Chapter 111: Anthology of Time
As Garp walked away, he heard footsteps coming up behind him followed by a woman's voice. "Mr Garp...could I ask you a few questions?" Turning back, he expected to see luffy's girlfriend but instead he faced Nico Robin. "Ask away miss Robin, I'll answer truly as I can" he responded smiling. Taking a deep breath, robin reached into her satchel and pulled out her notebook flicking to a specific page, "luffy mentioned overhearing a conversation between you and your brother a while ago about ancient people called the Tembla, my question is simply; who were they and where did they live?"
The smile on Garp's face vanished instantly, replaced by abject horror. "Oh god! H-H-How much did luffy say he heard!" Now it was Robin's turn to be baffled, "I don't think he really understands the significance of what he heard, just that the name was all he remembered and that you were talking in hushed voices", she explained. Garp visibly relaxed, sighing deeply, "oh thank heavens for that". Wiping a hand across his forehead the vice admiral leant forwards and whispered, "that name is forbidden. People have been disappeared, extradited or killed for simply mentioning that word. All I know is that the Tembla were around at the same time as the Ancient Kingdom but separate from them. Please miss Robin, don't ask me anymore. The government has eyes and ears everywhere, as does the Republic; one wants to suppress history while the other wants the Secrets of the Past".
Robin frantically jotted down the response she got as well as the Garp's warning. "ERA versus Mariejois..." she mused, "I thought there was a non aggression pact in place..." The Vice admiral shook his head and took her aside into the shadows of the log cabin. "The Government has always feared the wizards of the western continents, and back when the Magic Council existed east and west were allies but now the Republic is growing in popularity and strength" Garp stated. "Each side knows a War is coming and as long as the Pact remains in place it is a reminder that neither side is strong enough yet".
Robin turned over further pages till she got to a particular bit about the man called 'Rocks'. "Who was rocks and why was he so feared around the world?" She desperately wanted to know this part, even if it wasn't related to her overall dream of learning the Void Century, it was still a moment in tie that was banned from public consumption. "Nathaniel Flint. Born in the continent of Solana eighty years ago, the bloodiest and most sadistic pirate in the world", Garp explained. "He was feared for two reasons: one public and the second private. One, he killed indiscriminately destroyed entire nations and bankrupted twenty celestial dragons to the point that those families committed seppuku out of shame".
Robin's eyes widened as she took in everything told to her, "and the second, private reason?" She encouraged. "Flint was, as far as the government could tell, was the last known descendant of the last Tembla family. The ponyglyghs are all that remains of whatever the ancient kingdom, and they are also the only thing that can tell of what truly the past was". "There's more isn't there..." Robin asked, staring into the old man's eyes. Garp shivered and turned away, "I've already told you to much..." He tried to walk away but was grabbed by ten arms sprouting from the ground, "please tell me" Robin stated, "My home of Ohara was destroyed looking too far into the past. I won't stop until I have done what they set out to do". Sitting back down on a pile of chopped wood, Garp took a black enamelled Ankh from his pocket and placed it in front of him, "this is from Ishgar. It predates Mariejois by nine thousand year, in an era long ago the ankh was seen as the key of life, and worshiped as the sign of the Primordial Dragon devil fruit". He then removed another totem, this time a small amethyst demon. "This on the other hand is an icon of the Primordial Oni devil fruit, also nine thousand years old but a sign of destruction".
"Where did you get them?" The archaeologist spoke, "and how have you managed to keep them?" A small smile appeared on the man's face as he tapped his nose, "it's best you don't know, the less people who know the better. But I will tell you this, the Scholars of Ohara were right. The past must be known no matter much it may hurt the present". "I tell you this as well..." Garp whispered. "My brother discovered something, deep in the New World, I do not know what but ever since he abandoned being an admiral, he's been collecting secrets and artefacts. I think that my brother may be close to discovering the ancient kingdom's lost island". Robin froze her writing as she looked up at the vice admiral, "if that's true then as an Emperor of the Sea that knowledge will be incredibly valuable to all persons wanting to sit the seas". "I never wanted my brother to loose faith in the government, but I won't lie and say I don't understand his reasons for doing so", Garp regretted.
"Monkey D James, the Dragon King..." Robin mused. "How did he manage to get so much of a knowledge gap over his rivals?" Garp groaned as he thought. "Your guess is as good as mine, my brother was always good at delving into subjects that he deemed in the public interest. But this... his motives are unclear, and that worries me. His brutal siege of Mariejois and now his pursuit of history—I fear for the future". Robin felt a chill sry down her spine at the thought of potentially historical valuable artefacts being used for malicious intentions whist at the same time she knew that Luffy held his great uncle I almost the same regard as 'Red Haired' Shanks, and she she knew that it would wound him to fight family.
"I should get back to the others", she spoke, "they'll be wondering where I've gone". She giggled rubbing the back of her head before placing her notebook back in her bag. She was just about to leave when a certain question made her freeze in shock. "You're in love with my grandson aren't you?" The ease and poise in Garp's voice startled her, rooting her to the spot her face bright red and her hands clammy with sweat. "I-I-I..." she stuttered, trying to come up with a plausible denial. "I saw it in your eyes when you took his arm and explained the world to him, they were soo full of light and joy, but you are older than him. By nearly ten years", Garp plainly stated, in a way emphatic made Robin's heart drop in realisation that any relationship with Luffy would be deeply inappropriate. "You're right I do love luffy. He saved me, gave me purpose to live after he destroyed my old way of living but he is with Nami, and I refuse to betray my friends trust simply because I can't let go of my own feelings". Robin felt tears running down her face as she voiced her love, and her acceptance of friendship rather than furthering herself. "You really are a splitting image of your mother", Garp interjected, "I arrested her for possession of illegal documents, but she unavoidably freed herself. This is about four years before Jaguar D Saul helped her escape back to Ohara".
Robin flinched at the mention of Saul; the manner of his death, sacrificing himself for her and then coming face to face with his killer years later. "Please don't talk about Saul..." she begged fighting off tears. Feeling partly responsible for her sorrow, Garp approached Robin and embraced her. "You're not the only one who misses him; me, Sengoku and Tsuru all joined the navy at the same time as him. We graduated together, and got promoted together". Robin wipes her tears away with her sleeve and looked back at the log cabin, thinking about the friends she had made, "I fulfilled my promise to him...I have friends—and I'm happy", she mumbled. "I approve of you, Nico Robin", Garp responded. "If luffy and nami break up, then I approve of you dating my idiot grandson. But for now just look out for him...promise me that?" Before she could reply, the vice admiral had placed a scroll in her hands, pushed himself up and was walking away. "You should read that when your alone, it should help you close in on the Void Century". Turning over the scroll in her hands, Robin noticed the acrimonious name of a county renowned for being the most brutalist theocratic in the New World; 'the Holy Empire of Seven'. "Ishgar huh..." she placed the document into he bag and then rejoined the party, all the while her mind raving about what the Republic was hiding.