The sun shone brightly in the sky as seagull cries echoed around. Waves lapped gently against the port of as small, out of the way island. Just out to sea a small ship bobbed slightly in the water. On deck, a tall man stood gazing at the island through a telescope, scouring the port for any signs of Marians. the flag that was flying proudly above the mast gave reason for the caution he was showing. A skull wearing a dark green hat with a set of keys crossed behind it grinned out to the world, indicating that it was a pirates ship. The man lowered his telescope with a satisfied look on his face. Turning around he made his way down the stairs and across the deck. Stopping at a door he knocked twice and waited.
"Ja Fishy?" A cheerful voice chirped cheekily before adding as an afterthought, "door's not locked."
The fishman rolled his eyes at the ridiculous nickname before opening the and sticking his head inside. A young girl with near black, midnight blue hair and a handful of freckles splashed across her cheeks glanced up from where she was working and smiled brightly at her first mate.
"Captain Jackie, we are nearing port. No marines in sight. May be some bounty hunters. Your orders?"
"We'll dock. We need to stock up on supplies before we continue onto Sabaody." Jackie answered, maneuvering her wheelchair away from her desk and over to her draws. "I'll be out in a minuet James."
"Right." James gave a curt nod before shutting the door.
Jackie grinned happily to herself as she tugged a draw open and fished her leg braces out. Slipping them on, she locked them into place before catching hold of the bed post, using it as a support to help her stand. Her grin widened slightly as her legs didn't give out. Still grinning like a maniac, Jackie gently pushed her wheelchair to one side and scuttled outside just as they arrived at the port.
A buzz of chatter surrounded Jackie as she wandered around the town. After docking she and James had split up, agreeing to meet back at the ship in an hour. Plenty of time to get supplies and for Jackie to explore. The young captains soft hazel eyes shone with excitement as she took in all the interesting sights and kept her ears perked for any interesting gossip that may be floating around. A poster that had been plastered in a shop window caught her attention. Bouncing over a huge grin spread across her features at the sight of the familiar face of her sworn brother. She had seen it several times before, but the bounty was new to her.
"300 000 000 berri huh? Your making quite a name for yourself, aren't you Luffy?" she chuckled to herself. "I wonder what you did this time to get a raise that high."
Still giggling to herself, Jackie tore her gaze away from the window and continued her way down the street. She had barely rounded the corner when a loud shout was heard. Jackie paused to stick her head back around the corner to see what the fuss was about. A group of men were huddled around a poster, arguing among themselves. One of them suddenly glanced in her direction and let out another triumphant yell.
"I told you it was her. Lockwitch Jackie. There's no mistaking it!" he crowed to his friends. "Best of all, she has an 80 000 000 Beri bounty on her head."
"Then what are you idiots waiting for?" a second man who was obviously the leader, barked. "Don't let her get away!"
"Jackie yelped and jumped away from the corner as three of the bounty hunters suddenly charged towards her. Raising her right hand up in front of herself with her first finger extended, she made a smooth horizontal sweep through the air.
"Now lock!"
The three men collapsed on the ground, barely able to move. Turning swiftly, Jackie bolted as fast as she could down the street, the bounty hunters close behind. Making a sharp turn left, she darted down the nearest ally in an attempt to shat them off. Unfortunately this trick didn't work as they managed to stay right on her tail. Left, right, left. It didn't matter which way she turned, she only just managed to keep ahead of them. Swinging around another corner, Jackie found herself back at the harbor. A sharp pain flashed up her side as she took a turn to sharp, causing her hip to bump roughly against the corner of a table of a nearby cafe. Muttering a hurried apology to the person sitting at it she quickly darted down another ally and made three right turns then a left. Just as she thought she was managing to put some distance between her and the bounty hunters, her left leg locked up completely. A horrified, pained cry, escaped her lips as she crashed down onto the pavement, the rough cobblestones scratching her face and arms. There was no way she could escape now. Jackie brace herself for the beating she would receive form the bounty hunters, but it never came.
Kaku leaned back in his chair outside of the port cafe. After the incident at Water 7 and Enies Lobby, he had left the former CP9 and struck out on his own for a while, picking up work here and there while maintaining contact with the rest of his group. Somehow he had managed to find himself on this little island not far from Sabaody and at the end of the first half of the grand line. Little did he know it was just the right place to be at that time. The table his arm was resting on suddenly jolted roughly, causing him to jump slightly in surprise. Looking up he caught a glimpse of a dark haired girl just as she rushed by. A jumble of words fell from her lips as she muttered a hurried apology to him before darting off down a nearby ally. Barley two seconds after she turned the corner, a group of six men came charging past yelling insults and cures after the girl as they too disappeared around the corner.
"I wonder what that was all about." Kaku thought aloud. The girl looked familiar, although she wasn't someone he knew personally.
A stray sheet of paper fluttered along the pavement before wrapping itself around his leg. Picking it up, Kaku straitened it out to take a look at it. It was a wanted poster. No surprise since the town was riddled with them. But this one carried the portrait of the same young girl who had just run past his table. 80 000 000 Beri bounty, Silver D Jackie. Leaving the poster on the table, Kaku leapt up onto the nearest roof and took off after the bounty hunters and pirate captain.
It wasn't long before he caught up with the group. Jackie had just made a left turn and appeared to be gaining distance. Seconds later she let out a surprised cry as she suddenly fell and skidded along the ground. Having been a former member of the world government, he knew that the bounty hunters where just doing their job. But he was no longer a member of the world government, so it didn't really matter what he did. Making his decision Kaku leapt off the roof he was on, landing directly between Jackie and the bounty hunters, halting the men in their tracks.
"Who the hell are you and what do you think you're doing?" one of the hunters growled.
"It isn't honourable to attack a young lady especially as a group" Kaku replied, completely ignoring the bounty hunters initial question.
"Why should you care? She may be a girl, but she's also a pirate and wanted criminal."
"You should still show some respect since she is also still just a child." Kaku further irritated the bounty hunters.
"Gah, I've had enough of this," the bounty hunter snarled as he leapt at Kaku. "I don't care if she's a child or not, or if she's even a girl. She has a bounty and that's good enough for me! Get out of our way!"
"Finger Pistol."
Jackie turned her head and stared in amazement as the bounty hunter collapsed to the ground, a bullet like hole in his chest. This however, only enraged the bounty hunters further. Charging forward, they launched a group attack thinking that they could tack Kaku down together. Unfortunately they did not have as much skill or experience as Kaku did. One by one the bounty hunters fell to the ground, defeated by either a swift kick or the finger pistol technique. In only a few seconds there was only one bounty hunter left standing. Completely terrified, he let out a yell and bolted off as fast as his feet could carry him. Once he was out of sight, Kaku turned his attention to Jackie who was now busy trying to pull herself to her feet.
"Here let me help you." Kaku approached the young pirate and offered her his hand.
"Thank." Jackie grasped his outstretched hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. "And thanks for saving me from those bounty hunters."
"It was my pleasure." Kaku helped steady Jackie on her on her feet before realizing that her leg hadn't completely unlocked and allowed her to lean on his arm. "Still, this is a dangerous place for pirate's. Especially ones who can't stand their own ground or run away. I'll walk you back to the docks."
"Thanks." Jackie mumbled, turning red. "And I can normally hold my own ground. This place just has too much bloodstone around somewhere. The radiation from it is upsetting my powers. Just so you know."
"I see. You were born with witch powers weren't you?"
"Kaku. I used work for the world government." an amused look flashed across his face at the horrified look Jackie shot at him. "Don't worry. I'm not going to turn you in. If I wanted to do that I would have let those bounty hunters get you."
A relived look washed over Jackie's face as she relaxed.
"So tell me then, what are you doing all the way out here then?"
"Just wandering" came the reply.
A loud shout cut the conversation short as the neared Jackie's ship. James waved franticly at them from his spot on deck before jumping over the side and landing on the docks in front of them. Jackie grinned cheekily back.
"There you are captain. I was just about to go looking for you." James explained. "We need to get moving. We've got bounty hunters after us."
"I know." Jackie nodded, transferring her weight from Kaku to her first mate. "I had a run in with them not long ago. There is also a large amount of bloodstone somewhere nearby. the radiation from it messed with my powers not long ago and I almost got caught. Kaku here saved me though."
"I see." James turned his attention to the former CP9 agent. "Thanks for your help. My captain can be quite hopeless at times."
"HEY!"
"It was my pleasure." Kaku nodded while Jackie glared at James. "I should be going now. The bounty hunters will most likely be searching for you and could arrive here at any moment. It was a pleasure to meet you both."
Kaku turned and began walking away but Jackie suddenly called for him to wait.
"Before you leave, I want to ask you something." Jackie pushed herself off of James and did her best to remain standing. "I want to ask; would you consider joining my crew?"
Kaku stared in shock while even James looked surprised. After all, Jackie hadn't asked anyone to join her crew since she had asked him. That was probably why they were currently known as the twin lock Pirates as the crew consisted of only Jackie and himself. Kaku thought for a second and was about to refuse when a shout went up.
"Hey, I've found them." The bounty hunter hollered to the rest of his gang. "And it looks like they've gained another member."
"It appears that I don't have much to say in this matter." Kaku turned back to Jackie. "I would be delighted to join your crew."
"ALRIGHT!" Jackie cheered while James dragged her on bored with Kaku following as bounty hunters began pouring out on the port. "Now let's get out of here. Next stop: SABAODY!"