Well hello everyone, new and old. Some of you have been waiting for this story to start. Others have no clue that this was even going to happen. But no matter which you are, expecting or just curious, welcome. It is going to be my pleasure to treat you all to a wonderful story.
While Luffy and his crew are bouncing around from island to island, this story will follow an entirely different crew. Their adventures aren't in the pursuit of gain or glory, but for something entirely different. Do you want to know what that something is? (Chuckles) Well then, please do read on.
Welcome aboard.
The ship creaked as the waves and winds pushed it gently forward. The sun beat down harshly on the open sea with enough heat to fry an egg in a matter of seconds. Might as well open the deck up as a barbeque and start frying for the paying customers.
The ship wasn't large by any means but it wasn't small either. It was a Lorcha type, meant for carrying cargo and the like. The sails were easily the largest part of the ship. Speed and maneuverability, that's what this ship was made for, not sieging an island or battling other ships. In fact, there weren't even any cannons on board. There weren't decorations of any kind adorning it, aside from a chimney that smoked weakly at the back end of the ship and the crow's nest which had a large yellow star painted on the roof. Somehow the paint hadn't peeled from the strain of the Grand Line's harsh weather patterns. Overall, some would find its design sickeningly simple. The impression it gave was unnoticeable and unthreatening, which was exactly how the crew liked it.
But there was one thing that ruined that impression. Above the crow's nest waved a flag bearing pirate colors. A skull grinned from a black background, but instead of crossbones, two syringes crossed each other. Behind the skull and syringes was a large red heart.
In the helm room, a single man sat in a chair. This man's name was Doc. Doc Woodall, to be exact. He kept his eyes on the Log Pose on his wrist and corrected their course as necessary. But other than that, he just sat there. He might have been considered attractive in certain circles. He has blonde hair that is hidden underneath a wide brimmed black hat. His pants are dark red and his shirt is white. He wears a white lab coat over his shirt. His light blue eyes are slightly marred by worry lines while his mouth has laugh lines around it. But overall, he had an unobtrusive air. In a large crowd, he wouldn't stick out.
He glanced at the Log Pose again to make sure nothing was wrong. Nothing was. Everything was normal. No sudden storms or random tornadoes or surprise sea king attacks. That made him furrow his brow. Such pleasant weather meant one of two things in the Grand Line. Either they were near an island that had stable weather conditions or the ocean was about to throw something big at them. Well, there was also the chance that they had wandered into the Calm Belt but they were somewhere near the middle of the Grand Line. The chances of them wandering that far off course in one day were practically zero.
All he really wanted to do was sit back and enjoy the nice weather while it lasted. But he knew better. Getting out of his chair, he walked over to a large desk with rolls and stacks of paper scattered around it. These papers were all maps. It was practically a treasure trove of them. And in the lower right hand corner of each map was the logo of a pair of eyes with spectacles and large, pointed eyebrows above them. The man shuffled through a few maps that were laying on a relatively clear spot in the middle of the desk before his furrowed brows were matched with a frown.
"Now where did that map go?" He asked himself out loud. His voice was gentle. It wasn't commanding at all, but it was firm. When needed, that voice could calm a seething crowd or silence a king. Taking off his hat, he scratched his head and looked around, puzzled. "I could have sworn I put it here last night." He searched through the nearest stacks only to be met by disappointment.
Leaving the helm room, he crossed the scorching deck and went down the stairs that lead into the ship's interior. He was immediately stopped by three doors. The left one gave off the smell of antiseptic and various herbs. He ignored that one completely. It was the Medical Room. When one of the crew was sick or hurt, that was where they went. There was no way the map was there.
Instead, he went to the door on the right. As he opened it, the fragrance of cooking rice, vegetables, and meat flooded his nose. The kitchen. He had to resist drooling as his stomach growled. It was nearly time for lunch. On the far left side of the room in front of the door was a dining area consisting of a long table with small, cushioned stools scattered around it.
At the sound of something sizzling, he turned his attention to the rest of the kitchen. It was a simple layout. The walls were lined with a sink, a stove, an oven, and a large refrigerator with a matching freezer. There was a counter on the far wall that held all the cooking utensils. It was next to the door that lead to the pantry that held all of their dry foods. There was an island counter near the stove covered with ingredients, utensils, and a cutting board.
And in front of the stove, stirring a pot of what looked like soup, stood a woman with flowing pink hair that fell to the small of her back. Well 'stood' was a relative term in this case. Instead of legs she had a long, orange fishtail with white patterns decorating it. Her name was Maya and she was a mermaid. And she was only able to stand because of the bubble ring that was wrapped around her waist. It kept her elevated, sort of like she was swimming through the air. She had to be careful though. If she bumped into anything the bubble would pop and she would fall to the floor. Her eyes were cold and deadly and probably the only thing about her features that weren't strikingly beautiful. Her skin was flawless and smooth, her hair flowing and soft. Her curves would turn the head of any man and probably a few women. She was the kind of mermaid that nobles would give their entire kingdoms to own. But there was just one problem with that.
She belonged to no one. Growing up on Mermaid Island, she had learned one very important thing: never let anyone tell you what to do. Now, it was either that upbringing or maybe it was just her personality...but any noble wouldn't last more than a day before they would try to get rid of her. Her temper was fiery and her aim...unerring.
As he studied her (and enjoyed the aroma of the soup), a knife was suddenly embedded in the doorframe near his head. He flinched away with a startled yell, first looking at the knife and then in the direction it had been thrown from.
The mermaid was glaring at him with devilish eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you? Stay out of my kitchen when I'm cooking!" Raising her hand, she readied to throw yet another sharp implement at his head, this one looked like a carving knife...
"Maya...Maya be reasonable now." Doc said slowly. He was ready to bolt the moment that knife went any higher. He gulped. He really didn't want to stitch up another stab wound. "I'm just looking for the map. No need to get violent..."
"It isn't here so get out!" The knife was thrown and only his quick reflexes kept him from taking it to the forehead. "Out out out!"
He ducked out of the doorway before anything else could be chucked at him. "I'm leaving, I'm leaving!"
He slammed the door shut in his hurry (and to protect him from any follow up tosses) and leaned against it with a deep breath. Pulling off his hat, he ran a hand through his hair. Honestly, the crew probably suffered more injuries from dealing with Maya than they did with other pirates or Marines.
After steadying himself, he walked over to the center door and pulled it open. It lead down a long passage of other doorways. There were small lanterns here and there to keep things lit. The first door on the right lead to Maya's room. As a mermaid, she couldn't be forced to travel on the bubble ring all the time. Her room was specially made for a mermaid, the majority of it being a big pool. It was deep enough for her to swim freely. Even her bed was kept at the bottom of it. Plus, she never had to worry about intruders. Nobody wants to fight a mermaid underwater.
Going passed that, the first door on the left lead to a storage room. Normally, this would be where a ship would store its gunpowder and ammunition. However, their ship noticeably lacked such things as cannons. The barrels that were stored in that room contained something much different. They were filled with medicine. Herbs, drugs, powders, liquids, ingredients. This was where they kept the cures to many, many different illnesses. There was a second entrance to it through the Medical Room.
There was no way the map was in there so he walked right on by. The second door on the left opened up to the sleeping quarters for the rest of the crew. There were a few chests along the walls for personal items of the people that slept there. There were three in total, same as the number of hammocks that were hanging here and there, either connected to wooden posts or hanging on the walls. Doc looked inside and scanned the room. No sign of the map. He was starting to get frustrated. The next door on the right was the bathroom. It was furnished with a sink, a shower, and a toilet. Nothing too fancy but they got the job done. No point looking in there. The next two door were more storage rooms, one of which held miscellaneous items and equipment while the other was furnished with a multitude of stretchers, gurneys, and spare blankets. If the crew ever ran into an epidemic, this was where they were treated since they wouldn't all fit in the Medical Room.
He walked right by them and towards the last room in the hall. As he got close, a blistering heat. You would also noticed that the wood that made up the majority of the ship was replaced by stone. It hadn't been easy finding stone that wouldn't weight down the ship too much. It also wasn't cheap. But considering the profession of that room's occupant, it was basically a necessity otherwise the ship would catch on fire.
Opening the door, Doc's face was hit by a wave of heat. It practically burned his lungs. But he ignored that. He had gotten used to it at this point. When he opened the door, his ears were greeted by the sounds of a burning fire and the pounding of a hammer on steel. The walls were decorated with weapons of all shapes and sizes. There were barrels scattered everywhere filled with either brine or parts. The left side of the room was lined with shelves of ores, ingots, and other materials.
On the far side was a blazing forge. It was the source of the chimney that protruded from the duck of the ship. And in front of it, a man holding a molten sword with a pair of tongs in one hand and a hammer in the other. He would bring the hammer up and strike the glowing steel sharply, making the room ring with the sound of metal on metal.
Curiously, the man had nothing protecting him from the heat. He wore no mask, gloves, or apron to shield him from the sparks that flew from the sword with every strike. Sweat was pouring from every inch of his skin. He couldn't be any older than twenty-three. His untidy brown hair stuck out in odd places, though it was dampened by the sweat. His muscles gleamed in the firelight, which caused the burns and scars on his hands to stick out. He was shirtless but he wore a pair of blank pants. Doc knew them to be fireproof, specially made so that way he didn't have to worry about them catching fire. The only adornment on the pants was a golden "rook" chess piece on his left pants leg. The fire cast his shadow over to the wall, making it look like there was a second person in the room.
He was so concentrated on his work that he hadn't even noticed it when Doc stepped in. Used to this, he cleared his throat a few times before shouting over at him. "Rook! Need your help with something."
Rook's head tilted in his direction in. He tempered the blade a few more times before he stood up slowly and brought it down into a barrel of brine. It hissed as steamed erupted from the barrel. He rolled his shoulders as he turned to him.
"Sup, Captain?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. Walking over to him, he reached over and grabbed a red shirt that was hanging on the back of a chair. He put it on, despite the sweat that immediately soaked into the cloth. There was a small, black anvil on the bottom right hand corner of the shirt.
Doc groaned. "You know I hate it when people call me captain."
Rook just laughed him off. "Well, you are the captain of this ship. If you didn't want to be called Captain, you shouldn't have made the crew."
They had done this song and dance before so he knew that it was pointless for him to keep arguing. He glanced around the room until he noticed a piece of paper sitting on the same chair that his shirt had been on. He snatched it up to see that it was, in fact, the map he had been searching for.
He looked at Rook, irritated. "Why is the map in here? You could have damaged it."
Rook blinked. "Uh…no idea. I didn't bring it in here." He said innocently. "Why would I need the map anyway?"
Doc didn't have an answer to that. He stood there with his mouth hanging open as he tried to come up with a reason. But before he could, he glanced around them. It almost felt like they were being watched. Just as he was about to voice his suspicion, they heard a panicked voice from down the hall.
"Captain! You might wanna come look at this."
The two stood still for a moment, all traces of suspicion gone. They hurriedly ran into the hall and out into the sun. They both looked up at the crow's nest where a man was staring down at them, a spyglass in his hand. He had slicked back black hair that was tied into a small tail. He was even younger looking than Rook, though not by much. He wore a long sleeve black shirt and black pants with silver linings running down the pants. He had to be sweltering in that outfit in the day's heat. He also wore a sliver belt and a gold chain necklace.
He was pointing out at sea when he shouted down at them, "We got pirates incoming!"
"What!?" The two ran for the railing to see with their own eyes. And sure enough, a ship bearing pirate colors was headed straight for them.
Doc raised his hand and shouted up, "Pass me the glass, Alec!"
Alec, the man in the crow's nest, tossed down the spyglass, which Doc caught. He put it to his eyes and focused it on the pirate ship. Their flag was an odd combination of a skull and a frog with its tongue sticking out and making a circle around the skull.
"Shit." Rook grumbled. He had his hand over his eyes like a visor as he looked out at the enemy. "I really hope this isn't going to be another fight." He glared at Doc. "This kinds of things would be so much easier if you let us bring some cannons aboard."
Doc shot the glare right back at him. "You know the rules. I may be the captain of this ship, but I'm also a doctor. And so long as I'm here, we will never harm others unless absolutely necessary."
Even Alec rolled his eyes at that as he jumped down from the crow's nest. "You take that doctor thing WAY too seriously." Seeing Doc ready himself for an argument, he raised his hands to pacify him. "Now don't go getting all wound up. I get it, we'll try talking to them first." With a flick of his wrists, he unsheathed the two cutlasses that were hanging at his belt. "And once those talks inevitably fail, you can't complain when these babies finish the conversation."
Doc sighed as Rook cheered Alec on. He had taken the Hippocratic Oath when he had become a doctor, a promise to do no harm. He took it to heart, it made up the core of his beliefs. So long as he lives, he will never hurt another living thing. His talents were for healing.
Ignoring them, he stared out at sea at the approaching battle he knew would ensue. He always tried talking to the pirates, but they never listened. They were only interested in the treasures they had onboard, not in talking.
They would just have to be ready to fight.
There you have it folks, the start to a brand new adventure. I know it wasn't the most exciting of chapters, but beginnings are always hard for me.
Luckily, we are jumping right into the fighting next chapter! So we can look forward to that.
Please let me know what you all think, good and bad. Your expectations, your ideas, your views of the characters.
See you all next time!