Time was a weird companion. It was always with you, but it never took a side. It always stayed neutral and there was nothing you could do about it.
Maybe there was more than one time? Maybe everyone had their own time that was sticking to them like a shadow.
Sometimes time was lazy and it took forever for just one minute to pass. Sometimes time runs and it's impossible to follow. Sometimes it was hard to find time and other times only a moment could feel like an hour. Especially if you were under water. And especially if you were in a submarine that hadn't seen the surface for a few days now. Down in the ocean, there was no sense of a visible day and night cycle. There was no sunlight when you looked out the portholes of the Polar Tang. It was always dark and blue … maybe a lighter blue in the day but it never went much past that, still remaining darker in the later hours of the day.
It had been a few months since Strawhat's last appearance. Oh, and what an appearance it had been! He had ushered the beginning of a new era!
Law couldn't help but smile softly, at the thought about the Strawhat. He had made a lot of things more complicated for Law but that wasn't one of his worries right now.
Even with all the preparations the new world still took its toll on his crew. Again and again they would get surprised by the unpredictable sea. Bepo, who originated from the new world, still had trouble reading the flow of the sea correctly.
He was a good navigator! The best Law could ever hope for. Nevertheless, he wouldn't allow Bepo another mistake, and he trusted that Jean Bart (who had proven himself to be a very good helmsman) and the Mink would form a good working team.
Trafalgar Law, pirate and captain of the infamous Heart-Pirates had his own plans. Strawhat was irrelevant right now and sometimes the goal of becoming "pirate king" seemed weirdly far away and unimportant as well. His biggest and nearest problem was one of his crew members, who was sitting in front of him shaking and whimpering. The new world held many dangers, and among them were some that were invisible. He wasn't just a pirate but foremost he was a doctor. As such it was his job to ensure the medical safety of his crew and prevent viruses from spreading on the submarine. It would be fatal and could kill off even the strongest crew — turning the Polar Tang into a ghost ship in only a few days. So Law insisted on keeping his crew healthy and that included vaccinations.
Sitting in front of him with shaking knees was Shachi. He was deathly pale and kept his eyes shut tightly while Law held his wrist in a firm grip. Shachi always had been difficult with injections and Law couldn't help but be a bit proud of his assistant this time. Usually they had to hunt him down, this time he had come by himself to the check up. Well … not entirely by himself. There was still the need for a second hand to keep him on the chair, and that second hand belonged to Penguin, first mate of the Heart-Pirates and Shachi's best friend since childhood.
"No", whimpers Shachi as Law tries for the second time to put the needle in his arm, shooting him a warning glare.
Shachi pressed his eyes shut once more and then … it was already over. Penguin starts to pat his head like he was a dog. "All finished", he says with amusement in his voice. So much for empathy from your so-called best friend.
Shachi reaches for his glasses, which had been dropped to the floor in the struggle of getting him on the chair and shoots Penguin a glare as he pushes them back on his nose. Without another look back or a word of thanks towards their captain, he bails out of the treatment room. Law just ignores the two and focuses on the next member that enters to get his injection.
Penguin couldn't help but laugh as he follows Shachi. "I think captain was a bit less annoyed with you. I mean, you didn't kick him this time and you only tried to bite him once."
"Ha-ha", answers Shachi sarcastically while rubbing at the plaster in the crook of his arm. He hated syringes … more than anything else in the world, in fact. He could handle sea-kings, the navy, and other pirates … but he drew the line at the little injection device with the needle.
"He's completely overdoing it since we entered the new world", Shachi claims while still stomping down the hallway like a defiant child. His friend follows along still chuckling. "He's just worried. That's all. You have to ta-", he gets interrupted by Shachi who dramatically turns around and exclaims: "It's not like he is the best goddamn doctor in the whole world or anything! AND it's not like he has a devil fruit that can heal any illness! The only thing he has to worry about is me spitting in his coffee tomorrow morning." The red-headed Heart-Pirate starts to puff out his cheeks in frustration as he continues his little vent. "IF someone gets ill, then he fixes them up in no time. He's just over-reacting!"
Penguin can't help but roll his eyes at Shachi's behavior. "You're just trash talking now", he says. "Stop being such a baby. Not like you actually would ever spit in Law's coffee."
It wasn't like Penguin didn't understand where Shachi's frustration came from. He wasn't the only one who was annoyed and on edge all the time. The whole crew suffered under Law's most recent decisions. It had been days since they had last emerged and the heat inside the submarine was nearly insufferable by now. In addition, Law was driving everyone to high performances. If it wasn't about the usual navigation and planning of the route, then he wanted information or would give tasks such as counting and logging the medical supplies, and would also request unnecessary maintenance of the equipment, medical and otherwise. Law seemed … stirred up and it didn't just worry Shachi.
Bepo, especially was having trouble … not only with the heat but with his navigation as well. The mink was not only extremely worried about Law's lack of sleep and his weird behaviour, but he also didn't dare to leave his post anymore after having gotten scolded an unusual amount lately by Law and after having had trouble with the unpredictable sea too!
"Oi Pen! Did you fall asleep?" Shachi gives Penguin a nudge in his side to get his attention back.
"With you ranting in the background? Impossible." Penguin just pushes the hand of his nerve-grating friend away. "Could you-" He again gets interrupted, though, this time, not by Shachi but rather by the speakers of the Polar Tang: "Land ahoy!" and "Surface!" the voice echoed through the halls.
It was just like on every other ship. Everyone had their place and everyone knew what to do without being in the way of someone else.
Shachi parted ways with Penguin and he made his way back to the bridge where he arrived only a few seconds before Law himself.
The island was small but it had a port and something that looked like a shipyard as well. The city itself radiated such a lightheartedness and joy that you could feel it on the submarine as the Polar Tang slowly pulled into the harbor.
The city looked as though someone had emptied a bucket of paint all over it and its streets were decorated with colorful, ornate clothes. The occasional cobblestone was colored as well, adding to the marvelous awe factor of the port town! The city resided on a hillside which allowed for a good view of the scenery, and looming over it was an enormous tree. It was hovering over the city and was decorated with the same colorful clothes as the streets and smaller trees were along the pathways. No one had seemed to care about the pirate ship that innocently pulled into the harbor. There were no navy ships to be seen … or other pirate ships for that matter. Only a single, big ship that probably belonged to a merchant and some smaller fisher boats here and there.
"Uuui!", says Shachi as he leans over the railing, his eyes sparkling with joy and anticipation. The view of the colorful city made him forget all about the pain from a few minutes ago. Penguin spots his friend and walks up behind him.
"Do you think they're celebrating something?", Shachi asks without looking back to him.
"It looks like it", was the tired response. Penguin leans next to Shachi on the railing just waiting for the rest of the crew to appear while enjoying the fresh yet cold air. After all, before everybody would leave the ship, there was a ritual to be held. In his head he counted to five when the first member, Uni, had arrived, shortly followed by all the others. The happiness of finally being able to draw some fresh air into their lungs seemed to make them even more excited than usual. The cook tore off his hat and Penguin was sure that he lost a few hairs in the process. He didn't seem to care though as he started waving his cap around fanatically. "Shachi! Bring the notes!"
Within seconds after the submarine had come to a stop, the entire crew was on deck, gathering around the cook and his cap. Shachi whirled around with a big grin on his face and a small bag in his hand that he'd pulled from who knew where. He empties the contents, which were little notes, into the hat.
"Please let me be lucky this time." Penguin walks over to the rest crossing his fingers as he reached into the hat to draw his lot. Just as he wants to pull back his hand, Law calls out for him: "Penguin and Bepo are coming with me!" Law was smiling as he watched his crew draw lots like little children on who had to stay on the Polar Tang and keep watch while the others had time to explore the city. He was the last one to arrive at deck.
"We have to run some errands", Law explains. Penguin answers with a big grin. "Shore leave! Aye!" He gleefully says after hearing one of his comrades groan and shortly thereafter the grin from Shachi's face disappears too."Oh come on that's not fair! Again?"
Disappointed, he stares at the note. There were two rivets and one was grinning at Shachi in the form of their Jolly Roger.
It was late afternoon and the sun was standing low enough to give the city a shining yellow tint. It was nice. Not too warm, not too cold. The perfect weather, especially if you had just spent the last few days in a tin can without nice air or even a bit of fresh wind.
This already should be enough to raise the crew's mood. But one of them already had lost his happiness again.
Shachi stares at the Jolly Roger on the small, wrinkled up paper. He felt the need to tear it apart, that's how frustrated he was. In the background he could hear Penguin laugh and a big hand starting to pat him on his back. "Don't be like that Shachi. We can switch tomorrow morning, then you still have time to explore the island." It was Jean-Bart who tried to cheer him up. And he succeeded! After all, he was right! He still had time the next morning, it wasn't so bad that he had to sit out the evening round.
"That's not gonna be possible." With just one sentence Law manages to simultaneously crush Shachi's hopes and throw them in the trash. He gives Bepo his sword before he continues, "We stock up on food and supplies and then set out at dawn." That was it for the captain. His word was law and all his subordinates had to follow without a right to question it. Everyone on board knew that. However, his words couldn't prevent an unenergetic grumbling as the crew was seeing themselves under the sea for another week already.
Shachi takes a deep breath and crushes the paper in his hand. For weeks now Law had been irritable and grumpy, and slept even less than usual. He barely cared for the crew anymore and spent his time locked up in his quarter rummaging through books and studying papers. The brief emergence to exchange air and to get hold of the newspaper, and perhaps a brief stop on an island for a few hours, was all he allowed. If you saw it like that, it was actually lucky that they had stopped so close to the evening this time.
"Why can't we stay a day longer?", Shachi asks, taking all the courage he could muster. "It would be good for raising our morale", he quickly adds to not make it seem like an egotistical request. He could see Penguin breathing in deeply too and the rest of the crew was staring at Law's back, who already had turned to the docks to leave the submarine. Shachi knew they all agreed with him. They were all unhappy … there was no fun allowed anymore on the Polar Tang and they wished for the sweet return of the days past.
"We are leaving at dawn. We don't have time to waste", Law replies coolly, without turning around. Again there was a rumble going through the crew and some even went so far as to curse out loud. However, they sat in motion to finish all the chores and errands quickly, so they at least had enough time to visit one or two bars.
All of them knew that Law had his reasons and they all trusted him, so his decision was accepted and respected even if they weren't happy. … well, from everyone except for one.
"I think it's time you tell us why. Why are we in such a hurry? Why are we sailing like the navy and all four yonko are stuck to our asses?", Shachi asks harshly.
Law stops and the mood around him noticeably drops. Shachi was regretting his tone immediately and takes a step back. The captain's mood obviously was as bad as his own.
"When I think it's the right time", he says slowly, putting emphasis on the "I". "You will know."
Now there was no going back for Shachi anymore. He might as well continue digging his own grave. Shachi huffs, putting his hands on his sides. How could Law just order them around without telling them anything? He wouldn't even share his usual worries with them. Sure, he maybe wouldn't tell the whole crew what was going on but he normally at least talked with Bepo. …and maybe share with Penguin and Shachi. They weren't just his subordinates, they were his family!
"So when is this going to be? When the heavens fall into the sea? Since the thing with the Strawhat and Whitebeard's death, you act like we aren't good enough for you anymore. Don't you trust us … don't you trust us that we can handle it? Whatever it is?"
Shachi's fists were shaking but he didn't dare to look up, keeping his gaze on the planks. He could feel the eyes of everyone on him now … and then a shiver goes down his spine. He carefully glances up so that his brown eyes met Law's icy grey ones.
A sickening silence drowns out the otherwise lighthearted and carefree sounds of the island as Shachi's heart sinks into his stomach. Law very slowly grabs for his sword which was still resting in Bepo's arms.
"Don't you trust me?" Law returns the accusation to Shachi, staring him down now. Shachi bites his teeth together before hesitantly taking a step towards his captain. "Of course I trust you!" His voice was now louder and angrier. "But that doesn't mean that I don't have doubts in you!"
Ouch.
That hurt, you could see it in Law's face even if it was just for barely more than a second. As soon as the words leave Shachi's lips he had regretted them. It wasn't true! He never would doubt Law. He was just angry and disappointed that their captain had decided to distance himself from his crew. He was frustrated and felt churned up inside since Law started to ruin himself … for what reason, no one knew. Shachi felt utterly useless and he hated it.
He couldn't even see Law's face anymore since the captain had looked away after Shachi had said the hurtful words. First it was quiet, no one had dared to make a sound, then Law finally speaks and his voice is as cold as ice. "Is this all you have to say?"
Shachi winced. The scabbard of Law's sword gets pressed into his chest. It wasn't painful but the message was clear.
Bepo comes to the rescue before someone could say anything else or the situation could escalate more. He gently puts a paw on Law's hand that was holding the sword. "Captain, didn't you say we are in a hurry?, he asks hastily. "It's gonna be dark and the shops are gonna close before we can finish everything."
For a moment Law doesn't react, then he looks at Bepo with a small smile before giving him the sword once again. "You're right", he says, snuggling through the soft fur of the mink.
The captain of the Heart-Pirates turns around and raises his voice. "We're leaving!"
The answer from his crew is nearly timid and a lot less enthusiastic than usual. "Aye." Several glances brush over Shachi who hadn't moved and was standing with his head hanging. Penguin patted his shoulder for a moment before wordlessly closing in with the rest of the crew, leaving the Polar Tang to Shachi.
And that concludes the first chapter. :D
Main characters are going to be Law, Penguin and Shachi - but Killer and Kid also will have their moments :D
No ships (expect the canon once ... which are actual real ships not realtionships) but maybe you can find some hinds now and then if you really want to :D
I hope you have fun with this small mysterie adventure thats going to unfold. Even though it probably will take a while before answers will be given.
On a sidenote: There will maybe be hints to the official backstory off the Heart-Pirates but no spoilers. It's set after Law entered the New Wolrd and before he became a Shichibukai.
Critique is always appreciated (ecpecially with grammar because I am not a native speaker and have my issues with times and stuff. I want to fix that)