Follow The Current

Chapter 17

They went island hopping for a bit before making their way back to the Forbidden Lands. "How you doin' Kid," Lux asked Kin as he approached him with the tattoo kit. "I'm doing better," Kin told him with a smile. Lux sat down at the table across from him. "I'm going to let you decide. You're still underage, with many years ahead of you. If you want too though, I will tattoo you, making you officially part of the crew," Lux told him. "Once you wear our mark though, no matter where you are, you'll always be one of us. I'm giving you the option because you are young and don't have a wanted poster. The sky is the limit for you, and you can be whatever you want to be." "You guys saved me from slavery, gave me bed and food," Kin told him. "You guys gave me a place I can be proud to call my home. Sure you're all bat shit crazy, but you're my family. I'm proud to be a member of this crew." 

Lux nodded with a smirk, "That's what I like to hear. So where do you want it?" Kin chose his left bicep. It was one of the few places that wasn't covered in scars. As Lux began to work on Kin's tattoo, an argument between Brian and Tanya could be heard right below deck. Everyone stayed quiet to hear. 

"You're not giving me a fucking chance," Tanya snapped at Brian. "You're too young," Brian snapped back. "I'm older than Kin is, yet you don't seem to be against him being apart of the crew," Tanya argued back. "Kin was already a pirate. You on the other hand, were training to be an auto-mail specialist, not a pirate," Brian shot back. "Where the hell am I going to go," Tanya asked him. "You're the only family I have left!" "Technically, I'm not. We still have Aunt Linda and Uncle Jermaine," Brian told her. "I'd rather jump over board and drown than live with those aristocrats," Tanya snapped. "Did you forget about all of the family functions Aunt Linda insulted mother and I? Oh wait, of course you don't because you always found a way out of those functions because you didn't fit in! How did you think I felt? My interests weren't into looking like a lady like Aunt Linda had wished. You force me to stay there with her, and you will be putting me through literal hell." "At least I know you'll be safe and not in harms way," Brian argued. 

"You thought I was safe at home, but look what fucking happened," Tanya yelled back. It was a verbal slap in Brian's face, but she had a point. Home should've been safe for her. "You weren't there Brian," she said, her anger fueling her. "I killed twenty seven Marines! I blew up two Marines ships! I was nearly raped! I watched our home get blown to hell! Then after that, I went to nearest island for updates on whether or not you were still alive. I then waited for that damned broadcast, because I had wanted to see you one last time. Then I watched as you had been saved. So I went back to our island, to wait for you, not caring how long it took for you to come for me. Aunt Linda showed up while I was waiting for you, trying to force me to go with her. I didn't hesitate to point my pistol at her, and told her to get the hell away from me. I am not the same baby sister you left with mom and dad when you first joined this crew." Brian was at a loss for words at her confession. "Tanya I...," he tried, failing at finding what to say. 

"It's okay Brian," she told him. "I didn't lose any sleep over those Marines, because I knew if I didn't then I wouldn't be standing before you today." Brian's throat felt dry and tight. "On the bright side, before everything happened," she said while pulling a form out of her bag. "I became the world's youngest certified auto-mail specialist." Brian took her certificate and studied it. She had five gold stars across it. The more stars a person got proved how skilled they were at the time of certification. Common specialists rank three or lower. Tanya went above and beyond proving herself. 

Brian smiled down at it, "That's really awesome Tanya. I'm so proud of you. This proves you're better than the pirate life." She shook her head, "I'm an inventor Brian. Not just auto-mail. I love building explosives, making special weapons. Growing up, my favorite photo of you, was your first ever wanted poster. Our family saw it as a disgrace that you became a pirate, but I felt honored to call you my brother. I knew that you were using your adventures as a chance to test your skills. I didn't want to get left behind, so I pushed myself as well. Mom was actually terrified I would become a pirate like you, but I think dad knew it was always a chance it would happen. After all, he always said we were carbon copies of each other." 

Brian studied his sister, and he saw that determined glint in her eyes. He sighed in defeat, "You win. You have my permission." She cheered in victory, and Brian gave her a soft smile. "Our only problem is, that you're now the only member without an ability, and the Marines are using Beast Island as an experiment facility." "No they're not," she told him. "It was all over the paper a month ago. They took a few of the beasts and began breeding different ones to produce different abilities for their members to take for themselves. There isn't any marines on that island, it's too dangerous for them to stay there." 

"We should be sailing past it, so we will be able to see," Brian said with a sigh before going above deck. 

"So what's the verdict," Lux called out as he continued working on Kin's tattoo. "I fucking gave in," Brian told him. "Only problem is, she's now the only one without an ability. She says that last month there was an article that the Marines were only capturing beasts from the island to take and breed to get the different abilities." 

"We'll know in an hour or so," Dio said from the wheel. "If there are no Marines, we'll use it as a chance to test her," Lux said. Lux looked over the railing, down at her. "Since it's still early in the day, you'll have until sun set to get you an ability on your own. Think you can manage it?" Tanya nodded with confidence, while the rest of the crew became tense. 

At the island, no Marines were in sight, and there were signs of plenty of monsters roaming about. "This is insane," Lance hissed as they watched Tanya make her way into the forest. "She's only seventeen." "I'm aware," Lux said with a nod. "I know she'll make it," Kin said as he sat on the railing. Brian prayed he was right. 

Tanya made her way through the trees silently. She kept herself as calm as possible, as she searched for a beast that could best benefit her. She had zero combat skills, but she had plenty of special explosives that she made to assist her. She had been walking, when something hit her head from above. She looked up, and saw a large bat like creature. It's pupils, changed as it looked at her, as if they were zooming and locking on to it's target. She cursed silently, as she prepared for it. 

Brian was ready to leap from the ship as the sun began to fall. Suddenly Pince was appearing on the ship. "When the hell did you leave," Dio asked him. "Captain asked me to shadow her," Pince said. Brian felt relieved to know that he hadn't just sent his sister on a suicide mission. 

"What happened," Lux asked him. "She has two abilities," Pince told them. "The second was entirely an accident. She had been in the midst of her fight with her first beast when it attracted another. I'm not sure what the first beast's ability was for her to want it, but the second one was able to shoot incredibly sharp spikes and use the spikes to create a kind of spikey armor. She received a couple of injuries, but nothing life threatening." 

A few minutes later she appeared and got on the ship. She smiled at Brian, "Nothin' to worry about." "So what was it that the first beast could do that made you want to go after it," Lux asked her curiously. "It's eyes were interesting," she told him. "I didn't fully understand it, until now, but it was like they locked on to me. It was more than that. It could zoom in it's vision to search for any threats. I also learned the hard way, it's senses were incredibly heightened from it's sight, to it's hearing, to it's sense of smell, to it's touch. I had wiped my hand on my shirt, and I was able to feel every individual thread of it." 

"I hope the sound proofing I did was enough," Brian muttered while eyeing the two couples. Lance blushed, while Muris and Lux smirked, as Scarlet rolled her eyes. After that, they all ate and retired for the night. Brian laid in his bed, looking up at the ceiling. He sighed and looked out of the window. What was in store for them now?