Hi guys Azza here!
900k WORDS REACHED GUYS A NEW MILESTONE!
Again, like I always say, thank you to all the regulars who have stuck by this story since the beginning. Even you guys who wait for chunks of it to release then binge read it, I see you guys!
A massive shout out to all of you who leave reviews, be they of support or to point out stuff I may have missed you guys are absolute legends I always like to see them pop up!
I'm not really sure what else I can say that I haven't done to death eight times previously this Volume alone but know that I always appreciate you guys for sticking with me this long. Honestly, getting the amount of views I do per month I never thought that would happen when I started but its legit and you guys keep me going on this, your reactions to stuff actually has pushed me forward at times where I did consider giving up.
ROAD. TO. ONE. MILLION. STARTS. HERE!
Anyway, just a brief explanation of what's going to be happening with the next several chapters.
So the next few will explain where the other Straw Hats ended up, not fully what happened, but just the initial stuff. This will reveal who their mentors for the time skip will be and believe me, I think you guys will be quite happy with some of the choices.
Here is the order this will go in.
Brook
Franky
Chopper
Usopp
Nami
Sanji
Zoro
Robin
And yes, to those who want cowardly Usopp banished it is going to happen. His mentor alongside the chad he met originally will see to that.
Anyway I've gone on long enough, happy 900k and hope you all continue to enjoy the story!
I do not own Fairy Tail, One Piece or the Nasuverse.
Where Are They Now – Brook
The Battle of Marineford, more often referred to as The War of the Best, concluded just shy over two weeks ago. The world was shaken to its core as major players from all sides, from all corners of the world clashed for the sake of their ideals.
The death of Edward Newgate.
The death of the most recently inducted member of the Seven Warlords, Vortigern Pendragon.
The destruction of Navy Headquarters.
The reveal of new rising stars in the world to replace the old generation.
These are just a few of the consequences borne from the conflict between some of the greatest the world had to offer. The world's balance is currently shattered as all sides scramble to pick up the pieces and claim power from the unstable vacuum left in the wake of the war.
But, in all the chaos, events orchestrated by Fate played out elsewhere.
Said events were dotted across the world, far away from each other to the point that many would consider them isolated and irrelevant from one another. This, however, is far from the case.
We now turn the clock back two weeks and investigate the Fate of the other members of the Straw Hat Pirates who were blasted away from Sabaody Archipelago by the power of the Paw Paw Fruit, by the will of the Warlord Bartholomew Kuma.
A mere glimpse into what Fate ordained take shape to forge the future anew.
/A Gloomy Island Somewhere In The Grand Line/
Slowly, light began to pierce through the veil of black that obscured Brook's vision. The skeletal musician wanted to crack a joke that such a thing was impossible due to a lack of eyeballs, but refrained from doing so.
His bones ached, worn from the fierce fighting they'd endured on Sabaody before he'd been touched by the Warlord Kuma and darkness took hold. The light grew brighter as his vision fully returned and the skeleton couldn't help but gape at what he was seeing.
"Wh-what's going on!?"
All around him were the dead bodies of a bunch of humans, their throats slit and blood pooled around his skeletal body. The musician quickly scarpered back and away from the grisly sight to notice he'd been laying at the centre of some sort of ritual circle.
"Who are these people … What madness is this!?"
Glancing at his surroundings, he quickly started to get a clearer picture of what was going on. All around the place were strange effigys, runic symbols and dimly lit candles. The room itself looked like it was the main interior of a church of sorts and it didn't take much to put two and two together.
"A ritualistic sacrifice …"
Taking a moment to compose himself, Brook slowly rose to his feet and took a deep breath before sighing audibly. His bones made audible cracking noises as he took a moment to stretch them, moving them around to find they'd gone stiff whilst he was unconscious.
"I wonder how long I've been here?"
Shrugging, the musician gave a wide berth to the dead cultists at the centre of the room and made his way toward the main altar. Noticing that there was some kind of ritual book there, the skeletal man picked it up and moved off to one of the nearby pews and took a seat to read it.
"Some of this I can understand … but other parts are complete gibberish," Brook murmured as he flicked through the pages swiftly. "The Cult of Satan … Yo-hohoho! Well, I suppose they did get a Devil in the end if Natsu's claim about my other power is indeed correct."
Reading further, he quickly came to the realization that this 'Cult Of Satan' was nothing more than a ruse to manipulate the people who lived wherever he ended up. Anyone who had any shred of logical thinking or reasoning to them could easily pick this entire religion apart.
It was a shame people had already died to its influence, but there was nothing he could have done.
Deciding he'd read enough; Brook placed the book down next to him and rose back to his feet. Just as he was about to continue searching, he froze upon hearing the sound of scurrying footsteps outside.
"More cultists," he said barely above a whisper as he darted across the room, barely making a sound as he went due to his light frame.
Deciding to hide, he leapt up into the rafters and laid perfectly on his side so that his form was almost completely obscured by anyone who might look directly up at him. It wasn't perfect, but without his trusty cane sword, or any other visible weapon aside from the rusted and flimsy ritual dagger, he was unarmed.
Not defenceless, but it would be rather messy if push came to shove.
Soon enough, eight more of these supposed cultists entered through the front of the church, all dressed in similar attire to those surrounding the ritual circle he'd awoken in. They shambled in, some hobbling and others quite literally hopping on one leg with only the female at the front seemingly undamaged.
It was obvious however from the look in her eyes that she was positively mortified to be there. To Brook, it didn't take much more than that to realize the woman was not here willingly, and that reignited the anger he'd briefly felt upon waking at the centre of a ritual circle surrounded by corpses.
Someone here was responsible for this atrocious cult and he would find out who.
"Did they do it properly," one of the shambling cultists hissed as the others moved to surround the bodies.
"Looks like it."
"Did they succeed in summoning anything," a seemingly young yet crippled hopeful asked. "Is our saviour among us!?"
"Throats are cut exactly as the High Elder decreed them to be so there is no doubt of the devotion to our cause from these young prospects," an elderly cultist muttered quietly. "Something definitely lay within the circle, notice the disturbance of the blood in these key areas …"
Brook had to hand it to them, at least they had decent observational skills. Not like there was much he could have done on such short notice to obscure something like that after all?
"It appears that our ascended Brothers and Sisters succeeded," the elderly man cried as everyone save for the terrified woman began to cheer. "We must now simply provide more for our new Lord to appear before us!"
All the cultists in the room immediately turned toward the terrified woman who had managed to shuffle off to the side, a horrified whimper escaping her throat as the cultists slowly advanced toward her.
"No … No please-!?"
"From the book of Zoth! He who devours the seas requires a boon of equal purity," the elderly cultist's voice boomed as the girl screeched and tried to back away only for her heel to catch on one of the pews, tripping her. "The final corruption requires the ultimate pledge!"
"NO! STAY AWAY FROM ME! I DON'T WANT ANYTHING TO DO WITH THIS," the girl screamed as she scurried back away from the hobbling and shambling group. "JUST LET ME GO!"
Brook had seen more than enough. The girl was clearly here against her will, most likely not the only one, and they clearly had some seriously sinister intentions for her.
Dropping down behind the cultists without making a sound, only the girl saw his appearance, her look of complete shock somehow increasing as Brook knelt down and grabbed onto the rusted ritual dagger.
"Lord Satan will welcome you with open arms child, there is no need to fear any longer," the elderly cultist cooed in a manner that angered Brook greatly, his grip on the rusted dagger tightening as he rose back to his full height.
"I do believe you have all gone far enough …"
The cultists stopped their advance and were about to spin around to view the supposed interloper, only to all suddenly drop as their throats were slashed open.
The girl couldn't even scream, shocked into silence as a towering skeleton appeared right in front of her, fountains of blood exploding from the necks of the cultists who had held her captive for so long.
The elderly cultist's eyes focused on Brook, eyes widening as a ghastly, bloody grin etched its way onto his face.
"Ah … our Lord Satan … has come to us … at last …"
The elderly cultist was the last to drop, gurgling audibly before falling silent as Brook turned back to face the young girl who was now struggling to glance up at him in fear.
"My apologies for what you have endured young lady, and for being forced to witness such a ghastly display," Brook said as he knelt down to her level. "Are you injured?"
"…"
Brook couldn't help but sigh, knowing full well the girl likely thought he was this 'Satan' that the cultists wanted to summon. Being a skeleton certainly had its drawbacks and unfortunately Human relations was one of them.
"I promise you young miss that I mean you no harm," Brook said as softly as he could. "Now, I don't want to rush you after having all this happen so suddenly, but I need to ask if there are any more of these cultists about?"
The mention of the cultists seemed to snap the girl out of her shocked stupor as she skittishly met Brook's gaze, fear mixed with confusion in her eyes.
"A-aren't you the Devil they wanted to s-summon?"
"I'm afraid not young miss," Brook replied gently as he wriggled his fingers. "I was once a proper Human who ate a Devil Fruit."
The girl's eyes widened in surprise as a look of hope flashed across her features briefly before a guarded one swiftly took its place.
"How can I trust you?"
"What would you wish for me to do to prove myself, young miss?"
"I-I don't know," the girl muttered quietly before meeting his gaze with a bit more firmness. "I suppose I haven't got much of a choice but to trust you …"
"For what it is worth, I do apologize for this situation you've found yourself in young miss," Brook sighed as he backed off and allowed the young girl to get up without him hovering over her. "I cannot even begin to imagine what these people did to you."
"These cultists are animals," the girl spat, gritting her teeth as she glared down at their bodies. "They kidnap people and sacrifice them to this … 'Satan' deity!"
"Are there any more of them about?"
"Don't you know where you are," the girl asked with Brook shaking his head in the negative. "We're at the centre of Harahettania Town, the last town of the Nakamura Kingdom."
"I've … never heard of this island before," Brook admitted as he took a moment to glance out one of the windows, noticing other buildings nearby. "Safe to assume most of the town are in this cult then?"
"Yes. Most of them are into cutting up people for their Lord, themselves included."
"Ah … That makes sense as to why some of these ones were mutilated."
"I take it you have no plan on how to get out of here then?"
"I'm afraid not young miss, however I don't believe it shall be much of an issue if the scripture of these cultists is to be believed."
"Huh? What are you talking about Mr-?"
"Brook, young miss."
"Brook," the girl repeated, mulling his name over before shaking her head, "My name is Marzia."
"It is nice to make your acquaintance Miss Marzia," Brook responded with a slight nod. "And to answer your question, I am referring to the writings of these cultists. I believe that their very scripture is what shall secure our exit."
"Wh-what!? How!?"
"Did you not see the reaction of that elderly cultist when he saw me? He believed me to be this 'Satan' that they worship, we can exploit this."
It took a few moments for the girl to realize what Brook was getting at, a small frown etching its way onto her face as she pondered the pros and cons.
"Are you sure that'll work? That they'll just buy into you being Satan?"
"Don't worry young Miss Marzia," Brook replied in a hollow tone as he turned on his heel and began strolling toward the main door to the church. "I can be quite convincing."
Had Marzia been in front of Brook, she would have seen his eyes flash Crimson Red briefly. Instead, she half jogged to catch up as he casually pushed the double doors open and strolled right out into the open.
Almost immediately, all attention at the centre of town was brought upon them however none of the cultists dared to shift so much as an inch. Looks of disbelief mixed with relief were present amidst the crowd as Brook began walking toward the main road, keeping a skeletal hand on Marzia's shoulder as he went.
"Can it be … ARE YOU TRULY LORD SATAN," one of the cultists cried as low murmurs washed in and out of Brook's non-existent ears. "HAVE YOU FINALLY COME TO SAVE US!?"
"Yo-hohoho! Indeed, it is I," Brook replied boisterously as he rounded on the cultists with his eyes glowing Crimson Red. "YOUR LORD SATAN HAS COME!"
"I-I don't believe it … Lord Satan," the cultist stuttered as he dropped to his knees, tears of joy beginning to escape him as many others followed suit. "B-but where are you going Lord Satan!?"
"And where are you going with that girl!?"
"This girl has given me much in order to bring about my summoning," Brook declared as all the cultists looked at the girl in surprise. "Her presence shall be necessary for the final phase of my summoning!"
"F-final phase, Lord Satan!?"
"As you can all see, I am a mere skeleton. What I require is a body of flesh and blood, yet no regular body shall do! Therefore, I shall go and acquire one now then return to aid you all!"
The cultists were silent for a moment before bursting into cheers at Brook's declaration that he was going to help them. Marzia was just gaping in sheer disbelief as Brook turned to her and chuckled lightly.
"Come, we should leave now just in case the ruse is discovered."
Marzia nodded as they quite literally received a hero's farewell from the cultists, almost as if they were going off on some grandiose quest. Brook merely smiled and waved at the cultists, Marzia robotically following after him as they left Harahettania in the distance.
Once the town was no longer in view, Brook's eyes faded back to their usual black sockets as Marzia turned to face him.
"I can't believe that actually worked!?"
"If there is one thing you can be sure of in life Miss Marzia it is that those who are so deeply entrenched in their faith to the point that they are willing to sacrifice other Humans are the easiest to fool. Provide even the smallest glimmer of evidence that their atrocities were justified and they will eat from the palm of your hand."
"Even so, I still can't quite believe it …"
"Well, you're free now, so believe it," Brook grinned as he leant up against a dead tree. "I don't suppose you have anywhere to go?"
"No … Not anymore," Marzia sniffed as she sat down on a nearby tree stump. "I never actually thought I'd get out so I never planned on what I'd do if I did."
"Well, I feel like I should help you at least get somewhere where you can find help," Brook replied with Marzia shooting him a grateful smile. "I can only hope that-."
Brook stiffened, his eyes narrowing with Marzia immediately tensing at the abrupt silence of her saviour.
"Mister Brook?"
"Music," Brook muttered in response as he rose from his place. "I hear … music."
Marzia cocked her head to the side in confusion, scrambling after Brook as he took off toward the nearby beach. Due to the fact that Brook was over double her height, it was a rather impressive feet she was able to keep up at all.
However, the pair didn't take long to reach the beach with Marzia almost bumping into Brook, not having expected the skeleton to have abruptly stopped.
"B-Brook!"
Looking beyond the skeleton, Marzia was surprised to see four people walking out of the sea, all dressed in rather elegant clothing. The youngest, a woman wearing a red and white frilly dress was being carried by another woman who wore an elegant blue and white uniform.
Next to her was a man wearing a black pinstripe suit with red tie, messy medium length black hair with grey streaks through it and another man who looked more like an elf than a man. This man wore an ornate purple and gold suit and didn't seem to be the least fazed by the fact he was soaked head to toe.
"I told you taking that ship was a mistake," the broody looking man snarled with the cheery one laughing in response. "This isn't funny!"
"We're still all in one piece, aren't we!?"
"SANSON IS MISSING YOU BUFFOON!"
"Oh dear, I could have sworn he was right there with us when we jumped," the young blonde girl muttered before grinning despite the grim news. "I'm sure he's alright!"
"My Lady, I think you should stay back for the moment," the one wearing the uniform muttered as she spotted Brook and Marzia looking at them. "A skeleton!"
"Hmph. You do yourself a disservice worrying about such weak fodder," the broody man scoffed as he manifested a violin and a long straight sword. "I give this trash five seconds under my symphony!"
"Symphony," Brook responded, prompting all four to freeze in place. "Are you a musician by any chance?"
"I believe I might be going mad, but did that skeleton just talk," the broody man asked his collective group with the cheerful one eagerly bounding forward. "OI!"
"Ahahaha! Hello there Mister Skeleton! I do believe you asked if my friend was a musician, yes!?"
"W-well I did, yes," Brook replied, slightly unsure of the situation as the three behind the cheerful man all gaped in shock at him.
"I see! Well, luck is on your side today since both I AND my friend here both happen to be some of the finest composers of our time!"
"Of your time? Wait … are you saying that the two of you are S-Servants!?"
One Of The Greatest Composers To Ever Live
The Magus Of Music
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Caster)
Bounty – 312,000,000 Berries
"I do apologize if I have shocked you both, however all of us happen to be Servants," Mozart grinned as he motioned to the broody man who merely scowled back at him. "Ahahaha! As cold as ever my friend!"
He Whose Legend Was Twisted
Purported Killer Of A Man Loved By God
Antonio Salieri (Avenger)
Bounty – 362,000,000 Berries
"Oh yes, just go and blurt our names out all over the place like usual," Salieri scoffed. "I am indeed Salieri, not that either of our names would mean much to the likes of you!"
"Sal," the young girl huffed, her cheeks puffing out in an adorable manner. "Be nice!"
Thoroughly cowed, 'Sal' moved away from the group as the cheerful girl practically skipped forward until she stood directly in front of Brook.
"Hello Mister Skeleton! I've never once met one of your kind that was capable of talking, let alone being sentient! All the ones in the French catacombs wanted to stab you so seeing you before me is truly magnifique! Vive La France!"
An Idol Beloved Yet Despised By All
Former Queen Of France
Marie Antoinette (Rider)
Bounty – 132,000,000 Berries
"My Lady, you should be more careful approaching those we do not know," the last of the Servants said as she approached him. "No offense, but from where we are from, all skeletons are naturally hostile so please excuse my defensiveness for I mean no disrespect."
The Woman Who Was A Man
A Man Who Was A Woman
The Knight Of The White Lily
Chevalier d'Eon (Saber)
Bounty – 300,000,000 Berries
"So, all four of you are Servants then," Brook muttered before grinning widely. "Yo-hohohoho! I almost feel like I've got Natsu's luck, running into so many legendary people consecutively!"
All four Servants froze, eyeing the skeleton with serious gazes. Even the blonde-haired beauty who had seemed so carefree was gazing at him with a firm, emotionless expression.
"You know of Natsu Dragneel," Salieri asked with Brook nodding casually in response.
"Yes. Natsu is a rather dear friend who helped me find my place with him among the Straw Hat Pirates. He's been teaching me how to control this power I didn't understand called the Devil's Aura …"
Activating it for good measure, Salieri sucked in a breath as Mozart decided to continue the line of questioning.
"So, you journey with Natsu?"
"Well, I was, up until recently."
"Why," the short blonde asked curiously with Brook sighing audibly before explaining the events that had occurred on Sabaody until just before he'd arrived with Marzia.
"That checks out with the colossal spikes we've been feeling from that general direction," d'Eon nodded as she sheathed her blade. "My apologies for drawing my blade on you Brook."
"Yo-hohohoho! It is quite alright Miss d'Eon, I can understand your caution all too well!"
"Getting back on the topic of where we all are, it seems you are just as stuck here as we all are," Salieri cut in with the rest nodding in agreement. "Not only that, the island appears to be infested with some sort of Satanic Cult that would sooner sacrifice us than speak openly."
"We may be stuck here for some time until the Servant State sends us help which means we need to secure the island," d'Eon noted. "Would both you and Miss Marzia be willing to assist us in this endeavour?"
"I-I don't know how to fight," Marzia cut in awkwardly only for Marie to gently pat her head.
"There there, its ok. No one is asking you to fight Marzia, there is more to helping us than just fighting."
"Speaking of helping," Salieri muttered as he eyed Brook curiously. "You've been eyeing my Violin for quite a while now I noticed. Couple that with the fact that you immediately picked up on the fact I was a musician I'm wondering if you're one yourself?"
"A skeleton musician," Marie chirped. "Oh my, how wonderful!"
"Yo-hohohoho! Well, I am indeed a musician," Brook replied before his cheery demeanour dropped. "Unfortunately, my old violin I'd had for almost seventy years was destroyed on Sabaody …"
Mozart and Salieri both dipped their heads out of respect. Both men knew full well how it felt to lose an instrument they were fond of, but neither had lost one with as much sentimentality as Brook's.
"You said you had your violin for almost seventy years," Salieri asked with Brook nodding solemnly in response.
The two musicians shared a look before Salieri moved over toward Brook and offered the skeleton his Violin. Initially, he was taken aback by what the Avenger Class Servant was doing but gently took it into his bony fingers.
"Here," Salieri muttered as he summoned a bow made of pulsing red metal with a thin black hair. "Play us something, whatever you would prefer."
"N-not to say I'm not grateful you would let me use your personal Violin and bow Mister Salieri, but why?"
"We shall explain the why after you play Brook," Mozart responded in a rather plain tone. "Please, play something that draws out the passion within you, something from the heart, if possible?"
"Something from the heart," Brook murmured, only one song immediately springing to mind as he began to tune the violin, much to the approval of the two fellow musicians who would have been rather unimpressed if he had not done so beforehand.
"This is a score I used to play with my former crew, as well as my new one, called Binks' Sake," Brook said as he began to play.
Starting out slow, the skeleton closed his eyes as he fondly played his favourite tune for the Servants and Marzia. All five immediately felt at ease the moment the first note hit their ears with Mozart and Salieri sharing a look.
"There are vocals tied to this, but I would rather you all hear the song at its most pure," Brook said softly as he continued to play, humming what would ordinarily be the lyrics.
It wasn't a long song by any means, but once it concluded both Salieri and Mozart had already come to a unanimous decision. That in of itself was a rarity, a miracle, one might say.
"Brook," Salieri muttered as he took back his Violin and bow from the fellow musician. "That was excellent."
"Indeed, simply marvellous," Mozart crowed, startling Marie, d'Eon and Marzia out of their semi-asleep states. "I could feel every note full of passion Brook, every fibre of your being resonated on the same frequency as your piece!"
"W-well thank you," Brook replied awkwardly, knowing he was receiving such high praise from two Servants apparently lauded for their musical talent.
"I think there are some things we can teach you whilst we are here, Brook," Salieri continued with the musician's neck snapping toward the broody Servant.
"Y-you would both want to teach me!?"
"Music is not just something one listens to, Brook, it is an artform that is virtually unrivalled," Salieri said firmly as he leant forward from where he was seated. "Music is not just something that affects the mind … nor the heart."
"Music, Brook, can be used to strike at the very SOUL of another living being," Mozart continued. "You have a gift, Brook, and it behooves us both to ensure that the minority of us that can wield it to its fullest help those most deserving of it to learn."
Brook was completely gobsmacked at what he was being offered by the two Servants before him. This was an opportunity of a lifetime; one he knew he had to capitalize on as much as possible.
"How long do you think we have until someone comes to get us off of this island?"
"We aren't sure," d'Eon replied neutrally. "This island is far off of any known routes, hence why the place seems like its in ruins and a Satanic Cult was able to spring up."
"Then I must learn all I can," Brook replied firmly with both the musicians before him nodding in approval. "As soon as we are able, I would be honoured to study hard until my fingers bleed! Only, I have no flesh or blood of which to bleed, YO-HOHOHOHOHO!"
The small group got up from their place on the beach and headed west from the main path that had led Brook and Marzia there. They knew eventually the cultists would wander out in that general direction and they knew they had to find somewhere to take shelter, if only for Marzia's sake.
It would not be until just shy of over a month before Brook learned of the events that had occurred with Luffy and Natsu, and of the plan that the pair had concocted to ensure what they had suffered on Sabaody would never happen again.
So I know I said these were meant to be short, but I really got into writing this for some reason and I don't doubt the same will happen for the others as well.
As you can clearly see, the Post Time Skip crew are going to be absurdly more powerful from their canon counterparts as evidenced by the four mentors Brook is going to have. If you are wondering why I say four and not two, d'Eon is a Saber that specializes in Fencing, the same sword style Brook already uses and Marie in Fate is essentially an Idol Queen who has a beautiful appearance and is loved by all. This will also help forge Brook into essentially a monster of a Superstar … the Soul King, if you will.
Anyway, enough spoilers, hope you all enjoyed and I'll see you in the next one!