In the minutes after leaving behind the Sonorous pirates rotted ship, Eddie took to himself wandering around the ship, he was incredibly impressed by all the machines, his boney fingers caressing the metal with such immense intrigue. Before hertz had come around many decades after Eddies Death, the world was far behind technologically on a wide scale
There was the Den Dens, and the other biological based machines. As well as advents for heating and energy via combustion and using furnaces with their heat. But technological advancement was largely dictated island to island. One island may have been using bronze and copper tools and doing much labor by hand, while other islands could've had rudimentary augmentation to these processes. The concept of an 'Elevator' was in existence, but only in few parts of the world.
Unless you were allied with the World Government, who made it a priority to be the most technologically advanced in all fields (And even under such an alliance it was not a guarantee) would you have the opportunity to even know of certain technologies' existence. Even through books and News, given that the wide spread news printing only came into the worldwide advent 200 years ago, and only 124 years ago when mass printing presses came to be
"Ya like it?" Leroy said as he walked down the winding spiral stair case of the Library. Watching as Eddie looked at the dozens and dozens of shelves with tomes across them. They were all requested by many of the crew, back in Water 9. Raven had a well known distributor of books to acquire them
"Its fantastic." Eddie fingered the edge of the spine from one of the books and pulled it from the shelf, holding it like one would hold a wallet. His hands dwarfing the book
Leroy was now dressed in black, a new shirt on his chest, it had a larger collar that was flipped up. "You can read all you want in here. Just one thing ya gotta do." He gave a sly grin and a snicker.
"Yes. Yes there is." Eddie slid the book back and traced another finger across the wood before facing Leroy, looking down to the 6'1 man "Leroy, I must thank you again, for offering your help to an old soul like me. You didn't have to."
"Of course I didn't." He said with a shrug "But I wanted to. Sure it also gives me a way to another marshal to kick the shit out of but–" He rested his hands on his sash "You needed help."
Eddies skeletal face shifted into a smile "Hm." With a sigh he then began again "I think while we wait to find Barbary's Base of Operations, I can finally tell you just what happened."
"I feel that I owe you that, ahead of time." Eddie said as he walked over to the couch, and sat down, even while being nothing but a skeleton, he took up almost the entire thing
Leroy followed. "Okay, if you want. But I won't force ya." He rested his arm behind him, hanging off the back of the couch.
"Its okay, I assure you. Now, where to begin…" Eddie began to think "Well, when I was 22 I founded my crew as I've mentioned. And over those years, we stopped from island to island. We were in the…" He stroked his mandible "The second at first. There were smaller islands that our log pose didn't pick up, and they had small taverns."
"That's where we met many of our would-be crewmates, they were typically the only entertainment in the area, or one of few. But it was a tale as old as time that some of them were notable outcasts to their hometowns for one reason or another that lead them to become what they were."
He gestured with his hand as he spoke "Everytime we found one, we asked them the same question; 'Do you wanna make some noise?' and after seeing the crew, or the ship or having already heard about us in passing. They accepted."
"Not everyone did of course. I may have given the wrong impression when I was surprised that my metal became so popular. It was popular at the time. Hundreds of people would watch our shows. But we were pirates. And being a pirate back then, it was looked down upon even more than it is today. If you even suggested you were, people were wrought with fear."
"Seems like that Roger fellow you all mentioned changed that up something fierce. But I digress, it was that reason that many of them denied us, why many ran from us. And well, during that stint of being alone, I figured the world would want to forget and toss aside a brash young man's noise. No matter how popular at the time because he labeled himself something the World Didn't like"
"Hmph. Yeah I get that." Leroy raised his brow in agreement. "figure you would. It was because of that, that often times other pirates on the seas would attempt to raid and pillage are shows or while we were sailing."
"No matter what type of Pirate you are in the world. You always have to be ready to protect what's yours. That's what I was taught by those moments." He clasped his hands
"But I wasn't able to protect them for long. For many years it was the same thing, over and over. Some may have seen it as mundanity or monotony. Doing shows, partying, sailings, doing another show. Pirate was also ported and they wanted what we had, fight them. Move on. But it was in those same moments that the different happened. Memories."
"Heh. Vox…My Lead singer. Heheh, ah he would do this at parties, guzzle a tone of booze, and then he'd disconnect the small amplifier that connected to the back of Den Den mushi, this small box with small wires of copper, and I guess how it worked was that some of the prong that connected into holes in the Snails shells vibrated and the Den Den then replicated that noise louder."
"Like a microphone!" Leroy announced "Whatever that is yes." Eddie said "Same thing, but more advanced. No need for snails."
"Wonderful. We had to keep the snails in a small box with mesh metal on the front. It'd look weird if some snail was just sitting on a poll. It might look fine as a handheld, but for constant use, you gotta dress' em up a bit, make it look more…Suitable. And not as, amateur and unsightly."
"Anyway–" He waved his hands "He'd then get up on stage, and while stumbling around like an utter fool, would toss the– Microphone, up into the air, open his mouth, and then try and catch it in his mouth."
"That alone was funny. But it was the addition of the extension copper wire to it, a good 100 feet of it that connected back to the Den Den, so when it landed in his mouth it made a loud"
"Oumph!" He said covering his mouth to muffle the noise. "Hahahahaha!" Leroy began laughing, slapping his knee. Eddie following along. "Heheh…Ah…Yeah. It was moments like that that made the monotony and routine so unique…"
"But then one day…" He sighed heavily. The jovilness utterly leaving. "We reached, the Bleak Stretch…"
Suddenly, before Eddie could continue, huge explosions exploded through the air! The sound of rain pattering against the wood of the ship as the waves rocked!
Barbary Was Here…