"Boss, Mr. Edward is your first 'crew member'?" Robin asked, eyeing the towering, lightning-infused clay clone.
"Yes."
"And your ship?"
"Foolish! Are ships such inconvenient things?" Storm grinned. "What are you riding right now?"
Robin looked down at the massive dragon beneath her. "The Blue-Eyes White Dragon is certainly magnificent, but it's not a ship. Can it dive?"
"In fact, it can," Storm said. "And we're about to 'dive' right now."
"Nani—glug glug—!"
With Robin's scream cut short, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon angled upward, soaring into the sky. It didn't dive into the blue sea; it dove straight into the White Sea, seven thousand meters above ground.
The thick, endless sea clouds acted just like real seawater.
Fun Fact: The "Sea Clouds" of Skypiea contain Pyrobloin, which emits the same energy as the sea, weakening Devil Fruit users.
A sudden feeling of profound weakness eroded every corner of Robin's body. She couldn't even maintain her seated posture. If Storm hadn't created a pair of clay arms to firmly strap her to the dragon's back, she would have fallen into the abyss.
When the dragon finally broke through the dense White Sea, Robin felt the oppressive weight lift slightly. She opened her eyes, gasping for air.
"Am I... finally dead?"
"Just a little bit more~" Storm's teasing voice reached her ears.
Robin blinked. What greeted her was a vast, breathtaking sea of pure white clouds beneath a blindingly blue sky. Such a magnificent landscape definitely didn't belong in hell.
"Boss."
"Hmm?"
"You... never mind."
"Not yet~" Storm smirked. "The sea we just crossed is the 'White Sea.' Now... do you see the clouds above us?"
"No—ah—glug glug—!"
The dragon surged upward again, diving into the second layer of clouds.
When they broke through the White-White Sea at 10,000 meters, Robin looked like she had endured a medieval torture session. She lay limply on the dragon's scales, too weak to even glare properly.
"Boss."
"Hmm."
"You're very petty." Robin panted. "Are there sixteen more layers after this? Is this the eighteen levels of hell?"
"I have good news," Storm walked over, looking down at her. "We've reached the Sky Island. 10,000 meters up. If we keep flying, we might reach the moon. But I must say, Robin, from this angle... you look terrible."
Robin mustered the strength to glare at him, then slumped back down.
"Huff... huff... the air is so thin..."
"You're just out of shape," Storm shook his head. "Rest for a minute. We're here."
The Blue-Eyes White Dragon flew slowly over the lush forests of Upper Yard, entering the ruins of the golden city, Shandora.
During Enel's reign, he had plundered vast amounts of gold to build his flying ship, the Maxim. What should have been a resplendent city was now stripped bare.
Storm scanned the ruins until he found what he was looking for.
Deep within the ancient stones stood a colossal Golden Bell.
"There it is!"
The dragon landed gently near the massive structure. By now, Robin had rested enough to sit up. She wanted to admire the legendary Sky Island, but her eyes locked onto the base of the Golden Bell.
Her breath hitched.
Set into the massive stone beneath the bell was a block of indestructible, dark blue stone carved with strange, square characters.
"That's... a Poneglyph!"
"That's right," Storm hopped off the dragon. "Archaeologist, what did you just say to me earlier? Something about me being petty?"
Robin, faced with the treasure she had sought her entire life, immediately abandoned her pride.
"I said you are the most generous, magnanimous boss in the world!" she lied flawlessly.
"Much better. Try to be that creative next time," Storm chuckled, shrinking the dragon down.
Robin ignored him, sprinting toward the Bell.
In the twenty years since Ohara burned, she had endured countless hardships just to see these stones. Crocodile had promised her the Alabasta Poneglyph, but his convoluted plan meant years of waiting.
And yet, here on a Sky Island, a pristine Poneglyph sat unguarded!
Robin activated her Hana Hana no Mi, sprouting hands to gently brush away four hundred years of moss and dust. The ancient text revealed itself.
Her eyes scanned the characters, translating the lost language of the Void Century.
"An Ancient Weapon bearing the name of a god..."
"Hidden in the deepest part of the sea, ten thousand meters below the surface, in Fish-Man Island..."
Her pupils contracted.
"The location of the Ancient Weapon... Poseidon!"
This wasn't Pluton. It was another God-tier weapon!
Robin desperately memorized the text.
"So, are you satisfied?" Storm's voice suddenly came from right beside her.
Robin jumped. "Satisfied? Of course! Boss... is this why you brought me here?"
"That's right," Storm stared at the stone, his expression unreadable.
The light in Robin's eyes dimmed slightly. 'So, White Dragon is just like Crocodile. He only wants my knowledge to find the Ancient Weapons...'
But Storm kept talking, his voice dripping with venom.
"To be honest, I didn't originally intend to recruit you, Nico Robin. And I don't care about the history of this world."
Robin blinked, confused. "You don't?"
"What 'Void Century,' what 'Great Kingdom,' what 'Will of D,' what 'Ancient Weapons'..." Storm scoffed, pacing in front of the bell.
"The more you learn about the true history, the more disgusting it becomes. You scholars think it's some grand mystery of freedom. But read between the lines! It all just boils down to one word..."
Storm gritted his teeth, his Haki flaring unconsciously.
"Nika."
He had once naively believed the Pirate King was the freest man on the sea. But what was the truth? It was all destiny. Bloodlines. Prophecies. A chosen 'Joy Boy' coming to save everyone.
"It's repulsive," Storm spat. "God saves humanity? Bah!"
Robin stood completely dumbfounded.
She knew her boss had secrets. He knew about Crocodile. He knew about Saul.
But this? "Void Century," "Great Kingdom," "Will of D"... he listed them off like common knowledge! Even the scholars of Ohara hadn't uncovered all of this! And what was "Nika"?
Robin stared blankly at the twenty-year-old man in front of her.
'Who is the real archaeologist here?!'
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