][Malice][ =One Piece=

:: Chapter Fifty Four ::

Malice woke with a start her dreams plagued with haunting visions of Kid being tortured and killed at the hands of Kaido's men. She rolled out of her tent hoping the cool night air would offer her some semblance of relief. Her skin was hot and sticky with sweat and she peeled off a layer of clothing and tossed it back into her tent. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end; someone was watching her. Peering through the dark camp, her hellish gaze met a familiar pair of bright blue eyes.

Marco was sitting near the dying campfire watching the once feared ghost carefully. She looked a little unhinged, her hellish eyes were wide and wild like a frightened feral beast. He was careful not to make any sudden movements sensing her delicate mindset. He'd listened to her plan; it wasn't the best plan but he was confident after watching her movements all day that she had the strength to pull it off. Malice turned without a word and marched into the darkness away from camp. Marco noticed her two companions, the first mate of the Kid Pirates and the Captain of the Hawkins Pirates peer out of their own tents after the girl before making a move to follow her.

"Unless you can best her in a fight, you should probably leave her be." Marco halted the pair as they made their way toward the edge of darkness where Malice had disappeared into the surrounding forest.

The first mate of the Kid Pirates watched the crimson haired beauty vanish like a specter in the night, melting into the darkness of the thick forest. He looked to the intimidating blonde seated at the dying campfire before turning his gaze to the mystic blonde at his side as he drew out a random card from the tarot deck, he kept with him at all times.

"We need to hurry..." Hawkins said cryptically looking down at the ominous card in his hand, "I think your bull-headed captain may have been the only thing keeping her humanity intact."

Marco chuckled at this as he left the dying fireside, "I don't think you're giving her enough credit." He disappeared into the darkness with Killer and Hawkins following closely behind. There was a slight twinge of apprehension in the back of his mind as he remembered the words, he'd said to warn them, he wasn't even sure if he could best her in a fight anymore, not when she was like this.

The trio stepped out of the dark forest on the opposite side of the island and paused as they spotted the crimson haired girl kneeling by a crystal-clear pool in nothing more than a pair of black shorts and a flimsy grey camisole. She splashed some of the cool water on her face and the back of her neck. Despite the chill in the air there was a thin film of sweat clinging to her pale skin.

"Malice?"

She turned her head and her hellish gaze froze them all in place, "What?"

The masked first mate saw clarity in her hellish eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. Though she was angry and in emotional agony, she was in her right state of mind. "Are you alright?"

"I will be when I punch that idiot in the face and take off Kaido's head." She hissed and turned her back on the trio to splash more cool water on her face.

The trio exchanged curious looks, she sounded level headed. Killer took a step closer to her but paused as every muscle in her body tensed. "Mal-?"

She vanished. None of them had even seen her move. The only sign that she'd even been there a moment ago was the faint ripples in the water from where she'd dipped her hands in. Before any of them even had a moment to expel a breath or blink an eye, Malice collided into the masked first mate tackling him to the ground.

"What th-?" Killer cut off and stared at the spot he'd been standing a fraction of a second ago, a poison coated harpoon was sticking out of the earth. "Malice?" He looked to the crimson haired beauty sitting atop his chest, her eyes were practically glowing with hellfire.