Pierce sleeps and Karmen lets the guards of the DavenGallow winery complex relax some. When things have been quiet for a few hours, Darren agrees to let the slaves have their breakfast. She follows them down to the locked room and watches as he takes the keys from his belt and unlocks the heavy door. The slaves lift their heads from their resting positions, expecting to be unshackled and given their orders for the day. Instead, they are given their food and taken to the bathroom in small groups. Karmen crouches on a large wine barrel during this process, watching for injuries or illnesses she'd need to take into consideration later. One man stares directly at her when Pierce shuffles his wings in his sleep. The old man's eyes widen and she smiles, holding a finger to her lips. The man seems to think he's losing his mind because he stares at the person in front of him until he's back in the room. When every person had been tended, the dishes are collected and the room locked. The guards go back to their regular duties in pairs with nerves on edge.
Small reports trickled in throughout the day. One guard said he saw a red mist moving up the stairs to the second floor. Another said he saw a woman with horns reflected in a third story window, but when he turned around there was no one there. Several men reported hearing the spectral laugh and intangible whispers in their ear. All guards state that the building had steadily been getting colder, despite the heat of the day. It was like the frost had been creeping up from the basement.
"Has anyone seen Aether?" Shane asks as the sun begins to make its downward arc.
"He walked out," a guard says. "We tried to stop him but it was like he couldn't even hear us, like he was in a trance. The cook boy left too. He passed out dinner and left without saying a word, eyes glazed over."
"A lot of guards left," Darren says. "This will all reflect badly on me when I give my report."
Shane shifts his feet and checks for the third time that hour that his rifle is loaded. "Not that I give any heed to superstitions and curses or any heebie-jeebies like that, but maybe we should go into town. Just for tonight." The three remaining guards with him nod their agreement.
"You could," Darren says, giving a carefree nod. "But what do you think happens when I give my report and our superiors hear of everyone who abandoned their post?" The men feel a sudden chill that is completely unrelated to the quickly dropping temperature. "The best case scenario is getting fired. You've all heard the rumors of what it's like for those who get taken to Galaval." The guards look like cornered animals, forced to choose between a possible and unknown death or labor until they died from exhaustion or worse. An unknown probability was better than what they knew was certain. They would stay.
Karmen almost feels bad for what she will have to do. When the sun has completely disappeared, she reaches back and runs her hand down Pierce's furry cheek. "Get ready," she whispers to him as he yawns in her ear. "We're going to have to scare these ones out."
She snags Darren's keys and makes her way down to the first floor. The guard on the door had long since walked out with the aid of her flexomn toxin. When she unlocks the latch, she reaches back and slides the gas mask back into Pierce's visor. He'd had it on all day to negate the effects of the constant exposure to the algidity grenades, so he seems very confused that she wants him to take it off. "What are you doing?" he asks.
"Negating risk." As she steps inside, she drops a deadbolt grenade. Everyone, including Pierce, is frozen stiff. She saunters in, unfading for those in the room, and gives a friendly smile. "Hello, everyone. I'll let you all move in a minute, but there are still guards in the building so I need all of you to keep from screaming, ok?" She holds up the keys. "I'm going to let you out and take you somewhere safe where the guards and DavenGallow crews can't find you, but you have to stay quiet and do exactly what I say so the guards don't find us until we want them to."
She moves around the room quickly, turning keys in the locks and disposing of chains and exploding collars as she goes. They clink against the floor as they drop and Karmen can feel Pierce's heart flutter in stabs of panic at the sound. The deadbolt ensured that his flesh remained solid where it is and no extra claws sprouted from him. When everyone is released she sets the antidote grenade in the center of the room. "Remember everyone, no noise, or else you may very well end up back in those chains." She releases the pin and the reversing gas fills the room. When everyone can move again Pierce grows a set of wings to blow the remaining mist from the room. One man let out a cry of surprise. One second Karmen is standing in the middle of the room, the next she had her hand clamped over the man's mouth, muffling the sound. Everyone sits deathly still as she scanned the building with her haki. No one is coming. She slowly backs away. "Follow me."
She leads them into the next room where several barrels had been placed with their lids ajar.
"You poisoned me," Pierce says in disbelief, folding his wings tightly in agitation. His voice is too low for anyone besides her to hear.
"I did."
"Why?"
"Because of the way you react to chains. We can't fight guards if there's a random claw sticking in my ribs. We can talk about it later." She places her hand on one of the barrels and turns back to the slaves as he slides the mask back over his face. "Right. I'm going to need all of you to get inside one of these barrels. I am very sorry if any of you are claustrophobic but it will only be for a few minutes, I promise."
Some hesitate while others are too scared to disobey. Seeing as this woman who appears at random and grows demonic wings had just freed them, none of them hesitate too long. Karmen makes sure that all the lids are secured tightly and makes her way back upstairs where the guards are still huddled. "Let's finish this."
Pierce doesn't need a cue from her. He grew an extra pair of wings, unhooked his feet from her waist, and began climbing the wall, cradling her against his body. They crawled along the ceiling, raining plaster down on the guard's heads. With Karmen's haki, the only thing they see when they look up are holes appearing above them. Darren doesn't waste any time pointing his gun to the front of their procession and firing. Silence follows the retort. "Do you think you hit it?"
"You can't kill the dead, dearies."
They turn and see Karmen crouching in the corner, wings throwing her form into shadow. She gives her darkest chuckle as she looks up. She focuses her reverse observation haki on her and Pierce's mouths so that the guards in front of them see Pierce's fangs instead of her expectant grin. With the angle of his head behind hers, it looked like it's Karmen who had the horns. She can tell all of them are regretting their decision to stay. Surprisingly it's Shane who fires the next bullet. Pierce's clawed hand shoot forward and catch it, haki preventing it from penetrating his skin. He holds it up for Karmen to inspect and she smears it with concentrated sunblade so that it glowed hot like hellfire. Pierce throws it back at the guards and it singes Shane's ear as it sails back, burying itself in the wall behind them and smoldering into flame. While they stare at the fire, Karmen pulls a string attached to the last algidity grenade on this floor. Ice explodes up the walls and extinguishes the fire, dropping the temperature to near freezing. Shane drops his rifle and steps back a few paces in terror.
Pierce gives an earth-shattering roar and Karmen synchronizes with him to mirror his movements, arching her back low and spreading her hands like claws. Urine runs down one of the younger guards' legs and he takes off down the stairs, sliding and almost falling on the ice coating the first step. The others aren't far behind him. Only Darren stands his ground.
Karmen lets the haki fade from their faces and smirks. "You should have run." She pushes off the ground and Pierce accelerates their speed with a thrust of his wings. They catch Darren under his arms as he turns to dodge and break through a window at the end of the hall. Glass rains down on the other guards as they fly overhead, insane laughter mixed with terrified screams and otherworldly screeches echo in the night sky. They throw him into the ocean and a six-winged, horned silhouette of a woman blocks out the light of the moon. The remaining guards run and don't look back. They fly high over the facility and Karmen releases a surge of haki over the island and the surrounding ocean. It crackles with invisible energy through the air and those waiting in the water receive her signal loud and clear.
A low rumble emanates from beneath the waves that shakes the whole island. The water recedes from the beach and returns with destructive force as a sea king stingray breaches and falls back into the water. The winery is battered, walls shatter into rubble and water floods the ground floor. Smaller stingrays are carried into the building where they wrap their tails around a barrel each. When the water recedes they go with it, leaving not a soul in the building as it crumbles, destroyed barrels of wine turning the water a deep, bloody purple.
The stingrays keep the barrels under water until they are a mile out to sea. With Kudra's help, it doesn't take much time at all. Her giant fins redirect the currents in their favor and get them to a safe distance as they bob to the surface. Karmen and Pierce fly over them, monitoring them closely to make sure they still contain enough air and haven't sprung any leaks. The rays work to keep the barrels upright and gather them all together in a large bundle between them. Karmen and Pierce fly over to the first barrels and begins prying off the lids one by one in quick order. Despite the ray's best efforts, they are greeted by feet instead of faces in a few barrels, but most of them don't need any assistance climbing out.
"Get on the rays, three in a group. Choose any one you like, they're all friendly," Karmen says. Her voice remains low but is loud enough for all to hear her. "You'll find oxygen tanks waiting for you. Put those on. If you're a power user tie yourself to the harnesses. It's going to get cold, but we'll warm up when we resurface."
The man who had seen her before, an elderly man with a long white mustache and beard, speaks up with a shaky voice as he makes his way to a stingray. "E-excuse me," he says. "Where might we be going?"
Some of the others look shocked that he dare ask a question. Karmen notes this with a frown. They'd been pretty conditioned. She gives them all a pleasant smile. "To freedom." There is such a loud cheer that Karmen has to smother the sound with her haki. Covering such a wide area in such a sudden jolt of power leaves her light-headed, but Pierce adjusts his weight to keep her balanced on her feet.
When the noise dies down the old man speaks up again. "Are you really a ghost?"
A cheeky grin crosses her face and she winks at him. "That I am, dearie. Valentine W. Karmen, at your service: The Vengeful Gallowcomb Ghost."
Pierce's ear twitches against her shoulder. "Mistress."
"Oh. Right." Karmen looks towards the island. "We still have a few minutes. Is anyone not ready?" She scans everyone to make sure their masks are in place and their hands are at least gripping the harnesses. She notes a few who tied themselves down while she makes sure Pierce is secure. "Here we go." She empties the poison cartridges out of her quills and throws the darts into the water. She steps up to Parvati's nose and touches the water with the tip of her index finger, sending a stream of haki straight down. As a single unit the rays dive, the ones on the edges catch the darts she'd thrown in their mouths and return to the perimeter. The sea prism in the metal will help keep sea kings at bay. When they're fifty feet down, Kudra swims to the surface and gathers all the empty barrels in her mouth, completely erasing the evidence that they had ever been there.
It isn't long before a naval ship passes overhead. She can recognize the patterns of sea prism set into the keel. She senses fifty strong, capable marines on board. They seem to be doing a searching pass, perhaps looking for Darren, but if any of them have good observation haki it could mean trouble.
"Par, Raja, I need you to hold onto me," she says. The rays immediately wrap their tails around her wrists and hold her suspended, dragging her along through the water between them. She spreads her reverse observation haki out from herself like a cloak, covering all the rays. They sense what she is doing and gather closer to her so it will take less effort, but keeping the cloak at her highest sustainable level still takes all her concentration. Thankfully she doesn't have to cover Kudra. Granny can take care of herself, as Karmen's aching ribs can attest to.
The effort it takes to cast a cloak over the entire group saps the mobility from Karmen's body. Her limbs go rigid and she can barely move enough to draw air into her lungs. She wonders if this is what it feels like for power users to be submerged in water. No, it's the complete opposite cause that somehow leads to a similar reaction. The rays swim faster and the ship sails off in a different direction. Karmen holds the cloak for as long as she can. She can feel her muscles protesting and her vision is beginning to go dark. When she can no longer sense the ship she lets herself relax. The cold water feels good against her skin, especially since she can't seem to remember how to move her fingers enough to get back to Parvati's back and her vision hasn't improved. Everything looks dark. Her body doesn't want to respond to commands. She can barely register that Parvati lets go of her forearm and wraps her tail around Karmen's waist before Raja releases her.
She must have lost consciousness because she swears she hears a voice on the currents.
Karmen.
It's like a ghostly whisper. She can't tell if it's male or female. Every time she tries to focus on it the voice fades away. It's clearest when she lets her mind float in the blackness. It seems so familiar that she has to wonder if her neurons are replaying a memory.
Karmen.
Strangely, the voice fills her with reassurance and she finds herself fighting the panic she hadn't realized was even setting in. True, she can't even feel her own body, but she's surrounded by her bond-mate's family and has Pierce on her back. For now, they're safe and protected. She could rest, if just for a little while.
Parvati carries her for the next thirty minutes before the air tanks start running low. As a unit, all the rays rise to the surface. Pierce recovers quickly. He snaps the ribbons holding him to Karmen and climbs off her back as he transforms back into human form. He kneels on Parvati's back and scoops Karmen into his arms, rubbing her hand and patting her cheek. Or at least, she thinks that's what he's doing. She can't exactly feel any of it. Her limbs feel like cold lead and have all the sensory capabilities of dried seaweed. "Hey, are you still with me? Say something," he says. She can breathe just fine, which she finds odd, and she's still able to blink. She watches his ear twitch towards the sound of her lashes scraping together. With that stupid gas-mask visor over his eyes, she can only gauge his expressions from the set of his mouth and the worried tension in his jaw. An idea forms in her mind and she can only hope he remembers Morse code.
F-I-N-E, she blinks.
He gives a small laugh of relief. "You don't seem fine to me, but I'll take your word for it." Her fingers and toes start to tingle, which she takes as a good sign. "What happened?"
U-S-E-D T-O-O M-U-C-H H-A-K-I, R-E-C-O-V-E-R-I-N-G S-L-O-W-L-Y
He sighs and relaxes. "Don't scare me like that. I mean, I know you're supposed to be dead and all, but as your bodyguard, I've got to draw a line." He wraps her in his wings to warm her up. "Leave some of the work to me."
U-N-D-E-R-W-A-T-E-R
He scoffs. "You act like I haven't destroyed a ship before."
If she could laugh she would have. Instead, she tries to use her haki to check on the others. She finds her mind just as numb as her body and is left unsettled.
T-H-E-M
He turns his head to survey the others. "They all managed to hang on, it seems. Their heart rates would suggest they're a little scared, but I don't think this is expected for anyone."
H-O-R-I-Z-O-N
"All clear from above and the rays aren't acting like there's any threat from below." She can now feel the pressure of his wings and hands against her skin without the sensation of warmth. Still, any progress back towards normality is comforting. "I didn't even know you could do that."
M-E E-I-T-H-E-R.
"You said you'd been training your haki," he says, voice so low only she can hear. "Do you think this will happen every time?"
N-E-E-D T-O G-E-T S-T-R-O-N-G-E-R
"And if you destroy yourself in the process?"
U-N-W-O-R-T-H-Y
"Then I'll get stronger too, so I can support you in your times of vulnerability."
B-A-C-K
"Yes, Mistress." He stands, pulling her up with him. His wings support her as he shuffles her around to his back and form under her to create a basket of living leather. Her arms droop listlessly over his shoulders and her head lulls to one side.
"Is she ok?" one of the children asks.
If she could giggle, she would have as Pierce realizes all the freed slaves are looking to him for information. "My Mistress is fine," he says, a little stiffly. "She merely exhausted herself to keep us hidden from the marine ship that passed us by."
"Is she a power user, like you?" the old man asks.
Pierce shakes his head. "No, Karmen uses haki, some of the most powerful I've ever seen."
I-N-T-R-O-D-U-C-E
"Wouldn't you rather do that?" he asks, mumbling the words out of the corner of his mouth. She simply hangs there like a ragdoll. "Right. Sorry." He squares his shoulders and stands up straighter before clearing his throat. "My name is Pierce. I am Valentine W. Karmen's bodyguard and second in command. As you may have noticed, I am a bat-bat man. I was, erm, fed the artificial bat-bat devil fruit: gray bat model." Fur bristles along his shoulders and Karmen finds it comfortable against her cheek. "I generally don't like to be around very many people, but since Karmen is incapacitated at the moment I will try to answer any questions you may have." His voice is so authoritative and rigid that no one speaks up at first.
"Are you a slave too?" a teenage boy asks.
"I am not a slave, and neither are you," Pierce says. "Not anymore."
"Why do you have horns?" a little girl asks.
"It's from eating the artificial devil fruit," he says, producing a second set of wings and wrapping them around himself like a cloak. Several of the children gasp.
"Artificial?" a woman asks.
"Are there any questions that aren't about me?" Pierce rolls his shoulder, making Karmen's head bob slightly. "Get better already, would you?" he whispers.
Part of her likes forcing him into social interactions, while the majority of her brain wants to help him out. As she tries to regain control of her body she realizes that she'd never stopped using her haki. In fact, she was still using massive quantities. Instead of slowly recovering from her earlier use, her body is simply adjusting to her current rate. If she stayed like this she would eventually learn how to control it. And further still, if she pushed herself, she feels she could leave her body and discover far more than she could ever imagine. The unknown calls to her like a siren.
Not yet, Child. Go back.
She feels the voice slip away, and with it, her desire to explore this new power. She draws her haki back until she can sense it again and her senses rocket back to painful awareness. "Oh, my head." She slumps deeper against Pierce's shoulder.
"Welcome back," he says, relieved. She isn't sure if it's her sudden recovery or the fact that he doesn't have to answer any more questions alone. "What happened?"
"I think I may have been communing with the dead," she says, rubbing her temple.
"If you're hearing voices, I'm having Dr. Saaresto examine you the second we're back," he says, concern edging his voice.
"Relax and put me down already." He lets his wings lower until her feet are touching Parvati's back. As soon as she feels the sensation, Parvati whips her tail up and raps Karmen sharply across the forehead. The message is clear. Don't scare me like that. "Ow. Understood." She rubs her head as she tries to stand on her own, but collapses. Pierce catches her and wraps a sturdy arm around her waist. "Ok, not completely recovered." She leans against his arm for support and smiles at the watching party. "Hello. Sorry about that. I'll answer all your questions from here on out."
"Absolutely not," Pierce growls. "You're going to sit down and rest." He lets go and she drops roughly onto Parvati's back. He sits behind her, using his back to support her seated position.
"Ok. I'll answer questions later. Wake me up if anything happens or the new air tanks arrive before I get my strength back." She closes her eyes and a different darkness takes her.
AN: Happy New Years! ~KnightNGale020