What if Skyloft was in the land of Skypie how would this effect Groose, Zelda and Link? How would this effect the Straw Hats? A mix of Legend of Zelda and One Piece some characters and concepts are going to be switched. Major spoilers ahead if I get that far.
(heavy edits and consolidating some chapters to be longer)
A few days before Straw Hats arrive
Skyloft was a quiet village the main attraction was the bazaar where various goods were sold. Near by was the Pumpkin Café famous for its soup. There was also one small school run by an old soldier who trained all the young lads in the village. Everything had a peaceful cloud look decorated with various flowers.
A young man tossed and turned in his bed as a nightmare consumed him. The sounds of a battle echoed around Link's head as he yelled. He was desperately looking for someone, but he could not make out who. Suddenly the battle dropped into silence and a monster covered in thick scales roared as Link found himself falling from the sky right into the creature's mouth.
Link was wearing a tan shirt with brown and red stripes going across the bottom. His pants were a plain brown color held up with a black belt the buckle had a symbol of a red loftwing. Notably he was lacking wings and the normal hair fashion of Skyloft.
With a jolt Link woke up as a letter slapped into his face. His loftwing Crimson squawked at him through the window. The letter reminded him of his promise to Zelda all those years ago as he read.
'Wake up sleepyhead! Did you forget about your dare with Groose? If you win, I'll meet you at our special place, make sure you don't get caught though, he would be furious!" Zelda
How did he get into these messes? Link vaguely remembered going out to drink with Zelda and Groose at the Pumpkin Café. Of course, Groose kept teasing him that Link did not have wings like the other skyloftians like always. Zelda tried to intervene, and he ended up finally shouting into Groose's face.
"OH YEAH YOU COULDN'T BEAT ME AT A RACE THROUGH THE SACRED FOREST ANY DAY OF THE WEEK!"
"BRING IT ON BUT NO FLYING FIRST ONE TO OUR MEETING PLACE WINS!" Groose had shouted right back.
Groose was wearing a plain green tunic over brown pants. As usual his red hair was set in a perfect pompadour. His wings were also proudly shining as he probably combed them every day.
"THE WINNER GETS TO SPEND TIME WITH ZELDA ALONE AT THE SACRED CEREMONY!" Groose proudly exclaimed.
Zelda was wearing a simple white dress with her bow slung onto the back behind her own wings. Her blonde hair was somehow in two braids and in two antennae.
"WHO DECIDED THAT ALL OF THE SUDDEN YOU CAN BOTH COME TO MY COMING-OF-AGE CEREMONY YOU DUMMIES!" Zelda yelled into the conversation knocking a large goose egg lump on both of their heads.
Both boys grinned knowingly at Zelda she loved the idea of a competition as much as they did. They just had to make sure they were not caught.
Link hurriedly grabbed his shield and sword passed down from Ganfar when they had parted ways. The shield had a crimson bird emblazoned on it along with the sacred triangles. It was reinforced with a little bit of sea prism along the edges. The sword had a simple purple pommel and the triangles also. It was forged with simple steel.
He often snuck into the skyberets camp or even watched the guerillas fight so he could train. Despite that he never earned the SkyKnights respect because of his wings. It was very rare to capture a Loftwing let alone tame one and still Link felt like an outsider even to his friends. His dream of becoming a knight was useless but still he fought every time the Shandians would invade the sacred forest. Maybe that was why Groose was so bitter, he felt that Link was defending his own home. Groose had also grown up beside Zelda before he had met her and made his promise. Groose just did not understand that Link did not want to fight over the land, he just wanted to make sure no one was hurt.
Shaking his head at the memory Link rushed out to the very edge of Skyloft and jumped whistling on his way down. He would never get tired of the sheer freedom he felt as Crimson came rushing underneath to catch him and lazily soared closer to the main city of Skypiea it was a short hour flight. Link enjoyed every minute of it not even bothering to strategize as he expertly somersaulted onto the main square right in front of Zelda and Groose who were both waiting in front of the statue of Vearth on Lovely Street on Angel Island.
"All right Zelda what are the rules this time?" he asked rolling his eyes at Groose who was posing in the background.
"You two start at the milky road River of Trials the first person to the altar wins but Link you cannot use your Loftwing to just fly over everything. You know what happens if you get caught." Zelda exclaimed.
Both Link and Groose sweat dropped as they thought of the Vassals also guarding that area. Neither of them was willing to back down Groose because of pride, and Link because he had something to prove.
"I'll be following behind to watch and to see who the winner is, let's borrow a ride and start." Zelda said as the made their way to Angel beach it was the closest location to the Sacred Ground and happened to rent out Wavers.
Conis and her father Pagaya happily shouted after them "Be careful!" waving from their repair and waver shop. Of course, they had no idea the friends were headed straight for trouble.
Conis was a young lady with a long dress decorated with flowery symbols along the left side, her white cloud fox Suu always curled up on her shoulder. Her hair was in a long braid and in the usual style. Paquya had a bushy brown beard that covered his mouth and short antenna on his bald head.
Soon the group found themselves at the entrance to their wavers idling quietly. "All right here's the plan we go as fast as possible to avoid being noticed if we don't make too much noise the vassals should leave us alone. We back each other up if we get caught. We each choose the same challenge, so we don't get separated." Link said deadly serious if it came down to the wire, he would defend his friends with his life.
"Ready set go!" Zelda called quietly carefully following in her own waver and then leaping onto her skyskates to hover over the river her bow ready.
Groose let his hair writhe along his head, while Link had his shield ready. Soon they came to the scythe section the deadly blades crossing their path. Groose grew out his hair further and let one of its lengths catch the ropes tangling up the traps.
"YEAH, baby the power of the hair-hair fruit!" he shouted over.
Link meanwhile used his natural athleticism to dodge each one relying on the maneuverability of the waver it was just like flying. His shield easily caught one blade and deflected it away.
Zelda was calling from behind "Scythe from the left Link!" or "Duck Groose." The boys obeying her words without question.
The same thing happened as they encountered the hungry sea lampreys. This time Link sliced some of them up with his sword leaping into the air to meet them and then landing again on his ride. Groose sharpened his hair into sword like points and pierced the fish bodies. Zelda supported them both with her bow the arrows flying with deadly accuracy.
With the way clear it was easy enough for her to catch up just before they saw the four doorways each displaying its challenge.
"Zelda?' Link asked relying on her perception to sense anyone nearby.
"We go through the string challenge it's clear." She replied.
Link growled beneath his breath he had a grudge against that man but hurried through the tunnel.
The group hurried through the rest of the forest keeping an eye out for trouble. The race was in earnest as the altar soon came in sight. Groose and Link were side by side as they grinned at each other. Groose tried to trip Link up with his hair but he easily avoided it. They were going so fast when they finally touched the altar that anyone seeing it would probably declare it a tie.
"Tie, you guys' better luck next time." Zelda laughed at their antics. They had many such races and almost always ended in a tie.
"Meet me at the Godess statue Link." Zelda exclaimed leaving them in the dust, Groose had an abashed look on his face.
"Fair is fair Link I think you won by a hair. I'm going home see you tomorrow" He said winking at his friend.
Later Link and Zelda end up atop the Godess statue.
"Link do you remember that promise all those years ago." Zelda asked her feet dangling off the edge.
"Of course, I'll never forget that!" Link exclaimed
"I have something for you." Zelda said bringing out and elaborate sailcloth embroidered with the triforce and a stylized loft wing.
"So that you can always fall with style when you catch me!" She said mischievously as she leaped off the statue.
Link barely hesitated he used the sailcloth to slow his fall so he could catch Zelda in midair and lower them gently to the ground. Except Zelda somehow ended up on top of him uncomfortably close when they hit the ground.
Link gasped in surprise gently stroking Zelda's cheek "Are you alright." He asked.
"Ah-hem" a voice interrupted the moment as they both scrambled to their feet. It was Wyper glaring at Link especially.
"Zelda I forbid you from coming here again especially with that wingless one."
"But" Zelda protested her poster saying she was barely containing anger.
"I'm you chieftain that is my final word on the matter now we are going home."
Zelda muttered a goodbye and whispered something under her breath before resigning herself to walk away.
Link hurried away before Wyper could do something worse, going back to Skyloft to rest from the long day.
Day of strawhats arrival
Link immediately went to Ganfar to ask to go on patrol with him. Everyday there was the same answer "When you are strong enough you may follow me."
Link muttered under his breath and waited for the knight to go over the horizon. He called Crimson and flew behind anyway. He was just in time to see Ganfar defending a small ship from one of the guerillas. Link grinned it was time to surprise some blue sea people.
He flew up above the ship and skydived onto the deck "What you need is a guide, not some old man." He blinked as he realized there was a foot, a sword, and a fist ready at his throat. These people were the strangest he had ever seen.
A few minutes earlier
The Going merry had finally came to rest after flying from the knock up stream. The Ship had a prow shaped like a sheep's head with a makeshift collar and horns. The main deck featured a small cabin holding the kitchen. Above the cabin was a grove of tangerines. Above the mast was a giant sail with a skull and cross bones bearing the famous straw hat with a pirate flag to match. Further back was the smaller yellow and red striped sail for tacking.
Just a few hours earlier they had avoided a falling ship, visited the island of Jaya, and met a man searching for a lost treasure Monteblanc Cricket.
Everyone gasped and coughed as they recovered from the shock. Of course, the captain Monkey D. Luffy was first to recover. He was wearing his usual red vest and shorts with his straw hat thrown back to hang behind. His black hair was a spiky mess from the wind.
"Hey you guys look! Look where you are! Luffy called excited about a new place.
The view was amazing with white clouds stretching out in all directions almost like the sea.
Rornoa Zoro the first mate and swordsman got up water dripping off his face. "Blast what happened? We lose anybody?" he huffed. He had on a white shirt and dark black pants. His three swords hung in a green sash. To match he had a green bandanna wrapped around his arm and green hair.
"We are sailing on the clouds?" Nami the navigator asked. She was wearing a striped halter top with a super short skirt. She had short red hair and a tattoo of an orange and pinwheel on her right shoulder.
Usopp the sniper was still lying on the deck sleeping. He had a polka dotted bandanna on his head and brown coveralls. He also had a white sash around his waist and a pack was always around his shoulder.
When Chopper suggested giving Usopp mouth to mouth. Sanji the chef shouted, "Okay I'll give Nami mouth to mouth." With hearts in his eyes. Sanji was wearing his black suit over a blue collared shirt. His blonde hair was parted to cover one of his eyes displaying one curly cued eyebrow.
Chopper the doctor was checking over the sniper and determined that he had just fainted. Chopper was in his small reindeer form his usual red hat sitting on his head. He also had a cute blue nose and red pants on.
"Idiot" Zorro muttered.
Finally, there was Robin the archeologist who was helping Nami examine the compass the logpose. She had short black hair and piercing blue eyes. She was wearing a yellow halter top with a black pattern on it and long dark pants.
"This must be the middle of the empire cloud the logpose is still pointing up." Robin hypothesized. The compass used magnetic fields to lock onto different islands. Resetting after a certain time period.
In the background Sanji was yelling at Zorro again
"Did you just call me an idiot?"
"I forget." Zoro replied right back.
Usopp finally got up and announced, "First course of action Captain Usopp will go for a swim." Even taking his shirt off for the experiment.
"Hey, be careful we don't know anything about this ocean." Sanji called over. Off course Luffy and Chopper were cheering Usopp on.
"All oceans are the same!" Usopp laughed manically as he leaped over the railing.
There was hardly any resistance as the visibility dropped and he fell deeper and deeper.
Above the straw hats realized he was not coming up.
"I was thinking does this ocean have a bottom?" Robin asked calmly.
"Did he fall through the clouds? I'm going to stretch as far as I can." Luffy yelled leaping up. His rubber body letting his arm go deep. "I can't see through the clouds!" he glanced at Robin
"Leave that to me. Ojus Fleur" Robin replied as she used her power to blossom eyes along the captains arm. "There he is! Seis Fleurs!" this time Robin sprouted hands "Okay pull him up!" she called
Surprisingly Luffy was struggling with a weight as he reeled in not only Usopp but a giant skysquid. Even before Nami and Chopper finished yelling Zoro was already leaping up to meet the beast "It's not so scary." He scoffed as he landed. The creature collapsed having been cut in half with one slash.
Finally, there was a moment for the straw hats to examine the creatures. "That octopus was like a balloon I guess we should think of this as a sea. "Sanji explained thinking about how the thing could be cooked.
Somehow Usopp managed to get a flounder type fish in his pants. Chopper was muttering about how the sky island was scary. Robin was just as excited to examine the skyflounder.
"Noland mentioned this in his diary, in order to survive in in this bottomless ocean the fish are flat and balloon like. Their bodies are like airfoils since the air is less buoyant than water. "Robin referred to the old tale that had led to their hunt for the sky island in the first place.
"They even have sail like feathers and teeth like carnivores." Nami said. Before they even finished Sanji had sauteed it and Luffy had scarfed it down.
Unnoticed Chopper was watching through a pair of binoculars seeing another ship and a person in the distance.
"Listen I saw a ship, but it is gone now. It looked like a man attacked it and he's coming this way! There is a bull running over the clouds, we might be in big trouble." Chopper yelled.
Everyone turned to see a man running over the clouds wearing an elaborate mask resembling a boar. Even as Sanji yelled for him to stop the man was relentless. "I'm going to get rid of you." The stranger said. He easily carried a large cannon and shield. All he had on was short grass like pants.
Taken by surprise Sanji, Luffy and Zoro all took heavy hits collapsing onto the ground.
"You wimp there are three of you and only one of him!" Nami yelled. Usopp was pretending to be down and muttering "sky island is scary" over and over.
Before the stranger could attack again someone said "Enough." An armored knight fought the figure off with a few well-placed blows. While the crew wondered who the man was the guerilla finally retreated.
"I am the sky knight Ganfar." He said revealing himself to be an old man with a long white beard. He was wearing what looked like old heavy armor with a helmet and was wielding a lance.
Nami was on a rant again "What the heck? You guys were pathetic. He clobbered all three of you."
"Thank you for saving us" Chopper said giving a cute little bow.
"Um yes, I had no choice it was my duty." The knight replied.
"How could I lose like that?" Sanji lamented.
"I can hardly move" Luffy complained.
"That is probably because the air is so thin." Robin thought aloud
"Now that you mention it you must be blue sea people from below the clouds. This is the white sea which floats 23,000 feet above the blue sea and higher still is the white white sea 35,000 above us in the upper stratum. Most blue sea people can't tolerate these altitudes." Ganfar explained
As soon as the knight finished, he was flabbergasted as Luffy and Zorro declared they were already used to the atmosphere.
"Who was the man who attacked us?" Chopper asked.
"One moment no doubt you have many questions but let's talk business first. I am a soldier of fortune this sea holds many dangers. Those unfamiliar with sky fighting are targeted by guerrillas and become food for the sky fish. But I can save you from them. One whistle for five million extols. "The knight explained.
There was a moment of silence because no one had an idea what he was talking about.
"Don't be stingy! That's an incredible bargain! I won't go one extol lower I have to make a living!" Ganfar declared.
"What the heck in an extol? And what's this about a whistle? Sanji asked.
"Didn't you people come by way of the peak of high west? Then you must've got here by island hopping. Don't tell me you rode that beastly sea current!" Ganfar said.
"We didn't have to ride the current. "Nami sweat dropped.
"Want is the big deal? We made it." Luffy asked.
"We were almost killed! We should've gotten more information! "Nami yelled back anima teeth showing.
"You're lucky you did not lose any crewmembers. The other routes are different, but they all have their perils. The knock up stream is one of those gambles where either everyone makes it, or no one does. There aren't many who'd take the risk especially these days. You have to have both courage and skill you're worthy see dogs." The knight exclaimed impressed.
Usopp took the opportunity to brag "It was all thanks to me actually! The others were all in tears and had given up, but I said never fear I'll get us there!"
Ganfar did not even pay attention but dropped his whistle on the deck "Here is one whistle blow it once and I will come down from the heavens to save you! By rights you should pay me five million extols in sky currency for that. But you may have that one for free in honor of your courage. You can use it to summon me anytime."
"For I am Ganfar the skyknight with my partner Pierre" All the strawhats watched in astonishment as Pierre transformed from a horse to a Pegasus. "Piere is a bird with the power of the horse-horse fruit!" the effect was rather thrown off as Pierre was pink with blue polka dots and was rather ugly.
"Good luck brave ones!" Ganfar called as he flew away.
"What a strange creature but we did not really learn very much from him did we?" Robin remarked the others agreeing.
As they were talking a young man dropped from the sky right onto the deck, rather jumpy from the experience Luffy , Sanji, and Zoro all prepared attacks.
"What you need is a guide, not some old man." He spoke. Link held up his hands sweat dropping a little not expecting the reaction. "I will even not charge an extol." Link said figuring Ganfall had tried his usual spiel.
"I'm Nami welcome aboard!" the red-haired woman said berry signs in her eyes. Everyone introduced themselves as they finally relaxed.
"Um, how do we go higher up? I want to blow the whistle so badly." Luffy pouted.
"That is for emergencies besides the entrance is right there." Link pointed to the giant cloud waterfall in the distance.
"That settles it then we sail forwards!" Luffy called with enthusiasm.
Soon the ship sailed closer to the cloudfall before seeing a cloudbank of the thicker clouds in the way. Nami suggested coming to a stop briefly to investigate.
"This you have to discover for yourselves I think you'll love it." Link remarked grinning,
Luffy nodded and to Link's surprise stretched his arm out to touch one of the fluffy clouds and bounce back.
"Oh, I should mention if you have devil fruit powers like my friend does you can't swim in the thicker areas either." Link said casually. Everyone who had powers sweat dropped. Link was referring to the how devil fruits gave extraordinary powers but at the cost of being unable to swim.
"But…" Link leaped onto the bouncy clouds "You can bounce on these all you want." He laughed at everyone's expressions.
Luffy, Chopper, and Usopp quickly joined him calling excitedly on how fun and soft the clouds were.
"Guys I need you to call directions the ship cannot pass through these clouds!" Nami called from below. The boys made their way to the top to see a giant heavenly gate peeking through the maze of clouds. Link made sure to pay attention and guide the ship to just outside the gate.
It was an amazing sightseeing a huge waterfall drop down and then bounce up again. It made room for a huge archway that proudly exclaimed "Heaven's Gate"
Link could barely contain his laughter as he heard the crew discussing whether they were dead and in heaven. He quick ducked into the doorway of the cabin and whispered to Nami "Hey, um you're expected to pay a toll of about 5,00 berries per person." Next thing he knew the deck was in his face and he had a pounding headache. "Ooff pirates right." He had almost forgotten what Ganfar had told him about pirates because the crew seemed more goofy than murderous.
Link was just in time to see Amazon the gate inspector "If you want to go up to the upper stratum the entrance fee is one billion extols per person." Even to Link's hazy mind that seemed a bit much.
The crew shouted at seeing an angel for the first time "An angel isn't she a little pruny to be an angel? What is an extol? UM we don't have any money." Everyone said in a jumbled mess.
"You may pass." The gatekeeper winked at them. But the choice is entirely your own." Amazon said smiling sweetly. "I'm neither a gatekeep nor a guardian, I'm merely asking what you wish to do."
Link was too concerned about being caught with pirates to think of warning the crew. He still had that giant lump on his head from earlier.
Astonished Luffy replied honestly "then we're passing through to the sky island! "
"I see seven of you right?" she asked. Link was furiously shaking his head at luffy and waving his arms.
"….Yeah how do we get up?" Luffy's reply was cut off as giant crab like claws emerged from under the boat. The claws grabbed the railing and whisked them up the windy roads higher up.
"Great I hope she did not see me; I don't need to be reported." Link said worried.
Indeed, as soon as the boat was out of earshot Amazon had picked up a receiver snail and reported "Eight people have illegally entered Godland Skypia render heaven's judgement." She smirked.