A Chance at Redemption {Eyebite22}

[Armani]

The sound of Cuomo's footsteps echoed in the Marine base as he traveled towards the holding area. His lanky legs had him towering over many of the other marines, making it easy to see his destination in front of him. With grace, he managed to weave between many of the men and women who were his comrades in arm, though the occasional bump had him immediately stopping to apologize. If the sound of his tailor made shoes weren't enough, the two chains he carried around his waist clanked together as well, as the sway of his body caused them to bounce back and forth.

He had just come from his Superior's office with details regarding the two recent troublemakers that had brought a fair amount of chaos to the small island kingdom of Ilusia. For twenty minute (though it felt like hours), the young marine stood in front of the chief officer in charge of the base discussing the punishment required for the two men, Marcus Ansem, the seemingly accidental troublemaking inventor and Jon E. Lawless, the feral fighter who had assaulted about five different Marines, including Cuomo himself. The sentence for Lawless had been much more severe than that of Marcus, time spent in holding for up to eight years if he remained as wild as he seemed to be. The inventor's punishment however seemed pretty drastic for his situation however. He was to spend time in holding until he paid for the damages he had caused, even if it was unintentionally. It was on this topic that Cuomo seemed to spend most of his time on in the officer's office.

Even though the damages were pretty serious in the marketplace itself, Cuomo had heard of no actual civilians getting hurt from the incident and by the way the man was acting, he was also trending to believe that everything had been an accident at the beginning and not out of malicious intent. That didn't excuse his behavior and deliberately attacking Cuomo and other the other Marines, but it was all he could do for the guy to try and believe and make his officer believe that this man could be a decent member of society if certain measures were taken.

Fighting for the inventor over that fact that he didn't have much beri on him at all at the time of capture, it seemed like an impossible scenario for Marcus if he was to be forced into this payment. Instead, after much going back and forth, which was a surprise at first for not immediately being dismissed by his officer and forced to give this man his punishement, Cuomo was able to talk his way to, what he thought, was a much better solution.

Have Marcus Ansem work for his payment under Marine supervision.

The creak of the steel door that lead into the holding area made a loud groan as the officer in charge of guarding it allowed Cuomo to pass through. As the door banged shut, he was caught off guard for a split second at the resounding difference in noise volume that was in here as opposed to the hallways and common areas he had traveled through to get here.

His feet took him to the holding cell that kept the prisoner in.

"Good morning Marcus Ansem." Cuomo's eyes were soft and easy, much like how they were the day they had unceremoniously met, before the incident that is. There was no malice in his eyes from what had been done before. After all, the only real hit Marcus had gotten on him, was when his gadget had been malfunctioning, so it hadn’t hurt that much. So no harm, no foul. Your sentence has been decided, sir."

[eyebite22]

Marcus rose from his cot, looking towards the marine. He gripped a bedpost, using the metal bar to lift himself off the bed. He was still a bit sore from the fight, once again his lack of physical prowess leaving him on the receiving end of some pretty hefty injuries.

His gadgetry had been removed upon his capture and was probably sitting on a scrap pile somewhere for all he knew. His body felt weird without the gauntlets and backpack, he had adapted to the extra weight and now sometimes found himself leaning forward for no reason . . . . although he was concerned it was more a sign of head trauma than any muscle reflex that was causing it.

"That's good to hear, from your expression it sounds like good news. But is it good news for me or good news for you?" Marcus had had what seemed like an eternity to contemplate his fate on the ride here and while waiting for the marines return. He had decided to face his fate with a smile and a nod, go out with some dignity. A smirk pulled at his eyes as he addressed the marine. "If you are going to execute me can we please do it before the next meal time. Whatever that stuff is you guys gave has to be considered cruel and unusual punishment"

So whats the verdict buddy?

[Armani]

By the way Marcus was acting, it seemed that Cuomo might have put a little too much into final attack from the other day. As his eyes looked over the off beat inventor, it would have been difficult not to notice the extra effort it took for him to literally pull himself up as he used the cell's bar as leverage. Or maybe it was, in fact, the lack of machinery and its weight causing him to be off balanced. He could only hope that the latter was the case because if Marcus was that soft, then perhaps staying in a holding cell was the better option for the man.

His doubts were almost instantly casted away, however, as he watched the prisoner throw on a smirk and come back at him verbally, making sure to insult the food.

"I think that I would consider something to eat would most definitely be better than nothing…" The young marine retorted right away, though he would trend to agree with the insult to their military cuisine. "…Though it would seem that decent flavoring must be forced out in order to obtain a maximum nutritional value." He returned the comment back with his own analysis of the cooking as his own soft smile turned into a grin. It was a mutual feeling amongst most of the base's employees and current residents that the cooks seemed to refuse to put any type of seasoning into their food and merely pumped it full of proteins and vitamins. He had heard of certain bases out in the rest of the world, particularly the Grand Line, that actually had legitimate chefs as part of their core cook staff, and with as long as Cuomo had been stationed at this one, he envied such lucky men who served. Still, once you had began to learn how to stomach what was shoved in front of you, (as he said to Marcus) "something was definitely better than nothing".

It was at that time, that his own stomach grumbled fairly loudly in front of the inventor. The thoughts of crisp french fries entered his head. Hot and fresh from the fryer, they would then be slathered with steaming hot, chunky, chili and drizzled with thin strips of shredded cheese. Cuomo could only imagine the tantalizing taste that they held, waiting for his hand to reach in and retrieve that first fry.

He had to stop though. Those thoughts were better left to times were he might actually be able to indulge them. If he went too far into that fantasy, he might actually begin to drool in front of Marcus! It would be a travesty to show such a side, professionally and personally. Not only was that a distasteful show of the Marines, but he held his own appearance in high regard as well. Right now was the time to speak with the prisoner.

"Execute you, huh?" Cuomo managed to bring himself back to the conversation with a little bit of a chuckle. He could only assume that the man across from him was joking about it. "That would be a little on the extreme side of things wouldn't it?" His hand flippantly waved the idea of execution away. "Justice doesn't demand a life for just any crime. Such a thing would leave the world itself a barren place, wouldn't you think?"

It was pretty clear that Marcus had just been trying to keep his own humor and spirits up by the comment, so Cuomo left the topic of execution at that, sparing its thought for only a couple of lines. Though he joked around about it with Marcus, death was a very real worry for him. Not simply for himself, but in truth, Marcus didn't really want to see men die at all. Death meant no more chances. After death, no man could ever try to redeem himself ever again. Death was absolute punishment in the fact that it took away man's chance to become more. He didn't want to see that for anybody.

"No, Marcus Ansem, we don't plan to execute you and in fact, I plan on relieving you of our faulted vices, like the food." Marcus said with a very warm smile. The smile didn't last but more than a second though as his face became very serious on the switch of a dime. "Its not our intention to kill you, but where you and I are headed can quite possibly kill us both." His hand reached into the pocket of his uniform and withdrew a key. It slid perfectly into the lock of the cell and with a turn and a click, the door jutted out slightly showing that it was no longer restrained closed.

"You're sentence is to travel with myself as well as another unit of Marines to Winchester Island. Have you ever heard of it?"

[eyebite22]

Winchester Island? never heard of it. Should I have?. Marcus was starting to like this marine, he seemed to have a sense of humor he could understand, something Marcus often found in short supply. Marcus was willing to let bygones be bygones, if this marine was willing to let him out of here, delaying his long walk with a short drop then he was definitely going on his Christmas card list.

With a grin Marcus turned to the marine, the rumble of his stomach audible in the confines of the cell. "You know if you gave me back my gadgets I could make something a little more edible, I superheat a corn cob making a delicous snack, its even nicer with some melted butter and generous dash of salt. . . .I'm calling it popped corn, its gonna be huge." Marcus laughed out loud, the sound booming with the acousitcs of the cell. He couldn't seem to stop himself from joking, the contemplation of his death having been lifted in what he thought would be his final hour.

Marcus stood from the bed slowly so as not to seem threatening, rubbing his back and stretching his arms. "Will I be getting my gadgets back by the way? I'm more of a technician than a fighter technically and I don't know how much help I would be in a fight without them". Marcus performed a few mock punches while shuffling his feet around, his form was terrible, thrown off by a lack of gadgets adorning his body. He knew that he was no boxer, all his power came from his weapons. His mind was his greatest weapon, not his fists.

Marcus turned his face towards the marine and raised a quizzical eyebrow "Speaking of which are we going to need to fight at all . . . or is it my technical expertise that you need? what is it exactly that you need me to do on this . . . . what did you call it . . . Winchester Island?". Marcus well knew the name of the island, and while he was unaware of its importance he was sure getting as much information out of the marine as possible would be the surest route to getting out of there alive, either by enemy or marine hands . . .whether or not there was even a difference.

Your lucky that you decided to let me go, I was just about to make a break for it. I have my plan all layed out." Marcus gestured to the wall where a number of computations and diagrams were scratched into the wall with a spoon. He smiled at his genius before doing a double take, looking back at the wall. Picking up the spoon he scratched a notch onto the wall. "Oh . . . forgot to carry the one, that would have been . . . .. messy". Marcus stared at the wall, puzzled, while incredibly smart it was exactly this kind of thing that often caused his gadgets to fail. Improper calculation and calibration, rushed work, these were the hallmarks of his failure, his inability to truly show the world his genius.

With a sheepish grin he turned towards Cuomo "So you were saying I'm getting a get out of jail free card. Thats great. Lets get a move on now time to waste is there hahahaha."

Marcus gently pushed Cuomo's shoulder, urging him to leave the cell before he changed his mind. The egotistical declaration of escape could undermine his benefactors generosity. Once again his ego would be his downfall, the same ego that had made him stand and fight the marine rather than fleeing in the first place. It was time to get out of here and quick before the tides of fate turned on him.

[Armani]

Marcus' demeanor suddenly took a one hundred and eighty degree shift as the lock was opened. It was like the small taste of freedom that the Marines had allowed him from his cell instantly transformed into a surge of energy and cheer. It seemed like just seconds before he was seemingly aching from the attack Cuomo had given him a day ago and now he was happy to talk to the young Marine like he was an old friend. Then again, Marcus was a peddler of "defective" goods when he had met the man in the market. Maybe he was just trying to sell himself to the Marine.

The thought of popcorn wasn't quite as farfetched as Marcus had made it out to be. Heating up the kernels of corn to cause the inside to expand wasn't Vegapunk science and in honesty, Cuomo didn't know whether the man was trying to insult his intelligence with such a silly drawn out explanation for popcorn, if he was trying to make small talk or if just didn't know what else to say. With as hungry as the thought of Chili-cheese fries had made him, the young marine wasn't quite sure that the "superheated corncob snack with salt and butter" would hold him over, but even then, this wasn't the time for eating or even thinking of eating. There was a mission to be done and the boat for Winchester Island would be leaving soon. With or without the two of them.

Marcus continued to ramble on even going so far as to talk about his plan to escape. At the sound of that the marine could only give the man a small slightly scolding grin as he raised one eyebrow over the other. It seemed, however, that the inventor was more interested in finishing what he had started as he probably missed the expression and went back to scratching on the wall. If nothing else, this man had quite the enhanced self image of himself.

"Sir, I might advise you to stay away from vandalizing our walls if you want your freedom back sooner rather than later. Your sentence is mostly based on the amount of money in damages you caused in the market place. I would recommend you keep from making it a habit of defiling other property." Cuomo stated, interrupting the man's laugh. His voice and expression was stern and implied that the inventor might want to take a little caution in what he was saying out loud. "As far as the gadgetry you came in with, all of what you had on you will be provided once we have reached out destination on Winchester Island." He deliberately stayed away from replying to anything that Marcus might have said about escape. If he pretended not to hear it then it would be all the better for the man's hopeful freedom.

"I'll have to watch him closely…"

His footsteps echoed as he traveled around to the back of Marcus. Quickly and efficiently, a pair of handcuffs were removed from the pocket of the uniform and snapped around the wrists of the inventor as they were pulled behind his back carefully, yet forcefully. Their cold, metal claws clasped closely together, yet, the marine made sure to barely leave enough room so that his wrists weren't going to be hurt by them. Cuomo wanted to believe that Marcus could be a decent person, but the fact was that as of right now, the man was a criminal and judging by the tattoo that had been noted on his person, was quite possibly a pirate also. He couldn't take any chances.

"There is a constant state of war on Winchester Island, Marcus." Cuomo stated as he gave the man a slight nudge forward to let him know they were moving. "Pirates and outlaws have taken up residency on the western side of the island and have been there for quite some time. They are beginning to reach quite threatening numbers. We, the Marines, have a fort on the east of the island, "Fort Stanely", that looks over the only safe place for civilians on that island." Cuomo stopped in front of the solid door that was the only way in or out of the holding area. After a few seconds had passed, the door opened up to reveal the hallway in which he had come down just moments ago. Now standing behind Marcus, he then placed his hand on the inventor's shoulder and continued forward while guiding the man with the arm. "The powers there seem to be eternally conflicting, the outlaws and pirates always pushing the boundaries and trying to get as close to the city and fortress as possible. Are you with me so far, sir?"

[eyebite22]

OOC: sorry it took so long to reply, have not been on much over week and forgot to bookmark this thread so I never remembered about it til now

Constant state of war? and how exactly am I meant to help. trust me you don't want me on the front lines, you've seen what my stuff can do . . I might end up hurting your guys more than theirs.

Marcus was guided by Cuomo out into the hallway, the sudden light from outside intense and blinding to his eyes. While he had hardly been kept in a box for his stay they high windows and darkness within had made even this dawning light seem intense.

I'm more than willing to help you, after all your really saving my bacon here it's just I'm hoping you have a better plan than me riding valiantly into a wall of lead shot you know.

As Marcus stretched and his eyes got adjusted to the light he looked about himself. He was standing in a hallway, several other cells lay adjacent to his own, some were clearly filled with prisoners, their pleas for freedom and the curses sent his way testament to that fact. Other cells seemed empty but whether they were or their occupants were simply resigned to their fate was unknown to Marcus.

You know if you really want me to help I could probably build something great to get you guys in there . . . off the top of my head maybe . . a giant wooden horse, you guys could hide inside and spring out when they bring you inside. . . . actually forget that, it would never work. The pirates would probably just burn it in effigy. The element of surprise might be lost when you burst out of it on fire

I hope you don't plan on using me as a spy in there. I may be a pirate but I'm not exactly your typical pirate. I would stand out like a sore thumb, right before they broke mine if you get my drift.

Being led by Cuomo down the hallway Marcus waited for an answer, the lack of information infuriating to a deep thinker like himself. Marcus kept peering out of the corner of his eye, waiting for a response while taking in the rest of his surroundings

[Armani]

Marcus was definitely a rambler, if Cuomo had ever known one. Just in the few minutes of conversation he had with the man, he had already gone of on his own tangent more than a couple times. The ideas were "interesting" to say the least and the more they talked, the more it became clear to the Marine that this inventor was most definitely an outside of the box kind of thinker. Although he felt he should have at least suspected that from the series of misfit inventions he had been trying to peddle away the other day.

Despite all of his internal efforts, a gut feeling began to course its way through him, feeding the thought that, despite this man's abnormally odd way of thinking, he was going to end up relying on that very oddity during this mission. With as quickly as Marcus shifted from idea to idea and topic to topic, there was definitely an uneasy sentiment to go along with that thought.

"A wooden horse?" His lip would curl up just a little bit into a smile at the humor of the idea. "I don't suppose you could just as easily build it out of steel then could you, Sir? I would most definitely hate being toasted alive." He had treated such an idea as a joke in front of Marcus, yet there was some merit to the idea discreet infiltration behind the idea of the timber steed.

"Unfortunately, Marcus; I'm not yet at the level to where I am able to do anything on the frontlines aside from being a bullet depository." He managed out a sigh of disappointment at his own lack of strength. Cuomo wanted to be useful, but even more than that, he wanted to have enough strength to protect those out there from any threat that might attempt to hurt the ones who couldn't protect themselves That was one reason why he had volunteered for the mission. He wasn't strong enough yet. The thought beleaguered his mind, but he didn't allow it to break his small, but soft smile as they continued walking. "Fortunately for you, I and that unit I mentioned earlier; our goal is something much more specific than just a generic "running out to repel invaders".

The two of them passed through another series of doors and found themselves in the main entrance of the Marine branch. Cuomo led Marcus to a desk and stopped in front of a rather large man. Powerful broad shoulders and overly muscular forearms dominated the appearance of the marine officer, though his curled mustache, tanned skin and scars were easily noticeable. He wore a brown and yellow plaid suit underneath the typical officer coat that draped over his shoulders.

One hand suddenly dropped its hold on the inventor and instantly shot upwards in a salute. The man himself stood up revealing himself to be at least seven feet tall and casually returned it to the young marine making sure to scowl at Marcus on the way back down to his seat. Cuomo remained still, yet in the back of his mind, it was a surprise to find someone even taller than he was that wasn't classified as a giant.

"Cuomo Royale, Sir." Cuomo's voice deepened a little bit to match the hard, professional tone a lesser Marine would have to his superior. "I am prisoner, Marcus Ansem's escort for his transfer to the S.S. Trident; destination Winchester Island. As he spoke of his intentions, the hand that had raised the salute reached into his navy uniform and removed several sheets of paper. On them were Cuomo's official instructions for his mission also explaining the situation involving Marcus' terms of release. They were immediately transferred from his own hands to the officer's as he began to scan over them.

"Approved." His one word response was given still holding on to that same scowl he had given the pirate inventor. "You know where the dock is Marine."

With that, Cuomo gave a final salute, and walked through the doors that lead out of the base with Marcus in hand. If the pirate turned back to see the Marine officer one more time before he passed through the doors himself, he would see the scowl of intimidation switch almost on a dime into a malicious smile.

[eyebite22]

Steel instead of wood? Never thought of that. Then again they could set a fire underneath and cook you alive like a pressure cooker. Marcus continued to walk alongside Cuomo as they approached tha main hall.

Walking alongside Cuomo into the main hall he had been surprised to see such a huge marine, the mere thought of having to fight him almost made Marcus glad that he had decided against any escape attempt.

As the marine stood to receive the papers Marcus marveled at his size. The intimidation exuded from the marine silenced any witty remarks he may have made. Marcus could not but help notice that the disproportionate bulk of his arms and upper body were similar to his own when wearing his gear.

Glancing over his shoulder as he was led out he saw the malicious grin cross the marines face. What did that mean, was he laughing at their suicide mission, was he laughing at how he had ALMOST peed himself in his presence?

Marcus allowed Cuomo to lead him outside towards the docks. Marcus wondered how many other marines would be joining them, that would set the stage for the level of mission they would be undertaking. If Cuomo would not give him specifics he would have to deduce them himself. A small group would mean infiltration or stealth. A large group could be a strike against a target or even a defensive action. Marcus needed to wheedle some information out of Cuomo in a roundabout way.

"So what kind of boat are we going on? is it big because I sometimes get sea sick and you probably don't want to listen to me the whole way. How big is the crew going to be, you mentioned a team of marines before. Are you in charge or is there someone there higher up."

Marcus waited for a response, hoping to deduce as much he could from the vague answers he was accustomed to receiving. Forewarned was forearmed and the more information he had the better armed he was. . . . . maybe he could build himself a fore-arming machine? And with that thought his mind drifted to another crazy invention, his mind wandering as Cuomo led the way.

[Armani]

As the two walked, Cuomo couldn't help but be impressed by Marcus' thirst for knowledge. Of course with as little as the young marine had been able to give him thus far, would probably have anybody in the inventor's position asking for more.

The Ilusia Kingdom was a heavily forested island. As Cuomo, marine prisoner escort and his prisoner, the pirate inventor Marcus Ansem walked onward, the road they traveled through to the docks was a quickly becoming darker and darker. Being stationed at the base for a while now, the walk to the dockyard where the Marine's ships were was a usual one. The base itself had nearly been removed from sight as they progressed deeper and deeper. This was a safe Marine only road straight to the docks. The trees themselves threatened the duo with their growing ability to block out sunlight as Cuomo started talking again to answer some of Marcus' inquiries.

"I'm not sure of the amount of Marines involved with this mission, sir." It was true, Cuomo had been there for the briefing with other men and women around him. The amount of them definitely hadn't been a very intimidating number, but he had never bothered himself to find out just how many. "However, I know of at least two that are apart of it." He looked back at the inventor and gave him a soft, pleased smile at his own sense of humor. There was a pause in which Cuomo would give the man a chance to laugh at his own joke before he acted like he wanted to continue. His mouth moved to speak again, but as he inhaled to get ready to speak, his mouth closed and shut. "Hmmm…Marcus? I hope you won't take offense to this, but as you've already demonstrated the desire to escape from our custody, I'm afraid I can't divulge anymore information to you about our mission until a later time."

Cuomo grimaced as he spoke out against sharing anymore. It was true, Marcus had a plan already lined out in his cell that he had told Cuomo about. He hadn't understood all the chicken scratch on the wall and didn't bother to try as the two of them were on a tight schedule as it was. Nevertheless though, Marcus, probably like most prisoners had thought and acted on those thoughts to try and break out. He wanted to believe that the pirate was a good man and would honor the chance that he was given, but the truth was that Cuomo had seen enough not to trust the man fully yet. Such mistrust, hurt him to hold onto. "I'll be able to share more with you Marcus in a little bit." The grimace on his face would change into another smile as he looked back to the inventor again. "Don't worry, I don't intend to leave you in the dark."

His smile curled up the side of his face and turned into a smirk as he let go of such a poignant pun in the middle of the darkened Ilusia forest.

[eyebite22]

I can understand, I need to earn your trust, not just expect it, especially after our little throw down in the market.

Marcus kept looking around into the depths of the forest, the trees blocking out sunlight adding oppression to the air as they trudged onwards.

With his eyes widened slightly in panic Marcus began muttering under his breath to himself. "God I hope their aren't any bats around here, freaky little rats with wings, crawling on my back, in my hair, biting, gnawing, filthy little creatures."

Marcus knew deep down that he would be fine, it was day time, irregardless of how dark it was under the canopy of the tree's. There would be no bats, but then nobody ever said a phobia had to be rational.

Marcus turned his head to address Cuomo. His attempted humor at the consignment of marines on the mission finally getting past his panic and making him laugh involuntarily. "We'll this is one 'Marine' who would be more than happy to get out of this forest and on our way. Nothing like the open skies and the expanse of the sea after being locked up in that broom closet you call a cell to make you miss the little things. . . . .by the way, do you know if their are any bats around here . . . .just asking . . . no big deal"

I'd race you to the boat but some people might think I was trying to escape and, you know, shoot me. Kind of a downer wouldn't you say. Hey lets pass the time with a game, I spy with my little eye something beginning with T, and its definitely not Tree's . . . okay so it is. Maybe that wasn't the best idea for a game . . . are we there yet.

[Armani]

It seemed that Marcus' mind wouldn't let him stay on one topic. The man moved from trees to bats to races and back to bats within the span of a minute. But maybe that’s just the kind of person he was. Cuomo thought back to the scribbling on the cell wall that he'd done. He wasn't overly impressed by it considering almost all the other inmates that holding area had ever seen managed to pass the time by scratching their thoughts out. Cuomo would have to at least confess to himself that the inventor's writing didn't hold much to him simply because he had looked closely enough or long enough and even then, his brief glimpse at the chicken scratch seemed to less than comprehensible.

Maybe Marcus was a genius and his mind didn't allow for him to stay on a subject for very long because he had worked everything out in his head before the rest of the world could. Was that really the case though? To the marine, he seemed more scatterbrained than anything right now. Still, judging by his technology and gadgetry that he was the self proclaimed inventor of, there had to be something to his intellect that was there, even if most of what he had seen was a little wacky and unnecessary to have been created.

"I've never heard of any bats in the forest." His comment seemed distant as he focused on the path ahead, keeping his ears open for anything that might sound abnormal though he would still try to sooth any struggling fears Marcus seemed to try and tough out by talking. I was surprising to hear his voice was deadened by the amount of trees that seemed to enclose around them. This was an odd road and as Cuomo thought about the lack of sounds ability to travel well in these parts, if anything were to happen, a call for "help" would probably never be heard. To him, that was a less uncomfortable thought that whether or not bats lived in the forest. The light from the sun struggled to reach them and as they continued forward the only light available to them was that of marine set lamps that illuminated the pathway. To be honest the road was a little creepy, even if this hadn't been the first time he traveled it, but he was usually with a convoy of some sorts. "And we're almost there." He stated with a warm smile as he looked directly at his prisoner.

"Ilusia Island is a densely forested island. The man civilian docks as well as most of the town were cut out of the forest a long time ago. Because of the massive amount of trees on this small piece of land, the kingdom that is set up here has done very well for itself just by the timber export alone. And even after decades of chopping trees, the people here seem to have not even made a dent in this place… Anyway, I digress, sir. The dock will be coming up shortly. As soon as we begin to see the sun clearly again, we'll know that the dock is nothing more than a ten minute walk away."

Cuomo took a few steps forward in silence before speaking up again. "So why did you come to Ilusia Island, Marcus? I hope it wasn't just to burn down the market and raise chaos like any decent pirate would." Cuomo said the last part in jest, letting his sense of humor drip so much so that Marcus hopefully wouldn't take what he said the wrong way. Yes, the basic assumption about pirates on the seas was they lusted after raping, pillaging and plundering. However, Cuomo felt that he was able to joke about their nature he had known many men who labeled piracy as simply wanting to be free on the ocean. It didn't make piracy right, but the marine could at least respect those people for their decency.

[eyebite22]

Marcus continued to peer out at the forest's depths. Just because the marine said that he had not heard of bats in the forest did not mean there were none. Bats were sneaky like that. His thoughts were interupted when he caught the last part of the question from the marine.

"what. . . oh, why did I come to this Island. Well the last island we were on I made a good few sales but I decided to move on, needed to see more of the world. I'm naturally adventurous. The townsfolk there were very generous, they even paid my fare on a merchant vessel. Never knew people could be so nice."

Marcus turned to smile at the marine, the memory of those nice people helping him with all his luggage, giving him a big send off with balloons and party poppers. He remembered that when the boat pushed off he had waved to the crowd, promising them he would return one day. The sadness he saw in their expressions showed him the fact that he was leaving had sunk into their minds, the thoughts of him leaving finally dampening the party mood at the docks.

The ground seemed to become more regular, the road in better repair. Glancing ahead Marcus could see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, the tree's thinning enough to make out their destination.

"What about you Cuomo, what made you want to become a marine, Money, Power, Women . . . . you obviously didn't want any of these things if this is what you decided to do as a job eh" Marcus Guffawed at his own joke, until his breath was stolen from him by the sight ahead. They had reached the harbor, the open spaces and the boundless view of the sea ahead welcome after the claustrophobia of the forest's interior.

The Crystal clear water sparkled in the sunlight and the rambunctious noise of the hustle and bustle of the port made Marcus feel at home again, even if it was filled with more marines than he would normally feel comfortable with. There were a number of vessels docked, including a battleship and a merchant hauler, both of which Marcus doubted was their intended destination. There were however a number of smaller cutters resting in the waters.

Marcus turned to Cuomo, waiting for him to lead the way. Whichever vessel was waiting for them a sense of adventure and beginning had already settled over Marcus, the feeling of euphoria he often got when setting sail, or creating a new invention. This was a story waiting to be told.

[Armani]

The smell of salt water grew more and more potent as the light of the sun penetrated through the trees of the forest. Soon the torches that were there for traveler's guidance were no longer necessary and the marine and his prisoner were illuminated once more.

"Somehow, I can imagine their generosity wasn't for your best interest…[/color] His soft smile curled up at the thought of Marcus' natural given talent for unintentional and inadvertent destruction being the prime reason they paid for his ship fare. Of course, he could imagine them also forcing him upon whether he liked it or not. Still, this was only based off of his limited, but thorough experience with the inventor and even though he found amusement in the thought, it wasn’t fair to his prisoner's character to just automatically assume such discouraging traits about him.; especially when he saw what they did as a kindness to him. So Cuomo would bite his tongue on that one.

The two pressed forward to the encroaching ocean dock that was their ultimate destination on the island, but it wasn't very long before Marcus turned the marine's inquiry about his life back to him with a little quip at the end about money, power and women. At that moment, Cuomo could feel the pendent around his neck seemingly become heavier around his neck as he thought about his reasons to join the institution of the marines. His eyes wavered for a second as the past jumped to the forefront of his mind.

Before he could answer the question however, the two of them escaped he confines of the woods and emerged to find themselves in the lively marine port. The sun beamed down on them with all of its power now as Cuomo felt the difference in heat that blessed the area. The sounds of men grunting and singing their work away as they loaded and unloaded different ships filled the air and found themselves in harmony with waves that lapped against the posts that kept the dock above water. Seagulls joined their chorus as Cuomo found himself in near exact state of awe as Marcus. The last time Cuomo had been at this port was when he arrived here to be stationed at the base. And ever since then he had been landlocked on the island serving the people of the island to the best of his ability. He was now about to step back out onto the ocean for the first time in a couple years. It was a big step to go back out into the world, particularly when his destination was somewhere he hadn't been before. There was a nervous feeling to begin with, but as seconds passed, excitement started to swell within the young marine and his smile grew even bigger. There was barely any room to keep composure, though he somehow managed to do so.

"I apologize, sir." He turned and looked to the handcuffed Marcus, "I'll have to explain my reasoning at a later date. It seems we have arrived at our first destination."

Cuomo's eyes began searching for the Lady of Antiquity, their specific vessel they would use to travel to Winchester Island. As he carefully studies each ship, he-

"ROYALE! RIGHT ON TIME-CHA!"

A booming voice seemed to resonate through the dock as the name called out to the marine. His head whipped towards the source, but after a couple of turns around, there was no sight of anybody looking directly at him. That is, until he looked down. There, standing at least three feet shorter than himself was a midget in a captain's coat! He was a tiny little man with a curled, white mustache and short goatee and wild white hair.

"AYE! DOWN HERE SON!" He continued shouting out.

"Captain Dryers?" Cuomo questioned the short man's presence, but as shocked as he was, protocol suddenly kicked in as he was now facing a superior! "Sir!" He dropped his slight hold on Marcus and stood straight in salute to the miniature man. "Cuomo Royale, reporting for prisoner transfer to the Lady of Antiquity." With that he hand the papers to the little, old Captain to read over. He reached up and grabbed the papers from the oppositely tall marine subordinate. It only took him a second to look at them before he crumbled it up and threw the new ball of paper behind him and ff the docks. With a generous smile, he looked up and said, "WELL? WHAT-CHA WAITING FOR, SON? WE'RE WAINTING ON YOU!"

One final salute came from the young marine before returning the smile with one of his own. Cuomo had never met this captain before, but he could already see himself taking a liking to the man. Leading Marcus by the back towards and onto the ship, Cuomo was trailed only by the little man. Once he had boarded, the planks were lifted and their voyage towards Winchester Isle was assured.


Thread End!

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