The Marine

A month and a half after sailing away from Water 7, the [Frontier Run] crossed over the Calm Belt and entered the waters of the [South Blue].

The voyage so far had been uneventful due to the fact that they used two Eternal Pose – one to get to Water 7 and the other to an island that Hollandaise knew in the South Blue; where it was hoped they would clear his name from the charges sent against him.

Besides the commission to repair [Gran Tesoro], Bill had decided to spend up to two weeks sailing around the area that Hollandaise claimed his tribulations had originated from.

Of course, he didn’t buy the notion of [Pure Gold], but Bill knew the older man was either telling the truth or lying to himself, and that alone made it worth while to go and see what was going on.

Asking more about the story which [Hollandaise] had told Bill about all those years ago when he was a prisoner, he said that his bounty came from the fact that he and his small merchant crew had been held hostage by a 200-year-old girl and a big lizard, and that little woman – or ‘girl’ as Hollandaise claimed – was Wanted by World Government because she had [Pure Gold].

When Bill asked how he knew this girl was wanted by the World Government, Hollandaise claimed that they had come upon this information when they went to report the theft of their cargo – which was canned sea king meat, Hollandaise emphasized – and overheard two men speaking about the situation.

These shady men had been very open about the facts of the case – which coincided with what the girl talked about as she ate up their cargo.

Furthermore, according to Hollandaise, these men had definitely not been Marines, and that fact was what made them so fearful that they ran away and attempted to sell the information about [Pure Gold] to any major pirate crew for protection.

Finally Hollandaise claimed he knew more about the corrupt side of the [World Government] because he was a merchant who traded with [Gran Tesoro], and even if he dismissed the idea that those men were secret agents, then they might as well be Marines because he had seen Marines do a lot worse than rough up some shoddy merchant crew when those orders were given.

Needless to say, Bill didn’t like that accusation.

He had been exposed to some greed in the organization – for example when Captain Hina’s subordinates had tried to not pay spoils to the Science Division after the shipwreck fiasco.

But that kind of greed was more on an individual level, and not something that could be seen as institutional.

As a matter of fact, hadn’t the corrupt Captain Nezumi been arrested after Bill tipped off the appropriate authorities?

But, no matter what, Bill didn’t get defensive over the claim Hollandaise made.

Firstly, this was because he knew that man wasn’t outright lying.

Secondly, because over the last month the new Fleet Admiral had been decided on.

Admiral Akai- no… [Fleet Admiral Sakazuki] had emerged victorious over Aokiji in a battle that Nelson reported to Bill not only destroyed an island but also a battle that shook the organization when Aokiji resigned afterwards.

What did this mean?

Well, for starters it meant that there were now two open Admiral positions and Aramaki was one of the prime candidates being reviewed.

For Bill’s entire life, even though he tried not to use it, his father had been his final lifeline when things got out of hand.

It was currently unknown all of what Sakazuki would choose to do now that he had taken control as [Fleet Admiral], but one thing was for certain, if Aramaki became an Admiral, then Bill figured that whether it was a corruption case against South Blue Marines, or a mistaken warrant posted by [Cipher Pol], he would be able to clear the name of Hollandaise.

So, with this in mind, the Frontier Run sailed into the South Blue.

Sailing in one of the Lower Seas was always a treat for Marines who were stationed on the Grand Line, smaller waves and less dangerous sea kings were only the tip of the iceberg.

In the Lower Seas, weather patterns were more stable, and the pirates were generally less localized, which was to say that they generally were too weak to put down roots anywhere.

Excluding Bill, this sense of ease that infected the Lieutenants naturally trickled down to the rank and file.

Special Operators whose goal was to become [Beetleborgs] trained their [Iron Body] techniques a little less hard, Borodo spent more time fiddling with his mechanical contraptions than updating weather charts, Foxy started fishing, and even Nelson stopped drilling the men quite so much.

Seeing this, Bill didn’t say anything thinking that the men and women needed some days to relax, and in that way one day passed after the next.

On the fifth day of the journey, just as they had entered the area that Hollandaise described, Bill stood on the deck and watched the South Blue’s low waves crest in the distance.

Seeing a flock of News Coo flying high above the ship, Bill flicked a coin up in the air and getting a paper of the [South Blue Times] for the first time in years he leaned over the ships railing he read his favorite newspaper.

Nothing much was happening it seemed, sure there was a tournament going on at Karate Island, but besides that, the paper was filled with what could only be considered trivia.

And so, folding a paper, Bill tucked it under his arm and breathed deeply.

He truly didn’t have high hopes for finding anything, without radar or satellite, finding any specific target on the open ocean was literally like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

From time to time, he would jump high into the air and scan the horizons, and this, during this moment of boredom, made Bill consider the practicality of airplanes.

‘Well…’ he started to think.

Of course, the function of localized scouting could be done with the Iron Wardens, but Iron Wardens were incredibly expensive and there were the morale issues to consider.

Yes, the rank-and-file Marines would definitely feel reassured when they saw a half dozen [Iron Wardens] flying overhead to engage enemies, but what if for the same price Bill could have two dozen Mustangs thundering above them?

Idling around while he leaned on the railing, Bill began to daydream about the possibility of having his Department equipped with aircraft, then as his mind tended to do, those ‘daydreams’ started becoming a series of ‘pros and cons’ which then turned into ‘if and then’ which finally ended up in ‘how could it be implemented’.

For starters, he told himself, they would need to design aircraft carriers, and this represented its own problems because even if the planes could be fueled by stabilized [di-hydrogen] instead of diesel, it was impossible to imagine them having the ability to supply an aircraft carrier-sized vessel with that fuel anywhere except for around the vicinity of New Haven.

‘Unless…’ he thought to himself, but before he said the word “reactor” out loud, he saw a puff of black smoke far out on the horizon.

Squinting his rebuilt eye, Bill’s sight turned telescopic, and though he was unable to see whatever was causing the smoke, he knew the smoke was from an intense fire due to how black it was.

Reaching into his Coat of Justice, he pulled out a walkie-talkie and spoke to the crew: “Call to Maneuvering Watch!”

‘Maneuvering Watch’ was the code implemented in Bills Department where the most skilled Helmsmen, Spotters, Signalmen, and other deck hands took control of the ship.

Typically, the practice was to use ‘Maneuvering Watch’ when entering ports or going through shallow water, but when it was called when out at sea, it was seen as a precursor to a ‘Call for General Quarters’.

With his sudden alarm, the ship burst into a flurry of activity, and standing on deck for a few moments, Bill waited for Nelson to come running over to him.

“Actual?” Nelson asked quickly and pointing to the small dot of smoke on the horizon Bill answered affirmatively.

Taking out a pair of binoculars, Nelson looked in the direction Bill pointed in, and nodding he said: “Righto, Commodore will you head over first?”

By now, Borodo had gotten to Bill along beside Miyagi, and talking to his three lieutenants, Bill said: “Yes, I’ll go take a look. If I don’t return by the time that you’ve sailed half the distance, then call for General Quarters.”

“““Aye, Commodore.””” The three men answered in tandem and rushed off to their own duties.

While Borodo and Nelson would have their own jobs in commanding the ship, Miyagi would no doubt be getting the Medical Bay ready just in case, and seeing the trio move quickly, Bill didn’t linger.

To mention Bill’s mastery of [Moon Step] was unnecessary at this point.

Having defeated the [Flying Pirate] in mid-air combat, Bill was undoubtedly more skilled with that technique than anyone alive, and maybe more so than anyone who ever lived.

His physical strength certainly played a large role, but more than that was the fact that he had used the technique virtually every day since he learned it.

And so, moving through the air almost as quickly as he would have on land, the tiny dot of smoke very rapidly enlarged to a point that Bill could see what it was.

A burning [Marine Battleship].

Not just any battleship, Bill quickly noticed, it was a Grand Line-class vessel.

These kinds of ships could be seen in the Lower Seas, but they were extreme luxuries considering their price tag. Added with the fact that they were just not necessary, they were naturally very rare.

Picking up his speed, Bill turned into a blur and landing on the deck of the ship, he looked around with a hardened expression.

It was a massacre.

The ship was billowing out smoke with scores of Marines lay dead all around. Some of the men and women were slashed, some seemed to have been bludgeoned, but most had metal arrows sticking out of them.

Amplifying his senses, Bill quickly thought of looking for survivors, but then he paused, thinking that the ship had only not sank due to the seastone hull and the fact that the magazine hadn’t exploded.

‘Preventing an explosion comes first’ thought he, and with that thought he moved like a shadow.

Entering the lower deck, the halls were filled with smoke and sporadic signs of fighting.

Dead bodies positioned here and there were accompanied by the pristine-looking interior that any commander of such a ship would demand.

Judging from the direction of the smoke and where he had seen the fires, Bill continued to move with great speed.

Down two levels he reached the ships gunnery deck – this Marine Battleship, like most others, still relied on broadside cannonades – and finding the room so full of smoke he couldn’t see his hands in front of his face, he held his breath and rushed in.

Getting to where he figured the first gun port should be, Bill found a barrel of gunpowder.

Thinking it was good that he could have found what he was looking for so soon, he quickly turned and using a tiny bit of his strength, he pushed on the sides of gun port.

The thick multi-layered wooden wall of the ship ripped just like paper under Bill’s hands, and with a body-sized hole in the side of the ship, smoke billowed out fast.

It was still impossible to see clearly, but with the hole already made, Bill moved up and down the gunnery deck, launching one barrel of gunpowder after the next through the hole he had made.

In this way, and after smothering some fires out with his feet and bare hands, it took Bill roughly 8 minutes to be relatively sure that no explosions large enough to sink the ship were possible.

With the threat of an explosion mitigated, work to save any survivors began. Every body that Bill passed was checked for life.

He had checked 18 before finding one, then he checked 22 before finding another.

A battleship of this size could hold a crew in the neighborhood of 2000 individuals. In a tight squeeze, its max occupancy may be closer to 3000.

Applying first aid to whoever he found alive, Bill used his communication device to inform Nelson of the situation, and by the time the Frontier Run pulled within range to start deploying its water hoses, he had found some 35 sailors alive.

‘Alive’ in different degrees, but alive, nonetheless.

With his Marines starting to fight the fire, with Miyagi leading a team of 19 Surgeons to see to the wounded, and with Spotters keeping eyes on the horizon, Bill made his way to the Captains Quarters.

The room was a mess, papers were scattered everywhere, and the desk had been smashed to bits.

Not stepping in too far, Bill saw a headless Marine wearing a Coat of Justice, and soon, Borodo stepped beside him.

“What do you think?” Bill asked, scanning the room for the tenth time.

“Ah Sir, it seems to me there was a fight… and… an ambush?”

Looking around as he spoke Borodo, who had spent a lifetime as a professional thief, suddenly paused, and said: “Sir, I don’t think this was a robbery.”

“Why not?” Bill asked, now stepping into the room, and when he did, Borodo followed after him.

Turning his head to look at the former thief, Bill saw Borodo point at something, then following his eyes, he noticed it and nodding said: “Right.”

It was an unopened safe, and seeing that Bill now noticed it, Borodo said: “That’s not all either, Commodore, look there – they didn’t take the Communication Snail.”

Even though his Department were trying to phase them out, Communication Snails were the gold star solution for communication in this archipelago world.

And while they were regulated by the World Government, naturally they would fetch sky-high prices on the black market.

Walking over the headless Marine Commodore, someone Bill had never seen before, he saw the Commodores pockets turned inside out.

“The attackers were looking for something specific” said he, and answering his suspicion, Borodo answered: “I agree Sir, and it’s safe to say these attackers are specialists... possibly hired hitmen, but I can’t say for certain… I’m not familiar with the [South Blue’s Underworld].”

Nodding again, Bill told Borodo to search the files and see if he found any clues for the attack. The headless Commodore would be removed by the medical teams as soon as the survivors were stabilized onboard the Frontier Run.

Getting an affirmative answer, Bill left the Captains Quarters to Borodo, and began helping the Marine fire fighters.

Once the fires were put out, he went to one specialized group after another, putting his hands to work through the entire day.

Finally, as the sun was setting and the ship had long ago been secured, Bill and 150 of his Department stood in formation on the wrecked ship as the last dead Marines body had been wrapped in linens.

Out of a crew of 1400 men, a mere 80 had survived.

Besides a single Lieutenant whose head had been bashed, every single officer on board was dead.

With many of his own people either displaying rage or sadness, Bill could only display an attitude of fortitude and stability.

But standing there during the funeral ceremony for over a thousand Marines was hard.

In this world there were many things that Bill did not like.

One of those things was burying Marines at sea.

Bill silently prayed that he would meet the people responsible for this.