"It's done," Bepo exclaimed in triumph.
Samira dropped her defensive stance, excusing herself from the spar with Shachi, and hurried over to him and Penguin on the deck. She peered over the bear's shoulder at the map he created for her and hummed in appreciation.
"It looks good," she uttered out of breath. She wouldn't admit it, but the exertion brought a painful flare-up to her ribs.
Penguin puckered a brow.
"Really? Because it looks like a child drew it."
Bepo hung his head and apologized, but Samira assured him that it was fine. She asked to have it, thanking him for his effort, and rushed into the mechanical bowels of the Polar Tang to deliver the map to Law. The last time she saw him was at breakfast before the sub emerged from the depths; he excused himself and went to his room for the afternoon, so she was certain he'd be there.
Knocking on the hatch, she waited for him to answer before she walked in and slammed the paper onto his desk. Law narrowed his eyes and peeked at her from the book in his hand.
"Why are you out of breath?" And covered his sweat for that matter.
Samira took an uneasy breath. There was no use in lying to him.
"I was sparing with Shachi."
Sparing was an understatement; she was mostly on the defensive, but at least she was trying.
"I gave you orders to rest, Amunet-ya," Law pointed out.
He was intrigued by the fact she was sparing despite her injuries, but his annoyance at the fact she blatantly ignored his orders overshadowed his curiosity.
"I asked Bepo to draw a map to the entrance of the Isle," Samira stated, not concerned with the look he was giving her.
Law peered down at it, raising a brow. Bepo did in fact make it; the style was easy to distinguish.
"There is only one entrance?" Law asked.
Samira shook her head in agreement.
"It's the true entrance. Over the years the water dug out holes in the rock that reach the Bennu Kingdom, but only one entrance is safe. You run the risk of flooded tunnels or cave-ins without this."
What Arsenio said to Law made sense now. He claimed that he wasn't sure how to get to the Isle, which checked out according to what Samira told him. But how were they able to leave? Chance? Law leaned back in his chair and raised a brow.
"Do you still plan to leave?" He asked.
"I want to," Samira uttered. "But someone has to lead you through the caves."
Law snorted.
"How generous."
There was more to it, he knew, but at least she was helping. Law sighed.
"This isn't going to be easy, so I hope you are prepared to face your nightmares head-on."
"I'm doing my best," Samira uttered.
This time tomorrow I will be home.
"I don't understand the reason you want to go there, but I trust that you have a plan."
"I do," Law said with a grin.
Of course, he did. Samira felt a little at ease knowing he'd be at her side. She opened her mouth to inquire about it, but a sudden force knocked her onto the floor with an oof. The sub screeched like a wounded animal and the entire cabin became bathed in red as an alarm echoed throughout the interior.
Samira groaned in pain and held her injured side.
What is that? The noise was so loud. It sounded like the alarm to inform the crew when they were emerging, but that couldn't be right; they were already above water.
Law growled in annoyance, retrieving his sword from a pile of books that had fallen from his desk and helped Samira onto her feet. Her face was scrunched up in pain.
"Sit down," he ordered.
How could she? Samira could feel the panic and chaos ensuing around her. She ignored Law's order and followed him to the control room at the front of the submarine; a large room with panels that performed various functions. Both Jean Bart and Bepo were inside, scurrying to steady the wounded vessel.
"Cut the alarm," Law ordered.
Bepo pressed a button on the console and the alarm went off.
Despite the fact her ears were still ringing, Samira was thankful.
"What happened?" Law asked.
"Bepo spotted a marine ship off the coast of the island to the northeast, so I tried to take us around, but another appeared in our sight," Jean Bart explained.
Bepo growled at him.
"I told you not to drift us so close to the island. Now we're under attack."
"Why are we not submerging?" Law asked in annoyance.
Bepo hummed in grief.
"The deck was pierced with a massive harpoon. I'm sorry, Captain."
A harpoon? Samira widened her eyes in horror. Shachi and Penguin were on the deck last she saw them. She hoped they were safe and sound. Watching Law bring up his hand to activate his room, she wondered if he was heading up top. Samira stepped closer and grabbed his sleeve.
Law gave her a look of confusion.
"I want to go with you," she stated.
He didn't have time to argue with her. Law transported them onto the deck, easing his arm from her grasp as she clutched onto him for dear life.
"I can't get used to that," Samira uttered.
Law ignored her and surveyed the condition of the deck. As Bepo claimed, a massive harpoon attached to a thick chain caused the damage. There was no way the sub could submerge with a hole in the deck. But at least his crew was safe. Shachi and Penguin steered clear of the hole, attempting to dislodge it, but to no avail.
Samira hurried over to them.
"Are you both okay?"
Shachi grinned.
"We're fine, but the deck is in bad shape. The harpoon is stuck."
"And I'm certain we're being reeled in with the chain," Penguin mentioned.
It was strange how calm they were acting. Samira could feel their unease despite their fake demeanors. Perhaps they were used to this sort of thing.
"Penguin is right. As inconvenient as this is, we need to prepare for a fight," Law mentioned.
Was there no other way? Samira widened her eyes. An idea came to mind.
"Law, can you cut the chain?" She asked.
The said man raised a brow.
"What are you planning to do?"
"I'm not quite certain," Samira answered in honesty.
She wasn't sure there was anything she could do, but she was going to at least try. Pulling Shachi over to the railing she began to climb onto it.
"Please keep me steady."
"You're injured," Shachi claimed.
He grunted in annoyance when he realized his worries were lost on her and held her legs as she stood up.
"Be careful."
Samira grinned as she looked out at the Marine ship in the distance. It wasn't too far away; the harpoon would have missed its mark otherwise. But could her power reach it? Taking an uneasy breath, she activated her Devil Fruit and drew in the raw matter incited by the situation; the fear of the Heart Pirates down below.
Raising her arm, an aura of red and black formed around her hand, sparking like an electric current. She aimed for the mast of the Marine ship and shot a chaos bolt at it. To her surprise, the mainmast exploded into slivers of burnt wood and sent the sail soaring down on top of the panicked sailors.
Law cut the sub free and sent Penguin to the control room to update Jean Bart of the situation. Moments later the sub kicked it into high gear and escaped the Marine ship.
Despite the damages done to the Polar Tang, Law was pleased. He walked over to the railing as Samira came down. Her skin was slick with sweat and her breathing was uneasy.
"That was insane," Shachi uttered.
"We're not safe just yet," Law mentioned. "We need to start repairs as soon as possible."
Shachi got the idea and hurried inside to gather the engineers.
Once he was out of her line of sight, Samira sunk to her knees, grasping her side in pain.
"That was dumb," she uttered.
Law agreed.
"But it worked. And no one on the sub got hurt."
She was grateful. Standing up, she leaned against the railing.
"What is the next step?"
"We have to dock onto the island and repair the sub," Law answered with a sigh.
Samira hummed in concern. She was curious about the Marine ship. What was it doing around the island? One was normal, but two – as Jean Bart claimed to have seen – was rare.
"Is it possible for there to be more than two Marine ships roaming around the island?" She asked.
"It is if there is a base stationed here," Law answered.
She didn't need to ask him what he was going through his mind, because she could feel the turmoil eating him alive.
"It's so hot," argued Bepo.
Samira hummed in agreement and waved her hand in front of her face. She shed her current attire for a bikini and shorts, waiting on the upper deck as the engineers worked on patching the hole. There wasn't much she could do to help, and from the looks of it, there wasn't much Bepo could do either.
The sub was docked in a niche along the shore of the island as the Heart Pirates scrambled to make repairs. Samira heard from Penguin that a party of three headed by Law ventured out to a nearby town seen from the sub that they passed earlier. There was nothing to do but to wait.
"The inside feels no better, does it?" Samira asked.
"No," Bepo uttered.
She groaned in annoyance and fanned her face harder. How long were the repairs going to take? She honestly thought about jumping into the sea and risking her life for a moment of relief.
Hearing the sound of footsteps coming up onto the deck, Samira turned to see Penguin.
"Captain is back. He asked for the two of you," he mentioned.
Samira wondered what Law wanted.
Heading inside with Bepo, she groaned as the clammy heat consumed her. It felt better outside. She found Law in the galley with a few others and sat beside Ikkaku as he stood at the head of the table near a box of what appeared to be garments of various colors. When everyone was seated Law began to speak.
"The materials we need to fix the sub can't be found in the town we visited. We seven are going to cross the Mirrored Expanse, a 1.3 million square kilometer desert to New Kelna and retrieve them," Law explained.
Samira widened her eyes. Was he serious? She looked around the room, counting the crewmembers despite knowing how many were sitting around her. There was of course Law, the giant of a man Jean Bart, Ikkaku, Bepo, the duo of Shachi and Penguin, then her.
I make seven.
Samira sighed in frustration. Damn. Of course, Law chose her to trek the desert in the blistering heat with him. It wasn't like she could do much to help the engineers, but crossing the desert was going to be unbearable.
For the next few minutes, the retrieval team prepared. The garment box was passed around and each of the crew took a cloak from it; Samira chose one that was beige with red swirl patterns intended to keep her safe from warm rays of the blistering sun. She slid it on over her current outfit and listened to Law as he instructed them on what to take.
Samira was meant to be in charge of food and water, forced to wear a large haversack on her back. It was heavy, but she knew that it could be much worse – Jean Bart had to carry the camping gear and equipment, though he didn't seem to mind. How would her injured body manage the terrain? From what she could see from the deck, the Mirrored Expanse was no more than an arid desert, but it was too soon to tell.
She walked with Ikkaku down the gangplank to where a few of the others were standing, then waited for Law to finish with his assessment. He was a man with a plan, always certain before he made a step. But what dangers did the desert hold? Samira admired the captain for his strategic personality, but there was no way he could know for sure what might happen to them.
Under his lead, she and the crew trekked up the first dune, heading to New Kelna in the west, but as they cleared the top, Samira gasped in surprise. The Mirrored Expanse was more than sand and vast desert. Its red flaming cliffs hovered high above them; so high she couldn't see the top.
Samira shivered in fear. She had no doubt; Law was winging it.
A/n: the idea for the Mirrored Expanse came from 123_crowbar_solo. I appreciate the idea. Thank you for offering me support.