Through hard work and with a name that carried power, Lu Dahn had put together a valiant team of fighters and quality Marines. However, as he stood on deck of the Enforcer this morning, only five others stood with him. Forde, Orson, Mica, Lawson, and Hyde. The rest, his Ensigns, and Captain were all taken from him to be assigned elsewhere. Though he had went by the books to recruit them for his cause, under the jurisdiction of the World Government, his cause wasn't seen as grand enough to require the forces he had amassed. After all, on paper, he was still on leave in Water 7. So while it made sense to him, it made his blood boil, because now the mission he had before him may be too much for the dog of the navy to chew.

He stood in front of his men with his head down and a hand to his temple, massaging the irritation out of cranium. As a Commodore, he had a choice to make. Risk the lives of his dear comrades and take what was his by force or understand the odds were heavily against him and take a safer route. "Sir, we've all talked amongst each other and while we know the danger the mission ahead of us imposes, we're all willing to die for your cause!" Lu Dahn looked up at Lawson as he spoke. He had feared that they had indeed come to this conclusion together and while part of him wanted to use the lives he had at his disposal, part of him knew it wasn't the right move. Should his whole unit be eradicated on his first mission as a Commodore, he'd lose favor and face in the navy.

He smiled at his petty officer how a God would to a man who knew no better about the world he claimed he was ready for. While he'd do all in his power to protect the fledgling, there are limits to how much meddling God can do in the life of a mortal. "I understand that . . . That is why you five are standing before me today. That is also why I have made my choice . . ."

Each of the petty officers swallowed hard in preparation for what the Commodore was about to say. However, before he could speak he had to turn his back to them to address a bout of internal turmoil that had been bothering him for some time. He walked forward to the railing of the ship and let his hands grab the railing as he looked out to the infinite horizon.

He had the lives of these men in his hands, but he couldn't trust them alone to not disgrace his Unit. He sighed and turned back to face his grunts, his gaze on each man implied he was above them in more ways than ranking in the Marines. "Per my orders, you are all to report to Marineford to Rear Admiral Rello. He's been made aware of this adjustment and has agreed to accept you all into his unit." "Sir! We-" "That's a direct order from a higher ranking officer! Don't forget your place. Gather your things and head to the Sea Train, you'll be meeting with the Rear Admiral's Lieutenant there." With that handled Lu Dahn retreated to his quarters to prepare for the mission he had ahead of him. When he reemerged he expected to be on the Enforcer by his lonesome. When he'd return, he'd bring with him riches that were tangible and intangible, however. Fool's Gold wasn't what he was interested in, it was the shame that'd befall Briggs and the honor that he'd gain from gathering it.

The first thing he'd grab when he was in his quarters was his officer jacket. It was a navy blue trench coat with multiple pockets in reasonable places over it. From there he reached for his pistol which was saddled in its holster. Equipping that to his hip, he went for his rifle next. The leather sling on it was drawn over one of his shoulders, so it'd hang comfortably against his back in a place he could easily grab it from. Walking over to his desk he went over his mission briefing he had pitched to Captain Uchis and Ensign Rainrex. Now that this was a solo mission, it was much more dangerous and difficult, but still he felt he had what it took to come out on top.

His goal wasn't to retrieve all ten of the bricks of Fool's Gold after all. All he needed was six out of ten, the majority and he could count it as a victory over Briggs. While closing his eyes, he sighed, then once again opened his eyes. All his stressed expelled from his body with that sigh, now it was time to buckle down and get to business. Having assigned Ensign Rainrex with some of the easier targets, he decided to go for his litter of criminals first. Grabbing their wanted papers off his desk, he held Buso Featherfoot's profile in one hand and Matziyah Fault's profile in the other. Eyeing both of the men, he took in their appearance and locked it into his mind. Stuffing their posters into his coat, he exited his quarters and saw the sun had descended, it was now night. "Time to work."

[Exit]