' Am I dead?' Markus asked himself. He sat still, completely silent just, just thinking to himself. Repeating that same question over and over again.
' Am I dead?'
' Am I dead?'
' Am I dead?'
' No. If I was dead, I wouldn't be thinking this right now. I probably wouldn't be thinking at all.' Markus thought to himself. ' But that sword. I know I was cut. What happened?' He wondered. ' I can... I can feel my body. But... It's so heavy.' Markus lamented.
Markus' eyes started to flutter as the world began to return to the boy. And as he weakly opened his eyes, the pain that he had been ignorant of suddenly hit him hard.
" Agh!" Markus grunted.
All of that built up trauma had hit Markus all at once. Every last bit of it, from fighting Jinshi, and more importantly, that still throbbing, burning sensation in his chest that he received from that swordsman.
" Aghhh....Where... Where am I?" Markus grumbled. He looked around his bed and noticed that he was lying in the medical bay back on the ship. " How?"
*Skirt!
Markus heard the sound of a curtain being pulled back and looked down as Norin stepped past the curtain, wearing bandages all over her body.
" You're awake!" Norin shouted.
" Aghhh." Markus groaned. " Not so loud." Markus told the woman. " Norin... What happened?" Markus asked the woman. " How did we survive?"
Quick and to the point. This was information that Markus needed to know.
Norin pulled back the curtains all the way, revealing the injured vice admiral in the bed next to him.
" Dal- Agh! Dalmatian-San."
" Easy, Markus." Norin spoke. " Your wounds were bad. We barely managed to save you." Norin told the man. " I honestly didn't think either one of you were going to make it. But thankfully, it looks like you're both going to be fine."
" How did you get us back to the ship? The last thing I remember is being cut across my chest and then after that... Nothing." Markus told the man.
" You might not believe it... But It was the Black Lion." Norin spoke.
" Wha- Ugh!" Markus went to question the woman. He couldn't believe what she had just said. But when he tried raising his voice, he immediately felt pain in his abdomen.
" Easy. Your stitches are still fresh. You haven't healed yet." Norin told the man. Norin gave Markus a moment to relax and rest his still sore body before continuing. " It was as I said, the black lion and fought your attacker. It was his intervention that prevented the swordsman from taking your life."
............
" What are you doing, Black Lion?"
" How dare you?! Who do you think you are?!" Jinshi yelled. He attacked Zohakuten with the full-on fury of a lion. " Lion's Maw!" Jinshi threw his head forward with such force that an energy attack shaped just like his fangs launched from his mouth.
" Moonlight-Mirror of Misfortune!" Zohakuten swung his sword in front of him in multiple crescent shaped slashes, and unleashed a continuous wave of upward slashes, which deflected Jinshi's attack.
Jinshi dashed behind Zohakuten and tried to kick him, only Zohakuten raised his blade and blocked it. But the force was still strong enough to send him flying backwards a few yards.
" Hey, woman!" Jinshi yelled.
Norin, who had still been lying nearby, heard Jinshi speak to her.
" Take them and go! I'll handle this." Jinshi muttered. He reached into his pocket and threw something down onto Markus' body. " If he makes it, I'll see him again. Heal his wounds, get strong. Then we'll settle this matter."
Norin wasted no time in grabbing Markus and Dalmatian both. She quickly took the two men and ran towards the ocean line and jumped straight to the ship.
Zohakuten tried to stop the three of them from escaping, but when he jumped into the air, Jinshi dashed in front of him and kicked him back to the island.
Zohakuten landed on his feet and quickly looked up at the Black Lion. " I'll ask you again, Black Lion, what are you doing?" Zohakuten asked the man.
" That's my prey. Go find your own." Jinshi told the man.
" Those Marines have my brothers." Zohakuten responded.
" That's too bad. I'm not letting this one go."
" Move or I will kill you."
" Do your worst!"
Zohakuten and Jinshi both rushed headfirst towards each other.
" Lonely Moon- Perpetual Nightfall!"
" Lion's crushing Fangs!"
............
" The last thing I remember, before I got out of earshot was the sound of his laughter and the black lightning that exploded off of the island." Norin finished recalling what happened after Markus had lost consciousness to the man. " Unfortunately, I don't know who it was that attacked you."
" I'm pretty sure, if what you said to me was right, that he was the older brother of the twins." Markus told the woman. " It's a good thing we got away, when we did. Thank you, Norin." Markus said to the woman.
" You don't need to thank me. You saved my life once too. Now, just consider us even." Norin spoke.
Markus smiled at the woman, and slowly started pushing himself up, until he was sitting up in his bed.
" Whoa! What are you doing?" Norin asked the man.
" Have to get on the move again. First thing's first, we have to get to the nearest island. Our supplies are low, and then we need to see if there's going to be any kind of reinforcements coming from Marineford." Markus told the woman as he started slipping on his clothes at the foot of the bed. It was a simple pair of brown sweatpants and a brown shirt. " And then, we'll figure out what to do next." Markus told the woman.
" Markus wait. There's one more thing." Norin spoke.
" What is it?" Markus asked the woman.
Norin stood up, reached into her pocket and pulled out a small little orb. It was a small glass ball, with a needle in the middle of it pointing in a certain direction.
" A log pose?" Markus asked. " Where did you get this?"
" I told you. The Black Lion threw this at your body." Norin told the man.
" A log pose? But why would he give me... Oh, I see."
" What is it?" Norin asked.
" I have a feeling, that if I follow this needle, I'll find what we've been looking for, for weeks." Markus muttered. " Or at the very least, it'll lead us to their next island."
" You mean, he gave us a key to finding him and his entire alliance? He would give up his comrades, just for a chance to fight? What drives a man to do such a thing?" Norin asked.
" I don't know. But we can use this." Markus muttered.
" Use it? To do what?" Norin asked.
" To go after them." Markus told the woman.
" You would still go after them, even after everything that just happened?"
" Of course." Markus replied.
" Why? Why would you risk it? You're in no shape to keep going. You were both so bloody, that your clothes had to be thrown away. Why are you going to put your lives in danger again?"
Markus looked at the woman and smirked. " Because we're Marines." Markus told the woman. " Because if we don't who will? I know you're probably scared. And that's fine. I understand it. Anyone would. But not us. If for one second, we Marines' shudder in fear in the face of the enemy, then the people whom we've sworn to protect suffer. For a Marine there is nothing worse than that." Markus explained to the man.
Norin was completely overtaken by the man's declaration. He appeared to be only a few years younger than her, and yet he seemed so much more courageous.
" So, don't be afraid, Norin. Because I am here!"