To go with your crew...

[highseasmods]

Who: Everyone who is fighting in the battle to kill the witch.
Where: The Black Fortress in the East
When: Jan 24th-25th
What: The grand battle to get back what you have lost, get revenge for what was taken, and avert disaster.
Warnings: Language. Death. Victory. Defeat. True love. Miracles.
Style: Text or prose
Status: Open to all



The black fortress ripples with shimmering iridescent energy, the piles of black coral heaped on roped together barges around it, bobbing in the waves. On the largest barge stands a slender man with a copper belt, wearing a face mask, orange red hair flecked with black from ash or dust. As the dawn slowly folds over the ocean, he'll look up, as if hearing some hidden voice.

At the top of the fortress, a figure climbs into vision, a woman, dressed in gray, features obscured by a hood with impenetrable darkness behind it. She staggers a moment as if she is weary, then straightens to her full height. As she speaks, her voice comes out of the journals, echoing over the water, low but clear.

"This is no small task ye do. She that rots within'll do anythin' ta stop ye. Don't hesitate to kill what ye find. If they were human once, they hain't no more. Watch out for her golems, too, or they'll drain ye dry quicker'n a wink. But if ye can get rid of 'em, it'll weaken her." She hesitates, cants her head to the side. "And if ye lot aren't as much of a bunch'a idiots as usual, ye might come out alive through this."

That said, she raises her hands. After a moment so does the man on the barge. For a moment, nothing seems to happen and then iridescent light shimmers over the coral, seeming to match that which surrounds the fortress. It crackles and dances like a fire, and then without warning bursts into a furious life, slamming against the energy of the fortress. There is the sound like thunder and light snaps and crackles, zipping with energy. Then with a woosh the light flies upward, taking the figure with it. The man on the barge lets out a cry like a seagull and dives into the water as if intending to swim after her.

For the boats that remain, a part of the fortress will crumble away into the sea, revealing a small harbor and an open doorway. Enter all ye who dare.


[If things become too crowded, feel free to make another thread outside of these. Just put where you are in the header.]

Comments

The Armory

[highseasmods]

You will also see a portrait of a man that looks like a certain ghost, standing tall and proud behind the wheel of a ship. There is a large red gem hanging from a plated gold chain around his neck. Just behind him and to the right is a proud woman with pale skin, red lips and russet red hair, her posture tall and her eyes hooded.

[serving_love]

[Rummaging around in here, looking for something he can use to get this shitty collar off. He heard that clap of thunder and felt the sudden rush of energy, so he's pretty sure now's the time.

The gig is up, their way out is here, though the thought of facing any member of his crew actually makes him feel physically ill and weighed down with overwhelming guilt. Still, he expects soon there'll be all sorts of idiots running through these halls looking for their missing nakama, not to mention the prisoners he knows have already escaped their cells. It's about to become a fucking battleground, and this thing around his neck is a damn nuisance.

In any case, he's done pretending to serve the Witch. And besides, there's something he still has to do...]

[fortyfivedegrees]

[Well, there was a familiar humming echoing down the hall, only to be punctuated by the sound of steel being drawn and sheathed in a flash before a few somethings hit the floor. A few moments more and none other than Brook himself would appear around a corner, spinning his cane in his hand with a bony grin on his face; a grin which got even wider at the sight of Sanji.]

Sanji-san! I'll have you know we've been looking for you all over since you left...Luffy-san has been quite stricken ever since you left I'll have you know.

[He adjusted his neck tie slightly as he spoke, his tone nonjudgmental seeing as how everyone had pretty much lost their heads...metaphorically speaking.]

Celestia-chan as well...you wouldn't happen to have seen her here, would you?

[serving_love]

[Sanji...doesn't quite grin back. It's not that he was expecting anyone on his crew to really turn their backs on him, though he wouldn't have blamed them if they did, but this complete lack of hostility somehow makes the guilt even worse.

He eyes Brook for a moment, brain skipping right over the mention of Luffy -- he can't think about his captain right now -- and narrows in on the question about the princess. When he answers, his tone is dark.]

Celestia-san is still under her control.

[fortyfivedegrees]

Hmm...

[Brook gave a small hum as he rested his cane on the floor, leaning on it for a few moments in pensive thought; last time they'd come into contact, the two of them had fought quite fiercely...but she was Nakama no matter the circumstances.]

Then I do believe we should start searching for her, yes? If there is any chance to free her from the witches control, we must take it, yes?

[serving_love]

[Shakes his head.]

She's in the shitty throne room.

[At least, that's the last place Sanji had seen her. They'd been there for most of the week.]

It's the Witch you need, though. She's the one we have to beat, and I don't know where she went.

[yourotherleft]

[it doesn't take Zoro long to get lost, because he's Zoro. It does, however, take him time to actually end up in the armory, not that he knows what's behind that door or what he'll find in it. He's already got enough swords, what does he need with the armory?

Though, he really didn't expect to find his missing crewmate in there, too]

...huh. What, are you lost?

[serving_love]

[And Sanji definitely wasn't expecting to run into Zoro so soon, nor is he at all prepared for this. He spins around, hand still clutching the collar around his neck, and the words that burst out of him are automatic.]

Shit, you asshole, don't sneak up on me like that!

[A second later his eyes widen, like it clicks just who he's talking to, and he backs straight up into the wall.]

...Fuck.

[yourotherleft]

[it's a good thing Zoro's default expression is stony blankness, because he really needs it right now, to hide everything he might be thinking. He strides forward confrontationally]

Are you in your right mind?

[serving_love]

[Attempts to disappear backwards into the wall, but that's obviously not very successful. He wants to chicken out and look away, look at anything in the room that isn't Zoro, but he can't. He forces himself not to. His eyes stay locked on the other man, and he gives a single, firm nod.

Then he draws in a somewhat shaky breath.]

Where's— ...Is Luffy...?

[Okay.

Sick.

Alive.

...Dead.

He leaves the question hanging, not entirely sure he wants the answer. And even less certain he can handle it if it's that last thing.]

[heartismyown]

[It's a hoarde of the undead out there and Roxas has been hacking and slashing his way through without much of a problem. It really is like fighting a flock of heartless.

There's a room ahead though and he wouldn't mind a moment to catch his breath. He opens the door and slides in before slamming it shut behind him, leaning against it to catch his breath. Yeesh. Neverending, it seems.]

[serving_love]

[Ducks around a bend in the room when the door opens. He still has the collar on, so he's playing it safe until he finds a way to get it off. When he hears the door slam shut again, followed by someone panting, he carefully looks around the corner to see who it is.

And then his heart slams in his chest and he immediately feels like he's going to be sick.]

Shit.

[His voice is a whisper, the word more an exhaled breath than a distinct sound. He quickly pulls back, letting his head bang back against the wall as he cringes.

Fuck. Fucking fuck. It's the kid he—

It's Roxas.

...Looking remarkably alive, but.

Fuck.]

[heartismyown]

[In the room, that's seemingly empty, there are a lot of weapons. Many of them look useless, but some of them look okay. Roxas doesn't need a weapon, but before he catches his breath, he needs to make sure nothing's going to jump out at him.

He walks around carefully, looking for any zombies, heading deeper in the room with both keyblades out at the ready. Only when he's sure it's empty, can he take a rest.]

[breakfastmetaphors]

[The captain had left them to their own devices, so upon entering the fortress, L-Elf's first priority had been to search out the armory. Ammunition is expensive in this place and the knife he carries, while usually sufficient, is limited in its range. He examines the assortment of blades the armory offers, looking for anything easily concealable or that won't weigh him down too much. Ultimately, he settles for a pair of wicked looking daggers and what seems to be some sort of short sword. It's not what he's trained in, but against largely mindless opponents, he doesn't foresee any difficulty.]

[OOC: Underarmed? Not armed at all? Have someone who can figure out what you need.]

[oneofthelost]

[It doesn't take long before Alex finds her way to the armory. The shy, somewhat nervous girl from the tavern is gone.

Most of the color's drained from her skin, highlighted, to some degree, by the blood spattered all over her. She's going to need some new clothes after this is all done. (She's heard some chatter amongst their fellows about a treasury... She might just go help herself to a bit. Just enough for clothes and weapons. She doesn't need a lot.)

She rounds the corner with her last arrow ready to fire but... recognizes a familiar, living face. So she loosens her hold and relaxes her shoulders.]

Nice of her to keep this stocked, huh?

[She flashes a smile as she goes to the bows and their quivers, rooting around for the right size and feel. She could use an upgrade.

Which is when she can't help but laugh a bit. If she doesn't joke a little, she's going to lose her mind to all the blood.]

Feels like something out of a video game, huh?

[breakfastmetaphors]

I wouldn't know.

[It does get a small smile out of him, though. He's in his element for once with a fairly open-ended mission, so he's in a far better mood than he's been in since arriving in this world.]

I don't have any hobbies.

[He's not the type to crack jokes about his work being his hobby, he usually has someone around that does that for him, but it's kind of clear from looking at him that it's the case.]

[oneofthelost]

Once this is done, we've got to find you one.

[She's teasing more than anything else.

And most of her serious attention is on the bows she's testing. None are what she's used to, but she's found at least one she likes.]

[forthevillage]

Checking here before had found him nothing, but with all the current commotion Itachi found himself back here again. Surprisingly, where before there had been nothing but broken and useless weapons, there now seemed to be a fair amount in working condition.

How peculiar.

At this point it wasn't easy to tell if things were an illusion or not, so he kept the rusty sword from before at his waist as opposed to tossing it aside and grabbed up a sword in better condition. There were daggers, but it seemed a waste to try and use them as replacement kunai for now, so this would have to do.

[thethundersaid]

This pace was enough of a rabbit warren that Sasuke was beginning to appreciate Orochimaru's architectural aesthetic -- but he'd also been true to his word, leaving the hallways behind them clouded with the smoke of anything that could burn. There hadn't been too much, especially once they'd found the empty cells, but there was enough that it was clear to them and passerby that one location had already been located.

It was less useful than he'd expected when there were more locations and doors than he could count. The one they rounded on now was already open, which was probably a relief for Draco (who didn't have to go first as a result): tensed for attack, Sasuke those behind him to wait and swung into the room, ready --

To see Itachi. It didn't register at first, Sasuke blinking in surprise, and then it did --

"Brother?!" His voice was loud enough to be heard by those still in the hall.

[forthevillage]

"Sasuke." Itachi turned, only somewhat surprised to see the other ninja there. The break-in was large enough to involve multiple ships after all. He immediately began walking toward him, clothes filthy and bandages in tatters. At least his coat would still be back in his cabin.

He kept his weapons at his side, holding his hands up to show that he was no longer a threat (not that he had been much of one to Sasuke to begin with). He was, if perhaps not 'fine', then at least back to normal aside from his nullified abilities. There was still a bit of roughness to his voice, but far less than there had been before.

"Are you alright? Is the rest of the crew here?" Are they alright is the unspoken addition.

[thethundersaid]

No attack, but then Itachi hadn't seemed eager to fight him even when he'd been possessed. It was the last question that confirmed the witch's work had ended, that Itachi was in control of himself. A moment of relief, and then Sasuke was striding across the room to meet him -- surrounded by weapons, oddly fitting -- reached out an arm when he was close enough and without thinking, pulled his brother into a rough, one-armed hug, the collar on Itachi's neck clinking against the weapons tucked into his own arm band.

He released him a moment later, instantly embarrassed.

"I'm fine," he said, voice gruff, stepping back to look Itachi over for injuries. "The crew is here; we're spread out. Are you hurt? I can get this collar off of you."

[ex_automobiles598]

[The armory would have suited Asami's needs more had there been more advanced weapons. She wasn’t all that well versed in using any of the present weapons properly, but they would have to do for now.

She picked up a pistol and tucked it away under her belt and then picked up a longsword, flipping it both ways before standing up]

Alright...I think I have what need from here.

[Now hopefully she could move to another area without too much trouble]

[madeofswords]

[Wordlessly, Archer entered. He wasn't dressed as 'Kiritsugu'. His glasses had been cast aside and he had combed his hair back to sufficiently return to his role as Archer for the moment. Clad in his suppressive cloak, Archer's eyes followed the line of the walls, observing Asami only for a moment as he realized he wasn't in her line of sight.

The benefit of being able to walk through walls, really.

Still, there was nothing in there at all useful for him, but it made no difference at the moment. He could hear the scraping and shuffling of undead down the hall, which immediately sobered him.]

[ex_automobiles598]

[The sounds of the undead are what piqued Asami's senses back up as she took a step back and twisted her body around in that direction. Well, so much for not running into any more trouble, but she figured it would be that way regardless.

With a quick step, she pressed her back against the wall and steadily held the sword in her hand. There was an obvious frown on her face as she looked back down at her weapon, she had to admit she had no idea on what she was doing exactly. But the best way to practice was to just jump straight into the fray, right?

Maybe not the best way, but it was what Asami did anyway. She didn't really have any other options at this point. She finally caught sight of Archer when she inched her way closer to the halls, back still against the wall. Keeping quiet would be pointless so she spoke up instead, furrowing a brow]

It sounds like there's a lot of them out there, I...hope you know how use one of these better than I do.

[She lifted the longsword up]

[madeofswords]

[He had vivid memories of it--of every time he had been in the way of a number of 'Deads'. Zombies, wrought by the machinations of sorcerers and greater vampires. This witch was no different. She brought forth the dead from the sea to her unknown purpose and in that, showed a great deal of skill in how she violated life and death, yet Archer didn't feel thrown off by it at all.

If he were forced to confess, he would have said it would have been simpler to have just escaped, destroyed the ships of the other pirates and left before the plague could spread from where they were. Isolated, those corpses could do no one any harm. Yet, there he was, attempting to be helpful. Deep down, he knew it was folly. There, Archer had someone in front of him and for the moment, he didn't feel like becoming a monster.]

Ideally, you shouldn't even have to do that. The best fight you can be in is one that never happens.

[Opening his left hand--a series of three small 'handles' of swords appeared between his fingers. He locked his fingers over them to secure them and immediately, long slender blades stabbed out from between his knuckles. The 'Black Keys' he created were suited for killing abominations such as the undead.]

However, I advise you make the best of your time. Collect what you need, first.