“This is your last chance to surrender. Drop your weapons and relinquish control of your ship to us; failure to comply will only delay the inevitable.”The sound of harsh, mocking laughter was the only reply that came from the pirates above, Ricardo tilting his head back to be able to see the mass of sneering faces peering over the railing of their ship. The galleon they had been pursuing for the last couple of hours was much larger than his own small marine vessel and judging by how many sets of eyes were on him now its crew was at least twice the size of his own. Clearly, they did not take his demands seriously.
Nonetheless he looked confident, standing tall on the deck of his galley with his arms crossed over his broad chest, most of his crew of twenty lined up behind him with rifles held in front of them; the guns weren’t aimed at the pirates just yet, instead resting in the palm of one hand and against shoulders as if they were lined up for inspection, but the implicit threat was there.
“Who does this idiot think he is, giving us orders? Doesn’t he realise how much trouble he’s in?”
“The marines all have big heads now just because they caught Gold Roger; think they own the seas.”
“Well, this one won’t have his head much longer, putting holes in captain’s nice new boat like this.”
More laughter rang out as the pirates joked among themselves. Indeed, Ricardo and his crew had managed to put a few holes in the larger ship before catching up to it, cannons and harpoons flying between them as they chased the pirates across the open waters of West Blue; a few of those harpoons were still stuck in the other vessel, ropes tied to the missiles connecting the galleon to their galley and forcing the pirates to stop and deal with them, hence the current standoff.
Ricardo raised his eyes slightly, looking past the amused faces to the sails above them and the stylised crossbones that decorated them; while the skull was normal the bones had been replaced by a pair of thin wooden clubs covered in iron spikes.
“This is the vessel of the Iron Club Pirates, yes? Led by Captain “Iron Bar” Tetsubo?”“Did you hear that? Our captain’s famous!”
“If he knows who we are he should know not to mess with us!”
“Surrender.” Ricardo cut through the voices of the pirates, interrupting their talk with his simple demand.
“Or I will come up there and make you.”There was no laughing this time, no jokes, no mirth. Maybe it was the new intensity that had entered Ricardo’s voice that let them know his patience had run out, or maybe it was the more direct threat of violence against them. Either way things were deathly silent in the moments following Ricardo’s statement until the sound of heavy footsteps, interspersed with a third, heavier beat, broke the tension.
“So the marine wants to act tough, eh? Stop bullying my crew and come up here, eh? If you want me to drop my weapons you gotta come up here and take ‘em yourself.”At the invitation Ricardo made his move. As he bent his knees the line of marines behind him braced themselves before he leapt, his galley rocking violently in the water as he pushed off of the deck and launched himself up and over the railing and the heads of the pirates to land on the deck of the galleon.
The pirate crew no longer looked so amused now that he stood on level ground with them, most of them seemed to be bracing themselves for a fight while more than a few were backing away or outright cowering in fear. The only one who didn’t look worried was the man Ricardo presumed was the captain; taller than the rest of his crew, though shorter than Ricardo, and broad, he had a bald head covered in scars and in his mouth was a lit cigar. One hand rested on the handle of a large wooden club as the head covered with iron spikes sat on the ground; it was identical to the ones on his sail.
Tetsubo pulled the cigar from his mouth, blowing out a puff of smoke as he looked Ricardo up and down.
“Aren’t you a big one? The hell do they feed you guys?” He flicked his cigar to shake loose some of the ash gathering at the end before putting it back in his mouth.
“No matter; what’s my bounty at these days?”“4 million Beli; for the crimes of piracy, theft, assault… and murder.” Crossing his arms again, Ricardo settled in as he waited to see what would happen. It looked like Captain Tetsubo wanted to talk for a while, probably so he could put on a show of not being intimidated for his crew before he tried to attack; hopefully he wouldn’t be so predictable and he would just come along quietly.
The pirate captain looked a little shocked at the number, eyes widening before his face scrunched up in an affronted expression
“Wha’? Only 4? I feel like I’m not being taken seriously.” He lifted his club, swinging the weapon up to rest on his shoulder.
“Especially not if I have marines thinking they can just jump onto my ship like this.”They never wanted to come along quietly.
“I take it you’re not going to surrender then?”“Heh, I don’t know. Do you boys think I should surrender!?” The answering roar from the on looking pirates, who Ricardo now noticed had moved to surround him and cut off any retreat, clearly expressed their wish, even if the accompanying shouts of
get ‘im captain and
show ‘im who’s boss weren’t also included.
“Well then, I think you have your answer.” Tetsubo lifted the club from his shoulder and began to grip it with both hands. He began to pace forward, closing the distance between them as he held the club behind him and wound up for a big swing.
“If you want me to hand over my weapon so bad, I’ll give you a taste of it.”The heavy, lethal weapon rushed towards Ricardo as its wielder swung it with all of his might, only to stop dead as it met the marine lieutenant’s palm. Ricardo had uncrossed one arm, holding it out before him as he caught Tetsubo’s swing before it could reach him. The crowd, who had not ceased their shouting or cheering since their captain had called out to them, now fell silent once more as everyone aboard the vessel stared in shock.
A trickle of blood ran down Ricardo’s hand and onto his wrist, the spikes of the iron club digging into his palm, before dripping down to form a small puddle on the deck of the galleon. If the marine felt any discomfort however it didn’t show on his face, his expression not having changed since he had first asked for the surrender of this ship and their crew.
“This club… has hurt a lot of people.” The muscles in Ricardo’s arm rippled, the vein’s in his wrist and only the back of his hand popping as he suddenly twisted the club in his grip, snapping the weapon in half.
Before anyone could react he unfolded his other arm and struck Tetsubo with the back of his other hand, sending the captain rolling across the deck to crash into the wall of his cabin behind him. As the pirate slumped to the ground the marine dropped the half of the club he still held to the deck, the dull sound it made seeming to snap the remaining pirates out of their daze as they began to either back away from him or draw their weapons to attack.
Turning towards the side of the ship, Ricardo tilted his head back and let out a shout.
“Boarding action!” A few of the pirates froze, letting those words sink in and giving the marines from Ricardo’s crew time to climb up the side of the ship and over the railing to attack them from behind even as others prepared to fight back. Despite their lower numbers, the marines were better prepared and hadn’t just seen their captain be defeated in one hit and were able to quickly subdue a number of the pirate crew before they could mount a proper defence. Walking towards the largest group, where the fighting was thickest, Ricardo began to assist his crew by attacking the defending pirates from behind.
Hearing heavier footsteps approaching from the side, Ricardo turned and raised his arms just in time to block a powerful attack from some kind of weapon. Sliding back from the blow, the marine lieutenant paused as he felt the pain radiating out from where he had been hit; whatever he had been hit with had been strong enough that he would likely have severe bruising after this, maybe even a fracture or two as well.
Turning to face his attacker, Ricardo was unsurprised to see Captain Tetsubo back on his feet. In his hands he held a club much like the one that had just been broken, however closer inspection showed that this weapon was purely made of iron instead of just wood with iron spikes. Tetsubo grinned around the cigar in his mouth, unaware or uncaring of the fact that it had been bent when he had been struck.
“You didn’t think that was enough to stop me did you? You’re not the first marine to try and stop me and you won’t be the last.” The pirate captain rushed towards Ricardo, swinging his metal club in a downward stroke that the marine dodged. A follow up swing was also dodged, as was a third.
“My name and my flag are known and feared all across the West Blue, and I’m going to show you why!”Ricardo continued to dodge each swing as Tetsubo continued his assault, wary of trying to block or catch the weapon after he felt what it would do to even his body. Just as troublesome as the power of each attack was the speed at which they came, as the Captain showed he was more than just a dumb brute; he controlled the weight of his weapon well, carrying the momentum of each swing into the next attack and losing little time between swings. Ricardo could do nothing but dodge until he saw an opening to attack.
The moment came as Tetsubo began to tire; his attacks slowing slightly as swinging around that heavy weapon began to wear away at his stamina. A slight paused after one swing to catch a single breath was the only opening Ricardo needed as he charged forward and drove his shoulder into Tetsubo’s chest. He pushed the pirate captain back, the man staggering as he sought to stay standing, giving Ricardo even more time to prepare his next attack. Holding his arms crossed in front of him with his hands flat to form an X shape, Ricardo lowered his head and ran at his opponent.
“Charging Bull.”The attack name was not shouted aloud for his opponent or any onlookers to hear, instead being said at a normal speaking volume as if for Ricardo’s own benefit. As his charge brought him in front of Tetsubo he flung his crossed arms outward, chopping the pirate captain with both arms and sending him flying again, this time crashing through the wall of his cabin and coming to a stop atop a pile of shattered furniture and broken timbers.
The fighting around him came to a sudden halt as both pirates and marines stopped to check on the captain; through the hole in the way it was clear to see that Tetsubo would not be getting up this time, as his open eyes showed nothing but white.
It didn’t take long for the remaining pirates to surrender upon seeing their captain fall and Ricardo’s crew were able to round them up without issue; a few had been injured in the fighting but their coordinated assault had worked well and they were experienced. Even outnumbered they had fought well. The pirate crew, including the still unconscious Tetsubo, were gathered in the centre of the deck and surrounded by armed marines. “You are now in our custody and will be transported to the nearest marine base so you may be arrested and charges officially brought against you. Any attempt to escape will be duly prevented and result in extra charges brought against you.
“Marines!” Every marine on deck snapped to attention.
“Take any injured pirates and secure them in the brigs of either ship; they are to be provided treatment and to be made comfortable. These men are our responsibility now. The remainder will stay on the deck and be kept under armed guard. Sergeant, you have the helm of the galley; lead us home. I’ll stay here and help keep guard.”“YES SIR!”
----
A seedy bar on Starter Island
The amber liquid swished around the inside of the glass as the holder swirled it around, his single eye getting lost in the motion as he seemed to almost put himself into a trance. An unlit cigarette hung from between his lips, more as a fashion statement than anything else; the man hadn’t smoked a single one since walking into the bar several hours ago.
Letting out a sigh which concentrated years of weariness into a single exhale Shigeuchi threw back the glass, downing the whiskey in one before lowering it back to the bar with a tap that seemed loud for how quiet the establishment was. The bartender made to refill it, uncorking the bottle and stepping forward, but the pirate placed his hand over the top of the glass to block him.
“No more for me.”With a nod the bartender moved away to attend to his other patrons, the elderly man placing the bottle of whiskey back on the shelf as he went. Shigeuchi moved the glass aside and placed his elbows on the bar to lean forward, chin resting atop joined hands and one eye closed as he sank into deep thought.
Or fell asleep.
Definitely one of the two.
It had been weeks since his captain’s idiotic first born had left home, sailing off with nothing but a dinghy and a ton of paper, weeks since the captain’s first mate had told him to go keep an eye on him. Admittedly Shigeuchi wasn’t doing a very good job of that.
Since leaving the fleet he had seen neither hide, nor hair, not steering wheel of the kid. He had heard no word of the so called ‘Red Lion’ or even a rumour of a red-haired kid wandering around; and the kid was nothing if not memorable with that thing in his hair.
No bounties, no news, nothing at all. No clues to help Shigeuchi find Shiki’s wayward son.
So Shigeuchi had come to Starter Island, the world renowned floating boat yard of East Blue where many an aspiring pirate or merchant found their way; some of the finest ships in the world could trace their not-so-humble origins back to this place. It was also famous for being the place Gold Roger earned his first ever bounty and if there was one thing anyone knew about Nikko it was that he was crazy about Gold Roger.
Where better for Nikko to begin his journey than the place his idol started his?
Yet even here, no one had seen or heard tell of a red-haired youth fitting the kid’s description. It was starting to look more and more like Shigeuchi was going to have to return to the fleet empty-handed and try to explain how he had somehow lost the eldest son of their captain.
Maybe he would just stay here and drink instead.
@Reflection 
