Leaving - chapter 12
As promised! the final chapter of Leaving is now available! Now, I haven't sent it off to be edited so there might be some mistakes here and there. Yes, there will be an epilogue but for all purposes the fic is now done. I want to apologize for it taking so long. I had some..."trouble" over the past year. I promise not to post another fic until it's completely finished. That being said, I am currently working on finishing up a fic I had started on last year and I have another outline waiting once that's done. Hurray for the return of Chi!!!
TITLE: Leaving It All Behind
AUTHOR: tshapo_chi
CHARACTERS: One Piece Characters from beginning to after Thriller Bark
RATING: NC17 - for Violence, Sexual content, Language, character death
DISCLAIMER/S: I don't own One Piece or any of its characters, nor do I profit from this
SUMMARY: Witnesses were disappearing from protective custody right and left; no rhyme or reason to the order in which they are taken out. Only one seems able to escape the villan's wrath.
Four years have past since the tragic events that would forever change him. With his life in shambles, would the wayward son ever be able to pull things together?
Chance encounters, odd letters and even stranger people are all intertwined in the mystery that surrounds them.
Zoro knelt in the middle of the room in dead silence, not even the storm outside reaching his ears as he struggled to breathe; his chest refusing to expand as if it were being crushed by a heavy weight. He was numb and yet full of pain at the same time, while it felt as if someone else had control over his body. His world… his very life… everything, came crashing down in an instant as he came face to face with the man he had intended to kill. A man whom he thought was already dead. Someone who should have been dead no matter how much he wished it to be otherwise.
Thunder shook the room and the family picture on the wall came crashing to the floor; the shards of glass tearing the photo across the man’s face. The world shook for a moment before settling, and then suddenly Zoro found himself flying across the room, courtesy of a solid kick to the head from an agitated cook. He picked himself up slowly and searched the room as his thoughts began to form again. Across the room, Sanji was shutting the window and laying down a few towels to soak up the rain that had entered.
“What the fuck just happened? First you knock me out of the fight and then when you have him, you drop your swords and let him go!” Sanji’s voice rose with every word until he was finally yelling. “You stupid fuck! What the hell is your problem? Has all that alcohol finally killed the few brain cells you were born with? Damn it! You sure picked a shitty time to grow a conscience, asshole. Who the fuck was he that he was so important you had to let him go?!”
“He was my father,” Zoro’s voice was rough with emotion.
Sanji froze in his attempts to clean up the mess, his anger dropping immediately only to be replaced by guilt and wariness. His chose his words carefully this time. “I thought you said he was dead.”
“He’s supposed to be.” Zoro’s shoulders had fallen again, seemingly held down with the weight of his new founded troubles. But they only stayed that way for a moment. And when he lifted his head, a new depth of emotion had settled into his dark eyes; slowly bringing a frightening change. Gone was any of his depressing aura. Gone was the confusion and despair. Gone was any hint of peace or sanity. And gone was every ounce of humanity as a demon began to take Zoro’s place. “And he will be if he is the reason for her death.”
Sanji’s eyes went wide at the wave of fury that swept the room and began to chase after Zoro as the swordsman turned heel, storming towards the bedroom. “Hey, hey… Look Marimo, you can’t run off half cocked into the beast’s lair all alone. You need to think this out and for fuck’s sake would you stop a minute and listen to me?!”
Zoro spun around and shoved Sanji against the wall, knocking the wind out of the blonde. Their noses touched as Zoro sneered at him, lacing his voice with a warning growl. “For the past four years I’ve mourned the death of my parents whom I thought had been taken from me. And up until this past week, I had nothing to even go on to try and bring them peace. Then you show up...” There was a hint of something in Zoro’s eyes, but it passed too quickly for Sanji to identify. “Get the fuck out of my house shitty cook. Go back to your life. This isn’t your fight anymore.”
Having little to grab onto to keep the swordsman from backing away, Sanji hooked one hand into the waistband of Zoro’s pants and grabbed a handful of hair in the other. “You’re not getting rid of me that easy, asshole.”
Zoro hissed as a few tufts of hair were ripped from his head when he slammed his fist into Sanji’s face and sent the cook flying. He watched the blonde wipe the blood from his lip and prepared himself for the counter, though not enough. Two feet caught him solid in the chest and knocked him into the mirrored closet doors, shattering them with the impact of his solid form. He barely had a chance to sit up before he had to block the next attack. Grabbing the slender ankle as it came down above him, Zoro jerked hard and kicked up with his own feet knocking Sanji over and onto the floor. Zoro leapt out of the closet and tackled him while he was down, sending them both rolling across the floor; Sanji at a great disadvantage with nothing on the swordsman’s upper half to grab onto.
A twist of his upper body and Sanji managed to catch his elbow on Zoro’s temple, creating a little more space between them. While Zoro had mass and strength on his side, Sanji was graced with flexibility and agility. The cook hooked his heel under Zoro’s chin and pulled, careening his head backwards into a painful position and cutting off the air supply. With a lurch of his entire body, the cook managed to flip the swordsman off of him and rolled quickly away. Not sparing a second, Sanji landed another hit to Zoro’s jaw as the man was getting to his feet though this time, Zoro’s head merely flew to the side rather than his whole body. Again Sanji attacked, and still Zoro refused to go down. Sanji watched cautiously as the swordsman kept his feet and wondered how long their hospital stays would be if either of them really got down to business. As it was right now, Sanji knew he could be taking a lot more damage; for one because the swords were still in the other room, but also because Zoro had yet to strike at him again.
Taking a chance, Sanji let down his guard and approached the ticking time bomb. He put his hand gently on the rough and now slightly swollen cheek but was knocked immediately away. With a heavy sigh, Sanji took the green haired man’s head in both hands and forced it up enough so he could kiss the fool soundly. His fingers tightened in the short hair as Zoro tried to shove him away, and he continued to keep his lips pressed against the others. Zoro’s struggling ebbed, though Sanji was sure that the tight grip on his upper arms would leave bruises if it didn’t ease up soon as well. When the kiss still wasn’t returned, Sanji sighed heavily and pulled back, though never letting go.
“Look, asshole, I’m not leaving. You’re just going to have to deal with that.” Sanji watched Zoro’s downcast eyes flicker slightly before closing and the cook leaned in so their foreheads were touching.
They stood in silence for a moment, tension still high between them as Sanji waited impatiently for a response. He could feel the blood in his arms pulsing under the vice grip Zoro continued to keep on them. If the idiot didn’t release him soon, his hands would go numb and the hold he had on the short hair would be useless. Sanji opened his eyes as Zoro released a deep breath slowly and watched the swordsman shake his head. “You’re not going to start spouting some fucking poems or shit about love are you?”
The question took Sanji off guard and the cook began to chuckle. “I don’t know. Will it keep you from doing something stupid?”
“Not fucking likely.” Zoro let out bark of sarcastic laughter, but a slight turn at the corner of his lips told that his mood was at least a little better and his grip on the cook’s arms was changing to a much gentler hold.
“What about the promise of mind-blowing sex?” Sanji found the slight reddening of Zoro’s cheeks endearing, and filed away the memory for future use. Unfortunately the situation was all too serious for any more silly antics, and besides it wasn’t his style. Sanji’s voice lost all amusement and he stared intently at the green haired man. “Zoro this is a suicide mission. You can’t run into it unprepared. Call for backup.”
Zoro leveled him with a fierce look and stepped back. “I have to know the truth. I have to know if my father is really responsible for this. The longer I wait, the greater the possibility that he will be gone again and I’ll never know. If it were your father, would you hesitate?”
Sanji nodded in understanding and released his hold on the green hair so that Zoro could walk away. “I’m coming with you.”
Zoro paused for a moment and Sanji could see the swordsman thinking hard. They both knew the cook had just as much at stake here, and that he had undoubtedly proved his efficiency at holding his own in a fight, but for whatever reason Sanji somehow knew what the answer would be. Zoro turned to look over his shoulder at the cook and shook his head. “No. I have something else I need you to do.”
-/-/-/-/-/-
Though his footsteps were silent, there wasn’t anything he could do about the trail of water being left in his wake. The rain had soaked him through to the bone and nothing short of stripping down would relieve the issue. Besides, no one would question his presence here anyway. The only reason for the stealth was to make sure his prey didn’t get away. He continued through the corridors to the lower levels after entering from the rooftop, never once pausing for longer than it took to open a door. Every man he passed in the hall stepped to the side, trembling in fear but never uttering a word, hoping that the life the warrior was searching for wasn’t theirs.
A soft click of the latch was the only sound as Ryuuma entered the dark room only to find it empty. Completely empty. Not even a chair remained in the doctor’s office, and more troubling was the lack of the desk that held the key to opening the pathway to the hidden cell. He was about to begin slicing up the walls when the door he had been seeking opened and a small female figure walked out. She stumbled and Ryuuma caught her without hesitation, cradling her to his chest carefully. The hood of the cloak wrapped around her fell away and Ryuuma felt as though a blade had been driven into his chest. Tear glazed eyes stared up at him from the disfigured face of a woman he barely knew. Ryuuma looked down into the empty cell that had previously held his wife, letting the hatred for his enemy continues to fester and grow. The woman pushed against his chest and he released her, keeping his guard up and ready to draw his sword should the need arise. The hood was pulled back over her blonde hair and the girl motioned for Ryuuma to follow as she left the room.
-/-/-/-/-/-
The off key notes being hummed as he worked echoed in the large workroom. Several tables were covered with different chemistry sets brewing concoctions that only he knew the reason for. Occasionally, faint screaming could be heard from down the hall making the mad scientist smirk evilly as he continued jotting down notes on his latest attempt. Soon his messenger would bring him the missing piece to the puzzle and everything would fall into place. Hogback sighed happily and sat back in his chair, holding out his hand expectantly. He wiggled his fingers impatiently and turned to search for his assistant who should have immediately handed him his tea he’d ordered.
“Cindry? Cindry… Cindry, you wretched thing! Where are you?” An irritated frown replaced his previous contentment as Hogback settled back to his work. “One of these days I’m going to just destroy that worthless wench and make a new one.”
-/-/-/-/-/-
Ryuuma flew through the halls, cutting down anything that stood in his way as images of the past filled his mind. The damage done to his wife in the crash was massive and he hadn’t thought she would survive. He himself had sustained significant injuries though none of them life threatening, but unfortunately their pilots hadn’t been so lucky. The couple was picked up by some rough looking locals and taken to a small third world country hospital with limited equipment and no phone access. When the eccentric doctor mysteriously appeared, Ryuuma thought it was miracle and begged Doctor Hogback to do everything in his power to save Sarah. The man had agreed… for a price. Ryuuma’s strength and skill as a swordsman would be needed in gathering information for the good doctor’s research and in return the dying woman would be given another chance at life. Blindly Ryuuma accepted and until tonight, he had just followed direction from Hogback so that the doctor would continue to heal her. But now… the madman had sent him on a mission that he should have never accepted. Ryuuma barely paused as his blade sliced through another unfortunate soul who had made the mistake of trying to stand in his way. Blood gurgled out of the man’s neck as he tried to scream before falling to the ground.
“Find him… Destroy him… Free us.”
The young woman’s words played over and over in his mind as Ryuuma continued his search for answers. According to the scarred woman, the instant Ryuuma had left for his mission Hogback had started moving all of his things into the main lab. Test subjects had been moved as well, though the reasoning was still vague. The only think she knew for sure was that it had something to do with that creature. Everything revolved around that thing. Cindry had said that there were rumors that the missing pieces they needed to complete the experiment would be arriving shortly and everyone was excited to see the results. It had never occurred to Ryuuma before to question what the beast was made of, why it was created, and more importantly how. Maybe he should have.
Ryuuma screamed in anger as he thought about all of the torment and suffering Sarah had gone through. All of the tests, the medical procedures, the experimental treatments. How much of it was really necessary? Was it all for show? Had there really been any hope of giving him back his wife? The invisible knife in his chest dug in deeper, sending more pain throughout his body. His eyes closed and in his mind he saw the shocked face of his only child staring back at him. Ryuuma clutched his chest and stumbled just outside the doorway to one of the smaller labs. The door was cracked and he turned his head to peer in. Skeletal bodies were laying here and there, some whole and others in pieces but all made of solid metal.
Mechanical men…
The very first assignment he had been given was to obtain a briefcase from a man at a research facility in California. He was told that it held the blueprints for a bio-metal that could be used in reconstructing some of Sarah’s shattered bones. His next target had been a doctor of some sort who had a breakthrough in neurological studies. Two more were experts in synthetic organ transplants. After that he stopped asking. He just focused on seeing the life come back into his loving wife. Now, looking at the stages of work in the messy lab, Ryuuma began to understand the sickening reality of what he had helped to create. Somewhere down the hall he heard a man scream, followed by a familiar sinister laugh. Ryuuma straightened, and headed towards the sound intent on gaining answers. May his family forgive him both for what he had done, and what he was about to do.
The creation known as Oz stood amongst the destroyed remains of the assembly room swinging something in circles over his head. Its master called stop and the machine immediately obeyed. What was left of a human arm was dropped to the floor as Oz tromped over to find a new toy to play with. The man in charge chuckled, clearly pleased with the way things were going as the disfigured abomination continued to wreak havoc. Moria sat down in the only remaining chair and tapped his fingers together in front of him. Ryuuma slipped into the room silently and crossed the littered floor towards the foreboding man.
“Ryuuma, my favorite samurai, kishishishi.” Moria’s voice rang with mockery as the swordsman fought to steady his hand. “Have you brought Hogback what he needed? I hope the new bodyguard wasn’t too much for you to handle.”
“Tell me that this wasn’t all planned out from the beginning…” Ryuuma slowly drew his sword, pleased with the visible stiffening of Moria’s body at the sound of the blade being removed. “Tell me you haven’t been targeting my family just to make this…. This thing.”
“Of course,” Moria assured. “But then I’d be lying. To tell you the truth, if that stubborn wife of yours had agreed to hand over all of her research we wouldn’t be here now. Then she had to go and be all safe and only take part of her work on the plane.”
Shadows moved in the darkness behind him and Ryuuma realized he was surrounded. The eyes of the men were dead and lifeless, as if they weren’t really there. Defeating them wouldn’t be an issue, but the amount of them would hinder his earlier mission to end the life of the bastard behind all of this.
“You see,” Moria began as he stood up. “She wasn’t supposed to die in that crash. The plane just took off a little later than anticipated so it didn’t go down where we planned. But still, we were able to put you to good use. It’s amazing how lifelike Hogback can make someone seem. I admit that using her shell of a body had been my idea, but he really pulled it off.”
Emotion began to haze his judgment and Ryuuma charged. The lifeless bodies around him sprang into action and he realized that he was facing an army of rejected Oz’s. His sword hit the first metal skeleton and he growled as Moria faded into the darkness. Metal and rotting flesh went flying in every direction as the swordsman tried to follow.
-/-/-/-/-/-
It had taken a few minutes to get all of the necessary information together in order for Sanji to be able to do what he needed, but somehow Zoro knew it was the right decision. Now all he had to do was find his father again and get answers. A quick call to Saga gained him the address he needed and Zoro pulled up outside the rundown factory, eyeing it speculatively as he gathered his swords. Every way he looked at this he could only come to one conclusion. The assholes responsible had brainwashed his father somehow and he had to be saved. Well, that was the only answer he would accept at least. A set of doors flew open and two bloody men came stumbling out, their scared faces going even paler at the sight of the swordsman.
“Shit,” the least damaged man mumbled and looked around in panic for somewhere to escape. He began stammering and tripped over his own feet as he backed up when Zoro took a step towards them. “Oh God! Please don’t kill us! I swear I’ll change! I’ll never do anything wrong again in my life! Please!!”
Zoro grabbed him by the front of the shirt and drew the man up so he could look him in the eye. “Where is he?”
The wounded man blinked a few times and swallowed hard. “Who?”
“My father.” The words were laced with warning, letting the man know anything less than honesty would end poorly.
Understanding reflected in his eyes and he nodded shakily. “If you mean the guy who kinda looks like you, they say he’s headed for the main lab. It’s in the basement.”
Zoro released him and the man fell to the ground, immediately forgotten in lieu of trying to decide the best route. He stepped through the open doors and had to quell his stomach as the stench of rotting flesh filled his nostrils. Bloody footprints on the ground looked to be the best track to follow and quickly Zoro hurried through the halls in search of answers. Several bodies littered the area in front of a set of doors that were partially open, giving him a view of the flight of stairs beyond. Lights flickered in the stairwell as Zoro cautiously made his way through the dead men; the smell from the lower level even worse, making it hard to breathe.
Shouts for help drew him in and Zoro found himself in a large room lined with cages. Each one was filled with men and women of varying ages. One held a couple of boys who didn’t look to be more than fifteen. Distracted by the gut wrenching scene, he was almost struck by a circular wall decoration flying by his head. The disc shattering against the bars of one of the cages, silencing the prisoners and pushing him into action. Zoro spun around and drew his sword, placing its tip at the throat of the attacker.
“Wait.” The feminine voice held a hint familiarity, gaining enough of a pause for her to pull the hood from her blonde hair. “Do not leave them like this to suffer.”
The connection clicked and Zoro narrowed his eyes in anger. “You’re the one who called me, offering me the job.”
A nod of the head and her sad eyes turned back to the captives who began crying out to them again. “My name is Cindry.”
“Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you here and now?” He kept the sword pressed against her throat though he felt no malice from her. She placed her hand on the backside of the sword, pushing it away as if it were a mere annoyance. A feeling of unease settled around him at her lackadaisical attitude towards his intended threat.
“Because I can help you find what you seek.” She met his hardened stare with eyes filled with pain and tears. “Help them, and I will tell you how to find your father.”
The sound of his heart beating in his chest drowned out all other noise as he weighed his options. Give in to the urge and run the woman through, or take the time to free the slaves and maybe get some answers. A single tear rolled down her scarred cheek, making his choice for him. An exasperated huff escaped his lips as he turned to examine the cell doors. His eyes followed the cables to the keypad release panel on the wall. Not one for protocol, Zoro thrust his sword into the box and shielded his eyes against the sparks that flew. A buzzer sounded and the doors all clicked open, releasing the captives inside.
He watched her speak softly to them, giving them instructions on what path would lead to the exit. She was helping a young woman with a swollen ankle when he held out his sword, blocking their way.
“I believe payment is due.”
Cindry nodded and passed the injured woman to another prisoner. She motioned Zoro to follow and they exited the other side of the now empty dungeon. Several twists and turns later and he could hear the sounds of metal hitting metal ahead. He burst through a set of doors to find carnage littering almost every space of a makeshift laboratory. A glint of light flashed from one of the corpses, drawing his attention and Zoro walked over. Metal and wiring wrapped in human flesh jutted out from where a hipbone should have been.
Metal men. Cyborgs. Robotic humanoids, just like thing in his mother’s video. Well, not quite like that, but definitely not living creatures. Their immobile bodies told the story of a mad man who had taken something that didn’t belong to him and tried to play God. Anger and hatred consumed him as he sliced the head off of a semi-functioning soldier that had stood up behind him. A bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face and he wiped it away with the sleeve of his shirt. The blonde woman had disappeared while he had been caught up in his thoughts, but he was close enough now that he could follow the sound of metal against metal and find his target. Zoro had barely gone three steps when everything stopped. Unease set in and he stepped up his pace, wondering who it was that had just fallen.
( Time is of the essence )