@dragonmancer
"Good man." Melany whispered under her breath as she rushed away from the ship. By the time she made it into the town's proper there was chaos, confusion, explosions and what appeared to be non-discriminatory exploding. "Sigh" she sighed. Stopping to look around and hopefully see someone who looked like a local. "I hope our leader over there doesn't blow up anything important."

It took a bit of scanning but she found her man. The guy was huddled under a small tree, hands over his head, entire body quivering with nervous energy. "There we go." She grinned and was standing over the man in an instant. "YOu there!" She took out her blade and poked the top of the man's head, gently. She'd kill him in a heartbeat if he turned out to be a threat, but she wouldn't be able to sleep as easily if she went as far to maim him for a little bit of info. "Hello." She shouted, and poked hard enough to draw a trace of blood.

Whoever the man was, apparently he was on edge. Without a word his whole body lunged upwards like a coiled snake. His fist thrust out in any old direction. Neither hit her though. It was amazing kind of like watching someone unload barrels full of buck shot at close range and not hitting anything. Still, he wasn't any good to her so she cut him down, quickly, painlessly. There was enough time for the figure to spasm once from the shock but that was it.

"Oh God!" A woman screamed as she saw the man fall to the ground. "Oh god!"

"Shhh." Melany whispered as she turned and took a step to the figure.

"What do you want?" The woman wailed. MElanie smiled, and five minutes later she was standing in front of the town's drug store, kicking the door in and hurrying inside.

"What do you want?" The old man, hiding behind the counter pleaded.

Another smile. "Glad you asked."

By the time she was done filling up one of her sacks the old man was standing still, rubbing his hands nervously. "Is there anything else you want? I'll give you anything. Please just don't hurt me."

"well, since your offering." Melany said, hefting the bag of herbs, medicines, and some medical supplies that were definitely going to come in handy later. "Would you mind pointing me at whatever passes for the town's botanist."

Walking out from the store, donning a brand-spanking new leather coat, one in brown with gold accents. It was a very nice coat, and it would make an apt replacement for the battle-worn coat Sancho had worn for the last few weeks. Since he had been spotted in the East Blue a few months back, there's been quite a few people who have come for him, as such, battle has been hard to avoid. Not that he really minded, nor did his crew, both of his crewmates were always up for a little bit of fighting. The Fishwoman a little bit more so than the gunslinger or Sancho himself, though.

Speaking of the two, they would most likely be found in a bar, drinking to their hearts content. Sancho's fingers ran through his hair, the long shining hair was tossed out of his face, but it was sure to return over his face in a few moments. He walked along the city streets, this was a hub city, the last outpost before the Grandline here in the East Blue. Once upon a time, the East Blue had been the weakest one, but ever since a young boy who was born here became the King Of Pirates, in fact, both of the King Of Pirates had been born here, if legends are to be believed. As such, this had become a Mecca for pilgriming pirates who aspire to take to the Grandline in the footsteps of the two greatest pirates to have ever lived.

Of course, such gestures of grandeur wasn't in Sancho's wheelhouse. Oh no, he wasn't here to get famous. He had a job to do, and incidentally, the amount of powerful people who hanged around the East Blue made it possible for him to make some very powerful allies - his crewmates, for instance. Both as powerful as him, and then some.

Certainly not one to trust, not since what happened back home, anyway. But he knew if he wanted to make his dream come true, he couldn't do it alone, and he needed allies. His thoughts died down as he approached the tavern, pushing the door handle he opened the door. Him and his two allies had been staying at the Silver Hook Tavern for the last few days, giving themselves enough time to recuperate and relax a bit, while also looking for a log pose. . Something Sancho sure wished he had taken with him when he left his home in the Grandline.

Walking over to the table his crew had made their own, it was empty. Sancho sat down and the bar maiden walked past, Sancho nodded and she would soon return with a glass of beer for the young man. He would await his friends, and then figure out their next course of action. This was the last outpost for pirates - somebody's gotta sell a damn log pose.

Anaru Kahurangi



Location: A Marine ship under his command, near the Conomi Islands.

Anaru roll his neck, a grin across his face, as the Conomi Islands appeared in the distance. "Men, and women of the marines, today we'll win back this place, for justice!" Anaru shouted, throwing his arm up in the air, some men cheered, the others rolled their eyes, and smiled at their commander's antics. two smaller ships floated behind Anaru, backup, in case the Sunny Massacre Pirates, ended up being more dangerous than originally expected.

"Lockjaw!" Anaru called to an old man, he was their navigator, but in his old age his eyes were still sharp. "What do you see on the island?" Lockjaw clicked his teeth together, like he often did. "Them pirates are causin' a ruckus, but that's to be expected." was the old man's response. Anaru's already wide grin grew even further. "Then we'll put an end to that ruckus, with our Rock Solid Justice!" he shouted again, the same people who cheered earlier cheered again.

Anaru had sent word to the 99th divison, if they were near they were welcome to come, but it was just reassurance, his fleet of three ships should be plenty, he thought. "Alright men, full speed ahead!" he shouted in his booming voice, before letting out a jolly laugh.

Location:

• Archepeligo known as the Conomi Islands.

Interacting:

• @Ira

---

The Crimson Reaper walked through the flaming hell that was the Conomi Islands, often sticking his head in on doorways and forcing shop keepers to carry goods that once belonged to them.

Explosion after explosion rocked the land as if its very foundations were being torn apart. The fire from explosions quickly started to spread, leaving civilians with little place to run, many turned to the sea. Those who tried to put it out, only succeed in fanning the flames.

Xerxes was lost in a stupor, he could never put his finger on it, did he love the act of killing, or was it the burning and explosions that he enjoyed?

There was a beauty in simple principles producing complex and intricate phenomena. The stealth of a tiger, the indomitable lethality of a Great White shark, the way of an anaconda, the form of a pyroclastic flow destructively rushing down a volcano, the unstoppable nature of a tornado, and even awesome massiveness of a tsunami all invoke wonder and awe as many observed them, all the while we are dreadfully conscious of the unimaginable suffering to human life that each extends towards humanity. 

Humanity lives with deadly things around them all the time, yet considering the risk small when compared to the benefit that humanity received from each.
Despite the untold destruction an event was to bring, it would be beautiful.

The blood curling screams of a young Marine drew his attention. The poor soul was thrown into the raging inferno. His screams clearly vocalized his fear and despair, he was desperate for mercy, but the intense flames swallowed his voice and engulfed his body. The electricity in the flames popping and scarring his body further.

Xerxes grinned maniacally, killing brought a whole new prospective on life, one that sent his mind spiraling. It took a special power to kill a fellow man and it gave you a secret something—a confidence, afterward. The feeling was a private thing. When a person files, at take-off, there is a strange feeling in ones body, not explicable, but strange. A sort of revolution in your belly. That's the way he felt when he killed.

Xerxes soon made it to the pier, 15 wagons pulled by terrified shopkeepers following him, fearing for thier lives. It was amazing what you could get people to do when the burning of thier person was involved.

He set of to find Macxo, which was simple task, as the man had been standing at the piers end, looking out at the sea. Walking up next to him, Xerxes gazed in the direction that Marxo was, surprised to find three Navy ships speeding towards them.

The tingling in his stomach was a clear sign of anticipation, he was excited. Raising both of his arms in front of his body, he rubbed his hands together, creating friction which in turn created static and sparks. The moment his unclasped his hands, the oxygen between his hands ignited, but he increased the amount of static in it, making the flame dense. He repeated this process, but this time allowed the oxygen molecules in the air to the work to produce more static. This fed the flame, but kept it small. Within seconds a ball of unstable volatile electrical fire the could be employed to release a beam that could burn things without setting an explosion, similar to a lens focusing sunlight, instead vaporizing its target pointing it in the direction of the main ship, its bright light could be easily seen by them.

"I could end them right now, they will get here before we can get a ship and load it." Xerxes affirmed, glancing at his Captain as electricity arced off of the ball and on to the ground around him.

JACKAL VENTMAW

Location:
Archepeligo known as the Conomi Islands.

Interacting:
@Ira
@LokiLeo789

Shouting and roars of my monstrous form boomed through the town as I plowed through buildings and trampled over left over civilians that hadn't fled successfully, racing to the pier to which my suprise I found a massive and glorious ship awaiting me. However my awe was short lived as I saw the navy ships approaching. I looked to Xerxes and Marxo with my saurian head looking in anguish. "Cap'n we better move out if were going to avoid the navy" I said with worry as I rested the giant sac of stolen beli and fruit beside me, which was half the size of an average house.

"Sheep is rather a harsh simile isn't it? Is it not a natural reaction to seek safety when danger is present? Idiots like us and the people in this restaurant are the exception."

The cafe had pretty only people who had grown accustom to these sirens as they acted like it was any other day. It was sort of like the ballet that Jax was taken to as a child. There was a dance in the restaurant while the music of the sirens and the yelling of people accompanying the customers. It was rather calming in a way. If these people act like nothing is going on then maybe we have a chance of avoiding a fight if we just stay calm.

That was just a lie that Jax told himself. There will be a fight and they will be chased off the island. Worse case scenario they will die at the hands at some captain or another who is better trained then they are. Even worse would be one with a devil fruit power and the ability to actually use it. Jax just learned how to teleport himself completely and even then it is not even close to instantaneous. Jax has to be smart with his position if he is going to take any of the real marines by surprise. He may look like a brawler, but he would rather fight with his brain than his muscle.

"This might be our last real meal for awhile and I still have a decent amount of beli. This meal is on me to celebrate the start of a journey. I was gonna buy some googles at a store, but given the current climate I am probably just gonna get some off a marine that ends up knocked out or dead. I have about 10,000 beli so pick basically anything."

@renny @cannedbread @bctheentity @Uno

Location:

• Archepeligo known as the Conomi Islands.

Interacting:

• @dragonmancer
• @malmshodes
• @Ira

---

Xerxes shook his head in dismay, he found the insatiable hunger and search for a worth opponent to be stupid and illogical. He always felt that it was better to cut your losses before it became a real problem. In the end, the notion of finding a real or worthy opponent was all bullshit to him, but he couldn't deny the struggle involved in killing them was entertaining.

Without as much as a nod and a grin plastered on his face, Xerxes aimed at the ship to the right of the main one.

"Primordial Burst."

Within seconds of whispering those words, a dense ray of electrical fire smashed into the ship, completely vaporizing the front quarter of the ship in a massive explosion that rocked the main ship. The ship literally melted before thier very eyes, the screams of Marines could be heard from the slowly sinking ship, which still burned even as it came in contact with the water.

Xerxes cackled, taking pleasure in the pure destructive power of the technique itself. Without another moments hesitation he created another and fired it at the other ship, this time hitting the deck of the ship, allowing for more immediate casualties. He could imagine the look on the Marines of the main ship faces as they watched there sister ships, thier allies, brothers, family, completely vaporized with his unnatural flame.

Turning to those who he had forced to follow him, the giddiness in his stomach grew with the fear and horror apparent in thier faces. "Get the goods on the ship." he said simply, impressed with Marxo's ingenuity, a breath of fresh air compared to the lazy oaf that Jackal was, or he was assumed he was.

Right on time, the giant, pounding foot steps, and booming voice of Jackals alternative form came forth. With a sigh, Xerxes turned to Jackal, his goggles glowing bright, he found this rhino slightly infuriating.

Freya – East Blue Seas near Conomi Islands

Winds rough under sunny skies, Freya's long green hair flowed over the back of her reclining chair on the deck. Her Justice coat was lashed to an umbrella, which was keeping most of the sun off of her.

Rolling over, she muttered, "I should do something..."

"Purupurupurupuru. Purupurupurupurur."

Turning back over to the small table at her side, an emptied cup of juice sitting next to a Den Den Mushi, Freya stared as it rang for the third time...fourth...fifth.

Midway through the sixth she finally grabbed it, figuring she got what she was asking for. "Hiiii," she droned.

On the other end, her Comms officer, Teru, began, "Captain, we got a call from Lietenant Anaru's group. He's heading into the Conomi Islands to subdue the Sunny Massacre Pirates. Since we're close he said you're welcome to join."

"Sunny Molasses? Crew names get dumber every day. And I thought the 'Steak Pirates' were bad." That said, Freya wondered if Conomi Island had any good steak. "Patch me through."

"Yes ma'am."

Sitting up, throwing her legs over her seat and sitting with her back straight, she waited until she was in contact with a comms officer under Anaru's command. Voice less lax and more refined, Freya said, "This is Freya, Captain of the 99th Patrol Division. Inform your commander that we're en-route if the situation starts to get out of hand. This is his operation so he's retaining command. Over."

Replacing the receiver, Freya's posture slumped, but she stood up anyway. Surveying the deck, the mood was no more relaxed than she'd been just moments ago. Piping up, she ordered, "Oi! We're changing course! Navigation! Deck! Set a course for the Conomi Islands!"

Not making a further move herself, Freya took a cigarette and lit up. Her officers weren't familiar with the stubborn gorilla, were they? Or maybe they were, who knew...

@Hillan@NachoBachoPacho@RyoRyoRyoken

ANARU KAHURANGI

Location: East Blue Seas, Approaching Conomi Island Swiftly.

As Freya was put on the line, the communication's officer began to speak. but was nearly instantly interrupted by a massive roar of anger, from Anaru himself, followed by the noise of him lobbing several heavy objects. those heavy objects were in fact, cannonballs, thrown faster and with more power than a regular cannon could muster, at the pirates by the dock. "Those men, WERE UNDER MY COMMAND! I will not, let their deaths be in vain!" Anaru shouts, it was very out of context, but the sounds of explosions were a pretty big give away.

Anaru rolled his neck, his massive arms tensing up as he lets another cannonball fly, his ship was charging the island at high speeds. as he tossed cannonballs at the Sunny Massacre Pirates, screaming about 'Rock Solid Justice' the entire time. Anaru was so furious about the destruction of the two lesser ships, that his long messy hair, was flying around like a flag in the wind, a sign that his life return wasn't something he had under control.

"I want these pirates in chains my friends! we will NOT let our comrades deaths be for nothing!" Anaru announced, he looked like he was going to bust a vein, he was so tense. just then, his head of communications informed him Freya was on the other line. "Oh." Anaru said. "These pirates are more dangerous than we thought, Freya, were at the front of the island, the village's port, I want your ship to sail from behind, catch the pirates in between our forces, but be careful, one of'em has some sort of explosive ability." Anaru said, before going back to screaming about justice, and throwing cannonballs. at this point, the ship was about to literally crash into the port, this marine ship had something most didn't, a type of battering ram as their ship's bow. when it manages to hit the port, it was going to hit hard.

@Pacifista @LokiLeo789 @Ira @dragonmancer @malmshodes

"Listen, guy. I have been all around the world and I'm tellin' ya that nobody else is sellin' at this price. This is practically a robbery here." "I don't care if anyone else is giving them away for free! If you want an apple in Loguetown then you're paying the all thousand beli for it!" With a disappointed scowl, Church relented his argument and reached into his pants pocket. "Stiflin' son of a..." He pulled out a few bills of cash and set them on the stand, not even waiting for the man to count before grabbing one of the red apples from the nearest basket and walking away. He was positive that he was getting ripped off by the merchant, but ultimately he had cash to spare and it wouldn't keep him awake at night or anything.

The crew had split up an hour ago. Church had no idea what Samehana was up to, as she was a peculiar one, but he figured Sancho was trying to find a Log Pose. He'd been searching for one since they met several months ago, after all, and Loguetown was pretty much the last chance to get one. The grizzled gunslinger took a bite of his apple as a siren began to ring throughout the city. An early warning system for a pirate attack, most likely. "Don't reckon that's us... better get back to the tavern an' figure somethin' out. Sure the Marines will handle a few pirates just fine," Church spoke to himself, promptly taking another bite as he weaved around civilians that were scattering. The crowd was surprisingly calm about it, probably not the first drill they've had, but there was still an air of tension and fear among them. Church could detect it quite clearly, though he didn't feel the least bit anxious about the mysterious problem.

When he stepped back into the tavern, Sancho's designated meeting spot, he noticed right away that Samehana still hadn't arrived. Only Sancho was waiting at the table, already wielding a mug of beer. "I think there's a pirate crew in town," Church reported, taking a seat across from his captain. "Seems like a bit of a panic is startin' to go down. We might wanna find that Log Pose soon. I doubt the Marines will come for us but ya never know. It'd be a shame if we had to make a scene before we even reach the Grand Line." He took another big bite of his apple, taking the time to chew and swallow before speaking up again. "Should probably also make sure our lady friend ain't getting into trouble. I wouldn't put it past her to start searchin' for that other crew. Actually, now that I think about it, maybe she's the one who's got the town scared..."

”Fwaaaahhh~. That was refreshing.” the voluptuous Fishwoman sighed as she landed feet-first on the Loguetown dock. She had decides to spend some time swimming as a nice little warmup workout. So far, things had been quiet in town and there weren’t too many around these parts that wanted to challenge her to much of, well, anything. As a result, Samehana was beginning to get a little bored. On the bright side, they cooked all kinds of things here! One would think that the Golden Fleece Pirates’ chef would be taking notes or something, but instead she enjoyed the local eateries without a care in the world. Besides, Sancho and Church only complained after having seafood for weeks straight during their voyages.

Still glistening from the seawater, Samehana attracted a fair bit of attention from those who watched the Fishwoman launch out of the water like some kind of super-dolphin, as well as those she passed by as she walked through the town. This wasn’t anything new to Samehana, as she had long been made aware that she stood out amongst most people. What she was most interested in at the moment was the sound of sirens that blared through the town. Huh. Wonder what that’s all about?” she thought, watching as the townsfolk all hurried off. Maybe someone ratted Sancho out? It didn’t make sense that there would be such a commotion over “Church, the Litterer”, that much seemed obvious. And it certainly wouldn’t have been for her. Maybe some real dangerous pirates came into Loguetown and started causing trouble? The very thought of such a prospect made the Fishwoman grin ear to ear, her razor sharp teeth shining in tandem with the twinkle in her eyes.

Just as she was getting geared up to try and find this mysterious band of miscreants, she frowned. Sancho and Church might nag her if she made too much trouble. ”Eh, it’ll be fine if I just try and scope ‘em out, right? Just try not to fight ‘em and everything’ll be A-OK! After all, if they get their asses kicked by some Marines, they might not be any fun anyway.” Samehana mused, finally setting off to any areas where she could find any “weirdos” or signs of some action that she could watch from a distance.

---

“That Gorilla’s as loud as he is huge.” Zepp remarked once Captain Freyja had ended her call. And he was just beginning to enjoy the sun. Straightening his standard issue Marine cap, Zepp watched Freyja stand up out of the corner of his eye (not that most people could tell, considering he always looked like he was asleep) he leaned on the railing. People often remarked that Zepp was a lazy guy, but the Captain was a total sad sack. Real goddamn bummer, she was.

“I see you couldn’t be more excited.” Zepp teased, brushing off the sleeves of his white track jacket and his jean legs. From what he’d managed to listen in on past the hot-blooded roars of Lt. Anaru, it appeared that they were going to assist the other division in repelling an invasion by the “Sunny Massacre Pirates”. They certainly sounded like a fun bunch, didn’t they? Frankly, Zepp wasn’t too interested in dealing with a group of bizarrely-titled outlaws, and instead set his mind to pondering where he’d like to take a nap. If they were lucky, “King Kong” would take care of ‘em before they even got to the island.

Zepp took a moment to scan the deck for Johnny, the young Ensign. Between just Freyja and Zepp, there was enough apathy to go around. But ol’ Johnny boy probably had enough pep in his step for the both of ‘em. Perhaps he was a bit more gung-ho about that sort of thing? Eh. Whatever.

@Hillan @Pacifista

"Pirates, in Loguetown? There's just no way." Sancho exclaimed as Church mentioned the sirens. The tavern was unusually empty, a lot more seats were without drunks in them than the crew of pirates had gotten accustomed to. His sarcasm was the closest to humor the young nobleman would ever get. He looked over at Church, chewing his apple. Sancho took another sip of his drink. "You don't want something to drink? Figured whiskey would fit your whole shtick." The young man mentioned, before finishing off his pint of beer.

"Anyway, we should probably go and find Samehana. Can't be safe for her to be out there alone. Well, safe for the rest of the town, anyway." Putting the pint down and leaving a few bills on the table to pay for his drink. Standing up from his seat, he headed towards the door.



Walking across the deck of the Marine Vessel, Johnny was chatting with his fellow Marines. "Looking good there!" He mentioned to the Seaman First Class, whom was swabbing the floor. "Inspection time coming up, we'll get this baby shining like a diamond by then!" He exclaimed, chipper. A smile on his face. He saw how Freya answered the call, and then got up from where she was sitting - which meant something was going on. He walked over to her, seeing Zepp in the corner of her eye. She had a cigarette in her mouth, and was going for the lighter in her pocket, when Johnny came and offered his Zippo lighter, before digging out a cigarette for himself.

He put the tobacco stick between his lips and lit the tip, inhaling and then promptly coughing. He wasn't much of a Smoker. But ever since he had gotten his powers, he had this sudden need for nicotine.

Turning to Zepp, Johnny grinned. "Hey, old man! You excited about showing those pirate fools what the Navy is capable? I wanna increase my Bounty-Book Record to over ten million today." He mentioned, smiling, knowing full well that both of his superiors would rather sit in their cabins filling out paperwork than doing any amount of fighting. The Ensign was talking about the track-record of how much bounty they had 'collected' by capturing dangerous pirates. Of course, as a Navy Soldier, you didn't actually get any pay for collecting criminals with a high bounty, but it was a fun little thing to keep track of for the Marines.

Soon, they would arrive at the island. The Ensign flipped his cigarette overboard, only but the bud left. Turning around. "All right people, battle stations!" He said, himself walking to the armory to pick up his cutlass and dual-pistols.

There was a body on the floor, two actually, but one of them wasn't really. It was hard to explain. Apparently there was such a thing as a clone-clone fruit. Who would have guessed? "Good times" Melany muttered as she moved the sacks she kept slung over each shoulder in an attempt to find something that would be at least close to comfortable as she hurried back to the pier. Honestly, she was going to be cutting it kind of close. Funny how time flew sometimes. Didn't matter if you were having fun or not. "Well" she said down to the real corpse and the one that was probably made out of whatever it was a soul was "Thanks for the plants." She gave a half-hearted salute before turning to hurry out the door.

"Damn it." She muttered as she stepped out and surveyed the inferno before her. "I understand those guys want to make a name for themselves, but big and buster isn't always the way to go." She massaged her temples and took a deep breath as she shook her head. "Pirates and bluster! Ugh! Why doesn't anyone secret consolidate power any more!?" Shaking her head she started running towards the pier.

@LokiLeo789@Ira@dragonmancer
It was easy to find her crew mates as the dragon fruit Jackal had eaten made him the next best thing to an actual flare. They were on the pier, standing in front of a boat. She assumed it was the one their captain had settled on. For some reason it looked familiar, but as hard as she tried she just couldn't put her finger on it.

"Hey!" She called stepping up to the other members of the sunny crew. "What I miss?" But she didn't need them to answer, not really. It wasn't hard to miss the chaos and swiftly approaching danger coming from the sea. "Oh!" She nodded. "Nevermind. I got it." She hefted the bags. "I'll take it we're not going to beat a strategic retreat?" Not that such a thing would be a good idea. Sometimes, it was wise to burned bridges and the best time to do it was when your pursuer was hot on your ass. "Well then, I'll be right back. I'm jug going to put these things on the ship. Don't want any of our medical supplies" or her personal items "getting smashed up in the frey"