Chapter V: Jayan Dreams
To Vivi's relief, Baby King was a fast, reliable vessel, despite its embarrassing name. She was responsible for the small yacht's navigation.
"So Mr.9, how is your mission preparation going?" Vivi turned to the man. He seemed to be wholly engrossed in making their breakfast. When no response came, Vivi tapped his elbow.
"Ah, Miss Wednesday! Breakfast will be ready in just a minute! Don't you worry about the nutrition, I am about to start on the eggs, how do you prefer yours?" Mr.9 asked in surprise.
"Scrambled, but I was-" Vivi was interrupted as a tray filled with sliced mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, bell peppers, cheese and various condiments appeared in front of her face.
"Any toppings?" Mr.9 asked with a delighted smile plastered on his face.
"I'll have the bell-Mr.9 I meant the MISSION, not NUTRITION." Vivi sweatdropped.
He has the attention span of a goldfish sometimes, she sighed.
"Oh! That's right! Well, I checked the assignment sent by the Boss, and this time we probably won't have to flex our muscles at all. We need to collect a debt owed to us by a local tavern owner. Here's the letter." He handed her a simple envelope.
Vivi opened it and skimmed through the text and stopped when her eyes reached the very bottom of the page.
Did Mr.9 miss this part?
"Mr.9 I will have to disagree with you on the 'muscle flexing' part," she frowned as the man finally looked up from his cooking.
Vivi continued, "Did you miss the part where it says 'this tavern owner killed Mr.11 and stole his bounty money, take him out'?" she asked sternly.
Mr.9 opened his mouth as he processed the information. Idiot! Vivi's hands itched to punch some sense into her colleague.
"Hehehe so that's where the debt part comes from, I was so excited that I missed it entirely. Let me see that again Miss Wednesday." He laughed nervously and took the letter.
"Well I am a 9, and he was an 11, so this tavern brute will be like '1,2,3' Baby! Just prepare our bazookas for Showtime Miss Wednesday!" Mr.9 put his hands on his hip and smiled confidently.
I could learn a thing or two from him. My worries won't make this mission any easier...nor will they save Alabasta. She took a deep breath and smiled.
Emboldened by the pause in the room, Carue began eating the toppings on the tray, while the two agents completely ignored him.
"Fufufufu, l will be sure to do that, everyone knows that riskier missions equal bigger rewards after all!" Vivi tried to mimic Mr.9's bravado.
"That's the spirit!"Mr.9 chimed in.
"CARUE how many times do I have to tell you? You shouldn't eat so much in one go it will make you sick when you run!"She took the tray away and went out onto the deck and shivered, the volatile climate of the Grandline already shifted from the refreshing breeze of spring to a freezing blizzard.
Pulling her jacket tightly around her, she walked to the bridge of the ship to watch the helm. Vivi checked the eternal log pose for what seemed like the 1000th time that day.
Good, if we stick to this course and speed, we should be able to reach Jaya in 4 to 5 days. How and where did Mr.9 get this ship I wonder...
Mr.9 never spoke about his background (not that Vivi pried much), even his country of origin was a mystery. The only personal things she knew about her colleague, were his pride and love for this small yacht and his passion for acrobatic shows.
In any case, the lack of information did not diminish the mutual respect the two agents had for each other.
Vivi noticed a fresh copy of the News Coo lying on the chair nearby. She hesitantly picked it up to look at the headlines.
Thank goodness Alabasta is not on the front page.
She unfolded the newspaper and turned over the page only to crinkle the entire thing up in rage and frustration.
"Rebel Numbers Swell, Poised to Take Alubarna Soon".
This can't be happening; 20,000 Royal soldiers deserted their posts to join the rebels. I have to go back, yesterday they announced Crocodile's celebrations...the people love him. Poor Father, this conflict and my disappearance must wound him deeply; I need to be there and support him. Support Alabasta's people and its peace. I MUST speak with Kohza.
Vivi looked out to the sea ahead, and this will be my last mission as Miss Wednesday, I will have to come up with a way to get out of Jaya as soon as I can, and go to Alabasta. She quickly went to her cabin to check something. Ever the gentleman (he tried to be at least), Mr.9 assigned the biggest cabin with an ensuite bathroom for Vivi and Carue; opting for the smallest cabin/storage room for himself.
Looking around the well-furnished room, Vivi walked up to the bed and opened the bedside drawer. She rummaged through the drawers, throwing out various hair accessories, notes and maps in the process.
I didn't leave it on Whiskey Peak, did I?! She panicked, it wasn't there. Running up to her closet she slid its doors open only to throw things out to find it.
Not here either.
Finally, storming into the tiny bathroom she flung open the toiletry cabinet, scanning the myriad of intricate bottles of intoxicating fragrances for her "Perfume Dance" diversion tactic.
Vivi was on the verge of a breakdown.
She looked at the rows of bottles before her, one by one, where, where, where could it be?! She paused to regain her composure and looked up again.
There it was! Flanked by the perfumes of its land, stood the eternal log pose for Alabasta. Vivi smiled and grabbed the precious object in glee.
I won't let you out of my sight again! Relieved, Vivi gently placed the eternal log pose into her belt bag. I can't allow my nerves to affect my senses...stay calm Vivi, or you'll miss out all the details.
; the young woman bit her lip to suppress her emotions and slowly went back to the helm.
The rest of their journey was reasonably typical by Grandline standards: sea kings, pirates and marines(they fled both), snow, hail, storms, dangerous currents.
By the end of the fourth day, the sea settled down as the ship entered Jaya's mild climate zone.
SIX DAYS LATER
Having safely docked Baby King in a secluded cove, Mr.9 insisted on hiding it as far away from the busy port of Mock Town as possible.
He's worried about thieves stealing his yacht and yet he refuses to take off his crown...
Vivi was fuming, not only did they risk encountering dangerous pirates, they practically asked for their attention, they also had to hike to Mock Town as Carue was left to "guard" the vessel.
"Trust me, Miss Wednesday, all those primitive Pirates will be in a drunken stupor; no one will pay attention to us. We will just corner that tavern brute, get the money, finish him off and be on our way just like that baby!" Mr.9 twirled his metal bat around as if to emphasise his point.
"I don't know Mr.9, don't these rogue pirates pick fights all the time? How about a backup plan hmm?" Vivi gave her partner a quizzical look before skipping over a mud patch.
"I suppose you are right Miss Wednesday, then how about we-AHH! What the hell is this?!" Mr.9 stepped into the very same mud patch that his colleague avoided a second before.
Vivi turned around and sighed in annoyance; she pulled out a map of the island.
"Why don't we wait outside the town until midnight and strike then instead? This island is mostly uninhabited anyway; perhaps we should look for a hiding spot first? Say...somewhere around here." She pointed to an area on the outskirts of Mock Town and looked up at Mr.9 in triumph.
The man in question was too busy with his stained green pants even to pay her any attention, "That's a marvellous idea! Let's go with your plan." he replied automatically without looking.
Vivi mentally face-palmed, but was glad to have a basic course of action list in place. I need to prioritise my escape plan.
She did draw one up the night before. It consisted of four relatively simple steps, at least they seemed to be so on paper:
1) Accomplish mission objective with Mr.9.
2) Set the tavern on fire and make it appear that she perished in it.
3) Hide from Mr.9 and run to the docks and steal/hire a ship.
4)Carue was supposed to run to the town after sundown and wait for her at the docks. Given his speed, he should be able to accomplish that with ease. And if he can't, then she can linger around longer.
Knowing Mr.9, he will probably throw a dramatic goodbye and be on his way out of Jaya as fast as he can. I will have to report to Igaram as soon as I'm out of here.
Vivi knew that her plan was somewhat ridiculous but if she pulled it off, not only will she be off Baroque Works' radar (at least temporarily), she can return home and avoid incriminating Mr.9 too. One plan, three benefits. Father would approve, she smiled and for a good reason.
As sad as the circumstances are, she did accomplish her initial goal after all...Mr.0 was identified. The next step required her presence in Alabasta.
Kohza you will have to believe me.
With Mr.9, huffing and puffing behind her, Vivi finally saw a wooden sign that said: "Welcome to Mock Town" with a lot of obscenities and ugly graffiti drawn all over it.
"Eugh, we are too glamorous for this hell hole Miss Wednesday. Let's kill that man and get out of here as soon as possible. I'm feeling sick already." Mr.9 complained.
"We certainly are Mr.9," Vivi looked at his emerald green suit, lace collar, gold crown and a shiny pair of metal bats and number 9s tattooed (are those even real?) on his face. Glamorous? Or tacky? She smirked, "That's why it's better for us to wait till nightfall you see, let's find us some adequate lodgings Mr.9!"
"Like that?" the disgruntled man pointed to a dilapidated wooden building with a hand-painted sign that read: "Leona's Inn" in bright red capitalised letters.
They both looked at the building in disgust. The price of our promotion, ah Utopia the things I do for you...Mr.9 thought in defeat.
"It looks abandoned, could be a trap too you know. We should proceed with caution Miss Wednesday!"
"Yes that's quite obvious Mr.9," Vivi rolled her eyes and continued, "In the worst case scenario, we can use our weapons and make a run for it, right? And if it's abandoned then all the better for us." she said as a matter-of-factly.
"Absolutely baby!" her partner in crime responded enthusiastically.
They approached the front door, Mr.9 knocked. No answer. "Excuse me!" He called out. Still, no response.
"Alright! Miss Wednesday after I say '1,2,3, Baby!' we kick down the door and depending on the situation, be ready to run for it, .okay?" he whispered.
"Roger that Mr.9!" Vivi nodded and positioned the bazooka on her shoulder.
I am ready; she gulped trying to put on a brave front.
"1...2...3...BA-" The door slammed open into his face, Vivi shrieked in surprise. "MR.9, are you alright?!"
"I...uh...yes?" He paused looking up at a large, middle-aged woman in the doorway. Vivi opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Shouldn't we run? She backed away a little.
Standing before them was a very muscular woman with rouged cheeks, blonde ringlets and a gaudy pink dress with frills.
"The name's Leona, how can I help you two?" the woman asked in an unusually high voice. She looked bored and wasn't fazed in the least by their appearance nor by Vivi's bazooka.
She must be used to it, living in a pirate town after all.
Both agents were rendered speechless at the contrast in Leona's voice, physique and outfit.
What a bizarre combination!
"We would like to book a room for the night Miss..er...Leona." Mr.9 said awkwardly as he made a quicker recovery.
"200 belli, payment upfront. Self-service, breakfast included. Alcohol excluded. " Leona replied instantly.
200 belli for this?! Vivi looked at Mr.9, and he seemed to be thinking the same thing as he hesitated to respond.
"Well?" Leona demanded.
"We will take it," Vivi replied.
"Miss Wednesday!" Mr.9 hissed.
"It's too dangerous for us to stay in the town Mr.9, just look at how strong she looks, imagine the other townspeople?" she whispered, as Leona motioned them to follow her to an old desk.
"Hmm, you may be right. Plus it looks empty and seems pretty quiet. But let's be on alert, we can't fall asleep here that's for sure." Mr.9 gave a conspiratorial whisper back.
Vivi nodded as Mr.9 handed Leona the money.
"Follow me." Leona yawned and walked up the creaking stairs and down a corridor with mould-covered walls.
She stopped in front of a door with a rusty five on it.
"Here's your room and key," Leona handed Mr.9 a brass key, "Enjoy your stay! If you need anything, I will come by in the evening, around eleven." she grinned revealing a gold tooth.
Eh, that's not exactly evening Mr.9!
The room wasn't as bad as they thought it would be. Faded palm tree patterns adorned the peeling wallpaper, the floor was mossy green with some questionable stains, and the bed was the epitome of vulgarity, Vivi thought.
The bed was shaped like a heart with a moth-eaten velvet headboard, the sheets had a heart pattern on them too. Hearing Mr.9 shriek in the bathroom, she did not dare enter it for the time being.
Alright, maybe it is almost as bad as I thought it would be.
"I don't think my eyes can take any more hideousness!" Mr.9 cried as he came out of the bathroom, carrying a yellow towel. I hope this is its original colour, he shuddered and placed it on the floor. "Let's sit here, for now, Miss Wednesday and prepare for tonight." Huddled together, the duo looked at a town map and tried to memorise the location of the tavern.
"Alright, the tavern owner's name is Terry," Mr.9 held up a photo of a man with a thick moustache and dark, slicked-back hair and an orange headband. "Pfft, he looks stupid, we will be done with him in a matter of minutes." Mr.9 concluded his "careful" investigation.
"I can't believe Mr.11 was killed by someone like that," Vivi replied in Miss Wednesday's typical haughty manner.
"Yes that is unusual I must say, maybe this brute used a sneak attack? Doesn't matter, either way, he won't stand a chance against us! All we have to do is wait now."
"You're right Mr.9 fufu." Vivi laughed, but something didn't seem right. This man doesn't look like someone who is capable of cold-blooded murder, but then again appearances can be deceiving. Hmmm...
Whatever it was she had to survive and get out of there tonight.
A/N:This entire chapter was not part of the story plan but when I started typing, one thing led to another and here we are lol. It just wrote itself and I went with the flow. Terry was the name of the bartender in Jaya but I decided to make him the tavern owner and Leona just came out of the blue.