One Piece: The Skull Pirates
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Arrival on Nameless Island - the Icy Scholar Appears!
"So," Jack said as he looked down at the map, "if we're planning on getting a navigator...uh, where? Pirates might be a dime a dozen, but they don't exactly grow on trees."
They were gathered in the ship's Galley, peering over a map of West Blue. Mary smiled. "Fortunately, you have a charming resident of this sea to help you." She pointed to a large island located very close to the Red Line. "I had this island in mind when I brought it up."
The captain squinted. "The Kingdom of...Avalon? Funny name."
"You can tell everyone that when we get there." Mary said dryly. "I'm sure they'll appreciate your input. The Kingdom of Avalon is part of the World Government, and has the biggest city in West Blue by far. They have a great dedication to the arts and sciences. If there's any place in this sea we'll find a navigator, it's there, and maybe a few other crew members besides."
"Cool." he drew a line from it to about where they were right now. "It's a ways away, though. We've got a few islands between us, and it's been a little while since we've been to a proper port."
Mary nodded. "Hm. I wonder why that is?"
Jack ignored this.
"Because the Captain decided we should take a detour and have an adventure?" Frank asked.
Thankfully, Mary ignored that.
Gerald pointed to an island not far away. "I know a good place. Bistro Island, famous for its restaurants. We could stock up, and maybe even find a cook there to come along."
Jack raised an eyebrow, and indicated an island closer by. "What about this one? It not famous enough?"
"Oh, that's an uninhabited island." Gerald replied. "Not in the fancy, legendary way, though; people just don't live there. From what I hear it's mostly wilderness, and I suppose no-one's felt clearing it out would be worth the effort. There isn't exactly a shortage of space in this sea, after all."
"Huh. You know your stuff, Gerald." Jack shrugged. "Well, if there's nothing there-"
The door was open to lit the sea breeze in, and they might not have heard a dull thunk from outside otherwise. Drake was on-guard at once, quickly crossing to the door. "I think that was something hitting the boat."
They all tensed, and then two mysterious sounds came. One was a bird screeching...
Which would have been ominous if not for the second sound. "Yeah I know, you freaking bird! Not a whole lot I can do about it right now, is there?"
They all looked at each-other. Jack stood up and strode out the door, over to where the voice was coming from. "Uh, 'scuse-"
A caw and the flapping of wings came from below, and a massive bird alighted on the railing in front of him. It wasn't like one Jack had ever seen before, even in the Grand Line. The thing looked big enough to snack on some sharks, and certain smaller humans too. Worse, it seemed to know that, going by the look in its eye. It leaned forward, and he tried to resist taking a step back.
"Hey, anybody up there?" the voice called again. The bird swiveled one eye toward it, keeping the other trained right on Jack. "Could use a hand here - 'fraid I slammed into your boat, and well, I'm kinda stuck."
Keeping both hands raised, and hoping that wouldn't be an invitation to take a finger or two, Jack eased around the bird and looked over the railing.
A dusty face in a panama hat stared back at him. "Hey there," their sudden visitor called up, "mind if I come aboard? Well, that or give me a push." He looked to be at least a few years older than Jack, and was seated in a rather sorry looking dinghy. A large bag sat in the boat behind him, and Jack could see a few toolheads sticking out of it.
Well, if he tried anything they had two devil fruit users and a fishman on board. Any would-be hijacker would probably be a bit put out at that kind of job. Jack grabbed a rope from nearby and tossed it down. The others walked up as the young man boarded.
"Oh, look at you." he said cheerfully, staring at Jack. "Thought that might have been a trick of the light. Devil Fruit power, right? No problem, I've been around the block a few times."
The young man smiled as he saw Mary. "Ah, but at least you've balanced it out. G'day, miss." he said, stepping forward.
Lazily, she lifted a finger, one long thorn extending from it. He backed away. "Heh, fair enough."
Jack waved a hand in front of his face. "So, before you get too cozy, mind telling us what you're doing out here? Not saying you look suspicious...but you look suspicious. Drake doesn't mind giving you a push-"
"I don't?"
"Sure. But we're sort of out in the middle of nowhere here, if you hadn't noticed. What's the deal?"
If the guy felt threatened, he didn't look it. He looked confused, actually. "I've been asking myself that since I set off, actually."
He reached into his pocket, getting an irate squawk from the bird. "Aw come off it. You showed it to me no problem, and I look like a bum. Don't I?"
"Yes." Mary nodded.
Out of the pocket came a dirty looking piece of paper. He smoothed it out and handed it over. On it was some writing, barely legible after a while in the guy's pocket.
To whoever answers the call of this bird:
The people of my island are in grave danger, and we need help, now. As in 'a matter of life and death', now.
He's got a pretty good eye for people who can take care of themselves, but this isn't going to be a job for the faint of heart.
You'll be well compensated, and we won't turn anyone away if they come to lend a hand. My only request is that the Marines not be informed of this. We have our reasons.
If you accept, come here and I'll explain things in detail.
After that was a list of coordinates. Jack looked at them, and then went to grab the map.
"So, pirates, eh?" their visitor said pleasantly while he was gone. "Seems like a bit of skeleton crew, though."
Almost everyone. "Um, I don't get it."
"I'll explain later, Frank. I'm sure you've never heard anything more drole."
Jack returned with the map, comparing it with the note's coordinates. Sure enough, they matched up perfectly with the 'uncharted' island he'd pointed out earlier. "So there are people living there. And they have problems, but don't want the marines to know about 'em...you know, I think we will drop you off. This sounds like the kind of thing you'd end up missing a kidney over."
Their visitor shrugged. "Everybody else in the bar said about the same, but I'm in need of some quick money. I can't say I'd mind some people there besides me, though. I've heard a lot of weird stories about people on deserted islands." He extended a hand. "Ricardo."
"Jack Bones, captain of the Skull Pirates. But I'm sure you've already heard of me."
"Nope."
"..."
0
After the beauty of the archipelago, it would be hard for anything to compare, but there probably weren't many islands in West Blue that looked more uninviting than this one. Sheer cliffs rose in all directions but the dirty-looking beach before them, and even that was past a shoreline riddles with rocks. Like the Archipelago, there was a forest a little ways in, but the trees that made up this one were a dirty brown. Actually, 'brown' was a pretty good description of the island in general. It could probably do for a name in a pinch, if you were struggling. It'd be better than 'Bad First Impression Island', anyway, which was the first one that came to Jack's mind.
"Well, I've seen better receptions." Ricardo said, leaning over the railing. "Bit of work getting over those rocks, huh?"
Drake mopped his brow. "I'll agree with that. I hope whatever's here is worthwhile."
The traveler nodded. "Well hey, if this turns out to be a prank or something, we get to leave early. That'll be nice."
The bird had been sitting on the railing the entire time they'd sailed in, but now it perked up and took flight, sailing across the beach. It reached the beginning of the forest just as someone stepped out, and quickly landed on their shoulder.
It was a middle aged man, but He stepped forward, surveying the ship and its occupants from beneath the brim of a ragged looking straw hat. "G'morning, folks!" he called over. "Allow me to welcome you to our island - since it's probably not doing much of a job of that itself. I can probably assume you're here about Striker's note and not sight-seeing, right?"
"Sure are." Jack said back. "Since you said the Marines are a no-no, can I take it pirates are no trouble here?"
"Nothin' to steal except food, so yeah, sure." He peered closer. "Looks like you could use some, though. Come on, best you get settled before I give you the full story."
As Drake tossed the rope bridge down, Jack watched Ricardo shoulder his bag. "So, you just do odd jobs like this? Lot of tools in there."
He nodded. "The few situations I wasn't prepared for in the past were nearly my last ones. Wanted to avoid that from now on, y'know?"
"Definitely. I know a lot about the unknown...wait. Uh-"
"I get what you mean. You must have seen a lot more than I have, being a pirate and all."
Jack grinned. "Oh, yeah."
The island's forest wasn't much better when they were inside of it, and not just because it quickly became an up-hill treck. The trees barely looked like more than spindly bits of wood with some leaves stuck forlornly to them. Mary still looked at them with interest, but it was dampened from the heat of the forest path. Things had been fine outside, but now it was like they were walking through a sauna. Of course you had to expect some heat on a tropical island, but something had to be causing this rather than ordinary weather.
"Is it just me," Gerald put forth, "or are these trees-"
Mary recoiled her hand from the trunk one of the trees, letting out a yelp. "That wood...it's blistering!"
Their guide, who had introduced himself as Stanley, nodded. "Yep, that happened to a few of our people our first day here. You alright, miss?"
"I'll live. It startled me, that's all. What on earth causes that?"
He shrugged. "No clue. There's someone in our town who has three ideas on it you can listen to if you like. You look like you could wrap your head around it better than me. She always looks disappointed when I don't get something."
Stopping, Stanley reached up. "What I do know..." Surprisingly, this one bore fruit. "Is that it has its advantages." He tossed it out to the pirates. "Try it."
They stared, but Jack was happily free of suspicion toward anything edible. He felt the heat beneath the rind and bit into it carefully. "...wow." The heat blended perfectly with the juice; he'd never tasted anything like it.
Gerald bit off a chunk and nodded thoughtfully. "Hm. I didn't hear of the island having anything like this on it. It would probably be more well-known if so."
"Doesn't surprise me." Jack said through a mouthful of fruit. "Most of the people who do maps are more scholar than explorer, I bet, and this island looks like it's about to rear up and bite ya. Probably thought it would be a waste of time to look deeper into it. Not like anyone's really fighting each-other to move in here...save present company, of course."
Stanley nodded. "This wasn't exactly the first place we would have picked ourselves...but I'll explain when we get to the village; it's just ahead. Ikki's there waiting with the others."
"Others?" Ricardo perked up. "This is really something big, isn't it?"
The older man nodded. "To us, at least. Hopefully you too, but well, we'll see. C'mon."
0
When they passed the final set of trees, the Skull Pirates all blinked in amazement. Here it opened up into a small valley where the village sat, nestled in-between more of those trees, and similar looking foliage. It wasn't very big, just two streets intersecting each-other, but from what they could see it was active. From here they also had a better view of the rest of the island, particularly the mountain on the far end of it.
"Correct me if I'm mistaken, but..." Drake pointed at it, frowning. "Isn't that a volcano?"
"So Ikki was kind enough to tell us." Stanley said, looking at it. "That's one of the things we wouldn't have minded knowing about this island before we settled down here. She tells me it's probably not an active one, though - and I really hope she's not wrong for once."
Jack whistled. "That sucks. Well, look on the bright side: what could be worse than something that might explode and bathe your town in lava?"
"This Ikki you keep mentioning," Mary spoke up before they could continue down that delightful avenue, "she sounds very knowledgeable."
"Too much to be working for a hick like me, right?" Stanley said as they descended the hill. "She's not one of the ones who showed up for my notice, but she's still helped us plenty. I don't think there's anything she doesn't know at least a little about."
He paused. "I'd say you'll like her, but to be honest...she can be kind of an acquired taste, if you catch my meaning."
Jack shrugged. "What's more acquired than a pirate? She can't be that bad."
Stanley looked unconvinced, but said nothing.
As the pirates neared the village, some more things became apparent about it. One, at least to Jack, was that the lumber that made up the buildings had been part of a ship until recently; it had the marks of wood that traveled over a lot of water. So, they'd taken one or two ships here, and then dismantled them to build this town. That explained why they couldn't leave, at least.
The other thing they all noticed was the street: it was made of more lumber, and heavily nailed down. It spread from building to building, not leaving an inch of open ground exposed. As they walked down the main street, Jack noticed something else weird. Stooping, he looked at a section of the wood in the center of the street. The nails had been hammered in hard, but he could still see the fracture from where the lumber had been broken. That wouldn't have been odd on its own, but it had been broken outward.
"So whatever caused that came up from underneath." Ricard said quietly, his smile gone.
That wouldn't have been bad on its own. There were plenty of things that lived underground that could cause damage like this that Jack could think of.
Ones that could cause it in an area longer and wider around than Drake's whole body though, he drew a bit of a blank on. "You have sharp eyes, son." They all turned to look at Stanley questioningly. "Wish I could say we just have a bit of a mole problem, but my mother didn't raise a liar." He jabbed a thumb at the building behind him. "That's our tavern there - no commercial brew, but the kind we've made up isn't too bad."
"I don't drink anymore, sorry." Jack replied.
"It always makes me etourdie too easily. And yes, technically I'm underage, but I'm also a pirate."
"I prefer to keep my head clear if I can help it, especially if something dangerous is nearby."
"Um, I don't think anyone back home would approve of me drinking alcohol...n-not that I would anyway, of course!"
"I prefer coffee."
Stanley gave them all a look. "Pirates, eh? Whatever. C'mon in."
The tavern wasn't very big, and looked to be made of the same former ship materials as the rest of the town. They didn't seem to have had enough for the seats, though, which had been carved out of the nearby trees. The building was pretty full despite its size, probably because of who was occupying some of the seats. As the Skull Pirates entered, several pairs of experienced eyes turned to watch them.
Jack slowly turned to look at their owners. One was a short, thin man with white hair, wearing simple, dark clothing. Another, a serious looking woman in a colorful uniform; a sword was clipped to her belt. Then there was a large shirtless man, dressed in tribal garb and wearing tattoos. He had a bit of a wider berth than the other two.
No-one said anything for a moment, and then a voice called from the corner. "More people, Stanley? I'm not certain this can be called a small party any longer."
The captain turned to look at the speaker, who hadn't watched them as they came in. She had the table all to herself like the others, but Jack had a feeling people would have passed it up even in ordinary circumstances. She wasn't really someone you'd sit next to, and was someone who'd be perfectly happy with that state of affairs.
And she certainly wasn't normal. Currently her nose was buried in a large book opened on the table, but Jack would have had a hard time seeing her face anyway, because of the parka she wore.
Yes, really. It was white-blue, decorated with designs of snow and ice, and covered most of her upper body. The body that, in this weather, should have been vertical by now underneath something like that. But to look at her, this was the middle of the arctic.
Jack walked over. "Ikki, right? I'm Jack, Jack Bones."
She looked up. A brown face with dark eyes beneath a pair of glasses looked up at him. "Yes. You are a pirate, I take it? You wear the uniform well." Ikki spoke quietly; not quite a whisper, but low enough you had to listen to hear her.
"Thanks." He pulled up a chair and sat down across from her. She raised an eyebrow. "Definitely not as good as yours, though."
"There is no uniform for what I am. I am a scholar, a seeker of knowledge." She set the book off to the side. "I am also more or less the leader of this undertaking. If that bothers you, I would suggest you leave now, as it is not something that will change."
Jack shook his head. "I worked under a girl for a while, that's not gonna be a problem."
Ikki stared at him. She could do that really well. Something about the glances. "Thank you. But the question of gender had not crossed my mind." He had the feeling his standing had just slipped a little in her mind, and it couldn't have been all that high to begin with. "Only that you might take issue with being directed by someone as humble as I. Something as great as the world's authority is not fit to contain you, after all, and I would ask that you follow my instructions to the letter."
The pirate let out a whistle. "You want to be sure this place turns out alright, huh? I can get behind that. I'll do what you say, no problem."
She paused. "Ah yes, the village. That is also a concern of mine."
Also, eh. "According to Stanley, you-"
Ikki stood up. She was wearing some heavy boots, Jack noticed. "Now that we have agreed upon that, I see no reason to engage in further pleasantries. There are more important things to speak of, after all."
Jack would have gladly shot back with something, if she'd been deliberately insulting him. Seemed more like that was just how she spoke. It took a peculiar kind of person to consider anything about that conversation 'pleasant', anyway.
But he had to know: "It's not...hot in that thing, is it?"
"Not at all. I'm quite comfortable, thank you."
"...'kay."
Ikki walked over to the bar, where Stanley had just cleared his throat. "So, while I'm sure you've all been enjoying the hospitality and fresh of our little town, I expect you're all wondering what exactly you've been hired to do. Some of you more than others." He glanced at the three strangers.
"Oh yes." said the swordswoman. "Some of the sounds I heard last night made me wish I had asked for more."
The white-haired man shrugged.
"If it is something that can test my mettle, that is all I require." said the painted warrior.
Stanley looked uncomfortable. He'd really hired these guys with money? How much could a place like this have, and from where? He was about to say something, when Ikki caught his eye, and shook her head. Yeah, that was right, actually. If he had told this mercs everything, he'd tell him soon. If not, doing that could end up causing trouble.
The town leader leaned back against the bar, looking like he was searching for words. "Yeah, those sounds. I was trying to think of the best way to describe them-"
"Something underground, yes?" the woman asked. "You needn't look so surprised. My ears are good enough to tell where they came from, and I saw the state of your road outside."
Stanley nodded. "Good, don't have to waste your time then." He started pacing. "When we arrived on this island, we didn't think much of it, but it was a place to live and there was no-one to bother. Or at least we assumed. Things were fine for a week or so, and we'd just had time to get most of the houses up before we got our first...visitor. If Ikki hadn't arrived soon after, I don't know what we'd have done. That was about a month ago, and things have reached the breaking point."
Jack cleared his throat. "When you say visitor, it doesn't sound like you're talking about travelling salesman."
"I wish." Stanley said. "I'm talking about the-"
Sometimes you just couldn't have a pleasant conversation. The floor underneath the man seemed to jump almost a foot, nearly rocking him right off his feet if not for the counter. The tremor continued, tables and chairs spilling over as it moved toward the doorway. The Skull Pirates kept their footing, as did the three mercenaries. Jack looked at the townsfolk. They didn't look surprised - just ready to run at any moment. He'd seen that look before, and it was never pleasant.
He watched as Stanley nodded - to Ikki. She'd kept her footing too. Nodding, the scholar set her book on the table and walked past him out the door. "
"Wait, hang on a sec." he said, following her. "Whatever that is, you can't take it on yourself!"
She stood in the street as the rumbling centered on the middle of it. "Mr. Bones. Part of the reason I asked you that question was because I thought a pirate might dislike working for someone physically weaker than them. If that is a concern for you or anyone else here," she gestured to the Skull Pirates and the mercenaries, who had joined Jack on the tavern's porch, "then please let me disprove that with my actions here now. Watch carefully."
Ikki didn't have to wait any longer. The wooden street in front of her shook and cracked as something hit it from below. It didn't survive a second hit.
Everyone present gaped at what flew out from the hole to land on its four limbs: a massive, red-green lizard that looked big enough to swallow someone in two bites. It stared at them, tail swishing and eyes wild. They were behind a carved wooden mask someone very brave had fit over its face.
That someone may have been who was riding it right now. A saddle was on its back, where...something close to a human sat. It was tiny, barely half as tall as Jack, but with long limbs like a monkey's. If it stood up straight its arms would almost drag on the ground.
Across its face was a mask identical to its mount, and in one arm it carried not a weapon, but an instrument: a carved flute.
Jack could feel its eyes on all of them, glaring. It lifted the flute to its mouth and began to play. He squinted, and in the brief glimpse he got, the thing's teeth looked extra pointy.
As for the tune it played, he'd never heard anything like it come out of a flute before. It was sharp and ugly-sounding, like war music from a hive of bees. There was only one thing music like that could get you in the mood for.
Something about it flipped a switch in the lizard's brain, that was for sure. It began to paw the ground, salivating. A slight chill went down Jack's spine - kind of odd given some of the things he'd seen before. Probably just concern for her sake. No way was he letting her fight it alone.
As he stepped forward, Ikki held up a hand. "Thank you for the thought, but I will be alright." She turned slightly, taking off her glasses. "If you wish to do something, hold these. I would hate to break them."
The pirate blinked as he wordlessly took them. He'd been able to spot the invader's sharpened teeth, but sometimes things right in front of you made you second-guess your eyes. And his had just seen Ikki's breath in the air on a tropical island. Not to mention her face...
Without saying a word herself, Ikki reached down and wordlessly slipped off her parka. Everyone stared.
"Well, I did think she seemed a bit glace, but..."
Not surprisingly, Ikki seemed smaller without her parka on, but her body underneath was fitter than you'd expect from a scholar, and her clothes matched. They were practically the coat's direct opposite: a pair of shorts with several pockets and a simple, sleeveless shirt. There were some very evident reasons for this wardrobe choice.
The color of Ikki's skin had gone from brown to the shade of someone who'd been out walking in the winter wonderland just a bit too long. Ice had grown across her exposed arms and legs, not in cheery little patches but nasty, pure-white cold. It disappeared under her clothes, and Jack got the feeling hitting her with something you weren't too attached to would be a bad idea. Whatever color Ikki's hair was ordinarily, it had turned grey, flaked with crystals - the effect looked neat enough it nearly kept him from noticing it was covering a serious case of bedhead.
"I apologize if that surprised you," Ikki said, turning her head to look at them, "but I felt it might be hard to accurately exp-"
"Look out!"
A sharp toot from its rider, and the lizard swung one of its front paws down on the scholar's left shoulder. She wasn't defenseless, sure, but Jack still winced as it came crashing down, half expecting it to snap off like a melted icicle. Ikki's arm came up, however, and the ice held firm. He saw the lizard's tongue quiver as it let out a slight hiss of pain. Armor that hurt the guy hitting you, huh? Nice.
Ikki shoved the claw away and the lizard backed off, the rider appearing to think. "Like you, I have eaten a Devil Fruit - the Temp TemptFruit. As you might imagine by my appearance and the name, it allows me to regulate and alter my internal temperature, resulting in this."
The rider seemed to reach a decision, and played another short set of notes. The lizard hissed, beginning to circle Ikki. She didn't look concerned. "Obviously this has many practical uses, but I am sure its worth in combat is evident for all of you."
She made an odd movement then, raising her right foot and stomping - well, more like lightly tapping the street, really. "And if it is not, I will show you now. Again, please watch closely."
To Be Continued...
Next Time on One Piece: The Skull Pirates:
Ikki: I am not certain how much your word is worth, but do I have it?
Ricardo: It might be suicide...but I've done worse for ladies before.
?: Well now, this will be interesting, won't it?
The Expedition Commences! What Lurks Underfoot?
Stanley: They took 'em. Both of them.
Paladine - I'm glad you did, but I hope this arc will be a bit more entertaining for me and the reader, I think I planned it out a bit better.
Scratch92 - I've been looking forward to her for a little while now, I think you'll find she's pretty interesting.
Sorry for the short chapter, but it was mostly set-up. The next one will be a bit more lively - and hopefully, sooner.