As she looked around, still not seeing any signs of the so called 'dragon' or Max, Luka started to get a bit worried about him. She certainly wouldn't call him terribly experienced just yet. That's when one of the other Marines came up to her with a status report. "Ma'am! It appears that we have managed to assist everyone in town that we could find so far. There are a total of 19 casualties from a...flying sea king incident. Five total deaths are reported as well unfortunately..." They looked down, as did Luka at the mention of loss of life. She hated being too late. She hated not being able to save everyone but it was an unavoidable circumstance to these things. "Understood. Thank you. Make sure that everyone that survived is taken care of and any bodies remaining are properly buried and taken care of."
"Oh um Ma'am...one more thing..." She looked at them, eyebrow raised as they held up a small snail before her. "Private Max forgot this on the ship..." Her eyes widened just then as she snatched it up and turned on her heel. She began running in the direction she remembered Max had run off tofor his share of the search. No wonder she hadn't heard from him. Dammit! What if he was already- no, she wouldn't think like that. She'd put at least a little faith in him and merely pray everything was alright. She'd soon enough come upon an orange tree orchard as she kept running past the trees before coming to a sudden halt. There he was, perfectly safe and unharmed as she let out a sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness." As she walked past the trees, she heard another voice and soon saw the woman he was currently with, becoming confused then as she came in during the middle of some kind of story about her mother abandoning her. "Max. You forgot your Den Den Mushi..." She said, walking over to hand him the small device, eyes on the woman with the unusual hair style. "Who is this...?"
A big lizard? How in the world could such a thing escape in such a short time. Wait no. Luka had mention that the monster was a devil fruit user and would have turned back to it's normal form. For a moment Max had thought he had figured out the situation, standing up and peering over the trees before sitting back down, instead he was stuck not knowing how to find the pirate. And from what he was hearing from Tene her family weren't related to the attack either. Or at least not that she knew of. "It was devil fruit power. So I'm sure you wouldn't be part lizard...if it was them anyhow" The big man was relieved to hear her hold no ill will for his accusation not realizing that she could have very well hold a grudge. Seeing her pick up he oranges he had dropped he quickly moved to pick them up as well. "Oh you don't need to pick them up...I was thinking of bringing them back to my crew." If that was true why would he have dropped them? Carelessness. Wanting to shake her hand to properly greet her he forgot that he was holding them. Still he helped pick them back up again his big hands squashing a few of them. As the teen started to talk about her life and past Max would say sitting there listening. Having a patience most would not expect from the energetic wrestler. They both had very different upbringings and experiences but there was a theme that Max could relate to. Freedom. "It is your choice but if you do plan to become a marine. They are always looking for...what's the word. Blacksmiths. So you could probably learn to be one if you like polishing armor and helping with weapons." Max was so in concentrated on the conversation that he didn't hear Luka walking up behind him until she was handing him his Den Den Mushi back. "Oh the big lizard was some pirate we're trying to catch they have this special power from eating a fruit." Max would say to Tene before telling Luka who she was. "She's a civilian who I just met while looking for that pirate. Orange?" Grabbing the oranges the teen had offered him and offering them to Luka.
Tene stared at Max with a questioning gaze as he went on to answer her question, "Devil fruit?" she questioned clearly lost about the whole thing, since she still didn't know what one was despite having been the one to eat it. When she moved to pick the oranges up he was quick to be a gentleman and try to help as well as offer reason for what he was doing, "Aye, if you bring them back it wouldn't do if they were squashed or dirty." she'd snort continuing to help him. When she had dug her nails into the first orange and neatly began carving the peel she would listen to him mention that they were always looking for blacksmiths, she stared at him for a moment looking thoughtful as she mulled over his recommendation. The bronze skinned lass looked over to a new woman with....wow that was a really big forehead. She stared at the red head for the longest time...rather she stared at her forehead but quickly remedied her casual stare when the woman gestured to her. Blue stared towards green briefly before going back to peeling the orange and offering one or two to Max as he explained that the pirate they were trying to catch could transform, "Wait." she suddenly stated looking at the orange in hand, "If I keep eating these will I get a special power?" she questioned holding up the orange briefly and looking between the two of them.
She looked at him and then to the woman, shaking her head as her hand was raised at the offer of fruit. "No thank you." She replied, looking at the young, tanned woman. She shook her head again at the questions regarding Devil Fruits. "No, they aren't any ordinary fruit...Devil Fruits typically have swirling patterns on them and taste absolutely vile. They are possessed by the spirit of an actual devil that grants the consumer a permanent special ability, at the cost of their ability to swim." She spoke calmly, informing the young lass properly on at least the basic bit without going too into detail. "In fact, we have reason to believe the 'monster' that attacked the town was someone who had consumed such a fruit. Many of them allow their user to transform into any number of different animals or beasts and back, without any indication as to their true nature." She narrowed her eyes at the woman, somewhat suspicious. "You wouldn't happen to have noticed any strangers arriving upon the island recently, would you? Anyone not a normal inhabitant? Or anyone acting unusual from the norm by chance?"
Luka must have not been a orange person. When his offer was rejected Max would simply shrug and eat them himself; saving a couple of oranges for his crew. The wrestler didn't even realize that Tene was questioning what a devil fruit was until she asked if eating the oranges would give her a special power. That was something that Max didn't really know. Having only heard of tales when he was younger but other than that he never seen anyone with amazing powers. Making him thankful for the info session that Luka decided to give about devil fruits. Hands placed under his chin, Max listened intently towards the strange side effects that eating one could have. Without noticing it the conversation would slowly move towards Tene and about the pirate who had attacked the island; clueless about the fact that Luka was attempting to question his friend. Max decided it was a great time to butt in and mention his fruitless report. "I looked all over but it looks like the dragon person left" He wasn't too ashamed of not finding the pirate after all what he did find was a friend.
Ryunosuke Ryusei
Cor Contritum
Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 10:15 pm
Tene looked at the woman who rejected oranges, maybe it would eventually turn her red hair orange and that was why she didn't like it? Who knew. At the explanation of devil fruits she'd become interested and remain quiet as she waited for it to finish, "How do marine's catch them then? I mean if you capture them and don't keep'em knocked out wouldn't they like...uh..." she thought hard, "Bust out of whatever you bind them in and leave? I mean for anything that can't fly- wait, are there flying ones too? What about a squid? Wait if there was a squid fruit does that mean it would just dry up on land or something? Or can it swim?" she looked immediately delighted at her ramblings before she'd blush and purse her lips. When Luka went on to half glare at Tene she would be once again enraptured by that large forehead as the eyes grew smaller, her eye twitched as she would attempt to actually make eye contact again, "Stop squinting damn it I can't stop staring at your forehead!" she snapped before slapping her hands over her mouth, "Oh gods, I am so sorry!" she quickly stated before deflecting to what she asked, "Nope, before I got here my family was here. I dunno if that lizard thing was there, I was sorta hungry." she stated pointing at the many orange trees behind her, "Don't you call me a coward for not helping out the villagers and all either! I didn't know what the damn thing was and it was biiiig." she stated widening out her arms, "Other then that I guess I'm the only interesting one here. I'm ******** purple and hispanic." she'd roll her eyes, "Oh, I did see some big old fins though, maybe the lizard could swim? Wait, no, you said if it was a fruit person they can't. What if it was just a sea king?" she wondered idly before looking at Luka, "Also! Cause I know you might jump like my pal Max here, I am not a pirate! My...family is, but I didn't do anything!" she stated quickly, "The Mad Cat Dekura leads them, I'm not his underling....which...prooobably means I might get killed now that I think about it. I mean technically speaking I was born into their group so I can only get out by death? Maybe? I dunno, mum and my foster pops didn't really explain s**t, kinda threw me on the life boat when they got back from here and then kicked me towards this place." she murmured before staring at the oranges again, "...are we stealing oranges? I mean...technically these do belong to the townsfolk." she murmured as she stopped peeling an orange to glance between the two, "How much you think they'll charge me for eating the oranges?" she asked with a sheepish smile. These two were kind of fun to talk too. They weren't as rowdy as the Mad Cat pirates, but they were decent listeners.
Unaware that her simply refusal of the oranges was being taken so seriously by the other two, Luka would look at the woman as she started speaking. Her question was indeed hard to answer as keeping such people arrested was actually somewhat difficult specifically due to their powers. "Typically seastone cuffs can be employed. It's a special material that negates their ability to use their powers. Yes some fly, and none are sea creatures." She answered each thing in turn and overlooked and ignored the rude, yet very overplayed remark regarding her forehead.
However her attention was at full when the name of that b*****d Dekura was mentioned. Having personally witnessed the destruction that man had so casually performed on a whim alone, she was anything but pleased to meet anyone connected to that man. In fact Tene had likely damned herself by mentioning such a specific as Luka waited for the story to end. "I'll pay for the oranges. As for your connection to the Mad Cat..." She paused slightly, sighing as she stepped closer to the woman. "I'm afraid that sue to his sheer threat level to the world and your confession to being connected to him in any ways, I'm going to need to further interrogate you. If you really are innocent and trying to abandon that lifestyle for you own, then I can likely put in a good word for you to possibly joining the Navy. If not...Then there will be severe repercussions..." Her tone shifted at the last part, sounding much more stern.
Bringing along a bag would have been helpful to carry all the oranges.The juice from the peeled oranges, that Tene had handed him, got his hands sticky. It was a small annoyance that could have been dealt with if there was any sort of bag. Ignoring that side speculation, Max's attention would go back to the conversation. Tene asking more questions which Luka would answer in. Max nodding along pretending to have known all of it, in reality this was all news to him. There wasn't much he could add to the conversation but when the purple haired teen spewed out an insult, Max would burst out laughing. "GABABABA SHE DOES HAVE A HUGE FOREHEAD" Wheezing, Max would fall backwards holding his sides. The captain's forehead was proportionally bigger than the rest of her body and her squinting her eyes only made it stand out more. The giant was baffled by his own blindness; how could he have not noticed such a thing. Max's blindness towards the outside world became more important when a confused expression appeared on his face, when the topic went towards a man named Mad Cat Dekura. Having no idea who it was, Max would see Luka's reaction as abnormal and unwarranted. The once laughing giant would become serious. Standing up with his arms crossed over the other. "Now captain. Tene has nothing to do with the man. If she did why would she risk imprisonment for mentioning even the slightest involvement with him...whoever he is" A tincan once mentioned that he should show respect towards a superior officer but respect was earned by one's actions not one's title. Tene has been kind to him even when given a reason to act rudely.
Tene stared at the woman as she would talk about 'seastone' though all Tene could imagine were seashells and rocks that came up from the waters, she just took an educated guess that it wasn't just any old rock that came from the ocean. Though it was interesting, though she was more bemused by the fact that there were flying ( which she was aware of ) creatures and a little disgruntled at the lack of fish devil fruits, "Maybe the devil fruits of the sea are the sea kings? Like, failed devil fruits...half grown? Is that even a thing?" she wondered idly. Max immediately busted out laughing when Tene had yelled at Luka to stop squinting, she couldn't help it, the woman's forhead was so damn white and smooth, she had very pretty skin....easily shown off by her billboard forehead. Though when she had mentioned Dekura she saw Luka's expression change, she blinked but had continued her story. Luka offered to pay for the oranges and then went on to speak saying she had 'confessed' to being connected to someone she had no choice of being connected too. When Luka stepped closer Tene immediately closed her expression's off becoming stony and steely as she would immediately start to label this woman as someone awful, unlike Max.
The man hadn't reacted to her like she was of the utmost threat because she was born somewhere. A glare became fixed on her face as her nails dug into her palms while the woman went on to claim that Tenebrae now deserved to be interrogated, and apparently wasn't allowed to go free to do what she wanted unless it was under the work of the marines. Tenebrae began to shake in anger clearly not happy, Max's words didn't seem to calm her, well not too much. Tene stepped closer towards his side and away from Luka, she growled trying not to lunge at this woman's eyes. She hated that look. She felt like she was guilty for living. she growled backing behind Max at this point practically hissing like a cat, "I won't answer your questions you ******** awful judgmental whore!' she growled before taking a deep breath and trying to settle down.
"Max, I'll go with you. I'll answer your questions, or someone who is actually nice like you." she stated before glaring daggers at Luka and then pretending like the woman didn't exist, "But I won't ever join the marines. Not while judgmental people like her are there. I don't need people deciding that I'm awful just because of my birthplace, or the occupation of my mum and pops." she sneered clearly bitter now as she would offer and arm out to the man to cuff her if necessary, "Tal vez debería haber preguntado si podía obtener alguna información, ¡pero noooooo! Voy a acusar a alguien como una zorra de lame el culo. Coño de mierda! ( Maybe she should have asked if she could get some info, but noooooo! Going to accuse someone like some boot licking... *cussing at Luka* )" she snapped before crossing her arms clearly defiant.
Once again her forehead was the topic of discussion as she merely sighed, rolling her eyes quickly as she ignored it. Such remarks had gotten beyond old honestly. As for the young lady, she didn't take Luka's decision very lightly. In fact she practically exploded as she seemed to misunderstand her intentions entirely, even going to far as to call her a 'judgmental whore' which was admittedly a bit surprising. She wasn't used to being considered 'not nice' but at the same time that wasn't her job here as she softly sighed, looking between the two. before thinking how best to correct this child. "Max is neither in charge, nor does he have any authority to perform an interrogation for one. For two..." She stated, staring directly into Tene's eyes. "You seem to have misunderstood what I meant. I am not trying to force you to join anything. But if you really are just a victim of circumstances like you say, then wouldn't you agree that joining an organization like the Navy might offer you a bit of protection? You said so yourself after all. He's most likely going to have you killed for leaving and you should pray he doesn't decide to do so himself. I watched that man obliterate an entire island like it was nothing."
Her tone became more serious on the matter as she was forced to recall so many lives being ended all at once, barely even surviving the destruction herself. "Mad Cat Dekura is one of the four Yonkou. The pirate lords who are the most powerful threats to peace in the world." She clarified the scale of the situation, while also informing Max about who the man was. "If he wants you dead, do you honestly believe that simply sailing about on your own is the safest option for you? I am not going to make you join or do anything you don't want to, but simply letting you remain a free roaming civilian is no different than choosing to leave you for dead under the current circumstances." She finished off, still sounding stern but she was legitimately concerned. Letting someone be just to wait for Dekura or a member of his crew of monsters to show up and kill her just didn't sit well with the woman. The thought alone made her feel shitty. Hence her intended offer.
Hearing Tene's theory about sea based devil fruits, there was not a single word she had said that Max would comprehend. Not understanding a word, the big man would still give a confident response. "No it's not a thing" Looking over at Luka for some reassurance. There would be no confirmation as the topic had changed to one that quite frankly made Max uncomfortable. Blaming Tene had been a mistake and seeing someone do the same, in a much worse fashion, was hard to watch. Keeping his eyes towards the ground hoping for a friendly resolution after what he said, instead Tene spewed unwarranted insults towards Luka. The big man would now go on to defending Luka. "Woah...Tene I'm sure she meant no harm by what she said." Still his voice was drown out by the insults and Luka's explanation of her own actions. Being told that he had no actual authority to do an interrogation which admittedly was true even if he was a higher ranking officer. Being told who the man was did explain the situation a bit more for Max but he didn't quite understand the power or threat of a Yonko. Being called nice would normally bring a smile on his face but the fact that the sentence was also an insult towards Luka didn't bode well with him. "You'll find people judging you everywhere you go. But it is your choice to join or not. It's been fun so far even if we didn't caught the pirate who did this" Standing back on his feet since it appeared that they were either questioning Tene or leaving the island. Both which should happen on board the ship.
Ryunosuke Ryusei
Cor Contritum
Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2018 9:57 pm
Tene continued to glare at the woman not at all happy about this whole entire thing, the first thing Luka tagged on too was the fact that Max wasn't allowed too. Tene fully intended on stopping the woman there but she was stopped by the fierce look in Luka's eyes as she would continue on to explain that she had apparently misunderstood. Annoyance and defiance became obvious in the young wyvern girl's eyes as she glared back while Luka explained what she had meant. She'd grimace at Luka's remarks on why she should have no reason to pass up on the navy and then went on to mention protection. Tene's fingers grasped Max's shirt lightly in hand as she would become less and less okay with what the woman was saying and looked down after a moment, "I heard he did some bad things..." she muttered easily making it clear she didn't know as much as Luka and the marines most likely hoped. Tene would remain quiet for a good while as she would think over what Luka said. When Max had attempted earlier to placate the raging teen she had kind of ignored him, but she calmed slightly to think rationally. With Max's remarks after listening to all of Luka's words she'd look at her shoes and seem almost thoughtful if not guarded.
With a deep breath she looked between the two, "I don't feel like I would like to join the marines. I'll answer any questions you have to the best of my ability." she stopped and pointed a sharp jeweled nail at Luka, "I was not part of his main crew. I was under a different division entirely. What you are asking me to do by having me go under protection or whatever means I would be giving up my birth mom. In the off chance we fight them at any point in time...well I don't know if I could kill or arrest her." she stated lightly, "I'll go with. I'll help out at the marine place or whatever, but I don't want to be a marine...I'll keep an open mind about becoming one though." she muttered glancing up at Max and releasing his shirt, "I don't think you'll be able to protect me from Dekura if he is able to blow up islands though." she muttered clearly doubting the powers of the marines.
Finally, with a proper explanation provided, it seemed the woman had calmed down a bit. Max had attempted to quell her anger himself but it still took a few moments either way. Though it would appear than Tene wasn't even fully aware of how dangerous Dekura himself was previously. Luka sighed softly as the younger girl began to say how she'd be more cooperative this time, but also not wanting to join the Marines even with the promise of protection. It wan't like Luka could tell her to fight and kill her own family anyways. If she had found out Ran had gone and done something terrible, she would be unlikely to raise a blade to him herself. Though of course there was doubt they even could offer her such protection as well, which was understandable. The Marines didn't often do displays of raw power like pirates did so such was to be expected.
"As I said, I don't plan to force you into anything, but please consider it a helpful recommendation. And yes...he is extremely powerful and dangerous. But that's what we have the Admirals and Fleet Admiral for. They are the strongest members of the Navy with their powers rivaling that of the Shichibukai and Yonkou. Should Dekura make an appearance again, they would certainly be directly involved in dealing with the issue and I assure you they can handle it." She spoke more calmly now, sure of Chikami's own strength as she'd watched him take down that traitor Merlin personally with ease. "After the questioning is done...I'll give you my personal Den Den Mushi contact at the very least if you still do not wish to join the Navy yourself. That way, should Dekura come after you, you can let me know and I'll be able to contact the higher ups about his movements. Does that sound fair to you?" She asked, genuinely wanting to help her in some way and very much not wanting to just leave her to the wolves in a worst case scenario.
Feeling a small tug on his shirt Tene was hiding behind him like a nervous child would when meeting a stranger. Giving a reassuring toothy smile at the young woman. There was no reason to fear Luka. Their initial greeting, where some over sized scrap of metal decided to kick him in the gut, had the Commander try to broker some peace between them. It didn't quite work out as the man soon left the marines; it was for the best after all the marines wouldn't want someone who would up and leave simply from disliking a single person. Ironically that was the kind of person Tene was but Max was oblivious about it. Letting the two women talk to each other before butting in at the end. "You dare question my ability? I'll let you know I have been known to create islands with every breath I take" Max would boost beating his chest once. It was disheartening to see Tene worried and full of doubt, she wasn't like that when they had met earlier. Putting his hand down on he ground his palm was open, the look on Max's face was inviting Tene to get on his hand. If she did she would be placed on top of his shoulder. "By joining the marines you'll always have a place to stay" After hearing that Tene was in danger Max felt obligated to protecting her and teaching her how to protect herself. A job made easier if she joined the marines, which explained why he seemed more adamant in her joining.
Tene would listen to Luka as she went on to speak about reassurances on them being able to handle Dekura and everything. She'd slowly nod and accept the woman's offer on a den den mushi should Dekura appear, but she had the in general feeling that if the Mad Cat came prowling she wouldn't know ti'll it was far too late. The young hispanic looked to Max when he made what she assumed was a joke, "So you breath dirt?" she questioned with an amused smile. She'd look to him when a hand was offered and she'd step into it before being raised up and allowed to sit on his shoulder, she balanced with ease as a large smile appeared on her face, "Man, it feels much nicer up here!" she'd look more relieved after all the serious talk had gone, she'd only look a little uncertain when it came to Max's suggestion on having a place to stay. She patted his neck, "I promise I will seriously consider it. I don't want to join just because I'm scared of the cat man." she'd mumble looking fairly skeptical, "So. We going then?" she questioned looking between the two marines.
