Star Line
Law walked along the woodland path. The flowers around him were larger than a ship. The trees stretched out over the clouds, blocking the sun. Several animals rushed passed him seemingly not caring that he was there at all. He found it odd. Wild animals always ran when humans were around them. He wondered why these weren't. Still he kept walking. They appeared to be going in the same direction that he was.
He had no idea how long he was walking but suddenly the forest began to thin out as colorful crystals appeared growing from the ground. For some reason they reminded him of the elements of nature. There were red ones, blue ones, light blue ones, and green ones. Each gave off a warm glow that was a few shades lighter than their color. He continued on the path he was walking. Then an odd sensation filled his body, mind, and soul. Someone was close to him. His heart started beating erratically in his chest. He knew who it was but didn't know who it was. He wanted to hurry and find them. So he broke off into a run.
The presence he was feeling kept getting closer and closer, yet he never saw them. He continued running on the path until it led him to a small circular field with several animals surrounding a large white flower that was closed up tight. The presence was strong here, the presence as inside of the flower. He walked forward, the need to be near the flower over whelmed him. His feet carried him forward. The animals parted for him as he reached the flower. Someone was inside. They were making his heart pound and his palms grow sweaty. He had to see. Reaching out he placed his hand on the flower. Its silky petal shivered under his touch before the petals started to open. He stepped back, giving the petals room to open all the way. His heart rate speed up. It was a woman. Though he couldn't see her face he could see the subtle curve of her body under the black top she was wearing. He stepped back to the flower. His hand reached up and slipped under hers. Her skin was soft, just as soft as the flower's petals. "Can you hear me?"
Her fingers curled against his. Her head turned towards him, but he still couldn't see her face.
"Who are you?" Law asked.
The woman sat up but didn't answer him. She released his hand then turned her body and slid off the flower. She was a whole head shorter than him. It gave her an innocent childlike feel.
He wanted to hold her, to wrap his arms around her and protect her for the rest of his life. He reached for her to do just that but was interrupted by a strange darkness that surrounded them. "Who's there?!"
The animals shivered before bolting for the safety of the forest.
"There's nothing you can do," a voice said. "You all are lost forever."
"What are you talking about?" Law asked.
"Give up," the voice said. "You can't win."
"I demand you tell me what's going on!" Law said.
"Give up, Trafalgar," the voice said, fading away with each word. "Give up, Trafalgar. Give up, Tra. Get up, Tra…"
"Get up, Tra. Hey, Tra? Tra?" a voice called to him through his awakening senses. "Are you going to get up? I'm hungry."
Law opened his eyes. He started when he saw Luffy staring right at him only a couple inches from his face. "Straw Hat! What heck do you think you're doing?!"
"Trying to get you to wake up," Luffy said. "You've been talking in your sleep for ten minutes."
"What?" Law sat up and looked at his younger companion. "What do you mean?"
"You were talking in your sleep," Luffy said.
"I was?" Law asked.
"You were talking about some kind of flower and then you were demanding to know who was talking to you," Luffy said. "Are you feeling okay?"
"Yeah." Law placed a hand on his face. He tried to recall what he was dreaming about but only got bits and pieces. "I was with someone. A woman, I think."
"A woman, huh?" Luffy asked.
"Yeah." Law nodded. "That and I saw some kind of crystals growing out of the ground."
"Crystal? Growing out of the ground?" Luffy tilted his head. "That's weird."
"It was just a dream," Law said. He lowered his hand and looked around. The stars were still shining brightly in the sea and no ships were in sight. "We better get started on our raft."
"Can't we eat first? I'm hungry," Luffy said.
Law wanted to protest but his stomach alerted him to being hungry as well. He pushed himself to his feet. "Fine. We can have some of that fruit for breakfast since we're going into the forest anyway." He picked up his sword then headed for the tree line. "Let's go."
"Yeah!" Luffy cheered and ran ahead of Law.
Law sighed but continued to follow after the boy. His mind spun with the few fragments of his dream. It was such a weird dream yet it felt oddly real. He paused to relieve himself before proceeding to the giant fruits. Once he got there the affects of his dreams were wearing off enough for him to push it aside. He cut himself a hunk of the fruit off and ate it. Next he glanced around the forest for the right size wood that would carry them to the next island. With no such trees around he began to cut off pieces of the large trees that surrounded them with his Room. He then cut some vines up to use as ropes.
All the while Luffy continued to munch on the large fruit. When he had finally got his fill he started running around the forest, swinging from vines, flinging himself into the air with his rubber body to see how far he could go.
Law's body twitched in annoyance. "Will you stop messing around and help me?"
"But that's boring," Luffy said. "And you're doing such a good job."
"Just get over here and help me tie the wood together!" Law said. "We need to get to that other island!"
"Okay." Luffy walked over to Law. He grabbed a vine off the ground and started wrapping it around the wood.
Law whipped the sweat off his forehead. "Finally. It's done."
"How are we going to get it to the water?" Luffy asked.
"I'll use my powers or whatever they are," Law said holding up his hand. "Room."
"Wow!" Luffy cried as the blue sphere appeared around them.
"Shambles," Law said. In a blink they disappeared from the forest and reappeared back on the beach. He then warped the raft onto the water. A few seconds passed before he decided it was good enough. He warped himself and Luffy onto the raft. Picking up the two oars he made, he tossed one to Luffy. "Start rowing."
"Okay." Luffy placed the oar into the water and stroked.
Law placed his sword down on the raft and started paddling as well. Minutes passed and it didn't seem like they were growing any closer to the island. But looking back at the island they were on, he could tell that they were making progress. His eyes dropped down to the water. It was calm, a little too calm for his liking. It made him wonder what sort of dangers was lurking just below the surface. Worry pounded into his head. If he or Luffy fell overboard they were going to be dead. He could save Luffy if the young boy fell in. But Luffy couldn't save him. They had to reach the other island before something knocked them off. "Paddle faster, Straw Hat."
"I'm getting tired of paddling," Luffy said. "Can't we take a break?"
"It's too dangerous to do that," Law said. "If something knocks us into the water we'll drown."
"But there's nothing out here," Luffy said.
The surface broke. Wave crashed against their small raft as a giant serpent with feathers around its neck rose up from below.
"Whoa!" Luffy screamed. "It's huge!"
"You idiot!" Law shouted. "I told you we needed to row faster!"
The serpent turned its brown eyes to the, a dark red tongue slithered out of its lips then back in. It opened its mouth. Two large fangs protruded from the roof of its mouth.
"Crap!" Law cursed. He held up his hand. But before he could create his sphere, Luffy's arm shot passed him. It landed on the serpent's neck. The sounds of cracking bones told him it was dead. The creature fell back into the water with a large splash, rocking their raft again.
"Yeah!" Luffy cried. "I did it!"
Law sighed. "This is just plain stupid."
"Relax, Tra," Luffy said. "We can handle anything."
"Just shut up and row," Law said. "I'd like to get to the island before another one of those appears."
"Can't we take it with us?" Luffy asked. "I bet it tastes really good barbecued."
"Is that all you think about? Food?" Law glanced back over his shoulder. He found Luffy staring back at the dead creature and drooling. "Just start paddling before I through you overboard."
"Hey!" Luffy placed his paddle back into the water.
Law faced forward. He pushed his own paddle through the water. Several minutes passed before the island finally got bigger. The closer they got the more he could make out the beach. Several ships were lined up in the docks. Bright lights came from the city as well as some loud music. Then finally their raft ran aground. He tossed his paddle aside, reclaimed his sword, and jumped to the beach.
"Yahoo!" Luffy threw his arms up in the air. "We made it!"
Law huffed and headed down the beach. The noise from the city got louder the closer they got. Reaching the city limits, he scanned his eyes over the bright lights. It was some casino city they had landed in. Several golden brown people, with pointy ears, walked up and down the brightly light streets. Some were window shopping, some were dressed in elaborate costumes doing performances for whoever would stop and watch them, while others were trying to guide people into the casinos on the promises of making it rich.
"Wow! This place is amazing!" Luffy said. "We have to check it out!"
"Do you have money on you?" Law asked.
Luffy reached into his pockets. Pulling his hand back out all he had was his pockets. "Aw, man."
"Then stay away from the casinos. They can get you into a lot of trouble," Law said. "And that's the last thing I need."
"So what are we going to do?" Luffy asked.
"First of all we're going to find someone who will tell us where we are," Law said. His eyes landed on a tall blonde haired woman. She wore a sparkling red dress with a slit on each side that went up to her hips. He knew she was watching him. Her eyes sparkled with danger and lust. She reached into her dress, between her half revealed breasts, and pulled out a white cloth. He narrowed his eyebrows when she dabbed her face with it then accidently dropped it. His eyes followed her bend. Her breasts clearly revealed to him in all their large, rounded glory. Then the girl from his dream flashed into his mind. Guilt leaked into his body and soul forcing him to turn away from the woman. His heart thumped rapidly in his chest. It was odd. The thought of a girl in his dream sent his heart racing yet this woman who was practically throwing himself at her he felt nothing for her, not lust or even the primal desire of satisfying his fleshly desires. He placed his hand on his chest.
Before he was able to analyze the situation he felt something under his shirt. For the first time he noticed a necklace hanging from his neck. Pulling it out he found a silver ring attacked to it. On the ring was an intricate heart shape. His eyes drifted to his chest. Small black lines were sticking out from his shirt. Pulling the neckline away he found he had a strange heart shaped tattoo on his body. The tattoo was similar to the design on the ring. He wondered what the ring meant. And wondered why he was wearing it on a necklace instead of his finger. Lost in thought he almost didn't sense the woman walking up to him. But her presence wasn't hard to miss. She was dripping with intention, sexual intention. She was trying to get with him by using her body. It wouldn't work. No matter how attractive she might actually be, he felt nothing for her. His body stiffened when he felt her presence standing right beside him.
"Well, hello there," she said, her words like honey. "I couldn't help but notice you standing here."
"I'm sure," Law said not looking at her.
"I haven't seen you before," she said. "Are you new?"
"If you'll excuse me," Law said walking forward.
"Hold on." She grabbed his arm and pressed her body up against his. "You seem a bit tense. How about you come up to my room and let me help relax you?"
Law jerked his arm free of her hold. "Leave me alone."
With a dejected hug the woman walked away from him. He tucked the ring back into his shirt for safekeeping. It might be an important clue that would lead him to what he had forgotten. Looking around for Luffy he found the boy standing near a man who had some cards spread out on a table. He walked over to him.
"Come on and pick a card," the man behind the table said. "Just one little card and you could become one of the richest men in the world!"
"Really?! That sounds awesome!" Luffy said before reaching for the cards.
"Hold it." Law grabbed Luffy back the back of his shirt and pulled his away from the table.
"Hey! I was going to pick a card!" Luffy said.
"And get us into some hot water," Law said dragging the boy down the street. "We're not here to gamble. We don't even have any money to gamble with. If you had picked a card most likely you would lose and spend the rest of your life working for that man."
"Working?! I don't want to work! I want to have fun!" Luffy said.
"Then stay away from the gambling tables," Law said. "Besides we have more important things to do."
"Right!" Luffy said. "You can let go of me now."
"Fine. But don't run off." Law released him. The two continued walking down the streets. He looked over the people, trying to figure out who would be the right person to ask, while Luffy looked over the bright lights and flashy games.
"This place looks like so much fun!" Luffy said. "We should play!"
"I already told you we don't have money to play," Law said.
"But this is boring," Luffy said. "And I'm getting tired of walking."
Law sighed. They had been walking for a long while, despite not knowing how long exactly it has been. He looked around his surrounds again before deciding he wanted to get away from all the noise for a while so he could think clearly. "Fine. Let's see if we can find a place to sit down. But away from all of the noise."
"Okay!" Luffy nodded.
Law started walking again. Down the street until the bright lights finally gave way to a normal looking neighborhood. Houses, in organic shapes, lined up were lit up buy yellow bulbs that resembled plant life. He continued on down the street, carefully eyeing the houses. Some kids were playing in a few yards, not paying them any attention. Soon a soft cinnamon smell floated through the air.
"Smells so good," Luffy said as he sniffed the air.
Law had to agree. The smell was rather appealing. He led the boy another block before a small restaurant appeared. It was a humble place. Dome shaped with tables and chairs scattered in front of a nicely kept yard decorated with small flowerbeds and a few bushes. Despite the mouth watering smells coming from the building no one appeared to be eating here. It made him wonder again what time it was.
"Yummy!" Luffy cheered as he ran over to the place.
"That idiot," Law mumbled. He followed after Luffy despite wanting to run in the opposite direction. While Luffy ran around the yard, he sat down at a table, propping his sword up on it. He then sighed heavily and started to think about their next move.
"Hello," a frail voice said.
Law turned to see an old man with a gentle smile walking over to him.
"What would you like to drink?" the old man asked.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Law said. "We're not here to drink or eat."
"Oh? Surely you want something to drink. It's rather warm today," the old man said.
Law didn't notice but it had grown rather warm despite there being no sun. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a few berries. "I'm afraid I don't have too much money on me."
"That's all right," the old man said. "It's on the house. I can get you something to eat as well."
"Really?!" Luffy said before running over to the table. He sat down. "I want meat!"
"Ignore him," Law said. "He's an idiot."
"No worries." The old man smiled and nodded. "I have a grandson that's full of energy like that as well. So it doesn't bother me at all. I enjoy all of the youth you young ones bring. Give me a minute and I'll bring you both something I think you'll enjoy."
"He's nice," Luffy said.
Law could only nod. He let his eyes drop down to the table while waiting on whatever the old man was going to bring them. His mind wondered back to his dream and the girl in it. Over and over again he tried to figure out who she was, why the animals were surrounding her, and why she was inside of a flower like that. He came up with nothing.
"You look like you have a lot on your mind."
Law looked up to find that the old man had several dishes of food set out on the table. "What's all this?"
"Food," the old man said. "You eat it."
"I know that." Law frowned.
The old man chuckled. "I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself. This is our going out of business sale."
"Going out of business?" Law glanced over at the building. There hanging in the window was a going out of business sale. He wondered how he possible could have missed that.
"Why are you closing?" Luffy asked.
"With the casinos around there's no more room for small businesses like mine to survive here," the old man said. "Many have already closed. So we're packing it up and moving to another cluster."
"Cluster?" Law asked.
"It's the place we're living on. There are several in the Star Line," the old man said.
"The Star Line?" Law asked. "What's that?"
"Hm? You don't know where you are?" the old man asked.
"Afraid not," Law said. "We're both suffering from some form of amnesia."
"Oh, that's terrible," the old man said. "You are in the Star Line. It's special sea where the stars are in the sea. It's an odd phenomenon that raises many unanswered questions. Many people have debated on whether or not we're still on the planet or if we're out in space. Many different creatures live here that don't line in the New World."
"The New World?" Law mumbled. "I think I remember that place. I've been there at least."
"Me too!" Luffy said. "The name sounds familiar!"
"Of course you have," the old man said. "That's how you get to this place. There's a cave out there in the middle of nowhere. It's the gateway that brings people here. You two must have gone through it if you're here."
"The question is why are we here?" Law said.
"That I cannot tell you," the old man said. "Many come here for adventure or got pulled in here by accident or by a storm. What I can tell you is you probably have friends here somewhere as well."
"Why's that?" Luffy asked.
"Because the water path that brings you here can't be navigated by only two people," the old man said. "You need someone to steer the ship and several others to avoid the many obstacles that would have gotten in your way."
"Friends, huh?" Law asked thinking back to the girl he dreamed about. Maybe that's who she was. Maybe she was a friend of his or Luffy or both.
"We have friends?!" Luffy said. "That's cool! I wonder where they are!"
"It's hard to say if you have gotten separated from them," the old man said. "Oh, by the way, you can call me Coal."
"I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" Luffy said.
"Trafalgar Law," Law said.
"Nice to meet you both." Coal nodded.
"So how would we go about getting a ship to sail?" Law asked.
"Buying one is your best bet," Coal said. "But getting one can be extremely difficult."
"Why?" Luffy asked.
"Because of our current ruler," Coal said.
"Current ruler?" Law asked.
"His name is Kuro," Coal said. "He's currently the strongest in the Star Line due to having beating the previous ruler and obtaining the star scepter. I'd avoid him and his minions at all costs."
"Why? Is he that strong?" Luffy asked.
"He is." Coal nodded. "Even without the star scepter he would be a powerful opponent to fight against. Now that he as the star scepter his power has been magnified. He can control all of the starbursts."
"What's a starburst?" Luffy asked.
"They're a power that anyone can obtain by wearing a star flake on your skin. Aerolite allows its wielder to launch meteorites. Escape Velocity Star gives the user fast speed. Gamma Ray is an extremely short-wavelength and energetic electromagnetic radiation. Nova Flash is just a flash of light often used for escaping," Coal said. "And those are just a few examples. New powers seem to pop up all of the time. The star flakes can also be taken away by simply removing them. But a lot don't wear them where they can be seen by the general public."
"Could that be what we have?" Luffy asked. "We have powers, too."
"Oh? And what might those be?" Coal asked.
"I can stretch really far," Luffy said before tossing out a punch as an example. "And Tra can form some sort of sphere and cut things up where they don't bleed."
"You don't say," Coal said.
"Are they part of the star flakes?" Luffy asked.
"I don't believe so," Coal said. "The star flakes give you abilities that are related to space."
"Then what do we have?" Luffy asked.
"I believe you might have powers that come from devil fruits," Coal said. "Do you know if you get weak by going in the sea?"
"We do!" Luffy said. "Tra had to save us both from drowning!"
"Then that's what you have," Coal said. "I've heard of them but never have seen one before. They're very rare here. Devil fruit users are also weakened by a thing called sea prism stone. Though I'm not sure if any is in the Star Line."
"Is there some place we can get more information on the devil fruits and what we might have?" Law asked.
"I'm not sure," Coal said. "Some library somewhere might have a book about them. You'd just have to look. As I said they are rare here."
"Is there anyway to find our friends?" Luffy asked.
"I'm afraid not," Coal said. "Or not that I'm aware of other than old fashion looking."
"Bummer." Luffy took a bite of fish.
"If you do find a way to set sail you best be careful," Coal said. "Kuro has many followers who won't hesitate to attack you for any given reason. And it's not always easy to know who's working for him."
"Why is that?" Luffy asked.
"Not all bear his symbol," Coal said. "I'm sure you have already past many of his followers when you walking through the city. But as long as you do nothing to upset him then there's no reason for him to attack you."
"Right!" Luffy nodded. "We'll keep that in mind!"
"What is his symbol?" Law asked.
"It's a broken star bleeding red," Coal said.
"Where's the library?" Law asked.
"You continued on down the street here then make a left and walk four blocks," Coal said. "You can't miss it. It's the largest building in that part of the neighborhood."
Law nodded. He ate some fish and something fluffy that tasted like ginger before grabbing his sword. Standing up he placed his sword over his shoulder. "We need to get going. I want to visit the library to see if they have any books on devil fruits."
"Of course." Coal nodded.
"All ready?" Luffy asked. "We just got here."
"We've been eating for about twenty minutes," Law said. "That's more than enough time to eat. So hurry up or I'm going to leave you here."
"Okay!" Luffy quickly shoveled the rest of the food in to his mouth. He swallowed, pounded his chest when it got stuck, and then finished his water. "I'm done!"
"Your table manners are deplorably," Law said before walking away. "Thanks for your services."
"Thanks, old man, for the food!" Luffy waved as he ran after Law.
"Sure thing," Coal said waving back. "Good luck to you both."
"He was a nice guy," Luffy said walking beside Law.
Law didn't bother responding to his companion. He continued on walking while looking for the library. He followed the old man's direction before coming to the dome building that was spoken of.
"Wow! This place is huge!" Luffy said.
Law ran his eyes up the side of the gray building. There were windows all around it and the very top of it was clear. Bringing his eyes back down he walked towards the door and entered. The smell of the books was the first thing that came to him. It gave him an odd feeling of nostalgia and the girl in his dream flashed back into his mind. His heart skipped a beat at the mere thought of her. He looked around. Near the door was a reception desk where a gray haired woman with round glasses perched on her tiny nose was checking someone out. In front of the reception desks were other square shape desks. A few people were scattered around them. They were of school age so that's who he assumed they were. Beyond them was an index of the books. Pushing forward he wondered over to the index and started looking for anything on devil fruits. Finding one card reading Devil Fruit, Floor Three Isle Twelve, he shoved it back in place and went to find the book. Walking up to the third floor he noticed that all of the isles were curved to fit the flow of the dome.
"This place is so weird," Luffy said.
Law didn't necessarily agree or disagree. This was just another building, hopefully with the information that he sought. A few minutes later he finally came upon the correct book. He pulled it from its place on the shelf and frowned at the cover. There was a strawberry shaped fruit with yellow spots on it. He didn't think it was what he was looking for but he still opened it. Scanning his eyes over the first few pages he found that the fruit was a poison. It could be ingest by itself or the juice could be put into something. And the reason it was called devil fruit was because when a person ingests it their stomach feels like hell fire. Flipping through a few more pages the desire to put it back on the shelf hit him then disappeared as he came to the cure for it. And that cure was to eat the ice fruit. The juice from it would cool the burning sensation and suck up all the toxins from the person's body. "Interesting."
"Tra, did you find it?" Luffy asked.
"No," Law said. "But let's keep looking around."
Luffy hummed and looked over the books. "I hate libraries."
"Just look around for anything that might be useful." Law placed the book back on the shelf and wandered through the isle. Somehow he managed to come upon the medical section of the library. They pulled at him like a magnet. He tried to resist them and focus on his real objective but then the thought of getting hurt crossed his mind. If he didn't read about that devil fruit then he never would have known it was toxic. He needed more information on this place if they were going to be sailing through it. So he gathered a stack of medical books, walked to the center of the dome, and found tables like the first floor. He sat down and spread the books out before him then started looking through them. His eyes drifted up to a notebook and a pencil lying on the table. Looking around it didn't appear the owner was near. So he pulled it to him. Opening it up he found nothing written inside, not even a name. He decided to use it. Grabbing the pencil he started to write down everything he thought would be useful. It struck him odd that he was absorbing the information so well and so quickly. But he didn't question it. This was a good thing. And he was going to get all the information that he could before they set sail. He stopped writing. He had no idea where they were going to set sail to. They still knew next to nothing about this place.