Monkey See Monkey Do

She had grown accustomed to the smell of the ocean. The tinge of salt dancing across the clear waves tickled her sensitive nose. Legs had come to love the ocean. It was her salvation. It was her friend, the very buffer that protected her from her enemies of Wano or years until she gathered the strength necessary to retake her home and to usurp their thrones. Quite ironic was the occasion for a devil fruit user to love the sea. She held no fear for the deep, yet she respected it, for if the waters can destroy a being mighty as she, then it meant that the ocean was perhaps the mightiest entity of them all. For Legs, such a challenge was exciting. To overcome the seas herself, to strip its god as its leader, and to welcome even the sea devils that danced in her soul. Such was the vision she bestowed upon herself. She wouldn’t stop till such vision became reality. “Empress Daddy,” a voice interrupted, tearing her from her thoughts. Annoyed, Legs’ glanced towards her crewmate, a middle-aged samurai clad in armor. He was a man who served the previous daimyo as a member of his elite guard. While a brave and virtuous being, he quickly recognized the might of Legs’ when she invaded, and was instrumental in her success at the battle of Hozuki Castle, a battle in which she took the daimyo’s life within three hours of invading. He was the mole that opened the back gates, allowing her, and her commanders, to flank from the back of the castle while their forces launched an assault from the front. For that, he was granted amnesty and awarded a position as her personal elite guard. “Shichirou, I assume that you broke me from my daydream for good reason?”

“Of course, my lady. From our latest informants, the marines have yet to catch wind that you have left Wano, and we’re only a few days out from Rusukaina,” he informed formally. “That is worthy news to tell me. I’m delighted, actually,” Legs responded non-sarcastically, a quite surprising feat in actuality since almost all of her responses were laced in some sarcastic, witty, or bitter remark. “I appreciate this.”

“I’m delighted, but we must determine which island we’ll dock on for the night. I assume that you don’t want to sleep on the ship two nights in a row. We will work to keep you safe, rest assured.”

“I’m not worried about being safe, Shichirou.” Legs frowned. “I’m upset that you’re treating me like some aristocrat. Do not forget, I despite soft-hearted aristocrats the most. I was a sailor long before I was an Empress, and a warrior before that.” “So, you wouldn’t mind spending another night on the ship?”

“Oh, well…” Legs trailed off. “If you wouldn’t mind stopping, I wouldn’t be entirely opposed to the idea.”

Shichirou nodded. “We’ll find a place to dock immediately and have the finest establishment prepare your room.” “Thanks, Shichirou. Make sure they prepare a room for you as well; Second best.” He nodded and departed her quarters, leaving her alone. Legs’ had been advised by her commanders not to trust a man who betrayed his very creed, and she had taken such advice. That was the main reason that she made him her elite guard. It provided her reason to bestow upon him an epithet, a manifestation of power weaved into his soul, and it slowly brought him under her control. A great power she granted, and one that he used often, but such usage brought him more into her grasp. In truth, Legs’ was unsure whether his mind was his anymore. He had seemed to read hers quite well. He could deduce when she bothered, when she was daydreaming, when she was hungry, and what food she craved at the time. It was for that reason why he was trustworthy. Yet, on the off event that he wasn’t truly her yet, she was aware that she had enough grasp over his soul to the point where she could rip it from his being easily. He would be an idiot to attack, or betray her, since she would just steal his soul to preserve her own. Maybe that was why he fought so fiercely to protect her? Legs didn’t allow those her own speculations to distract her from rest.

The Rumors of the Isles
“Empress-sama,” a guard, different from the man earlier, started jolting Legs’ from her sleep. “We’ve just landed in a small kingdom. The king has personally invited you to stay within his palace.”

“And did he offer,” Legs started, a yawn interrupting her briefly, “And did he offer me his own bed?”

“Not quite, Empress. He did say that you had one of the best rooms he could offer.”

“So the man doesn’t take the best room as his own, or he’s forgetting who he’s dealing with then.” Legs stood up, her tremendous frame towering over her guard below. She was surely at least four times his height, “Escort me to the palace, and send someone ahead to claim the emperor’s room for the night. I can’t be certain this isn’t a ploy to kill me, and I doubt he would poison his own room. Make sure the messenger is only a few minutes ahead of us, that way he won’t have time to change his plans, or should he be stupid enough to try, we’ll catch him in the act.” Her guard nodded as he led the way for Legs.

“Wait, where’s Salazar?”