MARINES - A ONE PIECE story (ENGLISH) - Part I

CHAPTER XXXVII - The seasonal fruit

It was definitely not a good day. Arthur, Haru and Zell had been lost in a storm, separated from their comrades, they had to face the members of Zodiac in duels, Haru had lost Daisy, her faithful partner, and as they were about to join their mentor, they found themselves once again in trouble.

When they arrived in front of Sagittarius' room, they were surprised to discover a smiling and affable young woman, accompanied by an animal in a suit. She had greeted them politely, while the animal, obviously a goat, was only observing them. But as soon as they got close enough, their fear was confirmed : the young woman took out a crossbow and, with expert precision, shot them while the goat had thrown itself at them and had begun a surprisingly powerful sequence of blows.

But the three soldiers did not back down. There was no question of going back, because they had to go forward to find Myr and confront Helio. They decided to rush headfirst through Sagittarius chamber and to continue their ascent, even if it meant being chased by the two attackers.

Thus, they crossed the ninth chamber, that of Sagittarius, then the tenth, Capricorn. Obviously, it was the two people who had been chasing them relentlessly, trying to intercept them.

- What are you waiting for to shoot them, Sagittarius ? They are within range ! cried the goat in a suit.

- I know, but the young woman who accompanies them is such a pain... She senses my shots and tells them how to dodge. Look.

Immediately, Sagittarius cocked her crossbow. As she pulled the trigger, even before the shot, Haru shouted "left !" and her two comrades moved briskly to her side.

- We're almost to Aquarius' chamber, Zell said, pointing to the large door they could now see. We should be careful with this guy. Myr had managed to neutralize him in Yega, but since he's not here...

- We'll go headfirst, like we did with the other two, replied Arthur. We can't afford to waste any more time with them, the priority is to find Myr.

- In that case, replied Haru, turning around, you just have to keep going up while we hold these two as long as possible.

- What ?! exclaimed Arthur. But... you don't even have your bow anymore.

- That is not a problem, Haru replied, visibly embarrassed, pushing him forward. Don't stop running !

As he and Peck charged up the stairs without looking back, Arthur heard his comrades engaging the two pirates. But he had only one thing in mind, which he repeated to himself like a mantra : "Keep going ! Keep going ! Keep going !".

When he pushed open the heavy door of Aquarius' room, he was surprised to find the pirate on the ground, already defeated. His surprise was even greater when he saw his mentor facing two other pirates. The first one was Taurus : he recognized her because Myr had shown him her wanted poster, and Haru had told them about her. The second was a man with such charisma that Arthur instantly guessed his identity. He was Helio, the man they were looking for.

- Arthur ?! cried Myr when he saw his apprentice.

Helio slowly turned towards him, and observed him carefully, without saying a word.

- I'll take care of him, my God. Don't trouble yourself, said Taurus.

- Be careful, my dear. This boy is more powerful than he looks... Is he your apprentice, White Tiger ?

- The best there is ! exclaimed Myr as he threw herself at his opponent once again.

But before either of them could act, the front door was knocked off its hinges and the wall collapsed. Haru and Zell fell backwards, thrown to the ground by their opponents.