As we prepared for the next battle, I was still chuckling to myself at the ridiculous question. It had been worse for the seventeen minutes immediately following her question; I had been laughing hard enough to rock the room. It had taken Nicole asking me fearfully to calm down or Aliza would be hurt for me to contain my hilarious state; by that time, the other captain had already sulked off, her fists clenched in fury. I didn't care a whole lot; she should have known by my earlier actions that I was a fickle person; I chose my captain, not the other way around. And I had chosen Aliza Alicia Alamonium, for better or for worse, to be my captain.
Anybody but her wasn't worth the attention.
Round two did, indeed, go far quicker than round one had; Nicole barely finished bandaging Aliza before our time was up again. As I gently picked Aliza's sleeping form in my arms and carried her toward the hall, I spotted our opponents moving toward their own door. One huge man with a ferocious glint in his eyes that reminded me of something; one tall, slender woman with snakes coiled around her arms and neck; one short, stubby man with a massive war hammer; one short, petite woman with pistols slung from every part of her body.
Then Reza screamed furiously and shot toward the big man, a wicked, demonic aura rippling out from him as he charged the man. I grimaced and flashed in front of him, cradling Aliza in one arm as I brought my other hand up and blocked his charge. The impact sent a shockwave out that caused pieces of the ceiling to begin crumbling, the shaking of the room continuing as Reza continued to try and grind through whatever it was that he had hit, fury blinding him.
Gritting my teeth, I inhaled deeply. "DIAN SHEIZ KRA'UG, REZA!"
His spinning slowed abruptly and then stopped as he snapped his wings out, flapping them furiously as he hovered in place, glaring furiously at the big man, who had turned and was watching us amusedly. I turned to regard him as well, my gaze suspicious.
"Who is he, Reza?"
The raven spat. "Arau! He's-au!- da one what-au!- busted m'pops, arau!"
I felt my eyes widen, then they narrowed dangerously as the big man began laughing, a booming sound.
"Wahaha! So you're the last of that pathetic clan?! Wahaha!" Vorlak the Destroyer, I remembered was his name, flexed one massive arm and smirked. "I'll take your wings and tear them off!"
Turning away from him, I held the arm that had stopped Reza out and snapped my fingers. "Reza, dar'kezh nug vard."
He snorted and flapped over onto my arm, slowly calming himself down as we moved up the hall until it was only a simmering fury that I sensed from him. Nicole and I exchanged glances, she worried and me grim, then we emerged into the sunlight and the announcer's voice.
"And here's our contenders now! The Dead Bones, last year's first-place finishers, are going up against our surprise fighters, the Pirates of Doom! Will the newcomers' luck hold? Or will the Dead Bones be their doom?"
The big man across the field started forward, a bloodthirsty grin on his face, and I reluctantly held my arm up, my other arm gently laying Aliza on the bench before I straightened up.
"Reza, dei vork'ezh!"
With the traditional wish for good luck in a battle, I hefted him into the air and he disappeared, reappearing on the ground in front of the big man; his wings spread wide, my partner bounced from foot to foot, his aura turning dark again as the referee began the countdown. The big man looked down at him and smirked.
"I'm gonna barbecue ya, chicken-liver!"
As the referee finished his countdown, Reza spread his wings and shot into the air, causing the crowd to gasp at his speed; once there, he began circling, a wicked chant echoing through the arena.
"First to bleed his opponents in war, last to flee the rotten core! Dark as night and cold as ice, the phantom of death strikes not twice! Blood on the ground, rot in the air, black as the shadow of the dead man's cares!" Raising his beak, he screamed the final line with the fury of his dead clan, murdered in a land forgotten by all but a few. "BLACKEST WINGS AND DARKEST LORE! THE WARRIORS FLEE MY WRATH, NEVERMORE!"
With that, he spread his wings and shot toward the big man, plowing straight through his opponent's body and blasting beyond. The big man did not even stagger, however; as I focused my vision on him, I noticed he didn't bleed, either. My eyes narrowed as I also noticed other small things about the man; no pulse, no breathing. Small pieces of skin rotted off, leaving behind a view of dusty bones.
"Reza! Di kruzh'g dermok!"
The bird flipped around and smiled wickedly. "Au! So, yer dead already, bub? Arau! Makes dis here punkdown-au!- dat much easier, arau!"
With that, he spread his wings and screamed, "CAW-CAW BLITZ!"
Forms began materializing behind him; shadows of the original that followed him as he charged the big man and they all tore into him with a vengeance. The big man didn't even twitch, however; instead, he snapped his hand back and grabbed Reza, squeezing tightly as he turned to look at my partner with one eye.
"Your father was stronger than this, featherbrain."
With that, he brought his hand up over his head before slamming my buddy into the ground hard enough for feathers and blood to fly.
"REEEEZZZZAAAAA!" Visions of our life together floated through my head, of when he had chosen me in my land's traditional forming of war teams to defend against the Gorgon Queen, of how we had fought all those long years in search of direction, a purpose for our skills, of how we had finally found it, only to have the purpose no longer applicable afterward. How we had decided to embark on a different sort of journey, he seeking shinies and me looking for peace.
And how I watched his pulse disappear, his body become crushed.
"Little birdy, yer just like your family." The man smirked, flexing his biceps. "Your powers only work on the living, not the dead. Shadows hold nothing that can hurt me."
Even as I watched the big man get up and turn away, a wicked grin on his face, I also watched as Reza's form began gathering shadows, shadows that seemed to resemble winged forms. As the big man stopped and began turning, a suspicious frown on his face, my buddy's body rose from the ground and a thousand voices filled the air.
"DAL KREG DEL MORT NA SHEZ RU'UTH VAR KEZH NE SAI..."
I felt my eyes widen, then I spun and, grabbing Nicole, brought both girls under the cover of my coat, yelling for them to get down as I turned my head to watch the final strike of Reza's long-dead clan.
"... DEL VUZHK NJEL DES KRAUG VAR NOKT DI'EN MORVAZH KRAUG!"
As the chant finished, Reza's dead eyes began glowing and he opened his beak wide.
"CAW-CAW ULTIMATE ATTACK! FEATHER DANCE!"
His body erupted, splitting into six shadowy forms that shot into a circle around the big man, then began growing. I felt my eyes widen as I witnessed his clan's ultimate attack, one that usually required six different birds but, due to the power of the Caw-Caw Fruit he had eaten, only needed him that day.
As the shadows hit the ground, they rippled there for a second, then began writhing and growing, quickly becoming massive, ravens with closed eyes and folded wings, standing erect and tall. The array was imposing enough, causing even the big man to back away. I smirked as I remembered that he had slaughtered most of the raven clan in their sleep; he must have heard of the power of the ravens that guarded the island of Nevermore.
Then the eyes snapped open, revealing orbs that burned with a demonic light. The ravens all spread their wings wide, then their beaks opened and they began speaking a single word.
"Nevermore."
They kept repeating the same word over and over, each repetition causing their shadowy bodies to grow larger and larger and closer and closer together, cutting off all chance of escape for the big man, who was beginning to shout frantically behind the wall of wrathful ravens. Beyond them, the leader of the opposing team screamed for a Blitz and they shot toward the circle of shadows.
The two ravens closest to them seemed to ripple, then they split in two, another raven emerging from each of them and facing the oncoming trio, who didn't slow as they prepared to attack. Before they could, however, the two ravens opened their beaks.
"Nevermore!"
Shadows erupted from the ground, catching their feet and wrapping around their arms, preventing them from attempting anything further as they became helpless to aid their comrade. The man in question was no longer visible and his cries were becoming weaker and weaker, as if he was moving farther and farther away; then, with a sudden surge, they imploded, taking the man with them and leaving behind only Reza's dead body.
Nicole cried out and dashed forward, running to the raven and picking him up in her arms, tears dropping down her face; I felt surprise trickle through me. I hadn't known that she was close enough to him for her to be so hurt by his death.
Beside me, Aliza stirred and I looked down to see her gazing somberly at the scene. Looking up, she revealed her eyes to be trickling tears.
"First Mate Rezzy's dead, ain't he, Argy?"
I nodded and reached down, picking her up with one arm as I turned to begin moving toward Nicole. As I did so, however, I felt my eyes widen in horror; the Dead Bones, released from the shadows once the ravens had imploded, were bent on taking out their rage on anyone in the area. The only one in the area, by the way, happened to be Nicole.
Aliza noticed it, too, as the gun-laden woman raised one of her pistols and aimed it at our other crewmate. "BLITZ!"
Nicole didn't even twitch as I flashed beyond her, catching the bullet that had been intended for her with Ras'cal and sending it skyward. Before I could do anything else, however, I heard a wrathful howl from behind me. Turning my head, I felt my eyes widen as what could only be Licone stood over Reza's body, her hands hooked into claws as a sense of death began permeating the air. As she raised her head, I lowered my pistol.
"What do you want of me?"
"Move," she growled as she stalked toward me; I obliged and watched as she stalked toward the others, who smirked arrogantly at her. I, on the other hand, backed away a few steps and sat down, sitting Aliza up in my lap as we both watched the pending fight.
"Whatcha gonna do, girly?" The man who had called out the Blitz, making him the captain, smirked as he swung his war hammer over his head. "Ya can't kill us; we're already dead! Ya can't hurt us, we ain't got feelin's! Whatcha gonna-hurk!"
Licone moved, her feet flashing almost fast enough to make my head snap as I followed her movements. One kick tore the man's head off, another separated his torso from his legs, then a fast series of kicks tore his legs and arms apart and flung them away. Spinning around into one more kick, Licone uttered one wrathful scream.
"STOMP-STOMP SCYTHE!"
Energy billowed to life behind her leg as she slammed it around and into the short man's chest, the impact blowing him to smithereens and his compatriots back, the tall woman's snakes recoiling in wariness as the other woman braced herself with the empty pistol she had shot earlier. As the dust settled to reveal Licone standing on one leg, her other leg cocked back for another kick, she glared at the settling dust of the captain.
"Dead nothin'; now you're dead, scuzzwad." As she turned to face the snake-woman, that woman settled into a fighting stance. "YA FREAKS MADE HER CRY!"
With that, she snapped her leg around, spinning herself into a series of leaps that landed her all over the place, causing the woman to look around frantically. Even as she shot one of her arms back, sending that snake, jaws open wide and fangs dripping venom, Licone appeared in front of her, standing on her hands.
"STOMP-STOMP WINDMILL!"
The woman screamed as her body disappeared in a hurricane of feet. Even as that happened, however, the pistol woman raised her weapons toward Licone and smirked triumphantly.
"Eat this, sucke-AUGH!"
Her shout turned into a death scream as my bullet pierced the only living part of her, the heart, shielding in her skull; as she fell, I spun Ras'cal around my finger and then holstered it.
"That's the way the skelly crumbles."
As the dust settled, the announcer broke into a cheer and so did the crowd; I simply got up and moved over to where Reza's corpse lay, darkness in my heart as Aliza slid to the ground and gently touched his feathers.
"Bye-bye, Rezzy. See ya later."
I smiled despite myself. Yes, we would meet again; all who did battle to the death met in the same place afterward. Gently sinking to one knee, I placed my left hand over Reza's body and closed my eyes.
"Dul'var no moz'xal."
His body flashed beneath my hand, then power surged into my left arm; clenching my teeth against the pain, I absorbed the power his people and mine had always exchanged on death, to keep a piece of ourselves close to our partner's hearts. My sleeve melted away to reveal a long, dark wreath of shadows being tattooed on my arm, with the head of a raven forming at my shoulder before the surge ended and I moved my hand, only three small feathers left of my friend. Sighing, I straightened up, feeling the sleeve of the coat, made out of a sea dragon's scales, reforming on my arm.
"Let's go, Captain, Licone."
Aliza sighed and got to her feet, smiling up at me. I felt a little uneasy about her ability to handle the disappearance of Reza, then Licone moved up on my other side, a darkness hanging about her.
"Nicole's gone for now. I think I need to kill somebody."
We walked back down the hallway, me once again carrying Aliza to keep her from reopening her wounds. As we entered the room again, which was becoming conspicuously empty, I noticed a lot of analytical glances being sent our way; ignoring them, I moved back to our corner and settled down again, feeling the absence of Reza like nothing else in my life. As we settled in, the woman captain appeared in front of us, a medium-height, muscular man standing next to her. Her eyes looked us over.
"You look pretty chewed-up, Pirates of Doom. Think you'll be able to go the distance?"
Aliza sat up straight in my lap, fire in her voice. "We're the Pirates of Doom! We always go the distance!"
She smirked. "Sure." Looking at me, she shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. Just thought I'd congratulate you on your win."
I smiled thinly. "Don't worry; I will defeat your crew by myself." Ignoring the tightening of her face, I turned my gaze on the man beside her. "I presume you are the captain of our next opponents?"
He nodded smoothly, a sneer on his face as he looked over my shoulder at where Licone smouldered silently. "Just wanted to tell the hot chick in th' corner she's welcome at my place anytime."
Grunting, I held a hand up just in time to catch her ankle as Licone sailed out of her seat and shot foot-first toward the man, who just stood there, a broad grin on his face.
"LET GO OF ME! I'M GONNA KILL THE BASTARD!"
Twisting my wrist, I snapped her around and released her ankle, dropping her into a crouch in front of me. "Save it for when it does the crew some good."
The man reached a hand down as she attempted to sputter out an answer; he froze, however, when the barrel of my rifle tapped his chin. Looking up, his face paled slightly as he saw my expression underneath the brim of my hat.
"Listen very, very carefully, krezatsch. I have just lost a buddy that's been with me for a long time. My captain is a little banged up, another crewmate of mine is so emotionally disturbed that her protector was forced to come in for her." Letting a little of the darkness I was feeling trickle into my voice, I concluded, "I'm feeling too murderous today for a pervert to begin making advances on my crew."
He straightened back up and the two of them silently retreated, a little more fear in their expressions than had been there before. As they left, Licone slowly straightened up and stared after them before turning to me.
"I shoulda killed him. He tried to touch Nicole's body like, like that." One fist began shaking, then I replaced my rifle on my back and gave a cool little smile.
"Trust me. They all get what's coming to them; if not me, somebody else will." I left it at that, watching as Licone picked up on the hidden hint in my words and returned to her seat behind me, brushing past me without another word.
Aliza looked up at me, her eyelids low. "I'm sleepy, Argy. You wake me up when we fight?"
I nodded. "Sure, Captain."
She nodded sleepily and nestled against my chest. "'Kay, g'night."
As her breathing became rhythmic and I felt her fall asleep, I smiled slightly and drew Ras'cal, resting him on my knee as I waited for the next fight to start.