well. hello there. i'm yaurei. this isn't my first fanfic. but it's the first time i've uploaded in ages. old account is long gone. back from a hiatus as a hermit and decided to do something with my extra time so here i am. back here with a great many revised stories. starting off with pirates. i was originally going to post an MHA or Gintama story first but they aren't ready. this is going to mostly follow the OC since we already know the original story. rated M for violence language drugs sex you name it. One Piece belongs to Eiichiro Oda. thank you for reading and i hope you can enjoy.

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The Flames of Fate

She ran. Ran as fast as her small legs would carry her. The chilled air of the night stung her lungs like a hundred bees and her breaths came out as thick puffs of white. The dense forest that was normally dark was illuminated by the massive fire raging behind her. She could feel the flames reaching out for her like burning tendrils. The young girl kept running.

But to where?

Her home was ablaze. And that monster was still there. She could hear it. A howl echoed through the trees like malicious, taunting laughter. The enormous outline of the beast was dark against the blaze as it loomed over the destruction. It was its hellish-colored eyes that made her snap out of her fear and run away.

Her boot suddenly caught an upraised root and she tumbled into the snow. This was the first time in what felt like hours she had stopped moving. Her heavy breaths slowly melted the snow around her face. She finally realized how much pain she was in as she rolled over. Her grey tunic was sticky from a dark liquid. Across her collarbone, traveling all the way from left to right, was a nasty gash from a bladed weapon. It had previously closed from a combination of the cold and coagulation but reopened when she fell, turning the blanket of white red.

Her vision was fuzzy as she stared up at the sky, tears falling from the corner of her eyes. The stars and moon were blocked by the billowing smoke. She had to keep running yet her body refused. Her sobs were swallowed by the forest and the cackling of fire. She began to hyperventilate when the image of her bloody parents in the maw of the monster flashed in her mind. The acidic sensation of bile rising in her esophagus made her quickly roll onto her hands and knees as she heaved.

Why did this happen?

Just this morning, she was out running errands with her mother. Chasing other kids around the wheat fields. Snacking on dried fish with her father as he did his rounds in town. Her home was full of life and people. It was common to have ships from all over to trade. She had been at the harbor, watching vessels on the horizon mere hours ago.

The harbor...

That's where she has to go. But that means heading back in the direction of the fire-filled town. Her body shook in protest at the thought. Wait. She remembered there was a path in the forest that lead right to the port, bypassing her home. She wouldn't have to go all the way back. And the raiders should be gone by now. That horrendous monster should be gone.

With the thin thread of hope, the girl pushed herself up, wincing at the pain. She reached out to brace herself against a tree, but her hand slipped along the splintery bark. Her face twisted in a grimace at the sudden discomfort yet that meant nothing as the wound on her chest throbbed angrily when she jogged back in the direction of the inferno. Several times she had to assure herself she was going to be fine. Even as the stench of the fire increased with every step. She just needed to get to the harbor and she'll be fine.

"What do we have here?"

A singsong-like woman's voice cut through the night, causing the girl to freeze. That was a voice she recognized. Her breathing became erratic again as her legs struggled to keep herself standing. She slowly looked over her shoulder with frightened eyes. There was a small group of four people behind her with a woman a decade older than the girl leading them. Her silvery white hair swayed with the breeze and seemed to change color with the orangish blaze in the background. A sickening grin spread across her face, widening with each step she took toward the terrified girl. She was with the raiders and had been yelling orders to kill and pillage.

"Looks like we found ourselves a lost little kitten," the woman taunted when she reached out to the younger girl. She quickly grabbed her by the hair before she could flinch away. "Do cooperate. You don't want to make this hard for you."

"L-Let me go!"

SMACK.

The girl fell to the snow from the backhanded strike. Fear coursed through her veins as she tried to scramble up and run. One of her legs was grabbed by a person and harshly yanked back to the small group. She landed in front of the white-haired lady who roughly took hold of her chin and forced the girl to face her.

"I told you to cooperate, you twat." The woman stood and kicked the side of the girl, grinning as she heard a soft crack followed by an anguished cry. "Now then. Bag her and let's go. The boss is already gone so we have no more reason to stay here. Let whatever survivors are left burn."

As much as her mind was screaming at her to get up and run, to fight back, her body continued to refuse. She had given up. She became like a ragdoll as she was lifted up and tossed into a burlap sack that smelled like old blood and sweat then thrown over someone's shoulder. The pace was slow but she could see trees pass and thin through the rips in the thick fibers. Soon she saw blackened snow and dying embers as the foliage all but vanished.

Fires still slithered around the ruined buildings that were once homes and shops. Charred bodies of different sizes littered the dirt paths, some looking like they were reaching out with twisted faces. Others wrapped their bodies around smaller ones in a failed attempt to protect them. The girl couldn't look away as tears streamed down her face. She couldn't tell who they were. They could have been people she talked to earlier in the day. The smaller bodies could have been children she played with hours ago. Her hand clamped over her mouth to stop herself from puking.

"We're ready to leave, Talea!"

The girl was jostled a bit when her captor came to a stop and the raider woman replied. "Good. We'll join up with the boss at the rendezvous. Let's leave this fucking shithole behind. Everyone move out!"

The shouts of agreement were followed by numerous footsteps that faded away. It wasn't long until the girl's captor moved again, their heavy boots leaving the dirt and walking over the creaking boards of the pier. Her position changed and for a brief moment, she was weightless until she landed on hardened wood. The burlap sack was yanked off of her and before she had a chance to bolt, iron shackles were latched to her wrists.

She could feel her energy drain the instant her skin touched the metal. She weakly tugged at the chains, feeling resistance on the other side, and noticed it was attached to the railing of a ship. The chains meant nothing when she looked over the edge of the ship at the inferno. Every single fiber of her existence turned into ice when she saw the full scale of the damage. The flames reached into the darkened heavens. Smoke swelled above, writhing as if it were alive. Skeletal remains of buildings scattered across the hellscape. The young girl could only stare, wide-eyed and voiceless.

Her head was suddenly jerked back again by her hair. She let out a yelp, reaching with her shackled hands. Her body was pulled back even further to make the cuffs dig into her skin. A hot breath was on her neck and a vicious chuckle filled her ears.

"Make sure you take a good, long look. You'll never see this place again," Talea snarled with another harsh pull of the girl's hair before releasing her and turning away. "Out to sea, you filthy dogs!"

The girl quickly looked back to the burning remains of her home as the sails unfurled and caught the wind, lurching the vessel forward. She struggled to keep her footing and fell to the deck, landing on her knees and hitting her forehead against the railing. She slumped to the wooden planks and there she stayed. The night sky dimmed and soon revealed the stars and waning moon as the young girl found her voice and cried.

ᓚᘏᗢ ᗢᘏᓗ

How many days had passed? Weeks? Months?

The girl was in her usual spot chained up to the railing. She was only allowed to move when she was made to do chores. Scrub the decks. Help the cooks. Sharpen the blades. Repair any damage. Check the inventory. It had become so repetitive for her that the tasks melded together. Her brain turned off over the countless hours. Wake up. Eat scraps. Work. Eat more scraps. Go back to work. Eat scraps before bed. If she wasn't working or sleeping on a straw mat in the lower decks where all the other slaves were, she was chained up. She wasn't lucky or unlucky enough to go ashore when the raiders stopped to drop off their "goods". The only positive thing was the ship's doctor cleaned and bandaged her wounds. Including the newest one that was a brand. Right on her lower back was marred flesh that looked like a wolf's head with an S on its side above its eyes. It still burned. She really was just cargo to be sold.

This day was different though. Up until this point, the wind had been steady. The girl found herself looking at the clear blue sky instead of the deck. The sun had passed its zenith. There wasn't a single cloud for miles. Not a lick of wind and the sea was as still as a graveyard. Despite the blaring ball of light, the temperature was moderate. Many of the others, both raiders and slaves, had noticed the rather anomalous day. The girl knew where they were from her father's stories and who knows how long they'll be stuck in the Calm Belt.

"Shit, this is bad," she heard one of the crew curse. "Do we even have enough food for this?"

"What kind of stupid question is that?" Another one said. "We can get through this, right?"

"Oh wait, you're new to the seas. This is a part of the Calm Belt. We'll probably be here for a long time or eaten by a Sea King."

The second person's voice trembled. "But...we'll be fine. Right?"

The first man went quiet as the top deck doors slammed open. The young girl carefully craned her head to the right where Talea stomped out of the room and down the steps. She quickly looked down to the planks when the older woman reached the lower deck in a huff. She didn't look mad. Just seemed annoyed at the inconvenience.

"We're fine," she assured her crew despite her voice not sounding that convincing. "If we start getting low on food, we can toss a few of the goods overboard. Or maybe tie them to the bow and have them swim us out."

A shiver raced down the girl's spine at Talea's cold tone. The ocean was her greatest weakness. She would drown in a matter of seconds. Yet something told her she wouldn't be one of the first to go. She was considerably younger than some of the other slaves and was in better health. She also had a sickening feeling she was going to be kept for nefarious acts in time. Her breathing quivered at the thought. Being beaten was normal. Some of the other women were taken alone only to come back half an hour later or so looking like they'd completely given up and were limping. Was that to be her destiny? Was she to spend the rest of her days being sold from one buyer to the next? Being used for others' pleasure?

The thread of fate seemed to have other ideas though.

"Ship!"

It was like a ripple through her body; an unknown feeling washing over her. She couldn't tell yet if it was good or bad. But the unease of the crew was obvious. The girl tore her eyes off of the deck, noticing the other chained-up individuals looking confused as well. The crew was worried. Especially Talea. The girl watched as she turned on her heel and hurried toward the back of the ship. Once she and most of the crew were out of sight, the girl carefully rose to her feet and glanced over the railing to look behind. There was in fact another vessel quickly closing in. With smoke? The water was churning on the side of the ship and there was a faint chugging noise. A steam-powered ship? That wasn't the only strange thing. There was no flag flying.

"Get to your stations!"

The shouts of Talea made many of the human cargo jump and immediately went back to cowering on the deck, including the girl. The rapid footsteps of the crew running along the wood were frantic as they took up arms to fight. The other ship must be an enemy. The chugging was getting louder. The tension in the air was thick enough to slice with a blade. Then it went quiet. The raider's ship swayed slightly in the wake of the other vessel.

A body suddenly fell with a heavy thump close to the girl and blood began to pool around them. What was that? Another body fell. This time the girl could hear a faint whizzing sound. She thought it was a bullet yet there was no gunfire. As the crew started to panic and scramble, there were more sounds of whizzing and bodies falling. One fell directly at the girl's feet and she noticed what looked to be a dart in their neck. Why would a dart make them suddenly bleed so much? Her attention was grabbed by a shadow cast on the deck, but it looked small. She looked up, seeing a person crouched on the top yardarm with a long staff of sorts. It took a while for the crew to notice the assailant. Not that it did them any good.

Those with guns raised and fired, only to hit the air. The girl watched as the intruder scurried across the yardarm before they gracefully slid down one of the ropes of the main mast. By the time they reached the deck, the girl noticed several more new people. They were only interested in the raiders, whoever they were. The crew realized their situation and easily surrendered before any more of them were killed. Except for Talea. She was not going down quietly. She had jumped down from the second floor with a bloody sword in hand.

"Who the fuck are you and what are you doing on my ship?!"

"Talea. Second in command of the Swamp Wolf raiders."

The smooth voice that replied belonged to a man that appeared to manifest from nothing. The girl turned her head to her left, seeing a tall man with short maroon hair and eyes like polished dark emeralds. The air around him blended in with the environment, making him like a phantom. She looked back at Talea, who for a split second, had fear in her eyes. She quickly gathered herself and raised her blade at the man with blood dripping down the metal. He didn't flinch.

"Well, I'll be damned. I recognize you. You're from that Order of Slayers, yeah?" Her voice growled with a disgusted tone. "Am I really that special to be hunted down by celebrities like you?"

"Word of your recent attack has spread rather quickly. Destroying a neutral nation. Pillaging priceless artifacts. Ruining important historical records. Kidnapping men, women, and children, you didn't murder to sell on the markets."

Talea shrugged, unbothered by the weight of her crimes. "And? We had fun doing it. Plus it pays off in the end. And now I have to repay you for killing some of my men with death."

The man stepped forward, grabbed the woman's blade with his bare hand, and pulled her toward him just to headbutt her hard. She stumbled back with an angry shout as guns and swords aimed themselves at the redhead. He was unperturbed by his bleeding hand nor by the array of weapons at his face. His calmness was soothing. The girl almost forgot she was chained up.

"You're complete disregard for life is revolting." The man spoke with venom in his tone. "Razing a kingdom that had been peaceful for many decades all for what?"

"How are you people any different? You murder too," Talea hissed, raising to her feet.

"We kill those who are undeserving. Those who defile the gift of life. We wish to cleanse the world of greed and hate."

The raider captain let out a gut-churning laugh. "As long as people live, there will always be evil! It's in our nature to-"

She was suddenly silenced by a blade slicing deep across her throat, all the way to the bone. What noise she did manage to make was gurgled as she fell to her knees, grasping her bleeding neck. She glared up, trying to curse the man before her, but her voice was dead. Talea collapsed to the deck as her crew could only watch in horror. She reached out to her men in silent pleas for help. She tried to crawl away, gasping with what little life she had left. Her gaze fell onto the young girl in chains. For the briefest moment, Talea had regret in her eyes before they faded into nothingness and her body went still.

"Free the slaves and bring them to the ship."

There were soft replies of yes sirs from the newcomers as they dispersed to obey the man's orders. The raiders didn't dare move. Their leader was dead and they would be next if they tried anything. The girl jumped a little when a figure appeared in her peripheral on her right and she met the bright eyes of a dark-skinned boy, a few years older than her. He had a warm smile as he reached down to free her from her shackles. The weight dropped from her bloody wrists and the boy backed away a little, holding a hand out to her. She stared up at him, unsure if this was real. Afraid it was a dream, she reached out, taking the freedom offered to her.

The thread of fate certainly did have other plans for her.

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