The midday sun cast an eerie red gleam across the surface of the water as the Titania cruised across the New World in search of riches and fame. The ship's captain, an infamous pirate from the West Blue, stood on the deck and stared out at the ocean as the waves crashed against her massive boat. It was a quiet day, but despite the ease clouding her mind, something was amiss.
The soft patter of booted footsteps alerted Sirena that someone approached, and turning her attention to them, her sharp eyes narrowed.
"This had better be important," she sneered.
The cabin boy paled. His breath came out hot and thick as he panted in exhaustion.
"T-there is a flagship on the horizon, ma'am. It appears to be sailing a jolly roger," he stated.
Sirena grinned; the expression did her gorgeous appearance no justice. She hadn't been in an intense naval battle in a while.
"Fetch me the spyglass," she ordered.
The cabin boy raced back into the belly of the Titania as ordered, and upon returning, his captain was facing starboard towards the ship in the distance. The helmsman stood near the wheel, awaiting orders.
He handed it to her and watched as she peered through the lens.
As stated, there was a pirate ship in the distance. Sirena made note that the flag was one she had not seen before. The skull had red hair resembling flames and wore what appeared to be square-shaped goggles on its forehead. She hummed in wonder but dismissed it.
"Gather the crew," she ordered.
The cabin boy knew they were in for a fight. Before he ran to execute her orders, his captain halted him.
"And bring me my monster," she added.
His eyes widened. Was it necessary to bring Corvina out? She was nuts. Not to mention her moods changed on a whim. He huffed, knowing there was no way to change his captain's mind. But why did he have to manage the monster? Rushing into the ship, the cabin boy heard the helmsman announce the Titania's change indirection, straight for the pirate ship.
He hurried down into the brig to the first cell and looked inside. On a cot sat a pale woman with dark hair and pointed ears. She stared at the bracelets around her wrists with uninterest, paying no mind to the cabin boy as he searched for the key to her cell.
"We're taking on a pirate ship,and Captain Sirena needs you," he mentioned.
The woman looked at him. Her red-ringed eyes held no concern for the situation. He wasn't sure how she stayed calm; he was sweating. Undoing the lock on her cell, the cabin boy tore back the door in a rush.
"Please hurr––"
A loud noise pierced the air, interrupting him, and the Titania shook; a cannonball must have struck near the ship. The woman hummed and stood up.
"And my weapon?" She asked.
The cabin boy grunted. He had forgotten about it.
"I-it's in the workshop. I'll take you to it," he suggested.
The woman nodded and followed him from the brig to the upper deck. The rotten scent of gunpowder burned her nostrils, and she grinned. Her ears made it easy for her to hear the pirates on the deck shouting and the howl of the cannonballs as they tore through the air. The cabin boy led her to the workshop, a spacious room filled with weapons and tools for various projects; her favored weapon, two scythe blades tethered together by a long chain, sat amongst them, hung on the wall like a trophy. She took them down, wound the chains around her arms, and turned her eyes to the cabin boy.
"I've been waiting for this moment," the woman said with a grin. Sirena kept her locked up for so long.
Her bloodlust was intense. The cabin boy could feel it rolling off her in waves. For a moment, he feared she might cut him down too, but she snorted and strolled past him, rushing onto the upper deck. The cabin boy stayed behind in fear and hid.
Coran hummed as she wandered out from the workroom and looked around. The Titania was tethered to the flagship by hooks, and the crew had engaged the enemy on their deck. Her keen ears twitched as she heard the sound of a war raging around her, a sound she was too familiar with. Coran crossed onto the enemy ship over the ropes and witnessed an exciting sight; her captain was in hybrid form using her Zoan type powers to slaughter the enemy.
Six long necks with a snarling head on each of them snatched at pirates, taking even her own to their deaths.
How exciting, she thought.
Sirena wasn't the type of conqueror who relied on her Devil Fruit to win battles. She was plenty strong without it. Someone must have angered her; she was bleeding profusely from wounds all over her body. But who caused them? The Terror of the Sea was no match for whoever this monster was.
A scream of pain and anger poured over the deck, and Coran watched in shock as two of Sirena's heads came off; their severed necks slumped lifeless at her waist. A tall, muscular man with bright red hair stood before her; weapons floated around him in a strange display. Was he a Devil Fruit user? She licked her lips in eagerness.
Coran raced towards the said man, leaping into the air with her blades ready to strike, but someone intercepted her and blocked them, tossing a swing at her head. She raised her leg and kicked off their stomach, landing on her feet with a grunt.
"You managed to dodge that better than most," a man wearing a white and blue striped helmet stated.
Coran tucked back her hair and pointed at her ears. "I heard you coming."
"Are you a Devil Fruit user?" He asked.
She grinned. "I am, but these are genetic."
"Shame," the pirate uttered.
He dashed at Coran and swung his arm. The blade attached to his gauntlet almost took off her head, but she slumped to her knees and barely avoided it, turning her weapon on him from behind. But she, too, missed; he was fast.
Standing up, Coran dropped slack in the chain and spun the blade, launching it at the blonde. As she expected, he turned and dodged it, but she was quick to counter as she leaped into the air and brought her weapon down, to which he blocked; his other gauntlet came up and knocked her to the side.
As she yanked the chain, the blade came back and sliced into the man. Blood leaked from the cut and stained his blue top.
"That was unexpected," the masked blonde grunted.
Coran laughed. "You haven't seen any––"
Her eyes grew wide as she watched the blades on his gauntlets begin to rotate.
What in the hell?
The pirate launched at her, and Coran did her best to block or escape his strikes, but to no avail. Her skin stung as he cut her. She didn't want to rely on her Devil Fruit, but she had no choice; his movements were too erratic for her to follow. As she activated it, her blood shaped into four long tendrils with sharp ends and struck at him; the tendrils shaped into a whirling sphere as he put distance between them.
The pirate hummed. "You manipulate blood."
Coran wasted no time on the details and used her power to launch high-speed blasts at him. The blonde ran around the deck, escaping her onslaught the best he could, but some of the shots hit him.
"Keep running," she boastfully laughed.
Halting some of the projectiles in the air, she snapped her fingers, and a volley of needles shot out, piercing everything around them, including her crew. Coran eagerly licked her lips; too bad this game had to end.
"Corvina," a voice screamed.
Coran turned and saw Sirena on her knees; the man with red hair had severed each of the six heads and stood over her, his mechanical hand raised above her head, ready to crush her. The woman's sharp eyes narrowed at her.
"Kill him," Sirena ordered.
Her sudden outburst gave the blonde pirate the opening to plunge his blade into Coran's side. She gasped in pain and fell to her knees; her power over the blood faltered, and it came raining down onto the deck. She clotted the fluid around the wound, but she was far too dizzy to stand. Perhaps she got a little carried away.
"I can't continue. I've reached my limit," Coran mentioned.
The pirate hummed.
"Do you expect pity from me?" He asked.
Coran shook her head. "I expect a quick death."
He took a look around. "Your crew has surrendered."
For sure, they had; the ones alive tossed their weapons on the deck and fell to their knees. Coran laughed.
"Line them up," she heard the red-head shout.
He must be the captain.
The blonde hummed. "Kid is feeling generous."
He grabbed Coran by the arm and jerked her onto her feet, pulling her over to the lineup where her captain was sitting. The pirate tossed her down beside Sirena and continued to round up the crew of the Titania. Around ten had managed to survive, more than she expected.
"You are useless," the woman snarled.
Coran ignored her and turned her eyes on the man with the bright hair. She was right to assume that he was the captain; he was also the monster that tore Sirena up. The said man stood in front of them, painted lips curled into a grin.
"You're all extremely fortunate," he declared. "I'm going to let you live, but under the idea that you now take orders from me."
Was he serious? Not all pirates took prisoners; the few who did were in desperate need of members.
The woman beside Coran burst into laughter.
"My pets won't take orders from you. They are mine and mine alone," Sirena argued back.
Kid aimed a flintlock at her. "I didn't ask."
"I am a captain; a conqu––"
The gun went off with a loud bang; its bullet pierced her head and killed her instantly, sending spurts of blood across Coran's face.
"Does anyone else want to follow her lead?" Kid asked.
No one said a word.
"Move the trash to the other boat and sink it," he ordered.
Coran watched as someone hauled the body of her former captain away, another one down. She sat and listened to Kid bark orders to the crew, then stood as a pirate with a Glasgow smile rounded the survivors up. Her legs trembled in exhaustion, but she was in no position to make complaints; she was again a prisoner.
As the ship floated away, she saw the infamous Terror of the Sea, crucified to the mast of her boat as it sank beneath the merciless waters in the New World.