Nearly everyone cried as they boarded the beloved ship. It was a wonder how she got there, but the Merry was their savior at that very moment. Now the only thing everyone had to focus on, was escaping this place in one piece.
"How did the Merry get here?!" Nami wondered aloud.
"That's not important right now! Give us orders! We need to get outta here!" Zoro grunted.
"Man! That was close!" Luffy gasped as he, Chopper, and Robin were placed onto the ship, thanks to Kokoro. "I thought the warships were gonna kill me!" Luffy exclaimed. He turned over his head. "Hey, Robin! You saved me! Thank you-" He was cut off by a hand growing from the deck to cover his mouth.
"Everyone...Thank you!" Everyone smiled at Robin as she thanked them.
"Don't worry about it!" Luffy laughed.
"Talk nonsense after we get out of here!" Zoro huffed, immediately ruining the mood.
"What do you mean 'nonsense' marimo!!!" Sanji snarled, attacking the swordsman. Chopper jumped in as well, latching onto Zoro's leg with his teeth.
"Shut up! If we die here, everything would have been for nothing!" Zoro spat, blocking Sanji's kicks with his sword.
"Sanji-kun! Go steer the ship please!" Nami called out, Sanji immediately following orders. The marines began preparing to shoot at them with canons, under a swollen-faced Spandam's orders.
"That Spanda bastard! He's still alive?!" Franky cursed. Nami began shouting out orders to move the ship out of there, but it was too late. They were surrounded.
"Fire!" Canons began to shoot.
"Here they come!" Usopp cried out, only to look on in surprise as the canons missed and were shot at the marines behind them. "Huh? Friendly-fire?"
"What's going on?" Y/n questioned, her jaw dropping slightly as she watched the giant gates before her closing, creating strong currents in the water, throwing the marines every which way.
"Whoa! That was more than I expected!" Sanji hummed.
"Sanji?" Y/n turned to look at the cook. He only smiled at her.
"They're not the kind of enemy that we can get away from with just our guts, right?" Y/n let out a huff of amusement at his response.
"Amazing Sanji!!!" Usopp, Luffy, and Chopper exclaimed praise to the cook.
"Don't be too happy!" Zoro called out. "The whirlpools are dangerous for us too!"
"Ah! We're gonna die!" Chopper cried out.
"Shut up! There is no sea that the Merry can't cross!" Nami exclaimed. "Not while we're on it!" As the navigator was studying the currents to find a way out, the marines had begun shooting again. Zoro and Sanji grabbed Luffy, using him as a net to catch the canon balls, bouncing them back with the male's rubber body.
"Are you guys devils?!" Usopp spat, the monster trio only holding up peace signs at their success.
"I see a path to victory!" Nami exclaimed. "Chopper! Hard to port!" She gave orders, the reindeer enthusiastic to follow.
"Let's go!!!" Luffy cheered. From the distance, the crew could hear Spandam shouting, livid at the thought of Robin escaping. Said woman silently lifted her arms, activating her powers.
"Clutch!" With a simple action, Spandam was broken. Y/n walked up to Robin and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Let's get out of here, shall we?" The goddess smirked, Robin smiling back softly.
"Franky!" Nami called out.
"All right!" The cyborg moved to the back of the ship, holding his arms out in front of him. "This will probably hurt the ship a little, but..!! Coup de Vent!!!" With a huge blast of air, the Merry was shooting off into the sky, away from the marines, away from this nightmare.
The waters were calm now, the skies sunny. Kokoro moved Luffy to his special seat atop Merry's head.
"We managed to get away thanks to you. Thank you, Merry!" The rubber man smiled largely.
"You guys really did something outrageous..." Franky sighed.
"We only took back our nakama, who was taken away from us!" Luffy giggled.
"And that nakama better have learned her lesson..." Y/n raised a teasing brow at Robin, who chuckled and nodded in response.
"This fight, is our victory!" Everyone cheered. The Merry kept on sailing forward, the crew unknowing of where it was headed.
"It's strange..." Nami hummed. "I checked, but there's no one else on board." Nami hummed.
"I did hear a voice calling us..." Zoro added.
"Like I said, it was Merry's voice!" Luffy huffed.
"Eh?! Really?!" Chopper gasped.
"Right, Merry?! Say something!" Luffy looked to the ram head at the front of the ship.
"Idiot, there's no way a ship could talk." Zoro grumbled.
"Maybe not a ship...No..." Y/n walked up to the rail of the Merry, placing a gentle hand on the roughened wood.
"What is it, y/n-swan?" Sanji questioned, everyone watching her curiously.
"It's-" But the goddess was cut off as Luffy shouted out.
"Look! A ship's coming from ahead!" He announced, pointing at said ship.
"It's the Galley-La's company ship!" Franky exclaimed.
"Ice-ossan!" Luffy smiled, waving at the mayor of Water 7. Before anything else could be said, a loud croaking of wood sounded, the front half of the Merry breaking off, leaning forward into the water. "What's going on all of a sudden?!" Luffy shouted out. Y/n furrowed her brows and looked to Usopp, who had put his mask back on.
"This isn't all of a sudden..." Y/n muttered.
"She's right. They did say that the Merry couldn't go on any further. Did you forget?" Sanji huffed.
"But-!" Luffy looked conflicted. "Ice-ossan! Merry's in danger! Do something!" He turned the the large ship before them. "She's a nakama that has traveled with us all this time! And just now too...She saved us!" Luffy pleaded.
"Then..." Iceburg spoke. "Let her sleep." Everyone looked up at the man. "We've done all we possibly can. I'm seeing a miracle right now..."
"A miracle?" The Straw Hat crew listened on, confused as to what he was getting at.
"I've been a shipwright for many years, yet I've never seen such an amazing pirate ship. It lived a very admirable life." Iceburg nodded. After a moment of silence, Luffy finally spoke up again.
"I understand." Everyone was transferred onto a smaller boat, leaving Merry alone in the water. Luffy was put on a separate boat, a torch in hand. "Then...Are you guys ready?" With heavy hearts, the crew nodded.
"Merry...The bottom of the sea is dark and lonely. We'll see you off here!" Luffy looked up at his beloved ship. "Maybe it's better that Usopp isn't here...There's no way he could endure this..." Luffy muttered.
"And what do you say to that?" Zoro spoke softly, Usopp standing next to him in his disguise.
"He'll be alright." The sniper nodded. "A time of separation has come. When men part ways...tears should not be shed. He's fully prepared for this moment." Y/n shifted her gaze from Usopp to Luffy, who had thrown the torch onto the ship, setting the wood alight.
"Thank you for carrying us all this time...Merry." Everyone watched as their nakama burned, some shedding tears, others watching with a brave face. Y/n placed a hand over her heart, closing her eyes. This was another loved one lost, but for once, she was okay. She knew Merry was happy, she knew Merry had fulfilled her unspoken quest.
"I'm sorry..." A mystical voice spoke, surprising everyone. "I wanted to carry you...just a little bit further...I wanted to...go on more adventures with you..."
"We're the ones who have to apologize, Merry!!" Luffy cried out. "I'm not good at navigating, and I crashed you into an iceberg! I even ripped the sail sometimes, and Sanji and Zoro are stupid, so they broke a lot of stuff too! Usopp tried to fix you, but he's not good at it either! We're so sorry!"
"But I was happy..." At those words, y/n's hand clenched tighter at the fabric resting upon her chest. "Thank you for...taking good care of me until now...I was really happy."
"A ship may not be able to talk...But its soul...Its soul communicates with ways in which humanity couldn't hope to understand." Y/n muttered.
"MERRY!!!"
~
Y/n sat on the docks, a bottle of sake next to her as her only company. The sound of the ocean waves calmed her, the breeze felt good flowing through her hair.
"Where do we go next?" She questioned to no one. Closing her eyes, she immediately opened them, seeing visions again. For the past two days, she could not rest well. It's like these visions were ingrained into the back of her eyelids. Every time she closed her eyes, she had visions of the same thing. Something big, powerful. It was all a blur though. She couldn't recall the visions clearly, but they still haunted her all the same.
Though there was one vision that was unlike the rest. It wasn't big or darkened with fear and malice. It was bright, almost blinding. There were few features she could make out and remember. A crown, made of pure gold, small but intricate. There were jewels that hung down from the rim, resting lightly on the brow of the figure. The eyes were a glowing white, no iris nor pupil, just pure, untainted white. The rest she couldn't remember well, but the sword clutched in the blurry hand glowing gold. It was familiar, but not terribly so.
Sighing out, y/n took a swig of her sake, hoping to release her worries to the sea breeze. Fast, heavy footsteps ruined her peace.
"Y/n?" Said goddess turned her head and found an out of breath Zoro behind her.
"What?" She raised a curious brow.
"Marines." Was all he could get out before y/n stood up and dashed towards the crew's hideout.
"Why did you come to me? Why didn't you go straight to Luffy and the others?" She growled, dashing through the crowd.
"Uh..." Zoro had a slight blush on his face, embarrassed.
"Oh right..." Y/n rolled her eyes. "Of course the one person who spotted the marines first was the most clueless when it came to directions."
"Shut up!" Zoro spat, following her as they approached the hideout, a makeshift Galley-La headquarters, seeing as the last one was burned down. They cursed as they saw a large group of marines already there. Unsheathing her rapier, y/n thinned the crowd, Zoro doing the same. Their screams alerted the others.
"Hey! Zoro! Y/n! You don't need to fight!" Luffy called out, distracting y/n. A pink haired marine tried to take that opportunity to attack.
"Cancer: Clutch!" Y/n clenched her fist and the pink haired marine hovered in the air, shocked and confused by the invisible grip around his waist. With a growl, y/n threw the man down into the grass. Zoro had just defeated another marine as well, these two seeming stronger than the others.
"Bwahahahaha!" Y/n looked towards an old man in the headquarters, standing near a large hole in the wall. "They are no match!!" The man laughed.
"You guys are strong...Amazing!" The pink haired marine slowly stood up from the floor, y/n's grip on her rapier loosening as he spoke up again. "I give up." He turned towards Luffy. "Luffy-san...Zoro-san...Long time no see!"
"Huh? Who are you?" Luffy tilted his head.
"It's me! Coby!" The pink haired male introduced himself, causing Luffy's and Zoro's jaws to drop.
"For real?!" Luffy cried out.
"How did he end up in the Grand Line?!" Zoro added.
"We're here now, thanks to you!" Coby smiled and saluted. Y/n walked up to the rest of the crew, raising a confused brow. They only shrugged, just as clueless as she. Rolling her eyes as the marines started to fuss again, mainly about the big hole in the wall, y/n took a seat at the table.
"Your grandpa sure is something..." Sanji muttered to Luffy, watching the powerful marine kneeling next to the wall, hammering down new planks with his subordinates.
"Grandpa...?" Y/n furrowed her brow.
"Yeah. Apparently the Vice Admiral Garp is Luffy's grandpa..." Nami sighed.
"By the way, Luffy. I heard you met your dad." Garp chuckled.
"Eh? Dad? What do you mean, dad? I have a dad?" Luffy questioned.
"Oh? He didn't introduce himself?" Garp hummed. "I heard he saw you off at Loguetown!"
"Loguetown..." Zoro grunted.
"Luffy's dad was in that town?" Sanji furrowed his brow.
"What's my dad like?" Luffy questioned.
"Your father's name is Monkey D. Dragon, the revolutionary." It was silent for a while after Garp spoke, only for that silence to be broken by panicked screams.
"Why are you all panicking?" Luffy looked around, confused.
"Idiot!" Sanji spat. "You haven't heard the name Dragon?!" Robin began to explain what the revolutionaries were and what they did, causing further panic.
"Ack! Maybe I shouldn't've said anything..." Garp mumbled. He chuckled, telling everyone to just forget this conversation like it never happened.
"I see idiocy runs in the family..." Y/n groaned.
After everyone calmed themselves, the marines finished patching up the hole in the wall before preparing to take off.
"You're my grandson! That's why I won't capture you here!" Garp declared.
"That's not an excuse at all...Just say 'they got away'..." One of Garp's subordinates sweatdropped.
"I'll be leaving now." The Vice Admiral smiled.
"Okay, bye." Luffy nodded, earning himself a punch in the face.
"That's way too dull!" Garp spat. "Be a little more reluctant, you idiot! You haven't seen me for a while!"
"What do you want me to do?! All you've done is hit me!" Luffy retorted.
"Even so, I still want to be loved by my grandson!" Their banter had y/n chuckling in amusement.
~
Opening her eyes, y/n relaxed under the water, taking deep breaths and exhaling rings of air. Breaching the water's surface, y/n pulled her hair back out of her face, sighing out at the warmth of the sun contrasting with the cold water of the pool.
"Y/n-swan! Nami-san! Robin-chan! The mizu-mizu meat is ready!" Sanji called over, the boys jumping at the food, the girls only smiling and taking their time. The smell of the delicious barbecue attracted nearly all of Water Seven. The Franky Family, the Galley-La company, everyone joined.
"You shameless girl! What are you wearing!!" Paulie blushed and pointed an accusing finger at y/n, who was lifting herself out of the pool. The goddess only raised a brow as she reached for a towel to dry herself off.
"A swimsuit." She answered simply. It was a strapless one piece with a floral print, her gills on her neck flexing and relaxing as she breathed, her scales and fins shining in the setting sun.
"Y/n-swan!!!" Sanji called again, dancing over to hand y/n a plate of food, hearts in his eyes. The goddess sighed and shook her head with a smile.
"Thanks Sanji." She grabbed the plate, shooing him off. The crew partied all night, eating delicious food, sharing stories, and generally having a great time. It wasn't until y/n was alone under the stars again, that she fell back into her mind. Unsheathing her sword, y/n looked at it, admiring its shine and sharp edge. Her eyes stayed on the words engraved within the hilt, the message she had discovered after her encounter with Aokiji. "...which you dread more...the echo or the answer..." She read some of it aloud. She couldn't understand what it meant, if it meant anything at all.
After reading the print again, y/n noticed something else that wasn't there before. Looking closer, y/n noticed a carving of what seemed to be some sort of stone or crystal. Running her finger over the carving, y/n closed her eyes and another vision ran through her. She felt the pressure of water surrounding her, pushing against her, pulling her down. Her hands were tied, her ankle locked with a ball and chain dragging her down. And despite all this, she felt calm, in control.
Opening her eyes, y/n looked around her. No more vision, just the dock she had been sitting on for the past few hours. Alone. Sighing, she stood up, deciding it was time to head back to the crew. Another day, another mystery added to the arsenal she still had yet to solve.