Warning: Really Sadistic Game Ahead, Lots Of Blood And Pain.
You Have Been Warned.
"Let's play a game, shall we?"
Nami seated herself on the box next to the wall. Immediately, she slumped against the wall and lifted her leg onto the box. I could tell that she was in terrible pain. Still, the look on her face was not one that a person who didn't know her well would recognize. It was her thinking look, the one that she wore when a storm was approaching the ship. All I had to do was stall for time and trust Nami's plan.
"What kind of game?" I snarled, glaring at Miss. Doublefinger. She gave a little giggle and removed her thorn-like fingers from the stone around me, effectively releasing me from my cage. I braced myself against the wall so as not to fall, but my thigh wound gave a sharp sting and I slid down to the hard ground. Hissing in pain, I clamped a hand over both it and my gut wound.
"Well, let's see," she grinned down at me like a child might when receiving a gift, "It all depends on how long you can last."
I glowered up at her. "What do you mean by 'last'?"
She stretched out a finger and poked my cheek. I jerked my head away and she cackled. "We're going to play a game, the three of us. It all depends on how long you can physically last against the pain, and how long your nakama," she tilted her head in Nami's direction, "can mentally last while she watches you get ripped apart..." her voice darkened, "by her choosing."
I lifted one eyebrow cockily, but my hands shook. "Why would I want to play?" I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
"Because if you don't, I'll kill you both in the most brutal way possible."
Scowling, I formed a fist, but then, thinking of Nami, released it. "Fine. I'll play your fucking game. Explain it."
She straightened and turned to Nami, who looked shaken at the brief explanation. "You, my dear, will simply choose one of three options. Your choice, however, revolves around whether you should prolong your nakama's suffering, or end it."
"I..." Nami's voice shook, and I could tell it wasn't faked. "I have to choose to... kill her?"
"Or make her suffer if you can't do it right away. But if you can't choose, I will pick whatever I think is the worst option," Miss. Doublefinger finished for her.
Nami looked quite shaken by this, but I hoped that she would keep a level head about it and continue to devise a plan. I ripped a strip of fabric from the bottom of my cloak that covered my skirt and bikini top (that I was still wearing since we were at the Merry) and tied it around my stomach to stem the bleeding. I did the same with my thigh, though I had to hitch up my stupid skirt that I had been blackmailed into wearing. Ready, I flashed a bright smile to Nami, which she returned weakly.
I subtly pulled my hair down to conceal my mouth and mouthed, Keep thinking. Nami nodded almost imperceptibly and I turned back to the sadistic thorn-lady.
Miss. Doublefinger held up three pointy fingers. "Alright!" she giggled, sounding too excited, "The first round will start with these three choices. Ready? Good. First choice, foot. Second choice, shoulder. Third choice, head. Choose wisely."
I went over the choices in my head. Having my foot stabbed would mean I couldn't walk or run. Having my shoulder stabbed would immobilize one arm, but I would still have another for the time being. If my head was stabbed, I would die, plain and simple.
Nami took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and said decidedly, "Shoulder."
Miss. Doublefinger, instead of using her finger, drew her foot back and stretched it out. The foot thorn was longer and thicker than the others. With an excited squeal, she swung her foot forwards so fast I could barely brace myself. The thorn pierced my left shoulder right under the end of my collarbone.
A loud sound, somewhere between a scream and a grunt, escaped my mouth. I breathed hard as the thorn was pulled out, but yelled in pain as she kicked the same spot. My shoulder burned in a way I had never felt before. The pain went deep into my shoulder, contrasting from the large clawmarks I had received from the Lapahn.
"You... fuck!" I yelled, grabbing my shoulder and bending over. A single tear of frustration and anger dripped down onto my knee. I held my position, because if I didn't, I didn't know how much it would hurt.
Without waiting for me to recover, Miss. Doublefinger giggled sadistically and looked over at Nami. I could hear her breathing over my own. She calmed down faster though, and I could tell she was collecting herself.
Dammit Nami, think fast! I don't know how many more rounds I can take!
"Second round! Neck, side, or ear?" she giggled.
Nami took a deep breath and asked daringly, "What are you going to do with my choice this time?"
Miss. Doublefinger sounded slightly taken aback, but she answered, "Well, since you so bravely asked, I think I'll tell you. I'm just going to use my fingernail this time."
I snuck a glance upwards. She extended a razor thin and sharp nail. I thought about the options for this time. The only place that wouldn't be dangerous in the long term would be my side, as long as she didn't pierce my lung. I would be dead if she did that.
Think fast! I can't do this much longer!
Nami tapped her finger against her leg. Her eyes darted towards the parts of her Clima Tact lying in the road. She shifted her weight seemingly innocently, testing her mobility, but winced when she put pressure on her injured leg. She moved to the edge of the box and placed both feet on the road.
"I sincerely hope that you're not trying to leave," Miss. Doublefinger smirked, stepping up to the spot Nami sat perched on, "Because you know what will happen to your nakama. Now, neck, side, or ear?"
"Side," Nami replied with a defiant grin.
Miss. Doublefinger spun around and walked towards me gleefully. She stroked my bloody cheek and I spat at her. She retreated an inch, but raised her hand, the one razor thin nail protruding from it.
As she slowly drew her hand closer to my rib cage, Nami burst into motion. She darted into the road and snatched the pieces of the Clima Tact. Miss. Doublefinger spun around to see what was happening, but her nail caught on my side and ripped through the skin, leaving a four inch long cut. Although shallow, it stung badly, and I nearly bit my cheek.
As she was facing away from me, I ignited my right fist and slammed it into her back. Her long blue afro caught fire and she screamed when she noticed it, batting at it with her hands. Her frantic efforts only fanned the flames, and soon her entire head was on fire.
During the commotion, Nami had picked up her staff and stood in the middle of the road, twirling it. Bubbles were coming out of either side, and a still atmosphere settled over the dingy houses.
I scrambled across the road, momentarily ignoring the pain from my many cuts. I felt lightheaded from blood loss, but there were more important things to focus on. Such as, for example, the frazzled and burnt thorn-lady that was staggering towards us.
Pulling myself to the steps of a house, I attempted to stand. I braced myself against the door frame and propped myself up with the help of a broken board from a crate. I leaned against the wall for a moment to collect myself, then stumbled into the street where Nami was with my makeshift crutch.
She cast me a concerned look, but kept spinning her staff. Looking more closely at it, I observed that the bubbles were only coming out of one end now. I wasn't sure whether this was planned or not, but I pointed it out to Nami anyways.
"Anni, what do you mean? Of course they're not..." she trailed off, staring at her Clima Tact in dismay. "No! I thought Usopp had completed it!"
When I looked at her quizzically, she continued, "The bubbles of hot air have stopped working!"
I cast a line of flame at the ground to serve as a repellent for Miss. Doublefinger, who had gotten too close. Nami gasped in revelation, and, a second later, I realized that I might have solved the problem.
"That will work! Can you shoot fire into the clouds?"Nami exclaimed. I looked up, and sure enough there were dark storm clouds gathering over the block. I obliged, but as I was doing so, the skin around my rib cage stretched and tore the wound just a millimeter further. I brought my arm down fast and squeezed my eyes tight.
"Anni! Are you okay?" Nami asked concernedly.
I nodded. "What are you doing with the clouds?"
It looked to me that a storm was starting until the wind started to blow. It blew out the separating line between us and Miss. Doublefinger, but there was no need for it anymore. She was on the verge of unconsciousness, and the wind nearly blew her over.
Nami grinned. "This is my Tornado..." She gestured with her staff down from the clouds directly towards the lady that had hurt us both badly. An impressive swirl of clouds and wind struck her, lifting her up and knocking her back down. "Tempo!"
As I was watching, I smiled sadistically with a wonderful idea. I had heard of these, but never seen them. Fire spouts. They sounded awesome. Tornadoes that sucked up fire sounded like the perfect thing to wreak havoc on the torturous woman.
I shot a huge blast of fire into the center of the tornado. However, it was more than I had expected. It became a giant whirlwind of fire that blazed through the streets towards Nami and I. She screamed in terror, while I stood in awe at its beauty.
Tugging on my uninjured arm, Nami yelled something unintelligible over the roar of the swirling fire spout. I assumed that she meant RUN YOU IDIOT!, so I stumbled behind her with the broken board as a crutch as she ran as fast as she could in the direction of the palace. The fire spout was hot on our heels as we ran, quite literally. The pain from my many wounds stung worse than ever, and I was about to collapse from a combination of blood loss and fatigue.
As we ran (or stumbled in my case) through the streets, soldiers and rebels alike both fled from the raging tornado. Fighting forgotten, they raced ahead of us in terror shouting warnings to their comrades. Swords were dropped, guns were left behind, and violence was the last thing on their minds.
Eventually, just as the streets started to transition back to the wealthier part of town, the fire spout dimmed. It had run out of fuel and the fire was going out. The wind subsided, and the tornado fell apart.
A worried voice called out from a nearby street, "Anni! Nami!"
I blinked and looked up to see Ace running down the road towards us. I attempted to stop myself, but my momentum prevented me from doing so. I started to fall forwards, grabbing at my makeshift crutch for assistance, but found none. Just as I was about to topple onto the ground, Ace wrapped his strong arms around me and laid me down on the side of the road.
Nami came to sit beside me, leaning gratefully on the side of a house.
Ace leaned over me and asked concernedly, "What happened? I saw a big tornado made of fire and I heard the people screaming. I came to check it out and then I saw you two covered in blood."
Something triggered in my tired mind. "Ace, weren't you scouting around the city wall?"
"Yeah. Usopp and Chopper were fighting two Baroque Works Agents out there. I offered help, but Usopp said they didn't need it. I helped out anyways though; I think he was lying."
Wow, I guess they're stronger than I thought.
"So, are they okay?" I asked.
Ace nodded, and I sighed in relief. I closed my eyes for a second and tried to evaluate my wounds, but there were so many that it proved nearly impossible. A dusty breeze blew through the streets carrying with it the sounds of swords clashing. I coughed, each one shaking my body.
"Anni, you should see Chopper about your injuries," Nami said, looking up from examining her Clima Tact.
I lifted my head a sliver to see, but I couldn't muster the strength to keep it there. Ace gently but firmly laid a hand on my forehead to make sure I didn't move.
"You never told me what happened," he insisted.
Nami began telling the story of our fight, starting from her first encounter with Miss. Doublefinger. She continued on to describe how I came in to help, but got caught by the Devil Fruit user. In a shaky voice she went through each detail of the 'game' and told Ace how I put up with it to give her time to think. Ace's face darkened at this, and he seemed torn between checking on me and looking for Miss. Doublefinger. She concluded the story with the creation of the fire spout, and how we ran even with the wounds inflicted by Miss. Doublefinger.
Upon hearing this, Ace pulled his hat low over his eyes, something that I had seen Luffy do when someone threatened his nakama. He stood up and started in the direction of our fight, but I mumbled, "She's dead, you know. We got her."
He paused and looked down at us. Nami and I grinned proudly. Ace sat back down next to me and stared. "You... Both of you are so... I'm glad you're alive," he finished.
"Anyways," Nami started, "Anni needs to get to Chopper. She's lost a lot of blood, and she'll need a blood transfusion if this gets any worse."
"Yeah," Ace agreed, "Can you walk? I can carry Anni to Chopper."
Nami nodded and stood up using the wall. Ace slid his arms under my back and knees. He stood up slowly, but my injured shoulder got squished between us. I let out a squeak.
"Sorry. I'm going to put you down for a second. Can you do that?" he said apologetically.
I nodded. He put me down against the wall and turned around. I slowly climbed up on his back with some help from Nami.
Now completely exhausted, I laid my head down on Ace's shoulder. His cowboy hat poked my head, so I shifted around to try and avoid it unsuccessfully.
"What's wrong?" Ace asked, turning his head as he walked.
I 'hmph'ed tiredly. "Your hat is poking me," I mumbled.
He let me go with one hand and lifted off his hat. He lightly pushed it down onto my head to where it blocked half of my vision, but I could still see.
"Thank you," I whispered gratefully, my eyelids becoming heavier with each step. A dark haze fell over my field of vision, and Ace's pace quickened as I quickly fell into unconsciousness.
XxX
"So, Chopper, how is she?"
"Hmm, she's lost a lot of blood, but she should be okay now."
"That's good. Hey, Ace! She's alright!"
"Thank goodness. Can I come in without being fined now?"
"Yes."
Boots clomped towards where I lay. I pried my eyes open to see three worried faces above me. Nami sighed in relief and sat down on a spot outside of my field of view. Chopper busied himself with adjusting my bandages. Ace sat down next to me and, looking around, I figured out that I was lying on the floor in the hallway of a long abandoned house.
"How long... What happened while I was out?" I asked, my voice scratchy.
"Nothing much. We got you to Chopper and Usopp, who came into the city. We don't know much about the others, but Usopp is searching for them right now. You weren't asleep for long, only about half an hour," Ace informed me.
I sat up ignoring Chopper's futile protests. Bandages covered my torso, shoulders, and upper leg. All of me hurt, but it was a dull ache instead of the stabbing pain from before. Chopper had done an astonishing job in such a short time.
Footsteps pounded on the street outside. Nami stood up, ready to defend herself with her Clima Tact. Chopper scrambled around organizing and hiding his supplies. Ace positioned himself between the door and me, but I lit my hand on fire just in case.
Suddenly, a long-nosed figure burst into the house.
"Big news!" Usopp shouted urgently, "There's a bomb somewhere in the city and Luffy is fighting Crocodile again!"
"A bomb?!" Nami gasped. The room fell silent as we waited for Usopp to elaborate on his story.
"Crocodile appeared on the battlefield and announced that he had placed a bomb in the city. Luffy arrived looking pretty beaten up a little while ago with a bird-man. He challenged Crocodile with a huge barrel of water and they're fighting up at the palace," Usopp panted, exhausted from running so hard, "And it turns out that one of Vivi's childhood friends was leading the rebellion, but a lot of things happened and now he's trying to stop the fighting with us."
"So, what do we need to do?" Nami loosened her grasp on her staff and stepped forwards. She was at the door, ready to go, when Usopp answered.
"Luffy told us to find the bomb. He said he can handle the fight but..." Usopp took a deep breath, "He doesn't look like he's doing so well. I'm worried for him, but he's our captain. We have to have faith in him."
Chopper looked around at his supplies scattered all over the room. "I'll need someone to help me clean up," he piped up.
"I'll help," Ace volunteered.
Usopp looked around the room, taking inventory of who was going where. "So... Ace and Chopper are staying here to clean up, then joining Nami, Anni, and I to look for the bomb, right?"
I pushed myself to my feet, leaning on Ace's shoulder for support. Ignoring the protests from both the fire user and the little doctor, I flexed my fingers and arms, then shook out my feet.
"Actually, I'll go and check on Luffy," I volunteered. Ace stood up sharply, unbalancing me. I swayed and nearly fell over, but he grabbed my shoulders and steadied me.
"You can't even stand alone. How do you expect to be of any help?" Ace insisted, lightly shaking my shoulders.
Usopp beckoned to Nami and the two slipped out to join the others in the search.
I floated an inch off the floor with the fire jet technique he taught me in the desert. "I'll be fine," I insisted, "And if I'm not, I'll make it up as I go. See, my powers are working fine."
Ace crossed his arms and strode over to the doorway, blocking it. "I don't want you to go fight Crocodile."
I dropped down onto the ground. "Why?" I asked, frustrated, "Is it because I'm injured?"
"You're too inexperienced," Ace stated bluntly.
I stepped up to him. "No, I'm not. I know that he's dangerous, and I know that he's hurting this country. That's all I need to know to beat him up. I promised Vivi I would!"
"You're wrong!" Ace shouted, "He's one of the Shichibukai, seven insanely strong pirates in league with the World Government. You don't have enough fighting experience to even try!"
"Luffy's out there fighting him right now! He's your little brother, so why won't you let me go?" I shouted back, poking his chest.
Ace uncrossed his arms, then crossed them again. "Luffy's been training since he was a little kid."
"And how do you know that I haven't?" I replied, "I was in that Academy since before I can remember! My life depended on training and getting better! I was taught how to deal with pain so I could keep training!" Ace didn't reply, so I stomped past him. Just as I passed him, however, two arms wrapped themselves around me.
"Just... I don't want you to die. ...I'm worried," Ace mumbled, burying his face in my hair.
Surprised at his sudden change of attitude, I leaned back into his embrace, saying, "Don't worry. I won't die."
I turned back to face him and hugged him back, hard. Over his shoulder, I spotted Chopper. The poor doctor looked terrified. He was crouching next to his backpack, concealing half of his face. In one shaking hand he clutched a Rumble Ball, bringing it ever closer to his mouth.
"Hey, Chopper," I wondered, releasing Ace, "Do your Rumble Balls work on humans?"
He edged out from behind his backpack. "W-Well, they're not meant for humans, and even less for non-Devil Fruits users. To a normal person, it would simply give them a short boost of energy, but the side effects would be unpredictable. To a Devil Fruit user, it would enhance their abilities for three minutes, but not to the extent of mine, again with side effects. It would be quite dangerous for you to take one in your condition, as I don't know what it would do to you."
I came over to Chopper and picked the Rumble Ball out of his hand. "I just need to know if it will kill me," I ordered.
"There is a good chance it won't, but it's still dangerous!" Chopper protested. I patted him on the head, assuring him I would be fine and I would only use it as a last resort.
Rumble Ball in hand, I strode confidently to the doorway and out into the street. Ace followed hesitantly. I tested all four limbs carefully for pain. Finding none, I stretched out my sides, bending sideways and backwards. I took a couple trial running steps and tested the fire jet technique shortly, stopping after I crashed into a wall.
Rubbing my head sheepishly, I grinned at Ace. "I'll be fine once I get going, don't worry. Or maybe..." I brought a hand to my chin in thought, "If we come up with a name for that technique it'll work better!"
"The Fire Foot Jet... Running... Thing?" Ace suggested.
I laughed, waving off the idea. "No, silly. That's terrible. I'm going to call it the... Fire Jet Run!" I announced triumphantly.
"What's the difference?! It sounds the same as my name for it!" Ace protested playfully.
"It's better because I came up with it," I stated by way of explanation with my hands on my hips.
I had to get going soon, or else Luffy could be in trouble. I couldn't leave without doing one final thing, though.
Walking up to Ace, I gave him one more reassuring hug. As I pulled away, I rose up on my tiptoes and lightly kissed the tip of his nose. His freckled cheeks turned a rosy pink and he attempted to stutter out some form of sentence, which I grinned at.
"Well, I'll see you when this is all over with," I said, turning to go. Ace mumbled a stunned affirmative, and, at that, I finally left to go find Luffy.
XxX
After Jet Running for ten minutes or so, I finally caught sight of the palace. It was grander than I had imagined, but I had no time to dwell on that. I was approaching from the back, but even so, I could hear the commotion of the fight in front of the palace.
I ran up the stairs leading up to the back of the palace and attempted to do the epic flame-fueled leap that Ace had done to exterminate the Baroque Works ships, but this time to jump over the palace. Unfortunately, I didn't put enough energy into it and I caught my foot on the ornamental edge of the roof as I came over the top.
"Wooooaaaaah!" I yelled, spinning down uncontrollably. As a safety precaution, I rolled myself into a ball. That only made me spin faster though, so I spread myself out like a starfish to control my descent. I caught a glimpse of the ground just before I hit it. My legs buckled as I hit the ground hard, and I dropped into a roll (or maybe five).
Standing up dizzily, I took in my surroundings. The ground outside the castle was pitted and scarred from the fight, and most of the plants were a little worse for wear. The castle walls were scraped and cracked in multiple places from many different impacts.
"Anni!" came the surprised voice of my captain. He wore a large barrel of what looked like water strapped to his back, and he was all scratched up. He stared at me in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
I glanced back at Crocodile, who was as surprised as Luffy was (and sort of... wet?), then replied, "I came to beat up Crocodile too. I promised Vivi that I would do it no matter what state I was in, so here I am. Plus," I smirked, "You can't have all the fun."
Luffy launched himself past me, sucking in a mouthful of water from a long straw. He directed a punch at Crocodile and as it connected, he spat the water out, drenching the Shichibukai.
Oh, so water works the same as fire does. Sand won't work when it's wet, or when it's melted. Either way it accomplishes the same goal: Crocodile would be incapable of dissolving into sand.
Jumping into the fight, I landed a couple quick punches. The battle started off as just hand-to-hand, which was Luffy's and my forté. Crocodile was pummeled from both sides as we got the most out of the short time that he was solid.
However, that only lasted until the water evaporated in the heat and Crocodile disappeared in a cloud of sand. When he reformed, I was ready with a flaming punch that connected with his shoulder. The spot around my fist instantly solidified, and Crocodile stepped back from the force behind it.
The Shichibukai's mind whirled; I could see it in his dark eyes. He dissipated into the air, letting his solid shoulder fall to the ground with a clunk. Reforming behind me, he grabbed me by my neck and slammed me into the ground.
I coughed up blood, spattering on the neatly mowed lawn. Crocodile took the opening to engulf me in a sandstorm, lifting me up and throwing me back down. I knew I wouldn't be able to dodge in time, so I braced myself for another attack.
When it didn't come, I cautiously opened one eye. Immediately, I scrambled to my feet when I saw Luffy rapid-fire punching Crocodile, using the same water technique as before.
I dove in to help, and together we came up with some very effective moves. It was only a few minutes into the fight when I sprang backwards to collect myself, breathing heavily.
This was just getting interesting.
A/N
I'm going to try and keep my rambling from distracting from the story. I'm back from vacation now, but I'm trying to keep up with my fitness rampage. By my standards I am weak! Still stronger than most girls my age though... (that I know).
I have been switching between Imperial and Metric, and I was wondering if it's okay or if I should stick to just one.
Also, is this romance going too fast? I'll edit the chapter regarding the feedback from you guys, so please tell me what you think of it.
See ya!