Mission #16: Monsters [BlacKitten/Z0]

[BlacKitten]

Mission 16

★★★☆☆

A group of new recruits seem a little dissuaded and lazy, so an instructor has been tasked with getting them into gear through some harsh training and realistic drills. Will they have what it takes to motivate them? Or will actions speak louder?

From the clear cerulean sky, the scorching sunlight beamed down across the plains, grasslands, and tropical forests. The land was dry yet still rich with vegetation. An organic scent lingered through the gentle breeze.

According to the hearsay, The Land of Beasts was a dangerous island full of bloodthirsty monsters, yet despite those disheartening words, a group of outcasts were sent here to this wilderness as their superiors ordered. None of them wanted to be here on their own accord. The intended purpose of this trial was meant to train them, yet it felt more like an execution than anything else. Each and every one of them had their own past that shaped them to be who that are now, but now their paths have all converged onto a single point. They had all decided to join forces with the Revolutionary Army. From the very root of their lives, the World Government had always held the reins of power and control over the lands just as the pirates held the reins over the seven seas.

Two designated individuals were supposed to oversee their training. One of them was a pirate from the West Blue, and the remaining one appeared to be an innocent-looking little girl with long, straight dark hair and curious eyes with violet-colored pupils. No matter how one looked at her, she didn’t look strong in the slightest; her very presence looked to be out of place. Wearing a white sleeveless, spaghetti-strapped tank-top, tan-colored shorts, sneakers, and a safari hat, she looked like someone who’s on a vacation, completely unarmed with no belongings whatsoever. There was not a single scar, bruise, or marking of any kind on her smooth pale skin. She was either deceptively strong or was meant to play a completely different role than an overseer. If there was another supervisor other than the pirate, they certainly didn’t see one. Perhaps they lucked out. Assuming the little girl was irrelevant to their situation, all they had to worry about was figuring out what kind of a person the pirate was.

[Blushing z0ro]

Leonard was lying down on a rock staring at the azure blue sky. The sky looked off in the Calm Belt to him, when a rare cloud showed itself it moved just so slowly, not like clouds should move over the seas, wild and unpredictable. Nonetheless, this island was a lovely place to nap, the scent of nature prevailed, a mix of flowers and various vegetations as befit a near tropical island. Truly, this place would be perfect for a vacation resort, if not for the issue of the dangerous wild beasts that roam the island. What caused the local fauna to become giant, the young pirate had no idea,they had not come here to study the place but to train some recruits.



Leonard truly meant to repay his benefactors who had saved him from the brink of death, so helping to train some recruits was really not a big deal. The plan was pretty simple, send the men on an obstacle course through a beast infected jungle, and those that come out get to have a brawl with their instructors. Granted to most people that would sound more like a sadistic way to get people killed, but Leonard and his fellow instructors had been assured the men were capable to a certain extent. To what extent exactly though, was anybody’s guess.



Right around the time the training should be starting, Leonard got off his rock. Walking didn’t pain him anymore after a year of recovery and training, but his last battle had left its marks. Two scars now marked the “Young Lion’s” body; one on his face going from above his left eye to below his right, going right between both just above the bridge of his nose, and another like an exploding circle on the left of his lower abdomen. A certain doctor took great pleasure to remind Leo that it had been extremely difficult to keep his face mostly intact and that he should feel lucky to still be pretty enough, let alone alive.



Walking towards the girl whom Leonard knew was not his fellow instructor, he dusted his open black sleeveless zip-up hoodie and baggy black trousers. Maybe the lack of wind in the Calm belt was why things got more dusty around here? Or maybe it was just the young man’s imagination. Reaching the side of the dark haired little girl Leonard spoke quietly so as to not be overheard. “Should he not be getting here soon?”



While waiting for a reply, the pirate turned instructor took a cursory glance at the recruits. They certainly looked rag tag. Tall, short; men, women; human, others; young and old; the group really had everything. But were any of these really capable of going through a trap filled obstacle course in this hostile an environment? Maybe the Revolutionary Army was more vicious than Leonard first though, or perhaps there was more this whole situation. Either way, the two; or was it three, the “Young Lion” did not know what to think of the girl yet; newly made instructors would soon find out.

[BlacKitten]

When approached by the black haired pirate with a scar on his face, Rebecca could quickly gauge out that the young man stood a few inches taller than her older brother who’s currently in question. In comparison to the visible instructor, she barely reached up to the height of his shoulders, yet despite her delicate and fragile appearance, the girl didn’t seem intimidated in the slightest. For the time being, she felt completely safe.

“He-he-he-he...,” the youth giggled playfully at the question posed to her. “But, he’s already here,” she hinted to him as a gentle breeze blew against her long dark hair to the side. The little one bared a cheerful yet mischievous smirk, clearly knowing the answer, but she couldn’t help but be vague about it. “Don’t worry. It’s not me,” she joked before giggling once more. “But, he likes to keep a low profile and is really good at hiding.”

Her older brother had always been a mysterious figure to her and to the world. She wondered if he eavesdropping on their conversation right now, or perhaps, he was fast asleep. One thing was for sure; he was certainly very close by.

Upon gazing at the seven recruits who have arrived with them, she could distinguish them each one of them quite easily due to their diverse appearances. There was a voluptuous blonde female archer, a middle-aged man with a saber and shield, a blue-skinned fishman, a man from the longarm tribe, a woman from the longleg tribe, a brutish, muscular man with a war-hammer and axe, and a female sniper with an arsenal of long-ranged weapons.

By the distant and quiet demeanors that they all shared, none of them seemed to be acquainted with one another whatsoever. They were all foreigners to one another.

Rebecca gave a quizzical look at the pirate, “Do you think they’ll listen to you?” The lot of them didn’t seem like the most obedient types of folks.

[Blushing z0ro]

Already here? Leonard could not help but to a look around as the girl said that. Nothing stood out around them, only a faint breeze in the wind stirred the grass they were all standing on. “I… see.” That was all that could be said really, what a strange girl. Hopefully the actual instructor paired with the pirate would be somewhat less… odd.

When the little girl spoke again however, it was a much more confident Leonard that spoke up. “This lot? Easy.” With a cocksure smile, that some might possibly construct as arrogant, the “Young Lion” raised his voice towards the recruits. “All right you lot! Stop chatting like schoolgirls and get in a line!”

The odd grouped of men and women looked at each other with a mix of confusion and bewilderment. These men and women who joined the revolutionary army with likely lofty ideals, probably did not expect to have to take orders from an instructor they did not know, much less that of a pirate who was not part of their army.

However, the awkward looks quickly passed and the men and women got in something that could pass as an orderly line. Leonard LeClerc may not have been part of the revolutionary army and thus not their commanding officer but they had been ordered to listen to their instructors and the pirate captain had been designated as such; not only that but a strong and clear voice often carried more weight and authority than most titles; or at least Leonard as found as much to be true.

Leaning slightly towards the young girl at his side the “Young Lion” spoke quietly has to not be overheard. “If he’s already here it would be great if he showed up. I can get them in line but they might not be too keen on going into a dangerous obstacle course on the word of a pirate alone.”

That much, sadly, was also true. Even with clear orders most people would simply see Leonard as a pirate, not an instructor to be obeyed blindly. So while simple orders could be accepted, the idea of running head first in a monster infested jungle along a path filled with traps would require pushing from more than one person.

Certainly, Leonard felt confident he could push these recruits into doing what he wanted with either enough time or maybe a bit of “aggressive persuasion”, but he neither had the time or inclination for either right at that time. Getting people to trust you took time, and violence.. Well that was supposed to be the cherry on top of the dessert that was this training session. Hopefully this other instructor would show up soon.

[BlacKitten]

Rebecca blinked upon hearing the pirate’s request of summoning her older brother. “Hmm...,” she hummed to herself on whether or not that was a good idea; her hesitance questioned on whether or not he would be suited for such a task. If it was just a matter of status from a full-fledged member of the Revolutionary Army, he would certainly be the only option there is.

“Well..., okay then,” the little one turned her head around with her eyes shifted to the side. “Are you awake?” She asked as if there was an invisible being standing right behind her.

“Unfortunately...,” a male voice sounded out from behind. Mysteriously, a small shadow slipped out from underneath the girl’s hair, immediately taking on a humanoid form on a half-kneel. For quite a while now, he had been hitching a ride, hanging upside down on the back of her collar where her long silky hair curtained him from the daylight.

Raising his hooded head, the lithe individual raised his head before standing upright. He wore a set of light steel-plated armor, dark pale violet in shade. The main piece covered his torso and shoulders, extending down to his outer thighs and groin. A low-hanging hood shadowed his face in darkness. Separate guards of the same color and material protected his forearms and shins. A dark-cyan undershirt and underpants covered the unguarded potions.

The seven recruits immediately had their eyes glued onto the figure with the cryptic appearance. They were all more or less taken off guard by this revelation. While they were already told of there being two chaperones, none of them had seen him before.

With a sweeping glance, the hooded revolutionary scrutinized the members amongst them, including the pirate. His hands were kept in his side pockets which gave off a reserved body language.

“Who the hell is he?” The fishman was the first to ask, revealing his set of white triangular teeth.

There was someone strange about this anonymous man. With that uncanny stillness and upright posture, it was like gazing at a void.

“A select few members of the Revolutionary Army refer to me as ‘Midnight’,” he responded in a calm tone.

Among the seven, it was the longarm who enlarged his eyes in recognition of that name. “Is he ...?”

However, the mystic, composed image was immediately shattered as the little girl lunged forth and tackle hugged him from the side.

“Eh!?” Midnight learned uncomfortably to the side the moment a pair of arms wrapped around him. “W-What are you doing!?” He pressed a palm against her shoulder in an attempt to shove her off.

“Your weakness is hugs, isn’t it?” She purred as she latched onto him tautly.

“Nonsense!” He denied while desperately trying to detatch the cutesy girl off him.

The droplet of sweat flowed down the back of the longarm’s neck, “Maybe not...”

[Blushing z0ro]

Leonard’s eyes opened wide in shock. Did this guy just… come out of her hair? It took the “Young Lion” a a few seconds to gather himself, he expected an outlandish entrance but certainly not small shape cropping out from a child’s hair and growing into a full sized human. Looking intently at the figure in purple Leonard whispered to himself. “Zoan…” That much was a given, he did not get a good look at the form this “Midnight” had in the girl’s hair but it was not humanoid, probably a small bird or mammal.

Trying to gage the quality of his fellow instructor Leonard looked the man up and down as one might look at an enemy trying to assert its strength, but all of that was abruptly stopped as the young girl tackled the purple figure and hugged him. Any sense of composure, coolness or even authority this Midnight might have held up to that point just shattered into a million pieces, as the girl grabbed on ever tighter whilst calling hugs the man in purple’s “weakness”.

Turning his attention back to the sveen recruits, Leonard was not surprised to see that they were all looking at “Midnight” much like Leonard had done moments before; with a look in their eyes just saying “Are we going to be alright?”.

Clearing his throat the “Young Lion” spoke up to bring the attention of the revolutionaries in training back to himself and away from the scene of familial love going on besides himself. “Right, your training will consist of an obstacle course through the jungle, starting on that path over there.” He said, pointing a finger of his right hand towards the aforementioned path. “Once you get through that we’ll be waiting on the other hand for the second part of the training.”


A moment of silence followed before the fishman recruit spoke up. “What’s the second part then?” Ah, the expected fatidic question; a wide smile appeared on Leonard’s face. “That my friends is a secret! If you want to find out, get to the end of the path.” The self satisfaction in the “Young Lion’s” smile could not quite be hidden but it was mostly overshadowed by the tone of challenge in his voice, and sure enough the recruits picked up on it. The fishman was the first to turn around and walk towards the path, the rest soon followed.

As all the recruits began to vanish from sight and into the jungle Leonard turned back towards his fellow instructor and the little girl. It was to find out what the hell THAT was about.

[BlacKitten]

“Let go of me, dammit!” The struggle persisted as he pushed against his sister’s smothering force. The girl had always been a clingy one. For most of his life, he had always thought to be an only child, but all of that had changed he came to discover her existence three years ago. He learned that he had a little sister who’s five years younger than him. As far as family ties go, they were the only survivors; they only had each other. The resultant of their past led to her attachment – perhaps out of fear of losing him. There wasn’t a single day where she didn’t appreciate him. Behind that sweet, warm smile, there was a quiet plead that says ‘don’t leave me’.

After the trainees were sent off to their designated path, he mustered the slightest bit of courage to return the girl’s gesture with a pat on her head. She stood onto her toes to press her head into his palm only to gradually loosen her grip and lean against him.

“Eh!?” He soon found himself supporting her weight altogether. Her eyes were closed shut, and her nose gently breathed in and out. She had a peaceful look on her face as the girl suddenly decided to take a nap.

Don’t just sleep on me!

The most frustrating part of being with her was the damage to his meticulously constructed self-image. Rebecca could read him well and knew how to break his composure and concentration. She knew that he hated being seen vulnerable, especially in the view of many others. To him, affection and love were kinds of weaknesses.

...

“Tsk..., what’s up with that guy. What kind of a name is Midnight?” The blue-skinned fishman scoffed from what the second instructor turned out to be.

“A codename, I bet.” The riflewoman answered in a serious, dignified tone.

“The name ‘Midnight’ has been popping up in the pirate world recently. I find this hard to believe, but supposedly there’s a zoan devil fruit user who took down dozens of pirate crews all by himself. Several notorious pirate captains with bounties nearing a hundred million were completely wiped out by one man.” The man from the longarm tribe informed.

“Hah!? Don’t be ridiculous!” The fishman laughed. “Those are all rumors trying to scare pirates. Someone that strong wouldn’t be wasting his time with us. I bet he’s not even strong. He couldn’t even handle that little girl.”

Rustling from the woods signaled the lot to halt. Something was coming. Out from the trees, a behemoth lumbered out with heavy steps. A gorilla with dark-red fur appeared, standing over ten feet tall. Fueled with wrath, the ape pounded its chest while howling in a low tone. Red eyes of rage stared at the lot of them with hostile intent.