48 Chapter 12
Markus hung out with the rest of the crew as Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper left on their own to explore the strange island. With his Haki fully expanded, Markus could see every nook and cranny of the island, including the sections currently underwater, and didn't find anything interesting. He didn't expect to but it was worth a peek as maybe he could have found something long lost to history and time.
Markus found a nice spot on the grass the lay down and relax while looking at the clouds floating through the sky. This island was warm, comfortable, and relaxing. The perfect spot to just laze around. At least, it was until he felt Foxy's ship finally moving closer to them. He let out a silent sigh but smiled right after. Honestly, as annoying as Foxy was, Markus was looking forward to the festival-like atmosphere of the games. As he thought about them he got a new quest.
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New Quest!
Playing Games
Foxy wants to take members away from the Strawhats and make them into his own! This cannot be allowed. Participate in the Davy Back Fight and make sure the Strawhats not only come out on top but crush all opposition! Once you're done with Foxy and his crew, teach Admiral Aokiji a lesson in humility.
Objective 1: Participate in at least one game and win.
Objective 2: Make Foxy regret trying to cheat since cheaters never prosper.
Objective 3: Confront Admiral Aokiji and prevent him from weakening Nico Robin's resolve.
Objective 4: Defeat Admiral Aokiji in one-on-one combat.
Failure Conditions: Death, Death of a crew member, permanently losing a crew member to Foxy
Rewards:
Objective 1: 1x Rare Weapon Token
Objective 2: 1x Rokushiki Skill Token
Objective 3: 1x Rare Item Token
Objective 4: Rewards TBD
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After reading over the quest, Markus smiled. Now, he could totally interfere in all of the games and make it a super easy win for the entire crew but he wasn't going to. That didn't mean he wasn't going to participate though! He planned to join in the games just like every other member of the crew. He was guaranteed to win whatever events he participated in. The problem was, this event was so minor that he could hardly remember many of the details. Foxy mostly stuck out because of his annoying personality, and Devil Fruit, while the rest of the events were pretty forgettable.
The big event he was looking forward to was meeting Aokiji. Markus couldn't remember if they met him on Long Ring Long Island or the next one. He just knew it would be soon and that he was looking forward to it. He didn't know if he could actually defeat Aokiji or not but he knew he wouldn't lose. Between the heat he could generate with his lightning and his sheer speed there was nothing Aokiji could do to him with his Devil Fruit. Markus also didn't think there was much he could do to Aokiji either. He was expecting their fight to come to a draw.
That didn't mean he couldn't defeat Aokiji, just that he didn't want to. Aokiji was one of the few decent people within the Marines along with Garp, Coby, Helmeppo, and a few rare others. How could he defeat Aokiji? Easily. Super easily. All he needed to do was fire an Armament Haki infused bullet with his railgun and he could blow off Aokiji's head from miles away. A single full-power shot from his Railgun skill would easily kill the man. How was he so certain? He'd tested it on Crocodile and Smoker and killed both of them in a single hit eat with ease.
Even with Observation Haki, it was nearly impossible to track or dodge shots fired by his Railgun. Even he couldn't see where they were when in flight, only the trail left in the air in the aftermath of the bullet flying. The only way Aokiji could dodge the shot fired by Markus is if he could see the future. As far as Markus knew, Aokiji never showed that capability so his life was forfeit if Markus wanted to snipe him to death.
As Markus was contemplating what to do when he met Aokiji, the Foxy pirates had finally made their move and appeared. They sailed their ship right up to the Going Merry and fired out two huge paws attached to large thick chains to lock it in place. Zoro, Robin, Sanji, and Nami were surprised and started yelling at the ship. Markus just smiled and went back to relaxing though he could clearly hear the entire conversation.
After getting yelled at by his friends someone on the Foxy pirate ship shouted back, "We are the Foxy Pirates! Don't be so anxious, our duel shall begin shortly."
Not only could he hear the conversation nearby but he could also hear the conversation between the other half of his crew and an old man they'd met. Near them, he could sense three people but only recognized one immediately, Foxy. The dude was unbelievably ugly. His entire body was shaped like a pear standing on two short stick-like legs. His hair was split into the middle and styled high into two peaks, which only made his long face seem even longer. Add on a nose longer than Usopp's while making it pointy and coloring it pink and you complete the ugly package.
He refocused on the conversation happening in front of him in time to hear Nami asking, "Davy Back Fight?"
The voice from the ship replied, "Yes! The game begins when the captains from both ships agree to it. Our captain is proposing the game to your captain as we speak."
Since no one else seemed to know what a Davy Back Fight was, and Markus could use a refresher, Sanji filled them all in, "This isn't just a fight. 'Davy Back Fight' is a gambling game played between pirates."
Robin chimed in, "That's correct. According to legend, the game was invented a long time ago on the 'Pirate's Paradise Island'. Many pirate groups have been using it to acquire good crews. It's the way pirate groups fight over pirates."
Nami seemed shocked, "Groups fighting over pirates?"
Robin nodded while the vocal pirate on the ship taunted, "You didn't even know that and you call yourself a pirate? Davy Back Fight is the 'contest for human resources'!! The format we use is the 3-coins rule. That means three rounds per game!! The victor of each game may pick one crew member from the loser's team. The chosen crew must then swear loyalty to the winning captain!! He will do so in the name of the great Davy Jones!"
Nami looked shocked, "If you lose the game you lose your friend?!"
Smirks could be seen on the faces of Foxy's crew as one sinisterly said, "That's right. Lastly, if there is no desirable crew left in the losing team, the winner may choose to take the loser's pirate flag!"
Sanji exhaled a cloud of smoke, "In this game, you ante up your friends and pride. If you win, you grow stronger. If you lose you can fall and may never get back up again. It's a very dangerous game!"
Markus tuned out the rest of their conversation and relaxed while the rest of the crew shouted back and forth about the game. Markus was kind of looking forward to just playing around a bit, though he would pay more attention when the games were spoken about. Maybe hearing about them would jog his memory so he could decide which games to play in. He grew bored of the chatter and started to doze off until he heard two gunshots fired off in the distance. A sign of Luffy accepting the challenge from Foxy.
Foxy's five hundred man crew cheered and immediately got to work setting things up. Markus, reluctantly, left his comfortable spot so that they could build a yakitori stand. Since yakitori sounded good, Markus let it go and made way. Foxy's crew was clearly used to the work because in no time flat they already had a dozen stands set up and were setting up the game rings as well. Markus wasted no time and started grabbing snacks from the various stalls, the prices were pretty reasonable too!
Markus munched on some delicious yakitori while enjoying the festival-like atmosphere of the games. People could say what they want about this arc of the story being annoying but the food was worth the annoyance of Foxy's laugh. As he enjoyed himself, Markus spotted the other members of his crew doing the same thing. Especially Luffy.
Once the main stage had been set up, Luffy joined Foxy on the stage while a woman named Porche walked up to a microphone. Porche was the type of character that Markus hated the most and could be considered even more annoying than Foxy's laugh to him. She was a moderately attractive woman who wore a pink jumpsuit opened to her waist with a red bikini top beneath. Her light blue hair was kept a little longer than shoulder length and she had a long pointy nose. It wasn't her nose that was offputting though. It was her voice. She had one of those cutesy child-like princess voices that were meant to somehow be attractive but came off like nails on a chalkboard.
As she arrived at the microphone she raised one hand in the air to calm the crowd while holding a baton in the other, "Alright everyone, quiet down!"
Some voices in the crowd called out her name in excitement. Markus was forced to keep himself from plugging his ears in a futile attempt to not hear her speak. She continued, "I will now state the rules of the game! Rule one, the crews and flags lost in a Davy Back Fight may only be re-acquired through another Davy Back Fight. Rule two, the person chosen in the endgame must swear loyalty to the winning team immediately! Rule three, the pirate flag that is taken away may never be used again! Anyone who disgraces the rules will be sacrificed to Davy Jones! Do you swear to honor these rules?"
The final question was aimed at Foxy and Luffy. Foxy was the first to answer followed by Luffy while he was still stuffing his face with noodles. At their affirmative answers, Foxy's crew let out a loud cheer of excitement. Once the cheering calmed down a sheet of paper was passed to both of the crews. On the paper was a list of three games they would play. The first, Donut Race. The second, Groggy Ring. And the third, Combat.
The entire crew, minus Markus, signed up for the race. Markus joined Zoro and Sanji for the Groggy Ring game. Only Luffy signed up for the third game as it was a one-on-one bought. This was slightly different from what Markus was remembering. He could have sworn the third game had been some kind of race. He'd been looking forward to it since he was the second-fastest man in the world. Sadly, he could not claim to be the fastest as long as Kizaru was alive.
Once both teams turned in their sheets the first event began. The Donut Race was a race around the island. Each team had to build a boat using only three barrels and two oars. Markus watched, amused, as his crew split up into three teams. Robin, Usopp, and Nami in one. Luffy and Sanji in another. With the last being Zoro and Chopper.
Markus watched them building rafts for a bit before getting bored and decided to get some more food and some ale. He really enjoyed the food. Foxy might be a moron but he could definitely pick good chefs! Markus paid minimal attention until the race officially began. The sheer cheating of Foxy and his crew was blatant and obvious but Markus didn't do anything about it, yet. He barely paid much attention to the race and watched as Foxy used multiple tricks to try and confuse and distract Nami and the others. It wasn't until he used his Noro Noro Beam to slow the raft with Nami, Robin, and Usopp on it that something worked. He chose the right time and used it just before they could cross the finish line.
He had to admit, Foxy's Devil Fruit had a lot of potential. Sadly, it's limits were a bit too restrictive for his taste or he might have stolen it instead of the Goro Goro no Mi. The biggest issue he had with the Noro Noro no Mi was the 30 second time limit. He didn't think 30 seconds was too short, with his speed and abilities before the Goro Goro no Mi that amount of time would be enough to kill anyone. No, it annoyed him that it slowed objects for 30 seconds every time it was used. That lack of control was annoying. There was also the risk of having the power of the fruit reflected and used on the owner. If his lightning got reflected, he could just absorb it and move on. The Noro Noro no Mi could be one of the powerhouse Devil Fruits in the right hands and was pretty wasted in Foxy's.
Since the Strawhats had lost the first round, Foxy got to pick someone from their crew to join his. Like in the canon, he chose Chopper because of how cute Chopper was. The entire crew let out a collective sigh of relief. If Markus had been chosen they would have been totally screwed. He was by far the strongest member of the crew. Thankfully his acquisition of the Goro Goro no Mi was a complete unknown to anyone outside of the crew.
Once they got over the happiness of not losing Markus, their mood quickly changed for the worse as they had to watch a sniffling and crying little Chopper dragged up to the stage and forced to wear one of Foxy's masks and swear loyalty to his crew. With tears in his eyes, Chopper shouted out in a pleading voice, "EVERYONE!! I... I don't want this!"
Everyone on the Strawhat crew looked on. Usopp and Nami looked distressed while Sanji, Robin, Luffy, Markus, and Zoro had stoic expressions. Chopper continued with a trembling voice, "I started sailing with you guys... Luffy! Luffy asked me... I only went because Luffy asked! I don't want to join these people!!"
Hearing Chopper's pleading, Zoro slammed his rum bottle into the ground with enough force for everyone to hear it. Frankly, it was a miracle the bottle survived the impact, "SHUT YOUR MOUTH CHOPPER! You are disgraceful!"
Markus crossed his arms over his chest and grit his teeth. It took a lot of his willpower to not smite every member of Foxy's crew right then and there. He knew Chopper would be back with them soon but seeing the little guy crying and begging was pissing him off. They would regret pissing him off.
Zoro climbed to his feet as he continued to address Chopper, "It was your choice to become a pirate. Dead or alive, the choice was yours alone. Don't blame it on others. We accepted the challenge! We did our best. In the pirate's world, tears won't get you anything. If you are a man..." He became deadly serious, "Then just sit tight and quietly watch the game."
Nami immediately began to berate Zoro for ignoring Chopper's feelings. Markus just smiled and watched as Chopper went from crying miserably to a look of realization, and finally determination. He sniffed up the snot running from his nose before his eyes hardened and he crossed his arms over his chest. Zoro seemed to approve of Chopper's action before turning to make his way to the Groggy Ring.
Markus turned and walked next to Zoro with Sanji joining them as cheers rang out from the crowd. Markus ignored the chatter and focused on the coming game while grinning viciously. He remembered a little about this match and the blatant cheating that happened. He'd remedy that. As they moved closer to the field with the announcer introducing the players for the match, Zoro and Sanji started arguing. Those two were really like oil and water, their competitiveness had reached even higher heights than in the show or manga due to Markus always pitting them against each other in the training sessions.
As they walked onto the field the rules of the game were announced. It was pretty simple, get the opponent's ball into the goal. The first one to do so wins. The catch was, one of the players was the ball. As that was explained, one of Foxy's men asked Zoro, "Which one of you will be the ball?"
Zoro just pointed at Sanji with his thumb prompting another Foxy pirate to place a ball with a strap on top of his head. This immediately prompted Sanji to start yelling at Zoro. Not wanting to deal with the BS, Markus walked over and plucked the ball off of Sanji's head and placed it on his own. The two of them were confused until they saw the evil smile on Markus's face. Soon they too sported evil smiles.
One of the best things about having a Logia-type Devil Fruit was that it didn't just affect the body with its intangibility, it affected everything being worn. This included the ball that Markus had just donned. He was now a literally invincible ball that couldn't be picked up or even touched by the opposing team as long as none of them knew Armament Haki. None of them did. It got worse though because not only could the opposing team not touch him, but if they tried they would automatically get fried for their effort.
As the three of them were grinning like villains, the opposing team came stomping over to the field. Each opponent was bigger than the last with the smallest one still being twice the height of anyone on Markus's team. The first opponent was a large square bodied man with a monkey face named Hamburg. The second was twice the size of Hamburg with a more rounded body and huge metal shields on his shoulders, Pickles. Stupid name. The final member was, once again, twice the size of Pickles and covered in muscles. The half-fishman half-giant Big Pan, who just so happened to be the opponent's ball. The theme with their names was lame and obvious.
Zoro, Sanji, and Markus looked unimpressed and continued to have evil grins on their faces. There was no way in hell they could possibly lose the coming match. It was time for them to take out some of their frustration on their opponents. This wasn't going to be pretty for the Foxy Team the 'Groggy Monsters'.
