Devil's Luck Pirates

When he woke up this morning, fighting the two most powerful people in the South Blue wasn't on Jasper's mind. His cell's dark and damp walls now seem like a distant memory. He went from being in a constant state of limbo to feeling as alive as ever before in his life. His breathing is heavy, the cuts and bruises on his skin, and the shimmering sword held tightly in his hands are proof of his existence at this very moment. Even death staring at him from both sides is not enough to wipe away the smile on his face. Even less so after his bright pink eyes spot a friend from a past life walking through the hole in the wall in front of him.

-Duros! William! – He shouts from the other side of the throne room – You finally made it!! – Eustass Valve and Captain Marrow turn their heads landing their menacing glares on the crew.

William is a bit annoyed that Jasper completely ruined their element of surprise, but also relieved that he is still in one piece. Duros, on the other hand, is filled with joy at seeing his friend after so long. Ragnar is livid and enraged by seeing his two arch-enemies. And Verona, after having a clear look at Marrow's frown face, has a realization.

He sticks a hand in front of the crew and steps forward.

-So it really is you after all. – Verona declares as he stares at Marrow dead in the eyes – I was hoping it wouldn't be, but go figure! – He takes another step forward – I never would've guessed you're the man I was looking for until I read this letter… – He pulls a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. A letter from Marrow to his deceased father Cranstin – that I got from a quaint old man. – Marrow's frown further deepens as he understands his meaning.

-I've been searching for you for a long time now. – Verona continues – And there were times when I almost gave up because the trail seemingly ran dry. I was definitely thrown off by the fact you changed your name to 'Marrow'. – The Navy Captain is not facing directly at him – No wonder nobody knew who the hell I was talking about when I asked for a man named 'Dog Tooth'. By sheer chance, we stumbled across your father on a quaint little island, and he was nice enough to tell us about his prodigal son through the letters you wrote back to him. – He takes off his goggles, showing his emerald-green eyes filled with reage – Which is not only how I learned you changed your name, but also that you were, indeed, the man who not only killed my father; but attempted to kill me by BURNING ME ALIVE!

Verona pulls down his mask, revealing only teeth as his flesh has been completely burned off from the lower part of his face below the nose – You probably never expected to see me again! – He declares with an amused tone – And that's understandable… I was just a child, after all. But here I stand before you today, and I am not alone. While I may not be enough to take you down, I found strength through my friends – He punctuates his sentence by looking back at his comrades. Giving them as much of a smile as his scarred face is capable of.

-And listen here, Marrow. – Verona snaps back at the Navy Captain. The two men are mere meters away from each other – I declare today will be the day you die. But before that, you will tell me the reason my father had to die for. – He pulls Little Timmy from the holster on his back – And after you tell me the truth, we will kill you! But not for my father nor me, but for a man that you murdered not a while ago. A man that I hated once I met him, but that I came to respect as a true friend. – Verona pulls out a purple bullet from his pouch as he remembers one afternoon aboard the Yogi Pooh – His name… was Atom.

"You sure this isn't going to explode on my face?" The navigator asked the man with the purple jacket. The two of them just finished working on a special project together.

"Relax buddy. I used those kinds of things all the time back when I had a gun." He responds after puffing out a cloud of smoke.

"And what happened to it?"

"…it exploded. B-but that was after years of using it! It had nothing to do with the ammo."

"If you say so." The navigator responds with a chuckle.

"Oh! Since this is was a special collaboration, make sure to give me a shout-out."

"How so?"

"Just make sure to shout out my catchphrase…"

Then, faster than Verona will ever be in his life, he slaps the bullet into the chamber of his rifle and aims it at Marrow's heart. For that moment, the entire room; or even the entire world for that matter, goes quiet. And under his breath, he mutters…

-Yeehaw.

He pulls the trigger, and Little Timmy roars followed by an explosion that engulfs Marrow's upper body. The crew watches in awe as Captain Marrow tanks the hit head-on. William had already seen this scene before. But he's determined that it will end differently today.

Valve is livid at this point. Snickering under his breath as if this was a comedy.

The cloud of smoke slowly dissipates. Revealing a grand smile with perfectly white teeth.

-HE HE HE HE HE… little Vorona. – The tall man speaks in a menacing tone – I am surprised that you survived. Not everyone can withstand that kind of inferno. That proves how difficult pests are to kill!

His deep voice sends shivers down Verona's spine. But he stands his ground. The explosion only managed to burn a hole in the Captain's suit, with his skin underneath showing little to no signs of damage.

-Your father was a traitorous fool. – The man continues – I was just doing my job. – He explains matter of factly as he reaches inside his coat, taking out a carton of chocolate milk. – But in the end, I am grateful to you. Not only did you allow me to finish the job, but you also brought the man who killed my father! – He finishes glaring at William as he rips open the carton and begins to chug it down.

William immediately rolls his Devil Fruit. Getting the Atsu Atsu no Mi at number 90. Heat begins to emanate from his body as he unsheathes his sword.

-I regret nothing, your dad was old! – He shouts at Marrow with the intent of drawing his ire to himself rather than his friends.

The Captain responds with a grunt as a bone spear manifests from his torso much quicker than William's seen before. Marrow takes it and immediately launches it towards William with remarkable precision. Duros manages to block it right on time with some difficulty.

With this, the battle begins in earnest. Verona shoots at Marrow's head, but it doesn't go through thanks to his impossibly hard skull. Marrow responds by raising his hand and firing a volley of small spikes at Verona, which are also blocked by Duros.

-Don't think you're the only one with an impregnable defense here! – Duros taunts confidently as Ragnar rushes past him in his hybrid form. He brings his ax down on Marrow with both hands, the latter blocking the attack with his bone-covered forearm.

- CHAHAHA!! You're not getting away this time! – He declares as the two powerhouses clash for a couple of seconds until being interrupted by Eustass Valve.

-YALL FINALLY DONE TALKING!!! – He shouts as he flies towards the two giants, colliding with them in a cloud of steam. Jasper was keeping him occupied until the pirate simply dashed towards the others. Valve and Ragnar jot out of the cloud in separate directions. While Marrow is revealed to be standing on the same spot, spear in hand – Let me see… A mysterious gunman, a guy inside a tin can, a big bear, and an ordinary guy. – Valve muses after landing – You lot are the ones that attacked my hideout in Krendor! – He concludes in anger while waggling his finger at the crew. At least at the ones he has in front of him. Steam erupts from his skin, preparing to lunge toward Verona and Duros.

Then, two blades swing at him from the front and back. Jasper goes for Valve's chest, while William; who managed to sneak away amidst the commotion, aims at his neck from behind.

Valve shoots upwards, avoiding the blades in the nick of time and leaving a cloud of steam behind. Verona tries to land a shot on him, but Valve's quick and unpredictable movements make him almost impossible to aim at.

-Ragnar, look out! – Duros shouts at his comrade as Eustass Valve flies towards him.

With his open palm pointing at Ragnar, Valve unleashes a blast of high-temperature steam, hitting the man-bear point blank. Ragnar grunts from the burn damage but still tries to swing at Valve with all his might, fueled by revenge alone.

The Loose Canon is taken by surprise by this but still dodges out of the way. The heavy ax hits the floor, shattering the cobblestone to smithereens. But his relief of not getting hit by such a powerful blow doesn't last long as a bone-spear is hurled at him.

-Gah! – He dodges out of the way, with the spear tearing away part of his coat – Hey, hey, it's not fair that everyone is gunning at me! – He exclaims annoyed.

-That happens when you're a murdering bastard. – William retorts, firing at Valve with his steam-powered pistol, hitting him on the shoulder. Followed by Ragnar dashing towards his in a rage, unleashing a flurry of attacks toward Valve.

-Weren't you fighting with the other big guy!? – Valve questions, looking over his furious opponent's shoulder. Bones and bullets fly through the air as the Navy Captain slowly walks towards Verona and Duros.

-You must be the captain, right? – Valve asks. As he deftly dodges Ragnar's attacks – What about we parley and take out that pesky Government dog first, huh?

Ragnar has zero intention of listening to this guy. He just wants to split him in two after what he's done to his family and village. He swings his ax right to left, and as Valve jumps backward to dodge it, he follows up with a punch right on Eustass' stomach that sends him flying through the wooden doors that separate the throne room from the corridor leading to it.

-I'm afraid that even if he was the Captain, he'd never accept that offer, buddy. – William comments stepping into the corridor. His shoe makes a sizzling noise as it comes in contact with the floor.

-What?! – Valve gasped. How can a guy this imposing and strong not be the captain? That's almost like an unwritten rule when it comes to pirates. – Who the fuck is it then?!

-Me. – William declares as he brings down a red-hot foot kick towards Valve who's still on the floor recomposing himself. Luckily, he jolts out of the way with a blast of steam as William's foot makes contact with the floor. The stone almost completely melted into lava.

-And as Captain, I fully support my crewmate's quest for revenge. – He adds. Ragnar now stands beside him.

-…hihihihihi.. – Valve laughs as he gets up on his feet – I guess you are one of those that come full of surprises…

William is about to point his gun at Vale until Ragnar stops him.

-Captain. – He says solemnly, stepping forward – Thanks for the help, but leave this guy to me.

William can see the resolve in Rangnar's only good eye. He would've appreciated it if they could do this together, but he understands his desire to not burden the rest of the crew with his personal vendetta.

-Very well. We'll help out once we've dealt with Marrow. – The Captain says turning around to leave.

-Chahaha… I might come to help you guys after dealing with this guy first. – The shipwright affirms.

William smiles and runs back towards the throne room.