So I know this chapter may seem confusing whilst reading it, but this is where the story officially starts. The first chapter was a flashback chapter that sets up the importance of the story. The story starts when Lucian is age 10 on the South Blue Island of Aragonia. Here we get to see insight into his life and how the rest of the plot is looking to be set up. This is going to be a long ride but I think it`s worth the read, This chapter is another introductory chapter that allows you the reader to immerse yourself into the story. Again I hope you all enjoy it :) and let me know what you all think.
Chapter 2: The South Blue Gem, Aragonia!
Over 13 years ago, Gol D. Roger King of the Pirates attained everything this world had to offer. Wealth, Fame, and Power. Roger turned the world upside down on its head and inspired now what we call the Golden Era of Piracy. After his execution in Loguetown, a ripple effect created a massive impact on the world. "Now tell me, children," the teacher said in the background. Lucian had one hand on his cheek with his head directed towards the window, he longed to go outside and explore but he was stuck in this hell. He heard the story of Roger over a thousand times at this point, the voice of Professor Rhuxa dimmed quietly in the background as it always had for him. He never minded to pay attention when it mattered the most, especially during history lectures. History interested him sure, but the way it was taught in school bothered him. Everything just sounds boring and slow for Lucian like he did not have the attention span for it.
"Mr. Xebel sit up straight!" the professor yelled. Lucian looked up and he obeyed, she wasn`t the worst professor that Lucian had but she certainly was one of them, he was wishing for time to be dismissed, oh how he missed messing around with his friends in the village. Where he lived, the South Blue. One of the four major oceans of the world, out of all of them the South Blue has the most exotic and beautiful islands you`ll ever see. Aragonia was the name of the country. One of the most beautiful landscapes with some of the most pristine beaches you`ll ever set eyes on, sometimes Lucian couldn`t believe he even lived here. Aragonia was the perfect place for vacationing and to mess around, during the summer seasons, tourism is at an all-time high and that`s when Father`s Bar gets the most profit. Summer was his favorite, no school just messing around going to the beach playing football, and having sleepovers every day. He remembered how just last week he and his friends pranked the wine merchant far left of the Ionian Riveria by switching his bottles out for vinegar and salt and mixing it with another wine to contain the smell. Let`s just say when he got home his ass got beat pretty badly but he had no regrets. He always wanted to explore and have fun but life throws responsibilities at you and helping out his father at the bar always seemed to be the end goal for Lucian at least he thought it would be. His mother was a traditional housewife with an amazing skill for weaving, she wove his suit for Lucian when they attended social events, she also sold a lot of her clothes in the marketing district and Lucian would hang around the trade merchants and bother them. Reminiscing about simpler times perhaps, but he was only 10 so he knew he had much more life ahead of him, "Answer me boy", he heard in the faint background.
Professor Rhuxa was angry, and Lucian realized he daydreamed too much and had to answer the question on the board. He squinted at the board and waited for the professor to say something. "The Question was where was Roger executed". Lucian scoffed, Pirates huh never had much admiration for them but also had none for Marines either he`d prefer to stay away from all that trouble. "Loguetown" Lucian answered confidently. Professor Rhuxa smiled "Correct.. If you were listening to my original question which was asking specifically how Roger was captured, perhaps a little less sleeping in my class next time would benefit you." Lucian was confused he did not know the answer. He stayed silent. She came over looking smug, he hated that look. "Don`t know, perhaps if you didn`t sleep during history class you`d learn something boy". She crossed her arms and assumed a position of a waiting stance as if she expected him to magically know the answer. Lucian stayed silent.
"He got captured by the Marines, specifically Vice Admiral Garp" said a voice to the right of Lucian, the professor turned to address the voice. "Ms. Latifi I expect you to keep quiet and not to be a know-it-all and let the boy answer". Lucian turned to his right and saw his best friend, Mikasa. Mikasa and Lucian are neighbors and best friends, they grew up together. She was the same height as Lucian which annoyed him, she had long brunette hair and hazel eyes. Also, she is a genius and way better than he ever was in school. "Next time let others answer". Mikasa smiled and nodded. She was a whiz at anything you could get a perfect grade at, she helped him pass all his exams for as long as he could remember. Mikasa looked at Lucian and smiled.
After school, Mikasa and Lucian were walking home "Hey Lucian" Lucian looked at her. "Isn`t your brother coming back home from cadet training, it`s been so long". Oh shit, he had forgotten that Karas was returning from training, his older brother Karas applied to the Marines around 3 years ago and hasn`t seen him since. Once Karas turned 14 he was accepted into the academy to train for the Marines, it was always his dream. "Yeah Mikasa, obviously I didn`t forget" What a lie. "Bet you miss him a lot huh". "Definitely, bet he`s gotten really powerful since then". "You think he ate a devil fruit," Mikasa said enthusiastically. Devil fruits were a tricky subject. Our professors made sure to implement into the brains of all students that they don`t exist but Mikasa thinks differently. "Highly doubt it… they don`t exist right". Mikasa shook her head in disagreement with a smile "No they do exist but don't tell anyone, I snuck out one of the encyclopedias from the teacher`s office and they confirmed its existence. How cool would it be to eat a devil fruit?" Mikasa said enthusiastically. Lucian said, "Amazing probably, but if you eat one not only can you never swim again but your power can also suck". Mikasa pondered for a second, "Let`s ask Ilir then" she said.
Ilir Abrojo was like a brother to Lucian. Ilir's parents owned the largest trade port in the country. They specialized in exporting and importing products such as food, fresh water, clothes, and stuff like that. They were also the richest family in the country, Mr. Abrojo was a sailor in his early years he went to the Grand Line and that is where he started his business. Long story short, he accumulated a lot of wealth and was revered in Aragonia for bringing economic prosperity, he was a big deal. Ilir`s two older brothers are currently overseas for business meetings if he could remember properly he`d remember more details, if it wasn`t for Mikasa's keen observations he`d always be out of the loop. Nonetheless, Mikasa told him they helped Mr. Abrojo maintain his business overseas. Though Ilir's family helped Lucian a lot, they weren`t blood-related but as close to family as you can get. Mr. Abrojo loaned Lucian's father the money needed to build his bar, once he paid him back the bar became the most popular destination in the country. They walked to Ilir`s dojo, for reference Mikasa and Ilir are cousins they always hung out and fought together like an old married couple, and he found it amusing. Mikasa's mom is the younger sister of and she`s cool. She lets him have all the ice cream he wants. And for Mikasa, she`s an only child, so you can assume she got bored at home and wanted to always hang out with us. Now, Ilir was obsessed with martial arts and always proclaimed his dream of becoming the greatest fighter in the world. The problem was Lucian always beat him, Ilir was no slouch either he`s one of the best young fighters he`d seen, it was a talent vs hard-work situation between both boys. Mikasa and Lucian neared the dojo. They walked in and took off their shoes. "Hey Ilir" Lucian called out. Ilir was training with Sensei Ryko. Ryko was a skilled man who sailed through the Grand Line, he came from a land called Wano but Lucian didn`t know much about it. Lucian and Mikasa bowed before him and he returned the favor. Ilir was practicing his footwork and blade technique. He was preparing for his exams next month. Lucian was helping out any chance he had, he was pretty skilled with a blade himself. "Ah, Lucian-san welcome, would you like to end Ilir's training today with a sparing session?" "Sure Sensei, I`d love to". "Sure idiot try if you can" Ilir responded. Usually after school, Lucian would swing by the dojo and occasionally train with Ilir. Lucian picked up a dull blade and Ilir was ready, Mikasa sat on the stool she loved to watch them duel. "GO". Lucian always defends first against Ilir, he parried his first jab and then continued to dodge his strikes. Their blades finally connected they each thrust back and forth. Their speed was impressive as they were quickly exchanging blows. Both of them loved to use katanas as they delivered a powerful strike and were light. Lucian realized Ilir's mistake with his footwork after a couple of minutes of perfect back-and-forth parrying, he took the opportunity to thrust and disarm his sword and flipped him from his wrist. Ilir layed defeated and he scoffed "Damn, not again", he offered his hand to Ilir. Ilir took it and got up, Mikasa came over giggling "Nice try you can`t beat Lucian". "Shut up brat". Mikasa laughed again "He doesn`t even practice as much as you". Lucian looked at Ilir, "Don`t worry you`ll pick it up bro". Ilir tried to hide his disappointment. They all turned their attention to Sensi Ryko and bowed goodbye.
Walking home was usual, Ilir and Mikasa often fought and Lucian just enjoyed it. "So tell me, Mikasa" Ilir said. "Why do you always praise Lucian every chance you get, are you in love". Mikasa's cheeks turned red, "No you idiot, I`m just stating the truth that`s all, don`t take it out on me because he beats you all the time," she said defensively. Ilir sighed "Sure ok". Ilir made it a habit to inform Lucian that whenever Mikasa was fawning over him, he was convinced she liked him though Lucian didn`t notice much. As they walked home the sun started to set. If you`ve never seen a sunset in Aragonia near the summer season you were missing out. It is hard to describe but the colors of the sky blend perfectly together to create some sort of beautiful portrait, it never got old and never will. "Hey we have no school tomorrow, let`s go into town and mess around," Mikasa said. Ilir was quick to respond. "No Mikasa, Auntie made me promise to bring you home as soon as possible and I am not getting in trouble for you again you heard." Mikasa scoffed. "So bro, Karas is coming back should we be going home now" Ilir said. "Yeah, why you coming". Ilir nodded "Yeah". At this point, Mikasa got visibly angry. "How come you get to go and I don`t". Mikasa yelled. "Because Auntie will kill me I don`t care if you come but ask her first".
Sadly, Mikasa's curfew had just passed so it was just the two boys walking to Lucian`s home. They all live right next to each other, so Lucian was confused about why Aunt Elda didn`t let Mikasa come, bur he knew better than to argue. Regardless they arrived home and approached the door. They heard chatter and the clink of drinks. Ilir looked at Lucian "Nervous", "Just open the door". Lucian saw Karas and he changed immensely. He gained 3-4 inches and got way more muscular, he had a Marine uniform on and the room was filled with relatives. Becoming a Marine is a big deal in the South Blue, mainly because it has the least amount of active personnel. So to say it was an accomplishment was an understatement. Karas saw Lucian and Ilir and grabbed them for a hug. "Little bros what`s up long time no see." As they struggled to catch air they groaned "You too". Mother would not stop flaunting Karas's achievement to everyone, Father was equally as proud. Ilir and Lucian stood there as they ate leftovers from this wonderful feast no one saved them any food for. After an hour of catching up, Ilir convinced his parents to stay the night which was easy since Karas returned, and they didn`t mind. Ilir had sleepovers nearly every weekend. Once everyone went to sleep Ilir started doing typical Ilir things, which was asking stupid questions. "Hey Karas, do you have… a devil fruit." What an idiot, nice first question. Karas's facial expressions were hard to read but he didn`t seem offended. "Nah, but they are real I can tell you that for sure. I have fought against Devil fruit users though." Both boys jumped from their chairs, excited to hear more about the Grand Line. Karas calmed them down and began to tell his story. All Lucian could think was how amazing it was and how he longed for a journey like that. He had 1000 questions but he wanted to ask one first, "What did you do for the Marines". Karas took a moment, perhaps to give a proper answer without giving much away. "I`m a Lieutenant now, I trained for years under Vice-Admiral Momonga, and what a privilege that was". Lucian was confused but Ilir was excited and he was fanboying now, "Wow Karas I didn`t know it was that wonderful so tell me which Pirates did you eradicate first". Karas's face was stern, Lucian did recognize that he may be hiding something but he also just returned from Marine duty, maybe it was the stress. "Hey Ilir, another time okay," Lucian said. Ilir looked disappointed "Nah screw that, I want to knowwwwww". Ilir looked like a spoiled brat who just got denied ice cream privileges. But Lucian understood Ilir's desire to know about the Grand Line, the most dangerous ocean in the world and we barely knew much about it, Karas was essentially an outlet for the information that everyone wanted to know. Karas turned serious for a second then he turned joyful, something was wrong. "How about this Ilir, for each rank you level up with Sensei Ryko I will tell you one thing about the Grand Line that I experienced.". Ilir pondered this for a while then decided to happily accept it. "Deal". "Now go to sleep guys". And that was the end of the grand return.
Usually on weekends, Lucian had a specific routine. He would wake up late and make breakfast. He would then leave depending on the weather that day, most days were sunny in Aragonia and it rained once in a while. He would travel down to the town center to his father`s bar. He would help him clean and readjust inventory for later on in the night. He saw his little sister Amante come by the bar and do homework after her tutoring sessions. Amante was 7 years old, she was very quiet and reserved and Lucian`s parents' joy. They always accommodated her in what she needed, which didn`t bother him though he liked to not be bothered. Usually, he would hang out with Mikasa or Ilir but today his school friends invited him to play football. It was a warm summer day and every day was around the same in Aragonia, everyone minding their own business doing what they enjoyed. Aragonia rarely had any uninvited visitors (Pirates), there was a Pirate invasion before he was born but it wasn`t bad from what his father told him. Lucian was adjusting the alcohol barrels to get ready for the party tonight. He had no idea what the party was for or about, but tourism was in high demand this month so Father was excited about the amount of customers he would receive. Then Mr. Abrojo walked into the bar, "Hey kid" he said to Lucian. "What`s up Uncle" he called him Uncle since their families were very close, he walked over to his father and hugged him. Father looked at Lucian and motioned for him to leave, they had to speak alone. Lucian left anyway, he finished his chores at the bar and ran to the football pitch where he met his school friends. They always played football and the loser had to jump off the cliff at the Ionian beach, it was a scary jump so no one wanted to lose, spoiler alert our team lost. Now, Lucian invited Karas but he had Marine duty whatever that meant, Karas was still around a lot but he also did come back occasionally on weekends, and he promised Lucian they`d play football. He waited on the bench of the pitch, 2 hours had gone by and all his friends left after a couple of games. Then finally, Karas showed up.
"Sorry lil bro, had stuff to do, now wanna shoot around." Lucian turned the cheek, angry at him for showing up late. Karas sighed "Look I had business to deal with I…" Lucian cut him off "You promised you`d come is it so hard to honor that, we lost because we had no winger, Jax can`t attack he`s too slow". Karas sat beside him and started lightly juggling the ball between his feet. "There is so much you don`t understand about the world, I dont blame you you are still young but once you grow up you`ll realize the world for what it is". Lucian looked at his brother, he looked conflicted most of the time, he decided to cut him some slack he had no idea what he was going through, and he could tell he was bottling up some emotions since his return. It made Lucian think about what happened to him out there. "Sorry, but tell me at least one thing that happened out there when you were gone?". Lucian decided to press his luck if he didn`t get answers now then when would he? Karas paused as he looked at the horizon. "I`m going to tell you a secret but you must promise to not tell anyone". Lucian jumped excitedly out of his seat. "No worries I won't say a word, I promise." Karas sighed then put his hand on Lucian`s shoulder. "Now listen carefully, I understand you`re young but it's better you learn from me than the hard way. Don`t trust anyone but yourself and your friends and family." Karas paused. Lucian was confused as to why was Karas speaking like this, "What are you talking about Karas explain". Lucian angrily uttered.
"Justice," Karas said and looked at his little brother. Lucian stayed silent. "Listen closely, this is a lesson. The Marines are a facade, justice is a term they use as an excuse to bend the rules to play to their evil intentions. I have seen real struggle, and that struggle can only be overcome by those who endure it, take all the bad shit coming their way, and become better because of their struggles. The problem is the Marines will let you suffer and won`t let you live to tell the tale, they`ll watch you suffer right before your eyes and laugh. You are a pawn on a chessboard, you think Pirates are evil. Marines are good. Perspective matters, it`s all subjective at the end of the day, true justice will never exist in this world in the form of Marines, they perverted the meaning of that word. What I saw little brother sickened me to my stomach and made me question my allegiance. Once you experience it for yourself that feeling it never goes away, it makes you… question yourself. Your morals and what your purpose is". Amazed, Lucian stood there with eyes wide open. He half understood Karas's speech but even though he didn`t comprehend everything he still understood it must mean something bad happened. Karas smiled "Don`t worry bro, everything will be alright, you want to kick the ball around". Lucian nodded. They got off the bench and walked onto the pitch. Lucian was still trying to make sense of the speech, and what justice was occurring with the Marines. He was taught growing up the importance of the Marines and how they lived to protect the common people. Was it all a lie? Karas would never lie to him, right? Many questions raced through his brain, but he knew one thing for sure. Karas was angery at the World Government. Stop the bad thoughts. He promised him everything was going to be ok, Lucian trusted him. They walked and passed the ball around for a while, everything still felt normal.