Now that it's the weekend I'm either going to publish more chapters or have fun either watching television or even reading a book. I would like to thank for helping me write this chapter. Please read and review.
XXX
Christopher counted how long his captain's ship has been sailing with a monk as well an assassin on board. He counted to six hundred-eighty before a fish just jumped out of the water and landed in his arms. It was some luck he had.
Not feeling the urge to cook Christopher had to put that fish away somewhere. He walked by Yokai who was sitting down hunched over with his staff held by his right armpit.
He dumped the fish in a cool-box, before walking back to Yokai.
"So . . ." He said awkwardly, "Where are we going?"
Yokai continued staring at his staff as he answered. "I have a place where my uncle's men won't find us. It will be safe to talk there."
"Alright . . ." Christopher trailed off, frowning at the moon as it came out from behind a cloud.
The small ship sailed on towards shore.
With a bump that shook the ship, they hit the hidden dock, snapping a couple of the structure's old rotted timbers. Luckily, the ship was unharmed.
"Fletcher!" Christopher yelled quietly, "You were supposed to be steering!"
"Oh, right. Sorry, Hehehe."
Grumbling to himself, Christopher tied the ship to the mooring post, then jumped ashore, followed closely by Yokai. Fletcher was running off ahead, forcing his fellows to sprint to catch up.
Five minutes later, Yokai stopped and Fletcher fell into a hole. Christopher windmilled his arms to avoid sharing the hole.
"Here we are," Yokai announced. The monk began to walk sedately down until-then unnoticed stairs. Christopher went down the stairs too, feeling rather smug for not falling in. Fletcher crawled after them, apparently convinced he was a snake. Christopher pretended not to know him.
The stairs lead down and down and down, the moonlight giving way to an earthy blackness. But, like all things, the stairs eventually ended, having led them down into a large, open chamber lit with candles. A table and four chairs stood in the middle, and the floor was littered with debris. Christopher gave Yokai a sideways look, causing the monk to throw up his hands in defense. "I wasn't expecting visitors!" He said indignantly.
Christopher cleared a chair of books and sat down, Yokai sitting across from them. Fletcher started rummaging through the stuff on the floor.
Fletcher's rummaging is going to be an important point *grins evilly*. Pity the other two.
"Now," said Yokai, "What do you want to know?"
Seeing that Fletcher wasn't paying them any attention, Christopher resigned himself to telling the idiot everything later.
"Well," he said, "First of all, where does Belcosa live?"
"In a tower with six floors."
"How many men does he have?"
"First, he has a sniper who wields two guns. Then there are a pair of swordsman, brothers, skilled in the art of fencing. A man who ate the Zodiac Zodiac Fruit, Model: Taurus. Tor, for that is his name, is one of my uncle's most loyal and strongest. Finally, there is my uncle himself, Brad T. Belcosa. You see this staff?" Yokai held his staff out towards Christopher.
"You see the three shards embedded in it's handle?"
Christopher nodded, and Yokai continued " The clear shard has the power of ice, the blue shard holds the power of lightning, and the third shard gives the power of fire. My uncle also has three shards just like these, plus three more. His other shards give him sway over earth, wind, and Ether, the element of myth. He is a very powerful man, and so far I have been no match for him."
Christopher stared at the monk, startled, asking incredulously, "You already fought him?"
Yokai nodded solemnly. "Yes, I have fought him before. I was overpowered with ease, and forced to flee. I now live here, underground, to avoid his wrath."
Christopher sat there blinking for a moment, stunned that he was sitting across from a man that had lived to tell the tale of an encounter with Brad T. Belcosa. Then he got over it, continuing his line of questioning.
"Apart from your uncle and the four men you described, who else is there? There is no way those five could have killed over a thousand sailors, no matter how great assassins they are."
"There are many underlings, and it is them who commit the murders on my uncle's orders."
Christopher glowered, thinking hard. Then he asked his next questions.
"This Zodiac guy, Tor, tell me about him. How does he fight? Does he have weaknesses?"
Yokai cupped his chin with his hand, elbow resting on the table as he thought about how to answer the question.
"Tor's Zodiac Devil Fruit is the Taurus model, so it gives him bull-like abilities. I've only ever seen him fight once, but what I saw makes me wary. When he uses his powers, he grows to twice his normal size and weight, and his skull hardens and thickens. He gets hooves instead of feet. If you manage to make him truly mad, then his head becomes that of a bull."
"You mean, like a minotaur?"
Yokai looked at Christopher blankly, making the cook blush slightly. Christopher had been into the myth and legend stuff when he was younger.
"Okay, now tell me about the sniper." Christopher was desperate to change the subject.
"Well-"
"What's this do?" Fletcher interrupted Yokai, holding up a round object with two buttons sticking out. One was red, the other was blue.
Yokai went pale as death and Christopher felt a shiver run down his spine. Yokai lunged towards Fletcher and-
KA-BOOM!
The lookout stared in disbelief at the horizon, blinking furiously in a vain attempt to clear his vision. He didn't know what on earth that was, but he had a feeling that the boss ought to know. Stumbling in the dark, seeing spots everywhere, he clumsily climbed down the ladder and staggered towards the tower.
XXX
A large hand knocked firmly on the sturdy oaken doors.
"Come in." A voice commanded. The large man obeyed, walking into the largest room on the sixth floor. He bowed towards the room's only occupant.
"Sir, I have news."
The other man smiled, showing the barest hint of white teeth.
"Yes, Tor, of course you do. Tell me, has my precious nephew been found? And that interloping ship, how did the men fare?"
Tor straightened, face grim. He answered his boss with an apologetic tone. "Sir, I'm afraid things didn't quite go as planned."
"Oh?" The most feared assassin in the Four Blues raised an eyebrow, silently questioning his most loyal and trusted subordinate. Unlike some of the others, Tor was not given to flights of fancy.
"Sir, the three we sent to deal with the intruders were found dead on their ship. All three had been stabbed through the heart. It is suspected that your nephew had something to do with it."
"Of course." The smile shrank a little for a moment, before returning in full force as the man spoke "But that is not all you had to tell me, or else you would have sent one of the lackeys."
Tor nodded gravely. "Yes, Sir. I have also come to relay a message from the lookouts. It would seem that one of them saw a large explosion to the south, which happens to be the area your nephew was last sighted in. The lookout who reported it described as 'a blinding column of light', a description that matches the effects of the experimental weapon your nephew stole when he escaped from here last year."
"Is that so?" Brad T. Belcosa's face split into a wide dangerous grin, his sharp little eyes lighting up with glee. He threw back his head with a laugh, his tall thin frame shaking violently.
"Sir?" Tor said with concern. His boss waved a hand in reply.
"Don't mind me, Tor. I was just thinking of how much that little brat must be hurting right now." Brad stood, shoulders stooped, walking towards the door with a loping stride.
"Tor."
"Yes, Sir?"
"Send those two fencing fools to investigate. Tell them I want answers within the hour."
"Yes, Sir." Tor retreated downstairs, leaving his boss alone to enter the only other room on the sixth floor.
XXX
A certain monk sat bolt upright, coughing up ash. His hair stood on end, and his robes were covered in soot. He looked around frantically for his companions.
Nearby, two fists shot in the air as Fletcher also sat up. "That. Was. Awesome!" He shouted to the moon. A rock smacked him in the back of the head.
"Idiot." Christopher muttered, hauling his protesting body out of the rubble. When Fletcher pouted at him, he sent another rock flying at Fletcher's forehead. It connected with a hollow thunk. Christopher stared. "Is there nothing in that head of yours?" He asked incredulously. Fletcher just continued to pout, rubbing his forehead with a childish scowl.
Yokai blinked. They had just been blown up. And yet those two were acting as if it was nothing, squabbling together like children. He shook his head in wonder. A rock smacked him in the temple. Yokai stared in surprise.
"I know what you were thinking." Christopher stated, hefting another rock in his hand.
XXX
Molly and Maggy ran lightly along the ground, each with a hand clutching the hilt of their swords. Identical grins stretched each of their faces. The brothers were ecstatic. It was rare that the boss let them loose, rarer that they were sent without supervision. They didn't once stop and think about what they were doing. It didn't occur to them to make a plan. In fact, they were just like sword-wielding versions of Fletcher.
XXX
Yokai had just finished dusting himself off when he heard the quick light patter of all too familiar footsteps. He turned in their direction, eyes narrowing.
Christopher looked towards the sound as well, dropping Fletcher back on the ground.
Fletcher now had two black eyes. One old and yellow coloured, the other quickly turning purple. He looked like an odd sort of raccoon.
Running towards them on the horizon, two figures were visible.
XXX
Brad looked upon the pedestal, eyes drinking in the splendour that lay before him. His Treasure. No one else could be allowed to have it.
He left the chamber, carefully shutting the door tightly behind him. He walked back into his room to await the reports of the two swordsman. They had 45 minutes to go.
XXX
Molly and Maggy skidded to a halt, barely noticing the fine particles of ash that puffed up with each step. A lone figure stood before them, silhoutted in the moonlight. He was holding a black sword, which the two could tell was a masterpiece among blades. They smirked in unison. One swordsman was nothing when he was outnumbered, no matter what kind of sword he held.
Molly and Maggy felt sure of victory.
Hiding in some miraculously intact nearby bushes, Yokai and Fletcher watched the newcomers. Yokai was apprehensive. Fletcher was picking his nose. Yokai felt worried as Molly and Maggy came to stand on either side of Christopher. Fletcher kept picking his nose. Yokai tensed as the three swordsman each took a fighting stance. Fletcher continued-
"Will you stop that!" Yokai whispered harshly. Fletcher blinked owlishly, still picking his nose.
"Stop what?"
"Aren't you worried about Chris at all? Stop picking your nose!"
Fletcher looked at battle waiting to begin, finally removing his finger from his nostril. He shrugged.
"Eh, it's Chris. He'll be fine. I dunno how to use a sword anyway."
"Neither do I," Yokai muttered. Making his decision, he tugged on Fletcher's shirt.
"Come on. If your crew mate is so great, we'll just go on ahead."
The two cautiously crept out of the bushes and towards the direction Molly and Maggy had come from. They slowly and warily made their way towards Brad's hideout, although they were only slow because Yokai wouldn't let Fletcher run off ahead.
No one noticed them go.
XXX
"Well," said Molly, "aren't you going to attack already?"
Christopher stood silent, watching both opponents with sharp eyes.
Molly and Maggy were bored of waiting. Usually, the target moved first, but this time it looked like it was up to them. Yelling, both randomly charged at Christopher.