"Tella!! Come here with our prize!!" Ironjaw demanded. Alloy and Damion looked to their left, watching the two women freeze in fear of the man bellowing onto them. Tella, the woman had a lean figure, clearly a bit malnourished, had short choppy purple hair that gave the impression she cut it herself, she was clearly the ship mechanic due to parts of her skin looking greasy and ashy from trying to keep the ship afloat, well... more than it was. She had a belt barely filled with rusted tools and her hands a bit calloused from work. Her pants were a dark shade of blue but with even more grease than her stained and patched up purple blouse. She hesitated to move, with her hand holding the greasy wrist of a woman who had a torn up blue blouse that barely held on to her, grey pants that were held up by a woven rope and even a bit torn as well. Her hair was dirty, dimmed by dusk and grime. Forcing a brown and black color on it. It was long, moving to her lower back, and loosely braided. Her shocking feature were her pair of silver clover shaped pupils on her eyes that glistened on the rays of the sun on its four leaves. Sun-kissed light brown skin that was a bit pale due to her situation and a few scars due to her mistreatment on the ship.
"Kakeha… go to them, please." Tella began, starting to make small steps toward Ironjaw.
"But… the stars…" she hesitated.
"The stars could have led us to them, even if they're the Syndicate, they might be different." Tella continued. She turned back and began to walk toward him.
Alloy noticed this and was concerned. She looked at Tasue who was right behind her with her umbrella open and asked. "Who are those two??"
"They were being hurt by big men, so I helped them. I think they've been here without wanting to." She replied.
This left Alloy remembering what Ironjaw said when she asked for him. That he'd sell her like someone else. Looking at both the girls, they were both terrified. Tella struggling to head over to Ironjaw with all the will she could muster, and Kakeha frozen, looking across Alloy to the Syndicate's logo. Alloy doing the same to make sure what she was looking at was the symbol. Driven by emotions and curiosity, she jumped in between Tella and Ironjaw's men. Her left shadow katana in splayed in front of her path.
"Who are you…" she asked her. "Who is she??" She continued, pointing at Kakeha.
"I'm Tella, a pirate, that man's shipwright… she's…" her head down… "She's our prisoner, her name is Kakeha, but I want her out of here, she doesn't deserve what is happening to her."
Alloy, understanding that the only way she could get answers was through Ironjaw, she gazed at him. "I want answers, but with him around, you can't tell me much…"
She looked back at Tella straight at her eyes, "I know he is your leader, you chose to follow him. If I beat him, will you hold it against me??"
Tella looked at her, back at Kakeha, her widened eyes of surprise told everyone that she yearned for her freedom, believing that she deserved what was coming to her… she had her reply.
"No, I won't."
Alloy looked at toward Damion, a serious face still plastered on her face. "Keep that woman safe,"
"Got it." He said, his bow ready as he moved slowly toward Kakeha.
"Tasue, remove these guys from our way."
"Okay!!" She said, removing her whip from her umbrella.
"Tella… go to Damion and Kakeha, I want to know what's going on after this."
"O… okay." She hesitated, then she ran to Kakeha.
Ironjaw saw this and intervened by throwing something toward Tella, but it wasn't that fast or that strong. It was going to be a lethal throw but Damion shot straight at it to deflect it. They now held an attacking position, all of them. Alloy had reached the top of her emotional turmoil, the captain, the women who seemed like powerless slaves against him, Kakeha… who looked traumatized by the mere symbol of the Syndicate. She wanted answers, and she wanted them soon. They were all serious, everyone glancing at the other side of the ship, anxieties risen, weapons gleaning on the afternoon sun. Alloy looked back at Damion after the spear had fallen on the ground, piercing the deck itself and breaking more than it usually would. The next thing they heard was a slight thud on the side of the ship. It had everyone's attention, it was two pieces of wood, a ladder. They heard the footsteps climb the ladder and when they got to the top… the man shouted.
"Alloy!!" Yukio waved his hands, his white hair waved with the wind, but his face held a worried look.
"This ship is sinking!! Water has entered from more and more cracks since you guys boarded it!! We don't have time!! Just a few minutes!!"
She heard him, acknowledging the situation, but ignoring the need for a reply. She knew Ironjaw was strong for him to lead a ship of a hundred. But she also knew he wasn't at full strength. He had enough to scare the women into submitting to him, but the throw of his spear was slow and weak. Everyone could feel the new weight of the ship, it began going down and half of the second floor was already filled with water, with all the cracks in the ship, it wouldn't last long. Alloy now knew her next move.
"Tasue, go. I'm right here."
Tasue heard it and leaped on the bulwark, the raised sides of the deck as she looked at the pirates. The men began taunting them.
"Captain, they think they can beat us!!"
"Go you idiots!!" He shouted. "We need those women to fix our ship!!"
"But…" one said, looking at Tasue. "She's a little girl."
"I didn't ask who they are, just go. The other weak idiots defeated by that girl will pay after we settle this."
Two men went toward Tasue, one hesitating to fight her since she was a child, the other raged toward her. Immediately, both their faces were hit with a swift crack of her whip, forcing them to hold their faces in embracing their new pain. Tasue followed up with the people behind them, three more men jumped toward her, missing a hole in the space between them, in the same moment, she did the same, but better. She activated her abilities mid-air, chanted with a smile,
"重め (Omome) — Heavy!!!!"
and forced the men on the air to fall fast, they shouted and screamed as they dropped toward the first floor with nothing but a thud heard as Tasue landed in front of the last four men behind them.
She looked up, trying to stand as the angry face of a pirate was barely two centimeters away from her. She screamed as he raised his right hand to swing an ax at her. But Damion was on his toes. He shot straight at the man's elbow, making him drop the ax. Afterward, another arrow hit his chest, finishing the state of his consciousness and dropping next to Tasue. This didn't stop her, she acknowledged Damion's presence in the back of her mind and lunged once more at the three who were left. With a swift movement, she leaped and used her umbrella to gain height, and she showed Alloy and Damion something else she could do.
In the air, she closed her umbrella and right above them, they felt a sudden pressure, in the next second, Tasue flew back down, like she was flung heels first onto the three people. The attack was effective, however, the problem was that she fell through the area that all three of them held their ground and broke through as well, going down with them. Alarmed, everyone looked at the hole.
"Tasue!!" Damion shouted.
"That is no mere child." Ironjaw chuckled. "But she is quite stupid to sacrifice herself just to show off…"
Suddenly, a white veil formed where Tasue had fallen. It was like a cloud that began dissipating as Tasue herself stood right next to it. Right behind her, the hole she made with her attack.
"What just happened??!!" Alloy asked, alarmed. Everyone else's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
"It was Kakeha… this is her power." Tella answered.
"That girl saved me," Kakeha spoke. "I just did the same."
"Thank you." Alloy said as she ran to Tasue.
"Hey… you did great!!" She crouched with a big smile. "Go back to Damion and the women and get ready to leave this ship."
Tasue was happy by Alloy's reaction so she went back to Damion's position. His smirk enough to show he was glad she was okay. The next thing everyone felt was the whole ship creak even louder and water was now at the first level. The one right below them. They heard a thud along with it. The ladder that Yukio had placed fell over into the ship and now… the pirate ship was at the same level as the Syndicate's enforcer ship. With one more enemy to take care of, Alloy spoke.
"Everyone, go to the ship."
Damion knew and understood that she had it under control, his one shot to deflect the pirate's spear had told him how weak he was. All he had left was intimidation and a desperate force. He told the rest to follow him as he stood on the edge of the ship. Tasue, Tella and Damion jumped, Yukio waited on the ship with his three troops… but Kakeha froze.
"Kakeha!!" Tella called to her from the Syndicate ship. Worried for her. Alloy had seen this as well.
'Just what the hell is this Syndicate?!' She thought as she glanced at her and reassured Tella. "I'll come with her!! Yukio!! Check if she's okay!!"
"Will do!!" Yukio said. "Tella, please come this way." He added, his open palm showing her the ship's quarters.
"Kakeha-san. Please stay behind me." Alloy told her.
"But the ship is sinking…" Kakeha said."Just stay behind me, I…"
"ENOUGH OF THIS USELESS BANTER!!" Ironjaw interrupted. His patience had faded more than his current physique as he took spears from his fallen men's sides. He held them up and prepared a stance. His right foot forward. His weapons held in the air. They hit each other at their spearheads, clanging and forming a triangle. He took a huge breath and bellowed his move.
"突き斬り Tsukigiri (Thrust Slash)!!!!"
Ironjaw created a wave through the air, crafted by his strength and the attack of both spears, creating two sharp waves headed straight for Alloy and Kakeha.