(Bellamy POV)
Old man cricket warmed up real quick once I made it clear that I wasn’t after his gold, and wasn’t the bloodthirsty hyena the newspapers made me out to be. The bottle of wine helped too. Who knew Cricket was such a happy drunk?
The rest of the crew also warmed up to him...eventually. I did have to grease the wheels with copious amounts of alcohol and clap Sarquiss over the head when he started challenging the “washed out old guy” to a fight. Though after they had an arm wrestling tournament, which Cricket won handily mind you, they suddenly became best buds. It was ironic if you considered canon, but Sarquiss was the type of guy who respected strength. It was also why he followed my lead but as long as no one embarrassed him, he’d be fine.
“Buhahahahaha, drink up youngin!”
“You too, old geezer!”
The last three days were spent in a frenzy, doing everything we could to prepare for the trip. Most of us were assigned to retrofitting my ship, the New Witch's Tongue, under the guidance of Cricket and his two adopted monkeys. Sons. Monkeys…monkey sons.
“Chug it, Masira! Don’t let her beat you!”
“Mani, drink that monkey under the table!”
“Nami-Swan! I love you!”
All in all, I was very happy with how she turned out and she was definitely far better prepared than the Going Merry had ever been in the original timeline. For one, my ship was bigger and built to Grand Line specifications. It was a rare find in the North Blue, which had also been precisely the reason the original Bellamy had commandeered her from the local merchants.
Second, my ship was currently way less damaged than the Going Merry was. For all their strong points, taking good care of their ship was not something the Straw Hats particularly excelled at. In my opinion, it was a small miracle that they hadn't already sunk prior to Skypiea but that was plot armour for you.
Finally, we had more hands working for a much longer period of time to retrofit my ship, meaning bigger wings and coverings.
“Give me anusher drink, shiffead! Many dishheads…”
“You’ve had enough Lily. You’re drunk.”
“Heim not drunk. Sheee? Oh, two Muretsh! Come…zzzzzz”
Food was well stocked, cargo was fastened and we even had time to run through some simulations for the real thing.
“Muret, was that a sedative?”
“Made it myself. You want one?”
Those not working on the ship were told to run through combat drills and I even got old man Cricket to supervise a couple of times. This applied mostly to Ross and Lily, our two main brawlers. I wasn't sure how much help it would be, considering the very short time frame we were working with, but it had to be better than nothing.
“I’m the greater eater, Ross! I’m rubber!”
“I am the North Blue champion eater! I can outeat you anyday!”
“You’re both disgusting, that’s what you are!”
Of course, we also met the Straw Hats, whose captain was currently engaged in a battle of wills and stomachs with Ross.
Our meeting was very anti-climactic. We weren’t at the bar when they showed up and so naturally we couldn’t ridicule them there. Instead, the Straw Hats found us working on the New Witch's Tongue and Luffy being the curious kid he was, asked us what we were doing to our ship. One lengthy explanation later, he summarized it as us building a flying ship. We didn't bother correcting him.
Then he decided that he wanted one too as he “wanted to visit sky island.” I immediately offered to help fix up his ship and travel together. After all, if I was in the same group as the main character, my chances of death and dismemberment should plummet, right?
“Oh my, maybe they’ll swallow a sharp bone fragment which will puncture the stomach, leading to severe peritonitis, sepsis and death.”
“Stop saying such scary things, Robin!”
“I swallowed a bone! Chopper, help!”
“We need a doctor! We need a doctor! Oh right, I’m the doctor.”
What did I do while all this was going on? I spent as much time as I could getting into shape. This was Bellamy’s body, not mine. Bellamy’s fighting style, not mine. So, I ran up and down the island, fighting every bug and beast I came across, mostly to get used to punching moving things and figuring out the finer points of motor control. For strength training, I started off lightly by punching down trees and ended my three-day marathon by carving out a respectable dent into the side of a giant boulder I found.
That first fight at Mock Town had also helped me overcome my internal aversion to fighting. You could say, that it sped up the process in accepting my current circumstances. The looming threat of an untouchable monster with a god complex the size of Jupiter had also helped provide motivation.
“Is that one of the 21 great grade swords? Can I have it?”
“I’ll cut you!”
I still didn’t have a decent plan on what to do about Enel. I had considered getting some rubber gloves and I eventually did purchase a pair from the barkeep in town. But while they may protect my hands from Enel’s attacks and hence myself from his ranged lightning bolts, they would do nothing to help me overcome Enel’ intangibility.
I didn't buy the explanation that rubber could touch Enel. If it was the insulating properties of rubber which had...which would allow Luffy to punch the asshole in the face, it should theoretically work for every other insulator…wood, rocks and rubber gloves. Heck, our lead bullets were poor conductors so by that logic, they should have had some effect on him. At the very least they should sap his endurance, but as the Shandians found out or were going to find out, their projectiles did absolutely nothing.
“Mademoiselle, please accept this poor offering from your humble servant. Parmesan panna cotta amuse-bouche.”
“Oh, why thank you. That’s so sweet.”
“Mani-zwan! My heart!”
“Let go of me, longnose! I’m shooting that jerk!”
From what I know, there were four ways, well three realistic ways one could deal with a logia. One, use an element countering theirs against them. In my case, that would be my rubber gloves but like I said, I didn't have much faith they would work.
Two, use seastone or haki. I had access to neither so that option could be thrown out the window.
Three, put them in a stressful situation such that they didn't have the mental capacity to transform into their element. It likely required enormous self-awareness in order to keep hold of your body in an intangible state. Of course, it probably got easier with practice, but you couldn't tell me you could consciously transform a part of your body into a cloud of electrons without some mental load involved.
And four, trap them in some sort of container, but unless the logia was an idiot like Caribou, this option was not likely to work.
“Stop embarrassing yourself, curly brows.”
“What was that, mosshead?”
“Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!”
Personally, I considered option three my best bet. Enel did not have strong willpower, regardless of his use of haki. The asshole was merely a child with a big gun. He had never been seriously hurt nor even been in danger thanks to his devil fruit and he'd likely never had a proper challenge.
If I had conqueror’s haki, it would have been an instant game over. Why did the D’s get all the good stuff?
Maybe if I broke the Ark Maxim? After all, it was the culmination of all of Enel’s plans and his prize possession, which he had spent years working on. Breaking it might anger him enough that he short-circuited momentarily like Big Mom did, when the Straw Hats broke that prized picture during the wedding.
“Ugh, I can’t eat anymore…blegh!”
“I don’t feel so good. Urgh…blegh.”
“Don’t puke on my carpet, you punks!”
Actually, didn't that lead credence to the hypothesis that devil fruit powers needed to be manually activated? Ergo, if you couldn't think, you couldn't use your devil fruit.
“You’re such a cute reindeer!”
“Shut up~~~You liking me doesn’t~~~make me happy at all~~~”
I think Crocodile mentioned that he trained his logia powers to react on reflex, even when he was asleep. But…Enel wasn't Crocodile. I would bet you anything you liked that Enel hadn't trained himself to the same degree.
“I love reading too! Want to exchange books sometime?”
“Why, I’d love to Muret-san.”
The problem was his haki. If I wasn't mistaken, he couldn't keep it on indefinitely because Haki ran out and needed to recharge. Sadly, I couldn't rely on that to win me the fight and I had a snowball’s chance in hell to reach him when he was sleeping in his little temple.
I needed to surprise him. Break the Ark Maxim and shake him to his very core.
I could break rocks. I could break a ship. I didn't even need to break the whole thing, just the engine so it couldn't fly.
“Fight me, devil child!”
“Tres fleur…tickle!”
“Wahahahaha...stop tickling me! I give I give!”
It was not a good plan. But it was the best plan I had.
I was not looking forward to tomorrow.
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(Hewitt POV)
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Today was the day. Death or glory. In just under an hour, they were going to be travelling to the sky. The guys back home would never believe this and he knew, that regardless of the outcome today, Hewitt's world would never be the same again.
But world changing experiences or not, there were hangover cures to make. That new cook, Sanji was a weird name by the way, made a real mean soup. In fact, it was so delicious, that Hewitt saw his dear old mum again.
“Needs salt.”
“You think? Maybe you're right, it could use a little more to give it a small kick.”
It took him a while to notice that he wasn’t envious. And that despite the smartly dressed chef’s skills in the kitchen and popularity with the ladies.
Hewitt was an envious person; he was honest enough to admit it. He didn’t like it when others were better than him. It was part of why he fought with Ross so often...both of them were prideful young men in their prime, serving vital roles for the ship’s crew. Him as the cook, keeping them healthy and fed. Ross as the sailmaker, making sure that they didn’t end up drifting aimlessly on the ocean. And both of them were about evenly matched, combat wise, though Ross was slightly weaker than him.
After all, the score stood at 44-43 for Hewitt as of yesterday.
“Are the drinks ready?”
But that envy didn’t extend to all members of the crew. Muret was muret. She was smart, far smarter than he was but that was ok. Hewitt was stronger than her. Lily was stronger than him but he was smarter than her. It balanced out.
Sarquiss on the other hand? Oh, very much jealous. No, not of his looks, Hewitt knew he was far better looking. Sarquiss just looked swarmy. Plus, he only ever wore that ridiculous fur coat on top unlike Hewitt with his nice crisp shirt.
“Just need to squeeze in a few more limes and they’re done.”
But Sarquiss was faster and stronger than him. More famous too. But that was fine…for now. Envy made him strong. It fueled him, driving him to ever greater heights.
He’d trained day and night to catch up to the obnoxious git and Hewitt was certain that he was close. So close he could almost taste it.
“How’s the soup now?”
“Perfect! Good job, Hewitt.”
Sanji was a whole different kettle of fish. It was the same principle as to why Hewitt wasn’t jealous of his captain. After all, you were only jealous of those who were within reasonable reach. A fish may be jealous of another’s pretty scales but no fish was jealous of a great whale.
No, those were objects of admiration. Goals to aspire towards.
Sanji was a genius, there simply was no other way to describe him. When he cooked, he danced. Creating a beautiful melody of vegetables and meats, supported by the steady bass of pepper and salt and with exquisite accents of spices. All brought into harmony by his masterful knifework.
Hewitt’s hangover juice paled in comparison. Like a firefly before the sun. There was no jealousy, for such petty feelings were cleansed away by the angelic song the soup summoned in his soul.
It was all Hewitt could do not to cry.
Instead, he did the only thing he could. He bowed.
“Please teach me, young master!”
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(Ross POV)
It was the biggest whirlpool Ross had seen since he set sail. Revise that. It was the biggest whirlpool Ross had seen, period. And they were sailing straight towards it. He could feel the cold sweat running down his back. It was difficult to breathe and it almost felt like someone was slowly crushing his heart.
Damn, why had he agreed to this again?
“Scared, Ross?” the annoyance asked, as if his own knees weren't trembling.
“You wish.” Of course Ross was scared. The captain was a freak, which was why he wasn't affected by the sight of looming death. But Ross was just a man.
“Don’t wet your pants, Ross. You’ve only got that pair.”
“Worry about yourself, Hewitt. If your legs vibrate any stronger, you’ll break them.”
He missed home, not that he would ever admit it. His Aunt and Uncle, and even his annoying cousins who kept stealing his hat. Always thought he’d get to see them again someday. He had it all planned out, you know? He’d get rich and strong and famous before returning home with a triumphant parade. He’d show off his new wealth to his family and buy the farm off of that rich fucker they were renting it from. Then maybe, maybe Ross would stop being afraid of him. Of how the man could snap his fingers and force Ross’ family to starve. Afraid that he’d be beaten for running away from his royal highness’s pet dog.
“That’s a big fish.”
“Think it’ll taste good?”
He hated dogs. He still had the scars, but he hid them behind the bravado, wearing an open coat like Sarquiss and long pants to hide the bite marks on his thigh.
They whispered behind his back, he was sure of it. Why doesn't Ross shower with us, they’d say. What does he have to hide, they’d say. Nothing but his scars. And the scared child within.
It was why he had joined Bellamy. Bellamy wasn’t afraid of anyone. People were scared of him.
“It’s yellow. Those are usually poisonous.”
“What would you know of cooking? You’re just the sailmaker.”
“And when have you cooked a sea king, huh?”
Soon, the tow lines were cut and they were off. Slowly sailing in circles around the edges of the whirlpool, speeding quickly past the point of no return. Ross spared a glance at Bellamy, but his captain was just standing tall and proud at the prow of the ship, arms crossed and his trademark grin shining for all the world to see.
He admired Bellamy, really, including his ability to face any danger head on and smile. The best Ross could manage was a scowl. Not sure what to direct it at, Ross settled for Eddy, who was frozen stiff like the rest of them. Right now, he didn't seem all that reliable, but he was the navigator and it was his job to steer them through this alive. Ross could only hope that Eddy wasn't going to let them down now, not after guiding them successfully past the first half of Paradise.
The Straw Hats were the first ones to go over the edge. The New Witch's Tongue followed soon after. What followed were several long seconds of weightlessness as Ross’ heart shot up into his throat.
Then they landed at the bottom. No, they were level with the rest of the sea. What was going on?
“Where’d the whirlpool go?”
“Beats me. Maybe it’s over?”
Fat chance of that happening. Not with his luck. He could feel it in his gut, the worst was still to come.
“No, it isn’t over. It has just begun.” Eddy shouted, his voice cracking. “Everybody hold on to something!”
It was a secondary precaution. They were already tied to the ship via the strongest ropes they had, captain’s orders. But it was reassuring to feel the solid oak railing beneath his hands. Was he a masochist for not going into the hold? Why was he even up here?
“HOLD IT!” a voice called out. It was booming and rough and thoroughly unpleasant.
What was that? That looked like…
“Captain, giant raft to starboard, half a mile out!”
Who used a raft to sail the Grand Line? How would they carry enough provisions and keep themselves safe from the wind and rain? Were they not afraid?
Were those cannons set within the logs? Why? Surely those logs weren't hollow.
“I’VE CAUGHT UP TO YOU, STRAW HAT LUFFY!”
Relief flooded through him when it became clear that it wasn't them that the unknown guy was after. The unknown was dangerous and it was usually best to stay away. On the other hand, why was he chasing Straw Hat? He was just some small fry, with a mere thirty million bounty.
“I’M HERE TO COLLECT ON YOUR 100 MILLION BOUNTY! PREPARE YOURSELF!”
…what?
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(Bellamy POV)
Blackbeard appeared, just like in canon. I had been hoping to avoid that guy like the plague, but at least he was focused on Luffy and not me. He was too late though, the sea was already rumbling.
My crew though, were seemingly stuck between disbelief that the idiot who'd entered into an eating competition with Ross was worth double of what I was, or fear because they drew penis pictures on the face of a sleeping man worth a hundred million.
The column of seawater began to rise, torrents of water carrying Blackbeard’s raft away from us and us away from him, making that one less problem to worry about. Which left only another hundred or so and it was making my gut go crazy, making me feel like I’d swallowed a swarm of butterflies.
“Here it comes! All crew, get ready and hold fast!” I was proud of how my voice did not break. It was probably my greatest achievement to date.
“The ship…it’s going up!” Mani exclaimed, giggling like a madwoman.
Muret was more composed. “Goodbye world. I shall miss you.” Or maybe not.
The next minute would either prove that I was fated to be more than a minor side character or my story would end.
The slow increase in height paused after a hundred meters. The calm before the storm.
“Lily, if I don’t survive, I want you to know I love you!”
“Shithead! We’re not going die! We’re not going to die!”
I hated rollercoasters. I always had.
KAWOOOOSH!!!!
My world turned sideways.