Compromised

A tall figure in robes darker than a moonless night peered down at Nami. Despite the bright afternoon sunlight, the deep hood remained impenetrable, as if some unseen force absorbed every ray that touched it.

The vessel was unmistakable. Eerie green flames writhed from candles positioned along the prow, while the hull itself was shaped like an elongated casket. From its center rose an unadorned crucifix serving as the mast, its crossbeam draped in heavy black silk.

What sort of freak had she lured in?

"We meet."

Nami's mind stuck for a moment upon hearing the man's deep and steady tone. How was she to respond to his words?

Her choice was not to.

She instead utilized every second to devise a plan to survive. She didn't question her reaction. Ghosts and other supernatural entities. Really, anything she deemed creepy or spooky had no place in her life.

Luckily, the figure turned out to be a male, which at least gave her a chance to get out of this. She would continue with her planned performance and adapt it as she went along. After all, her pallor really did resemble someone who survived a shipwreck after seeing him.

"I actually found someone on this wide, open sea..." Nami propped herself up further on her boat's ledge and batted her eyelashes up at him. "I-I don't know who you are, but... water... Might I ask for a cup of water?"

She made sure her voice sounded weak and helpless and then gestured to the ornate chest behind her. "I can pay however much you want. Please... save me..."

A silence stirred between them as a tepid breeze caught the frayed ends of his robe, causing them to lift and drift like ash from a dying fire.

"We scored big again!"

"Who would have thought that such a small ship would carry so much loot!"

"Captain Buggy won't be mad once he sees all this!"

Voices pulled Nami's attention to her right.

Passing by was the actual ship she had been waiting for. The unmistakable Jolly Roger would stick in anyone's memory. Skull-and-crossbones, modified with a large red nose and black "makeup" crosses over the eyes.

On the topic of crosses, she needed to escape from the creep behind her.

Nami lacked certainty her idea would succeed, yet she needed to try, regardless.

"Help me! I-I'm a victim of a shipwreck, and this man is trying to rob me! I have treasure I can give you if you help!"

"Treasure!?"

The three Buggy Pirates reacted exactly as she'd hoped. They steered toward her boat until something caught their attention: the strange vessel floating behind her and its cloaked occupant.

Nami missed their sudden shift in expression, too focused on the open treasure chest in their boat. Her berry-seeking eyes locked onto the gold glinting in the sunshine.

Today can still work out.

Unfortunately, they veered away, acting as if they'd seen nothing at all.

"Haha, we should get back to Captain Buggy."

"You're right, haha."

You idiots! Nami's heart clenched as they sailed away with her treasure. And she knew exactly whose fault that was.

Spinning around, her earlier fear evaporated, replaced by anger.

"Orange Town is near. I will take you."

Nami swallowed back her boiling ire. Was he not upset about what she'd just done? Is he stupid?

"Really? C-Could you carry my treasure chest over for me?"

The cloaked man stepped from his vessel onto hers and approached the chest. While he was busy, she grinned and hopped onto his boat. What a sucker. Definitely a pirate.

He'd cost her so many berries. The least she could do was steal from him. With luck, those dark clouds building to the south would blow in and sink him to the bottom of the sea.

Her thoughts stuttered the moment her feet hit the deck of the floating coffin. A high-backed chair sat at its center, but nothing else existed. She was stumped. How the heck do you sail this thing?

Before she could puzzle it out, a sharp rupture resounded behind her, loud as a snapping mast. Nami turned and saw a wall of darkness as the man stood right there. He moved past without a word, drawing her attention to the ruins of her former boat.

The vessel split in two while a vortex of white froth opened between the halves. Its drowned canvas sail became deadweight that dragged everything under faster. For a single breath only the mast remained; it stood like a broken finger pointing at the sky. Then the sea folded in on itself with a final hungry gurgle and swallowed the last trace.

First her treasure. Now the boat she'd stolen. Both gone. Wasted. All because of this man.

The craft lurched forward suddenly. Nami's balance wavered, but once she steadied herself, she focused on the figure who sat in the boat's single seat as if it were a throne.

"Hey! Why did you do that?!"

Her voice cracked with irritation as she squinted, trying to see past the darkness that consumed his hood. The featureless void where his face should be unsettled her more than she cared to admit.

"Compromised."

His answer was so blunt it took her aback. "Compromised? What are you talking about?"

"We were spotted together near your former vessel. It is no longer viable transport."

His logic infuriated her. Nami jabbed a finger at the craft beneath her feet. "And this thing is viable transport?! They saw you floating around on this weird lit—"

Mid-sentence, he pointed ahead, cutting off her tirade. She followed his gesture and realized they had traveled faster than expected; the coastline of the Organ Islands was already closing in, with Orange Town's port coming into view.

Moored beside the town's docks was an outlandish ship with a hull bearing garish purple, red, and white stripes. The main cabin resembled a circus tent, complete with a blue elephant's head serving as the figurehead, its trunk fashioned into a cannon. Impossible to miss was the rear sail emblazoned with 'BUGGY.'

As they neared, she spotted the pirate boat that'd passed them earlier, now bobbing alongside the pier. Nami shifted forward with a slight bend in her knees, preparing to move the moment they docked.

The second the vessel glided to a stop with a soft thud, she sprang forward and leapt onto the dock, but his parting words followed her.

"I depart in thirty minutes."

"Like I care!" Nami ground her teeth and ran across the aged planks into the barren town.

All she had to do was steal the map and, while she was at it, some of that Buggy guy's treasure. Then she'd head to the Grand Line to steal from even greater pirates.

But on second thought, she would visit Cocoyasi Village first to deliver the treasure she collected. Either way, nothing would stop her from succeeding today.

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Powerstones, collections, and comments fuel me. Thank you in advance!