Chapter 26: Oh, Hell No!

The island was exactly as expected. Small. Only big enough to put one or two villages on with a little bit of extra room. That would never come to pass, however, due to the entirety of the island being made out of some kind of black rock and absolutely nothing else. Perhaps it had been formed by an underground volcano, Mara mused. This place had been abandoned by the World Government thirty years ago when it was formed.

The majority of the perimeter was reminiscent of the place on Amazon Lily they had been allowed to stay; tall cliffs and long drops into the rock spotted ocean below. The only tall objects were the large rock formations. There were no trees. No grass. Not even dirt. There was no hope for plants to survive here, and there thus no hope for animals either. Nothing at all could survive on this island.

It seemed a fitting place for the apparently brutal murder Law had in mind.

The yellow submarine parked itself on the only beach on the island, made entirely of black sand. Mara ran her fingers through the powder when she found herself standing on the beach. It was softer than any other sand she had even felt, and glittered menacingly in the sunlight as it filtered back through her fingers to the ground.

No one but Law followed her off the submarine and his eyes never left the rocky pathways leading away from the beach. They were all surrounded by tall rock walls, in varying heights. This would not be a good place to be caught unaware.

"Where will this guy be?" Mara questioned, glancing back at his ship. Surely he didn't intend to wander off into this island without his crew. That was suicide. They didn't know who else was here.

"Likely farther inland, closer to the other side of the island." His eyes never stopped jumping between the surrounding rocks.

Uneasily, Mara looked to them as well. Any number of marines could be hiding out there, not just the one Law summoned. "Are you sure this is a good idea, Captain Trafalgar?"

"Positive." Law took the middle path confidently, his face one of grim determination. If he had a problem with Mara following him, he didn't voice it. Nor did he look like he cared that this was the perfect opportunity for her to kill him.

She didn't. The whole situation was far too curious for her to ignore, like all the other times he didn't bother to watch her properly. Maybe he planned it that way. She wouldn't put it past him. But who was this mystery marine, and why did Law want him dead so badly? Badly enough that he would take the time to taunt the man in the middle of such an important war?

"Are you ever going to tell me what was in that package, now that it's become relevant?" Mara wondered as they walked. There was literally no way for her to know without him telling her and it was really starting to nag at her mind.

"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough," came the cryptic reply.

Navy eyes rolled. "Seriously? You can't just tell me?"

The corner of his lips tugged up dryly. "I think it will be pretty clear when we get there. It's not like I put a bomb in it or something."

That particular idea hadn't even crossed her mind until now. "No, I don't expect you would have. It's not your style."

"My style?" Law repeated, taking his eyes off the landscape long enough to send her an amused smirk. "And what would you call my style?"

Sexy.

She literally could not help it when she smacked herself in the head. He seemed to know that it wasn't from what he said, because he chuckled, amusement radiating off him in waves. "You're a little more subtle than a bomb," Mara attempted to recover. "And, to be perfectly honest here, I don't think that would creep people out as much as you'd like."

"What makes you think I like to 'creep people out', Miss Mara?" Law questioned lightly, shifting so that his nodachi rested on his shoulder more comfortably.

Once again, she rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on. The creepy smirks, the finger tattoos, the stealing people's hearts, your devil fruit… Do I really need to keep going?" He made an amused noise. "No. A bomb doesn't suit you. You like to scare people. Crawl in their minds and really get to them, while looking like it's the most normal thing in the world to you."

"An interesting assessment, to be sure," Law commented.

"I'm right, aren't I?" It wasn't really a question. He simply glanced back at her, looking completely at ease with her assumption. "I'll take that as a 'yes'."

They went quiet for what turned into dozens of minutes. The rocky path never really seemed to change, always looking foreboding, always with cliffs looking down on them from both sides. They were making her nervous on their, without the feeling that someone was watching them. Which was totally there as well so it was ten times worse.

Law, however, made no indication that he thought anyone else was around, continuing his even path through the ravine. Maybe she was just going crazy. It was a possibility with how far up the wall Law continuously drove her. Or maybe she was just being paranoid, like she was taught from the wonderful age of seven.

The very idea of it made her shiver and scuttle up behind Law, keeping him within half a foot of her. He glanced back at her. "There's nothing to worry about, Miss Mara."

"There's always something to worry about, Captain Trafalgar," the woman refuted. Her mind caught up to her mouth and she gave a nervous laugh, trying to cover up her insecurity with levity. "I mean, every time I don't something unexpected and unpleasant happens. Exhibit A: You. Exhibit B: Zen and Weiss. Exhibit C: Eustass Kid."

Law didn't appreciate her attempt to cover up the emotions he'd been trying to see since day one. "You're afraid."

And for once, he got what he wanted. Complete honesty.

"Always."

The path led them through the island with ease. Law never showed any sign of slowing or stopping, even after they had walked for several hours through the winding ravine. It looked as if he didn't expect to get attacked during the walk, but Mara knew better. There was a subtle clench to his jaw that told her he was ready for anything this place threw at him.

That was good, because the feeling of being watched didn't leave Mara once during the trek. Before long, they were going to be attacked. Definitely. "How long is this path?" Mara wondered aloud. The silence had extended from her admission earlier and was turning rather stifling.

"That's a good question." Law eyed the bend ahead of them. "I would say it ends over there, if I had to guess."

"What makes you think that?"

"How long we've been walking. The island isn't all that big, we're probably close to the other side by now." His expression darkened. They were nearing the other side of the island, and yet hadn't run into their opponent by now. Had the package really not worked? No, he didn't believe that was the case. Not with these circumstances.

"So then where's-" Mara's question was cut off by way of a crossbow bolt imbedding itself in the rock wall behind where Law had been seconds before.

The pirate was closer to her now, pushing her behind him. Suddenly it didn't feel like as good of an idea to bring her along, now that the game was starting. Nothing else happened. Both of their eyes were locked onto the cliff top across from them. "I see you got my invitation," Law commented calmly.

"Invitation my ass." Absolute dread crept into Mara's severed heart at the voice.

The darkened closet was flooded with light so suddenly it blinded her, only allowing her to see the gleam of metal. The shriek of a terrified young girl pierced the air.

"Pirates," the man spat. They still couldn't see him, though it was obvious where he was. "You all think you can do whatever you want. But you can't. You never could."

"Stop it!" The tiny girl wailed, tears rolling down her cheeks. Pain erupted from where her shoulder was trapped under the heel of his shoe. "HELP ME!" Someone, anyone! Stop him! Get him off me! Help!

No one came.

No one ever did.

Law's lip curled up in grim satisfaction. "You didn't like it?" He had thought it quite tasteful.

The man showed himself, standing tall on a ridge above them, crossbow carelessly held in one hand. He was nearly six foot, an imposing figure in his fluttering black cloak, with long wavy brown hair and narrowed eyes, dark with hate. Helios Reade.

"What's wrong with you?!" The words barely escaped her lips before she could feel her finger snap, already having been under the tension of a steely grip.

"I was wondering the same thing about you, " Helios commented, tone way to light for their current… predicament. She could feel all his weight on her back as she was pinned to the floor, her hand trapped between his. He tutted. "If you're not with the World Government, you must be evil," he reasoned. "You're not evil, are you, Mara?"

Mara was frozen behind Law, unable to take her eyes away from him. Law had been taunting Helios? What on earth would possess him to do that? What could Law possibly gain from killing this one random Cipher Pol agent? Her brain was drawing a blank.

Helios gave Law a once over, sizing him up. "You cut up my subordinates and put their bloody heads in a box, Trafalgar." He did what now? Was he insane? "Excuse me if I don't find that amusing."

Her heart was pounding so hard it was the only thing she could hear. Her fingers grasped the tree with such force that the bark bit into her skin, and she could feel the warm liquid pooling under her fingers. If she just didn't move… maybe…

Pain shot through her back and she jumped away as best she could, only to be snatched by the arm and held still. She didn't struggle past that. It would only make things worse. "If I can find you, you weren't trying hard enough," Helios hissed. "I don't think you're taking this training very seriously."

Oh, she was. The training was a matter of life and death for her. Or life and eternal servitude, as he had hinted at just yesterday. She bit her lip to keep from crying out when she was thrown to the ground, landing painfully on her already cut and bloody arm.

"Try again."

Following Law off that submarine was the worst decision of her life. No matter how this played out, she still lost in the end. And she certainly didn't want to be around them to be caught up in this in the mean time. The one thing that had comforted her while she was trapped on that submarine were her thoughts of never seeing Helios again. Yet here he was, right in front of her.

Worst. Decision. Ever.