Serious: Onwards, to New Horizons! - Revolution Saga, Part 1: New Horizon Arc, Open to Cryptic Terror & me

"Who would have thought that it would have been by the hands of pirates, that stability would begin to anchor in these seas?" A husky, deep voice was heard, coming from within the small, log-crafted shed near the cliff. Below, large waves were smashing against the razor-sharp, steep coastline. Contrast to that image, the sun was beaming valiantly, as if attempting to oppose those rugged elements, to showcase a new world; a brighter world. "Fret not, this island is under the radar. No one will really bother to deal with the likes of you, anyway." the voice, a familiar one, continues on.

The door opens, and a broad, middle aged man of impressive stature -a familiar figure in fact-, walks out, admiring the scenery, taking a deep breath. His attire resembled that of a tourist -a flower pattern t-shirt along with pale blue shorts and sandals, complete with a set of golden shades. More striking however, was the fact that one of his arms seemed to not match with the rest of his body. And, more interestingly, a second figure emerged, him too sporting a similarity in that regard. "Isn't it good, us similarly crippled men enjoying some sun after all that mayhem?!"

"I had no idea you were that chatty. Had I known, this talk would probably have taken place from far far away." The second individual coldly remarks, causing the former male to burst out laughing.

Introduction Boxes:
"Hahahahaha! For a pirate, you really are formal!" Nemoushi Strass, Admiral Alias: Goruiguru (Golden Eagle)
"Pirate, rebel, pariah, whatever ..." Tiberius Mandrake "The Clown", Bounty: 750,000,000 Beli

"After all that, having a bit of a vacation is justified, is it not?" Nemoushi jokingly question's, sipping some emerald liquor from a large glass, large grin throughout. Tiberius seemed less interested with enjoying all this. More importantly, however, it was true that he was going to tolerate this behavior. For one, because that man played a big role in saving everyone. And secondly, because that man seemed gallant enough to appreciate companionship born into the battlefield, to the point of not fearing of being captured for his bounty. And third, because he had asked that man for a favor.

"Should you really be this casual, however? It has been but a few months since this war. Surely the Marines in general do not share your jolly demeanor, do they?"
"Ahahahahaha, can't you lighten up a bit? You know if you keep trying to kill my happy mood, I might have to resort to capture you, as I SHOULD. But eh ... things are stabilizing, for once. The presence of those four beasts, that is, has actually caused a decrease in hot headed rookies storming in to cause mayhem. Ever since Maximillion usurped the vacancy and formed an alliance with the Black Cross, things became stale. Do not underestimate my cheerfulness. Am well aware that there is work to be done. But ... let's just say we have an ace up our sleeves, too. But, more importantly ..." Tiberius narrowed his eyes. There was some news, it seemed.

"That man you are looking for ... I may have a lead ...!!"

-A few hours later-

"Waaaaaah! Stop cleaning up the ship all the time!" Brosko yells at Pumpkin. The literal pumpkin-faced weirdo of a man seemed to be a bit of a germophobe, as this was the third time he was cleaning the deck. Today. The ship? Jade's ship. "I must! This is a rented ship, I need to keep it clean! Or else I won't be able to repay Master Jade!" "Ah yes, our beautiful master Jade ..." "Ah ..." "OI DON'T GET TOO ATTACHED, MASTER JADE WOULDN'T LIKE THAT!" "OH SHUT UP YOU ERO ERO APE!"

Their stupid arguments were cut short as a specific Den Den Mushi rung. Panicked, they both dashed to answer the call. It was Tiberius. "LORD TIBERIUS! What an honor to ... hm? What?!"
"Exactly ... so, I need you to give me the location where she is. I need to talk to her immediately."
"Well, in regards to that ... I know her location, but ... I don't think she'll want to see anyone ..."
"Just tell me where she is. I can handle it, however bad ... she is at that island ...?!"

What did Tiberius found and, where is Jade?

Jade wandered in some time during the few hours before dawn, exhausted and covered in blood,  Another night of rampaging every one associated with those responsible. She had so long neglected her Sphinx form that she had forgotten how primal and all consuming the blood-lust was.  She had always taken it to be a point of pride to temper and control the beast within but now it had been set loose.  She felt nothing. She collapsed into a chair and picked up one of the tankards in the corner of her cabin - a previously unwanted gift from her whiskey-loving former division commander of her old crew when they parted ways, after the outright slaughter of everyone else.  Now she was the last one standing.  Again. 

It had always been this way - right after she was born, the kingdom her mother reigned over was decimated, including her mother.  Her father whisked her and her sister to safety, hiding them ... her father died violently protecting them.  Her crew, including her sister were wiped out.  Now the entire unit of her entire reconnaissance unit of her adopted break off of the Black Cross crew was all wiped out.  She knew she was cursed from birth... everyone who gets near her dies horribly. Especially those who foolishly promise not to.

She took a long swig from the tankard as she took a couple of news papers out of the drawer.  One was from several months ago announcing the untimely death of her and division commander Giada Kiana ... the Demon Blacksmith - the one person in her like she though was unkillable - too hot tempered and stubborn to die - her throat cut at the hands of assassins.  The later publication, from two months prior, headlined the death on Nemuri Hawks - during the last few days of his life, he promised her he wouldn't die - he promised - just as her sister had done before them.  She took another drink as she flattened the pages which had been clearly crumbled up and flattened several times, the ink slightly mottled from multiple boughts of tear-stains. She twirled a dagger in her hand as she poured over the text she had read a thousand times - hoping it was all just a nightmare.

She was emotionally exhausted to the point she was numb - she no longer had the capacity for anger or sadness ... she was just a hollow vessel.  It was easy for her to allow the Sphinx to overtake her as she surrendered to autopilot the carnage.  She looked down, noticing that she had started absently gripping the dagger by the edge.  She didn't even feel it when it sliced into her skin.  She took another heavy drink of the blacksmith's own personal hellbrew before sloshing some carelessly over the wound. Another drink and she faded from consciousness for a brief rest from the hell she occupied.

[Months later on a remote, abandoned jungle island]

Jade left everything she had known, isolating herself on an abandoned island - which had once occupied a mighty kingdom - much like her own. All that remained was stone ruins in a thick lush jungle that grew so heavily, it scarcely allowed light through the canopy. She had studied it years ago, fascinated by its eerie emptiness. The ghostly ruins were quiet, even serene - not even the many creatures of the jungle dared tread here. She had spent several weeks inside the ruins of an abandoned temple that held up surprisingly well, despite the ravages of time.

She woke up early, as she often did, her bare feet carrying through the crumbled marble edifice.  She was noticeably thinner, even delicate.  Thought still toned, the many months away from manning a ship, combined with scantly eating, had warn away much of her muscle mass.  She wore a thin, sheer white gown of light, delicate fabric and had also allowed her hair to revert back to its original bright silver colour and grow quite long.  She looked like an ethereal ghost of her former self - like some specter of a fallen goddess, doomed to wander an empty temple as punishment. 

She reached a secluded grove, surrounded by ritual monuments, elegant stone structures now overtaken with moss, fading in to their lush green environment.  She knelt, tucking her knees under her as she place her hands neatly on her lap over a gleaming object while breathing deeply, absorbing the scent and the profound silence of the jungle.  She had failed, fully. She was meant to be a protector- a guardian, as the inscription read when she obtained her fierce sphinx fruit.  Now she had failed so completely that she had nothing left to protect.  Not a single soul.  She gazed fondly at the dagger that sat atop her lap.  At least this she could do correctly.  She would not fail again.

"Oi oi, that island's no good, brother. You sure you wanna head there on your own? Your injury is still not healed." "You are being awfully caring all of a sudden. Are you finally coming out of the closet?" A small boat had reached shore, and Tiberius swiftly leaped off, heading towards the lush jungle that begin mere feet away from where soft waves were meeting with scorching sand. "Bah! You really are insufferable, after all ... take care then. Good luck." the individual still sitting in the boat -another familiar figure, Cebros-, growls to his subordinate, followed by the vessel slowly distancing itself from the pirate now entering the thickly wooded area.

Tiberius walked, and walked, and walked. This forest seemed like an endless maze, with few signs of civilization long abandoned. Yes, he thought to himself, that certainly fit the bill; surely where she retracted, detaching herself from the rest of the cosmos. The information surely had to be correct. But the question was, did she came here to hide from the ghosts of the past? Or to forever and irreversibly meet them again?

Eventually, larger ruins exposed themselves. He was soon met with a mostly unsullied temple of sorts. If she was on that island, this spot right there would most likely served as her den. "... I better remain on guard." he muttered to himself. He had no idea what kind of a "welcoming" would await him once she realized there was an intruder here.

Jade opened her eyes, hearing the distinctive crunch of footsteps.  No one came here, even animals.  It was a fortress of solitude - a silent world, separate from the rest.  Her nights of scant sleep and days of scant food kept her in a trance like state.  She wasn't sure if she was alive or if the entire jungle was some pathway to the underworld at times.  She had not eaten for several days now.  Time was liquid, the world was blurry. 

She stood for a moment, examining her surrounding.  Standing so suddenly made her somewhat dizzy.  She moved back toward her temple ... her body still remembered to move without a sound even if her head didn't  She she finally approached the intruder, who her eyes could not properly discern, but it was too late.  In a bleary state, she ran fully into him.  Her eyes struggling to recognize the face for a moment.

When she finally saw who was before her, strong and unmoved in front of her slight frame, she knew it was all a dream. He had died like the rest - like everyone who knew her. A ghost from her past.  She stared at his eyes, for a moment - they seemed so real, so full of life ... the scent, the feeling. Her hands softly cradle his face, fingertips feeling every contour, amazed by the sensory reality of death. She whispers softly, the light fading from her pale green eyes,  "You're dead..."  she smiles, absorbing a profound feeling of relief.  "...and, at last, so am I ..." the waves of exhaustion took her as her eyes closed, still smiling, she lost all bearing of consciousness, falling in slow motion.

The jungle was, surprisingly enough, quite barren of things that could be edible. At least in a palatable fashion. As if the place was abandoned by everything that could actually find a way to mobilize. Who knows what it's history was. Surely she had a few clues. But that was for another time. Right now he had to make sure to drop her fever down. She was severely malnourished, too. Thankfully, he did carried some basic provisions just in case that mini expedition was to turn into a longer, more harsh one. But first, drop that fever.

Dusk had set in. A small fire was keeping a small section of the ruins somewhat lit. Atop the flames dancing, a rusty pot was hooked, some soupy substance giving off somewhat pleasant fragrances. A few mushrooms he recognized were edible, a few roughly sliced chunks of jerky, water, a few herbs he identified as useful to help with that fever -since chilled, watered towels didn't seem to offer much of an assistance-, and a lone, miserable and crudely chopped potato would serve as the main dish of this dinner.

Walking back to her, curled into his long, thick, feathery coat he normally carried draped on his shoulders, he notices some movement. "Jade? ... I've prepared something for you to eat. Can you stand?"

Jade opened her eyes, confused by her feathery environment. These weren't her wings... had she become a bird. Becoming a bit more lucid, she sat up, perplexed by the smell of food. The silence was shattered by a familiar voice. She whispered weakly. "Ti... Tiberius? How did you find me... ? ....what do you want ... please, just let me die ... or you'll die too ... like everyone ... all of them. Please. ...Where is the blade?"

"You mean that one? That is a fine blade indeed ... what business do you have with it now, all alone, in this place?" Tiberius questions her with an aloof tone, while observing the blade he was holding on his right hand. He was munching on some straps of dried meat, his overall posture and demeanor giving off a vibe of reprimand towards her. Almost as if he was well aware of something that was devouring her mind, and he did not approve of her resolution as to how to deal with it.

As she woke up more, she leveled a gaze at Tiberius there, in possession of her blade now. Her eyes swept over his well-built frame - she knew she was in no position to contend with him in her condition. His tone told her he would never concede to grant her her wish. Her eyes were tired, pleasing as she sat up, tucking her legs beneath her while tugging the feathered garment around her slight frame. She exhaled, her voice thin, tired, void of life. "What do you want, Tiberius?

The resonance in her voice, or rather, the complete lack of any discernible hint of vigor or willpower in her lifeless, inert tone, said it all. This woman had been reduced to a wounded, feral beast who, after receiving a lethal blow, merely dug a hole and awaited for the inevitable. That blade was probably going to serve the purpose of the reaper picking it off from there.

However, in that state, there was only a minuscule chance that she would attempt to force that fate upon herself -while he was present, at least. Thus, after ripping a sizable chunk of the old, dried slab of meat he called his dinner, he stabbed the blade deep into the moist, mostly reduced to soil and rotting roots ground, and got up. He picked up the pot and, after finishing with his piece of that paltry meal, reached out and drew a small, cracked cup.

"First, you need to eat something of substance. Then, we can talk." he reached out, offering the cup, the smell permeating this small, damp, moist death den.

Jade watched him closely, perplexed why she would seek her out; she eyed the blade as it plunged into the soft grown memorized with how easily it slid in. She wouldn't fight him for it; she'd caused enough harm in this life. He didn't seem to be in the mood for an argument so she took the cup, holding it under her chin, allowing the steam to curl around her face. "I don't suppose you've come all this for the tourist experience of making a soup offering to the temple of a fallen kingdom?" She slowly drank the broth, the earthy aromatics reminded her of the scents of this forgotten grove but warmer. She had eaten so little and poorly that the feeling of hot food was alien to her. The flavours and sensations woke her up slightly before she spoke again, her voice slightly less thin. "I can't help you Tiberius ... what ever you want, I will fail you - just like I failed them all. You will die, and for some unjust reason I will endure as my punishment, cursed to oversee the bones ..."

"Overly dramatic as always, I see." Tiberius laments, with a soft crack of a smile forming, his voice's hue mixing up, making it unclear if this here was a taunt, or a friendly remark to lighten up the mood. Perhaps it was a combination of them both. "Besides, am not going to die. Not until my part on this upcoming, new era, is played out." he adds, cryptically and ironically, sounding dramatic in a way, as if all this is merely an act, a show.

"There's enough for seconds, if you wish." he says, turning his back to her -almost as if declaring that he was perfectly confident that either she wasn't going to play dirty to an old friend, or maybe he was certain that in her condition, even in this mental state she knew there was no point to even try, to head back to the spot he was sitting on earlier. It seemed that whatever reason he had for tracking her down, he wasn't going to immediately share with her. Not until the pronoun game was to be played, it seemed. "You cannot die yet, either."

Not that she was more awake, Jade realized he had seen the true colour of her hair and seemed unsurprised by it.  Either he already knew who she was or just didn't recognize the significance.  She knew him better than to assume he would capture her for a bounty but his presence was particularly puzzling.  Her location wasn't exactly easy to get to and considering her prior failures, she wasn't exactly useful. "... So you have come all this way to insult me, have you?  You really shouldn't have."

She took another drink of broth as he turned away. He still had the same gruff veneer after all these years. She glanced at the blade still stuck in the soil but made no movement toward it. She didn't want conflict and eventually he would conclude her uselessness and leave her alone. Even so, there was part of her that actually curious why he came all this way to find her. None of it made any sense. "Now if you would like to shore up your goodbyes, I have to see a man about a dog..."

"An excellent fighter with impressive wits, yet always plagued by a sense of being hopeless." Tiberius lamented to himself after hearing her out; this wasn't the first time he heard her speak in such a fashion. But it was starting to tire him to listen to it. After all, everyone had lost before. Many still did. To him, that alone was nowhere near enough of a cause to abandon everything and settle down in a defeatist-like state like hers.

Rather than engage into more dialogue, he instead got up, and begun packing up, her blade being effectively confiscated as well. "If there is anything else of value, grab it and follow me. We are living this place; we have work to do. Once we are done, if you truly plead for such a pitiful fate that much, you are free to return to that dog hole."

Jade's entire life was marked by loss. Every year someone close to her died violently. For many years it sent her into an angry rampage, which was only tempered by purpose and the home she had found with Blackcross and its exiles. She could hear the judgement in his tone though he knew little about her. "So that's what you want... you want me to fight. Fine. Maybe you have something worth saving. I don't really have anything to lose or protect anymore - may as well help someone else. If I can keep you from losing everything, I will. My blood is yours to spill, old friend." She didn't see Tiberious often but she was one of the few connections left in this world and if she could somehow help keep his world from shattering, like her own, she would give her last breath to that end. "Where are we going?"

Initially, he didn't respond to her, merely focused on packing, and then walking away from the ruins, with her following suit. However, after they cleared some distance, and in the middle of cleaving away some vines blocking their path to the shore, she implied that she assumed this was going to be a mission involving her being used. How petty did she thought he was. Or has her perception jaded so much as to assume she was to be used as a tool and nothing more? To be fair, he knew how that felt, too.

"Here, take this." he suddenly, but calmly, exclaims, and throws a small clay cylinder from behind his right shoulder, the direction perfectly in trajectory to reach her hands. Inside there seemed to be nothing but a dusty, somewhat crammed photo. The context seemed unknown, but seemed to showcase some form of war trench situation. "Look at the top right ... familiar figure, isn't it? The photo was taken a month ago."

Despite her frail state, her reflexes still had swift muscle memory. She reached up, plucking the canister out of the air before examining its contents, following with a slim pack as she looked at the weathered photo. Her eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat. She paused for a moment before falling to her knees. "No ... this can't be. This is impossible" she looked up at his as her eyes began welling with moisture. "...please don't do do this to me..."

The figure she saw, the promise of it only being a month ago, it was too little to cling too and too painful to hope. She had been there ... seeing them all there with her own eyes ... a sea of bodies. She never found his but a bloody photo in the paper she kept, confirmed the worst - along with other fallen allies. Daring to hope against what her eyes had already seen was such an insurmountable undertaking.

The last few month ran through her mind ... the breathless pain when she found out and the days... weeks... months of agony where she would transform to escape her mind, rampaging her enemies, blood-drunk, only to return to her ship, drinking heavily to pass out as soon as possible because remaining conscious was too painful ... day after day... week after week of agony... then came the news of Kiana and she started all over again. She came here, to the ruins of her mothers fallen kingdom, silver hair exposed, to simply die ... the ashes of the princes at last returning home after a life of pain, loss, and failure - happy to die so no one else will ever live in the shadow of the destruction she carried with her.

Her attention snapped back to Tiberius. He had gone through great trouble to reach this place... to even find it. He would not have bothered if it wasn't something he believed in. Every the skeptic, he would have thoroughly vetted the source of the dying ember of hope. She got to her feet and stalked after him. She grabbed his hand and pulled him back before wrapping her arms around him, breathing heavily as she finally accepted the reality falling into place around her, tears running over her face and onto his shoulder. She let go for a moment, placing a hand on his cheek, gazing at him with slightly reddened eyes. "You're a good man, Tiberius." She kisses his cheek lightly. "Thank you for coming all this way. You are a far more dedicated friend than I gave you credit for. I appreciate your efforts and I'm sorry for disappointing you like this ... I don't know if I can go so far as to believe that I could ever cross paths with this one again ... but I am here to help, fully and without remorse ... you have my word."

Finally, she seemed to arise from that deathly slumber of self loathing and defeat, and begun to crawl herself out into life. Or rather than crawl, she seemingly instantly leaped outside of that hellish pit, one mighty, emotional, grateful stride. While appreciating her words, it wasn't into him to be as cordial in showing affection. Although, he was well aware that she was. Even tho she usually tried to show a more merciless demeanor.

"Don't make it that big of a deal. Allies that fought the same wars are bound to that "contract". Surely you would have done the same for your fellow subordinates, no? When you have fought together, you make sure to take care of them." he calmly explained, and nodded to her to carry on, but forming a big smile as she wasn't looking. Maybe being cordial was a thing to cherish. Even for someone that distanced himself from that, after all.

"I do want I can to minimize harm but I have no one left to find nor protect. Honestly, I assumed you too had perished and I am relieved to see you still breathing - I'll do what I can to keep it that way. " Jade smirked a bit, amused by his ever stoic demeanor - at least something were constant in this world.She even felt bad for her outburst, knowing how uncomfortable it probably made him. It was the first time in a long time she had though of anything more complex than a setting sun. She had thrown her weapons together with scan provision and even a bit of Kiana's dangerous rum. She had also give some to Tiberius as she may not be in the mood to share.

Even if she was in elevated spirits at the moment, she dared not allow herself to hope that the photograph would lead to anything more than another heartbreak. She compartmentalized so much that she still tried to except the loss and anything contrary to that would be a pleasant surprise that she would process at the time. "... I wonder what the hell happened to my ship..."

Tiberius opted to remain silent, instead turning to face her momentarily, and giving her a reassuring nod, before turning and continuing on, now with improved vigor and speed. Thus, the pair managed to reach the shore just as the crack of dawn had begun to radiate towards the calm, crystalline sea up ahead. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he pondered, then realized his inner thoughts were spoken outwards, thus he covered it with a huffing, shift laugh.

"As for your ship ... well." he begun to explained, and pointed towards the east. A ship was quickly approaching the pair.

"MASTER JAAAAAADEEEEE!!!" a rather unappealing duet of overly excited moronic tones was heard, as the second pair of this story -the annoyingly annoying one, approached the shoreline. "WE TOOK GOOD CARE OF YOUR SHIP, MASTER JADE!"

"Well, they are an ear-sore but, they did took great care of your ship while you went missing. So there is some merit to having them around, I suppose. For now at least."

Jade trotted behind him and paused, nearly running into him as he stopped. She almost pulled a blade before noticing he was admiring the breathtaking visage - she had no idea he possessed such sentiment until she saw it. The deep azure of night mingled with the rising crimson sun setting a purple hue across the horizon while the light slowly moves over the center of the sea  glittering with a pale blue brilliance against the violet sky.  She stopped in her tracks - in her jungle cocoon, she had almost forgotten the luster, awe, and allure of the sea - it called to her.  The surprise of his remark over its beauty washed over her as she move forward.  The salt air filled her lungs and she felt like she breathed for the first time in months - the sea was her home and always would be.

She watched gulls fly into the horizon as dawn broke and the purple skyline turned more orange,making the blue of the sea bluer and more vivid.  Just when the breeze hit her was when she notices her shit ... and those idiots.  For the first time in her life she was happy to see them ... and better still, happy to see them ... alive. It was like a dream or a gift on holiday, a dream from her past life... the smell, the sight the sound.  She turned around, her silver hair tuning in slow motion as she threw herself at Tiberius, wrapping her arms around him.  She kissed his cheek again, in a moment of gratitude before whispering "Thank you..."

"Master Jade! I cleaned up the deck twice per day!" "Master Jade! It was me that cleaned the rooms thrice per day!" "Master Jade! I was also taking care of your treasury room to make sure everything is sparkling!" "MASTER JADEEEEEE!!!"

Mountain Bandit: Brosko "The Yeti"
Bounty: 200,000,000 Beli

Underworld Broker: Pumpkin' "Moonlight Scare" Jones
Bounty: 350,000,000 Beli

"It would appear that they are as excited as ever ..." Tiberius sighs, pretending that Jade's happiness eruption upon himself did not occur. Rather poorly an attempt, nonetheless an attempt. Meanwhile the pair on the ship, dressed in black tuxedos and generally overly formal dressing -were they returning or arriving at a prom date fit?, had begun arguing about who was the most useful and would earn the most admiration from the Sphinx.

"Will you two shut your insufferable traps already?!" a female voice was heard from within the ship, causing both clowns to yell in goofy terror and run around amok. Tiberius narrowed his eyes a bit, then turned his attention to her, just as the ship reached the point where it was to dock and await for Jade and himself to climb back up. "There is someone else there. Don't get agitated. It is part of the mission ..."

"Sphinx, we meet again, it seems ..!!" a brunette of an above average height emerged at the side, glaring down on the party awaiting to come abroad. Her blue eyes casting down a formidable, demanding for authority vibe. A golden ornament was above her forehead, traveling across her head just behind her ears, keeping her hair in check, a snake symbol in the middle of said jewelry. Her deep purple dress and boots were giving her a more goth-like appearance.

Former member of the Fortune Pirates: Lilian, the "Necromancer"
Bounty: 800,000,000 Beli

As Jade approached the familiar silhouette of her ship, she notices that it looked cleaner than it had in years.  all of the hectic battles had caused it to fall into disrepair.  She noticed that even some of the bits of bad wood had been both replaced and painted correctly.  When she saw the clown creatures on her ship she was confused by their attire, but not entirely surprised.

A voice shattered the fanfare of the familiar idiots and brought back memories of a familiar threat.  She narrowed her eyes, fingers flexing around the banded grip of her katana as the woman spoke.  She gave Tiberius a quizzical look as all of the relief and joy drained from her and turned to a look of spite and retribution.  "What is that doing on my ship? Explain.  NOW."

"Calm down, she is not an enemy." Tiberius calmly remarks. Meanwhile, with a shake of her head, which was sporting the most egotistical and arrogant of smiles imaginable, Lilian ordered the pair of clowns to lower a ladder for the Sphinx and the man to climb up to. As if it was her ship. "Don't get too excited now, Princess girl. We are on the same boat, figuratively and literally. For now at least. I am having some business with that man over there, you see. Thus, since you are his underlings, am willing to get along with you all."

-Mini flashback emerging where Lilian was actually to be cast away from her pirate crew for being deemed too troublesome and not useful to their plan, with Tiberius seemingly saving her, all appearing overly dramatic in her mind

"And you, you masked clown! Don't get your hopes up!" she spontaneously yells at Tiberius, as if merely remembering that vague detail caused her blood to boil for some inexplicable reason. Tiberius merely sighed and turned to Jade. "When you was knocked out during the battle, she actually saved you along with several others. And it did cost the lives of some of the crew members that didn't want her to be kicked out. Besides, I have a business affair to settle with her once our mission is to be concluded."

"Business affair ..." Brosko and Pumpkin' both repeated with an ironic tone, but were immediately kicked on their posteriors by an ever increasingly mad Lilian. "GET ON YOUR BOAT ALREADY, DAMMIT!"

Jade narrowed her eyes - it really wasn't for him to decide who was her enemy. She also recalled him having a confusing and dubious relationship with women. They seemed to ... inform him that he was in a relationship and not really wait for a consensus. This one seemed like just the type to both confuse and possess him at the same time.

She lacked the physical and emotional energy to even care at this point. A younger and stronger Jade would have challenged it all - but she didn't even recognize the frail thing in the mirror these days. She eyed the woman giving a vague nod, though not exactly pleased with having been "saved" from this miserable world. She silently moved aboard her ship, still surprised to see it in such a restored state. She was one idiotic affair away from regretting everything.

"Well then, the team is here, and ready for action." Tiberius remarks, in an attempt to break the ice and cause the ever increasing tension to subside. Even tho he was certain that wouldn't quite work. He had to deal with a pair of relatively good-willed, but rather obnoxious and loud individuals with a servant complex on one side, and a pair of mutually hostile women ready to throw snarls at one another at the drop of a hat. And he knew well that Jade was not one to take these lightly, while the other was prone to dart them around like a sharp knife. Thinking of a knife, that reminded him that he still withheld her blade. Which made her earlier attempt to be ready to draw it feel rather comedic. If only this situation could contain that kind of a silly vibe. Perhaps it would.

"Anchors away! Next stop ... um, was it Dressrosa, Tiberius sir?" Pumpkin questioned. The photo the Sphinx had received was obviously not from Dressorosa, however.