Chapter VI: An Accidental Witness
The sun began to set on the horizon when Vivi and Mr.9 finally finished their preparations for the mission. The bazookas were reloaded, strapped to their backs and "stealthily disguised" with the yellowed towels from the inn. Mr.9's iron bats polished, Vivi's kujaki slashers sharpened and perfume vials attached to her belt; the duo proceeded to head towards the centre of Mock Town.
"Good thing we left the inn before that...lady came back," Mr.9 said quietly.
Vivi simply nodded but didn't say anything, something about this entire trip just doesn't feel right. Focus Vivi, one task at a time remember? Lost in her thoughts, Vivi continued to follow Mr.9. The latter was concerned for his partner but tried to gloss over the tension with his grand pep talk of promotion and success.
The beautiful natural scenery of the island was almost too idyllic for an assassination mission. It was hard to imagine that there was a busy pirate town here. That vision quickly dissipated, however, once they approached a small clearing, as signs of civilisation came into view. Torches, broken glass bottles and cigarette stubs were dotting the clearing. Vivi stepped forward and moved a few vines away to unveil a small path that led to the centre of the town itself.
Spotting a tall wooden clock tower, from their current vantage point, Vivi gestured for Mr.9 to come closer. "This will be our guide point Mr.9! Based on the town map, the tavern should be right across that tower," she said quietly.
"It seems oddly quiet for a pirate town, and I think it will be safer for us to use the rooftop to enter the tavern, they are not much higher than the ones back at Whiskey Peak. Plus these babies are hard to hide!" Mr.9 pointed to his bats.
"Let's stick to the alleyways for now and then use the rooftops once we are closer to the clock tower and the docks since that should be the busier part of town."
"Right you are Miss Wednesday". Mr.9 walked ahead, staying as close to the building walls as possible. Vivi followed suit.
They walked through an entire block without meeting a single person. Just what happened here? Vivi looked at the circular windows that dotted the various buildings around them. There are no lights in the windows. It is almost midnight, but this place looks like a resort town, shouldn't there be more people outside?
"This place is a ghost town not Mock T-" a loud cry pierced the still night interrupting Mr.9's complaint. The duo froze in their tracks as more shouts followed suit.
"I think it's coming from the docks, probably a fight between drunken pirates" Mr.9 whispered uncertainly.
"Well whoever or whatever it is, we can't miss our deadline, the Unluckies will be on us in no time Mr.9," Vivi whispered in an agitated tone.
Meanwhile, Mr.9 was trying to climb up the scaffolding to get to the roof of the wood-panelled building in front of them and didn't even hear her.
Did Miss All-Sunday intentionally send me here? Vivi felt the air thicken with tension as beads of sweat trickled down her forehead. The dread and delay were getting to her.
Vivi had an idea; she grabbed Mr.9's ankle causing the man to yelp. "Mr.9 wait here! I will go, scout, the area." Pressing herself against the wall of a nearby building, Vivi side-stepped the corner and ran towards the docks. Let's get this out of my way.
"Miss Wednesday don't!" Mr.9 hissed down, realising his partner was not below anymore, he continued his climb. Well, I will be on the lookout then, he thought as his nimble feet helped him get on the roof in a matter of minutes.
Vivi ran past the shuttered shops, trying to stay in the shadows of the buildings around her, the shouts were getting louder. She noticed someone quickly shut a window above, so they ARE hiding from someone. If everyone is distracted by the commotion at the docks, this could be good for our mission.
Vivi slowed down and scanned the area in front of her; she spotted the tavern, it was next to a small alley that led to her current destination.
Good, we won't even have to use the main entrance if we enter through the roof, so the people up ahead won't see us.
Just to be sure Vivi walked into the tiny alley, it was sandwiched between the tavern and what looked like a hotel. The alley went out onto the boardwalks that lined the area in front of the docks. Finally catching a glimpse of the ongoing conflict before her, Vivi crouched as she hid behind a large barrel. It reeked of dry squid, just my luck, she thought sardonically.
"Sarkies stop don't do this!" a woman's voice cried out.
"I can't control my hands, they're moving on their own!" a young man with pale blue hair yelled back. His hands were shaking, and yet he was gripping a large sword.
Hmm, he is probably not from around here. Vivi noted his white fur coat, that seemed out of place in the warm climate of Jaya. Then again some people wear fur coats in the desert! She tried to put Crocodile out of her mind for now, but that was easier said than done.
"Why do you have to do this? I beg you, please don't do this, let us go! Bellamy get out of the way!" the man presumably named Sarkies continued. Vivi then noticed another bloodied, blond man in a long blue coat, standing opposite Sarkies.
A murmur went through the crowd gathered around the pair, Vivi strained her ears to catch what they were saying. "Why is he begging? Have they lost their minds?" a few whispers went out.
They must be drunk out of their minds. Okay, if everyone focuses on their petty fight it will be easier for me to set the tavern on fire later. Vivi was about to head back to report to Mr.9 when another voice rose above the others.
"Why? You dare ask me 'why' Sarkis?" the authoritative tone caught her attention, Vivi flinched as she heard something hit a wall. Hushed whispers went through the crowd, "What is he doing on Jaya?"
Some of the pirates began to back away from the fight. Who else is here?
Trying not to gag from the smell of the dried squid, Vivi carefully separated the smaller brown sacks on top of the barrel to see more. Nudging her fingers between the two sacks, she created a wider gap between them. Good, let's see. Vivi gasped and tried to suppress her cough as she inhaled the putrid smell of the barrel's contents next to her.
The very same man, whose face she saw in that book in Nanimonai, sat on a barrel under the awning of the town's bar. It can't be! Donquixote Doflamingo. She remembered that name well. The man who manipulated the people and took the throne of Dressrosa.
His actions showed Crocodile that he could get away with the same thing in Alabasta. Vivi felt her anger rise and glared at him.
The man in question, seemingly unaware that someone else was staring daggers at him, pointed to a white flag with a smiling jolly roger on it. "Fufufufu, you street punks shamed my sign, that's why." He laughed and raised his hand, Sarkies lifted his sword even higher, Doflamingo pointed a finger and Sarkies proceeded to charge at the battered blond before him. Is he controlling them? Vivi wondered.
"BELLAMY!"
Vivi had seen enough, so and she ran back to Mr.9. This is it. We need to act now while they are all gathered around there. That way I can set the building on fire too.
She almost tripped in front of the building, where she left Mr.9.
"Psst!" Vivi looked up to see Mr.9 gracefully hop down from the roof.
"Well, I was beginning to think you ran away Miss Wednesday!" Mr.9 said in a hurt tone.
Vivi tensed up, is he in on it with Miss All-Sunday?
"There's a powerful shichibukai on this island!" She blurted out.
"Is it safe for us to proceed? Who is it?" Mr.9 cautiously inquired.
Vivi motioned for him to lean in, and whispered, "Donquixote Doflamingo." Why am I being so secretive? He is not Mr.0.
But seeing Mr.9 visibly pale at the mere mention of that name she was glad for her earlier discretion.
"Miss Wednesday that man used to have a 330 million belli bounty on his head before." Vivi's jaw dropped. That is almost four times of Crocodile's bounty!
"Let's head back to the-" Mr.9 was cut off as a bright flash came up from above. Vivi froze. It's too late.
"NO THE UNLUCKIES!" throwing all caution aside, the two agents screeched in unison as their delay was now backed up by photographic evidence as the Unluckies flew over them and left heading back to the Boss.
"MISS WEDNESDAY, we have no choice. You know what will happen when Mr.13 and Miss Friday come back again, this was their first warning. The Boss knows we are not meeting the deadline. We need to set our record straight and complete this godforsaken mission NOW, or we're finished!" saying that Mr.9 pulled the bazooka from his back. Vivi repeated his movement, "Let's go Mr.9!"
There's no going back now.
The duo ran towards the back of the tavern, hidden by the building's facade, ignoring the drama with Doflamingo and the two younger men, they climbed up to the roof.
Why did he have to be here tonight?!
"Well Miss Wednesday let's follow our standard procedure," Mr.9 spoke up as he knelt down to draw an X with a piece of chalk on the tiled roof.
Vivi nodded, and they both pointed their bazookas at the X "1...2...3...BABY!"
A loud bang rang out through the night, followed by the sound of toppling tiles and shouts. In their haste, the two agents failed to notice that the only "noise" that came from the docks was the pitiful groaning of a young man and the laughter of Doflamingo, leaving the rest of the now solemn pirates around, to hear them.
The Shichibukai diverted his attention from his beaten subordinates to the tavern, "Fufufufu, what a busy town this is." He got up from his barrel perch and looked at the wrecked building up ahead.
He paused and noticed a man and a woman jump into the tavern from the hole in the roof, what a bold move, Doflamingo grinned. His grin grew even wider when he spotted another man and woman enter the tavern from the front entrance.
"This is getting interesting." The blond man grabbed a bottle from the trembling barman.
"Looks like I will stay around in your town a little longer..." Doflamingo said lazily, as he took a swig from the bottle in his hand.
"P-pp-please do!" the poor barman replied and had his staff bring out more bottles from his bar.
Leaving the shocked group of local pirates and his useless followers behind him, Doflamingo only laughed in return as he walked towards the "hotspot" of the evening. More blasts rang out as the door of the tavern flew open, and a stocky man with black hair and an orange headband ran out.
"EVERYBODY RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES" he yelled. The man was covered in blood and dust, he backed away a little from Doflamingo and continued to run, telling the already shaken crowd of pirates before him, to do the same.
Doflamingo was near the tavern entrance when he heard a hoarse male voice come from inside.
"You broke the Baroque Works' creed, Miss Wednesday. No one is allowed to know our Boss' identity."
The secretive Baroque Works eh? Trebol's report came on time. So they still don't know who it is? Impressive. Doflamingo stilled his movements
"Kyahahahahaha Miss Wednesday, you found out the Boss' secret, and now he knows yours!" a female voice interjected.
"Miss Wednesday what's your secret?" a panicked male voice followed.
No one answered, and the same woman continued. "But that's not the only reason why we are here kyahahaha. You see we have it on good authority that a number of agents from a certain kingdom on the Grandline have infiltrated Baroque Works."
"Miss Valentine and I were told that one of them is currently being dealt with back on Whiskey Peak" the hoarse male voice from before rose up.
"Kyahaha and the second one is right here in this tavern!" the female from before laughed.
Doflamingo heard a thud and a metal clank.
"Wait what are you doing to Miss Wednesday?" a male voice cried.
"Let go! Don't touch me! " another female voice shouted defiantly.
"Aren't you a feisty one? Kyahahah Mr.5 let's teach her a lesson!" the woman from before spoke up.
"That's exactly why we are here Miss Valentine. Nose Cannon Fancy." the first speaker said bluntly.
Following the conversation, another loud blast went off in the tavern. The force of the explosion sent its recipient crashing through the door. A flash of white and blue flew towards Doflamingo and landed with a loud thud onto the boardwalk...right at his feet.
A/N:Thank you for sticking around and reading my story! I decided to combine the events at Whiskey Peak with Bellamy's punishment in Jaya. Except in this case Doflamingo is going to the Warlord meeting in Mariejois, not coming back from it. The next chapter will focus be mostly from Vivi's perspective