Hi everyone! It's been a while. You know the drill: I do not own any One Piece characters, plot or settings. It all belongs to Eiichiro Oda. I did not receive any revenue or payment for the writing of this fan fic. Please enjoy Chapter 14!
Zoro acted before he thought. His sword could cut anything, even steel. Surely, a cat's forearm was no different. Instead, his blade met resistance and he was kicked effortlessly into the sea. Water enclosed him and Zoro had to resist the urge to gulp in a lungful of air. The currents tugged at his body; tossed him around like he was merely a leaf. The sea was rough and dark, a sure prelude to the storm that was rumored to come. The sea eventually got tired of playing with him and a large wave washed him onto a rooftop. Zoro coughed briefly, clearing his lungs of stale oxygen and salt water. He stood up and looked around the unfamiliar view.
"Where am I?" he murmured. The high winds teased his drying shirt and snatched his words out of his mouth.
"What would you do without me?" Magina's words echoed briefly.
A grim line set on his face. Chopper was down before Luffy was attacked and thrown out the window. With him being kicked out of the building, only Magina and Nami were left to face those bastards. Magina…and Nami…Oh, hell. His own words came back to haunt him; Just protect Nami and stay out of this! Knowing the siren, she probably only heard the first half of what he said. Damn! Zoro decided to try going up, the shipyard should be on higher ground.
He leapt from rooftop to rooftop, steadily making his way to the center of Water 7. One time he slipped on some water but after skidding across the slippery surface, he took a moment to regain his footing. It would be terrible if he fell into the street ways. He didn't have time to climb back up. The wind grew stronger, actually tugging at his short-cropped hair. Even with all the wind-resistance, he made good time. Magina, you'd better be safe, he thought to himself as he made a particularly large jump. Just at that moment, a gust of wind blew him off course.
Zoro yelped, tried to stop from falling…The dark grey of the city was replaced by pitch black darkness. He tried squirming to see how much his movement was restricted. His fingers wiggled in response. That couldn't be a good sign. His face was pressed against an abrasive surface, an odor of old smoke was everywhere. He tried using his strength to body slam a side that hemmed him in. There was no purchase of the hard brick and no leverage for him to break it by himself. If only he could reach a katana, the stone would stand no chance then. He tried to bring his hands to his side but the lip of the entrance held them fast. Zoro would need a sword from the outside to get free. He was wedged tight.
"I'm stuck," Zoro growled into the enclosed space.
Only the whistle of the mighty winds outside answered him back. What could he do now? He strained with all his might to no avail. Sleep eluded him; he wouldn't be able to relax until he knew Magina was alive. Instead, Zoro tried his best not to think about how easily those bastards beat Luffy…and surprised him. Their power was the strongest the Straw Hats had yet to face. A new technique would be needed to kick their asses and Zoro had such a technique tucked away in the corner of his mind. Those enemies would be the ones to test it on…
"Zoro! Can you hear me?" a higher pitched voice was muffled.
"Chopper?" he shouted. Finally! It was time to get out of this damn chimney!
. . .
"Hey. Wake up," a rough voice called her from the blackness.
Magina's head throbbed and she was finding it difficult to remember why she hurt so much. Faint memories of a large cheetah, Nami being thrown out of a window, unburying Chopper and fire slowly impinged on her mind. Right, she couldn't rescue Nami from those four monsters…Wait! Nami, was she alright?
"Nami! Where's Nami?" Magina bolted up, raw concern momentarily chasing the debilitating pain away.
"The other pirate girl is fine. She was more worried about you but the reindeer said you should rest a little more."
Magina sighed in relief; her worry draining from her along with her energy. Her vision swam and the pounding in her head came back full force. Her throat felt raw, her eyes scratchy and swollen. Magina's chest felt tight with every shallow breath she drew. She cleared her throat experimentally and winced when she swallowed down several fine point daggers. She would have to rely on her blades from then on.
As rough as the voice was; it didn't sound like Zoro. Magina managed to force her eyes upward. A man with a thin, angular face, short spiked blue hair and an unkempt beard looked at her. Soot and dried blood caused his eyes to appear hooded and his cheeks gaunt. Magina glanced around, expecting to see Nami or Chopper. The man smiled in understanding.
"She and the reindeer went to look for the other Straw Hats."
Magina nodded, fighting to swallow the bile back down.
"Maa, I suppose you need to know what happened. That Nami girl was so relieved when I told her, I thought she would collapse," the man offered her a hand.
Magina grasped the rough hand gratefully and pulled herself up to stand. She wavered on her feet, the dizziness blacking out her vision momentarily. A strong hand grabbed her arm and kept her standing while she regained her balance.
"You look more injured than the others were."
Magina blinked back the darkness and couldn't help smiling.
"Good. Then, they're okay. Zoro and Luffy?"
She didn't think they were dead. They were both stubborn and too strong to die easily.
"My shipwrights are helping the reindeer and the other pirate girl search for them. You already know the news about Nico Robin? I thought you were still unconscious when I told the Nami-girl."
"I already knew what Robin really felt before we met her tonight."
Magina didn't know what else to say. The man eyed her, the questions in his gaze hard to miss.
"If you already knew Nico Robin's true feelings, why didn't you tell the others? You wouldn't have needed to come here. Maa, if you Straw Hats hadn't arrived when you did, my life was forfeit."
Magina suddenly realized who she was talking to. It was none other than Iceburg-san, Mayor of Water 7! Iceburg waited patiently for her answer. She smiled.
"They needed to see the answer for themselves; and the enemies we would be facing after everything was revealed. I couldn't provide them with all the answers anyway. I'd only be able to tell them that Robin was desperate and not why. Now that the truth has come out, everyone will be resolved to rescue her, no matter what."
"I see. Can you walk? You can help me with something while your other nakama are being located."
"I can walk," Magina clenched her jaw in determination. She had to help any way she could. She wanted to help save Robin!
He motioned her to follow him. Magina was led through the confusing streets of Water 7. After a while, she began wondering where Iceburg led her. The surrounding area looked to be nearly uninhabitable. What was there to do in a place such as this?
"You don't have any ship building experience, do you?" Iceburg asked suddenly.
Magina shook her head. "I'm just a fisherman. But," and she grinned, "I'm good at following directions."
"Good. Then, let's get to work. Rocketman won't be able to run without some repairs. I never thought about making him sea-worthy but you Straw Hats want to go after Nico Robin no matter what. You got involved in our internal squabble and we even tried to put the blame on you. Providing you with a way to go after her is the least I can do. What do you think?" Iceburg walked forward a foot and slapped the hull of the bullet-like ship. His hand clanged against the metallic side. It creaked in protest. Magina could see a few spots on the body that looked pitted and worn. Traveling in this ship might just be the death of them but instead of being frightened or uneasy, Magina felt excited.
"This will be perfect," she replied happily before setting to work.
Magina turned dials and knobs, shoveled coal into the growing fire, doing whatever Iceburg asked of her. He worked right alongside of her, calmly answering her questions about Robin and CP9.
"Maa, hopefully the other pirate girl and the reindeer will be able to stop her from leaving on the Puffing Tom. It doesn't hurt to be prepared though," Iceburg said, putting tools away and checking the fire once more before motioning her off the Rocketman.
"Ooh! There it is! It's so cool!" Magina could hear the familiar voice of her captain. Luffy was alright!
"Sounds like they're here," Iceburg said.
Magina smiled happily as she followed Iceburg to the door leading off the train.
"Looks like you pulled through, Iceburg. What are you doing here?" another familiar voice asked.
"It seems like we were thinking the same thing," Iceburg walked down the stairs and sat on a box, "we can't let these idiots do this alone."
Cocoro-san laughed drunkenly. Magina stepped down the stairs, relieved to see that her nakama seemed fine. They were too busy with admiring Rocketman to even notice that she was there. She stifled a small giggle. Chopper and Luffy were always like that. A very intimidating presence was suddenly at her side.
"What are you doing here? I thought you were back at Headquarters!" Zoro growled angrily beside her.
Magina squared her jaw stubbornly. He was not going to keep her from helping. She glanced up, rising an eyebrow slightly.
"I was helping," she replied simply. "I'm not going to be left behind this time. Robin needs our help."
"You're such a stubborn siren! Just rest and leave it to us!"
Magina shook her head and smiled tightly, "No way. I'll rest after it's all over."
Zoro glared at her and replied, "I'll hold you to your words, siren. If you won't rest, I'll make you."
Magina grinned, unable to say how much she wasn't scared of the prospect of Zoro forcing her to rest. Instead, it excited her almost as much as riding Rocketman. Her smile seemed to upset Zoro; he growled louder and scowled fiercer than before. Soon, it would be time for all of them to rescue Robin. Magina couldn't wait.
Hello everybody! I profusely apologize for taking so long to post a chapter. Life happened, both in a good way and a bad way and I couldn't do as much writing or any posting until now. I have not stopped working on this story completely in all that time, so hopefully posting chapters will come more frequently now that I have a better idea where this story is going. I hope you enjoy this chapter! See you for Chapter 15! Review if you'd like, I enjoy reading and responding to them!
Maa- Iceburg says this a lot, it means 'Well' or 'Oh my'