Re: [Week ~8] [P] Morrigan Rassallion [Chap. 4] & Splice Willow [Chap. 3] <Collaboration: Of Enemies and Allies>

[CapnWillow]

Galeo’s elbow was smacked back with such force that it impacted with a crunch into the fishman’s own face. Galeo felt at least 3 teeth loosened by the impact, but he had more pressing matters to attend to. Luckily for him, the impact and shock of his elbow had caused him to jerk his head back, narrowly avoiding the head-butt coming his way. Opening his mouth, Galeo felt the loosened teeth drop from his mouth. Shifting his disconnected jaws forward, Galeo opened his mouth to a gaping maw, filled to the brim with layers of razor sharp teeth. This fearsome natural weapon was one a shark fishman’s strongest weapons, and Galeo’s thick neck provided him with truly fearsome jaw strength, even when compared to other sharks. Throwing his head forward, Galeo aimed a vicious bite at his opponents exposed shoulder.

***

Hark pulled himself over the side of the ship’s railing, slightly out of breath and chuckling to himself. He’d lost the Marine’s in the town’s maze of alleys with consummate ease, leaving them lost, angry and confused in the middle of the nasty part of town.

After listening with no small satisfaction to the sounds of the denizens of the town laying into the Marines with what sounded like bits of wood, broken bottles and considerable enthusiasm, Hark had ran back to the ship as fast as he can. Clambering up the side he’d noticed that many other ships in the dock were raising anchor and ‘getting the hell out of dodge’ as it were. He reflected that this was probably a wise idea. If a group of Marines this big had turned up, more were almost certainly on the way. Not a good idea to hang around waiting for them.

Pulling himself to his feet, he called to his companion; “Get this ship ready to go! We’re getting out of here.”

Willow turned from helping the woman to her feet.

“I’m not leaving Galeo matey.”

Hark cast about the deck, looking for the anchor chain. Spotting it, he made his way to the chain mechanism and began straining at the spokes.

“You idiot, he’s a fishman. We couldn’t get away from him if we wanted to; he’ll catch us up in no time. If you’re worried about him getting peeved that we buggered off without him, I reckon he’ll see the need to be honest. Look at the other ships here, I think they’ve got the right idea.”

Willow looked over the side and saw that his friend was indeed speaking sense. Turning back to the woman, Willow gestured at Hark.

“We’re getting out of here on your ship. Hope you don’t mind. It'd probably be a good idea to help us.”

[WC this post: 454] [My total WC: 6644] [Total Collab WC: 13396]

[Leviathan]

Jaxxon screamed in rage as the fishman's razor-sharp teeth sank easily into the flesh of his shoulder, the skin giving little resistance. Seeing red, the Marine closed the short distance between them, grabbed hold of Galeo's shirt, and flipped him over his shoulder in a suplex. Rather than break his hold upon his enemy as the fishman released his shoulder, he rolled backwards as the fishman's back collided with the floor, until he was knelt with his knee pressed firmly to Galeo's jugular. Snarling, he lifted his cannon back, then launched it forwards will all his strength, aiming for the fishman's face.

Morrigan sent two more Marines sprawling to the floor, a satisfied smirk upon his face. They were putting up such a poor, pathetic fight that he didn't waste his time in making them look foolish, nor were their lives even worth the effort required to end them. As he darted to and fro, dodging their badly aimed blows, he snatched his cloak from the floor and fastened it around his neck, one of the Devil Fruits concealed within the pocket rolling to the floor from the sudden motion. Morrigan stared at it, then glanced up at Jaxxon to see the man had seen everything and was regarding him with a look of pure, unrestrained hatred. ''Rassallion... You little shit...''

Swallowing, Morrigan swept the feet out from under another Marine and grabbed the fruit, ready to run for his life the second the opportunity presented itself to him. Jaxxon stopped his brutal strike before it could hit Galeo, got to his feet, and began to walk towards the young Captain, his fight with the fishman completely forgotten in wake of his renewed rage. ''How dare you... I'll have your head for this...''

[~]

Yonyon stared as Hark began throwing orders around, his thankfulness quickly giving way to anger. He pulled the crumpled wanted poster from his belt, smoothed it out against his leg, then held it up for both of his rescuers to see. Sighing, he then pointed to the grinning face upon the paper, then pointed to the ship underfoot, his eyebrow raised as he shook his head. It wasn't that he was fickle, he did truly appreciate the help, but he couldn't leave Morrigan behind, much less grant Willow and Hark power over the ship after Morrigan's efforts to obtain it. It was obvious to him that the two were pirates, and as he folded the bounty poster back up and replaced it, he readied his stance, just in case they decided to try commandeer the Alpha Morina by force. If they so much as put a toe out of line, he wouldn't hesitate in doing his job, whether they had rescued him or not.

[WC this post: 458] [My total WC: 7210] [Total Collab WC: 13854]

[CapnWillow]

The knee being pressed into Galeo’s neck was hurting, but the thick muscles the fishman had developed there to enhance his already formidable bite strength prevented Galeo’s air supply being entirely cut off. However, rather more pressing to Galeo’s mind was the large metal cannon approaching his face at high speed. Galeo closed his eyes and waited for the impact, gritting his jay against the pain. No doubt it’d be the first of many.

The blow never landed. Galeo felt the weight of the man lift from him and heard his enraged words to Morrigan. Opening his eyes, Galeo spotted what had so distracted his opponent; a devil fruit! A rare sight indeed. How the hell had Morrigan gotten hold of it? Never mind the one he himself had eaten! The man must be a devil fruit magnet, Galeo thought to himself.

Pulling himself to his feet, the fishman surveyed the utter devastation prevalent in the bar. With his attacker now completely distracted, Galeo decided now would be a good time to make a controlled withdrawal. As quietly as he could, he made his way towards the huge hole in wall.

***

Hark and Willow watched as the former captive mutely explained her position and took up a ready stance. They stared at the wanted poster in her hand, and as recognition dawned, Hark burst out laughing.

“I don’t believe it! Out of all the ruddy ships tied up here you picked his! Typical!”

Willow shook his head at his own luck.

“So his name’s Morrigan is it? We ran into him earlier.”

Hark nodded.

“Aye, he’s back at the tavern with Galeo fighting a dude with a cannon for an arm. Vicious looking bastard too. Having said that, they’ll probably finish up soon, and once they do Galeo will come looking for us, and Morrigan will come looking for his ship.”

“That’s all well and good, but we can’t stay here! I’m really not trying to steal your ship for myself; it really does need to get out to sea before more of those damn Marines turn up!”

Hark looked at the determination in the woman’s stance and shook his head. Words and assurances wouldn’t really help at this point. Walking between them, he raised he hands placating.

“Look, how about this. Willow stays here and helps you get the ship out to sea; I go back to the dock and find this Morrigan chap and Galeo. I’ll explain the situation and the three of us will meet up with you out at sea somehow, that Fishman could probably swim us all there with one hand behind his back. How’s that?”

[WC this post: 442] [My total WC: 7086] [Total Collab WC: 14296]

[Leviathan]

Backing up against the wall behind him as Jaxxon approached, Morrigan spied Galeo attempting to quietly make his leave of the scene. Tutting to himself, his stolen Devil Fruit clasped tightly in hand, he whistled loudly to get the pirate's attention before throwing the cursed fruit as hard as he could over the approaching Marine's shoulder, hoping it would serve as a distraction. Jaxxon's lip twitched around bared teeth as he took another step; the only indication he made to suggest Morrigan's actions had even registered at all in the haze of his building rage. The young pirate's back collided with a thump against the wall behind him, and suddenly, Jaxxon was far too close far too quickly. He had hoped that the massive Marine would have at least turned to see the destination of the thrown Fruit, given their immense and possibly priceless value and his furious reaction to Morrigan having revealed one, but it was for nought; Jaxxon had Morrigan well within his sights and not even the promise of a potentially devastating, potentially priceless Fruit could sway him away from his target long enough for the pirate to make an easy escape.

''Nowhere left to run, you little fuck. That trick you pulled before... So you ate the smoke Fruit? Had I known all it took were a little false hope to get you to spill your shit, I might have changed tactics on board the Delta.'' The Marine spat to the side as he had earlier, his saliva still tinged a vivid red.

''And if I'd have known all it took were me going to a pub to have a drink to get you to haul ass and hurry up after me, I would have said 'fuck it' to the laying low and gone for a pint as soon as I'd escaped you at the Delta.'' Morrigan retorted, his hands hovering over his sheathed swords. They shook slightly, though not from fear as most individuals would have been when confronted with such a terrifying man; for all of his snark and all his childish unpredictability, the thought of Yonyon back on board the Alpha Morina was the only thought in his mind prominent enough to sway him. Before the Marine could respond with anything more than a deep, grating growl, Morrigan drew his blades. ''First Singing Wall.''

Jaxxon blinked, sneer turning gasp as suddenly, his entire chest was shredded by a flurry of blades so fast he couldn't help but take a step back, for he wasn't expecting his prey to be capable of using techniques he had fought against so many years ago against a mocking, female enemy. A different face with the same name. Morrigan took his opportunity; a starved man offered a final meal before inevitability took hold, and with a graceful dash, the tyrannical Captain was far behind him... but not far enough. The giant recovered quickly; Morrigan didn't turn to watch the man sprint after him, sending the few remaining standing men sprawling to the side with his arms, the shallow wounds upon his chest dripping in time with his madness.

[~]

Yonyon stared at the pirates who had taken over Morrigan's ship, his jaw falling wide comically as they mentioned the altercation between Jaxxon and his Captain that were taking place elsewhere as they idly stood and talked. Recovering quickly, Yonyon took a cautious step forwards; even if they had met Morrigan and seen a small fraction of what he were capable of, they knew nothing of his capabilities. At a moment's notice, he would strike, and the deck of the Alpha Morina would be stained with yet more blood, regardless of how distasteful the idea sounded to him. Then, the man who had been introduced as Hark suggested an alternative that sounded much better than applying a new coat of paint to the ship, and Yonyon took the alternative with little real thought, signalling his reluctant approval by taking hold of one of the mast ropes and nodding silently.

[WC this post: 670] [My Total WC: 7880] [Total collab WC: 14966]

[CapnWillow]

Galeo heard the whistle and, turning his head, saw the projectile Morrigan had just thrown his way. Stretching his arms, Galeo caught the object tumbling through the air towards him and with a start, recognised a Devil Fruit!

“By Neptune, the man’s mad” he muttered to himself. Why would Morrigan give him such a treasure? Looking back at the melee, Galeo saw the giant of a Marine menacing Morrigan against a wall and in a flash of understanding, realised that Morrigan would rather see the Fruit in the hands of a pirate, any pirate, than in the possession of the Marines. Turning away and tucking the fruit away in the same movement, Galeo slipped out of the hole in the wall. Checking the street for any more erstwhile agents of the law, he began pounding down the streets towards the docks and, with any luck, escape.

***

Hark and Willow took the woman’s mute assistance for assent to their plan. Willow joined the woman in preparing the ship to make sail, while Hark leapt from the ship and made his way back onto the main street. Moving from alley to alley as quickly as he dared while keeping an eye out for more Marines, Hark sped back towards the tavern. He had barely made a start on the journey however, when the hulking figure of Galeo the fishman sped into view, his feet thumping the ground as he ran.

“Galeo! Hold a moment!” Hark cried, springing from his alley. The fishman slowed, but did not stop.

“Apologies friend, but I must go. I’m getting the hell out of here while I still can. If you didn’t live here I’d tell you to do the same thing. To be honest I’d still advise you to consider it.”

“Haha thanks for the warning but my roots are here. But- hey wait!” Hark started running after Galeo, sprinting to keep up. “I bring word of your crewmate!”

Galeo skidded to a halt and turned to Hark. “He’s on a ship in the harbour, getting ready to make his way out to sea. By the time you get to the dock he should be away.”

“Hah! The sneaky bugger. What ship? Actually, never mind. I’ll find it myself. Thanks for the word!”

“No worries my friend, just promise if you ever come back this way again the first couple of rounds are on you lot!”

“Haha, done deal! Although I doubt we’ll be back for a while. Look after yourself my friend.”

Clapping Hark on the back, Galeo ran on towards the dock. Hark, leaning against the wall of a nearby house to regain the breath Galeo’s friendly pat had knocked from his lungs, smiled to himself.

“Leave this place eh? Something to think on I reckon.”

[WC this post: 462] [My total WC: 7548] [Total Collab WC: 15428]

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