Mission 89: A Killing on the High Seas? (dandead, DarthCryo)

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

How hard could it be? Taking some time off on a luxury cruise was a present the teen had certainly needed. Although a pirate, the only thing his crew had done was steal a boat while no one was looking, and he was hardly the stuff of legend. But this time, it looked like trouble was looking for him. As the boat smoothly cruised through the waves, Zen admired the sparkling blue waves and the perfect sky. The glare of the sun reflected off the water, making it shimmer. A breeze blew across the boat, cooling down each of the sunbathing tourists. But alas, the peace lasted only minutes.

A scream echoed across the boat, and the ripple of shock was almost visible. 'Murder, murder!' A voice came. Zen reluctantly got up, stretching his legs. What could have possibly happened? He thought. As he walked through the frame of the boat, he couldn't help feeling a dread settle in his gut. The murder was real, and the body proved it. It was obviously a drowning, the carcass sopping wet and no visible mark on the body. Before Zen could get a look at the face of the corpse, it was blanketed with a thick cover. Perhaps it was better this way. After all, Zen was always shocked by death, and if the body was just a body, no face or name to it. It was easier to distance yourself, as much as he hated to even think it.

It must've been panic. It wasn't a murder. Just an unfortunate accident that shouldn't have happened. That was the thoughts running through Zen's head when the second happened. Again the gasp, but this time the atmosphere on the boat was degrading severely. There were people watching their backs now, darting their heads quickly around corners. The body was sealed off, nobody was allowed to look. It had happened only a day after the first, the incident giving an unnatural feel to what should have been a relaxing time. It looked like the crew of the cruise ship were looking into it, they had been questioning every passenger and examining their backgrounds. Zen was worried. If they found out he was a pirate, this wouldn't end well.

He could only hope they found the murderer before they found him.

[Dandead10]

Entering the perspective of the marine in this case was something that required a logical mind. There was obviously a murderer on the ship. A person had died the day before and now this day as well. Odayakama Senshi the Petty Officer of the marine core had taken the call to find this mysterious killer. Senshi and her own squadron of six marines had been gathered on the main deck of the ship for debriefing.

"My name is Odayakama Senshi and I will be your commanding officer for this case. There is a murderer of unknown origin on this ship and so, it is our job as enforcers of the law to find this criminal. You six shall split into two groups of three and patrol the ship. I will go on a more personal level to try and find more details." The redheaded officer had stood to her full height as her cerulean eyes scanned the scene.

"Yes mam!" The marine squad had split into two groups of three with a salute as they had went to the east and the west side of the ship. Senshi had to do some very important steps seeing there was an unknown murderer on a large crew ship. Moving onwards, Senshi had went to the captain of this large ship. She planned on getting a report file on all the information they had on the people they took log of and coming up with a plan to isolate the killer. With the marine squadrons patrolling, perhaps the killer will be less active. It would give Senshi the time to think of a plan.

Most likely the people that were killed were not because of some whim of a crook. There had to be some sort of motive to the killer and something both victims had in common. Most likely they both knew the the killer in some way or form. The real question is, why would somebody murder these people and who why? Senshi would think these thoughts as she took step by step torwards the bridge.

The calm waves and bright sunny sky was not the right type of weather for this occasion as she was sure another victim would appear. As she walked upwards to the bridge, she saw the captain and his workers seeming a little distressed. The first thing Senshi said was, "Show me the status reports and the data. Petty Officer Odayakama Senshi at your service.

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

The situation had escalated quickly, it seemed the marines had been called in by the crew. Zen was trapped on unfriendly ground. If he tried to escape he would be the suspected murderer, and if he stayed put he would be captured for piracy. He'd take his chances with the marines. Out on the seas, reputation was everything, and he didn't want to be known as a killer.

Zen formed a plan in his head. He wanted to catch the murderer as much as the marines did. And if they were to suspect anyone, it wouldn't be the one openly chatting to them and helping them. In the back of his head, Zen knew it was stupid. But one marine in particular had caught his eye. He had listened as she talked to her subordinates. She didn't seem the suspicious type, and in fact might even be friendly. 

As Zen walked round the ship in an attempt to find more clues to the mysterious deaths, he decided he wasn't going to get anywhere if he wasn't able to go everywhere in the vessel. It looked like stealing into the bridge for information could be a huge asset. But he'd have to go about this the right way. The ship was approximately divided up into three decks. The main surface deck, where the majority of relaxing cruisers sunbathed. The mid deck, which rose out of the middle of the boat, where the crew's chambers and the bridge was located. Then there was the huge below deck, which contained the general public's quarters and the storeroom. 

Where he needed to get to was the mid deck. But it was against the ship's code for holiday makers to enter. So he had to get friendly with the marines.

Into the lions den, he thought before walking up to the nearest marine, a young man about his age.
'Good morning.' Zen said rather matter of factly.
'Good morning to you as well.' The man said, friendly.
Zen said a silent yes. It looked like he had struck gold with his choice of marine.
'What do you think about all this murder business?' he asked calmly.
'Well, not much. I suppose it's my duty, but I only really signed up because my father made me. The marines, I mean. So what about you?'
'Well, I fancy myself a detective, I suppose. So it wouldn't hurt to know a little more, if you catch my drift.' Zen replied, hoping he wouldn't get suspicious.
'Well personally I could tell you, but your information source would have to remain anonymous.' He tapped the bridge of his nose conversationally. 'What I can do, is let you into the crews quarters. Just say Seaman First Class Johnson sent you to assist. My higher ups think that we need all the help we can get.'
'Thanks for your help. Nice to meet you Johnson, my name is Zenith, but my friends call me Zen.' Zen said, introducing himself before striding into the mid deck. That went way better than expected.

Now, to work.

[Dandead10]

Odayakama Senshi had most recently picked up the status report of all the people so far that have been logged within the charter. According to the report, no passengers on the ship had any bounty nor crimes committed against the world government. Odayakama Senshi was not impressed. It was so incredibly easy to get documents forged nowadays to hide unfavorable things. Odayakama Senshi never wanted it to look for the possible suspects, but to see who the victims had been. Senshi would use that information to see what they had in common, and deduce why they had been targeted.

Looking through the charter, Odayakama Senshi had found two pictures of men with their faces scratched out by a large X. These were the victims of the ship passengers, and immediately she had been able to deduce things just by looking at their pictures. Both the victims were male and according to the charter and had been within the mid fourties according to data. "So both of the targets were male, but that doesn't help me identify who the killer is. It wouldn't be safe to assume that the killer is female until further evidence is shown. Captain!"

A bewildered young man had ran over at the fall of the marine officer. He had a face of worry as he stuttered on his answer. "Y-Yes marine officer? How may I assist you?" I want all the men and women of the ship to be separated to the east and western side of the ship. My squads will keep constant watch on both groups. I have come up with a plan to drastically increase the chance of finding this killer." Senshi had thought of a simple gender segregation to test her hypothesis. If a man had been killed while both genders were separated, it would surely be a male killer therefore eliminating the chance of a female. If a female had been murdered, then surely the killer was a female also. It wasn't the most perfect strategy, but it surely would help reduce the number of suspects.

The captain of the ship had nodded and had grabbed a DenDen Mushi. Clicking the snail, a loud voice would ring across the ship. "All passengers please pay attention to the following instructions. All female passengers, please report to the western side of the ship. All males to the eastern side. This is all for the benefit of your safety. Thank you for your cooperation." Putting the snail back onto it's holder, the female marine had turned to leave. Now that this was done, Odayakama Senshi herself would take action. It was time to find a killer...

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

As Zen walked through the empty grey hallways cautiously, checking each room for a sign saying 'bridge', he heard a loudspeaker announcement stating that genders should seperate. Interesting strategy, he thought. But it would only work assuming there is another killing. Not the best way to go about it. 

Zen's musings came to an end as a crimson haired marine woman strode out of what he assumed was the bridge. This one looked higher ranked than the one he had met earlier, having a different uniform. This was going to be bad. 
'Good afternoon.' Zen half expected the woman to kill him then and there. 'Uhhh, I was sent by Seaman First Class Johnson. I've got the right to be here. Not leaving the woman any chance to kick him out, he quickly added his intent to help, and that it would make it easier to infiltrate the civilians if you had one to help.

Fidgeting awkwardly, he walked away. For some reason, the woman's turquoise eyes unsettled him, seeming like she could throw bullets into you at any time. Leaving down the plain, undecorated corridor, a door caught his eye. This particular door was padlocked and sealed with 'Do not enter' written in big bold font. Not one to test his luck, Zen didn't bother doing anything with the entrance apart from making a mental note it existed. To further increase his curiosity, deep rumbling was coming from the room.

Regaining his composure was a feat that took him all of his concentration, turning away from the door and striding down, his boots making a clack on the hard iron ground. Zen exited the mid deck, coming out into a blaze of sunlight, momentarily blinding him. Blinking repeatedly, the young man didn't notice the attack from behind.

Miraculously, before the strike hit the boy, he lumbered forward in an attempt to get out of the sun, before noticing the blade hurtling towards him once again. The sun prevented him from getting any sort of good look at his opposition, all that could be seen was a silhouette of a man. The stench of metal in the air was awfully clear to Zen, and as he raised his glove in defence, blocking the attacker from sight, he vanished. Gone with the wind, an apt phrase to put to his current situation, and still no closer to discovering who the killer was.

Zen couldn't get caught alone. Now he was a security risk to the man's plan, he would likely be the next target. He had been lucky to escape with his life. Next time it wouldn't be as easy...

[Dandead10]

As soon as she walked out, a man had called to her. "Good afternoon. Uhhh, I was sent by Seaman First Class Johnson. I've got the right to be here." Odayakama Senshi had looked the man up and down as her look grew less serious. Observing him, something seemed off. "So you have the intention of helping hmm? It makes me wonder if you could be the murderer. It would be a fitting excuse to not be put with the other men." The people of the fine cruise had been following instructions for the most part where two teams of tree marines would be standing guard over the passengers, beginning to investigate them. Something wasn't right here, and Odayakama Senshi would find out. Deciding that the man was suspicious, she would follow him to his next location.

It was suddenly then, that when following him...he was attacked. The attacker had swung a katana downwards for the boys head only for him to move forwards causing the blade to miss. The next attack that was launched was the last by the attacker as when he raised his glove to defend himself, the attacker vanished. Something was definately not right here. Just based off of the random event that had occured, she deduced the murderer was a Devil Fruit eater. She was wrong for having assumed the boy was a killer, but now she had to protect him from the mystery killer. Dashing forwards, she had made a clacking noise on the deck. Grabbing the man by the scruff of his shirt, she would comically carry the man with her. "Come with me. No time to explain.

Taking the man to the side of the ship, she would have then slammed his head into the side of the ship's wall. "Tell me who you are immediately. I need to know everything about you before more people's lives are put in danger!" She hadn't held back with her strength, and the man was surely startled by her actions as a marine officer. Odayakama Senshi needed to act fast as it had been shown that the killer could vanish within an instant. Odayakama Senshi would not have noticed the hooded figure slowly approaching behind her crouched with a katana in hand. If the man wouldn't act, the figure would have quickly acted to stab Odayakama Senshi in the back as red would pool around her uniform. Meanwhile, the civilians at the east and west side were growing restless. A revolt would happen eventually if nothing was done or said.

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

After the unfortunate attack, and the disappearance of what was now the only suspect in the case, Zen had been thrust aside roughly by the marine girl he had spoken to earlier. With steel in her voice and a glint Zen didn't like in her eyes, she was interrogating him.

'Hold up a sec lady!' he managed to put his hand up, panting. 'On second thought you might not wanna do that.' he pulled the marine down and to the right as a blade arced through the air menacingly, its steel frame thrust through the wall. The force and speed of the attack was almost too great to dodge, but Zen somehow dived to the ground. Right about now, he didn't care about the woman's life, just the preservation of his own sweet sweet one.

Oho, you again. I got a trick for masked baddies like you. he exclaimed with a half smirk on his face. Pulling a vial of sulfuric acid, he tossed it in a swooping motion through the air. The only problem with that was he had forgotten to unscrew the cap, and this particular vial didn't shatter very easily. 'Umm.. Got a gun? If so can you shoot that baby? A few moments later Zen realised the implications of that statement. 'Not like that! Gosh this woman must think he's a real weirdo. Well in any case, she was probably right.

Zen's glove purred softly. It was itching for combat, and the sabretooth devil fruit inside it agreed. 'If you insist buddy.' Then the glove grew orange fur, and out of its knuckles grew dirty great claws, and small fangs appeared on its palm, chewing the skin that was there. He was used to the constant gnawing of hybrid form, and it was almost comforting, having little teeth tickling his palm.

Charging at the man, who was struggling to pull his blade out of the wall, Zen executed a Ken Ha No Roar, in which his sabretooth let a intimidating growl out. Then he slashed wildly, but the man managed to dodge most of them, before Zen scored a hit, tearing an area of the man's shirt. Then the man tugged the blade out, and advanced on Zen, slashing downwards. Barely blocking the hit, Zen called to the marine. 'Little help please?'

[Dandead10]

A lot had happened in the brief span of a few moments. As Odayakama Senshi had been attempting to interrogate the man in front of her, he seemed to see something she hadn't. He had arched himself to the side while at the same time pulling down on her shirt to knock her down also. The assassin was still after them it seemed. "Oho, you again. I got a trick for baddies like you." Throwing a vial of questionable liquid torwards the man. It had simply clinged on the floor and clattered. "Umm.. Got a gun? If so can you shoot that baby?"

Senshi was a little peterved at that statement, but she had stood to full height planning on shooting the mysterious vial. The assailant had quickly done a high kick to send Senshi's flintlock out of her hand before dividing his or her attention to both of them. An odd purring noise had filled the air as the marine had looked to the man. Something odd was going on here, and Senshi wanted to know what. This assailant certainly wasn't easy to deal with, or at least until she saw her partner's gloves in front of her turn into a pair of large growling feline claws. Widening her eyes in surprise, she had realized that the man had a devil fruit inside of his gloves. It was definitely a Zoan type although she wondered for for a brief moment if it was a Ancient Zoan.

After the man's assault on the assailant and only being able to take off a piece of shirt did he ask for help. Odayakama Senshi couldn't just stand there and do nothing. "Nama Nama No:Lead Creation." A black liquid had formed in the woman's hands before becoming a long and sturdy pipe standing nearly twice Senshi's height. Using this weapon, she would quickly swing for the man's legs to knock their enemy off balance. She had succeeded, but the figure had leaned backwards into a handstand before flipping onto their feet. Throwing their sword in the air, a voice had called, "Soru." In a blinding speed, the man had appeared in front of the sabertooth man aiming to kick him in the throat. Then it would follow with a strong hook in the right cheek.

Odayakama Senshi by this time had rushed forward drawing her katana clashing blades with the enemy. They had been in a struggle as their blades locked. It was only when Senshi had spit into the assailant's face they were stunned. Senshi normally chews on lead bullets and she had simply spat it onto the opponent's face as it solidified. The enemy was now blinded seeing their eyes were covered. Her ally now had an opening to attack.

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

As Zen's attacker thrust a obscenely fast kick past him and into the young marine's pistol, sending it flying into the air like a frisbee, Zen whipped his head back, only to hear the words- 
'Nama Nama No Lead Creation.'
Some sort of grey, sliver metal flowed out of the red headed female's hands and solidified into a massive, blunt and brutal pipe. As this was happening the man charged, fast, and before the Rauner knew it, a foot was thrown into his throat. But he didn't have time to react as the marine rushed his assailant, blocking the punch that flew into a sturdy piece of metal instead of the flesh of his face.

The woman spit a sort of lead covering into the man's eyes, disrupting the clashing of swords they had, and sending the murderer reeling at the sudden literal bullet between the eyes he had received.

Zen saw his chance, and darting away from the figures, he picked the fallen vial up, and in a dramatic sweeping motion, smashed it over his opponent's head. 

Turning to his marine partner, Zen gave a wry grin. 'And that, as they say, is how it's done.' Not even bothering to check the man for injury, as Zen thought the glass and acid would be enough to keep any super fast murder maniac from moving for a while, Zen was suddenly brought down by a mixture of force and whiplash, the man croaking a 'Soru' before dashing speedily away.

Rubbing his head in a brusque fashion, the teen groaned. 'You can't be serious. He got away? Well, anyhow, you wanted to know who I was? Well, the name's Rauner. Zenith Rauner. Unknowingly imitating a certain famous spy, Zen smirked, a half smile that only barely surfaced. Nice to meet you.... His voice trailed off. His robes swished as he offered a hand, expecting an answer.

[Dandead10]

The teenage marine Petty Officer had seen her current partner grab his vial of mystery liquid and he had slammed it down whilst Senshi had been clashing blades. The man whom he had attacked yelled in pain as the powerful acid would burn him severely. As Zen was too busy planning on boasting, the marine officer had seen the man putting force in his legs. Quickly dashing for him, a blast of wind had blown both her and him onto the floor. That move was referred to as Soru. Why did that move sound familiar to her? Something definately wasn't right on this cruise, but at least now for sure it wouldn't be hard to find the criminal. They now had one big thing to look for when looking for a suspect.

The man had been injured in combat. Frankly, that shouldn't be hard to identify as all they had to do was look for a person with recent and visible wounds. The redheaded marine had quickly stood as she had looked to the man in front of her. Something didn't seem right about him still as there had to be some reason he had been chosen for attack. What did he and the other victims have in common? There had to be some sort of connection as the enemy seemed rather eager to finish him off. Apon the man introducing himself to her, she had decided to reply back.

"My name is Odayakama Senshi. It's a pleasure to meet you. It seems we are close to capturing this killer and delivering him to justice. Just a quick question...have I seen you before? You look awfully familiar for some reason." Senshi had never heard of the name, but she had seen his face somewhere before she was sure of it. Senshi would be broken from her thoughts as there were bigger matters to attend to. She had quickly shook her head from her thoughts as she looked to the male in front of her. "We need to isolate everyone and find this killer. He's rather strong. I don't have enough men for such an operation. Any ideas?" The redheaded marine would wait for her partner to possibly give a suggestion.

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

ZENITH RAUNER ____ TAG Cryo Through the Looking Glass WORDS 491 NOTES You likey?

'Senshi? F-familiar!'

It seemed word of Zen's antics on Ohara had gotten round quickly, and Zen realised he couldn't risk becoming too involved with the young female marine. Each passing moment was another chance she could recognise him, and so it was all the better that the Rauner solved this 'case', and soon. 

'Isolation is a good idea, though it needs to be more than a gender separation. Age, height and even occupation. I trust you have access to the files on this ship.'

Contemplating the current situation, Zen took stock of the information they had. Clenching his fist, he caught sight of the scrap of fabric in his hand. He'd been stupid. Although the man had been wearing an easily discardable cloak and cowl, the blood residue and injury the dark eyed teen had inflicted on the killer would easily be enough to detect him.

'We should split up.'

Explaining his earlier thoughts, he mentioned the need for files, but also the need to act fast. One of them should go to check for wounds on the men, and the other should cross examine the files. A technique that permitted intense speed had to have required training, and so any time spent in a place where they could learn such advanced techniques would have to be mentioned in the passenger files. 

Anyone allowed on a cruise had their background double checked, and Zen had evaded notice until now, presenting false files, which technically weren't false, just updated without his recent slew of crimes. So the image on his fake 'passport' was true, and thus he could be detected.

'I think you should check the men. I'll get the files. Besides, you have authority with the marines, and this operation can be done a lot quicker if they're helping rather than hindering.'

Walking down the clean, polished hallways and into a door marked 'bridge', Zen has his fingers crossed, hoping Senshi's influence would be enough to guarantee his access to the files. In the simple wood room, more of an office than a bridge, lies a one way window directly across from the door, where a perfect image of the waters below is offered. Various naval measures are strewn around the slanted desk, where a portly man sits. As what Zenith assumes to be the captain adjusts his glasses, the boy cuts off whatever the captain was about to say with a curt-

'Captain? I need access to the passenger files, specifically the male ones. This is a matter of life and death, and I'm acting on behalf of Odayakama Senshi. If we don't act fast, many lives on this ship could be lost.'

'I don't intend to come off as rude, but we need adults who know what they're doing rather than stumbling children.'

Zen cursed under his breath. This man looked like he had no intention of letting him through.

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Dandead10]

The man seemed nervous that Senshi might have recognized him. She had looked him head to toe and had tried to identify where she had seen this man before. She hadn't guessed he had been a pirate, but she had assumed she had seen him somewhere else. Before she could analyze him further, he had suggested that Senshi should have her two squads separate the passengers of the ship into more groups? That sounded foolish to her as there would then be too many groups to manage and would cause people to easily slip through the line of sight. Separating the figures by gender would be enough. After all, they lacked too much data about the murderer anyways.

The killers height was unknown, the age was unknown, and also the occupation. The only thing they could assume was that the figure was in fact a male. The body structure and the raspy voice that was given was that of a man. As she had realized the killer had been injured, that would be all they needed to identify whom it was. What had really surprised the marine officer was when her young partner suggested that they split up. "Baka. That will just leave us more prone to being attacked agai-..." It seemed he was gone already. She had in fact went to the male gender segregation even though she knew that the killer wouldn't be so foolish as to return to that location.

As Zenith Rauner had been denied the files, it was with good reason. As far as the captain knew, he could have been lying through his teeth. Along the edge of a porthole, the injured figure would stand. It had been a man with tan skin and a muscled figure as half of his face was burned and bleeding lightly. His hair was a long blonde as he would take out a blow gun. Quickly inserting a poison dart from his small assassin garb, he would load it inside. That teenager back in there had hurt him rather badly, and he would make sure to kill him first. His green eyes had focused in on the pirate as he would shoot his dart. He missed.

The captain would be in shock as he would look down to his stomach. Looking to the young teenager in shock, the captain had gasped as his face turned pale. He had fallen backwards as quickly Zenith would be able to see the man wither and shrivel like a prune. The assassin had failed, and so therefore had quickly used Soru to dissapear from sight. Now the man could access the files without interruption although he might have to watch his back. The killer was clearly going after him. Senshi in the meantime had been trying to reassure the people of the ship that they would be safe from harm as long as she was around. The people were growing restless. They wanted the killer dealt with as they came to enjoy a luxurious cruise, not a internment and segregation. Barraged with questions, Senshi wasn't having the best of times at the moment.

[Cryo Through the Looking Glass]

ZENITH RAUNER ____ TAG Cryo Through the Looking Glass WORDS 491 NOTES You likey?

The killer had struck again, and it was shocking. The captain, who had just denied him the files, had been struck by a dart, his flesh turning a sickly grey and his body spastically twitching. Zen turned in the direction of the dart, catching a glimpse of a blond head flashing as he 'sorued' out of there. 

The Rauner considered his situation. If he took the files, he would no doubt be suspected for murder. He decided against it, running out the room frantically. He whipped round the door, dashing towards the faint figure of the assassin, who was quickly disappearing. Zen doubted the killer's Soru technique was something he could use over and over again, and he could feel the assassin's stamina waning, as he was already quite weak.

It was then he cornered him. Zen released his sabretooth and lifted a dagger, walking slowly towards the blond headed man, who's face was horribly scarred with acid. It looked like the vial had done its job better than expected, and as the killer backed into a wall, Zen motioned for the sabretooth to keep an eye on the man as the Rauner pulled out a Den Den Mushi. 

'Senshi! I've got him! Come quick, and bring reinforcements!' He yelled into they snail. He looked at the man glaringly. 'Hold on a second... Johnson?!'
'Yes, dumbass. But my real name is Matt. Don't you think it was strange how I just let you through? But, that stuff about me being First Class Seaman was true. I quit the marines. I was only there cause my stupid father made me.' He said wickedly. 'I learnt some good stuff off of him though. Like Soru.' Zen answered hatefully: 'Why the murders? I don't see what that has to do with the whole thing...'

'And that's because you don't have half a brain! I knew the marines would come here, because I was the one who reported it. I killed Johnson, and took his uniform. I was on the cruise illegally in the first place! All I want, is to kick his sorry ass. I heard he was operating in this region, so I bided my time... He didn't turn up though. Just that stupid lead wielding chick!'

'I suppose you'll get to see your father soon... But the only one getting their ass kicked is you!'

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY