A/N: So I ran into a wall called writer's block that knocked all the eloquence from my head....:( I apologize, but this update is late and the next few won't be any easier to write. Sigh.
But here are some review replies, because I don't want to sift through my emails.
PrimeFan: Unfortunately, the whole 'Ace' conundrum will not be solved today.
ohlordies: it'll only continue to run on with the suspense and action (and epic-ness) because I'm trying to get to the climax. :)
Reformation: Update!! here you go!
ChainOfDreams: Even though this is the fiftieth chapter, I'll never give up on this story :]
sentimentalreality: I'm trying to bring in all the supernovas but there are so many! raah!
Santoryuu-Zoro: horo horo of course! the story's getting more epic, omg!!
And for the 50th chapter I'll do something special, I guess. Just throw out a name and I'll build a mini story (like the background stories for Zoro and Robin and Sanji...etc...). It'll be included in the next chapter.
:) Enjoy!
---
Sailing didn't feel quite the same on the Thousand Sunny without Luffy around. Considering the size of the ship and crew, Zoro thought that it would have been easy to find a distraction or place where he could not think about his missing captain. However, forgetting such a memorable leader was difficult; it seemed even emptier without Tashigi, who they had dropped off on the mainland before departing. The lion's head looked oddly empty without Luffy hanging off of it; the mikan grove was quiet without the constant disturbance of a light-fingered (but not so light-footed) thief who stole between the trees for a precious morsel of the sweet fruit; the kitchens were dark, as Sanji only cooked a fraction of the food that he usually did without their official glutton and had little need to protect his kingdom's spoils from a marauding pirate…
The only safe haven seemed to be the crow's nest, and that was only because it had served as a library as well as a look-out and weight room. It has been dreary these last few months, Zoro thought morosely as he pumped iron absently. Are you okay, Luffy?
He looked outside and saw the other ships keeping their distance from one another. It was surprising that such an enormous fleet would have been able to simply waltz out of the European waters without so much as a tiny scuffle, but Zoro supposed that the Marines were still recovering from the devastating London loss.
He looked out at the horizon on a whim and saw a butter-yellow flag waving from the Moby Dick. He grabbed the Den Den Mushi that linked to the speaker system and called into it, "Land-ho!"
"The climate feels…different," Nami said suspiciously as they drew closer to the land mass.
"What do you mean?" Usopp asked as the rest of the crew emerged from the galley. "It's a bit warm for the season, but it isn't that unusual, is it?"
Nami shook her head in disappointment at this response. "The air is much more humid than the last region we sailed to—I think we've been taken further down south. The water is a different shade of blue, and…" She pointed to strange figures sticking out of the water. "I don't remember seeing mangroves last time. Plus, the sands here are white, not brown."
"Nami-chan is right," Robin corroborated. "We are definitely in a different region. It is doubtful that the revolutionaries would have chosen such an arid and barren place as we had landed last time."
"Oy!" someone called from a ship to their left. They looked and saw Bonney waving at them. "The captains' ships are supposed to sail to the front and dock with Whitebeard."
---
Zoro hoisted his swords over his shoulders to keep them out of the water and slung his boots—tied at the laces—over each end as he jumped into the ocean and began to wade towards the shore. The water is warm, he thought. It's early spring, but it's kind of…pleasant, here.
The crews were all trudging in the same general direction on the beach, and Zoro lingered near the back of the group as they moved. Since they had no way of knowing what kind of enemies they might encounter, he preferred to stay where he could keep an eye on everyone.
"Where are we going?" he heard Sanji ask Bonney. Zoro chuckled; the first time Sanji had met Bonney, he'd been both repulsed by her eating habits and attracted by her physique.
"Apparently Shanks has a place he goes to whenever he's in the area," Bonney replied tersely before moving away. She was not too fond of the amorous chef.
They kept walking through the ocean, which quickly gave way to a salty marsh. Zoro swatted away mosquitoes the size of his thumb away as they moved and he swore that he saw the leathery scales of a crocodile disturbing the murky water once in a while. Given the climate and flora here, I'd guess that this place would breed disease like crazy… After a few hours, they found themselves on firmer ground and saw a round clearing with the ancient remnants of a fire pit and the gutted skeletons of a few huts. Shanks's crew was already gathered, inspecting the clearing in clear disappointment as they ran their hands over the old wood.
"The bandits have already taken everything of value," Ben remarked as they gathered around. "However, it should not take too long to rebuild everything…the wood here is scarce, but the climate is favorable and the wood should not be too difficult to gather. We'll need to split up into parties to get wood for building and the fire, food, and fresh water." Everyone quickly split up according to their abilities, and Zoro went off on his own in search of the materials he needed.
As he moved deeper into what was quickly becoming another foggy swamp, he didn't hear the softly padding footsteps following behind him, masked by the sinking earth.
---
"What are these bandits you spoke of?" Robin's question made Ben raise an eyebrow as he regarded the archeologist carefully.
"Why do you ask?" he replied as he looked up from the frayed rope he was mending. "They do not concern us, nor will they bother us."
"It would be prudent of us to be aware of any possible threats to…the mission." Robin smiled innocuously as she waved a hand, and a line of arms and hands appeared to help him finish the rest of the mending. "After all, I was not aware that many people lived on this continent, aside from the natives. Are they the bandits?"
Ben shook his head as he tied a seaman's knot firmly; she realized that he had been weaving a fishing net. "No, the natives and foreigners normally follow the golden rule: do unto others as you wish to be done to yourself. Although there are a few warring tribes—even some, I've heard, with the devil's own power—most of them keep to themselves. The bandits are groups of roving pirates who have realized how difficult it is to survive here, yet cannot bring themselves to take the long journey back home. They are tough enough to subside on what they can steal, but are unable to create a permanent and peaceful existence here."
"So other pirate crews have made it here, then?"
"Oh, of course…sometimes it's luck, or raw power and skill…almost none of them make it here intact, and many fall apart after their captains succumb to one disease or another sort of accident." He began to tie heavy stones to the edge of the net, deftly and swiftly. "This is not the first time they have done something like this. It always happens after we leave, and they have enough time to cover their tracks. I'm sure that everyone in our group is strong enough to fend off even a group of them."
Shanks ambled over, dragging an enormous crocodile behind him as he laughed heartily. "Ah, this beauty nearly caught me by surprise," he cackled gleefully. "She'll feed us well though. Have you ever had crocodile meat before, Robin?"
She looked at the scaly monster on the ground in curiosity. "I can't say that I have. However…" Something glimmered, and she moved to inspect the crocodile carefully. "There seems to be something affixed to its tail." Robin knelt and held it up for the two men to see. "See? It seems to be a bracelet of some kind, although I am unsure as to whether the design around it is some form of language."
"Let me see." Shanks peered at it closely. "Hm…ah, how simple. Have you any wax?" She nodded and rummaged in her pack for a candle she kept in case she wished to read at night. "If you would find a broad strip of wood or bark, then could you melt it into a broad sheet?" She followed his instructions and watched in fascination as he took the wax-covered wood from her hands and pressed the bracelet into the rapidly cooling substance, rolling it until the entire design was imprinted. "There we go." It formed a message in a language that Robin vaguely recognized.
"This is English, isn't it?" she asked. "I am just learning it myself to translate various texts…it is getting easier, after having learned French and Italian."
"A language expert, eh?" Shanks remarked. "Yes, this is English. Read it, Robin-chan."
She smiled at the affection use of '-chan' as she began to read. Her face grew more serious as she read, though. "'Wolf to Queen—Wyrm success. Grove 1.' What on earth can this mean?"
Shanks looked at the message and pulled out a stick of charcoal to record the message on another strip of bark at hand. "I don't know, but I intend to find out. Ben, stay here and let the others know that we've gone to find out what this means." Ben nodded, looking up from his work.
"Be careful."
---
Zoro looked around as he hoisted the deer he had found wandering nimbly in the swamp over his shoulder. I'm sure someone's out there, but who? Where? Try as he could, he could not identify the location of the person's chi, only that it was there somewhere. "Come out," he called, dropping the deer and placing a hand on his swords. "I know you're out there."
---
"So, Shanks-san, are there any other dangers we should know about?" Robin asked as they moved through the swamp for clues concerning the message. Shanks's eyes continued to rove, but he was able to speak without breaking his concentration.
"There are several factors that play into a man's survival in the new world," Shanks said, prodding at a clump of mud with his foot; it broke, revealing an egg. "Oof, sorry. First, there's disease. That cannot be helped—this land holds many animals and plants as well as sicknesses that have never been seen in the old world. There are also the natives, although they are rather unpredictable in their temperaments. The other rogue bandits are here too, but the most dangerous ones are the revolutionaries. I'm not entirely sure what they do if you do chance upon them, but I have had a few rookies in the crew wander off and never return."
"Do you think the bracelet has anything to do with them?"
"It has to be them. The natives have their own dialects, and they would not know English well enough to have had that kind of a message. The pirates would not have the finesse to attach that kind of a bracelet so tightly to the croc's tail. Furthermore…" Shanks brushed his hand against the trunk of a tree, and Robin noticed that the bark seemed to have a strange pattern on it. She tilted her head slightly and stood back.
"12?" she read. "The number is curved so naturally into the bark that it's very easy to miss." She looked around. "It looks like 11 is in that direction so…just a moment." Shanks watched, bemused, as she crossed her arms. A flurry of eyes popped out on the trees in every direction as she inspected the area. "I think I found 1, but it's quite a distance away," she finally said, releasing her ability with the uncrossing of her arms. "Shall we go, or should we call backup?"
"Put an eye, ear, and a mouth on every Supernova and captain within your radius." Shanks went up to the tree and picked up a shiny, round pebble. "I've been dropping these every few feet, so if they meet up with Ben then they'll know where to go."
"Such foresight," Robin complimented him with a smile. "Very well." She closed her eyes in concentration as she went to work.
---
"I know you're out there." Zoro's words echoed hollowly and seemed to mock him; there was no response. "Alright, I gave you fair warning. It's a good thing I was on the lookout for firewood. 108 Pound Hou!" The flashing swords sent a ripple across the forest in all directions and he looked around for a decapitated corpse. He looked down in shock when a mouth formed on his chest.
"Swordsman-san, we'll need you to return. We found a clue." Robin's voice spoke out softly, and Zoro grumbled as he saw an ear and an eye pop out alongside the mouth.
"Just a sec," he hissed. "Someone's following me."
"Oh?" Eyes popped out all over his body, creating a strange blinking pattern.
"Oi! This is really weird," he protested. "How do I know you haven't got an eye down my pants?"
Robin chuckled. "I didn't think you were the type to go commando."
"Hey!"
"Behind you. Watch out!" Zoro spun around, and his swords collided with his opponent with a mighty crash.
---
Ben picked up the last pebble and grinned at his captain. "Hansel and Gretel was a good story to know. What's up, captain? Did you find the lads we're looking for?" Behind him, a long line of pirates followed from all the way back to the campsite. "We have a few stragglers, but this should be everyone."
Shanks nodded. "We might have. We found that the trees might refer to groves, but Robin is contacting the rest—" His words were cut off as Robin cried out.
"Behind you. Watch out!"
They all heard the sound of combat in the distance, muffled by the distance and the trees.
"Zoro's not far," Robin gasped as she released the sensory organs she had sprouted on Zoro. A flurry of hands pointed in the right direction. "He had already wandered to grove 1!"
Nami and the other Mugiwaras trotted to the front from the back. "What's this about Zoro I hear?" she panted, clutching a stitch to her side. "When we realized that he was the only one that hadn't been accounted for, we ran as fast as we could." They heard another crashing sound in the distance. "Oh, you need say no more. I think we all get it. C'mon guys, let's go!"
