Alexander yelped as his hammock was upturned and he was unceremoniously dumped onto the floor. "What the hell?" he shouted, pushing his nightcap out of his face and putting on his glasses.

"We're under attack," Morgan said as he pulled on underwear. "Captain, Miserie, and Damien are already over there. You and I need to help Lyn and Cain armor up."

The musician nodded, then blinked a few times. "Wait, Lyn armor up?"

"Now isn't the time." Alexander had to admire the prince when he was in his element. The only other clothes he chose were pants, sandals, and his necklace of catalysts, newly updated with a ring of metal. Even his choice of jewelry was geared towards efficiency, a single steel bracelet for an emergency catalyst if necessary. He was out of the door before Alexander had even found both of his flats.

Alexander emerged from the men's quarters to find Cain standing in front of the galley. Morgan was bringing pieces of leather and metal up from the store room, and the most surprising sight was not the first mate listening to Cain's instructions on how to assemble her own armor. Jordan was standing on the women's quarters' balcony, her hands disproportionately large as she helped Cain with his straps.

"Finally, you're here!" Lyn exclaimed. "Come, squire, attend me!"

"Very funny," he said dryly, nevertheless rushing to her side. "What's with the armor?"

"We're going against Xiphos! I'm gonna need all the protection I can get!"

"Wait, Xiphos? How on earth did he catch up to us?"

She shrugged. "Bigger ship, more sails, and I think Miserie said they had oars, but I'm not quite sure. Here, these laces now. If Captain didn't want to fight them, what makes you think they couldn't get a set Pose too?"

"Outstanding. How close are they?"

"I could go there now," Cain boomed. "And they're still getting closer."

"I know they have people almost as strong as you. Why aren't they here?"

"I told you already," Morgan snapped, "they are currently occupied."

"Yeah! Damien's doing his thing, and Miserie made him reeeeally mad!" Alexander winced. He felt sorry for the Hoplite Pirates. "And she and Captain are over there now as backup! Or not," Lyn said as Miserie leapt from the ocean. "What's up?"

"Don't go into the water. Miserie asked some butcher sharks to visit."

Morgan nearly dropped his load of armor. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Butcher sharks! They keep other hungry fish away!"

The cheer in her voice was somehow both totally normal and extremely unsettling. "Okay," Alexander said slowly. "Nobody fall overboard. Sounds like a good plan."

"Oh, but Morgan can push the bad pirates overboard if he wants to. That would be good."

Jordan laughed loudly and pointed an overlarge finger at the hiding mermaid. "Now that's what I like to hear. Cheer up, Mimi! Don't be so down on yourself. You met Cici half a year ago, she'd have asked if she had a half-sister she was never told about." Miserie wiggled happily and dropped back into the water. Jordan spread her arms when the others looked at her in amazement. "What?"

"Really?" Alexander asked flatly.

"It's the truth!"

"I don't doubt it," Morgan said. "Captain looked all too thrilled when Raven described how she would prolong my death."

Alexander coughed. "Well, to be fair, you had just tried to kill her. She's not exactly the forgiving type."

"I'm here now, aren't I?" Jordan asked happily. "I've tried to kill her loads of times! She didn't have her Devil Fruit back then, but that did not make things any easier, lemme tell you. "

"We are not talking about this." Everyone stared at Lyn, and Alexander knew that he, at least, would never get used to the first mate's commanding voice. "This isn't a laughing matter."

"Hey, you're the one who wanted to know about Cici's life before," the impersonator shot back. "This is what's funny to us. You ever notice how she's all smiles when she's reminiscing about shit like that? That was our way of playing pranks."

"I don't care if she thinks it's funny. I don't."

Jordan planted her foot on the railing and gave a dark grin. "Novice. Prince. Bodyguard." She pointed at the approaching ship. "Assassin. Isn't that one of your fucking mottos? Don't pick and choose as you like. Oh, there's my cue. Take over, Momo." She grabbed Captain's rifle and leapt up to the crow's nest.

Xiphos' ship loomed nearer, and even Alexander could see the soldiers outlined by flames. The blast from Captain's sniper rifle blast caused them all to cringe. "We need more time," Cain informed them. "Can you stall them?"

The two Devil Fruit Users glanced at each other. Morgan grabbed the broken men's quarters door and ran over to Alexander, who was focusing as hard as he could on his left hand. As the elementalist ran past, the alchemist instantly turned the wood into water. Morgan wrapped the water around his body and looped around the mast just as the two ships drew together. "Techeniye!"

His elemental absorbed the wave of spears thrown, causing them to clatter harmlessly against the Knave. Alexander's eyes widened as he saw the course Xiphos' ship was taking. He dropped the straps and ran to the helm. He twisted the wheel as hard as he could, hoping he would make it in time. The galleon strained against the ocean and slowly turned to face the oncoming ship. It was a risky move, but what was a pirate's life without gambles?

He sighed in relief as they managed a full-on collision. The two ships did rub against each other, and all of the oars jutting from Xiphos' port side were completely smashed. Everyone was rocked from the slight impact, but they managed to stay on their feet. A group of soldiers leapt over from Aetos, and he reflexively brought his hands up, only to realize he had not brought his trumpet to the poop deck. "Voix Sonnerie!"

Several of them were blown backwards, and one was neatly fielded by Miserie and dragged into the water. Morgan glided by Alexander, who quickly turned part of his elemental into metal. The prince landed easily and caught one of the boarders with a punch that she only barely blocked with her shield. She staggered backwards, and Lyn's flying kick sent her overboard. "Be right back!" she shouted, plucking off the untied pieces of armor and sprinting to her room.

"Porshen!" The impact from Morgan's metal fist crumpled the soldier's helmet and sent blood splattering through the air.

Lyn reappeared with her one and a half swords. "Cain, let's go!"

The bodyguard hefted Basilikos onto one shoulder and Lyn on the other before leaping off. Morgan drew close to Alexander, facing off against the remaining six soldiers. "I don't suppose you have any more surprises?" the chef asked.

"Not without hurting the Knave."

"Surely you can be more inventive than that!"

"Wait, why me?"

Morgan surrounded him as the soldiers thrust their spears all at once. "Now is not the time! Think!"

"Uh… Get rid of their spears!" The elementalist twisted around, wrenching the weapons out of their owners' hands and hurling them away. Alexander winced as a few speartips scratched his skin, but he couldn't let himself be distracted. "Now vines, up high!"

"Zavod Bronyu!" Morgan violently dispelled his elemental, forcing the soldiers to take cover from the shrapnel, and grabbed Alexander's collar. Thick green vines wrapped around them, and they wound their way up the mast. "Why vines? They have swords!"

The musician's voice was somewhat muffled by the stems and leaves. "Breaks up their formation, and you need space."

Morgan released him, and Alexander entangled himself as the prince began to move unimpeded. The major flaw in his plan swiftly became apparent as he was turned about and spun around, completely disorienting him. If he was going to be useful at all, he needed to get out. He transmuted the vines around him into water and dropped out of the elemental. This led him to the second flaw, of which he was painfully reminded as he bounced off the yard in front of him and slammed into the deck.

He lay still for a few movements, too stunned to move. He eventually pushed himself to his feet, only to find two soldiers drop down to deal with him. This pushed newfound energy through his body, though he knew that wouldn't be enough to protect himself. If he were going to use his spirits, he needed to face away from either of the Knave's cabins. Unfortunately, he had no idea how he was going to do that. "Little help, Morgan!"

What absolutely nobody expected was a human-sized squid to fly through the air, latch onto one of the soldiers, and bring him tumbling to the deck. Alexander took advantage of the opportunity to circle to the side, but the other pirate got over his fear quickly enough. He attacked with an overhead strike, and Alexander barely managed to block with two sleeves of steel. The impact brought him to his knees, and the soldier's shield knocked him fully overboard.

He wasn't terribly surprised when he was yanked back into the air before he even touched the surface. "Miserie told him to stay on the ship. It is dangerous in the water!"

"Wasn't my choice," he panted.

They both hit the deck, and a swing of Miserie's tail bowled the standing soldier over. She sprang forward before he could recover, yelling angrily as she wrestled with him. Alexander rid himself of his metal sleeves, a tiny part of him lamenting the destruction of yet another good nightshirt. He wasn't sure if his sound attack would hurt the squid, and since it was technically helping him, he didn't want to hurt it. He took the opportunity to go to the men's quarters and retrieve his trumpet. He needed more control and sustainability than his voice could provide.

He exited to find the squid-wrapped soldier overboard, Miserie still grappling with her opponent, and six more soldiers landing on the deck. Before he could even think of what was going on, the boards before him dissolved into water, and he tumbled into the medical ward with them. He was just as surprised as they were, and they all gathered their bearings at about the same time. He gave a short trumpet blast as he backed through the doorway. "Trompette Sonnerie."

He hustled up the short steps and went down the cannon hallway. The floor seemed to be melting beneath him, making it worse than trying to run through sand. Cannons and cannonballs rolled this way and that, giving no small amount of trouble to his pursuers. A spear clipped his hair and punctured the door before him. He belatedly ducked out of the way, his breath coming in short gasps. Crashing through the remains of the door and losing his trumpet, he gathered his breath for another shout. "Eau Magie! Miserie!"

Alexander ran straight into the hatch Cain had made for the mermaid and out over the water. He hit with a wet splash, quickly sinking beneath the surface. A couple spears followed him in, one cutting open his left forearm. He could barely see anything around him, but he was pretty sure he could make out the black shapes of bodies and debris suspended in the dark water. He didn't know how good Miserie's night vision was underwater, but he was relying entirely on her to keep himself from drowning.

The feeling of deja vu was almost instantly eclipsed by the familiar form heading directly towards him. He was in no mood for any part of him to fill the shark's stomach. He tried to turn his surroundings into thick glass so he wouldn't be eaten and Miserie could still locate him, but it was like all of his attempts to transmute anything into air. He still had one last idea that had never been tested before, but he had no time left.

Voix Sonnerie.

His soundless shout shook the waters around him. The shark recoiled as if struck and quickly retreated for the time being. He let out a few bubbles of relief. He had done all he could.

"Miserie knows Alexander is a pirate, but she thinks he should know he cannot swim." Alexander gratefully grasped the mermaid's hand with all his might. She brought him to the surface and held him up so he could sputter and cough wetly. "His attack hurts more in water. He should not do it because it hurts the fish too."

The usual train in his voice that always accompanied his attack was accompanied by the harshness of nearly drowning. "Shark," was all he could say.

"They were hurt too. They are Miserie's friends, and they were helping us. See?"

He was back underwater before he could protest. The flames on Xiphos' ship somewhat lit the waters below it, allowing him to see the various body parts and armor being jostled by the three sharks swimming around. Dark blood streamed from their fins and tail, and Alexander was absolutely sure he didn't want to be any closer. Miserie misconstrued his slight struggle as desire for more air and only surfaced so he could regain his breath.

"Now say he is sorry. Lyn always says it's better after saying sorry!"

Alexander's shoulders dropped as he realized he had no other choice. Miserie pulled him over, and the sharks began slowly circling them, always keeping one predatory eye on the two pirates. Alexander dutifully did as he was told. The words came out as garbled bubbles, but that seemed to satisfy her. "He can't swim. Please bring him back to the back of the other ship. Miserie has to help Morgan. Alexander should hold on this instead of the fins."

Before Alexander could catch up to what just happened, Miserie darted directly through the surface and vanished from sight. He found himself being dragged to the Howling Knave by a piece of rope held in the shark's mouth. He could feel its teeth cutting through the rope and grabbed its left fin in a panic. He immediately let go as pure, crystalline agony shot through his hand and up his arm. The shark turned its head towards him, and he was sure he recognized the expression on its face, that of telling someone not to do a particularly stupid thing and watching them do it anyway. He gave an annoyed scowl, and it bobbed its head in what he supposed was amusement.

He had not reached the Knave before the seawater took its toll. His muscles completely slackened, and he was left drifting in the water. He was astonished when the shark curved back around and bit his outstretched arm. Instead of the dismembering chomp he was expecting, its teeth were blunt enough to only barely pierce his skin. It slowed greatly and led him to the surface so he could breathe again. It continued to gently tug him the remaining distance, occasionally twisting its head if he slipped too far underwater.

At this point, he was sure nothing else could shock him. He just gave up when he saw the squid gripping the stern of the ship and watching him intelligently. It captured his other arm and pulled him from the shark's mouth, its teeth leaving very visible marks in his arm. The squid's suckers detached from the rudder with pleasant little pops, and it climbed the stern with unexpected strength. It lifted him up and deposited him back in the cargo bay. He simply lay still, too exhausted and confounded to move at all.

However, he was never too tired to remember his manners. "Thank you," he wheezed, "both of you. Happy hunting."

The squid released its hold and slipped back into the dark waters. The shark circled back around and bobbed its head once more. He nodded as well and smiled as it departed. By the sound of it, Miserie and Morgan were done with the soldiers on deck, and there was nobody waiting to stab him in the cargo hold. The saltwater made all of his injuries blend together into one mass of intense pain, but it most importantly reminded him that he was alive.

I'm done, he thought weakly. Did what I could.

He was thrown against the wall as the ship gave a mighty jolt and fell limp.

\\'/.\\'/.\\'/.\\'/.\\

"Fuck, man." Jordan's soft curse snapped Cassandra from her reverie. "She salvageable?"

Cassandra's mind flew as she assessed the damage. The Howling Knave was still slowly being rolled onto its side, still slowly being pushed apart. As horrendously spectacular as it was to watch, she was forced to tear her eyes away. "Miserie. Miserie!" The mermaid grabbed the railing beside her. "Calm Damien down, then prepare the evacuation procedure. Now!"

Eyes wide, Miserie nodded and landed back in the water. As her soothing song filled the air, Cassandra gradually turned around and walked to the main deck. She purposefully stepped into thin air and dropped into the flaming hole. The center of the ship had been almost completely destroyed in the fight that had been raging. Damien was thrashing about off to the side while Cain and Xiphos pushed against each other. Their struggle dwindled as Miserie's song sunk in, and they eventually shoved each other backwards.

"Cain," she said sharply. "Enough. The Knave's in trouble. Commence evac. Bring Jordan to help. You know the order."

He stared at her for a moment, then quickly jumped away. Xiphos turned to her and leveled his bleeding sword at her face. "You."

"Me." They stared at each other, neither making a move. Their chests heaved in exhaustion, both drenched in sweat and blood. His armor lay in pieces around him, revealing many claw marks, bruises, and one particularly deep gash. She knew she appeared completely unharmed, but she couldn't hide her fatigue. Her knives dangled loosely from her fingers, and crimson droplets still occasionally fell from her body.

"You held back," he said at last.

"It's what I do."

"You lack honor."

"I've heard."

"You will pay."

The ghost of a smile graced her lips. "One day."

"This day."

"I don't think so."

"I will bring you to the underworld."

"You can try."

Miserie's song grew slightly quieter, and Cassandra was forced to devote part of her attention to the man shaking near the wall. Damien climbed painstakingly to his feet, his dreadlocks partially obscuring his burning eyes. Laughter grew within him and burst forth like a volcanic eruption, its hellish cacophony reverberating inside the gutted hull. His head moved back and forth between the two captains as his amusement died out. He seemed content to merely stare at them, though why he was analyzing them, Cassandra couldn't fathom.

"Your crew is dead," she informed Xiphos. "They put up a fight. If it makes you feel any better, you did better than any single crew against us so far. Although to be fair, you have the advantage of not being a Marine." Damien gave a thunderous growl. "So I guess you're actually not all that impressive."

"You speak as if you have already won."

"I have. Accept your defeat graciously."

He spat a bloody glob at her feet. "I would never bend my knee to you."

"Then are you going to keep fighting? My crew is still alive, and most of them can still fight. Isn't that right?"

Damien's guttural chuckles were no less unnerving than his roars. "Jar'ead tried 'is bes'. Wasn' good enough."

"You're still with me?"

"Ain' dead, am I?"

She faced Xiphos again. "And you won't lay down your sword?"

His grip tightened. "Come and take it."

She made as if to lunge, then straightened up. "Do you think you're going to be the last bastion, the last of the Hoplite Pirates? That you will defend until the end and not take one step back? No. You did show remarkable resilience against Miserie's song, but you're human. Your last moment will not be of heroic defiance. I won't grant you that."

"You cannot grant me anything!" he bellowed.

"I can grant you one last choice. You have three options, and not one of them allows for that noble last stand you desire so deeply. The nicest I'll allow will be you leaving my Aetos of your own accord-"

"Your Aetos!" He gave a sour bark of laughter. "She is not your Aetos!"

"She is now. You wrecked my ship." Damien growled even more loudly. "I'm taking yours."

"Never!"

She shrugged. "Option two is you kneel, give me your sword, and Damien will cut your head off." Xiphos snorted. "The third is revenge."

"Revenge?"

"The chance to avenge your lover by killing the woman who knocked out his teeth, cut out his tongue, sliced off his nose, and gouged out his eyeballs." She grinned as Xiphos visibly restrained himself. "Oh, how he wailed and cried and begged for his life."

"Andres would never!" He punctuated his statement with a slash that sent drops of blood flying from his sword. "These are lies!"

"I'm sure you saw almost every side of him, but you should know as well as I do, Xiphos, that people show you who they really are when they are about to die. There is no acting or pretending. Andres may have showed himself as a magnificent soldier and human being, but in the end, he was nothing but a cowardly infant in sandals too big for him to wear."

"I will silence your lying tongue, whore! Menis Aeide!"

Cassandra almost dodged to the side, but she paused as Damien appeared before her and caught the sword in both hands. "Yahahar! Ain' no need fer namecalling, mule'ead! We ain' finished yet!"

"Oh, that's right," Cassandra said with an innocent smile. "I so rudely interrupted your fight. I'll sit over here unharmed while you two finish, shall I? Looks like option three wasn't an option after all. He'll finish you before you even get a chance to hurt me."

Xiphos' scream of rage and anguish shook the ship, and he pushed down as hard as he could. Just before the boards gave beneath Damien's feet, the berserker let the sword go and let it barely skim his skin as he sidestepped. He grabbed Xiphos' beard and threw himself on his back, pulling the general forward. Cassandra caught his forehead and held him still, making sure he was staring into her eyes. His arms and legs fought for purchase, but Damien kicked or punched them away, keeping the large captain down.

"The gods were cruel when they put you in my path," Cassandra said softly. "You felt slighted and came after me, thinking that I would accept you with open arms and apologies for leaving without a farewell. You hurt my crew." His screams grew in pitch as she carved an X over one eye. "You tried to kill them." Even louder as she repeated her actions on his other eye. "I have no doubt you'll see your comrades in the underworld. How will you face them when, in the end, passion overruled your training? Will you tell them that even the great Xiphos could control himself no better than a fresh recruit?"

Xiphos finally pushed himself away, and his back slammed against the mast. Cassandra hefted his enormous sword with both hands and plunged it into his gut. "Lastly, remember this: all of this is your fault. We were only protecting ourselves. What happened on Rime doesn't matter. What happens on the Line stays on the Line."

Much to her surprise, he gave a bloody grin. His limbs fell limp, and his animosity seemed to drain from him. "You think you have won? You have given me peace after a lifetime of war. The gods have rewarded me. You have yet to see what they have in store for you."

Damien wrenched the sword from the large captain's gut and threw it aside. "Mouthy motherfucker."

Cassandra smiled and closed her eyes as she leaned on him. He didn't move a muscle, simply staring at the fallen general. She rested for a brief moment before standing straight once again. The flames that once seemed perfectly conducive to her anger were proved inadequate as ice water flowed through her veins. The fight between human and human had been won, but the fight between human and sea had not. "How are you feeling?"

He rolled his shoulders and idly scratched at one of his countless wounds. "Ain' about to pass out. Can' say the same for you."

"No time. I wasn't kidding when I said I was taking this ship."

"Wha'?"

"The bastard rammed the Knave. She's not going to make it. Cain and Miserie are moving things over. Get Xiphos out of here and dump him overboard. Morgan will have to calm things down here before Aetos sinks too."

He nodded in understanding. He grabbed Xiphos in one hand and Cassandra in the other and leapt up to the main deck. He staggered as he landed, but insisted he was fine when she asked. He heaved Xiphos' body overboard, and Cassandra allowed herself a moment to watch the rival captain sink. She turned away and slowly walked to the bow, where the rest of her crew was gathered. They were all looking over the railing, and she joined them. Having evidently recovered everything that could be recovered, Cain was straining to push the Howling Knave away from Aetos' keel. With a good number of her sails furled and the rowers dead, Aetos hadn't managed to go completely through the ship broken across her bow.

With a final heave, Cain pushed the two ships apart. He leapt over and landed on the forecastle deck behind them. Alexander looked about to fall asleep, but his eyes were still focused on the destroyed ship. They all drew away as Damien gave a loud howl, and a column of fire shot into the sky. He lowered his face to stare at the Knave, and the fire arced around and fell towards the galleon. Just before it hit with its regular destructive power, it slowed and simply allowed the ship to ignite.

Cassandra bowed her head as the pyre drifted away. Tears came unbidden to her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She hadn't thought she would grow so emotionally attached to what was essentially just a means of transportation, but the Howling Knave had grown into so much more than that. Lyn didn't hide her sobs, and Cassandra gently pulled her into a tight hug. As she slowly spun around and rocked back and forth, she couldn't help but check on how the others were handling it. Jordan had her head bowed in respect, and Cain wore an expression that could only be gained after honoring countless fallen comrades at their funerals. Damien's gaze was as hard as his bones, and Alexander's glasses were misty.

Morgan, however, looked slightly confused. "What? It was just a ship."

Damien's backhand sent him tumbling to the deck. The navigator batted away Cain's hand and planted one foot on Morgan's chest. "Just a ship?" he grated out, leaning in and making the bandit prince wheeze for breath. "Just a fuckin' ship? You outta your motherfuckin' mind?"

"What… are you talking about?" Morgan strained. "It was a ship! It served its purpose!"

"Wrong." Alexander's voice was soft and stern. "The Knave was one of our nakama, just like you or me. She was with us through thick and thin, and she never failed us."

The prince tried to wrestle Damien's foot off of him. "There's no use anthropomorphizing it! I understand ships are referred to with female pronouns, but it was just a bunch of wood and canvas!"

"Yer just a gilded sack o' snake eggs an' devil spunk that Cap'n decided to pity," Damien snarled. "But you're treated like a fuckin' 'uman being. Tha's way fuckin' weirder."

"Now isn't the time for this," Cassandra said.

As tired as he was, flames still flickered in the back of his eyes. "O' course it is. This cum-snorter thinks 'is ship ain' worth shit. I've half a mind t' throw 'im out and see 'ow 'e does without 'er."

"Don't do that," Miserie chimed in. "The sharks are still around."

Alexander raised a finger, then sighed and dropped it. "Hothead's right. We are pirates, and one of us has fallen in battle. We have to send her off with honor."

"What are you even so concerned about?" Morgan threw his hands out, giving up on trying to budge the irate navigator. "You smashed it… you smashed her up all the time."

"Cause she wa'n' like you. She could take some rough'ousin', unlike you. She pulled 'er fuckin' weight, unlike you. She didn' care whether she couldn' do it."

"Stop talking about her as if she had feelings!"

"She did have feelings." Lyn lifted her head from Cassandra's wet shoulder to look at him. "You might not have noticed them. It took me too long to notice. I bet you and her started talking right away, huh?" Damien bared his teeth in a wild grin. "I thought so. We-"

"Look, I'm with Cici," Jordan cut in. "Now isn't the time. Half of you are still bleeding, and the other half are sleepwalking. Yeah, it fucking sucks that you lost the Knave, but how about saving the grief and arguments until after we make sure we don't lose another person?"

Cassandra nodded, bracing herself as Aetos slowly glided through the burning wreckage. "Couldn't have put it better myself."