Marine Killer Vs. G-25!
"You're not going to get away with this, Redfield!" The two marine officers announced after they had been subdued by a bunch of walking corpses that were now somehow standing quietly behind Redfield. Or rather, they were standing behind the man now infamously known as the Marine Killer. Out of everyone that could have possibly been the Marine Killer, they were not expecting it to be Redfield. A former comrade of theirs. They couldn't believe it. They didn't want to believe it. They wanted it to be some kind of trick, illusion, or nightmare.
As if knowing exactly what the men were thinking, Marine Killer knelt down and smacked the both of them across the face. The sight of their bruised cheeks and horrified expressions brought a sinister expression to his face. It was his own little way of showing them that this was no nightmare. What was happening at the moment was real. It was reality.
"I thought I told you two already that my name is Marine Killer. I have no idea as to who this Redfield person is." Marine Killer returned to his feet and focused his attention to the corpses standing around him. "Well gentlemen, it's finally time for the operation to begin. I've worked hard "recruiting" all of you into my cause, so failure in this mission will not be tolerated."
The two marines exchanged quick glances of confusion with each other after watching the Marine Killer speak with a number of corpses. This scene alone was more than enough for them to realize that the man they once knew as their friend and comrade was long gone. Whatever had happened to him had warped his mind. He was no longer Redfield. He was indeed the psychotic murderer known as the Marine Killer.
"This marine base is vile and it must be brought down in the name of justice. So in order to do so, we must take down every single marine in this base that dare to get in our way. We've come this far…we cannot allow ourselves to fail. This is our mission. Let's ensure its success." The Marine Killer waved his arm out, giving his "subordinates" the signal to begin with the operation. The corpses all left the morgue and scattered around the marine base, chasing and striking down any marine that crossed their path.
Several minutes of a one-sided slaughter occurred throughout the base. Hardly anyone had heard any cries of pain or gun shots due to the effectiveness of the corpses. After several marines had been killed, their bodies would reanimate and they would join the other corpses in attacking the marines, only adding to their forces. It was only thanks to the act of a single soldier that the entire marine base was set on red alert. The wounded marine soldier crawled his way to a Den Den Mushi and announced the enemy attack to everyone within the base. Once he was certain that his message was received loud and clear, the man succumb to his wounds and died, unfortunately reanimating and joining the others into attacking his former comrades.
Once notified of the enemy attack, nearly all of the marines within the G-25 base went to their appropriate battle stations to deal with the incoming threat. Soon enough a large battle ensued throughout the entire base. The only marines currently not fighting were Corona and the other marines not affiliated with the G-25 base. They had no idea where to go and they were not yet accustomed with all the locations around the place. So they simply decided to wait in their respected areas for the mean time until the situation either settled itself or they were ordered to participate.
Meanwhile in Vice-Admiral Rowden's office, Commodore Bullock, Captain Dexter, and the aforementioned Vice-Admiral were standing around a desk, watching the battle take place around the place from a single monitor. Despite the graveness of the situation, Bullock and Dexter were completely calm, taking mental notes of everything that was being displayed on the screen in front of them. They planned to eventually join the battle if the situation could not be contained within a reasonable amount of time. Although any other officer would simply charge into battle without hesitation, Bullock and Dexter were different. They would not join a battle without any information as to what was going on in the battlefield, who the enemy is, and what their primary objective is.
All they knew right now at the moment was that there were dead marines rising from the grave and attacking other marines. The moment the marines of the base were killed, they would immediately reanimate and join in on the slaughter of G-25 marines. Bullock and Dexter immediately summed up this incident to a devil fruit ability. They deduced that someone had a devil fruit ability to manipulate the corpses of the dead. Although he probably wouldn't say this out loud, Bullock was somewhat impressed with the show of mastery and control that the mastermind was using to perform such a deed. It must have taken a lot of focus to control so many corpses at once. It was truly a great feat.
However, Bullock also deduced that when using such a power, mobility must be difficult. Usual when confronting devil fruit powers that involve manipulating people in some way, they would probably have to remain stationary at some point in time. If that turned out to be the case, then all the marines had to do was cut off the head of the person controlling the corpses.
"Are there places in this base that are not equipped with Visual Den Den Mushi's?" Bullock inquired, looking to Rowden for an answer. The Vice-Admiral was apparently too stunned to even respond to the question at first. His eyes were still affixed to the screen. This was a travesty. His subordinates, his men, his family. They were all being slaughtered and then reanimated only to continue on with the slaughter. It was truly grotesque.
Throughout his years as a marine, Rowden had never witnessed such a carnage spectacle. Well no more. He refused to just stand around and let something continue within the confines of his base. He regained his composure and looked to Bullock. The determination on his face brought a smile to Bullock's.
"There are a few areas in this base that don't have any visual Den Den Mushi's. The morgue, storage room, bathrooms…" Rowden listed off a few of the areas off the top of his head. "Wait, why are you asking such a question at a time like this?"
"The one behind this assault is a devil fruit user. They have the power to control corpses. In order for them to do this they must need absolute focus." Bullock began with his explanation while turning his attention back towards the screen. "I believe that the person responsible for this attack is hiding out somewhere in this base where there are no visual den den mushi's to stop him. I don't know what their motive is, but this assault is nothing more than a smokescreen for something bigger."
"Something bigger?" Rowden brought his hand to his chin and pondered as to what that could possibly mean.
"Whatever the case. We should make our move now. The more men that fall, the more enemies that we will have to deal with." Dexter stated.
"Poindexter is right. Our first priority is to find the culprit and take him down. We'll start by searching the areas where there are no visual den den mushi's." said Bullock, heading for the door along with Dexter. Rowden eventually stood out from his seat and followed them out the door.
Meanwhile in the infirmary of the G-25 base, Corona, Lucy, Lieutenant Junior Grade Jays and many other medical personnel were in a bit of a bind. Numerous corpses were outside the door trying to force their way through. Corona and Lucy thought on their feet and quickly barricaded the door with anything that they could find in the room. Cabinets, medical beds, it didn't matter what it was. As long as it was large and buy them some time to escape, then it would have served its purpose. Once they were certain that their barricade would hold for the meantime, the two recruits turned to the others for ideas.
"Okay, the door's barricaded for now. But I have no idea how long that will actually last." Corona looked over her shoulder and watched the barricade shake. The banging from the other side of the door only seemed to get louder and stronger by the minute.
Jays activated her devil fruit abilities and stretched her hair out while it took the shape of a large hand. The hand pressed up against the barricade and held it in place, causing the marines in the room to heave a sigh of relief knowing that they would be safe for the time being. But the problem still remained that they were trapped in that room.
"So does anyone have any clue as to why the marines are fighting among themselves and also trying to kill us?" Lucy exclaimed, immediately remembering back to the events that happened prior to the attack. Corona was still feeling down about having killed her first person, so Lucy decided to follow her and keep her company in case she needed so consoling. Along the way they encountered a few marines down the hall.
They were sluggishly dragging their feet and they looked sickly pale. Corona and Lucy went to check on their condition, but once they did, they were attacked. Luckily the two of them were still on high alert after their battle against the Marine Killer, so they made quick work of the marines. Unfortunately, only sicklier pale marines found them and continued with their assaults. Over time they heard over the intercom that the entire base of G-25 was under attack from the corpses. It was hard to believe at first, but they eventually accepted the truth. It explained why no matter what they did to strike down their attackers, they would just continue to get back up.
Corona and Lucy would aim for neutralizing points and it would be ineffective in the end. Eventually they were overwhelmed and forced to retreat inside of the nearest room they could find. Which of course turned out to be the infirmary.
"They're corpses as the announcement before stated." Jays mentioned. "Apparently corpses are rising from their graves and they're attacking the entire base."
"How is that even possible? This is too much to handle!" Lucy exclaimed.
"This is most likely happening by the hands of a Devil Fruit user." Corona assumed.
"Who do we know that has a devil fruit to do something like that?" Jays asked.
"No one that I can think of off the top of my head. Then again, it's not like everyone announces that they're Devil Fruit users." Lucy answered.
"Then the only conclusion that I can come up with is that this is an unknown enemy. Someone we don't know is controlling the corpses from a safe place, trying to kill all of us." Corona gave her input on the situation.
"This has got to be the work of the Carnage pirates. I can only picture someone with such a cruel Devil Fruit power like this in their crew." Lucy assumed.
"It doesn't matter who is behind this. We need to get out of here and find a way to put a stop to all this madness." Jays told the two of them.
"How do we get out of here? Our only real exit is being blocked by the corpses banging on the door." Lucy indicated to the door with a point of her thumb.
"What about the window?" Corona walked over to the window and took a peak outside. What she saw outside only horrified her. She was shocked when see only saw a few corpses roaming around inside of the base earlier. But the outside of the base was much different. There were hundreds of corpses roaming around the base; surrounding it. She backed away from the window and looked to her comrades. The grim expression on her face was more than enough to alert them on the situation. "The window is out of the question."
"Why? What happened?" Lucy approached the window and took a look outside. Her expression turned about as grim as Corona's at the sight of the surrounding corpses. "No way! This is too much! Where did all of those corpses come from?"
"There must be some kind of graveyard nearby. That's the only reasonable explanation that I can think of on the top of my head." Corona answered, trying her best to regain some of her composure. Sure everyone was in a dire situation, but they could not afford to lose their cool. If they did, they would not be able to think straight and come up with a plan to defeat their new unknown enemy.
"We don't have any other choice. We must break through the corpses and get in contact with the others." Jays struggled to get out of her medical bed. The moment her feet touched the ground, she suddenly lost strength in her legs and collapsed onto the floor. Corona, Lucy, and the other medical personnel quickly came to her aid and returned her to the bed.
"Don't move, Jays! You're still injured! You're in no condition to fight!" Corona informed her comrade.
"Just stay in the bed and get some rest! Leave the situation to us! Corona and I will think of something!" Lucy assured her, looking back over to the barricade. It was still being supported by Jays' hair thanks to her devil fruit ability. But only god knew how long the effect was going to last. Jays was still injured from her fight against the Marine Killer. She obviously needed time to rest. But of course the corpses attacking the base were not going to be so courteous. If they were going to do something, it would have to happen right now.
"You expect me to rest when my comrades are being attacked? Let me go! Let me fight! This is an order!" Jays struggled to break free from the grasps of the medical personnel. Her determination to fight despite her current condition inspired Corona. This was how a marine was supposed to be. The image of a certain someone flashed through her mind for a moment before she eventually snapped out of her little trance.
"That's exactly right! We're more than capable of dealing with a situation like this! Just you watch!" Corona spoke with much authority. She knew that Jays was one of her superior officers, but at the moment she was in no condition to do anything, let alone make demands.
She turned to face the barricade and she ordered for Jays to remove her hair away from it. Since the window was out of the question, the only choice for them now was to fight their way through. The number of corpses waiting on the other side of the door was sure to be vast. But she refused to let that deter her in any way. She was going to fight. She was going to win. She was going rendezvous with her comrades and come up with a plan.
Immediately picking up on her plan, Lucy stepped up and stood beside her. She tightened her grip on her chain flail and nodded her head. If Corona was going to fight her way through the corpses, then she was going to do the same. They were friends. Comrades. A team. They were going to support each other through thick and thin.
"You two be careful, alright? Don't be afraid to hide and seek shelter elsewhere in the base if you're cornered." Jays warned them before she removed her hair from the barricade.
"We will. Don't worry about us. We'll come back with reinforcements." Corona assured Jays before her and Lucy removed the barricade from in front of the door. The two marines braced themselves and opened the door, preparing for a fight. However, upon opening the door, the two of them were greeted by the unfortunate sight of seeing dismembered corpses all over the place.
Standing at the end of the hallway sheathing her sword was none other than Harper Valentine. Behind her were Wyatt Hotch and Christian. All three of them had stern expressions on their faces after everything that they had just done. However, their expressions immediately changed once they laid their eyes on Corona and Lucy. Christian and Wyatt approached their comrades and embraced them, more than happy to see that they were not among the corpses they were forced to strike down.
"Corona! Lucy! You're alright!" Wyatt happily exclaimed, eventually releasing the two of them from his hug. "I thought for sure that you two were goners!"
"Goners? Why would you assume that?" Corona and Lucy felt somewhat insulted that he would come to such a conclusion.
"None of you were answering your Den Den Mushi's! We thought that something had happened to you!" Wyatt answered, looking around the area to make sure that the corpses were down and out. "The entire base is being attacked by zombies! Freaking zombies! What the hell is going on here?"
"Your guess is as good as ours. All we figured is that someone with a devil fruit ability is causing all of this." Corona answered.
"Again with the devil fruits." Harper groaned in frustration as she approached the group with an angered expression. "Everywhere we go we can expect to find someone with such an audacious ability. No matter, dealing with this situation will not take much effort."
"What makes you so confident?" Lucy knew that she was going to regret asking such a question. This was Harper that she was talking about.
Harper crossed her arms underneath her chest and nudged her head to the side, indicating to the piles of dismembered body parts lying around the hallway. "These "zombies" are not all that strong. The only advantage that they have are their numbers. But dwindling them down should not be much of a problem if experienced marines stand up to deal with them. Slice off their heads and they should fall."
Corona and Lucy glanced down to the corpses. She was right. The corpses were no longer moving around after their heads had been sliced off. It was still quite an immoral sight to see though. These were former marines that they were cutting down. These men and women died for their beliefs of justice and this was how they were being repaid? Being used as tools for pain and destruction? Corona gritted her teeth and clenched her hand into a fist.
She didn't know who was behind this cruel attack on the base. And it didn't matter. In the end, she was going to ensure that they were found and captured. They were going to pay for their crimes. She was going to see to it.
"Still though…cutting off the heads of these marines feels kind of…barbaric." Wyatt shamefully admitted. "In a way, we're defiling the bodies of these once brave soldiers of the marines. I don't feel great about this situation."
"Who would?" Christian looked to Wyatt. "There's no way anyway should enjoy this moment. People are dying left and right and then they're immediately rising from the "grave" just to attack and kill more people."
"We're losing men fast. The more men that die, the more firepower the person responsible for this gains." Lucy announced to the group.
"No worries. This situation will solve itself soon enough. Do not forget, we still have Vice-Admiral Rowden and Commodore Bullock on our side." Harper assured her comrades, soon turning her back to them and continuing on down the hall. "We can leave the person responsible for this mess to them. We should focus our efforts quelling the zombies inside of the base."
Corona rushed over to Harper and followed her along with the others. "There are also a large number of them outside of the base as well."
"How deplorable." Harper sighed after hearing the information. But nonetheless she remained strong while unsheathing her sword. It did not matter how many enemies that she needed to cut down. All that stood in her way would be cut down without hesitation. It disgusted her that she was forced to strike down former marines and further desecrate their bodies. But it was a necessary thing to do to ensure that the one responsible for this tragedy was brought down.
"Do you think that the others are fighting just as much as we are?" Lucy asked, turning the corner along with the others. She and everyone else soon came to a complete halt after seeing another horde of zombies approaching them. The group of marines stood firm and readied themselves for another fight.
"If they are not, then they have no right to be considered our comrades." Harper took off down the hallway with the others, fighting her way through them as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Meanwhile in another location within the G-25 marine base, Bullock was being attacked by the zombies. The Commodore proved to be far superior to them by easily dismembering them with his hands. Should anyone have laid their eyes on such a sight, they would no doubt be terrified. It wasn't the fact at how easily he was striking down the zombies. It was the fact that he had no definite expression on his face. It was completely blank, emotionless, unreadable. The marine continued to casually stroll through the hallway, taking down all of the zombies that dared to get in his way.
He eventually reached his destination, the storage room. It was one of the locations listed as one of the places that did not have a visual Den Den Mushi installed anywhere. He, Dexter, and Rowden made the decision to split up and search throughout the base for the culprit behind this attack. Unfortunately for him, the culprit was not within the storage room. He searched around the room diligently, but there was no sign of him. That was until he heard the sound of a pistol being cocked behind him. He rolled his eyes in annoyance and simply raised his hands above his head.
"Are you going to shoot me while my back is turned, Commodore Redfield? Or would you rather that I call you Marine Killer?" Bullock inquired.
The Marine Killer stared blankly at Bullock for a moment, flummoxed as to how the marine could remain so calm despite having a gun trained on him. "Vice-Admiral Bullock…no wait, I hear that it's Commodore now. What did you do to have yourself demoted to such a rank?"
"Come now, Redfield. You didn't come all this way, cause all of this ruckus just to ask me such a question." Bullock laughed off his words.
"That is true." Marine Killer nodded his head in confirmation. "Forgive me for involving you in this situation. You showed up here at a bad time. It was not my intention for things to end this way, but I had no other choice but to make a few adjustments to my plan."
"And what plan is that if you don't mind me asking? So far I don't see the point in all of this. Killing marines, pretending to die, raising those fallen from their graves, only to incite more killings? This is truly barbaric for a former marine such as yourself."
"Justice. Justice is my plan. I plan to destroy this base and unveil the truth to everyone on this island godforsaken island. I am doing this all in the name of justice...in the name of the woman that I loved. The one I am doing this for is for Autumn." Marine Killer announced.
Bullock's eyes widened after hearing the mention of Autumn's name. Despite having the gun trained on him; he slowly turned around and glared daggers at the Marine Killer, showing clear hostility towards the man. Marine Killer was momentarily unnerved by the man, but he soon regained his composure and remained strong in front of the marine. He wasn't going to lose this. This was only the beginning of his plan. It didn't matter who got in his way. All that dared to cross him on his path to vengeance would fall before him.
"I don't care who you are. Don't mention Autumn's name like that so carelessly." Bullock warned him. The pressure he exerted from his body would terrify any ordinary man. However, Marine Killer was no ordinary man. He refused to be intimidated by Bullock.
"I will mention her name as many times as I please. You don't have any right to tell me what to do. After all, I'm the one with the gun in their hand." Marine Killer returned Bullock's glare. None of them showed any signs of backing down during their stare down.
"Don't underestimate me, Redfield. Do you honestly think that I could reach the rank of Vice-Admiral if I couldn't deal with something as simple as having a gun aimed at me?" Bullock scoffed at the man. "If I truly wanted to, I could have taken that gun from you a long time ago. I just figured that I'd amuse you for a moment and get you to talk." He lowered his arms down to his sides, displaying his fearless attitude towards the current situation.
"I'm well aware of that." Marine Killer set down his gun. "I don't wish to start a fight with you, Bullock. If you're willing to actually talk, then I can explain to you what's happening right now."
"I think I already have a full grasp on the situation at hand. You hold some kind of grudge against this particular base. I assume that stems from the murder of Autumn by the hands of the Carnage Pirates?" Bullock assumed. But it didn't end there. He continued to speak. "You blame the marines of this base for being unable to protect the woman that you loved. So in retaliation, you disappeared and came back masquerading as the Marine Killer."
"Well, well, it's like you have everything figured out." Marine Killer chuckled. He soon stopped and brought his hand up, wagging his finger back and forth. "But you're missing one crucial piece of information here, Bullock. Autumn wasn't killed by the Carnage Pirates."
And that marks the end of this chapter! I hope that you all enjoyed it! Please forgive me for my absence, but you know how life can be some times! Anyway, I am back and ready to frequently update chapters to this story now! And what a great day to begin doing it on! Today is a special day! It is my birthday! And for a present, I would really enjoy some reviews! I see that I already have over 100 reviews for this story, which is amazing! Now I'm going to reach for 200! XD
Now onto the preview for the next chapter!
Next time on One Piece: The Fight for Justice!
Justice Always Prevails Over Evil!
Rowden: Redfield...we meet again. Have you come to kill me like you did all your other comrades?
Marine Killer: Justice will always prevail over evil. That is common knowledge in this world.
Dexter: None of this had to happen.
Bullock: Ensure yourselves that you all have a clear view of what a true marine should be. I cannot give you all the answers. Find the answers for yourselves like everyone else.
Corona: So many lives were lost...we have to stop them. We have to stop them no matter what.
Please review and enjoy!