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Haven Trials

Act 1: The Fox Jumped Over the Moon

Chapter 38: News Coo II

"BROTHER!"

Cold eyes glared out from behind a pair of glasses, watching the heavier-bodied man run forwards, towards them. The man's hair was still in a mess and dangled in front of his face, covering most of its features aside from the deep scar that ran across his chin and left cheek. Within his massive hands, a newspaper was clenched within them, and as the man reached the seated body, he flung the paper out, the other body catching it.

"Ha... ha... you think... HE LOST? HEHE?!" The massive man bellowed, panting in between his words. "CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? IT'S A JOKE, A BAD ONE AT THAT! HAHAHA!"

"Calm now, brother dearest." His voice was as cold as his glare, and the other man continued to grin wide, albeit it was unknown whether it was a grin of joy or anger. "Let me read this now.."

The thin man opened the newspaper and began reading across the lines, his face remaining unmoved.

"... that all this time, Sir Crocodile of the Shicibukai had been working as the head of the organization Baroque Works, under the guise of the citizen-proclaimed 'Hero of Alabasta'. As princess Nefertari Vivi returned home after five long years since her disappearance, a rebellion quelled among her people, only to have ended with the aid of the Kinslayer Marth Altea. Along with this, it was reported the prince of the forgotten kingdom had defeated Sir Crocodile, soon going missing afterwards. Has his heart finally changed for better, or is it still..."

Deficio flipped through the pages, glancing over the rest of them before tossing the newspaper down, spinning back around to face the multiple monitors and devices in front of him. His eyes wandered across each screen, his hands remaining rested on the chair's arms. His breathing became short paced, his gaze unmoved as Deman approached from behind, poking at his chair.

"Brother, what do we-"

Before he could finish asking, Deficio stood from his chair and began flailing at the monitors, his body and mind full of rage. He smashed the screens and slammed his fists on the desk, knocking multiple knobs and gadgets off. Sparks flew off from the device, and Deman backed away in a hurry, his expression now frightened as he watched his brother fly into this wild behavior.

Deficio rubbed his head with his hands before resting them on the fragmented desk, leaning over towards the bashed-in screens, his breath panting, his glasses fogged. His purple tie remained undone as it had slipped out from his vest, hanging over as well. His face scowled as he sat back into his chair, tapping his fingers against the wood of the arm.

"And what of Miss Aran?" Deficio asked aloud, his voice still sounding calm, Deman slowly approaching him once more. "What progress has she made?"

"Haha... we haven't had any reports back from her.."

Deficio breathed in calmly, closing his eyes. "I'd be a liar if I said I wasn't surprised. The fox and his pets have made their movements known. While to say I'm upset is an understatement, I cannot lay all the blame onto that crew of thugs though... Crocodile was a fool to have eagerly dashed ahead of the rest of us. His lust for his metal gear led to his untimely downfall."

"We did have reports of a silver-haired man working alongside Crocodile," Deman replied.

"Did you? Of course." Deficio grinned, his boney fingers rubbing along his pointed chin. "He's trying to thwart my intentions, despite his very own being similar in idea. But with Crocodile out of the game..." Deficio paused, snorting out and slamming his fist on the chair's arm. "Go visit Miss Aran's friend. Send the huntress a message. Let her know her tardiness is unacceptable."

As Deman scampered away, Deficio focused his eyes on the remaining monitor that had not succumbed to his barrage. On it was the same scene of a seemingly empty room, colored a dull greyish-blue. In the center of the room was a black-haired boy, chained to the ground, his yellow and blue striped shirt stained with blood. His head drooped over his body, his eyes as dead as his hope of escape. Beside the boy were another set of chains, as well as a few small strands of blonde hair.

"Oi, amigo, you're coming back to me with bad news, I can just tell from your face there," the voice called out. It echoed within the wooden walls, sounding along with the aching of the wood moaning out. "Come, tell me what bad news you bring me. Mayhaps you've got some good news to back it up?"

A pirate slowly emerged from the darkness, stepping across the wooden planks that plotted the floor, puddles of water forming from cracks between the panels. His body shook as he approached the voice, his hand clenching a newspaper. "Ahhh... Lord C-Cortez, it is-isn't anything good at all 'tah come from dis." Blues eyes, blue as sapphires pierced through the darkness, bobbing slowly up and down, rattling heard from beneath them.

"Well? Spit it out already! Hold not your tongue like some sea-cow!"

"W-Well, according 'tah this, Sir Cr-Crocodile has been defeated, and t-the government has arrested him!" The pirate replied back, his voice still frightened.

"What? That's it hombre? That's good news, aye! Thought you were comin' to me with something worse!" Cortez chattered back. "Well then, what of Flavio? I know that slippery sandman had his hands on him."

"Ah, th-that's the problem, boss..." The pirate replied, his voice beginning to whimper. "Witnick and Hotfoot 'aven't returned yet, and we've gotten no word from anyone else that Flavio was taken back."

A rumbling shook the quarters the pirate stood in, and Cortez's voice began to groan. "Oho, that is a problem. That is bad news. That is DEFINITELY not GOOD NEWS, YOU UNDERSTAND?! My crew is UNABLE to take back one of our OWN? Amigooo... we've got a problem now. It's about time I stopped sitting by idly. It feels that somebody's ripped away my precious treasures from right underneath my nose. Go, amigo, let them all know that Cortez the Dread is coming!"

The silver-haired man stood patiently, watching from the distance the rocking waves of the ocean. The large silver dragon beneath him hovered lightly, barely breaking any movement as to not stir its master from his position. His small, pale hand moved towards his mouth, wrapping his other arm around his stomach. His eyes kept locked on the waves cascading, almost memorized by them.

"My peacock thinks it is safely caged away from me," he said aloud, only the beast beneath him hearing his words. "And that foolish brute had betrayed our word. It's not like I held it in high regards, I knew he would collapse from his pride. But that leaves me with a problem."

Images of Alubarna in flames flickered in his mind, and a small grin drew itself across his lips, his eyes batting along. "How long until we return to free the peacock? No bird, even one as majestic as it, should ever be locked away from its freedom."

"M-Miss Tetra!" a voice called out, worried. A large man lumbered into the ship's cabin, his hand adjusting the red bandanna tied around his head. He had on a worn-green tunic along with sandy-white cargoes and a red sash tied around his waist. On the visible part of his chest was a purple-tinted swirl. A small feminine figure turned to face him, noticing the other various ship-hands peeking from behind the man.

"What is it Gonzo," Tetra asked. Her hair was blonde, and near the end of it came upwards and curled neatly. She had on a periwinkle shirt with a blue vest over it, and had sandy-white cargoes as well as a red sash around her waist. Her red bandanna was tied around her neck instead, appearing like a scarf. She noticed the pale appearance the man had on his face, and a sense of curiosity filled her.

"Cr-Crocodile's been defeated! Baroque W-Works has been dispersed!" Gonzo cried out, waving his hands around in panic. "They say some princely guy was responsible for it! It's been in the news over the past week!"

"And you're NOW telling me about this?" Tetra replied, annoyance in her words. She rubbed her fingers against her head, scrunching her forehead, thinking to herself. This is much earlier than I anticipated... our last meeting was hardly a month ago! Then... it matters not! We've got no time to lose! She looked back up towards Gonzo, her arms crossed. "Fetch the boy! Let him know we're setting sail!"

Long brown hair swept down the man's head, tied together and covered by a dark-green bandanna. An eye-patch ran across his right eye, scars lining both cheeks. He wore green-spotted fatigues, along with boots to match with it. He remained seated in a crowded bar, keeping much to himself in one of the corners, his drink leaving behind a wet circle as it sat. His eyes read along the paper, grunting after every sip from his drink, a shadowy figure seated across from him.

"... rumors circulated around the kingdom, questioning King Nefertari Cobra whether there really had been a 'Metal Gear' hidden away in the country. However, the king simply replied that it was all made-up, and that Crocodile had created the rumors in order to try to distract attention away from his true goals of overthrowing the kingdom." The man paused, his own thoughts now racing in his head.

Another one? How could one be stationed that far, in that kingdom of all the others... He returned his attention to the paper, still reading away curiously. "...only to have ended with the aid of the Kinslayer Marth Altea. Along with this, it was reported the prince of the forgotten kingdom had defeated Sir Crocodile, soon going missing afterwards. Has his heart finally changed for better, or is it still clouded with revenge for what his family had suffered all those years ago?"

"You don't believe any of that, do you?" A softer, feminine voice asked. "It was that scum Falcon-"

"And Fox. It had to be," the man replied. "I knew he was headed towards the Mushroom Kingdom, but to change course towards Alabasta? I wonder what happened since I've last seen him."

Her head shook, blonde hair waving along, laying across the brown coat on her shoulders. "But now they've got to be headed towards him. You said that was their original goal, after all. If we're going to catch them, we've got to get moving now! This paper is nearly a week old."

"There's no rush," he replied calmly, setting the paper down, leaning back in his chair. "Pandaria is nothing but scenery and old tales. There's a reason nobody travels there anymore. He isn't going anyway any time soon either. For them, it'll take around two weeks to reach the coast from Alabasta. It wouldn't be any longer than three minutes for us to-"

The woman slammed her hands on the table, eyes peeking over towards them as the man waved his hand, his eyes fixated on her's as she spoke up. "Deficio still has him! I can't waste anymore time. I haven't reported back to him in weeks now, and that along with Falcon's betrayal has probably gotten him incredibly impatient."

"Plus my escape," the man snickered, his drink raised towards his lips. "I'm sure he's feeling burned by that as well."

"More of a reason why we should try to intercept them en-route to Pandaria. There's hardly any routes to take among the uncharted islands, finding them would be much easier than trying to locate them once they reach land."

"Again, there is no rush," he replied, his palm held out towards her. "Whatever it is you're worried about, don't be. I've got everything taken care of," he said, winking.

"Interesting, isn't it," the voice said aloud, two other figures standing near the end of the table. "A seat has opened among the Seven War-, well, Six Warlords, now." His red, piercing eyes peered over towards one of the figures, a woman, and his mouth grinned menacingly. "What do you make of this, Right?"

Right was an average height woman, with reddish-brown hair that was tied into a ponytail. She had on brown and blue leather equipment, leaving only her head bare. On her back was a massive, beautifully designed crossbow, and hanging on her waist was a simple short-blade. As the man asked her, she made no movement, instead remaining in place, her eyes watching the door to the room.

"Yes, yes, of course," he said, his voice deep and rumbling. His eyes now turned to look at the other woman, his hand reaching for the plate of food left to him, with cheese and crackers and crumbs covering it. "What about you Left? How do you feel about what Right said?"

Left was green in her skin-tone, not of a normal human, but instead orcish. She has longer ears than Right, and her head was mostly bald, aside from the black bit that came from the back of her head, tied into a ponytail as well. She had the same attire as Right, but instead her arms were mostly bare. She too stood watch, and didn't move either, remaining silent to the man.

"Good point. Who, exactly, could fill this open spot? What villian- or hero- could take over the responsibilities of a Shicibukai, responsibilities that Sir Crocodile dismissed in favor of his own desires? People will start crying that the balance is out of sync now that a seat has been emptied; that the World Government, or even the Yonko will hold just too much power." He snapped down on a cracker, bits and crumbs falling towards the ground, his hand reaching for another. "Mrfm- it is quite the responsibility that a Shicibukai has. The government wouldn't want just any small time thief taking over- no, they need somebody who has power and authority."

The man stood up and walked towards the open window, his arms crossed behind his back, watching the clouds drift by, listening to the sounds of water rippling by. "I wonder how much longer until my protégé arrives. It's been years since I've last seen him." He turned back towards Right and Left, grinning. "You think he'd be interested in filling the position? I think he'd be too above the request! Ha!"

"Sir Crocodile, defeated by this princely-brat?" The overly large man snorted, a meat-bone sticking out from his mouth, between his pink mustache and beard. "But coincidentally, our pal Fox McCloud got a raise in his bounty?" His aviator goggles bobbed along on his head as he chewed loudly.

"Gwok- How curious it is that he's made his way towards Alabasta." The small creature bounced off of the large red throne chair and hopped towards the wide man. It's small hands twisted and fiddled with the large white mustache on its face. "But at the same time, it's a relief to hear that they're alright, especially- gwok- after what happened in the Mushroom Kingdom..."

The larger man licked his lips as he pulled away the meat-bone, his eyes still scanning over the paper. "And what about this huge scandal with the warlord and Baroque Works? You know, there's also mention in here of some silver dragons having been responsible for nearly scorchin' Alubarna to the ground!"

"Brahne has been acting incredibly odd these past- gwok- few months. She's been reported visiting that same silver-haired man, and her actions described by Garnet lead me to believe this isn't all just a- gwok- coincidence." Footsteps were heard from outside the room, and both of them turned to glance over, expecting someone to enter, yet no body showed. "A sudden influx in armed forces have been noted of leaving this continent through the North Gate, which has been supposedly- gwok- closed down indefinitely after sustaining damage in the brawl between Blackbeard and the government."

"You know, both you and I are listening a whole lotta coincidences. Eventually, one of us are gonna quit beating around the bush and flat out say it."

"If we end up wrongly accusing the kingdom, especially with the- gwok- state Queen Brahne has been in, it could spell trouble for my people. Lindblum would be subject to unnecessary bloodshed because of us wildly throwing out accusations-"

"Well, I don't think it's slander if the parties being accused are bluntly obvious about their actions. If you keep sitting around trying to keep peace between the government and smaller bodies, your people are going to be caught in a crossfire despite your attempts."

The small figure turned his head away with a defeated look, his voice croaking. "We can accuse Brahne of collaborating with Crocodile and Kuja, but it won't mean much, especially in my current state. I've learned to hold my tongue longer and longer, for even the men- gwok- who claim loyalty underneath me no longer heed my words. I stand alongside other members of the Gorosei, but each- gwok- of them are too occupied to support me. Jarvin and Jerichio clawing at each others throats.. White King attempting to quell his own country's rebellion... and Neptune has become increasingly despondent- gwok- after his wife's death. I stand alone now, and the world order we have so clung on to for years is beginning to crumble."

His tiny arms wrapped behind him, his head looking towards the blue sky out from his balcony, watching the clouds breeze by with a lofty pace. "Crocodile's defeat was but a small, minor victory for us. In fact, I wouldn't call- gwok- it a victory at all; it will do nothing but irritate Deficio and cause him to proceed to his next phase much quicker. Fox and Lucas stand against a great- gwok- shadow, one they have no idea is hovering right over them. A threat grows far in the- gwok- North, with the winds of winter blowing towards the rest of the us. Old, forgotten names are becoming heard once again; names that should never be said by any man. The world is in danger, Baku, and there isn't much we can yet do but sit at the side and wait- gwok- patiently.."

"We must wait for Fox's next move."