Fury. That was the only way to describe Trafalgar Law's current state. Even coated in the blood of his enemies, he cursed himself over and over again.

He'd made a mistake. And it cost him. Dearly.

Now they were in the middle of the Grand Line, with a damaged hull and a dead lead mechanic.

They had been ambushed while relaxing on a tropical, deserted island. Law should have seen it coming, but he had been exploring a set of caves on the other side of the island. The opposing pirates weren't particularly strong, and the Heart Pirates had crushed them. Unfortunately, by the time they had the opposing captain had already ripped into their ship with his attack, leaving three huge scratches and crumpling the rudder.

The man who had built this ship, their lead mechanic, was a man who would protect this ship with his life. And he had done just that.

It was such a waste. No one else knew his ship like Krill. This had been the man's baby. Law had specifically sought him out as the only mechanic in the whole of the North Blue with the skill to bring Trafalgar Law's vision to life. He was a mechanic worthy of the future Pirate King, a man full of honor, dignity-

And now holes.

Not even Law could have saved him.

At least the caves had treasure. That combined with the treasure from the opposing pirates was enough to pay for repairs. Somewhere.

Fuck. They were in the middle of the Grand Line. He had a submarine. Not just any shipwright could work with a submarine. Submarines were a carefully guarded naval secret, a secret which Law had spent years developing, creating, and testing with Krill. Where was he supposed to find a mechanic worthy of touching his precious ship?

The heat of the sun did not calm his fury. It should have been raining. At least then it would wash away the blood. And guts. And brain matter.

This is not how he wanted his vacation to go.

"Captain."

Law turned to face one of the assistant mechanics, face blank. The man's face was streaked with grime and tears, his red rimmed eyes a clear indication of his grief.

"He… He left us something. Just… just in case."

The man was holding a box and a letter addressed to Law. Law took the package from the assistant's hands. "Thank you. Help Penguin with the fire." A fire to burn his mechanic's body. A funeral pyre. Law cursed himself again.

The assistant mechanic nodded stiffly before sniffing. He turned and left.

Law carefully opened the letter that was addressed to him.

Captain,

I've instructed Marlin to give this to you if anything ever happens to me. In the box, you'll find an eternal pose, a letter of introduction, and schematics for the entire ship. The pose will lead you to Covetel, a small island in the Grand Line. Unlike Water 7 that caters to ships, they cater to mechanical advancements. I myself studied there for a time when I was younger — if you're especially lucky, my ass of a master will be alive (the letter of introduction is for him). Either way, that island will be your best bet.

It's been a pleasure serving you, Captain. Take care of my girl.

Krill

Law folded the letter carefully, holding the box gingerly as the gift it was.

He truly was the best mechanic the future Pirate King could ever hope for.

—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—

It took a week of sailing to reach the port for Covetel. A week that fried Bepo's nerves. They had repaired the ship as best as they could, but the repairs would not hold through the rest of the Grand Line. He had breathed a sigh of relief when they finally docked on the island. His Captain had instructed Shachi, Bepo, Penguin and Marlin to split up and head to every warehouse, factory and workshop in the city to find a possible mechanic. They had taken copies of a couple of the ship's schematics in the case that they found anyone that might have the skill necessary to pull it off. Bepo had high hopes, seeing the mechanical marvels across the island: they had automobiles, motorized window displays and even a completely automatic planetarium that projected the stars on the walls.

Unfortunately, after three days, Bepo was starting to think that it would be impossible.

Every single master craftsman turned them away. A few had taken a look at the schematics, but his Captain had quickly pulled the pages out of their hands when they looked as confused as Bepo by the pages. Even Krill's former master was a dead end — literally. Bepo could tell that his Captain was as irritated as the mink was disheartened.

Bepo missed Krill. That man could make a working engine out of a bit of twine and a toothpick.

Bepo didn't want to return to the sub yet. He had finished scouring his section of the city, winding up on the very outskirts of town. After wandering among abandoned and empty warehouses for a while, Bepo had decided to take a rest and watch the waves of the sea. It was his favorite pastime, something that always calmed his heart. Some. It still ached. A week was not enough time for the grief to heal.

He was leaning against the wall of an abandoned warehouse as it poured, the waves angrily rolling beyond the dilapidated docks of this part of the island. Bepo had frowned when he first stumbled upon this area at the pure waste of it all — the entire city used it as a dump for everything from trash, to rotten food, to various mechanical pieces that were varying levels of smashed. Now, the pouring rain at least washed away the worst of the smell. Everything was washed to a muted grey tone.

"… A bear?"

Bepo jumped and squeaked loudly, turning to face the voice. There was a girl standing next to him, seeming as surprised that he had moved as he was that she had spoken. She held a comically large box in her arms — it looked like a steel woven basket that should have been far too heavy for such a tiny woman. It was hard to tell how old she was because she was so tiny. Her too-large overalls were black from the rain that soaked them, although Bepo couldn't tell what color they were supposed to be. She wore a black newsboy hat over shoulder-length, thick black hair. Her eyes were dark and olive shaped, her skin a few shades darker than his Captain's.

"… I'm sorry."

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT YOU TALK!" She almost dropped the basket, and the items inside it rattled over the din of the pelting rain.

"I'm sorry!"

She shook her head, clutching the basket tightly to her stomach. She fidgeted with the basket before speaking in a low voice, "No, it's fine. Are you… Um… lost?"

Bepo began to cry from his frustrations, bewildering the poor young woman. She sighed and scowled, shifting the basket in her arms again before gesturing at the bear with a tilt of her chin, a light blush painting her checks.

"Follow me this way. I can at least get you dry." Her voice was gruff and irritable as she spoke.

Bepo sniffed. "R-really?"

She huffed, before growling out, "Either follow me or not." She was clearly uncomfortable with the tears.

"Thank you! Ah! I'm sorry…"

"It's fine! And stop fucking apologizing!" She muttered darkly under her breath about talking bears causing her problems. She turned back as he started to follow her and pointed at him with her foot. "And don't even think about stealing any of my shit, you… bear, you."

If Bepo could pale, he would. "Y-yes, ma'am!"

She nodded gruffly, before leading him down into the junkyard towards a single, broken down warehouse on the very edge of the water itself. After a ten minute walk, they reached the building, and Bepo wanted to question it's structural integrity. Instead, he politely followed the young woman inside.

The inside was just as dilapidated as the outside was. The warehouse was one meant for boats, as there were some docks on the back half that were covered as well. The front half was full of all kinds of junk it seemed, from tools haphazardly tossed around, to cabinets clearly patched with random materials, to piles of junk that may or may not have been assembled into strange contraptions, Bepo wasn't sure. The roof itself seemed like it was barely held together, and buckets around the room caught all the rain water —

Hold on. Did that bucket just move?

The young woman dropped her large basket of things, taking a seat on the ground and grabbing a few tools. She began pulling out and fiddling with the junk items almost reflexively as she starred at Bepo. Bepo held back another apology as he shifted from foot to foot, smoothing the creases in his uniform. Her suspicious gaze was uncanny.

"So. Are you really a bear?"

"Uh… Yes?" Bepo supposed that it was true enough. He was certainly more bear than she was monkey.

"How did you learn to talk?"

Bepo scratched his head. "My mom?" he responded, unsure of what else he should say.

The glare seemed to deepen as she pointed a wrench accusingly at him. She shouted, "But how the fuck did she learn how to talk!"

Bepo shifted again. "I, uh… see, I'm a mink. We all talk."

For a moment, he thought that something flashed across her eyes, but she buried it deep. She pulled the wrench back, once again pulling apart the thing in her hand — was it a piece of engine? — as she dismissively said "Oh. Okay."

"T… that's it?"

"Yep. I don't got any food, but you can stay until it's done raining. You'll be dry here."

Bepo glanced at the roof, unconvinced. "I'm not so sure…"

She snorted. "Of course you aren't. You got a better fucking option?"

Bepo shrugged. Rain had never bothered him. On the contrary, he rarely got wet all the way to the skin anyway as his thick fur coat was great protection. Still, it was kind of this young woman to offer him something so —

She had jumped up, putting the piece she'd been working on inside of one what looked like a heap of junk —

Until it moved.

For a moment, all it did was jiggle a little until the tiny woman smacked it with her wrench. A great whirling noise sounded as the machine suddenly flared into life. It picked up a nearby full bucket full of water, passing it gently to another machine. Suddenly, Bepo could see that all the piles of junk were actual working mechanical marvels as the bucket was passed down a line, dumped into an enormous pot of water two stories tall, and brought back to it's initial spot. For a moment, Bepo thought his jaw was going to reach the ground — this had been work far beyond anything he'd ever seen before. The navigator cautiously approached the closest pile of junk, which now looked something like a spider's leg. He turned back to the young woman to ask her about it, only she was gone.

She appeared again, climbing a ladder to get to the top of the pot of water — which now had a roaring fire under it — and dipped something into the water. She scrambled back down expertly, approaching the bear with another glare.

For a moment, the two stared at each other, the mink in admiration and the woman in suspicion.

"Here. I don't got tea, but it's warm." There was the barest hint of a blush on her dark skin.

Bepo blinked, before he apologized while accepting the now steaming cup of water.

He frowned. The fire only just started. There was no way that the whole thing of water should be this warm yet.

She was off again, grabbing a welding mask from a pile of junk and grabbing hold of another arm creation as it proceeded to shoot out blue flames, and she welding together more junk pieces.

For a moment, Bepo glanced suspiciously at the cup in in his hand before he took a quick sip. The water was pure and clean, which he hadn't expected from the rain water coming through the broken roof. He took a seat on the ground, watching the young woman as she scampered from one end of the warehouse to the other doing seemingly unrelated tasks involving mechanical marvels. The rain continued outside, adding a quiet tinking sound as the drops fell on bits of metal.

She was the one. He was sure of it.

—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—/—

Law held still, waiting on the edge of this godforsaken dock on the edge of town. The mist in the air was thick enough that it he could barely see the shore, let alone this stupid town.

Finally, finally Bepo had found a mechanic. Law had faith in his companion, and had agreed to meet her at a place of her choosing. Bepo had been absurdly mysterious when talking about this mechanic he had found, which knowing Bepo could mean a couple of things. First, it could mean that Bepo was hiding something from his Captain. Knowing the honest nature of the bear it was unlikely. Second, it could mean that it was a trap, and Bepo had been forced to say those things to get Law alone. He highly doubted that one — they had several keywords and phrases planned for situations where one or more of them were in danger. Plus, his mink was hardly a pushover. The last option was that Bepo himself knew very little about this mechanic himself. Of all the possibilities, that was the most likely. Bepo was a great navigator and fighter, but give the bear a wrench and something was bound to break. Anyone who had even basic mechanical skills was greatly admired by the mink.

There, movement at the end of the dock. Law's eyes narrowed as he saw his navigator waving at him, a great big smile on his face.

There was no one else in sight.

Law sighed. The moment Bepo came in hearing range, Law called out to him. "So, this amazing mechanic of yours, where is she?"

Bepo blinked, and looked behind him. Law could hear a few hissed whispers before a foot stepped out slowly from behind Bepo.

Instinctively, Law clutched his nodachi tighter in his grip.

He hadn't sensed her.

She slowly stepped out from behind Bepo. Law was expecting her to act shy or coy based on the hesitation to appear in front of him. Instead, she glared at Law, stepping no closer than she had been. For a moment, they stared at each other, her gaze of suspicious anger, his of calculating coolness.

This? This was Bepo's mechanic? She looked like she weighed 100 pounds soaking wet. Law couldn't tell her age — she looked like she was a young adult, but she was so tiny that she might have been a kid for all he knew.

Bepo hadn't noticed the animosity between his Captain and the girl, and had finished the approach. He saluted his Captain for a moment as Law fought to think of an appropriate response. Another moment of judgement, and Law sighed. Bepo had good judgement, he was sure.

"Captain, can I have the schematics pages? She wants to see those the most."

For a moment, Law glanced back at the girl. She still stood a good ten yards away from himself, glaring with he same intensity. Curiously, he looked again, and really looked at her.

There. She was specifically eyeing the sword in his hand. He shifted it, watching a slight tremble appear in her knees.

Ah. She was afraid. Ready to bolt at any moment. Law grinned for the first time since seeing her. It seemed his reputation proceeded him. He reached into his hoodie pocket, pulling out the few pages of schematics, waving them tauntingly. Her attention, before so focused on his sword, was caught by the papers in his hand. He held them out to her, his lazy grin lapping up her obvious internal struggle. Approach the terrorizing pirate and see the schematics, or lose out on this chance to see something amazing.

She took a step forward, gaze meeting his again in suspicion and rage. It was a good look, he supposed. It really brought out the fire in her coal black eyes.

Slowly, she stepped forward, clearly ready to bolt at the first sign of danger. Law noted that it wasn't just him that she was focused on. She glanced around repeatedly, clearly expecting an ambush of some kind. He almost threw the schematics at her. Seriously, if he was going to kill her, he would have done so already. He began doubting Bepo's judgement again, even as he held perfectly still as to not scare off his only potential lead in days.

She reached out, and slowly pulled the schematics from his hand.

This was it. Either she was worth it or a waste of his precious time. If she was a waste, he might kill her out of sheer frustration.

She slowly stepped back a few paces — Law noticed that they were angled to put Bepo between her and him — before she finally started reading the schematics.

He waited for a moment as she glanced over the pages. His smile grew as he saw a change in her. Where before her eyes held suspicion, now they held a tiny spark of glee and amazement. It was tiny. Anyone else might still only see the seemingly permanent scowl on her face. Law supposed that was reflex — mechanical work of this kind was typically done by men, mean that she probably acted tougher than she was as a defense mechanism.

He gave her another moment before he shifted. Instantly the suspicion was back.

"Well? Can you fix her?"

She glanced back at the schematics. "What's the damage?"

Law slowly reached back into his hoodie pocket and pulled out the damage report from his other mechanics. He held it out to her, and she again stepped forward to grab them. She moved quicker than the last time, but Law doubted it was an increased trust in him.

It was interesting he supposed that she trusted Bepo so thoroughly. She probably hadn't seen his wanted poster.

She glanced over the reports, then back at the schematics, before she spoke again.

"What the fuck did you do?"

Law bristled. She dared to talk to him like that? "I did nothing, but I assure you the one responsible was properly punished."

She nodded, seemingly unperturbed by the suggestion in Law's statement. He frowned slightly.

"Can you do it?"

She glanced back up at him, and then back at the paper. More internal struggle behind her eyes as she thought. She glanced back up at Bepo, then back to the schematics.

"Yes. For 1 million. I can do it in a week."

Law almost choked. That price was outrageous — one million?

"I am giving you any and all materials you need, as well as manpower. My mechanics are good, just not good enough to complete the job. One million is extortion."

"And yet you don't have any other options, do you? You're a pirate aren't you? Then my price really shouldn't come as a surprise."

Law almost snatched the materials back out of her hand. He growled under his breath. "500,000 beri. No more."

"Done."

Law knew that he had just been played. He grit his teeth. She rolled up the schematics, ignoring Law and ordering Bepo. "Bring her to the same warehouse I brought you to, the one with the docks. I'll meet you there in a few hours."

She looked back at Law. "And I don't need your mechanics. Ya'll can go take a vacation."

With that, the deal struck, she ran off into the mist, disappearing as quickly as she had appeared.

For a moment, there was silence between Bepo and Law. Law broke it.

"That brat just played us, didn't she?"

Bepo shrugged. "You should have seen it Captain — the stuff that she does with junk is beyond anything that Krill could have ever have done."

Law glanced back at his navigator in shock, then pensively back at the mist. That was high praise indeed.

"It's still coming out of your wages."

Bepo dropped his head. "Sorry…"

Law pulled out his den den mushi. "Penguin, tell the others — we found a mechanic. We can celebrate tonight. Have those needed to drive the ship meet Bepo on the deck for a debrief."

There was a whoop of joy before Law hung up. With any luck, if this mechanic was half as good as Bepo claimed, he would have her join the crew and payment would be moot anyway.

He smirked as he began walking towards the town. Finally, this island was looking a little less gloomy.