Just Deserts: Part 1

[Phantasma]

"I don't know about that Pluto," Fixating on the sky and briefly looking up Kite let out a sharp breath of air, flicking his gaze back onto the dark haired instructor.

    The world was quiet here, no wind and no people. It was the silence that unnerved a man known for the quiet he lacked, mockingly named a Knight, a silent one. Maybe it was detectable Kite was on guard, hands inching towards his blades but stopping just short at the pockets as well as the tiny hairs standing up around the back of his neck.

    "Looked more like reflex when she defeated Gaunt. Perhaps it was best then to give that restraint, not that I don't trust Miu. Seems more like that Special Power of hers passed on more than just skills... something like the Nature of that form," Musing out loud and looking at either Miu or Pluto to see if what he spoke of was just coincidence or fact curious about what more he could learn from the conversation.

    It was one thing to be immune to poisons, to have the tendency of a wild animal when enraged or cornered was valuable information. Rather than consider it a weakness it was Kite's aim to work with it for his and her benefit being able to weave together their fighting styles. Such magnetism was questionable as to whether it was from a practical or more interpersonal point and there was hardly any time for Kite to question why he wanted these answers. It was just like talking about the weather or suddenly blurting about how your day went. Idle chit-chat that stemmed from some greater font.

        Content with silence or an answer the north blue man listened keenly when Pluto diverted the conversation to concern Miu. Unlike the previous bit this involved her goal, this mysterious figure, and having only been aware of bits and odd ends it was the perfect opportunity to learn more about the girls past and her motivations. Begrudgingly agreeing with the haystick sentiment with a quick jolt of a nod, shelving the small amount of back talk that might've been warranted considering what progress had been made chasing rumors.

    'Anyone kind chase rumors, it didn't take a particular set of skills. It was a moot point to invest hope in empty stories. But it was a start and ultimately one is still more than zero. There was still yet hope,' Kite additionally nodded mentally to himself while splitting attention between the current conversation and the oddly empty streets of Nanohana.

    "Yes. I am," Agreeing with Miu fully he continued his little explanation.

   

    "On good faith. You seem to know a lot about this criminal underworld, if it were really as dangerous as you lead on we wouldn't even be getting the exposition would we? I'm not going to snoop since Miu is the one after information... but I will be there to help her in the event she runs into trouble. It's what I decided on coming out here, to help her. I can't really go back on my words just because it might get scary," Flashing a small smirk the hunter made his stance known.

    Noticing their sudden arrival he quickly amended his previous monologue with a hasty retreat wishing to get things underway as soon as he could.

    "Excuse me," Kite bowed his head a bit towards the group as he went off ahead to inspect the crash site leaving them behind a few paces.

    Intent on listening he did his best to walk around the rubble and look into the shop while keeping at least one ear or one eye on the rest of the group. He was able to go into the store partially and discover not only an absence of a giant bug but a horrifyingly impacted storefront. Glass everywhere, books scattered from shelves and navigator tools strewn about the floor in gears and scattered cogs or telescopic arms and ruined poses. Suddenly deciding that scene was far more interesting the children detached from the orbit they had around the cat (who they took turns attempting to hold or pet) and ran off towards the store shouting and making far more noise than both Miu and Pluto's speeches combined.

    Satisfied with his investigation, turning over a few bits of the ruined merchandise, Kite exited the wound produced by what he assumed was Gaunt's doing and rejoined the group. Turning his head to the side and waving the kids over, eyes adopting a lazy sort of scowl as he was reminded why he detested children.

    They made messes messier.

    "You're going to get cut if you play in there like that. Between me and Pluto we're probably going to sew fingers on backwards if you lose them," Producing a very ridiculous threat it had an equally lukewarm result, the kids looking to each other and giggling a bit.

    "Looks like gaunt escaped~" The eldest chimed.

    "He's going to come back for us for sure then!" The youngest proclaimed.

    "We totally believe in him!" Popping up between either child and roping an arm around their shoulders the trio came into a close hug and laughed out their joy.

    Having no need for solid evidence they had decided their savior and his friends were fine and were going to find them. Judging from how calmed they were compared to before it was likely they had been here at the time hidden away in some shop while the fight went on, judging from how they didn't run from Miu it was unlikely they were in the exploded shop or anywhere with a decent view. Such musings and many more crossed Kite's brain as he considered what next to say taking a step forward.

    He'd soon adopt a defensive posture the minute shouting rang out overhead. First from the direction ahead of the Spice Bean and then behind, voices and footsteps echoed everywhere. Holding his ground the hunter turned around and jerked his head in response to the noise lacking a tuned ear and seeming to be at a loss for where they were coming from. His eyes however were quick on the upkeep and spotted the Marine insignia upon the coats of the World Government's grunt corps. A nondescript bunch they came up from the front, all that racket had made it seem like there were more but for the moment only a small contingency of basic navy soldiers were here.

    Adopting a relaxed gesture it wasn't too difficult for Kite to move in front of Pluto and bring in the kids towards him. Not daring to look over his shoulder he trusted the other male to take initiative and either stay where he was or to disappear while Kite dealt with the new guys.

    "Greetings Marines, is everything alright? You seem out of breath," Kite exchanged a few glances at the now thoroughly breathless government types all seven of them having ran likely some distance before arriving before him.

    "Excuse me Sir! But did you happen to see some kind of fire cat monster? We believe a notorious criminal may be within the city! Witnesses reported details matching what we had on file-- so we came as fast as we could!" Shrouded by his cap the marine talking to Kite hardly stood out, most of his fellow squad mates possessed a similar problem however that quickly changed the moment one of them laid eyes on the kids who had gone oddly quiet and seemed to be looking away and trying to hide behind Kite.

    "Sir... are those your kids?" The left most marine crept forward, gesturing towards all three children who had now stacked themselves in a line behind Kite with the front most gripping his pant leg and shaking with his red hair all in a tizzy.

    There was some sort of electrical tension in the air, some of the marines seemed to look at each other and mutter something Kite couldn't make out.

    "I," Kite started, thinking of an elaborate rouse on the spot sensing the tension in the situation but ultimately being cut off when the Kids made a run for it and ducked into the broken store at a speed that even got Kite to be taken aback by.

    "Marines! Move out! Those kids were among the list of lost goods reported by Duke Fuldoon!" Apparently a conflict of interest the questioning concerning what was Miu immediately ceased and the majority of the soldiers made to give chase through the ruined store and beyond.

    "Sir, if you have any details concerning the notorious beast known as Copycat Miu please do not hesitate to either apprehend her yourself or notify us. Almost feel a little better having a real pro with us-- Oops I gotta go! Later Knight Sir!" The last marine yelped out as he ran at a full sprint towards the direction his friends went.

    It suddenly made a lot more sense why the whole place was empty. People were likely instructed to go into their homes in response to the rumors of a dangerous monster lurking about, suddenly possessing a piqued interest in the kids and to a lesser extent what Miu did Kite waited a full second or two before running off after the kids.

    "I have a really bad feeling they're going to say something Teacher and Chica! We have to get to those kids!" He tried to use ambiguous language before giving chase and running through the store as well, heading out through the back door and down whatever alley's he could find the most foot prints on checking over his shoulder periodically for his friends.

    Kite did, logically, have a point. Those kids might give up details on Pluto and Miu, and if that happened the entire operation here would be under heavy limitation and at risk of being ended early. Miu was subject for government scorn and Pluto seemed to want to avoid detection or at the least appeared to want to have nothing to do with appearing on their radar so it would be an issue for him as well.

    There were personal motivations on his part too. Like what the CP agent threatened...

    Combined with the fact a part of Kite was a softie, a real puppy dog type that didn't want to think about children being captured and detained by the Marines if they hadn't done anything wrong. Something about them being called 'goods' didn't sit right with the man.

[BlacKitten]

Miu - 24

Miu twitched her ears but not towards any particular sound. Rather, the lack of any noise from the boy’s footsteps. Even with a cat’s level of hearing, she could barely make out any subtleties from his feet. It crept her out as if she was riding on the shoulder of a tangible ghost. Quick as the wind, she let a breeze oppressed over her head as the world began to plummet. But it wasn’t that everything was falling, she was rising until a sudden halt where her eyes scanned about, realizing they were standing on the ceiling where people lingered down below like little ants. Glorious manmade structures spanned out across distances beyond what she would normally see on ground level.

In just a single jump, her master had scaled up this multistory building and reached the peak. His feet landed softly as if he had padded paws like herself. His masterful ability to erase the sound emanating from his own body was creepy.

At the angle they were at, they could see neither Kite nor the kids which conversely meant that they -along with the marines- could not see them. But both their level of hearing was enough to make out the conversation, learning nothing particular new as they were just another force trying to hunt down a very particular cat.

In chorus, both their eyes shifted their glance the back side of the building, taking note of three kids bolting away as if their lives depended on it. Neither of them quite understood what just happened, spending a few moments trying to digest what they were seeing. And before, they knew it, Kite began chasing after the children along with the marine soldiers tailing from behind.

“Ooo!” Miu wiggled her tail. “Are they playing tag!?” She swiveled her head towards the boy with a whimsical expression, “Wanna go after them? You’re pretty fast.” When it came to speed, she had yet to encounter anyone that topped her master.

---

Pluto - 10

“Those kids are more troublesome than I thought,” Pluto murmured before leaping dozens of meters across, landing softly onto the next neighboring rooftop. As he leapt from one to the next, he traveled parallel to the chase down below while having a better line of sight due to having a higher elevation. “Based on the what the marines had just said and the reaction of those kids, they’re runaways.”

“Duke Fuldoon, they said,” the white feline recalled as she clung tautly onto his shoulder, being carried along for the ride. “And they referred to the kids as ‘lost goods’. What a strange way to refer to someone. Are they slaves?” She contemplated on what those words meant. The only instance she could think of where one would refer to a human being as if they were property was slave owners.

“For the marines to be involved in chasing mere children, this Duke seems to have quite the status.”

It didn’t take long for the two of them to project the anticipated path of the children further down the line. Based on their trajectory, these kids were heading straight for the port.

“You think they’re planning to sail away on one of the ships?” Miu brainstormed what their intentions might be, having doubts that these rascals even knew how to navigate one of those vessels.

FLASH!

Suddenly, a figure appeared before them, standing on the edge of the same rooftop as them, clearly intending to block their path. A man in a suit with black and white lines, a fedora-like hat shadowing his eyes, and a metallic hand. His bloody-red lips smiled, contrasting his pale skin. “Forgive me, but I’ll have to stop you right there. I have some questions for you.”

Standing upright, the black-haired boy in the light-grey cloak held a neutral posture with an expressionless visage.

“Gah!” the white kitten pointed her paw at the strange man. “Your voice sounds exactly like the snail that was bullying me at the bar!”

Meanwhile…

Ara lifted her head curiously as she sensed three unfamiliar presences encroaching the ship. She could tell that they were not very imposing.

Rebecca began settling down the plates on the dining table until she realized that the older girl seemed distracted. “Something wrong?”

“We seem to have visitors,” she said.

The youth smiled brightly, “Is it Pluto?” She was eager to see her brother again.

“No,” she said with certainty.

Rebecca’s smile quickly vanished, replaced with a puzzled look.

[Phantasma]

    Little feet peddled across the ground with such ferocity dust was kicked into the air. While limbs were forced into a run, sharp intakes of breath fueled a slightly overworked tiny frame. Shaking, terrified, sweaty hands gripped similar pairs and laced fingers to fingers. Wide eyed and grim expressions plastered onto their faces the children dashed like their life depended on it. Nate looked furious, brows heavy and mouth drooping into a deep frown while his younger companions seemed far more worried looking over their shoulders as they cut corners. Each of them sharing a quivering unsure lip and tightly shut eyes as the red haired boy hauled them into the safety of a seemingly derelict building. First through the heart of the town and taking a serpentine route along the backs and cracks of midtowns towers and shops they had wormed their way nearest to the port and selected an aged storage building to hunker down in. Nate for his part was the one that bashed into the backdoor and managed to bow it in just enough to let the others in, not too long before the Marines and Kite were on the scene.

    It was a few meters until township turned to wooden planks and docks replaced lanes set aside for houses and storage. A retreating sun beat down on the group and eventually the silver scalped goody goody. At first there was a sense of confusion in the front of the force, it soon evolved into them checking the whole of the place and knocking on doors demanding for the ability to check for what they cited as 'Dangerous material'. It was hard enough to suppress the urge to eye role as it was to hide his surprise when Kite by sheer chance wandered closer to the dock and nearest to the storage shed when he spied the children through a window.

    His heart thumping away in his chest Kite whirled around to intercept a guard and leaned on the door blocking out the window. Being more of a passive observer in all this, assumed to be an aid to the contingency of greenhorns it wasn't a surprise he had one of the marines infront of him attempting to ask him questions and inquires. Putting on his best poker face the north blue-man cleared his throat.

    "Didn't have the opportunity to ask you Sir-- since they ran off like that (honestly we're bound to find them with the sea cornering them like this). How did you know those three? Fuldoon was very specific about how they had been on the run for a very long time and to accomplish that much... well... I'll just ask it-- did you help them escape?" The marine was practically choking up on those words, not used to such brazen accusations and clearly uncomfortable with the prospect of Kite abetting in escapees.

    "I had only just met them, was completely unaware of who they were and how they came to arrive in this land. To me they looked like children in trouble and I wasn't able to keep my nose out of business that wasn't mine," Only partially lying through his teeth Kite rolled his shoulders, eyes slowly flicking up to stare into the darkness of the region darkened by the marines cap where eyes lay.

    "Alright I-- hey what... No stop moving for a second," The marine suddenly took a very quiet tone, standing on his toes and peering past Kite.

    Nearly frozen and having to quickly hide his widened eyes and drawn back shocked line of a mouth, Kite coughed and banged his head on the window. Wincing and holding the back of his head as if to imply that it was an accident. Fighting the urge to alert the kids in a more obvious way he prayed they got the message.

    "Whu... Seriously? i could've sworn I saw some people. Are you okay though? That seemed like an awful cough. If it's an illness or something--" The marine started only to freeze when the window overlooking the ocean from the storage shed shattered and three little bodies made a B-line to a particularly average looking ship.

    "What?!" Kite exclaimed, turning on his heels at nearly lightspeed running around the corner and nearly getting toppled by the kids in the process.

    Feigning being hit by glass he stumbled back in front of a marine that was running forcing the guy to dash to the side and miss tackling one of the slower kids. Perhaps sensing that Kite was putting up an act they simply charged forward, not looking back and barreling onto the ships ladder throwing themselves against a door and forcing it open through sheer weight before slamming it shut and affixing whatever lock it had if any. Unaware of the occupants inside.

    "They boarded the ship! Marines!" The leader type of the group threw his right hand over his shoulder only to fling it forward and point towards the back of the galleon.

    Kite, trying to save face helped the marine he purposefully threw off course and patted him on the back as a meek apology. Nodded at each other they filed in towards the ship going down the length of the dock it was parked at and waited by the ladder as one by one the troupe went up the gangplank to wait by the door as the main marine knocked on the door. Waiting down below, as he wasn't a marine but still ultimately employed by the government, Kite could only watch in silent horror as he ran a thousand things through his head. Praying that if Ara or Rebecca were inside they'd hide the kids.

    To have this kind of cooperation from the government in pursuing the juveniles, to not wound them and want to capture them unharmed... Fuldoon was a powerful person. And if these kids were avoiding him, preferring to live with a bounty hunter as creepy as Gaunt it meant he was as equally a terrible man.

---

    "Who knew the beast herself could also change forms at will? Or had more than one ally willing to help her search for her savior," Smirking for an uncomfortably long amount of time and in such a way his pearly whites gleamed in the sun, he walked forward with a perilous sense of grace seeming to not mind the several meter drop to his back.

    Feigning as if he knew such information... It was Miu who had confirmed who she was. That voice, that attitude, it all lined up beyond mere coincidence.

    "So who are you man in black? Why are you here? What business do you have with those two?" Firing out the questions like bullets the creep continued his little walk atop the roof his shoes clicking away on the stone bricks composing the stage.

    "Could it be you're the person that convinced such a loyal soldier of the government to suddenly start considering treason?" Smile evolving into a hideous laugh that sounded like 'Bufufufu!', pitched to that of a hyena's cackle.

    "Either way I can't have you going down there and interrupting our little chase. He needs to despair," He concluded as much with a final giggle before going silent. 

[BlacKitten]

Pluto - 11

“Aw, what’s wrong smiley face? I thought gathering information was your specialty. For you to ask so many questions, you don’t seem to know much about me.” He mocked the agent without fear. It was nigh impossible for the World Government to know much about him even if they were to try and research every nook and cranny of past reports. After all, he was long gone from any records. He had no bounty attributed to him, and no crimes of his could be linked to him in his current state.

“Fine by me,” the raven-haired boy replied, closing his eyes. He sounded cooperative as he strode onward until he’s a step away from where the agent stand. But, when he opened his eyes again, the agent saw a pair of icy-cold piercing glare of mystic violet. “Make him despair all you want. But don’t go inconveniencing me in the process.”

“A man who associates himself with a criminal should know his place.”

“You got it backwards. I never associated myself with her. She associated herself with me.”

“That makes little difference to me.”

“Well what do you expect me to do? This cat can literally incinerate me on a whim. Isn’t it the marines’ responsibility to protect people like me from her? You’ve had plenty of opportunities to apprehend her, yet you simply let her roam freely. You accuse Kite of considering treason, but have you ever considered that maybe we simply do not wish to be incinerated? Isn’t it rather unreasonable to expect a bounty hunter, a volunteer profession, to do what the marines have not been doing so far?” He gestured with his hands towards the feline sitting on his shoulder. “If this is the reason you are accusing both me and Kite, go ahead and do something about it!”

Meanwhile…

Men in uniformed, armed with rifles and sabers, stormed onto the deck of the mundane, ordinary ship. Sleeveless white button-up shirts with blue ribbon-knotted ties, indigo jeans, brown boots, and a white cap with the word ‘JUSTICE’ written on the front in capital blue letters.

Having ascended from the hull, Ara was shocked to see the navy on board. Three kids, who she had never met before, hid behind her for protection, and Rebecca, stood even further back, alarmed at the situation.

The soldiers reciprocated a similar react when they caught sight of the older girl with long black hair and golden eyes. “Chitanda Ara of the Revolutionary Army! What are you doing here!?”

Ah… shoot… they recognize me…

A bead of sweat trickled down the back of her neck as Ara wielded her pole-armed weapon with a light-orange shaft and an axe-shaped blade perpendicular to the tip at the end, ready to engage in combat.

“Don’t move!” a voice sounded as the sound of a pistol was cocked.

With a turn of her head, the spear-wielding girl caught side of man with a pistol aimed at Rebecca’s head and a spare hand locking her wrists behind her back. “I didn’t expect to see you here, but lucky us. We get to kill four birds with one stone.” A member of the revolutionaries and the three ‘goods’ were all trapped with nowhere to escape.

---

Miu - 25

Miu mewed energetically as if wishing to confirm everything Pluto had just said was true. She, the blue-eyed white kitten, sat on her hind legs with her tail subtly wavering in the air. With a gaping smile and devious eyes, she proudly posed on the spot while listening to her master framing her in a destructive light. He made it seem as if she was the one who threatened him to do whatever she wanted – something she found to be an amusing thought experiment. Sure, she may steal food from his plate when he isn’t looking and try to tease him by shapeshifting into Ara, but she never threatened to burn anything.

Nonetheless, this creepy man was becoming an eyesore to her. His pale skin, his voice, his lips, his laughter, his tone, she hated them all. He looked more villainous than most pirates she had encountered; she found it rather ironic that someone who looked like that would be working on the self-proclaimed side of justice.

“Roar!” She childishly called out as a spark of blue light emitted from the inside of her gaping mouth with fangs seemingly caging it from four corners. It started out the size of a small marble before rapidly expanding until it seeped out of her small mouth and continued to grow.

“!” Pluto widened his eyes as he noticed her feline charging up an offensive assault before without warning.

Faiabōru!

A massive sphere of blue flames with the diameter of Pluto himself, was hurled straight towards the agent. Reflexively, the suited man leaped back to gain distance with one hand pressing on top of his hat to keep it in place. Against his expectations, the blue spherical ball of flames suddenly dissipated, dispersing into a small zone of blurry scorched air.

A faint!

It was at that moment he realized that the fiery assault was merely a distraction, a means to block his vision as the two of them vanished from his sight. His eyes scanned at neighboring rooftops and the roads below, but that boy in the grey cloak was gone from sight along with the cat. They couldn’t have gotten very far, but for the time being, they did a good job hiding – wherever they are.

[Phantasma]

    "You don't exist," An especially widened grin was afforded to this statement, ruby weed contorted into a hideously thinned line as exposed teeth were bared.

    "The government protects a blessed many. However to accomplish as much they have to exist within our world. We don't deal with ghosts," Clicking his tongue the agent made a show of reprimanding Pluto like a teacher explaining why an answer was incorrect. 

    "Give... and take... if you want our shield, you're going to have to pay a price. If that's risking life and limb to be an informant than so be it! What use is individuality in a society that demands its occupants submit to dreams of prosperity and safety! Freedom comes with a cost you damned idealist," Suddenly frowning and flexing that metal hand of his it was pretty obvious an attack was being prepared, metallic digits whirring with unseen mechanisms inside and humming to a slow stutter visibly jiggling around. 

    Caught off guard by the sudden conflagration the man leapt off the side of the building with his back to the wind, non metal hand securing his hat while the other aimed to dissipate the flames. Something moved out from his outstretched hand and contacted the flames forcing the wall of heat to stand tall and rapidly swell meeting the defiant invisible with plainly visible color. Continuing to frown the Agent had an epiphany and allowed momentum to carry him down to the road bellow only lowering his hands to brace himself upon impact.

    Recovering, rising, the thump resounding onto the streets below. Keen on locating his targets the eerie recruit underwent a burst of high speed movement to temporarily fade from sight, unlike Pluto and Miu doing so without a smoke screen. Known as Soru the movement boosting skills was achieved from a superhuman level of footwork that rewarded practitioners with a blurring dash that caught many off guard. Destination unknown the bogey man agent stalked the docks poised to strike out at whatever attempted to make way towards the ship while simultaneously checking over vantage points overlooking the scene. He worked fast and if Pluto wasn't mindful it would be easy for him to get spotted. The skill displayed with Soru was raw, but it meant that it might be likely whoever this World Government type was probably knew more than just how to run.

    Miu was strong... but could Pluto protect her if the man got within range to deploy Shigan? Rankyaku?

---

    "I-I see! Good work," Kite nodded at the reinforcements that seemed to come out of thin air, hiding his obvious discomfort and dread at knowing just what ship these guys were about to bear down in.

    At some point a new face had arrived on the scene, one that the bounty hunter had only just vaguely been made aware of. Slinking out of a nearby ship, one that was as equally as bland and aged as Pluto's vessel was a masked well dressed fellow with a fedora tilted atop messy spiked, jet black hair complete with the nub of a cigar sticking out of the eerily smiling white visage of the mask. Unlike the government soldiers he was complete with a black suit devoid of snags or wear and tear, wearing what was likely equally as dark designer pants, shoes a white tie and a white undershirt. A few white roses here and there pinned to a white belt and a white bow going across the darkened hat. The ensemble was completed with a rather heavy and intimidating rifle slung to the decidedly masculine form of the stranger, a scope and everything stuck onto the streamlined murder tool suggesting it was used for ranged combat.

    "Apparently Graves... the guy up there? He spotted some kind of revolutionary chick. She's enough of a big shot to get the CP guys here involved-- exciting isn't it?! Must be some ultra dangerous trouble maker if it got them involved!" A suddenly giddy recruit elbows Kite forcing the male to gulp and hurriedly shake his head in agreement.

    "The actual Cipher Pol?" Kite breathed, shoulders slumping as his brain hammered together a plan meanwhile his legs slowly carried him closer to the scene unbeknownst to him.

    "He's a recruit but I wouldn't get near there! Those are officers and--" The recruit started only to be silenced by the oncoming breech and order from those aboard the ship.

    Startled and charging up the gangplank in the same fashion as the higher ranking officials the greenhorn momentarily lost sight of Kite. Curiously, despite his odd appearance, through footwork and hiding in blind spots the winter haired youth was able to board the ship and see the moment the confrontation arose. Nearly stunned when they announced out Ara as a revolutionary but ultimately deciding to slip past the people below deck electing to stay up top side and draw his blades. Up until now he had managed to get close by pretending like he was on the governments side and the inexperienced marines had all but rolled over for him.

    He wasn't about to abandon Miu's friends.

    Granted Pluto might not have held the same sentiment, a point Kite was hardly thinking about or likely privy to.

    Below deck a sudden piercing whine of metal would likely robe the soldiers of the ability to aim straight and coordinate themselves lucidly. The newer seamen were forced to cover their ears and grunt in obvious discomfort as the high pitched screech of pure sound bled through the hull and groaned throughout the interior of the ship. The perpetrator of the attack prayed that Ara would've heard the moaning of the boards before hand and prepared herself to make a dash for it. Kneeling up on the sole of the ship Kite had dug his knives deep and launched out one of his more stronger attacks that focused on flooding the air with headache inducing sound which could easily pass through common material like that used on ships or even shallow metals. The science behind it all explained through exceptional swordsmanship.

    Regardless of cover, of openings, the rifleman shot. Indifferent of his comrades suffering and flinching, choosing to use the smaller revolver in close quarters having only just now snaked his way towards his target.

    She had taken up a weapon, that was reason enough to fire. Kite had given him his second reason to fire.

[BlacKitten]

Pluto - 12

Information gathering can work both ways. As he’s being scrutinized, he, too, can scrutinize them. They knew nothing about him, but he had a rough idea on the kinds of people he was dealing with here. Nothing new to him, he had clashed with fighters of the World Government plenty of times before. He had infiltrated their forces and even became a Seaman Recruit thanks to mole that allowed him inside. With his past being a blank canvas, anything can be painted on it. From there, he had become a temporary spy, eavesdropping on private meetings of higherups from a distance. He shrouded himself in the hierarchical structure as a low-ranking soldier. He hated the experience, forced to partake in rudimentary, mundane exercises. The promoted lieutenant Tsubaki Taighana was a kind-hearted superior, but being trained under her was a pain, especially when he had to pretend to have the physical capabilities of an ordinary foot-soldier. But he was lucky, having such a generous and naive supervisor granted him more freedom to snoop around.

A member of the Revolutionary Army spying on the marines by becoming one of them, he couldn’t think of a better way to get hated by the World Government should they ever find out about it. Over a course of time, he simply became a ‘fallen soldier’ along with the rest of the masses - a young, inexperienced soldier who lost his life just like many others.

Hidden in the shadows of an alleyway between two towering buildings, Pluto silently stood idly, patiently waiting for the agent to dash off, presumably in search for them. His shoulder-sitting cat remained just as quiet, triangular ears swiveling, capturing sounds to better construct the population density in her head. With the navy forced concentrated towards the shores, the civilians seemed to be wary, granting them space.

“How reckless of you to attack a World Government agent like that,” the boy commented with a nonchalant tone, seemingly unbothered by the feline’s earlier actions.

“Better me than you. I’m the evil kitty after all,” she purred. Her large cerulean eyes glanced over his face, trying to discern the mysteries that surrounded him. That man just called him a ‘ghost’. It seemed that no one really know who this boy is, yet it was strange how someone so strong would remain unknown to so many. Perhaps strength did not always give birth to fame; this certainly appeared true in his case.

“Hey Miu, since you’re far more likely to get into a fight with them than Kite, I better warn you about something,” he said cautiously, believing this was a good time to inform her. “There exists a martial art style known as Rokushiki, only a select few in the World Government wields this skill.”

The feline gaped her mouth in awe, excited to hear her master talk about martial arts, “Really? What kind of style is that?”

“Only someone whose body reached superhuman physique may even begin to use it properly, but those who do train in this style can pierce flesh with their fingers, harden their body like iron, move faster than what the normal human eye can see, hop on air itself, evade like drifting paper, and slice the air with their kicks.”

“EH!” Miu widened her eyes before suddenly flatting her ears with her forepaws, “Eek! What’s that sound!?” Her fur spiked up, standing on its end.

“It’s coming from the docks,” Pluto would faintly hear it. With those three kids storming on his ship, the marines had followed them boarding onto his ship, the same ship where Ara and Rebecca were currently on.

I have a bad feeling about this.

He remembered a time where Ara purposely hid from the marines out of the fear of being recognized. Despite her gentle, sweet appearance, she was a skilled spearman. Ordinary soldiers, armed with swords and rifles, would not a chance against her. However, if what Kite predicted was correct and Cipher Pol affiliates were present along with the fact that Rebecca needed protection, things may not go so smoothly.

BANG! A gunshot resounded.

“Miu,” he whispered. “We should split up. Here’s the plan…”

---

Miu - 26

With a swift swing of her metal shaft, Ara remained standing despite just being shot at. To the any onlookers, the gunman must have missed. But to the trained eye, it was clear that this girl deflected the bullet with her weapon.

A man with jet-black hair and a fedora stood before this tender-looking girl who has been identified as a member of the Revolutionary Army. Through the cigar in his grinning teeth, he barked, “Drop your weapon! Or this girl is dead.” He diverted his pistol back towards Rebecca’s temples where her wrists were immobilized behind her back by a single grip.

Rebecca!

Without a second thought, Ara tossed her weapon aside, causing the metal polearm to thump heavily onto the wooden planks. “Arrest her and secure the kids!” Graves ordered as the soldiers began to maneuver on command.

Pluto… You would sacrifice yourself to protect her. It’s my turn to do the same.

However, a sudden bright light lit up above them, drawing heads to look up in the sky to see a massive spherical ball of blue flames plummeting down like a comet. The vessel shook as the fireball crashed down and splashed into a wave of flames that set entire deck ablaze.

Screams filled the air as soldiers cried out in pain as parts of their bodies were lit up on fire. Many of them jumped off the rail and into the waters to quench the flames.

Thump! Graves landed on top of the wooden yard that ran perpendicular to the mast. Somehow, he appeared to have evaded the fiery blast altogether. As he casted his gaze down with a perturbed look, a new actor had arrived the scene, but it was quite what he expected.

Suddenly, there were two Rebecca on deck!

They wore the exact same clothes, exact height, facial features, and even the exact same shocked expression when they caught sight of one another.

“Eh!?” Ara widened her eyes, unsure what to make of this. For whatever reason, the flames did not seem to affect her whatsoever. Even the ship itself did not appear to suffer any damage from the flames. The only person who was capable of summoning that flamboyant assault was Koneko Miu, but she was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there were two identical girls with violet-hued irises, staring at one another as if they just saw a ghost. What was going on here? Did Pluto secretly have two identical twin sisters?

[Phantasma]

    'Maybe it was dumb, or possible completely useless in this situation to interfere,' Kite wordlessly thought as he swung his arms high over his head, blades pointed to the falling sun and darkening skyline.

    Glimmering with an unorthodox sheen, glimmers of fading daylight dancing on a micro serrated surface. Arms were forced downwards while hands tightly wrapped around their weapons the air swirling around the points and whistling out ever so quietly like hushed sighs. Metal splintered gently into the wood of the boat and an unseen force swam out of humming knives crawling through the hull like a scuttling insect with numerous legs. The effect was a groan at first and then a sound unlike any other, nails on a chalkboard mixed with broken glass and metal pots banging together. In a moment Kite was about to find out just who that attack had hit and in his heart of hearts he hoped to any god that happened to be listening it wasn't Ara, Rebecca or any of the three children.

    Grown men cupped their hands to their ears as they fell against the wooden floors and walls of the ship. Harsh words, curses and clattering weapons sung out below and all but confirmed to Kite the bulk of the force was targeted directly over the ensemble of marine enforcement and greenhorns. Graves flinched but never dared to lower his weapon only sparing perhaps a second to look out of the corner of his masks right eye. Men years his senior were crumpled on the ground or braced against the wall agonizing over the torture inflicted on their ears and admittedly it was even starting to get on his nerves. Instead he clenched his teeth around that single cigar tucked into his mouth, ignoring the signals of pain zipping and zagging around his head. This was nothing compared to his training, one had to endure all manner of torture to be even considered for CP9...

    Cocking the hammer of the flintlock back events played in slow motion. The steel arm lurched forward and impacted with the back of a small piece of flint sending a spark against gunpowder once the interior of the musket was exposed. This reaction culminated in countless metallic balls being rocketed forward as the fuel surrounding it violently burst outward. The smell of burning ozone, ignited charcoal and even a heavier stench closer to urine wafted out from the still smoking barrel.

    It was a special mixture, one that Graves had tirelessly worked to perfect. Just fast enough that ordinary people would be mercilessly hit and sufficiently injured. In this case it was to subdue so he aimed to fire at the smaller girls arm so as to force her weapon out of reach for fear of the pins hitting others. He was banking on her generosity with children, made a split second decision after observing the lot behind her to use them to his own advantage. No hesitation was offered, and he lowered his pistol to observe the events and possibly dash forward if by some miracle this didn't work.

    'You're not going to do whatever you just did again Revolutionary. No more sound, no more weapon... you're going to come with me!' He glared out of his mask, positive that if he said as much his voice would've been canceled out by the clarion tone played currently.

    She deflected it.

    'Really,' Graves grimaced, suddenly aware of just why this woman was so dangerous.

    Ara had not only deflected the first few balls but insured not a single one had landed near her. Somehow spinning that heavy weapon of hers at just the right velocity to bounce them off harmlessly. Naturally the agent was already on the move the moment the first of those bolts had missed, stowing away his slight awe and irritation aiming to go for the one target that wasn't worth a bounty or had a duke pinning for their safe return.

    Spitting out his cigar as he dashed to the side Graves blurred before Ara's eyes. No doubt she could track him, kicking his legs like that it caused an electric-like rumble to hiss out into the air. Jackhammering into new speeds he seized upon Rebecca once again manipulating the lack of mobility on the poor revolutionaries part. With children at her back he knew she wouldn't swing the polearm willy nilly, the only soundtrack to the whole capture was the clang of a weapon and cessation of the horrendous noise.

    "Now!" Graves barked over his previous orders, disorientated marines climbed to their feet and very blearily attended to their tasks.

    Given a few more seconds he would've had the girl in restraints and kept Rebecca close to him at gun point. His ability to charge headlong into fire regardless of risk and adapt, this was why he was paired with that man. One of them schemed, the other one acted.

    KABOOOOOOOOOOOM!

    BOOOOOOOOOSHHHHHHHWOOOOOOOSHHHH

    CRACKLE CRACKLE WOOOOOOSH!

---

    An eerie quiet loomed over the ship seconds before the impact. The more lucid of the marines were looking through the decks at a strange blue light. Some of their number had even rushed outside to see it all, a massive globe of intense heat heading straight for the drab looking sea vessel. Kite was fixated on the events below the deck but upon seeing the source for the incoming attack he had silently dashed from his fixed location and joined the marines number so as to not make suspicion rise. The cool on his face from sweat and breeze evaporated against the encroaching attack, for the few greenhorns on deck he grabbed them and made a run for the dock not daring to look over his shoulder and shuddering as the flames kissed the wooden frame and seeped into the vehicle.

    Shouts, pleads and bleats all at once rose out complete with men jumping overboard out of the seemingly undamaged ship. Splashes of water created a curtain of steam all along the line of the boat and flailing men all but drowned out whatever noise the sinister blue flames had been making as they feasted upon easy prey. Kite had made it a habit to once again play off his role as a helper to the men and when no one was looking had taken a hat and coat from the water to rest upon his shoulders. What water had been on them immediately dried thanks to the vicinity of the ghostly flames victims, Kite had charged towards the vehicle dodging jumpers from the deck and thanking the chaos to allow him this opening. Not even the advanced officers paid mind to one oddly dressed comrade leading the charge back to the ship, apparently no one had seen him do his little change or questioned the black pants extending beyond the coat. However it could also have to do with the fact Graves made it a point to drop the children into the waiting arms of the seniors forcing them to retreat from battle. Not a single marine was without wounds or children to watch.

    Helpless from the sidelines all eyes were on Graves as he suddenly was alone.

    Positioning himself a little bit closer to the mast, under Graves, Kite tilted up the hat and looked at the pair of Rebecca's. Those red eyes made it clear this new face was in fact a disguised bounty hunter. Stowing the gesture as soon as Graves disembarked from his high point, going rigid as the CP recruit suddenly appeared beside him with nothing more than a explosion of noise to hint at the movement. Adjusting his coat and throwing the pistol to the ground with a clatter he collected his rifle from his shoulder, looking sideways to the Marine over on his right.

    "You're either going to run or get caught up in this blast. Amount of enemies finally exceeds that of us, meaning I can finally attack," Wasting no time to ready his weapon, drawing back the firing pin and placing his right hand on the rifles trigger.

    It was a wicked tool that looked closer to modern day fully automatic weaponry. An AK, to be exact only instead of the magazine there was a sort of Erlenmeyer flask filled with yellow gas. Meanwhile the barrel was more of a nozzle, a cone that radiated outward to about two inches in diameter. Aimed perfectly at the two Rebecca's...

    "Ara, crawl out here now or these nonessentials are going to be cooked. I'm not in the mood for games," He spat.

    A sulfurous stench rose out forcing Kites nose to wrinkle as he slowly went for his weapons. It was like rotten eggs.

[BlacKitten]

Pluto - 13

“Sorry about that,” a voice abruptly interjected the silence of the dry, hot air that lingered over the rooftops.

“!” Alarmingly, the masked agent cocked his head around. That mysterious ghost he searched for ended up finding him instead. To be snuck up upon from behind, this adolescent boy wasn’t normal. The white feline that once sat on his shoulder was no longer present.

“That cat attacked without warning. I had no intention of fighting, so I left,” he said bluntly.

“You…,” he wore a wide creepy smile as a bead of sweat trickled down the back of his neck. Something felt off. Throughout his time in the Grand Line, most people would always give him a peculiar look as if they felt fear or intimidation. Yet, this young man stood before him without a trace of that on his face. Had he not approached him voluntarily, he may have thought that this ‘ghost’ was simply adept at hiding his emotions. But now, he was convinced that this enigma genuinely did not fear him despite knowing the kind of occupation he was in. Even an innocent civilian would not walk straight up to him; the vibe the agent gave off simply did not allow that.

But there was something else about this kid. His posture. There was a perfect vertical axis that ran down his centerline. His steps were so quiet. The vibe that he gave off truly did feel like that of a ghost. A sensation of void as if he wasn’t even there. The look in those violet irises was that of someone with a vast amount of experience. He wasn’t a marine. He wasn’t a pirate. He had no bounty on his head. He wasn’t a civilian. He didn’t have a crew – at least not much of one. He interacted with Miu, a criminal, and Kite, a bounty hunter – such polarizing actors gave him no indication of what possible role this boy belonged to. All that talk about the cat incinerating him was complete hogwash. Back when he delivered his message to Miu and Kite with a Den Den Mushi, that feline addressed someone as ‘master’, and for that same feline to be so comfortably riding on his shoulder, it was most likely this kid that the cat was referring to.

But Miu was clearly a prankster where most of her actions and words should be taken lightly. But, if there exists the possibility that there was truth to her words, then that would imply that there existed someone who ranked over a criminal with a bounty of sixty million beri.

Although he wore a plain, grey cloak that may conceal some weaponry, as the agent could tell, this boy appeared unarmed. His body wasn’t that of an overbearing brute. There was hardly anything about his physique or clothing that should wary him. Or should the lack of anything significant be the reason for him to be concerned?

“Hey, listen,” Pluto began to speak. “I’ve no idea what you’re planning, and I don’t really care. I don’t care if you’re with the World Government or not. But you, people, have invaded my ship and are bringing trouble to my friends. I’m not asking for your ‘shield’. I’m asking that you to leave us alone. But, if you folks mess with those I care about, no ‘shield’ is going to protect you.”

“Tsk, you-” the agent’s words were suddenly cut off by an iconic, repetitive, dull, monotonic sound, “Puru-Puru-Puru!” His smile suddenly turned into a slight frown as if irked to be interrupted right then and there. Taking out the snail from his pocket, he picked up the receiver.

“The ‘goods’ have been seized,” a serious voice informed the agent, one which Pluto did not recognize “And, we got ourselves quite the bonus. Chitanda Ara of the Revolutionary Army has been arrested. We’ve captured an associate of hers, a little girl, who will be interrogated. Koneko Miu tried to intervene but later escaped.”

“!” This came as a surprise for them both. One on side, Pluto tensed upon hearing those two captured by the navy, and one the other side, the agent had to factor in the presence of another affiliation: The Revolutionary Army. Although speculative, this made him consider the possibility that this boy belonged to that group of rebels, led by the world’s most wanted man. But given the diversity of this youth’s interactions, involving a random criminal with a hefty bounty, a bounty hunter, and now a revolutionary, it was all just a blur.

“Do you… intend to get in our way?” the agent asked in a stark tone.

“Well… you’re the one who started getting in my way. You could have just left us alone, but I guess neither of us are all that lucky today.”

“In that case…,” the grinning man snapped his finger with his non-metallic hand, signaling a shadowy figure to leap onto the rooftop of where the two stood.

---

Miu - 27

Among the two Rebecca, one of them put one a brave face as mystic blue flames rose form her hands, facing the sniper with the stinky weapon. A lust for carnage. White fangs bearing as excitement and caution intermingled within her.

“I-Is that you, Miu?” The real, genuine Rebecca said hesitantly. Her heart beating rapidly, scared for her life. Had her older brother been with her right now, she would have nothing to fear, but with him, everything seemed so dangerous. It was at this moment that the youth reminded herself just how much she depended on Pluto’s protection. Even if she learned some self-defense lessons from him, it was plain as day just how abnormal this man was. The way this masked agent moved belonged in the superhuman category.

Ara stood in between the five kids with her arms spread out to the side in a protective manner as if to shield them all with her very own body against the offender. “Miu, stand down,” she spoke in an uncharacteristically serious tone.

“Huh?” Miu, disguised as Rebecca, rose a brow in confusion. “You don’t think I can beat him?”

“This is my problem,” said Ara. “They know I’m from the Revolutionary Army. It’s me that they want. Don’t put yourself at further risk.”

Revolutionary Army? They exist?

The force that was said to directly oppose the World Government, she had heard of them but never met one in person before. Was her master also one himself? Was Rebecca one as well? The three of them were together long before she even met them.

“Don’t shoot. I’ll do as you say,” the girl with long, silky black hair in a white tube-top spoke firmly, keeping her arms outstretched to the side in a protective gesture.

To my understanding, Koneko Miu has been spotted today and defeated Gaunt, the bounty hunter. She is reported to wield the power of blue flames and possess the ability to transform into a giant cat monster. But clearly, there’s more to her powers than what we understand. It seems she can take on the appearance of others as well. A Mythical Zoan-Type Devil Fruit power, the rarest and most powerful type of them all. There’s no point in trying to provoke her. We can focus on capturing her after we finish our purge.

“Koneko Miu, I will spare you this once. Leave now unless you want to be arrested as well.”

Huh? He’s willing to just let me leave?

Was Ara and the three kids so important that they didn’t even care about her anymore?
Rebecca knew one thing that Miu did not. She understood that Ara had the power to sense the level of threat of others. For her to be on guard like this only further consolidated her belief that this sniper was dangerous. Ara might be able to defeat him one on one, but she along with the three kids were just a burden to her. If hostages were involved, it didn’t matter how skilled Ara was, she was uncertain how proficient in combat this older girl is without her weapon. She had always seen her wield that spear of hers.

“Miu,” the real Rebecca whispered. “Listen to what Ara says. You need to go find my brother.”

Come to think of it, where is master? He said to split up, but he hasn’t shown up yet. Why isn’t he here? I want to protect these two, but Rebecca and the kids might at hurt. If this man wanted to kill them, he would have done so already. He wants them alive. If I retreat, I can assume they would at least be kept alive.

Clenching her teeth, Miu suddenly transformed into a little tannish-brown feline with a whitish underbelly and greyish-brown eyes. “I… I don’t want to abandon you two!” She shouted with all her heart, letting her voice be heard throughout the dock. Large kitten eyes filled with watery tears as she quickly scurried away.

Rebecca… Ara… I promise… I will rescue you two!

Without shifting the trajectory of his rifle, Graves kept his aim locked at his prime target. Drenched soldiers had left the waters, slowly returning the scene, a few with metal handcuffs ready.

Click!

Ara was the first to be handcuffed, her wrists immobilized behind her back. Next was Rebecca. Then the two of them along with the ‘goods’ were escorted off the ship, surrounded by soldiers from all sides.

[Phantasma]

    "If it's a promise you're capable of keeping, even as a lie... alright then," Gaunt was ragged in the dingy little jail cell the marines currently had him held up in.

    Under the pretense of offering medical attention they swooped in like vultures not more than a few minutes after the gang retreated. Marines helped him to his feet, depowered him via seastone cuffs so as to force him into a more readily movable state. Several grunts and agonizing marathon latter Gaunt was tossed into an uptown jail which despite the time of day seemed to fester in shadows. Through the few rays tickling through overhead bars the scorpion human could've sworn he saw a rat or two. The stone was about as cold as his blood was on his barefeet, scarcely able to stand he resigned his head and clamped his mouth shut as much as his eyes were already secured.

    "This should help with the injuries... What a shame it has to be used here of all places. I should mention however, it's not free~. Won't cost you a cent but it will shave off a portion of your total lifespan. Bit of an even trade when you consider how powerful it can make a person bufufufufu," Snickering to himself at the prospect of a grown man on the verge of tears, a criminal no less, Leval was reminded why he loved his job so much.

    He could punish those who deserve it and feel none the worse about it.

    Shrouded in darkness that hand of his seemed to glow ever so slightly. The pill in his grasp was much like the dying embers of a flame, a deep dark rich blue which bathed the mechanical limb in a shimmer. Potentially a trick of the light, or a hallucination brought on by intense pain and worse injuries, small details like that evacuated the desperate mans mind.

    Recalling just how much those kids meant to him, how his heart yearned for them to lead a better quieter life when they came into money... it was motivation enough for him to lift his own right hand in response. Gripping the strange centimeter sized pill between his thumb and pointer finger taking it immediately to his mouth and swallowing.

    Heart pounding nearly out of his chest but not from the drug. Rearing his head back he let out a hiss of a grunt feeling muscles flex in ways he hardly thought possible. Leval was almost taken aback by how gruesome the drug was affecting the injured man and how easily those reinforced chains simply gave way, stretched, yawning and shattered in seconds.

---

    Fwoooomp

    Crack

    With a flutter of fabric and the crunch of roof beneath his heel, Gaunt stood between Leval and Pluto. Hair pulled down over his ordinarily piercing gaze billowing in the draft which suddenly picked up. Wasting absolutely no time he grimaced and threw a punch towards Pluto at speeds that partially blurred his limb sending out the frustrated thump of displaced air. Fingers clenched in a fist and possessing a strength that likely would've hospitalized Miu on impact he started his attack not caring to adjust his aim if the blow was dodged. Shifting into a scorpion over the course of the attack rush he intensified his assault aiming with the intent to kill with every single blow. Air hissing and being slammed out of the way thanks to a combination of blinding speed and suddenly armored limbs sailing through the fading daylight.

    The whole time it felt mechanical, with each hit missed or intercepted-- potentially taken head on, the fighter simply pushed forward. Giving the feel of a cornered animal the desperate assault only redoubled and tripled in energy sending crackling roars of force out into open air. It was like the air around them was itself part of this beast letting out pained snarls and threatening attack rallies.

    Leval had long since slunk away however, dropping off the side of the roof much when the fight began to rejoin his comrade to investigate just what they had caught. The expression on his face only getting wider and more genuinely amused when he glanced towards Pluto.  

    Haunting words still echoed fresh, perhaps.

    "We're much too small a force to take you on... Ghost. Oh yes, i'm well aware of how potentially dangerous you are. Kill or don't kill gaunt, I've got much more manageable fish to fry. Delightful how a plan will inevitable work out. Sublime bufufufu~"

---

    Clenching his teeth in the dark of his hats shade Kite could scarcely stand to be near this guy. Every muscle in his body was screaming to leap out like a hellbeast, to flay off that mask and rip the gun right out of his hands. Telling himself to wait for an opportunity he made sure to conceal his intent through subtle shifts of his hands towards his pockets and made as if to hurriedly scurry away like a good tail-tucked marine. Slowing his pace somewhat and tensing up as he expected the assault to soon begin as well as measuring up just how much force he'd need to give in order to mount a backflip right onto that... living blur. Scarcely able to comprehend how the masked deviant could move so swiftly he was banking on the possibility the ability needed to be activated and thus had a lag time if a surprise attack was mounted.

    Reading his poise and ignoring the concerned waving of the marines the silver haired swordfighter in-visioned just how harshly he was going to impact with Graves.

    Ara.

    Ara was what got Kite to immediately stop and stand there with a dumbfounded look on his face. Honestly taken aback from the lack of a fight and quickly composing himself he ran through just why something like this could've happened. The prognosis was grim, giving yourself up was usually because that was the easiest option. If any iota was true to that it would have had to mean despite whatever power gap existed in the presence of at least three trained fighters, or even four, Graves and his gun was still a higher threat. Wrinkling his nose as much at the thought as well as the horrid stench it dawned on the hunter just what he was smelling.

    Sulfurous fumes. Rotten eggs.

    Fuel.

    Explosives.

    Horrified that such a man from the government no less would carry what was likely some kind of fusion of a rifle and canon or even as exotic as the weapon that slaver lady used-- despicable. Absolutely the lowest of the low to use those weaker than himself as leverage!

    'That's what his words meant! He was going to cook them!' Trying not to grind his teeth Kite scooted to the side of the gangplank and saluted the marines once they came marching through.

    Playing his role well he got in the mix of the detaining and made sure to pass along a special something from the pilfered pockets of the marine jacket he was still wearing. Initially discovered while walking the heavy rhythmic pat to his rightmost section of his body leading to his thigh was a den den mushi. Colored in the typical styling of the World Government and practically featureless beyond that. On a limb and from little more than hope Kite slipped the device to the child with the baggiest clothing hushing her while she looked wide eyed at the thing and helping her along to the bulk of the transport towards the other ship in the bay.

    Hard fought to excuse himself under the pretense of a sick stomach due to Graves gun Kite the not-marine was soon dismissed. A lot of the time he could've sworn he felt the gaze of that CP agent on his back as he slipped away into the ally and discarded the coat into a pile of garbage unceremoniously.

    Retracing what trajectory he though Miu would've headed in from her dash away from the ship a lump in his chest started to form. With the thrill of his betrayal fresh he didn't have time to properly understand just how much heartache would've been placed upon Miu. Clenching his hands painfully tight a solemn prayer went out towards whatever power was listening to ensure for once no one would get hurt and this would work out. Because even with all that stuff Kite preached and found here in the grandline it was moments like this that caused him doubts, genuinely made him question what he was up against.

    Miu running away crying replayed once again in his head. Reminded by the heavy pang in his heart for his friend the young man incinerated a majority of what was bogging him down and trudged on through taking turns and dips into alley's all the while keeping his eyes peeled to the ground and roofs for signs of Miu, Pluto or whatever else might be lurking around the seemingly deserted city. Apparently put under some form of curfew or lockdown judging from the huddled shapes within darkened windows.

    "Please be okay... Please be okay," Repeated under his breath as a mutter the frantic search continued with flickering red eyes and attuned ears.

    A marine doesn't just let a person go. There was something awful at work here, it was plain as day and much like a snare had already caught the gang well past the point of a graceful retreat. Leaving was not an option.

    'Was it even safe to give those kids that Den Den Mushi? Was this apart of some scheme too?' Pushing past such thoughts and more the hunter went into a running stride jerking his head around corners calling out silently to his friend not daring to risk discovery to himself, her or pluto.

[BlacKitten]

Pluto - 14

Six arms. Two pincers. Two legs. One stinger. With eleven appendages in total, the scorpion-human wasted no time to unleash a fury of blows towards the boy he must absolutely kill no matter the costs. Athleticism enhanced by a Zoan-type Devil Fruit power and a mysterious pill; he felt an unbelievable surge of strength coursing through his veins. But it all came at a grave cost: his lifespan. He had sacrificed a part of his life force in exchange for tremendous power. He was far stronger than the version of himself when clashing with Koneko Miu.

This black-haired boy with violet irises, he knew nothing about him, and for that, he was grateful. Killing an innocent stranger, while painful to bear, was far more bearable than killing someone he personally knows. He was grateful to have never seen this face before, to have never spoken to him before, and to have learned nothing about him. To do what he must, his heart must be hardened and numbed. He must detach himself from others. In order to protect those three kids, he was willing to sacrifice his life and his humanity. Even if it meant staining his hands to kill the innocent, that was the tough decision he made.

That murderous and desperate rage reflected in those stern eyes of his opponent; Pluto knew them all to well for he would see such eyes in himself upon casting a glance at a mirror. He knew nothing about this man’s story besides being the one who recently tried to hunt down his student’s bounty, but he felt a vehement, burning passion and desperation that made his heart cringe.

Yet, he, too, had no room to feel any sentimental feelings. He, too, was desperate. He, too, had those he absolutely wished to protect even if it meant sacrificing his life and humanity. Silent rage reflected in those cold, violet-hues.

No words were spoken between them, yet through their lethal movements, it was as if they understood a little about one another. They both felt the same pain.

However.

The difference in their pain and suffering over the course of their lives were worlds apart. If the double-edged pain made one grow stronger and tougher, then there was no contest. If pain enforced conviction and willpower, the gap between them was astronomical. The number of deaths that their hands have caused, the amount of experience in life-threatening battles, the time spent cultivating their skills, the difference was clear as day.

One limb.

All Gaunt’s relentless attacks were thwarted by a single arm that barely moved. This single arm was soft yet hard, fast yet slow. Like iron wrapped in cotton, this single limb would gently yet quickly press, roll, and deflect each incoming assault in a single subtle stroke. The tiniest, minute detail that made up his movements could only be felt but not seen. So simple his movement was, yet effective, nonetheless. That was the cycle of martial arts. One would start out learning the basics before learning the advanced movements. But when advanced movements became perfected, they often resemble the basics once again.

Each blow diverted elsewhere, and any remainder force that the boy received would be diverted down his heels and into rooftop. The structure of his rooted stance, he remained idle, sturdy, and unmoving. His hand guarded his centerline, deviating ever so slightly and intricately to fend off each consecutive blow.

To Gaunt, it was like trying to poke a rubber ball floating in water. No matter the angle he attempted to strike it, the ball would find a way to yield into the water and roll away.

What the hell!? How is he doing this!? Who is this guy!?

Two limbs.

As Pluto introduced his other hand, he began to control two of his opponent’s limbs at a time, slowly and calculatedly jamming one exoskeletal arm against another. The strategy of trapping an opponent’s limbs against one another, it should appear quite familiar to the arachnid. Joint manipulation commonly controlled the wrists and elbows as the main joints of control.

This coiling energy, his arms entangled with one another, all spiraling in a clockwise motion as if trapped in a vortex. All his monstrous energy was suddenly being sucked twisted.

“Wha-,” the world suddenly began the spin as Gaunt no longer felt any contact with the ground. All the energy he invested to attack suddenly spiraled and led to him being thrown away. Upon crashing, he tumbled uncontrollably across the rooftop, gradually anchoring the tips of his appendages onto the surface to slow himself down right as he reached the very edge of the building. “Haah… Haah,” He panted heavily. It felt like he had just been throwing away bursts of energy, striking thin air this entire time.

Without giving himself another second to rest, he lashed out his stinger, darting forth like a bullet. His target smoothly took a diagonal step, quickly shifting his weight from one leg to the next. Just as the stinger shot past his chest, a pair of hands quickly brushed along the tail before trapping it in a vice-like grip that caused the very plated armor to bend out of shape.

“!” Gaunt gritted his teeth as he felt his entire mass being reeled in by a sudden tug. The giant multi-armed beast whooshed through the air, orbiting around this inexplicably strong foe who swung him by the shaft of his tail. The buildings, the sky, the rooftop, the ground, everything began to flash through his head repeatedly before blurring together in a mixture of rushing colors. His body spun so fast that he appeared like a blurry disk.

He must have weighed well over a hundred-fifty kilos, yet he was being swung around like a lasso.

In just a fraction of a second, he endured through two and half cycles of being spun around before finally being released.

---

Miu - 28

Sitting on the rooftop of a warehouse by the docks, a tannish-brown kitten with a white underbelly perched closely towards the surface. Her watery eyes gazing out, watching helplessly as Ara and Rebecca were taken away, wearing those metal cuffs around their wrists.

I… I couldn’t do anything to protect them. It’s not fair. I have this awesome kitty power, but I couldn’t even use it. That masked man took them as hostages. Had I attacked; they could’ve died.

Her kitty ears were drooping like withered flowers. Her claws dug into the wooden surface as a coping mechanism. All she could feel was rage and helplessness. That cute little girl who cooked for her, fed her fish, hugged her, kept her warm, smiled for her, and spoke to her was being taken away by those nasty, indoctrinated uniformed people. And Ara, the gorgeous girl who would often act as the bridge between her and master, spar with her, and tease her master, was their main target. She, a member of the Revolutionary Army, must have dedicated her life to combat the World Government.

The legendary force that worked to free the oppressed, the poor, and the weak, lead by a mysterious criminal. Only now was she truly convinced that all of that was true.
But then, for a moment, her rage was put aside by a sudden thought experiment. Her master’s little sister was just taken away. The one, who her master seemed fond of, was taken away. If he were to find out about this, just what exactly would he do? Throughout her time with him, never once had she saw him angry before. At best, he would look expressionless. And never once had she ever seen him use his full strength either.

She remembered Rebecca’s words: ‘You need to go find my brother.’

Bestowed a mission by her master’s younger sister, Miu was now on a quest to locate the mysterious Pluto.

Her cupped-shaped ears suddenly propped up, hearing a familiar voice.

Kite?

The silver-haired bounty hunter must be nearby.

BOOM!

“WHA!?” Miu puffed up her fur, flinching upon hearing a thunderous boom as if a bomb had just detonated. Her feline eyes sharpened, pinpointing a cloud of rising dust and debris in the distance.

Curious, she began approaching the site to take a gander.

At the spot of where the incident took place, a massive gaping hole was formed on the third floor of a towering building. If one were to stare down that hole, one would see that the projectile had smashed through countless walls and floors at a downward angle, all eventually leading to the opposite side of the building where several small, shallow craters on the road had formed as if something had bounced across. Across that street was another building with a wrecked wall. And through that wall was a scorpion-man lied on his back in the furthest depths of the room, bloodied and bruised.

[Phantasma]

    Currently strapped into a roller coaster ride that just wouldn't stop the scorpion hybrid suffered. Feeling his chin tremble, G-Force tugged at him from multiple angles and often numbed the pain from the onslaught. At the climax of the spiraling and wring out his feet were completely silent and struck limp, devoid of sensation. Practically feeling his brain slosh around in his head the heavily armored combatant couldn't react while free forming through the air like this. Knowing full well by the roar of the air and changes in mashed colors he was drifting, soaring through the floors of a thankfully empty building. From what little information could zip around on his nerves and flow in his blood vessels he knew that hurt was coming and unlike pain prior he couldn't mitigate it. Limbs would fail to catch him and despite his new strength he couldn't catch himself. Devoid of the despair he should be feeling the fighter relied on what calm he could muster and calculated his situation choosing to go limp while keeping up what armor he could on the outside of his body.

    Making contact with the first of the series of floors in his parabolic flight path the bounty hunter grunted. Stone exploded past his body and dust filled his lungs forcing out a retching cough and gasping, searching breath for clean air. Screwing his eyes shut he tried not to swallow his tongue as waves of pain rolled over his protected form. Some boxes, tables, paintings, they all clambered down with him thanks to the explosive addition of momentum echoing into higher walls touching the floor.

    Another hit and another floor to fall right on through, this time through the hot rods of pain stabbing through limbs Gaunt could make out an ever approaching wall. Windows shuddering as light filled the newest compartment of the tower illuminating what was likely to fall with the prone fighter. Trying to keep at least one eye open and looking over his head it was as he feared, staring back at him was a man with his family in his arms. Moving much too fast to drink in any more detail than that one assumption and the variety of huddled heights a reflex took over. Perhaps breaking beyond ordinary limits even afforded by the pill the bug man struck his tail against the ground he was sure to breach aiming to further his trajectory to exit outside of the building. Although forcing the family through the ground upon his next explosion through the floor it was as if a portion of the speed had been nullified or at least slowed. Shredding a good bit of the muscles controlling the tail what was once a frightening stinger flapped limply behind him.

    The last floor was showered in stone, splinters and bathed in the shocked cries and shouts of the above occupants. With light from the miraculously intact window from above a scene much like a common room was set, unlike above which unknown to gaunt was a ruined bedroom. Such details went beyond the fading consciousness of the defeated-looking veteran. Holding his eyes shut and muttering three very family names a final, last large scale impact was birthed. Bricks and billowing sand scattered from the side of the somewhat now less-stable tower taking a brief skip with the zoan user as he traveled the last leg of his not-so-much controlled fall. Blacking out for a few seconds here and there his body struggled to suck in air as his chest repeatedly skidded, hopped and bounced on cold stone. At some point he sailed through a window while ricocheting across the road between tower and nearby building. Alley cratered and window broken the trail of destruction was finished with a group of glass shards sitting atop the groaning, shivering pile of a man.

    Commanding himself to rise with broken words and shambling behind a lame left leg. Holding his right hand over the eye of the same side, tears radiating off of his bruised and battered form.

    Despite hard hits earlier-- this whole time Gaunt was thinking of the children. How terrified they must be. How helpless they must feel and how they must think of him now all beat up like he was. Far beyond sobbing it was however enough to make a constant stream of moisture pour out of his right eye leading one to believe the stream in his left had dried up long ago.

    Exhausted and hurt his body was beginning to shift back into its old-self albeit far more raggedy and bruised. Welts adorned his body like jewels on a fancy woman's person, mouth tasting vaguely of iron and sand while his vision had stars and bright lights dance in them. Free hand busied with picking and plucking shard of stone and glass from an exposed portion of the mans extremely reddened left side. His cloak ripped with holes and undershirt beginning to fall at the seam all dragged as the shell of a skirmisher slammed against the furniture in yet another darkened living room. Bracing himself on upholstery and groping blindly to find a door. Everything but gentle when the time came to open said door, taking great effort to breathe in a deep sputtering bullet of air.

    "I'm not dead yet you MONSTER! So go ahead and come down here! If I have to I'll crawl after you even past all my bones being pulverized... If you think something like this could end the fight then you're as much mistaken as you are a DEADMAN!" Shouting with his head to the sky his eyes were clamped shut with a fierce river of isolated tears.

    Looking down he opened his eyelids the best he could. Face also bruised, puffing up thanks to trauma and inflammation. On many parts of his body, especially under his clothes wounds had opened up leading him to sway and brace himself against the side of the house he had burst out from. Ignorant of two shapes approaching from the side and too slow to stop them, convinced even in his current shape he was going to defeat Pluto and take back his family.

---

    Relieved more than Kite was prepared to admit the tell-tale yowl of a surprised Miu hailed out to the man. Then the concern came as to why the sudden explosive noise and exclamation, body kicking itself with reflexes and reactions her friend soon found himself scampering up the side of a wall via replicating his little dig trick he had practiced earlier in the day. Unshaken by the force that crackled in the air and tower far in long strides he galloped after what to most would look like just some unremarkable animal. Eyes flickering down to the feline runner only to look ahead with a sort of knowing glimmer to their rich red hue. Far from someone to run to danger and instead likely in the mindset to assist her friends there was little question as to why the pair would be going back towards an area seemingly at random. Solace found in the back of his mind since this was far from the docks and that man.

    "It's not Pluto is it?" Shooting it out to the side like a cough Kalisto continued to pump his arms in a mad run after Miu leaping across ledges and charging across roughs.

    Flinching at the sudden shout which rang out in the nearby area they had so eagerly approached. A renewed since of dread, worry, anxiety seeped into his marrow forcing him to reach at a speed nearly beside the fake house cat. Exchanging a downward look at his friend he nodded before ducking off the edge of the roof they were quickly approaching, zipping down and falling into a crouch he impacted with the ground under not much more than a cloud of sand and a quiet 'fwoomp'. Aiming at the softer dunes seemingly wiped together at the edge of a building it didn't take much to have Kite creeping across the street.

    The sight of the craters, the pure destruction, that got him to run and have very short breaths fire out of his mouth. Panic mixed with artificial calm as the morally compromised headhunter starred at what he believed would have been a heavily injured Pluto who had accidentally gotten caught in the cross fire. After all he didn't recognize the guy, if that were the case even if he were a criminal chances are it would've been small time. The people who took Ara, Rebecca, the kids... they were monsters capable of feats the young Kalisto thought fantasy. Wouldn't have believed his own eyes had he not witnessed the very same!

    Defying the process of elimination, the only person Kite considered being there, was Gaunt. Huffing, puffing, hardly standing and glaring at Kite with strained vision going so far as to point an outstretched hand at him like a silent threat before finally clenching together his right hand giving out a sickening crackle and pop. He was warped, physically, limbs were bowed and he was wobbling on his legs more than a heavily intoxicated booze-hound.

   

    "Who... who did this to you?" Appalled, eyes wide and brows high with his whole body in a similar state of frozen awe.

    Gaunt was a monster, a monster felled by Miu. No normal fighter could do this and just looking at him even induced phantom pain on Kite. On little more than instinct silver hair wafted and waved about as black gloves dug through pockets on pants and pockets within coats all to produce a copper short, flat circular tin of lime green salve and bandages. Taking a step forward he knew this would hardly be enough but if it could numb the pain to get the guy out of here then it was acceptable.

    Enemies, yes, but Kite wasn't the heartless type. Who he edged towards was knocking on deaths door and that's what motivated the shallow tip-toes forward tin in one hand and bandages in the other.

[BlacKitten]

Pluto - 15

A grey figure flickered by the docks. He wore a low-hanging hood that shadowed his face. His flat-soled shoes stepped in eerie silence as if he had no weight at all. There were signs of wetness on the ground, splotched in a pattern recognizable as footsteps from a large group of individuals. However, the trail didn’t stretch far as the scorching hot sun accelerated the evaporation.

In a single leap, he landed onto the main deck, his head turning side to side, glancing around. There was a faint odor lingering in the air like that of rotten eggs. He bent down and picked up an orange-shafted spear. This was Ara’s weapon. For this to have been left here, that girl must have sensed the need to defend herself. But why was this left behind?

Gleaming eye of violet shifted towards a tiny, minute detail. A darkening hole etched into the wood. It was a bullet hole.

As he had feared, he couldn’t sense any life on board. No one was here. Both Ara and Rebecca were gone. There wasn’t a drop of blood as far as he could find. They were likely still alive, but what the marines planned to do with them was a different matter of concern.

Ordinary soldiers couldn’t have accomplished this. Ara, alone, would have been enough to wipe them out. Was it someone who was leading those soldiers?

He recalled the sound of the voice who communicated with the agent through a Den Den Mushi. He could imagine someone with more of an authority to have the courage to speak with an agent like that. Did that voice belong to the leader of the gang of soldiers who raided his ship? Was the one who wielded that voice responsible for the capture of Ara and Rebecca?

Alabasta. Was there a marine base on this island? None that he was aware of.
Where were they taken?

Perhaps on a marine ship? If the marines plan to arrest Ara, they must also plan to transport her elsewhere.

Given the time difference between their capture and present time, they couldn’t have been taken very far travelled on foot.

Ara was skilled in pole-armed weaponry, but without her weapon, her fighting capabilities were greatly hindered. She was like a swordsman without any swords.
Down the stairs, he went below deck. Several intermingling scents mixed together, emanating from the kitchen. Empty plates placed on the dining table. Pots and pans ready to be heated up with ingredients readied. Rebecca was likely preparing for lunch right before the incident. The two of them must have gone shopping as he did not recognize some of the ingredients.

It was quiet.

No matter which room he entered, there was no one there. Even though he knew that, a part of him wished he was wrong.

He was alone. This sensation, it reminded him of the period when Rebecca was taken away from him by an organization of the Underworld.

History was repeating itself. Once again, what he sought to protect was taken away from him.

He returned the metallic spear back to Ara’s room and left the vessel altogether. But, unlike before, the clothes he wore beneath his cloak had changed, hidden from view.
Hands in his pockets, the cloaked, hooded figure faded away as if he was just a mirage.

First the Underworld. And now, the World Government… I see. So, you’re my enemy as well. I have kept a low profile all this time to protect those two. But this is different. If hiding and keeping quiet isn’t going to protect them anymore, then I’ll…

---

Miu - 29

Standing on her hind legs, the fluffy, little kitten hovered a paw by her forehead, blocking out the light as her large eyes gazed into the depth of the hole that the scorpion-man stepped out of. Waddling in place and turning a one-eighty, she then casted a glance towards the series of wreckage that the man must have flew through to have arrived here.

What she saw kept her body stiff and frozen. She simply couldn’t take her eyes off the scene. How many layers of floors and walls must have been destroyed and from this angle, he must have been hurled from a higherup place, crashing through that building from a downward, diagonal trajectory.

Even if Gaunt was shot out straight out of a human-sized cannon, it wouldn’t even come close to this level of destruction. The closest being that could come close to accomplishing this was if she tapped into the full power of the Neko Neko no Mi, and even then, her strength may fall off short in comparison. And since she knew for a fact that she was not responsible for this, she could only imagine there being a monster lurking about in the city.

After all, gaunt just screamed out the word ‘monster’, and that was coming from a man who could transform into a venomous beast with eleven different appendages.

The kitten sighed like a mother who saw her son getting into trouble again, “Did you bother another cat again? When will you learn that cats can smash you through buildings?”

As Kite presented the battered, disoriented man with some items from his pockets that might aid just a tiny bit of his injuries and wounds, Gaunt was not in the mood to be caring about his own wellbeing. Each time he imagined those three kids being taken back to the Duke Fuldoon; his heart sank. Even if it meant killing that freak who he originally thought was just some ordinary kid, the ends justified the means.

After what he just went through, even a talking cat could not longer faze him. His mind hadn’t fully soaked in the circumstances quite yet. Everything was happening way to fast. The girl with the bounty, the marines, the kids, the agents, the man who threw him through a building with ease, the talking cat, he couldn’t wrap his head of the situation completely. Driven by rage and fury, he could only rely on a single tracked mindset of saving the kids, going from point A to point B as quick as possible. No matter the obstacles that stood in his way, not matter what would become of him, he would continue moving onward even if it kills him.

And right now, his rage could be directed only at one person. “Where is he?” he said in a dry, hoarsely voice. As he squinted into the far distance, the one with those cold, piercing violet eyes was nowhere to be seen.

“Damn it!” He gritted his teeth. “Did he run away? I… must… kill him.”

[Phantasma]

    "You're not going anywhere you... you," Kite moved some hair out of his face only to smack his own forehead screwing his eyes shut letting out a hiss of a sigh.

    "God you're a blasted moron you know that right? Can barely move, probably got bones floating around in there and you're thinking about hunting someone down." Exchanging an irritated glance at Miu for rubbing salt in the guys wound the oddly tender Hunter shook his head left to right in a freeze of a pace only stopping to close the distance between him and Gaunt.

    Scarcely able to wrap and doctor wounds with the mixture of bandages and numbing agent. Hands flung themselves up and Gaunt shrugged around wobbling from left to right to dodge the treatment. Distant eyes glowered down at the fighter turned nurse, a growl showcasing slightly yellowed teeth.

    "Get out of my way. Now. Right this d-mned second... Right now- OW! OW! OW OW OW OW OW!" A series of yelps given as the smaller of the two men seized the previously pointed right hand and started smearing lime-green slime on open wounds wasting no time in bandaging them and moving on.

    Paralyzed by a fusion of painful surges of cold and soreness it was only a matter of time before he slumped onto the steps holding his head in his hands practically shaking. Stepping back and admiring his work the meeker looking of the two took a knee and did his best to look the man in his eyes, pocketing his supplies and extracting a transponder snail.

    "We know."

    Locking eyes he continued, a hushed tone overtaking what was ordinarily a fairly loud tone.

    "The kids. You're after the kids and got wrapped into whatever mess the World Government has going around here. We've ran into them too... seen what they're capable of. We know. We... Know..." Kite drifted off as he thought of the incident concerning Ara but he fairly quickly recovered and adopting a nodding closing his eyes as he rose to his feet, Gaunt's head tilted up to follow.

    "You want them back?" Asking a rather obvious question and crossing his arms after the point.

    "More than anything," Wincing as he rose to his feet, right arm wrapped across to his left shoulder looking more mummy than fighter with even a good portion of his left face and neck bandaged.

    "We're after the same thing, Gaunt. So you need to tell me if you fought them; if they told you to do something and they did this. Who ran away?" Backing up some more Kalisto aimed to give the man ample breathing room leaning forward as he did so in anticipation of words to follow.

    "Purple eyes... purple eyes and black hair... If I killed him I would've gotten them back. I can't... I can't... I," Clearly a mess he started a fresh trail of tears out of his free eye dissolving into what had been suspected this entire time.

    "Miu," Kite turned on his heel and walked closer to his friend bending at the knee once more to talk on her level without having to look down.

    Dust clinging to his ordinarily pristine suit, hair messed from a combination of sweat and being ran through with gloved hands. He looked like he had ran around for an hour combined with the color to his face. Yet he breathed steady and never had his eyes possessed such a fire to them, burning with a intensity that relayed sentiments of hope and a spirit of rebellion. Body relaxed but hands clenched into fists with each shaky inhale from Gaunt or the noise of his bandages rustling.

    He was angry.

    How was he maintaining composure?

    "If it was Pluto... I'm not going to beg here but we need to take Gaunt with us for a bit. Those CP guys are bound to end up killing him and the less people they have to work with the better. We can drop him in a hospital and hope for the best or we can have him tag along pray that he doesn't try to start anything with Pluto. Who we also need to find," Dropping his gaze and twisting his mouth.

    "Ara, Rebecca, he lost folks too so he could be on a warpath. I'd rather an innocent nation not get caught up in flames over the action of two or more wicked men. So we either take Gaunt, go to Pluto or find a place to put him and regardless try to find your teacher."

    "I'm also astonished at how quickly he's recovering," Muttering under his breath and turning over his shoulder he watched the less-wobbly gait of Gaunt who by now had lumbered closer to the pair intent on listening to just what the plan was.

    "..."

    "We may also know where the kids are Gaunt if you promise to behave. Tossed one of them a Den Den Mushi but... well. I've no idea if it'll be tapped the moment we patch something through. Point is we're not operating on just hope and sheer luck alone. We're going to rescue our friends and show the government that this kind of operation is sick-- an affront to the very ideals they represent," Jutting his chin out to punctuate his resentment.

    "You did?" Almost not believing the words he was hearing Gaunt adopted some other emotion from dismay and despair it was the wide eyed look of a bewildered man who had just now seen the light at the end of a long dark tunnel.

[BlacKitten]

Pluto - 16

The worst-case scenario was if Ara and Rebecca were taken away from this island. If they remain present, he at least could have a confined region to investigate despite the tremendous size of Alabasta. The marines ultimately needed to the means to transport Ara as well as confine her. There were no marine bases as far as he could know, yet it is a definite fact that the marines are present, nonetheless.

The reluctance of trying to capture someone like Miu implied that they could not spare extra manpower for the job, and perhaps the only reason they could spare some manpower for the Ara and Rebecca was the perception of them being easy to capture. The unusual activities of law enforcements and the reluctance to allocate soldiers for criminals that are right in front of their eyes, they had a different mission altogether which was good news for him because it’s likely that they also could not afford to spare any more manpower to transport the girls beyond the scope of this island for now.
Even if they did try to transport them by ship, it would have been too obvious to spot them sailing away in the vast open sea by the shores.

Where are they?

Sounds from far reaching ends of the town, sounds from spectrums beyond human comprehension, he could hear it all. The voices, waves, the breeze, the seagulls, the tapping of shoes, the breath, sounds of all kinds jumbled together, and in the midst of the background noise, his hidden bat ears swiveled beneath the hood, seeking for anything that could be a lead. Jumping from one conversation to the next in split seconds, he haphazardly eavesdropped over countless of trivial verbal exchanges. He could never miss the sound of his sister’s voice. If he couldn’t hear it, then she was not nearby. Her voice. Her breath. They were all carved deep into his mind. It was a sweet, gentle voice that would stand out to him. Just as one would reflexively react to their name being called, he would reflexively respond if he heard anything that came from her voice.

They’re gone.

Shut up! The marine ships, where are they!? They must have gotten here somehow!

I don’t see any. Are you sure you’re looking in the right spots?

Damn it! This doesn’t make any sense. I should’ve found them by now.

Then lure them out. Kill everyone in this town until those fighters of ‘justice’ show up to stop you.

No! I must stay calm. Clear my thoughts.

But can you? Your beloved sister and your mentor got taken away. And that agent didn’t seem to be the type to play nice. Did you see that lunatic smile? Did you hear his indoctrinated voice, programmed to carry out the will from the World Government’s shadows? They just captured a member of the Revolutionary Army. They will use any means necessary to extract information from her.

Shut up!

They’ll torture her. Will they rip their fingernails one by one? Will they drown her until near death, repeatedly? Will they rip her limbs from their sockets? You know how this goes, right?

Stay calm! I must stay calm.

Rebecca has already been kidnapped once, taken from you for months. You’re weak and careless. You’ve allowed her to be captured once again. Have you learned nothing from the past?

I said shut up!

She’ll cry. She’ll cling onto the hope that her older brother will save her like always. But if you fail, her hopes would slowly get crushed, dwindle away as the time flows by.

Who are you? Stop talking to me!

You’re broken, and you know it. You need Rebecca to keep you human. But with her gone, how long will your sanity last? How much longer until you’ll turn to me? How much longer until you’ll slaughter everyone in your path to get her back just like you’ve done before?

SHUT UP!

Ah! But if you do that, Rebecca might see you for who you’re really are. A cold-blooded killing machine. The rage and hatred bottled up inside you. The things you’ve had to endure and watch.

I SAID-

Shh! Hear that?

The buildings, the sky, the ground, everything shifted so suddenly until his eyes pierced towards two men. Until he was standing right between them.

“!” The two warriors, wielder of swords, draped in dull colors, leapt back as a shadowy figure seemingly popped into existence in utter silence and stealth.

The enigmatic figure wore a hood that shadowed his face, a cloak that concealed his body, and a suppressed aura of carnage. “What… did you just say?”

“W-Who are you!?” the sound of sliding metal. Shiiiiing!

“Rainbase,” he tilted his head, recalling what he had just heard from this man’s mouth. “Pirates. Marines.” His voice suddenly echoed from behind. “Tell me more.”

“!” A chill ran down the guard’s spine. Bulging eyes, chattering teeth, racing heart, he couldn’t see any of it. This stranger’s movements, he couldn’t make out any of it. The flutter of clothing, a breeze, the tapping of shoes, he couldn’t hear any of signs of him standing behind him where his sword could not reach.

---

Miu - 30

“Kite,” the kitten wiggled her tail as she listened to the scorpion-nursing man on what to do with Gaunt. “I’ve traveled with master for about a month, and throughout that time, there was always this air of mystery about him that I don’t understand. I have never seen him outwardly angry or sad, but… there’s something inside of him. Once in a while, that ‘something’ seeps out of him for a short moment. And, when that happens, I get scared of him. Master is scary when that happens.”


She had never seen it completely before, only the residue that slips out. It felt like there was something huge and dark being suppressed for a very long time, slowly growing in size and in pressure.


“With Ara and Rebecca taken away, I’m scared that the ‘thing’ inside of him would come out,” she uttered in a serious tone, openly expressing how she feels. And, this was coming from someone who would pull pranks and stalk her master all day long.

She piqued her head up inquisitively upon hearing Kite’s strategic maneuver of having placed one those bizarre talking snails to one of the kids. “Oooo!” She understood the significance of this the talking snail. “Hmm… Kite, we have no way of telling if those kids are alone or not. If there are people watching over them, then the snail gets confiscated. Should we at least wait a while to see if the kids would call us first?”


Gaunt gritted his teeth upon hearing what the feline uttered. He initially wanted to call them out of desperation, but if they do so without thinking, they could lose this one chance that Kite had presented to them. The best-case scenario would to have constant or repeated communication with them over a course of time, but that would depend on the kids being clever enough to talk to them secretly without being found out. Those kids would know better than anyone on when the best time to communicate would be.


“Take me with you,” the bandaged-up man requested. He'd have a better shot in getting those kids back with these two anyways.

“I wouldn’t mind if you tag along, but you won’t try to attack me or my master, are ya? If you do, you might die,” Miu stated her only mild concern with having him joining them on their quest.


“I have no interest in your bounty, Copycat Miu. Not anymore,” Gaunt spoke in a much calmer tone than just a while ago. “And your master is a freak that I never want to fight again. Honestly… I think I have a better chance surviving against those agents than surviving against your master. I could tell that he wasn’t even serious when he tossed me away. There was no sign of strenuous exertion on his face; he was holding back. No… he spared my life.”


Someone who lost those he holds precious just like him, it was Pluto’s empathy that saved him.


“Okay,” the kitten turned to Kite. “Are you alright with him tagging along then?”

[Phantasma]

    "Sure. Gaunt was never after me to begin with and... while I'm not in the business of making threats he's not exactly able to benefit from a surprise attack," Grimacing a bit as he shut his eyes as if to vanish the thought entirely.

    "Besides when he's healed up he'll be another set of hands for us to work with. Already has made quite the startling recovery and might be fine by the end of a day or two. Surprising given how he was... Thrown?" At first looking over his shoulder at Gaunt, Kite decided to fully turn around and look at slightly bettered wounds and clearing bruises only to spy the flightpath he would've had to follow to end up where they were presently.

    It wasn't like being bowled down the street. Dust was heaved in piles, craters in the roads and pieces of buildings sunk in on themselves. All in all it appeared as though he had been hurtled down from a nearby tower, visible through the remains of several buildings and banged his way to the ground below. Shooting an arrow of worry into the young man he tried to psych himself out and chose to break the brief silence with a quick tap to his face with both hands appearing to slap himself back to reality with one hard pop.

    "Owch," He murmured.

    "All that aside... I was thinking the same with the Den Den Mushi. We have no way of knowing if we're being listened to if we were the ones to send out the call and it's wishful thinking to assume Pluto has already distracted them enough to afford a conversation. If they saw anything..." Kite began, Gaunt for his part seemed to flinch at the mention of this supposed distraction and looked to the floor appearing to be conflicted due to his meandering floor stare.

    "They'll call us when they can. First things first is we need to collect Pluto before something else bad happens-- to yet more innocent people. In either this town or any nearby settlement,"

    "If he was that strong when I was... well... When we fought the way we fought I would've throttled both you and Copycat. Wouldn't be too wild to believe he's not only outside Nanohana but on his way to a nearby city. Alabasta sits on scorching sands and places are hardly clustered... under the right circumstances something like him could've found a way on foot or otherwise. You need to act quickly--"

    "I was getting to that. Still used to this strategizing thing... well... unorthodox planning anyway. I've always been a thinker just not on a macro scale. The citizens of this village, city, collective, whatever are all holed up in there homes probably due to some curfew or order from higher authority probably to avoid whatever we did, what Pluto can do or something else entirely unrelated. It's an easy source of information and the people centralized in this location are all have likely to seen the fight and noted where he ran off to." Nodding to himself and pocketing his hands the hunter took a step back and waited for suggestions, naysayers or otherwise.

    Feedback came in the form of Gaunt joining the huddle. Not so much limping as he was slowly making his way over to the group. Picking a piece of toppled wall he plopped himself butt down on it balancing himself on the edge and clearing his throat.

    "I... My fight with Pluto wasn't voluntary. The Cipher Pol agent, the one with the metal hand, he ordered me to engage under the promise of my...the kids. I was told that in order to spare Marine forces the local guard was monitoring any and all movements from secluded but cleverly positioned places across Nanohana. If our fight went south the plan was to never draw near those locations so a warning could be raised... It's actually why no one has gotten to us yet probably. Whatever is going down here has put local law enforcement to a stop and delayed responses. Until that information is reported and guards notified of new duties we're in a blind spot," Gaunt finished head bending forward as he held his chin up with his right palm trying not to grind his teeth as Kite crept closer with wide eyes.

    "... They got you to engage Pluto personally? They recognized him as a threat...? Or maybe this has something to do with Ara and Rebecca. In any event we should go for citizens first and then guards, that way any interrogation can be done at first on our terms without force. I'd hate to see what contingency is sprung in response to us wasting our opportunity to get lost and stop meddling," Taking only a pause to look up at the sky and suck in some air, Kite pondered to himself just what kind of mess this adventure had turned into.

    Not that he'd have it any other way.

    Dismissing thoughts of destiny, fate, paranormal or otherwise he once again assessed just why he was so involved. Was it because of him actually wanting to save people? Or was it because of some kind of sense of duty he owed to Miu? Perhaps it was none of those and something all together new? What stayed the same on him? What had changed so viscerally he wasn't able to answer?

    "Why do you even care about the people Pluto might hurt? You're going to have an opening if he goes berserk, one to call the kids and find out where everyone is when the CP agents rush off to stall the attack or summon reinforcement. After which you could probably convince her... whatever he is to come with you all and to escape this place. We could all leave, all be safe and it would come about just as easily from waiting. It doesn't take a genius to know when to run if there's danger... and if you fight other peoples battles you're just going to end up getting burnt." Standing and crossing the divide between the group Gaunt confronted the skyward looking Kite who could only just casually flick his own head down and smooth back his hair with a rather vacant looking stare.

    "It's not like I'm a hero. Personally I'm doing it out of the knowledge should I run I'm never going to change as a person. I'm doing it for selfish reasons... reasons that probably make me more of a demon than a saint. A part of me just gets p-ssed off when I think about running from a situation I could easily influence," Eyes sharpening and staring right back at a for once agape Gaunt.

    "Precious sentiment and ideology aside, those CP agents don't strike me as merciful. We were all doomed the moment we stepped foot in this country. I'm just choosing to direct my energy towards making an escape. A clean one, not a bloody one."

    Quickly closing his mouth Gaunt let out a chortled sigh.

    "You... I've met Monsters, I've met the Surely-Dead and I like to pride myself on recognizing the kinds of men or women they manifest as. That stare is... new. I'll help you both for a similarly selfish reason but dont expect me to rescue you... White hair. You've got no powers, I don't remember your skills and out of the two of you the Cat is probably the more fierce. If this was any more one sided it would have had to been a comedy," A small grin twisted on the mans face as he found a kind of humor in the stacked odds.

    Apparently he was unable to avoid addressing the elephant in the room. Ignorant or uncaring of the efforts Kite displayed in their previous bout of combat.

    "That's true. I've got no powers."

    "Never stopped me from rolling heads and, apparently, earning the ire of the Government."

    Smiling in his own way the hunter stepped to the side and walked towards the wreckage disappearing into the darkness of the store. Shoes echoing their tune and then having the song of movement zero out all together.

    "Branded a traitor... you still choose to help us? Help her? Him?"

    Silence.

    "Ah... I see." Gaunt clicked his tongue and shrugged off some bandages cracking fingers, knuckles, his shoulders and any other accessible limb.

    "I never really liked working for a boss. Much rather do it my way and give mercy when I find it appropriate. A selfish demon, a traitor, a turncoat and a two timer. That's me," Kite stepped out of the store sporting a brand new look spelling like a fusion of ink and some odd scented candles.

    His coat, turned inside out, was a bright shade of screaming red that broadcasted a sort of warning to it looking far more velvet in appearance than the outside material. Gloves were pocketed and instead naked hands were shown to the world, as was the pendant around his neck and the ascot tied over his chest tucked under a now blackened white under shirt. Similarly pin-stripe pants were stained and dyed completely black with a pair of night shade shoes to match. To top this entire ensemble off was a medically wrapped and fully mummy-ied up head with only eye holes and a mouth hole dyed in otherwise blackness. In the newly garbed hunters arms were weathered billowing, sheet like cloaks that one could affix to their shoulders and drape over themselves. White, greyed, it didn't matter but they were anything other than black. First one was tossed at Gaunt before one was gracefully chucked toward Miu ensuring it didn't hit her face but all the same reached her.

    "We'll talk and walk. Miu, feel free to stay two legged or otherwise. I'm content with doing the talking... and looking like this I'd say it'd be perfect for as much. Wont give citizens much to report on what otherwise would've been a certain Bounty Hunter. I don't plan on running into the CP goons so discovery-- hopefully wont happen. If it does? I'll have some calls to make, " Frowning in his bandaged state the hunter marched forward expecting his allies to follow.

    He couldn't fight in a cloak anyway. Miu knew that, probably, but Kite undoubtedly knew as much. His fighting style involved flexibility and movement, weaving attacks together. Excess fabric out of the swordsman's control would be a hindrance.

    Weaving his steps back towards the tower Gaunt crashed through to hopefully ask the occupants about what just had happened. Particularly where the source had gone to and then after which investigate the next four or five houses before moving onto the guard stations Gaunt talked about. His stride quick and his gaze flickering he made sure to keep a watch.