Missing Piece

Chapter 15

"Remember sixteen paces and then there's a table somewhere and four more." Penguin informed again.

He and the rest of the Heart Pirates were attempting their escape in the dark as well following the breadcrumb clues that Charlotte had left them. Though they weren't making it out as gracefully as the huntress did. Each of them hugging different parts of the cell or walls, slowly inching their way across in the room they couldn't see.

Another loud crash as something else fell to the floor among with the several other items they knocked over already trying to feel for things in the dark. "Guys! I found the table! Or maybe it's a water cooler... nope, it's a table!" They were lucky that all the guards returned home for the day. This was probably the loudest jail break anyone had ever attempted.

"Good now, just four paces!" Penguin called back towards their younger member. "Does anyone remember if she said left or right?"

"Try both!" Cole yelled, his voice far off in the distance and the other two wondered where he had gone off. The man cursed. He had just stubbed his toe on something hard. "We gotta hurry! She's probably after Captain again."

"That's most likely true." Shachi agreed with a light laugh. He sounded like he was on the opposite side of the room.

"That's no laughing matter!" Cole snapped. He shuffled back the way he came from, trying to retrace his steps to follow whatever path Rike took seeing as how he was the one closest to the exit. "Captain's in danger!"

"When is Captain not in danger? We're pirates!" Shachi retorted with a grin. He knew and trusted Law enough to know that Law could handle himself against the hunter. She may be fast, but their Captain was smart.

"Why are you always at heads against her?" Shachi asked after a moment. The rest of them had been friendly and albeit cautious towards her, never really butted heads or purposely riled her up as much as Cole did. "She was the one who told us when to rescue you and Rikers." Rike had clarified for him what had happened when they were caught.

"Let's not forget that she got us out of Marineford." Penguin added.

Cole rolled his eyes at that. How could he forget, he was there. But oh, how the rumors have spurred. "She did that to save her own butt. We were just lucky collateral!"

"She may say that, but it doesn't change the fact that she did save us." He didn't buy her act one bit when they asked her earlier. Even if they were just lucky collateral, they still owed her for the save. Not to mention, if her goal was to only get them out of harm's way, then why did she volunteer to take care of the marine ship? Marines didn't chase hunters as long as they didn't do anything cause too much trouble.

"I also don't think she's as bad as you think." Rike added after a moment's pause, he smiled at the others though none could see it. "Even though she doesn't want to, she still abides by Capt's orders in the end. She came on the island and didn't cause any trouble either, and earlier she was teaching us Haki. She even left cage door open for us."

"She probably forgot to close it!" Cole retorted quickly. He huffed, scowl deepening on his face. "I'm like this because ya lot are too easy going. Acceptin' any dangerous stranger in just like that. Need I remind ya that she was an enemy just yesterday after Captain's head?"

Penguin beamed when the object he had been groping started resembling the shape of a table. He was making his way across. "We let you in pretty easily too, didn't we?" Penguin commented, his voice not matching the achievement rushing through his system. He grinned, sending a smug lilt into the darkness. "Should we have been harsher with you, Mr. Ex-Marine?"

Cole shot a glare back in the direction of Penguin's smug voice only to remember the other couldn't see it. He rolled his eyes instead, drawling the feeling into his voice. "Why do ya think I'm like this? Someone gotta make sure. She could be dangerous."