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"This means someone is talking."
'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'
This means it's a flashback.
*This means it's a sound effect!*
{This means I'm speaking in a different language!}
Froppy's Swashbuckling Adventure!
The moon hung low over the ocean, casting an unworldly glow over the water and the Sand Hawk as it pushed through the meager waves on it's journey away from Japan's shores.
Tsuyu looked down and tested the plastic zip tie wound tightly around her wrists. It didn't budge and it didn't seem she would be able to slip her larger than average frog hands out either.
Her captors had put it on her right after she had climbed up the ladder on the side of the cargo ship, a harpoon gun pointed at her back the whole time. Now she was being led down the ship's deck, the three men who had captured her and the pro heroes escorting them.
Sirius and Mike were on her right, similarly restrained with all of the former's support gear, including her radio, confiscated. They both wore an expression of frustration and utter disdain for their captors.
If Tsuyu had to guess, it was for the treatment of Selkie being dragged in front of them. The criminals had seen it necessary to restrain his arms with a heavy looking anchor chain, the other end in the grasp of the broadest of the three men who would sharply tug on it every so often, pulling him along. But that hadn't been enough for them, as they had also placed some kind of dog muzzle on his snout, probably to prevent him from trying to bite anyone with his sharp seal teeth. To his credit, Selkie remained silent, keeping his dignity rather than lose it in a futile effort to fight back while in such a state.
Tsuyu's spirit wept for the savage mistreatment of her superior, but she could do nothing. She could only imagine how furious Sirius and Mike were feeling, watching the man they held so much respect for paraded around like a circus animal.
She tore her eyes away to start taking in her surroundings, rather than witness him being degraded. The deck of the ship was mostly empty, save for some rusting shipping containers, wooden crates and a single crane dotting the wide expanse. Hanging around said containers were more and more of the brigands, all of them wearing some manner of the same bright red as the three men surrounding them. There was a larger congregation in the centre around a flaming barrel, laughing and falling over each other as they passed bottles of foul smelling liquid, liquor probably.
And all of them were armed with knives, machetes, makeshift clubs or some kind of nautical firearm, like the harpoons currently held at Tsuyu's back..
"Sirius-san… who are these people?" She whispered out of the corner of her mouth, careful to not bring attention to them.
Sirius kept her gaze forward. "I don't know Froppy. But I have an idea of what they are."
"Really?"
"Yes. I had heard rumors, but never gave them much thought. Rumors of common criminals and former sailors banding together to make gangs that venture on the seas, raiding and stealing from unsuspecting and isolated vessels, usually cargo ships."
Her glare hardened. "They're pirates."
Tsuyu's eyes widened. "Pirates?" She exclaimed, her mind automatically drifting to movies and shows about bands of swashbuckling adventurers gallivanting on the high seas, firing huge cannons and engaging in flashy sword fights. "Those are still around?"
"Afraid so."
"What do we do? What are they going to do to us?" She asked fretfully.
"I don't know." Sirius admitted, dashing Tsuyu's hopes. "All we can do right now is bide our time. Keep an eye out for a way to escape or signal the coast guard. Until then, do what they say."
"Oi!" The eel faced pirate barked as he jabbed Sirius in the back with his harpoon, making her jump a step and hiss in pain. "Zip it!"
Selkie twisted his head and bared his teeth at the offender. "Keep your filthy hands off my crew-ugh!" He grunted as the man in front yanked on the chain again, pulling the protective captain back.
"Hrrrdrrrmrrr!" The man ordered, his speech smothered once again by the obscene amount of bandanas and scarves wrapped around his face.
"What he said! Shut yer yap! Only speak when spoken to when we meet the captain, 'less ya want yer neck slit!" The eel spat.
"Kero…" Tsuyu croaked nervously under the threat. Selkie said nothing further, instead shooting her, Sirius and Mike a concerned look before resuming to trudge after his handler.
"Ey, Hoffman!" A new, deep voice slurred and their escort stopped
Glancing to the side, Tsuyu spotted the meandering pirates looking their way from all the commotion. One of them wore a bright red pancho, a matching bandana over his face and a ratty tricorn hat on his head, which he fixed while he shambled over. His loose steps betrayed how he was, if the smell of cheap alcohol didn't.
"Whatcha got here mate?" He asked the birdman in the back of the posse.
"Some of the heroes that were chasing our sellers. Gave the squids a walloping before we stepped in."
"Ohh, that's what's been happenin'?"
"Yeah, the sellers will be right up after some of the boys bring them to."
"Bout bloody time!" The newly dubbed White said before looking over the captives. When his gaze landed on Sirius, his bandana stretched over what Tsuyu assumed was a lecherous smile.
"Well, ahoy there!" He sauntered around and caressed one of her bangs. "What's yer name?"
"Tch!" Sirius clicked her teeth in disgust, leaning away from his touch.
"Hands off White. The captain will decide what happens to these four." Hoffman warned his comrade, whose eyes widened in excitement.
"Ohhh, there's gonna be a show then! Oy! Lads! Get off yer asses! The goods are here!" He called to the rest of the men nearby who all perked up and got to their feet.
Thus, the long walk continued, now with an entourage of bloodthirsty and partially drunk pirates. They hooted and hollered, leered at Sirius and some even made bets on which of the heroes and intern would die. None of it helped Tsuyu's nerves, as she was immediately thrown back to the USJ incident and how close she had gotten to dying at the hands of Shigaraki, if it hadn't been for her teacher.
Then the subject of the leader of the LOV got her dreading her upcoming meeting with the captain of this debaucherous gang of criminals. What did they look like? What were they going to do to her, her own captain and senior?
Looks like she was about to find out as the four of them were marched out towards the centre of the deck, which had been made into a pseudo-courtyard under the shadow of the ship's bridge. The pirates fanned out around them, finding comfortable seats on the railings or nearby crates to watch what was about to unfold.
"Lights!" One of them yelled and almost immediately, two large floodlights on the top deck were turned on and angled to light up the floor below, revealing a crimson insignia of a five petalled blossom lying on a pair of crossed cutlasses.
'A pirate colors.' Tsuyu noted, taking the scene all in before the eelman brusquely shoved her from behind, making her stumble.
"Keep walkin'!" He ordered.
"S-Sorry." She stuttered and ran a little to catch up to the rest of the group. She squinted under the full glare of the floodlights as she made her way to Sirius's side, Selkie and Mike on the far end.
She looked up to her seniors amidst the raucous chatter of the pirates surrounding them. Sirius gave her a scared, yet reassuring smile while Selkie firmly nodded, as if in promise that they would make it out of this situation.
Tsuyu wasn't sure if she believed him, but it was the only hope she had.
"About damn time you lousy bastards showed up!" The four of them jolted at the sound of a familiar voice.
Stepping out of the shadows and led by a couple of pirates were the smugglers they had worked so hard to capture. In the front was the boss, the peach colored octopus man, whose right cheek now sported a bruise most purple from where Selkie had dropkicked him. Behind him were his three minions, the woman dressed in yellow now free and the two men in red and blue grinning as far as their beaks would allow. They were all carrying plastic wrapped packages, the stolen cargo Tsuyu presumed. There was also a smaller, metal box held in one of the boss's hands.
"Seriously! Any later and you'd be kissing this stuff goodbye!" He grumbled at the pirates before his gaze landed on the captured heroes. His tentacled upper lip curled into a delighted smirk.
"Heheheh, you shoulda did what I told you, brat." He chuckled pointedly at Tsuyu. "Then we would have been out of your hair and you wouldn't be in such a pickle!"
"How do you like being tied up, huh?!" Yellow laughed.
"Anyway…" The boss turned to Hoffman. "Here it is! Twenty five kilos of pills and the "package", whatever it is." He placed the stolen drugs at his feet, his henchmen depositing theirs with them. He kept the metal box in his grasp though. "So if you guys could give us the money you promised, we'll be on our way. If it's cash, make sure it's in airtight bags, don't want the bills to get ruined."
"I'm not the buyer pal. Just one of their lieutenants." Hoffman snorted.
"Then who is your boss and where is my damn money?!" The smuggler demanded, raising himself over the smaller man, his many tentacles coiling threateningly.
"That would be me!" A new, effeminate voice rang out, tinged with a distinctly British accent.
Every head turned to the sound of the newest arrival.
'A woman?' Tsuyu wondered.
A second later, she became aware of an odd sound, a sort of clanging like metal being hit off of metal. Then her eyes were able to pick out a dark shape slowly climbing down the steps leading to the upper deck. They took their time as they descended and slowly made their way into the circle of light.
And just like that, all of Tsuyu's expectations were completely blown out of the water.
Standing there, invincible and prideful, was a tall, curvaceous woman adorned in some kind of grey naval uniform, long sleeve and immaculately pressed. It was complimented by a bright red waist cape held up by leather belts and a golden, spiked epaulet on her left shoulder. On said belt hung a sheathed saber, the hilt of which sparkled under the floodlights. Below that, she wore dark grey trousers that went right into her leather boot.
Leather boot, singular, as her right leg from the thigh down had been replaced with a mechanical pegleg. If that wasn't enough, she had a gleaming rectangular hook on her left arm where her hand should be, its point wicked and sharp. On her head she wore a bircorn sailor's hat, golden rings and spike lining it's long horizontal brims.
Tsuyu's eyes trailed up to her face, but was surprised to see that the woman was actually quite beautiful. She had tanned, flawless skin, her lips a deep red and her singular light blue eye shone with excitement. The other was hidden under a mechanical eyepatch with a red lens, another injury Tsuyu surmised. She had polished gold and silver rings hanging off her left ear, a smaller one on her bottom lip and a stud on the top one. Finally, sticking out the side of her hat in a strange, gravity defying curl was a long bolt of crimson hair.
All together, it was an ensemble reminiscent of the classical pirate captain, albeit with a modern flair.
"Innsmouth-san I presume?" She greeted the smuggler in a cheery tone, sounding like she was very happy to see him.
"So… you're the captain here?" He asked, his eyes looking her up and down.
"I'm wearing the biggest hat aren't I?" She laughed, all the while Tsuyu and her allies stared in disbelief. This was the captain of this motley crew and the buyer of the stolen cargo? She felt more like a cheerful buccaneer cosplayer than an actual villain on the high seas.
"Huh… I guess if you're paying, then appearances don't really matter." The head smuggler, now identified as Innsmouth, shrugged.
"I'm going to ignore that. I see you picked up a few guests." She turned her head to the gathered heroes, Tsuyu hiding herself on the end of the lineup.
"Yeah… thought we lost them when we trapped the big bastard in a fishing boat's cargo hold, but they're very persistent. Now, where's my money?"
"Patience my good man!" She held up a placating hand. "You know how this goes. I need to make sure you brought what I asked for." She patiently explained, then snapped her fingers.
Hoffman pulled a knife off his belt and knelt over one of the boxes. He sliced through the plastic wrap, then the tape and opened the cardboard flaps to reveal a dozen pill bottles. He picked one up and gave it a shake, the telltale rattling confirming it's contents.
He looked to his captain and nodded.
"And the case?"
Innsmouth flipped the tin he was holding over and handed it to his client. The woman held the case before her with an air of reverence, as if she couldn't believe what was in her arms was real. Turning her back to the smugglers and heroes alike, she popped the lid with her hook and let out a gasp.
"My God… it's even more beautiful than I could ever imagine…" She said breathlessly, in awe. The sheer wonder in her voice made Tsuyu peek out from behind Sirius. What was in the box? What treasure could elicit such a response? A flawlessly cut gemstone? A priceless ring?
"So? Are we all good?" Innsmouth tapped his fingers impatiently off his crossed arms, cutting the captain's moment short as she closed the lid.
"Everything seems to be in order." She answered, handing the case off to Hoffman.
"Good. Now. My money?" He growled, his tentacles whipping around him more and more.
The woman sucked her teeth. "Yeah… about that." She turned back around. "I was thinking we could agree on a discount, aye?" She asked, sounding more than a little bashful.
Innsmouth bristled. "What?! We brought you the goods as promised!"
"Yessss, but you also kind of led a bunch of heroes to the handoff location and we had to save you from getting arrested?" She grimaced, giving him a sorry smile. "But look, I'm generous, I'd be willing to give… eh, fifty percent?"
He definitely didn't like that. Appearing to swell in anger, the octopus man's tentacles similarly grew in size, lashing over him!
"WHY YOU-! I'LL KILL YOU, YOU DOUBLE CROSSING SNAKE!" He bellowed, swinging his great, elastic limbs down to crush the captain, making Tsuyu's stomach leap into her throat(literally).
*BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!* The air rippled and smelled of burnt powder and blood splattered from gaping bullet holes in each of Innsmouth's arm tentacles!
"AAAGH! YOU! YOU BITCH! YOU SHOT ME!" He screamed, falling onto his back where his wounded tentacles thrashed about, smearing the deck with his red ichor.
"BOSS!" His henchmen cried, moving forward to help him only to freeze as they now found themselves at the pointed ends of the many sharp implements owned by the pirates around them.
"Well of course I did. What would I do with this, slap you?" The woman asked with a snort, twirling a black metal revolver around her fingers. "Don't worry love, octopi can grow their limbs back, no sweat!"
Then she frowned, tapping her chin with her hook. "Or was that cuttlefish? I fell asleep halfway through that particular documentary I'm afraid."
The pirates laughed at their captain's carefree demeanour and pointed fun at the man writhing on the floor, all the while Tsuyu and the heroes watched on in horror.
Sure, Innsmouth had hurt her, Sirius and Mike and tried to kill her but she never would have wished him this much harm on anyone. He hadn't been hit anywhere vital, but it looked agonizing as he shivered and moaned. Where had she even gotten that gun from?
"Kero…" She couldn't help the horrified croak that escaped her mouth.
"Hm?" The lady pirate looked up at the sound, making her regret being born a frog for the first time in her life.
"Oh right, you're all still here! Sorry about that and all of…this." She gestured around with her pistol, the barrel still smoking. "You have to understand none of this is personal, yeah? We didn't want to take you prisoner either, but these sort of things just happen, y'know? I really wanted these things and you were going to keep them from me, sooo…" She meandered about, casually explaining away her horrible actions as if they had been invited to her house and she had forgotten to clean it up.
"Ah, I'm rambling again and I haven't even introduced myself! How embarrassing! Many apologies!" She chuckled sheepishly, coming to a stop in front of them. "Greetings! I'm, um, Captain Scarlett!" She said, giving a little bow and a curtsy.
She then aimed her gun behind her and fired another shot into Innsmouth's leg, eliciting another howl before fixing them a wide, innocent smile. "Nice to meet you!"
To be continued...