Devil's Luck Pirates

CLANK!

The sound of copper clashing with steel makes the two First Mate's ears ring. Duros managed to parry another attack from Piper, he swung down his mace but his agile opponent skillfully dodged with a back flip. Many blows the two of them have exchanged. Piper's more or less reckless combat style has earned her many bruises all over her body. Meanwhile, the cracks on Duros' armor are now plain as day. The metal that has protected him for so many years has now reached its breaking point.

-I must admit; you are a skilled fighter! – He declares whipping his mouth.

-You don't get where I am now without being one, my dear. – She responds. Piper tries to keep her cool and somewhat seductive appearance, but she cannot hide her exhaustion and pain any longer – We've been at this for long enough. Why don't you surrender now and maybe I can convince the Captain to keep you as my pet instead of selling you.

This makes Duros' blood boil.

-Is that how you see people? Just as a commodity to be sold or kept at your whim?! – He moves forward, almost too fast for someone with that much armor, but still slow enough for Piper to step back from his mace.

-You and your crew embody what I hate the most in pirates! You have the freedom to do whatever you want. No government nor nation to tell you what to do, and you still insist on wasting that freedom by bringing misery and pain to all around you! – He unleashes a barrage of attacks as he speaks. All swiftly dodged by his opponent.

-Darling, you are the one who has a wrong idea of what it means to be a pirate. – Piper rebuts – As our Captain always says: to actively bring chaos to this world while getting rich in the process… – Piper jumps forward bringing down both her pipes into Duros' shield so hard that it breaks his defense. Forcing his shield out his grip – Now that is what I call true freedom! – She combines both her pipes, forming a staff, and jabs it into the knight's lower stomach where his armor is the weakest while screaming:

-PIPE DOWN!!!

Duros drops on his back; blood covering his mouth. There was a dent in the armor right where the attack landed.

-Look at that! Piper won! – One of the Steam Pipe Pirates screams. Many of his crewmates celebrate the victory. The remaining knights now fall into despair once again.

But not all of them.

Right as Piper was about to go and revel in her victory over the body of her defeated opponent, something got a hold of her foot.

-…Oh? You're still alive. – The elderly knight who spoke with Duros before. It looks like he somehow managed to drag his old body towards them. Or did she end up here just by coincidence after Duros' reckless barrage of attacks? – I can finally finish you off. We will get nothing out of selling you… – She cockily muses while hitting his head with her pipe with just enough force to draw blood.

But his grip stays firm.

-Y-you might kill me now… But I won't let you go u-until HE finishes you off! – The old man declares, tightening his grip on her foot; even grabbing her other leg.

-What are you on about, old man?! Can't you see that he-

The rising figure a few meters in front of her makes her eat her words.

-You gotta be kidding me! How is that guy still conscious!?!? – Panic takes over her voice. She tries to move away but the old man is determined to keep his promise.

-Let go or I'll smash your head for sure this time!! – She rages while stabbing her metal staff at him. She raises it enough to deliver a lethal blow when another knight gets a hold of her weapon.

She looks at him in shock. This one was also lying down on the ground seemingly dead. His eyes tremble as he desperately holds onto life with the same force he holds Piper's staff.

-I-if Captain Duros can still get up… So can we!! – He declares.

-DON'T GIVE ME THAT BULLSHIT!! – She screams while she watches as the ominous figure slowly makes its way towards her. Piper writhes like a trapped animal, desperately trying to get free, but the fight took most of her strength to the point that these half-dead knights are able to hold her. Another one manages to grab her free hand, while a fourth one still lying on the ground clutches her green scarf; locking her head into position.

-HEY YOU USELESS IDIOTS!! COME HELPE ME HERE!!!! – She screams for help, but it seems that all the knights and even some Marines got inspired by this. They are holding off many of the pirates around them while some only noticed her getting piled up by bodies when it was too late.

-I am so proud of all of you. – The man in the broken armor lets out. Piper looks at him in horror as he grabs his mace with both hands.

Each step he takes carries enough weight to send vibrations through the battlefield. Every, single one of them carries a simple message.

Never give up.

-I apologize in advance for this. – Duros says stopping a few steps away from Piper. He raises his mace with both hands and takes a deep breath – But as I said… – One step forward – I'm a firm believer… IN EQUALITY!!!

SMASH!!!!!!!!

One hit. The moment it connected, all the knights let go of her and dropped to the ground. Pieper, however, first falls to her knees. With a broken nose and fewer teeth. Her eyes go white as the plummets face first to the ground, motionless.

Duros, now standing two steps behind her, also falls on one knee. He would like to stand proud for a little longer, but he already made his point.

-OH SHIT! – One pirate screams.

-Piper is down!!! – Another shouts to everyone.

Almost all the pirates present immediately turn back towards their ship. The defenders simply let them go. No one has the will or strength to fight anymore.

A couple of pirates hurry towards Piper's unconscious body to take her away. Duros made an effort to stay on guard, glaring at them in case they tried anything. But fortunately, they didn't. It was like they were genuinely afraid of him.

He then looks at the knights that helped him achieve this final attack. A soft smile forms on his bloodied face. He hopes that all of them are just unconscious, but if they aren't; that's ok. They managed to stand up to their oppressors one last time.

And while Duros himself really wants to fall down now so he can rest, this day is far from over… But he'll still stay there a couple of minutes to catch his breath.

While Duros takes it easy for a while, Verona's still fighting.

Commander Saif keeps on with his endless barrage of attacks. His swords cut through the smoke and ash that surround him and his prey. It is as if each slash carries the flames with it. All Verona can do is focus on one attack at a time, trying to not be cut, or even worse. Saif clearly doesn't intend to bring this one alive.

Verona aims with Little Timmy and fires. The bullet missed by almost a meter. At this point, Saif had pushed him even more into the flames. He must have picked up by now that Verona's source of distress is the fire around them.

-That was even further off than the last one! – The Marine taunts him. He's really enjoying this – I guess it wasn't a good idea to bring a rifle to a sword fight! – He punctuates his sentence with a dash and a swing form below. His scimitar nicks Verona's chin, cutting his mask. He stumbles back trying to take a shot, but Saif's unbelievable speed forces him to block the incoming attack with his gun. It's not good to let the barrel of your rifle get this sort of hit. But it's certainly better than being sliced in half.

They stay in the bind for a couple of seconds. Saif manages to get a good look at Verona. His goggles reflect the flames in such a beautiful way...

-You talk too much… – Verona says. 

Saif just smiles.

-And I thought you couldn't even talk! – His snarky rebuttal is marked by a kick to the stomach, sending Verona stumbling back into a flaming house.

He crashes through the flimsy wooden door and falls to the ground face-first. He wipes the dirt from his face only to be met with an awfully familiar scene. His mind is inundated with terrible memories; his body tenses up barely letting him move.

-It's just as I deduced. – Commander Saif lets out as he struts into the building, barely bothered by the fire – I bet your crew only keeps you around because you're the only one competent enough to use a gun! Well, only when there isn't a candle near you. QUAHAHA!!

His laugh is more annoying than intimidating. However, he has a point. Just like back in that cave, he's being useless again. Duros is out there in the thick of it; fighting tooth and nail for his convictions, while he's down here cowering like a child.

"It's time to be strong"

Those words echo in his mind from a memory long forgotten. A good one. It was buried by that burning house along with so many others.

The house starts to crack as it is about to crumble. Verona grabs his rifle from in front of him, swiftly turns around while still on the ground, and shoots the first thing he manages to get an aim at. No thoughts running through his mind, only one idea being repeated over, and over in his head.

Fire.

Little Timmy roars, letting out a bullet into one of the support beams that supported the roof. The fire weakened it enough that it completely shattered into splinters, bringing down the roof on top of Saif; who instinctively dodged thinking that Verona was aiming at him. This split-second mistake let Verona jump out of the house right on time.

He recomposed himself, loading another bullet into his rifle just in case that wasn't enough to finish the Navy officer.

It wasn't.

Saif jumps out of the burning rubble. His dark complexion was now singed, his impeccably white uniform blackened, and his "Justice" cape burned left burning.

-YOU SCUM!!! – He roars as he dashes towards Verona. The latter fires, hitting Saif on his left arm; but he still swings at Verona his scimitar on the right.

Verona stops the attack with his rifle, pushing it aside only for Saif to attack with his left sword on a horizontal cut. This one manages to cut Verona. Not too deep thanks to his timely evasion.

He needs to reload, but Saif has no intention of slowing down. He knows his opponent is effectively helpless now.

-Enough games with you! I wasted too much of my time with a pathetic excuse for a pirate while the biggest fish on the South Blue is right under my nose!!! – Saif barked while unleashing a flurry of attacks; leaving a handful of cuts all over Verona's body.

The navigator tries to fight back. One swing from the right he manages to bash away with Little Timmy, followed by a strike with the stock of his rifle. Only to be left with a nasty cut on his left arm. However, this manages to put a few steps between them, maybe just enough so he can reload his gun.

But right as he was about to close the bolt, The Navy officer swuings down both his swords in a fit of rage. Verona manages to block them with his rifle, getting another kick in the abdomen. He manages to stay on his feet, but the Commander swings up before the pirate can step out of his range, cutting his mouth on the left. It would've been a finishing move if Verona hadn't stretched to his limit to avoid the attack, which once again, puts him on the ground.

Verona finally manages to close the bolt while he is falling, but the moment he is about to pull the trigger, Saif kicks the rifle out of his hands. Verona responds by sweeping his opponent's legs, making him fall.

He only has a few seconds to pick up his gun and finish this. He crawls towards Little Timmy. The flames are now essentially extinct. He can do this. He can win this!

SLASH!!!

A massive gash across his back leaves him immobile from the pain.

-Although it was very entertaining seeing you crawl away from me in despair. This little scuffle has gone for far too long.

He can still do it. He heard enough of this guy that he knows he'll start monologuing now that he's won. Little Timmy is right in front of him. If he stretches his hand he can reach it. Is he fast enough to do it while this idiot runs his mouth? If not, can he take another hit before taking the shot? Or… will he just miss like so many times before?

No. He has to do it. He's about to go for it when a voice calls out for him.

-Verona!! Where are you, my friend!!

It's Duros. If he's around here, the fight with the Steam Pipe Pirates must be over. If only he could stall a couple of seconds-

-Verona…? – Saif said curiously. He looks at Verona in shock – …Are you–

BANG!!!

Smoke rises from Little Timmy's barrel. The bullet went right through Saif's heart.

The Commander stumbles back before finally dropping to the ground. No final words? Good, Verona thought. He stays on the ground, the pain in his back plus the exhaustion are finally hitting him for good.

Not long after, Duros arrives at his location.

-I see you were also fighting a tough opponent then! – The knight's figure looms over him, giving Verona a good look at how banged up he is. But still with the same upbeat attitude everyone loves – At least you got out better than me HAHAH!

-…Just wait until you see my back… – Verona extends his hand so he can get up. 

Duros helps him up, immediately understanding his situation. It's been a good while since they got this hurt in a fight.

-I'll have to admit, a cut across your back is way worse than being hit with a pipe in the stomach! – Duros jests, trying to lighten the mood a little bit.

-What do we do now? – Verona asks. 

-The fight on the port is over. The pirates ran with their tails between their legs! – Duros declares in triumph – However, some of them made their way into the city before we even got here.

-They must be running a mock in there. Should we wait for the others or… – Verona trails off as he sees two familiar figures in the distance.

Only two.