Chapter 2: Sins of the Past, Part 2
I do not own One Piece! That will always belong to Eiichiro Oda! I only own my OCs.
Destiny was unable to sleep, so she decided to get some air. She was surprised to Slashback and Gaff sitting against the foremast chatting away, and as if they sensed her, both young males turned their heads. Slashback flashed the silver hybrid a loving smile as he got to his feet, causing her heart to quicken.
"You guys couldn't sleep either?" She asked as she sat down with them.
Slashback was grinning. "How could I? I'm too excited."
"So damn excited that he almost talked my ear off," Gaff said with a snort.
She looked at Slashback in honest puzzlement. "Excited? You sound like my Uncle Luffy," she said to which Slashback only grinned more. "Slash, you are strange; do you know that?"
The five gilled saw tooth shrugged. "My dad and the whole village always said I was."
"Where are you from?" Destiny asked, curious about him.
Even Gaff was interested. "Yeah," he said. "You never exactly told Poseidon or me where you came from, and don't you even dare say, your mother."
"You are no fun, Gaff," Slashback whined.
"Where are you from?" Destiny asked again.
"Just a little village in the North Blue," Slashback said. "It's nothing great, just an old fishing village."
"So why did you leave?" Gaff asked.
"I needed to get away," Slashback said. "I was so tired of going out with my dad and fishing. Fishing! A fishing village full of hybrids and other Fishmen and women, and what do they do?"
"Fishing?" Destiny and Gaff said.
"Yes! Fishing!" Slashback said, rolling his eyes. "I hated fishing and the stinking smell of fish! Finally, I couldn't stand it anymore, so I decided to run away."
Hearing Slashback say this was in a way so strange that it was, in truth, laughable. But, of course, learning that he was from a fishing village that other Fishmen/women and hybrids inhabited were just beyond insanity. Gaff was about to point this out, only to be stopped by Destiny, who gave him a small light jab in the ribs.
"Behave," she hissed at him. She turned her attention to Slashback again. "So, what is your dream then?"
"What do you mean?" Slashback asked, looking confused.
Gaff rolled his eyes. Slashback really was, in his opinion, a chowder head. But, how did he not understand what Destiny meant?! "She means do you a goal in life," he said. "Something you want to do."
Slashback scratched his head as he thought before he just started laughing. "That is so pointless and wasteful."
"What?!" Destiny said. "How is that pointless and wasteful?!"
"It just is," Slashback replied with a shrug.
Gaff saw the flash of anger in her eyes and knew full well that his friend had just insulted the silver-skinned hybrid that he was so in love with. "Are you saying that you don't want to find a beautiful girl to settle down and have a family with?" he asked.
"You know I do," Slashback said. "When I find the right one."
"FIND THE RIGHT ONE!" Destiny yelled as she got to her feet. "Slashback…you're stupider than my Uncle Luffy!" Having said that, she turned and stormed off.
Gaff looked at his friend, who sat looking bewildered by Destiny suddenly leaving. "Did your parents drop you on your head when you were a baby?" he asked. "I can't believe you just insulted her like that."
"Like what?"
"When I find the right one," Gaff said. "I thought you were in love with Destiny."
"I am," Slashback said.
"Then why the fuck did you say something that stupid to her?!"
Slashback looked at him for the longest time before it dawned on him what he actually said to her. "SHIT!" he said, eyes wide as they could be. "Why the fuck didn't you stop me?!"
Gaff looked at him. "Me? What should I do that?"
"You're supposed to be my friend," Slashback said.
"I am, but that doesn't mean I have to take care of your screwups!"
Slashback growled as he got up and stormed off.
"Aren't you going to apologize to Des?!" Gaff called after him.
"Later!"
Gaff sighed. Later his ass! You might as well go and do it for that idiot! So gaff thought as he headed for the direction Destiny had gone in. He found Destiny in the kitchen sitting at the dining table crying. He came up to her and rested a hand gently on her shoulder. She looked up at him, and he gave her a small smile.
"Can I get you anything?" he asked.
"Maybe a cup of tea," Destiny asked.
Gaff nodded, and being careful not to wake Long and Neeta, whose bedroom was just off to the side of the kitchen, he put a kettle of water on. While the water was heating up, he got the cup ready. Once the kettle started to whistle, Gaff turned the stove off and poured the water into the cup.
"Here," he said, placing the cup of tea before the upset silver.
"Thank you, Gaff," Destiny said.
"Welcome," he said, taking a seat across from her. "Slashback…he didn't mean to insult you."
"Then why isn't he apologizing for it?" Destiny asked, taking a small sip from her cup.
"I can't really answer that," Gaff said honestly. "You are right, though; he should be the one apologizing."
They sat in silence after that until Destiny looked at him. "Gaff, what of you?" she asked.
Gaff looked at her in surprise, "Me? What about me?"
"Besides what you told us about, you were running away from your home and you and Slashback from Skarn," Destiny said. "Surely you had a reason for leaving."
Gaff folded his hands and stared at them. "Being a hybrid," he said with a heavy sigh. "I was never that strong, and it showed when Slatafang challenged me over Neeta."
Destiny looked at him. "Neeta? You were in a relationship with her?"
"Sadly yes," he said. "She was my best friend, and I grew to love her, but it wasn't meant to be." He looked toward the bedroom. "I am glad that she found someone to be a worthy mate."
Destiny reached over to rest a hand on top of his. "You'll found someone, Gaff," she said before she got up. "Thank you for the tea."
Gaff was not expecting nor was he prepared for Destiny to kiss him on the cheek. He sat there stunned as the silver hybrid retired to her room. The kuda hybrid felt his heart racing. Did she just kiss him? No female had ever kissed him, not even on the cheek! He reached up to touch the spot as he felt a strange warm feeling fill him.
If Slash screws this up, then maybe I will have a chance with Destiny, Gaff thought.
Slashback was his best friend, but he was so clueless at times, and his goof-up may go in Gaff's favor. The kuda hybrid washed the cup and retired to bed, dreaming of a possibility of a future with Destiny.
~~ A few weeks later~~
The Wavecutter was sailing near a small island when Ryder, who was in the crow's nest, noticed something extraordinary. "Oi Cap'n!" the black tiger shark hollered.
Riptide stepped out onto the deck. "Ryder, what is it?"
"Look toward the island," he said, pointing. "I think we should investigate."
Jimbei skillfully said the ancient warship into the small harbor as all of the Saw crew gathered at the Starboard railing. No one was prepared for the sight that greeted them. A large part of the island looked like a wasteland, for it was barren of trees and crops, and what houses they could see were destroyed.
"What happened here?" Nami asked.
"That's what I would like to know," Riptide said.
Wavecutter came alongside an undamaged wooden deck, and Tarlong jumped onto the dock securing their warship. The bounty hunter looked toward the decimated town, wondering what had happened. The crew disembarked though Butch and Sunflash leaped from ship to shore easily.
Butch sniffed the air. "I smell blood," he said. "A lot of blood."
Sunflash moved farther out, sniffing more before he took a few steps back, shaking his scaly head. "I smell something more than blood," he said, looking back to his brother, catching the look he was getting.
"Sun, what is it?" Riptide asked, moving to the velociraptor's side.
Sunflash moved his head closer to Riptide, keeping his voice low. "The smell of decaying flesh," he said. "I fear there's been a massacre close by."
"Butch come with me," the tiger-marked hybrid said.
Butch nodded as he followed his brother and Riptide. Marcus soon followed, as did Longtooth, Blade, and Ryder.
~~.~~.~~
"Oh, merciful heavens," Ryder said.
The scene before them was nothing more than a nightmare, but for Marcus, it was far worse. Far, far worse. The ground was soaked with blood as flies buzzed around the gruesome remains of the town's people. The sight and smell were overwhelming.
"Rip!"
The captain of the Saw Pirates turned to see Gaff and Slashback hurrying to join them, and the moment the two saw the scene before them, they both got sick to their stomach. Who could blame them?
"Who…could do something so…monstrous?" Slashback said before he retched again.
Sunflash and Butch inspected the remains, clearly not bothered by sight. However, they did say they owned a ranch raising beef cattle, so odds were good that they had seen plenty of disturbing things. Sunflash circled carefully around the scene, studying the ground. Butch studied the grizzly remains, searching for the cause of the deaths of so many.
"Rip," he rumbled, turning his head slightly. "You need to see this." Then, taking a deep breath, the hybrid joined the towering Spinosaurus. "Are those not the bite marks of a shark?"
Riptide calmed his stomach as he knelt and pulled out, to his surprise, a serrated tooth. A tooth from a shark. A mako shark. "What kind of Fishman does something like this?" he said.
He is not dead! Marcus thought, seeing the tooth. Damn it! Genghis is fucking alive!
~~.~~.~~
On the East side of the side stood an ancient stone-built fortress with giant wooden gates. Standing guard outside the gates were two Fishmen who looked nervously at each other before shifting their attention to the score of Kudas that came up the road that went from the fortress to the various towns of the island. Leading them was a 5' 2" tall slim-built Kuda who resembled more of a dragon-lizard hybrid than a Kuda.
"Open the gates," he said, striking a pose.
The two Fishmen glared daggers at him but did as commanded. The score's commander led his men inside the compound. "Go," he said, gesturing to the building off to their left. "Eat, drink while I speak to the master."
The Kudas cheered as they hurried off, eager to harass the Fishmen hanging about and were also part of the crew. Their leader walked with a cocky swagger toward the main building, and he barely reached the entrance when a shot of water struck the dirt near his right foot, causing him to jump about a foot into the air with a yelp.
"Kuhahahahaha! You got him to jump a good foot!"
"Pity. I was aiming for his miserable hide. Chu"
The Kuda whirled around with a snarl as he glared at the two Fishmen who were sitting in the shade of an old lean-to. The pair returned his glare with their own hateful looks.
One was an 8'3" tall ray Fishman who had the typical appearance of a martial artist with a dark blue Gi and a black belt. He had grey skin with his black hair tied into a straight ponytail and on the right side of his chest was a red sun tattoo.
His friend was an 8'5" muscular blue-skinned smelt-whiting Fishman with thick lips. On his right shoulder was a tattoo of a red saw nose shark that was turned left with the tail curving inward and was surrounded by a semi-oval with three curves emitting from it, and he wore a necklace. He also wore an old, faded blue striped vest with dark brown leather pants and sandals.
"Threaten me again, Chew, and you feel the master's wrath," the kuda hissed.
"Genghis won't always be around to protect your scaly miserable hide Itachi," The ray Fishman said.
"I'm not scared of you, Kuroobi!" Itachi said.
"Really?" Kuroobi said, getting to his feet cracking his knuckles. "Maybe you need a lesson in Fishman karate."
Itachi, in truth, was a coward who talked big but would run for his life from a stronger opponent. Seeing both Kuroobi and Chew starting toward him caused him to yelp terror, darting quickly inside the building. Itachi cursed at the sight of Jellicoe.
The jelly Fishman was perhaps the strangest looking of all the Fishman race. His head was covered by a transparent frill like a regular jellyfish giving him the appearance of a jellyfish on his head, complete with tentacles. He had yellow eyes with black pupils, and because his short round body had pale jellied skin that was transparent, he wore a green and white striped T-shirt and black shorts which covered his lower body.
Itachi did not need the jellyfish Fishman hanging around his master! But, of course, His master did not look pleased with the Jellicoe and seeing that pleased the Kuda. The mako shark Fishman sat on a high back wooden chair decorated with the bones of various predatory animals and their skins.
"Explain to me how you have not found this other Fishman?" Genghis demanded with a wheezing breath as he gripped the arms of his chair so tight that his claws sank into the wood.
Jellicoe swallowed as he thought about how he should answer Genghis. "I do not know," he said honestly. "He is proving to be tricky prey."
Genghis leaned forward, purple eyes narrowing. "No prey is that tricky, you fool," he said with a snarl.
"Of course, master," Itachi said. "Jellicoe is proving to be lazy, or he is helping our enemy."
"What was that?!" Jellicoe said as he turned to look at Itachi. "I don't see you and your fucking ugly lot out there trying."
Itachi bared his fearsome teeth as his eyes narrowed. "My hunters could easily hunt and capture this one Fishman!"
"Then do it!"
Itachi and Jellicoe both looked at the mako Fishman. "M-master?" Itachi stammered. "Surely you are joking?"
"Did you just not claim that you and your hunters could do what Jellicoe could not?" Genghis said. "Or were you lying to my face?"
The Kuda gulped visibly as he cringed before his master. "I have never lied to you and this, you know, O' Master!"
Genghis sat back in his chair, staring hard at the two before him making them incredibly nervous. Neither knew what he was thinking, and it was hard to say what his mood would be at the moment. Finally, he rose from his chair and walked past the two, who fell automatically into step behind him. The mako stepped outside, and every Fishman sitting around was quick to notice as they sat up, fear reflecting in their eyes. Genghis slowly turned in a full right circle since he was unable to look to his left.
"Kuroobi, Chew!" he said with a snarl. "Come here, you worthless maggots!"
The two former officers of the Arlong Pirates came over to him carefully not to make eye contact with Genghis. "You need us? Chu"
"You two are going with Jellicoe, Itachi, and his hunters," he said. "I want this rogue Fishman found. Do not return until you find him. Am I clear?"
"Yes," Kuroobi said.
"Yes, master," Itachi corrected the ray, Fishman.
Kuroobi glared at the Kuda. Never in his life would he say that. Never! Keep going, you little shit, and I promise I will kill you, he thought angrily. "Let's go, Chew," he said, turning to leave.
~~.~~.~~
Wavecutter's arrival did not go unnoticed. Staying hidden was the Fishman that had so far stayed a step ahead of Genghis and his lot. He was of the saw species, but he did not look like Arlong or any of the members of the sawtooth clan. Standing at 8'8" tall with dark blue skin and speckled hair pulled back into a top knot, he had two different colored eyes; his left was orange, and his right was a bluish-green. He had a short barbless nose; it was his lower jaw that was strange. His teeth had grown in a strange spiral-type pattern and were designed to crush and grind any shellfish. He was actually from a prehistoric saw shark line known as a spiral saw shark. He wore only black tattered black pants, and strapped to his back was a spear-like sword with a 38" long blade with a 29" nylon cord wrapped handle.
He had seen Riptide depart with Butch, Sunflash, Marcus, Longtooth, Blade, and Ryder. Soon Gaff and Slashback followed. However, the very sight of Butch and Sunflash caused him to remain hidden.
Dinosaurs. They have dinosaurs with them, he thought. Itachi's cursed hunters would be no match for them, let alone that Spinosaurus.
He was still thinking about what he should do next when he heard the snapping of a branch that was a short distance from him. He turned toward the sound, and his eyes widened when he saw one of Itachi's hunters creeping toward a docked Wavecutter. This was not good! He snarled as he started hunting the hunter.
~~.~~.~~
"Where is this bastard hiding?" Itachi said.
"Having trouble finding him? Chu"
Itachi glared at the smelting-white Fishman. He wanted to slit his throat, nice and deep. Kuroobi saw the glare and gave the Kuda one that promised a terribly slow and painful death if he dared to hurt his friend.
"Itachi! Itachi!"
The kuda looked to see one of his hunters hurrying up to him, Jellicoe, Kuroobi, and Chew. "What is it?" he said, irritated.
"We found a ship that is docked not far from us," Said one of his hunters.
"A ship?" Jellicoe said, surprised. "What fools are that stupid to dock their ship on this island?"
"Who cares," Itachi said. "It means more slaves for my master. Let us go and capture this ship and its crew!"
Eager to please his master, Itachi leads his group in the direction where the Wavecutter lay docked.
~~.~~.~~
The spiral saw shark edged closer to the unexpecting Kuda, who was carefully watching the ancient warship looking for any signs of life.
The Kuda moved forward and skillfully started climbing up the side of the warship.
No! the spiral sawtooth thought as he rushed forward.
~~.~~.~~
Nami stepped out onto the deck, stretching her arms overhead. She looked toward the direction Riptide, and the others had gone, and she started to worry. They had been gone for over an hour.
They should have been back by now, she thought with worry. But, hopefully, they are okay.
She turned just as the Kuda hunter's ugly scarred head popped up. She screamed, and with her sorcery Clima-Tact at its full length, she swung downward, whacking the Kuda square on the head. He howled in pain as he accidentally bites down on his tongue but still managed to hang on the starboard side railing.
"Gust Sword!"
The Kuda gave a yell as a gust of pressurized air resembling a thin whirlwind hit him in the face sending him up into the air and screaming, and he fell to the ground. Nami peered over the side just in time to see the spiral saw shark strike down the stunned Kuda with his sword. Then, having disposed of his enemy, he looked up at the orange-haired woman.
"Alert your shipmates," he yelled up to her. "There is more of them on the way!"
"What?" Nami said. "Just who the hell are you?"
"A friend," the stranger said before he turned to see the Itachi and his hunters emerge from the forest that was just off to the left of the ruins of the town.
"It's that rebel!" Itachi screamed. "Get that fucking bastard!"
The spiral saw shark's eyes changed to a red color as he charged the oncoming Kudas with a wild howl of war.
~~.~~.~~
Kuroobi and Chew with Jellicoe had held back. "Let those fools get themselves killed," Jellicoe said.
Kuroobi ignored him. His eyes were on the mainsail and the flag that fluttered in the breeze. On the mainsail were two saw sharks facing each other their tails were curving inward as their noses clashed, while behind them was an emblem of rising flames. The saw shark that faced left was red, while the one that faced right was white with some striping on its body. It looked so remarkably familiar.
"Chew," he said. "Look at the mainsail. What do you see?"
Chew looked and blinked several times. "It almost looks like our old Jolly Roger. Chu," he said. "Wait! Is that Nami?! Chu"
Kuroobi looked. It was Nami! What was she doing here? He still owed her for betraying Arlong.
"SSSHHHAAA!"
The wild yell made Kuroobi, Chew, and Jellicoe jump, and they all looked toward the direction of the yell, and what they saw shocked the two former officers of the Arlong Pirates.
"That can't be! Chu," Chew said, rubbing his eyes. "That…that almost looks like Arlong! Chu"
"I know," Kuroobi said. "It's not making sense."
He, too, was shocked. How was this possible? How could they see another saw shark who looked like a young version of Arlong but of a different color?
Jellicoe was staring still. "Did your captain ever have a wife and child?" he asked, looking at the pair.
"Arlong had no wife," Kuroobi said. "He was too blind when he believed that witch Nami was so trusting. She did no wrong in his eyes."
Suddenly the unthinkable dawned on Kuroobi as it did on Chew. "HE'S ARLONG'S SON!" the two shouted, looking at each other.
Talk about shell shock! Now that Kuroobi and Chew have figured out, Arlong has a son. The big question remains; who's side will they pick? What is Genghis' connection with Itachi and his Kudas? So, remember to Read and Review.