Chapter 35
The Going Merry groaned like a living thing as the impossible current of Reverse Mountain seized her hull and began dragging her upward. The storm still raged, rain and sea spray mixing into a chaotic blur that made it nearly impossible to see. The ship tilted at an angle that defied every natural law Silas had ever known.
"WE'RE GONNA BE LAUNCHED INTO THE SKY!" Usopp's scream cut through the howling wind.
"THIS IS HOW PIRATES DIE! SHOT OUT OF A MOUNTAIN LIKE HUMAN CANNONBALLS!"
"If we crash, I'm blaming the cook," Zoro grumbled, bracing himself against the mast with his swords as the deck tilted dangerously.
"BLAME YOUR OWN MOSS-COVERED BRAIN, SWORD-FOR-BRAINS!" Sanji snapped, legs working overtime to stay upright.
"You probably got us lost upward somehow!"
"I DON'T GET LOST, DART-BROW!"
"You get lost in a straight line! You're a walking broken compass!"
At the helm, Silas and Usopp had death grips on the whipstaff, knuckles white as they fought to keep the ship steady against the violent current. they clung to the whipstaff like it owed them money. The wood groaned under their grip, the whole ship shuddering like it was trying to shake them off.
"WHY AM I EVEN TOUCHING THIS THING?!" Silas yelled.
"I'M A GUNSWORDSMAN, NOT A DAMN HELMSMAN!"
"YOU GRABBED IT FIRST!" Usopp screamed, voice cracking.
"BECAUSE YOU WERE BUSY SCREAMING LIKE A SEAGULL IN A TYPHOON!"
"I'M ALLOWED TO SCREAM! THIS IS A RIVER THAT CLIMBS A MOUNTAIN!"
The whipstaff jerked violently to the left, nearly ripping itself from their hands. Both stumbled, boots skidding across the slick deck.
"WE'RE GONNA DIE BECAUSE YOU'RE BAD LUCK, LONG-NOSE!" Silas shouted.
"WHY AM I GETTING BLAMED?! I DIDN'T DESIGN THE OCEAN!"
---
Meanwhile, Luffy stood at the bow with his arms spread wide, completely unbothered by the chaos. His straw hat stayed perfectly in place, like the storm respected him too much to touch it.
"THIS IS AWESOME!" he laughed, voice full of joy.
"We're flying! Shishishishi!"
"WE'RE NOT FLYING, WE'RE BEING FLUSHED UP A MOUNTAIN!" Silas snapped.
"Same thing!" Luffy replied cheerfully.
The Merry tilted even more dangerously. Water barrels broke loose and rolled across the deck like cannonballs. One headed straight for Zoro's head—
WHAM!
Sanji's leg shot out, kicking the barrel mid-air and sending it flying over the side.
"Watch where you're standing, moss-head! Some of us are trying to keep this ship in one piece!"
"I didn't ask for your help, curly-brow!" Zoro growled, driving his swords deeper into the mast to anchor himself.
"Next time I'll let it hit you!"
"GUYS!" Nami shouted from the map table, one hand gripping her charts, the other clinging to the table.
"LESS ARGUING, MORE NOT DYING! The current's angle is steeper than I calculated!"
"WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!" Silas and Usopp screamed in unison as the whipstaff bucked like an angry sea beast.
"IT MEANS WE'RE GOING FASTER!"
"THAT'S NOT BETTER!" Usopp wailed.
---
The ship continued its impossible ascent, water rushing past them on all sides. Silas saw the summit approaching—a point where the mountain seemed to level out, a moment of deceptive calm.
"We're at the peak..." Nami said, voice tight with awe and terror.
The Going Merry crested the summit, floating in a brief pocket of stillness. For one surreal moment, the world spread out below them—the East Blue behind, and ahead...
"So where's the other side?" Sanji asked, eyes scanning the mist.
"Don't say it," Zoro warned.
"Don't jinx it."
Luffy pointed ahead with a grin that could've powered the entire ship.
"There! The Grand Line!"
And then they saw it.
The other side of Reverse Mountain. A steep, violent descent that made their climb look like a kiddie slide. The current grabbed them again—this time pulling them down at a speed that made Silas's stomach drop into his boots.
"WE'RE GONNA DIE AGAIN!" Usopp's scream reached new octaves.
"I SWEAR IF WE SURVIVE THIS, I'M NEVER TOUCHING A WHIPSTAFF AGAIN!" Silas roared, voice cracking.
"SHUT UP AND BRACE!" Zoro barked, his swords now the only things keeping the mast from snapping.
"If I lose my knives in this mess, I'm kicking someone!" Sanji declared, somehow still managing to look cool while being flung across the deck.
"WHEEEEEEE!" Luffy's delighted laughter cut through the chaos as the Going Merry plunged down the mountain like a stone dropped from the heavens.
---
Silas and Usopp clung to the whipstaff like it was the last solid thing in a world gone mad. Through the spray and screaming, Silas caught glimpses of his crewmates—terrified, soaked, yelling, fighting to keep the ship together.
All except Luffy.
Who was grinning like this was the best day of his life.
The Grand Line rushed up to meet them—dark, mysterious, full of promise.
"HOLD ON!" Nami screamed.
"WE'RE TRYING!" Silas and Usopp yelled back.
And down they went—five terrified pirates and one delighted rubber lunatic—plunging toward their destiny at the speed of falling stars.