Revisionist Destiny: Creature of the Void
Aliens and portals. Reality warping and pirates. And a parallel universe to boot. The Straw Hats certainly have their work cut out from them when they meet a creature from another world, and from the future nonetheless. The Straw Hats must now embark on a dangerous journey to cross the boundaries of the universes themselves to watch for changes in a parallel version of their very own lives! But something is lurking in the dark. An evil predator that will feast on both worlds if the bridge between dimensions is not closed in time. Be very wary Straw Hats, lest you want to survive. Beware the Creature of the Void.
Chapter One: Parallel Genesis! Iddaq and Apologus Make Themselves Known!
It was a cold night on Dawn Island. The winds battered the rocks and trees with a vengeance, trying to assert its power. It finally broke through the treeline and entered the Grey Terminal. The scraps of rubbish were high and vast, and the smell of rot and disease lingered in the air. Even the wind could not clear the fumes left behind by the Goa Kingdom.
However, this was a normal day for the Grey Terminal. At least, that's what a certain farmer thought. Otis was a tall and well-built man with black hair that reached down to his shoulders. His hair was kept together in a ponytail, and the bangs of his hair were contained neatly in his hat. Upon closer inspection, you could see a beard starting to form on the man's face, as he could not find time to shave due to tending to the crops all day; despite his wife's protests. Otis was wearing a red shirt which had the sleeves ripped up to the shoulders. Above that he wore a blue set of overalls, which was marked with dirt on the knees. The man also wore wellies, which were muddy and went up just below the knees which were marked with dirt.
Otis poked his pitchfork into some more rotting food, and placed it in his large bag which rested next to him on the floor. Tying the bag off at the top, Otis's nose scrunched up with displeasure. The smell was horrible but he had to collect fertiliser for the crops so they would grow more. Otis heaved the bag onto his shoulder, and began to walk out of the Grey Terminal.
Looking around, Otis saw all different kinds of people. Pirates, criminals, the diseased, the decrepit and the dying. They all found a home in the filth of the nobles. He shook his head and could not help but feel sorry for them. However, this feeling was quelled by the need to get back to his farm; the place he called home.
Otis finally stepped out of the hellhole, and turned around to stare at the Grey Terminal once more. He sighed with resignation, knowing nothing could ever get rid of the hell of Dawn Island. Not for the first time in his life, Otis was grateful for what he has, and how lucky he was. Spinning on the heels of his wellies, he walked away from rubbish heap, hoping it was the last time he would have to do so. However, he knew he would be back next week, perhaps even tomorrow. Otis frowned, realising that perhaps he was trapped to the Grey Terminal as those who resided inside.
He trudged his way up the dirt path, scraping his wellies against the rocks and tree roots. Adjusting the bag that was now starting to dig into his shoulder, Otis pressed on faster, wanting to get home to his family.
It wasn't long until he reached a large field full of crops. The farm was full of all kinds of produce. Carrots, leeks, cabbages, potatoes, tomatoes and much more. If you wanted produce, Otis was your man. This brought a great sense of pride to Otis and his family, which helped them get through the day bit-by-bit.
Stepping over the low fence, Otis started to quicken his pace, as his house was in his sight. Otis liked his plot of land. It was secluded and unknown, but still had a sense of being part of the community. He thought it was perfect and smiled to himself, happy that his life was perfect for him.
Stepping onto the patio of his house, Otis smiled and looked up at the two-story building. It was in good condition and Otis liked to keep it that way. He and his wife built it together, so it was a symbol of their happiness together.
Opening the door with gusto, Otis smelt food being cooked. Smiling with glee and showing his slightly yellowed but intact teeth, Otis was ready to step into his humble abode.
"OTIS!" a voice screamed from the kitchen, making the man nearly fall over, "No muddy boots in the house!"
Otis calmed his racing heart and sighed, taking off his wellies. It was the same story each time, the same routine. And Otis was glad for that, as it brought a sense of security into his mind. His wife peaked her head out of the kitchen door and smiled at him, ushering the man in after she saw his boots were off.
Placing the bag outside the door, Otis stepped in and walked towards his wife. However, before the man could make it to his wife, two bundles of joy crashed into his chest. This nearly made Otis fall over for the second time that day, but he steadied himself on his right foot and hugged the two perpetrators.
"Daddy!" they both screamed in joy, making Otis hug them tighter.
"Hey kids! Have you been good for Mum while I was gone?" Otis said, placing the two on the ground with ease, despite their wriggling in his arms.
Otis's children were twins, both at the age of nine. Max was a brown-haired boy with vibrant green eyes, taking after his mother in the latter. The boy had many freckles adorning his face, showing how much the boy loved being outside. Amber was a black-haired girl and had blue eyes, after Otis himself. The girl was much more pale then her brother, because she liked reading and drawing inside more than Max, who couldn't stand the inside one bit.
Max started to bounce on the balls of his feet, something which Otis noticed he did a lot when he has had an exciting day. Amber, on the other hand, bit her lower lip with her teeth; showing the girl was getting slightly impatient.
"Mum let me make dinner!" Max said, the words coming out in a bit of a mess but still understandable to the boy's father.
"Wow! I bet you were really good!" Otis exclaimed, trying to brighten his son's spirits.
"Yeah! Mummy said I was the best in the world!" Max shouted with glee, glad to receive his dad's praise.
"I thought you hated the inside Otis?" Amber asked, confused as to why her younger brother, by only two minutes Max would always remind her, would enjoy an inside activity as opposed to one in the lush outside world.
"Nope! I love cooking! I want to be a chef when I'm older!" Max said, inspired by his day of cooking.
Otis laughed and picked his daughter up, making the girl giggle in happiness, noticing his wife placing the food on the table. He began to walk towards the food, not before washing both his daughter's hands and his, which he especially needed to do after his collection at the Grey Terminal.
"And how was your day Amber?" Otis asked while they were washing their hands, helping scrub soap between the girl's fingers, tiny in comparison to his own.
"Good!" Amber said with a smile, frowning slightly when she got soap stuck in her fingernails, "I drew a picture of the farm Daddy. It's on the fridge!"
Otis turned to the fridge and saw a very well-drawn picture of his farm, with all the different crops drawn to remarkable detail. He smiled and ruffled his daughter's hair, before laying a kiss on her head, making her try to wipe it off in protest.
"Let's eat!" Otis said, and the two ran to the dinner table, creaking the wooden floors as they did so.
Otis sat down at the table, opposite to his wife. Wendy was a short woman, with green eyes like grass and pale skin like snow. She had vibrant brown hair which fell to the bottom of her neck. She had a small nose and thin eyebrows. She wore a dotted red dress which went to her knees, and sandals which covered her toes and heels. She stared at Otis lovingly, and Otis kissed her on her lips, reaching over the table and making his children cringe in disgust.
They all began to dig in, and Otis ate a lot. Closing his eyes in pleasure due to the taste of the food, he sunk back into his chair slightly, making the wooden floors creak once more.
"Wow Max! This is really good!" Otis said, looking at his son in excitement and making his wife chuckle with her eyes closed.
Max's eyes widened and he blushed, before quickly turning to his food to hide his happiness. Otis looked at his wife knowingly, and raised an eyebrow as if to ask if she made most of it. She shook her head at her husband, and Otis's eyes widened in shock. He smiled proudly at both his children, but was especially proud of Max at this moment.
"How was the Grey Terminal?" Wendy asked, making the other two heads turn to their mother.
"Same as ever," Otis noted with a dull look in his eyes, not wanting to think back to the Grey Terminal, "Quite frankly, nowhere can get as bad as that place."
As soon as he finished his sentence, an extremely loud crash emerged from outside, which made the whole house shake in disagreement. Pots crashed to the ground, paintings shook on the walls and windows shattered all at once.
"WHAT IN ODA'S NAME WAS THAT?" Otis shouted, jumping out of his chair, knocking it over in the process, and running towards the door while his wife checked on the kids.
Otis shoulder barged the door open and saw smoke coming from the left side of the house in the field, about 100 metres away. Wendy and the kids ran outside, only to see Otis running towards the area where the noise had originated from. They could easily follow him as he had his oil lantern with him and the light got reflected off his pitchfork, making a beacon for the rest of the family to follow. By the time they all caught up to the man, he was already standing in front of a crater in their field.
The crater was about 7 metres deep, with a large rock at the bottom of it. From what Otis could deduce, it seems to have fallen from space, as there was nowhere else it could have fallen from. He ushered his family back and started to slide down the crater and towards the rock.
"Be careful Otis," Wendy said as the children bit their lips in worry, while she followed suit and bit her lip as well; it seemingly being a trait that ran in the family.
"I'll be fine," Otis said, reassuring the three massively but not enough to stop Wendy from eyeing her husband nervously.
Upon closer inspection, the rock seemed to have a mildly large hole in it. It was large enough to fit about two people, Otis reckoned. He pocked one side of the rock and it barely moved an inch. Otis pointed his lantern towards the opening, but this revealed nothing to him. He sighed in relief and turned to his family.
"See? Everything's fine…" Otis began to say but was cut off by a large, black clawed hand which shot out of the entrance and smacked Otis to the side of the crater, making the man scream out in pain as his shin smashed against a particularly sharp rock, drawing blood from his leg.
A screeching emerged from the rock and another hand came out of the darkness, however, this was unnoticed by the preoccupied family. Their focus was all on the beloved father of their loving family.
"OTIS" "DAD" the voices screamed, with tears in their eyes. Amber began to run towards her father, her little legs going as fast as they could, wanting to make sure her daddy was safe. You see, while Max was a mummy's boy, Amber was a daddy's girl through-and-through. So seeing her beloved dad and hero get injured sent her mind into panic mode, as she just wanted to make sure he was safe. Amber had to make sure her lovely daddy was not in pain.
"AMBER! NO!" Wendy screamed in pure fear, knowing it was too dangerous for the little girl. Nearly running after her, Wendy refrained when she saw her son shaking in fear on the spot.
The two black claws gripped the bottom of the rock tightly, before a body launched itself towards Amber, making Wendy's eyes widen. There was nothing she could do, as her mind started to seise in pure horror.
"NO!" she screamed, only to see her daughter's head fly from her shoulders, before her eyes widened in fear and panic.
The creature had black skin, and no visible eyes. It had long arms and digitigrade leg, like that of a hyena. It held itself in a great ape-like stance, which allowed it to stand on its hind legs for a moment of time. It stood at 2.5 metres tall and seemed to be quite lightweight for a creature of that size. It was hairless and had an elongated head which held an extremely intelligent brain. It also had extremely sharp teeth and seemed to be drooling from the mouth, due to it not having lips.
Otis screamed in agony at the sight of his dead daughter, and tried to stab his pitchfork in the creature's hind leg. It jumped out of the way and turned to Otis, who had stood up with tears streaming down his face.
"GET OUT OF HERE! RUN!" he screamed to his wife, who picked up Max and ran towards the forest, who was screaming in fear and grief due to what happened to his twin sister.
Otis yelled in anger and charged towards the beast, ready to get his revenge. The beast took off to the right, and chased after the rest of his family. Otis tried to stop the creature in desperation, and dropped his lantern in the process, breaking the glass and setting the field on fire. But that was not even close to his first priority.
The beast lunged towards Wendy and Max, the former of whom had turned around just in time to see the beast lunge at her son. She kicked it in the face with the side of her foot, sending the creature flying to the left slightly. Placing her son on her right side, ready to protect the boy with her life. However, this did not stop it from getting back up immediately after. It lunged towards Wendy and she was ready to strike again, but the creature dug its right claw into the ground and spun towards Max. The boy screamed in fear, and looked at his mother for help, but the woman was not fast enough. The beast stabbed its claw into Max's neck, making the boy choke on his own blood. Before Wendy could even react, the beast shot off its left leg and dug its hand into her stomach. It ripped out Wendy's spine and threw it towards Otis like a javelin, who was running towards the creature. Otis jumped out of the way and lunged at the predator, but the creature jumped up, and grabbed Otis' head, forcing the man to look at his dead family. The creature balanced itself on Otis's head, not even wobbling slightly.
"NO!" the man screamed in agony, but the beast ripped out the man's throat and left him there to die.
Noticing the flames were getting close, the predator started to sprint off into the distance and into the woods. Those people were not good enough for it, as they didn't have enough of an impact in this world. Suddenly, the creature's senses tingled and it turned its head towards a village consisting of windmills and one very important boy. It screeched in excitement, making all the animals around it run away in terror. It pushed off one tree and started to run towards the village, clocking in at about 157 kilometres per hour, and this was a bad day for the creature.
Bounding across the fields, the creature jumped over a fence and latched itself onto a windmill. It climbed to the centre of the sails and began to spin, but it did not seem to care. Using extremely sensitive sonar, the creature looked around the village, turning its head left and right very quickly. It began to sniff out where the powerful change was to be made, but it could not get a proper fix. With its claws twitching in anticipation, the creature climbed down the tower and crouched low in the grass, trying not to be seen. It snuck stealthily through the slightly high grass, before stopping when it sensed two humans walking on the path nearby.
"Wasn't Otis meant to join us down at Makino's Bar later?" asked one man, causing the other to shrug.
"He's probably just spending time with his family. Give the guy a break. You know how much he adores them," the other remarked, as the two headed further down the path.
The creature felt its blood rushing as the need to kill began to overtake its system, but it screeched silently to itself and pressed on; into an alleyway of the village. Walking towards the wall of the building on its left, it pressed itself into the shadows and got ready to pounce if need be.
It dug its claws into the wood, making a slight scratching noise resonate in the alley. The creature pressed its feet into the wood as well, finally hoisting itself up off the ground silently. Darting its head from left to right, the creature made a sound reminiscent to that of a bird, but with a screeching element to it. The creature began to dig its claws and feet upwards, ascending higher up the building.
Hearing a sudden crash and the sound of metal wobbling against the ground, the creature dug its claws hard into the wood, before flipping its feet above its head, so it was looking towards the ground. During this process, the creatures skin turned a shade of brown, camouflaging itself against the wall.
The predator looked around and noticed a strange feline creature slinking its way towards where the beast had come from. The creature sniffed once and then gave out a sound that other members of its species would recognise as a huff. The creature began to climb the wall once more, before flipping over onto the roof of the building.
The view would stun any human to look at it. The starlight glistened off the water and the windmills spun slowly, which would give even an outsider a sense of homeliness. A normal person would stop and take a moment to gaze at the scenery, but this was no human. The predator began to sprint on all fours before leaping to the next building over, which was about 30 metres away. It skidded against the stone roof and caused some birds to fly away in fear. Knowing this was the first house of many however, the creature began to jump from roof to roof, making its way to a very special building. Just looking at the building made the creature excited, it made its blood pump harder and caused its heart to race.
The building gave off so much potential energy, the creature clearly deduced, shown by its muscles and claws growing bigger and sharper. Potential energy was the energy from possible futures; to advanced beings and time-sensitive creatures, it is known that potential energy flows between every point in the multiverse. And looking at the building in question, the creature noticed that it leaked potential energy unlike anything it had ever seen. The building was the host and key to so many future events of this world and others in the far future, so much so that the one or two hairs on the creatures back bristled on instinct. However, the feeling of the building would not compare to the individual inside.
Jumping towards the balcony above the sign that said 'Party's Bar', the creature landed gracefully and as quiet as a leaf hitting the soil. Quivering with anticipation, the creature walked towards the wall and phased through it, looking transparent as it did so. Entering the room on the left of the balcony, the creature phased back to existence. And then it was blinded.
Now Monkey D. Luffy was a prideful little boy. He never cried and he never gave up. Despite living in a shack that his gramps gave him, and despite being bullied by all the other children, he never gave in. However, some nights were too much to handle for the Son of Dragon. Having broken open his wall because he ran at it with his head, as all boys do, he had let in a vicious draft into his already freezing house. Not being able to tolerate the cold much longer, Makino had allowed him to stay at the Party's Bar until the wall was fixed. Which led the boy to the left room, on that very night.
The creature took a step back, feeling the energy the boy was giving off in waves. It wanted to scream and shout but it could not allow itself to give itself away. There was so much potential energy. It felt as if its skin was on fire and its brain was freezing. The creature had only heard of beings with that much potential energy, such as the Raeshuehx; the Iddaq; and the all-powerful Chronarchs. But this was a human. A human who had so much potential energy that the creature knew that the chances of finding a human like this were one in 300 sextillion.
Adjusting to the pain, the creature started to make its way towards the boy. If the creature could smile, it would be doing so at this moment. The creature was so close to the boy that it had started to absorb the potential energy which radiated off the boy in waves. The creature had grown by 3 feet and now loomed over Luffy. It scraped its claw against the bed and its saliva dripped down from its mouth, leaking through the floor boards.
It was so close now, so close to reaching untold heights of both physical and temporal power. Red lightning started to form around its claws, sparking in all directions, lashing out at the world. Luffy began to stir, his senses screaming at him to wake up, but it was too late.
The creature brought its claw down towards the boys chest and ripped it open, the lightning seeping into the wound, burning the child's insides.
Luffy awoke with a scream that practically woke up the whole village, as he clutched his sparking red chest wound that ran from his right shoulder to the centre of his chest. Luffy rolled to the floor, as the creature screamed in pain and victory. Footsteps could be heard rushing towards the room, but the creature didn't care. It had achieved completion. Its eyes turned blue and dark blue electricity started to spark from both creature and child's body.
Makino burst into the room, having heard Luffy's scream of pure agony. However, what she saw made her gasp in horror. A massive black creature stood over Luffy, who was on the floor clutching a chest wound. She narrowly dodged a bolt of electricity which shot out from Luffy's body. Makino felt a deep anger as she stared at the creature which caused Luffy's screams; Luffy's blood to seep through the floor; and most of all, Luffy's tears. Ignoring the fact that it felt as if Whitebeard was shaking the whole world apart and the very sky had ruptured in two, Makino clenched her fist in pure hatred.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" the woman screamed, but could do nothing as the creature shot towards her, its claw going for her neck.
But before anything could play out horribly, the creature stopped and began to look around in confusion. Then the creature vanished into thin air with a painful shriek, and Luffy's chest wound disappeared as did his blood. The world started to shake even more violently, before a shockwave shot out from the Party's Bar and transversed the world at near light speed, knocking everyone unconscious.
Blue, sizzling energy shot up from Luffy's chest and into the sky, and the shaking stopped.
A large bang resonated everywhere, and then the universe exploded in a flash of bright, white light.
Between the West and North Blue, and Fishman Island and the other side of Reverse Mountain; was the New World. Compared to its counterpart, Paradise, this sea was an ugly demon which flipped the rules of seafaring on its head. Living in the New World was no easy chore, however, for a number of factors. Ranging from the Four Emperors, who were extremely powerful pirates who claimed territories all over; to the weather which could throw even the most skilled navigators off their feet. With the Navy's shadow looming over the second half of the Grand Line with Fleet Admiral Akainu leading it, things looked bleak for all pirates in the New World. Extremely recently, the New World had been facing some turbulence. Former Admiral Zephyr had planned on detonating all three Endpoints, which could have destroyed the New World entirely. The three Endpoints are three islands in the New World which seal a huge amount of underground magma. Should all three islands be destroyed, the seal would be undone, and magma would not discriminate between pirates, citizens or marines alike.
However, the plan to detonate the Endpoints was thwarted by a very famous pirate, who goes by a very familiar name; Monkey D. Luffy. With a bounty of 400,000,000 berris, the pirate had already begun to make a name for himself in the New World. He had liberated Fishman Island and had defeated Zephyr. And now he was sailing the New World with his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates.
Oddly enough, the seas were calm in that particular area of the New World where the Thousand Sunny sailed. The Thousand Sunny was a brig sloop, consisting of two masts and a smiling lion figurehead. Towards the stern of the ship, on the balcony of the library, stood Nami. Having her arms crossed and resting on the balcony, Nami looked towards her Log Pose and confirmed they were headed in the right direction. She turned her head to look back at the ocean. She began to lose herself in her thoughts, thinking about the fight against Zephyr.
She had been de-aged into a child, because she left her guard down against Ain. Nami clenched her fists, annoyed that she had allowed the woman to get past her. Nami felt powerless, and she had become a liability during the battle against the Neo-Marines, Zephyr's forces.
"You shouldn't feel so bad you know," a familiar voice said from behind her, "You tried your best!"
Nami turned around and stared at Luffy, who was grinning at her. Her eyes, however, could only focus on the scar on his chest. It was a reminder of the crew's failure at helping their captain at Marineford, and now it was a painful reminder for Nami's own weakness against Ain. Luffy's grin disappeared when he saw her eyes scanning his chest.
"That's easy for you to say. You managed to beat Zephyr and save the day," Nami said, watching as Luffy leant his back against the railing, with his forearms resting against the wooden barrier.
"Nami, what happened with that weird lady wasn't your fault. You did what you could, and that's all I can ask for as your captain," Luffy said, his grin beginning to reappear.
"But we spent two years training to get to the New World, and despite the wait, I still got beaten. Nothing has changed," Nami said with a sigh, her mood dropping.
Luffy continued to grin at her, before shaking his head in rebuttal.
"Nami, sometimes we can't do everything. Sometimes one mistake slips through, and then you think it outshines your accomplishments. Sometimes one little error gets out of hand and escalates into a problem, but that doesn't mean you're to blame," Luffy said, his hand shifting to the scar on his chest, "Nami, believe me when I tell you that what happened before could have happened to any of us."
Nami stared at him in shock, and turned her whole body to face him. She stared at the man in front of her, feeling slightly like an idiot that Luffy had to be the one to give her philisophical advice. In the words of a great man however; it was a surprise to be sure, but a welcome one.
"Since when did you get so mature?" asked Nami, feeling the weight lift off her shoulders.
"Mature? Nami, these are just obvious facts. Are you stupid or something?" Luffy said with a laugh, not realising what he had just said.
"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR THAT FROM YOU!" Nami said, punching him into the floor.
Luffy screamed and clutched the growing bump on his head in pain with both of his hands.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR!" Luffy screamed at his navigator with shark teeth, flinching when Nami raised her fist again.
Before Nami could continue with the beating, she felt a familiar feeling against her skin, giving her goose bumps. The air pressure was dropping, but she had never felt it happen so rapidly. However, Nami felt something different this time. Something was off about the approaching weather and Nami couldn't place her finger on it. However, before she could think of it more, the boat started to rock with the waves. Nami grabbed Luffy by his vest and ran to the main deck of the Sunny, with Luffy's head continually banging against the floor as she did so.
"NAMI! WHY ARE YOU-" Luffy began to say, before his face smacked into the support for a railing.
Nami rushed out on deck to see Usopp and Chopper chasing each other around, presumably playing tag. She saw Zoro sleeping against the tree with a swing attached, with a bottle of alcohol next to his hip, of which brand Nami could not deduce. Finally, she saw Robin reading a book on a lawn chair, too engrossed to notice the storm coming ahead.
Nami climbed up to the Crows Nest and used the microphone, which relayed around the whole ship.
"Oi, everyone on deck! A vicious storm is approaching!" Nami said, before rushing through the hatch and climbing down to the deck. While she did so, she could hear footsteps all around the ship, which were all getting louder and louder as more of the crew reached the deck. By the time Nami's feet hit the deck, all the crew were present, some of them staring at the clouds approaching.
"Ummm guys," Usopp said, pointing a shaking finger towards the storm, "Why are those clouds red?"
"WHAT THE HELL?" Chopper screamed, tears pouring out of his eyes.
"Shishishi! It's like they're soaked with blood!" Luffy said with his signature laugh.
Usopp and Chopper both turned to Luffy with terrified looks on their faces, before smacking his face into the deck.
"WHY ARE YOU SUDDENLY ACTING LIKE ROBIN?" they screamed, before looking at the woman in question, in slight fear of what she had to say.
"Perhaps they're an omen of death," Robin suggested, covering her mouth with her hand as she laughed when the boys suspicions were confirmed.
Usopp and Chopper felt her words pierce their hearts and they fell to the ground with tears in their eyes. They started to roll around, muttering words like 'scary storm' and 'blood rain', fearing what would happen to them.
"STOP IT YOU TWO!" Nami screamed, making the two shoot up in fear, "Right, we need to act quick. Sanji and Zoro, I need you to furl the mainsail!"
"Yes Nami-swan!" Sanji said, his legs spinning around like noodles.
"Stupid Dartbrow," Zoro said, already climbing to the top of the mast.
Sanji, not only having been insulted, but also was in second place as he had not started to climb yet, felt flames build up around him.
'I won't let that moron outclass me in front of the ladies!' Sanji thought, before shooting up to the top of the mast with Sky Walk.
Sanji looked down at Zoro, who had nearly finished climbing all the way up. Sanji grinned in satisfaction, as nothing pleased him more than beating Zoro, except for the love of a lady of course.
"Take that Mosshead!" Sanji said victoriously, sticking his lower lip out at the swordsman, mocking the Vice-Captain.
Zoro jumped up and drew his swords, before starting one of his infamous fights with Sanji. The two danced around each other, childishly flicking each other while using their boots and swords.
"WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?" Nami screamed, her face almost demonic and her face red in rage.
The two immediately stopped, and they both started to furl the sail up, not wanting to annoy the navigator.
"Stupid Cook…" "Shitty Swordsman..."
As the two were raising the sail, Nami turned towards the rest of the crew.
"Alright guys, those idiots aside, I want everyone on high alert. Franky, I want you down by the cola engine, ready to patch any holes when they appear!" Nami explained to the shipwright, who gave her a thumbs-up before running through a door towards the engine room.
"Perfect! Usopp, I want you to batten down the hatches as fast as possible, and make sure they're tight. I don't want any water getting inside the Sunny!"
"You got it Nami!" Usopp said, running into the ship to fetch the canvas covers. While he did so, Zoro and Sanji had jumped down onto the deck, making a squelching sound as their feet hit the wet grass.
"Luffy and Chopper, I need you to shorten the jib drastically. Seriously, make sure you do it right or we're screwed."
Luffy grinned and wrapped his left arm around Chopper, before slingshotting his way to the jib, with Chopper screaming the whole way.
'That idiot…' Nami, Sanji and Zoro thought with a sweat drop.
"Robin, using your powers, I need you to set up the safety lines, running from fore to aft! When you're done, help Usopp with the hatches!" Nami said, looking towards the only other female crew member.
Robin nodded and crossed her arms, sprouting arms which began dragging safety lines across the ship. The crew began to work at an almost frightening efficiency, having done this routine what felt to them like a thousand times.
"Zoro and Sanji, I want you to tie down all the loose items, inside and outside." Nami said, before remembering something else, "AND I SWEAR TO ODA IF YOU ARGUE, I'LL MAROON YOU BOTH!"
The two rivals, slightly not telling if she was being serious, began to work faster than they had ever done. However, obviously for slightly different reasons due to their opinion on Nami.
"Finally, I need you to sort any cargo into valuables and non-valuables which we can throw off the boat if the situation gets desperate," Nami said, looking towards Brook.
"It shall be done! I shall work myself to the bone… but I already am bones! YOHOHOHOHO!" the skeleton said with a laugh, before shooting off to the inside of the ship.
Looking down at her log pose, Nami noticed all three needles were pointed towards the centre of the storm, however, they were all shaking violently.
'This is bad!' Nami thought, remembering what the Ministers on Fishman Island said about how the Log Pose predicts danger levels with how much the needles wobble.
Entering further into the storm, the Sunny ploughed on, heading directly to the opposite end of the red clouds, and hopefully to the crew's salvation as well.
Despite the crew's efforts however, the Sunny began to tip due to the waves getting higher and higher. Because of this, the crew began to use the safety ropes that Robin had laid down earlier. Luffy and Chopper finally got back from the jib, with Luffy keeping Chopper on his shoulders to keep the boy in place so he wouldn't fall in. All of a sudden, red lightning shot out from the clouds and struck the deck, close to the grassy lawn, making most of the Straw Hats jump out of their skins.
"WHAT THE HELL? IS LIGHTNING SUPPOSED TO BE RED?!" Usopp screamed incredulously, thinking back to Robin's 'omen of death' idea, making him scream in fear.
Another lightning bolt struck one of the Sunny's trees, setting it on fire. The fire was a bright red and no matter how much rain hit it, the fire would not go out. Franky burst from the cabin door, his eyes in a panic.
"Big Sis! The Sunny won't last much longer! We have to use a Coup de- WHAT THE HELL?" Franky screamed, seeing the fire begin to spread around the Sunny.
"We can't!" Nami said, turning her head towards Franky, "Not only would we not escape the storm, but there's no telling what would happen if the Sunny became airborne in this weather!"
Franky looked at the fires beginning to spread to more of the deck of the Sunny, making the man shout in protest.
"IT'S A BETTER ALTERNATIVE TO WHAT WE HAVE NOW! YOU HAVE TO PULL THE LEVER!" Franky screamed, while looking around at the other Straw Hats, some of whom were nearly falling off the ship, and he made sure to keep an eye on the Devil Fruit users.
Nami looked at the flaming Sunny, and then ahead in the distance. Thinking she could see an island in the distance, and with the evidence from her Log Pose needles, Nami took a deep breath and rested her hand on the lever for the propulsion cannon at the stern. Nami screamed in frustration and pulled the lever.
"FINE! COUP DE BURST!" she screamed, as the Sunny shot up into the air, nearly making quiet a few of the Straw Hats fall over due to the unexpected acceleration.
The ship soured through the clouds, dodging lightning strikes as it did so. Brook ran up to the roof of the Crows Nest, and spotted something with his empty eye sockets.
"I SEE AN ISLAND AHEAD! AND IT SEEMS TO BE IN THE EYE OF THE STORM!" Brook said, gesturing to that area with his bony finger, "Oh wait! I DON'T HAVE ANY EYES TO SEE WITH! YOHOHOHOHOHOHO, SKULL JOKE!"
Nami looked out the bow and saw what the musician was talking about, ignoring his skull joke as per usual. However, there was a problem. One that could mean the end of their adventure.
"We won't make it with the Coup de Burst, the distance is too great! And the Sunny can't afford to hit the water or we'll sink!" Nami screamed, alerting the whole crew of the issue, making them all look at Nami nervously.
Luffy grinned to himself and began to run to the figurehead. Putting his thumb in his mouth, Luffy jumped off the Sunny's figurehead and into the sky. There was a moments silence for the whole crew before they saw a gigantic hand appear in front of the Sunny.
"YOU IDIOT!" they all screamed in fear and anger, even Robin seemed a bit on edge from her captain's actions. This was quite possibly one of the most stupid moves he had ever made, and that was a long list of events.
"Third Gear!"
Luffy's gigantic hand gripped around the keel of the Sunny, with his fingers digging in over the railings and onto the burning deck. Hissing in pain, Luffy ignored the fires and tensed his arm.
"Now Gum Gum Giant Trebuchet!" the man screamed, slinging the Sunny backwards and then over his head, before launching it towards the island like a trebuchet would.
The Sunny flew towards the island at extremely high speeds and Luffy's arm shrunk, while the boy began to fall towards the ocean.
"Luffy!" most the Straw Hats yelled in fear for their captain, while Sanji lit a cigarette and began running to the edge of the Sunny.
"I got him!" Sanji said, using Sky Walk to shoot towards the rubberman.
Luffy kept falling towards the ocean, faster and faster, continually out of the man's reach. Sanji bit into his cigarette a bit, before using all his strength to catch Luffy with a strong Sky Walk. The captain was about to hit the water when Sanji caught him in the nick of time, before shooting after the Sunny.
"Thanks Sanji," Luffy said with a chuckle, making the man sigh in annoyance.
"Honestly, even after two years you still pull this kind of shit," Sanji said, taking a drag from his cigarette. However, if one knew the man well, you could hear the relief in his voice.
The Sunny hit the water right next to the island, with the Adam Wood absorbing most of the shock. All the Straw Hats breathed a sigh of relief, glad they had gotten out of the storm. However, the flames licking some of the crew members' skin made it evident they were not out of danger yet.
"Franky, take the helm and steer the Sunny to the west side of the island. I saw a cove there which will shield the Sunny from the winds. Usopp, keep an eye out for Sanji and Luffy. Zoro, find a way to put out the fire. The rest of you can relax for now, preferably in the kitchen so we know where to find you guys if we need you," Nami ordered, and the crew shot into action once more.
Usopp rushed into the Crows Nest and began to monitor the seas and skies for their cook and captain. Franky began to steer the ship west, but noticed that the Sunny did not have enough speed to get there in a substantial amount of time.
'Damn it!' the man thought, looking down at the dock system, 'I'll have to use Channel Zero. But then we might run out of Cola! Damn it what should I do? If I use all the cola, we'll be stuck in the storm with no way out! Please, help me Tom!'
All of a sudden, water splashed all over the Sunny from its side due to a massive explosion in the ocean, which launched her forward as well, allowing the ship to retain a higher speed. Franky believed it to be a sign for a second, before seeing Zoro jump back on the ship and sheathing Shusui, and Franky almost felt disappointed. However, the cyborg was mostly glad that the Sunny was no longer on fire.
Seconds earlier, Zoro began to run to the edge of the ship, drawing Shusui with extreme fluidity.
"Don't tell me what to do, you damn Seawitch!" Zoro growled, making the woman in question turn angrily towards him, with a look that promised the 120,000,000 berris man a good beating later.
Zoro jumped off the railing and rolled forwards in the air, so his body faced the ocean. With an almost bored facial expression, Zoro gripped the handle of Shusui tighter.
"One Sword Style: 360 Caliber Phoenix!" Zoro muttered, firing a compressed air slash at the water with incredible speed.
The power of the attack made water shoot off into the air, both pushing and covering the Sunny. Zoro landed back on the railing with a smirk, before slowly sheathing his sword.
"Not even the New World's oceans can stop m-" Zoro began, but was cut off when a fist sent him flying to the side and into the charred grass.
Zoro looked up while clutching his head in pain, to see Nami standing over him; her face red with anger.
"Who did you call a Seawitch?" Nami growled, making Zoro's eyebrow twitch in annoyance.
"I just saved the Sunny! What did you do to help?" Zoro shouted back, "You're so annoying honestly!"
Nami's eyes turned red before she started to pound Zoro into the ground, making the man scream in agony. Before the beating could continue, they heard Usopp's voice ring out through the ship.
"I see Sanji! And he has Luffy with him!" Usopp said in relief, as the tension the Straw Hats didn't even know they had disappeared.
Sanji landed on the deck without making a sound, and dropped Luffy carelessly onto the deck. Sanji looked around the deck, seeing the charred surfaces that scarred the Sunny. Looking down at his lit cigarette, Sanji blushed slightly and threw it into the ocean. Bursting out of the kitchen, Chopper jumped into Luffy's arms and started to cry about how worried he was. Usopp, having had to climb down the Crows Nest, dived at the man a bit after Chopper did. Chopper started to babble to Luffy about how cool he was and how he saved them, while Usopp rubbed under his nose with his index finger and proclaimed he would have done the same thing.
Sanji shook his head in amusement, before walking to the kitchen to make lunch for the whole crew. He thought about making something warm, after having noticed that some of the crew were shaking due to the cold, specifically Nami and Usopp. Bowing to Robin as she walked past, Sanji just snuck through the door before it slammed shut.
Zoro looked down at his captain in relief with his swelled face and one eye, before feeling a dark presence walk towards his captain. His one eye widening in pity and horror, Zoro walked to the uncharred tree and decided to take a nap, with some of the crew looking at him with a sweat drop.
After Chopper and Usopp had finally let Luffy go, giving the man some space, Luffy stood up and gripped the top of his hat. Seeing his crew all accounted for, the man relaxed and gave off his signature grin when realising something.
"I barely got wet!" Luffy said gleefully, knowing how annoying it was to get his vest wet after some incidents on Rusukiana, "Isn't that a reli-"
Before he could finish, Nami's fist collided with his face and sent the boy flying into the ocean. Nami sighed, having nearly gotten all the anger out of her system. The keyword there being 'nearly'.
"YOU IDIOT! WHAT IF SANJI HADN'T GOTTEN YOU IN TIME! YOU CAN'T SWIM YOU DUMBASS!" Nami screamed, getting it all out of her system.
Nami looked confused as Zoro had suddenly woken up from his nap, having sensed his captain fall into the water. The man quickly took off his swords and shoes, before running to the same railing he had just been on before.
"He can't swim now either, you damn woman!" Zoro said, diving off the edge and going after Luffy, making Nami blush in embarrassment due to her hypocrisy.
Seconds later, Zoro climbed up onto the deck with a spluttering Luffy on his shoulders. All the crew had dispersed quickly after Zoro had jumped in, either gathering their bearings after the storm or they were undoing the storm procedures on the Sunny. Robin was on the deck, already tending to the burnt grass by using her sprouted hands to rip the burnt blades out, which could perhaps find a use later on. Zoro laid Luffy against the railing to allow his captain to catch his breath, before sitting next to the man as well.
There was a silence between them, apart from Luffy's occasional spluttering to allow his lungs to clear. Zoro closed his eye and used his Haki to scope out the island. Observation was never his strong suit, Zoro noted, that was more Sanji's area. But even he could…
"You can feel it can't you," Luffy said, having finally recovered from the ocean's curse on his body, "It's itching your senses."
Zoro looked at Luffy with an understanding eye, before looking back towards the island they had arrived at.
It was a fairly large island, about 100 km in diameter. The island looked almost circular, but had lots of jagged edges and a notable cove on the west. A deep forest lied on the north side of the island, before thinning out and stopping just before the south coast. On the west side of the island was a large cove, which was surrounded by a large mountain which circled the circumference of the west side of the island. This mountain had a large hole in the centre of it, which opened out where the mountain stopped, which was the northern forest. Towards the southern side of the island, the mountain begins to shallow, before dissipating into the water. The east side of this island was full of strange arches, which ranged from a metre high to a kilometre high. It was an extremely strange phenomenon, however, not strange enough to grasp the swordsman's interest.
"It feels wrong," Zoro noted, his eye focusing on the mountain, "The island has so much life energy but also feels completely absent of it. This island is a haki oxymoron. But the absence seems to be focused inside the mountain."
"What do stupid oxen have anything to do with this?" Luffy said, tilting his head with a pout.
Zoro lightly bonked him on the head with a chuckle, before standing up and heading back to the tree to nap.
"Zoro," Luffy's voice called from behind him, making the man stop and turn his head.
The two men stared each other down, but Zoro knew exactly what the captain was telling him. Zoro was glad, so glad it would have reduced someone like Usopp to tears. Zoro was glad his bond with Luffy was still strong enough that he could tell what the man was saying without words. Just by looking into his captain's eyes, he could tell Luffy was expressing gratitude for saving him. And Zoro felt extreme gratitude as well, now at ease about spending two years apart from his best friend. And in a way, he knew Luffy didn't say a word because he knew Zoro. And he knew Zoro needed reassurance. Luffy's face split into a grin, his eyes full of knowing and joy.
"Just doing my job, Captain," Zoro said warmly, finally about to sit down and have a restful sleep.
However, a voice called out from the intercom. A voice Zoro didn't want to hear at all.
"Ladies and shitheads, this is your cook speaking. I would like to inform you that food is served!" Sanji said classily, making Zoro grit his teeth in annoyance.
Shoving his hands in his pockets, Zoro stalked to the kitchen, muttering about a stupid 'lovecook' along the way.
"Shishishishi!" Luffy laughed in joy, glad to see things going back to normal. Luffy let his gaze fall on the island once more, before the man ran off to the kitchen, tantalised by the smell of meat.
Dinner was nearly over for the whole crew, except for Luffy who was finishing off everyone's leftovers. The whole crew sat in silence, the boat completely still due to the calmness of the water in the cove.
"So, let's recap. We're stuck on this island, with little to no cola. We were struck by red lightning of all things, setting fire to the Sunny. Are we all on the same page?" Franky asked, making the whole crew nod, even Luffy who was still stuffing his face.
"I say we all explore the island," Sanji said, cleaning the dishes in the kitchen.
"WHAT?" some of the crew shouted, mainly Franky and the weakling trio.
"Bro, we can't leave the Sunny on its own!" Franky protested, "She's in bad condition already! What would happen if we were attacked?"
Sanji held up his hand for silence, momentarily stopping his cleaning. Franky immediately stopped talking, allowing Sanji to speak in respect for the cook's notable skill in making plans.
"Now Zoro, Luffy and I haven't sensed anyone on this island at all. Not to mention that no one is exactly going to be following us through that storm. So, we hedge our bets and explore the island, so we can scope out how much trouble we are in," Sanji explained, allowing the crew to digest what he had just said.
"I agree completely," an unfamiliar voice said, making all the Straw Hats turn towards the origin of the voice in shock, which was from behind them.
It was a humanoid figure stood tall at seven feet at least. However, it was reptilian in nature. With green skin and patches of yellow located at the eyes, mouth and presumably other parts of its body, which was clothed by a blue robe reaching down to the floor. Its teeth reflected the light ever so slightly, and it had two horns, which were black in colour, growing out the back of its head and down to its lower back. The creature's tongue occasionally slipped through the gaps between its teeth, which was split at the tip like that of a snake. The creatures tail had spikes running across it, which scratched the floor with the sway of the creature's said appendage. Its hands had five digits each, with sharp claws that looked like they could cut steel with ease.
"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?" all the Straw Hats shouted except for Luffy, who carried on eating in peace.
All the Straw Hats took out their respective weapons and prepared for a fight, with Zoro and Sanji staring at the creature wide eyed.
'This thing is the one of the causes for that feeling! Evidently full of life, but feels like a void in our Haki! Almost unrecognisable to our sixth sense, and yet our brains seem to be able to accept it so easily,' they both thought, on extra edge due to the feeling of their Haki screaming at them that something was wrong.
The creature raised its hands and laughed nervously, with a carefree smile on its face.
"No need for the hostilities! I'm only here to help," the creature explained, smiling as most of the Straw Hats lowered their guard.
"Alright, but we're asking the questions! One, who the hell are you? Two, what the hell are you? Three, how will you help us? And four, why are you here?" Usopp said, pointing an accusing finger at the lizard man.
"These questions shall be answered in due time. But first, how about a change of scenery?" the creature asked, holding up its right hand with a mysterious glint in its eyes.
"Change of scenery? What do you mean by-" Robin began, but before she could finish, the creature clicked his fingers and the Straw Hats found themselves in a cave, illuminated by a bright light on the ceiling.
"That's better," the creature said, sitting down on a chair which appeared out of nowhere.
"HOW THE HELL DID YOU DO THAT? AND HOW THE HELL DID WE GET HERE?" most of the Straw Hats shouted, including Luffy who had annoyingly not been able to finish his meal.
The creature, as if sensing the man's thoughts, clicked his fingers again and the food appeared on the cave floor in front of Luffy, making Luffy grin in happiness.
"You know what Lizard guy, you're not so bad," Luffy said, eating once more; not even comprehending the existence of the lizard man. However, it was evident to Zoro that Luffy would ask the thing to join their crew after he finished eating.
"Now to answer your questions. My name is unpronounceable to any of the species on this planet, so just call me Iddaq," the creature began, only to be cut off by Robin.
"Excuse me, Iddaq. But you said 'this planet', so does that mean you are extra-terrestrial in origin?" Robin asked, fascination brimming in her eyes at the prospect of new knowledge.
"Well deduced Nico Robin," Iddaq said, "I am from a species called the Iddaq, from a couple of galaxy's over from yours. And before you ask, Iddaq is not my actual name. It is for your benefit not mine."
Usopp lowered his hand in disappointment, as the creature had sensed his question before he asked it.
"How do you keep making things vanish Lizardwizard?" Franky asked, already finding a nickname for the Iddaq.
"Yeah, I'd like to know how you made all this food appear!" Luffy asked, with stars in his eyes, "It's so cool! You're a mystery lizard! Tell me how you do it? Is it a devil fruit? Laser beams? Mirage thingies? LASER BEAMS?"
Nami bonked Luffy on the head, making the man whine like a child. He wanted to know how the mystery guy made food. Thinking about it, Luffy realised that he would be a perfect addition for the kitchen.
"LET HIM ANSWER YOUR QUESTION!" Nami shouted, making Luffy pout but be quiet nonetheless.
"It's a long story but I shall try to make it as short as possible. Firstly, there's something you must know about the Iddaq. We are hosts of infinite amounts of Apologus energy. Now, before you ask, Apologus energy is what is called 'The Energy of Order' by some. What this means is that Apologus energy is essentially 'narrative' energy. The energy is produced when the universe and events follow a set narrative. For example, you guys coming here was a narrative of your journey so to speak, so Apologus energy was produced when you all followed a set plan or narrative to go about your life. However, being a host of Apologus energy, I can manipulate anything as long as it follows a set narrative. What I mean by this is that if anything follows a set structure or plan, whether it be water going down the stream or stars being born and destroyed, I can manipulate reality within any events that follow a reasonable 'narrative'. Don't you Straw Hats think it's odd that none of you fell in the ocean when you were sailing through the storm? That's because I was able to warp reality itself to mean you couldn't have lost your footing, because you guys were following what the universe perceives as a 'narrative'. Are you still following me?" the Iddaq explained, looking towards the pirates.
"So, if anything does anything that could be presented as a plan or story, you can manipulate reality within that area or timeframe?" Chopper suggested, looking slightly confused as he wanted to grasp the concept
"Yes! Exactly! And I can manipulate a non-narrative timeline, as long as I can 'convince' or manipulate people or events so they end up following a set plan or structure. So, I struggle with people who act on whims or those who never have a plan and dive in head first! Tell me, have all of you been feeling at peace of mind since you arrived in this cave?" Iddaq asked, with a grin on his face as if he knew the answer.
The Straw Hats all nodded in confirmation, wondering themselves why they had not been panicking more about the situation.
"That is because I am a being of the 'narrative'. Therefore, it is easy for your minds to process my very presence, as I am presented to your minds in an ordered and structured way. Now you're probably wondering why Apologus energy came from?" Iddaq asked with a grin.
"Not really," Sanji said, however, Iddaq conveniently ignored him.
"Far into the future, a Chronarch began to tamper with a source of raw Ionic power. Ionic power is used by some creatures to create stories into reality, as they can conjure up literal worlds around them. However, the Chronarch tried to harness the Ionic energy and ended up creating something else. Apologus energy was formed, being the twin of Ionic power. However, a hole in time was made by the Chronarch due to the power surge and the new energy leaked through, making Apologus energy a fundamental energy from the beginning of the universe," Iddaq continued to explain, making the Straw Hats even more intrigued.
"So, what else can you do?" Robin asked, wanting to know more about Iddaq.
"I am a temporal being. Tell me, when you read a story, how does an author present the past and future?" Iddaq asked, watching as Robin's eyebrows raised in confusion.
"By flashbacks and previews," Robin answered, wondering what that had to do with the Iddaq being a 'time' being.
"Precisely. Being in charge of the narrative of reality, I can change the perceptions of individuals to allow them to see through time with ease, via the process of flashbacking and previews, to allow anyone to look through any point of time. As long as I do so to give the individuals something that will provide insight or prediction to something in their personal narrative, I can show them anything. This means I can't show people stuff willy nilly, as it wouldn't make sense. A good way to explain it is that I have to live my life as if I'm in a story book, and if I do something or try to manipulate something that wouldn't make any sense 'narrative' or 'plot' wise in the story, my power doesn't work," the Iddaq explained, however, he noticed the disbelieving looks on the Straw Hats faces, "Fine, so be it."
The Iddaq raised his left hand to the non-eating Straw Hats, and all of them felt as if they had disconnected from the world itself.
The ground shook and the Straw Hats found themselves in a very familiar place on a very familiar courthouse. It was the courthouse of Enies Lobby, and standing in front of them was their captain and Blueno from CP9. However, they knew it was not their captain from the present, as the look in the boy's eyes was too innocent. Robin phased her hand through the floor and gasped. So, they could witness events but they were not able to interact with the environment. All the Straw Hats then realised that Iddaq had told the truth.
"Dear god, he was right," Brook said, looking at their younger captain with what could be perceived as a shocked expression.
"It's no good! I can't stay like this, it won't work!" Younger Luffy began, making the Straw Hats turn their heads towards him, "When I lost to Aokiji, I realised something."
The Straw Hats were brought into a silent flashback of Luffy's fist being frozen by Aokiji, making them all slightly dazed. So, flashbacks within a vision were possible as well?
"I said to myself, you keep running into guys that are stronger and stronger, unless you can get stronger to," Younger Luffy continued, "You can't protect your friends. And I want to; they're not all strong like me. But either way, they're my friends and I want to keep them. So, I have to get stronger than anyone else, otherwise there is a chance I could lose them."
The Straw Hats stared at Luffy in awe. They could already guess before but now they knew. Gear Second was not so Luffy could feel like he was the strongest; it was all for them. Zoro looked at his captain in pride, however, he frowned when he remembered that despite his promise, they still got separated after that. Zoro felt guilt, because he allowed his captain to feel the guilt of weakness after making a promise which said the opposite. Zoro clenched his fists in anger, as he knew he would never allow his captain to feel like that again.
"Then what are you going to do?" Blueno asked, breaking Zoro from his thoughts.
"I thought of a new way to fight with all my might!" Luffy said, shifting into a very familiar horse stance that gave the Straw Hats a feeling of security and worry at the same time.
"So this is it," Sanji said with a neutral facial expression, knowing the effect the technique had on Luffy's body before he did two years of training.
"The first proper Gear Second," Nami noted in awe, amazed to see such a legendary moment before her. Seeing Luffy use it was one thing, but to see where Luffy's power rocketed forward was astonishing.
"So that I won't lose anyone!"
One leg pump. As his body started to turn a tinge of pink and he let out steam from all over his body.
"So I won't let anyone slip away from me!"
'What's happening to him?' Blueno's voice rang out in the air, making the Straw Hats jump in shock, 'What's going on inside his body?'
"DID WE JUST HEAR HIS THOUGHTS?" Usopp screamed in confusion, making the others look incredulously at Blueno as well.
One more leg pump.
"That did it. You won't be able to stop me now!" Luffy's voice rang out, pulling the Straw Hats back to the scene in front of them.
"What?" Blueno asked, confused.
"All my strength and techniques, just went up by one step! SECOND GEAR!"
And with that, the Straw Hats were forced back into reality.
All the Straw Hats were looking wide-eyed at a certain lizard man. Usopp fell onto his backside and started to gasp for air, while Chopper hid the wrong way behind Zoro's leg.
"So, it was true then," Sanji said, taking a drag from his cigarette.
"Now that we have got that sorted, lets get down to business!" the Iddaq said, rubbing his hands together, "From now on, everything I show you must be from a narrative sense, or else I'll lose my power!"
All of a sudden, the snot bubble coming out of Luffy's nose popped and the man woke up with a yawn.
"So, what must we know about the Iddaq, Lizardwizard?" Luffy asked in a daze, having adopted Franky's nickname for Iddaq.
"THAT WAS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE STORY! YOU WERE ASLEEP THIS WHOLE TIME?" the Straw Hats shouted incredulously, slapping the air in front of them.
"It's of no consequence, now I have bad news to break. You, Monkey D. Luffy, are extremely important to the future. You are so important in fact, that your narrative is the reason most of the people in the future of this galaxy are still alive. So, imagine my surprise when I found out that something has completely altered your whole DAMN TIMELINE! Now, usually this would be a job for the Chronarchs, but most of them are dead I'm afraid. Save one. And that man is far too busy, or so he likes to think. Damn bastard. Anyway, that leaves the job to the Iddaq. So, they sent me, but it was such a top-secret mission that you won't be hearing from the rest of my species I'm afraid. Sorry if I sound a bit frustrated, but 2 tredecillion lives are at stake, which is too many I'm afraid," the Iddaq said, slightly rushed due to his worry for the situation.
"So what do I have to do?" Luffy asked, while the whole crew was still letting all the information sink in.
"Essentially, what has happened is that a Future Beast has altered your timeline. Usually, the universe would just compensate but you are fixed. You are too important. So, a new universe had to have been created. A parallel universe if you will. Luckily for us, the creature did something wrong and a hole in the fabric of reality was made. And that hole is right there," Iddaq said, gesturing his thumb to the left.
"IT WAS THERE THE WHOLE TIME!" the crew shouted, looking at the gap in the air. That's all it was, a black gap. Absent of life and time and matter. A gateway if you will.
"That right there, ladies and gentlemen, is a temporal-spaciomatic schism," Iddaq explained, before noticing the confused look on the crew's face, "Call it a hole. And that right there is the Void. A place of no up and down, no time and no space. Just nothing. And on the other side of it is our new universe. Another bit of bad news I'm afraid is that the creature is trapped in the void, trying to get out."
"That's fine then. We just leave the creature there and move on. Thank god!" Usopp said, relieved that the crew won't be in danger.
"Until it regains its full strength in a year and slaughters everyone in both universes. At least on this planet," Iddaq said bluntly, making Usopp's heart leap out his chest.
"Whatever! I'll just beat this thing up!" Luffy said, running towards the hole only to be teleported back by Iddaq.
"If you go in there, you'll be lost forever!" Iddaq said quite loudly, startling the whole crew, "Now for your task. Both universes are held together by threads of temporal energy, due to both timelines being connected at points where things are the same. Therefore, I need you to identify where things are the same and where things are different in this new world, so I can cut these metaphorical threads and leave the creature trapped in the void."
"So they're mystery strings," Luffy said, bumping his fist against his hand as if he had just figured it out.
Everyone sweatdropped, but no one did so harder than Iddaq.
"Yes, if you like…" Iddaq said with a sigh, but with a small smile on his face.
"Why can't you go in?" Nami asked, curious. Iddaq was so powerful, so why couldn't he risk his life?
"Because the creature will sense me immediately and then know where the exit is when it gains full strength, buying us even less time," Iddaq said sagely, making the Straw Hats nod in understanding, except Nami.
"But why won't it sense us?" Nami asked, trying to exploit a loophole to guarantee that they wouldn't have to go in.
"Because it's already sensing you, in the parallel universe. Thus, it won't be able to tell the difference and would pay you no heed!" Iddaq said, seemingly revering in his personal genius, "Now I must warn you! My power will make you see everything in a narrative sense. So, you will hear thoughts related to the people you observe and you will see flashbacks given to you to retain the narrative structure. Imagine yourself as a reader of a book, except your watching someone's life but it is still in the structure of the book. This is all so I can prevent you from getting lost in the Void so I can retain my power.!"
"So, just to be clear. You want us to go across a dimension of nothingness, with a dangerous creature out to kill us, to watch our lives in a different way?" Usopp asked with a tremble in his voice.
"Ye-"
"ARE YOU CRAZY?!" Usopp screamed, cutting Iddaq off.
However, Iddaq just gestured his brown lizard eyes to Luffy, who seemed to be trembling in excitement. Iddaq gave Usopp a knowing look, which Usopp was able to read immediately. Usopp fell to the ground in a depression, muttering things like 'scary void' and 'stupid lizard'.
"That settles it then!" Iddaq said, clapping his hands together, "Don't worry about the passage of time. You won't age and it'll only be a few weeks on my side."
The whole crew felt relieved, as if Iddaq knew their biggest concern.
"Walk over to the hole please," Iddaq said, as the whole crew began to walk to the 'hole' in space, "Monkey D. Luffy! If I don't see you again, I want you to know it was an honour to meet you!"
There was silence between the two, and it was as if the whole world was absent except for those two.
"I'll see you again Iddaq! Count on it!" Luffy said, giving Iddaq his signature grin, "Call it my promise!"
Tears came to Iddaq's eyes but he shook them away with a smile. This crew really was as inspiring as history makes them out to be.
"Good luck, STRAW HAT PIRATES!" Iddaq shouted, using all of his power to send the crew flying through the void and into the other universe. The cave was left silent and only Iddaq remained with the hole as company.
"Good luck with your Ultimate Adventure, Pirate King," Iddaq said with a smile, glad to have made friends which such a legendary historical figure.
Blackness. Blackness. And suddenly an explosion of colour breached all of the Straw Hats eyes when they came to. Groggily, they sat up and looked around. Everything was blurry but they could make out three figures in what appeared to be the cabin of a ship.
"Will Iddaq be okay?" Chopper asked with a sniffle, in concern for the lizard.
"He's strong, don't worry Chopper," Zoro said in reassurance, patting the reindeer's head.
Everyone's vision had fully recovered now, and they looked at the three figures in the room. Specifically, two of them. Two boys. They appeared to be bickering with each other, both boys looking ready to bite the others head off. The whole crew's eyes widened when they saw the two boys in more clarity, with the captain of the ship slowly crawling towards one of the two boys.
The first one, who stood three inches shorter than the second, wore simple blue jean shorts and a white short sleeved shirt along with brown sandals.
The second wore khaki shorts and a dark black mid sleeve shirt, as well as black sandals.
Luffy tried to grab the second one desperately, digging into his own hand with his fingernails while his other hand kept phasing through the boy.
Nami brought her hand up to her mouth in horror, tears building in her eyes when she saw Luffy's reaction. Franky began sobbing, his eyes like waterfalls. Robin gasped, a very unlikely sound from the woman. Zoro felt like hurting Iddaq, horrified at what Luffy had to go through. Sanji lit a cigarette, trying to steel his shaking nerves. Brook gazed on solemnly, knowing what it feels like to be surrounded by ghosts. Usopp eyes widened in horror, as he fell to his knees in shock. And Chopper jumped onto Zoro's back and cried, not wanting to look any longer.
Luffy became more desperate, his cries becoming more and more apparent when his hand phased through more and more.
"Please, please! Let me have this!" Luffy started to shout, but the universe would not oblige him.
Luffy looked towards the ground and started to sob harder, biting his lower lip until it bled. He didn't know what to expect when Iddaq said visions, as he didn't see the flashback with the crew when Iddaq showed them. Of all the things he had expected to see, this was not one of them. Two years of trauma began to resurface, until he felt the hand of his navigator on his back. In his heart, Luffy knew he was her anchor and deep down, she was the one he always confided in when it wasn't matters that have anything to do with the crew. When it was about his problems, which made him seem weak, she was who he confided in. It was how their friendship is. That's how it had always been. That's why she was the only one who was allowed to wear the hat.
Luffy gained enough courage to look up at the boy's face once more, nearly reaching a hand out to touch him but spared himself the pain by stopping himself.
"Ace?" Luffy asked in a weak voice, his eyes finally clear of tears.
Standing in front of Luffy, was a young Ace and a younger version of himself. Luffy smiled to himself and fell on his backside, sitting next to Nami and bringing his knees up to his chest.
"I miss you… Ace"
BOOM! A new story! Quite the shocker I know. Now, you readers must be informed of one detail. This is a challenge fic, requested by ultimatedbzmaniac. The request was for Oda's Straw Hats to react to his own fanfiction's Straw Hats and their journey. His original fanfic is called Ultimate Adventure. If you haven't read it already then I suggest you do, it's quite an outstanding piece of work! It is a LuffyxNami fic but don't worry! This fanfic will probably not have ships at all for Oda's Straw Hats, so non-shippers welcome! So not only is this a reaction fic, it's a crossover with another fanfiction as well (spooky isn't it?). So please enjoy!
Now for the minority of those reading this that were waiting for another chapter of Changing One's World, if there even are any of you. I can assure you a chapter is in the works, so don't worry. Aisa and the Straw Hats journey in Skypeia is going to change the whole dynamic between the crew, so look forward to that!
Reviews are welcome I suppose, and all criticism is welcome as well. Even the haters, whose opinions are just as valid as anyone else's.
So, sit back and look forward to new chapters of this story. Or don't look forward to them, if it's not your cup of tea! Many questions are lingering: Will the beast escape? Will Luffy recover from seeing Ace? Will Iddaq be okay (I hope so!)? And what the hell is a Chronarch and a Raeshuehx? Most of these questions will be answered! Especially the most important one: Will Scriptor shut up now?
Yes, yes he will.
This is, TheHumulisScriptor, signing out!