Chapter 3: The First Crewmate and the First Friend
"I grew up in a small village on another island, my adoptive mom Dadan helped keep a roof over our heads but when we weren't around her, me and my "brothers" were in the forests being trained by Luffy's Grandpa." Morgan began to talk while eyeing the straw hat in his hand; his expression soured a little on the last part but he continued, "that old man who trained us was a hardass and deadset on making us into "Respectable Marines" like he was….Me, Ace and Sabo were all wanted the same thing….Luffy was too in the beginning and we swore that we were gonna become pirates together whether on the same crew or with our own….Sabo was taken by Marines to join his real family but died when his ship got blown up."
"That's…that's horrible, I'm sorry that you went through that but you can't blame the Marines solely for that…I doubt it was their fault that it happened." Coby pointed out and then saw Morgan nod a little in agreement.
"You're right, I can't blame them for that but after a while; Luffy said that he wanted to be a Marine after he almost drowned, he turned his back on me and Ace to go join up with his Grandpa, swearing that he was gonna become stronger and catch the high profile pirates. So yeah I can't blame the Marines for what happened to Sabo, but I CAN blame them for brainwashing my little brother and making him break his promise to us." Morgan finished it with a swift draining of his drink.
It was there that they saw that little girl from the base and she was heading over toward them, she thanked Morgan and Coby again for helping her earlier, once Morgan said it was no problem; she began to explain why she was bringing him the rice balls and more specifically why he had tied up outside for an entire month. "That man from before was in the tavern and his wolf was eating all the food we had, I tried chasing it away with a broom but Mr Zoro knocked it on the head to make it stop….he said he was going to hurt people for what happened to his pet but Mr Zoro offered himself up to take the blame….They said that he had to last a whole month being in prison and if Mr Zoro could, then the Marines would let us be pardoned and he could go free." The girl would say before heading home while smiling when Morgan had told her what Zoro said about her rice balls.
"I never thought that Zoro would actually be a nice guy like that." Coby would admit to himself as he looked up at Morgan; "Did you get that vibe from him?"
"Not a nice guy per se….but I could tell he has a good spirit in him." Morgan mentioned as he took another drink; "Why else do you think I want him on my crew?"
However there was a new voice laughing it up in the back of the tavern, Helmeppo was crooning and bragging to some "willing" Marines who were bodyguarding him; "That green haired idiot has been thinking that we'll be letting him go when his time's up tonight, but all he's got looking forward to him this evening….is a firing squad and the sight of these no good bottom feeders getting what they deserve!"
Coby covered his mouth in shock at hearing such a thing as Helmeppo continued to brag and bluster to no one in particular, "Thi-This is bad, not only is he lying to Zoro but this guy also plans t-" Coby would start to panic to himself and began to worry about the other townsfolk but was immediately snapped out of it as he heard the scrape of a chair and looked to see that Morgan was now gone.
"W-Wai-Morgan….Morgan! What are you doi-" Coby would try to urge Morgan back over but it was too late to stop him.
"Heheh-oh…who the hell are you and what exactly do you want?" Helmeppo would ask as he heard footsteps getting closer to him but not bothering to look up at his new visitor. "What is it you want, already? Are you looking for a handout or something?" He would continue to gripe at no one in particular before finally getting annoyed by the lack of response and turned up at Morgan; "Hey jackass, I'm talking to y-BWUH!"
There was a gasp and a hushed silence as everyone in the tavern watched Morgan cock his hand back and delivered a hard enough punch to send Helmeppo crashing out of his seat…and one of his teeth clattering across the floor.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING YOU RUFFIAN?! DON'T YOU EVEN KNOW WHO I AM?!" Helmeppo would scream up at a stone faced Morgan as the martial artist cracked his knuckles, Helmeppo's eyes stinging with tears as he felt a new wave of pain sear his cheek.
"You really are a slimy little piece of shit, you know that?" Morgan said through grit teeth as he glared daggers at Helmeppo; "Being a no good thug shaking down people is one thing, but toying with someone's life like it's a game is one thing I'm not going to ignore."
"My tooth….you knocked out one of my gleaming teeth…..I'm…I'll tell my daddy on you! and he's gonna make sure you get the death sentence!" Helmeppo would yell in childish anger as he ran out of the tavern and towards the Marine base with the other Marines following behind.
"Kid….I don't know if you're the bravest person in this town….or the dumbest, you know he's not bluffing about that threat of his." the barkeep would mention as he watched the whole thing and then passed Morgan a bag full of ice for his knuckles.
"I wouldn't worry about it, Mister….I'm not afraid of some spoiled rich kid running to his daddy." Morgan chuckled as he held the iced bag to his fist, flexing his fingers as Coby was staggering over to him, white as a sheet.
"Morgan…You saw that guy from earlier, he may look like a gangly weirdo but I think he's serious about siccing the Marines on you…and me too just out of spite." Coby said with enough concern for the both of them as he knew that Helmeppo would definitely do anything to save face.
"Crybaby pot calling the gangly Kettle black much, kid?" Morgan would think to himself before rolling his eyes at Coby's decision to make his decision after all of the commotion.
"Hate to admit it buddy, but your little friend's right…Helmeppo's not the kinda guy to let things go and he's certainly petty to a fault; he's sent people to prison for less." The barkeeper admitted to Morgan with all seriousness; "Plus his pops is the Captain in charge of the Marine base here and that guy is the LAST person you want to mess with."
"Wait….he said tonight…we need to get to the base and help out Zoro!" Morgan said once he calmed down and realised what the stakes were.
"H-Hold on a minute Morgan!" Coby would say as he managed to grab Morgan's wrist; "Zoro already said he wasn't interested in joining so why are you going to help him still? He's a pirate hunter, he fights pirates and collects their bounties…What's to stop him from collecting your bounty?"
"First of all, I don't even have a bounty yet and secondly; what makes you think I'm just gonna abandon someone like that." Morgan said with a serious look on his face down at Coby.
"You never made any promises with him, he's not even a member of your crew or even someone you're friends with yet…why are you so insistent on helping a stranger?" Coby questioned him intensely before feeling Morgan pull his arm away.
"Because I refuse to let someone die because of a broken promise or by being double crossed!" Morgan would snap at Coby and shoved him off before rushing towards the Marine Base.
——Meanwhile at the Marine Base——
A large statuesque man with an iron jaw and an enormous axe melded to his arm was watching a giant statue of himself being lifted up and being positioned to stand over the city; "Wonderful, truly nothing is greater then I am…my justice, my power….my raw unmatched authority over this town. Wouldn't you agree, Men?" The man would say with an overtly proud smirk on his face however with the metal plate over his mouth; it seemed to look more like a harsh grimace and to plenty of the soldiers around him, his tone and the sharpened axe were more then enough incentive to agree.
"Y-YES SIR! CAPTAIN MORGAN IS TRULY GREAT, SIR!" The shaky response from each of the Marines echoed from the roof as they lifted up the statue, eager to keep their jobs and more importantly…their heads.
"FATHER!" a shrill and haughty voice cut through the atmosphere like a knife as Helmeppo stomped up the stairs, his cheek still bruised from Morgan's punch to his face and his once smug mouth was now lopsided as he had a gap from one of his missing teeth; "There's someone in that dump of a town that ruined my perfect, perfect face! I want you to take someone and execute them!" the bratty blonde would pout and snap like a toddler who had his candy stolen from him.
Silence permeated from the man he called father, Helmeppo was getting sick of being ignored; "Father? Are you even listening? I said I wanted to borrow some men an-" Helmeppo couldn't catch a break as his father brought his still human fist down and struck him across the other cheek, knocking him to the ground but thankfully still having the same amount of teeth that he came to the base with; "H-HEY DAD! what was that for?!" Helmeppo would whimper as he tried to scurry back, watching the lumbering figure of the much more imposing man stand over him.
"I did it because you weren't worth hitting before…Now if you'll excuse me, I have to clean up YOUR mess and execute Roronoa Zoro." Axe-Hand Morgan would grumble as he returned to watching the statue getting raised up higher but getting lightly knocked by another Marine seemed to earn his attention.
Outside the base however was Morgan gazing up at the tower and then to the gates; "Looks like they're planning something up there….and if they're all up there then I can sneak in and free Zoro." Morgan planned to himself as he jumped up into a tree and climbed into the base towards Zoro who was quietly counting down to himself.
"Just a few more minutes…then I can walk out of here free and carry on my journey…Kuina….I'll keep my promise to you and become the World's Great-"
"Hey Zoro!" Morgan would say as he rushed over towards the bound up swordsman; "There's no time to explain, we've got to get you out of here while everyone's distracted." Morgan whispered to him as he started to try untying the knots on his wrists.
"What the hell are you doing back here, you idiot? I already told you that I'm not going to be your goon or your yes-man." Zoro would growl back at him and tried to nudge him back.
"Look this isn't about being a member of my crew, I'm busting you out because you're gonna die if you stay here longer." Morgan warned him and growled to himself as he couldn't undo the knots.
"Die? What are you talking about, in a few minutes…they're gonna let me out and they're gonna leave me alone once I get back on the water." Zoro would assure Morgan as he was dead set on completing this challenge.
"And when has a Marine ever honoured an agreement with Bounty Hunters or Pirates? I've heard that mouthy little skid-mark bragging that once the month is up, he's gonna put a bullet in you." Morgan retorted as he then stood up; "He said that he was gonna wait until your time here is up and then he's gonna bring a firing squad to you as a "reward" for lasting this long."
"Rrgh! Fine, if you want to try and help me out then you can get me my swords, I can get the rest fixed myself." Zoro would say to Morgan who nodded and started to rush towards the centre building.
"Idiot, he's gonna get himself killed doing this…but at least it'll give me some time to think of a way ou-" Zoro thought to himself but got interrupted when he saw a head of pink hair scramble over the wall.
——Meanwhile, at the foot of the tower——
"It's a long way up…but if it helps out then I'm gonna make it…I have to." Morgan would think to himself, taking a deep breath to channel Haki into his legs and his arms before getting into a flowing stance; "Swift Style Kenpo: Rabbit Sprint!" He would call out as he sprinted forward and made the first hop up to a windowsill, then springing off towards the higher ledge and then hopping off the next one; getting higher and higher towards the rooftops. However his concentration faltered and the Haki radiating from his hands pushed him off of the ledge skyward "WHOAWHOAWHOA! TOO MUCH! TOO MUCH!", accidentally kicking one of the Marines in the face and making him drop the rope along with the other Marines flinching in surprise at the sudden appearance of the pirate.
This had resulted in the Marine captain turning around to see the sudden drop of the statue, it collapsed backwards; shattering against the lip of the tower before breaking apart and falling in pieces, much to everyone's horror with Helmeppo and Captain looking especially shellshocked from the sound of Statue Morgan's sculpted head bounce against the outer wall before shattering against the dirt ground below.
Morgan turned to look at the now bisected statue and the sea of horrified faces staring right at him; with the tallest and largest Marine quickly turning lobster red in billowing anger as an axe raised over his head; "GRAB THAT LAWBREAKING VANDAL AND STRAP HIM UP NEXT TO RORONOA!" Axe-Hand roared in uncontrollable fury, making the Marines scramble frantically to grab their rifles.
Morgan rushed forward, ducking and weaving past the mob of soldiers who were trying to aim guns and swing their swords at him. His mind focused to a singular point as he sprinted in a zig-zag line.
Helmeppo was in a complete state of fear; his father was nearly ready to put everyone on the chopping block for breaking his statue, every Marine around him was more focused on following his dad's orders then protecting him and nothing could prepare him for the hand clasping around the back of his collar and dragging him to the stairs down inside the tower.
"You! You're coming with me!" Morgan growled in his ear as he dragged Helmeppo through the hallways; "Now, Zoro said you guys took his swords somewhere, you mind telling me where you put them, the armoury or something?" he would ask as he finally stopped and slapped Helmeppo around the face to get him focused.
"You think that I'm gonna tell you anything? once my dad and the Marines find you, then you're gonna be gunned down like the Pirate Hunter." Helmeppo threatened as he was dragged around.
"Freeze! Drop the Captain's son and back away!" a trio of Marines yelled out as they pointed guns at Morgan who still had Helmeppo gripped tightly at the collar.
—Meanwhile Outside—
"What the hell are you doing? Get out of here kid before you get caught!" Zoro would be yelling at Coby who was doing a better effort at untying Zoro's knots but was still struggling; "Your friend went in and kicked the hornet's nest so if you wanna make a run for it, now's the chance!"
"I'm not running, Morgan's focused on getting you out of here before the Marines get you!" Coby yelled back as he was keeping a watch out.
"This again? Your friend already told me what they have planned, so what? Even if they plan on taking me out, they're still going to leave the town alone." Zoro struggled against the restraints.
"That's the thing, they're not going to." Coby remarked; explaining to Zoro about what Helmeppo said about executing Zoro and then ramping up the threats and violence to the town.
"That lying, two faced….arrogant snake! So that's why he was so willing to listen to me….but what about your friend? why is he willing to stick his neck out for someone like me when I told him to buzz off?" Zoro would ask Coby.
"Because he hates the idea of someone dying because of a broken promise….I know he seems a little surly and well…he's pretty mean to me but he said he's gonna become the World's greatest Martial Artist and I believe him…" Coby mentioned as he saw Zoro start to think.
"Greatest Martial Artist, huh? then maybe it wasn't bullshit that he wants me to come along as a crewmate…." Zoro mused to himself before the two heard a sound of gunshots from the tower.
——Back at the Tower—
"You better let me go right now because I won't hesitate to make them shoot you." Helmeppo tried to threaten Morgan in a shaky tone as he could see the barrels of the rifles staring the two of them down.
Morgan smirked; "Then you better tell me where the swords are, otherwise I'm gonna use you as a human battering ram." he would remark as he then lifted Helmeppo up in front of him like a shield and started running towards the Marines who were shocked that someone had the nerve to defy them but also conflicted as to shoot or not.
"ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! I TOOK THE SWORDS TO MY ROOM, IT'S AT THE END OF THE HALL, SO JUST DON'T SHOOT!" Helmeppo screamed out loud as true to his word, Morgan barrelled through the Marines and then rammed Helmeppo through the last door, showing off his gaudy and very plush looking room; dropping the unconscious Helmeppo on his bed.
Morgan grinned triumphantly as he gazed at the rack of three swords with a plaque underneath written as: "My New Trophies~"
"Alrighty, let's find the…..aw damn it all, Zoro never told me which sword was his…I guess I just grab them all for now." he sighed as he grabbed the three katanas, attaching two to his waist and the other to his back before the sound of rifles being readied could be heard from the door; "Alright, drastic or door dash?" Morgan thought to himself but then saw out the window that Marines were lining up to shoot Zoro; "Drastic it is then."
—Down on the grounds—
"Roronoa Zoro, you've been charged with high treason against Captain Morgan of the Marines, you have been sentenced to be shot on these grounds." Axe-Hand would announce with a band of Marines armed with rifles; "Any last words, dog?" he would ask Zoro who was gritting his teeth.
"I've got nothing to say to you, Captain Asshole." Zoro would spit back with a glare at him. "Fuck! I can't lose here, I've still got to take on HIM…if I die here then Kuina's gonna be bashing me with a kendo sword across the afterlife." Zoro was trying to keep his stoic look but the threat of death looming over him and the words that Morgan said to him before lingered, "Alright buddy, if you're gonna choose any time to jump in and be a nuisance…do it now!"
"FIRE!" Axe-Hand ordered as the Marines took aim and fired at Zoro, time seemed to slow down as the sound of the rifles boomed across the courtyard and the smell of gunpowder filled the air, but something else quickly echoed too; it was the sound of a frantic yell as Morgan was descending from the top floor down to the Ground floor.
"Alright Haki….hold together because this is gonna hurt…..Strong Style Kenpo…." Morgan then hit the ground with a flying axe kick; with his frantic gathering of Haki to his right leg and caution to the wind with control: Morgan had let out a yell as he thrust his leg down, cracking the ground in front of him and Zoro; "FAULT LINE BREAKER!"
Zoro had his eyes clenched shut to prepare for the end however after opening one eye, he could see Morgan crouched downward with a leg extended and what looked to be a piece of earth had been uplifted like a stalagmite.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!?" seemed to be the common question as Zoro watched Morgan barreling down like a cannonball while Axe-hand and the Marines just watched this unarmed man split the earth beneath him and shielded the two with a broken piece of rock.
"There's….There's no way you're human…right?" Zoro would ask as he saw Morgan turn to pull off the swords.
"Nope, Human and a Martial Artist… but talk about it later, which one's your sword so I can get you out?!" Morgan rushed Zoro as he held out the triad of swords to him.
"Heh, they're all my swords so you may wanna stand back." Zoro would say as he kicked one of the swords up out of Morgan's hand and angled himself so the sword cut the ropes from his left hand; once it landed and he grabbed it by the hilt to effortlessly slice the ropes from his right hand.
Axe-Hand realised the risks that entailed if both this freak of nature AND Zoro teamed up to fight back against them; so he raised his Axe arm; "Don't just stand there and stare, you idiots…apprehend them or kill them!" He bellowed out in an order as most of the loyal Marines rushed forward to stop the two from going any further.
Morgan was surprised at the sudden kick but he was also impressed at how easily he could swing the swords around; "So does this mean a temporary truce until we get out?" He would ask before getting back into a Kenpo stance and then started to weave, parry and strike back at the Marines swinging for their heads.
Zoro gripped the third sword in his mouth by the hilt and started to fight back too; "I did some thinking back there; if I carried on the way I did even if the Marines let me go then nothing would change, your friend back there told me you wanted to be a famous Martial Artist like I want to be a swordsman…So I'll take you up on that offer of joining your crew IF we get out of this." Zoro explained as with two swords; he deflected around four marines and sent them back, doing his best to injure and to incapacitate rather then to kill anyone.
Morgan grinned widely as he flipped backwards with an upwards kick, sending another Marine flying backward to the ground; "If that's the case then I accept!"
"BUT I am not going to be your hired killer, nor will I be made into a glorified dogsbody….If I notice you start to do something I don't approve of or if you make me stray from my path in any way…then I don't care if you're my friend, my captain or anything else, I'll make you commit seppuku as a recompense." Zoro warned Morgan of his terms before bringing the flats of his swords down on another Marine.
"No half measures and no hesitation to speak up; Welcome to the crew then, First Mate." Morgan felt his pride swell as he delivered a quick swathe of palm strikes to knock back another Marine to land at Axe-Hand's feet who was slowly getting more and more frustrated.
"What kind of Marines are you if you can't even beat a half dead pirate hunter and an unarmed one? If you don't want to be killed by me, then kill THEM!" Axe-Hand offered his ultimatum, sending plenty of his remaining solders into a panicked frenzy as they ran forward.
"STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!" a shrill voice picked up plenty of attention, making a number of people turn towards it; it looked like Helmeppo had woken up and he now had Coby taken as a hostage at gunpoint; "YOU! the ruffian who ruined my face! I want you to back down now…or I'll make sure this brat gets it worse!"
Axe-Hand smirked ghoulishly as he saw his son take initiative before noticing that Morgan and Zoro stopped in his tracks; "Good work; you've finally done something worthwhile Helmeppo, now keep that going….I have some pirates to execute."
"M-Morgan…..BEAT UP THOSE SHITTY MARINES!" Coby screamed out as he hated seeing his dream getting dragged through the dirt by the likes of Helmeppo and Axe-Hand.
"You shut up! or I'll blow a hole in you!" Helmeppo yelled at Coby as he readied the gun.
"Hang in there kid, I'll think of something." Morgan thought to himself as he saw Axe-Hand rumbling towards the two with his axe raised before looking to Zoro, wordlessly getting a plan together before then rushing towards Axe-Hand at breakneck speed.
"I'm Captain Axe-Hand Morgan and I'll cut you down in the name of my authority and my greatness!" Axe-hand roared as he was aiming to cut down the new captain at the head.
"And I'm Morgan…now eat dirt!" Morgan would retort before going into his boxer's stance; "Strong Style Kenpo!" He would yell out and barrelled past Axe-Hand by rolling under his axe swing and propelling himself towards Helmeppo at a quicker speed before Zoro deflected the strike.
"Stop that! Y-You better stop right now or I'll shoot him! I MEAN IT!" Helmeppo screamed out in a shaky tone as he felt his body shake, being on the receiving end of Morgan's blows plenty of times had now instilled a fear into the already cowardly daddy's boy. His hand shook while trying to pull the trigger….but it was too late.
Morgan pushed himself off with a strong leap and launched towards Helmeppo with a flying haymaker; "CASTLE BUSTING BALLISTA!"
Helmeppo felt his finger on the trigger, but nothing happened; all he could see and feel was Morgan's quickly approaching fist sink into his face, propelling him backwards and crashing him through a wall of the tower and landing the two in the rubble.
As Morgan got to his feet, he helped up Coby and dusted himself off; "You okay there, Coby?" he would ask; filling Coby with a small amount of happiness that Morgan actually used his name rather then just the "Kid" he used most of the time. However there wasn't any time to relax as a gasp was heard from inside the hallway they landed in.
The two looked across and saw a red headed girl with a full sack of loot over her shoulder and clutching a locked box under her arm; "Uh….this isn't what it looks like?" She would say with a nervous laugh.
Morgan raised an eyebrow at this; "You don't have to pretend that you didn't just rob the Marines, I honestly don't care if you rob these scumbags." he would admit outright, though Coby would normally object to this, the fact that these particular Marines were stealing from other people took the sting out of it…though he still didn't approve of it all together.
"Alrighty, well in that case….I wanna thank you for opening up an exit for me and for knocking out the guards there in the rubble; so I'll be on my way now, Bye Byyyeee~" The girl winked at them and waved as she raced out and into the city.
"Who….Who was that?" Coby would ask in confusion but he got his answer as Morgan looked equally as confused but on another level; intrigued by her.
"First time I ever saw her…..now, let's get back out there and help Zoro….you on the other hand get out of the way in case that asshole wakes up." Morgan would say to Coby who nodded in agreement and ran for the walls.
Zoro meanwhile was blocking and parrying Axe-hand while Morgan was saving Coby, smirking a little as he saw Morgan rushing his way. "Took you long enough!" Zoro yelled out, making Axe-Hand turn around to face Morgan.
"I told you that I was gonna make you eat dirt! now let's finish him off, Zoro! SWIFT STYLE KENPO…." Morgan would rush forward in a low stance
"I fought for Order….I WILL HAVE ORDER AND EXECUTE YOU BOTH BECAUSE THERE IS NO ONE GREATER THEN ME!" Axe-Hand yelled out as he was ready to cut down the both of them however he missed as Morgan ducked under him and Zoro stepped back before getting into a dual sheathed position.
"CROW'S FLIGHT!" Morgan yelled out as he knocked himself backwards; propping himself up by his palms and swinging both legs up to kick Morgan under the chin hard.
As the Captain was knocked into the air, Zoro focused himself before rushing forward with both swords unsheathing and zipping past Axe-Hand with a three bladed strike; "ONI GIRI!" Zoro would yell out as he struck right on target and sent the Marine captain crashing to the ground.
"NICE JOB, ZORO!" Morgan whooped with a hearty cheer as he watched the large man hit the ground like a ton of bricks.
"It's no sweat….Captain." Zoro would remark as he sheathed his swords and headed over to Morgan where they checked to make sure Axe-hand wasn't going to get back up.
"Is he….is he dead?" one of the Marines asked as most of the soldiers had been scared stiff thanks to Axe-Hand's intimidation.
"Well…we tried not to, but I doubt he'd be getting up any time soon." Zoro would mention; "My cuts weren't that deep anyway."
Once the realisation that Axe-Hand was done for and not threatening them anymore, a very loud and very raucous cheer rang out among the Marines as they celebrated the fall of both Axe-Hand and Helmeppo; "Get those two in a cell and let's go clean this up….you two may want to leave for the time being." The most senior Marine outside of Axe-Hand would mention to Zoro, Morgan and Coby as a group of soldiers began dragging the two to the prison.
——Minutes Later——
Morgan, Zoro and Coby were back down at the tavern as they were getting their strength back and recuperating; Zoro was gulping down food by the plateful and drinking by the barrel after having been starved for so long, Morgan was currently chowing down on a giant plate of meat while his leg was wrapped up in a cast; it turned out that the earth shattering kick he did to stop Zoro from getting shot actually injured his leg but the doctor told him that it would heal with time, Coby in the meanwhile was regaling the other patrons with the story about how Zoro and Morgan helped to bring down Axe-hand and Helmeppo after they had heard that the two wouldn't be bothering the town anymore.
"And once Helmeppo got knocked out, Morgan and Zoro kicked the Marine Captain's butt across the grounds an-"
The doors of the bar soon opened up as several Marines marched in before surrounding Zoro and Morgan with the new Captain taking the lead; "You two caused quite a lot of trouble for the Marines in Shells Town…."
Morgan's face soured once he realised what this was about; "You're kidding right? You saw what those two were doing to the town AND to the Marines….You can't tell me that you condoned any of that?!" Morgan called them out as most of the Marines felt themselves shrink a little; while they were under the threat of violence and extortion, they DID still obey Axe-Hand and Helmeppo regardless.
"Look…The Marines aren't perfect…I can agree with you on that, but now it's our chance to start fresh and act like we're meant to….So we came here to thank you for your help in dislodging that tyrant. BUT we also can't ignore the fact that you're pirates, we're not so blind to ignore that you helped us; so we're willing to give you a boat and some supplies to get you on your way while we…..take our time filling out our reports of Former Captain Morgan's dismissal." The Marine would explain cryptically as both Zoro and Morgan nodded in understanding.
"It's….not exactly ideal but if it means we can get out of this, then I think it's worth taking." Morgan shrugged as he figured taking it would be a lot better then fighting through Marines on an injured leg.
"Can….Can I stay here?" Coby would ask, drawing attention away from Morgan and the Marines; "I always wanted to join the Marines for the longest time, so it might be better for me to stay here and at least do my part to help….once I can enlist." Coby explained, drawing confusion out of Zoro and the Marines but a faint hint of pride from Morgan.
"Finally getting the courage to ask for what YOU want…nice work, Coby." Morgan thought to himself as the Marine Captain mulled over his words and considered everything that Coby had said.
"I don't see any reason why you can't and if we go through the right channels then that should be fine….but it's not going to be an easy ride kid, before anything else; we're gonna need to run a background check on you and make sure that you've got no current ties with any pirates when you join…." He would explain to Coby who immediately paled and felt his blood run cold, "Are you and this gentlemen here affiliated or working together?"
"Oh no, this is bad….really bad, if they find out I have a history with Alvida then my chances are shot! Maybe I can lie about it, sure it might take a poker face but I can…." Coby would mentally unpack as he started trying to talk again but realised the scope of it when he saw Morgan smirk.
"Actually now that you mention it….there is someone that comes to mind." Morgan piped up with a smirk as he looked to Coby who was sweating bullets at this point and grabbing him by the collar.
"MORGAN, What are you doing?!" Coby would ask in a hushed tone and was growing more flustered as he saw the goading look on Morgan's face, daring him to say anything.
Morgan chuckled to himself as he jerked back and forth from Coby's shaking; "There's someone he was on a ship with for a while, it was this REALLY big and mean pi-" Morgan started but was shocked like the others when Coby finally decided to do something and punched him square in the mouth.
"I SAID SHUT UP!" Coby screamed at Morgan with his fist shaking from the first punch, though he noticed that Morgan was glaring him down and cracked his knuckles.
"Oh you've done it now, Kid!" Morgan said ominously as he rounded a punch back on Coby into his nose; leaving Zoro to watch the two break out into a fistfight in the middle of the tavern.
"HEY!HEY!HEY! BREAK IT UP, THE TWO OF YOU NOW!" The Captain ordered as two Marines separated Morgan and Coby from each other; Coby had one of the lenses in his glasses broken and a black eye while Morgan had a bloodied nose. "Alright, I think it's more then clear that you two aren't working with each other…so you two get to that boat we left for you…and you." The Captain would then look to Coby with a smirk; "We're gonna teach you how to throw a better punch if you intend on fighting Pirates."
"We're leaving, don't worry." Zoro grumbled while helping Morgan up and onto his crutch, leaving the two to walk out of the bar and onto the pier; "You know, I still don't get it with you…you acted like you hated that kid to the point of potentially screwing him over yet you could've easily booted his ass into the hospital." Zoro would ask his captain as they finally found a decently sized boat for the two of them along with a bag of preserved food and supplies to last them.
"It's not like that! I never actually hated him….sure he's a whiny and annoying crybaby, but I still have respect for him since he stuck up for himself when he had the chance….all it took was a little push." Morgan would chuckle as he wiped the blood away from his nose and climbed into their new ship; "Besides….Marines are assholes but I'm not gonna beat up a kid just because he wants to BE a Marine."
This time it was Zoro's turn to laugh as he opened up the sail; "You know, I expected you to be this cutthroat jerk….but you're just soft at heart, aintcha?" Zoro would joke.
"Hey, I won't tolerate insubordination towards your captain." Morgan joked back as the wind started taking them off to sea but a yell took them off guard as they looked back to land; seeing Coby and the Marines standing there.
"THANKS FOR THE HELP MORGAN, I HOPE I SEE YOU AGAIN!" Coby would call out and went into a salute; leading to the other Marines to show their thanks by saluting too."
"Y'know kid, saluting Pirates is not off to a great start….all of us! as punishment, we're going to be going without dinner tonight!" The Captain announced to the others, causing a chorus of groans between them.
"So where to now, Captain?" Zoro asked as he looked to Morgan who was staring out to sea and then put the straw hat on his head.
"We're gonna make our way to the Grand Line…For you to become the World's strongest Swordsman and for me to become the Greatest Martial Artist in the World….AND THE KING OF THE PIRATES!" Morgan yelled out to the open sea.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone