Stampeding Up the Battle Tower [Arc Part 3]

The world began to grow blurry as the Rascal tried to follow the action before her. Blood had begun to flow into her eyes and she was struggling to lift her arms just to wipe them free. It was during this that Miku realized that she was feeling slick skin against her forehead instead of the cool metal of her vambraces.

Unfocused blue eyes trailed down her bare forearm to the floor where her only piece of armor lay broken on the ground before her. The woman lifted her head back up slowly and ignored the gnawing in her stomach, it was just some equipment despite all it had been through with her. They were bound to break, but why did the sight cause her to feel so insecure?

The Rascals opponent seemed to be struggling to stay on his feet as well with Anton was exchanging words with him, not that she could understand them. ‘Why can’t I hear them?’ Miku thought to herself as she took a weak step forward only for her leg to immediately buckle, forcing her into a kneeling position. Her eyes widened in shock as she barely managed to catch herself on her bent knee and prevented her from falling flat on her face.

‘Is this as far as I can go?’ The woman thought to herself before she fell backwards onto her own behind with her legs splayed out in front of her. ‘I guess that’s the blood loss. Oh, and I think some of my old wounds are open again.’ Miku assessed as she slowly felt her eyelids growing heavy. Before long the woman was flat on her back, a bloody mess of bruises, cuts, and battle torn clothing. For all the world looking like the small battered teenager that she was.

“-- for you to die here!” Were the first words that Miku could make out as she was finally regaining consciousness. The girl opened her mouth to reply but only ended up coughing up some blood that had pooled in her mouth and now attempted to slide down her throat. After doing that she opened her eyes to see the face of Anton over hers, full of concern and its fair share of cuts and bruises from the fight.

This sight elicited a chuckle out of the young woman as she ignored the pain wracking her body. “You- you look like shit.” Miku said with a teasing tone as she closed her eyes again and focused on her own breathing, trying to gain some sobriety as she was dizzy as all hell. The woman tried to lean forward only to fall back into the arms of Anton, only realizing then that she was in fact in his arms.

“Hey, what did I tell you about getting handsy.” Miku said glaring up at the man. She willed her fist up and over her shoulder and slowly brought it to his cheek in the weakest punch she’d probably given in over a year. “There, no more perverted thoughts.” Miku chuckled to herself remembering that she’d promise to beat the perverted thoughts out of his head earlier.

After a couple moments of punch drunk fueled giggles, the woman finally brought her hands to her face and began wiping at the blood that was smeared all over. “I need… I need some time.” Miku said as she began to feel all her wounds again and felt the throbbing of aches and such throughout her body. “Can you, just, down?” Miku asked as she once again tried and failed to get herself out of the marines arms.

The short battered woman was only too glad to feel the ground beneath her instead of Anton’s arms. She hated feeling helpless and being carried made her feel like some damsel in distress, like in those childhood stories. Miku ‘Rowdy Rascal’ Etsuko Sato was no damsel in need of rescuing.

Miku was taking steady controlled breaths as she willed herself to focus past the pain when the ground they were on began to shudder and shake. The woman’s eyes scanned around her surroundings to see that the walls were moving and they were rising up the tower. Above them the opening for what was presumably the peak of the tower was slowly growing closer.

The Rascal stood up and let out a groan of pain as she felt all her wounds screaming angrily at her. With grit teeth she ignored all the protests and slowly walked over to where her hat was on the floor, bending over to scoop it up and place it on her head in one motion. The hat was extremely dirty and she could feel the blood on her skull causing her matted hair to stick to the fabric of the hat.

Once the duo finally reached the apex of their ride they were surrounded by opulence. The sheer display of wealth and comfort caused Miku to sneer. “Figures the bastard in charge would be watching in comfort.” The Rascal said under her breath before noticing the third occupant standing just outside the room. She immediately raised her fists but slouched and felt a bout of nausea hit her as she tried to move so quickly.

The woman quickly reached for her head and instead took a few steps back behind Anton. She hated to admit it but if anything was going to happen she wouldn’t be much help. The man before them was dressed finely and had a smug look about him that made Miku scowl fiercely. His platitudes fell flat on her and instead she felt her temper start rising within her quickly.

As the man continued his monologue Miku wanted to feign innocence and declare that she couldn’t believe what she was hearing, but that’d be a lie. She cold easily believe someone who forced people into bloodsports for his own entertainment would describe the survivors as if they were just trash to be swept away.

“You think we care about your stupid FUCKING GAME?!” Miku yelled at the end of her sentence as she took a step besides Anton. “You think we did this for you to get off to?!” Miku said as she took another unsteady step towards the man. “You thin-” Miku was suddenly cut off as she started coughing as she spit up some more blood and leaned roughly on Anton. The blood on the floor was a reminder that she was nowhere near being okay but some of it actually managed to travel far enough to land on the man’s outfit.

The Rascal took a few deep breaths before shoving herself off of Anton and turning back to the man before them. “You’re awfully calm considering your butler is not here.” Miku said between pained breaths. The threat may have seemed weak coming from her beaten self but she could care less, she’d make good on her words.

The look on the short woman’s face could only be described as blatant disbelief followed by intense fury as the words from the pompous Viscount washed over Miku. This was the face that turned in tandem with the cocky noble to focus on Anton. The blank look upon his face only caused Miku to take a shaky step away from him as if to distance herself in disgust. As if he was the filthy one described instead of herself.

The Rascal quickly began considering simply tackling the man over the edge in an attempt to at least get some form of revenge if it was true Anton couldn’t lift a finger against him. The only thing preventing her from doing so was the fear of having Anton leap to his defense when she was barely able to stand on her own feet at the moment.

When the marine finally began to speak the pirate captain was ashamed to admit she was hanging on his every word in complete suspense. The feeling of fury from his words were no surprise to the woman but the accompanying feeling of disappointment and betrayal were. She had no reason to believe he’d actually do what was right and deal out some real justice for all the people who had died for the sadistic nobles pleasure. These feelings were on open display on her face as Anton looked directly at Miku and admitted he wouldn’t even be arresting the man.

Miku clenched her fists in anger and frustration as she couldn’t stop them from shaking in pain. ‘Why was it always like this?’ She attempted to glare a hole straight through Anton’s face as she grit her teeth and tried to get the maelstrom of emotions in her chest under control. ‘Why am I always too weak to make a difference in the end?’ Memories of Las Camp were still fresh on her mind, the way she nearly got herself and her Kids killed. The times she had to hide or run away when she was young and defenseless on the streets of Centaurea. When Baa-chan was taken from her due to that plague brought to Centaurea by a ship of plague-ridden Marines.

Suddenly Anton shifted into his bug-man form and Miku instinctively lifted her arms and got into a fighting stance, her eyes flinching in pain as she forced her body through the pain. Though instead of being attacked a large crashing behind her caused her to turn around and realize that the elevator had been sent plummeting down below. ‘What the hell is going on?!’

The quick exchange between the noble and Anton only added to Miku’s confusion and her eyes kept darting between the two. Then she was suddenly in Anton’s arms, much to her immediate frustration, and the two were standing at the edge of the chasm. Moments later the pair were quickly falling back towards the ground of the tower. It was all so sudden that Miku was rather confused about the whole situation and didn't put up much of a struggle.

As the pair fell Miku quickly began to process what she was feeling. One part of the pirate captain was still furious that they’d left that rotten noble breathing and completely untouched at the top of the tower. Another part was relieved she hadn't been forced to fight Anton in the state she was currently in. And a tiny part, that she refused to acknowledge, was glad that she was wrong about Anton's choice at the top of the tower.

The landing was rough, less so than she thought it’d be, but Miku managed to prevent any grunts of pain besides a large exhale of air through grit teeth. The sounds of the whining noble trapped atop his tower were irritating but easily ignored. Once the woman was placed back on her feet she immediately scooted away from the marine with a scowl on her face.

Miku raised a fist before pausing, slowly lowering it, pointing at him with narrowed eyes, and mouthing ‘Last time.’ before striding out of the tower, quickly grabbing her broken vambraces on the way out and slinging them over her shoulder. The whole time she fought back each wince despite the burst of pain with each step. The pair looked back at the tower outside together before Anton decided to literally close the door on this particular part of their lives.

“Fucking prick.” Was all that Miku muttered as she looked towards the top of the tower as if she was staring straight at the noble. She spit at the tower before sticking her hands into her pockets and turning around, looking around, giving up, and picking a random direction to walk in. As she started walking off she stopped and looked over her shoulder to Anton.

“You coming or what?” Miku asked before continuing to walk in the random direction. She wanted to get away from that damn tower and didn’t care where that was as long as it wasn’t there.

Once the pair had walked a fair distance away, Miku ignoring all attempts at conversation, the Rascal would spin on her heel and look at Anton with a considering look. She had a burning question on her mind but wasn’t sure how to go about it now that the threat that forced them to work together was no longer in play.

Miku could tell that he was obviously injured but she was at a major disadvantage. The Rascal could probably put up a fair fight for a short while now that she’d had time to gain a second wind but the odds were still stacked against her. She looked away and raised a hand to lower her cap over her eyes as she decided to just bluntly ask her question.

“So, you going to try and slap some cuffs on me now? That bastard was right after all…” Miku looked up at Anton through the shadow cast over them by the brim of her hat. “I’m a ‘filthy criminal’ after all and your job is to ‘dispose’ of ‘pirate trash’ like me.” Miku’s face was set in stone as she stared at Anton with a look of defiance. “Is it time for our rematch, Anton?” The question hung in the air as Miku stood still as a statue, her hands tucked into her pockets, her clothes tattered and torn, her lip busted with dried blood caked all over her face. Despite this she gave off an aura of determination and grit.

The Rascal was completely tense and serious, slowly gathering her strength for what she knew would be an incredibly one sided battle if he decided to take her down now when she was at her weakest. So when his response was so nonchalant and cavalier the short woman actually released all the tension in her body and looked up at Anton in complete confusion. Her facial expression was one of utter bewilderment.

His flimsy excuse of avoiding paperwork seemed as strong as she felt at the moment, though she couldn’t argue his latter argument. She finally adopted a more awkward relaxed stance as she continued to listen to Anton listing why he wasn’t taking advantage of her at the moment. His swift subject change into how they were going to even get out of their current situation threw her off even more and she continued to stare in confusion.

The events of the day before and conversation between them that night flashed through her head, the feeling of camaraderie she shared with him at the time returning. It was only strengthened when she remembered his decision atop the tower and how even then she’d assumed the worst of him despite their cooperation up until that point. It all reaffirmed her statement that Anton wasn’t that bad for a marine. And it made her feel incredibly and utterly stupid.

So stupid that the Rascal ignored his attempt to seriously solve the situation to start laughing. “Pfft, bwha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” The Rascal began laughing uncontrollably, ignoring the man before her and doubling over to clutch at her aching ribs which flared in pain with each laugh. Despite the pain she only laughed even harder. “PFFT, BWHA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA!!!!” The woman eventually fell on her side as she continued to laugh.

After a minute of straight laughing the Rascal finally quieted down and laid flat on her back, taking deep breaths that burned her throat and caused her to ache all over. She stared straight up at the sky and simply enjoyed the moment.

“You’re something else, bug boy.” Miku said out loud at Anton, she ached all over but she felt completely relaxed despite it. “You’re really something else.” The young woman shook her head side to side and continued laying on the floor. After a few moments she looked over at the man and smiled at him genuinely.

“I don’t care, you figure it out. I don’t think I can get back up now that all the adrenaline is gone.” Just as she finished saying that she started laughing again followed by small grunts of pain between each laugh. ‘What a fucking weird couple days I’ve had.'

The young captain had drifted off into a deep sleep as her temporary comrade got to work around her. Her dreams were simply filled with the events of what had transpired on the island. It all started so chaotically and only continued to be so as the duo moved from battle to battle. Miku even thought that she’d finally bitten off more than she could chew at the end. It was so surreal since she felt like she was watching her own life as a spectator in her dream. By the time she reached the end of her dream she’d awakened to a lit bonfire and Anton sitting beside her.

Moving to sit up Miku let out a small grunt of pain and instead remained on her back, opting instead to slowly stretch out beside Anton. After a few decent stretches the short woman finally managed to get into a sitting position.

[npc=pirt]“How long was I out?”[/npc] Miku asked bug boy while staring into the flames of the bonfire he’d managed to create. The smoke stack was rather strong, hopefully their respective crews would find them soon.

----
A particularly battered patch of forest

One of the search parties sent out by Emi was currently examining the damage done to the area with great interest.
“I’d bet a hundred Berries this was her.” Jonny said as he eyed a completely shattered tree trunk.

[npc=misc]“I’ll take you up on that.”[/npc] Replied Nick with a grin on his face as he aimlessly paced around the area.

[npc=misc]“That’s a stupid bet… it was definitely her. I’ll double down and bet that she tossed someone through the area.”[/npc] Countered a sullen looking Cedric as he looked apprehensively at the visible tower in the distance and the smoke column also in that direction.

[npc=misc]“I really wish you guys would stop betting on our captain like this…”[/npc] Their final member Jude said as he too looked in the same direction as Cedric.

The group eventually began to make their way towards the two visible landmarks in hopes of finding their wayward captain.

The battered Rascal rotated her arm a few times as Bug Boy answered her question, wincing the whole time. “I can move without feeling like my arms will fall off at any second, so I think I’m good for now.”

Miku continued to rest while Anton did his freaky, yet helpful, bug thing and jumped into the trees once again. ‘Wonder if I could do something like that… Nah, I’d rather just smash through the trees.’ The young captain thought to herself idly.

At the news of both their respective ships being on the island she cracked a wide toothy smile. “Finally some damned good news!” She called back up to Anton, it was time for them to go.

The Rascal had just gotten to her feet and was brushing off the dirt and foliage that’d managed to cling to her during her impromptu nap when Anton jumped back down from his perch up above. The news that their ships were also on opposite sides was another stroke of luck. Not the kind she usually has so it was definitely due to Anton.
“Makes sense, don’t want either of our crews to see their captain cozying up with their sworn enemies now do we?” Miku said in a teasing tone. She looked back at the tower one last time before turning back to Anton.

“I’d be dead if it wasn’t for you. I’m not stupid enough to believe I’d have gotten out of that tower alive without you.” Miku said, her smile was gone but there was no ill will behind her words. “I owe you one. Feel free to call it in whenever you want.” The Rascal thought about what she just said and realized he’d have no way to really call her at the moment. She thought about it for a moment before deciding on a method.

“I’m headed back to my home, got some unfinished business I’ve been running from for far too long. If things go well, you can probably find me there. If I’m not there I’ll make sure to leave some way for you to get a hold of me.” Miku nodded to herself as it sounded like a good plan to her.

“Not sure if you Marines have it on record somehow, not exactly a secret, but I’m from Centaurea. That’s where I’ll be for a while.” Miku extended a fist out to Anton.

“Till next time, right?” Miku asked with a smirk once again on her lips as she waited for him to return her farewell.