Yes! I managed to crank out another chapter in one week! Although my sleep schedule will probably suffer for this.
Oh well. Nothing new there. Now, for the review!
Alpenwolf: Not quite, but you're kinda close with that guess. I also know that there aren't many women fighters, which is part of the reason why I made Terra. Not because of some feminist ideals, but because I know I can really piss her off with the fact that she won't be taken seriously as a fighter most of the time. I am not that nice to my own characters, and I find the short-tempered characters to be the most fun to write about.
Now, on with the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. Terra is my OC.
Chapter 21
Terra blinked a couple of times to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Yep, that was definitely a house, made from what looked to be wax, in the middle of a tropical forest. However, judging from the fact that a dinosaur had broken its teeth by biting it, it was a very hard wax.
Wait, dinosaur? Okay, that was two surprises in a row. Although it did explain the lizard-like bird from earlier, weren't dinosaurs supposed to be extinct? She guessed that anything really was possible on the Grand Line.
She was about to stepped forward to examine the house when she heard someone coming. She ducked behind a weird bush just in time to see two unexpected faces.
What were Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine doing here? Didn't they get enough of an ass-kicking back at Whiskey Peak? Were they still determined to kill Vivi?
She watched as the two walked into the house. Well, she guessed it wouldn't hurt to eavesdrop on them to see what she could learn before beating them up.
Terra quietly made her way to the open window and hid underneath it. She could make out their voices nice and clear from there.
". . . We just underestimated them! That's all! We didn't know that pirates are protecting the Princess," said Ms. Valentine. Her tone suggested that she had been insulted just now.
"You didn't know?" asked a new voice. That confirmed that there were at least three people in the house. All of them enemies. She continued to listen to this new voice.
"What a lame excuse. Do you remember that we are professionals? If we lose and let our enemies live, it means that our organization will be revealed to the world. So when we get an order, we have to complete it! However, since you came here, we will give you 30% of our work. If you won't accept this job, I will make you disappear from this world right now." His voice rang of the same arrogance she heard from Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine at Whiskey Peak.
However, what caught Terra's attention the most was that he said "we." That suggested that there was at least one more enemy here. They were just being quiet at the moment.
Terra stayed in her crouched position as she listened to the guy talk about these two giants that were supposed to be on the island and that their heads were worth 200 million berries. He also thanked Mr. 5 for putting a bomb in the rum to take out the giants.
Terra didn't really care much about the giants she had yet to see, but she now had some information she needed to share with her crew. Except . . . she didn't know which way the ship was. And even then, most of her friends were exploring the island, so they could be anywhere.
This wasn't good. She needed to warn them and to have back-up for when a fight occurs . . .
A delicate lady such as yourself needs all the protection she can get!
And just like that, her rage did her thinking for her.
She didn't need back-up. She could fight all on her own. Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine proved to be weaklings back at Whiskey Peak. This new guy was just as arrogant as they were, so he was probably as weak as they were. Not to mention the fact that he was severely underestimating them.
"If you know how to adapt your strategy, you can defeat anything." Yeah, he was definitely an arrogant one. She just needed a few seconds for that to last in order to go for the ki . . .
"Then what's your strategy for the girl outside the window?" asked a new voice. It was feminine and sounded younger. It was also selling Terra out.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, a girl ducked under the window shortly after Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine came in. She's been there the whole time."
. . . FUCK!
"Why didn't you say anything?" asked a now angry voice.
Terra jumped to the side and stood up as Mr. 5 looked out the window and looked down. She used that moment to punch him square in the jaw. The blow caused him to fall to the side and out of the window. At this point, everyone else in the house had come out through the door.
Terra now saw that the voice must have belonged to the man . . . with one of the stupidest-looking hairdos she had ever seen. Really, she could already guess that he was Mr. 3 in the organization due to the 3 on top of his head. How the hell have these people remained inconspicuous for as long as they did?
There was also a girl with a paintbrush and a blank look on her face, but she wasn't making a move to do anything, so Terra ignored her for the moment.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here? One of the pirates has gone ahead and decided that she wanted to be captured first," said Mr. 3.
"That sounds boring. I think I'll just go and kick your ass instead," she retorted. He laughed.
"You think you're so clever? You're way out of your league."
"I believe that's supposed to be my line," she said without skipping a beat. Mr. 3 was starting to get annoyed now.
"As much fun as this is, it's time to stop joking around. I have plans for you and your crew, and you have no hope of stopping me!" As he said this, his hand turned into some kind of white goop. Terra's eyes shifted over to the house for a second.
No . . . not just goop. Wax! She remembered that stuff breaking the dinosaur's teeth. She should avoid getting hit by that stuff.
She jumped back as he tried to fling the wax onto her. She had little doubt that he was trying to restrain her movements. She needed an opportunity to get up close and deliver one good punch.
She ran forward as she dodged the globs of wax being thrown her way. Just as she was right in front of him, she jumped up to avoid her legs getting trapped by more wax and was finally within nose-breaking distance. She pulled her fist back to hit him, when she suddenly twisted around and blocked a blow from Mr. 5.
His fist exploded on impact, but her arms took the blow instead of her rib cage, where he was aiming. The blow caused her to fall on her back. Her arms stung a bit, but she ignored it in order to get up. But she wasn't fast enough. Her legs and arms were now trapped in the wax she couldn't dodge this time.
"It's over now," gloated Mr. 3. Terra was furious now. She refused to give up now! Arching her back, she managed to jump back on her feet, surprising her enemies, but she couldn't run. She probably couldn't hop much if she tried.
"Honestly, this is getting painful to watch now," said Ms. Valentine as she made the mistake of getting too close.
"I mean, you can't do –" She was cut off when Terra slammed her log-like wax handcuffs into her side. She skidded against the ground for a few feet. Terra then turned her attention to her other opponents.
"You still refuse to give up? You're just in denial at this point. Face it, your death is inevitable!" said Mr. 5. Terra glared at him with murderous intent, just like the last time.
"Keep talking. Then, see if your windpipe is still intact when everything is said and done," she said with dangerous undertones. While Mr. 5 looked a bit unnerved, Mr. 3 only laughed.
"Even in a hopeless situation, you talk as though you have a chance. I have to admit, you have that glare down. But, threatening us isn't going to do anything for you. Go ahead and knock her out, Mr. 5. I don't want her to cause enough of a ruckus to alert the others."
She struggled. She'd be damned otherwise. But, eventually Mr. 5 managed to hit something against the back of her head, causing her to black out.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Terra came to just in time to see Mr. 3 finished some big structure that looked like a jack-o-lantern on a pole.
"You finally awake?" asked Zoro, who was right next to her. Terra looked around to see that Nami and Vivi were also with them. There was also a giant lying down not too far from them. And just like her, they all had their wrists and ankles trapped in wax.
"Yeah. What have I missed so far?" she asked.
"Well, we got caught after falling for this guy's traps. And they say that Luffy's dead," said Zoro simply.
"So in other words, he's fine," she said. These guys were too weak to kill Luffy, so of course she wasn't going to believe it. Just like Zoro didn't, judging from the tone of his voice.
Eventually, they are all standing on the base of the structure, the wax up to their ankles, preventing them from escaping. Their arms were free now, though Terra wasn't sure how to get out of the wax. She was between Zoro and Vivi, the latter she sensed still didn't trust her, so she figured that she shouldn't bother her. Maybe she should try to come up with a tactic with Zoro. But what could they do? And what the hell was this mist raining down on them?
Mr. 3 then went on to explain that the candle mist raining down on them from above was going to turn them into wax dolls. Nami, of course, started panicking. She started to plead with the giant to try to help them.
Terra tuned out of the conversation about the giant killing his friend and the giant saying how Mr. 3 didn't understand anything. She was busy thinking about how to get out of the wax. From what she saw, it was as hard as stone. She needed something to strike the wax with if she wanted to break it.
Suddenly, the giant started to break the wax. Terra was surprised, but the hope was short-lived as Mr. 5 threw a bomb to his face. Mr. 3 then pinned him down with candle swords to keep him from moving.
"I will increase the speed of my candle service. So, you will become my candle dolls soon," he said. The mist then became thicker. Terra tried to hold her cough in, but was starting to fail at it. She didn't want to appear weak now.
"I can't breathe!" said Nami.
"That's right! If possible, I want you to suffer! Because the piece of art that I want should represent suffering and fear. Just become my candle dolls with fear in your hearts," said Mr. 3.
Terra was starting to get angry again. She needed to think of something. There had to be a way out of this, right? Well, there was. And Zoro was the first one to come up with it.
"I will cut both of my legs off," he said as he unsheathed one of his swords. Nami, naturally, went off on him. Vivi was just as concerned. Neither of them thought it was worth it.
"You never know if you never try. Anyway, we are going to die. Why don't we try our best? I don't want to die by those pieces of trash," he said. Terra thought about it for a moment. Finally, she reached her left hand out to him.
"In that case, can I borrow one of your swords?" she asked.
"What? Don't tell me you're going along with his plan? You're not that crazy!" said Nami.
"I'm not going to cut my legs off. At least, not immediately," reassured Terra. Zoro raised an eyebrow at her.
"Then what are you going to do?" he asked.
"I'm going to see if I can break or cut some of this wax. If I can't, then I'll join you in the fight." Zoro stared at her for a moment.
"The sword might not be able to cut it," he said.
"You never know if you never try," she said, throwing his words back at him. He smirked.
"I guess you're right. Here." He unsheathed another sword, Yubashira, and handed it to her.
"Thanks." She transferred the sword over to her right hand and tightened her grip. She had the strength. She knew it. She just needed something to give her an edge against this damn wax.
"What's wrong with them?"
"Have they gone nuts?" She was aware of their enemies asking these questions, but she couldn't really care. Having the sword in her hand, for some reason, gave her comfort. It felt as though she couldn't lose now.
"Wait a minute! I will fight with you, too!" said Vivi.
"Okay," said Zoro.
"Let's do it!" said the giant, who had also resolved to break free, no matter what. Zoro poised to cut off both his legs at the same time while Terra raised the sword she had to strike the wax. She then proceeded to swing the sword down with all of her might . . .
. . . When Luffy, Usopp, and Karoo came charging out of the forest like a herd of stampeding elephants.
Terra looked away from the sword and at them, relieved that help has now arrived. However, that same help also flew through the air from the momentum of their charge, causing them to fly across the clearing and crash into the forest on the other side.
As glad as she was to see them, she had mentally face palmed at the sight. While the rescue team was recovering, she looked down to see if she made any progress with that strike, even though her strength had faltered at towards the end when the charge distracted her.
It wasn't much, but there was an inch-deep gash where the sword struck. She smiled. Yes! This could work!
She looked back up to see that Luffy had noticed the same thing about Mr. 3 that she had noticed upon first sight.
"Look at his hair style. That looks really stupid," he said. Terra smirked. Luffy was as blunt as always. Nami then called out to Luffy to help them.
"Eh? You are in trouble, too?" asked Luffy.
"No," said Zoro.
"Not really," shrugged Terra.
"There's a lot of blood coming out of your legs," Nami pointed out to Zoro. Terra looked down to see that she was right. Zoro had managed to cut his legs about halfway off.
"That's right," he said.
"And you say we're not in trouble!" shouted Nami angrily.
"Hey Luffy! Can you destroy this pole behind us? We can take care of the rest," said Terra.
"Sure." As Luffy prepared to do just that, Zoro had put away one of his swords and raised the other one up in front of him.
"What are you doing?" asked Nami.
"In case we become candles, I'll have a nice pose," he said. Terra rolled her eyes.
"Well, I'm going to go ahead and continue with my idea. I think I can make it out if I apply more pressure."
"You don't think Luffy will pull through for us?" asked Zoro. Terra shook her head.
"No, I just don't like to stay still. Besides, I'm still mad at these guys, so I want to join the fight if it's still going on after I hacked my way out of here."
"What about the rest of us? Won't you be able to break us out too?" asked Nami. Terra shook her head again.
"There's not enough time. If I can break out of here, the priority would be to break the pole. If I try to cut you guys out as well, the time will run out." Zoro shrugged.
"Do what you want. Just don't break my sword," he said. Terra nodded and went back to work. She noticed that she was already developing patches of wax throughout her body. She didn't have much time left.
While she was doing that, Luffy had managed to get his legs trapped in the same wax binding that got her stuck earlier. But, he managed to use it to his advantage by swinging around on the candle sword on the giant's hand and swung it at the pole behind them.
Yes! That had destroyed it! They were saved!
And then, she saw that, while the pole was destroyed, the jack-o-lantern type thing was still intact . . . and falling right towards them.
. . . Damn it.
This chapter actually turned out longer than I originally thought it was, but I think it turned out decent.
Anyway, as usual, please leave a review and tell me what you think. I can't make improvements to the story if I don't know if you guys spotted any mistakes or whatnot.
Later!