][Malice][ =One Piece=

:: Chapter Ten ::

Warm blankets enveloped the small eight year old girl. Crackling flames and the smell of campfire wafted around her. Slowly she eased her eyes open to find herself in what looked like a storage room. Crates and barrels lined the walls and there were rows of shelving units filled with glassware, nonperishables and an endless supply of booze. She was lying on a comfy cot next to a decent sized fireplace.

Voices drifted in from a door at the opposite end of the room. It was outlined in light and she could hear the occasional clinking of glasses and loud drunken raucous laughter. Perhaps she was in a bar. Cautiously she sat up, wobbling slightly as her vision blurred at the sudden movement. She eased herself off the cot and slowly made her way toward the door. As she moved she felt a slight tug against her shirt near her shoulder and realized it was her clothing getting snagged on some bandages. Who had bandaged her up?

The door opened with a loud creak as she lightly pushed against it and everyone fell silent to stare at the small crimson haired girl framed in darkness. It was a bar, a crowded bar filled with what looked like a bunch of ruffians.

“What the hell is a kid doing here?” A man half slumped at the bar slurred sloshing his drink down his front as he missed his mouth.

Her heart began to race as all eyes were suddenly on her. She took a faltering step back as she realized her weapon was missing. Completely defenseless and now the center of attention, her nerves became unsettled. One of the patrons abandoned his seat and approached the retreating child.

“Are you lost little on-.”

“Stay back!” The child panicked. A somewhat familiar rush of energy coursed through her veins and a powerful aura shot forth causing the approaching man to collapse into unconsciousness. The majority of the other bar patrons slumped in their seats or fell to the floor, leaving only two people unscathed, the bartender and an old man sitting at the opposite end of the bar.

The bartender, a woman of questionable age with straight ebony hair that framed her sharp angled face, stared at the child in awe, “Did she just use Conqueror’s Haki?” She gaped.

“What an interesting development.” The old man mused as he finished off the contents in his glass.

“Who are you?” The girl demanded as she frantically searched for some kind of weapon to defend herself, if these two were unaffected by her strange aura, they’d prove to be formidable opponents.

“My name is Silvers Rayleigh.” The old man smiled.

It was her turn to be stunned into silence. He was the man she was searching for, the one who may be able to give her information about her father’s whereabouts.

“What happened?” Killer’s voice asked softly from outside of her room.

“She snapped.” The deep arrogant voice of the captain replied rousing the young woman from her slumber.

“She has an alarming amount of scars.” Killer said so quietly she’d almost missed what he’d said.

Slowly, she sat up and cursed under her breath as she felt the familiar rush of fluid as more blood seeped from her patched up wound. She’d probably just ripped open a couple of stitches. Shakily she tossed the blankets aside before swinging her legs over the side of the bed and staggering to her feet. The remnants of bile lingered in her mouth causing her to grimace. So she had thrown up, apparently not on the captain otherwise she’d probably have woken up in a ditch somewhere.

“She’s awake.” Kid pointed gruffly and the door to her room was suddenly wrenched open spilling blinding light into the dark confines.

Malice cringed at the sudden harsh light and stumbled to her knees.