Darkness was my only companion, stretching as far as I could perceive. At some points I floated and others I swam through a sea of darkness. Where ever I was time didn't matter and so I have no idea how long I traveled. I don't know how I knew that I was making progress only that I was. It could be that my mind was only providing the illusion of movement.
The darkness around me trembled and then seemed to shatter like glass. When my vision returned I found myself sitting at the end of a long table. Opposite me on the other side sat a formless shape. Everything other then the shape and the table was grey and wavered as if it was smoke. The shape at the other of the table seemed to radiate amusement.
"Yes I think that you'll do." It said speaking with a voice that seemed to be every voice and none at the same time. Whatever I was looking at seemed to shift and suddenly I found myself staring at a humanoid figure dressed in an all concealing grey robe.
"I have one last boon to grant you before throwing you back to the wolves. At dawn each morning your limited items will recharge at least the one that doesn't recharge on it's own. I'll be keeping a close eye on you so try to survive long enough to provide some entertainment."
At that the table started to fade and grow dark. Soon the darkness was closing in and the last thing I heard before I woke up was its voice echoing from the darkness.
"Oh yes if you need something to refer me by then call me V. Not that you should need to but just in case. After all I'm unlikely to contact you again."
I woke up with a gull perched on the end of my muzzle. The bird's head was darting up and down as it used its beak to peck away at my teeth. This was certainly the most unique way I had ever woken up and I just had this feeling that it wouldn't be the last time either.
"They've been doing that for the last five days. Ever since we brought you here." Someone said and I turned me head to see a dark skinned young man sitting in a chair besides the bed. The gull startled by the sudden movement let out a squawk and took off out the open window.
A quick look around the room revealed wood plank walls and floor. A wide open window with curtains swaying in the breeze. Finally an opened door from which the quiet bustle of noise from the rest of the place could be heard.
"Why didn't you stop them" I asked as I sat up. I took a moment to sweep the feathers off of me before finally looking up at the young man again.
"We did try at first but they kept opening the window to get at you." He replied with a cheeky grin before glancing at the window.
"Not that we could figure out how they keep doing it." He muttered as I felt my eyebrow twitch.
"Ugh whatever I don't have the energy to deal with something like this right now. First where the hell is my stuff and second the pirates are gone right?" As I talked I pushed myself into a sitting position. The bed groaned in protest as I shifted my weight and I was actually surprised it could even support me. Then I recalled that I had been asleep for nearly a week and figured they just built everything strong here.
"We placed your armor and stuff in the taverns storage room we weren't quite sure what else to do with it or the gems embedded in your chest." At this he fell silent and gave me a quizzical look.
"They're meant to be like that so don't worry about them. On that note what about the pirates?" I responded wanting to get back to my questions rather then answer any about myself.
"Well you gave their captain quite a beating and even after you went down they continued to retreat and sailed away. We lost some people, a few buildings collapsed, and a lot more people were injured. If you hadn't interrupted them things would have been a lot worse. For that the whole village thanks you." The young man responded a hint of awe in his voice as he spoke.
"Umm, thank you. I just did what I thought was right. Oh the captain and his second mate does anyone know what kind of powers they had?" It was a question that had been bugging me and one I wanted an answer to.
"Uh well I'm not really that knowledgeable about stuff like that, but I can fetch the village's doctor. He's a retired marine and knows all sorts of things. Plus he wanted to see you when you woke up." The young man leapt to his feet and it was only my snagging his wrist that he didn't vanish out the door.
"One last thing before you go, where am I?"
He looked confused for a moment at my question before answering. "Your on the summer island Shalast. It's an island near Sabaody Archipelago." My question answered he pulled his hand free and hurried out through the door.
As I sat back in the bed my mind went over the information that I had just received. I know knew where I was but still needed the when. Sadly a glance around the room didn't reveal a convenient newspaper so I'd just need to ask when I got the chance.
Of course with nothing to do I immediately grew bored and started to examine myself. Bandages had been wrapped around my side and neck though neither was stained with blood. My left arm that should have been broken was fine, only a little bit of stiffness remaining. Well at least it was a good thing that I healed just as fast as everyone else in the world. Maybe a bit faster it was hard to tell.
A thought came to my mind and a quick check confirmed that I was in fact wearing pants. Briefly I mused on what else I had been wearing underneath the armor but I was pulled from those thoughts as a man stepped into the doorway.
My first thought upon seeing him was hairy. Full beard down to his chest and a full head of black hair. He was built like a bear and about as hairy to boot. He also had an unlit cigar in his mouth and was dressed in a tuxedo of all things.
"Cigar's are bad for your health you know." Spilled out of my mouth before I could even think about it. Good job mouth, way to make a good first impression. Any time brain I'm sure that we'll get along well.
I quickly shook myself before that train of thoughts got even weirder. If I didn't end up getting myself killed then I would certainly end up going crazy.
"So is fighting pirates and getting poisoned." He responded, his voice sounding like it was echoing from the bottom of a barrel. He stood in the doorway looking at me with his dark brown eyes.
"Fair enough, take a seat and tell me how it is doc." I conceded and gestured to the only chair in the room. He shook his head with a sigh before finally dropping down into the chair. As he settled down on it he brought one hand up so that he could rest his chin on it as he looked me over.
"I got to start off by saying that your lucky to be alive, rock fishman venom is nothing to laugh at. Getting hit by a double dose did you no favors either. I was impressed that none of your organs shut down before the people got you to me. Everything else was easy enough to treat after that but you just kept sleeping so we moved you here.
I do have one question about your appearance though, have you eaten a Devil Fruit?
I took a moment to think about the dream I had just before I woke up. It was possible that I had been given the powers of a Devil Fruit. I knew that the world that Tii'chia had been pulled from he was just a normalish lizard person so it was possible but unlikely.
"I don't believe so but it's possible." I eventually ended up responding with a half shrug of my shoulders.
"Might want to check sooner rather then later. Don't want you thinking you can swim and then find that you cant. Ah but other then that your fine. I'd suggest taking it somewhat easy till tomorrow since you've been laying in bed for a while and your going to be stiff." The doctor said as he started searching the pockets of his tuxedo for something
I nodded absentmindedly to him as I considered his words. Something I would need to check on in the future. I was sure that whatever the answer was that it was one of the boons that V had mentioned in my dream.
As I was thinking the doctor finally found what he was looking for and pulled out a lighter. He quickly lit his cigar before pocketing the lighter again. He took several puffs on it before he finally spoke again.
"Ah where are my manners I haven't introduced myself yet. The names Hank, retired Marine officer and doctor of this island. What about you, What's your name?" He said extending one hand out to me.
I hesitated for a moment, their really wasn't any danger in using my real name but well it just didn't fit for the body that I was in. Which really only left me with one name to go with. So I reached out to take his extended hand.
"Call me Tii'chia." I grinned as we shook hands for several seconds. Afterwards I leaned back and sat in silence for a little bit. Him smoking and me staring out the window. Eventually I broke the silence.
"So what can you tell me about The Bloody Skull pirates and their captain?"
Hank leaned back in the chair, taking a drag on his cigar before responding.
"Nasty bunch that lot, they like looting and pillaging. They don't care who gets hurt or why long as they get to have fun. Last I knew they had about 20 to 25 crew mates none having bounties of less then 10 million.
Their captain certainly earned his nickname of The Butcher. Generally kills the most out of the crew and he seems to be the driving force behind much of their raiding. What I've heard is that he ate the storage-storage fruit. By draining one aspect of himself he stores up time and energy that can be used to increase that aspect later. It's why he stands still so much in combat, so he can store the speed for unexpected strikes.
I heard that he's limited in that he can only decrease or increase what he stores by 50% so while he can get stronger its based on how strong he is already."
Hank pauses for a moment to take another drag at his cigar. He blows the smoke in the direction of the open window and watches the gentle breeze disperse it before continuing.
"First Mate Gargoyle as you now know is a rock fish fishman. Deadly venom and all the strength and power of a fishman. The spines that he uses to inject his venom grow back eventually. He doesn't have a devil fruit as far as I know.
Second Mate Prima is a bit of an odd one for the crew. She doesn't go out of her way to attack people and generally stays back acting as the crew's doctor unless ordered otherwise by Jack. She ate the doll-doll fruit and so can make doll copies of herself. She can then modify the copies however she wants and control them mentally.
One last thing she also never goes into battle in person whenever she is on the field it's just another one of her dolls. Makes it so no one is quite sure what she looks like."
I mulled over what he had said. It did explain quite a few things I had seen when fighting them and my recollection of the fight. Prima had only attacked me once and that was towards the end of the fight. She also seemed to be the first to start retreating.
"Ah your probably starving after sitting in bed for so long. Come on let's get you down into the tavern proper and get you fed." Hank chuckled as he rose from the chair and offered a hand to help my out of bed. I actually didn't need to eat, sleep, or breath even thanks to the powers of two of the gems resting in my chest but better to not mention that right now.
Wait if I didn't need to sleep then why the heck had I been out of it for 5 days? Either it was the work of V somehow or it was something else. I shoved those thoughts aside wanting to be getting up and doing things rather then to thinking about it.
It was a good thing that Hank offered me his hand as my body was quite stiff from lack of movement over the past few days. Everything seemed to prickle as proper blood flow returned to me and I suppressed an urge to shake myself.
I took my time to stretch, working out the kinks in my muscles and double checking that nothing hurt. Once I had confirmed that everything still seemed to be working the proper way I followed Hank out of the room.
I found myself at the end of a second floor balcony that overlooked an empty tavern and bar. Doors to my right probably led into other rooms like the one I had woken up in. Numerous circular tables surrounded by stools took up most of the taverns lower floor. Heading downstairs I could see people moving about on the street outside through a set of large glass windows that flanked the door. Each person outside going about their individual tasks.
Many of them were carrying planks of wood or were burdened down with tools to repair damaged property. Weaving around the adults feet were kids laughing and playing. They all seemed to be happy and enjoying themselves which made me smile. Seeing the kids reminded me of something that I wanted to ask about.
"That young man from earlier he said that this island was called Shalast but I can't say that I've ever heard of it." While this statement was completely true I was trying to not reveal that I basically knew nothing about where I was. That would just bring up way too many unwanted questions. Those would likely end up getting asked later but for now one thing at a time.
"That's probably cause you've heard it referred to as wash-out island or dead end island. The place where all those that couldn't make the cut into the New World end up. Be it Marine or Pirate." A woman said as she came through a door from behind the bar carrying an armload of wooden mugs.
She wore a low cut dress of animal fur and had a bust that just seemed to draw ones eyes. Of course it also drew the eyes to the necklace of beads and very long and sharp claws that she wore around her neck. She was quite tan showing that she was often out in the sun. Long black hair was pulled into a loose braid at the back
She had a certain sharpness to her facial features that wasn't unappealing to the eyes. She also had an air about her that just seemed to scream danger to my senses. In short she looked like a woman that had broken a few heads in her time and ended as many bar fights.
"Let me guess ex-pirate?" I asked as Hank sank down onto one of the stools in front of the bar. I eyed the stool for a moment before sinking down into it. When it didn't crack immediately I mentally complimented whoever made them. Good to see it wasn't just the beds they made strong here.
"Nah, just someone that was born and raised here. Those that think I'm just a pretty face don't think that for long." She replies as she opens the door she had come out of. The smell of food cooking briefly washing out and making my nose twitch. While I might not have to eat it still smelled good.
When she returned she was carrying a tray with a pair of bowls full of stew with a large haunch of meat at the side. The smell wafting from them was instantly making my mouth water. Once the bowls and meat were set in front of me and Hank we both dug in with gusto.
To say that the next 30 minutes was an unmitigated disaster was an understatement. While I had the muscle memory for fighting and other things the difference between the way I usually ate and the way a lizardfolk ate was vast. Who knew that eating with a completely different jaw structure would be so hard.
"Well I have to say I'm impressed that one person trying to eat caused more of a mess then a full on bar brawl." Sheryl said. She had introduced herself during the clean up after my attempts at eating were finished.
"I am sorry about that. I wasn't thinking that eating would be so hard." I ended up replying as I scrubbed at a stubborn bit of meat that was on the ceiling. How it had gotten their I didn't want to think about. I was likely revealing more then I should about myself but it had been such a mess.
The sun was just starting to set by the time we finished the cleaning. Just in time for the rest of the village to start streaming in. Claiming that I was tired after all that cleaning I elected to head back up to the room I was staying at rather then deal with anymore questions tonight.
Once back in my room I dragged the chair over to the window and just watched the village as the sun set. I was pondering what I would need to do in the coming days. One thing was certain was that I needed to figure out what was going on in the world around me. Once I managed that I guess I'd just wing it.
Despite not needing to sleep I must have done so at some point as the next thing I knew I was waking up by the window. When I woke up the next morning I shooed away the gull that had been pecking at my teeth with a scowl. Yeah this was certainly going to be a thing. I swear I could hear someone laughing in the back of my head.
Heading downstairs I found Hank, the young man from yesterday, and a muscular man with a buzz cut of brown hair and a Marine uniform waiting for me. While it was hard to tell with Hank the young man was clearly trying to hide his nervousness. Not that I'd ever been all that good at reading peoples faces.
The three of them were sitting around one of the taverns many tables upon which my gear had been stacked. As I approached the man in the Marine uniform glanced at me with a sigh. "Finally." He muttered
"Tii'chia this is Davros, he's an ex-marine like myself and was helping me get all of your stuff moved." Hank said to my questioning look at the items on the table.
"Yeah, yeah. Now if that's everything Hank I'd like to get back to my other work. I still don't know why you needed my help in the first place" Davros grumbled and once Hank had given him the go ahead quickly left.
"I wouldn't worry about him Tii'chia, he's always like that. Happy to do anything to help until someone actually asks him. Then he gets like you just saw. Used to drive the brass crazy." Hank chuckled out as he shook his head fondly in the direction that Davros had departed in.
I gave a shrug in response to Hank as I approached the table and started to outfit myself. It took sometime for me to get everything on to my satisfaction. Hank and the young man alternating between watching me and making small talk as I equipped myself. Once I was fully armored I turned my attention to Hank and his companion.
"So were you waiting for me this morning Hank? Not that I mind I just wasn't expecting it." It wasn't like I had a lot of experience with doctors in general let alone One Piece doctors.
"Came to give you a clean bill of health plus I figured you'd want your stuff. Course I was expecting you to still be in bed not up and moving about." Hank responded with a good natured chuckle. I scratched awkwardly at the underside of my chin as I looked away.
"I also wanted to say thank you for saving my and my wife's life from the pirates. I know I gave you the village's thanks yesterday but I wanted you to know about our personal thanks as well." The young man cut in with a glance at Hank. Hank took it all in stride as he waved a hand for the young man to continue.
"My names Ian and if their is anything that my or my wife can do for you please just ask. It's all we can offer in return for you saving us. I know its not much but without you we wouldn't have survived that raid." Ian continued seeming to want to get everything out all at once now that he'd started speaking.
"Umm, thank you Ian if I think of anything I'll be sure to ask." I answered before patting him on the shoulder.
Ian stood up and gave me a smile and quickly shook my hand before departing. Clearly he was in a hurry to get back to his wife and home or maybe he just didn't like talking. Either way I turned back to Hank determined this time to get all my questions answered.
"Hank can you fill me in on recent happenings that have been going on? I've basically been living under a rock the past yearish and if I'm going to be heading out into the wide world I'd better be prepared."
Now to figure out where the Straw Hat's were and what they had been up to.