The man gleefully opened the door to let Shanks in. His wide smile never faltered and his eyes never left the door as the rest of the group ran inside. "Please, have a seat!" he gestured to the living room couches. He winced at Zoro's head injury. "You should get that looked at," he drawled. "I'd hate for my beloved cousin to be angry..." he trailed off, making a zipper motion over his mouth.
"Who are you?" Shanks narrowed his eyes, hand resting on Gryphon. Law and Zoro followed Shanks' example by keeping a hand on their swords as well. "What the hell is going on here!?" A burst of haki flared out before abruptly stopping. Shanks' head twinged in sharp pain. The man's smile grew impossibly wider, purple eyes glowing with glee.
Robin stayed silent, keeping an alert eye on the house. Nami glanced out the window at the monsters. The shadowy creatures stopped attacking, stalking around the house. A faint barrier surrounded the cabin, shimmering green. One of the smaller creatures lunged at the cabin and hit the barrier, screeching before bursting into black dust. Nami yelped and jumped away from the window.
"Don't worry," the man crooned mockingly. "They can't get past my sister's barrier. You're safe here, as she promised."
"You didn't answer his question," Bonney found herself muttering, sitting by the fireplace to warm up. "Who are you?"
The man sighed dramatically. "My dear sister didn't tell you?" He put a hand on his forehead. "For shame! I'll have to speak to her about that." He huffed, putting his hand on his hips. "Fine. My name is Aphromes, and this is just the beginning." His smile morphed to a cruel smile with all teeth.
A sense of unease fell upon the group. Except for Luffy who grinned. "Really? Woo!" Luffy bounced up and down. "Does this mean we get more people to fight?" he giggled. Aphromes stared at Luffy, mouth slightly agape. "Is it..." he mumbled to himself.
"Waaa!" Chopper cried, burying himself in Robin's lap. "Why can't we leave?" he cried to Robin.
Buggy tapped his foot on the floor, eyes narrowed. "And why the hell are our..." his throat tightened up and he coughed violently. He exasperatedly groaned and tried again. "Is going on...in the caves?" he managed to say, tightness fading.
"Well, I do believe it is time for me to depart!"Aphromes opened the door. "Have fun!" he waved and walked out of the cabin.
"You didn't answer my question!" Buggy yelled, shaking his fist at the now closed door. Shanks grit his teeth. "I am tired of not getting any answers," he growled, clenching his fist. "Buggy, are you sure you saw Mihawk?"
Buggy gaped and glared at Shanks. "OF COURSE I AM!" he shrieked.
"Maybe Mihawk has answers, then?" Law spoke up. "Zoro-ya, sit on the couch. I need to look at that head wound." At the mention of Zoro's wound, Chopper got off Robin's lap. "Hai! I'll help," he determined and hopped over to Zoro who begrudgingly sat on the other couch.
Luffy frowned and looked from Zoro to Shanks. "I think we should find Mihawk," he declared. "If we want answers, Mihawk would logically have the most. These other people on the island keep giving vague answers. Mihawk is one of us, right? A pirate, a swordsman, and he knows something." Everyone looked at him. "What? It's true."
"Since when are you so smart?" Bonney asked Luffy, scowling. "But you're right." The pink-haired girl stood up. "I can help the search party," she offered. She didn't necessarily want to, but she wanted to get away from the island more. Finding Mihawk seemed to be the only option.
"Are you sure?" Nami asked Bonney.
"My devil fruit can be helpful here," Bonney explained with a sly smile. "I've sneaked into many fortified places and have gotten away with a lot by using it." Pride emanated from her words. "Don't worry about me getting caught. I have yet to be caught by marines or anyone."
"She has a point," Robin agreed with Bonney. "To make this work, I think we should have two groups split off. Shanks, Buggy, Chopper, and I will have to stay here. Those monsters want us, not the others. At least, not yet anyways." She laughed to herself at her morbid joke. Law coughed to hide his snicker.
"So that just leaves Luffy, Nami, Bonney, Law, and Zoro," Shanks sighed, looking at the five he mentioned. He frowned in thought. "Two groups, one with two and one with three. Keep it simple," he mused. "The Straw Hat trio go together so that leaves Bonney and Law to go together."
"Any problems with that?" Robin asked the five. No one complained. "Sounds like a plan, then," Shanks grinned. "Robin, you and I can search the cabin for any books or anything that can help us get answers. Chopper, try to see if you can find any medical supplies. Buggy," Shanks turned to his clown friend. "Tell me about this...cave system."
—
"Wake up. You need to run." A warm voice whispered in his ears. "Don't let them catch you."
It was dark...too dark. Cold, much too cold. Black eyes slowly opened, taking in the dim light and glowing fauna. He coughed, wincing as pain shot through his body. He forced himself to sit up, taking in his surroundings. Water trickled through a small stream nearby, small woodland creatures chased each other through the trees. Demonic screeches echoed in the distance and the man froze.
"Ugh," he coughed up some blood. "What happened?" he asked himself, head fuzzy, memories hazy. On shaky legs, he pushed himself up. "Where..." his voice trailed off. The screams grew louder. He raised his fists and stood still, listening. The screeches and howls of the monsters echoed around him making him unable to pinpoint where the monsters were coming from.
"RUN!" the same female voice cried out in his head. He ducked down at the last minute as black dust showered above him.
"This...is quite unexpected." Panting in horror, he spun around and locked eyes with Dracule Mihawk's golden ones. "You aren't supposed to be here...or," Mihawk paused, eyes raking up and down the man's body. "Hm, nevermind. Follow me."
The man grit his teeth, feeling angry with Mihawk. He couldn't remember the swordsman, but something about him made the man feel uneasy. "Why should I?" he scowled, crossing his arms over his chest. "This is hell, isn't it?"
Mihawk's facial expression became sorrowful for a split second. "You might as well be in hell," he sighed defeatedly. "Just follow me if you want any chance of surviving this. Don't let Luffy lose another brother."
"Luffy?" the man tilted his head. "Who's Luffy?"
