Chapter 6

The ocean's song

The straw hat crew had left the beach after breakfast for the land overlooking the All Blue and if the cook had struggled to tear his gaze from the ocean, he was now heading ahead of the procession with Chopper, Usopp and Luffy who were talking loudly. Behind them, the girls and Franky were commenting on the panorama with interest while Zoro and Brook were bringing up the rear. The skeleton wasn't offended by his crewmate's silence even though he was telling him the funniest jokes in his opinion.

Arriving at the top of the small dirt road they had taken, the blond immediately observed the landscape, curious and feverish at the same time. The path continued to meander through a vast green plain of tall grass, but in the distance, he could make out the shape of several dwellings. He walked faster without wanting to and his three friends were forced to increase the pace in their turn.

In the end, Sanji froze, his heart pounding. It was indeed dwellings that he was seeing at the turn of the road, lit by the morning sun. People were living here. Human beings were living on the lands of All Blue. It was unreal.

The rest of the crew caught up with him at that moment.

"It's a small village," Franky noted with an appreciative smile.

"There aren't many people to welcome the tourists," Zoro noticed with indifference.

"Maybe the village is deserted," Sanji murmured, confused among all these new emotions.

"I don't think so, there's smoke coming out of this chimney," Nami showed him.

"There are also some grazing animals," Brook noticed.

"And cultivated fields," Chopper added, pointing to a bale of straw about twenty meters away.

"Life on the All Blue seems very peaceful, but perhaps it hides the darkest intentions," The archaeologist quietly commented.

"Robin, please control your morbid impulses so as not to contaminate the others," Usopp grumbled.

"It smells like food!" Luffy suddenly drooled before starting to run.

"Oh, fish!"

The captain's illuminated eyes immediately spotted the source of the tantalizing smell that had taken him to the middle of deserted little streets. The dwellings around him were closed, but the straw hat boy didn't notice them, his whole attention focused on his goal.

The house he was heading towards was like the others, rather modest, but it nevertheless offered the most diverse fish and shellfish on a wooden stall. Some were simply placed on ice to keep them cool while others were grilled on a huge hot stone, giving off a delicious aroma. Unable to help himself, Luffy held out a greedy hand for the food and he was about to grab his loot when his face twitched suddenly. He stopped hard ten meters away from his destination and winced in pain, covering his ears with his hands.

"Luffy?"

The rest of his crew tumbled in disbelief. Their captain seemed to be in pain, but they couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. It was only when they approached him that the sound hit them, forcing them all to cover their ears in the vain hope of protecting themselves.

In the midst of the shrill noise that literally pierced his eardrums, Sanji tried to collect his wits. "Don't stay here!"

He took a step back while pulling Luffy after him and beside him, he noticed that his friends were clumsily imitating him. Chopper in particular seemed to be in pain and fell to his knees. Fortunately, Franky had the reflex to take him in his arms to step back and a second later, the crew could open their eyes again, relieved.

"What… What was that?" Nami stammered, slowly coming to her senses.

"It really hurts!" The straw hat boy complained, pressing his little finger into his right ear.

"It was as if this thing pierced my skull!" Usopp lamented, one hand still on his head.

"Chopper, are you okay?" The cook asked him, worried.

The little reindeer was slowly getting back on his feet with the help of the cyborg. "I-I'm fine," The doctor replied weakly.

"What do you think it was?" The shipwright growled, glancing around suspiciously.

"It looks like an alarm system," Zoro muttered, his hand on his swords.

"A particularly effective system," Robin approved.

"I thought my eardrums were going to burst!" Brook lamented, nonetheless cheerful. "Even though I haven't had an inner ear for a long time! Yohohohoho!"

"Stay where you are! What do you want?!"

As if moved by the same force, the whole crew raised their heads in the direction of the small house and saw two newcomers in front of the stall, a dark-haired young man and a smaller young woman set back from him. The man was holding a strange device in his hand and Zoro unsheathed his swords while Luffy was pointing to the still smoking fish.

"I'm hungry!" He showed them as if his answer explained everything.

"Are you pirates?" The man ignored him, frowning.

"Yeah!" The captain replied, enthusiastic again. "And I'm the one who's gonna be the Pirate King!"

Behind him, Nami and Usopp sighed while the two strangers were staring at the straw hat boy who was smiling broadly.

"So you're pirates and… you ate devil fruits?" The young man asked again, somewhat destabilized by his direct attitude.

As if to approve his companion's question, the woman stared at the skeleton and little reindeer, clearly tense.

"For my part, I ate the Revive-Revive fruit!" Brook politely introduced himself," I died and rose again!"

The two young people gazed at him in amazement, perfectly incredulous despite the appearance of the musician who proved his statements.

"I ate the Human-Human fruit," Chopper said timidly in turn.

The young woman's eyes widened even more and the little reindeer blushed, hiding behind the cyborg. "Some of us have eaten devil fruits and some haven't," Franky intervened to reassure his friend. "What about you?" He asked them, folding his arms in defiance.

The two strangers shook their heads slowly, in shock. "N-No…"

The man suddenly seemed to collect himself and his hand gripped his device again. "What are you doing here?" He repeated with determination.

"We don't want to cause any trouble," The navigator replied, raising her hands in front of her in a calm gesture, "We arrived on the ocean without knowing how and we're only looking for explanations."

"And I'm hungry!" Luffy insisted.

"Are you the one who activates this noise?" Robin inquired.

The young man looked down at the device in his hand before sharing a look with the woman behind him. A silent exchange seemed to take place between them and after a few seconds, she nodded. The dark-haired man ended up sighing. "Sorry, you never know who you might run into…"

He pressed a button on his device and the little reindeer's hypersensitive ears moved before his face relaxed a little. "Is that ultrasound?" The doctor asked, still uneasy.

"Not really because humans can hear them too but they're indeed on a very high frequency. However, since you're an animal, the system must be harder on you," The man admitted, embarrassed.

"You… Are you hungry?"

Silent until now, Sanji's attention was fatally attracted by the soft voice of the young woman who had just spoken her first words to Luffy. She had light brown hair pulled back in a high ponytail and large green eyes and tanned skin. She was wearing blue dungarees over a tight black tee-shirt. She had also lifted her pant legs above her calves at the level of wide boots. Her outfit was obviously intended for outdoor work and the blond found her even more attractive: she was a woman who didn't lack courage for this kind of thankless task. And at the height of perfection, she was living on the All Blue…

Charmed, the cook stared after her with adoration when she handed an overflowing plate of fish to the straw hat boy.

"Luffy, don't be shameless," Nami scolded him as he was already stuffing himself, "You ate less than two hours ago!"

"But it's too delicious!" His captain replied between massive mouthfuls, stars in his eyes.

"All Blue's fish have an incomparable taste."

Sanji looked up at the man who had just answered. He was as tall as he was and about the same age, his messy dark brown hair the same color as his eyes. He was also obviously used to the sun judging by his rather dark skin, although he was dressed more classically in jeans and a white tee-shirt.

"There's no problem," The young woman replied to the redhead, "I fished a lot this morning."

"Are you a fisherwoman?!"

The blond jerked out of his contemplation to whirl towards her and she stepped back in front of his eagerness. Seeing his confusion, Nami grabbed the cook by the collar to stop him. "I'm sorry about these two fools," She growled, "They have no manners but they aren't mean."

The young woman's face lit up and she chuckled. She then moved forward again to extend her hand to the navigator, a wide friendly smile on her lips. "I'm Lily and this is Liam," She said, pointing to her companion. "Welcome to All Blue."

Nami released the blond and grabbed her hand to shake it warmly back. "Thank you, Lily. We're the Straw Hat Crew," She introduced them, "And we knew this ocean is the All Blue."

"Oh, you knew?" The young woman wondered.

"Our dear Sanji-san here has dedicated his life to searching for this legendary sea!" Brook explained, pointing to his friend who was still staring at her with hearts in his eyes.

"It's his dream!" Luffy added with a big smile.

At these words, he slapped heartily on the back of his cook and the gesture had the merit of bringing him back down to earth under the force of the impact.

"That's amazing, that means people have heard of the All Blue outside!" Liam exclaimed.

"There'd be books written by the elders that some locals took with them when they tried to leave," Lily remembered.

"When they tried to leave?" Franky noted, frowning.

Lily and Liam shared a look. "It's quite a complicated story…"

The two young people had led the newcomers behind the house which belonged to Lily and whose front was converted into a small fish market. The rear of the house had a long wooden table in a corner of the garden and the crew settled there under the shelter of a large parasol.

"The climate is mild," Nami noted, looking up at the sky dotted with white clouds.

"It's late spring," Lily confirmed, putting drinks down for her guests.

"Are there other seasons?" Robin inquired.

"Yes, of course. Spring, summer, winter and autumn," The young woman answered, "Three months for each of them."

"The four seasons!" The cook violently got enthused. "Exactly like on the East Blue, South Blue, West Blue and North Blue!"

In front of his fervor, all eyes converged on him and the blond blushed. He had probably not measured the tone of his voice. Zoro sighed, deciding to create a diversion. "It looks like there's no one here. Why?"

"The island isn't very populated," Lily answered while everyone focused again on her explanations. "We only have a few traders, including myself, who allow us to obtain some food."

"It reminds me of my village on the East Blue," Usopp approved nostalgically.

"Our village isn't big even if it's the most important on the island," The young woman continued. "There are a few more a bit further."

"The locals are also suspicious," Liam added, "They have already been attacked many times."

"So your device is a weapon to defend yourselves?" Robin inquired, pointing to the small case that the dark-haired man had placed on the table at his side.

Liam grimaced before grabbing a toothpick which he stuck between his teeth. "Yes," He agreed, "Again, I'm sorry. It's my first time using it, but after what the locals have been through…"

"Don't worry, bro, you couldn't have known," Franky reassured him, gulping down his cola.

"By whom were the inhabitants attacked?" Brook asked in turn.

"Oh, by pirates or even people from other islands…"

"There are other islands?!"

This time, Sanji had gotten up abruptly, surprising everyone again and making his captain burst out laughing. The blond felt his cheeks color once again. He was sincerely trying not to look like a fool before the three magnificent creatures not far from him but the increasing amount of information relating to the All Blue he was hearing was like so many shocks in his brain already submerged since the day before.

"Relax, cook, you ain't gonna do this every time."

Beside him, Zoro grabbed his companion by his shirt to sit him down and the blond just followed the movement, letting himself suddenly fall back on the bench.

"There are other islands," Lily kindly confirmed. "In fact, we're on the main island which consists of an archipelago of three. The other two are smaller."

"How long have you lived here?" Chopper asked.

"I was born here and my family is from All Blue for generations," The dark-haired woman said.

"Watch out, Zoro, she's a woman and she lives on the All Blue," The sniper whispered to the swordsman, "I don't know how you're gonna survive this kind of competition," He added with a sneer when the blond stared at the young woman with admiration again.

The fencer totally ignored him, all his attention on the conversation.

"For my part, I only arrived two years ago," Liam said.

At that moment, Lily glanced at her watch before getting up. "Excuse me, I have to pull up the fish-traps I set up this morning." She then turned to the crew. "You're welcome at my place and Liam can explain everything we know about the All Blue. He's one of the greatest experts."

The young man shrugged awkwardly at the compliment and Lily walked away, letting the attention fall on him. He then cleared his throat in front of the admiring gaze of Chopper, Brook and Usopp. "Lily exaggerates, I'm not a great expert. It's just that I'm interested in the characteristics of this ocean," He specified. "Actually, there are several lands to the north and to the east but they're uninhabited. Beyond that, it's hard to say. You must have noticed that coming to the All Blue isn't the most obvious thing…"

"We crossed some kind of mist," Nami approved. "There was a thunderstorm and we couldn't avoid it."

"This mist is a gateway to the All Blue," Liam agreed, "There are others on the ocean."

"A door made of mist?" Luffy wondered, smeared with strawberry juice.

"Actually, this mist is made up of a multitude of waves. Acoustic waves.

"Sound waves?" Sanji exclaimed, eyes widening.

"Absolutely. That's also why I analyze them and was able to understand a little how they work; I'm an acoustician."

He then showed the headset around his neck and Chopper turned to him, impressed. "What does it consist of?"

"It's the science of sounds and there are several kinds. I personally have mainly studied physical acoustics since I've been here."

"What's that?" Franky asked.

"Physical acoustics determines the principles of sound generation and propagation. They are then translated into mathematical writing," Robin explained.

"Exactly. Its field isn't limited by human perception though and we study ultrasound as well as infrasound which obey the same physical laws," Liam added.

"It sounds exciting!" Brook got enthused.

The young man nodded, a broad smile on his face. "When I walked through the gate myself with my crew two years ago, I quickly realized that it works the same way sound wave propagation does. My instruments turned on instantly. You can imagine these waves like a song and according to the notes, I try to identify them."

"Where are we concretely?" Zoro wanted to know. "All Blue isn't on any navigation chart."

At these words, the scientist shook his head, chewing harder on his toothpick. "All I can say is that we're not on the Grand Line or the four oceans that border it. To my knowledge, the All Blue isn't geographically located. It only has related spaces with other oceans.

"So we're in a… kind of parallel world?" Franky thought, frowning under his sunglasses.

"The thought has occured to me," The dark-haired man admitted, "But my research is far from being substantial enough to confirm or refute it."

"This is incredible," Robin smiled.

"This is scary," Usopp grimaced.

"It seems completely impossible but it doesn't surprise me," Nami sighed.

"It's so weird, just like the sky islands!" Luffy exclaimed, delighted.

"Sky islands?" Liam wondered.

"Islands floating among the clouds and accessible by a column of water on the Grand Line which propels ships directly to the sky," The swordsman quietly replied, finishing his drink.

"There are the remains of an ancient City of Gold that was on earth," Chopper added.

The young man looked flabbergasted and Nami smiled sympathetically. "Surprising but not impossible," She repeated.

"I guess that… the Grand Line is indeed unpredictable," The scientist said after a few seconds.

"What's weird is that we've never seen this mist before," Usopp went on, "It suddenly appeared with this storm!"

"The doors are most of the time totally invisible," Liam replied. "It's the rain mixing with the sound waves that creates this mist."

"So we can pass through a door without realizing it," Nami understood.

"Absolutely. This is how most people turn up here from all over the world and have no way of leaving…"

There was a sudden silence around the table. All Blue was a nice place at first glance but not being able to go away wasn't the best of prospects.

"Ah, don't worry, that's why I'm studying it!" Liam continued, noticing their discomfort. "I'm working on a map of the few doors I've already been able to identify!"

"Did you manage to make a plan?" Nami inquired with interest.

"I measure the frequencies and I try to locate them," The young man affirmed. "Sound waves are moving by definition but some are more stable because they also fight against weather elements and ocean currents. A certain concentration indicates their position and I measure them with my instruments."

"That's great!" Luffy got enthused.

"The inhabitants of these islands really need it," Liam continued, suddenly more serious. "Not only could this allow trade with the outside world, but it could also reduce looting and destruction. Most people can't bear to know they're locked up here and they go crazy…"

"You must have improved their prospects a lot with the map of your doors!" Franky congratulated him.

"I'm trying but unfortunately, it doesn't keep the island from being plundered," The dark-haired man sighed, "Two months ago, it happened again although I gave the location of a gate to the group that had turned up…"

"You couldn't defend yourselves?" Zoro inquired, frowning.

Liam shoved his hands in his pockets, leaning back a little more against his chair. "Here, the inhabitants are fighting for their survival," He explained, looking at the village around him, "They must make sure to eat every day so an organization to protect themselves is far from being their priority."

"There are a lot of natural resources here though," Nami wondered.

"Yes, but there's no one to buy them and this frugal life doesn't suit everyone," Liam sighed again. "All Blue is like a bubble. Its inhabitants know the outside world by what people in passing tell them about it, but they don't have the opportunity to go there so they imagine that life outside of here is necessarily better. And without trade with other lands on the Grand Line or elsewhere, most people see no point in slaving away for a barely adequate life. So they leave, they try their luck. But since the gates aren't a secure system, many never return from their trip."

"You mean they set sail without knowing if they will actually be able to cross?" Usopp got frightened.

"I can understand them," Liam murmured, "For those who have never known the possibilities offered by progress, it's difficult to conceive of the downside. The islands of the All Blue are magnificent and its ocean is miraculous, but its inhabitants are poor. The hope for a better world is irresistible…"

I'll take the time to set the scene so that you can imagine the characters and environment before really setting the stakes.

I hope you're interested in this start of explanation! Don't worry, I won't go that much into detail about the scientific part.