Fandom One Piece: Setting Sail for Paradise 1x1

[takki]

Setting: Sailing in the seas of South Blue
Characters: Hoshiya, interacting with Avalon

"He must've been really tired," Hoshiya quietly muttered to himself, and he appreciated his quiet sleep compared to his absolute bone-wrenching snore back at the island. While the threat of running into a pirate or crashing into an island kept him fully alert and awake, the calming sea ambiance only aided in him snoring at times.

And for three days, Hoshiya had to keep himself awake. Conserving food and water for Avalon who's currently in a deep sleep, while keep himself vigilant for anything other than the sky and the calm ocean. And after those three days, he finally ran out of food, Some apples and potatoes still remained in the sack, but he set it away for the sleeping captain.

Hoshiya spotted a few black dots moving in the distance. He initially shook his head, thinking, "I must be hallucinating." Yet as those dots flew closer, it revealed its whole figure and soon he realized it was a flock of birds flying towards them. The flock of birds landed on their moving boat, pecking on anything or anyone, without regard for the human who's currently sleeping.

The blue hair internally celebrated as he shifted their course from where the birds flew from, and soon enough, he spotted an island in the distance.
The savanna island were filled with thick, green foliage, with only a field of grass greeting them from the dock.

"Avalon! We're here." They landed on the run-down, mossy dock. It was empty, devoid of any visitors or so it seems to him. After he secured the boat onto the pole, he stepped onto the dock. Hoshiya tried to wake Avalon up, but his ragged snoring wasn't a good sign. At this point, he couldn't tell if Avalon was still sleeping or barely conscious. "I have to get him help."

Hoshiya found a gap on the trees, and he entered a dirt-paved pathway that would hopefully lead to civilization. If he doesn't get Avalon the help he needed, it might already be too late for him, especially since he's lost too much blood. He traversed the path quickly, until he saw a small village from an open clearing.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

The dirt path taking Hoshiya into the small village, it was fixed with an eerie stillness. While the buildings had a familiar style in lumber (though lacking in paint), architecture style fitting in with the nearby islands like Black Star or Tuol Skear, each and every home was completely abandoned. The innards had already been pillaged, furniture and goods left in disarray, food long gone. While the grassland wasn’t exactly rich in trees, those nearest to the town by a few miles had been hewn down long ago, the stumps still lingering in many places. In others they’d been moved aside, unkempt farmland left in its place, rife with unwanted plants in its abandonment, the exposed dirt left dry. Further on the outskirts where bones, bleached in the sun, piles of them. Wildebeest and buffalo predominately, but they were just the majority in a variety and shapes and sizes among the decay. Lion, elephant, rhino, the latter two without fail missing their horns or tusks. And yet, not a single human corpse was there, just the marks of weapons, be they shattered spears, arrowheads, or bullet holes left lingering in the wreck. The only signs of anything alive beyond the scavengers was a plume of smoke even further to the north.

-----​

Roughly an hour or so after Hoshiya left Avalon under the beating sun, a pair of feet pattered their way up to the small boat left at the abandoned dockside. A shadow cast over him, the man still refusing to wake, the occasional groan escaping him in his sleep. A smile came to the shadow’s figure, each of their teeth razor sharp, like that of a beast.

 

[takki]

Setting: Unknown Island
Characters: Hoshiya

Beheld in Hoshiya's eyes with a ruined village whose houses were built with lumber. Unlike Black Star Island, this place was much more peaceful, yet the rural atmosphere conflicted with an uneasy silence. "Hello?" Hoshiya shouted, but his echoing voice met no response. He approached the nearest house to his left, and while knocking on the door, it swung open without much force. "Excuse me..." He said, just to let someone know that he was entering their house. That is, if there was even any person there.

It was uninhabited, Hoshiya observed, but the warm water on top of a charred fireplace indicated that someone might've been here before them. Looking from beyond the window, he saw an empty area with sowed dirt. Crops from further out wilted from the sun, and it might've been untended as the dirt itself looked hard and dry. At the center of the farm area were bones surrounded by flies, their buzzing noise heard even from a distance.

A disturbed expression popped out of his face, reminding him that he should keep his guard from then on. He placed his one hand on the sheath of his sword, and after stepping out of the house, he saw a dark plume of smoke emerging from a distance. The instinct of trouble kicked into him quick, especially since Avalon was left alone in the ship. He ran towards the smoke plume across the grove, unsure of what he could find.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

Hoshiya’s path took him across the savanna plains, through the long stretches of grass, gradually taking him through areas less cultivated. The scattered acacia and marula trees stretched wide, but none could eclipse the distant smoke. The animals became a bit more prevalent as well, vultures circling a former hunting ground, or tracks of an elephant’s passing marking the way.

Eventually, human structures came into view: huts of wood, stick, and straw built, perhaps something like mud or clay as well. The glistening of a river was visible in the distance, but even closer were the movements of people, carting food or water as children played. The smell of cooking meats and roasting vegetables came from a large fire in the middle of the village, burning strong and brightly.

The first to catch notice of Hoshiya came not from the village, but from behind. A nearby tree rustling, a broad figure touched down. Standing a head above Hoshiya, hair dark and short, skin a pale tan, his bare arms and chest were muscular and inked with tattoos, dark rings matching the contours of his muscles, wispy trails of dark blue linking them together. A leather skirt layered with an animal hide dyed in blue covered his lower torso, his bare feet jangling with beads and bracelets about the ankles. One of his eyes was closed forever, several blade scars marking both his eyelid and face.

Leaning over Hoshiya, the man’s lips hung open as he observed, his teeth showing, each one of the fangs sharp. “Oh~ Pretty brazen for an outsider.” Flashing a keen grin, he remarked, “Swords are for making war, you know.” His voice reverberated, those in the village nearest to them starting to shift their attention.

-----​

Met with an unfamiliar ceiling of packed dirt, Avalon rustled in his spot, the wooden bedstead shifting. He felt fresh air on all his wounds, the bandages missing. As his hand fished around, he didn’t find blood, instead finding an off-white oily salve. “What the fuck.”

“Iyahyah!” came a gasp of fright. Avalon glanced over to see a form bouncing up in the sunlight coming from the opening of the underground space. Feet bare, skin dark like, tree bark, shortish hair more of an orange shade, the teen girl’s sharp teeth flashed. Over her back was the pelt of a red furred lioness, worn like a mantle or cape. Underneath she had a skirt and top of leather and hide, her arms and midriff left bare. “Ohwow!” she gasped again, reaching down to catch the roller, coated with herbs and oils before it fell out of the boat shaped bowl it was being used with. “Don’t touch that stuff! It’s keepin’ you from bleedin’ to death!”

What blood he had left rushing from his head in his sudden movement, he let out another groan and flopped back. The girl clamored to the bedside. “You need food? Water? You had some with you...well, I might have eaten one of the fruits. And the ones that tasted like dirt I left on your boat but-”

“Where am I? And where’s Hoshiya?”

“Oh! I’ve heard outsiders call this place Sunscar Island! My name’s Lyna, by the way. What’s a Hoshiya? Is it there any on your boat?”

Avalon sighed. “Probably not...”

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

As a group of small huts and a large bonfire came into view, Hoshiya concealed his presence behind a nearby tree, observing if the lively inhabitants of this island were not just lively, but also friendly. He observed them from a distance: beyond the huts was a river. Some men carried baskets of clothing towards the river, while others were already washing their clothes. Children ran across the village, making sure to avoid their mothers who carried a plate of uncooked meat, some having raw vegetables. Over the bonfire was a large boiling pot where they dropped their ingredients, and beside it was a thick stone plate where they cooked meat and roasted vegetables.

The smell of actual good food made him realize that he was starving. It's been a month since he left his home island, and for the same amount of time, he hasn't eaten proper food aside from fruits, bread, and if he gets lucky, two pieces of bread. Staying with Farah for a few weeks definitely contributed to his hunger.

“Oh~ Pretty brazen for an outsider.” A man's deep voice spoke from almost directly behind him.

Startled, Hoshiya jumped into the open and turned his back, facing the tattooed burly man who came up behind him. "How did I not notice him?!" He held his sword at its sheath, ready to draw at any time. Now that he has attracted attention, the lively atmosphere of the village became curious and guarded, unsure if the outsider meant any harm.

Realizing that he was the outsider, Hoshiya raised his arms in surrender as he let go of his sword. "I mean no harm!" He said. "I am a p... traveler."

He changed his introduction at the last minute. Pirates aren't looked at highly, after all. "My friend is injured at your dock. Please... Help him." He bowed. "But we would also like some food, water, a compass, and a map--" Then he shut up.

"Crap. Was I being too demanding?"

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

The man’s eye flickered darkly, his sharp teeth showing through a grimace. “Oi oi oi oi oi, you’ve got something wrong there. That’s not our dock, that’s yours.” He started circling Hoshiya like a hunting cat. “You outsiders left it 15 years ago or so now. Well, that’s not right… They were chased off after they kept taking. They lied to our faces about wanting a good relationship, cuz they just kept taking behind our backs. They’d have eaten the whole island if we’d left them. Taking taking taking…” he ran a pair of fingers across his missing eye. “They took this from me too.” The man got right in Hoshiya’s face. “And here you come wanting to take even more!?” There was a harsh burst of killing intent, the man’s fists out like claws.

“Ringo! Enough!” The blaze was quashed with that one demand. Back at the edge of the village, a few dozen had congregated. Curious eyes, young children and men and women alike, some of the adults even brandishing weapons of their own. There seemed to be a correlation, with suspicion in the elderly with curiosity left to the young. And chief among them, a larger man with robes over his red skinned chest, beard full and spattered with the colors of salt and pepper, stood at the front, the teeth of the whole village not unlike Ringo’s razor maw. “It’s bad fortune to spill blood before a War Council,” claimed the village elder.

Ringo snapped, “It’s also against our laws to let outsiders on the island! We’re the ones who’ll be in trouble if we’re discovered, Chopi.”

Elder Chopi sighed, “That’s not incorrect.” Turning to Hoshiya, he requested, “We don’t have anything to offer you. Should you run afoul of the other tribes on the island, they’ll be even less receptive. You should leave at once, and seek help from your own people.”

-----​

Chomping down on an apple with his good arm, Avalon watched as Lyna applied more of her salve. “The first one was to seal the wound, this one should help the healing process along and prevent scarrin'. Probably.”

Avalon gagged on his food. “‘Probably?’”

Lyna gnashed her teeth, “Graaaah! I tested them before! They work! I just don’t know about the scarrin' part, I’ve never had a wound that bad.” Finishing her work, she went back to her workstation on the ground, cleaning up some of the ingredients and materials. “And I don’t have any of those bandages. What are they made of anyway? I always wondered but I never found anythin' like them. They’re kinda like hair but not.”

Avalon blinked, admitting, “Actually I don’t know either.”

Lyna pouted. Glancing back over to her things, she lit up, grabbing a book. Hopping over, she held it open for Avalon. “You can read this though, right?”

Avalon could see a few drawings and diagrams. It seemed to indicate some form of medicine making. Glancing between some of the plants in the drawing and some of the ones Lyna had handy, he saw similarities. But when it came to the words, he could only offer, “Nope, no can do.”

“Oh…” Lyna frowned. “Is it hard?”

“I dunno, I can’t read.”

“Ehhhhhh!?”

Avalon’s cheeks would have flushed a little red had he blood to spare. “It’s not my fault!” Leaning back, he said, “Never had anyone to teach me.”

Lyna looked over at the book again. “No one here knows how…”

Avalon blinked, realizing, “Wait, you made that medicine without even knowing how to read the book?”

Lyna’s cheeks puffed up. “Well, yeah, but I had to do a bunch of trial and error. It was really hard!”

A glimmer of recognition in his eyes, Avalon said, “Yeah, that sounds rough.”

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

The man's roaring anger reverberated in his ears. He readied his stance and put his hands on his sword, ready to draw in the first moment he got attacked. The mothers retreated to the back of the crowd to hide their children, while the capable men stood strong to aid the man in front of Hoshiya. Before the fight escalated any longer, a bearded man emerged from the crowding people.

After Chopi politely requested him to leave, Hoshiya had no choice but to come back to where he came from. He walked with a straight back towards the grove, hearing the bulky man named Ringo huff as he started to contemplate the island and its potential inhabitants. Even if he didn't get what he needed, he indirectly heard some important information coming from the two adults in the village.

"Pirates arrived at the island fifteen years ago?!" Hoshiya was astounded at the time it was mentioned. The mossy dock, the thick foliage, and their outfit made from animal hide and leather--these observations caused him to conclude, "How can an island remain out of outside contact for that long? If they didn't have supplies, surely the other tribes they were referring to should have..."

Then, an evil thought entered his mind. He spoke it out loud, assuming that no one should be around the thick forest to hear him. "I'm a pirate after all. What if I just steal from those tribes...?" He continued. "But I have to be careful. If they are any less hospitable, I don't think I'll be kept alive."

Hoshiya had no choice, after all. Avalon was gravely injured and they hadn't eaten full for days. Not to mention Hoshiya, whose sleep only lapsed between 30 minutes and at most an hour, just to watch for any signs of life. The fact that they ended up on an island while blindly sailing in just three days was the epitome of luck.

He decided to do his stealthy thieving mission at night, so he decided to come back to the boat for now, fully expecting Avalon to awaken. In the normal case, Avalon would still be asleep. The worst case, however, had already happened.

"Avalon...?!" Arriving at the beach, Hoshiya caught sight of the empty sloop. The sack of leftover fruits he left for Avalon was gone, and so was the captain himself. Somewhere on the beach was a single pair of footsteps in the sand trailing in another direction from where he came from. The footsteps, on the other hand, were not big enough to belong to Avalon.

"Shit, Avalon!" He ran towards the trail of footsteps and into the grove of trees once again, uncaring of what else he might find beyond the trees as long as he's found him.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

“So why are you helping me?” Avalon wondered.

Lyna sat down, crossing her legs. “Well, I’ve never met an outsider before. I thought lots of people were out adventurin', but we don’t get that many people.”

Avalon shrugged. “Well, we’re pretty far out of the way here. Not a lot of trade routes. Tuol Skear is the nearest kingdom, and it’s also one of the poorest in the South. It’s one bad year from becoming lawless land from what I hear. Black Star isn’t far off, but it’s a shithole. As for this place...I imagine people know about it, but if there’s no reason to come, they won’t come. There a lot of gold here?”

“That shiny stuff? Not really. We got a lot of animals though! You ever seen a Mega Lion? Or a Megaphant?”

“...Can you really just put ‘mega’ in front of animal names like that and call it a day?”

“They’re HUUUUGE. I heard the Big Folk Tribe lives in the former carcass of a Megaphant. There’s not very many of them, but still!”

“Not very many of which one?”

Lyna’s energy dropped. “Well, either. The Big Folk Tribe was hit the most back when the outsiders tried to settle. They caused a lot of problems for the environment here, we’re still strugglin' in some ways even now. Though that’s also because-”

Crossing through, into the opening of the hill where the footprints led, Hoshiya found his way inside. “GWAAAAAH!” Lyna yelped, hopping back to the corner of the room.

“Oh, Hoshiya!” Avalon called, waving a hand from his position on the bedstead.

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

The distressed Hoshiya ran across the forest, avoiding the large tree trunks and overhanging vines from the branches. "If someone can carry Avalon by themselves..." Hoshiya's taught continued in his imagination, and a mental image of an extremely muscular and violently threatening man in a lion's pelt carrying him in his shoulder with ease, easily formed in his mind. "Ugh, I'm not sure if I can take on a guy of that size." Nevertheless, he's willing to challenge himself when the time comes.

As he exited out of the forest, the faint footprints led to an opening of on the base of a hill. He barged inside, drawn sword in hand, shouting without a second thought, "LET GO OF AVALON OR I'LL--!" The blue-hair shut up when a girl jumped onto the corner of room with a loud scream, followed by Avalon sitting on the bed and greeting him.

"Avalon? You're alright," Hoshiya said with a relieved exhale as she sheathes his sword. He was glad to know that Avalon was alive and well, and his wounds patched-up. "It's a good thing you woke up now, because we need to get out of this island. I met some folks on the other side of the forest and they weren't really nice to outsiders like us," He informed Avalon, fully ignoring the existence of the actual inhabitant hiding in the corner from him.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

Lyna relaxed a bit when Hoshiya’s blade went back into its sheathe, but Avalon didn’t blink. “Gotta leave already? I was hoping we could get some time to rest our legs, I’ve kinda had a nonstop shitshow since, uh...what day is it?”

“Wait, you’re leavin’?” Lyna gasped. Glancing between Hoshiya and Avalon, she muttered, “Y-you can’t leave yet, you haven’t paid me back for treatin’ you!”

Avalon shrugged. “I mean, to be honest, I didn’t ask in the first place. I appreciate it though.”

Lyna’s jaw dropped, every one of her chompers on full display. “You’re evil!”

Avalon remarked, “Besides, we can’t stay, weren’t you listening?” Lyna huffed and puffed before storming out the entryway.

Trying to get up, Avalon said, “Er, gimme a second.” Dragging himself across the bedstead, he puffed up his cheeks as he took a deep breath. Throwing his feet over the side and to the floor, he let out a deep grunt as he stood. “Oh yeah, that’s gonna be rough for a while, but I’ll live. Let’s get.” Taking note of Hoshiya’s sleep deprived condition, he observed, “...Is it me or do you look a little out of it?”

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

A stiff smile appeared on Hoshiya's face, realizing that Avalon himself didn't even know he was asleep for that long. To him, he must've perceived that he only slept until the next morning since they left Black Star Island. As for Hoshiya, he told Avalon the truth, "You've been out for three days. I kept watch for that amount of time, and we're lucky we found this island without a map."

Hoshiya watched the lion-pelted girl storm out of the cave, and he glanced at Avalon with an affirming expression. "She was the one who helped you?" He thoroughly observed the wound on his chest and his shoulder, now covered with a slightly wet, oily salve that hardened over time. "It did better than the bandages. She's pretty good," He remarked about the girl.

“...Is it me or do you look a little out of it?” Avalon asked, to which he replied confusingly, "What? No, I'm perfectly fi--" His head spun and his vision suddenly tunneled, causing him to stumble out of balance and into the hard and dusty cave ground. "Sorry, just a little headache."

He continued after he stumbled, acting as if nothing was wrong with him, "We have to leave soon, but we can't. If we leave without having a compass and a map at the least, we're going to be sailing blindly again." After explaining, he proposed the plan to Avalon, "We can camp out until the night--" Hoshiya tried to stand, but he stumbled again on the cave wall as a raging headache started to persist in his head, groaning in pain as he held his temple trying to ease the persisting ache. "Ugh... Shit."

The adrenaline from docking on the island and seeing the villagers left his body, leaving him to feel the dire symptoms of fatigue, hunger, and sleep deprivation.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

“Huh? Wha?” Avalon blubbered as Hoshiya’s condition deteriorated further. “Wait...have you not slept in three days!?”

Locking arms at the shoulder, Avalon and Hoshiya supported one another as they headed back to the dock, not imposing on Lyna any more than they had to. “Let’s get to the boat and we’ll figure everything out. We’re gonna need more food and water too, huh?”

It took a fair bit of time, but when they returned to their small boat, they weren’t alone. The boat had been pulled up onto the shore. Lyna wasn’t even trying to hide. As they got closer, she spoke before Avalon could ask what was going on. “Ah! Oh no~ It looks like when you guys docked you hit some rocks, you’ll need some repairs first.” Sure enough, there was a gash in the wooden hull, an open invitation for the ocean to board.

“What the hell!?” Avalon barked. Hoshiya slipped from his grasp as he stepped forward suddenly, the exhausted man collapsing to the sand.

“How could this have happened?” Lyna mused.

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

"Damn it..." Hoshiya cursed as he let Avalon carry him from behind. "This is shameful, but thanks." Aside from the full extent of the Zenko-style sword art, his Master's ego was also projected to him. That ego being: "Be sustaining, be self-recognizing, and most importantly, be self-important." If anyone from his homeland were to see him in this pitiful state, they would've done more than shout at him for being an embarrassment. As for Hoshiya, however, it didn't really affect him much, and he'd be more appreciative of Avalon for helping him.

As they approached the beach, Hoshiya's eyes widened in surprise as he saw the boat literally pulled up to the shore by this lioness girl. Hoshiya stumbled onto the sand as Avalon rushed to see the damage, with Hoshiya struggling to even stand as his knees kept buckling from exhaustion.

With a careful, non-judging thought, he internally mused, "She pulled up the boat to the shore alone?" Followed by an unintentional mutter that he hoped wouldn't be heard by her, "For a girl her size, is she actually a small gorilla?"

"Sorry, Avalon!" Hoshiya apologized. He was the one who docked the boat but on the other hand, he also wasn't sure if that damage was already there before. The blue-hair knew he could've caused the boat to get gashed onto some rocks, but just didn't notice it because of his decreased senses from his fatigue. In any case, it was great the sloop didn't capsize before they docked.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

Avalon stared blankly at Hoshiya. “Uh...you’re kidding right?” Lyna looked to the side, averting her gaze. “SHE DID IT!”

Lyna gaped. “Did not! You’re lyin’!”

There was a rumble from Avalon’s throat. “What the hell are we supposed to do now? Weren’t we getting kicked off this place? It's not like we can fight them in our state.”

Lyna’s hands fluttered as she explained, “Well, if we go and explain it to the rest of the tribe I’m sure it’ll all work out!”

“WHAT KIND OF FAIRY TALE WORLD DO YOU THINK THIS IS!?”

“Oh, getting aggressive, now?” came a voice from the treeline. Avalon and Lyna titled their heads to see Ringo's lax posture and bold tattoos.

“Who are you?” Avalon snarled.

Ringo ignored him, moving past the two pirates to Lyna’s side. Seeing the gash in the boat, he noted, “Oh, they’re stuck here now. I guess they should be killed for antagonizing one of our own, even if she’s an outcast.” Flashing an eye to Avalon, he added, "You admitted that you'd fight us if you could."

Lyna’s dark skin went a bit paler. “N-no!” There was a rush of motion, Ringo kicking back, Lyna hurtling back and splashing into the tides. Avalon reached for his chain, but the bolt was empty, nothing having replaced its original cannonball.

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

Hoshiya blinked in confusion. At first, he couldn't understand why a stranger would destroy their boat. It took him a few moments to process that: [A stranger helps Avalon --> said stranger is angry that Avalon wouldn't pay her --> stranger storms into their boat --> their boat is suddenly wrecked without them noticing.]

It's only when Avalon retorted and Hoshiya saw the literal fist-shaped hole in the hull of the boat that he exclaimed, "Ah! You bitch! You destroyed our boat!" albeit the late reaction.

As the lioness girl and Avalon argued, a man's familiar voice spoke from beyond the trees. "Ringo... I encountered him earlier. He's not good news," After explaining about the burly, tattooed man to Avalon, Hoshiya's expression hardened, fully ignoring his weakening state. The swordsman stood on guard, his hand held on the sheath of his sword.

It was only when Lyna got kicked to the watery shores that Hoshiya felt compelled enough to fight Ringo. He dashed towards him, his sword still unsheathed but he held his sheath at the ready. Hoshiya unsheathed his sword at the last second, embedding his sword with lightning as he tried to slash Ringo's chest.

At the last second, Hoshiya noticed something wrong. At the height of his slash, there was no crackle of lightning that came out from his sword. "Shit, there's no lightning?!" He panicked as he threw out a weak slash at Ringo instead of a lightning-imbued attack.

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

Ringo’s arm flashed, the man drawing a pair of short spears, lightly concealed under his hide and leather. But the sound deflecting Hoshiya’s blade wasn’t of those bone tips, but metal. An axe held against the sword, Lyna standing in between the two, her waterlogged lioness hide left in the shallows, her hand brandishing a second, matching one, the steel glinting in the sunlight. Ringo sneered.

Lyna had a desperation in her eyes. “Please, leave him to me. If you fight, he wins, even if you beat him.”

Ringo raised his arm, smashing his elbow into Lyna’s face. As she buckled, he kicked out, knocking her away. “Are you joking?” Lyna got back to one knee, hacking a glob of blood from her mouth with a defiant look. “I’m the strongest warrior in the Sharp Jaw Tribe. Or did you not know, since you’ve been gone for the last 5 years? What’s a runaway like you going to do with a couple of weapons made by outsiders? If metal was all that mattered then we wouldn’t have been able to chase them off!” His cry was punctuated with a thrust of his weapon, Lyna gaining a scratch on the cheek as she barely dodged. Flipping the grip on her axe, she swung it backhanded, Ringo ducking as the blade sailed over his head. The strike went exactly where it intended, carving right through the wood shaft of one of Ringo’s spears.

Sending out a quick jab with his other spear that went wide, Ringo retreated, backing off. Lyna stepped forward slowly, both axes out to the side. “Metal is strong, right? And we don’t know how to make it. That’s somethin’ we could learn from the outsiders.”

Ringo glared out of his lone eye. “You’re just a child who has no memory of losing anything to those bastards! The more we see of them the more chances we have to lose!” Ringo stomped forward, as did Lyna. He suddenly stopped his charge, kicking sand upward, Lyna taking a dusting right to the face. His remaining spear struck through her bicep. Coughing away the cloud of sand, Lyna flexed her muscle, Ringo unable to remove his weapon as the flesh tensed around it. Her mouth opened and she bit down onto Ringo’s shoulder, the man crying out as the two collapsed.

Lyna pulled back, once again spitting blood from her mouth. Yanking the spear out of her arm, she tossed it aside as Ringo sat up, anger rising. “I learned how to do that to keep snakes from strikin’ more than once.” Running her thumb across her mouth, she held up a spattering of Ringo’s blood. “And I did that because I wanted to remind you that we’re still comrades. Our blood’s mixed together. We don’t have to let the outsiders take from us, but why can’t we take from them? Just like we take knowledge from our land, and each other?”

Ringo hopped to his feet, hissing, “We’re one with each other, and our home, even through predation and prey. There’s more of those outsiders than there are stars in the sky! If we become one with them we’ll be swallowed up, one way or another! Now strike me down like the wannabe outsider that you are!”

Lyna’s expression didn’t change, her determination clear. She lobbed, one of her axes landing at Ringo’s feet. He flashed his teeth in derision, before picking up the weapon. Feeling it out, he waved it back and forth, then flipped it about, catching it by the handle with no fear. “Then I’ll show you...who’s stronger,” Lyna claimed

Ringo let a manic glee overtake him. “Not in a million years!” Like a jaguar, he pounced, axe in both hands. Lyna met his strike, the metal implements ringing out like a bell. Meters away, birds fluttered off as they fled the sounds of war. Metal flecked from both axes, and they planted their feet to launch another mutual strike. Ringo’s blade went a bit high, its arc not quite able to reach Lyna, while her axe struck the lowest part of the metal head, the lower curve just above the wooden handle. Like a ball hit by a stick, Ringo’s axe was flung out of hands, twirling away and digging into a tree, sticking like glue, the shaft reverberating from the two impacts. Ringo’s hands shook, but still he pulled back and launched a fist, striking in desperation. Lyna shifted her axe to the arm that had been stabbed earlier, launched her other fist forward, their knuckles meeting. Once again, Ringo buckled, his arm flying back, disbelief passing over him. Huh? How...how can she be stronger than me!? His axe strike earlier had gone wide for his hesitation, his inability to so easily strike down a young kinsman, but for this exchange, he had no excuse. His mind flashed with scenes of his spars with fellow warriors, his equal among them nonexistent. Even so, his defeats against the other tribes were crushing. A problem posed without an answer. He couldn’t visualize Lyna’s constant battles against the wildlife, against herself.

Avalon had his own observation, speaking more to himself than to Hoshiya. “Yeah...I thought so. When you’re alone and you don’t have anyone else to rely on, you have to get strong.” A dark look crossed his face, his arms crossing across his chest. “Not half bad.”

Lyna brandished her axe. Ringo stood his ground. “FINE, YOU WIN! FINISH IT!”

“I’m not gonna kill you,” Lyna remarked casually.

“Then-” Ringo’s words were interrupted as Lyna’s axe came down. His eyes bulged as blood erupted from his chest. Avalon felt his jaw drop. Ringo fell down, his consciousness gone.

Wiping beads of sweat and specks of blood off her forehead, Lyna pulled out a leaf wrapped poultice of the same salve applied to Avalon earlier. “I can just put you back together again! Neeheeheehee!” Her toothy smile seemed to capture rays straight from the sun.

 

[takki]

Setting: Beach, Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

Hoshiya heard a loud metal clang erupting from his blade, indicating it had been blocked not by Ringo, but by Lyna herself. Unlike the bone-tipped spears the tattooed man brandished, Lyna pulled out a metal axe that blocked his slashing attack. "Y-you...?" He reacted in surprise. He knew that he might not have been able to handle Ringo in his current state, but out of gratitude for her for helping Avalon, he sheathed his sword and stepped back. He sat beside Avalon--or rather, fell down on his rear as his knees buckled once again from exhaustion.

As Hoshiya watched Ringo and the lioness girl fight, he was fortunate that he was only told to go. The way they fight is unlike the low-bounty pirates from Black Star. They were far more experienced—each strike matching a killing intent and their innate strength to compliment their brute-forced technique.

When Ringo fell, Hoshiya's back also fell on the sand, his arms spread and his hand gripping his sheathed sword. He stared at the bright blue sky away from the blinding rays of the sun. It reflected the wild girl's energy, yet her personality was not in any way bright and "moral." Thinking she was really going to kill Ringo, only for her to stop at the last second while barely leaving him at the edge of his life.

"Hey captain, are we really safe with that woman?" Hoshiya asked in full seriousness. "If we sleep with her around, I wouldn't be surprised if one of our limbs becomes dinner for her."

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

Avalon balked at Hoshiya’s words, wincing, “Well she does have those teeth, but…” Scratching his head, he was clearly not sure what to think. Lyna was busy with her treatment, caking the wound in her salve, the blood flow stopped. Dragging him under the shade of the closest tree, she didn’t even get the chance to speak before Avalon roared, “What gives, huh? That was our ship!”

“W-well, it’s like this...I need your help! The whole island does!”

“Like I give a shit! Even if you’re tribe didn’t want us here, I don’t want to be here either! I’m a pirate! I’ve got better places to be.”

Lyna put her fists up, “If you want somethin’ we can give it to you!”

Avalon huffed. “Fine, then make this place a paradise.” Snapping his fingers, he snipped, “Chop chop.”

Lyna’s arms fell to her side. She muttered, “The foreigners who were here before, the ones who killed my parents...I heard that’s what they were trying to do. They wanted to make a paradise for themselves…”

Scratching his head, Avalon took a few steps away, heading back to the boat. “Rough luck then.” Lyna stood by, looking between Hoshiya and Avalon helplessly.

 

[takki]

Setting: Beach, Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

Hoshiya mustered all the strength he could to stand up. In such weakened states, both the swordsman and his captain wouldn't be able to get out of this island if they messed with their self-contained island-related affairs. It was ideal for them not to get cooked as meat, but it was also ideal for them not to travel without food and basic navigation tools.

He followed Avalon's direction, heading back to the boat while thinking about how they were going to patch a big hole in the hull of their boat. But as stubborn as this girl was, he couldn't help but look at her annoyingly, eye-twitching at her desperation as if to express, "Do you want us to get killed, woman!?" He couldn't muster enough energy to say that out loud though.

But he also realized he could capitalize on her desperation, he said, "Well, if you're so insistent, maybe we can help you at a price," He gave Avalon a side-eye just to see if he was also going with his plan. Hoshiya uttered his terms:

1. Don't kill us, eat us, or feed us to animals here
2. Give us food, preferably lots of meat and fruit
3. A map and a compass
4. A new boat since you destroyed it
5. Treat us like kings of the tribe

"If you agree, we'll help you," Hoshiya said in full confidence. I mean, what kind of help does a tribal community want from a couple of outsiders? Make a fire? Figure out the laws of the sea?

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

Lyna crossed her arms, head titled as she mulled over Hoshiya’s proposition. Avalon grumbled, “Well, I guess that’d be fine.”

Lyna seemed to grow more and more concerned. “The first one is easy, but...I don’t have enough food for that. I got a compass lyin’ around somewhere-”

“Don’t tell them that!” came a pained call. Letting out a groan, Ringo slumped to his side, having tried to stand but managing it very badly. Ringo insisted, “They’ll just steal it and go.”

“Our boat’s busted, asshole.”

Lyna tapped her fingertips together. “And I dunno how to fix it either, we don’t have any boats on the island.”

Ringo growled, “Fuck.” A few moments of standstill passed, an impasse reached. “...Dammit, I think we have to talk to Chopi about it.”

Lyna lit up, Avalon shaking his head in derision, but offering no words in counter. Running to grab her lioness pelt, she shook out as much seawater as she good before pointing her finger northward. "Let's go!"

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

The line of thought running on Hoshiya's mind was, "You gave us this much trouble while we only wanted some things, we deserve to have at least those things!" But he could never admit to them that he was literally going to steal from their tribes in a true pirate-like fashion. He was also a bit surprised when Ringo himself had no choice but to accept his terms.

"W-well! Our terms can be negotiated in a future time..." He stuttered. The truth is, he still wasn't sure if they were not going to get eaten by the tribes, especially since they hadn't seen the "less-friendly" tribes who were also supposedly inhabiting this island.

As they walked across the forest, Hoshiya glanced at the lion-pelted girl, "I haven't caught your name yet. I'm Hoshiya," he introduced. "Why did you say that the whole island needs our help anyway?"

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

“Hmm? Oh, I’m Lyna.” The group managed their way through the rippling grassland, slowly, the eve starting to come. “I’ll just explain it when we get there, since we have to talk to the elder too.”

The group arrived before the last of the days light was gone. Ringo’s calls were answered, the few dozen Sharp Jaw men and women taking note. Soon enough, a meeting was called. The entire tribe assembled by the bonfire. In the center sat five people. Lyna took a spot in front of Hoshiya and Avalon, the former still so clearly exhausted. Opposite them were Chopi and Ringo. Numerous suspicious eyes and mouths without smiles glinted in the low light of the evening.

Chopi shook his head. “You continue to make trouble for us, Lyna. That’s why we don’t allow you to stay here with us, except during celebrations and War Councils.”

Avalon huffed. “In fairness, as much as I want to be gone, we really can’t, even if our boat wasn’t busted.”

Chopi let out a sigh. “Well, we can’t let you stay here. Your kind has caused us enough trouble in our lifetimes.”

“Don’t care. We have nothing to do with them.”

Lyna butt in. “W-wait! Don’t you see the issue? We can’t keep going like this!” the girl stood, addressing the crowd. “This is our home, and I want it to stay that way. But if the outsiders really wanted, they could take it all for themselves. We’re not strong enough to fight them! We don’t know how to live in that world! But there’s things that can help us, right? With their weapons, we could protect ourselves. With their medicine, we don’t have lose so many of our people.”

“And what do we have to offer them that they can’t just take for themselves?” Lyna’s mouth went quiet. “Things are best the way they are.”

“No they aren’t! Forget the outsiders, we can’t even manage against the other tribes, normally, let alone while I’m like this.” Ringo grunted as he shifted his sitting position slightly. “I don’t agree with letting these outsiders have their way with our home either, but this year’s War Council is going to go the same way as it always does, and we’re going to be just as hungry next year.” The crowd murmured, Ringo’s words having a resonance to them.

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

"Lyna. Thank you for helping Avalon," Hoshiya said in gratitude as they made their way back to the village. As the sun set, the darkness of the island intensified to the point that it wouldn't be safe anymore to wander the forest without a light. Coupled with the eerie roars of animals from a distance, from which Ringo and Lyna seemed unfazed, Hoshiya was slightly relieved he didn't have to go through his plan of traversing the unknown just to get some supplies.

As the whole village gathered around the bonfire, he took his seat behind Lyna. The village people around had their eyes stuck to both Avalon and Hoshiya, murmuring unintelligible words. He stopped glancing to his sides and focused on the village elder Chopi instead, with the injured Ringo sitting beside him.

Lyna defended Avalon and Hoshiya, but Chopi was still adamant about not taking them into their tribe. If the two died somewhere on the island, he was sure they couldn't care even less, except for probably Lyna.

"This conversation is going nowhere. If we can't change Chopi's mind, we'll be good as dead meat," thought Hoshiya. Even when the lioness girl tried to persuade her community, Ringo's counter-argument still had a deeper impact on the village people.

Hoshiya inched beside Lyna, his knees dug into the ground as he addressed to Chopi, "Let us help you!" The swordsman said adamantly. "Avalon and I, Hoshiya, bear the knowledge of the outside world. We know about their weapons, techniques, and practices, but the two of us are not like the pirates. We will teach you, and we will swear an oath not to harm or steal. We won't ask for anything more than food, water, and wood for our boat."

He continued speaking, hoping that Avalon would agree with everything he was saying, "And as for the War Council, let us fight in your place."

Code By Nano

 

[Craftsdwarf]

“Oi,” Avalon grunted. “This place isn’t our responsibility. I just want to get to the next island. Maybe you know about all that stuff, but I don’t. Not that spending the rest of our lives here pretending we’re helping is really going to do them any good.” Turning to the crowd, he exclaimed, “And I’m not going to lie, I’m a pirate!”

The crickets from beyond were about all the sound that filled the air. Lyna hissed, “Er, not everyone here knows what a pirate is.”

Avalon balked. “R-really? Well, there’s normal people who just live in houses and stuff, then pirates who come around a pillage, against the law.” There was a murmur of apprehension. Avalon insisted, “You don’t have to worry about yourselves, you ain’t got anything worth taking.”

Chopi admitted. “Indeed. You seem mistaken, Hoshiya. If what your friend Avalon says is accurate, then those weren’t pirates who came 15 years ago. They were simply normal men and women, seeking a normal life, by their standards. One incompatible with our own.”

“B-but-” Lyna began, but Ringo stepped in.

“Stop it. Avalon said it wouldn’t do any good anyway. Sorry but you’ve been wasting your life obsessing over those foreigners.”

Lyna bit her lip, before turning to Avalon. “What did you mean by that? What do you mean it won’t do any good!?”

Avalon sighed. “This is lawless land. The whole planet is ruled by the World Government. You have to pay a shitload of gold to them each year or you don’t count as human, and until you do the Marines or pirates can do whatever they want.” Running a hand over his chest, he explained, “See this? This was caused by a Marine. And I’m no slouch. He wasn’t even one of the top dogs, not even close. Better to keep your head down and pray no one else comes here. It’s pretty out of the way. The more noise you make, the bigger chance you have to attract any unwanted attention.”

As the sun set, a dark chill overtook the tribesfolk. Lyna seemed distraught, head bowed, fingertips digging into her thigh. “It’s not fair...”

Chopi shook his head. “There you have it Lyna.” Facing Avalon and Hoshiya, he said, “The three tribes have collectively agreed that no foreign presence will be tolerated on the island. We cannot let you fight for us. We’ll give you a place to rest for the night, and one meal, but from then on you are on your own. If you take more than you are offered, or are seen again after tomorrow morning, we will have no choice but to have you killed. And Lyna.” He turned to the teen girl. “We can no longer support you. You are no longer welcome with the Sharp Jaw Tribe.”

 

[takki]

Setting: Sunscar Island
Characters: Hoshiya

Hoshiya's adamant proposal was shut down, and Avalon's rejection had an even larger impact than Chopi's. From his childhood, he knew about the horrors and inequality that were rampant in this world. So, he had to cope with it by being hospitable to others, making sure that they stayed blind to reality while Hoshiya pursued his dreams while making sure that no innocent person would be caught up with it.

But Avalon stated the truth to these people. They were a lawless land, ungoverned by the Marines and untouched by the pirates. They survived on their island they already considered their world, treating those outside as hostile people, and Hoshiya couldn't blame them for that. "In this world, everyone is just trying their best to survive," he recalled the words Avalon implied to him when he joined his crew. He couldn't face the truth, and for that, he expressed dissatisfaction to himself, "Damn it...!" He cursed himself/

Hoshiya bowed in gratitude, thankful that Chopi still gave them a meal and a place to sleep for tonight. Everything was fine before this until Chopi said, "And Lyna., we can no longer support you. You are no longer welcome with the Sharp Jaw Tribe."

Hearing those words made Hoshiya glance angrily at Chopi, outraged at his sudden line, "That's unfair, you shouldn't bring Lyna to our punishment! Lyna and Ringo over there had a battle to death earlier, and if it wasn't for her, he wouldn't be sitting on your faces right now!"

Code By Nano