Task Information:

Captain Stelbourg walked down the hall at a quick pace, his normally friendly expression hardened, his eyes sharp. A couple of ensigns followed close behind him, trying to keep up with the large man's strides. "How is he?" he spoke, his voice level and flat. "Ph-Physically he's fine sir. The doctors gave him a clean bit of health. But he hasn't said a word since he arrived here sir. He's just been in his quarters the entire time. The man looks completely broken." Stelbourg gave a small grunt and a nod. He had been briefed on the situation. Anton had fought against the infamous pirate Melissa Devaroux and had been thoroughly defeated. Thankfully it seemed like the pirate decided to spare him, allowing to receive proper medical attention. But it seemed the wounds the pirate had inflicted on him were far from physical.

The marine captain stopped in front of a door. "I'll take it from here." he rumbled, the other two marines nodding and leaving him be. He stood there silently for a moment, before opening the door and taking a step inside. The room was dark. Anton hadn't even bothered to pull the curtains back. Through the dim light though, he could make out the form of Anton La'croix sitting on the bed, slouched over, his eyes looking down at the ground. Stelbourg stood directly in front of him. "I've been informed on what happened," the captain spoke, to no reply from Anton, "I can understand the pain of defeat Anton. We've all felt it at some point. But that doesn't mean it's the end."

"It doesn't matter..."

Stelbourg blinked, confused by his words. "What do you mean?" Anton didn't even look up, but he continued to speak. "I failed. I completely failed. I didn't even land a scratch on her. Everything I did was completely useless. How can I hope to protect people if I couldn't even stop one pirate!?" Anton's voice went from a flat whisper, to barely containing the misery the marine felt. Stelbourg had watched this young man since he was a chief petty officer. To see such a promising young man so broken was more than the captain could stand. Anger began to boil within him.

"Don't give me that crap!" Stelbourg barked, suddenly lashing out and siezing Anton by the throat, pulling him to his feet. "So you lost once, who hasn't? That doesn't undo everything you've done! If you're going to throw all that away and fall apart after just one loss, than maybe you are useless!"

He then released the commander, who managed to remain on his feet. "You will report to the courtyard in fifteen minutes, understood? And be sure to bring your sword with you." He didn't even wait to see Anton's response. The captain turned and strode from the room.

Needless to say, marines had begun to gather in the courtyard outside of the marine base. News had quickly spread about what was going to happen, and well, who wouldn't want to watch? On one end of the courtyard stood captain Stelbourg, brandishing a pair of iron knuckledusters. On the other hand stood Anton La'croix, slouched over and sword sitting weakly in his hands. The red haired marine wasn't even looking at his opponent, who was giving him a hardened glare.

"Alright Anton, here are your orders," Stelbourg spoke out, his booming voice reverberating around the area, "You are to fight me, and you are to beat me, understand?" Anton slowly looked up at him in confusion, "Wha...?" "Furthermore," Stelbourg boomed, "If you do not beat me, then by my authority as a Captain of the marines, you will be discharged from the marines. I will not have someone with such little backbone in this organization!"

The marines in the area gasped. Many of them had been around long enough to see Anton's rise, and had heard about his recent defeat. And now he was being threatened with having his entire career ended? Anton didn't seem to react at all from the news. This lack of reaction seemed to ignite Stelbourg's anger even further. "This fight starts now!" He suddenly shot forward like a rocket, a large fist crashing into Anton's midsection. The young man went flying back against a wall, his sword clattering uselessly to the ground. The marines winced as Anton slumped to the ground like a ragdoll, very slowly climbing back to his feet.

Stelbourg stood there for a moment, looking down at Anton's fallen weapon and then back at the marine half heartedly climbing to his feet. With a low growl, Stelbourg stormed up to him, seizing Anton by the throat and throwing him through the air. Anton bounced along the ground before sliding to a stop, not that far from where his weapon had fallen. "Pick it up," Stelbourg growled, "Pick up your weapon and fight me Anton La'croix!" After all the effort he had put into this young man's career, he was not about to let him walk away and ruin it. Anton was going to fight him, or Stelbourg was going to beat the hapless marine into a bloody pulp.

Anton slowly picked up his sword, rising to his feet. Stelbourg made no move to stop him. "Now then," Stelbourg spoke up, "Attack me. Come on now." Anton seemed to hesitate for a moment before running at the captain. He swung his sword, only for the larger man to easily sidestep the strike. A couple of seconds later and he swung again, completely lacking in conviction or skill. Stelbourg let out a growl of anger as he responded with a one-two punch, one aimed for the sternum, the second aimed for the face. Anton simply flew back and collapsed to the floor, not even trying to remain standing.

Stelbourg looked down at the fallen marine, shaking his head and turning his back. "What a waste."

As Anton laid on the ground, images began flashing through his head. There was his defeat at the hands of Melissa, there was his encounter with the marine Damocles, who treated him like he was a mere insect. He remembered his battle with the psychopath Bloody Mary, and his mission on Centauruea. Every last one of those individuals looked down on him, seeing him as some sort of weakling or easy prize. Hell, the reason the marines continued to send him into such dangerous missions was because, well, he looked nothing like a marine. Who would obviously suspect such a weak, and pitiful man?

Then he remembered his encounters with Naga D. Linnea and Concetta. Both women had shown faith in him, had believed that he could become stronger. Those very same words had inspired confidence in himself, had pushed him to train and to make himself stronger. Was he simply going to give up and let them down?

As Stelbourg began to walk away, he felt something suddenly rushing towards him. Before he could turn around, something slammed into the back of him, knocking the captain off of his feet. The marines watching the fight gasped. When Stelbourg finally got a look at what attacked him, he saw Anton standing there, full hybrid form and weapon in hand. The grasshopper zoan was just bringing his foot back after delivering the surprise kick. Gone was the misery and sadness. In his eyes Stelbourg could see sharpened determination.

The captain could only smile as he slowly climbed to his feet. "There you are," he spoke, unable to hide the happiness he felt. He slipped back into stance, staring down his opponent, "I was wondering when the marine was going to come back."

Anton shot forward like a bullet, sword in hand as he swung at Stelbourg. Unlike the last time, this attack was faster, more focused. The marine commander wasn't holding back this time. He was throwing everything he had at him. Stelbourg ducked and weaver, even at times forced to bash the blade aside with his knuckledusters, sending sparks flying. He attempted a few counter attacks of his own, managing to land some good strikes. Thankfully, Anton's exo-skeleton managed to soften the blows, and the young marine continued to press his superior, refusing to give him a chance to breath.

"Yes," Stelbourg spoke, his voice a rumble as he parried another blow, "This is what I like to see. Come at me Anton! Hit me with everything you've got! All your passion, all your fury, let it all out!" Bashing Anton's blade aside, he jumped back to give himself some space, but the red haired marine quickly closed in. Stelbourg moved for the attack, swinging fist after fist, this time trying to put pressure on Anton. The grasshopper tried to duck and weave as his superior had done, but the captain was proving to be much faster than him, resorting in him having to block rather than dodge. 

A well aimed strike knocked Anton's sword from his hand, another catching the young man in the stomach. Anton fell back, catching himself on his four hands and bringing his legs up. With one sharp movement, his long legs ground against eachother, letting out a sharp, piercing sound, a sudden force slamming into Stelbourg. Caught off guard, the captain stumbled back as Anton made a leap for his sword, grabbing it.

But not with his hands.

Stelbourg only managed to realize what was happening and move back just in time for the blade to swing at him, thankfully slicing at his coat but not at him.  He looked at his young protege, balancing on one foot, while his other held the sword. "Very interesting," Stelbourg said, "Can't say I've seen anyone sword fighting with their feet before." he then glance down at his coat, seeing the slash in it. "Of course you realize that you're paying to repair this." "Doesn't seem fair to me," Antn replied, "Considering you wanted this fight." The captain chuckled. "Fair enough. But let's save that for later shall we?" With one swift motion, he tore his coat from his body, throwing it into the air and revealing the massive, muscular form underneath.

Spoiler:

"After all, we're not finished yet!"

The two marines crashed head on, a sharp exchange of blows. While Stelbourg had the strength and the speed, Anton had the reach and endurance. Gripping his sword in his insecticide foot, Anton swing and thrust, the added reach allowing him some leeway against his larger opponent. However, it did make dodging a bit more difficult, due to having to balance on one foot. Stelbourg meanwhile was able to avoid and deflect the blows of the sword, attempting to get in close, only for the grasshopper zoan to jump back and put space between them.

However, Anton knew in his stomach that he couldn't keep this up forever. Not only was his opponent much more powerful than him, but he also had a tremendous lead in terms of stamina, due to the severe beating he had received before he had snapped out of his funk. His body was beginning to ache from the exertion. But what was he going to do? The captain was fast, very fast, and the only two blows he had managed to land had been due to sheer luck and surprise.

Anton moved in for another thrust, only for Stelbourg to shift to the side and lurch forward, suddenly wrapping his arm around the outstretched leg and grab hold. "Got you," Stelbourg rumbled, a confident twinkle in his eyes. Anton yanked on his leg, trying to pull away without success. Then, an idea occurred to the marine. Stelbourg may have just given him the opening his was looking for. "Not quite," Anton replied. Suddenly, his free leg shot up, slamming against the marine's sternum. But kicking him was not his intention. Hopper Saw!" Pushing with all his might, Anton managed to pull his leg free, the sharp barbs on the insect appendage slicing into Stelbourg like a saw. The captain yelled out in surprise as Anton drew back, but Pull off one of the captain's knuckledusters in the process, disarming one hand.

But Anton wasn't done yet. He had to make use of this opening, while the captain was surprised. Without a moment's pause, he lept back even further, landing against the wall of one of the nearby buildings. With all his might, he kicked off of the wall, shooting towards Stelbourg. He twisted his body mid air, so that his feet (and sword), were pointed at his target, before spinning in mid air, his body acting like a gigantic drill. [color]"Hopper Drill![/color]

The attack struck head on, a direct hit. Stelbourg seemed to stand his ground, trying to resist the force of the attack. However, there was only so much the captain could do, having had little opportunity to defend himself. With a loud cry, he was thrown back, slamming back against a wall and collapsing to the floor.

Anton came to a stop, his head a little dizzy from the attack. He would need to work on that a bit. The other marines were standing in silent awe, unable to believe their eyes. It only took a moment before Anton realized the situation. "Oh hell! Captain! Are you ok!?" he yelled out, switching back into his human form and running over to the downed form of the captain.

Then, very slowly, Captain Stelbourg began to rise.

Anton watched with a mixture of relief and horror as Stelbourg rose to his feet. The man was like a giant of vengeance, his massive form ready to deliver swift reprisal for Anton's efforts. But what shocked the young marine more was his chest. The area where Anton had struck him had turned completely black, looking like it had hardened to some degree. Was the captain a devil fruit user like himself? The blackness quickly faded as he stood to full height.

A low rumble emerged from the marine's chest. Anton was getting ready to avoid whatever horrific attack the captain was planning for him. However, instead of a bellow of fury like he had expected, the captain let out a booming laugh. "Excellent! Excellent my dear boy! Exactly what I was hoping to see!" He took a step forward, suddenly letting out a grunt as he fell to one knee, one hand resting on where Anton's attack had struck. Anton's concern for his superior returned. "Sir! Are you alright?" Stelbourg let out a small chuckle. [color=blue]"I'll be fine my boy, that attack just took a lot more out of me than I thought. If I hadn't used my haki, it would have been a lot worse."[color]

"Haki?" Anton asked. Stelbourg let out a pained grunt as he rose to his feet again. "Yes, Haki," Stelbourg explained, "Using the power of one's own spirit to sharpen their senses, strengthen their bodies, allow them to accomplish feats normal men could not." Anton thought he understood, and then a realization dawned on him. "I never had a chance to win, did I?" he murmured sadly. Stelbourg cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his head. "Had I been fighting at full strength. Probably not." he walked over and placed a large hand on his shoulder, "But really, victory was not the true goal here. I wanted to break you out of your little funk, and not only did you do so, but you've proven just how far you've come. You really have earned your rank Commander La'croix."

Anton slowly looked up at the Captain. "You mean, I'm still a marine?" Stelbourg laughed. "Boy, there was never any doubt!" The watching marines cheered out, and even Anton couldn't wipe the smile from his face. Stelbourg beamed before clearing his throat and turning to their audience. "Now then, if you've all enjoyed the show, you are dismissed! Let's get back to defending the innocent shall we?" All the marines saluted, including Anton. "Yes sir!"