Chapter 2: The beginning of a new life.
Tattoo face was looking at him really funny. He just stared at Zoros form and was silent ,not making a single sound despite having his mouth wide open combined with this look of disbelieve. Well it can't be helped. Right now the swordsman was in the body of gorgeous young girl and young men who have never seen one are always petrified by its sight. Tsk. Just thinking about that makes him remember a certain idiot. How Zoro wished, hoped that the Ero-cook would never see him in this embarrassing state. He would never let him live it down and constantly tease him about this new body. Even fighting him like in the old days would mean nothing now ,because of his white knight tendencies and code of honor to never hurt a woman, which has put them more than once into dangerous situations. The revived swordsman could only hope that the bastard stays dead.
"Are you Zeref? " snapping Zoro out of his thoughts the young man finally spoke and stopped acting like a horny teen holding their first adult magazine.
Zeref, huh. Zoro was not sure if the body he was currently residing in was this so called Zeref the young one was hoping to meet. It was better to bring him the bad news now then latter.
"No " answered the swordsman .
"No…" muttered the tattoo face under his breath slowly, his only arm covering his eyes after learning that the young man had failed in ... whatever he was trying to do. Now having this out of the way it was Zoros turn to ask a question.
"Now kid, could you tell me why I'm here? And while we are at it, where am I and what have you done to me?" only to be met by silence.
Annoyed Zoro let this kid be for the time. Quelling his hunger was more important right now and it was not like this kid could escape him in this condition. After gathering some fire wood he used a glowing warm blue rock he found. Having hit it with another rock it created surprisingly big sparks for its size, instantly combusting the wood he stacked on top of each other for his camp fire. The sulking boy still lying motionless on the ground next to it. While waiting for the fish to cook, Zoro began to think about what transpired today before he met this kid here ,in order to set his next course of action.
When he woke up from his shor nap ,Zoro found himself in a blue crystal protecting him from all harm of the outside world. His body surrounded by a gel like substance that was pleasing to the touch. It was like swimming in pudding and despite its denseness breathing in it was no problem. The blue dome having recorded some activity started to shift and opened like a blooming flower, the blue pudding still retaining its original form for a while ,before slowly melting leaving a puddle of its remains on the ground. When the revived swordsman feet finally touched the smooth ground he took his first step on this new land.
Stepping out he was met by the starry night. Moonlight passively shining onto him as if coating his entire body in a silk blanket. The rocky wasteland before him was entirely alien to him. The salty smell of the Sea and the sound of waves crashing brought back a certain nostalgia he hasn't experienced in years after the Great Shift. The wind was gently blowing on his body and instantly Zoro could fell something wrong. He stepped closer to the water to confirm what he hoped was not the case. The rough stone poking him into his soft feet for every step he took. The newly revived mosshead was now standing before the water, starring into its shining surface ,only to be met by the reflection of a beautiful young woman. She was not particularly muscular ,toned body could only be achieved by rigorous training. Her messy long hair was the same color as his ,greasing his back every time the swordsman moved his head to look at every feature this young face had to offer. Her right eye was covered by hair, so Zoro pushed it out of his way only now noticing that she lost it.
Sighing hard the revived Swordsman just couldn't believe that this was happening. It's like Punk Hazard all over again only this time he was on the receiving end of it, but still it was not really something big to be worried about, just more of an annoyance really. On his journeys with Luffy and the rest ,Zoro has seen so many unbelievable and messed up things that simply swapping bodies didn't faze him at all.
All in all ,if Zoro didn't know any better the body he was in could have passed as his granddaughter all things considered. Which in turn made him wonder how his daughter was doing. The last time he met her she was training soldiers in swordsmanship ,explaining to them the art of cutting nothing and everything, the most important lesson in his opinion every real swordsman needs to learn, but not many understood. That brought a small smile to his face, how he wished to see her again.
The growling sound of hunger broke Zoro from appreciating the pleasant memory he just had. So having nothing better to do he jumped straight into the freezing water to catch himself something to eat. It was not the first time he did this naked, so even while this body wasn't accustomed to this activity the swordsman turned woman knew exactly how to prevent hypothermia from killing him in minutes. He dove deep into the water belove ,the darkness becoming more prominent the further he got. Using his haki he spotted a big fish not far from his position. He couldn't make out its exact features, but it looked like a swordfish as it was speeding in Zoros direction, no doubt planning to pierce him through the chest.
Having none of that the swordman shifted his body slightly to the side, avoiding the strike at the last moment before catching the fish under his left arm and choked ,what later turned out to be a swordshark, unconscious before twisting its neck to end its suffering. With a meal secured to stop his hunger Zoro tried to go back to the island, but it seemed to him the land itself moved from its original location. Even in another body the world just loved to mess with him. It took some time, 3 hours to be exact before he finally found it. That's when Zoro met that one armed tattoo faced boy lying on the ground. Which brought him to his current situation.
The smell of burned fish entered his nose, snapping him out of his daydreaming just in time. Reacting as fast as he could, trying to save as much as possible from his slightly burned meal. Annoyed at getting distracted Zoro let out a sight, before looking again at the still motionless young man on the floor, planning to leave a portion of his meal for the boy when he finally gets a grip on himself. Without further delay the now swordswoman took a big bite, the sweetness of the fish entered his mouth. The fatty meat filled this body with nutrients it so desperately needed.
"One thing after the other" concluded Zoro in his mind. The now turned woman would deal with him later. Taking another bite it did not escape him that several voices were nearing his destination. Maybe he could ask them to give him and this a brat a ride to the nearest port?
Captain Wrack was a notorious black market dealer and was known for delivering wares people didn't even know existed or where thought to be lost forever. Some call him Wrack the Finder, thanks to his immense knowledge and timing, knowing where and when to strike to find even the best hidden treasure. He was the one who supplies the Dark Guild Eisenwald with the Flute Lullaby, a mass murder curse magic item created by Zeref himself some centuries ago. To be perfectly honest ,Wrack did not expect them to have enough money to even purchase a single splinter of it, and he was right. Instead they paid him with an old artifact of the past from an era he's a known passionate collector of. A sword , a Grade Sword to be exact, so ancient it goes back to the time before the Great Shift, an event which circumstances brought the world to its current form. Apparently back then their did not exist Ishgar nor Alvarez. Instead the world was littered with countless island, mostly small but some the size of an continent, each more different than the other. Not much is known how that came to be, but in ancients text the same keywords pop up. The worst generation. Fruits of the Devil. Marines. Pirates. But the most prevalent ones were Strawhat , Blackbeard and for some odd reason the single letter "D". Whatever happened to cause the Great Shift those are the keys to uncover them. But back to the matter at hand.
His team infiltrating the Magic Council had delivered some amazing news. Etherion was fired on a tower reminiscence of the R-system. Captain Wack knew that he had to act quickly. A normal person would stay away from there ,but he knew that whatever he may scalp from the tower even those big shots couldn't allow to exist any longer, would bring him immense profit. Its not like the Country busting spell left a toxic wasteland behind ,so before the dogs of the Council could mobilize their forces and secure the area, he should be able to at least find something decent to sell to the highest bidder. The news of their Headquarters being destroyed by a traitor just made his day even better. With this much chaos he should have at least a day to bring on board as much goods as possible, instead of the expected two hours he calculated before.
"Land Ahoy" could be heard on the entire ship. On its signal the captain stood up from his comfy red chair and moved towards the wooden doors leading to the deck, a big smile adorned his face. It seemed its finally time to sweeten his life with some new goodies.
"No" was her answer.
"No" was his reply not wanting to believe it. It cannot be, right? Surely this has to be a joke. Unyielding rage filled his mind, the thought of having sacrificed everything for a fluke drove him of the cliff of his mind. "No,no,no,nononononononNO!" screamed Jellal inside his head, still too weak to even change the expression on his face or even scream at the person who just left his side ,leaving that stupid fishface to stare at him. The young mage had sacrificed everything , EVERYTHING he had and for what? He was even ready to sacrifice his childhood crush for his dream to come into fruition. It was not an easy decision to make. Having spent months just thinking about it, before strengthening his resolve and just accepted it as the best course of action. But what did the young mage create in the end? He created himself a Erza Mosshead for fucks sake!
The thought of her replaced his anger with deep regret. He had sacrificed her. He told himself it was for the greater good, for freedom ,for a better world….. in the end it was all for nothing. His mind jumped from Erza to his other friends he disappointed, exploited, lied to. His only friends who trusted him with all their heart and being.
Millianna..
Sho…
Wally….
Simon….…
"Simon, what have I done" tears slowly gathering in his eyes and that was not because of the smoke caused by the burned fish entering his cavities. Jellal killed his best friend and saw it as inconsequential, Simon protected Erzas life when Jellal tried to extinguish it. The guilt rapidly built itself up. Every action he ever commited in the name of reviving the Black mage made him feel like the worst being in the universe. Should he end his life right now and make the world a better place this way? No, killing himself would just be a mercy at this point and if he did it ,what about this new Erza. He couldn't just leave her be and dirty the name of the original with its actions. Let the dead ones rest in peace.
Jellal slowly parted his finger in order for the woman ,who was currently enjoying her meal ,not to notice the young mage observing her. Countless theories entering his mind. Was it the same Erza? Did she lose her memory or did another soul take her place ,destroying what was left of her. Another possibility could be Jella created a new life with the memories of the original intact? Can he even trust this thing? Should he just kill it and be done with this whole ordeal?
So many options, but Jellal had to little information and energy to do anything at this point. Suddenly a piece of fish was thrown at his belly, its juices already staining his current shirt, its heat warming his cold body, while saliva gathered inside his mouth urging him to take a bite. Confused what to do Jellal just looked at it in silence.
"Eat up, can't have you starve here when you still haven't told me anything " told the moss headed woman after taking another big bite from the oversized fish, not carrying for any sort of etiquette at all.
Taking her on the offer Jellal reached for the fatty piece of food and after taking a single bite his body instantly felt much better. Bite after bite ,each piece filled his stomach bringing fort plenty of energy the young man did not know he had left. When the final piece was slurped down the mage was already sitting beside the fireplace, while his creation continued to eat undisturbed, as if she had all the time in the world.
Not bearing this silence and having many question Jellal faced the Erza lookalike and asked the question that may determine what he should do from this point forward.
"If you are not Zeref ,then who are you?" hearing the bluehaired mage speak the woman looked at him with interest while gulping down her food.
"I see that you are ready to talk?" Jellal just looked at her, still waiting for an answer ,his tone became a little more serious.
"Answer me!" a little demanding even.
As if out of spite the woman just took another bite of the fish at a leisure pace ,as if daring Jellal do to something about it. No doubt she doesn't take him seriously, not that Jellal could pose any threat in his state. So all the young mage could do was wait for an answer, he eventually got.
"Roronoa Zoro" that name meant nothing to Jellal, but someone else might know about it "Now Tattoo face ,it would be better for you to tell me what you have done to me, putting me in this young gals body is not how I want to spent the rest of my life." This little info has confirmed what has more or less happened inside the tower. The soul of another person was put inside of Erza. Could that mean she is still alive? Jellal was no expert in soul management ,but the soul of the original should still reside inside the body. Which meant he could save her, even if it there was just a tiny chance, Jellal promised himself that he was going to take it. Its not like he could do anything else now, having failed massivly with reviving the Zeref. This was the start of his redemtion, but the young mage needed the help of an professional and he knew exactly who would be thrilled to help. This meant Jellal had to convince Roronoa to accompany him to meet Madam Potra, the only person in the entire underworld capable of lending a helping hand in this matter. The next words had to be chosen carefully. So Jellal got back into the role of the more professional Siegrain,trying to speak in the most calming voice possibly, like a loving mother genlty shushing someone to let her little one sleep.
"Excuse me miss Roronoa, it was not my intention to let you waiting "he started" You see I tried to resurrect someone dear to me, but as fate would have it something did not work out as intended, leading to your current state. To be speak the truth ,I don't know how it happened, but if you would accompany me to a certain individual we could find a solution together" This was not a lie. But vague as hell, which was nothing new in politics. Now what was the answer.
"If that's how it is ,fine by me. You better pray your 'certain individual' knows how to help me. I will hold you accountable" That worked out better than expected, but she was not finished talking yet " by the way I'm no miss, I'm a guy. Just so you know "
Sure why not, as if this situation itself was not awkward enough already. Both parties shook their hands as a sign of partnership, only for the young woman to pull Jellal over the fire and drop him on the ground next to her. The place where Jellal sat was now a giant hole that tried to swallow the mage whole.
"It seems we have company" as if to answer the former Councilman confusion ,the resurrected woman stood up, after having thrown a small rock into the darkness. The sound of someone hitting the floor could be heard.
"I know where you all are so come out before I make you" demanded the moss head. Her face adopting Erzas serious expression, fitting that of a leader if Jellal had to be honest with himself.
But no one came out except a giant fat man slowly making his way into the clearing. The first thing visible was his flaming red short hair ,as was his same colored bushy mustache reaching down his chest. He wore a sleeveless plain blue jacket and his torn pants were nothing to write home about. All in all he looked like your average citizen where it not for his big fat Dragon Head Cannon he effortlessly held over his shoulder with one arm. You could see it in his eyes that he was a man to not be taken lightly, glaring at the pair below him, as if promising to make them pay for hurting one of his own.
"Young lady, I was planning to just capture the young lad near your side. If you hand him over I will forgive you injuring one of my crew and let it slide. You are surrounded, outnumbered and weaponless. Choose wisely or you will regret it " the man spoke to them in a deep voice. Judging by the way he caried himself he was no doubt serious. Normally Jellal would have no problem taking care of them, but in his current condition even the cat of the Salamander could take him out with ease. So it all depended on how smart his new partner would play it.
"Sorry, but I need him. Instead you and your crew are going to take us of this Island to the nearest port" the woman said in a calm almost bored manner, before releasing some demonic aura that made even Jellal take a step back "Unless you want to help me warm up a bit"
Immediately a fireball was speeding towards her out of nowhere, hurling towards the greenhaired woman who effortlessly, somewhat lazily shifted to the left, letting the spell miss her head entirely before it dispersed on the ground behind her. A devilish smile formed on her face.
"I will take that as a no" not wasting any time she speeded towards the big guy in charge. Countless spells were hurled into her direction from all sides , each one becoming less and less accurate the closer she got to the big man himself who aimed his big cannon at her. A big magic circle came into existence before a giant beam of fire instantly engulfed the greenhaired woman entirely, her arms crossed forward trying to protect her face , as if it would make any difference. The spells size could be compared to a little Jupiter Cannon, so this had to be a Mars Cannon, a relic of the past used some hundred plus years ago in the Second Trade War.
It seemed to Jellal the problem has taken care of itself when a pure black body came out of the fiery blast, but instead of falling on the ground like a burned corpse should do it kept closing the gap ,not getting any slower before slamming into the stomach of the big guy launching him into the rocks behind him. The big gun falling out of his grip on the ground.
"Didn't expect that" Exclaimed the presumed burned corpse nonchalantly, as the black pigmentation slowly disappeared revealing an unharmed smilling woman. The battlefield became silent for just a moment, before more spells where thrown at her. She of course avoided every single one launched, the smile never leaving her face. Having enough of fooling around the green haired woman picked up the discarded weapon on the ground, its mass having no visible effect on her, before pulling the trigger bringing hell on Earthland. No one could hide before her, as if the weapon gave her X-ray vision, yet despite that she was a terrible shot, missing everyone the barrel was pointed at, not that the ones on the receiving end were just sitting ducks doing nothing. They weren't part of Captain Wracks crew for comedys sake and he was also not a weakling ether.
The Cannon suddenly disappeared from Zoros hand , after which he had to immediately coat his arms into the black pigmentation he used before in order to block the incoming strike aimed at his head. It seemed the big guy was not their leader for show. In his hands was a beautiful blade Zoro immediately recognized as it was trying to pierce his hard as steel skin. It looked like a normal katana, but the plain quality blade itself ,the green handle and the golden guard in a four pointed star shape mimicking somewhat the look of a flower made it all the more obvious. This was the blade of the four-eyed copycat. How the Marine Captain could lose her weapon was beyond him.
"Where did you get that sword" asked Zoro the redheaded swordsman still holding him in place.
"Ho. Color me surprised little Miss. Not everyone would recognize this Meito as anything less than a plain katana" said the goliath of a man , putting more power into the blade before pushing the green haired woman several dozen meters away next to the unfinished shark remains. Yet despite this her stance did not change in the slightest. Her gaze never leaving his. So Captain Wrack started to spilled the beans as a token of appreciation for a fellow person who recognize quality when they see it .
" I acquired this Shigure by trading an item with another group of Mages. Those suckers knew about my weakness for such blades ,so I could only accept their terms ,after having made sure of its authenticity. I hope you are not too jealous that I possess this remarkable high grade sword ,my dear" explained the old man, holding the blade grandiose in the air, without revealing any specifics. He was a professional after all and not even God Serena would get any info out of him, but this little speech had also another purpose. Which was to waste time for his men to reposition themselves and strike.
Pillars of rock erupted around the revived swordsman. Trapping the girl inside a made shift coffin of sorts. Several men immediately jumped out from their hiding spots, surrounding the construction with blue magic circles and with combined effort created a giant sphere of water which contents flooded the inside of the stony structure that had several deliberate holes left in it. The purpose of this combined attack was to drown each unlucky creature trapped inside it without seriously wounding them. This would have succeeded were it not for one tiny detail. They were dealing Roronoa Zoro.
The structure explode as did the Water sphere when a high pressured wind blade slash bursted the coffin open, while also hitting more than half of the mages around it, taking them out for the rest of the fight. In the hands of the perpetrator was a severed Swordsharks head, an odd choice for a weapon but not an entirely stupid one. Slowly she stepped forward into the direction of the Ringleader of this operation, while the little flies tried to put as much distance between themselves and this beast of a woman.
Jellal was amazed. Not only did Roronoa hold her..his.. whatever, own against them. She did it without using a single ounce of magic. He heard about the legend how people could create razor sharp winds without the help of any magic, which just sounded ridiculous, had the young man not seen it with his own eyes. But that brought forth a question. What was this black thing she covered herself in that helped her survive the metal melting blast of the Mars Cannon . While in itself it is not as strong is her older sister Jupiter ,it was still one of the most effective weapons used in the Second Trade War, created by the design of the Fairy Tactician herself in order to breach even the toughest of defenses.
"You know, today I'm not in a great mood. I have no idea where I am, no idea why I'm here or how I got here, butt naked in a body that doesn't even belong to me" his partner started to rant more out of annoyance than anything else, before locking her gaze into the eyes of the captain " but I will give you another chance big guy. One move, lets wager our life on it. Come at me with your best attack. Graze me ,hit me, if your blade cuts even one hair on my body you win and you can do everything you want with me or that tattoo face behind me. Now should you fail, then you will have to call me master and do my biding as I see fit." Said the fierce woman calmy, walking closer to the Captain who was visibly thinking about the offer, knowing that this offer was too good to be true, and Jellal agreed.
Sensing the hesitation the approaching woman continued.
"You know what I fell generous ,so I will throw you a bone" which she did literally ,letting go of her only weapon and making it fall on the ground behind her back. Her pace never slowing down ,not until the only thing separating them was 7 meters of ground. The cocky grin never leaving her face ,her arms crossed making her look like a cocky teenager.
The redheaded Goliath just started to laugh , not in an insulting manner. He was not mocking the one before him, but after hearing this he was visibly amused at the current situation at hand. Jellal could hardly blame the big guy for that.
"It's not every day that I find myself in such an situation" exclaimed the Leader, still wary of any tricks the girl could throw at him " I like you, but I could not possible accept such terms against an weaponless opponent. That would stain what honor I still have left"
"Oh, then you won't have to worry about that" said Roronoa, pulling out a glowing sharp rock that seemed somewhat familiar to the former Councilman, which was properly stored between her breasts. "This thing will be enough for you."
The Captain was now grinning. He summoned a red magic circle, out of which he pulled out a scabbard which he used to sheet his current weapon. Was he giving up? Looking at his partner ,the young mage saw her patiently waiting. As if trying to answer Jellals confusion ,the redheads stance shifted suddenly. His feet were wide apart, the sword sheeted and secured on his belt, while his right hand grabbed the handle of the blade , his other one holding the scabbard at a fixed angle, preparing himself to draw the weapon for the deciding moment.
"You got yourself a deal girl. I ,Captain Morgious Wrack, accept your challenge and welcome you aboard my trusty vessel The Hasty Monkey." shouted Wrack with an massive smile on his face, no doubt sure of his victory " But before we begin what's the name of my new trusty cabingirl?" asked the giant half-mockingly. While standing lazily still, the young woman half the size of his opponent just looked at him, with slightly more interest in her eyes than before.
"Roronoa Zoro, remember it" hearing that Morgious just couldn't contain his laughter.
"Sure you are. Now let us end this charade" the face of the Captain suddenly changed like day and night, the look of seriousness he displayed when the first met returned to his face once more, shouting he warned the girl of his coming strike
"Here I come" and he disappeared faster than his frame would allow, no doubt rushing Roronoa who was still just standing there, menacingly. What happened that day marked the beginning of Jellals redemption, as for Zoro it was just Friday.
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You all have no idea how excited I am for bringing worth the second coming of my story on such a short notice. At first I wanted to stop where Captain Wrack showed himself to our main cast and change to the other plotlines. But it just didn't feel right and oddly enough I just couldn't stop myself from writing it.
I even somewhat neglected collage because I couldn't stop myself. Now I wanted to show you whats up with the 'mysterious' trio from last chapter and what happened with the Fairy Squad, but I felt it would be better to post this chapter as it is now than let you guys wait any longer. Now we meet again next time and remember you can't hate something without loving something in return and the worst thing that can happen to you is indifference... That was my Wisdom for the next week, now go out for a walk after reading this and see you soon.
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