A Pirate's Soul Chapter 2

Chapter 2:: Massacre of Marine Base I-9

Hey guys, sorry for the delay. I've been pretty busy with . . . stuff. You know, volunteering,  cleaning up the whole damn house, party planning and partying, earthquakes and such.
I'm a-okay! (besides my allergies acting up)!

VOTE NOW! I HAVE A POLL UP FOR THIS STORY! I NEED HELP DECIDING KATSU'S INTRODUCTION AND I WANT YOU TO TELL ME! Go to fanfiction.net and to my profile, CanadianGothStalker, to vote on my poll.
Pretty please? I'm seriously having a hard time choosing.
Anyway I'll stop rambling so you can get to the story (for those who actually READ this)
~~~~~~~~~

%Narrator%

"Huh, I remember this," Nami shook out an old newspaper, over a year old by the date.
"What is it Navigator-san?" Robin crouched down next to her, smoothing the bottom of her skirt down.
Newspapers were spread out on the bright Thousand Sunny deck, some old and worn other were new enough to had come that day. They all dated back to when she first started sailing with the Straw Hats, and through the two years they were apart. She had kept everyone, no matter the unimportance of it. A tall cold glass of strawberry lemonade with a strawberry on the rim of sugar coated rim sat next to her, ice reduced to small clear specks floating to the surface. Her sandals sat next to her, bare feet tucked under her skinny jean clad bottom.
"'Massacre of Marine Base I-9'," Nami read out the title.
"Mmh~ yes that was all over the papers for weeks when that happened. I wonder if they ever caught the suspect," Robin said.
"Whacha up to, Nami?" Luffy swung by, nearly kicking her head with his rubbery feet.
"Luffy!" She shouted, throwing her sandals at the back of his head, making him fall into the sea.
"Captain Usopp to the rescue! Duh-duh-duh-duuh!"  Usopp dived into the water after Luffy. An explosion rang out from the bowels of the ship (AN: am I the only person who uses that word, bowels?) followed by shouts and the sound of hard-heeled shoes colliding with steel blades and the screech of Chopper running out from the inside of the ship, his fur on fire.
"I don't think right now's the right time to read it again," Nami gathered up the newspapers and stacked them neatly back into the boxes, the newspaper in question sitting atop the others.
It showed the title in bold black lettering and the subtitles read "Unknown enemy threatens the World Government". There was a black and white picture under that of a burning Marine base, Marines scrambling around to put out the fires. Piles of bodies surrounded the burning base, the poor quality blurring most of the details.

~~

"I heard of that," Sanji said at lunch.
"The Marine Massacre? What happened?" Franky cocked his head to the side.
"Sometime after the War of the Best there was a bloodbath at a Marine Base. Rumors say it was some of Whitebeards' remaining men taking their revenge by scaring the public. Others say it was the work of the Revolutionary Army," Brook explained.
"Whitebeards' men wouldn't do that. Their like us, won't kill to scare people or anything. Their hearts are in the right places," Luffy said around a large bite of his meat.
"Aw shucks thanks Luffy," Usopp waved his hand in embarrassment.
"So what does it say?" Chopper asked.
"Someone went in and killed everyone brutally, leaving a blood-printed message on the wall stating how they will take down the government one base at a time," Zoro said darkly. How the light hit his face mixed with how he said those words freaked out Usopp and Chopper.
"Zoro, stop scaring the children," Nami frowned.
"Children?!" Usopp and Chopper blanched.
"Not sorry," he went back to his food.
"I have it here," Robin held out her hand and one of her many arms handed her the newspaper.
"Read it! Read it! Read it!" the idiot trio pounded their forks and knives into the table, earning a kick from Sanji .
Robin cleared her throat delicately and read:
"' On April 17, weeks after the Battle at Marinford, a surprising attack occurred at Marine base I-9, where over 2,000 soldiers, all ranking from Chore Boy to Captain, were slaughtered. At 2:24 am, the attack started. Over 1,300 were dead, while the rest were either near death, handicapped, and/or deemed insane.
One of the only survivors was able to tell the tale of what happened that night.
Marine Esign Makko, came out alive with only a deep scar on his chest, and in his heart and mind.
"It was terrifying, how *they* fell down around me, ten, twenty in seconds. No one knew what hit them. When the attack started, blood and bodies flew and no one able to last more than a couple seconds once you were hit. Some were killed in horribly, grotesque ways. Getting sliced down the middle from head to toe. One was stabbed in the back, the blade twisted and sliced upward through the head. No, we didn't see the attacker. We saw the occasional flash of *something* and heard a maniacal laugh, but other than that, we were completely blind."
Our reporter, Lindsay Toma, asked the final question.
"There was an indication of an attack. It was weird. We heard a strange ringing noise, that seemed to vibrate into our very soul. Some guys started running around, claiming to be on fire or the demon of death was after them. I think the sound caused certain hallucinations to them. I, myself, swore I saw an army of skeletons breaching the outer walls, then I rubbed my eyes and they were gone. Strange flashes of images clogged my vision, while the ringing made us deaf and unbalanced. It was impossible to fight. Whether 1000 or just 1 man, we were doomed."
The attack not only cause a major uproar with the Government *since they lost a large amount of promising fighters*, but the world as well. Citizens of the surrounding islands are fleeing, hoping to get away from the site of destruction.
The victory of the Battle of Marineford had been dampened by this tragedy. All 170 countries are panicking from the fact that an enemy as powerful as this was able to slaughter so many officers in a mere two hours.
No one knows if it's the work of the Revolutionary Army, or pirates. The attacker(s) did leave a message, leading to further investigation.
The message, written in the blood of the fallen Marine Soldiers, read:
"There is no such thing as absolute justice. Peace cannot be maintained through the merciless slaughter of innocent lives. I vow to take down this so called 'World Government' and strip them of their title, rulers. Did anyone appoint you king? No. How many people disagree with your merciless slaughter and unfair charge? Millions and billions. Prepare to die, Gorosei."
Now and forever, this incident will go down in history as I-9 Massacre."

Silence followed, and then they all managed to put two and two together. Heads swiveled to where Zoro was chewing slowly on his sandwich. Brook and Franky looked around confused.
"Strange ringing noise?" Nami arched her eyebrow.
"Followed by hallucinations?" Robin added.
Zoro looked up, remaining eye wide in his innocent act as his chewing slowed. He swallowed and met the eyes of his crewmates.
Then he grinned and slapped the table with a shout, "That's my girl!"
"Mystery of unknown murderer case solved," Robin folded the newspaper and tucked it under her plate.
Brook and Franky were turning their heads back and forth from different crew members, a quizzical expression on their faces.
"Zoro's girlfriend," Usopp whispered to them
"Ow! Congratulations, Roronoa!" Franky slapped Zoro's back with his giant hand, practically sending him face-first into his food.
"Ooh! Zoro's got a girlfriend! Zoro's got a girlfriend! Zoro's got a girlfriend!" Brook started singing, getting up and dancing too. Usopp and Chopper followed suit.
"And I though this ended years ago," Zoro grumbled.
"So who's the lucky babe?" Franky was starting to sound like a gossip-loving high school girl.
"What's she like?" Brook added.
"Selfish, shameless, laziest, psychopathic, most annoying woman you'll ever meet," he said.
"She's the most beautiful being to ever walk the earth," Sanji sighed then turned to Nami and Robin, "But not as beautiful as you two, Nami-san and Robin-chan."
"Luffy's sister even," Usopp added. Brook's jaw dropped.
"Dating the captain's sister?!" Franky shouted out. "Does he even approve of it?"
"I'm okay with it," Luffy patted his large belly, "They're happy so it's totally okay."
"She must be crazy to be able to put up with you," brook said.
"She is slightly insane. I tested her," Chopper said, waving his small hoof happily.
"And she's proud of that fact," Zoro added.
"That explains the Marine Base massacre," Sanji said.

~~

Days followed that conversation. Teasing returned to Zoro, joined in with Brook's constant love songs and Franky rambling.
When Zoro had enough he just slammed his head against the Thousand Sunny railing and stayed there.
"I still don't know her name or what she looks like or what kind of panties she wears," Brook sulked.
"Boxers!" Usopp shouted from across the Sunny, somehow overhearing the conversation. "Sometimes bikini or just goes commando!"
Brook's jaw dropped again, "And how do you know Usopp-san? Have you been cheating?"
"No she walks around with no pants on," Nami said as she walked by, arms laden with rolls of parchment (AN: lolz, Harry Potter).

~~

" . . . And then the island sides lifted around me like a giant flower, bringing everything towards its mouth into the very center. And as the strong man I was, I managed to hang onto a tree so I wouldn't fall in. My friend, Heracles was falling down past me, so I used my quick thinking and skill to grab a vine and lasso him around the ankle, saving him from his immediate death," Usopp bowed at the conclusion to his story.
"Sugoi~!"  Luffy's and Chopper's eyes sparkled with admiration.
"Oi Usopp, come help me with this!" Franky shouted from the belly of the ship.
Usopp sighed and straightened broadened shoulders, "Alright."
The New World truly was a strange place. It made the first part of the Grand Line look like the Blue Seas to the Grand Line. It wasn't all bad, but not all good either.
"' . . .  Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore -
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Nameless here for evermore."

Robin was reading a poem to Chopper. Zoro didn't quite understand what it was, but it sounded dark. He sat up in the crow's nest, window wide open to let the ocean breeze blow into the warm room. Zoro sat with his head rested in the palm of his hand, eyes drooping and hair ruffling in the soft wind.
He listened to Robin, the ocean waves washing around the Thousand Sunny, Brook playing a soft tune on his violin somewhere, and Luffy's indulgent snores floated from the bow of the ship. It was peaceful. And he liked it that way.
"And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
`'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door -
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door; -
This it is, and nothing more,'"
'The guy must love his curtains,' Zoro thought, 'And seems either scared or excited about having a visitor.'
Speaking of which . . .
Zoro's sleep disappeared in a flash as he shot up from his position and leaned out the window, squinting at the horizon. He ran over to another window to get a better look, practically throwing himself out the window.
He checked. Double checked. Even triple checked to make sure he wasn't seeing things, then went to the income.
"Oi, we got a visitor. Mihawk's coming from . . . front left side of the ship," he announced.
"Wha-?"
Questions followed as the Mugiwara gathered onto the deck, looking out over where Zoro directed.
"Other side, idiots," Zoro sighed. In reality Zoro meant the right, not left.
"Shitty swordsman can't even tell his right from his left. I think his sense of direction has gotten worst over the years," Sanji complained.
All nine of them were gathered at the railing, leaning out to see the familiar raft approaching the large ship.
Dracule Mihawk sat cross-armed and cross-legged on his coffin raft, the blue flames flickering eerily in the late afternoon sun. The large black sword at his back glistened dangerously in the fiery light of the sun. His hat shaded his blank face. Mihawk's golden eyes seemed to pierce into them, as though trying to cut them in half with just his stare.
"What's he want with us?" Nami asked; as though someone would somehow know the answer. All eyes went to Zoro.
"What? I thought I wouldn't have to see him for a long time after I left him," Zoro replied.
"There's something on his ship . . . er, raft," Usopp pointed out. "I can't tell what it is."
"He's probably asking to join us, so he brought his stuff!" Luffy answered simply.
"Like hell he would, dumbass," Sanji flicked his spent cigarette into the ocean
"He wants to give us a present then," Robin said.
"It's probably suupaah~," Franky answered easily.
"Or a trap," Chopper added.
"He wouldn't do anything that low," Zoro stated.
"Well I guess we're about to find out," Nami said.