With Clockwork Island well behind them, the Straw Hat Pirates were looking forward to tomorrow. And on the way, they had another new face to welcome to the crew. While Honey Queen was a bit bummed that there was no bathtub on deck the Merry, she found the little caravel preferable to her old galleon. What she lost in authority, she gained in much better company.
And if she had any worries about how she met the Straw Hats, then Alvida, Nami and Desire all assured that Luffy was not one to hold grudges. He told her the truth about Nika, handed her the Six Powers book, and gave an introduction to Haki once she had settled in and soon she was cavorting with the others over a delicious dinner and toasting that she finally had a real journey ahead of her.
She was also let in on Luffy's other activities with the crew, though Honey Queen agreed that she had other priorities than getting in the captain's pants. Seeing how Armament Haki bypassed her Syrup-Syrup Fruit, she wanted to get a handle on it and on how to shift between solid and liquid on a dime.
The next day, the Straw Hats were all out on deck either training, relaxing or picking tangerines from Nami's trees. They were surprised when a News Coo fluttered onto the Merry's rail with a delivery. One ten-beri coin later and Makino held the World News Gazette which actually had an article about the Clockwork Island escapade.
"According to this, the Bear King was defeated by an uprising by the local scientists with assistance from a nearby Marine fleet… Well, at least he's being locked up and those other guys seem to have avoided getting captured too."
She then pulled out the new wanted posters, much to the surprise of Carmen and Desire. If they had to guess, the fallen pirate was interrogated and ratted out Luffy alongside giving descriptions of his crew.
Alvida, at least, was happy to see her bounty poster updated. Now the picture showed her more beautiful body along with a much higher price.
"'Iron Mace' Alvida – 25,000,000," she chuckled, "Keep your eyes peeled, Boa Hancock, I'll get you someday…"
Desire just chuckled. She had never gotten big enough to attract any government attention but that changed within a week of joining the Straw Hats. Now her own smirk was staring back at her, her pipe clearly visible behind her. Plus, she loved her moniker of "Enforcer" Desire – 21,000,000.
"Ugh, can you believe this?!" Carmen raged, "Those ingrates got my bad side!"
"That's your biggest concern?!" Kaya paled, "Not that you're a wanted woman now?!"
"Pft, as if that would stop me in my goal of finding the All-Blue." She at least didn't put any stock into having the second-lowest price of the crew. It made sense as one of the people who had no criminal background that she was given lower priority. She also got a kick out of being "Wildfire" Carmen – 9,000,000.
And, surprisingly enough, Honey Queen also had her bounty boosted from 7,800,000 to 12,000,000. No doubt ratted out by the Bear King for her "treachery", she took now being wanted for eight digits as a compliment. She was done relying on subterfuge, she would stand on her own merits and help a far better captain get to the One Piece in the process.
As they continued on their path, the Going Merry sped up as a rushing current swept underneath the hull. They all stood in awe as the distant wall of rock on the horizon grew bigger until it blotted out the sky.
"There it is…" Alvida awed, "The Red Line…"
"And on top of that is where the World Nobles live?!" Kaya gasped, straining her neck to try to see the top.
"Yep," Luffy said solemnly, "That's where Mariejois is. Where he is…"
Everyone could hear the tension in the captain's voice, knowing that he fully intended to climb this insurmountable barrier and defeat the one responsible for everything. The thought of even trying to scale this thing, let alone facing the security that would be in the Nobles' home turf made even the strongest fighters pale.
"But first, we have to get to the end of the Grand Line!" he said more jovially, "And by the time we've got the One Piece, we'll kick Imu's ass!"
"That's the spirit!" Desire laughed, "We ain't gonna let a stupid hunk of rock stop us!"
"And good thing we're on course for the only way into the Grand Line!" Nami said, pointing ahead. Several stone archways were spaced out miles apart alongside the swiftly moving current now carrying their caravel along. All of it leading to a rushing canal that scaled through the stone goliath in front of them; Reverse Mountain.
"We're actually going up the mountain?!" Nojiko gaped.
"Yes, I know it sounds insane, but it's either that or sailing through the Calm Belt and I don't feel like rowing through the Sea Kings' mating grounds when there's no wind…"
"Or going into the Kuja Pirates' hunting grounds," Alvida added, "This is, somehow, the most sensible option."
"LET'S GOOOOOOOOOO!" Luffy cheered, "Grand Line, here we come!"
"Why not sail up a mountain?" Honey Queen asked with a giggle, "And now looking at it, I'm starting to realize the Bear King's cannon was doomed to fail."
"Forget about that blowhard!" Carmen said, "We're on to meet all sorts of new challenges! Off to find the All-Blue!"
"To become the world's greatest swordsman!"
"To surpass a Warlord of the Sea!"
"To map out the entire world!"
"And to make it back to our homes once we've found the One Piece!"
"WOO-HOOOOOOOOO!" Luffy could only holler as the Going Merry was lifted onto the rushing rapid, soaring up hundreds of feet of rock in minutes. Sprays of sea foam lined the entire ship as they raced up and up, the East Blue disappearing from sight as they soon passed the clouds. With the Mini Melody secured with twice as much rope just behind the Merry, the Straw Hat Pirates watched in awe as they sailed into the sky.
Not before long did the ships finally crest the top of Reverse Mountain, three other rushing canals forming in a small lagoon before both ships were sent rushing down a natural waterslide with everyone cheering as they raced down faster than they thought any ship could sail. They soon saw the first glimmer of blue, they had truly arrived at the Grand Line.
The mood was high until a strange, ominous noise hit the crew's ears. "Ooooooooooo…"
"Um, guys?" Makino asked first, "Was that any of you?"
A round of nos answered her, only for an even louder wail to come.
The crew all rushed to the bow and were shocked to see a bank of fog surrounding something humungous, like a mountain sitting square in the middle of the sea's gateway.
"Uh, Nami?" Kaya said, her pointing finger trembling, "Is there supposed to be a gate to the Grand Line?"
"Of course not! I checked the map we got from Buggy, the Twin Capes should be totally open!"
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…"
"Well, clearly that didn't get the message!" Kuina shouted over the roaring water and the deafening wails. The fog-shrouded shadow only grew bigger as their ships approached and soon it was clear that whatever was blocking the way was massive, large enough to make even a battleship look like a bath toy.
When the Merry finally splashed down and officially entered the Grand Line, all the Straw Hats could do was strain their necks to spot the monolithic black wall that seemed to sandwich them between the Red Line. As they drifted closer, they could finally make out the figure before them.
"It's a… WHALE?!"
Makino was right, the Straw Hats were facing a massive black whale easily hundreds of feet tall and just as wide. Two large, dark eyes peered ahead, barely paying them any mind. The creature's mile long maw seemed to be beneath the waves, much to their partial relief. But the most striking detail were the stretches of scar tissue all along its front, each one a dull brown of healed-over wound.
"W-W-What in the world could hurt a creature like that?!" Honey Queen yelped, "Quick, we need to move on before whatever did that finds us!"
"Yes, I don't fancy my chances with that either," Sally nodded, "All in favor?"
"OOOOOOOOOOOO!" The massive whale let out a bellowing blast of noise. And now that they were right next to it, the call made the ship's every plank and screw rattle. The pirates all clamped their hands over their ears to try and block out the bone-rattling clamor. Even worse, the water underneath them all turned choppy, the ships lurching and threatening to capsize.
But then, as the noise blasted on, it suddenly died down. And just below the bellow was a soothing sound of strings. Luffy ears perked up, scarcely believing it.
"It can't be…"
As the gargantuan porpoise calmed down, the ladies all started hearing the melody. A calming serenade that instantly put their minds at ease as the water grew smooth once again.
"Where's that coming from?" Kaya asked, "Nobody here can play, right?"
"They forced me to learn piano, not violin," Sally said, "Although, I can already tell it's being played by a master. That would put the court musician of Goa to shame!"
Moodie creased her brow. "I've been to plenty of restaurants with string quartets, and I don't recognize this song at all."
"Because it's a sea shanty!" Luffy cheered, "Makino, remember when Shanks and his crew would sing this?"
"Oh, it is the same!" she beamed, "They had their musician on board the Red Force play this at the tavern when it started getting late!"
"I can't believe it, you all know this one?" Alvida chuckled, "I might have indulged in the occasional round of this after a raid but my singing was dreadful…"
The others all watched as Luffy, Alvida and Makino huddled together and sang, "Yo hohoho, yo hohoho! Yo hohoho, yo hohoho!
"Yo hohoho, yo hohoho! Yo hohoho, yo hohoho!" Kaya and Sally added, the others smiling along as the first three remembered the lyrics.
"Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew!"
Sea wind blows, to where, who knows? The waves will be our guide!
O'er across the ocean's tide! Rays of sunshine far and wide!
Birds they sing, of cheerful things, in circles passing by!"
"Bid farewell to weaver's town! Say so long to port renowned!
Sing a song, it won't be long before we're casting off!
Cross the gold and silver seas! A salty spray puts us at ease!
Day and night, to our delight, the voyage never ends!"
Luffy rushed off to grab some paper, having Makino and Alvida write down the rest of the lyrics so that everyone had a chance to sing along.
Gather up all of the crew! It's time to ship out Binks' brew!
Pirates we, eternally, are challenging the sea!
With the waves to rest our heads, ship beneath us as our beds!
Hoisted high upon the mast, our jolly roger flies!
Somewhere in the endless sky! Stormy winds are blowing by!
Waves are dancing, evening comes, it's time to sound the drums!
But steady men, and never fear! Tomorrow's skies are always clear!
So pound your feet and clap your hands 'til sunny days return!
"YOHOHOHOHOHO!" A lofty voice laughed, the music cutting to a stop as the Straw Hats looked up, "I haven't had a proper audience in ages! What a sight for sore eyes! YOHOHOHO!"
They then watched a distant black dot from atop the whale leapt off and seemed to speed right towards them, only for something to land with a light thud on deck. Everyone that gaped at the sight of the strange musician… And how his body was nothing but bones.
"WHOOOOOOA! YOU'RE A SKELETON!" Luffy cheered, his eyes popping in amazement as many of the ladies either gawked or revulsed.
"Indeed I am. I am Brook, a pleasure to meet you all." The more than eight-foot-tall skeleton bowed his head, shocking the others both at the courtesy and seeing a shock of black hair on the otherwise stark white skull. In fact, the lanky violinist was garbed like a proper gentleman with a dark violet dinner jacket and dress pants, a blue cravat pinned to his exposed ribs, a small top hat and a cane on his arm with his violin carefully held by the neck in his other hand.
"Y-You're alive?!" Nami balked, "HOW?! There's no way to bring back the dead!"
"I thought just as much as you did, young lady, but my Revive-Revive Fruit did just that! It kept my soul tethered to this world!"
"A Devil Fruit that can stop you from dying?!" Kaya said, rubbing her eyes, "That's incredible!"
"Okay, as completely freaky as this all is," Carina shook her head, "What exactly are you doing here? And what's with this huge whale that almost sank our boats?"
"This here is Laboon, a dear friend of mine. And ever since I arrived back here a few months ago, I've been serenading pirates who enter the Grand Line but most of them just pass me right by! It's not every day I get a crew that appreciates a good shanty, right Laboon?"
"OOOOO!" A much happier sounding sound came from the whale. Even the look in this dark eyes seemed much brighter as it focused on the skeleton.
"Yeah, most pirates are real pieces of work," Nojiko nodded, "Well, um, Brook, it was nice to meet you and thanks for the song but I suppose we should be going."
"Oh, must you? I have a friend here who I think would just love to meet you!"
"Another friend, besides the whale?" Carmen asked. When the skeleton nodded, the Straw Hats all shrugged. The dapper bag of bones seemed friendly enough, what was the harm in meeting someone else?
They soon regretted that as Laboon opened his jaws and both of their ships were effortlessly sucked into the rushing mile-long vortex.
"WE'RE GOING TO DIIIIIIIIIIIE!" Nojiko yelled as she hung onto the mast for dear life with Nami clutched to her stomach.
"IF WE BITE IT HERE, YOU FREAK, I'M GONNA MAKE SURE YOU STAY DEAD!" Desire warned even as she was rolling across the deck scrambling to find some solid ground. Brook himself just laughed his skull off as the Merry and Melody were soon swallowed by darkness with the whale's mouth making a deafening echo between the cascade and their screams.
Before long, the pirates all opened their eyes and came to the shocking conclusion: they weren't dead. The ships were swallowed in pitch darkness and several were still shaking from anxiety but they were somehow alive.
Brook, however, had barely moved from his spot on deck even as Nami and Kuina both wrapped their hands around his collarbone. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR, YOU ASSHOLE?!"
"My apologies for the surprise, but Laboon has gotten very careful not to let ships capsize."
"Alright, what's your game here?" Alvida said, her mace inches from Brook's pelvis, making a bead of sweat appear on his bare brow, "You expect us to believe your friend is inside a giant whale?"
"Guys, look!" Luffy pointed ahead to the light at the literal end of the tunnel. The ladies all gasped as they were actually able to see again before the Merry floated along the canal into… a bright blue sky?
"What the?!" Reiju gaped, "How… How are we outside again?!"
"Uh, guys?" Kaya piped up, "I think something's wrong with the water…" Everyone looked over the side and the water was not only extremely calm but an unnaturally bright green. The more they looked around this place, they noticed some other things were off. The fluffy white clouds were totally still, they couldn't find the sun, and they soon spotted what was clearly a man-made island.
On this little platform, only about the same size as their ship was a single one-story house, a deck chair set up on a small lawn that covered the metal disc, and a few palm trees.
"What circle of Hell are we in?" Sally shivered, even in the humid air of this new, strange sea. And it only got worse as a humungous squid the size of the Going Merry emerged from the placid water, its tentacles writhing as the Straw Hats yelled in surprise and readied themselves for battle… Right until three harpoons shot out from the little house and killed the beast in seconds.
The Straw Hats could only shout in alarm with Moodie and Carina even hiding behind Brook as the harpoons retracted and the massive squid flopped down into the water. They all watched as an old man dressed like he was on vacation, a bright flower-patterned shirt on, give them all a challenging look. The crew also noticed the bright yellow and purple petals growing around his bald top of his head with long white locks going down his neck to match the two-point beard on his chin.
Luffy could immediately sense this man's will, the gleam in his eyes daring any of them to try their luck and see if they can do better than the three-story tall monster that was now his lunch.
The fearsome-faced man promptly ignored the ship full of people and a skeleton and sat down in a lawn chair to ready the paper.
"Um, is this your 'friend?'" Moodie asked.
"Oh yes, this is Crocus! And this silent bit is his favorite running gag!"
"He's just messing with us?!" Desire and Kuina shouted, making the petal-haired old man look up and give another loathsome look making them both shut up.
"Eh, thanks for spoiling the fun, you bag of bones…" he grumbled.
"HEY! This isn't funny to us!" All of the Straw Hats yelled save for Luffy who laughing along with Brook.
"Ahem, ah, Crocus, sir?" Makino asked, "Where exactly are we?"
"In Laboon's stomach, where else would you be sailing into a whale's jaws?" he said as he stood up and reeled in the miniature kraken, "Gotta admit, not used to seeing so many ladies on one boat."
"Yeah, that's just Luffy's thing," Nami shrugged, "But what is all of this? Did you make the whale's stomach look like the outside?"
"Yep, that was me. When you've got fifty years to kill, you get real creative."
"FIFTY YEARS?!" Alvida, Kaya and Sally all yelled.
"Woooow, you're old!"
"LUFFY!" Makino snapped only for Crocus to chuckle.
"Heh, you've got some real gumption, kid. What's a young buck like you want in the Grand Line?"
"The One Piece! I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"
Crocus paused and looked into Luffy's eyes, not sensing an ounce of hesitation and felt his heart swell. For just the briefest second, he swore he saw an older man in a red tailcoat, the same devil-may-care expression on his face…
"Heh, you don't say? You know you've still got a long way to go. The Twin Peaks are just the starting point."
"Don't worry, I know we'll get there someday! And along the way we'll see a ton of awesome places and meet new friends!"
Brook wiped an arm over his empty eye sockets. "Ah, you see Crocus? Such a shining example of the right kind of pirate! Not the braggarts fixated on treasure and conquest!"
"Heh, it is true you don't see many Peace-Main crews anymore," the man nodded, "You kids looking for the exit? There's a tunnel due south that will lead you outside."
Several of the women turned green at the thought only to look that direction only for Brook to chuckle. "He means he built a gate to the outside. Trust me, you ladies won't have to worry about that…"
"Oh, thank goodness…" Carina and Nojiko sighed before looking up, "Wait, what?!"
"You built tunnels inside the whale?" Sally asked, gobsmacked, "What in the world made you do that?"
"Again, tons of free time. Plus, it's made my job a heck of a lot easier looking after this big guy."
"BHOOOOOOOOOO!" The green sea churned and rumbled as all of the Straw Hats clamped their ears shut as Laboon let out a tempestuous roar.
"What's wrong with him now?!" Luffy yelled but Crocus didn't answer. He dived straight into the sea of stomach acid, heedless of the girls screaming at the thought of him getting digested. They all relaxes seeing Crocus quickly emerge from the gastric pool and swiftly climb up a metal ladder leading up to a tunnel higher up on Laboon's body.
"Oh, the poor thing…" Brook sighed, "If only the rest of the crew were here…"
While some of the ladies quirked an eyebrow at that, they were more focused as Luffy appeared wet but unharmed on the same ladder and followed after Crocus. The young man soon found himself running along metal corridors, astonished at just how big the place was. He would need to jump to the top, but that soon changed. He picked up the faintest noise, like two sets of footsteps. A quick check with Observation Haki and he was heading into a far larger metal chamber like some kind of massive bilge. And sure enough, inside a little motorized skiff were two figures.
Luffy quirked an eyebrow at their odd outfits. One was a man dressed in a bright green shirt with a ruffled collar, a bright red scarf around his neck, and a large golden crown on his auburn hair. His companion was a curvy young woman with bright teal hair tied into a huge ponytail, wearing a loud light green jacket over a striped blue and black blouse, with white shorts and heeled boots.
As soon as he saw the two pick up humungous rifles from the bottom of their boat, easily as large as a person, he walked into their sight. "Hey, what are you planning with those?"
"Oh look at this, Miss Wednesday! Looks like someone else got eaten by the whale!" the man laughed haughtily.
"Indeed, Mr. 9, I suppose not everyone can be as sneaky as us!" the woman cackled but something was weird about her voice. Luffy swore she was trying really hard to sound snooty and uptight.
"Yeah, my boat got swallowed. How'd you get here?" He was answered with both of the massive guns being pointed at him.
"That's for us to know…"
"…And you to find out in HELL!" Two deafening bangs echoed in the metal chamber as both muskets fired but Luffy simply twisted to the side before either shot could touch him. Much to the pair's horror, Luffy was in front of them and nailed them both with a gut punch that floored them.
"Tch, jerks…" Figuring there was more to the story, he grabbed them both and hoisted them onto his shoulders before finding Crocus down a different path with his Haki. As soon as he was in eyesight of the old man, he noticed him pulling a huge syringe from an exposed bit of flesh along the corridor and Laboon suddenly quieted down.
"Did you just drug the whale?" Luffy asked, blinking. That was a strange question, even for him.
"Sure did. Wouldn't be much of a doctor if I couldn't. More importantly, where'd you find the riffraff?"
Luffy could tell Crocus wasn't happy and soon he learned why. These two were bounty hunters from the nearest island looking to kill Laboon and take his meat back to their village. The young pirate grimaced and was now extra grateful he tossed their guns into the water earlier.
By the time he finally returned to the stomach area Crocus called home, he noticed that Brook was literally running away from all of the Straw Hat ladies. Weapons were drawn, projectiles were flying, and everyone looked enraged.
"Aw, damn that old skeeze," Crocus sighed.
"Hey!" Luffy called out, "What did Brook do?"
"He asked to see our panties!" Kaya, Carmen and Moodie yelled, all red in the face and mortified. Even they were rushing after Brook who proved extremely agile enough to dodge them and their attacks even on the cramped space of the Merry's deck.
"Forgive me, you lovelies! I merely haven't been graced with such ravishing women in so long!"
"You don't just ask that, you deviant!" Sally said as she sicked her bees on him, "What kind of musician are you?!"
"Why do you even care?!" Nojiko yelled, turning the floorboards into roots to try and trip him to no avail, "You're nothing but bones! You don't even have anything down there!"
Nami's face turned green. "Ugh, thanks for that image, sis! Excuse me while I wash my eyes out with the stomach acid to get rid of THAT!"
"Alright, that's it!" Kuina drew the Wado Ichimonji and Shaved right up in front of the skeleton, "TAKE THIS!"
And had to blink before she realized her sword was blocked. She noticed that a round black sheathe was now at her feet, while Brook himself was holding a three-foot long, straight blade still attached to the handle of his cane.
"A fine blade you have," Brook said with all the same poise as before, "It has been ages since I properly met a swordsman. Would you allow me the honor of a quick spar? Soul Solid here has not seen any action in far too long."
Kuina shrugged even as she tried to overpower the skeleton. "Heh, alright. Good thing you can't bleed because I'm gonna make you hurt for that panty crack!"
The other ladies all backed away as they watched Kuina and Brook duel, amazed by how their swords vanished. The only thing they could see was a shower of sparks with every clash and a glimmer of silver with each swing.
"Wow, Brook is awesome!" Luffy laughed as he carried the unconscious whalers on his shoulders before moonwalking back onto his ship. Crocus only smiled as he observed the duel like it was a fine afternoon sport.
"You shouldn't be surprised. Brook was captain of the Rumbar Pirates from the West Blue, earned himself a tidy bounty of 33 million beris. He was nothing to sneeze at."
"Makes sense to me!" Kuina yelled back, smiling as she found yet another of her strikes blocked. What the dapper bag of bones might have lacked in raw power he made up for in finesse. He fought like a trained fencer, with graceful thrusts and deft parries to stop any oncoming attack. She hadn't found such a challenge and it exhilarated her! Desire might have been a good partner to go against but here was someone with a clear respect for her craft.
The Straw Hat ladies soon forgot all about Brook's faux pas as the duel continued, showing some remarkable stamina which Kaya remarked made sense. Without a nervous system or organs, his body was phenomenally light and could move with far less energy. But as Kuina got a read on his moves, she soon found a weakness. She baited him with a feint before slashing right for his neck only to be shocked when his skull was swiftly detached from his shoulders.
"AAAAAAAAAH!" Reiju, Makino and Carina yelled, hiding behind Luffy.
"Heh, oops…" Kuina said as she sheathed her blade, "Erm, he'll be okay, right?"
"Oh yes, just give me some milk and I'll be right as rain!" Brook's head said, much to the horror of many of Luffy's crew. The man just laughed at the sight of a talking skull before he noticed the whalers were coming to.
"Oooh, what hit me?" Miss Wednesday moaned before glancing up and seeing Luffy's face. "EEEK! You! How did you dodge bullets?!"
"Instinct, really. Guns don't really work on me anyway but that's besides the point. You two aren't going to be hunting Laboon anymore."
"You think you can order us around?!" Mr. 9 yelled only to have Alvida's mace nudge his cheek.
"I'd watch your tongue, young man. This is Luffy's ship and he's no one to be trifled with." She then turned to Crocus, "Now then, I think that's enough fun for today. Where was that exit you mentioned?"
Crocus pointed the way and soon the Going Merry was on its way with the Mini Melody behind it up to a huge set of double doors. They took the time to tie up the strangers to make sure they didn't cause any trouble as they went before learning more about Brook.
While they knew he was a pirate now, he shocked them by mentioning that his crew entered the Grand Line fifty years ago with Laboon when he was just a little whale separated from his pod. Brook couldn't help but smile as he recalled meeting the little porpoise in their home sea before learning that he followed them down Reverse Mountain. It was here at the Twin Peaks that they met Crocus and made a promise to return here once they found the ed of the Grand Line while the then-young lighthouse keeper looked after the adorable whale.
"Wait a second, you left here fifty years ago?!" Nami paled, "But Laboon is huge now, how long were you gone?!"
"I only came back here a few months ago. The scars you see are from Laboon ramming himself into the Red Line because he thought we abandoned him…"
"Oh, that's horrible!" Kaya sobbed, "What happened to the rest of your crew?!"
"They all perished long ago. I only survived as long as I did thanks to my Revive-Revive Fruit. And even then it took my soul decades to find my body again thanks to that damned fog…"
Nami suddenly paled. "…You weren't in a place called the Florian Triangle, were you?"
"We were, unfortunately. A pocket of the ocean blanketed in an ever-present mist that saps your will to live. I played my violin as long as I could to try and keep my men in good spirits but even the greatest musician needs water and food at some point."
"What's that place he's talking about?" Desire asked her.
"The Florian Triangle is a navigator's worst nightmare. A strange section of the Grand Line where tons of ships just disappear without a trace. How did you get out of it when no one else did?"
"In my loneliness, I swore I could hear whispers on the wind. Legend has it that the fog is the restless souls of departed forced to remain in this world. As I played my melody one day, the mist parted just long enough for me to find my way. And since I had no chance of making it through the rest of the Grand Line, I instead worked my way backwards so I could finally reunite with Laboon here."
"BHOOOOOO!" Another much happier bellow came, making the crew lighten up as the doors parted to reveal a real blue sky. As soo as the ships were back in open water again, all of the Straw Hats breathed in the salty air. They slowly circled back around to see Laboon's eyes following their progress until they pulled up to the lighthouse resting on the eastern side of the Red Line.
"…And that's where all the scars came from," Crocus sighed as he sat on a picnic table with the Straw Hats all listening in, "Ramming himself into that mountain range."
"Goodness, that's horrible…" Nojiko almost cried, "But at least he has Brook now, right?"
"Oh, he's been in far better spirits ever since he came back. He still cries out for the rest of his friends but all of his waiting paid off. He was right that his friends never abandoned him, they just got lost on the way back."
The girls all turned to see Brook happily chatting away with the whale, the massive creature's eye fixed on him and a clear peace in his expression. They might have gotten off on the wrong foot with the skeleton but they could all tell he was a gentleman at heart. Plus he had already apologized for the panty bit several times and all but gagged at the thought of actually touching one of them without permission.
He was, however, stupendously jealous when he heard that Luffy had all of these women to himself. They never imagined a skeleton could cry either, but that would be for Kaya to mull over later. Now they were all waiting for Reiju and Carmen to return with a special lunch.
Soon the crew was rewarded with the scent of freshly roasted fish as the chefs walked over with a huge tray between them. They were proud to present the Elephant Blue-Fin Tuna Reiju won, seasoned lightly and on a bed of Carmen's signature paella rice designed to enhance the succulent fish's flavor.
As the crew dug in alongside Brook and Crocus, all was light and cheerful until Nami shouted in shock.
"Whut's wroung?!" Luffy asked her around a mouthful of tuna.
"The compass is broken! Look!" She held up her trusty tool and everyone saw the needle spinning around at random.
"Oh boy, you kids really are new to this…" Crocus sighed, "The Grand Line can't be navigated with a common compass."
Brook nodded, chuckling at how he made the same mistake when he first sailed here long ago. "What you need is a special Log Pose. It's a little glass bauble on a leather strap mounted on the wrist. You see, the Grand Line's islands all give off very unique magnetic properties that a Log Pose can detect with enough time to find the signal."
Nami nodded along only to frown. She had no idea where to find something like that, she just assumed that her know-how would be enough. Carina, however, slid up next to her and pointed back to the ship.
"Saaaay, didn't those two crooks come from an island on the Grand Line?"
"Oh yeah! They must have a Log Pose to their island!"
"Heh, getting the hang of things already," Crocus nodded, "I'll be sure to keep an ear to the ground for you kids. I gotta good feeling you all will get into some crazy stuff."
Luffy could only laugh as the crew finished eating before bidding a fond farewell to Brook, Kuina swearing that she'll be back once she's claimed Hawkeye's title so they can have a proper duel.
As the Going Merry and Mini Melody truly sailed into the Grand Line, Luffy looked at Miss Wednesday and could only find it weird when she scoffed and turned away from him. In any case, he headed inside to see Nami eagerly sitting at her desk examining the Log Pose.
"So, where's our first stop?" he asked.
"Some place called 'Whiskey Peak.' Ready to hit the Grand Line, Captain?"
"Heck yeah! Let's GOOOOOO!" The whole ship heard his cheer and couldn't help but relate. They were finally starting on the real journey towards the One Piece!
And thus we get an early appearance from Brook and a warning about one of the Grand Line's most dangerous spots. Next time, though, we have their first proper destination in the most infamous sea with Whiskey Peak!