A CURSE NO ONE WANTS

Zoro grasped his swords tightly and approached the mountain of rubble warily. He knew Axe-Hand Morgan was underneath but didn't know if the attack Artemyra did just now was enough to knock him out. He would think so, but he just needed to know to ease his mind. He made sure to keep his wits about him as he climbed the heap of stone and started to move aside some of the rocks, and what he saw underneath was none other than the Marine captain himself. There was no movement at all from his large and bruised body, and his eyes had completely rolled to the back of his head.

"Is he still alive?" Artemyra asked while walking up beside him.

Zoro lightly kicked Morgan in the leg, but the goliath-of-a-man didn't even budge. He knew then that he was completely knocked out and that the fight was over. "Sure looks like it," he said while removing his sword from between his teeth.

"Ah, I see," Artemyra spoke in a bitterly soft voice, and in one swift motion, she twirled her sword around and slid it back into the sheath known as Mars. She raised her head and looked around at the Marines who were left. All slowly getting back to their feet and staring down at their captain that had been completely knocked cold. Artemyra didn't look worried though and simply stepped away with Zoro so the Marines could all have a look themselves.

"Did…did she just defeat Captain Morgan?" One of the men asked while looking around at his fellow men who looked just as roughed up as he did.

With swords still in hand, Zoro turned his body fully around and glared intensely at all of them. "Any of you still want to capture us?"

All the Marines paused for a second and glanced amongst themselves, and without warning, threw their weapons in the air and cried their hearts out. They clung to each other in absolute joy and sang songs of the fallen tyrant known as Morgan. They cheered until their voices became hoarse and continued to cheer even when hot tears of joy streamed down their cheeks.

"We're free!"

"Morgan's reign of terroir is finally over!" the Marines praised.

Luffy crinkled his eyes and looked perplexed at the Marines' sudden change in attitude. Because only moments ago were they shooting at Artemyra and attacking them with swords, but now they looked relieved to the point of crying. "Huh? They're happy we defeated their captain?"

"Of course they are," Artemyra said with a somber voice. "Marines are loyal men…but no one likes to follow a tyrant. Morgan did nothing but rule with fear, and that is no way to govern over people."

Artemyra knew that there were people who ruled as Morgan did, but she never saw how it could work. She was raised to believe that if someone wanted control, then respect from the people had to be earned first. She couldn't even imagine her own father doing such a thing. Yet...it briefly made her wonder if any of the other leaders from the four islands ruled with the same iron fist as Morgan did. It was a sickening thought really, and she didn't want to think about it.

"So that means it really is over. The Marines are free now!" Coby was about to cheer when he heard what sounded like a ton of bricks falling behind him. "Huh?" He turned around and saw that Zoro had collapsed to the floor, completely still and unconscious from exhaustion.

"Zoro?" Artemyra gasped sharply and rushed over to him.

"Ah! I'm stuffed!" Zoro beamed and leaned back in his chair, patting his full stomach after nearly eating half the food in Rika's house.

"Are you sure you're alright? You're not going to pass out again, are you?" Artemyra asked worryingly. She had to admit that he did look better though, and even his attitude seemed to have perked up too. It was such a severe change that it was hard to believe that it was the same man that everyone claimed was a blood-thirsty demon. At least to her, he seemed like a very normal, honest, and self-driven man.

"Nah. I'm totally fine, but not eating for nine days was way worse than I thought it was gonna be," Zoro said.

"You'd never survive a whole month out there!" Luffy scoffed while simultaneously stuffing his stretched-out mouth with food.

"I really don't get how you're hungrier than me…" Zoro muttered and gawked at Luffy's insane bottomless appetite. Even though he was the one being starved, it was hard to think that Luffy still ended up eating more than he did.

Artemyra smiled and turned around to Rika's mother who had kindly let all four of them into her house. "We really do appreciate you feeding us like this, ma'am."

Rika's mother shook her head and smiled at them with a cheerful but relieved expression. "It's the least I can do! You four saved the town."

The knightess released a breathy laugh when her face quickly turned perplexed. She looked down to her right side and saw Rika tugging on the end of her petaled dress. "Rika?" Artemyra spoke up.

"Were you really the one who made the Marine base collapse? How did you actually do that?" Rika said, beaming with excitement and practically begging for answers to her million questions.

Artemyra's smile dropped a slight bit, and she felt her skin prickled. "I suppose I just have my ways," she said, noticeably unsure how to answer such an innocent question.

"I guess you do," muttered Zoro. Artemyra looked up and saw him making a gesture with his head, silently asking for some privacy to talk. At least away from the ears of Rika and her mother.

Artemyra frowned and nodded her head. "Luffy, we're going to head outside for a bit. We'll be back in a few minutes," she said and got up alongside Zoro.

Luffy couldn't really say anything because of the food in his mouth, but he did give them something of an answer and waved them off as they headed out the door.

Zoro closed the door behind them but waited for at least a couple more seconds before speaking up. "What is that thing on your back?" he asked while crossing his arms over his chest.

Artemyra's face didn't really change despite the blunt way he brought up the question. Her expression remained surprisingly neutral, but very slowly her lips did melt into that resembling a melancholy smile. "Something…quite problematic, I'm afraid. It's not really the right time to go into depth about it, but I can tell you this," she said while reaching around to her shoulder and beginning to unclip the leather straps holding Mars up. "This thing…is a living weapon, and as you've already seen…gives the user immense power. It's something I've been dealing with for as long as I can remember."

Zoro's eyes swiftly fell on the mysterious sheath once it was presented to him, and he could obviously see that it was indeed beautiful. The sheen of gold was polished to perfection, and the variety of gems embedded into it sparkled like a million stars were held captive inside. He wanted to touch it, see how it felt, but his natural survival instincts were preventing him from doing so. He could feel his muscles tense up and lock his joints in place with just the thought of going near it.

Zoro cleared his throat and kept his hands tucked away from the weapon to avoid any temptation. "Even if you don't explain it fully. I can see that it's quite the weapon. I can name ten people right now that would love to get their hands on it. I would say you're lucky to have something like that…but I won't." He then closed his eyes and gestured for Artemyra to reattach the weapon to keep it away from his sight. "I don't envy you. The thing you carry on your back…is an honest to goodness curse," he said with a bitterly cautious voice that was saturated with discomfort.

Artemyra noticeably perked up and looked rather stunned. "Oh? you can tell?" she said while reattaching her sword and sheath.

He nodded. "Yeah. I can sense…something wrong with it. An aura of some kind that I can't really place," he said with an air of mystery.

Artemyra lowered her head and closed her eyes, nodding slowly to confirm the uneasy feelings that plagued Zoro's mind. "Hm. Then allow me to tell you this. It isn't an aura you're feeling, Zoro. It's emotions…but just one." She reopened her eyes but there was something different about them now. Something both dangerous and unbelievably bleak. "It's hatred," she said with a coarse and dreary voice.

Zoro felt the air evaporate from his lungs the instant those heinous words reached his ears. "Myra…that's a nasty weapon you're carrying," he finally concluded.

"Nasty is an understatement for what this thing really is. This weapon is nothing but evil."

Greed had always been an issue that played into Mars. It was a natural feeling and desire that everyone was aware of. Yet, there had always been something else about it that only Artemyra seemed to be aware of. A much darker and dangerous emotion leering in the background like a lion waiting to attack. She never really knew what to make of it until Zoro brought it to her attention too. Which only solidified her suspicion that something darker was in the works.

"Excuse me?" someone abruptly spoke up. Both Zoro and Artemyra turned their heads and saw a group of Marines approaching them. They recognized them to be the same ones that worked at the base, but instead of being led by Morgan, they were following closely behind their lieutenant.

"Something we can help you with?" Artemyra asked them as politely as she could before taking notice of their subtle weariness of her. Which was to be expected since she was the one who destroyed their base and defeated Morgan.

"Yes. We were hoping to talk to you all for a moment," the Marine lieutenant said.

The knightess narrowed her eyes before taking a glance at Zoro. "I understand." She gestured her head to the door and opened it up for the seemingly unarmed Marine. "Luffy, we have some Marines here to see us," she announced to her captain.

"Huh?" Luffy looked up and quickly swallowed his food.

The Marine lieutenant stood at attention in the doorway and began to speak to all of them with a grave but firm tone. Yet, there was this underline reluctance in his words. "You gentlemen are pirates…correct?"

Luffy answered right away. "That's right. I even have a crew now. Which makes me a genuine pirate captain."

"You saved all of us and this town…and we are truly grateful to you…" the Marine lieutenant lifted his gaze and swiftly looked over to Artemyra. "But we are still Marines…and you have an Armwell knight within your company."

Zoro's eyes went wide at what he was hearing. "What the hell are you going on about? She's the one who saved you all…and you have a problem with her?"

"Unfortunately, we do," the Marine said seriously. "The knights of the four islands and the World Government have had a deal for some time. They wouldn't get involved in our affairs…so we won't get involved with theirs. She clearly had breached the contract by leaving Armwell and getting involved with the situation here."

Artemyra took everything in calmly and wasn't really shocked to hear this. She broke the rules and had a feeling this was going to come back around to her. "Hm, I fear that was going to become a problem. I didn't think it would come this early though." She pushed herself off the wall she was leaning on and stood before the Marine lieutenant. She sucked in a deep breath and abruptly bowed her head to him. "But please believe me when I say my island had nothing to do with this. For anything that will happen in the future…it will only be in my name. So, I ask you not to drag my people into this. You have my word, and even though I am a pirate now…my knighthood runs deeper. You can trust in that part of me."

The Marine lieutenant looked moderately stunned at her sudden action and was too astonished to even speak for a second. If it was just some regular pirate saying these things to him, then he would have a hard time believing it. An Armwell knight was a different situation though. They were people that were praised for their loyalty and skills. Skills that deserved nothing but respect. Which was the only reason why he decided, against his better judgment, to trust her words. "Then…we shall hold you to your word. To show our gratitude to you, we will only ask for you and your crew to leave. We won't report you to the higher-ups."

Artemyra continued to bow her head. "That is all I can ask. I appreciate your consideration."

Luffy quickly scarfed down the rest of his food and stood up from his chair. "Guess we're leaving then. Ma'am, thanks for the meal."

"Luffy-san." Coby immediately got up too and watched as all three of his friends brushed past him and headed for the door without saying a word to him.

The Marine lieutenant looked down at Coby and saw that he wasn't moving to follow. "Aren't you going with them?"

Coby felt his body flinch. "I…I'm not…with them," he said to him shyly.

The lieutenant's gaze turned suspicious, and he looked up at Artemyra. "Armwell knight…is that true?

Coby's entire body began to tremble, leaving goosebumps all over his skin. He closed his eyes tightly and could hear Artemyra stop walking and turn around. He stood that way for a while, holding his breath and hoping that she wouldn't say anything. He snapped his eyes wide open though when he felt her cold gauntlet firmly drop onto his shoulder.

"No. This man is not one of us. If anything…he is a victim of pirates," Artemyra said to the Marine. "He had been a victim for the last two years, and only recently was able to escape because of my captain. I know you will investigate his background sometime in the future…but would you please let him into the Marines?"

The lieutenant frowned. "Is this what your friend wants?" he asked while directing his gaze to Coby.

Artemyra released her hand and gave Coby a light slap on the back, pushing him forward and forcing him to stand up straight for the first time in his life. His words briefly got caught in his throat but the slight stinging sensation on his back practically forced not only words, but emotions out of his mouth as well. "It is! Please let me join the Marines!" Coby said loudly while simultaneously bowing his head. "I'll be a cabin boy or anything, but please just let me join!"

The Marine lieutenant eyed him suspiciously and looked between both him and Artemyra. He groaned after a moment of thinking it over and adjusted his hat. "Many of my fellow soldiers have been killed by pirates. Don't be taking a soldier lightly…but I'm trusting the word of the lady knight and accepting you. Welcome to the Marines."

Those sweet words were nearly enough to bring Coby to tears. He quickly sucked them back behind his eyes though and swiftly bit down on his tongue. "Yes sir! Thank you very much!" he shouted with a stiff salute, and no more did he feel his legs shake.

Artemyra smiled before turning back around and following Luffy and Zoro outside. They strolled down the street quietly, under the watchful and captivated gaze of the townsfolk that knew what they had done. Looking around, Artemyra could see that they no longer had a fretful look in their eyes.

Zoro slowed down his pace to match with the knight. "You're lucky the knights have such a good reputation. You completely took advantage of that," he said while nudging her in the arm.

Artemyra bit down on her lips and awkwardly looked away, not realizing until now that that was exactly what she did. "You act like I've done something bad," she said with an embarrassing red face. "Coby still got what he wanted in the end, did he not. Everything that he does up till now will be by his abilities alone. I'm looking forward to seeing how he'll grow up."