Wealth, Adventure, and the Open Sea: A One Piece RP.(Arc 4: Porte Carlo.)

[GoWithDAFro]

"Well, today was a successful day" Yoje said with a grin. "Now, I'm going to eat dinner, and then rest for a while." He walked out the room they were gathered in and headed for the inn's dining room. He saw Alaena and Peter talking outside, but she had said she wanted to talk in private, so he didn't listen in. If any of the others wanted to join him, they would catch up.

I hope there's some good meat in this inn. Yoje thought. And that the chefs weren't hurt in the battle. His stomach rumbled, reminding him of the large bruise on his gut from Higaldo's last attack. Once I recover, the first thing I'm doing is training my Iron Body technique. It should be able to withstand much stronger attacks than it does right now.

 

[Fragrance of Mtn Dew]

Hal watched Marielle leave with a slight pang of guilt. Hmmm... It doesn't feel right chasin' her off like that if she has nowhere to go. I oughta know how that feels after all. Although I was a lot younger than she was when I had to figure out how to deal with it. He had only been 14 when those pirates had attacked his family's merchant ship. Traveling alone was a dumb move, but they had been too poor to hire anyone to protect them. Once they realized they were done for, Hal's mother packed what little money they had and some rations into a bag and gave it to him while his father put him onto their only lifeboat. Hal rowed to the nearest island, not daring to look back at the ship for fear of what he might see.

Once he landed, he did the only thing he really knew how. He used his funds to buy and sell goods for maximum profit. The skills he had picked up from watching his parents helped, but for the most part people found themselves caught off guard by the shrewd negotiating skills of such a young boy. And of course, he ripped off pirates as best he could at every turn. It wasn't even close to what they had taken from him was the reasoning he used to justify it.

And here he was today, being asked to join a group of pirates. If hadn't been for that little flashback, he probably would have gone ahead with it without giving it much though. If he was going to prevent the misfortunes that befell him on Lasklee in the future, he'd need strong people like these guys after all. Of course, hanging around them had only put him in more danger lately but he couldn't deny that he had ended up better off for it with all the loot he'd gotten. Besides, they didn't seem like the kind of people that would murder his parents. Still, he couldn't ever see him calling himself a pirate.

"Tch! This ain't getting me anywhere." He muttered as he stood up from his seat and grabbed his briefcase off the table. "I need a drink... Hopefully there's a bar around here somewhere that hasn't been blown to hell." He said a little louder to no one in particular before walking out of the room and out of the inn. He had gotten to know the streets of Lasklee pretty well during his stay, but with many of the landmarks ruined and the streets he used covered in debris he was having a hard time finding his way around. He found a tavern he used to visit every once in awhile, but it wasn't open due to how wrecked it had been.

Growling angrily, Hal turned and went to go try and find another one that would actually be in good condition. Eventually, he came to an intersection that looked vaguely familiar and stopped to take a look around. He didn't see a place that looked like it served alcohol, but he did spot Marielle sitting on a nearby corner. With her head in her hands like that, she seemed to be having an even rougher time of it than she was when she left the inn. Oh boy... I can't just leave her sitting there after seeing her like that. I don't know what to say though. I'm a salesman, not some kind of councilor. Aw hell, here goes nothing.

Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the corner where Marielle sat. "Hey, Marielle. You gonna be alright?" He asked, cursing himself internally as he did so. It was a really dumb way to start off the conversation. "Look, uh sorry if it felt like we were chasing you off earlier. We all appreciate your help here, so if you need anything just say the word. I know it ain't easy having no home left to go to." Hal told her with what he hoped was a reassuring smile. The whole 'I know how you feel thing' felt a little overused to him but in this case it was the truth.

 

[Xero Scythe]

Grana sighed as he stood up, buckled on his sword, and walked out the door. He had noticed a nice little park on the way to the inn, and he figured it would be completely deserted: perfect for what he was planning. He arrived at the grotto and slowly unsheathed his blade, facing a few of the bamboo stalks. Grana exhaled as he raised his katana to split his vision. "The ability to cut the very spirit of the world...I must learn it, in order to bring the crew to the World's End. I shouldn't be bother by such peons of Harligold's class- not if we are to survive on the Grand Line. I must do better." Grana flicked his blade sideways, aiming to cut a stalk. The sword passed through, but Grana saw the curved edges and knew the result was from strength alone. "No! That's wrong! Find that-that sound, or whatever it was!" Grana began to hack through the bamboo, desperately trying to find what came so easily in desperation. Exhausted, he sank to the ground, a mob of decapitated bamboo accusing him.

Grana winced and pressed his good hand to his chest, feeling the blood start to seep through his shirt due to his exertions. He stared at his hand and wiped the minute amount of blood onto the grass. "I've had worse. I'll be fine." Fingers shaking with adrenaline, Grana reached into his hat and pulled out a letter. It was the last one from his brother before Grana was forced to leave the island. Grana read over the letter proudly, still amazed that his brother was able to survive on the Grand Line. "And since I've received this letter, he's had five whole years to train and become stronger. Heh, my brother must be a monster by now." Grana gently placed the letter back into his hat before looking back at his mangled arm. Perhaps it was only the aftereffect of adrenaline, but Grana could feel pain surging through his arm, and his arm twitching in response. Both were good as far as Grana was concerned: they meant the nerve still had some life left in it, and that meant it would heal. Grana slowly stood back up, using a stalk for support. He sheathed his blade and began to slowly walk back to the inn, ravenous in his hunger. As Grana stepped back inside the inn, he noticed Yoje heading the same direction, with presumably the same idea. "Hey! Yoje!" Grana called put, catching up to his shipmate as quickly as he could. "How are you feeling, Yoje? A little better than I do, I hope." Grana grinned. "We just seem to shine a beacon for trouble, don't we?"

 

[CounterAttack]

Marielle looked up at the sound of a familiar voice. "It's... it's fine," she answered Hal hesitantly. Yes, that was his name. She had heard it mentioned once or twice. "I've only had one place I could call home, and it's right here. But you already know that; I said it earlier." She turned her gaze back to the streets, a slight feeling of sickness beginning to form in her stomach. Briefly she contemplated telling Hal about her history - or rather, a lack thereof - but quickly reminded herself that it was personal and she barely knew this person.

"I could stay here, sure, but... I don't know. It's surprising how much can change in a single day. Some things I did today are going to haunt me, that's for sure... even if Sammi told me to just push past them and move on. Not everyone can do that. Dunno if I can."

 

[GoWithDAFro]

Yoje shrugged. "We did what we had to do here. Lasklee should be better off now." He gave Grana a quick once over. "You look worse than you did back at the inn. What happened, did a wound open up?"

 

[Xero Scythe]

Grana winced at Yoje's perceptiveness. "Yeah, I suppose. More like I ripped it open." Grana shook his head in anger, both at his idiotic recklessness and his inability to grasp the concept of resonance. "I was remembering the sword style my sensei taught me so long ago. Apparently, all I remember about it is that I forgot everything." Grana gave a short, barking laugh. "I was completely helpless by the end of that fight. If Hal hadn't convinced that last fishman to leave, I would've been crushed." Grana shook his head and shrugged. "I've become too reliant on my Devil's Fruit, and have neglected my basic swordsmanship. I need to become stronger." Grana pushed open the doors to the cafeteria and, lo and whole, there was a chef serving food to the uninjured. Grana then looked at Yoje. "Though you're one to talk, buddy. You look like you're going to be a human bruise come morning. What happened to that Iron Body of yours?" Grana nudged Yoje slightly, to drive home his point.

 

[Fragrance of Mtn Dew]

Hal nodded slowly as listened to Marielle, mostly to give himself time to think. He wasn't entirely sure what some of the things she did today that would haunt her were, but it was a pretty brutal battle so he had a pretty good guess. "Yeah, that sounds like something Sammi would say. She's got the right idea I think. Just try not to think about it too much. Can't be haunted by it that way." He suggested since that was how he dealt with things like taking lives. It was effective for the most part.

Having said that, Hal tried to steer away from that subject since he probably wasn't the best person to be talking to about it. The fact that she had lost her home seemed to be weighing more heavily on her anyway. "Look, I ain't gonna bore you with the details, but I found myself sitting in more or less the same situation as you a while back. Here's what I eventually figured out: This is an opportunity for you. I know it doesn't seem that way, but it is. If there was ever something you wanted to do or something in your life that you weren't entirely satisfied with, you can change that now that you don't have anything to lose. If you want to get outta here, I bet if you talked to Peter again he'd let you tag along. You already proved can handle yourself, and it seemed like he felt kinda bad about what he said." Hal said with a passion in his voice that usually wasn't there. It wasn't often that he had experience that was worth sharing after all.

"And even if you do decide to stay here, the same thing applies. A house can be rebuilt even better than before. The same goes for this whole city. Give it some time and this place will be back to normal. Even better with the gangs gone I'll bet." He finished. After a pause, he realized that maybe this whole speech of his wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear right now. "Uh, anyway that's just how I see it. Sorry for getting all preachy on ya there." He added afterwards with a slight chuckle.

 

[NeoAC]

After Peter had finished talking and gone off with Alaena off to somewhere, Sammi was growing bored being left to he own devices in the inn. There was really only one person who she felt needed to be talked to anyway. The one who was probably the least equipped to be dealing with the situation. The one who dashed out. Sammi took the rest of her rum to go and walked out of the inn.

It took less time then she thought before she spotted the girl with the baby blue nails sitting on one of the intersections not far from the inn. The merchant was already there, which was a bit surprising, given that he was agreeing with Peter back at the inn, but no matter. Marielle seemed to be feeling a bit better.

"Hey," she said, greeting the two. "Didn't expect to find both of you here. You feeling all right there, Blue? I know that was a really rough trip you were given in there by Peter."

 

[CounterAttack]

Marielle listened closely to Hal. An opportunity... that made sense, sort of. His words after that did not. "If there was ever something you wanted to do or something in your life that you weren't entirely satisfied with, you can change that." She didn't have anything that she wasn't satisfied with, and there wasn't anything that she could think of that she wanted to do. Perhaps it was confession time, she thought as Sammi joined the two of them.

"Honestly, Sammi... I don't know. It's not just Peter's words. I know I messed up there by wandering in when I shouldn't have. But there are other things on my mind. You know what I did, you know I had no choice, but just the idea of it makes me sick," she said, the words seeming to spill from her tongue in a rush before she fell silent for a moment to collect her thoughts. Hal's little speech needed answering as well.

"And then there's Lasklee itself. Hal, to answer what you said just now, the thing about the whole 'opportunity' bit is... I only remember the last three years of my life. The three years I spent here before Harligold and his horde showed up. That's why it's the only home I know. I don't know where I could have been before, why I'm here, or how I even got here. Odds are that Marielle Avacin Villeneuve isn't even my real name. It was given to me because I told my family that I didn't have one." As Marielle explained this, she averted her eyes, looking back down to the ground where she felt she belonged. Down in the dirt with the rats and scavengers. That was the way she had lived before Ainha and Lilliena took her in and gave her a home.

Marielle didn't like to tell people that she had no past, but in this case it was necessary. They needed to know, to fully understand what she was thinking.

 

[GoWithDAFro]

My visible bruises don't look that bad, do they? Yoje quickly examined his arms. There clearly were bruises, but nothing serious. The worst looking bruise was on his stomach. Maybe Grana was trying to make himself feel better. "I need to improve that technique, I know. The fishman I had fought was stronger than I thought he would be." He sat down at the nearest table. The cafeteria wasn't very crowded, so the waiter would probably get to them soon.

"By the way, what fishman are you talking about? The guy Hal convinced to leave was big, but he was definitely human. Was there somebody else?"

 

[NeoAC]

Sammi thought about what Marielle was saying, about not really having a past and having her present all but destroyed. It was a rough go to be sure. Sammi looked down at the poor girl and thought for a moment, sneaking a sip of her rum as she did so. Finally she spoke.

"You know what Mari? I can't really say anything about what you've lived through. I can't say anything about your past except this. It is just that. It's past. What's done is done. Can't change it. The only thing you can control is the future. You can use the future to find out about the past, maybe even right the wrongs of the past. But dwelling on it isn't going to fix any of it.

Now, I dunno if the answers you're looking for are going to be found here, or in Porte Carlo, or at the bottom of the Grand Line. Who knows? All I know is, it's better to make a move to try and figure things out rather than just sitting around moping on how you got to this spot in the first place, you get what I'm saying?"

 

[Xero Scythe]

Grana sat down across from Yoje, visibly confused. "There was the spiky fishman someone told me about, the annoying Dolphin Fishman that warned Twitchy about my power, and...the...gate...breaker...damn. He was human, now that I think of it. I was so out of breath by the end that he just got swallowed up by a dark spot. I guess I just assumed from his size and perceived color that he was a fishman. Still, what kind of normal human tries to break down a wall with his fists?" Grana shook his head in wonder. "There are some interesting people in this world."

A new thought sprang into Grana's head then, and he decided to give voice to it. "Say, how many techniques does that martial art of yours have? I've seen the sword leg technique, that you're so fond of, that sky-runner technique I asked you to teach me, and that high speed dash that you and Hal both know. You also have that Iron Body technique. Is that all? It seems that the style is very long-ranged, but it could be a hassle if the opponent comes in close and you can't kick or run away. You also have the problem where an opponent could simply cut through or overpower your Iron Body, like today. For such a powerful fighting style, I would be surprised if there aren't any remedies to these situations."

 

[GoWithDAFro]

"There are six techniques. Besides the four you mentioned, there's the Finger Pistol, which allows a single finger to pierce skin and bone, and the Paper Art, which makes you extremely flexible. It can even change your size. I'm bad at the Finger Pistol, and can't use the Paper art at all, but they would help in close ranged combat."

"And there's more to Rokushiki than just the six techniques" Yoje said in a somewhat annoyed tone. "The six powers are what makes it special, but we learn regular hand to hand combat skills as well. Only the weaker users rely entirely on the powers they know. It's like how you were saying that you feel you're too reliant on your devil fruit. The best Rokushiki users are the ones who naturally adopt the Powers into their fighting style, combining skills, and making it their own. So-"

A waiter came over then, asking for their orders. Yoje asked for a hamburger and sake, and turned back to Grana. "So no, close range isn't truly a weakness of the martial art."

 

[Mr. Omega]

"So you just want a ride? Shame... you seem nice enough. Extremely violent, but you seem to have your heart in the right place." He said, practically not paying attention to most of what she said. "Still, we don't do that much piracy stuff. Or at least I don't. Can't speak for the rest of them. Still, you can leave whenever you want. I just strongly advise against leaving at Porte Carlo."

 

[tsatoma]

"I have some things I plan on doing at Porte Carlo, but I certainly won't stay there. I have a feeling that there will be some sort of trouble on that island when we get there; perhaps even caused by the crew. Just call it a hunch," Alaena replied with a smirk, somewhat surprised that Peter was completely fine with all that she had said. "I have some things to do, and I assume you do to. I'll head on out then. Thank you for letting me aboard," she added before heading into her room.

Fletch had gone straight to the inn after his owner had told him to stay out of the fights to keep him safe, and was now perched at the window when his owner came in. He loudly shrieked as if mad at her, getting told to calm down and not be so loud. "I know you've been waiting for a bit, but I wanted to keep you from harm. Who knows what could have happened? If you want to fly around now you can; I'll be heading out in a minute anyways," Alaena told him, watching as he flew off the window's ledge in a huff.

There was a second where she considered telling him to not get into trouble, but she had trained him well enough to trust in him. She reached into one of her satchels and grabbed out a wad of Beri; carefully counting it and putting it into her pocket before heading on out of her room.

 

[Fragrance of Mtn Dew]

Hal was a bit surprised to hear about Marielle's lack of a past. He had been wrong to compare her situation to his own it seemed, which explained why she had been less than receptive. He was at a loss as to what he could say next, but thankfully Sammi stepped in with some advice of her own. Hal was thankful for that since he didn't have anything useful to contribute and he would feel weird saying stuff like that. He did agree with Sammi though, and it seemed to tie in rather well with what he had been saying earlier.

"Uh, yeah. Pretty much what she said." Hal added, not having much else useful to contribute. "What I said before still holds up. If you want to find out who you were, someone out there has to know. 'Course, it's up to you really. Do whatever you want." He finished with a shrug. Not the most inspiring thing he'd ever said, but it was the truth.

 

[CounterAttack]

The pirates' words made sense to Marielle. While she didn't know who she really was, she could find out. And she wasn't going to do so by moping around, or putting herself down. No-one had known who she was in Lasklee, even though she was a citizen with a home and suchlike. The gifts her adoptive family had given her were not things that she could overlook. Her Devil Fruit ability in particular: it was a weapon, she knew. And one that she could put to good use.

She got up from her spot on the ground, a determined look on her face. "Thank you, both of you. I have an idea of what I could do now... but before I explain it, I have one question. You guys are pirates, aren't you? So what exactly do you, well, do?" If there was questionable activity in their answers - raiding, looting and suchlike - then perhaps Marielle's idea wasn't such a good one. It was one of the two options she believed that she had to choose between, though.

One or the other, not both. One cannot live on the fence one's whole life, she remembered Ainha telling her. If you do not make a decision, you ultimately lose both choices.

 

[NeoAC]

The question was a surprising one, one that Sammi thought she would have a ready answer for. Well what else do we do? We steal, we go for treasure and we stick it to those bastard Marines. But there wasn't much of that done since she joined with Peter. Hell they had been a damn near benevolent force in her time with them. There's definitely been a moral shift. I mean with Bob we pretty much took on whoever got in our way, good or bad. With Peter though, it just seems like we're playing the wondering avenger role. Stealing from the corrupted rich to give to the poor. Hell, we were the good guys on the island. I don't think that was the case ever with Bob...

Sammi then decided to answer Marielle as best she could. "Well, lately Mari, I don't know if you could call us true pirates or not. I mean, compared to my old crew, this one is pretty righteous. Still, if you're thinking what I think you are, you're going to be entering a whole new world. There isn't going to be any kind of safe haven you can turn to, you're going to have to be on your guard at all times. And I know you weren't too hot about taking people out earlier, but that's another fact of life in our given work. You're going to have to be able to do that. So I guess what I'm going to tell you is that this is going to be a major life shift. You gotta think about it to make sure this is a step you're ready and willing to take."

And if you are, I'll at least make sure you're more prepared then I was...

 

[Fragrance of Mtn Dew]

Hal paused at Marielle's question, not entirely sure how to answer that. It was only natural that she would assume he was a member of Peter's crew, even though it was actually just an offer on the table that he was considering. What Sammi said confirmed his suspicions that the crew was much more benevolent than most other pirates. That was going to weigh into his decision. "Yeah, I'm not an official member of Peter's crew but he has offered to have me along. I don't like pirates much so the only reason I'm even considering it is because they don't seem like your average pirates."

"Well, that and they saved my ass when I got on the wrong side of the gangs around here." He continued with a small laugh. That had been a rough situation but he had really lucked out by running into Peter when he did. "I've just sorta been tagging along with them since then. Maybe I'll keep on doing that. Traveling alone just isn't very safe for a merchant nowadays..."

Aww, who the hell am I kidding with this maybe crap? This is the my best bet to get around without any more incidents. Guess I'll talk to Peter about it when I get back.

 

[tsatoma]

"Is there anything else that you need today, ma'am?" asked the older merchant to Alaena, trying to get the woman's attention. The question was repeated, and this time he received an answer.

"No. Thank you. Sorry about that...battle fatigue," Alaena explained, hoping that was a good enough excuse for the man. It seemingly was as he didn't question her, instead giving her the price for everything as he finished tallying it up. "That will come to about...oh 14,100 Beri," the man calculated after pressing a few buttons on a small calculator, looking up after a few seconds of Alaena not taking out any money, "Is there a problem, ma'am?"

"The amount. It's less than three times what it should be. Is it because you figure that you won't be getting as many customers while Lasklee is being rebuilt so you'll keep prices down for now to undercut competition?" Alaena asked, watching the merchant nod his head slightly.

"That's a reason for it. Another is that you helped fight off the pirates that came here to take this city; I figured a bit of a discount was in order," the old merchant explained, surprised when Alaena counted out 43,000 Beri and placed it on the counter. "That's about the amount it would be at full price. Keep it; you'll be needing it," Alaena explained, shushing the old man as soon as he started to speak.

She grabbed the bag on the counter and walked out of the beaten up shop before the merchant could try to give some of the money back. 'That should be all I need before we go. I'll have to definitely restock medical supplies at Porte Carlo...I wonder what I'd be able to find at the base,' she wondered as she walked down the streets; most of the debris and wreckage from the fights having already been moved to the sides so people could walk safely.