More Important Than Dreams

Zoro leapt nimbly onto the port-side rail and danced over the swings of the Cockeyed Canary pirates' swords.  Jumping into the air, he executed a flip, his arms crossed in front of him, a katana clenched in each hand.  He drew his arms apart as he landed on the deck behind the enemy, slicing through the backs of six pirates at once. 

He spun on his heel and cut a swath through the battling pirates.  Yellow feathers stained deep red floated around them as one Canary after another was felled.  Death sang with the clink of steel.  Five bodies flew through the air from the stern, kicked by a thick-soled shoe.  The collided with the pirates Zoro was fighting, sending them all crashing to the deck, several impaling themselves on their own swords.

A bullet ricocheted against a steel patch nailed to the bright yellow Cockeyed Canary figurehead.  Zoro dove out of the way, rolled back to his feet, and looked up.  Several Canaries balanced on the horizontal yard, while a few more had made it to the crow's nest, each sporting a long rifle or a crossbow.  Narrowing his eyes, he barreled forward towards the rigging, slicing through anyone who got in his way.

Luffy's shouts echoed in the air, coming from the Marines' ship.  When the thick, early morning fog had lifted with the sunrise, the Going Merry had been caught unawares hemmed in between the Marines and the Cockeyed Canaries.  The two other ships dwarfed the caravel.  Ropes with steel claws at the end held the Going Merry captive on either side.  The fighting between the Marines and the Canaries had begun on the Going Merry's decks, but Luffy had flung them all back to their ships.  The Straw-Hat crew had divided: Luffy and Robin took on the Marines, Zoro and Sanji went after the pirates, while Nami, Usopp, and Chopper worked to free the Going Merry.

Sanji made a sound of derision, hands tucked casually in his pockets.  "It's more like I should be watching yours."

Zoro sheathed his two katanas and climbed the rigging quickly.  When he reached the yard, he unseated one of the armed pirates with a kick to the face and watched him fall to the deck far below.  Smiling smugly – anyone could kick like that useless cook – Zoro drew only Yubashiri and ran the length of the yard.  His swift swings cut cleanly through the Canaries on the mainmast.  He made sure several of them landed in the fray surrounding Sanji, taking out a few more pirates.  He earned a sharp glare from Sanji before Sanji turned his attention back to the fight.

Zoro saw a Canary perched on the top of the cabin below, notching a stake in a crossbow.   Out of the corner of his eye, Zoro saw another Canary with a rifle hanging from the starboard-side rigging, taking aim at Sanji from an advantageous spot above the battling pirates.  Another quick glance down showed the crossbow was now also aimed at Sanji. 

"Shit.  Sanji, look out!" Zoro yelled in warning, but the roars of battle drowned out his voice. 

Annoyed, and maybe a little concerned, Zoro's gaze darted between the two Canaries.  The distance between them and Zoro's position made it impossible for him to strike both down before either got off a shot.  His best bet would be to fell the one in the rigging before he pulled the trigger and then smack the stake out of the air before it reached its target.

With a determined jump, Zoro slid down the broad mainsail at the edge of the yard.  The Canary with the rifle looked up right as Zoro reached him and fear widened his eyes.  Zoro's blade flashed in the sun.  The Canary cried out in death and fell backwards, but his foot was tangled in the rigging.  His corpse dangled like a fish caught in a net and the rifle fell from his unfeeling hands into the sea.

The canvas grew hot under Zoro's seat as he slid faster down its curve.  He hit the foredeck at a run, drawing a second katana as he dashed up the steps towards the stern.  Blood drenched the edges of his swords as he plowed through the Canaries still fighting.  He noted that their numbers were dwindling, but winning the battle wouldn't make a difference if he lost one of his own.

Cuts and scrapes marred Sanji's face and bare forearms beneath his rolled up sleeves. His blue shirt was splattered with dark splotches of blood.  He frog-leapt over a falling Canary, twisting his body into spinning kick.  Five pirates were caught in the impact, knocking them down like a row of pins.  His back was to the cabin and the sharpened stake whizzing through the air.

Zoro put on a burst of speed, shouting "Duck!"  Sanji still didn't hear him, the warning vanishing under a screech of dry wood scraping together.  The ship shuddered, making Zoro misstep over a fallen body, as he was about to cleave the stake in two.  The edge of his katana nicked the projectile, but did not stop it.  It would hit Sanji right between the shoulderblades.

Zoro didn't hesitate, he didn't even think.  He threw himself forward, into its path.  The sharpened stake slammed into his chest, piercing through cloth, skin and muscle.  He staggered upon impact, knocking into Sanji. 

"What are you doing, marimo head?" Sanji growled.  His shoulders bumped against Zoro's as he kicked.

"Need you to watch my back, remember?"  The words tasted like blood on Zoro's lips.

Agony bloomed white hot around the thick wood stabbing into his pectoral and radiated down his limbs.  He felt as if he were breathing water.

"Tch.  Just don't get in my way."

Zoro's sword rose instinctively when a Canary tried to press an advantage, even though his arm felt heavier than his weights.  Steel blades kissed.  Black spots swam in Zoro's vision as he cast his gaze over the remaining pirates on his side of the deck.  Blood burbled in his throat.  He had to finish them off quickly, before his strength ebbed.

The Canary on the cabin was lining up another shot, standing confidently on the edge of the roof.  Zoro blinked the sweat out of his eyes, flicked his wrist, and sent his opponent's sword sailing end-over-end.  It sliced into the crossbowman, cutting him down neatly.  The swordman in front of him collapsed dead with a jab of Zoro's katana.

"I'm going back to help Nami," Sanji called, his voice sounding as muffled as the clink of Zoro's katana against another opponent's sword.  Zoro nodded, indicating he'd heard, but then it became too hard for him to lift his head again.  His body moved mechanically, taking down his foes without input from his brain.  Blood dribbled from his slack lips, adding to the deep red stains on his shirt.

The edges of his vision faded and objects became fuzzy.  He struck down another Canary and waited for his arm to rise again.  It didn't.  Around him, all he could see were blurry bodies of the dead littering the deck.  What little strength was holding him upright vanished abruptly and he crashed to his knees.  Yubashiri and Wadou clattered on the stained deck on either side of him.  The sluggish sound of his heartbeat was now the only thing he could hear, growing fainter with every pulse. 

He was going to die.  It didn't scare him, though, like it had in the past.  He had no regrets in blocking the stake, not even being unable to fulfill his promise to Kuina.  Some things are more important than your dreams. 

Zoro smiled faintly as the deck came crashing upwards and the stake pierced through him.  He felt an instant of blinding pain that whited-out his blurry vision. 

Then, there was nothing.