Devil's Luck Pirates

The man with the purple jacket dangles from Captain Marrow's spear. The blood slowly dripped down, smearing the pristine, white bone in the form of a spear with red.

Marrow lowers his arm slowly and methodically. The body slides out of it, hitting the ground with a wet splat. He, however, seems more preoccupied with the two figures running along the shoreline. The bone covering the Captain's arm dissolves back into his body as he takes one step towards his new prey until the sound of a transponder snail rings from inside his "Justice" coat.

He picks it up. An annoyed and frightened voice shouts at him from the other side of the line. Marrow grunts with anger as the caller hangs up on him. He puts the sail back inside his coat and slowly approaches the city gates.

In the meantime, Pear and Jasper are soaring the skies above the city. They can see pirates fighting knights and Marines all over the streets while many civilians are rounded up and put in chains. The desire to help them is immense. But their father must come first.

It is a silent trip. Too many things to be said but too little time to say them.

-Is your friend going to be ok? – Jasper asks, unable to withstand the silence.

-I hope so. – Pearl responds crudely – And he's not my friend. He blew me up inside a cave not long ago. And the spin-kick I gave him was not enough for me to get over it.

Jasper chuckles a bit. The flaps of Pearl's wings muffled the sound. The way his sister said it, without much sadness or anger just made him think.

-It seems you had a rough time out there… – He muses – But also a fun one, no?

Pearl thinks about his statement for a moment. She certainly has been through a lot. But looking back, it was a thousand times better than being locked inside a tower.

-Mostly after I met William and the others. – She comments with a smile.

-Don't forget to tell me all about it when this is all over. – Jasper adds. This comment made Pearl ponder. How will things be after this is all over? Will she stay here in Tarako to help her brother rebuild? Would he want her to stay? And what about Duros? Will he stay?

All good questions she did not want to think about at the moment. The castle is mere meters away from them. A group of Marines is guarding the front entrance while the pirates, accompanied by a maniacal laugh and copious amounts of steam, are approaching quickly.

They fly over the castle walls and burst through one of the stained glass windows directly into the throne room. Pearl and Jasper land graciously in the middle of the room, ready for any type of resistance.

But there is none, only an audaciously decorated room with an elaborate throne atop a flight of stairs.

Pearl is the first one to notice the trembling figure cowering behind the ostentatious throne hugging a sword. She widens her eyes and immediately puts on her hood, hiding her face within it. Upon noticing this, Jasper follows her gaze towards the throne; King Malachite, peeking from behind it.

She thought she could do it. She thought she could face that despicable excuse for a man after all this time. But after seeing his face, the memories started to flood her brain. The humiliation, the beatings, the corpses thrown inside her prison.

-W-who's there?! – He shivered, not recognizing his own children – H-how dare you to intrude upon t-the royal palace! I'll have y-you beheaded!

-After all these years, that's how you receive your son and daughter? – Jasper solemnly declares, walking past a petrified Pearl towards the coward king.

-A-ah! So it's you, my child! – The king responds with relief – A-and I see you brought that… thing. – Malachite could not hide his disgust and uneasiness upon noticing Pearl. The girl pulls down her hood This only makes Jasper even more irritated – You must be here to defend the Kingdom from those despicable pirates! – The old man's voice trembling with each word.

-Yes. – Jasper said, walking up the flight of stairs – And for that, I will need my sword.

The prince stops right in front of the king. His figure was slightly taller than the old man's thanks to their age difference. But mostly because Malachite keeps his head down and eyes on the floor as he rubs his hands together. He still remembers very well what he has done to the two of them, hence his pitiful attempt at being humble.

-R-right! Umm… – The king hesitated a bit. Not wanting to give away his pretty sword, but having no other choice – Here you go… m-my son. – He says, picking the sword from the ground and handing it to Jasper – Be sure to deliver justice to the enemies of this kingdom with it! – Malachite adds in a pathetic attempt to frame this as a heartfelt moment between father and son.

-That's exactly what I intend to do… – Jasper announces, unsheathing the sword from its beautifully decorated scabbard. The masterfully crafted sword gleams with a brilliance long lost as it is returned to its rightful owner – Starting with you, father. – He punctuates, pointing the tip of the blade at Malachite's throat.

-WH-WHAT!? – The king asks dumbfounded. How could his son turn against him in this moment of need?! The irony is not lost in any of them.

-For too long you have oppressed this kingdom and its people. – Jasper declared – Not to mention what you've done to my precious sister! – He growled.

-P-p-p-please! H-h-h-how could you do this to your own father!?!? – Malachite begged in tears, the sword now pressing against his neck. Jasper has all the reasons to kill this sobbing old man right now. But as he decides to officially humiliate him in front of the people he oppressed, an explosion grabs his attention.

Something suddenly blasted through the wall of the throne room, filling it with steam and dust. It distracts the siblings just long enough for Malachite to scuttle away. Jasper tries to stop him, but a shrill and maniacal voice grabs his attention.

-Hey Malachite! – The voice shouted from the smoke – Have you been selling slaves at a discount to the tree guy?! Your defenses are pathetic!!

The man steps out of the cloud of smoke, although it almost looks like it's coming out of him. He's of average height, with pale white skin, bright red hair, and purple lipstick. He donned a top hat covered in gears and pipes, the outer rim shadowing over his big, green-tinted goggles. A flowing brown coat also covered in gears completes his steampunk look. Emphasis on steam, as it can be seen coming out of his bare arms thanks to his rolled-up sleeves.

The most infamous man in the South Blue, the "Loose Cannon" Eustass Valve now stands before them.

-Who the fuck are you two? – Valve asks. Pearl seems to have snapped out of her trance. The explosion made her move closer to Jasper, who now stands beside her.

-Don't matter!! I'm itching for a good fight! – He declares, puffing out an enormous amount of steam.

Jasper keeps cursing in his mind. He cannot let Malachite escape with the Marines, but Valve for sure won't let them go.

Pearl puts a hand on her brother's shoulder.

-You keep him busy. I'll go after Malachite. – She declares.

Jasper wants to protest her decision. But there seems to be no other choice.

-Are you sure? – He asks, taking a glance at her. Pearl's face is mostly obscured by her hood, but he knows for sure the expression she has right now. The same he had back when he told Duros to protect his sister while he faced Commander Jefferson.

-…yes. – Pear answers, running off right after. Jasper then readies his sword, locking eyes with the pirate captain in front of him.

-Hihihi… You sure you can take me on alone, pretty boy? – Eustass taunts.

Jasper smiles – I might not be enough to bring you down. But I'm sure I can hold you here until the real heroes of today arrive! – He dashes forward, ready to strike.

Valve laughs hysterically – Well, come on then!! – He squats down, waiting for Jasper's attack.

The prince swings down his sword, but Valve bolts away from the attack in the blink of an eye, leaving behind only a cloud of steam.

Jasper manages to recompose himself. He locks onto Valve, who's now on the other side of the room.

-You'll have to be way faster than that!!! – The pirate exclaims before rushing towards the prince. Too fast for Jasper to dodge or even block.

Valve's fist singes the prince's face as it makes contact with it, sending him stumbling back against the wall.

So this is the power of an experienced Devil Fruit user, Jasper thinks as he stands up.

-What? Tired already? – Valve taunts.

-Quite the opposite... – Jasper rebuts with a smile – I feel much better now.

Valve looks at him confused, only now noticing the blood on the prince's sword. Valve looks at his cut arm, finally understanding the situation.

-Hihihihihi!!! Finally someone competent! – Eustass Valve rejoices – Let's have some fun then! – He bolts towards Jasper, who braces for another hit until a spear made of bone darts towards Valve from the hole in the wall.

The pirate reacts quickly; ejecting steam from his hands, pushing his body in mid-air back.

Jasper looks at the hole made by Valve. The tall figure of Captain Marrow, with a crushed carton of milk in hand, slowly walked through it.

The Navy Captain looks at the two of them. Anger and contempt plastered all over his face.

-OH, NOW THIS IS WHAT I CALL A PARTY!!! – "Loose Cannon" Valve shouts from the other side of the room, steam violently shooting out from his body.

As if the situation couldn't get any worse…