Siegfried has been captured, and it's up to Adrian and Asakura to fight off Ripfang's crew, scuttle his plans, and save their helpless leader.
Can you tell I'm a feminist, yet?
One Piece: Bounty Seven
Chapter Seventeen: Ghost Ship, Part 2
Slowly, head still pounding like the war drums of hell, Siegfried opened his eyes. The surroundings that greeted him seemed blacker than the darkness behind them in a way that had nothing to do with the lighting, or the fact that his body felt like someone had used it for a football. Siegfried let out a weary groan despite himself, almost not caring if anyone saw.
"Cap'n, Cap'n, he's awake!" said someone, fittingly enough, along with the sound of rapidly retreating footsteps, and a door opening and closing.
In the meantime, Siegfried tested his bonds. They were fairly standard: two at the wrists, tied to whatever surface he was on, and two binding his legs together to prevent him running away. Not that the psychic was intending to, of course. It would be rude to leave without seeing whoever had demanded his company as a guest…and learning whatever force was making that forsaken noise.
Thankfully his host was polite enough – kidnapping aside – to arrive promptly. The door opened soon after, a series of thudding, measured footsteps approaching where he lay. They stopped, and Siegfried felt the sensation of being sized up.
"Well, well, well," said a rough male voice, "isn't this…a fantastic specimen?" It sounded pleased. This was never a good thing to hear when you were tied up.
Siegfried spoke up. "I'm used to getting that reaction from the fairer sex," he murmured, "but then, I'm assuming your intentions aren't quite so 'benevolent'." His voice grew serious. "Are you going to show me your face?"
The chuckle that came next sounded like it was filtered through a coffin-hole. "My, quite an exquisite tongue on him, too. Very well, I'll oblige ye."
With another two thuds, the voice came closer, until the face it belonged to loomed right over him. It was the kind of face only a mother might love, and in fact would regret ever squeezing out. It was bony-white, cruel, and very dead, yes, but to Siegfried it was so much more. To his mental sight the skeleton was a buzzing hornet's nest: around him dozens, perhaps hundreds of clear, translucent orbs swirled. From each issued a silent, mournful cry of mingled hatred and anguish, ones that only he could hear.
If this ship was a whirlpool for the dead, then he was the exact center – or the kraken lurking within it.
Catching his gaze, the skeleton sneered. He didn't seem capable of many other expressions. "Oh?" he asked with sarcasm. "Does something about me countenance disturb ye, boy?"
Siegfried thought about it. "Hm…well, you're certainly the ugliest person I've ever seen, but that's not really what I'm worried about at the moment." He looked into the pirate's eyes. "Who are you?"
The undead's eyes glinted. "Ah, a perceptive young lad, I quite like that in a person." He disappeared from his captive's view, but judging from his foot falls, began to pace the room's length. "Ye probably haven't heard of this old bag o' bones, but I nonetheless like to give my name to everyone I…meet. I, wee lad, am Captain Ripfang Northwind, commander of this lovely vessel. Can't quite recall its name at the moment, but I doubt it matters; with my condition I've had all the bad luck possible, eh?"
"Captain Ripfang…" Siegfried said slowly, "no, I can't say I have heard of you." He was genuinely surprised. For his role as a bounty hunter, he'd made sure to memorize all the current Grand Line bounty heads he could. One thing this man certainly wasn't was a newcomer.
He tried not to look unsettled at the braying laugh that came afterward, and found a hard time of it. "Ha ha ha…so honest, too, such a find. Well, my lad, I suppose ye're wondering about why I wanted to meet ye, huh? Understandable…but I really can't say. It would spoil the proceedings quite well for ye, heh."
"My name is Siegfried." the young man said sharply.
His captor made a slight noise of appraise. "Siegfried…" he said, as though savoring it, "…interesting. Sort of a shame, really. Oh, well. For the meantime, Siegfried me lad, you'll be staying on me lovely vessel. Try to relax, and please do call if ye require any room surface." He made another nasty chuckle; this one typically used by people who think what they've just said is very, very funny.
Siegfried said nothing, and waited as the skeleton left the room, still chuckling. Once he was alone, at least physically, he weighed his current situation.
Well, at least he had one answer. The…incident that had paralyzed him had merely been a bad reaction to the spirits in his head. Of course, that was quite a simplified way of putting it, but when the alternative was thinking very hard about them – how they had died, how they had become that way, and how they felt – he'd prefer to seem arrogant. He had never been able to hear dead people's thoughts before, though, which made him wonder despite that.
"The pain they feel must be on a completely different level from anything mortal." He shivered slightly. "Asakura, Adrian – be careful, please."
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"Will you hurry up!"
Adrian glared across the deck as she continued to pace. The flunkies there had taken a few steps backward (a fact she noted with Adrian-like satisfaction) and their boss had even seemed a bit apprehensive when he looked up…but the target of her shout, who he was talking to, didn't budge an inch.
She clenched a fist, walking like the deck had wronged her personally. "C'mon, let's get going already!" she called again.
This time Asakura looked…dismissively, for about one second, before returning to her conversation. Adrian stopped, shaking slightly, before turning and punching the air hard enough to split it. She hated being useless like this, only able to stand and wait while other people planned things. Her instructors at the GLAA Academy had given her straight Fs in strategy, since there hadn't been a lower grade available. Even the assassin had to admit she didn't have many skills beyond simple brute force, but…leaving it all up to her left a bad taste in Adrian's mouth.
She stomped the deck. "Tch…dammit, Sieg, why'd you have to leave me alone with her?"
A few feet away, Asakura was concluding her conversation. "One of your lifeboats will be all we require. Neither you nor any of the passengers will be involved."
"If this works, you mean." Tenille pointed out, frowning slightly as the girl's demeanor didn't change. "You're that confident, eh?"
The conversation had been more than a little awkward so far. Relations between the shinobi and the crew had predictably soured after the little incident en route to their last stop, and even though he hadn't specifically ordered it carried out, this mood seemed to extend to him as well. Presumably, anyway: the girl's mask covered any expression that might've revealed such.
After a moment, she bowed. "Please. We cannot do this without your aid."
Something about her voice resonated with Tenille. He nodded. "Alright, the dinghy's yours. Try to bring it back in one piece if you can, but I'm not putting it above this ship. None of us will get out of here without you three, after all." He wondered how many of the passengers would be making a return visit to his ferry. Given the ones who were currently holed up in their cabins with pillows over their heads, the number couldn't be very high.
Asakura straightened up, giving him a curt nod. "Yes. We will rescue Siegfried, and put a stop to this incident. Of that you can be certain, Captain."
Without a single word further, she turned and strode away toward Adrian, leaving Tenille scratching his head.
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"Assassin," said Asakura, striding toward Adrian, "I have finished devising our plan of attack. Follow me."
She pointed to the side of the ship, where the crew was quickly preparing the lifeboat for deployment. Adrian frowned. "Oh, really?" She folded her arms. "Well, sorry if I sound paranoid, but I'd prefer to hear it before getting into a boat with you."
Asakura frowned. "There is no time to explain." she said coldly. "We must hurry. There is no telling what that ship has planned for Siegfried."
"We can wait," Adrian said with a blithe shrug, "if they wanted him dead, that thing wouldn't have taken him in the first place." She had very first-hand knowledge of this fact, and often wished she didn't.
The frown deepened. "You would distrust me in this situation?"
Adrian shrugged. "Not any more than you distrust me, birdie. If I'm helping you, then I think I deserve the full story." She leaned forward and stared into Asakura's eyes. "Assuming that's not too much trouble."
Silence reigned on their portion of the deck; neither flinched as they stared the other woman down.
Finally, it was Asakura who relented. "…very well," she said calmly, "please pay attention, Assassin, if you believe you may be of some help."
She did so, and slowly raised an eyebrow. It wasn't a plan you'd think could come from a person like that.
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With a smooth snap, the lifeboat detached from the ropes binding it to the ferry. It dropped into the sea below; not shifting the dark waters an inch upon impact. This was fair enough, as neither did Asakura and Adrian.
They both looked across the void to its rough center, the ghostly ship. It wasn't very far away, but separating the two vessels was an uncomfortable amount of open space. No debris or landmarks entered the fog, evidently: only other ships. Both women found this fact disturbing. It was as though something had taken the concept of an ocean, but forgotten all of its spirit…ironic, given the circumstances.
Adrian leaned back, trying to keep as still as possible. "Okay, are you sure this is gonna work? What makes you think those guys would still be able to see us?"
"Absolutely nothing." Asakura whispered. She crouched, beginning to make hand signs.
The Black Cat sighed. "Did anyone ever tell you how good you are at reassuring people?"
"No." Asakura answered again. This time, a note of exhaustion entered her voice, a fact Adrian didn't fail to notice.
Raising an eyebrow, she leaned forward. "Hey, what's wrong? You sound weird."
Ignoring her, the shinobi continued signing. "I am fine, Assassin. Please be still; we cannot afford to be seen now."
The signs concluded, and Asakura spread her arms apart with a flourish. "HA!"
Nothing appeared to happen. Adrian looked around, but nothing had seemed to…wait. The air around the tiny boat had become heavily misty, almost solid. Hesitantly she reached out with her hand, only to snatch it backward quickly. She shivered: the air was now cold as ice. Trying not to let her unease show, she turned to the shinobi. "What was-"
"-a simple use of my wind based ninjitsu, Assassin. It has hidden us from any watching eyes." Asakura interrupted calmly. The tiredness had increased slightly. "Now, please move aside."
Something about that statement irked at Adrian's mind, but she gave in and clambered across to let Asakura get to the lifeboat's rear. Sitting down and leaning over the water, she began to make a second set of complex signs. As she did, Adrian listened to her companion's breaths, and watched as her shoulders rose and fell. She frowned.
Asakura spread her hands once more, this time producing a more concrete effect. The lifeboat pushed off gently, gliding through the quiet waters toward the so-called ghost ship…and, hopefully, Siegfried.
A minute or two after they had set off, Asakura's hard breathing came to a head, and she fell, striking her head heavily on the seat – or would have, if Adrian hadn't shoved out her hand and caught her. The masked woman lay there panting for a few moments.
"I knew it." Adrian said disgustedly, "there's no wind in this place, so you had to make your own. How much energy'd that take, huh?"
Her answer was a cool stare. "…it is not important," Asakura said at last, "this is the only method available to us."
"That's not the damn point!" Adrian shouted. "Don't you think someone else would want to know about this? I asked you to tell me everything, didn't I?"
This was enough to make Asakura look away wordlessly. With a swift jerk, Adrian tugged her face back into view. "Look at me, idiot. How are we supposed to do this if you won't tell me everything? I don't exactly like having you to watch my back, either, but can't we learn to trust each-other for a little while?"
She put out her hand. "Truce? For now, anyway?"
There came a long pause, as both women looked at each-other silently. Adrian had no idea what Birdie was thinking, but knew she felt really awkward. Assassins usually weren't very good at the whole 'friends' thing, only appearing at social events to inhume the person holding them. But although she didn't like to admit it, she probably couldn't take this entire boat by herself, if that squid was anything to go by. They'd have to…work together. And learn how to, quickly.
Behind her mask, Asakura thought too. Despite her profession, the Assassin's words were certainly correct. But was a hired killer, and a rather crude one at that, truly trust-worthy? She thought back to Siegfried's words days ago; did she truly view things in only black and white? Had her village instilled that belief within her? Was it wrong? These were thoughts that should not have been considered, should not even have been entertained…and yet, Siegfried had caused her to. She didn't know if he was right, but she now wished to find out. He had likely been the cause of that, as well.
She would follow her words to him, beginning now. Taking hold of Adri – the Assassin's hand (nothing could happen all at once), Asakura shook it. "Very well. Until we retrieve Siegfried, I will tell you everything. But," she added firmly, "you will follow every order I give. Agreed?"
Adrian raised an eyebrow, looking down slightly to see that yes, she was still supporting the other woman. "Acting like a hard-ass even in this kinda situation, eh? Reminds me of that time out on the hike with Proctor Doogle…"
Dumping Asakura back down on her seat, she nodded eagerly. "Yeah, sure; you're probably at that than I am, anyway."
Asakura blinked, taken aback. It was the first compliment the Assassin had ever given her. "…th-thank you."
"Like that's much of a compliment," Adrian said with a deprecating snort, "but you're welcome." She clapped Asakura on the back, grinning at the cry it received. "So…what's the plan?"
She listened intently to the information.
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Humming happily to herself, Elly skipped down the hallway, hopping around a pair of skeleton crewmembers coming down the other way. She waved to them. "You're doing a bang-up job, fellas! Keep up the good work!"
The skeletons didn't respond verbally, and their expressions remained static – having no muscles left made it difficult to close their mouths, let alone make them smile – but raised their hands in reply. It was really impossible not to like Elly a bit, even if you were dead. The fact that she wasn't only added to the appeal.
The peppy girl had a dinner tray in her hands, an unusual sight on a ship like this – what with the, er, 'unique' status of its crew, meals had by and large been forgotten. However, there was one member here who still appreciated his roughage, and, conveniently, enough for an entire crew.
That was the nicest possible way of describing what was on the menu, anyway. Her nose hadn't worked for a while, but the eyes were another matter, and she looked away at every opportunity.
Heading deeper into the ship, she turned a corner and rapped on the first door. "Dagon!" she called cheerfully. "Your supper is ready!"
There came a rumble from within, and the door slid open. The dim room within held not a single source of light – Dagon's species would only sleep within absolute darkness if they could help it. His truly sat lurking in the center, growling low.
Elly smiled at the giant squid without fear, despite him dwarfing her sitting down. "Huh? What's wrong, big guy?"
Dagon was silent for a moment, and then looked away…with a whimper?
She smiled radiantly. "Awwww, did those meanies hurt you, Daggy?" Setting the tray off to one side, the girl folded her legs and sat down. She extended her hand friendlily. "C'mon, what's wrong?"
The creature remained largely motionless, yet twitched slightly…letting out a whimper?
Her smile changed to one of utter dismay. "Oh no," she cried, "I didn't know they hurt you that badly!"
Looking around frantically, Elly held up her hands as much to reassure herself as Dagon. "Ju – Just hang on, big guy!: I think we still have some first aid stuff in the infirmary, well no duh we do, since we're all dead, but anyway! I'll go find some right away, so don't move!"
With that she ran off frantically. Listening to her rapidly retreating footfalls, Dagon chuckled low to himself, curling up like a dog. He had been angry at the time, certainly, but the gnats had not truly managed to harm him. His species could withstand far greater pain than they, and recover from wounds twice as fast. It was just that…well; he liked to hear the little one worry about him.
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Siegfried had only meant the admirer joke as, well, just that: a joke. He often made them in situations like these, and although people didn't usually like them, but…well, that was partially why he made them. If people got angry, they would make mistakes and trade precision for fierceness – the disadvantages of such an exchange had been drilled into him back at the academy. It had held true in his journey so far, with one notable exception he was still feeling faint twinges of.
But in terms of unsettling a foe, he had nothing on Captain Ripfang. He hoped, anyway.
"Hmmmm…" mused the skeleton aloud from his position near Siegfried's feet. Grasped in one gnarled hand was a line of measuring tape. "Lesse here…yes, yes, a pair of lovely young legs. You must take good care of yourself, lad."
"I try."
Ripfang moved upward. "Now, on to the chest…mmmm, very good…"
It went on like that for a little while; Ripfang measuring various parts of Siegfried's body and the bounty hunter trying not to sound disturbed, with increasing difficulty. Finally, he discarded the tape into his coat (evidently it was ghost tape, or something) and walked up to the young man's face. He had already seen it once before, but that didn't stop him from squinting hard.
"As for the face: smooth complexion, sharp eyes, snappy accessorizing. Ah, and of course, some fine hair."
"Black," Siegfried said all of a sudden, "in case you were wondering."
For the first time, Ripfang's grave features contorted in surprise. "Huh?"
"My hair color," he explained, "I'm a natural black. That isn't a problem, is it?"
The great pirate looked uncertain. "Er…no, no, not at all," he straightened up, "I used to have a fine mane o' hair meself back in the day. Well, before me, y'know."
Siegfried shrugged sympathetically. "At least it's more interesting than going bald."
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"…and that's why they never gave the senior students metal utensils for dinner on chilli night ever again."
Asakura leaned back, aware that the story was finished but not quite sure how to reply to it. To pass the time while their boat glided across to the ghost ship, the two women had decided to swap tales from their training. She had recollected a training session between her, several other genin, (the Assassin had asked her if she needed a cough drop) and their jonin teacher.
The Assassin had then countered with…well, recounting the tale even second-hand wasn't a task she would greatly desire, but it too had been about training, in a way. Merely managing to survive more than a week within the GLAA's academy was far more concrete training than anything the proctors had to pass on.
"Course," Adrian added, looking up at the sky, "in a way, both our schools were a helluva lot tougher than the other."
This made Asakura raise an eyebrow. "How so?"
Adrian frowned. The curt tone put a hole in her idea before it was even out. "Well, just speaking of guys back at the academy, most people don't exactly become assassins to please people, y'know?" Her voice was slightly sardonic.
"That does not surprise me very much." Asakura said calmly.
"Yeah, whatever," her companion snorted, "but that's not the case with you, is it?" She looked into the shinobi's eyes. "The way you talk about it, it seems like a lot of what you guys do involves kissing the asses of people higher up the ladder, or playing hot potato with people on the same rung. Don't get me wrong, it kinda worked the same way at the academy…but not with teams quite so big."
Asakura's hand slowly tightened on the boat's railing. "Personal glory has nothing to do with it. We shinobi have a mission."
"I didn't say that was all of it," Adrian added generously, "only part. And, eh, I wouldn't really call it personal: if everything you guys do gets glory for your family, you alone don't get any credit at all, right?"
Her face grew ponderous. "But, man, anyone who did think that was all there was to it would be pretty messed up…"
"…yes." Asakura's voice was barely a whisper.
From out of the corner of one eye, Adrian watched her for a few moments, and then clapped her hands together loudly. "Anyway! It pretty much goes without saying why my school was tough."
"I am sure you will anyway." the shinobi replied, though less coldly than she would have before.
Adrian chuckled. "Yeah, whatever. I'll just prove you right, then. According to you, all you shinobis have families – even if they're small, you'll always have someone willing to watch your back."
This time, it was her turn to look away. "It didn't work like that at the academy. In there, parents were more myth than, hell, even One Piece. Nearly everybody there was an orphan."
"Including you." Asakura said, her mask showing nothing.
"Yep," she nodded back freely, "never even knew who they were. Don't bother crying or anything; it's not that big a deal."
Adrian then snorted. "Actually, according to our proctors, that's part of the reason why we graduated at all. The loss and flying solo made us tougher or something. Nice -ing compliment, huh? He was right, too, which pissed me off good for a while."
Asakura propped her head up on one hand. "You think that no-one else can understand loneliness?"
"I didn't say-!" the other woman outburst.
"You did." Asakura stated calmly. "I could sense it – because I often feel the same way. Normal Shinobi are assigned to teams of three, but we of the hunter class are solitary because of our duties. We fight alone, and, oftentimes, die alone." She paused. "Just like you assassins." They both fell silent for a moment that seemed longer than it was.
At last, Adrian nodded. "Yeah, I guess." She frowned. "So if that's true, then why are we hanging around this dude?"
"In my case? To find out why I am." Asakura said, cracking a rare smile beneath her mask. "Is it the same for you? You seem very interested in him."
The assassin shrugged, trying not to act like she had noticed the gesture. "Well, yeah: I like meeting tough people in my line of work – or at least ones who can manage to lay a hand on me - but Siegfried's something else. It doesn't matter what situation he's in or what he's up against; he always thinks he'll come up smelling like roses. Hell, he's probably even making some scheme right now." She smiled back. "Maybe I just want to see how far a guy like that can go. Maybe you do, too?"
"…perhaps." Asakura said after a pause, voice laden with reluctance. She wasn't used to discussing such personal matters, and it plainly showed.
Chuckling, Adrian reached over and clapped her on the shoulder hard, taking some pleasure in the resulting flinch. "But he's not gonna go any further without us around, eh? Probably waiting for his favorite Birdie to come rescue him right now."
Asakura stared at her, blinking. She looked over her shoulder. "We are here, Assassin."
"…darn." Adrian grumbled. "Thought I had something there."
Indeed, the tiny boat had thumped silently against the ghost ship's starboard side. No-one on deck appeared to have noticed, and things were quiet.
"Well, now what?" Adrian asked.
To her surprise, Asakura simply shrugged. "We must make an entrance." She waved a hand at the decrepit wood.
The Black Cat's lips curled back slowly, showing off all her teeth. "That's an order I can follow." Pushing past the shinobi, she cracked her knuckles and drew back one fist.
"Quietly." Asakura added.
The other women froze mid-swing, hung there for a moment, and then drooped. "You're not very nice."
"Your finger technique should be able to cut through it neatly." the masked woman said, sitting back down.
"Yeah, I think I know what my own moves can do, thanks." Adrian muttered, sizing up a decent spot. "Not if anyone asked you though, I'm sure."
Asakura didn't answer. She watched as the assassin gingerly inserted her forefinger into the wood a few inches above her head – the substance bending like it were taffy – and began to trace a human-sized circle into it. Just before the end, she withdrew her hand and punched forward with the other…veeeeery lightly. With a slight thump, the wood circle snapped off and fell inside, leaving an easy doorway into the ship.
They waited for a moment with baited breath, but no sentries looked over the side, and there was no movement from within. Flashing a thumbs-up to Asakura, she swung herself easily inside.
"Better hope you really are ghosts already, boys – The Black Cat's arrived!"
Her erstwhile companion sighed. "Quietly, I said."
"Yeah, I heard you. You coming?"
Sighing, Asakura followed. This surely would take getting used to.
"Please hang on, Siegfried. We are coming."
To be continued…
Next time, on Bounty Seven…
Dagon: *indecipherable roar*
Elly: You girls are totally, perfectly doomed! One hundred percent!
Asakura/Adrian: Get out of our way!
Ghost Ship, Part 3
Ripfang: Ye want to know that badly, lad? Very well, listen closely…
Thepirateprophet44 – Oh…oops. Thanks anyway, I guess, eheh heh…
OPFAN – Oh, it's not damaged so much it can't run anymore, don't worry. Thanks for the review.
Lord Gambit508 – Well, good to see you've made the adjustments to fix that. And, uh, wow: I half expected there to be, but seeing it confirmed is still a bit shocking. Anyway, thanks for the review, and keep an eye out.
Hopefully I'll be able to finish this arc up in time for All Hallows Eve, schedule willing – I'm in college now, after all. Until next chapter, see you, readers.