[Author's Note: This chapter (and a few in the past) mentions a few unnamed people. I felt it would be giving away too much if I revealed who exactly they were speaking of so soon in the story line and I felt their conversation wouldn't be natural if they themselves had to explain who it was. No, you haven't missed anything. It's just written to be slightly confusing and mysterious. At first Pierce remained unnamed as well, but he gets mentioned in the next chapter and I felt this one has enough unnamed "him's" in relation to her past as it was.]
Valentine's Personal Log 18: Ocean in the Sky
It's hard to breathe up here, so I'll copy the important details over to the ship's log once I can fill my lungs enough to go get it. Everything is made of clouds. The bottomless ocean, buildings, weapons, everything. There are fish and people with wings on their backs. A knight showed up talking about "Extols". It seems to be the currency used here. I found myself touching the ring around my neck, wondering if my family's money would work in the clouds. I haven't risked using it since I left, so I'm not sure if I even have access to it. There would be a low risk of anyone tracking it to Skypia, but the knock-up current isn't the only way to get up here and I don't want to cause unnecessary trouble.
We found ourselves in a part of Skypia called Angel Beach. Zoro teased me for not putting on my red outfit to go ashore. I just smiled and told him I didn't have any ex's in heaven yet, but that I might make some before we went back to our ocean. We met a woman named Conis and her father Pagaya. We learned about waivers, bike-like boats that run on things called breath and jet dials. Nami took to it right away and asked for the one that Luffy brought aboard could be fixed.
Everything here is powered by creature shells called dials. They can store anything from light to an impact to sound waves themselves. Usopp was very interested in them. I could see the wheels in his head turning and knew some invention was about to be born. Be proud of him, Kaya. He's grown so strong and he's only going to get stronger in a place like this. I can't let myself pass this up either. I found myself looking to collect liquid dials for storing inks and poisons. I even learned of one that could neutralize toxins.
A bunch of weird guys came after us and threatened us with divine punishment from the sky island's Kami, Eneru for not paying an entrance fee. Sanji, Luffy, and Usopp went back to Conis' house to grab some supplies while the rest of us piled back into the ship. While we were waiting for the rest to return, a giant lobster grabbed Merry and drug us off to a sacrificial altar in the part of the island that the sky people told us not to go to. This ought to be interesting, if we survive. I've never met a Kami before but I don't think I could poison one.
Sky sharks and sky eels patrol the waters around the altar. Our favorite swordsman punched one. Since this is my personal log, I've got to say, Zoro looks great with his hair held up by goggles. Throw that in with a tank top and he looks like a cool thug. My father would be so disappointed to find me living on a ship with guys like this. I love it. And speaking of men that father hates…
Karmen's eyes scan over the shadows in the forest.
Zoro wants to go do recon and Robin wants to investigate the local ruins. Nami heard "ruins" and decided to go treasure hunting. I hate to leave Chopper all alone in a place like this, but I really should go say hi. I'll say I'm looking for poisons or something.
Strapping her basket to her back, Karmen swings across to dry land after Nami as the other sky sharks devour the one that Zoro knocked out. Pretending to adjust her basket, she looks into the shadows and nods towards the forest ahead. After they walk a long distance, Robin runs ahead to investigate a partial ruin and Nami climbs a tree to try to find a few reference points. Karmen writes a brief note and pins it to a tree. Saw some plants I want. You would have stopped me. Will ride a sky shark to catch up. -K.
She quickly climbs a tree and walks across a low hanging branch to get across the river. She slips briefly on the damp moss and a hand materializes out of nowhere to stabilize her leg. She looks over her shoulder to see Robin give her a discreet thumbs up. Karmen gives her a nod in return and continues. She slides down a vine to get to the ground and runs straight for five minutes to join the man out of earshot of the others.
"Uncle Drac, what are you doing somewhere so sunny?" she asks.
"How, in any form, are we related?" Dracule Mihawk asks. "You have more of a relation to Doflamingo than you do to me."
"Don't go lumping me in with that creep." She crosses her arms. "And his mark was all over Mock Town. Don't you guys have territorial boundaries or something? Whatever. You said last time that you don't like Hawkie, and Bird Man's been out since I was a child, so what am I supposed to call you?"
"Mihawk or Dracule come to mind."
"I only give nicknames to people I'm dearly fond of, you know. You should accept it without complaint."
"Call me what you will, then." She smiles. This is the closest she can get to having him admit that he likes being called "Uncle." "How's that whelp doing?"
"Oh? Still interested in, Zoro, huh?" Her smile widens. "He's gotten stronger thanks to that speech of yours, but now I'm just repeating my letter. He's still no match for you, but you'll get old someday."
"When we last crossed paths I was surprised to see you with pirates."
"I would have waved, but I was a little busy trying to keep some young frog from bleeding to death." He gives her a sidelong look that makes her shrink a little. She gets to the point. "I didn't really expect it either. I just needed a ship and they seemed like good people. I'm just the secretary. I don't do much fighting."
He glances at the poison harness on her wrist. "Obviously." He begins to walk slowly and she falls in step beside him. "I had business in the area and calculated your route based on your captain's personality."
"How do you pick up on so much from those clipped conversations of yours?" she asks. "And you're an awful liar. Your left eyebrow lowers slightly. He sent you, right? How is he?"
"I saw him at a government meeting a few days ago. He was himself. I mentioned seeing you and he asked me to look in on your current situation."
"I would have called but it's safer for both of us if we keep contact to a minimum." She wonders about the extra tidbit of information he had added, knowing he doesn't say more than necessary. Afraid to ask what he means, she lets it slide. "As long as I don't run into this Kami guy, I think I'll be fine. The crew may have a few airheads, but they're pretty good in a pinch."
"They're full of potential, but I don't think that will satisfy him."
"Then he'll have to live with my decision, won't he?" Karmen stops walking and Mihawk lets her form her thoughts. "Have you heard anything about… Pierce?"
"I'm a busy man, cub. I have not had the leisure to look after his status."
"I thought you might say that." She continues their progress forward. "I just thought it couldn't hurt to ask. I'm going back for him."
"Don't let past failures cloud your judgement. They would be very upset with you if you got yourself killed."
"Past failures," she scoffs. "What choice did I have? I was forced to leave him behind. I made a promise, Drac. I'll keep it, even if I get killed."
He considers this for a moment before he stops walking and looks at a nearby plant. "That's Brugmansia. Avoid touching the leaves and seeds. The main symptoms are tachycardia, dark hallucinations, self harm, and paralysis. I trust you can figure the rest out on your own."
She leans down to examine the plant and takes a few notes. When she looks back up, he's gone. "Thank you, Uncle Drac." She smiles as she collects it. "Though, if you're going to try a disappearing act, you should dial down the Haki. I can feel you watching me."
Karmen returns as the others start heading back to the ship. Her shoulder is a little bloody, but the sky shark she's riding follows her commands without any backlash.
"How did you tame that thing?" Nami screams at her.
"I poisoned Teeth here with deadbolt and told him that if he wanted the antidote before his friends ate him he'd give me a lift." Karmen pulls the vine in his mouth to maneuver the shark closer to shore.
"What did you find, then?" Robin asks.
"Angel's Trumpet. It'll be the perfect thing to replace my bloodroot. I'm almost out." She jumps ashore and removes the harness from the shark. It swims off quickly.
Zoro waves the note in her face. "If you keep doing this I'm going to stop returning your pens."
Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji were at the altar when we returned. The ship had been attacked by a priest of Eneru and Chopper had called the sky knight for aid. He is the old Kami who was driven out of sacred island which, as Nami discovered, used to be part of Jaya and had been blown into the sky by the knockup current. He's in rough shape. He fought hard defending Chopper and Merry. We were told that without him, the ship would have burned and Chopper would have been killed. I feel I should have stayed, but I know deep down that if I had tried to fight this man, I would have been killed. We owe a great debt to this old knight. I hope we can pay him back somehow.
I can feel Mihawk in the woods still. It's like he's pinpointed Haki directly at me. Maybe he's trying to tell me that I'm protected, but I'm not sure if his protection extends to the crew. I want to believe they don't need it, but Chopper could have died today. We still know next to nothing about this Eneru except that everyone up here is terrified of him and his beams of divine punishment. Usopp says they defeated one of his four priests in the forest to get here, so we may be able to pull this off. They said there are also tribal guerrilla nearby, so that may give us an advantage, depending on who they choose to attack.
We're camping on the shore, eating soup and the sky sharks that Luffy knocked out. I didn't see Teeth amongst them, so I didn't feel obligated to skip the meal. I left the Angel's Trumpet on the ship, so if anything happens I won't be able to use it in a fight. I need time to remove the extract and produce an antidote for it. I feel that time is a luxury we don't have at the moment. I did, however, load up on Plucharon.
I wonder if this "Kami" considers taking plants from the sacred land an offense. It seems like nearly everything is. I probably can't dodge beams of divine punishment. If this creature, however, is a man, like the old Kami is, then it means he either has special dials or devil fruit powers. I've never had any qualms about hurting a man's feelings before. I don't plan to start having any now.
Nami's been getting everyone gold oriented. I've never gone gold hunting before, but they're sure to run into resistance. Maybe I'll be part of the team that stays with the ship. The men set up a bonfire. I think I'll join the party. Too bad Uncle Drac is keeping a low profile. He's quiet, but he likes festivities. I'll make sure to "accidentally" throw a bottle of booze into the woods.
Later that night, as she is getting back from placing two bottles of liquor in the shadows of the forest, Karmen hears the sound of a hammer being used on Merry. She goes and stands next to the lake that surrounds the altar upon which the ship rests. She hears a voice say, "It's alright. I'll carry all of you for a little while longer." Not too far away, Usopp screams.
Ship's Log 18: The Split
Merry was repaired by someone last night. Usopp and I heard a strange voice. I discussed it with him privately, since none of the rest of the crew seems to believe it. The poor ship's been through so much, I'd like to thank the person if I could. Usopp used a sky shark to drag her back into the water. If Teeth had still been in the area, he wouldn't have had to use Chopper as bait, but the plan worked fine. Luffy, Zoro, Chopper, and Robin went to find the ruins. Usopp, Sanji, Gan Fall (sky knight), his horse-bird, Nami, and I started sailing the ship around the island to pick everyone up when they have the gold. The old Kami confirmed that the title of Kami is passed down to the leaders of the sky people and that the guerrilla are people called Shandians who are the descendants of the people who lived on the part of Jaya that made it to the sky.
That Eneru guy showed up. Just as I thought, he's a man with lightning devil fruit powers. (I really need to start poisoning apples. This guy seems to like them). He's made up of lightning, so we can't hit him. I really need some sea prism.
The guy just zapped Sanji and Usopp. I'm going to have to stop writing for a while.
Karmen dips a pen in Plucharon. "Stop zapping my friends!" She leaps at the so-called Kami and slashes chest level. He dissolves into lightning and reforms a few steps away. He shocks her and the impact sends her flying over the railing and into the mouth of a sky shark in the waters below.