Chapter One: Dying Wind
This story which took place many years ago during the great pirate age, will be full of sadness and death. This story will haunt you, make you grip into the edge of your computer chair waiting for the next chapter to be released so you can know if your favorite pirate is alive or dead. That is the goal of this story. To give you a darker and more sinister look into the world of the Strawhat pirates, this is the story of the darkness in the light.
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The air was humid and the sky was cloudless. There was a light breeze, yet it was also strong enough to keep the large ship going. The ocean waters were calm, lightly brushing against the wood of the ship known around the world as the Thousand Sunny. The black jolly roger was slightly moving from the breeze. The design being of a straw hat on top of the normal skull and cross bones.
The ship was calm at the moment, all the crew members were inside the large kitchen built into the ship. The sun was starting to set as noon turned into dusk. The sky became darker and darker and dark, almost black clouds started to come in from the west as the water started to become more active, like it was trying to escape the oncoming storm.
One of the many doors of the golden ship flew open as two of the crew members quickly looked at the advancing clouds. One of them was female, she had bright orange hair barely going to her shoulders, she was wearing a short black top with a denim jacket around it. She wore short denim shorts as well to match her outfit, a metal pole broken down on her waist. Her eye scanned the clouds and then the skyline for any sign of land.
"Looks like we're going to have to take this storm on." the woman said to the man, who had a very long and pointy nose, he was wearing a tan t-shirt with brown overalls serving as the rest of his attire with large shoes on his feet. "It looks like its going to be a big one, we better get ready for it." the woman continued.
"Yeah, this one looks like a monster storm, look at the water, its becoming more violent and rough by the minute. Those clouds look like they're advancing quickly, we'll be within the storms grasp in roughly an hour. There is no way we could out-sail it, even with the cola helping us get out of here." the man said.
"Ussop, go make sure there really aren't any islands around here, if you see any sign of land at all we can get the cola ready and turn in that direction." the woman said before heading down a set of stairs and going through a door below the deck of the ship.
"Anything you for Miss Navigator." Ussop said with slight sarcasm in his voice as he turned to up a set of stairs. He climbed up a loose ladder that was starting to blow heavily in the wind. Ussop wasn't too sure if it was safe enough to climb up to the look out, but he knew he had to do it anyway. Nami would kill him if he didn't.
Ussop reached the top in a matter of seconds, he looked at the clouds with horror filling in his face as the clouds were moving closer and closer to their location. A strike of lightning hit the sea and he could see water shoot up high into the air before rejoining the ocean water again.
Large waves were starting to slam into the ship as the crew members all waited downstairs with Nami, waiting on Ussop to come back down and give the OK to use cola to get to a safer place on the large ocean. A huge wave slammed into the ship and Ussop almost fell from the lookout spot, he felt like throwing up, but fought the urge back down inside of him.
Ussop, still shivering from the impact of the wave, reached for his scope, he didn't directly look for it, keeping his eyes staring directly at the storm. Ussop found the scope and raised it, he started to scan the surrounding area for any sign of land. After a few minutes of dangerous searching Ussop decided to head back down.
There was a whip and flash before a bang, and Ussop looked on in horror as a strike of lightning struck right beside the ship, sending the ship to the right in a heavily forced fashion. Ussop prepared to go down the ladder, but his feet didn't catch onto anything. The ladder had been sent off its hinges and into the unforgiving sea.
Ussop lost his balance as rain started to downpour onto the ship, his hands barely holding onto the wood of the lookout post as he struggled to pull himself back up. There was another flash of warning lightning as Ussop finally pulled himself back into what seemed to be a safe place at the moment.
Ussop was crying in fear, he knew he was because it didn't roll down his cheeks like the rain did, Ussop was known for backing out and crying during fights but he always pulled through by bluffing, when fighting against mother nature Ussop knew there was now bluff. If he was to be pulled into the sea by this horrible storm that must be his destiny.
Ussop gulped as another warning flash of lightning streaked across the sky. Ussop looked directly up into the clouds to see a lightning bolt literally forming right above his head. Ussop wanted to let out a scream for help, but the crew had no idea what was really going on. Ussop prayed for a moment before he heard the loud bang of his captain bursting through the downstairs door.
"Ussop, where are you?" his captains voice called out over the loud thunder, the whipping wind, and the pounding of the rain. Ussop watched as his captain turned the corner on the regular decks of the ship, his straw hat wasn't on his head, revealing his black and scruffy hair. His blue sleeveless, jacket-like shirt was blowing in the wind as his rolled up jeans were sticking to his skin from the rain.
"Luffy! I'm up here! Up here!" Ussop yelled, but at the moment he decided to speak there was another loud crack of thunder and the forming strike of lightning Ussop had been looking at went directly for the lookout tower. Luffy didn't look up in time as the entire lookout tower caught fire, dismantled itself and flew up into the air in pieces.
"No! Ussop! No!" Luffy yelled, his arm flying to try and grab one of the larger pieces that Ussop could have been sitting in when the piece exploded. Luffy's arm didn't reach far enough as the pieces of the former lookout tower crashed into the water and the pieces were swallowed, by the sea.
Luffy didn't move, he didn't go to see if Ussop was alive because Luffy knew that Ussop couldn't survive a blow like that. Luffy just stood there as the end of the storm came into sight, revealing clear skies and calm ocean.
No more lightning struck the ship as the other crew members came out from the lower decks to see Luffy still standing in the same spot, they all gasped as they looked at the remains of the lookout tower, and the pair of goggles dangling from a long piece of wood sticking straight up. Ussop was gone.
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Ussop opened his eyes as the low waters brushed him deeper and deeper into the sand. Ussop felt like he had been broken into pieces as he struggled to sit up to see where he was. Ussop felt the wet sand slide through his fingers, his bloody fingers.
"I survived?" Ussop muttered to himself before looking out at the ocean. The Thousand Sunny wasn't in sight at all. Ussop had no idea where he was, he turned his head to see a large jungle in front of him with a sign that clearly read:
Welcome to Amazon Lily
