On To Something Bigger Than Oneself

[Armani]

"S.W.O.R.D.; the 'Sworn Warriors of Righteousness Division'…"

Cuomo, a young Marine in service to the World Government, reviewed the acronym out loud as he leaned forward against the ships railing, his arms folded over the top bar for a moments rest. His tall, lanky body made it dangerous to lean too far over, so he kept himself at more of a half-lean over the bar in fear that if he went too far forward, he would find himself in the briny sea of West Blue. It wasn't the most comfortable position he could be in, but it did provide some bit of comfort. And the reward of slight relaxation was much more valuable to the young man than the risk of that of full physical contentment and the off chance of him ending up in the sea. Particularly so, considering he was on his way to a new sea today; the North Blue!

"Kind of a lofty title isn't 'Righteousness'?"

What exactly lay in store for him when he arrived at his destination on Jreum Island? Apparently this was a new division for the Marines and from what Cuomo had heard, was meant for select individuals to begin training themselves at a more aggressive pace for the sake of justice and the continued strive for peace around the world. Of course the question arose of, "What had he done exactly to be selected for this?" He had been in the Marines for a few years now, but up until only recent events had he really considered that he had been making a name for himself. Perhaps it was the events on Winchester Island or in the Ilusia Kingdom that had garnered his superior's attention.

"I wonder how big the unit will be?"

As the sea's waves crashed against the side of the ship, a blast of salty mist rose and splashed itself into his mouth in a large dose as he spoke. He reacted instantly, standing up straight and spitting the taste of salt out. After a few tries that were hopelessly useless in helping him eradicate the flavor, he remained standing up. He was alone for a couple moments so it was fortunate that no one had seen what had happened to save himself some face in front of the rest of the crew. Cuomo seemed to have an almost regal composure about him when he stood up straight, for a second, his shoulders were tightly pulled back, his head was held high and lofty and his back was arched perfectly. His entire form was kingly and noble in appearance as his heritage displayed itself in full dignity. He was Cuomo Royale, son of Archibald Royale, a prominent World Noble from Goa Kingdom. His stance relaxed after a couple second of recovery. Not by much, but enough to change his demeanor from ceremonial Noble to just "classy looking guy", and his thoughts went immediately back to where they were moments before.

So just what was in store for the Marine when he arrived on the island? He had always heard stories of Marines with intimidating and daunting strength, ones that could move at speeds so fast that they couldn't be seen until they wanted to be, of men and women who were considered tactical geniuses who could plan entire battle strategies in their minds while thinking ten steps ahead of their opponents. Was this what the kind of power and intellect that they were about bestow on Cuomo? It was true that he needed more power to be able to defend those who couldn't defend themselves and to support the people he called his allies, but was he up to the task of acquiring it?

"Of course I am…"

A whisper of pride and assuredness dared to escape his lips. The S.W.O.R.D. was going to be his tool of finding his own way to protect the world. He was a Marine for the sake of the people and in using such a bold motive to drive him, he would become stronger, not for his sake, but for others; and not only stronger, but faster and smarter too. His experiences were limited to the mostly calm West and East Blues. Now with the opportunity wide open in front of him, Cuomo Royale would run full tilt into this. He would do his best to become a source of pride for his new division, superiors and its members.

Suddenly, the doubt and questions stopped coming. Determination and conviction would guide him despite whatever happened in this strange part of the world. There was no fear or reservation, only the will to move forward!


[Cuomo Royale is on his way to the North Blue!]

[tyrfing]

The sun was at it's peak and burned like a vengeful wrench, warm laughter spread across the half private compartment. A set of cards was played across a small table with a fraction of the monthly pay summed up in the middle. The attractive female had played the three other marines for good and they were down to their last penny. A small window offered the narrow room sufficient light so that every face was revealed.
Andrew was sitting in his bed, paying no attention to the game. His usual white marine uniform tugged back into his luggage and replaced with his purple attire. It didn't feel right without it, besides he had no intentions of hiding his true color. His hand reached down into his pocket and peeled out the new assignment. His persistent letters had payed off, finally some one had boggled under at head quarters from the pressure and reassigned him. The letter had several signatures and official references to well known marine codices. Most importantly it had his name on it, Andrew Tyrfing! He read it again and again, this was going to change everything. As if some one might try and steal it he put it back into his pocket and got up. Formally declining the invitation to play a game of cards or to use the marines own word: "just one game". He slipped past them into the hall way and made his way up to the deck.
One foot in front of the other he walked proudly along the corridor greeting the kitchen on his way out. If there was one thing he had learned, it was to stay on the good side of the people who serve you food. He had previously attempted to open with a joke the day before. He didn't tell it right and it wasn't really that funny. Luckily they didn't take note of it so they greeted him with a professional smile and continued their work. No harm done and worth a try, Andrew shrugged to him self.

As he emerged heroically (in his own mind) from down below onto the deck, he bathed in the sun light. He could hear his heroic theme play for his ears the catchy tunes and for a brief moment he forgot the presence of the world. "To the outer darkness and the bottom of the sea, I will find you!" Realizing he had spoken aloud a sudden feeling took hold of his spine. Cold tendrils reached up his back as he turned his head left and right. Did anyone hear him? The marines in his vicinity continued their work and avoided eye contact. "Ah no matter" the day was too good. He couldn't wait to see his new division, the sword division! Supposedly it was some acronym but he had forgotten the minor details. The important aspect that he was now on the move. West blue, although his dear home had provided him with all he needed. He had to move on and as he sat down on a sealed box of nails he reminisced his past. He was now a marine and looking into the future he could see him self reunited with his father.

A shrieky noise took attention on the deck, swooping down from above Andrew's pet parrot Hauk took a sharp hold of his shoulder. "So it's that time again huh?" Andrew laughed and presented the animal with a palm full of seeds from his pocket.

[Armani]

(Hello Tyrfing, it’s a pleasure to meet you! ;D)

A screech made a sudden outburst amidst the many thoughts he tried to collect. It surprised Cuomo as its sound was completely different from the seagull's cries that circled the ship. A bit of curiosity took hold and before he even realized it, the marine's feet were taking him towards the source of the less that delicate squawk. His feet were soft in walking, but the dual set of chains that he kept attached to his waist jingled and clanked as they shifted with his movement. He slipped a black and gray plaid designed scarf around his neck as the sun continued its descent behind the horizon's line. Despite being in the usually warm West Blue, things seemed to become a little chilly once the sun had gone down, particularly on the ocean.

In just the few seconds it took him to adjust the cloth around his neck, he was able to turn the corner and find the source of interruption to his thoughts. Flapping about in mid air right in front of another man was what seemed to be a brightly colored parrot. Even more interesting though would be the stranger that it was flying about. A taller man (though Cuomo's own height would still dwarf him in comparison), he wore purple garments similar to what Cuomo might have called a gentleman rogue. It really was a good look for him, however there was a problem in the fact that when he was dressed like this, he didn't look like a marine at all and as far as he knew, there weren't any civilian on board when they left port. Despite this, Cuomo was the type of person to give even a man wearing the striped uniform of an Impel Down prisoner a chance to explain themselves.

"Isn't it normally pirates who are said to have pet parrots out at sea?" If the clanking of his chains hadn't warned the man of his presence, then he would certainly be aware of the marine now as he spoke up. "Good evening sir." He kept himself in a relaxed stance and held onto his typical soft and friendly smile though his eyes watched as thoroughly as they could for any sign of movement or threat to come.

[tyrfing]

(Like wise ;D)

"Isn't it normally pirates who are said to have pet parrots out at sea?" A sudden voice appears with a figure standing tall and mighty above him. A friendly smile on his face as the formality were cleared out of the way. "Good evening sir." Andrew couldn't tell if he had been standing there for long or just arrived. Repaying the marine with a similar smile he gestured for the marine to take a seat. Not waiting for the marine to make a decision whether to sit or not he continued the conversation.
"Hello there, I'd shake your hand but I'm a bit occupied of the moment." Fighting with the purple beast on his shoulder to calm it's frustration of the sudden drop of temperature. As the sun retracted it's rays over the open sea Andrew continued. "Absolutely, a marine with a parrot? That's unheard of, right? Frowning softly he drew his face back and shrugged. It didn't matter, be it wooden legs or eye patches, a man should be judged on his actions alone. He didn't say anything, he wasn't going to praise his own ideals. But we've been through our fair share of adventures all ready. I'm not going to leave him behind until we've seen the edge of the world together. He attempted a contagious giggle. Bored or unmoved by his story, Andrew couldn't tell so he figured philosophy wasn't his subject and changed the course of the conversation. Andrew got up and introduced him self with a deep bow as Andrew Tyrfing.

The night lights was prepared and men swarmed back and forth with orders to relieve the evening patrols. The sun painted the sky flaming red and a mild wind from south east blew a shivering feeling across the deck. Andrew's parrot Hauk had long since left him on the deck to find a warm cozy place for the night. Since the initial conversation few other marines passed by and took hold of the conversation. Even the first mate had appeared with marvelous stories of adventures. Every man eying the the marine with puzzled faces. "What happened then?" Spoken as one they reached out for more and the first mate continued while seeming to enjoy the rookies attention.
Andrew just smiled, secretly judging the marines. If it had any impact on his new friend he didn't show it. Catching Andrew's look with his superior posture Andrew found him self looking for an excuse. Pulling out his transfer paper he briefly summarized that he was being transfered to "The S.W.O.R.D. academy at Jreum island"

[Armani]

"SW.O.R.D.?"

What an odd coincidence…or perhaps an arrangement of fate? Regardless of how or why these two were brought together, Cuomo immediately took on a sense of camaraderie to this man, "Andrew Tyrfing". He certainly was a dramatic man, if nothing else, acting like he was taking the stage for everything. His guard let down and his soft smile beamed even brighter at the sudden find.

"How fascinating sir." He didn't quite return the bow that Andrew had given him, but instead, he gave him a brief, careful nod of the head. "I'm Cuomo Royale, Marine who's destination is also the S.W.O.R.D. training on Jreum." He would simply smile at him for a couple of seconds before continuing. "I apologize for labeling you as a pirate, Andrew. I didn't see a uniform and to be honest, I've met some pirates who would be bold and brash enough to simply take a seat on a Marine vessel full of men like it was nothing."

His mind turned to the past and some of his seemingly random encounters with the one pirate he knew he could call his friend, Ryan Wallace. The man certainly had a foolhardy way of going about things, yet it seemed that every situation he was put in wasn't a problem for the older man. He certainly had a power that Cuomo himself had yet to obtain. Maybe he would find it while training…

"It is exciting to meet someone before actually arriving at the base. I was stationed at Ilusia Kingdom myself. Where are you coming from, Andrew?" He inquired as he took he lifted his scarf a bit while the wind tried to bite at him.

[tyrfing]

(OOC: Had a little chat with shaki in the c-box, he asked where we were and if we could speed it up, let's hurry and meet the captain!)

"What!?"

Was he serious? They were going to be team mates! Was this what best friends were like? Andrew initiated a hug but sensed that Cuomo was in a different place in their relationship, that is; not present. Sensing the words "No way dude" radiate from his surprised eyes. No matter he thought, he will buckle under eventually.
Cuomo Royale, suspicious and careful. Traits worth having as a marine some one worthy of being his fellow marine, or supervising officer? Oh what does rank mean between best friends anyway, he told him self smiling. A question broke his day dreaming: "It is exciting to meet someone before actually arriving at the base. I was stationed at Ilusia Kingdom myself. Where are you coming from, Andrew?" Ilusia kingdom? He had absolutely no idea where that was. Would he take offend if Andrew didn't know anything? He surely didn't want to wreck his friendship this early, although it probably didn't matter to him. He continued after a long awkward pause: "Sooo yeah, I'm from the island of Sumba. A small thing in the middle of the tri-trade route of west blue." Opening his mouth to continue he remembered that he didn't even know that much about his own home island, so he changed the subject.

Darkness fell over the marine vessel breaking waves with it's humongous body, the marines had scattered around it's railing with night lights. The night was clear and quiet with the exception of the two men standing at the wheel. Navigation could be troublesome during nightfall so disagreement were unavoidable.
Andrew sensed that time had flown by and it was time to call it in. The estimated arrival to Jreum island were just a few hours away by the break of dawn. Andrew disappeared down below the deck thinking, tomorrow was going to be a great day.

[Armani]

((Ahhh, I see…well then! Then let's make haste to Jreum!))


The amount of excitement that was displayed on Andrew's face told Cuomo that the experience of meeting each other in such random coincidence was intense, to say the least. His eyes lit up almost like a child on Christmas when he heard the news that they were headed for the same destination. It was very entertaining, yet also flattering to the point that Cuomo felt honored to have such a reaction bestowed towards him. Not to say that it wasn't exciting for himself either. And even though he had been smiling about the fact already, Andrew's expressions could only stretch that smile out even further, to the point that if he held it for too long, his face would start to get sore. It couldn't be helped though, he had to smile.

"I apologize…I've never heard of Sumba, sir." If the name is any sort of indication however, it sounded exotic though.

Suddenly, the passing of time became much more relevant. A strange silence that hadn't been noticed before suddenly became deafening. Almost every crewmember, save for those on graveyard duty, had left for their bunks. A wave of sleepiness instantly grabbed a hold of Cuomo as he began to realize what the time might have been. As Andrew began to make his way towards his own bed, Cuomo took steps in his own direction. His feet took him to the railing for one last look out into the ocean. It was a lot different without the light from the sun to look on it. The ability to see long distances was now quite limited and forced his eyes skywards. Pinpricks of light filled the sky, save for the random cloud passing by. "Such a clear and serene night. It seems like the perfect setting."

His thoughts were kept to himself, more or less for the lack of anybody else around now. It definitely seemed like the best way for the weather and ocean to finally end the chapter of his life on Ilusia. Tomorrow was a new beginning. No doubt he would meet other marines at Jreum who were enrolled in the program. It was impossible to imagine all the different types of people that he would come across, though it didn't stop him from trying. As his body began to make its way to his own bunk on the ship, Cuomo's thoughts drifted one last time to the man he had just met, Andrew Tyrfing. He would certainly be interesting to get to know.

And Cuomo looked forward to it!

[tyrfing]

The ship carved through the weak waves leaving a clear trail from it's proud bow. Along the side of the ship the name Carrier was easily readable in a bright white-gold color. Starboard to port it was filled with marines as the ship made it's way to the port. With four masts it stood above the sea waves as a giant, carefully approaching the dock to restock it's supplies. The giant cared little for other smaller vessels as they flinched at the wake of the humongous body greedily threatening for more space. Turning a few heads along the coast the captain as proud as the ship itself barked commands to his subordinate. It was no small task guiding a ship to Jreum island, especially one as huge as the Carrier. It was not unusual to see such battle ships of the BFS-343 model around the waters of north blue. The white sails reflected the soft rays of the sun slowly descending on the waters.
The crew held no pause and were constantly in motion, Andrew was tasked with preparing the underbelly to restock before he got off and whistled a work tune. Which mostly involved moving every empty box to the front of the storage, every other box labeled and to the back. He had packed his luggage before he went to sleep last night and would get off as soon as possible, with his new friend Cuomo.

A delay caused the ship to wait until mid day before it could properly dock and put down it's gang planks. Andrew had been done for many hours just waiting at the railing looking to wards the marine base, towering above the civility. His parrot Hauk sat next to him on the rail asking him questions or possible complaining about the weather, Andrew wouldn't know. He wondered if he would get to see a devil fruit user, he heard a fair deal about them but never met one him self. Hauk set off to the town probably because Andrew spaced out, again. If he could get his hands on a devil fruit it would have to be one with the ability to fly. Nodding for him self it was clear the ability to fly would prove the most fun. A pair of drunken sailors were picking a fight at the docks but quickly calmed down and separated. Obviously not in the mood for occupying the marines attention, Andrew smiled for him self.
Finally the gang planks were dropped down and Cuomo appeared behind Andrew. No need for words as they, in one motion moved towards the exit and greeted the vice captain on their way out. They had been long underway but first now Andrew knew his life were going to start. They descended down side by side steadfast and heads held high.

(OOC: I think we are good to go now)