Chương 17: Chapter 16
"How many of them are there?" Hancock asked as their Ship headed towards the Docks.
"98 Pirates are stationed on the docks. There are three vessels of Slave Merchants, and they are colluding with the Pirate Fleet. A total of 149 enemies if you count in the guards and seamen of the three Vessels." Augur, who was in the Crow's Nest, gave her the information. "It seems like their Commanders are not present on the Docks, so their forces should be somewhere on the Island. I am unable to scout them from here."
The Black Pearl was exactly a mile away, and already on the enemy radar. The Pirates on the Docks were waiting for them, with the ships in the Pirate Fleet lined up, ready to open fire on the hauntingly-majestic black ship as soon as it enters their range.
"Slave Merchants?" Kuina frowned. "Didn't the World Government make Slavery illegal 200 years ago?"
"They did, at least on paper, but it is still legal for Celestial Dragons to own slaves, and in 7 out of 170 Kingdoms affiliated with the World Government, slavery was never abolished," Robin informed her. "At the end of every year, Slave Auctions take place in the lawless zones of Sabaody Archipelago, where Celestial Dragons and the Royalty buy their slaves. Marines and World Government know about it, and they allow it. Secret Slave Auctions also take place all over the Grandline, which are not licensed by the World Goverment, and that is where the lesser slaves are sold while the better ones are saved for the annual Sabaody Auctions. Even if it is illegal in other Kingdoms, they secretly purchase slaves and add them to their Armies and Workforce in their Palaces, providing them with some incentives. Maids, who in truth are Sex-Slaves, are present in almost all the Royal Palaces. Kingdoms also buy and free slaves, usually orphans, providing them with shelter, food, clothing, education and training, with the intention of turning them into loyal servants of their Kingdom. But since they qualify as willing slaves, they don't exactly fall under the banner of Slavery."
Nojiko and Nami had been listening to their conversation, and they were scared after learning the truth.
"They come on Islands and abduct people to sell them?" Nami fearfully asked.
"Yes." Robin nodded to her. "Pirates are blamed for such activities in the news, but in truth, the Slave Merchants, who are sponsored by the World Government itself, collude with these Pirates to capture the slaves for the Sabaody Auctions." She turned to look back at the enemies waiting for them. "Once these Pirates are gone, a couple of weeks later, Marines will come to this place to make an official report. The families will be told that their children are dead along with all the Pirates, believed to have fallen to the storms of the Evil Sea. And some survivors will be returned to their homes by the Marines, rescued in a fabricated encounter, all to make their story more believable to the people."
Seeing that her words had distressed the younger girls, Robin smiled at them and gently caressed their heads.
"Augur, Bepo, Law!" Sin called out their names as soon as they approached the Island. "Stay on the Black Pearl with Nami and Nojiko. Keep the ship sailing, and make a round around the Island. See if you can find anything else. And in case you encounter trouble, use the flare to send a signal."
"Aye, Captain!" The three of them replied in unison.
Sin nodded to them and turned to look at Kuina, Hachi, Bonney, Hancock, and Robin.
"No survivors." He coldly smiled and said.
"Aye!"
The Pirates were taken aback when bolts of lighting suddenly shot from the haunting Black Ship, and in a blink of an eye, six individuals appeared in different places on the docks. For a brief moment, they hesitated to attack but the battle ensued when a barrage of Purple Fireballs rained onto the vessels in the Pirate Fleet, blowing them into smithers, and killing their comrades who were on board.
Black Pearl unleashed cannon fire onto the scout ships of the enemy Pirates, sinking them before sailing away to make a round around the Island.
Cries and wails rose from the docks, and gunshots echoed all around, travelling far into the sea. And in a slaughter that continued for over 15 minutes, all the Pirates, Guards and Seamen of Merchant Vessels, lost their lives tragically.
Some of the people of the Island, who were present nearby the docks, and all the abducted children, young men and girls on the Merchant Vessels, were horror-stricken at the carnage that they had just witnessed. Their hearts were palpitating in fear as it was way too cruel.
The crew did not use their Devil Fruit Powers to take out the enemies. It was an exercise for them, and since they wanted to push Kuina and Hachi to do their best in the battle, the four of them did not try to end it as soon as possible.
By the end of it, Kuina and Hachi were covered in the blood of those that they had slain, and both of them had sustained some injuries as well. The blue-haired girl was visibly tired, panting heavily, but Hachi still had some fight left in him.
"Come here and help us pile up the bodies." Sin turned to look at the inhabitants of the Island, who were hiding in the woods. They cowered in fear when he looked at them and commanded, but then the men stepped forward and did as asked.
15 minutes later, a Funeral Pyre of over a hundred dead bodies was lit up. The smoke travelled far in the sky, and the stench of burning human flesh made some of the civilians throw up.
"Go and rescue your people." Robin gave them the green light, and only then did their fear subside. Some people dropped onto their knees to thank them, while others only hastily shouted their thanks and ran towards their loved ones, who were aboard the Merchant Vessels.
Seeing the young children cry the pain out of their hearts, and seeing most parents crying in happiness, made Kuina smile and feel sad at the same time. Taking her conflicting emotions, she silently approached Bonney, and sat by her side to get away from all the noise of crying.
"What are you looking at?" She curiously asked when she saw a pamphlet in her hands.
"Here." Bonney smiled at her and handed it to her to read for herself.
"The slave price list:
Humans: 500,000+
Dwarves: 700,000+
Mink Tribe: 700,000+
Longarm Tribe: 700,000+
Longleg Tribe: 700,000+
Snakeneck Tribe: 700,000+
Fish-Men: 1,000,000+
Giants:
Male: 50,000,000+
Female: 10,000,000+
Merfolk:
Female: 70,000,000+
Male: 1,000,000+
Parted female: 10,000,000+
Devil Fruit users: Market price
Other rare species: Market price"
"What's a Parted Female?" Kuina curiously asked.
"After a Mermaid reaches the age of 30, her tail and fin part and form two human legs, enabling them to walk on the land as we do," Bonney replied.
"What?!" She looked at her in disbelief. "They lose their tails?"
"No." Bonney chuckled at her reaction. "They can transform back and forth, so when they are in Water, they keep their tailed form, and when they are on land, they transform their tail into a pair of legs. Mermen are unable to do this, only Mermaids can. They are mystical creatures of nature."
"But if that is the case, why is their Price lower?" She looked back at the list and frowned. "Shouldn't it be higher?"
"Celestial Dragons buy Mermaids for their amusements and to keep them in aquariums. Some mermaids can not control their transformation and their legs turn to Human legs as soon as they leave the waters. Therefore, the prices of those that can transform their legs are lower. But in case a Mermaid is very beautiful, and if she is still a virgin after turning 30, their base Price is higher than what's listed here. It is the same for Human girls and some girls belonging to specific Mink Tribes. Wanted Criminals and Pirates fetch a high price too, and their Base Price starts with what their Bounty is."
The pink-haired girl informed her, which made her really uncomfortable at the thoughts that were emerging in her mind.
"How do you know so much about Slave Trade?" Kuina asked after a while, curious about it.
"It's common knowledge for some." Bonney chuckled at her words and ruffled her hair. "Get ready, more enemies are coming." She said as she sensed the approaching enemies with her Observation Haki.
A force much larger than what they had slaughtered came out of the woods, with more children and young men and girls in chains. But they stopped in their steps when they saw the Funeral Pyre and found all the prisoners free.
There was a haunting silence that continued for several minutes, and then an angry cry rose, with a tall bulky man transforming into a Hybrid Zoan-Form, scaring his men who were standing around him.
"I will kill you!" He glared at Sin and the rest with his ominous beastly eyes and yelled right through his large fangs.
As if on cue, a person behind him, stepped forward and embraced his Hybrid Form as well. Long and heavy curved horns protruded from his head, and he looked intently at them with his now rectangular, side-slanting eyes.
"Heh... A Tiger Zoan and an Ibex." Sin smiled brightly. "This should be fun."
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