first blood

The enemy ship was slowly approaching, the entire crew was preparing. Some held white weapons, others firearms, ready to take lives. I, too, was perched on top of the ship, my two daggers in hand, determined to kill because I had to.

Their ship was more or less similar to ours, a huge size capable of holding a hundred people. But what surprised me the most was their captain. He measured three meters, even surpassing our captain in height. He was a true mountain, with imposing muscles. The members of the enemy crew did not seem to appreciate him, but they were afraid of their own captain. He brandished a lance and a shield, like a gladiator, which probably explained their nickname.

After a few more minutes, the two ships collided with each other, and everyone rushed on board, except for the two captains. In turn, I jumped, ready to claim my first victim. Descending slowly from the mast, I spotted a pirate and sliced him without hesitation. Thanks to gravity (9.8 m/s²), my strength multiplied, and my dagger easily severed the pirate's body from the throat to the waist. The sensation was repulsive. I could effortlessly feel the slicing of different bones, the heart, the intestines, and the stomach, as if I were cutting a tomato. Blood sprayed everywhere, and I ended up vomiting. For at least thirty seconds, I was paralyzed, unable to move. My heart was throbbing, an indescribable pain.

However, as if I were not alone, my body and soul told me not to falter, that I had to suppress these feelings, that darkness would take care of my emotions, and that I, Ash, had to devote myself to killing and becoming stronger!

A pirate rushed towards me to kill me, witnessing the horror of seeing his comrade die so quickly. However, I was currently in the midst of a mental crisis. I couldn't die, but killing a human being was completely different from killing an animal, even if that individual had killed many innocent people.

But this man wanted to kill me. A man with so much innocent blood on his hands that he could swim in it. These men disgusted me. Unfortunately, some of us had to take care of cleaning up this trash, and it was up to me to do it.

As if I were hungry, or rather thirsty for blood, I wanted to kill him, make him disappear. I think he could feel it because his movements froze. He seemed chained or trapped in quicksand. I rushed towards him and, without hesitation, plunged my dagger into his body, piercing his bones and penetrating his heart. I was no longer disgusted because I didn't need that emotion. I lived in a cruel world where killing was necessary to survive.

*** PIRATE POV ***

I will kill him, he killed my brother! "Bastard!" But I felt fear engulfing me, as if I had to retreat. Too late. I could see nothing anymore, just a dark world. My legs refused to move, I was trapped in a lake of darkness. I looked up and felt intense terror. It wasn't fear, it was death. I knew it was the end. What stood in front of me was not a man, it was a dark shadow with blue eyes, getting closer and closer to me. Finally, I felt my heart stop, painlessly.

"What? Darkness... monster..."

*** END OF POV***

Well, you could say this "thirst for blood" is a useful skill. But I didn't stop there. I kept running, slashing pirates in my path. I couldn't really distinguish between our allies and enemies anymore because, anyway, I planned to leave this rotten crew today.

Suddenly, a strong wind blew, causing me to move a few inches. Looking at where it came from, I was shocked. The two captains were fighting, one with his shield and spear, blocking and counterattacking, while our captain had transformed into a dalmatian-human hybrid. He ran at a frightening speed, and even I wasn't sure if I could surpass him in terms of swiftness. His already overwhelming strength was even more impressive. Each of his blows pushed back the enemy.

After killing enough pirates, I climbed up the ship's mast to observe this fight that could have killed those nearby. The gladiator was struggling, using all his strength to strike, but his attacks were being evaded by the dog captain who countered with kicks, forcing him to retreat.

"Hahaha, you filthy pirate! You have no Devil Fruit, and without that power, you can never defeat me!" The half-human, half-dog form of the enemy captain continued to grow, surpassing three meters in height. I felt tiny, not far from their battle. The longer the duel lasted, the more covered in blood the gladiator became, exhausted. When he was about to receive a fatal blow, he gathered all his strength to launch one final attack.

"Meteor!" He jumped off the ship and used Gepo, a technique I didn't know how he had learned, to reach an altitude of over 50 meters.

"You want to escape? Ah, ah, ah, I'm coming after you!" But before my captain could jump as well, the enemy descended at great speed, his spear and shield perfectly positioned to inflict damage. The dog captain looked with interest, hesitating probably to flee, but ultimately he accepted the challenge and jumped towards him. I dreaded the collision, and as expected, the captain was pushed back, crushed by the gladiator. But when the smoke cleared, our leader held the lifeless body of the enemy in one hand, then crushed his head and threw it into the sea.

I was amazed by his strength, but I remained confident in my newfound ability. As my captain returned to his human form, a bit exhausted and injured from the head-on attack he had endured, he shouted to all of us, "VICTORY!" But at that moment, I lunged, ready to execute him, but he dodged, grabbed my head, and smashed it against the ground.

I sense that this is going to be more difficult than expected.