid posture.
"Why?" he asked. His demeanour turned strangely serious. "Do you feel sorry for those we killed? Or for those we captured? You really shouldn't. After all," he smiled sweetly, "you'll be joining them soon enough."
Luffy barely had time to react. He stepped aside to avoid a knife, placing weight on his wounded leg. It buckled under him and he swayed, blanching in agony.
The jewellery-man twisted around. He attacked in a lightning speed, this time aiming with his bare arm. The boy let it bounce off him and flew with momentum, hitting a nearby tree.
He gritted teeth in pain. The rough bark scraped against his wing's, making his gashes sting. He blinked tears away, straining to see an upcoming blow. He dropped to the ground, just as a blade pierced the place where his right shoulder previously was. He rolled away and sprang back to his feet.
"Oh? Little birdy still lively?" Lyon teased. "Not for long."
Luffy didn't see it coming. A well-placed kick dug in his ribcage, lifting him in air and making the world spin. The boy landed heavily in a puddle of blood. He started coughing like mad, spitting out dirt and chunks of flesh.
"Oh?" The violet-haired man smirked. He rubbed his knee, with which he scored the hit, and viewed it in fascination. "You are Rubber Man, as I thought. What happened with your appearance, Straw Hat Luffy? I don't remember wings, horns or a tail on any of the photos. Did you survive another fruit or is what people say true? You know... Devil's powers, Dragon's son, Demon himself ?"
Luffy said nothing. He crept backwards, keeping low to the ground. His arm and leg were throbbing and world was turning off and back in colour, but he tried to ignore it. He turned his gaze from Lyon to Vladir. He noticed how the latter remained in the same spot, as if not willing to fight.
"What?" Lyon said, noticing where the boy was looking. He pursed his lips in an unhappy pout. "You think that my friend is a threat? I can take you on alone, birdy. You are in no condition to win."
Luffy measured him with a glare. He knew, however, that it was the truth. He could tell his opponents were skilled. There was also no way of judging if more enemies weren't hiding in the forest... He was on his own, tired, bloodied and cornered. He wouldn't last through a fight.
"Let's make it fair," Lyon offered, but his sly grin made it clear that "fair" wasn't what he meant. He started walking in a wide arch, looking at the boy from underneath long, violet bangs and head-band's triangle. "My friend here has a gift. He is like a snake charmer, see? But he charms whatever he is close to. Be it animal, marine force or a small, defenceless pirate worth a Belly."
He winked at the boy, who fought down shivers.
"Vladir," the man continued, "can just sit back and relax, when his pray drives itself crazy. His presence shuts senses down, one by one. It starts with the sixth sense. You can call it "someone-is-behind-me instinct" or observant haki, however you want. It makes it harder to think. You are confused. You suddenly feel fear, even though you had been a powerful, invisible creatures seconds before. And then you fall deeper," Lyon whispered. He made a sinister expression. "You loose the sound. You don't hear an attack coming, you don't hear people gathering under a staircase, you don't hear when an enemy stands behind you. You taste dread on your tongue. Your mouth turns drys and you try to swallow saliva that isn't there, gulping when a hunter towers above you. You look into his eyes. And you know you can't run."
Lyon turned to the boy. He measured him with piercing gaze.
"How is that? To be our prey?" he asked with curiosity.
Luffy willed his legs to stop trembling. He straightened despite the pain, and answered firmly:
"Like hell I would know."
Lyon roared with laughter. He punched the tree he was closest to, piercing it with a knife he still had in his hand.
"Ah haha, I love your guts!" he cried out. "Can we please keep him, Vladir? He cracks me up."
The other man said nothing.
"It's true," Lyon added, "that Vladir has yet to perfect his ability... He can't take away everything at once. It's a process! It takes time to use on humans, but it's easy enough to make wild beasts dumb. I wish you saw them running to us like cute puppies! Killing them like that was almost no fun. But! It's great watching humans. I love those we sell as slaves, I love them madly. I love how in lucid moments they beg to be sold away, or thrown into the sea, anything to get away. They can't stand the presence of dear Vladir and they go crazy. They trash around in their little cages, yelling in fear and anger. And then they become a blabbering mess on the floor. Sick with terror, devoid of senses, trapped in delusions of their messed up minds... I can't get enough. It's so worth waiting!"
He smiled sweetly. Luffy blanched, feeling his insides twist.
"But! I can do stuff as well!" Lyon exclaimed, happy like a child. He caressed the numerous ornaments he was wearing. "I'm Hunter Hunter fruit user. I turn plants, animals or specific objects into tools for hunting. Remember our Chain-Snake? Or... let's see."
He turned to the nearest tree and touched it. Luffy watched with uncomfortable, sickening feeling as it moved and brought a colossal branch down. It smacked the ground with a vicious thump. There was a wide, deep dent left in its stead.
Luffy held his breath. He stiffly wiped his face from the animals' blood, which was spluttered by the strike. Lyon left fluids on his own face to dry.
"Lovely, isn't it?" he asked. He knew fully well what such power meant, in a forest, to a pirate unable to run. "Oh, but don't worry." He gave a lazy shrug. "We don't plan to smear you on the ground. We will capture you whole and sound."
Vladir gave a low grunt. "Liar," he said to his companion.
The violet-haired man flashed a smile. He put the knife back in its case, where it was attached to his belt. He then took off four bracelets from each arm and started to circle them around his fingers, with swift, easy movements.
"Well," he whispered, "maybe not whole. And definitely not sound. But hush, my pretty birdy. A little bleeding here and there won't be bad."
Luffy glared.
"Like I'll let you touch me," he growled.
"That's fine if you fight," Lyon replied. He stopped the bracelets all at once. "It simply means more fun."
Luffy dodged when three gold circles were thrown at him. He didn't knew what they could do against his rubber body, but his doubts were quickly answered when jewellery morphed, landing as thick, barbed chains where he just stood. They didn't stay on the ground, however. All three moved like snakes and rushed after him, clanking wildly.
Lyon gave a crazy laugh. He released five more bracelets. They rolled at Luffy at incredible speed. He jumped over them and they hit a tree behind him, where they wrapped around its trunk. They tightened, snapping the bark with a crack.
Luffy didn't stop to look. He charged on Lyon, but the man stepped aside with ease.
The boy wasn't done. He let the momentum carry him and he span around, smacking his opponent with spiked wings.
The violet-haired man cried out in pain. He caught the wing with a tight grip, trying to pry it away and dislodge spikes from his back. Luffy used this moment and whipped his tail at his knees. Lyon, having lost his footing, fell on the ground.
Luffy gasped when he unexpectedly fell right with him. He landed on top of the bigger man, who instantly circled arms around his torso. There was sudden pressure around Luffy's throat. He clasped at the material-like object, which was tightening around his neck, and tried to pry it away. The moment he raised his hands, however, they were caught in a crashing hold.
The boy started kicking. He tried to look at the thing that kept him captive, dizzily peeking from narrowed eyelids. He recognized it as a head-band. He saw the long, silky material circle his wrists and bound them together. It was also what continued to choke him and pressed against his mouth, stiffing desperate, shallow breaths he tried to take.
"Heh," Lyon grunted beneath him. He readjusted his grip on the boy, making him immobile. "What is it? Little birdy can't fight off a big, scary wolf?"
Luffy narrowed his eyes. He wrenched his head backwards and was rewarded with a shocked, horrified scream when his horns sunk in flesh.
"Gyah! You son of a bitch!" Lyon roared.
He rolled their bodies and climbed over Luffy, keeping him pressed to the ground. There were bracelets-turned-chains coiling behind him, rising on one end and twisting in fury.
"Think you're untouchable?!" the man growled.
He reached to his belt, where a long, curled knife was placed. He bared his teeth in a vicious snarl. There was dark blood flowing from his temple, where horns made shallow holes.
Luffy's eyes crossed on their own. He breathed heavily through his nose when a blade grazed his face.
The scarf-like material on Lyon's head, which was still wrapped around the boy's hands and neck, suddenly tightened. Luffy felt how his lungs were cut off air. He started trashing like never before, twisting and fighting to throw the offender off. He lifted his wings and tried to strike once again, but chain-bracelets moved faster and strapped them to the ground.
He couldn't attack. He soon drained the energy to move and laid still, wheezing on the ground.
"Had enough?" the man asked. He pressed on the boy's chest, making it deflate even further. Luffy made a strangled, wailing noise, which was muffled by the gag. "So much trouble. You better be worth it."
Lyon raised the knife.
Vladir silently stood behind him. He watched as Luffy struggled with neutral expression. There was no mercy, no empathy in his eyes.
"I have enough of your bad behaviour," Lyon whispered. He caressed Luffy's cheek in a mocking attempt of comfort, then he broke the contact and leaned back. He smiled at the view. "Don't worry. You won't run away or fight ever again. Cutting tendons in your legs and arms should solve the problem. Buyers wouldn't mind. Would they?" he asked, drinking terror in Luffy's eyes.
The boy could only watch as the tip of the knife glinted, held above in a dark promise.
There was no way out. No escape.
"No hard feelings," Lyon said. Then he lowered the blade.
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