An Adventure Begins
Part Four
Eri shivered when she felt her loose hair brushed against her skin. She slowly opened her eyes. A small gasped passed over her lips when she saw her hair and the loose ends of their clothing were floating in the wind that she had created. She gave him a look of disbelief. This wasn't possible. This couldn't actually be happening. Could it?
"Believe it," Boss said. "This is possible. And you're doing it."
Eri shook her head. She just couldn't get her mind wrapped around the fact that she had control over the wind. She swayed in her chair, her head buzzing with disbelief and dizziness. She leaned back in her chair as the wind vanished from the room. Her stomach churned. She wasn't sure why but she suddenly felt very sick about all of this. She was scared. She wanted nothing to do with it. She wanted to leave this place. She wanted Luffy to come and save her from this.
"And so much more," Boss said.
Eri gave him another look of questions. Despite wanting nothing to do with this, a small part of her couldn't help but wonder what he meant by that.
"It doesn't matter," Boss said. "You'll eventually learn."
Eri looked up at him. She swallowed when he reached into his pocket. She wasn't sure what she was expecting for him to pull out. But it certainly wasn't the ball he tossed down on the floor. Forgetting her sickness, she watched it questioningly as it rolled to a stop about two feet in front of her.
"This is your first training lesson," Boss said. "You are to float this ball around the room without hitting anything."
Eri lifted an eyebrow in confusion. Was this all he really wanted her to do?
"Hurry up now," Boss said. "We don't have all day."
Eri shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She didn't want to do this. But what choice did she have? She nodded then pointed to the ball and gave him a shrug in hopes he would understand her.
"Just concentrate on the wind. Connect with it," Boss said. "You're its master. It has to obey your commands."
Eri swallowed. She didn't like being called master of anything. She didn't like the idea of controlling others. She's had that done far too much to herself by others. But she knew she didn't have any choice but to obey what this man was telling her. She just wished she knew the point of this since she was stuck here. And she knew that wouldn't happen. It was crystal clear that this guy wasn't going to tell her everything at once. He was just going to give her tiny bits and pieces when he felt like they were need. There had to be a reason for him to want to go to this island in the wind. But what was it? What was there that he really wanted so badly that he had to kidnap her? Money? She knew that was a high possibility when kidnapped. It was something a lot of men and women did. The only other reasons she could think of were darker, more physical. Her body shivered at the thoughts of violation that could possibly happen to her. She hoped and prayed that her didn't end up dead somewhere in the dark depths of some forest. Or thrown in the sea were creatures could devour her cold, lifeless body. Wasn't that a high possibility once she took him to this island? She would have served her purpose so why would they keep her alive?
Fear gripped her chest. Her heart and blood turned ice cold, but not completely because of these strange men. There was something else that was causing her to feel all of this fear. She just couldn't figure out what it was. All she knew was she had to get out of here. She had to think of a plan and get out of here before they killed her. But how could she possibly do that? How can she get out of here when the only way she had to fight was blocked from her? Would she possibly be able to charm one of the men into giving her some paper and releasing her from the bracelets that separated her from her wind abilities? She could get a letter to Luffy then. She closed her eyes and took a few slow breaths to keep herself from crying. She knew that wouldn't work at all. Going by what happened yesterday, the men weren't going to stick around her long enough for her to appeal to their softer side, assuming they have one. Maybe she could escape when Boss released her from these confining talismans so she could call upon the island or whatever she was suppose to do. That looked to be her only chance to escape.
"Stop daydreaming and get to work!" Boss snapped.
Eri jumped at Boss's anger. In being startled, she somehow released strong gust of wind from the world around them. It shot her backwards. She felt her wheelchair crashing into the wall before feeling her body fly forward. She groaned when her body hit the hard ground. She felt something, some bone inside of her snap. She felt searing pain in both her head and her back. She cried out, hot tears pouring down her cheeks, and curled into a ball. Her head buzzed with sounds of several people speaking in incoherent mumbles. She opened her eyes to a blinding white light. Dark figures passed between her eyes and the light. The movement made her head spin and her stomach lurch. She was going to be sick. She could feel her stomach about to give up what she had eaten earlier.
Then she heard laughter.
All the incoherent words she was hearing were replaced with someone laughing. She opened her eyes. Blinking in confusion she stared at the wall she was facing. There was no white light, no shadow figures walking between it and herself. There was just the wall and her wheelchair. There was no other pain but for the light throbbing in her right elbow where she hit the ground and the shakiness that wracked her entire body, other than that she wasn't hurt at all. Confused, she reached up and touched her wetness on her cheek. At least she really was crying. She hadn't imagined that part at all. So why had she imagined all the other pain, lights, and shadows?
"That was beautiful!" Boss said.
Eri gritted her teeth when he started clapping in addition to his laughter. Her chest filled up with anger at him. He was supposed to protect her. Her eyes shot open at her own thoughts. She had no idea why she thought this man was suppose to protect her. He was a complete stranger. A stranger that had kidnapped her from her home and was forcing her to do something she didn't want to do.
"Get up!" She heard the man snapped. "You're not hurt!"
Eri didn't want to. She didn't want to get up at all. But he was correct in saying that she wasn't hurt. She had only imagined it for some reason. She brushed off her tears before pulling her wheelchair closer to her. She locked it into place before unlocking and pushing the feet rests out of her way. Her body was still shaking from the fall but it had slowed down enough for her to pull herself off the floor. Grabbing the back, she pulled herself up into the chair. Once settled in the seat she lifted up her right leg and put the footrest back in place then did the same with her left leg. She exhaled, her pounding heart now almost back to normal.
"Fly the ball," Boss said. "I won't tell you again."
"Fine," Eri mumbled through her silenced voice. She dropped her eyes to the blue ball on the ground. The crippling fear from before returned. It gripped her mind and replayed her hitting the ground and wall over and over. Flashes of pain shot through her body. She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head. She had no reason to be afraid. She didn't get hurt at all. She knew the wind really couldn't hurt her, especially if she was in control. Still, she didn't want to do this. She didn't want to mess with the wind. Wind was a dangerous element to control. She wanted to just leave. She wanted to go find Luffy. She wanted to be free from all of this. She wrapped her arms around her shivering body. She shook her head. Her lips saying, "I…I can't do this."
"What are you mumbling about?" Boss asked.
Eri pointed to the paper. She watched as he grabbed it and handed it to her. She scribbled her words down and showed it to him. She wrote: I can't do this. I don't want to get hurt.
"You're not going to get hurt," Boss said, almost tenderly. It caught her off guard. Her fears dropped away from her. She looked up at him with shock and confusion rolling through her eyes. Through his one good eye, she could see tenderness in it. It was just a quick flash though. Once he realized she was looking at him his cold, expressionless eye had returned. He ripped the notebook away from her. "What are you looking at?! Just float the blasted ball! You're being childish! The wind can't hurt you because you're the one in control of it! Or you will be if you'd stop being such a coward! Back to work!"
Eri exhaled. She had no idea how she could possibly think this man had an ounce of tenderness in him. He was nothing but a hateful, selfish jerk looking for an easy way to get rich, probably. She still had no idea what this island held after all. She forced herself to let it go. There was nothing she could do about it.
She shifted her focus back to the wind. When she felt the wind teasing her skin, she became cold again. A blurry image flashed through her brain. The image was familiar to her, but she couldn't place why it was. All she knew was she didn't want to do this. She didn't want to control the wind. She feared the wind.
Still, she pushed forward. She had no idea what this man would do to her if she didn't try to float the ball. Maybe if she did she could go back to her room. So she forced the blurry image and her fears as far away from her as she possibly could. She looked down and focused on the ball. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she formed a mental picture of the ball lifting off the ground. Her eyebrow lifted when the ball shifted on the floor. The movement caused her to shiver. Her fear was pushing its way back up to the surface. She refused to let it, or she tried to. It seemed no matter how hard she tried her fear just kept pushing back to the surface. She tried to focus harder on the ball and caused it to roll closer to her.
She exhaled and shook her head. That wasn't what she was supposed to do. She was supposed to float it. It should have been such a hard task. She could feel the wind around her. She could feel the wind wanting to obey her, or her talismans. She wasn't really quite sure which it was. So she tried again. Closing her eyes, she imagined the ball lifting off the ground. She kept her eyes closed for several seconds before peaking through one eyelid. Her other eye popped open when she saw she had the ball floating six inches off the ground. Blurry images filled her mind as fear and an icy cold grip grabbed her chest. The wind picked up into an immediate gale. The ball and her wheelchair shot towards the wall. The paper that was sitting on the table flew off and hit the floor.
Eri gasped, grabbed her wheels, and banished the wind before she could hit the wall again. A sharp whistle ran through her head. Her vision blurred as she watched the blue ball bounce across the floor in front of her. She felt herself fall. Then everything went black.
…
Boss, holding his cowboy hat to his head, dug his boots into the floor when Eri's wind picked up. He tried to hold his ground, but the wind was far too strong. He felt his boots sliding across the floor before his body lifted into the air and his hat flew off. The air in his lungs was forced out when he landed on the ground. His body bounced once before rolling to a stop. Still sliding across the floor, he did what he could to keep himself from flying off again. Then, suddenly, the wind stopped. He looked up. The girl was still in her chair. Her face was pale, her eyes were dull and hollow. She looked like she was about to pass out. Even from several yards away he could see that her entire body was trembling. He knew it wouldn't be long before she passed out.
Scrambling to his feet, he dashed over to her. Grabbing her shoulders before she could fall out of her chair, he laid her back against it. A heavy exhale left his body. He was expecting some trouble with her and her training but he didn't think it was going to be this bad. Staring down at her, noticing that the outbursts of wind had messed her hair up quite a bit. He reached for a strand of her loose locks but instantly pulled back when the door busted open and his three subordinates ran in.
"Boss!" Jaq said.
"Are you all right?" Mitch added. "We heard a bang."
"Is she all right?" Pratt asked, holding the book he was carrying out to the girl.
"Yes," Boss said. He removed the silencing talisman from her and put the bracelets back on her wrists. He then turned away from her. Walking over to where his hat was laying, he picked it up off the floor, and placed it back on his head. "Pratt, take her to her room. We're done for the day."
"That's it?" Mitch said. "You haven't been in here but for about six minutes."
"I say it's over," Boss said. "There's no telling when she'll actually wake up. She's done enough for now. So don't question me about this."
"You're the boss." Mitch shrugged.
Boss adjusted his hat. He glanced back over to Eri and Pratt. The man was making sure she was secure in her chair. He scoffed and headed out of the room with Jaq and Mitch following after him.
…
Pratt sighed upon seeing Eri in her unconscious state. He didn't like seeing her like this. He wasn't sure what exactly caused her to black out. He wanted to ask Boss about it but knew it wouldn't do any good. So he quietly checked to make sure she was in a secure position before stepping behind her wheelchair. He took the handles and wheeled her out of the room. By the time he got out in the hall, the other men were nowhere in sight. Most likely they were heading down the stairs to the ground floor where they would get lost in their drinking or whatever they felt like doing.
He turned into her room. Gliding her up next to the bed, he locked in her wheels, placed his book on the bed, and then picked her up. Gently, he laid her down then repositioned her wheelchair so she could get in it when she woke up. He reclaimed his book before heading for the door. About half way to it his legs suddenly paused. His eyes drifted back to Eri. For whatever reason, he felt like he should stay with her. So he walked over and sat down at the table. He watched her sleep for a while before he started to feel like a creep watching his next victim before striking. Opening his book he started reading to pass the time.
…
Eri blinked and stared into the darkness that surrounded her. She had no clue where she was. All she saw was the darkness. Everything was silent. She continued to stare out into the darkness until she realized that her wheelchair was gone. Looking down she found that she was standing on her own two feet again. She tilted her head when she noticed that her feet were a lot smaller than they should have been. But she didn't really care. She was back on her feet. She could dance again.
And she did.
Throwing one hand into the air, she spun on her toes. Her moves were fluid. She felt like she had never stopped dancing. She felt like her being in a wheelchair was nothing but a dream. She was free once again. Free to dance all she pleased. And she did. Her body flowed gracefully through the arabesque, développé, grande rond de jambe, and so many more moves, her dress flowing around her like soft flower petals being blown on the wind. Her heart pounding with excitement from feeling so free.
Opening her eyes she found that the darkness had been replaced with a lush green field full of colorful butterflies and flowers. She ran out into the field. Her body automatically doing all kinds of dances moves while the butterflies flittered their winds and took off around her. She felt their silky wings brush across her bare arms. She giggled. Her joyous laughter rising up with the wind and the butterflies as they both disappeared into the bright blue sky.
"Eri, did you know you could fly?"
"Huh?" Eri turned and looked up to the voice. Standing with her were two people. She knew them. She couldn't see their faces, but she knew they weren't going to hurt her. "What do you mean?"
"You are very gifted, Little Dancer," the younger of the two said.
"What do you mean?" Eri asked.
"You have been chosen to ride the wind," the older one said.
"Ride the wind?" Eri tilted her head.
"You love dancing, do you not?" the older one asked.
"Of course I do, Uncle!" Eri said. She spun around for him. "See?! I love dancing so much! I always feel so free! I feel like I'm flying when I dance!"
"That's good to hear," Uncle said. "But you literally can fly."
"I don't understand," Eri said. She stopped spinning and turned back to the two.
"These." The younger one reached out and touched the nubs that were stuck into her earlobes. "These can help you fly."
"My gift?" Eri reached up and touched the earrings. "These can make me fly?"
"Indeed, Little Dancer." He nodded. "And they can take you to a very special island that hidden in the wind."
Eri gasped. Her eyes lit up with excitement. "There's an island hidden in the wind?"
"There is," Uncle said. He knelt down on the ground. "And if you want, I can teach you how to use this gift so you can fly and go to that island."
"What kind of island is it?" Eri asked.
"An island that floats on the wind," Uncle said. "You can see out into the world but the world can't see inside of the wind."
"That's amazing!" Eri squealed.
"And that's not even the most amazing part," Uncle said.
"Then what is?" Eri rushed to his lap. She down and stared up at him like he was feeding her sugar. "Tell me!"
"Okay, okay," Uncle said. "The most amazing part is the little people that live there."
"Little people?" Eri asked. "Do you mean like fairies?"
"Something like that." Uncle nodded. "And they love to dance just as much as you do."
"They do?" Eri's eyes widened.
"If you learn out to fly you'll be able to see them," the younger one said.
"I want to see them!" Eri announced. She jumped up off Uncle's lap and spun around a few times. "Please! Teach me how to fly! I want to control the wind!"
"Okay, we can do that," Uncle said as he stood up. "But you have to promise me that you'll take us with you."
"Of course I will!" Eri said. "Why woudn't I?"
"Some people might not want you to go there," Uncle said.
"Some will think it's too dangerous for you," the younger one added.
"But it's not," Eri insisted. "I'll be with you two. And if I can control the wind then I'll be very powerful."
"Indeed you will," Uncle said.
"So tell me what I should do," Eri said. She straightened her back and held her arms at her sides."
"Listen for the wind," Uncle said. "Feel out for it. Once you have it, connect yourself with it."
"I'm not sure I understand," Eri said. "How can you connect with the wind?"
"You'll know what to do when you feel it," Uncle said. "Just give it a try."
"Okay!" Eri nodded. She looked down at the ground and tried to concentrate. Instead, feeling so silly about what she was suppose to do, she giggled.
"Little Dancer," the younger one said, crossing their arms over their chest. "You're not focusing."
"I'm sorry, Bunny," Eri said. "This is just harder than I thought it was."
"I can understand." Bunny nodded. "But this is serious. You do want to go to the island in the wind, don't you?"
"I do! I do!" Eri nodded. "I'll focus! I promise!"
"Then proceed," Bunny said.
"Yeah!" Eri closed her eyes. Focusing on the world around her, she listened and felt for the wind. At first, she didn't feel anything. She did still feel silly but that was it. Then she felt it. A cool breeze brushed across her arms.
'Are you there?' a voice asked.
'I'm here,' Eri thought back to the voice. 'Who are you?'
'I am Celestial,' the voice said. 'I'm bit surprised that you can hear me,' Celestial said.
'Why?' Eri asked.
'It's been many years since someone heard our voices,' Celestial said.
'There's more than one of you?' Eri asked.
'Indeed, Little Wind,' Celestial said. 'We accept you as the wielder of the Wind Talismans.'
'The talismans are real?' Eri asked.
'Indeed, they are,' Celestial said.
'You live on the island in the wind, don't you?' Eri asked.
'We do,' Celestial said. 'And we are waiting for you to come see us.'
'You're waiting for me? I can really come there?' Eri bounced up and down on her feet. 'I want to come now!'
'I'm afraid you cannot,' Celestial said.
'Why?' Eri stopped bouncing. Her lips curled down into a frown.
'You're not strong enough yet,' Celestial explained. 'It will take time for you to get good enough to control the Silver Wind that will bring you here.'
'How long do I have to wait?' Eri asked.
'You are just beginning. You are only a zephyr,' Celestial said.
'What's a zephyr?"
'It's a small wind,' Celestial said. 'You must be able to with stand hurricane winds to come here. It could take you years to get that much control.'
'I see.' Eri turned her watering eyes down to the ground.
'Do not lose hope, my little one,' Celestial said. 'I promise that you will one day come here. And until that day I will be waiting for your arrival.'
'Okay! I'll be patient!'
'You're a very good girl,' Celestial said. 'Above all you must remember this, you hold a great magic right now. It is something that you cannot force. It has to come naturally. If you try to come here when you're not ready, you could end up hurting yourself. Promise me you will not get in a hurry to come here.'
'Yes, I promise,' Eri said.
'Then I shall leave you now,' Celestial said, her voice fading farther and farther away with each word.
"Wait! Don't go!' Eri ran towards Celestial's fading voice. 'Please, don't go!'
'Do not worry, Sweet Zephyr," Celestial said. 'While you will not be able to see me I will always be watching over you. It's time for you to go now.'
'Okay,' Eri said. She stopped trying to follow the voice.
"Eri?"
"Huh?" Eri opened her eyes to Uncle and Bunny watching her. "What happened?"
"You were talking to someone," Bunny said.
"I was! Her name is Celestial! She's waiting on the island for me!" Eri told them. "I can't wait to get there! I have to train!"
"What else did she tell you?" Uncle asked.
"That I'll be able to see her when I'm ready and that I shouldn't push my magic," Eri said. "I'm not strong enough yet to get to the island."
"Then we better start training again right now," Uncle said.
"Yeah!" Eri nodded. She closed her eyes. Feeling out for the wind, she found it. She could feel it blowing over the island. It appeared to notice her silent beckon and floated towards her. She smiled. The wind wrapped around her like a blanket. It was calm and soothing. She felt like she could ride it thousands of times around the world. She wanted to ride the wind around the world. This suddenly felt so natural to her. She had to learn to do more.
Suddenly, the peaceful breeze erupted into a gale. Deep, threatening rumbles of thunder rolled through the dark, lightning streaked clouds above. Eri shivered. The wind and rain was cold on her skin. This wasn't correct. This wind wasn't what she was use to. What had happened?
"You're not focusing, Eri!" a voice shouted over a rumble of thunder.
"B-Bunny?" Eri called out. She crossed her arm over her eyes to shield them from the rain and look for the two men she was with. "Uncle? Where are you?"
"What are you doing, Eri?! You're supposed to be controlling this wind and taking us to Anemone! Get control of this wind! Now!"
"I'm trying!" Eri said, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Take us to Anemone!"
"What are you waiting for?! You've had plenty of time to get this right!"
"But Celestial told me-" Eri felt her cheek sting and grow warm. Her body was flying through the air, but not under her control. She hit the ground hard. Crying, she held her stinging cheek. "I don't want to do this!"
"You want to go see her, don't you?!"
"Yes! But she said I wasn't ready!" Eri cried.
"She doesn't know you!"
"Please stop!" Eri begged.
"Do it now! Take us to Anemone! I'm tired of waiting! You've trained enough!"
"Just stop it!" Eri screamed. The winds picked up. Howling over the rumbling thunder, it picked her up. She was flung backwards. A sharp pain shot through her back. A scream flew out of her lips, but was silenced from a sharp crack of thunder.
The world faded.
"Move it! We have an emergency here!"
"We need blood!"
"Get the IV ready!"
"Prepare for surgery!"
Eri opened her eyes. Blurriness and dark blobs moved around in her vision. She felt her left eyelid open even wider. A bright light appeared causing her to pull away. But when she did, more pain shot through her body. "Mommy!"
"I'm…ere. Don…sweetie…"
"You…be fine…"
Eri looked for the distant yet familiar voices. She reached out to them. She wanted them to hold her. She was in so much pain. More voices faded in and out of her ears. The unclear world also faded in and out before everything went solid black. Then came the pain. It was different from the pain she had felt before. Something was missing. She could feel it. Her heart ached. She knew she had lost something important. "No…it can't…I can't…I don't want…I didn't mean…"
…
"No…I don't want to," Eri said. She rolled her head over to her right side. Her breath came in rapid breath. Gripping the smooth fabric in her hands, she turned her head to the left and back to the right. Her chest heaved up and down. A cold sweat broke out on her forehead. Her eyes popped open. She gasped and forced herself up. "No!" She grabbed her head. "Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!"
"Hey, it's okay," a voice said.
"No! Just stop!" Eri said, her hands automatically grabbing the man's sleeves. "I can't do it! I don't want to do it!"
"You're not doing anything. You're just having a bad dream. Wake up now. You're safe."
"Huh?" Eri turned her eyes to the voice. Slowly her eyes came back into focus and she found herself staring into Pratt's concerned eyes. "What happened?"
"You were having a bad dream," Pratt said. "Are you okay now?"
"Yeah." Eri nodded. "I…I think so."
Silence passed between them for several seconds before Pratt spoke up again He said, "Do you want to talk about it?"
"No," Eri said. She dropped her eyes down from his, noticing she was clinging onto his shirt. She released him. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be," Pratt said. "You were just scared."
Eri could only nod. She was scared. Her nightmare, or whatever it was had scared her.
"If you tell me about it you'll feel better," Pratt said.
Eri shook her head. She really didn't want to talk about it.
"Are you sure?" Pratt asked.
"I'm sure," Eri said. "I don't really remember much of it." And she didn't. She could only recall talking to three different people in a field, the storm, and pain, so much pain. She grabbed her chest. "I don't…remember."
"That's okay too," Pratt said. "I have dreams where I forget them shortly after waking up." He stood up. "Well, you've been out for a while. You're probably hungry."
Eri opened her mouth to protest food. Instead, she accepted it. "I guess a little bit."
"I'll go get you something then," Pratt said. "I might be a while."
"That's fine," Eri said while thinking about how she didn't have anywhere to go and nothing to do.
"Yeah," Pratt drawled.
Eri looked up at him when he didn't move. He was just watching her. She couldn't help but wonder why this guy was with those other three. While she still didn't know him very well, she felt like he really, really didn't want to be a part of this. Or was it just a trick to get her to let her guard down? She didn't know. And probably never would. "Did you need something?"
"I'm sorry," Pratt said, his cheeks tinting pink. He headed towards the door. "I'll just leave now."
Eri sighed when the door closed. Using her hands, she pulled her legs up to her chest. Wrapping her arms around them, she rested her chin on her knees. She closed her eyes and slowly exhaled. Relaxing her mind, she tried to remember the rest of her dream. Instead of getting more she had more disappear. She really wished she had some paper. If she did she could have wrote down what all she had dreamed about and tried to figure out what exactly it was. Something about it felt very familiar. The two people she was with were very familiar. Or she thought they were. She started to think it was just a dream she's had before. It had to be. She lifted her eyes to the window. She whispered, "Luffy…please…save me."
…
Luffy was sitting on the figurehead of the Sunny. Staring out on the horizon, his eyes scanned for an island while his leg bobbed up and down. "Come on. Come on. Eri…just hold on. I'm coming. I won't let them get away with this."
…
"Is he going to be all right?" Neo asked. She started up at Luffy from the main deck with a worried expression. "He's been sitting up there since we left Pax."
"He'll be fine," Sanji said.
"But he hasn't eaten anything," Neo said. She turned her eyes to the pirates around her and took them in. Penguin, Robin, Chopper, and Sanji were sitting with her at the small round table while the other Straw Hats were scattered around the deck. She and Penguin was the only Heart Pirates on the Sunny. The others were over on the sub doing whatever they felt like if they didn't have orders to fulfill. And Penguin was only with her because Law wanted one of their crew to be by her side while she pushed them along.
"I can't believe that either," Nami said from the helm of the ship. "It's not like him to skip meals."
"You can't really blame him," Robin said, flipping to the next page of her book. "Eri isn't like the rest of us. She can't defend herself like we can."
"Yeah, I guess you do have a point," Nami said. "But I still don't understand why someone would kidnap her."
"Maybe she has some kind of knowledge about a treasure or something," Chopper offered.
"That could be possible," Usopp said. "Luffy did say that Eri said they had a lot of guards watching their home."
"Well, we'll know soon enough," Zoro said, pumping his over sized weight.
"He's correct," Brook said. "We've made great progress in just one day."
"If Neo can keep this up, we should be seeing an island sometime tomorrow," Nami said.
"Why can't we be there now?!" Luffy demanded, startling everyone since they didn't think he was paying attention to them. He flung himself to the others, landing with a loud thud. "Neo! Can't you go any faster?!"
"I'm sorry, Luffy," Neo said.
"Luffy, we already told you," Franky said. "If we go too fast the ship will get damaged. Then we'll have to stop for repairs. And that'll take us even long to get to your friend."
"I don't care!" Luffy screamed. "Eri's my friend! Go faster, Neo!"
Sanji slammed his foot on to of his captain's head. "You idiot! She can't! Besides, can't you see she's getting tired?!"
"I'm all right," Neo said. But her body betrayed her words with a yawn.
"You should stop," Penguin said.
"No." Neo shook her head. "I want to keep going."
"Neo, you know what the captain will say about this," Penguin said. "You're getting tired. You need to rest and sleep if you can."
"Penguin," Neo said softly.
"Neo," Luffy said, pulling her attention to him. "He's correct. You need to rest and take care of yourself and your baby."
"But I-"
"It's fine," Luffy said, cutting her off. "Eri's my friend. But you're my friend as well. I'm sorry for being so impatient. I know Eri wouldn't want you to put yourself and your baby in any kind of danger or stress. You should take a break."
"Very well then," Neo said. "But I'm going to have some sea kings pull us along."
"Do you sense some near by?" Franky asked.
"I do." Neo nodded. "They've actually been following us for quite a while now."
"What?!" Chopper and Usopp screamed. "They've been following us?! Why didn't you say something then?!"
"They're not threatening us," Neo said. "They're only interested in me." She stood up and walked over to the edge of the ship. Looking over the railing, she called out for the sea kings below the surface. The water broke. Four large sea snakes appear, causing Usopp and Chopper to scream once again.
"What are you idiots screaming about?!" Nami shouted. "You know Neo can control animals!"
"We know!" Usopp and Chopper said, clinging to each other. "But they're still scary!"
"Those two will always be cowards," Sanji said.
Ignoring the commotion behind her, Neo addressed the sea kings. "Hello! Would you mind doing me a favor? We're trying to get to an island that's not very far from here. We're not exactly sure where it is, we only know its three days away from Pax Island. What? Oh, really?"
"What are they saying, Neo?" Penguin asked.
"They said they know the island," Neo said, looking over her shoulder. "They said it's the only one out this way. They also say they'll take us right to it."
"That's awesome!" Luffy cheered.
"Thanks a lot for you help," Neo said. She summoned a couple earth crystals. Pulling up some seaweed, she wrapped it around the sea kings like a bridle then wrapped the other ends around the sub and ship. The sea kings dove underwater and instantly headed towards the island. She banished her wind crystals, letting the sea kings take over her work. "It's all set."
"Thanks, Neo," Luffy said. "I really appreciate you doing this for me and Eri."
"Don't worry about it, Luffy," Neo said. She walked over to him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she hugged him. "You know I'd do anything for you."
"Yeah." Luffy nodded. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her gently. "You get to your resting now."
"I will." Neo pulled away from him. She cupped his cheek and brushed her thumb over his skin. "She'll be okay. We'll be there soon."
Luffy nodded again. He watched Neo walked back over to her chair and sit down. He then launched himself back up to the figurehead. Continuing his watch, he kept his eyes on the horizon. He barely noticed his crewmates and friends wondering around the deck. He didn't even hear what they were talking about. He just continued to stare. Before long the bright sun had set and the moon had risen. The air was cool on his exposed skin but he didn't care. They were closer to finally getting to Eri. She wondered how she was doing. He wondered if she was being hurt. He hoped not. But if they did, he was going to thrash whoever touched her. He clenched his fists, wishing there was some way to move faster than they already were.
…
"Hey! Luffy!"
"Huh?" Luffy looked over his shoulder when Sanji's voice broke into his ears. He didn't even notice that the sun was high in the sky already. All of his friends, including Neo and Law were on the deck. "What?"
"You better come eat!" Sanji called up to him. "You're going to need your strength to fight!"
"Please, Luffy," Neo said when the rubber man didn't move. "You've been up all night long and skipped breakfast. We're about to arrive at the island."
"What?!" Luffy jumped up and shot himself over to his blue haired friend. "Are you sure?!"
"Yes." Neo nodded. "I can sense an island getting closer. I also spoke to some of the local sea life. They said that they saw a ship a few days ago enter into the island."
"Enter into the island?" Nami questioned. "What do you mean by that?"
"How is it possible to enter into an island?" Franky asked from the helm.
"Apparently the shape of this island causes the entrance to the island to be hidden," Neo said. "There's a small opening on one side where the ships can enter into it."
"Seems they had a well thought out plan," Robin said.
"An island that has a hidden entrance would be the perfect stop to hide someone," Law said. He tapped his sheath on his shoulder in thought. "Since that's the case it would probably be better if only a few of us went onto the island while the rest of us stay out here with the ships."
"What for?" Usopp asked. "Shouldn't we all go in? I mean, we have no idea how many men there's going to be on the island."
"Exactly," Law said. "If we all go into this place without knowing how many people are really there then we could very well get trapped on the island."
"He's right," Zoro said. "There is the possibility that they could have an ambush set up on the island in case someone did follow them. With just that one entrance to guard we could get caught inside."
"Neo could just fly us out of there," Usopp said.
"Not after pushing us along these past few days," Law said. "And her magic is still occasionally cutting out on her. I'm not going to put her and our baby at risk anymore. She's not even going in herself."
"Excuse me?" Neo crossed her arms over her chest.
"Neo, you need to stay here," Law said.
"We're fine, Law," Neo said. "You can't go in without me."
"Yes, we can," Law said. "I can warp everyone to the island and back to the ships."
"No, you can't," Neo insisted. "What if they have sea prism chains and an entire army waiting for us?"
"I highly doubt that's likely," Law said.
"Law, you're not going in without me," Neo said. "I won't permit it."
"Neo, you're not going…" Law's voice trailed off when tears gathered at the corner of her eyes. He sighed. He didn't want to upset her, but with her pregnancy, it seemed that was always impossible anymore. He placed his hand behind her head and pulled her into him. "Shh…don't cry, love. I just want to keep you two safe."
"I know," Neo mumbled into his chest. "I'm sorry I'm being emotional again."
"It's fine," Law whispered.
"She can go, Tra," Luffy said. "I'm not planning on getting into a fight anyway or at least a big one. I know we're going to have to fight at least a little bit."
"What?!" Usopp and Chopper screamed. They dashed over to their captain and started checking his vital signs.
"He doesn't have a fever!" Usopp reported, his hand on Luffy's forehead.
"His blood pressure is normal as well," Chopper said before pulling out a needle. "I need to take a blood sample."
"What are you two doing?!" Luffy demanded.
"It's not like you to not fight without a reason!" Usopp said.
"I have a reason!" Luffy said. "Eri's in a wheelchair, remember? I don't want to cause a big fight around her if I can help it! Unless they have hurt her, I'm ordering you all to not fight all out! Just do enough to help escape with her!"
"Luffy has a point," Brook said. "This isn't like rescuing one of us. Eri is different. She needs to be handle differently in our escaped attempt. That is why I have to agree that Neo must go." The skeleton chuckled nervously when Law glared at him. "I'm only saying that Neo can better escape with Eri on her winds than the rest of us can in carrying her. Plus, we have her wheelchair to think about. That doesn't need to get damaged at all or left behind. We might not be able to find her a new one."
"Don't worry about that," Franky said. "If it does get damaged, I can easily build her a new one. It'll be super amazing!"
"That'll be great, Franky!" Luffy smiled.
"So who's going to go?" Sanji said. "I know it's obvious that Luffy, Law, and Neo are going."
"I think you and Zoro should also go," Nami said.
"Why us?" Zoro asked.
"Because you're our two other strongest members," Nami said. "We have no idea what kind of strength these men have."
"Then wouldn't it be better if one of them stays behind to help guard the ships?" Chopper asked.
"We'll have the rest of our crew and the Heart Pirates with us," Nami said. "Most of the Heart Pirates can stay on the sub and have it ready to dive if it's needed. Their stronger members can stay over here with us in case we needed them. Neo can give us a signal if we need to prepare for a hasty take off. The sub can dive underwater and we can escape with a Coop de Burst."
"All right!" Luffy slammed his fist into his palm. "We have a plan! Now let's-" His voice was cut off by a loud rumble of his stomach. He wrapped his arms around his protesting organ. "Eat! Sanji, I'm hungry! Meat!"
"He's back to normal," Nami said while Robin giggled.
"I already told you I have some food prepare!" Sanji said just seconds before Luffy dashed off to the kitchen. "Good grief."
"So how much longer until we reach the island?" Usopp asked.
"About fifteen minutes," Neo said, her eyes closed in concentration to feel out the location of the island.
…
It didn't take long, like usual, for Luffy to eat the lunch that Sanji had prepared for him. Once finished, he ran back out on the deck, licking his fingers as he went. He made his way upon the figurehead once more and looked out over the ocean. "Hey! Neo! How much farther now?!"
"Neo and Tra went back the sub," Nami said. "They're talking the plan over with their crew before come back here with those who are going to stay with us while you all go inland."
"Before leaving Neo did say that it was only about eight minutes before we arrive at the island," Robin's voice said.
"Just eight minutes," Luffy said. He narrowed his eyebrows. He had no idea what was going on with Eri, but her knew she was upset. He could feel it happened. He wished he knew why. But he had no idea. And he had no choice but to wait. This was the first time ever he felt like time had stopped. Well, that wasn't completely true. Time stopped for him once when he thought Sabo had died and then again when Ace did die. Those were horrible times. However, in some ways, this felt a lot worse. Though he didn't know why he felt like that. He could only assume it was because Eri wasn't like him, Sabo, Ace, or any other of his crewmembers. Eri was different. She was special. He wanted to be by her side to let her know that it would be all right. And soon he would be. Then he would never let anyone take her like that again.
It was the most painfully slow eight minutes of his life. But finally, finally, they made it to their destination. He could see the island coming closer. He punched his fist into his head and said, "All right! Let's do this! Neo!"
Neo summoned her wind crystal. Engulfing their group in her winds, she pulled them off of the deck of the Sunny and into the air.
"We'll be back soon," Sanji said. "Be sure to get the ships ready to leave when we do."
"You got it," Nami said.
"Hurry back!" Chopper called up.
"Don't get into too much trouble!" Brook added.
"Remember! Get her and get out!" Usopp reminded them.
"We'll be fine!" Luffy called back. "Come on, Neo! Fly us as fast as you can!"
"Fly how you want," Law said. "Don't listen to this idiot. You and our child are more important."
"Relax, Law," Neo said. "I'm in control. Huh?"
"What's wrong?" Law asked.
"I can sense the wind inside of the house," Neo said.
"Maybe a window's open," Zoro said.
"Possibly but I don't think so," Neo said. "It feels like it's only in this one particular room. I'm not sure but I think we should head right to that room."
"If your instincts are telling you that, then head right for it," Law said.
Neo nodded. Picking up on her winds, she took them around to the other side of the building. When she found the room where the wind was in she pointed to it. "There it is!"
"Let's go!" Luffy shouted.
…
Eri sat quietly while she picked at the now cold fish on her plate. She didn't feel like eating. She wasn't hungry at all and her mind was too distracted by her practice sessions yesterday and this morning. It happened again. She tried to float the ball but wasn't able to without freaking out and caused herself to shoot back towards the wall. And still she had no idea why this was happening. She couldn't figure it out. There was no reason for her to be afraid of the wind, yet she was. Sure they lived on an island and had their fair share of storms that passed by. However, their house was strong enough to with stand the storms that did come. She never felt them at all. When one did blow through, someone would always move her into one of the many well build rooms of the house before it hit or shortly after. All of these particular rooms were reinforced when built. They were also built so she wouldn't be anywhere near windows or doors. She was protected, trapped with in the so called safe walls of her home.
It was becoming frustrating. She had an irrational fear. She had never been hurt by the wind in any kind of way. So why? Why was she so scared of controlling the wind? Was it because she was always so protected by her family? Could she have some bizarre fear of new things because she's never been allowed to experience life before?
She shook her head. No, that couldn't be it. She wanted to be free after all. And what better way to obtain freedom than controlling the wind? It literally went wherever it pleased. It did whatever it wanted. It could be a gentle breeze, cooling off people and the planet or it could be gale force winds that ripped an entire island apart. To her it seemed and felt like the ultimate freedom. A freedom she had at her fingertips.
"You really should eat," said Pratt.
"I'm not hungry," Eri said.
"It's not good to skip meals," Pratt said.
Eri felt like rolling her eyes. He was sounding like her so called protective parents. She didn't care about food right now. She was too confused. Besides, skipping an occasional meal wouldn't and never hurt anyone.
"Please eat something," Pratt said.
She mentally sighed. She really didn't want him here. And really had no idea why he was staying with her. He appeared to be more around since her issue appeared yesterday followed by that strange dream she had. Her eyes rolled at the memory of him being so gentle with her. There was no possible way he actually cared about her. She wasn't going to let herself fall for it despite the small lingering hope in the back of her mind that kept asking if it was possible that she would turn against Boss and those other two and help her escape. She stole a quick glance at him. He wasn't looking at her. He was staring down at his empty plate and looked to be thinking about something. She figured her was probably trying to figure out something else to say that would get her to eat.
It never came. Before either of them could think of something else to say, Boss had entered into the room. With one hand remaining on the door handle he placed his other on his hip. His lips curling down into a frown when he saw her plate was still full. He said, "You didn't eat."
"I'm not hungry," she said.
"You should eat," Boss said. "You need to remain strong to pull this off."
Eri sighed. This guy didn't really care about her health, not that she cared. He only wanted her to remain strong so she could carry out his will. She clenched the fabric of her dress. A fire lit up inside of her chest. She was really starting to dislike this man. He didn't even know her. She was healthy. And she was healthy because of all the health food that her parents forced down her throat. Getting sweets or any other kind of junk food practically never ever happened. In fact, she couldn't even remember the last time she got a real cookie, ice cream, and really any other such treat. The thought made her mouth water. She wanted to wrap the wind around herself and fly to the nearest theme park and eat junk until she was sick. But just as quickly as she though it, her body became cold with dread and fear of the wind. She tightened her hold on her dress, piercing the fabric with her nails.
"Eri, you're fine." She heard a voice saying. It took her a moment to realize it was Pratt that spoke. Still she wasn't able to come out of her fear. "I don't understand. Why does she become like this when she thinks about or when someone mentions the wind?"
"It doesn't matter," Boss said. "One way or another she will over come her fear and do as I say."
"I think there's more to it than we think," Pratt said. "We should talk to her about it."
"We don't have time to talk about it," Boss said. "And there's nothing to talk about."
"But-"
"Silence!" Boss boomed, causing Eri to jump. She placed her hand over her pounding heart. She didn't need to hear him shout like that. She was on edge enough as it was. "I won't hear any more about this! I didn't bring her here so we could all speak about our feelings! She has no choice or say in what happens here! She will take us to Anemone whether she likes it or not! Now, she has five minutes to eat and get to the training room!"
Eri jumped again when the door slammed. She looked up to see that she and Pratt were once again the only ones in the room.
"That guy," Pratt grumbled as he saw back down.
"Why do you work for him?" Eri found herself asked. Instantly she felt her cheeks heat up from the open question. She hadn't meant to ask it. It just rolled off her tongue.
"Sometimes I wonder that myself," Pratt said.
Eri opened her mouth to ask another question, but she quickly shut it when he looked at her.
"You can talk to me if you want," Pratt said.
"No," Eri replied. Talking to him or any of the others was not on her to do list unless she absolutely had to. Before long, her five minutes was up. Her food still laid untouched on her plate as Pratt pulled her away from the table. She didn't care. She still wasn't hungry. Only the sound of his boots tapping on the wooden floor passed between them while he pushed her down the slightly dark hall to the training room.
Pratt opened the door and pushed her in. Like the day before, Boss was patiently waiting for her to come here. Without a word, Pratt rolled her in front of him boss then left the room.
Eri glanced over at a window. Softly, she said, "I don't want to do this."
"You don't have a choice," Boss said. "Now hold out your hands so I can take off the bracelets."
Eri didn't move.
"Come on," Boss said. "We don't have all day. Don't make me repeat myself."
Eri flinched. As if under their own power, her hands lifted off her lap. Her heart and head pounded hard. So hard she thought that they both were going to explode. The boss man reached out for her wrists. Just as he was about to clamp the voice blocking talismans on her wrists glass shattered and rained down on the floor.
"What the heck?!" Boss hissed.
"Luffy!" Eri cried upon seeing her friend.
"Eri!" Luffy shouted. He bolted for her. "I've come to save you!"
"You're not taking her!" Boss said. He tossed the talismans down on the floor. They clanked angrily at the treatment before wobbling to a stop.
"Get out of my way!" Luffy, not wasting any time, encased his right fist with his Armament Haki and smashed it in the boss's face. The man flew backwards, his body flying through the wall and into the next room across the hall. He then ran over to Eri. "Hey! Are you all right?! Did they hurt you?!"
"No." Eri shook her head. "I'm fine."
"Then we should be going," Law said.
"Yeah!" Luffy nodded. "Eri, this is Neo. She's going to fly us out of here. You don't have to be scared. She's really good at controlling the wind."
"She can control the wind?" Eri turned her eyes to Neo for a second before looking at the light blue crystal that hovered near her.
"You can talk later about it," Zoro said upon hearing footsteps thundering down the hall. "We need to go now unless you want to get caught up in a fight."
"No," Luffy said. "Let's go."
Neo nodded. She pulled Eri into her winds and lifted them back out the window.
Eri's eyes widened at how high they were. Her nerves settled when Luffy's hand found its way to her shoulder. She turned to his bright smile.
"See? Neo's good at controlling the wind," Luffy said.
"Yeah. I guess so," Eri said. With in a few second, their small group had landed on the deck of the Sunny.
"Let's go!" Luffy ordered.
"You got it, Captain!" Franky yelled. "Get ready for a Coupe De Burst!"
Eri wondered what they were talking about.
"Hold on," Luffy said.
Eri looked around. She found that all of them were grabbing on to different parts of the ship. Before she could question it a loud pop caused the ship to go sailing. A startled cry left her lips. She could feel her body and wheelchair slipping on the woodened deck. She closed her eyes tight, expecting to get thrown off. When her body didn't go flying, she opened her eyes to find the blue haired girl still had her crystals out and have them floating in the air. Her head spun. Feeling the day taking hold of her, she let her eyes close and blacked out.