Three of a Kind [Closed]

[aiden]

Here on Stetson, there were things a man learned from a young age to value and cherish. Hard work, loving women, working guns, and a good poker face. Right now, staring over seven cards at three other men, Jack was reminded all to well of the value of a good poker face. "...Raise." he said at last, setting his bid on the table, glancing around for any sort of reaction.

"Call."

"Call."

"Raise."

The contents of the pot were starting to build up. If there was one way to test a mans nerve, it was when the pot was getting full. Jack looked at his cards, then back at the pot, then set down his bid. "Raise." He looked around at the men, and hid a smile behind his hand as two shook their heads and set their cards down.

"Fold."

"Fold."

All eyes were on the final bidder. He and Jack met eyes, each trying to see if the other would lose their nerve. At last, he set forward his bid. Another raise. At this point, it was all up in the air. Maybe he was a bluffer. Maybe he was sitting on a royal flush and just wanted to see how far Jack would go. Who knew? "...All in." Jack pushed his entire portion into the center of the table, and watched the other man. Some nearby tables were now actually watching them, to see what the man would do.

"...Ah hell, fold."

Jack laid down his cards. The men stared at it for a moment, and all at once, started to laugh. Jack pulled the pot towards himself. "Well, gentlemen, it's been nice playing." he said with a tip of his hat as the three stood up. Smiling, he set his cards down, and started to organize the mess of bullets, cigarettes, and small change they'd been using to bet. A barmaid passed by, and set down a glass.

"From your friends. No hard feelings about the game." she explained. "By the way, Jack, just what did you have that made the whole thing so funny?"

With a faint grin, Jack tapped his cards. "Three of a kind." he explained with a shake of his head. "What can I say? It's all about how you play the game." He patted the barmaid's hip and pushed a bit of the small change her way before sending her off. Slipping the bullets into his belt, Jack glanced at the poster sitting on the table with him, wondering when, if, anyone would show up. The way rumors got around this town, someone must have heard by now that someone was looking for a few partners in crime. After all, 50,000 wasn't exactly small change.

[❰ Misha ❱]

"AURAHAHAHAH!!"

Salvion bursted out laughing for no reason other than the joy of the moment. The bar was filled to capacity with everything most men would swoon at. Quite a handful eyeballed the passing women, plenty chugged down glass after glass of ale, others sat around the poker tables on the far side of the room around piles and piles of chips.

Not Salvion though. He was content to sit at the bar with his glass of chilling lemonade, in the company of men who enjoyed hearing the many tales he had from his militia days. Everyone around him cheered excitedly as he stroke his signature blue beard and reminisced over his various deeds. He told of his failures as well as his successes in equal givings. Salvion didn't mind letting everyone know of the time when he'd accidentally led his team into an ambush or the time he and his squad spent weeks sprawling in the jungle after Private John lost the map of the trail.

His failures and shortcomings made his successes all the sweeter as everyone sat at the edge of their seats each time he began another one of his military stories. If there was one thing Salvion had a weakness for, it was retelling his militia life around a bar of drunken patrons while he himself remained cheerfully sober.

"AURAHAHAHAHA!!" Salvion laughed, to the drunken haws of everyone present, "I remember this one time we went into a desert on the far side of the island. Everything was fine for the first week or so, until dinner time on the 8th day. I cooked my signature SLOP for everyone in the squad while we sat around a campfire in the chilly night." Salvion rattled off. "I made due with what we had and everyone was happy..." Salvion's eye than turned around slyly. "Except for a new recruit who'd just joined before the mission. Her name was Kate Berricks, a new lass that seemed to be quite nice. She was good with a rifle and pistol, but couldn't carry a load to save her life. She also had never eaten MY slop before so it was interesting to watch what happened when she took the first bite." Salvion took another swig of lemonade before continuing.

"As soon as she did, her lips fattened up. She clutched her stomach and started running forward as fast as her legs could carry her. She only got a few feet before tripping over Jenkins!" Salvion laughed again to the chuckles of some of the others. "She started throwing up on him while he slept! It must've lasted at least 10 minutes before she finally stopped spewing! By the time she stopped, Jenkins had puke all over him! He was completely covered in puke, but he was still out cold!"

"Than I saw a big black scorpion leap into the air and land right on Kate! She screamed like crazy and swatted the thing right back onto Jenkins while he snored! It stung him right on the lip!" Salvion guffawed happily to a few chuckles from some of the others.

"He woke up SCREAMING at the top of his lungs! Which caused him to swallow even more of Kate's puke!" Salvion could barely contain his laughter as he remembered the moment. "We started laughing our butts off while he screamed and slipped around in all the puke! It took a good half-hour before Jenkins could sit upright again! He gave Kate dirty looks for the rest of the week!"

A few of the other patrons burst out laughing, some started chuckling, a few sat unimpressed. Jackson, a man about as tall as Salvion walked over to him with a moderately serious look. "Is that all? That wasn't as interesting as the last one you told us about."

Salvion took another swig of his lemonade. "Not all of my missions were entertaining. There are a few I'd rather not tell you about. It was funny to us at the time, it lightened the mood for awhile. It isn't everyday that you get to see a grown man scream like a girl and slip over a young girl's puke."

Jackson seemed satisfied with the response, but than decided to add in something else. "Again, Why do you not drink!? The maid thought you were kidding when you asked for lemonade, why not have some rum or ale while you're here?" Jackson asked.

Salvion paused mid-swig to answer Jackson. It was a question he got quite often when he came to bars like these. "I told you before. I prefer to remain sober at all times. No use for strength if you're too out of your senses to know right from left. Plus alcohol dulls my aim. Sorry, I'll stick with lemonade and an apple pie later."

Jackson looked disappointed for a second before shooing off the bar stool and and walking to the nearest table. Salvion took another swig of lemonade and reminscingly stroked his blue beard.

"Bluebeard" was what he was called anyways.

[Lord Bromosalino]

Man, its sure was noisy in here. From men scowling over lost hands at the poker tables, drunkards creating a mess and ruckus, and some big guy laughing at his own dumb joke. Pushing a lean hand through fiery red hair, Vincent Vitkas sat in a corner by himself. He wasn’t here for enjoyment. He was here for business. And he had a pretty good idea as to who would be his partner in this little endeavor. It was the very lucky man who had just scored quite a huge pot at the table, if it could be considered a huge pot. Cigarettes, bullets, and a decent amount of pocket change. Though, more interesting than what some considered a big pot, was this mans attire. Dressed in a cowboy style, the man looked to be out of date in style. Still, the man looked as if he could hold his own, and that was good. From what he had heard, they would need strength. After all, one simply does not just walk into Impel Down. Yet, quite in fact, that is why Vincent was here.

Finally, after much handshaking and head nods and shakes, the other two men left the poker table leaving Vincent’s future partner to collect his prize. Sipping his sake, Vincent waited. A piece of paper lay in front of this man, and Vincent was becoming more convinced that this was his man. Though he couldn’t see the paper clearly, he was sure it was a bounty hunter. Yet, they were not to capture this man, but break him out. The challenge was certainly immense as these men would face the mountain of Impel Down, yet for a large sum of 50,000 Beri, Vincent would play this hand. There was any number of things one could do with that kind of money, and Vincent fancied his chances. After the famous rookie Monkey D. Luffy had broken in, Impel Down was rumored to still have been a mess. And whoever was pulling the strings for this job must have gotten together an ace team or was as mad as Vincent thought him to initially be.

Leaving the sake where it sat, Vincent made his way towards the table. Crossing the room, Vincent heard a big man with an interesting blue beard laugh and chuckle at his own story of a scorpion stinging some man only to slip on some vomit. In all honesty, from what Vincent had heard at least, it was not only ridiculous, but quite possibly one of the worst stories he had heard.

Without so much as a greeting or word of acknowledgment, Vincent plopped himself in the empty seat across from the cowboy he was sure was his partner. Catching a glimpse of the paper, Vincent was one-hundred percent right. There on the poster was the face of “Iron Lung” Indie. The man had been caught a while back and rumors were that someone wanted him out, and was willing to pay good money. Knowing why this mystery man wanted this Indie character out was of no concern to Vincent. He was here to make some extra cash, and to do it as quickly as possible.

Whipping up his strong face, green eyes stared at the man. Disregarding any formalities, Vincent dove straight into the heart of the matter.

“So, when do we do this.”

[aiden]

Jack shook his head and laughed under his breath, tucking bullets into his bandolier as a man told his life's story in the loudest, most booming voice he'd ever heard. He had to admit, if there was one thing about his home island that he loved, it was the bars. It was certainly never boring, if nothing else, and the loud mouth was only adding to how lively it was. If he hadn't just explained the reason for his teetolling, Jack might have even bought him a drink.

Tucking away the last bullet, Jack used his hand to push the cigarettes away from the small collection of different shaped coins. Picking up the glass the bar maid had given him, he sipped it in quiet thought, giving the room a once over. Farmers, gamblers, rough necks, and good ol' boys. His people. But amongst the crowd of gun loving drunks and card players, he noticed one man who seemed to stand out, though no where as much as the loudmouth at the bar. Jack didn't linger on him though. He just set his glass down, and went around to gathering up the cigarettes, tucking them one by one into an old, beat up cigarette box.

He saw the man approach from the corner of his eye. With red hair like that, he would have had absolutely no excuse not to notice. The man sat himself down, and got straight to the point. "Right down to business. I like that in a fella." he commented, tucking one of the cigarettes into his mouth. Producing a match, he struck it against the table, and lit his cigarette before shaking out the flame and carelessly tossing the burnt out stick to the ground.

He took a long, casual drag off his cigarette, then slowly exhaled a long stream of smoke. "We start first thing tomorrow. But it ain't that simple. The last fella may have gotten off, but from what I hear, he ain't exactly the normal type. We're gonna need to be smart about this." he explained, raising his glass to his lips, washing down the taste of smoke with a bit of bourbon. "Word is that they're calling fer Marines from all over the world. Double the manpower while they fix the damage. In all that confusion, who's going to notice a couple of fellas like you and me? We need to get our hands on some Marine uniforms. 'Course, impersonating military personnel's a mighty hefty crime, but then again, so's breaking a pirate out of Impel Down." Jack looked at the man over the rim of his glass. "So how about it, partner? You in or you out?"

[❰ Misha ❱]

The cheer at the bar was truly never-ending. As a swarm of new guests gathered around the man, so did the amount of alcohol consumed which in turn made the place even livelier. Salvion spun more tales of his life in the militia on his home island, telling of the harsh deserts he endured and deep forests he explored.

He became the life of the bar. Customers ordered more drinks and moved their chair to sit around the large man with the neatly-kept blue beard. Salvion, in turn, became even more mirthful even as the crowd grew speaking with ever increasing volume and speed.

"And so there I was, in the middle of the Gaia desert at the southern peak. We'd just made camp at the oasis when the enemy launched a surprise attack on us." Salvion said, the tenseness echoing in his voice. "They came out of nowhere, striking us just as we put the fires out. We lost James and Bret within 5 seconds and barely managed to get out alive from that one. After that, we..." Salvion spoke until he was cut off by the loud slamming of a door.

Everyone's eyes turned to the entrance where they spotted the source of the noise. It was a brown-skinned man, garbed in a green military outfit. He wore black sunglasses that obscured his eyes from view. His black beard covered his chin and the lower part of his cheeks. A cigarette stuck from the mean scowl adorned upon his face.

SPOILER: Click to show

[/Spoiler]
As he ducked inside the bar, Salvion could hear slight gasps escape from some of the men in the crowd. The sheer size of the man was even more intimidating then his facial expression. He was about 10-and-a-half feet tall, towering over everyone in the entire bar and even coming within reach of the ceiling.

All talking seemed to cease around the bar as the large man strode over to the bar and leveled his gaze at the bartender. Even the bartender had a hard time gathering himself as he attempted to offer the the man a drink. "W-W-What would y-you like...Hade?" he stuttered.

The man named Hade scowled a little before reaching down and grabbing the bartender by the scruff of his shirt. The man struggled as he was pulled up to the man's height and looked him square in the black eyes.

Salvion sat unfazed by the man, though he could hear several of the patrons around him start to whisper to each other and several heads face downward along with the nervous shaking a few hands on the tables around him. The giant spoke calmly, though the undertone of it seemed to make the struggling bartender sweat even more. "Give me every last barrel of rum and ale you have left in stock" he said plainly.

Salvion raised an eyebrow at that while the bartender hung helplessly by the scruff of his collar in the face of the intimidating Hade. Unable to articulate himself properly, he let his lower lip drop pathetically before nodding his head dumbly, deflated and powerless to argue. The man dropped quickly to the ground when the man's grip disappeared, falling to his knees before stumbling away through the door behind the bar, obviously not intent on keeping the giant man waiting.

Everyone remained silent as the giant began to gaze around the bar, almost drinking in the sight of fear from everyone around him. When he spotted one person sitting at a table beside the bar with his head down, the man seemed intrigued and adorned a very wicked smile as he sauntered over to the patron, cracking his knuckles as he did. He grabbed the man by the hair and hauled his face up from the table and bowed over at the waist until he was looking straight into the man's eyes while Salvion looked on.

"Long time no see, Darin." the man said mockingly, like a tiger that had finally caught his antelope. Darin remained silent. "Thought you could get away from me huh? Didn't think I would catch up with you so soon did you?" Hade mocked. Suddenly, the man named Darin found himself hauled up by his neck. clutched in one hand of Hade's massive grip until he was dangling over the floor, completely helpless. "Tell me Darin, who do you think I am?" Hade said threateningly.

This time, Darin broke the silence. "You're the one everyone has been talking about lately. The strongest known man in West Blue, "Vermillion" Hade Isaac." Darin winced as Hade's grip tightened around his neck, "You've defeated every man you've faced so far with a single punch, You run the Vermillion Pirates and you sunk a marine ship by yourself, punching through the metal..." Darin broke off just as the strangle hold became too much for him.

"That's right." He said affirmatively, "So tell me than, what made you think it was a good idea to plant a BOMB on my ship!!" Hade began to yell. "Did you think I wouldn't notice it? Huh? Did you think it would help you become a big-shot by sinking one of the most feared pirate captains in ALL of West Blue!!"

Salvion saw the stranglehold tighten further, clearly with the intent to suffocate the man. The man couldn't answer further as his hands kept trying to pry Hade's humongous hand off his throat. He would have succeeded in killing the man if Salvion hadn't decided to intervene at that moment.

"ENOUGH!" He shouted, breaking Hade's attention away from Darin. Hade looked to the source, seeing Salvion seated at the far end of the bar. He released Darin and casually strode over to where Salvion stood from his seat. There was no height comparison among them, Hade was a massive man and the muscles on his tree-limb sized arms made him seem even more intimidating.

"Do you have any idea who I am, old man?" Hade threatened, to which Salvion's face remained stern. "I heard. You should also know who I am, it might help you avoid the hospital by not making the mistake of crossing me. Just being bigger doesn't always make you better."

Hade seemed to smile at that, interpreting it as some kind of joke on Salvion's part. Some of the patrons in the bar looked on, some with awe and some with painful unease at watching a strong man like Hade face down such man whom he had a clear advantage over.

The tense energy of the moment reached a high point when the first punch was thrown. Hade clenched his massive fist and swiftly launched it at Salvion's jaw. Salvion rose up one of his hands to catch the punch but ended up using his other hand too in order to subvert the massive force behind it. With both his hands tied up, Salvion had no defense for what came next.

A booming right hand struck Salvion right in the gut, launching him into the air off his feet and heading towards the wall on the opposite end. The impact hurt a lot, but the punch was even more devastating then hitting the wall. If he wasn't so durable, Salvion would've fallen over right then and there. A little winded from the punch, but still standing up, Salvion smirked at the man in front of him.

Hade, for the most part, was surprised the man was still standing. He'd completely leveled men much bigger than Salvion with that same right hand, but Salvion still stood, almost seemingly unaffected. Angry, but undeterred, Hade rushed again at Salvion, winding up another blow to strike right at Salvion's jaw. Salvion quickly sidestepped the massive punch and balanced on one leg while Hade rushed past.

~ Combat Style: Monster Leg
Salvion brought the leg he held off to the side swinging around to strike Haide right on the knee. All the while, his leg vibrated slightly which amplified the damage caused to the knee of Haide. The kick did the job, dropping Haide down to one knee which brought him face-to-face with Salvion.

Salvion readied his fist before slamming it on Haide's cheek. Salvion's own massive strength was enough to send Haide sprawling onto the floor. Salvion moved quickly to take advantage of the moment, before Haide surprised him by turning on his back to face Salvion's oncoming punch.

He bent his neck to the right, dodging the left hand before lifting his leg and kicking Salvion in the leg as well, than following up with another jaw-dropping fist to Salvion's chin. The attack sent Salvion flying backwards once again, landing on his back and skidding a few meters away from Haide.

Salvion laid sprawled on the ground while Haide regained his footing and walked over to where Salvion was on the ground, confident that he'd won the fight. Haide stopped in mid-step however, when he saw Salvion rise from the ground.

A small dribble of blood rolled down Salvion's chin, though he wiped it away casually as he got to his feet, much to Haide's surprise. He was used to ending fights with one or two punches, everyone he'd fought before was a bloody wreck after just one punch from him. He was 1/3 giant and his strength was the greatest known in West Blue. Yet here was a six-foot man who'd risen from two punches and was still ready to fight.

The audience watched on, some quietly and some with dreadful awe that the fight wasn't ended after just one punch from Haide.

Salvion lunged from afar at Haide, striking him in the face with his own punch. The attack staggered Haide, pushing him back further towards the bar.

~ Combat Style: Bullet Punch
Salvion's lunging fist suddenly blurred for a second, which threw off Haide's time dodge attempt. The uppercut blow sent Haide reeling into the air a little, almost embedding him in the ceiling of the bar. Continuing on his momentum, Salvion attempted to strike another mighty punch to Haide's stomach before suddenly being swatted away with another critical punch from Haide to his face.

Salvion flew through the air, crashing into several tables before finally stopping where his head hit the wall hard. Haide stopped staggering as he gathered his bearings and Salvion laid on the ground, seemingly out cold. As soon as Haide saw Salvion on the ground, he smiled triumphantly, believing to have finally settled the fight with the smaller man. Clutching his face and gut where Salvion hit him, he felt his ribs creak and his face ache terribly. The pain shot through his knee, face, and torso as he approached the other man.

Salvion however, was shaken but not out yet. In a moment of sheer jaw-dropping and face-faulting, Salvion rolled on his side and began to stand.

The pain was immense. Whether he could take another fist from the man was a question he couldn't answer. His vision blurred as his brain rattled from the impact. His stomach lurched and his ribs felt like they were broken, though he pressed onward and ignored the pain. He was a sturdy man, militia-trained, and above all; disciplined. It didn't make it any easier to stand up, but it definitely made a difference. If he was any lesser, he would've just stayed down and not gotten up.

Three punches. And he was now on his second wind. He had to admit, the man had earned his status as the strongest, each punch was like a freight train come to life. Haide stood in disbelief as Salvion shakily got to his feet, completely speechless.

Salvion's eyes obscured by shadows for a moment... but than a wide smirk made it's way across his face. Haide had no response to the smirk, all he knew was one thing.

End it with one more punch.

The man was getting too much on this. Some of the crowd now began to root for the blue-bearded man as he staggered to get his vision to stop blurring.

Each of them lunged at the other, winding up their fists to ready the final attack.

In the middle, their fists collided, pushing back and forth. Both men were drenched with sweat and blood, utilizing all their might to bring an end to the fight.

With a large push, Haide swung Salvion's fist away to the left. Salvion gritted his teeth, backing up to try and evade the oncoming punch. He sidestepped the first and second attempts at a clean blow. The blurry fists rushed past him as the 10 foot giant swung downward to try and get the better of Salvion on his last legs.

Cunningly, Haide came up with a plan. On his last legs, Salvion managed to strike him once more with a mighty blow to the abdomen. The blow crippled Haide, bringing him down... but before Salvion could withdraw the arm, Haide grabbed it. With nowhere to retreat, Haide wound up and delivered a fourth knockout punch to Salvion's face.

Salvion didn't remember flying, all he remembered was being struck hard in the face. He felt the ground vanish from beneath him but nothing else as his vision finally started to fade to black.

When it finally became clear he was on the ground, Salvion wasn't sure he could get up. Later on, he would admit that if they were to fight again, he could not duplicate the feat. The man's fists had brought him to the brink of passing out. He searched one last time for something he wasn't even sure was there: one final wind. He could withstand two fists, a third was a maybe shot. A fourth... Salvion doubted he would remain conscious after a fourth one again.

But he stunned the audience and Haide, beyond disbelief and recognition when Salvion rolled on his side and stumbled onto his knees and elbows. He coughed up a glob of blood, than got to his feet. His form was lopsided and his body was obviously past it's limit.

Salvion smirked as he stood, though saying nothing.

==========================

OOC: I think I went a little overboard...
2500 words.

[Lord Bromosalino]

Marines had been called from all over the world? Well, that could become problematic. Not only was the Marine Headquarters the home for Vincent, but his own father, who he hadn’t seen in quite a few years, was a captain of the Marines. Still, his father was stationed in the New World. And everyone knew the New World to be far more important than Impel Down, given the types of pirates that were in the New World. It wasn’t until this partner of his suggested that they dress and impersonate a Marine that Vincent thought the idea to be more of a reality than he had first thought. Amid the hundreds, if not thousands of Marines, at Impel Down combined with the numerous mass that would be sent to help secure and fortify the prison, none would notice two, especially if they went about it in a smart way and kept their heads down. It could work, and when this man asked Vincent if he was in or out, he merely stuck out a hand as if to seal the deal. He was in.

Before Vincent could say anything, a hush fell upon the room. His back to the door, Vincent didn’t bother looking. Whatever it was, he would wait until the noise would pick up again so he could further discuss this adventure. He definitely didn’t want any citizen hearing what they were up to and going to “tattle” on them to someone who might just do something to put a stop to it.

However, the silence only grew deeper and much, much more tense. Turning to look over his shoulder, Vincent caught the sight of something he hadn’t thought he would see in a place like this. Some dark-skinned man with a green military jacket striding across the small bar. What made this man so incredible to see was the fact that he was nearly as tall as the ceiling, at least ten or eleven feet tall! Not sure why the hush, Vincent gave a questioning eye towards the man sitting across the table.

Before he could answer, Vincent’s own silent question was answered by the once jolly and cheerful bartender. Vincent caught a name that was thrown in amid the poor man’s stuttering; Hade. The name meant very little to Vincent and held no meaning or power behind it, yet nearly every man in the bar had gone either silent or were too scared to say anything. Foolish.[/I] And indeed, it was all ridiculous. If these men were scared of the man’s abnormal height, then they were in no way men to begin with.

Hearing this Hade man, as he was the only one speaking in the once lively place, Vincent paid no more heed to him. He seemed to be a typical criminal, using his status and build to threaten and bully people. Not that Vincent had anything against that, but it was just pathetic watching every “man” in here go as limp and white as a paper in Hade’s presence. Even when Hade turned his attention to a man who was attempting to stay hidden from Hade’s view, no one, including said man, did anything.

"Long time no see, Darin. Thought you could get away from me huh? Didn't think I would catch up with you so soon did you? Tell me Darin, who do you think I am?"

At this, Hade lifted the man up by the neck, with everyone’s full attention on this giant, while truth be told, were probably inwardly relieved that they were not this Hade’s victim.

“You're the one everyone has been talking about lately. The strongest known man in West Blue, "Vermillion" Hade Isaac. You've defeated every man you've faced so far with a single punch, You run the Vermillion Pirates and you sunk a marine ship by yourself, punching through the metal..."

"That's right. So tell me than, what made you think it was a good idea to plant a BOMB on my ship! Did you think I wouldn't notice it? Huh? Did you think it would help you become a big-shot by sinking one of the most feared pirate captains in ALL of West Blue!!"

Ah, so Hade Isaac was his full name. A pirate who thought he was just the toughest thing around, apparently. Though Vincent couldn’t help but smirk at the idea that he was so impressed with conquering the West Blue, though he had never heard of him.

At that moment, the Blue-bearded man telling the horrible stories decided that enough was enough. Probably not the smartest move for the old man. Catching only glimpses of the following conversation, for Vincent did not truly care, the two were at it hammer and thongs. As Vincent expected from a man of colossal proportions, Hade had some strength behind his punches. What shocked Vincent, was the way the older man was able to hold his own, trading blow for blow.

Vincent knew how this would end, the Hade man would most undoubtedly win and possibly kill “Blue-beard,” as Vincent would call him. Though he knew this, Vincent made only one move; turning his attention back to his own table and his drink.


[/size]

[aiden]

((OoC: Sorry. Real Life hit me really hard.))

Jack continued to watch the man, sipping his drink as his could be partner mulled it over. When the man stuck out his hand, Jack set his own glass down, and stuck out his own, clasping the mans hand in a firm shake. "Alright then, welcome aboard. Names Denning. Jack Denning." Before he could catch the mans name, the entire bar fell deathly silent.

Every seasoned bounty hunter knew the signs of imminent danger, so it was only natural that he started to glance around, his right hand twitching towards his revolver. His eyes fell on a large, an unbelievably large, man as he sauntered in like he owned the place. From the way the barkeep was speaking, the man had been here once or twice before, and apparently enjoyed throwing his weight around. Normally not a wise move to pull here on Stetson, but then again, most of the people in this particular bar were just farmers or small time merchants, not bounty hunters.

As the man started rambling off, Jack merely rolled his eyes and raised his glass for another drink. He really was full of himself, wasn't he? Rambling off about how he was the most feared pirate in the West Blue - Jack doubted that incredibly - only proved that he was an idiot. You didn't make those kinds of boasts in this town and get away with it for long. Still, the argument with the loudmouth at the bar had caught his interest. Bluebeard planted a bomb on his ship? Well now, wasn't this the useful tidbit of information. Still, Jack simply stayed in his seat, enjoying his cigarette and his bourbon as the two fought it out, trashing the bar in the process. "This is why we can't have nice things." he commented, the force of impact as one of them hit the ceiling causing a piece of glass from one of the chandeliers to fall only a few feet from where he sat.

Finally, the fight was coming to a close. It looked like old Bluebeard just couldn't contend. Yet, just as he'd thought the old man was down for the count, he got right back up on his feet. Jack had to give it to him, he could certainly back up his loud mouth. With a sigh, he crushed out his cigarette, set down his glass, and stood up, pulling out his right revolver. He pointed it at Hade, and the tell-tale click resonated through the bar as he cocked back the hammer. "Alright, amigo, I think that's enough." he stated in a very calm voice, staring at Hade down the barrel of his gun. "We like ourselves a good bar fight here in Stetson, but we've got a few issues when it comes to property damage - and pirates. So, I would strongly suggest that you do what I say, and not make any sudden movements, comprende?" he reasoned. His words were polite, and even his speech was slightly pleasant, but it still held a steely tone.

"Now, this is how this is going to happen, friend. You're going to pull out whatever cash you've got and give it to our good friend the bartender so he can pay for these damages, then you, me, and my friend here are going to take a little walk. The bartender gets to fix his establishment, you get to keep your life, and I don't have to waste a bullet. Sounds like a good deal to me, compadre." he stated, before glancing to old Bluebeard. "And you're coming with us, friend, so pay your tab, and lets be on our merry way before you bleed out and die on the floor. Lowers the property value." Glancing back to Vincent, he gestured for him to get up and follow with a jerk of his head, before looking back to the two battered men. Oh, these two didn't know it yet, but they'd just given him exactly what he needed: marine bait and a demolition man. Tonight was proving to be a good night.

[❰ Misha ❱]

For a second, things were swimming in front of Bluebeard's vision. He had to really hand it to the tall man; he could punch. Another one of those fearsome missiles, and he would've had to resort to his Devil fruit powers to take down the man.

As bad as he was though, Salvion could see the damage he'd inflicted on Hade quite clearly. Hade was bleeding from the mouth and it looked like he was in pretty rough shape too, his posture looking quite wobbly and his gaze seemingly unable to keep still. Despite their injuries, both men stared down the other, with creepy smiles beginning to break out on their faces.

"Interesting." Had voiced inside his head. He'd never faced a man who could take him head-on and still stand up. Salvion's smile also grew wide. It had been a long time since a man had given him an actual physical challenge. Like Hade, he was used to overpowering everyone in his path. Now it seemed like he'd met his match and just might be defeated here and now.

Just as both men prepared to duke it out again, they heard a resounding click that set them on edge. They both turned to face the sound, and saw a slim man behind a table. He was dressed in a cowboy attire, and they could see several more weapons on him. In his hand, he held a revolver, though neither Hade or Salvion appeared very worried by the weapon. Hade knew he could take a revolver shot and Salvion could jump for cover behind the bar counter. Nevertheless however, they stayed still as the man started to speak.

"Alright, amigo, I think that's enough." the man started, ""We like ourselves a good bar fight here in Stetson, but we've got a few issues when it comes to property damage - and pirates. So, I would strongly suggest that you do what I say, and not make any sudden movements, comprende?" The man's tone was calm, though both of them could tell he was serious.

Salvion's face turned to a frown though and so did Hade's. None of them liked being interrupted by this punk when they were having a good fight. They let the man finish his speech however, though they both had some choice words for him afterwards.

"Now, this is how this is going to happen, friend. You're going to pull out whatever cash you've got and give it to our good friend the bartender so he can pay for these damages, then you, me, and my friend here are going to take a little walk. The bartender gets to fix his establishment, you get to keep your life, and I don't have to waste a bullet. Sounds like a good deal to me, compadre." the man seemed to end, before glancing at Salvion who returned it with a very mean look.

"And you're coming with us, friend, so pay your tab, and lets be on our merry way before you bleed out and die on the floor. Lowers the property value." the man finished, much to Salvion and Hade's surprise.

In the few seconds that he'd said all that, Salvion and Hade both came up with quite different opinions of the man. He was as tall as Salvion, but he didn't intimidate them in the slightest. Salvion leaned over to the side and reached over to where his guns had flown during the fight with Hade. He would need them if this got ugly.

One of the guns was top-notch silver rifle, decorated with a guard on the bottom to steady for fire from behind cover. He looked a little more intimidating with it than he did with the second one. The rifle clutched in his left hand, looked like a piece of junk to be honest. The scope was an actual bottle, held together by duck tape and a few gun parts that looked like they'd been found in a dump.

Salvion held both in his hands and twisted them around a little, seemingly examining them. This lasted for a moment when he put the guns down and faced the man with the revolver. His smile started up again, twisting across his entire face and then followed by a loud booming laughter.

"AURAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!" Salvion laughed, sending the vibrations across the entire bar.

"Tell me; What makes you think you're the one in charge and should be the one giving orders?" Salvion spoke calmly, though the threat was insinuated in his voice. "You interrupt our fight and order us around at gunpoint, without so much as a name or a reason. I fail to see why that we should heed your orders, your manners certainly aren't exemplary and you don't intimidate either of us, just holding a gun isn't enough to put you in control and I think Hade here agrees with me." Salvion glanced at Hade who was also grinning widely.

"And don't think you can get away pointing a gun at me. Everyone who has.... well they're all ripped in half." Hade put up his fists, ready to attack the man at a moment's notice.

"If you want to fight as well though... I'm pretty sure.." Salvion was about to finish, until he was interrupted. The door burst open, letting a sudden swarm of marines inside.

The effect was immediate. The clicking of guns set the room to complete silence. All guns in the room pointed at Hade, Salvion, and the man holding the revolver in his hand.

"That's enough! You're all under arrest now." One of the marines shouted. "Hade; You are charged with destruction of marine property and resisting arrest." Hade cursed under his breath.

"You two..." the marine glanced at both Salvion and the Jack. "I'm taking you both in as accessories to Hade. I have received confirmation of piracy on you.." the man pointed to Salvion, "And..." the man paused for a second, seemingly uncertain until he spotted the man that had been sitting in front of the man. The marine then continued, "consorting on piracy with a pirate. All 4 of you are going to jail!!"

Salvion almost laughed that the man's ridiculousness, but that might've caused trouble. Salvion would've readied himself to fight, but then something else occurred. His vision started to blur and the numerous marines in front of him started to swim in front of his vision.

Hade glanced at Salvion and chuckled. "You don't look so good. Did I beat you too senseless?" Hade voiced in a semi-mocking tone. Salvion steadied himself and smiled at Hade. "Your punches don't tickle. I'll give you that." Hade smiled again, only a warm smile instead of a mocking one. "And you're a tough old man. How about I take care of this batch instead. You look like you could use a rest."

Salvion's vision continued to swim in front of him. He opend his right eyelid halfway to focus. "That would be fine but... I think I have a better idea." Salvion panted a little before steadying himself and focusing on the man who was holding the revolver.

"Well brat," Salvion started, emphasizing the word to draw the man out, "care to show us why you should be in charge?"