Bogged Down in Balaggan Port

[CelticHero37]

Watanabe Hotaka Wasabi
Debts
Wasabi remained silent as Roy seemed to come up with a more peaceful solution of his own accord after Nerissa arrived despite seeming opposed to such an idea. He couldn't help but recognize that Roy already seemed to have an opinion of whoever Aquarius was. Perhaps he already knew Nerissa as well. Either way, Roy seemed content to leave the situation at that.

With a friendly nod to the two brothers, he turned back to the shopkeeper. Almost as soon as the man tried to play off the situation, the seriousness returned to Wasabi's expression as he cast a glare and a shadow down across the man. Leaning forward, Wasabi said, "If you're going to cheat someone, you could at least look them in the eye first." As he said this, he grabbed the man's collar and lifted him off the ground so that his feet dangled freely. Bringing the shopkeep up level with himself, Wasabi continued, "That's better. Now, just so we're clear, you owe him due to attempted fraud and he told you to pay me in his stead, and now you want to postpone that payment? I see, so you'd rather be in debt to someone like me, is that it?"

Wasabi wasn't being rather gentle with the man despite holding him off the ground. The chef didn't need physical violence to deal with the man. His presence was enough to do the trick. Wasabi simply wanted the man to understand the debt that would be owed if he didn't pay. Wasabi wasn't a pleasant person to owe a debt in a situation like this.

Lady Warlock QuirkyAngel

 

[Exanis]

Syrin InsinuAllowing himself to relax ever so slightly while leaning back into his seat, Syrin took the time to take another cursoury glance around the pub as Stacy went to go order for the both of them. If he was going to be honest with himself, this was exactly the change of scenery that he needed. Gone was the eccentricity of the crew, instead replaced with something that he could more easily predict, and more importantly, deal with if it truly came down to that. Shaking himself out of that train of thought, he reminded himself that he was here to catch up with Stacy, and as such he shouldn't be bothering thinking of what he would call 'work', especially since he's all but set in stone his decision to tag along with her now that he's found her again.

It was just in time too, as he saw her making her way over to him with two ales, handing him one when she arrived. He, of course, responded with a small smile and nod of thanks, then took a small sip of the drink, letting himself relax even further into his chair. Giving himself another moment to gather his thoughts, he was about to speak, only to notice the barkeep make his way over with two delicious smelling burgers, placing them in front of the two then heading back to do his job. Taking a deep, lung filling inhale through his nose, Syrin sighed out contently.

"I won't lie. I've truly, truly needed something like this after this whole shenanigan of an adventure I've been dragged through." Shaking his head twice, Syrin took another drink then leaned forward. "But I'm not here to talk about myself. I haven't seen ya in too long, reassure me about how you've been dealing. Catch me up, y'know? You can't have told me everything that you've been through. Hell, I wanna know what's on your mind right now."

Lady Warlock

 

[AtlannianSpy]

Emilie De Cortagne
​

"I must apologize on behalf of my crewmate," said Emilie, bowing solemnly towards the store clerk who merely looked on with a bemused expression. "I believe he means well and is merely... over exuberant at times,"

"Ah that's... you two are crewmates?" The store keeper could only smile, politely but obviously confused. What kind of crew has a maid and a.. ninja?

"Indeed, of the Tiger Shark Pirates. We are pleased to make your acquaintance and I'm sure in any future dealings," Emilie fixed Norman with a firm stare. "We will endeavor to use more.. conventional means of transportation,"

"Well I'm just happy for the business to be honest," said the store keeper, sighing. "Things have been a little rough latel-"

Suddenly the bell on the door chimed and a trio of rough looking men swaggered into the store.

"Well, well Mr Waker, customers! Isn't that a nice change of pace," drawled the leader, a grubby man in a battered bowler hat. Behind him one of his lackeys snickered while the other sent a nearby display crashing to the ground. Emilie frowned.

"I'd have more if you fella's didn't keep scaring them away," said the storekeeper with a very strained smile. "I have Mr. King's money right here, 120,000 berris,"

"Mr. Waker come now," said the bowler hatted man with a falsely sweet and sympathetic tone. "That was last week's payment. Surely you must realise this week's is 180,000? Once inflation and cost of living are taken into account...Or something."

"Cost of L-" The storekeeper looked livid for a moment and then swallowed the emotion with a visible effort. "I don't have 60,000 berris just lying around!" he said tautly.

"And my heart bleeds for you, Mr. Waker truly it does," said the bowler hatted man, closing his eyes and spreading his hands. "But you know what has to happen now," the man snapped his fingers and the other lackey raised a bat he had been holding up over his head and brought it crashing down on a shelf.

-Until a single, silk covered hand caught it, holding the bat in place with a steely grip.

"My crewmate and I are about to place rather large orders with Mr. Wakers store," Emilie said, her voice just as soft and placid as it always was. "Which I believe will cover the discrepancy, so if you'll just be patient there's no need to cause a mess someone will have to clean up later,"

Lady Warlock
AllHailDago

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Nerissa Orta (Red Ribbon Pirate)

Nerissa sighed as Wasabi lifted the dishonest merchant up. She couldn't stop people from being upset. However, she could at least trust Wasabi to inflict physical harm to someone who was clearly weaker. Probably. The Red Ribbon chef seemed to have a level head. To be honest, Arlen might've reacted violently to the merchant as well given that he was a fighter and also very protective of the people he cared for. Perhaps it was a good thing the young Leviathan had remained on the ship rather than join them on their port excursion. Shopping would've probably been much more difficult with him around, given the prices of some of these vendors.

"More than any mortal man, what one should fear is the wrath of Aquarius." Looking between the two men, Nerissa left it at that. Her blue-eyed gaze landed on Wasabi and she smiled. "I've got one more thing to buy, but I'll see you on the ship when I'm done."

Returning to the store she was at before seeing Roy Volantis cause a commotion, Nerissa purchased the dress that caught her eye, picking a size she guessed would fit Ed. Well, even if it wasn't the exact measurement, it could always be fixed up. Nerissa had gotten...a bit...better at sewing since the incident with Arlen's jacket. Pleased with her choice, the Priestess of Water was on her way back to the ship when she passed an interesting establishment. It wasn't so much that the establishment was interesting, but rather what the people in front of the establishment was doing.

They were...building something?

"May I ask what you are doing?" The innocent question was posed to the workers.

CelticHero37
Lady Warlock
Phayne

Tristan Roads (Tiger Shark Pirate)

It didn't take Tristan long to find the Red Ribbon ship. Not too long at least, given Nerissa's vague directions. Staring up at the large boat, which was big enough to be a marine vessel, Tristan whistled.

"I wonder what her name is."

Not that it mattered too much to the red haired barber. His job was simply to drop off all of the chronicler's purchased oddities on the deck of the ship, then wait for her to return. Simple enough. The gangplank wasn't dropped and there wasn't any rope ladder to climb...not that he had any hands available to climb with at the moment. He could always just jump aboard, but that seemed a bit...rude? It was pirate ship, right? They probably didn't take well to uninvited guests.

Tilting his head up, Tristan called. "Yoo-hoo~! Is there anyone aboard!? I've come to make a delivery!"

If there was no one on board, he'd just have to take some liberties and deal with consequences later, since carrying the large aquarium of "magical" fish around was getting a bit annoying.

AllHailDago

 

[Sinny The Fool]

"Sharktooth Fin & Tabemono The Beast Child"

​

Fin was enjoying watching the battle, although he was confused by her statement about fishing.”Huh? Fishin spot? I thought ya waz fightin nawt fishin?” His brain was beginning to hurt trying to comprehend her pun. But he quickly snapped out of his brain cramp upon hearing mention of a bear. He turned eyes squinted as if he were looking at something far away. But he quickly stood smiling at his next battle.”Aye, sounds good ta me..hmm but if’n I win. Den I get yet ship! Howz that sound?” He asked now rolling his shoulders in preparation for battle.

But before the bear could answer his attention was turned back to the sword swinging gal known as Rabbit. He gave her an unamused look, almost as if he was being bothered by a bug during dinner time.”Huh? Ain't ya got sum carrots ta eat er somethin?” He didn't want her interfering with his fight. This was a rare occasion for him. He so rarely got a chance to battle someone of his size, and strength. At least he hoped the bear wasn't all talk. Glancing over Rabbit once more he couldn't help but give her kimono another long glance. Something was itching at him. He couldn't quite put it to words. But after a few moments, he snapped his fingers. The thought having finally resurfaced in his head.”Ha! I almost fergod! I'll return to ya uno momento friendo.” He told them before once more tunneling into the bar. Through several still fighting bar patrons.

It wasn't long before he came to a group of people. All standing around something, Fin simply craned his neck to look over the crowd. It seemed some poor fellow had gotten his throat ripped out. Fin couldn't help but crack a smile. He pushed through the crowd, an easy feat as most ran at the sight of him. Once they had cleared out Fin was left with a good view of the situation. He bellowed, unable to refrain due to his overwhelming amusement.”Hahaha! Ai! Knew et! I c’not leave ya alone fer a second wit out ya geddin into trouble.” He said moving towards Tab with a big jolly smile on his terrifying mug, while Tabemono, on the other hand, had still been a little shaken from the sight, and struggled to even get back to his feet. Fin scooped Tabemono up in one hand, then turned to the sound of growling.”Huh? Ow fer cryin out loud! Damn mutts done gone n’ did it again! C'mere mongrel!” He said walking over to the ferocious looking Goncho, and giving him a smack on the nose to snap the creature out of it’s berserk state.”I got a fight ta be geddin to. Lez ditch this snooze fest. Ya can rips people's throats out latter. I ain't gunna stop ya.” He said turning to Tab, and giving him a friendly cheerful grin. Showing he had some good news.”Lookin like we'll get off dis rock soon. Found a fella willin ta take us onta his crew. Well, if’n an when I beat him I'll win the ship. But he's a big fella, so who knows what might hap’n.” He told Tab as they exited the bar. As soon as his massive figure appeared in the hole of the bar, he tossed Tab towards Rabbit with little effort. His only yelling being a,”Catch!” In Rabbits direction. He then stuck his tongue out, and gave them a thumbs up.”Aight! Now stay outta tha way, and watch this Tab. Gunna be a fight fer tha ages!” He told him, almost sounding like a command. He then turned to Jarko crossing his arms with a bloodthirsty smirk resting on him.”So, where we gunna do dis? Im game! Lez go now!” He said with an impatient excited tone unfitting of his expression.

Being tossed back down to the ground, right by the woman he and Fin had become acquainted with earlier. It was also around this time he had actually gotten to take a serious look at the other large figure that - if anything; reminded him of a slightly furry Fin. Tabemono wasn’t able to pay too much attention to whatever Fin had been saying to him, gathering it in pieces over the bustling crowd that was coming from within the pub, which had still been in the midst of a massive brawl. However, it almost sounded like Fin had made a gamble of sorts on a battle with the other furry figure who had seemed to already leave quite the impression on everybody, even noticing some gawking eyes coming from inside the gaping hole that was made in the pub wall. Probably waiting to see these two large figures duke it out to see who would be the winner. Nyan had come scuttering out of the pub in a panic-like state "NYYAAAAAN!!!", leaping onto Tabemono and causing him to smash his head back on the ground as Nyan nestled himself under Tabemono’s kimono. Goncho had also made his way to Tabemono’s side, circling around a few times before coming to a final standstill and laying down on the ground he covered his nose with both paws. Now they were all there again, Nyan poking out only just far enough from Tabemono’s kimono to witness the upcoming brawl and Goncho rubbing his nose the best he could. Now all there was left to do, was for Tabemono to sit and wait to see how the fight would unfold and after everything that had happened, Tabemono had practically completely forgotten about the topic he had been contemplating so heavily on earlier...

​

​

(This was a collaboration post done by Solemn Jester & Sinny The Fool )
(Interacting with Chak ; Kimiko of The Blossom) and AllHailDago ; Jarko 'Frostfur' Belfonte
(Color Code - Sharktooth Fin, Tabemono, Nyan & Nameless NPC's)

 

[Phayne]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zambini had been to caught up in his own antics, the swaying of bodies coupled with the hypnotic rhythm of the music had enveloped the troubled man; consuming him in its lustrous grasp and for the shortest of times enabling the pudgy fella to forget about his worries and to forget the forceful nature of his little schemes. While his body remained able to keep up with the momentum, Zambini truely allowed for his worries to disappear, alas all good things always have that inevitable ending and once he could no longer physically dance, Zambini returned to reality.

Spotting his guest's digging into their food, Zambini committed himself to the scheme and began to push past his dancers. "Now my darling new friends, I have a favor to ask of you" began Zambini, waddling over towards an empty seat and clambering on to it. The chubby little man was visibly exhausted, his chest heaving as he swallowed as much oxygen as he could. He was not built for physical labour and that was apparent by how red his face had become as he struggled to regain a steady heartbeat. "As you may have..." he paused as one of his dancer poured him a glass of crimson red wine; to which Zambini quickly guzzled down."....guessed, I run a rather extravagant establishment, some call it a fancy little Brothel but I prefer to label my hard work as nothing more than the 'Gem' of Balaggan, a restaurant catering to everyone regardless of their origin as well as providing them with a visual work of art as well as stimulation" he gestured towards his belly dancers. His face momentarily full of joy as he reminisced on the good old days, only to suddenly turn to one of utter devastation as the reality sunk in once more.

"Alas.. poor little old me and my hard working colleagues have hit a wall... " Zambini sighed and dropped his head onto the table, his cheeks bulging now as he slumped there in defeat. "That traitorous Rat, Zamir's new establishment has lured all my customers away... that filthy mongrel using his charming good looks to steal away by prettiest dancers from right under my nose..." Zambini sighed once more. " Without the main attraction.I.. I fear that within the month or so.. I'll be unable to remain open.." Zambini slammed both his hands on the table, causing the chalice he had earlier drank from to crash onto the floor below. "what will happen to Zambini then?" He raised his pudgy face towards his guest's, his eyes now tearing up as he stared at his last hope. Zambini was never a bad man, yet circumstances made him desperate and desperation always caused one to make rash decisions.

"My sweet and beautiful new friends..." As he said this, several large men entered the room that they were in, positioning themselves in front of each exit and closing off any means of real escape. "...will you dance for me tonight?" Zambini's words and actions betrayed one another, on one hand he was truly asking them for their help, yet on the other his desperation could not allow for them to decline his request and whether they liked it or not all three of them would become tonight's main event.

"What do you say?" he queried, his eyes glancing over to JayJay and Ed. "In exchange for this food and for any help you need in regards to treating that young girl, Will you two young ladies star in tonights main dance?.. and will you" he pointed towards Jayjay, "..will you be able to perform something spectacular for the audience?"

If plan A didn't work... he'd have to go with B.
CelticHero37 Felix DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl
~~~~~~~~~

Time was of the essence and the slave driver Zambini had given them hardly any, however despite the severity of their boss's demands, the workers tasked with preparing for tonight's event were full of determination to see their work through. The main lacklustre stage which had fallen into disrepair over the last few weeks now needed emergency repair, that coupled with the unique attraction Zambini had promised which itself required specific decorations meant that the men were up to the brim with work.. yet not even the toughest of men could ignore the curiosty of a young woman.

Each and every man presently hammering away at their work stopped at the sound of a young inquisitive voice, yet only one among the many stepped forward to answer.

"Preparing for tonights Main attraction" he replied, offering her a smile. "It shall be a surprise for the residents of Balaggan and if you truly want to see what it is, then I advise you return tonight... for I suspect our Master has a grand unveiling"
QuirkyAngel

​

Felix DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl

 

[Phayne]

Jin raised an eyebrow as Alex spoke '...a taste of what I dished out to those bar drunks...', those words lingered for awhile as Jin's eyebrow for the briefest of moments began to twitch. Jin could've sworn that he had told the crew to not get into any trouble while here on Balaggan, yet here Alex was casually joking about what could only be assumed to be 'trouble' that she had gotten into or at worst caused. Jin while out of Alex's point of view, raised a palm to his face and shook his head. The last thing he wanted was to have attention drawn onto them, especially over something that sounded so trivial.

Though rather then interrupting the chat in an attempt to get the details of 'the dish she had served', Jin instead slumped his shoulders and leaned back against several of the wooden crates, his head again staring skyward as he watched the gulls hover against the wind. As Alex continued to set up the meeting, Jin could only submerge himself into his own thoughts; a growing but controlled surge of excitement welling inside of him as his concerns gave way to adrenaline. It was really happening... Jin alongside a crew of fellow pirates were on the precipice of entering the grand line; the grand race. A smile formed across his face as he half heartedly listened to the conversation whilst also floating in the 'feel good feeling' his thoughts brought him, Jin's eyes slowly closing as he let the euphoria envelop him.

.....

Jin's eyes slowly opened as he listened to the conclusion of their conversation; the flirtatious last remark of Darius having little visible effect on Jin. Though inwardly Jin could not help but get curious. He did not take Alex to be the kind of woman that would fall for such a 'line', though he was never really the best at reading women in the first place. Simply, Jin was unsure as to how someone like Alex would have reacted to such flirting; it was a real opportunity for him to learn a bit more about his new crew mate. It also made him wonder just what exactly happened at this bar.

"Let's go" ordered Jin, placing both hands into his pockets and walking past Alex. "I'm even more curious about this Darius Fletcher" he remarked, as he continued to walk. Truthfully though, Jin was more curious about what would happen when Alex and Darius met up again.​

AllHailDago shadowdude505

 

[Felix]

Jayjay was a bit overwhelmed by the hospitality of the man. Mainly by the form it had. So many beautiful dancers, at least three per friend of Jayjay. He kindly used the materials provided to treat some of the kid's skin as some of it was swollen and blistered. He tried to concentrate as hard as he could, but it was not easy with a tired brain and all those people. The patching was a bit of a shoddy job. They could thank him later.

When Zambini mentioned the problems with the competitor Jayjay understood completely. Why else would he be so overstaffed. While the man made his request Jayjay immediately knew he wanted to help. It was the least they could offer for the mans generosity. It felt like a good way to buy away some of his guilt and shame of receiving so much food. The girls clearly tried very hard to control their disgust. They almost succeeded, just not quite. Jayjay drank a glass of juice as a one of the girls offered him one. He also took a strawberry from her plate. He did not really need to eat, it was more of a courtesy, and the taste of strawberries was one of his weak spots.

"Spectacular is my middle name, good friend!" Jayjay said. "Of course I will help. It will be the most spectacular spectacle ever to be performed in this establishment. You could also let me dance of course. I look fabulous in a pink tutu. Or maybe I can do dangerous acrobatics! Being dead takes away a lot of the fear and nerves, Jayhayhayhay. Or no, even better, I will perform as a magician. We can make my hand disappear and pull him from a hat. And then we saw me in half without any complicated parlor tricks! And you have plenty of lovely assistants I see, so that shouldn't be a problem. What do you say, old friend? Do you think you can handle my magic?"


In all the confusion and distraction Thing decided to make a run for it. He opened the back from the inside and swung himself outside in one agile move. He knew he could not get his friends out of here by signing alone. He had to dig up some evidence first. Thing scurried over the floor, constantly avoiding being trampled by those bare feet. He really hated dancing! So unpredictable. Unfortunately the only way to find out what happened behind the scenes was go where the girls came from. He made his way across the room and quickly hid behind the wall into the corridor. When he was sure that nobody had seen him he loosened his muscles a bit and ventured deeper into the corridor. He prayed that he would not find any skeletons in Zambini's closet.

Phayne DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl CelticHero37
QuirkyAngel (nearby)

 

[DonquixoteDoflamingo]

Kate and Anjellyka​

"...will you dance for me tonight?"

As soon as Kate heard Zambini say those words, she felt her stomach drop. Dance? Kate was never much of a dancer no matter how much her good friends at the circus tried to teach her. But it wasn’t the dancing that was making her break out into a cold sweat. Zambini wanted her to dance on a stage… in front of a crowd. The last time Kate had been on stage, she had been in chains. He shuddered as she remembered being dragged from show to show in a metal cage, separated from her friends and being given nothing but scraps to eat. And then her horrible ringmaster, the one she hadn’t realized just how awful he was until it was too late, dragging her on stage. Johnny Ringo would excite the crowd beforehand, describing her as a dumb, savage beast. She wasn’t ready to go onto another stage. Kate didn't think she would ever be ready again.

”What do you say?" he queried, his eyes glancing over to JayJay and Ed. "In exchange for this food and for any help you need in regards to treating that young girl, Will you two young ladies star in tonights main dance?.. and will you" he pointed towards Jayjay, "..will you be able to perform something spectacular for the audience?"

Kate shook off her awful memories as Zambini’s words brought her back to reality. “I appreciate all you’ve done for us Zambini… I really do but…” Kate rubbed one of her arms and stared down at the floor. “But I can’t get up on stage. I’ve has some… bad experiences being in front of an audience.” Kate looked back up at Zambini with pleading eyes and continued. “But I’ll do whatever it takes to repay you! I’ll lift heavy stuff, I could be a stagehand, I’ll even beat up a guy or two for you if that’s what it takes. I don’t want to mooch off your food without repaying you somehow.”

After Kate answered, Jayjay jumped in with his suggestion, putting Kate’s mind at ease. “That sounds awesome Jayjay!” Kate smiled. “The audience will totally eat it up! See Zambini, you don’t even need me up there, Jayjay can be a one man show.”

While Kate and Jayjay answered Zambini’s question, Anjellyka was still attempting to process exactly what the man was asking of her. Dance...she recognized the word but what did it mean again? She thought back on her time drifting from island to island with her swarm of jellyfish. A few times would hear the word ‘dance’ in connection to a group of people swaying and moving their bodies around to music. Actually, now that she thought about it, the ladies in this place just did a ‘dance’ didn’t they? So….did that mean Zambini wanted her to dance? Could she dance? Anjellyka never tried such a thing before.

Turning her dome-shaped head toward the ground she slid her slippery skinned feet across the floor. “I-I’ve never tried to dance before….I don’t think I know how..” She muttered before she looked up from her feet. “I can try though!! ….But I might not be very good at it..”

“Don’t say that!” Kate interjected. “I’m sure you’ll be lovely Anjellyka!”

Anjellyka’s confidence grew upon hearing the squid-woman’s words. “REALLY!?” She shouted and did a little hop. “Okay, then I’ll give it a try!” Thinking her hardest of a single movement that could maybe be used for a ‘dance’ she lifted her arms a spun herself in a circle. She made the turn about halfway before her slippery skin failed her and caused her foot to slip out from under her. Anjellyka’s face quickly met a nearby table and her body and tentacles accompanied it to the ground.

“Anjellyka!” Kate reached out in an attempt to stop her friend’s fall before she realized she couldn’t touch her without hurting herself. She watched dismayed as Anjellyka fell to the floor, clenching and unclenching her four hands in frustration. Damn jellyfish toxin! She just wanted to help her newfound friend! Why was life so cruel!?

Anjellyka laid on the ground for a moment, frustrated that this was where she ended up after trying a simple move. Moving around her numerous tentacles, she managed to get herself back on her feet and turned around to face the group, her cheeks blushing a deep blue in her embarrassment. “Ummm…” She struggled to find the right words. She did after all want to help Zambini, he was so nice to her! Not to mention the poor victim who still lie unconscious, AND her new friends! She didn’t want to let any of them down! “I-I don’t think -or well hope- that won’t happen when I’m on stage..” She trailed off.

Felix Phayne CelticHero37

 

[Phayne]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I appreciate all you’ve done for us Zambini… I really do but...But I can’t get up on stage. I’ve has some… bad experiences being in front of an audience. But I’ll do whatever it takes to repay you! I’ll lift heavy stuff, I could be a stagehand, I’ll even beat up a guy or two for you if that’s what it takes. I don’t want to mooch off your food without repaying you somehow.” - Kate Thulu

Zambini's face drooped even more, his cheeks almost completely flat against the table as he listened to Kate's rejection; the young fishwoman clearly troubled by his request. It wasn't the case that she did not want to help, simply the act of being in front of a lot of people seemed to bother her. Whilst it was a damper in his plans, Zambini couldn't bring himself to force Kate to do as he wanted, despite his earlier intentions to do just that. The moral side of Zambini was simply too hard for him to disregard. "... I.. I understand.." mumbled Zambini, pouting. ".. i.. I can't.. force you..", tears beginning to build under his eyes as the thought of losing his 'store' weighed heavily upon him.

"Spectacular is my middle name, good friend! Of course I will help. It will be the most spectacular spectacle ever to be performed in this establishment. You could also let me dance of course. I look fabulous in a pink tutu. Or maybe I can do dangerous acrobatics! Being dead takes away a lot of the fear and nerves, Jayhayhayhay. Or no, even better, I will perform as a magician. We can make my hand disappear and pull him from a hat. And then we saw me in half without any complicated parlor tricks! And you have plenty of lovely assistants I see, so that shouldn't be a problem. What do you say, old friend? Do you think you can handle my magic?"- Jayjay

Cellulite ears twitching, Zambini turned to face the zombie opposite of him; the tears almost evaporating as the heat from his swelling cheeks rose. "Marvelous simply marvelous!" chimed Zambini, his chubby face perking up as Jayjay agreed to his request, the sight of the living dead was sure to attract a lot of positive interest in his establishment and he was sure that Zamir would be unable to top this attraction. "The Zombie Magician!" shouted Zambini, both hands shooting upwards above his head; his cheeks reddening every so slightly as he considered all of the possible 'tricks' he could perform, many of which were suggested by JayJay himself. The porky man almost squeeled in delight at the sound of this idea. Dancing excitedly on the spot, it was a few minutes before the joy died down and Zambini returned to business.

"Lyasha, Suri!" shouted Zambini, clapping his hand and twirling around until he was facing away from his guest. Two young dancers stepped out from the group, their faces covered by a silken veil; Suri's a soft apple green whilst Lyasha's delicate features were hidden behind the mysterious veil of violet. The two girls stood almost twice as tall as Zambini; their navels almost eye level with Zambini; the man unfazed by this. "Tell the men outside to build us a grand sign.." he held both hands before him, fingers outstretched as he marvelled at the potential success this would bring his establishment. "Zombie Magician Extraordinaire!" he spoke, his voice filled with excitement. "Performing tonight!" he added, clapping his hands excitedly. "Make sure this sign is placed in view of the filthy rat's brothel" he ordered, "... Suri, once the message is passed, round up several of the new talent.." Suri's eyes squinted slightly, silently questioning Zambini about just who exactly he meant. ".. yes, those ones.. make sure they spread the word around the island". Suri nodded and left, Lyasha following alongside behind her.

"Now.. as for the danc..." - bang - the sound of Anjellkya's face hitting the side of the table creating a loud bang, soon followed by a symphony of plates, utensils, chalices and the like to hit the floor. "Ai Yai Yai yi Yai" gasped a horrified Zambini as he watched the boneless body of Anjellyka deflate the moment she came to a stop on the floor. "My oh my oh deary dear dear" he continued, panicking. Though it was a rather quick recovery on her part as she muscled the strength to getn back onto her feet.

“Ummm…I-I don’t think -or well hope- that won’t happen when I’m on stage..”- Anjellyka

Zambini was relieved that she seemed to be physically alright, however he could not help but be concerned for her well being and confidence, considering the way her attempt went. Perhaps dancing was not ideal for her, he didn't want to force her into a position of uncomfortably..- it also didn't help that it would be a rather scandalous disaster should she fall on stage and hurt a guest accidentally.. his store would never recover..- A few beads of sweat dripped down his forehead as the thought momentarily took hold.. though he shook it off rather quickly.


"A.. are you alright..?" he inquired, taking a few steps towards her. ".. maybe.. maybe we can find something else..?" Zambini paused for a few moments and pondered the possibilities. Meanwhile several of his dancers had begun to clear the mess on the floor.

"Ah!.. Maybe you can assist our master magician?"

​

Felix DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl

 

[DonquixoteDoflamingo]

Oliver and Walter​

The smell of sea salt drifted through the air as the wind off the ocean ruffled Oliver’s hair. The sun was shining and seagulls were cawing but Oliver took no notice as he inspected his map and the notice board with all the various passenger ships being advertised. He bit his lip as he tried to calculate the best and cheapest route for him and his mechanical friend to reach their destination. No matter how much the thought of just where they wanted to go frightened him.

Walter glanced around at the bustling port town, there was so much action, he wanted- no- he needed to be a part of it. Rotating his head his optics rested upon the small form of his human companion who was still staring at the same sign as he had been for the past who-even-cares how long, too long. He optics darted between the two scenes multiple times before a loud sigh of air rushed through his vents. “I’m sure you have it memorized by now. MOVING ON~!” Walter suddenly exclaimed and wrapped one his metal arms forcefully around Oliver and lifted the human into the air and over his shoulder. With a little hop to his step Walter made his way into the busy crowd.

“AHHHHH WALTER!!!” Oliver yelped as he was man-handled by Walter. “Put me down!” Oliver whined as he kicked and hit Walter. He didn't bother hitting too hard though since he knew Walter couldn’t feel it anyway and he would only end up hurting himself. “We need to figure out how we’re going to get to the Grand Line! We need to go backkkkkk!”

“Why go back when we can go forward?!”

“Then just put me down! People are staring…” Oliver blushed as he took in all the curious and annoyed stares they were receiving.

Walter stopped walking and glanced around at the crowd. “Oh, I suppose people are staring. SS-S-S-S-SS-Shall I put on a show?” Walter wondered, glitching slightly but still refusing to put Oliver down.

“No! Just please… put me down.” Oliver's voice went from a loud whine to a soft whimper as he felt his growing embarrassment from being the center of attention, hiding his face behind his hands.

With another hiss of a sigh through his vents Walter bent down and placed the human on his feet. Straightening back up Walter fixed the placement of his top hat and glanced around them before crossing his arms over his chest plate. “No fun.” He complained.

“Thank you.” Oliver straightened out his clothes as he took a look around. “I guess you have a point though. We don’t have enough money to afford going on another passenger ship anyway. I may need to see if I can sell any of my inventions here if we’re going to get anywhere.”

Bending down Walter looked Oliver right in the eyes. “Yeah, because that’s worked so well for us in the past.”

“Shut it you!” Oliver huffed. “We can’t steal-”

“Oh, yes I can, you just don’t like it.”

“I DON’T like it. At this rate we’ll be wanted before we even make it to the Grand Line.” Oliver glared at his criminal companion.

Standing back up Walter placed the back of his hand to his forehead dramatically. “Don’t like to steal but alas,” he raised both his hands over his head “it must be done!” He practically shouted.

“Walter. Stop it. People are staring again…” Oliver trailed off as again blushed at all the weird looks they were getting.

Walter once again glaced around the faces as they scurried past. “Hmm.” The gears turned in his head as he thought. With a few quick moves the robot maneuvered around Oliver and picked him up so he faced the crowd before them. “Someone, anyone, please! Help this poor boy! Anything helps! A few cents, even more, you could save him from hunger! Please, find your humanity!” Walter yelled dramatically as if he was a walking talking commercial.

“WALTER PLEASE NO!” Oliver yelped as he was hoisted into the air. As Walter went on and on about sparing them some change, Oliver’s blush took over his whole face as he hid his face behind his hands. “Don’tlookatmedon’tlookatmedon’tlookatme…” He mumbled to himself as he felt tears of embarrassment run down his face, making him look even more pitiful, fueling Walter’s ‘sales’ pitch.

To Oliver’s dismay a couple coins were indeed tossed in their direction. “YOU, you sir!” Walter switched to holding Oliver with one hand to point at the man who threw the coins. “You just saved this boy’s life!” He announced before gesturing with his free hand at the rest of the crowd. “Anyone else? Spare change for the poor! No? No more takers?” The loudness of his voice slightly dropped as he realized no one else was going to give up free money. “Fine, ya stingy bastards.” He grumbled before finally setting Oliver down to grab the coins from the ground.

With his feet finally on the ground, Oliver took off running, unable to deal with the copious amount of eyes still directed at them. He kept on running until he found an ally and ducked into it, catching his breath.

Grumpy at how few coins there were Walter looked over to see Oliver running away. The robot wasn’t surprised in the least and calmly walked after him. He watched as Oliver ducked into alleyway just in front of him. “SO!” Walter began loudly as he turned the corner.

Just as Oliver was beginning to calm down, he heard a loud voice next to him that made him jump.

“Walter! Don’t scare me like that!” Oliver complained. “And why do you have to keep embarrassing me! You know how much I hate people staring at me!”

With a smile Walter leaned over and patted the top of Oliver’s head while he held out the coins with his other hand. “Hey, we got three beri out of it.”

Oliver brought his hand up to his face and sighed. “You know Walter, you may be my best friend, but sometimes I wish you weren’t my only friend.”

Standing back up to his full height Walter brought a hand up to his chin. “It’s possible to have more than one friend?”

“Yes Walter.” Oliver huffed. “In fact most people have a whole plethora of friends. I only have one friend because I’m a loser and nobody else would want to be my friend anyway.” Oliver frowned as he wrapped his arms around himself and turned his face towards the ground.

Frowning for only a moment at his friend’s comment Walter grabbed Oliver by the shoulders. “You’re not a loser, you’re a winner!” He corrected with a grin.

“It’s true though. And the only reason I have you as a friend is cause I re-built you.” Oliver mumbled, not looking at Walter’s gleaming eyes.

Walter’s green and blue eyes flashed to a deep red as anger flooded his circuits. In a flash he grabbed Oliver by the chin and forced his face toward his own. “How DARE you say that.” His tone stern and forceful as the words escaped his grimace. “I’m your friend because I want to be.” With a large and loud hiss hot steam spurted out of Walter’s face and mouth as he tried to expel his anger. The steam lasted a rather long moment before Walter’s eyes switched to their normal blue and green hues. “Enough of thisss-s-s-s-s-s-s.” He stated and released Oliver from his grasp and clapped his hands together. “I know what will cheer you up: more money!” He spun on heels to face the opening of the alleyway.

Oliver was stuck in shock for a moment, caught between being scared at his friend’s sudden outburst but also feeling immense joy that Walter truly wanted to be his friend. He was so shocked that he didn’t get a chance to respond before Walter turned back to him with a gleam in his robotic eyes.

“I found our target.” Walter announced and pointed out of the alleyway to a woman with a messy ponytail who seemed to be carrying many shopping bags in her arms. “Miss Money Bags over there.”

“Walter! No!” Oliver yelled.

“Walter, yes.” The robot gave an inhuman grin before trotting off toward the woman.

“Walter! Walter wait!” Oliver scurried after him. “Walter you can’t!”

Walter hummed himself a little tune, ignoring the pleas from behind him. Picking up his pace he jumped in front of the woman. “Excuse me Miss, may I have a moment of your time?” Walter wondered with a grin, tipping his top hat toward her in a greeting.

collab with: thatonespacytallgirl
Lady Warlock

 

[shadowdude505]

Alex Q. Draw
​

An angry vein bulged on Alex's forehead after hearing Darius' flirtatious closing remarks. Hanging up was a smart move in the sense that he would avoid hearing her wrath, but the downside was that it ended communication between the two. "Next time he flirts with me, I swear I'm going to kick him in the balls...," she angrily muttered. She didn't care that an impulsive reaction like that could ruin the chances of becoming allies. She had already hinted that she's not the kind of girl that likes to be flirted with. Though the thought that Darius might find the whole thing entertaining afterward caused her facepalm and let out a disgruntled sigh.

The order to get going from her captain caused her to lift up her face. She pocketed the transponder snail and began to follow him toward the docks. She breathed out cigarette smoke as she walked, allowing the nicotine to calm her down. She didn't immediately feel a wave of hatred at the sight of Darius' jolly roger, so the cigs must have been doing the trick. Instead, she was beginning to look like she just wanted to get the meeting between the two captains over with. While she would love to play the role of moderator and use some of her bounty hunter negotiation skills, she also couldn't stand Darius' flirty disposition.

"You there Darius? I have my captain with me," she called out with her arms crossed. Her tone of voice was formal, but her face didn't look very pleased. From his perch on Alex's shoulder, Jet cocked his head a little as he stared at the ship, looking for the first signs of any movement.

AllHailDago Phayne

Cletus T. Bass
​

Cletus was a bit surprised that Scarlet hadn't noticed the two friendship bracelets he had recently acquired for his right wrist. Either his fashionista captain hadn't noticed them yet or was just to preoccupied thinking about the crew to mention them. Either way, it saved him from having to give some kind of explanation. He wasn't embarrassed about wearing the bracelets and their gender-neutral look, nor the reason he bought them in the first place. He just didn't want to bring up the topic of his nieces out of the blue. It didn't seem like relevant information to give.

Cletus followed Scarlet toward the ship and kept an eye out for his crewmates just in case they crossed paths before everyone returned to the ship. He let out a gruff sigh after Limstella brought up how gentlemanly it would be for him to carry the bags. She was technically right. "Would you mind if I helped lighten your load, Captain?" he asked stiffly. He was no butler like Jasper.

Before he could get a reply, a robot suddenly walked up to them and asked Scarlet for a bit of her time. Cletus gave Walter a stern look as he resisted the urge to reach one of his weapons. He didn't want to cause a scene. He just didn't know what the robot was up to and his paranoid mind was preparing for the worst case scenario.

Lady Warlock Misuteeku DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl

 

[CelticHero37]

Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivruski IV
As the situation was progressing in Zambini's restaurant, the group seemed to forget somewhat about Ed. As the spastic child began to stir from her slumber, she suddenly threw her arms around the back of the chair she was sitting on -- as if snuggling with it. Not long after, her nose began to twitch. Then she went completely still; not even breathing as she opened her eyes and they flicked over to the table where food had been set out.

Flopping around in the chair, she rested her head back with her mouth open and began to make snoring sounds. All the while, she let her hand fall limp right next to one of the plates. Every couple of moments she would peek at the group to see if anyone was looking before taking hold of something from the plate and popping it in her mouth. Occasionally she'd hand a piece down to Ein who had gone back into hiding under her shirt. It was the perfect ruse. Nobody would ever notice, and if they did, they were in for a big surprise, as Ed didn't just steal from one plate, she snuck food from all the plates, showing no sign of slowing down.

DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl Felix Phayne

 

[AllHailDago]

Darius Fletcher & Andre Stoll​

Darius rubbed at his aching jaw as he followed slightly behind Andre towards the docks. "Punching me was unnecessary you know," Darius muttered in a clipped cadence. Andre didn't even look at him as he responded. "Captain, we are on our way to negotiate a potential alliance with a crew of pirates. From what you this Alex is rather capable, and her Captain would sensibly be more so." He tossed a glance back at Darius with a deepening frown before looking forward once more. "At least I would hope so. We are capable in combat, but we aren't nearly so battle focused as most pirates tend to be. It would be greatly advantageous to establish this alliance, and you... stopped to flirt with a waitress in a cafe."

Darius pursed his lips and looked away, like any child being called out on their obvious misdeeds might. It twinged at his jaw uncomfortably but he did his best to ignore it. Quickening his pace, he passed Andre in a few short seconds. "Be that as it may, we shouldn't look less than our best when we meet them. Just be thankful my roguish complexion was not ruined by such a brutish method of coaxing me from the cafe." Andre rolled his eyes and bit his tongue on further responses as they stepped onto the docks leading to their ship. They saw two figures waiting at the gangplank to their ship, one female, one male. Andre sighed a deeply relieved sigh that the captain was not a woman.

They stopped a few feet shy and Darius bowed deeply and rather... flamboyantly. Andre restrained himself from rolling his eyes and gave a curt half bow at the waist only. As they both returned to standing Darius introduced them. "Hello to the both of you! My name is Darius Fletcher, Captain of the Wolfwind Pirates. This is my first mate, Andre Stoll." Andre gave a curt nod but said nothing. "I am acquainted with the stunning Alex, but I am afraid I don't know your name." Darius held an extended hand out to the man and waited to see how he would respond.

Phayne shadowdude505

Jasper Pharos​

Jasper leaned against the counter, sipping his tea as he listened to Arlen. He would have responded between varying sections of his speech... but this tea was just so good. Instead he enjoyed it to the last drop until Arlen was finished. "Well, yes. I do suppose that should have been clear enough. I was only a Marine because I was loyal to my prior Mistress. When she...," he trailed off for a moment, "... when I no longer had a Mistress in the Marine's to be faithful to I left. Was supposed to be promoted to Captain rank if I had stayed, but I cared little. Though I do suppose there is a bounty out for me now because of it, likely a sizeable one."

He set his empty tea cup on the counter before continuing. "It is good to hear that you have no self pity for your loss. That will help you greatly I believe. Worry not about calling me Outsider either, I quite frankly care little what I am titled." He twitched his jaw for a second as Arlen said Nerissa took priority over everything else. Though he could hardly cast a stone at that sentiment he supposed. "That is perfectly fine. To be honest I am of the same sentiment. I will preserve Lady Scarlet's life above everyone else's, including my own."

"As for beating the technique there are a few ways. Be able to see those who move at that speed, and strike where they will be before they reach you. Be durable enough to care little when they strike you, and strike them when they stop. Or, you can be as fast as them and fight on even ground. The latter has a touch of the first, but it is not always the case. This is what option I presume you desire. You need not worry about "wasting my time" as you put it. As First Mate assisting the crew in what they need is one of my foremost duties. I can easily fit training you and others in around my cleaning."

He turned back around and rinsed the cup out. He put it away in its proper place clean and pristine. He turned his head to the side as he heard a shout from above deck. A visitor perhaps? Or an attack on the ship... he hoped for their sake it was not the case. "Seems we have someone above deck who warrants our attention. Shall we go and see what it is they want?" The question was teasingly rhetorical. Jasper headed towards the stairwell that led above deck.
QuirkyAngel

Norman Newman​

Norman stopped posing, which Hawky seemed a little downcast about, and gave Risa Talon a thumbs up. "Got it, Risa Talon! Sorry about the mix up. Also, I should be fine right now! There's only a couple people here and they already noticed me so being sneaky doesn't matter!" He turned to Hawky and squinted for a second. Hawky squinted back to the best of her ability. Finally Norman poked her in the beak with a childish muttering of, "Boop!" He turned back to Risa Talon and looked at her hat. "Very pretty! I can't wait to see what totally stylish but covert ninja hat you come up with for me.... now if only you could see me stabbing for true embodiment of my character..."

Just as he said that a few guys walked in who didn't at all look like they were there to buy something. Norman looked at the lead guy's hat with narrowed, thoughtful eyes. One might assume he was considering deeply about what it meant concerning the man. What valuable clue would it give him about whether he was stabbable or not. In reality.... he was considering how much soup would fit in the hat. Then he promptly got bored by him and concentrated on the nice lady who blocked one of the men from smashing the store owners stuff.

"Hey... wait a second. I only did that on accident!" Norman looked at the men with a rather childishly grumpy expression. "You shouldn't break nice peoples stuff on purpose, y'know!" Norman approached the leader with his brows furrowed deeply. The slouchy man in the soup bowl hat looked down at him and lifted one side of his lips from his teeth. "Kid, you best get out of my face and the shop both unless you want to ge-" his words cut off into a pained cry as Norman stabbed him in the foot with his suddenly, and kinda inexplicably drawn sword. The man to the right of soup hat guy took a step back in stunned surprise. "Where the hell were you keeping that sword, kid?"

Norman pulled the blade from soup hat guy's foot and spun to the one that spoke, stabbing lightly into his Achilles tendon and withdrawing the blade. "That's a secret!" Norman said as he attempted to stick his tongue out at the man. It worked poorly due to his covered face, but he paid that detail no mind as he skipped past them and out of the store. Out in the fresh air with Hawky having hopped along just behind him he pondered what to do next. He put his katana away and walked with a merry bounce in is step down the street. It was somewhere between one minute and one hour later when he was drawn in by something.

A brightly dressed weirdo was yelling about an amazing show outside of a building. Dancers and magicians and stuff were gonna be doing a show inside! Norman's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates as he heard magician. He had always wanted to see someone do magic! He nearly bowled over six or seven people as he ran past them to get inside. This was gonna be awesome!
Phayne Felix DonquixoteDoflamingo thatonespacytallgirl AtlannianSpy Lady Warlock

 

[DonquixoteDoflamingo]

Echo Ekko, Kahr Barroes, and Gerome Jackson​

Gerome and his whole crew had mouths agape in wonder as they stared at the hyena man. “Woooow.” “Do you laugh like a hyena?” “I love your fur!” The crew started firing off comment after comment before Gerome raised a hand for them to be quiet. He closed his own mouth, giving the man Echo had called Kahr a brief smile and nod. “Nice to meet you two! Excuse our excitement. We’ve never seen minks before! Many of my crew were excited to get to the Grand Line just to meet some.” He blinked for a second, the coffee trader question delayed in his mind due to excitement. “No! We’re pirates! The Cool Guy pirates!” Varying members of the crew struck poses only the eccentric would refer to as cool.

“We are headed into the Grand Line now actually. We just finished stocking up here in Balaggan port! Are you two looking to go to the Grand Line?” He looked back and forth between them swiftly. He was hoping that the answer was yes so he could invite them to come with him.

Echo had heard of the Grand Line many times, she had read that there were many archaeological sites to be seen there. Some that could still yet be discovered. What if SHE discovered one?! So much to explore...so little time. She wanted to see it all! “Really?! You’re going to the Grand Line!? Aww that would be so cool!! There are so many ancient sites there and oh my goodness the amount of exploring that could be done, what you could discover! AGH! The possibilities are just endless! I want to see it all! I totally want to go there now! You just made me- ugh!” The excited bat hit lightly against Kahr’s shoulders. “Kahr! Kahr wouldn’t it be fun!? Don’t you wanna go!?”

Heaving a moderate, but not too irritated sigh, Kahr shrugged as he mulled over the concept of the idea. Sure, adventure could be fun, and he certainly missed the open seas, but honestly they were still making an effort to keep themselves stocked on supplies as it was, and as fun as getting back out on the sea could be, well.

“It may not be the best decision for us at the moment Echo. We have business we still need to handle here right now. Furthermore, it’s a big commitment to go out on the sea. We should plan more before rushing into things.” the Hyena explained before turning to the crew, “Thank you for the offer, it is certainly a nice one, but again, there would need to be much more thought on such a topic.”

The truth he didn’t speak, however, was that he didn’t like most of the crews around. He knew many were pirates as of late, and while he had not always been on the right side of the law, he had always made sure he was on the honest and goodly side of any situation he was in.

Gerome looked downcast for a few moments. “Didn’t even get to actually ask and rejected already…” He pepped up quickly though. “That’s okay! Hopefully we’ll see you around out on the big blue ocean, yeah?!” He gave a fake wicked look and a mock sword slash, “Just make sure not to double cross us, arrrrgh!” He laughed as he turned to walk up the gangplank. His crew pulled it up behind him, most of them visibly bummed that they said no. “Good luck with whatever you two are after!”

“Aww.” Echo whined as she watched Gerome leave. She waved one of her wings in a goodbye before her ears twitched once again tuning into that bar fight she had noticed earlier. MAN they were loud. She tried her best to focus on the sounds closer to her, the sounds of docks, the vendors. No such luck, the bar fight was just so distracting! The more she listened to it the more curious she got, she wanted to see it first hand. “Kahr, we have GOT to go check out this bar fight happening! It sounds intense!” She exclaimed.

Using her legs and flapping her wings she launched herself off the hyena’s back once again. She flapped hard a few times until she was comfortably higher up in the air. She twitched her ears back and forth until she was able to pinpoint the direction the fight was in. “Come on!” She called down to her friend excitedly before flying off toward the commotion.

Kahr could only watch as the two parties, the whole other crew and Echo, a party all on her own, disappeared their different ways. Shrugging yet again, he made sure his supplies were properly put away before turning about and heading off after his companion.

Maybe the coffee today should have been skipped.

Maybe.

collab with: Chak and AllHailDago

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Arlen Hakhassi and Tristan Roads
​

Arlen occasionally nodded while Jasper spoke—to show he was listening to the more experienced seafarer –while his eyes followed the man that was rinsing out his own cup. He supposed he ought do the same. It was only good manners to clean up after oneself after the drink was finished—or so his mother taught him. Then again, wouldn’t him doing so deprive the good butler of his much loved work? Jasper seemed to like to clean things.

While the teenaged fighter mentally warred with his internal laziness, the shout from above deck brought his non-relevant thoughts to a halt.

“Sound like a simple delivery to me,”

Arlen wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. After all, Cletus was buying wood and stuff necessary to spruce up a ship. Wasabi was buying food—probably large bags of rice. He could imagine Scarlet coming back with a new wardrobe.

Still, Arlen checked his weapon as he followed Jasper above deck. He wouldn’t be surprised if a marine wearing a delivery-man costume appeared to drop off a bomb for their ship either. They were pirates, after all—and Arlen wasn’t so naïve.

The first thing he noticed about their visitor was that the man didn’t look like a cargo carrier. He had a...clean...look about him. White dress shirt with rolled up sleeves underneath a black vest. Shiny red hair. Though, what really drew Arlen’s attention was the large fish tank the man carried in one arm.

Was Wasabi adding new seafood to their diet?

Had Lady Nerissa ever revealed to the chef that she didn’t eat fish? Arlen didn’t mind it. Food was food. However, since the daughter of Aquarius could communicate with sea life, he could understand her reluctance as well.

“Red Ribbon Pirates, I presume?”The redhead called when noticed their arrival. “I have…items…belonging to your chronicler. Permission to board?”

“Nerissa?” Arlen didn’t know why he was surprised. He glanced at Jasper, before shrugging. “Sure.”

The red haired man didn’t bother to wait for them to drop the plank. He just took a couple steps back, then ran forward and jumped, managing to land—feet planted on the rails of the marine/pirate ship—with his knees bent and hair shifting slightly. Arlen was impressed he hadn’t dropped anything. The man moved swiftly to relieve himself of the items he carried before stretching his arm.“Ahhh~finally. A man with my talents isn’t meant to do manual labor,”

Arlen watched the man closely, looking for any signs of hostile intentions. He found none. Only the light scent of shampoo when the red head passed him lingered—and that didn’t tell him much other than the fact that the man liked lemons.

“What is all this stuff?”Arlen questioned. “Where’s Lady Nerissa?”

“Gifts, I think,” The redhead replied easily, dusting his hands and straightening his vest before glancing at Arlen. “Though, I’m honestly not quite certain. Nor do I care. Nerissa said she had one more purchase to make before she’s finished. I am to wait for her at the docks.”

“Wait for her?”Arlen didn’t like where this was going.

“Yes. She promised to spend some quality time with me at my shop if I helped her carried her things.”

“...Quality time?” Yep, not liking at all. “ What will you two be doing?”

“ I’m going to turn her into a beautiful woman, of course~”

Quicker than one would imagine, Arlen’s new sword was pointed at the redhead’s throat. Arlen cursed. He should’ve known better than to let Nerissa wander town an unfamiliar town on her own. She tended to get into some sort of trouble with her words or pick up scumbags. Granted, he hadn't thought she'd be alone.“Like hell you will. I’m not going to sit back and let you defile our Priestess.”

The red haired man blinked at the sword, an eyebrow raised, before cocking his head to the side and studying Arlen. An amused smirk crossed his face—one that made Arlen feel as if he was being mocked— and the ship’s visitor raised his hands in a peaceful gesture. “Not to say she isn’t pretty the way she is, but it’s a girl’s decision if she wants to change. I don’t think you should have a say in such matters, Boy~”

Arlen flushed, his eyes narrowing.“Do have any idea how important she is to Mirage Island? Or what the Chieftains will say if I allow what you're planning to occur?”

“Nope,” the redhead replied airily. “But I suggest you wait and hear what Nerissa has to say before jumping to any conclusions. I’m not forcing her into anything.”Grinning the redhead turned to Jasper. “Mind if I wait here for her until she comes back?”

AllHailDago

Nerissa Orta​

“It sounds like it’ll be quite the show,”Nerissa returned the offered smile with one of her own. “I’ll be sure to let my friends know.”

With one last curious peek at the stage, a slight tilt of her head at the large sign being built—the one saying ‘Zombie Magician Extraordinaire’— Nerissa strolled in the direction of the docks. As curious as she was about the event, spoiling the surprise would probably kill the fun of it. Patience was a virtue. Besides, she had made a promise and it wouldn’t do to keep Tristan waiting too long. On her way, she encountered Scarlet, Cletus, and Limstella being stopped by a…gentlemanly looking machine.

A friend? Scarlet did seem to have a habit of making strange ones. Not that she thought any members of the Red Ribbons were strange or anything…just different than what she was used to.

Studying the robot with interest, she gave it a polite nod of greeting. “Hello,”

Then she turned towards her crewmates and smiled, an expression much more natural with friends. “Hello Miss Scarlet. Hello Mr. Cletus. Hello Miss Limstella—I’m glad to see you’ve found your way back to Miss Scarlet.”

Knowing Limstella’s safe return through her water scrying methods wasn’t exactly the same as seeing it herself. “Sorry for taking so long. I got a little distracted by a new friend, then decided to spend some time getting to know him. I am actually on my way back to the ship to meet with him. ” The shortened explanation seemed easier. Besides, she and Tristan did pass back to the shoe store in their search for gifts…only to find that everyone had already left. Not that she was worried. Nerissa knew Scarlet could take care of herself—especially if Jasper and Cletus were with her. Then she had found the perfect dress for Ed, followed by the incident with Roy Volantis. Speaking of which… “Is Ed with you?”

I’d be nice to double check Ed’s size before gifting her with the turquoise dress.

Lady Warlock , shadowdude505 , Misuteeku , DonquixoteDoflamingo , thatonespacytallgirl , Phayne

 

[Lady Warlock]

Captain Scarlet Johanna Indigrid

As the brunette pirate with a ribbon in her hair walked back towards where she’d last left her ship, she thought she knew exactly how the rest of her day would go and she was fully prepared for how dull it would likely be. She would get back and then her crew would slowly trickle back in as well. With all their shopping completed and their ship restocked, they’d be able to leave Balaggan without issue and continue on their way to the Grand Line and all the adventures they’d find there. Scarlet wasn’t really the most patient person in the world, but if that was what it would take to get to the One Piece, then she’d manage; she knew that for sure.

However, she was also not expecting things unexpected.

Therefore, the young captain was caught completely off guard when someone - or rather, something - stepped in front of her and asked for a moment of her time. She’d just been telling Cletus that she was fine carrying her own bags when it happened, and she actually stopped talking mid sentence when Cletus offered to turn and catch a glimpse of what was now standing in front of her. Her expression shifted from wide-eyed curiosity to a full on smile of amusement and wonder in a matter of seconds.

Scarlet shifted all of her bags to one arm so that her other arm was free (which was quite a feat in and of itself considering how many bags she was carrying), and then she stepped towards the stranger and reached out to touch his hand before jumping back at the realization that she was touching metal. There was a small, almost childlike giggle, and then Scarlet stepped to the side briefly so she could get a better look at him without his hat obstructing her view while he tipped it.

“If I can have a moment of yours and if I can have my moment first,” she replied in a tone that expressed that she really didn’t think he would have a problem with it.

Then, purely out of an untainted sense of absolute astonishment, Scarlet launched into a series of questions. “What are you!? Where did you come from!? Is your entire body metal or just your face and hands!?” Since he was wearing clothes, she could suspect that he was entirely metal, but she couldn’t be certain.

In the midst of her questions, Scarlet noticed a smaller individual standing behind the metal… man?... and nearly jumped because his presence there surprised her. “Hello there! Are you with this marvelous being? Are there more like him? And where could I find one?”

Turning back towards Cletus, her eyes still wide with complete curiosity and amazement, she added, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could have a metal man on our crew Cletus!?” Not once from the moment she saw Walter to the moment she found herself with her back to the robot did Scarlet’s tone sound anything other than curious and absolutely astonished at what she had found.

thatonespacytallgirl DonquixoteDoflamingo shadowdude505

Stacy Beauregard

She really wasn’t in any position to argue with Syrin’s relaxation at the quiet environment of the bar or the pleasantries of the food that was placed in front of them. In fact, she was finding that she was sinking into that same sort of serenity. It was a nice feeling.

“It's certainly a nice thing for me as well. Everything was crazy for the longest time.” She let herself lounge back in her chair a bit and she took a bite of her burger before figuring out where her story should even begin. It wasn’t too hard to figure out that it should probably start where their contact had last ended, though, so that’s where she began. “After we got separated, I headed back to Kenji’s ship because it was the best place to get myself off the island. Kenji never showed and then we tried to take the ship without a captain. That didn’t work so we wound up meeting Garrett. He was my captain for a while, but the crew was… well, weird at best.” Stacy really couldn’t think of a better way to describe it.

“We ended up on an island with these weird mechanical zombie creatures that were tormenting the town and that was crazier than I enjoyed. Jin met up with us there and Garrett, for a reason I don’t even recall, sent us off to join him instead. I think Garrett had his own things to figure out. And… now I’m here. Jin seems like the most reasonable captain of the three I’ve technically been with so far. I’m going to stay with him until something better comes along, I think. I’m not sure how long that’ll be, but I’ve got a job and a ship to take care of which is a good thing.” A ship to take care of meant that she’d be busy and that was what Stacy liked.

Then there was Syrin’s next question of wanting to know what was on her mind right now and that one took a bit more thought. She took a bite of her burger, almost as though she was done speaking for the time being, but after a moment, she added, “As for what’s on my mind right now, one of the first things is definitely the thought that I’m really glad you didn’t blow up on that island.” It was hard not to smile as she said it. It had been so long since she’d actually had anyone she could actually talk with.

Exanis

Rhyse “Risa” Talone

The shopkeeper certainly seemed glad to see business and Risa was more than happy to be that business presence. She let Emilie do most of the talking since she wasn’t quite sure if she herself would be buying anything there on that particular day, but her eyes did glance in nearly every direction to see if there was anything that might help her out in her hat-making ventures. Risa did manage to spot some ribbon that would work well for decorating her creations and there was plenty of fabric dye as well. Those were certainly things she could make use of.

Risa smiled briefly at Norman and then her attention quickly shifted as some shifty folks walked into the shop and started demanding money from the shopkeeper. They didn’t seem polite and they also didn’t seem all that official either which had Risa wondering what sort of trouble this port town harbored although she doubted it was anything she’d desire to get involved in.

Her eyes widened when Emilie said they’d be making a big enough purchase to cover the discrepancy. That was a lot of berries and Risa herself, at least, hadn’t planned on spending nearly enough to cover it on her own. She wasn’t entirely sure how much Emilie would be buying, though, so she didn’t really say too much right away. It seemed like Emilie had a plan and although Risa wasn’t sure what it was, she felt like trusting her crewmate was a good place to start when it came to working together. She was also glad when Norman stepped in a little bit although he didn’t seem too interested in helping them himself. Sighing a little bit when he left, Risa wished he would have stuck around. There wasn’t much she could do about it, though.

Instead, Risa did the one thing she could do - she started grabbing off the shelves the few items that she knew she would be buying. If nothing else, it demonstrated to the thugs in the shop that Emilie wasn’t lying when she said they intended to make a purchase. Of the things she took, there were a few rolls of ribbon, all different in color, and there was a kit with various dyes meant for various fabric types and meant to create a variety of shades.

Walking up to the counter, she set down her things. “You can put myself and my crewmate on the same bill, I think. I’m sure she has quite a few things she’s interested in buying. She’s much more of a jack of all trades than I am.” That much Risa was sure of, at least when it came to the things sold in this particular shop.

The thugs seemed to be defeated for the moment and they walked out of the shop. Risa had no doubt they would come back later, though, and she wished she could do more to help than just buy the few things she needed. Glancing to Emilie, she wondered if the other woman would have any ideas.

AtlannianSpy

Toy Shopkeeper

The shopkeeper had appeared rather pleased with himself and with how the situation had been handled, up until the point where he was hoisted off of his feet by the man in the rice hat. “Woah, woah there!” he yelled out with no small amount of fear in his voice. “Yer chokin’ me!” His hands reached in front of him to hold onto Wasabi’s wrists even as his feet failed to touch the ground.

Given his position, it was hard not to listen to what Wasabi had to say, though.

“I… I need the money to repair the shop…” he struggled with the words. “I’ve got nothin’... sir… nothin’ but the shop so I need what I’ve got to keep ‘er runnin’.” It honestly sounded like he was telling the truth in that regard.

With his feet swinging and swaying, there wasn’t much he could do but hope Wasabi believed him and would let the debt remain. It wasn’t quite certain whether he would keep his word on paying back at a later date or not, though.

CelticHero37

 

[thatonespacytallgirl]

Oliver and Walter and Captain Scarlet Johanna Indigrid
Walter grinned when the lady he had intercepted went wild with curiosity. She started to bombard him with questions but he was barely able to focus on her words as soon as she asked him ‘what’ he was. What? WHAT?! He was a WHO not a WHAT! He grimaced and opened his mouth to speak before she turned her energy toward Oliver. Walter hissed some steam through his vents to calm himself down, happy that Oliver was getting some recognition.

Oliver sucked in a breath as his hand reached out and grabbed Walter’s coat in a tight grip. There were four strangers in front of him and all his shyness and anxiety were bubbling to the surface. He gripped Walter’s shirt tighter as he tried to calm himself down. It was just normal human interaction… he could do this… maybe…

Walter grinned at his little friend’s panic and lifted an arm to help shield him for a moment. “Don’t mind him he’s just a little people shy!” Walter explained. He pointed his finger at the woman’s face for a moment as his face grew more serious. “Now, I hate to correct you misssss-s-s-s-s-s-s-s, but I am a WHO not a WHAT, thank you.”

Pulling his hand away from her face he gestured to himself with a smile. “Let me introduce myself,” He began his voice changing from loud...to louder much to the dismay of Oliver. He placed one hand on his hip while the other grabbed the top hat off his head and held it high up in the air. “I am the AMAZING, INCREDIBLE WALTER!!” He proclaimed before flipping his top hat back onto his head as if it were one of his tricks. A sudden glimmer of mischievousness could be seen in his optics right before he spun in place and grabbed onto his little friend. Walter held Oliver straight out in front of him, directly in the face of the woman before them. “And THISSSS-S-S-SS! THIS is my WONDERFUL MECHANIC, OLIVER!” Walter shouted the introduction, his voice booming in his little friend’s ears.

With naught but a smile on her face and pure joy flooding her aura, Scarlet reached out, grabbed the ‘wonderful mechanic’s’ hand and shook it with great enthusiasm. “Nice to meet you!”

“N-nice to meet you t-too.” Oliver stuttered out, blushing at all the unwanted attention while shaking the girl’s hand nervously. “N-now could you p-put me down p-please…?” Oliver felt himself slowly dying inside as he attracted even more stares from various onlookers who heard Walter’s obnoxiously loud voice.

With a rather incredulous expression on her face, Scarlet released Oliver’s hand and stated, “You’re quiet. You know that?” She seemed confused with that fact. “I mean, if you’re truly marvelous and wonderful and fantastic and awesome, you should really be proud of it! I am! I’m Captain Scarlet Johanna Indigrid, Captain of the Red Ribbon Pirates and I’m gonna be QUEEN of the pirates someday and I announce it to the woooorrld!” Her tone gradually grew louder as she spoke and at the end, she spun around in a circle, holding both arms out with grandiosity. Without intending for it to happen, one of the bags she was carrying fell off of her arm and landed… thankfully not spilling out any of the contents.

Oh no, Oliver thought, it was another Walter. “Well I’m actually not any of those things… Walter’s just exaggerating…” Oliver said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly while looking at the ground.

Hearing those words caused a spark to surge through Walter’s circuits. In a split second Walter had whipped his captive around in his arms to face him. “I NEVER EXAGGERATE!” He complained loudly, not caring that he had yet to change the volume in his voice. He held a small pout on his face, knowing that sometimes the face would help him get what he wants and perhaps Oliver would take the compliment for once.

“D-don’t look at me like that.” Oliver could feel Walter’s face pulling at his delicate heart strings. “You know I can’t stand it when you make that face!” Oliver finally found his volume as he tried to get his only friend to break out of his pouty face.

As she observed the interaction between the two of them, Scarlet bent down to pick up the bag she had dropped, not wanting her precious clothes to get dirty. That would’ve been a nightmare, after all. xa

Happy that he was able to gain some volume out of his friend, Walter finally set the poor boy down. He turned his attention to Scarlet. “Scarlet was it? You said you were going to be a queen?” He recalled and placed a hand to his chin as the gears turned in his head. Just as he was getting the words out someone came running up to them and began talking to Scarlet. He felt a few more sparks of anger surge through him. Someone...was...they were…INTERRUPTING HIM!?

“Yes!!” Scarlet proclaimed quite loudly, although even the exuberant captain never quite attained Walter volume. “I’m going to be QUEEN OF THE PIRATES once I find the One Piece!” Seeing that Walter’s eyes had shifted to Nerissa, Scarlet realized her own rudeness and decided that introducing her crewmates might be a good idea. “And my delightful crew is gonna help me get there! These are some of my crew. Cletus is our shipwright - he fixes the ship when it breaks. Limstella is… well, uh… hmm…” She realized, quite oddly, that she didn’t quite know what Limstella was yet. “She’s our friend and sweetie. And THIS,” she gestured to Nerissa with grandness, “is the GREAT Priestess of Water, Nerissa!”

Walter was listening to Scarlet’s introductions and nodding at each one. With each new name and title Walter grin grew more and more...until he heard that word: water. Instantly the robot jumped and made an ‘x’ with his fingers at the girl Nerissa. “NO!” He whined. “Why water?!” he continued expressing his displeasure.

“Walter!” Oliver looked up at his tall mechanical friend. “Be nice!” He scolded him with a frown on his face.

Walter practically leaped onto his little friend and clenched onto Oliver’s sleeve rather harshly. “BUT OLIVER!” He began shaking his mechanic rather harshly to express his feelings. “RUSTING!!!” He shouted as loud as his audio levels could go.

“StopStopStop!” Oliver shouted as Walter jerked him too violently. “You’re giving me whiplash!” Oliver complained as Walter stopped shaking him. “It’s still no excuse to be mean. I’ll take care of your rust, don’t worry.”

Watching the whole exchange, Scarlet could not have been smiling more. Then she finally made a decision. Nodding her head quite firmly, Scarlet stepped closer to them and said, “I like you guys! Do you wanna be pirates and join my crew!? Granted… it does involve sailing on the sea and the Grand Line and going on long adventures and the rust might be a problem, but I’m sure Cletus can help too with the rusting problem and there will be long nights and long days and I don’t know what you eat, Walter, but I’m sure Wasabi can make something for you and you’ve gotta make sure not to get my clothes dirty because then I’ll get mad, but I can help you dress for the fanciest balls and we’ll all be the best of friends… OH, and there’s treasure involved and I’m not very good at sharing, but I’ll manage so there’s that too and then you’ll be best friends with the QUEEN of the pirates and I’m sure there’ll be even more treasure then and… and… and…” She was running out of breath at that point.

“P-p-pirates?” Oliver's eyes grew wide. He was hoping to make it to the Grand Line in one piece and going as a pirate involved more danger than Oliver was comfortable with.

“TREAS-SS-S-S-S-SURE?!?!” To be honest Walter had not been paying too close of attention to the words coming out of Scarlet’s mouth. There was something about pirates and food...clothes maybe...but then TREASURE?! Walter turned to look at Oliver instantly. “Oliver. We’re going. THERE'S TREASURE AND WE NEED IT!” He informed his friend.

“But-but-but shouldn't we discuss this first? Being a pirate is extremely dangerous!” Oliver interjected, looking more panicked by the second.

Walter tilted his head slightly at the comment. “What even is a ‘pirate’ anyway?” He wondered.

“I’M A PIRATE!” Scarlet interjected. “Pirates go on adventures all across the seas and sail the grand line and they hunt treasures and they make lots of friends along the way and they sometimes fight marines… well, we did on the last island and… and, well you’re a pirate now too because you’re joining my crew!”

Walter looked at Scarlet with a huge grin before turning back to the panicked Oliver. “She’s a pirate! See! They’re cool! And the Grand Line?! You wanted to go there anyways! Making friends?! Yes please! Fight?! Pchhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I’m great in fights!” Walter tried to convince his friend, even though they were going to go anyways.

“But-but-but…” Oliver looked in-between Walter and Scarlet and realized there was nothing he could do. They were pirates now, whether he liked it or not. “Oh no…” He whispered. “Ohnoohnoohno, this is bad. I’m gonna die before I ever get a chance to fix Walter.” Oliver’s eyes watered as he pulled on his hair in nervousness.

Walter smiled and swooped Oliver up in his arms bridal style. “You won’t die!” He assured his little friend. Anyone who looked closely could see his optics flash red for a split moment. “I’ll kill anyone who tries to hurt you.”

“And we have a doctor, too!... Oh, wait… no… we lost Shannon in The Hallows… but Jasper and Arlen keep people safe too. Just don’t get hurt too badly.”

Oliver looked at Scarlet for a moment, before turning his head into the crook of Walter’s neck and bursting into tears. “My life is overrrrrrr.” He sniffled.

Walter glanced at his little friend before turning his gaze toward the others around him. “Don’t worry. Those are tears of joy. I’m sure of it.” He nodded, confident in his response.

Collab: Lady Warlock and DonquixoteDoflamingo
shadowdude505 QuirkyAngel Misuteeku

 

[Misuteeku]

Limstella

Throughout the entire ordeal, Limstella was completely silent. Annoyance grew when Cletus didn't realize that she was joking around, but the arrival of a robot caught her attention. Why was a robot here, and why was it talking to Scarlet? Those questions were left unheard as she napped out of her thoughts when her captain started to freak out in joy over the robot. How could such a childish person get a iron head butler like Jasper? She was also glad that her attention was on Cletus since Limstella was a slight introvert. Of course, Nerissa had arrived prior, but the attention wasn't on her right now.

Cringing at the robot's enthusiasm, Limstella noticed the mechanic. He had her sympathies being teamed up with the robot named 'Walter.' It must of been hard for him being teamed up with that robot. Silently, she took a few steps back in order to minimize the amount of sounds, she was hearing from the conversation. They were ungodly loud, and she didn't know what to contribute to the conversation. When Scarlet mentioned her name, she didn't quite know how to possibly act. Should she tell her that she was their 'lookout' or tell them that she wasn't a sweet. Regardless, she stayed quiet.

Lady Warlock DonquixoteDoflamingo shadowdude505 QuirkyAngel​

​

 

[Sugary_Paragraphs]

Yummy Foods
"And that'll be 2 bell...sir? Why...why are you crying?"

Kneeling on the ground, arms shaking and hands nearly drenched in tears, Yummy sniffed and wiped at the flow streaming from behind his sunglasses. "I-I'm sorry. I promised I wouldn't do this...bu-but the moment. It's just so...beautiful." Standing up, Yummy quickly jammed a hand into his pocket and handed a large wad of belli toward the confused elderly man, who's eyes widened at the large amount that exceeded his previous price.

"Si-Sir, this-"

"Thank you, kind Samaritan to chefs everywhere!" Yummy exclaimed, holding the man's free hand and bowing his head. "It is thanks to you that my most prized possession is complete! Please, before I leave, promise me that you will continue god's work." The old man, so utterly confused, decided to just go with it and nod, causing Yummy to smile and pluck the small parsley from his hand. Taking how the still hot omelet from his afro, he unwrapped part of it and slowly placed the green leaf onto OOO, the last piece to such a delicious puzzle. Quickly wrapping it back together, Yummy's smile grew comically large. "IT. IS. COMPLEEEEETE!" Yummy cheered, doing a perfect ballerina saute repeatedly, bouncing away from the stall.

It had literally been only five minutes ago since more women showed up to his encounter before Yummy realized his predicament. He could feel the heat seeping away from OOO, and it seemed as though the poor girl he ran into had her attention in another manner. And the CUSTOMER WAS PROBABLY STILL WAITING! And so, quietly slipping away without a trace, Yummy had ran, slower, into the marketplace and acquired the parsley that would end all of his (current) problems. And no, out of the marketplace and prancing down the street, Yummy felt as though all was right in the world. He learned a valuable lesson, the omelet in his hand was in prime condition, and nothing could ever possibly ruin this mo-

Whoa! Yummy skidded to a stop when he realized he was almost about to run into *another* person! "Whoops! Sorrry about that!" Yummy said to the tattooed man, nodding to his cohort behind him before stiffly walking past them. HA! See? He learned his lesson! Now, no one could possibly get in his way except-

"WHOA!"

HIMSELF?!

Suddenly, everything went in slow motion. The plate in Yummy's hand jolted from the sudden trip thanks to a rock on the ground, and the omelet somehow launched from the wrap and into the air. "NOOOOOO!" Yummu yelled, somehow twirling dramatically to the ground and watching the flying omlette with a look of despair. And in the universes' last act of cruelty, Yummy watched the omelet splatter into the filthy street just as his back hit the ground. This...This was rock bottom, wasn't it? He could practically hear the insects crawling all over his masterpiece.

"My beautiful dish...destroyed. Massacred! RUINED!" Yummy cried, holding up a fist and slamming it on his forehead. "CURSE YOU, YUMMY! HOW COULD YOU LET YOUR PERFECT STREAK END LIKE TH-I-IIIIS!" And then, the waterfall of tears began, two large puddles forming at both of his sides. "All that training as a skilled and overly-handsome chef...FOR THIS?!"

AllHailDago Phayne and shadowdude505 (Since they are nearby and probably see dis)

 

[Phayne]

"Seem's like they are not here yet" replied Jin as the lack of a response to Alex calling their names implied. "I may not know you as well as most people Alex, but it seems like this Darius Fletcher gets under your skin, are you going to be able to conta...in.." Jin turned around as he heard an unfamiliar voice address them, "Ah.. I'm guessing thats them" though it wasn't so much a guess, rather then Jin recognised Darius's face from the bounty poster's he had seen before.

"Jin Flyheart" he replied, taking a step forward ahead of Alex and extending his own hand out to reciprocate the hand shake. "Captain of the Horizon Stride Pirates" he paused and looked towards Andre, nodding slightly to acknowledge Darius's first mate. Jin's grip was strong and firm, the pressure he was exerting on his part just enough to imply that he was indeed a fighter but not so much so that he would be squeezing the life out of his hand. "Alex here has briefed me about your meeting earlier today" he added, though stopped short at hinting towards further knowledge of their initial first contact. However if the smug grin across his face was anything to go by, it was clear that Jin knew more than he was letting on. Releasing his grip on Darius's hand, Jin walked over to a nearby wooden barrel, sitting against the edge of it as he continued to look over the potential allies. "Darius Fletcher of the Wolfwind Pirates, I must say I have heard a fair few stories about your crew, as well as seen your bounty poster posted here and there.. what exactly brings you over to Balagga...n?" Jin's attention was drawn away from Darius and Andre and towards the sound of a large commotion occurring further down the port.

Like Jin, several others in close vicinity had stopped what they were doing and taken the time to inspect the cause of the disturbance, the perpetrator a rather extravagant individual if his afro was anything to go by. The blonde ball of fluff almost glistened in the sunlight as the man lay there, seemingly in anguish. It wasn't until Jin took a few steps closer that he could hear the mans cries of anguish; the man's violent tears quickly causing a puddle to form beneath him. Whilst the first sight of Yummy splattered across the floor was not the best of impressions. Jin could not deny that he was impressed by his passion; the over the top reaction to his dish spilling clearly showing a pure love for his profession. Jin smiled, an idea forming.

"Alex" spoke Jin. "See to it that you keep your eyes on that man.. we need a cook and if his passion is anything to go by, then I'd very much like to speak to him" he issued, before turning back around and returning his full attention towards Darius and Andre. "Apologies, that was just but one of several things I hope to accomplish whilst here" he smiled, "now.. rather then beating around the bush, lets get straight to the point. What are your intentions as pirates?"

Jin's tone was calm, composed, his demeanour further exemplified by the cold hard stare he was presently giving this Darius Fletcher, a man of whom he knew very little about on a personal level. The act of forming an alliance was not to be taken lightly and if Jin was to commit to this, he needed to know as much as he could about this other captain; likewise he was prepared to be asked several questions himself.

It was only fair.​

shadowdude505 AllHailDago Sugary_Paragraphs

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Nerissa Orta​

Nerissa nodded as Scarlet announced her dream, smiling at the interaction between Oliver, Water, and Scarlet. When Scarlet introduced her in such a dramatic fashion, the priestess blushed, but curtsied nonetheless. Walter's reaction to water made her blink and frown slightly. Water was the realm of Aquarius. It was the source of life. It wasn't to be feared. Though, she supposed it made sense that a machine would be afraid of water.

Nerissa had read about machines--about the many wondrous things engineered by people outside of Mirage Island. However, she had never seen one up close before. Least of all one that seemed so...alive. She giggled a bit as Water shook Oliver, shouting something about rusting. Nerissa nodded. It was true. Water could wear and tear things over time. It could be very dangerous. However, it was also filled with beauty...a flowing tranquility. The more she practiced with the blood of the Aquarius, the more she felt she could understand it.

Wield its power for the sake of her friends...so that the events of the Hallows would not happen again.

Nerissa watched Scarlet make her decision. Scarlet seemed very determined to have Walter and Oliver in their crew. She knew what she wanted. She was quick to make friends. Nerissa had thought Scarlet would still be mourning their losses at the Hallows, but the vibrant girl was already back on her feet. She was strong. Not in the same way that Arlen and Jasper were, but Nerissa thought Scarlet could keep her friends safe as well.

"I read a bit about herbal medicine in a book once," Nerissa said consolingly to Oliver, patting the boy on the back. "It'll be alright. Aquarius protects this crew."

Walter's fear of water meant that it was unlikely the robot knew how to swim. A pirate lived their life around water. That meant Water was going have to get used to it. Getting wet, that is.

Eyes twinkling a bit in mirth, Nerissa glanced at Limstella, noticing the girl had taken a couple of steps back. Was she shy?

"Let's show Walter and Oliver the new Red Ribbon ship. We still haven't given it a name yet, but it's very...big...compared to our last one, Perhaps Oliver and Walter can help us decide." Nerissa smiled. "There's also going to be something big at a restaurant called Zambini's tonight as well. One of the construction workers told me."

Nerissa looked between Scarlet and her friends. "Can we all have dinner there? As a crew? I think it'd be a nice way to end our stay at Balaggan..."

Lady Warlock , Misuteeku , thatonespacytallgirl , DonquixoteDoflamingo , shadowdude505

mentioned: Phayne

 

[Hanarei]

​

Mizuki smiled gleefully in response, nodding her head as she seemed so quick to take her on as part of the crew. She couldn't believe the incredible amount of luck she had struck upon. What had turned out to be some sudden disaster all but fell perfectly in her favor. All she had to do was allow the winds to guide her... well and take over a half a year journey with little success in order to find something... but she did find something in the end! Then again.... it was possible it was all a trap. She shook her head of the thought, after all it wasn't as if she had anything of any value to take. It would be a rather large waste of time to bother with a blind girl like herself.

The teen glanced over towards Trista... or at least more so turned her head in her direction lacking any actual vision to see the girl who she still hadn't the slightest clue what she was due to the crowd of people around and about making it difficult to pick out more about her, not to mention the notion of zombie wasn't even something she would even knew existed to begin to ponder such a being. It seemed as if she was taking nearly anyone onboard the ship... perhaps something she should have some worry about but she was far to grateful to even think about that.

Mizuki's head turned in the direction of Keya, hearing the woman speak up further addressing her presence. She lifted her hand as to wave, smiling brightly. While she was facing the right general direction it wasn't hard to tell she didn't seem to know exactly where she was, the area being far to noisy and her appearance so unexpected it had left her more so fumbling simply using where her voice came from as a general direction to face. She felt as if she should give her name though with Cait already mentioning it, she simply brushed off restating it. It was strange how people from outside her tribe seemed to interact socially with one another at times.

"Hello! Feel free to take the Omelette if you so like it... if the... eccentric chief doesn't mind." She spoke pausing a bit trying to think of a nicer word to say then weird before coming up with eccentric. She clutched tight on her staff, holding it to her side. Her hand fumbled to ensure she had her bag with all her things... as little as it might be... on her. She turned her head back vaguely in the new captain's direction nodding her head.

"Yes, I'd love to um... well I'd like to get a feel for it." She spoke with an awkward smile not quite sure of how to react to such a turn of phrase. She wasn't one who really got too offended by people making unintentionally 'making fun' of her lack of vision, typically only really throwing a fit should she feel slighted.

shadowdude505 simj26 Mitchs98 Sugary_Paragraphs (Nearby, small mentioning)

 

[AllHailDago]

Darius Fletcher ​

Darius was pleased to have the fellow captain, Jin, return his handshake. It was strong and firm, a clear sign of a capable fighter. Darius returned it with less force, but equal rigidity, signaling that he wasn't likely to be the same kind of fighter, but would stand against attackers regardless. He looked Jin up and down with his eye, scratching at his eye patch in thought. He saw tension in his stance, perhaps as a readiness to fight Darius settled over him. A smart enough, but subtle enough stance. After all, many a pirate alliance was a ploy of some kind to kill your "partners" and take out competition. Darius shrugged it off and focused on responding to Jin's questions. He'd let Andre be the judge of Jin's physicality, he had more of an eye for it most of the time.

"What we are doing here? Well-", he cut off mid sentence as both he and Jin noticed an odd man making quite a lot of noise back towards town. Darius didn't move his eyes from Jin, allowing Alex to turn and watch Darius' back instead. A chef lamenting a lost creation of some kind. Rather passionate, but Darius had his own chef already so he quite honestly cared little. "Don't worry about it. Possible recruiting is pretty common amongst pirate crews with big goals." He rolled one shoulder, thinking on his own recruiting to this point and how shockingly well it had gone.

"As for why we are here and what our goals are... Well that's pretty simple actually." He flipped a few stray strands of hair out of the way of his eye. "We are a crew of musicians first and foremost. Our largest goal is to perform at the biggest event on the seas, the ascension of a new Pirate King or Queen. For that to happen we need to be strong enough to survive and sail the Grand Line. We're because it's our last stop before we enter the Grand Line proper. What of yourself? Are you a PIrate King to be?"
Phayne shadowdude505

Jasper Pharos​

Jasper watched the whole exchange between Arlen and their visitor with wariness initially, and tightly contained amusement by the end of it. At first glance upon the man Jasper took note of his pristine, finely groomed and cleanly appearance. Jasper approved of such attention to detail and cleanliness. Not to mention carrying the fish under one arm meant he was not a casual civilian. Civilian's rarely packed power into unseen, lightly framed muscle like that. How interesting. Jasper's fingers drummed rhythmically on the hilt of his swords. A common gesture when he was ponderous.

His opinion dived somewhat as the man talked of how he shouldn't be doing manual labor. He watched him warily as he put down the fish tank. The man stuck around apparently in wait for Lady Nerissa. Jasper eyed the mans hands and movements for a second. It clicked into place where he had seen similar motions before. As Arlen misunderstood the man and went on the defensive for Nerissa, Jasper cracked a momentary smirk. Stepping forward, he put his hand on Arlen's raised blade and gives it a soft nudge downwards.

"No need to be so hostile Arlen, this is a simple misunderstanding. The man is a beautician of sorts, if I am correct. He simply means to style miss Nerissa's hair, perhaps do her makeup and the like. He is not going to 'defile' Nerissa." Jasper gave Arlen a look of understanding as he pressed the sword down a bit firmer. "No need to worry. I have seen his type many a time with Lady Scarlet." He turned his gaze onto the other man. "As for you, perhaps you should choose your words a touch more carefully. If you wish to wait here you may, so long as you remain respectful of the ship and its crew members." He said the latter more pointedly, his head leaning slightly towards Arlen as he did.
QuirkyAngel

 

[Solemn Jester]

Jarko vs Fin
viewed by Tabemono, and Kimiko a collaboration done by AllHailDago Chak Sinny The Fool and myself


Kimiko watched as 'Tab' was put down next to her before Fin started his way back over the the bear-man. She was honestly somewhat surprised on well Tab had managed to come out of things. She didn't mean it personally, but he certainly didn't seem to be a fighter. Regardless, making it out as clear as he had was a feat in and of itself.

"So, uh, what's got these two going at it? Bar fight brawl, or something else? Also, how're you doing?"

Tabemono's ears twitched, realizing he was being spoken to he faced his stare towards Kimiko; which from her earlier display appeared to like bar brawls almost as much as Fin did. Of course, no one liked them just as much as Fin did. Nyan poked out his head in interest, still unsettled by the previous events.

Tabemono tilted his head from side to side, biting the tip of his index finger "Fin saw something as big as him...So he wants to fight it." Nodding to himself, as though validating his own words. "Yup, it wouldn't be the first time..." hesitating to answer the last question. He gave a slight shrug "I don't like this place..Too many people."

Jarko cracked his knuckles and rolled his neck. They had begun to draw onlookers when those around them realized who was about to fight. This was very good in Jarko's opinion, as battles like this should be watched in awe. Especially when it might draw more people to his new crew when he wins. "Right here is fine by me! Ready whenever!" He shifted his jaw back and forth with a few pops and eyed the shark man with interest. Would he make the first move? Or would he leave that to Jarko?

Fin gave a hearty laugh as the crowd began to form. He didn't care much for putting on a show. He usually just enjoyed the fight, but if these people saw it necessary to put themselves in harms way just to watch the the throw down. Then that just meant the fight was all the more promising. "S'ben a while since I've had a gud fight. Hope ya dun dispoint me!" The ferocious sharkman said taking a fishman Karate stance. He inhaled deeply, closing his eyes, and focusing. He focused the strength into his hand, then in a sudden charge ran at Jarko attempting to strike him with his signature move."Hyakumaigawara Seiken!" He roared as he aimed to hit Jarko square in the chest.

Jarko didn't really recognize the shark man's stance when he took it, but he did recognize it for a fighting stance. Jarko turned, putting his left side towards Jarko with his arm outstretched, palm facing up. His right arm was raised in the air, palm down and ready to strike. He simply watched as the shark man gathered himself before he charged Jarko. There was a second of confusion at the difference between the shark man's regular speech and the name of his attack before Jarko moved to strike. As the fishman closed the distance Jarko allowed the hit to connect, but not without grabbing the arm from underneath with his left, and above with his right. The shark man's connected strike was stronger than he expected and he huffed out a forcefully expelled breath while he tried to turn and flip Fin over him onto the ground.

Fin was shocked that the bearman took the hit. Although clearly not unfazed. Within this moment of amazement he found himself flying over the bear,"Awuaah!" He yelled as he was dropped onto his back with a loud thud. He was confused, but he knew better than to give his opponent an opening. He quickly rolled onto his stomach, and pushed himself off the ground. Now staring down the bearman with a exhilarated grin."Aye, did'n know I'd b flyin today." But keeping the small talk to a minimum he immediately charged the bearman again. This time using a technique called Wanto Giri. He aimed his arm fin at his the bear man's side, striking with grest power, and prescision. His arm fins acting like daggers.

Jarko simply gave a wry grin in response to Fin's comment on flying. He took a step back and took up a stance again as the shark man rolled and picked himself up. Jarko had read about Fishman Karate at one point, but never experienced it in person. The fact he'd never seen it in person so this was a fun learning experience. This time when Fin charged Jarko, he charged to meet him. He drew his arm back as they closed the distance, and threw a powerful forward swipe with his claws at the shark man's striking fin.

Fin was impressed by the bearman's skill. He was obviously a skilled warrior, and worthy rival for Fin. But that only meant he had to win more than ever. He'd hate for their first battle as rivals to end with his defeat. When the bearman's claw meet Fins arm they clashed like blades. But Fin didn't let this stop him. He continued to strike at Jarko with his arm fins. His ferocity growing with each strike. He would continue this for a moment before doing something that wasn't exactly fishman karate. Once he saw an opening he would cock his head back, and rocket his skull at the bear mans face in an attenpt at a headbutt.

Jarko hadn't expected the fin to be comparable in hardness to his own claw, so when Fin went to strike the first time after he scored a hit on Jarko. After that however Jarko began blocking the flurrry of swipes with his claws. Waiting for an opening to strike, he saw one when the fishman drew his head back for what he presumed to be a headbutt. Jarko considered for only a split second on what to do, but decided easily. Drawing his own head back, he slammed it forward, meeting the shark man's headbutt with his own.

Fin was expecting alot. To have blood splatter all over his head. To have a bruise on his noggin, to miss completely. But he certainly did not expect Jarko to strike him with his own headbutt. The force of the conmecting skulls sent a jolt through Fins body. But he stood his ground, staring down Jarko still grinning, although momentarily dazed. He pulled back from Jarko and lifted his fist."Hahaha, ya sur got spunk. Wat waz yer yer name again? Jarko? Heh, well den. Waddya say we get serious?" With that Fin bbegan stretching his arms, and legs. Reaching far to the sides, and towards his toes. Feeling the burn as he readied for the real match."Hope yer ready! Hehehe! Hyakumaigawara Seiken!" This time he aimed his fist at the ground, causing a shockwave that demolished the top layer of the ground as it made its way towards the large bearman.

Jarko blinked a few times and took a step back after the headbutt's connected. Unfortunately him starting after Fin meant his headbutt didn't have the same force behind it, and he'd gotten a bit more of a shock out of it. He grinned back at Fin and replied, "Aye, Jarko is my name. Jarko Belfonte!" He took a stance again as the shark man struck at the ground. However when he saw the ground suddenly break apart and the shockwave come towards him he paused in place. Was this still fighting with just their bodies? Would Jarko tossing barrels count as ok? What if he threw bystanders at him? When he said just claws and hands he wasn't expecting this. The conundrum of what was ok distracted him long enough to be hit by the shockwave and get tossed into several surprised bystanders. He coughed for a second as he climbed off the poor unconscious humans.

"A neat trick! That's for sure.!" He rolled his neck again and gave a firm, toothy smirk to Fin. He looked to his left and spotted several crates. He hooked one with his foot and tossed it Fin's ways before throwing the other two with his arms, all within a short enough time that all three crates were in the air at the same time. Then he dashed at the shark man, roaring as he ran. He held his arms wide, preparing to swipe with both arms when he reached Fin.


Fin couldn't help but ooh, and ahh at Jarko's every move. If he hadn't been in the middle of a fight he might have shed a few manly tears in admiration. But he had no time for that, because those three crates were coming at Fin fast, and he only knew one way of dealing with them. As they got close enough he took the Hyakumaigawara Seiken stance, and once within range he struck them midair, sending the crates, as well as whatever might have resided inside of them splintering away from him. He wasn't quite fast enough to avoid Jarko however, as the bearman used the crates as cover, in order to close the distance and strike Fin. Who managed to block one blow with his right arm, but was unable to do the same with his other arm. Resulting in Fin getting knocked back a few inches. Before another blow could be struck Fin crouched down, and charged at Jarko. Tackling him into a nearby food stand, and sending it toppling down on the both of them. Leaving many questions as to what would happen next, as both seemed to be hidden beneath the rubble that was formerly the food stand.