Pirates of the Grand Line

The Curse of the Thousand Sunny

Chapter 7

By Wakback

While plans were being made in Tortuga, plans on the Thousand Sunny were about to be revealed. Moonlight overflowed the sky and air. In it, Orange, who was still in her nightgown, waited in a guestroom when she turned to the opening door. Entering were Mage and Soge, a rose red dress in Mage's hands.

"You'll be dining with the captain tonight; and he requests you wear this," Mage spoke.

"Well you can tell Captain Wakback that I am disinclined to acquiesce to his request."

At this both men had a smile that didn't seem too innocent. "He said you'd say that. He also says that if that be the case, then you'll be dining with the crew, and you'll be Naked."

Much to the demise of the men's urge for lust, Orange was now in the captain's quarters with the rose red dress on. She now sat at the table, silently cutting her leg of pig. There, all across the table were foods and drink that slightly shifted with the rock of the boat. Wakback, who sat not too far from her at the end of the table, chuckled.

"Miss Burner, you're among pirates. Manners don't exist here."

Orange shifted her eyes to Wakback's smiling bony face, seeing that he wasn't joking. And, seeing as how that she didn't eat at all so far today, she took the pig leg in her hand and tore in it like a tiger eating his meal. Wakback's eyes shifted at bit at the sight of this to a veiled look of greed. He grabbed a bottle of wine as it slid across him as the boat swayed, then poured a healthy portion of it into a cup as it slid back. He then took the cup and offered it to her.

"Please, try the wine."

Orange took the cup and drunk deeply, Wakback's look not changing a bit. He picked up a green apple that he gathered for special occasions, and held it to her.

"And an Apple."

Something then clicked in Orange's mind as she dropped the piece of bread she tore from. "…It's poisoned!"

"Naw," Wakback sighed with a look of humor on his face. "There's no sense in killing you."

"Then release me, you have your medallion, I'm of no more use to you."

Wakback chuckled and reached into his Jacket. He pulled out the medallion, dangling it in his fingers as the nearby pet monkey that sat on his perch paused his chewing of a grape. He spoke in a low tone. "…You don't know what this is, do you?"

"It's a pirate medallion."

"No. It's Aztec gold. One of 882 idenical pieces delivered in a stone chest to the conquistador Cortez himself. It was blood money, paid to stop him from slaughtering their people. But he wasn't satisfied. He took all of it and still killed them. So the Gods placed a terrible curse on the chest to punish any for their greed. 'Whomsoever takes but one piece from the chest, shall be punished for all eternity.'"

"… I hardly believe in ghost stories anymore Captain Wakback."

"Aye," Wakback then got up and started to walk around the room as he continued the story. "That's exactly what I thought when I first heard the tale. Buried on the island of the dead that cannot be found except by those who know where it is. We found it all right. Treasure was common like furniture in a room. And there, like a crown jewel, was the chest the gold inside. And we took it all! We spent them, thrown them away on food, drink, and pleasurable company."

Wakback now took an even deeper tone. "But the more we spent our claim, the quicker we came to realize the gold would not satisfy. The drink wouldn't satisfy, food turned to ash in our mouths, and even the most pleasurable of company could not wear our lust. We're cursed men, Miss Burner. Compelled by greed we were. But now, were consumed by it."

It was then that the monkey started to howl like it saw the devil himself in front of him. Wakback then went to it and petted it, calming it down, and handed it the medallion in its little paws. The monkey then ran off through a hole in the wall installed in the door. Orange however, had taken this time to hide a steak knife in her napkin on her lap. Wakback then continued his story.

"…But there is one way to end our suffering. We must collect all the scattered 882 pieces and return them to the chest with the thief's blood on each piece. The blood to be repaid. For 10 years, we've been searching for the pieces, and always failing to find one certain piece that was sent off by one of our now dead crewmates. We thought we would never be freed. But now, thanks to you, we have the final piece."

Now, if Orange wasn't at least frightened, she certainly was now. "A-And the blood to be repaid?"

At this, he gave a malicious grin. "That's why there's no sense to kill you. ...Yet."

And now, Orange was scared like hell. Wakback then held his palm out offering a certain something to her. "Apple?"

Orange smacked his hand away and pulled the knife out in a threatening manner trying to get to the door. But no matter how she stepped, Wakback blocked her path. She then went and stabbed him straight into his heart. She then stood back, her eyes wide and mouth open with fear. Wakback looked down to the knife, the handle sticking out of his chest, but not a drop of blood had shown. He pulled the knife out, pulling a gasp from Orange. There was the knife, the blade thickly caked with his blood, but Wakback was standing as if nothing had happened.

"I'm curious Miss Burner. After killing me, what was it that you planed on doing next?"

Orange was just still shocked and ran out the door, but then wished she didn't. She now looked at the bodies of the crew, but the were rotten skeleton forms, the clothes tattered and torn like the ship's sails, hair strands hung loose from their skulls, and the only flesh there was were their eyes. She turned again and screamed. Shrieking in her face was a similar skeleton monkey with the dangling medallion in its bony paws. She ran back to the room and was grabbed by Wakback who stayed out of the night and turned her to see the cursed crew.

"Look Miss Burner! The moonlight shows us for what we really are! As you can see, we are no longer alive so we cannot die, but neither are we dead."

He then turned her to him and they slowly stepped closer to the moonlight. And now he had a look of anger on his face. "For too long I've been starving to death, and haven't died! For too long have I had a thirst, unable to be quenched." Now his look became one of sadness and desperation as he recalled the past. "I feel nothing! Not the wind on my face, the spray of the sea," he then reached his hand out towards Orange and she gasped, as it turned skeleton-like in the moonlight, "or the warmth of a woman skin."

Now he stepped fully into the moonlight becoming a full skeletal figure. She looked into his eyes only to find them not there anymore, but it was clear that he could still see. "You best start believing in ghost stories Miss Burner. You're in one."

It is now morning on one of the many docks of Tortuga. Luffy, Zoro, and U.B. now stand before a lengthy line of raga-bout sailors.

"Feast your eyes captain!" Zoro said with pride. "All of them faithful hands before the mast, each one worth his salt," Luffy then turned his gaze down onto a small 'boy' who was a really a little reindeer with a pink hat and walked on two legs, name: Tony Tony Chopper "and crazy to boot."

"This, is your able-bodied crew?" U.B. asked with disbelief. They then stood before a certain pirate with a Parrot on his shoulder.

"You sailor!" Luffy shouted addressing him.

"Sherms." Zoro informed.

"Mr. Sherms! Are you willing to follow all of my commands despite any doubt, fear, or any other force before any challenge and even death itself?" Luffy asked in one breath. He didn't answer. "Mr. Sherms! Answer!"

Zoro spoke again. "Uh, He's a mute sir, poor man got his tongue cut out," Sherms then opened his mouth displaying the absence of tongue. Luffy chewed his own tongue behind a disgusted face in gratitude of his own luck. "So he trained the Parrot to talk for him. Nobody's quite figured out how."

Luffy turned about to leave, but then turned back. "...Mr. Sherms's Parrot. Same Question."

"Squawk! Wind at the Sail! Wind at the Sail!"

"Most of us figure that means yes."

"Of course it does!" Luffy then turned to U.B. "Happy?"

"Well you've proven they're crazy."

"And what's the benefit for us?" a new female voice shouted.

The three turned towards the direction and walk to the person that spoke out loud. There at the end of the dock was someone with their head down and a hat covering their hair and hiding their face. Luffy flipped the hat off of her head and out poured Orange hair.

"Nami!"

SMACK!

"I suppose you didn't deserve that either?" U.B. asked.

"No, that one I deserved."

"Where's My BOAT!" Nami yelled.

"Well I-"

SMACK!

"Borrowed! Borrowed without permission. But with every intention of bringing it back!"

"But you didn't!"

"…You'll get another one!" She quickly raised her hand as Luffy covered his face in fear of being slapped again. "I Will…"

"…You'll get another one!" U.B. assured.

"Another one!" Luffy said joyously agreeing with him.

"A better one!"

"A better one!"

"That one." U.B. spoke while pointing.

"What one?"

He pointed again. Now, all eyes landed on the El Dorado.

"THAT ONE!" Luffy hissed through his teeth.

All eyes came back to Luffy as U.B. smirked in triumph. Luffy frowned knowing that Nami won't take anything else for an answer now.

"Aye!" Luffy spoke with effort happiness. "That one. What say ye?"

"Aye!" all sailors shouted. Sherms's Parrot just crowed, "Anchors away!" Zoro then came up to Luffy.

"You know it's bad luck to bring a woman onboard a ship."

Luffy turned his eyes to the sky, already knowing what was to come. "Believe you me Zoro. It'd be far worse luck not to." Luffy left for the ship behind the sailors. U.B. and Zoro however were trying to see what he saw. All they saw was one small cloud far on the opposite direction of where we were to go. The calm before the storm one might say.

A couple hours later, they were barely moving the ship as they went against a storm in full bloom. U.B. and Zoro barely grasping the ropes to keep the sail steady, Chopper dangled on a rope beside them. Luffy was at the Helm with his compass in hand and Nami by his side, he saw it pointing in a different direction from where they were. Quickly, he sharply spun the Helm putting them on the right course. After being swept away by a wave, U.B., Chopper, and Zoro scrambled back to the ropes.

"How are we supposed to find an island that can't be found with a compass that doesn't point north?" U.B. shouted above the storm to Zoro whom was beside him and Chopper.

"Aye! The compass doesn't point north. But we're not trying to find north now are we?"

Luffy spun the wheel once more as Nami yelled at him to get her voice above the winds. "We should drop canvas Luffy!"

"He can hold a bit longer!"

"What's in that empty head of yours that's put you in such a good mood!"

Luffy grinned. "We're catching up."

Orange looked out the ships window, now at a calm grasp of what was going on. She looked at the entryway of a cave where much pain and suffering began. The door opened behind her to reveal Soge, Mage, Jyabura and Gin.

"Time to go Kitty."

On the deck, they tied her hands together. Wakback then clasped the medallion around her neck.

They traveled by boat as they entered the cave, with Wakback standing at the head of the first boat. The ceremony has begun.