As Chloe gripped helplessly as Vinnie the Eel's hands wrapped around her neck, she saw an odd tear fall from the strangely pretty gangster's eye.

"I'm sorry," he said, his deep voice strangely mournful. "I made a promise to a gurl once never to hurt a lady. I did say so long ago, but since then I've been in worlds o' hurt!"

"Great!" Chloe gasped as he slightly loosened his grip on her throat. "Then ack...let me go. I can fully vouch that I am a lady. But I can't guarentee I'm gonna grow up pretty. Planning on getting a lot of pirate scars ..and tattoos and ack...!"

Vinnie the Eel's glove tightened around her neck again. A weird barnacle covered man had arrived and overlooked the battle and Vinnie seemed to squeeze harder when he met his gaze. "But I also made my crew a promise I'd get us uncursed! And as da leader, dat's a big responsibility. My love of beautiful women is only outweighed by my loyalty to my crew!"

"I'm giving you an...irk...different option...ya big palooka!" Chloe screamed.

"Huh?"

"I'm gonna get to the bottom of this sea plague that's been spreading oceanwide! Join me. Together, we can stop this plague from spreading further and...urk..."

"Dats not possible," Vinnie answered and he looked towards the seas. "There is no cure...not even in death..."

Ramone held his hands nervously to his face. "Lady Annabell!" he screamed. "Somebody..." he cried. "Somebody do something!"

"Oh," a thick accented female voice called. "Did somebody call for somebody? Well, mis amores, I ain't just anybody."

Chloe's eyes shined and she forced a smile on her pale blue face. "Monica!"

"Monica Montero, great, great grand daughter of Queen Van!" the tanned swordswoman said and brandished her weapon as Captain Abacab stood beside her.

"I got the pancake mix, me hardies!" Captain Abacab said, holding up red boxes of Aunt Clamima flapjack mix.

"Those look vaguely familiar," the barnacle swordsman remarked, scratching a pink one off his chin. "Wait a minute!" he screamed. "Those are the people who attacked us in the market square, boss! The ones I've told you about!"

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But Vinnie the Eel was silent. He simply mimed words with his mouth.

"Boss!"

"Shut up, Barney," Vinne the Eel said. "There's a woman in my presence and she takes precedence over you non-women!"

"Hubba hubba!" he said, gazing directly at Monica. "I have not seen a woman dat fine since..." he grasped and clutched at his chest. "Koko."

"Koko..." he dropped Chloe on the ground and staggered almost hypnotized towards Monica. "I had sworn to my now poisoned heart, that I would protect you Koko! And oh love of loves, you've returned!"

"Koko?!" Monica said, raising her dark eyebrows. "Is she some lady of the night or something?! I thought that these Demollusks didn't feel anything!"

"Our captain," the barnacle man answered. "Is oddly sentimental still. I feel the darkness hasn't penetrated his heart deep enough yet."

Vinnie the Eel threw his arms open and ran towards Monica with love in his yellow eyes. "My delightful sea lily! I'll will never let dat dark slime reach my heart when I have you! Especially when we run away together."

"I ain't running with no icky Eel man," Monica said and she drew her blade. "Though I can run you through if you want."

Vinnie the Eel's mouth dropped open. "Then, you are not...Koko!"

"Did you not hear me, cabron!" Monica answered. "I'm Monica Montero, we flamboyant swordspeople love to introduce ourselves before battle!"

Vinnie the Eel placed his head in his hands. "Then I am sadly mistaken. My deepest apologies, dame."

"None taken," Monica smiled gallantly.

Vinnie lifted his hands and they shifted to the form of electric eels. "Prepare to die," he said with a devious smirk.

"Careful!" Chloe exclaimed. "'Those killa-eels are full of kila-watts!"

"With more electric than an electric chair!" Barnacle Barney smirked. "Expect your pretty little friend to be fried to a crisp!"

Monica leveled her sword directly at Vinnie the Eel. Without a moment's hesitation, he blasted an electric charge right at her head. "Ay dio mio!" she screamed cartwheeling away.

"I wasn't joking, lady!" Vinne the Eel cried. "Dats what happens when you mess with my fragile heart!"

"I've already told you, muchacho!" Monica said. "I'm much to focused on revenge for any petty love affairs. You had one with some other girl!"

Vinnie the Eel was silent and he simply waited for his eels to recharge.

"Attack him while he's charging!" Chloe shouted. "That eely mouth has a blind spot and that's it!"

"Got it!" Monica shouted and she ran as fast as she could at Vinnie.

He backflipped out of the way. "Too late, gorgeous," he smirked and fired his eel hand cannons again.

Everyone gasped as Monica dropped to the ground. Chloe couldn't make out...had her ally been hit? Was Monica dead?

When the static cleared, the young swordswoman lifted her head up with a wily smirk. "Too slow, idiot!" she smiled and she ran her sword right into Vinnie the Eel's tuxedo, penetrating his stomach.

"I cannot believe this..." he gasped. "Felled by the face of my truest love!"

"Get over it, hermano!" Monica teased. "I'm not her. You're finished!"

Vinnie the Eel's eyes darkened. "But you are merely a devil wearing her face...and that...charges me up like NUFFIN' ELSE!"

Vinnie's body began to shake as the crackle of static filled the air. Without any further indication, he roared and sent ten thousand watts through both of their bodies.