Chapter 11: Anne’s Awful Hell! The Y-1 Company Makes a Name For Itself!

  Weapons prepped and uniformed straightened, the four of us were ready for the buster call. Once we were packed, we made our way up to the deck. The Captain was back in his quarters, so the four of us sat in a circle while we waited. "So," I said, trying to figure out how I wanted to bring up this sensitive topic, "you guys have been Marines longer than me, have any of you had to… kill anyone yet?"

  They were a bit surprised by my sudden question. "What brought that up," Felix asked with a raised eyebrow.

  "Well," I said as I tapped my fingers together, "we're heading straight for a battlefield. It's obvious we're going to have to fight. It got me thinking about the Captain's sense of 'justice' and how he told us we're going to the island to deal with any survivors. I've used self-defense before back on the island I grew up on and knocked some heads around, but I've never actually… killed anyone before. It's something I'm worried about..."

  The three boys exchanged glances. Felix was the first to speak up as he said, "Yeah, all three of us have. It was kind of, well, forced upon us. I actually think it's something you should know before we get there."

  "Felix, is this a good idea," Kai asked apprehensively. "I mean, she might view being a Marine differently if we tell her."

  "That's exactly why I'm going to tell her. She deserves to know," Felix snapped at him. "Your dad might do the same thing to her and she should know what might happen. I know I wish I had."

  Kai tried to interject a protest, but River stopped him and shook his head. "Is it really that serious," I asked with concern. "I mean, you don't have to share if you don't want to."

  "No, it's fine," Felix said, interlocking his fingers together, preparing for a heavy topic. "It happened probably about a year before you joined our squad. Kai, River and I had been a team under Captain Delta for about a year already. One day, he summoned us to the middle of a courtyard at a nearby prison.

  "We thought it was strange, but we did what we were ordered to do. When we got there, he stood there with three men kneeling in handcuffs in front of us. He told us that the men were captured pirates that were notorious for plunder, murder and many other heinous crimes. As Marines, it was our job to uphold justice.

  "He gave each of us a pistol we had been trained with, telling us that it was the day we overcame a difficult hurdle many struggle with... Killing our very first person.

  "He instructed us to take aim at the pirates and to shoot. We were hesitant, obviously. The men were begging for their lives, saying they didn't want to die and that they had children back home. They couldn't even fight back or defend themselves. It felt wrong. We lowered our guns slightly, but the Captain noticed and snapped at us. He reminded us that the men in front of us had murdered families and now there were orphaned children and childless families, all because those men were alive. He told us that, after the first kill, it would get easier. He gave us another order to execute the men with folded arms. So… we pulled the triggers."

  I couldn't believe what I had just heard. The Captain had made Felix, a 16 year-old at the time, and his own sons, 15 and 11, to kill people when they were still children. "That's not right," I said, unable to hide the frustration I felt. "A decision to take a life should not be forced onto anyone, whether they are a Marine or not! How could he do something like that?!"

  "He was just trying to prepare us," Kai tried to defend his father. "It might sound cruel, but that first step inevitably did prepare us for the real world of being a Marine. I don't know how many times I was able to protect these two, all because I didn't hesitate on shooting someone going after them or myself. That harsh lesson helped prevent hesitation that could have killed comrades."

  "Your brother was only 11 when he became a murderer," Felix spat.

  "He didn't become a murderer by killing a pirate," Kai argued. "He was delivering the justice our dad talked about. Besides, you always thought that your old life was boring, so I thought you would have become hooked on the adrenaline."

  "Are you saying you thought I would enjoy killing," Felix asked in offence, flabbergasted by what Kai has just said. "Sorry that I don't get my jollies off by offing every person the military deems worthy of murder."

  "Th-That's not what he meant," River interjected. "Kai meant we were still getting to know you, and we knew you were looking for excitement of some kind. We merely hoped you wouldn't get it in the wrong way!"

  Felix rolled his eyes before turning back to me to continue, "Anyway, I told you all of this to prepare you. We all know how the Captain holds a grudge against you for your background, so it wouldn't surprise me if he uses this buster call as a 'teachable moment' for you. Just… be prepared for anything, from both enemies and allies."

  "Thanks," I said as I looked down. "I appreciate the heads up and you willing to share such a sensitive subject. I'm sure it wasn't easy for any of you."

  We sat there in silence the rest of the way, each trying to mentally prepare ourselves for what we might encounter. As we got closer, we started to hear multiple cannon fires in the distance.

  Getting up, I made my way to the bow of the ship. On the horizon, I could barely make out a large fleet of warships firing upon an island in front of them. As we approached, the ships stopped their long cannon salvo, signaling the second phase of the operation to storm the island for survivors to start.

  We made our way through the slower, larger ships and were one of the first ships to land. Captain came out, fully geared up in ammunition, pistols and shotgun, and a large battle axe on his back. "Alright, Y-1," Captain began to address us, "Squad A will be the team of Anne and Felix. Squad B will be the team of Kai and River. Team A will immediately begin scouting to the west while Team B scouts to the east. If you see any stragglers, you shall subdue them if there are only a few. If assistance is required, shoot a single flare into the air. The higher ranked member of each team has their baby transponder snail in case of announcements or if orders change. Keep your head on straight, and gather all the remaining survivors near the docks. You have permission to use lethal force if necessary. Now, go."

  The four of us gave a solute, jumped off the ship onto the banks, and took off in the direction we were assigned. We were immediately met with a sickening scene. The whole area was set ablaze, homes were in shambles, and bodies littered the ground everywhere. Areas were painted red by blood and body parts were scattered around with no indication of who they belonged to. There were bodies of men, women, children, and infants laying in pools of blood. Burned corpses of mothers hugging their children sent chills down my spin. THIS was the Marines' sense of justice? These people didn't stand a chance. These people were all really deemed as dangerous? Many of the infants couldn't even walk yet-.

  "Hey," Felix said, snapping me out of my trance. "I know this is extremely difficult to cope with, but stay alert for now. You never know what is lying in ambush for us. Just… remind yourself that they were… evil."

  I gave a nod, and ironically, just as Felix said that, an injured burly man with a longsword jumped towards us. We stepped out of the way as I held the man in place with air. Felix knocked him out with his golden brass-knuckled left hook.

  Felix was very skilled in the art of hand-to-hand combat, with his fighting style closely resembled that of a boxer. It was his strongest suit, as his brass-knocked, Haki-infused left-hook was quite powerful. As I just saw, powerful enough to knock out a full-grown, muscular man.

  Similar attacks happened as we scoured the island, but we repeated our team strategy of holding and knocking them out. After the 13th person, we were about to take the captives to the docks, when we noticed a flare go off in the direction Kai and River went. Kai's voice came over the transponder immediately after asking for help.

  We looked towards each other and Felix simply told me to go, stating he could handle things here. I nodded, knowing he could defend himself without me, and I flew towards the flare. I got there in less than a minute with my flying speed and was the first to arrive. When I landed, I saw the flare gun in Kai's hand. He franticly shaking and was visibly fretting over something.

  "Hey," I called as I reached him, "What happened? Where's River?"

  "He's in there," Kai said shakily, pointing towards some rocks that were jutting out of the ground, forming a pyramid of pointed slabs. "We had barely made any distance from the ship because River was complaining about feeling exceptionally heavy and weird, and then the ground shot up around him. He says he can't get out!"

  I quickly rushed towards the shifted terrain and banged on the stone. "Hey, River! Can you hear me," I asked loudly. "It's Anne! Knock or say something so that I know you can hear my words."

  There was a knock, and I could faintly hear through the thick rock, "Anne? Yeah, I can hear you! I-I don't know what happened! It's dark in here and I can't figure out how to get out! Am I gonna be trapped in here forever?!"

  "First, take a breath," I instructed him as he panicked. It went silent so I assumed he did just that. "It's going to be fine. You probably accidentally triggered your Devil Fruit powers. I had a similar experience when I first ate my fruit, except I almost floated away into the sky with no way down. Instead of getting trapped in the sky, you're getting trapped by the ground, so I'll give you similar advice to what I was given. You gotta center yourself, remind yourself it's your power now. Feel the connection between your element and yourself. Realize you have control over it, not the other way around. Earlier, you mentioned that you felt heavy and something strange. That 'something strange' is the ability to manipulate the terrain around you. Take hold of that feeling and manipulate it."

  The rocks that encased River began to shake slightly. Kai and I both gave him encouragement to continue doing whatever he was doing. It would go silent for a moment, and the rocks would begin to shake again. Although, instead of separating, they closed in on him more. This caused River to give out a shriek. "I-I can't do it! I-It's going to crush me!"

  "No it won't," I reassured him. "Remember, deep breaths, light thoughts. Whatever you were just feeling, try thinking the opposite. Release those tensions, don't compress them."

  After a moment of silence, the terrain began to retract back into the ground slowly, revealing a shaken River. Kai and I both went over to him and comforted him until he calmed down. Seeing him reminded me so much of when I first got my powers and how terrified I was at first.

  However, I was brought out of that recollection as Kai's baby snail went off. "Kai, is Anne there, and have things been resolved," he heard Captain ask through the snail. "I saw the flare and tried calling Felix to pass a message to her, but he informed me that she went towards the signal. Over."

  Kai took out the snail from his coat pocket and spoke into it, "Yes to both, sir. I shot the flare as River's Devil Fruit powers went out of control, but Anne arrived and talked River through it. What did you need to pass along to her, sir? Over."

  "Tell her to come to the docks," the Captain instructed. "We have nearly completed the mission, with just one phase left. As for you and River, get him back to the ship. We'll work on his new powers later. Over."

  "Yes, sir," River, Kai and I said in unison. "Over and out."

  Kai put the snail back up as River bashfully said, "Er, thanks for your help, Anne. I don't know what I would have done without your advice."

  I gave a reassuring smile as I told him, "Don't worry. I was in your shoes and had someone help me. It was the very least I could do for you. Just remember to stay centered and think light thoughts on your way back to the ship."

  I parted ways with the boys and made my way to the docks. When I got there, there was a group of probably a hundred some people tied with rope sitting on the ground with the Marines encircling them. I had only expected a lot of buff men to have been caught, but there were also women, children and toddlers/infants in the mix as well. "Anne, what are you doing here," I heard Felix ask. I looked over and saw him and the Captain standing to the side.

  I walked over to them as the Captain said, "I called her here."

  When I approached, I saw they were standing in front of two boys around Luffy and Ace's age, holding each other in fear. I instantly felt pity for the two, envisioning the two as my own brothers crying in absolute terror.

  "Hey, what's going on? It's alright. Did you get lost," I started asking the two in a soft voice.

  "Not another step closer to them," Captain told me as he put an arm in front of me. "There was a reason I called you here."

  Felix looked at the Captain in horror. "You don't mean-," he tried to say before the Captain interrupted.

  "These are the children of the pirate scum that tried to rally a nation against the World Government," Captain said, forcing a polished pistol into my hands. "The last phase of the mission: eliminate all future threats."

  I was stunned and caught my breath. "You're not saying to," I tried to say, but it came out as a quiet mutter.

  "Your task is to take part in the execution of future rebels," Captain said with a stern look.

  "I can't do this, I have brothers their age," I tried to resist, but the Captain would not let me let go of the gun. "These kids are not their parents! They could still lead their own lives and be beneficial to society, if you just give them a chance!"

  "Look at their eyes," Captain instructed.

  I did as he said, and I could see the pure hatred and resentment in the children's eyes towards us Marines. They were the eyes of malice, close to that of a cornered wild animal. "You say that, but their eyes say another thing. You will do your part as a Marine and deliver justice to future threats."

  Before I could resist or protest further as I looked the children in the eyes, the Captain had already moved behind me. He forced my pistol hand in his, placed his finger over mine on the trigger and forced me to pull the trigger. I saw the bullet fly through the air as the gunshot went off and screams filled the air as the bullet went through the older boy's forehead. The younger boy began to wail in horror as the older brother slumped over onto the ground beside him. Captain swiftly moved my arm to aim towards the younger brother and did the same to the younger one before I could look away. Both boys fell to the ground as the Captain let go of my hand and stepped away.

  I could not move an inch. Their blood was literally on my hands, body and face. Those boys were my brothers' ages and born with similar circumstances. The only difference was the way they were raised, nothing more. Ace was the son of the Pirate King and Luffy, I ended up finding out, was the son of a revolutionary army's leader. If either were found out like these boys, surely Captain Delta would personally want to take care of them himself, or worse, try to force me to take care of it.

  My body began to shake as tears filled my eyes, just imagining Ace and Luffy huddled together like these two brothers with a gun pointed at them. I could no longer support my weight and fell to my knees as I held my face in my hands, smearing the blood on my face. I heard a whistle being blown, followed by a barrage of gunfire and the screams of the people in the group getting shot. It felt as though everything was suddenly intensified. I could feel the fear and agony of the people getting killed, as well as their resentment towards their killers. I had never felt so overwhelmed by such emotions and terror. I tried to cover my ears to block it out, but to no avail. The screams echoed inside my head and it was deafening. I bent over with my forehead on the ground with my eyes closed, as it was too much for me to bear. I let out a scream of my own as I cried out in pain. "Anne, what's wrong?! Are you alright," Felix echoed in my mind as he rushed and slid next to me, looking for any physical injuries.

  "Make it stop," I muttered over and over again. "Please, just make it stop! It hurts! It's so loud, it hurts, and it's terrible. Make it stop!"

  Captain Delta just looked down at me with narrowed eyes, as though he understood what was happening to me. He gave what seemed like a wicked grin, almost as if he enjoyed the fact that I was in so much pain.

  Felix had had enough of seeing me tortured like this. He put one of my arms around his shoulder and helped me up and began walking towards our ship. "We need to get you away from this environment," he told me as he readjusted his grip on my limp body. "Uh, screw it."

  He sat me down for a moment and positioned himself in front of me as he picked me up piggyback style. This allowed him to carry me much more quickly away from the screams and gunfire.

  Once we reached the ship, most of the shots and cries had subsided, but the bitter feelings still lingered. All the emotions and noise were still echoing inside of my head as hot tears ran down my blood-covered face. As Felix was taking me to our quarters, Kai and River must have seen the horrible state I was in as I heard them run after and ask what happened. I was too exhausted from everything that was going on that I didn't even have the energy to open my eyes to look at them. I could somehow feel their worry and fear without having to see or know what they were saying. I could even feel their presence running behind Felix. Felix's fear felt just as strong, if not more.

  Felix laid me down onto my bed and I immediately curled into a fetal position, grabbing the sides of my head in agony. I don't know how long it lasted, but sometime after feeling the ship move and start to sway, I was lulled to sleep by its calming motions. Although, even while unconscious, the screams and horror still haunted my dreams. I could not escape what I had just experienced...

  When I awoke, I noticed I was in the bed of what seemed like a hospital ward. All the blood had been wiped off of me and I was in a blue hospital gown. I looked over and saw River sleeping in a chair next to the bed and Kai had fallen asleep sitting on the ground leaning against the wall.

  I still felt so drained after that traumatic experience. I didn't have much time to myself before Felix came into the quarters saying, "Hey, it's your turn for training, Riv-… Oh, Anne! You're finally awake!"

  I rubbed the grogginess out of my eyes as River and Kai both woke to Felix's exclamation. "Oh! I'll go get the doctor and some food for you," River said excitedly as he jumped up from his chair and ran out of the room.

  "Welcome back to the land of the conscious," Felix told me with his usual, reassuring sly grin.

  "What even happened out there," Kai asked with concern. "You were out for a whole week!"

  "I… don't know," I said, almost spacing out just remembering the agony I was in before.

  "She seemed to have been under a lot of mental and emotional stress," Doc said as she came in, glancing over the information at the foot of my bed. "So, will you enlighten me, how did you even get into such a mental state that it caused your body to shut down for its own protection? Please tell me you guys weren't overdoing it again. You all looked like hell when you got here."

  I took a deep breath and composed myself before digging into my trauma. "Well, I'm not completely sure what happened," I started to explain. "It was during a mass execution of people at a buster call. I was forced to kill these two boys that were as young as my younger brothers, and shortly after, I was overwhelmed with a bunch of strong emotions of pain, sorrow, and hatred all at once. No matter how hard I tried to block it out, it never worked. I've never felt like that before…"

  Doc gave a sympathetic look as she set my clipboard aside. "Unfortunately," Doc started to say with a sigh, "it sounds like you might have activated your Observational Haki at the worst possible time."

  "Wait, there's another form of Haki, other than Armament and Conqueror's," I asked with wide eyes.

  Doc gave a nod, then explained how it was basically like a sixth sense that allows the user to sense presences, strength, and emotions of other people, as well as a few additional skills.

  So before, I seemed to have been using Observational Haki to sense all the strong emotions of everyone on the island before, which overloaded my senses and cognitive ability. "That's why your body shut down," Doc said, wrapping up the explanation. "Your body hasn't been properly trained to withstand so much stimulus from the Observation Haki. It did not know how to deal with all of the stress happening in your mind all at once, basically doing a hard reboot."

  "I see. Now that I think about it, Captain Delta must have been using Observation Haki when I went against him in that game of 'Marine Vs. Pirates'," I said, still slightly dazed. "Thanks, Doc. I appreciate your help."

  "No problem at all," Doc said with a grin before turning to leave. "You should be able to leave any time if you feel up to it. Don't push yourself and take your time. I've told you before, I would seriously enjoy a week without seeing any of you four."

  Right after Doc exited, River came running back in with a tray of food and a letter in his hand. "S-Sorry I'm late," he apologized as he sat the tray on my lap, out of breath. "As I was getting the food, I was given a letter addressed to the Y-1 company."

  "Oh, what's it about," Kai asked as he stood up and stretched.

  I took a bite out of the sandwich that River brought me as he opened the letter. "I don't know, I just got it," River told him. He quickly started to read over it silently and we could see his eyes open wide. "No way!"

  "What is it," Felix asked, curious now.

  River turned the letter around as he said, "Y-1 has been recognized by the higher-ups! We're all getting promoted! I'm getting promoted to a Warrant Officer, Kai and Anne are getting promoted to Officers as Ensigns, and Felix is jumping up two promotions to Lieutenant Junior Grade due to his contribution to catching so many rebels on his own after splitting up with Anne, and also taking care of his fellow brothers- and sisters-in-arms! Not only that, but these are promotions directly from the Fleet Admiral himself, meaning he has recognized our company! This is a big deal!!!"

  "You're kidding," Kai asked in disbelief. "That's amazing! We've made it to Officer level, and River is just one promotion away from Officer level! We're climbing the ranks!!!"

  I continued to eat the food that was brought to me. The boys and I were giddy and talked about our accomplishments. Once I finished eating, I found a pile of spare casual clothes next to my bed and went to change out of the hospital gown I was in. I then realized, since I was an Ensign, I didn't have to wear a uniform anymore and could wear whatever I wanted! That made me all the giddier.

  When I came out, I dealt with all the discharge work and we all made our way back to our barracks. When we got there, we saw long, Marine jackets with the word "Justice" on the backs on Kai's, Felix's, and my bed. So, it really was true. The three of us were officially Officer rank and River was close to being one.

  "Anne! Kai! Check it! We got 'Justice' jackets," Felix exclaimed as he threw his on, showing it off. Kai and I tried ours on and they were perfect fits.

  We spent the rest of the night messing around with one another and playing a card game or two. It was times like this that made me forget the harsh world that I live in. I was happy to have a squad like this. I came to value them as if they were basically my own family, and I to them as well. At least, that's what I thought, but I'll save that for later on...