Faulty Disobedience

[Kurosaki]

He didn't want to have to hurt these Marines seriously. They were maybe not all bad but some were probably forced to follow orders from the top. At least, he hoped that they weren't all so corrupt that they wouldn't know in their hearts that kidnapping these children was wrong.

As he faced off against two Marines who were now serious, swords drawn and prepping themselves to rush him from either side, Kurosaki realized just how little training he really had. He didn't know which one to try to attack first. He had never gone up against two people at the same time before...

That was when someone slammed into the Marine on his left, yelping in surprise as he was forced to the ground. His head banged against the wooden deck and he passed out. Kurosaki looked up, a surprised expression on the blond's face before he spotted Phoenix, who had come down to lend him a hand and perhaps a wing or two.

"Thanks!" Kurosaki said, both in response to Phoenix's statement that he had gotten better and also to her helping out. One Marine was left now and he seemed a bit stunned to find himself alone at first. Then he seemed to seethe in anger as Phoenix began to approach the black bag before he yelled nonsense words and then rushed at Kurosaki with his sword raised.

Kurosaki parried the blade and came in quick, thrusting the handle of his cutlass into the man's gut and sending all of the air rushing out of his lungs. He followed that up with a Crescent Moon kick that sent him into the ground.

The sounds of the tussle luckily hadn't drawn any other curious men or women their way. But that didn't mean that they had all the time in the world to dawdle. Chances were that some Marines were making rounds and would soon discover the incapacitated Marines and would raise alarms. They had been lucky so far that the Marines had been too stunned by their sudden appearance to do so already.

Sheathing his weapon, Kurosaki closed his eyes for a moment and breathed. He tried not to relax too much though for he didn't want the adrenaline in his body to stop pumping. If he did he would find himself feeling very tired and not as alert. He needed to keep going to keep himself at the top of his game.

Turning, blue eyes locked onto the black bag and a heavy feeling came into his heart again. Phoenix had pulled down the plastic to reveal the two kids from before that he had spoken to. Jasper quickly walked up and began to rub the little boy's leg while Phoenix untied them and leaned them against a wooden wall on the side of the ship.

Nodding his head, Kurosaki balled his hands into fists again.

"Dammit. If I hadn't taken my eyes off of them..." he said, blaming himself for suggesting that they split up. If he hadn't then these kids would probably never have ended up involved in this mess. Then again, it was ultimately the Marines that were responsible but still... He wouldn't forgive himself until they were safely off this ship and back to the Island of Maricea.

Phoenix asked what he wanted to do and suggest each carrying one of the kid's until they found someplace safe for them.

"Alright, sounds like a good idea," Kurosaki answered back before he gently knelt down and then scooped up the little boy. Jasper meowed and Kurosaki smiled at him. "I think the storeroom would be the best place." At least they already knew that it wasn't full of Marines so they wouldn't be walking into a bad situation.

[/justify][/size]

[{Argentate} Phoenix Dahana]

-Phoenix

She recognized the look on her friends, wait, friend...? Perhaps yes. Her friends face, that look she'd worn before a few times now in her lone adventures. She frowned faintly then looked to the girl and Jasper for a moment. Maybe she had no room to talk, she blamed herself for hiding them in the first place but it looked closer to the fact that these marines wouldn't have been very compelled to let them go peacefully. Blame was a funny thing at times, and she could get onto him later if it continued. Considering she was now preferring that they were fighting for these kids and their own freedom in consideration.

She did take Kurosaki's suggestion of the storeroom in mind and looked to the two marines slumped over the other. Curling a wing around the little girl and Jasper, she cradled them on her back, leaving her hands free. Moving a marine over and against the wall, she sifted through his pocket and freed a pair of cuffs and a key. "We could lock the storeroom door for now... with any luck, passing marines will maybe think it needs to stay locked considering its theirs..." She glanced to Kurosaki then straightened up. Hopefully their luck would hold out a little longer, the whole ship was crawling with just a bit too many marines to be safe.

A warning hiss from Jasper was acceptable, even another lucky swipe.

Phoenix's free wing snapped out, the muscled joint slammed into a marine's neck who just come out of the hall, his yell of intruders cut off halfway before her elbow followed into his stomach. The air left him and she locked her arm around his neck. Hesitating, she sighed then looked to the cat poking its head over her shoulder from its feathered blue confine. With a mew, the brunette slowly let go of the unconscious man and laid him beside the others.

Luck, she figured, would probably run out sooner then later.

The storeroom wasn't far thankfully, simply back up the stairs where she looked around before opening the door for Kurosaki, considering his hands were full. The other two marines were still out cold, but she didn't feel comfortable leaving the kids with them. Grabbing her white cloak, she laid it down and laid the girl on it, Jasper jumping down and trotting over to the blond, rubbing against his leg almost in thanks. Rubbing the back of her neck, she glanced to the two marines and wordlessly picked one up, still keeping her hands free habitually.

"Think there might be a closet down the stairs we can hide them in...?" She whispered it, staying by the door for now. The fluff ball of a cat had decided to sit in between the two kids, watching them curiously but wouldn't be tagging along this time.

[Kurosaki]

Phoenix proceeded to pick up the little girl as well as Jasper, balancing them with her back and wings. Blinking at the strange way of going about it and pouting a little since she was able to so easily keep her hands free for fighting, Kurosaki nodded and then proceeded to start to lead the way up the stairs again. That was until he turned as a hiss came followed by a muffled yell before Phoenix's wing slammed into his neck. She followed it up with an elbow to the stomach causing him to go unconscious.

"Well, that was too close for comfort..." Kurosaki admitted with a sigh. They could be very thankful that the fluffy white cat was on their side and not on the Marines. Kurosaki looked at him with a grateful expression and then readjusted his hold on the little boy, holding him gently, before they made it back to the storeroom.

They couldn't keep getting away with it though. Marines were not this stupid normally and they probably would figure out something was happening soon. Kurosaki only hoped that they would be a few steps ahead of them before that happened. But, how to do that was beyond him. This was the first time he'd even fought outside of a dojo and now he was supposed to be taking on an entire Marine crew with one partner?

Once back inside the storeroom, Kurosaki placed the little boy next to his sister on top of Phoenix's white coat. At least they would be a little warm from it if it got chilly in the room.

"Alright," Kurosaki said in agreement, not about to let the Marines stay confined in the same room as the children. He did not trust them to wake up and not take their frustration out on the kids that were completely innocent in this entire situation.

Grabbing the second Marine under the arms, the blond was not very nice about how he dragged the man out of the room. His foot whacked into something and his shoulder hit the door frame on the way out.

"Jasper, you keep an eye out, alright?" Kurosaki told the cat as he held the door open using the unconscious Marine so that Phoenix could exit out first with her luggage. His eyebrows narrowed, Kurosaki stared straight at the cat who proceeded to stand up on all fours and meow at him happily. Satisfied that he understood, he then dragged the Marine the rest of the way out of the room and fished for the keys that he had looted out of the man's pocket so that he could lock the storeroom.

That was when the sound of a gun being cocked not too far away resounded in the air. Kurosaki's eyes shifted over to the side from his knelt down position and sweat broke out on his forehead as he saw the barrel of the gun pointed straight at him in point blank range.

"Well, well, what have we here?" said a very civilized sounding voice. The man on the other side of the pistol was clad in a normal Marine Seaman get up complete with a hat pulled far in front of his face. He grinned and tilted the cap up a bit so that his calm eyes could be seen staring at both Kurosaki and Phoenix with amusement twinkling in the irises.

Kurosaki's jaw locked as he realized the pickle that he was in. He couldn't move without the man squeezing the trigger and ending his life. So the best idea was to possibly make a move and by Phoenix some time or just give in. Like hell he was going to give in.

Closing his blue eyes, Kurosaki prepared himself to try to tackle the man.

"I wouldn't try anything stupid if I were you," said the man, as if reading his thoughts. The blond's eyes reopened and he looked at him with hatred. "I wouldn't want us to end up fighting so early on into our relationship. I believe that you're here for the same reason as I." The pistol was lowered and though he did not relax, some of the tension in the atmosphere was gone finally.

"Who... Who are you?" Kurosaki demanded as he allowed the unconscious Marine's head to whack back onto the deck as he let go of the man's shoulders.

"It's a shame to say that despite my commoner dress, I am truly Rear Admiral Robert Raice," said the Marine before waving an arm and then bowing properly before he holstered his pistol with a smirk at the shocked expression on Kurosaki's face as well as whatever Phoenix wore as an expression.

[{Argentate} Phoenix Dahana]

-Phoenix

Perhaps it was something slightly amusing in such a tense time. She stepped over the marine slowly, the feathered ends of her wing not in use ran over the male and turned around as he addressed the cat. A faint smile touched her face and as he dug, she took the cuffs and hooked it into the door handle, followed by the latch on the wall as he used the key to secure them. However, her attention pricked just as the sound of a gun could be heard. She'd turned halfway, stiff, with no ill intent to get Kurosaki shot. She felt the wrong end of a bullet, not the funnest thing though not the most painful either, still. The less chances the better. Her expression turned icy, but she realized something. If he'd wanted to shoot them he already would have.

Not to mention, the single bit of amusement told a completely different story that if looked at right, one could read much like a book. The bird like woman did just that, and didn't move an inch, didn't even seem to think about it. She was still stiff, looking more like a statue with her posture then a single person more then ready to leap to Kurosaki's aid if the situation demanded, in the case she read this stranger wrong. His statement seemed to solidify her hunch however. Needless to say she was also rather thankful the blond hadn't move. Releasing a quiet breath through her nose, she took the cornered gaze off of him to focus on the marine, still holding the one on her back in an almost constrictive hold.

She waited, her heightened shoulders and senses demanding a slight relief from the tension which she slightly allowed, the man groaning behind her as the wing ceased to squeeze him. She didn't have the decency to bow back, nor the patience. While she did slightly recognize his name, she did much care. Perhaps her being holed up in a basement for the majority of her life could provide some humor. Admiral, Sea man, Raice, no in all honesty names didn't matter to her unless she needed to protect the owner of the name or possibly respect it. Seeing as none of these fit, she only lifted a brow at his smirk, ignoring Kurosaki's expression.

"...Pleasure's ours... perhaps you can share why you didn't shoot us..." It was dry, a stark contrast to the tone she used with Kurosaki. It held no warmth, barely even sounded human, it more grasped the zoan part of her. There were no other marines nearby just yet, her hearing was picking that much up despite her stupidity of missing Raice coming up on them. She should have been watching, but she was wasting time. "Forgive my crudeness but I won't leave his... or my own safety up to blind chance without some mutual benefit..."

Something about shattered trust wouldn't let her move, or let him out of sight until she had heard some satisfactory statement, even if another marine showed up. The danger of this Rear Admiral was far more potent then the others perhaps moving around around them out of sight. Hopefully their time wouldn't be wasted too badly. With some sort of compliance she would be ready to continue, either by allowing some stroke of luck, which the abundance of wasn't helping her suspicion, or by dropping the weight on her back to face the threat head on. It proved she would, not just for the kids but the one person she even seemed remotely fond of wouldn't be threatened again, all voiced by her expression which was narrowed sharply yet listening with some mutual form of respect.

Suppose a balance, though she still wasn't exactly a people person.

[Kurosaki]

Approaching them, Phoenix asked in a very unemotional way why he hadn't shot them both. Something about it worried Kurosaki so much that he looked straight on at Phoenix and searched her facial expressions to make sure that this was the same woman speaking that had been his partner up until this point. Still shocked, Kurosaki straightened up and watched the two of them with his eyebrows furrowed and a serious expression on his face.

"Yes, I would expect you to say as much. Though my name might not interest you, perhaps the reason why I am aboard this vessel in the first place dressed as only a lonely Sea Man will. It was reported to me through some complex channels that as of late children have been disappearing from Islands in the Calm Belt.

Firstly, the escape of the kidnappers was always immediate and no one caught any sign of them. Secondly, the attacks were almost always at the same time of the day. This led me to consider the possibility that these children were being taken by a group that not only had the ability to sail the Calm Belt unimpeded, which most pirates do not have, as well as stuck to a tight routine," the Rear Admiral said before shifting his focus to Phoenix and bowing lightly as he finished.

"But what seems to have taken me weeks to uncover has in actuality been discovered by you two ordinary civilians quite easily. So, it would seem to me that it would be in our best interest to 'team up'."

A Marine, that was on their side? Kurosaki blinked in surprise and then actually grinned as he straightened up a bit more and relaxed. He placed his hand on his cutlass hilt but it was just a place to rest his hand, not a threatening gesture. He reached out and offered the Rear Admiral his hand.

"Well, us 'ordinary civilians' could sure use any help that you can provide, Rear Admiral," he said with more enthusiasm than he had before about the entire thing. He felt that they truly could win and that feeling was even more strong now.

Robert Raice looked down at Kurosaki's hand and at first seemed reluctant but he sighed. "I suppose a handshake is an important gesture of friendship," he grumbled before he shook Kurosaki's hand with his own white gloved one.

"So, now that the formalities are done with. I believe you had some Marines to stuff into that closet?"

"Oh, yeah, that's right..." Kurosaki said, looking down at the passed out man in front of him. He grabbed the man and dragged him the rest of the way into the closet before shutting the door and thumbing through the possible keys for it. Last time he had gotten lucky but... There! The door clicked as it was locked.

"Okay, now what?" Kurosaki questioned. That was just as a shout below, just past the stairs that they had been down earlier came.

"INTRUDERS! INTRUDERS ON BOARD!!"

The bodies of the Marines that were knocked unconscious had been discovered and now the entire ship knew about their presence.

[{Argentate} Phoenix Dahana]

-Phoenix

Not only his name and his desire, but some fair information was shared fairly quickly. She took note of it, watching him closely much like a hawk would another bird in its territory. She noticed Kurosaki's inquiring look but did not change anything, no, not until she knew he was safe at least. Her own could be worried about then. As he finished up and focused, even offered her a bow, she lifted a brow then sighed in thought but glanced to Kurosaki as he relaxed, even seemed somewhat elated at the idea. Her shoulders lowered slightly but she didn't intend to make Raice feel uncomfortable. she only did then incline her head in some visible gratefulness and the icy touch to her expression faded slightly.

She waited only a moment, faintly focusing on the sounds around them before blinking and following Kurosaki to place her own conked out marine with the other before he locked it. That part was done, the two kids would hopefully be safer then. However, their brief bit of luck seemed to have finally reached its end. Her attention perked at the yell down below their feet and her gaze flickered to Kurosaki then toward the stairs again.

"About bloody time..." She smiled to herself wryly. After the luck of Robert, she felt she had her fill of things going right, though they still needed to find out just how many kids were on board. Realizing something about Raice, she pondered finding the captain now so he could get his job done. It wasn't too worrisome, nobody on board realized her desire to become a pirate according to her and Kurosaki's title of ordinary civilian. She kept to herself as well that their discovery was accidental. The choices lay however in a single idea. She couldn't swim, and she couldn't carry three or more people. In a right conscience she couldn't leave any others on board either.

Some ringing footsteps on the other side of the storeroom sounded a bit large for her liking. Reaching to grab Kurosaki's wrist, she glanced to Raice before heading down the stairs, hopefully bringing both of them along for the most part. At this point there was only a single marine that called the alert, running up the stairs. However she drove her knee into his chin, knocking him down the stairs without a second warning where he sprawled, unconscious. Descending the rest, she turned, seeing an opening under the stairs and hid beneath them, presumably tugging the blond with her.

She did glance to Raice and Kurosaki for a second in thought, dragging the newly hit marine out of sight with them. Perhaps one or two of the alerted crew ran down the steps, making sense of the three knocked out at the end of the corridor. Maybe. She should have done it earlier when her companion did but for now it was better then nothing. She relieved the unconscious marine of his uniform, pulling it on over her own. The only issue was her wings that freely poked out from under the jacket. Uncomfortable maybe but she worked on hiding the feathers in the trousers and tugged the cap on and glanced up, whispering just after the marines split up to search the other halls.

"Pretend to be searching, or? We need to find the captain, if that works... or in short we just need to get the ship back to Maricea's docks..." She trailed off, glancing out from under the steps, managing to not look too out of place with the large outfit.

[Kurosaki]

At least someone was keeping humorous about this. Kurosaki looked at Phoenix in surprise and then smiled. Yeah, he supposed their luck had been too good so far. They were bound to have been discovered at some point. In fact, the Rear Admiral having been the one to sneak up on them had also been a miracle because anyone else would have either shot Kurosaki for real or overpowered them by holding him at gun point. Neither one was a good situation for the duo.

"Wha-" cried Kurosaki as his wrist was grabbed by the brunette and he was tugged toward the stairs. The Rear Admiral watched with a quizzical look but also seemed to frown. This wasn't going the way he had planned at all. He had expected them to listen to him intently and then to follow the orders that he dished out.

Kurosaki almost was pulled off his feet as they rushed down the stairs, Phoenix pausing only for a moment to drive her knee into the chin of a Marine and then continuing to drag him down and under the stairs. Raice followed relatively quickly and hid along with them though he looked disgruntled. At least the Marine that Phoenix had taken out was safely hidden so no attention would be drawn to their hiding spot not only that but Phoenix was working on disguising herself the best she could with a Marine outfit despite her large wings on her back. Raice had to wonder what was up with those wings anyhow.

"I think the first priority should be to find those children and make sure that they're okay," Kurosaki whispered, not really speaking from a strategy standpoint at all. In fact, that was probably the worst thing that they could do given their situation for it would mean being cornered in whatever room they had stashed the children in.

"In other words, you're an idiot, kid," whispered Raice, earning a glare from Kurosaki who also seemed to be pouting at the same time from the insinuation. "Listen to the girl. We should confront the Captain who is in charge of this vessel, take him down and restore order. I would simply announce my presence and take it over myself if it weren't for the fact that the Captain would simply order me silenced or the Marines that had much in stake in this little enterprise would attack me of their own accord."

Kurosaki was beginning to like this guy a little less the more he spoke. It wasn't really the words he was saying in particular. No, he agreed that Phoenix's idea was more sound. In fact, they could pretend to be part of the search while they went for the Captain and then once they had control they could return to Maricea. Still, it was the way he said it that caused Kurosaki to change his perception of the man.

"What if any of them are injured? Don't expect me to think just because they're in the hands of Marines that they're not treating these kids horribly," Kurosaki responded perhaps a little bit too loudly because it was over a whisper. Rear Admiral Raice noticed him escalating and made a hushing gesture to which Kurosaki simply seethed at.

"Twenty two. There are that many aboard this vessel in total," Raice responded quietly, flashing ten fingers twice and then two fingers. "They are all being kept in the dungeons but have been regularly fed by some guilty conscious Marines."

Still not really satisfied, Kurosaki just looked away angrily but listened as the Rear Admiral explained that they should do as Phoenix suggested, sneak into the search party and then head for where the Captain was.

[{Argentate} Phoenix Dahana]

-Phoenix

She was used to hiding, however not in a uniform. It was awkward and uncomfortable much unlike her coat earlier but either way, it was enough. The limbs flattened to not look so unnatural under the top and it was too much of a hassle to pull her hair out in the tight confines where she was crouched shoulder to shoulder with the two. She did keep mostly from stepping on the unconscious marine. Looking to Kurosaki at his suggestion she thought. He wasn't the only one worried about them all, their safety was of course the only reason she was really on here besides getting them back home. Some of them may not even be from Maricea. If she'd been alone she would have probably already been down there, however; Kurosaki's safety mattered just as much as the kids, though she wouldn't mention that. It only allowed her to think a little more clearly.

Raice was quick to voice himself and Phoenix glanced to him, golden green eyes settling on him with a mixed look of distaste for the comment yet she kept quiet for the sake of just that. She listened, silent throughout most of it and while she was almost on par agreement about their new partner with Kurosaki, that didn't change the fact he was different in thought. Her attention drifted when the blond spoke up, resulting in Robert attempting to slightly calm him down. If not for her own slight irritation she might have smirked. No instead, she waited for him to finish about the plan considering she didn't know the lay out of the ship, took note of what he said then turned her attention.

Reaching to set a hand on the blond's shoulder to get his attention, she glanced between both. "As for further agreement... if we get most of the danger out of the way including the captain, I can't settle down either with just words..." She turned back to Kurosaki and lowered her hand. "We can't hope to help them if they aren't okay if we don't keep some safety as well... I intend to to check on them, with you if you wish once we have a little more security..." It was simple enough, while Raice did explain a little she still had a reactive imagination. She didn't care perhaps if Raice was stronger, or seemed to show some discomfort with her words which his expression said slightly, she wasn't a marine and never planned to be one as following order's wasn't exactly her best quality.

Hopefully enough of that part was settled. Once a few more marines ran past she shifted as the Rear Admiral slid out first, shooting Kurosaki a brief look before following him out, taking up the rear. She took a second to readjust so the feather's couldn't be seen, in visible view or under the clothing to a degree and tugged down the cap a little more to cover the rather unnatural golden green eyes while still keeping some visibility. The only issue now was hoping that the marines were too focused on their search to realize three strangers were in the midst in disguise. Word around and according to Robert was that the captain was further along, not even upstairs so he could settle some matters, maybe about where the kids were being taken.

A group of marines, about five or six ran by them, one of course with a brutish tone and an appearance to match who paused to look at the three, apparently frustrated with the matter. "Hurry it up, we can't let some intruder's know what's going on here!" Gruff but rather oblivious, he'd only really looked at Raice and not even closely before running down a separate passage. Phoenix rolled her eyes under the cover of the hat but glanced upward to the marine on their side, for now rather thankful otherwise she'd have been lost in the large ship's numerous doors and halls.

[Kurosaki]

Despite him being not too happy with how things were going, he didn't take it out on Phoenix, turning to look at her normally when she set a hand on his shoulder. She said that they couldn't help the children if they weren't safe themselves and he had to admit that she was right. The problem hadn't been what the Marine had been saying but more of his attitude. Realizing he was being a tad too high strung, Kurosaki sighed and nodded his head in agreement.

More heavy footsteps signaled more Marines running past. Noting a gap in Marines coming onto the scene, Raice exited out of their hiding spot with Phoenix following behind. After a brief second, Kurosaki then brought up the rear, his hand on his cutlass just in case anyone took note of their mysterious appearance and called into question who they were.

The Rear Admiral mentioned something about the Captain actually being further along. Well, that certainly was specific. Kurosaki realized he was finding any little excuse to get upset at the guy though so he just followed along, trying to bite his tongue and play nice.

Heart beating more rapidly as a group of about six Marines stopped and paused to look at the trio, Kurosaki tried to act natural. It was the hardest thing to do when every instinct in him told him that they had been a blown cover and that the best bet was to fight their way out of it. Trying to keep his hand off of his cutlass so that he didn't look more suspicious, Kurosaki's blue eyes flickered to look at all of the soldiers one by one to try to read their facial expressions.

One of the Marines, a gruff man told them to hurry it up, telling them that they couldn't let intruders know what was happening on the ship. Kurosaki's eyes narrowed at the man but luckily for them all, he was in too much of a frenzy because of his guilty conscious to notice for he took off immediately after with his group.

"Heh, well, it is certainly fascinating to watch the rats scurry, is it not? Come; the Captain should be up ahead this way," said the Rear Admiral, chuckling a bit to himself as he placed a gloved hand on his face and grinned to himself, seeming to get enjoyment out of watching the fear in the others.

Kurosaki nearly jumped out of his skin when a voice shouted for attention nearby. He looked up, eyes wide, to find a Den Den Mushi hanging from the wall upside down, it's white eyes unblinking and just staring at the three of them.

"Attention, attention all Marines!" said the Den Den before it narrowed it's eyes and opened it's mouth wider to reflect the man speaking on the other end. "Intruders on board! Be advised that there is at least one of them most likely wearing a Marine uniform!"

"Dang it, they must have discovered one of the unconscious Marines," Kurosaki said as he looked from the Den Den Mushi to the others and back again, hands balled back into fists. Their luck was steadily running out.

"We don't have much time to lose. They'll be suspicious of everyone now," Raice said with more of a sense of urgency than before.

Gesturing for them to follow him, they would now move at a faster pace than before as long as everyone stuck together. Raice would lead them up a flight of stairs and to a room that said Captain's Quarters outside.

[{Argentate} Phoenix Dahana]

-Phoenix

Her lip quirked in some form of a temporary smile when Kurosaki responded, just honestly surprised and yet content with the fact they had some upper hand to start. Almost like something telling them they had a chance to help these kids and in any case, she was more then ready to grip that chance firmly. They moved as a small group, taking in the appearance of a search party, at least until the group had them pause. Phoenix had her head up but her eyes still out of view, managing a calm sentiment maybe in resemblance to marine who didn't feel as guilty. She kept from clenching her jaw at the statement before pausing to look at Raice once they obliviously ran off. Unsure whether she enjoyed his amusement or not, she did have to agree on the fascinating part.

Like Kurosaki she stiffened and turned toward the odd device. It had been clear that she was unfamiliar with many things, this one of them as she gave the Den Den Mushi a strange look but gathered its use once it finished and frowned to herself. Still, this time she waited until Kurosaki was moving before keeping pace with the two of them. The door was by itself and obvious, a different shade then the other doors. Approaching it with Raice's lead, it happened to open just before they could do anything like open it or even knock.

The captain was tall with short straw like blond hair, and easily picked out due to his outfit. He spotted the three at his door and paused, glaring between them. Suspicion was definitely there, but he seemed to be a relatively new captain and couldn't be blamed for not knowing everybody on board. But he didn't think that three could possibly be working together. "...Have all three of you made sure of each other?" He wasn't hesitant, looking closely at Kurosaki first but seemed to disregard him and looked to Phoenix as he shifted his weight. He had two hook like blades clipped to either side of his belt, clinking as he moved. It didn't take long for a second and since Raice seemed relatively well known she spoke up first.

"Yes, sir... six more that we ran into were also clean..." The captain lifted a brow and leaned down to look at her a bit more in which she kept from visibly hesitating, straightening up a little more if that was honestly possible. Eventually he straightened up and grunted, rubbing his hands together before ushering all three of them inside. Despite the idea that this could be a welcome opportunity, she cleared her throat, hanging back. "I'll... keep an eye out." She didn't move out of sight which seemed fair enough to the captain, his name newly plastered on the wall in bright lettering as 'Victor Cawling'.

There luck just seemed to be spotty now, they were in the room and Phoenix had no intention of letting anybody in, however, he finally took a close look at Raice, narrowing his eyes. "Your names, you three, now." He had a growling undertone as he stood on the opposite side of his desk, Phoenix hesitated then and glanced to the two others, Cawling's eyes trained on Raice in higher suspicion. "You look familiar but not to my crew..."

Fake names? Raice would definitely need one then. However it was honestly his call, she had very little understanding of how the marine system worked. Her attention went to two marines that were approaching the Captain's Quarter's though and she hesitated, letting him focus on Raice while she stood in the doorway, faking a stern look which would hopefully disregard her from Cawling's suspicion for awhile. His intent seemed to be getting a few marines who he knew were trustworthy though he needed to get his information.

[Kurosaki]

Bracing himself for what waited on the other side, whether they would meet disappointment or a fight, Kurosaki had to admit that he wasn't ready for it to open seemingly on its own. A man who Kurosaki could only assume was the Captain because of his dress came out and paused when he saw the three of them, looking at them with suspicion. At that time Kurosaki was sure that they were going to be in trouble.

The Captain then asked them if they had made sure of each other and Kurosaki looked at the two of his partners and nodded his head in reply as he was looked at skeptically before the blond haired man's eyes shifted to Phoenix. She spoke up and told the Captain that they had and that they had also cleaned six other Marines as well.

Kurosaki hoped that the man would buy it. After all, the three of them could all back each other up so it would take a while before their story would be busted unless the Captain was better at faces than he seemed to be. For now, their luck was back for he straightened, grunted and then rubbed his hands together as if he were satisfied before he showed them inside to his quarters.

It seemed logical when Phoenix told the Captain that she was going to keep an eye out. Victor Cawling, as the man was called, then seemed to take more notice of Raice who had mostly been keeping quiet up until this point, his Marine hat pulled forward to cover most of his hair and even his eyes were hard to see. Tilting his hat back a little bit, he took note of the look in the Captain's eyes as he ordered them all to tell him their names.

"Seaman Henry Johnson. This is Seaman Scott Howard and Jane Sanders," said Raice smoothly, staring back at the Captain as he listened to the sounds in the hallway of two Marine officers coming at a fast pace. He knew one of the Marines that they had knocked out had been named Scott and believed this Marine to still be confined in the closet. The fake name Henry had been one that the World Government itself had faked for him so that he could get aboard the vessel in the first place. As for the woman's name, it was a Marine woman that he knew was often someone who kept to herself and had joined about the same time that he himself had come aboard.

"As to my familiarity, I have only been with the crew since the Island before this one, but you might have recognized me from the time this vessel, led by yourself, teamed with the crew I was on to attempt to stop the notorious Pirate, Mad Jack? Sir!" Raice offered, saluting, knowing that this information was correct besides the fact that he hadn't been there at the time. He had simply found the files on it and had taken the name for himself from the other crew so that he had some legitimacy.

Meanwhile, Kurosaki was just hoping that they had made the right call to trust the Rear Admiral. At that time he really held all of the cards in his hands. One slip-up would be enough to seal their fate at that time or if this was really some sort of elaborate trap, he and Phoenix would be in a very precarious position. He followed Raice's salute when the Rear Admiral's eyes shifted to him and Phoenix to attempt to prompt them to follow his lead.