"Dammit, aren't they out of ammo for that thing by now?"
"I think they brought enough to level every building on this island…John's leg isn't looking too good, guys."
Another seaman looked to the one who'd spoken. "Yeah, so what are we supposed to do? One of us sticks his head out the door and-"
A shot from the mortar blew another hole in the ceiling: they all shrunk away from the splinters. The rest of the pirate crew had set it up before they'd arrived in pursuit, and they'd had to either run into this deserted shop or be blown to kingdom come. And of course this had to be the only place on the island without a back door…
"Think they know he's wounded? If they ask for surrender, what are we going to do?"
"…I don't know."
It was then the marines realized the street outside had gone silent, and not simply the pause between cannon blasts. They were curious, but none of them were going to go check. Then a loud clunk came as something smashed into the cobbles outside, followed by a quick cry of pain.
One of them got up the nerve and crept to the door, only to shrink back when it slammed open. They flinched, but quickly relaxed when they saw:
"Vice-captain!"
Ryoga nodded to them all. "Are you all right? I'm sorry I couldn't get here in time, the rest of them…" he trailed off as he noticed the wounded seaman. "We'll have to get that checked out, and quick."
He hadn't arrived by himself, and a stretcher was quickly prepared. One of the marines breathed a sigh of relief as John was carted away. "Thank you, sir. If you hadn't arrived when you did, things might have-"
The martial artist held up a hand. "There's no need to thank me. That's my duty as a marine, after all."
One Piece: The Skull Pirates
Chapter Twenty-Five: Arise! Ahab's Ambition and the Ocean Palace!
"This has got to stop."
Those five words had been swirling around the inside of Michaels' head for quite some time now, probably ever since he first picked up Ahab, and he couldn't ignore them any longer. The bastard had practically turned him into his own sockpuppet now, and he hadn't realized what that meant until the girl was on his ship, his deck, crying her eyes out. Was that what he had wanted to do? He couldn't remember what he'd thought back then.
What he was thinking about now was the pirate's ship, creeping closer and closer thanks to the hit they'd taken a few minutes ago. Then he turned to look at his crew, running to and fro on orders that weren't his. He'd hired a lot of them personally, and most had been on his crew for years. A few of them had families, but most were just getting some bucks in a job they knew would take pretty much anyone. These guys weren't fighters, whatever you might think about the business, and if it came to blows he knew which crew was going to be the one getting hurt.
Surrendering was definitely off the table at this point, and even if it wasn't he knew how Ahab would react to that. But he'd decided one thing a little while ago: if the guy wanted to act like this was his ship now, it was only fair he go right down with it, wasn't it?
"Michaels!" the creep shouted from the deck below. Snarling, he stomped down the stairs.
0
Michaels wasn't the only one staring at the other vessel. Jack stared straight ahead, hands gripping the wooden railing intently. Even without the storm starting up he barely heard the sound of Gerald approaching.
"So, Jack. Everything seems to be in order on the ship, and we'll be there in just a few minutes. With that in mind, I don't suppose you'd care to share your plan for this battle? If that's quite alright, anyway."
Jack waved a hand vaguely. "The biggest problem is that damn whistle, yeah? I figure me and Drake'll bum rush him first thing, try to get it away from him-"
"Um, Jack?"
"-while you guys handle the rest. I dunno about you, but they sure didn't look like-"
"Jack!" Gerald turned the captain toward him forcibly. "Forgive me if you're aware, but I feel I should mention that Drake isn't anywhere to be seen at the moment. If you think that's something to be worried about."
The skull pirate shrugged. "He'll be around. He's not the kind of guy who would run from a fight."
Gerald started to say that there might be another reason why he wasn't around at the moment, but shook his head. "You know, I don't mean any offense by this, but I think you're both a bit short-sighted, doing all this because of one girl."
He didn't flinch at the hard look Jack gave him. "I'm not saying it's right that this happened to her, of course, but think: depending on how strong the mystic mumbo-jumbo we're dealing with is, this entire stretch of sea could be in danger. I've doing this with my home island to think of, not one lone girl."
Jack stared back. "Huh. Didn't expect something that deep from you, Gerald. Good point."
The first mate looked surprised himself for a moment. "Well…I can have a moment now and again, can't it?"
"Just don't act like you're not doing it to shove something up that guy's blowhole too, huh?"
"Surely that goes without saying?"
0
Drake slowly opened his eyes, a heavy pain in his back searing at him instantly. The blow had been carefully aimed, meant to paralyze rather than kill him out-right; a cruel mercy in these waters. But he had been underestimated, leaving it merely excruciating. Or at least it should have been, but just as quickly as the sensation came it faded to a dull throb. Replacing it came the sensation of movement, even though he hadn't twitched a muscle in any of his limbs.
He saw something in his peripheral vision, and looked down gingerly. A sleek black surface was what he beheld, and near his legs, a flat tail. The fishman frowned. Size aside, the only reason he could think of for a manta ray to be here was-
That is the second time he has proven to be more than he seems. Ketos' voice came from around him. She is in his clutches now.
"Tell it to leave." Drake grunted. "I've already said I'm not interested in your help."
Ketos made a sound of half-curiosity, half-annoyance. I see why you are on that pirate's crew – you and he are very similar. But I have already released him and the rest of your companions. There should be nothing left between us.
"I wouldn't go to you for help even if you hadn't laid a finger on them." he retorted with hard eyes. "You gave Emelia your help, and look what became of her."
The all-present voice paused. I do not know what you-
"You know damn well what I mean." Drake replied. "You saved her from drowning, but afterward you didn't help her at all. You did everything you could to make sure she wouldn't even think of leaving. You were more concerned about not being alone than making sure she was back where she belonged. "
He snarled, showing off his many teeth. "And the worst part of all is she still wanted to help you. I suppose she's still grateful – but from my point of view you don't deserve a bit of it. I don't care if we're both 'from the sea', I'm not accepting the help of someone like you. I'll show her people can stand on their own two feet. And swim on them, too."
Drake kicked off from the manta ray's back, sending the creature off-course as he swam away. Even with that, though, it was still far more graceful than him at the moment. But that didn't matter: as long as he could still move this wasn't over.
0
"Well?" Ahab stamped his foot on the deck, the gesture looking ridiculous from someone like him. But Michaels' patience had been a bit too stretched to really appreciate it. "You still haven't told me what the damn problem is? This tub runs on an engine, so just…shovel more coal onto it or something!"
The whaler took a great deal of pleasure in the look he gave Ahab then; a few crewmembers close enough to hear (so, quite a few) indulged themselves as well. "A steam engine, Ahab. If you'd like to go down there and try to shovel some of that into it, go ahead. We can increase the ship's output, but not after we've taken on water. Unless you have a big problem with us staying afloat, anyway."
That comment earned him a hook in front of his face, vibrating menacingly. "So the whaler's getting big for his britches now, then?" said Ahab, spitting. "I'd be a bit more worried if I were you, Michaels: if they catch up to us it's not going to just be my ass in the fire. You know that, don't you?"
Sometimes Ahab could be unsettlingly perceptive. But there were some things he didn't have to take. "If you want that ship out of the way so damn badly, why not get them to do something about it?" he pointed to the fishmen, still milling about the deck aimlessly. "All they're doing is getting in the way anyway!"
His first thought was that that had been a big mistake, but after a few seconds Ahab's face spread in a grin. This was worse in a lot of ways. "A fine idea, Michaels. I'm a little shocked." Gripping the whistle, he turned and blew into it fiercely. They all stood to attention.
"See that?" Ahab pointed to the Flying Skull. "I want it gone."
Quick as a flash, six of the fishmen dropped off the side of the boat and were gone, leaving about half their number remaining. He grinned. Devil Fruits or no Devil Fruits, he'd like to see someone fight off that many of them and keep a ship afloat. Of course, in this weather, there was always the chance they wouldn't be coming back…oh well. He was so close to his prize, and so close to payback, with a nice bonus besides. Losing a few grunts was a small price to pay.
Snapping his fingers, he watched as one of the remaining fishmen spread open the map, and grinned. Michaels watched for a moment and walked off, glad to be out of his attention for the time being.
0
On the opposite deck, Jack found himself happily free of any worries currently plaguing Michaels. He'd made it onto that steamship before and gotten off in one piece. Maybe by coincidence, sure, but he'd still done it. Having thre – four buddies along with him would just make things easier. But to tell the truth, he was thinking about something else. "Hey, blowhole."
Yes? Ketos seemed to have figured out it was pointless trying to fight that.
"I get that we're supposed to get that girl back, but what do these guys want with her? I've seen a lot of guys with big plans before, and Ahab's definitely one of them."
The whale paused for a moment, leaving only the sound of the waves and growing storm. When he spoke again, it was resignedly. Very well. When humans still lived in this land, before I revealed myself to them they had constructed a…temple, I suppose you would call it, in the center of all three islands. I assisted them in its development afterward, and it became a home for many creatures of the sea.
"Hippie stuff, okay. Sounds like there's more to it than that, though."
You are correct. Using the temple, a representative of mine could call me to there from wherever I was in West Blue. However, it is not only myself that it could summon. I am sure you have seen others of my species quite often in this sea.
That told Jack all he needed to know. "Shit. I knew you were big, but I didn't think you were a Fortress Whale. That's not good. Not good at all."
No, it is not. Ketos sighed. In truth, Emelia had been saying I should demolish it for good. If only I had listened to her…but destroying it seemed wrong, somehow, even with all the memories still within it.
"I can understand that." a quiet voice said. Jack turned to see Mary tying a rope tight near the railing. "You don't want to be reminded of what it represents, but it's become too much a part of you to just throw away. Everyone has something like that, I think."
Jack slipped a hand inside his coat, feeling the pendant around his neck. "Yeah. Yeah, that's true." Even Ketos fell silent at that.
But not for long. Steel yourselves. Something approach-
A splash struck up from the water nearby, and a clammy hand snatched at Mary from within the spray. Grabbing her around the arm, the fishman pulled her up against the railing. The waves rolled below, a certain death sentence for any devil fruit user.
As Jack left the wheel and ran to help her, a shriek pierced the air, but it wasn't Mary's. He'd read somewhere that a lot of them had more sensitive skin that a human, so it probably sucked even more to get a handful of thorns for your trouble. The swordfish's grip loosened as it flinched, giving the dancer all the purchase she needed. Grabbing his arm with her own (applying a second helping of thorns as a bonus) she braced one leg against the railing, ducked to dodge the headbutt, and threw him over her shoulders as strong as she could.
It wasn't a particularly hard throw, but it put the fishman airborne, just as Jack leaped. With a loud crack the boarder flew the other way, nose bent at a nasty looking angle. As coincidence happened, Frank and Gerald were running from the same way, and they quickly ducked. The three fishmen landed in a heap.
Three more boarders quickly left the water, but by then the Skull Pirates had arranged themselves into a tight circle. The fishmen circled around them slowly, but none of them made a move to come closer.
"Well, come on then!" Gerald cried, waving a pole he'd picked up at one. "What the devil are you waiting for?"
The deck rolled beneath them, nearly throwing everyone besides Frank off their feet. "That's why?" Jack growled, pointing to the spinning wheel of the ship. "I guess their instincts are still mostly there; there's no reason to fight us at all if they can just have the ship tip over."
He took a step toward the wheel, and cursed as one of the fishman crossed his path, swiping at the air between them. "Okay, screw this. If I'm gonna go down on my own ship – shut up, Gerald-"
"I wasn't going to say anything, I assure you."
"-then it's gonna be going down fighting. Any objections?"
Frank gripped his sword tightly. Mary tapped her foot on the deck. Gerald…shrugged. "It's not like there's much choice about it, is there?"
Mary gestured to the fishmen, who had grown cautious. "Well, there's one for them. Either run now when they have the chance," she smiled, "or don't."
Jack cracked his knuckles, the noise audible even in this storm. A hurricane might not have drowned it out. "It's always nice to have choices, isn't it?" It was almost a relief: you didn't need to worry about what happened to you in a fight if you were doomed either way, right?
The fishmen expected a charge, but what they probably didn't was the smoke bomb Frank dropped a moment before. Of course, the wind and the rain meant it wasn't a cover for very long, but by then the pirates were already upon them.
Mary, probably not by coincidence, went for the one who had tried to drag her overboard moments ago – just as it was heading for Jack. It struck out at her, but she twirled aside from the clumsy slash, wrapped her transformed leg around its own, and tugged. The back of its head hit the deck hard, and it was dazed just long enough for her to release him, extend thorns from her foot, and stamp it down onto one of its knees.
Nearby, Frank winced at the snapping noise. The first fishmen he had run into (or maybe the other way around) had two fins on its arms that seemed as sharp as blades. Good; he was the only one truly equipped to deal with 'swords', and the only one wearing any kind of armor at that. It had two blades to his one, but that didn't matter much with the way it was swinging them. They were clumsy, choppy blows, and it didn't use the advantage it had.
The shinobi couldn't tell whether that was just ignorance of it having one now, or it not really caring given the circumstances. If it was the latter, there was some ground to it: even if they were unskilled, the attacks were ferocious enough he couldn't counter-attack, and on top of that he was getting pushed back across the deck as well. That would be bad enough fighting a fishman ordinarily, but given the current terrain…
His expert shinobi analysis came to a close when, parrying another hit, he ran up against something quite solid. He turned and gulped deeply as he took in the massive fishman he had backed into. Almost ponderously it raised a club-like fist…and then flinched ever-so-slightly as Gerald broke the rod over its head. Or upper back, really, but that was splitting hairs. In any case it was enough for the giant (well, gianter) to notice, and it turned.
Fortunately, Frank's opponent chose then to strike once more. A quick side-step, grab, and shove later, and the larger one had something a bit worse to tae notice of. Clutching at the side the razor-sharp fin was now imbedded in, the large fishman bellowed and swung its fist at the nearest thing around. By this time, that didn't include Frank. From safely behind the giant and out of its immediate concern he watched as the other hit the deck, ripping its fin free in the process. Suffice to say, that didn't help the wound very much.
Gerald watched as Frank drew a kunai from his pouch, sizing up the fishman's legs with a calculating mask hole. He considered looking away a moment too late, and winced as the unfortunate boarder was hobbled "Right. Make sure never to get on his bad side, Gerald. Assuming he has one."
Jack, naturally, went straight for the wheel: he could worry about subtlety when they weren't a couple waves away from getting capsized. As the deck rolled beneath him again the three remaining fishmen leaped in front of him. He licked his lips. "Three of you against me by my lonesome? Happy hunting then, fellas."
The first punch went right for his head – made sense, not like he had many other targets now. It was so obvious, in fact, that he saw it coming a mile away. The blow sailed through thin air as he quickly hoisted his head off his shoulders, leaping into the air as he did to avoid a charge from the second brute. "You guys don't know how to fight dirty, do you? That's bad news, on a pirate's ship!"
Slamming himself down in a headbutt that sent it sprawling, Jack popped his head back in and landed, just as the third, slime covered one made a move. He took a half-step to the side, intending on a feint, when a sucking noise came from the fishman's throat and it spat. The next thing Jack knew a slimy, brown blindfold of mucus had squelched into his eyes. "D-dammit! Didn't I have enough of this crap with Helsing?"
The reference, like most things now, went over the fishman's head. It half charged, half slithered toward him, opening its mouth wide. Jack threw a punch, but it was like trying to hit a mud puddle; his fist slid right off, leaving his arm the perfect target to sink its teeth into.
He'd never actually been bit by a fishman before, probably because he rarely saw any of them in bars (or outside bars just after they'd closed). Getting that from someone actually trying to take a chunk out of you would be bad enough already, but this guy's jaws had far bigger consequences than an embarrassing mark or two. They locked over his arm on both sides, producing not just blood but terrible pressure too. It almost felt like it could have his arm off if this went on much longer.
Quickly he smashed his fist over the back of its head and…um. Ow. Guess punching him deeper into the bite wasn't exactly a stroke of genius. He swung out with a kick this time, putting his full weight behind it; a lot more than it looked thanks to his devil fruit. The fishman hit the deck hard, pinned by Jack's knees, and received a swift punch to the neck. That made it gag, and he swiftly drew his arm back. "Nice try, punk."
The wheel was just a step or two away. He made a leap for it-
-and grunted as the two other fishmen bore down on him from behind, grabbing at his shoulders and arms. "Damn it! You guys are pissing me-"
His head snapped back as the muddy one decked him right in the nose. Harder skin or no, it busted him right open. Jack struggled as blood came down from his nose, while the fishman leaned back for another punch. But now they actually had a good grip on him, he saw just how strong the madfish were. He could barely budge an inch or two, let alone get free.
Captains were the heart of any good pirate crew, and it was unfortunately pretty fitting that everything started going wrong right then.
Mary gasped as her opponent's hand snaked out, grabbing hold of her leg and twisting it sharply. She was quick enough to transform it beforehand, lessening the damage, but the fishmen didn't seem to notice or care. It tightened its grip and threw her to the side, right into the railing. Her head came up against it hard, and she clutched it, stunned.
The sight of this in the corner of his eye made Frank falter in bringing his sword down. "M-mary-san!" Not a good time at all to be distracted, a fact he found out in the next instant as one of the downed fishmen shot up like a jack-in-the-box, wrapping one hand right around the sword like it was a blunt tooth-pick. Using it as leverage, blade or no blade, it got to its feet with frightening speed, hitting the shinobi in his stomach and disarming him.
Gerald started forward, not quite sure what he was going to do, but sure he would do it hard, when a pair of massive hands wrapped right around his throat. Apparently the giant had been hurt more by the rod than it looked. A feather in his cap, ha ha…ha…
Jack struggled quicker, more frantically, but it was nothing doing. He couldn't even separate, and even if he did there was no way he was fast enough to stop what would happen in the next few seconds. "It's been what, maybe a month? Didn't think it would end that quickly. But hey," he thought ruefully, "not like it's the first time something like this has ended too fast, is it? Sorry, Ketos."
No. Not yet.
The water rose on one end of the boat. And by 'rise', he meant it as literally as possible; a pillar of water rose almost vertically from the sea, with Drake at the end of it.
He fell on the fishman choking Gerald just a moment or so before the actual droplets rained across the deck. It looked up, but far too slow. "Dolphin Bucear!"
He hit home like a missile, breaking the brute's hold on the first mate; he flopped to the deck, clutching at his neck and breathing hard. The fishman would have flown back ordinarily, but Drake quickly grabbed a hold of it, hoisted it up and threw it across the deck. It smashed into the two holding Jack, knocking them aside. Not too quick on the uptake, the third went for another punch just in time for it to be grabbed and squeezed.
"Now, where were we?"
The one attacking Frank had tossed his katana right near Gerald, as it so happened. Drake snatched it up, hurling it like an arrow right into its shoulder. It shuddered and let out a roar of pain, brushing the blade loose – and right into Frank's grasp. What happened then was probably pretty obvious.
That just left – Drake turned to see the final one lift a struggling Mary up high, aiming to throw her right over. It wouldn't be a sure death now that he was here, but he wasn't going to let it happen, regardless. She caught the gesture he gave her, and went limp. "Shark MORDER!"
The punch hit the fishman right in the back of the head, sending both him and his captive spilling toward the sea. As she passed the railing, though, Mary slung out her arm in vine-form, catching hold and swinging back onto the deck. When her feet touched solid deck, she let out a heavy sigh of relief. It wasn't quite as lucky, falling into the water with a splash.
Frank swung his sword, driving his wounded attacker to the center of the deck. Jack gave his one last punch and kicked it that way, where the other three were also backing away to. They looked from the skull pirate to the ninja, to the flower girl tapping one foot on the deck (something about nearly drowning twice tended to kill your mood), and finally to Drake.
Then, as one, they all ran, leaping off into the water.
"Yeah, that's right, you better…" Jack paused to wipe a glob of blood off his nose. "Run! Hah, that's what you get when you try to ambush the Skull Pirates, right guys?"
"Almost kill us all, and lose by pure luck?" Mary asked. "That sounds about right. Very glad you could join us, Drake." She clapped him on the shoulder, and blinked as he flinched with a grunt of pain.
The fishman eyed the looks of concern this got, and shook his head. "It's nothing to worry about. Something just caught me off-guard, that's all. I'll be fine." He shifted his feet as the deck rolled again. "Jack?"
"Oh yeah, right." Jack hurried to the wheel, correcting their course quickly as best he could. The other members quickly got back to what they were doing, bruises or no. Even if they were still alive the attack had battered them good, a victory he was unhappy to admit. It was the perfect attack for someone like Ahab, he thought, fingers tightening on the wooden spokes. If he lost one, ten, or even a hundred of his men, as long as that creep got what he wanted he probably wouldn't think about it for a second.
Thinking about it was making him way angrier than he thought he could be about such a waste of sailing space. But it was also making him look forward to when they were face to face again. That would be a whole barrel of laughs.
"You know, not to stereotype, but I'm starting to think showing up just in time is a thing for you guys." Jack commented as Drake walked up from behind. "Gerald thought you were dead. Funny, right? Shows how much Gerald knows."
"Well, I think I did crack a nail or two down there." Drake replied. "…that was a joke."
Jack snickered. "Heh. You're about as good at telling jokes as you are at lying." He nodded to one of the shark's giant arms. "Couldn't help but notice you're favoring that one. Both a little, actually."
Drake looked uncomfortable, but nodded. "When I was chasing after the ship, trying to slow it down, that angler fishman attacked me. I didn't expect him to know how to fight. It's probably safe to say he's not involved with them reluctantly."
"False friend, huh." Jack said calmly. "That's the kind of thing that can really get under a guy's skin, if he still has it. But I guess you'll be wanting him all to yourself, eh?"
"Of course." The helmsman said, and cracked his knuckles.
Jack made another turn, staring at the steamship. It was close now. "You think you'll be alright there? If he's the one who hit you, he'll probably know you've got at least one bum arm. I know all about the honor of men and whatnot, but you just joined. Sending you to Davy Jones would be a bit of a downer."
"I might not have much of a choice in the matter." Drake replied with a frown. "I'm sure he'll try to take the battle underwater the first chance he gets. You won't be able to help me there." He clapped a hand on Jack's shoulder. "But I'll keep that in mind. Thank you."
The captain grinned. "Anytime."
0
"Just a little longer, you grunts! In an hour or two you'll all be very rich men!"
This statement didn't hold quite as much water as Ahab had hoped. He gave a steely-eyed glare to one crewmate that raised his finger just a second too long. It was troubling, really. Not, Ahab added to himself quickly, that he was worried any of them could lay a finger on him, or would even try considering the example of bravery they had for a leader. But it was enough to make you depressed, it really was. He was offering them a piece of a pie big enough to last a life time, and they just didn't care. It was almost enough to make you weep, it really was.
Bah. Not like it mattered much either way. To get what he came here for, he'd give up a mountain's worth of Berries. And if a bunch of meddling bleeding-hearts found their way underneath that mountain, well, he wouldn't be losing many winks over it.
Ahab smiled as the sound of splashing came from behind him. "Ah, back so soon?" he asked, turning. "I barely heard any-"
He saw the ship, still standing, before the fishmen, all wounded. Then he stood still in the deck, quiet. Surprising, maybe, but volcanoes could be pretty quiet too.
"WHAT HAPPENED!?" he roared, face going red. "I TOLD YOU TO SINK THAT SHIP, NOT COME BACK WITH YOUR GILLS BETWEEN YOUR LEAGUES!"
The storm was a whisper by comparison. Some of the whalers stopped to stare, and the rest couldn't help take notice. The only who didn't seem to care who could was Johnny, currently sitting up against the galley wall picking his teeth.
Naturally, the fishmen were silent. They couldn't be anything else. That fact appeared to have slipped Ahab's mind, though. "Well?" he said, not yelling, but somehow just as loud.
The answer he got probably wasn't the one he wanted: the wound of the one who'd been cut by Frank dripping onto the deck.
Michaels knew what was going to happen one second before it did, a realization that stretched it out to an agonizing eternity. It took just a moment in reality. Ahab raised his blunderbuss, fired, and the fishmen went toppling over the side like a rag doll. The deck got a bit messier then.
"Gonna be bad, Michaels. Real bad." He looked down to see Spider had materialized next to him.
He shrugged. "Well, of course it's going to. You have an idea or two instead of stating the obvious?"
Spider shrugged back, a complicated gesture for her. "Could surrender. Some pirates leave their prey alive. If they're useful."
"Kinda doubt I'd be anyone's type." Michaels replied. Then again, they did only have the one girl… "You either." He reached up to tap the sickles hung across his back. "How do you feel about our odds?"
"Worse than plankton at lunch hour."
"So the usual, then."
The pirate ship had nearly overtaken them, and tension across the deck had thickened to a gumbo. Crewmen were picking up harpoons and hooks and weighing them in their hands. They'd had a few scuffles on this ship before, with pirates or marines they couldn't out-run, but it had mostly been strength in numbers that had let them get through it safely. Here, no way.
Ahab growled, and piped at his whistle. The fishmen stood to attention, and he snatched up Emelia from the one holding her, shoving the girl toward Johnny. "Take the brat. Don't let any of them lay a hand on her, understand? Otherwise I'll be very upset."
"Sure, sure. Me and Emmy will be fine, right?" He patted her on the head roughly. She said nothing.
0
"Take the wheel, Gerald!" Jack said, and ran to the side, just as the The Flying Skull caught up with the steamship. He couldn't see the whaler's faces behind their masks, but he could tell surprise when he saw it. "So much for your fancy steamship, huh boys? Time to pay the piper."
He leaped, snatching hold of a rope and using it to swing across the gap. Landing, he grinned all around. "Hey, I'm back. Still haven't cleaned the place up I-"
"PULVERIZE HIM, BOYS!" Ahab roared, jabbing his hook forward at the pirate.
Jack stared as the entire group of fishmen all charged him at once. "What, not even gonna let me finish the lame joke?"
He took a step back, waiting for – yep, a couple of them jumped. And hey, fair enough. They probably hadn't seen him do this!
Ahab let out a string of curses as the jumpers sailed right through Jack when he split apart, going right over the railing. One even went far enough to smack into the galleon's side before dropping.
Coming together, Jack gave a clap. "Yep, I can see Ahab hires nothing but the best of the-"
"You know, where I come from people don't interrupt each-other." he said to the whaler who'd been brave enough to swing a harpoon at him. "It's kinda rude." Jerking the weapon out of his hands, he broke it in two with a quick squeeze.
He watched as the crewmates' collective gaze wavered between him and Ahab's fishmen, which were lining up again, and then to Frank, Mary, but especially Drake as they all made the leap as well.
"So," Jack began pleasantly, "I'm sure you're all aware, but just to make it clear, you're fighting pirates right now. Anyone not brave enough to deal with that should go hide, but just remember: this is getting settled now, one way or another. Understand?"
A few of them stayed where they were, but most started edging away, trying to avoid catching Ahab's gaze. "So that's how it's gonna be? Fi-"
A flicker of movement caught his eye, and he rolled just as the tip of one of Michaels' tonfas hit the metal deck behind him. This put him about halfway between the head whaler and his own crew, with the fishmen in-between.
Michaels' eyes had gone from depressed to wide awake, and he held the two weapons tight in his hands. He withdrew the one he'd just used, and Jack couldn't help noticing the metal there was now cracked. "'Getting settled', eh? Should I take that as a threat, Mr. Pirate?"
Jack smiled back. "Depends on what you want it to be – Mr. Whaler."
His gaze didn't flinch. "Okay, then." He turned to look at his crew. "All of you, below deck. Me and Spider will take care of this, you just keep the ship afloat, got it?"
The skull pirate was almost disappointed how little a poker face they collectively had. A few lingered, but most took the opportunity and ran with it, literally.
"Michaels…" Ahab growled.
The Tusk turned straight toward him. "Shove it." he growled. "I don't care what you think, Ahab, you're not the man in charge on this ship." He twirled his tonfas. "And anyone messing with my boys on it is going to take a short walk off. Do you want that to mean you, or them?"
Jack whistled. During the pause, he turned his head slightly to regard Johnny sitting nearby, Emelia within arm's reach. The angler waved back, making his blood somehow boil more. "Well, that's going to be a problem."
"You…" The cyborg stared at Michaels, jaw shaking rapidly. "ARGH!" He raised his cannon and fired one shot toward Jack.
From there the fight resumed pretty much as you'd expect. Jack went for Ahab, dodging the shot as he charged. The fishmen and Michaels in turn went for him, them because they hadn't been told otherwise, and him for a quick end to this shit.
Ahab realized the mistake he'd made about a second before the rest of the Skull Pirates careened into the back of his fishmen, vines, sword and fists flying. One got through, but that was just what Jack had expected. Sidestepping the inevitable swing, he grabbed it by the arm and threw it behind him – right into one of Michaels' tonfas. There was a nasty crack and it fell, for the moment.
"Ahab! Get your ass over here, landlubber!" Jack yelled, closing the distance. Another shot whizzed past, discouraging the whaler from following just yet.
Meanwhile, punching one of the fishmen in the gut, Drake threw it to the ground, starting forward with only one person on his mind. "Johnny."
The angler was already on his feet, however, holding Emelia in the crook of one arm. "Oh, heya, Drake. Back treating you alright, heh heh?" He tapped her on the nose. "Seems like you picked up a few stupid habits from this bunch, but I hope making sudden movements at the guy holding a hostage wasn't one of them." He smiled. "Or is it?"
Drake didn't stop. "Do it, then. But if you think Ahab will be very understanding about throwing away his key to riches, you're not as clever as you think you are." He smiled back, humorlessly. "And then you'll have two people wanting to tear you limb from limb."
Johnny had a far better poker face than any of the whalers. His eyes barely flickered toward Ahab, and he kept his pace backward. "Oh yeah? Go right ahead, then." He abruptly shifted his grip, holding Emelia straight out ahead of him. "Assuming you can hit me and her. Can you?"
That made the sharkman halt, snarling at him over the tip of his pointed nose. He felt like calling him a coward, but what was the point of saying the obvious? Drake didn't have long to think, though, as the fishmen he'd fought off came charging back with one of its friends.
Nearby, Jack stopped to duck another shot from Ahab's gun. "You even know how to use that thing, metal mouth? Maybe you should take some lessons – after an etiquette course, that is!"
"Shut up!" Ahab cried (original guy, him), pumping the trigger. All he got was a dull clicking noise. He pressed it again, staring stupidly, before realizing what Jack had a crucial second earlier: out of ammo.
Jack hit him with something halfway between a tackle and a head-butt, right in his chest. Already feeling a lump rise from the impact, he bore Ahab to the ground. How much of the guy was metal now, anyway? He pulled back a fist. "Better hand over that whistle if you don't want me to feed it to you."
The blood-shot eyes narrowed. "You think I'm going to take orders from some worthless pirate!? I'm going to-"
The pirate's fist slammed across his jaw. "Shut up already, damn." Jack muttered, and made a grab for the whistle. Ahab grunted and kicked out with his peg leg.
Getting hit with bits of chairs was almost a rite of passage where he'd grown up, and ordinarily this would have rolled off him like water on a duck. But even a sharpened one wouldn't have bit into his leg like it just did. He looked down to see a thin, spiny blade sticking out the end of the fake limb. "You gotta be kidding me – who plans for that!?"
Ahab swung out with his hook for Jack's closest wrist, but he wasn't having any of that, snatching it midway by the blunt end. "Ha, nice-"
Metal mouth must have been pretty good at the old 'hold the bottle with your teeth' trick. He'd grabbed onto the chain of the whistle with his and pulled it up to his mouth. Jack went for another punch, this time to the lungs, but Ahab breathed out like his life depended on it (which, hey, it just might). A familiar screech rang out above the storm.
His gaze turned to look out at the crashing waves. They weren't any worse now, but it would probably only be a minute or two. Before Ahab could make another move, he shoved an elbow into his throat. "Call it off, now."
Ahab grinned back. "No." He choked.
Jack prepared for a damn good rebuttal when two of the fishmen charged in. He rolled to the side, stifling a pretty big curse: things were about to get a hell of a lot more complicated.
"Ha, ha ha…" the half-metal man laughed as the pair helped him up. "Nice try, but no catch, I'm afraid. I hope you're not that attached to your boat…but you have your own things to worry about, don't you?"
The two advanced on Jack as Ahab retrieved more ammo for his gun. He backed toward Frank and Mary, doing as well as they could against the fishmen. Johnny quickly moved near his partner, taking his eyes off Drake reluctantly. "We there yet, Ahab? This deck is getting a little crowded for my tastes."
"Like I care about your tastes." the cyborg muttered, snapping his fingers again. When the map was unfurled, he took a quick glance around the area…and smiled. "We're here."
Michaels and the 'woman' (he preferred his a bit less spider-like, personally) were fighting with the pirates, and from what he could tell not doing much other than getting in his boys' way. Did he have to do everything around here? Moving to a nearby speaker, he snatched it off the wall. "Stop the ship! NOW!"
"Good!" came the reply. "It'll give us time to fix that hole you gave us!"
He shoved it back on, memorizing the sound of that voice: he'd regret that later.
The two fighting the martial artist seemed like they were losing steam: Ahab gestured toward him, and as the other pair left to join in, turned to Emelia. "Now, miss, I'm you sure know what it is we want, don't you? You look like a bright young thing…so I'm sure I don't have to waste your time with fancy threats or anything like that. You can probably imagine enough what we'll do to you if you don't." His eyes looked into hers. "Can't you?"
Johnny pulled out her flute, and pressed it into the girl's trembling hands. Ahab tapped his hook on the blunderbuss.
Then, shutting her eyes, Emelia began to play.
It was a simple tune, and one that meant nothing to him. But things seemed different for the fishmen present. As it carried out across the deck Drake stopped mid-punch, ears perking up. The rabid fishmen followed suit, all of them suddenly halting where they stood. Even Johnny went still. Then they all turned, staring out at the empty sea.
Ahab hadn't expected this, which was a bit unfortunate. "AHAB!" Jack roared, pulling away from the two combatants still standing in a mad dash toward him.
Two things came erupting out of the sea, then: Ahab's squid-like sea king, evidently not as affected by the melody as the fishmen. But if anything living in the ocean could ignore it, Jack wasn't surprised they were it.
Looking at the thing's massive eyes, it seemed like it was the opposite, actually: they were bloodshot. An angry sea king wasn't something pleasant to behold, especially when a good chunk of had being angry as their usual mood. It bellowed, raising a thick tentacle above the Flying Skull and the steam ship.
But a thick wave made it paused as the second object came rising up: the tip of a building, made out of what seemed to be many different colors of coral. Both boats rocked as it continued rising; dangerously so as a dock appeared, with a set of stairs leading up to the building itself.
Ahab knew to get when the getting was good. Pulling Emelia out of Johnny's loosened grip, he hissed, "Keep playing," and kicked the angler's prone body in Jack's direction. With as much as he was getting out of this deal, being a diversion for a bit was only fair, really. He'd attract the shark's attention, at least. Then he ran toward the far railing, leaping off to the dock.
Kicking the tub of lard out of the way, Jack pursued, then paused as the sea king rumbled. But something odd was happening in the water underneath it, and the squid started to flail as it was slowly pulled away and under.
Hurry and go. There is no time!
"Right!" Jack shouted, leaping off the railing and hitting the dock without slowing down. He reached the stairs just as Ahab disappeared into the building.
"Just you wait, Ahab! This isn't over yet, not by a long-shot!"
To be continued…
Next time, on One Piece: The Skull Pirates…
Jack: That's what this is all about? Are you kidding me?
Johnny: Do you even get how this world works, idiot?
Gerald: From my perspective, this fight seems a bit pointless now.
Jack and Drake! Twin battles underneath the Ocean!
Ahab: You're not getting in my way…nobody is!
Smilingdamnedvillain – He is the Big Guy of the crew, so unfortunately he is going to get beaten up a lot. Like Sanji, if he were a lot more of a straight man.
So I noticed some reviews (well, from one person at least) from people wondering about me maybe focusing more on Bounty Seven than the Skull Pirates, and you know, they could be right. To address that, from now on I'm going to try getting a chapter for both of them out at the same time.