Chapter 2: Quick as Lightning
The sheets that had once seemed so welcoming were now far too tepid for the likes of the navigator as she restlessly kicked them off and awoke from one of her rare naps. It wasn't often that Nami would succumb to sleep in the middle of the day, but she supposed that her little breakdown earlier had played a major role in her sudden fatigue. A sleepy glance at her alarm clock informed her that she'd slept for about three hours.
"Great, you just wasted part of the day sleeping and feeling sorry for yourself," Nami muttered in frustration, wishing that she'd been working on her maps instead of lounging around in bed all afternoon. She stumbled over to the light switch and flipped it on, shielding her eyes in the process so she wouldn't be blinded by the sudden illumination of the dim room. Her nose wrinkled in disgust at the feeling of sticky sweat on her back and forehead, so she rubbed some deodorant on and tied her hair back back before gazing at the mirror to see if she was even remotely presentable. Her eyes were slightly puffy from crying, her bangs stuck up at odd angles, and a crimson circular mark was evident on her right cheek from being pressed against the pillow.
"Well don't I look majestic."
A gentle knock on the door pulled her out of her thoughts. "Miss Navigator, dinner is ready if you wish to join us."
Of course Robin would just somehow know when she woke up. Nami shuddered in the realization that an eyeball had probably sprouted out of the ceiling and checked on her at some point. "Thanks, I'll be there in a few."
When the footsteps faded away she hastily brushed her bangs down so they didn't look so wild, and splashed water on her face to get rid of any lingering sweat. Once she patted her face dry with a hand towel, she exited the bedroom and made her way up to the deck.
The dining room was pleasantly chaotic as usual. Zoro and Sanji bickered while Usopp attempted to protect his food from Luffy's greedy elastic fingers. Robin and Chopper were engaged in a conversation about medical herbs, and of course dinner just wouldn't be the same without Brook singing and Franky unnecessarily posing. While the noise could be really obnoxious at times, Nami had come to really appreciate the energetic commotion.
She seated herself next to Robin and across from Zoro, her stomach gurgling and eager to eat whatever culinary masterpiece Sanji had concocted that evening. The chef halted his fight with the swordsman so he could grab the plate he'd prepared for her earlier.
"Enjoy, my sweet angel!" the blonde lovingly cooed as he set the dish down in front of her and poured a glass of fresh lemonade. "Specially made for you!"
"You call this crap food?"
"What did you say moss head?!"
Nami rolled her eyes as the fighting resumed before she dug into the steaming slices of fish that she assumed was the one Luffy had captured earlier in the morning. He'd cantered around the entire ship with it over his head and waking everybody up with his boisterous yelling before Nami reached him and left an impressive bump swelling on his head. Punching him had never felt so satisfying.
Her amber eyes lifted up and met Usopp's, who had glanced over at her in concern. Nami felt a twinge of fear for a second as she considered the possibility that he'd told somebody about her earlier emotional moment. As if reading her thoughts he shook his head and offered a reassuring smile to confirm his promise, prompting her to sigh in relief.
"Dammit Luffy! Eat your own food!" the sharpshooter impatiently snapped before the ends of his fork pierced his captain's left hand.
"Hey! What'd you do that for?!"
"Because you won't leave my plate alone! You have your own!"
"Hey, shitty captain, keep your hands to yourself."
"Yo ho ho! Now calm down everybody! I have the perfect song to raise our spirits!"
Amidst all the noise Nami felt goosebumps spread across her arms as she felt an uneasy feeling churn in her gut. She couldn't entirely explain how she sensed storms, but she just somehow knew when one was coming. An icy shiver jolted up her spine so fast that she felt like she'd been doused in cold water. Her heart pounded when she realized that the weather was changing at such an accelerated rate that there was no doubt they were about to be bombarded by something powerful. They needed to move now.
"There's a storm coming in fast! We have to go!" Nami ordered before she bolted away from the table and out the door. The others all glanced at each other before they trailed after her, all except for Luffy, who didn't want to let go of the food on his plate.
Usopp yanked on the rubber boy's legs and pulled as hard as he could. "You can eat after! Let's go!"
"But...food!"
"We're going now, Luffy!" With one final tug, the two were sent flying onto the deck and crashed against the mast. Usopp had the misfortune of his nose painfully crashing against the wooden pillar once more, drawing out a high-pitched cry of pain until he forcefully popped his nose back in place. Luffy laughed like it was the most hilarious thing in the world and proceeded to take his place at the top of the mast with Zoro so they could unfurl the sails when the time arrived.
The whole crew had a role to play when a storm occurred; Franky took the helm, Chopper lifted the anchor, Zoro and Luffy controlled the sails, and Sanji, Usopp, Robin and Brook stood in the middle in case their assistance was needed with securing objects and fellow crew members. Nami instructed everybody from her spot next to Franky so he could heed her directions in steering the ship off the storm's path.
Although the sky was perfectly clear and didn't pose a threat, the Straw Hats mentally prepared themselves for whatever was coming. They'd learned over the past several months that the Grand Line had the most unpredictable weather out of any ocean in the world, so they waited with bated breath for the treacherous storm to strike. Nami had never led them astray before, and they doubted she would now.
They didn't have to wait long. Within seconds the sky transformed into a harsh blackness of curled clouds that spat out lightning bolts and roared with thunder. The sea's once placid waves pushed into Sunny's sides as rain harshly pelted the pirates and gusts of wind fiercely propelled the ship forward.
"Hard turn to port! Chopper, bring the anchor up! Zoro and Luffy, lower the sails! Robin, try to secure items on deck! Usopp and Sanji, help her! Brook, make sure the mast is secure and check for any damage!" Nami spouted off one order after another as she grabbed onto the railing in front of her and held on tightly. She watched as all the tasks were completed, giving Sunny a much needed speed boost that she hoped would build up some distance between them and the storm.
Unfortunately, the amount of lightning only seemed to increase for some strange reason. The waves grew rockier and the random bouts of thunder continually echoed off each other without a break. Nami's eyes widened when she realized that this was quite possibly the worst storm they'd ever been through, and she had no idea why the lightning impacts had increased so much.
"Nami-sis, what are we gonna do?!" Franky bellowed out in alarm, unsure of what direction could possibly help them. He was worried not just about his friends, but the ship as well. He had worked to hard to build it for his captain that the idea of a storm ripping it apart made the Cola inside him bubble up.
"Just hang on a sec!" Nami hurried down to the deck, her bare feet slipping on the wood and grass as she attempted to reach the main mast and lean against it for support. Upon noticing her struggle, Sanji rushed to assist her. He grabbed her right hand and pulled her forward until she was right where she needed to be. She nodded her thanks and briskly glanced around for some sort of visual idea of where the storm's center was.
Usopp held onto the wooden pillar for dear life as the vessel continually tilted and crashed against extensive waves, his body fully shaking as panic overtook him. "N-Nami, what's g-going on?!"
The young woman focused on where the storm had come from and what direction they were currently headed in before she came to the conclusion that she had no idea why the storm was so powerful. It was if her senses were blocked, making her usual instincts completely void. She wished she could tell Usopp something different, but lying to him when their lives were possibly on the line wasn't something she could forgive herself for doing.
Sensing the others watching her for some sort of clarification, Nami threw her hands up in the air in defeat and attempted not to scream in frustration. "I don't know! This storm isn't natural, even for the Grand Line! There is something else going on and I don't know what!" A vast wave pushed against Sunny, forcing her and Usopp to slide over to the nearest railing and cling on for dear life.
"We're going to die we're going to die we're going to- OW!"
"Shut up Usopp! You're not helping!" Nami snapped. She covered her ears as thunder continued to vehemently roar and bolts of light stabbed the enclosed upsurging water.
Luffy dropped from the mast with a protesting Zoro wiggling in his arm, and began to stretch his arms out to secure his crew. "Hold on guys!" He only managed to seize Chopper, Brook and Robin before Sunny violently lurched forward and caused everybody to lose their balance. Luffy held on tightly to his friends as he reached for Usopp and Nami, only to watch in fear as lightning struck nearby and caused the two to fall backwards off the ship.
"Nami! Usopp!"
The navigator toppled backwards with a scream as her fingers instinctively reached up to grasp at something to hold on to, but all she saw was Usopp tumbling in after her before she disappeared beneath the treacherous waves. Sanji ran to jump in after them, but a powerful blast of wind thrust Sunny away from the fallen Staw Hats.
"We need to find them!" Franky yelled as he prepared to ready to Mini-Merry, but he too was just grabbed and knotted together with the rest of his crew.
Robin shook her head sadly as Chopper cried out next to her. "It's too late. We'll just have to hope that they make it."
The typical humor in Luffy's eyes had dissipated as he gazed out. "I know they'll be okay," he seriously stated. "I just know it."
"Dammit!" Sanji hissed. The pirates watched the hazardous water with fear gnawing in their stomachs as they held on for dear life, with only their captain's rubbery arms to protect them.
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Frigid water painfully smacked against Nami's back, prompting her to cry out and lose oxygen as water filled her mouth. Everything around her was bleak and dark, making it nearly impossible to tell which way she was facing. She calmed herself to gather her thoughts and senses. As her body began to float up, she took control and forcefully kicked until she broke through the surface, gasping for air and sputtering out salt water.
"Usopp!" she anxiously screamed. "Usopp, where are you?!" She briskly rubbed the water out of her eyes as she searched for Sunny and the sharpshooter, but to her dismay neither were visibly around her. Icy fear gripped her heart as she realized they were alone in the middle of the world's most dangerous ocean, and her friend was missing. She was pushed under water as a smaller wave pushed her back under. She wasted no time in swimming back up and resuming her search.
"Usopp, answer me right now! Where are..." Her voice trailed off when she noticed a head full of curls lying belly-up several feet away. Hope flooded her chest as she pushed her trembling arms forward and ignored her protesting muscles until she finally reached him. "Please be okay, please be okay," she whispered to herself as she nervously hovered a hand over his parted lips. She sighed in relief when she felt his breath tickling her fingertips, grateful that he was only unconscious.
"You're such an idiot," Nami tiredly laughed, unable to prevent herself from floating on her back beside him. It was only then that she noticed that the rain had dissipated , and the sky had cleared itself as if the storm hadn't even happened. She observed multiple colors painting the sky while sunset ensued its daily routine like all was right and beautiful in the world. She wondered if perhaps it was Belle-Mere's way of promising that everything would be okay.
Her hand weakly held onto Usopp's wrist as she attempted to come up with a plan to make sure they didn't separate. Her eyes lazily traveled over to his bandanna, and suddenly an idea entered her head. She undid the cloth and wrapped it securely around both of their wrists, making sure to tighten it with a thick knot that wouldn't somehow undo itself. Her eyes closed as she settled back against the water, unsure of where they even were or if the crew were circling back to rescue them. All she could do now was allow herself to rest as they drifted off towards the unknown.