Strength - Ghost Ships and Pervert Primates
Everyone was amazed as the large ship came out of the fog.
"Whoa!"
"A-A freighter!"
"I didn't see it at all!"
As the lifeboats got closer to the large ship they could see that the ramp was down.
"Jotaro what are you concerned about?" Joseph asked as the lifeboat floated closer to the freighter, "Do you think there might be another Stand user on this freighter, too?"
"No, I was just wondering why no one's shown themselves, even though the ramp is down," Jotaro said
Hanabi felt a chill run through her spine not liking the looks of this ship.
The lifeboats pulled up to the ramp and Polnareff was the first to jump off.
"They came this far to rescue us! There has to be someone aboard! Even if they're all Stand users, I'm getting on this boat," Polnareff said
Really having no other options everyone got off the lifeboats and onto the freighter. Hanabi and Anne were the last ones left in the boat.
"You go first. If you fall back I'll catch you," Hanabi told the girl with a smile.
Anne nodded her head and went to jump off the boat onto the ramp but stopped when she saw Jotaro holding his hand out for her.
"Grab on. I'll help you up."
Anne looked at Jotaro then jumped off the boat into Joseph's arms, surprising the older male. The young girl turned her head and stuck her tongue out at Jotaro.
"Yare yare daze," Jotaro said
Jotaro turned back to lifeboats where Hanabi was still sitting. She was giggling behind her hand.
"I thought you were a ladies man Jotaro, losing your touch?" Hanabi snickered
She stood up and jumped onto the ramp but her foot got caught on the edge of the ramp causing her to fall backwards. Hanabi screamed as she fell but she was stopped when Jotaro reached out wrapping his arms around her waist pulling her back onto the ramp and into his chest. Hanabi's face instantly turned red, her warm cheek pressed against Jotaro. The two stood there unmoving.
"Hey, you two hurry up!" Joseph yelled surprising Hanabi.
She jumped away from Jotaro with a nervous smile and ran up the ramp.
Jotaro just pulled down his cap following the girl.
The deck of the boat was deserted and eerie. Hanabi physically shivered from both the cold air and the spooky feeling the ship gave her.
"This place is unnerving," Hanabi thought
The group made their way to the bridge with Hanabi clinging to Jotaro's jacket scared out of her gourd. Locating the bridge they discovered that there was no captain, in fact, there wasn't a single crew member anywhere to be seen.
"What's with this ship! There's no captain in the pilothouse! There's no operator in the radio. There's no one anywhere! And yet look! All the machines and meters are working properly," Joseph said
"Maybe they're all in the bathroom with a bad case of diarrhea," Polnareff said
Hanabi was busy clinging to Jotaro's jacket chanting 'There's no such thing as ghost' over and over.
"Hey! Isn't anyone around?" Joseph yelled out.
"Everyone, come over here!" Anne called pointing at an open door.
They all walked in to see a large cage.
"A monkey! There's a monkey inside that cage," Anne exclaimed
"She's right," Hanabi stepped forward, "It looks like an orangutan."
"Who the hell cares about a monkey?! Let's split up and find whoever's been feeding it." Joseph walked out the room followed by the rest of the men.
Hanabi was about to walk out when she saw Anne wasn't moving. She walked over to the girl and grasped her shoulder telling her to come on. As the two girls walked away they locked eyes with the monkey. Both girls got a chilling feeling, Hanabi grabbed Anne's hand and they quickly left the room.
Everyone congregated on the main deck. Avdol was present along with the crewmembers from their previous ship. They were all studying some machinery located on the deck.
Joseph looked up when he heard a creaking noise to see the hook from a crane swing back and forth.
"Avdol! Those sailors are in danger!" Joseph yelled
The hook swung down and pierced right through one of the sailor's necks hooking him like a fish then yanking him right up into the air.
"GAHHHHH!"
"WAHHHH!
"AHHHHHHH!"
Hanabi and Anne both screamed as the older girl covered the young girl's eyes. Hanabi was rather surprised when a pair of hands covered her own eyes.
"Yare yare daze. A welcome like this is a bit much for girls," Jotaro spoke from behind Hanabi.
Blood dripped down the sailor's still body landing on the ship's deck as the poor man hung from the air.
"B-But no one was touching it….." A man stuttered
"I saw the crane move, even though there was no one operating it!"
"Th-That crane impaled him on its own!"
"Be careful! There's someone here," Jotaro pointed at the sailors, "Hey! Don't touch any of the machinery. If it moves or runs on electricity, don't lay a finger on it! If you want to live, follow my orders. Don't leave the cabin down below until we say it's okay!"
The crew members followed Joseph's words and headed down to the deck below.
Hanabi grasped Anne's hand. "I'll take Anne below too and watch over over her."
Everyone nodded their heads thinking that was a good idea. Hanabi went to walk away with Anne in tow but stopped when a hand fell on her shoulder.
Hanabi turned around to see Jotaro.
"Watch out. Be careful," Jotaro said
Hanabi's eyes widened and her heart sped up a little bit. She smiled at Jotaro and nodded her head. Hanabi turned to Anne who had a worried look on face, "I know this scary but I promise you I'll watch out for you and protect you. On my life, I swear." Hanabi held her pinky out to Anne.
Anne's face seemed to calm down and she hooked her pinky with Hanabi's.
"Let's go then," Hanabi said
Anne gave a small 'yeah' and walked with Hanabi down below.
"Is there something wrong Anne?" Hanabi questioned noticing the Anne's expression.
"The monkey…." Anne simply said
"Do you perhaps want to see it again?" Hanabi asked
Anne nodded her head.
"Well, then I guess a little detour won't be bad."
The two girls made their way back to the bridge and went to the door where the monkey was being held.
As soon as they opened the door the monkey grew excited.
"Looks like he's happy to have some company," Hanabi said
"I can't believe I thought he was creepy earlier," Hanabi thought with a smile.
The two girls walked over to the cage studying the primate.
The monkey pointed up at the lock above his cage and tapped on it.
"You want us to open the cage? We can't. I don't know where the key is, and your so big," Anne said
The monkey put his hand out of the cage holding an apple that was cut in half.
"An apple?" Hanabi questioned
"You're giving us an apple? But that doesn't make sense the apple was cut with a knife….." Anne stared at the apple studying it.
Hanabi stared at the fruit too. "And the color hasn't changed at all. It's fresh."
"So there is someone somewhere on the boat right? Do you know where the person who feeds you is?" Anne asked the large primate.
Anne looked around the room with Hanabi wondering if there were any other signs of someone else on the ship, but they stopped when they heard a whoosh sound. They looked over to see the monkey had struck a match and was now lighting a cigarette.
"Y-you're a pretty smart monkey, aren't you?" Anne said
"I've heard of research groups that use monkeys to test out things such as smoking. Maybe he's a research monkey?" Hanabi pondered
The monkey reached behind him in a pile of hay and pulled out something. Hanabi's eye's widened when she saw that it was a magazine with the title "PlayBoy".
Hanabi jumped with a red face and covered Anne's eyes as the monkey opened the magazine and started reading.
"D-Don't look Anne!"
"Is that monkey really looking at pinups of human girls?" Anne asked
Before Hanabi could answer back the door to the room opened and two sailors entered.
"Hey, be careful!"
"They say an orangutan has five times the strength of a human, so it could easily rip off your arm."
"Come on. Stay with us in the room on the other side."
The sailors led the girls out of the room as a pair of black eyes followed them.
The sailors went back to the radio room hoping they could use the equipment to get a signal and call for rescue but they were having no such luck.
The two girls were watching the men struggle when something caught their attention. Hanabi and Anne started to sniff their clothes causing them to wrinkle their noses.
"Shower?" Hanabi asked Anne.
"Yeah," Anne agreed
The two girls easily located the shower room and each chose a stall next to each other. Hanabi smiled as she went under the hot water.
"I haven't showered since we left Japan. This is nice," Hanabi said
She let her hair down letting the hot water rinse out the smell of the sea. Hanabi smiled as she heard Anne humming to herself. She then heard Anne's curtains open, but her shower kept going. Hanabi opened her curtain to peek out and her eye's widened when she saw the monkey standing there leering at Anne. She threw a towel on and flung her curtain open.
"HEY YOU BIG APE!" Hanabi yelled
The monkey looked away from Anne and turned to Hanabi. Its eyes became even more lustful as it stared at the full-figured teen. It also didn't help that her towel was two sizes too small just barely covering the essentials.
The monkey stuck his hand out reaching for Hanabi.
"Hey."
The monkey froze then turned around he was met with a swift hit upside the head.
"JoJo!" Hanabi happily cried
The monkey attempted to crawl away as the two girls stood behind Jotaro.
"Here's your lock!" Jotaro threw the large lock from the monkey's cage hitting him.
The monkey stood up and grabbed the front of Jotaro's jacket.
"Stay back Anne," Hanabi said blocking the younger girl with her body.
"This ape….is no ordinary ape. Could it be that he's…." Jotaro said
"RAAAAH!"
The monkey lifted his leg up to kick Jotaro but Star Platinum easily blocked the attack. A ceiling fan from above broke off and flew at Jotaro lodging itself in his shoulder.
The monkey hooted giving a gruff laugh pointing at Jotaro.
"I-Is he the one that removed the fan? So this ape's a Stand user. But where his Stand? Why can't I see it?" Jotaro went to remove the fan from out of his shoulder but it slapped his hand away, "What? The steel fan bent on its own?"
The fan then bent back and slapped itself into Jotaro's face knocking him back through a door.
"Jojo!" Hanabi and Anne shouted
The monkey followed going to attack Jotaro again.
Hanabi ran into the hallway to see Star Platinum about to punch the monkey but the animal vanished into the wall.
"What's with this thing? The ape sank into the wall and disappeared! Hey, you saw that too right!" Jotaro asked the girls. "Stay close to us! Something bad is going down."
Hanabi stood on one side of Jotaro with Anne as he had one arm wrapped around both girls, Hanabi would have blushed but this situation was too dire to think about stuff like that.
The ship started to shake making them falter.
"W-What?"
"So the Stand is the freighter!" Jotaro said
Unfortunately, it was too late. Piping rose up and wrapped around Jotaro pulling him back pinning him to a wall. The monkey's face reappeared from a wall laughing.
"Anne stay close to me!" Hanabi said glaring at the monkey's face.
The monkey fully stepped out the wall wearing a captain's uniform smoking a pipe. He held up a notebook presenting its pages to everyone.
Strength! It means force, energy, power, or aid. And….it's the eight card of the Tarot! It suggests challenge, a powerful will, and hidden instinct!
The monkey puffed out some smoke from his pipe and pulled out a Rubix cube trying to solve it.
"ORA!" Star Platinum appeared breaking off one of the pipes.
The monkey looked at Star Platinum and simply added three more pipes in its place.
The ape laughed with glee mocking Jotaro.
"That's it!" Hanabi thought tightening the towel around her.
"Hey, monkey!" Hanabi said getting its attention, "Jotaro's not the only one who can fight. Come on Queens Thorn let show this monkey what we're made of!"
Queens Thorn came out wearing its usual smirk. Instead of hoping that the monkey would be surprised or frightened it had a lovesick look on its face staring at both Hanabi and her Stand.
"Oh great…." Hanabi groaned as her and Queens Thorn facepalmed.
The monkey charged forward at Hanabi drool flying from its perverted grin.
Hanabi jumped back dodging each grab it made at her.
"So far I've been mainly using Queens Thorn for defense lets see how she does with on the offense," Hanabi thought.
"Rose whip!"
Queens Thorn bought out its whip slashing at the monkey but it just disappeared into the floor.
"Damn where'd he go," Hanabi clenched her fist looking around.
"Hanabi!" Anne yelled
Hanabi turned around to see the monkey appearing behind her.
Queens Thorn swiped it's hand forward and shot out several seeds like bullets. The monkey dodged them as the seeds lodged themselves into the wall.
"That's new," Hanabi said, "Wait Queens Thorn has complete control over plant life. That means..."
The monkey let out a yell as it jumped at Hanabi.
"Oh no, you don't!" Hanabi said
The seeds that were lodged in the wall sprouted and several vines shot out catching the monkey mid-air. Hanabi smirked as the monkey was pulled back into the wall.
"Doesn't feel good now that it's you huh?" Hanabi said
"RAAAAGGGHHHH!"
The monkey let out a shriek as piping came up and cut through the vines, then they went for Hanabi. She gasped not believing she could dodge the attack.
Suddenly a flurry of rose petals hit Hanabi like a tornado and spun her out of the way, although she flailed to notice her towel get snagged on one of the pipes.
"Whoa, that was close," Hanabi said
Hanabi turned back around exposing herself to the group.
"You're gonna have to do better than that," Hanabi said
No one moved and Hanabi noticed all eyes on her. The monkey's mouth was hanging open as drool leaked out. Jotaro had his head down his hat hiding his face. Anne had her eyes covered keeping her face pointed anywhere but Hanabi.
"W-What's with those looks?" Hanabi questioned
That's when Hanabi felt a cold draft on her rear. She froze up and slowly looked down.
"A-A-A-A-A-"
Hanabi couldn't get any words out of her mouth as she looked back up. Hanabi's toes started to turn red and it spread all the way up to the top of her head.
Hanabi felt her temperature skyrocket as she started to sway on her feet.
"Why is the room spinning…." Were Hanabi's last thoughts before she passed out on the cold steel floor.
Stand Name - Strength
Power - B Speed - D Range - D
Durability - A Precision - E Potential - E
Jotaro watched Hanabi fall back onto the floor, her naked body still exposed. The monkey licked its lips as it headed towards the passed out girl. Before it could lay a finger on her it felt something hit the back of its head.
"Stay the hell away from her ape," Jotaro commanded
The ape turned around and picked up what Jotaro had thrown at him.
"That button's not part of your Stand. Feh, you mad? I guess I wounded your pride, since you thought you'd already won. No, it's not hurt….Because apes don't have any pride!" Jotaro said
"RAAAAAHHHHH!"
The ape yelled out and jumped to attack Jotaro.
Star Platinum used its new Star Finger attack to hit the button still in the ape's hand and shot it like a bullet right into the primates forehead.
The ape screamed and fell back as blood leaked from its eyes. With that Jotaro easily ripped himself out of the wall.
The ape screamed again and stepped back from Jotaro ripping open its shirt.
"I heard when frightened animals show their stomach to signal that they're giving up. So you're asking me to forgive you?" Jotaro asked
The monkey nodded its head fear in its eyes.
"But you've already broken the rules of being an animal. So I don't think so," Jotaro said
Star Platinum came out and did its signature rapid punches at the ape.
"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!"
With one final punch, Star Platinum knocked the monkey threw a door defeating it.
Jotaro walked over to Hanabi and took his coat off covering her. As he went to pick her up the ship started to shake and the walls started to bend.
"It's distorting…..The whole ship is twisting up!" Anne yelled
"Hey. Be surprised later. This ships about to sink," Jotaro scooped up Hanabi holding her bridal style, "We're gonna get out of here, by the boats we came in on."
Anne ran back and grabbed her clothes, unfortunately, forgetting Hanabi's clothes.
Everyone had escaped the ship getting back on the lifeboats. As they watched the large freighter it started to shrink and take on a new form.
"I-I can't believe it. The ships shape is changing. It's turning into such a shoddy little boat…." Anne said
"Unbelievable so that monkey used its own Stand to get this far into the ocean. What terrifying power. That's the first time I've encountered such energy," Avdol said
"We were completely overwhelmed. If Jotaro hadn't figured it out, we would have been done for. But are we going to encounter even more Stands with unknown powers from now on?" Joseph said
At that moment Hanabi started to stir in Jotaro's arms. She slowly opened her eyes sitting up.
"J-J-JoJo….what happened?" Hanabi questioned. She stared up at her friend's face but then the memories of what had transpired flashed through her head.
"YAAAAAAAAHHHH!"
Hanabi squealed jumping out of Jotaro arms. She hugged Jotaro's coat close to her comical tears flowing down her face.
"Naked I was naked. My maiden skin exposed to the world," Hanabi choked out.
Everyone watched as Hanabi's aura turned dark and gloomy.
"NOW I CAN NEVER GET MARRIED!" Hanabi cried
"Yare yare daze," Jotaro said
"Why does this always happen to me!"
After floating for a few more hours the group was picked up by another ship and they were taken to a port in Singapore.
Hanabi was wearing Jotaro's jacket which was far too big she had to hold the bottom so it wouldn't drag. It reminded her of when her mother used her as a model for her line of new dresses and they were too long for the short girl.
"Good grief we're finally here," Polnareff said
"We'll stay at a hotel tonight and figure out our route to Egypt," Joseph said
No one could have predicted what was waiting for them inside the hotel.
To be continued ⤍