"GRANDPA RYU!" Apis looked like she was going to run directly into the sea to rescue the slowly sinking dragon.
"She can't swim!" Nami screamed, "she's eaten a devil fruit!"
"I'm on it!" Usopp jumped into the sea and swam to the small boat.
You watched as Luffy talked to Ryu. He was too far away from the Merry for you or Nami to hear what he was actually saying.
Nami's eyes narrowed, "Those bastards..."
"Well," you looked towards the flagship, "From what Smoker told me, this is something Nelson would pull." You gritted your teeth as the obnoxious flagship fired a harpoon at the dragon, "Selfish obese bastard."
Luffy caught the weapon easily, and threw it back towards the flagship, "BASTARD!"
Nami whooped, "I hope it hit that fat-ass!"
"Well he is a very large target according to my sources. I would be surprised if he misses."
"LET ME GO! GRANDPA RYU NEEDS ME!"
"GUYS, COULD USE A BIT OF HELP HERE!" Usopp was in the little rowboat trying to restrain a struggling Apis.
With your help he brought the resisting girl onto the deck. Nami tied her tightly to his back.
"GRANDPA RYU NEEDS MY HELP!"
You jerked a thumb at your captain, who seemed to be talking to the dragon again, "Cap's with him, so you can be certain that Gramps will be safe. No offence, but what would you be able to do?"
"She's right," Nami smiled, "You and Ryu are our friends, and Luffy wouldn't let anything happen to a friend."
You rubbed your temple absentmindedly, "Besides, I think his wish has been fulfilled..."
"What?" The three of them turned to you, well Apis turned as much as she could considering she was facing the other way.
A mild tremor ran through the ocean, shaking the Merry.
"GYAA! THE ENTIRE OCEAN IS SHAKING! WHAT'S WITH THIS SEA?"
Turning to Nami, you tapped your chin, "Well Mello has a theory that seems pretty convincing. Don't you think the name 'Millennial Dragon' is a little odd?"
"I guess..." She tilted her head and crossed her arms, "I thought it referred to their life-span or something..."
"GRANDPA RYU! HE'S ALIVE!"
You looked over your shoulder as the dragon arched his neck and roared again. The sound wasn't as loud or as aggressive as when he roared before; you thought it sounded slightly melancholy.
Apis paled, "Grandpa ryu..."
"What's he crying for?" Usopp stood with his back to the railing so Apis could get a good view.
You smiled sadly, "It really does sound like he's crying this time, doesn't it?"
"He's calling them," Apis' eyes widened.
Nami and Usopp looked confusedly at each other.
"The Millennial Dragons scattered around the world," Apis tilted her head, 'The time has come,' that's what he's calling."
'That was nice deduction, Mello. It seems you were right' You could feel his smug satisfaction.
"I'm sorry Nami, but maybe they weren't named after their life-span." You grinned as dark shapes started to form on the horizon, "What if, they were named after their migratory period."
A flicker of realisation appeared in Nami's eyes, "No way..."
"O-oi, what're those?" Usopp pointed at the approaching shapes.
"They're," Nami's eyes widened, "Millennial Dragons!"
"So many..." The sniper's jaw dropped, "The sky's full of them!"
Your smile widened as many majestic green dragons flew over the Merry, each one at least twice the size of the little boat. They cried out in high pitched screams and squeaks, their shadows blotting out the sun above.
"I bet they're Grandpa Ryu's nakama!" Nami smiled in awe.
Apis smiled amidst the tears, "Yeah!"
Ryu collapsed, his final call answered. You could see Luffy rush to his side, and the two looked at each other before the rubber man nodded. He stood up, and faced the flagship.
"Gum-gum..." His arm stretched into the air, until it took hold of the neck of one of the Millennial Dragons, "ROCKET!" Luffy disappeared into the air, and you could vaguely see his leg elongate, "AND AXE!" The massive limb smashed the flagship cleanly in two, and Luffy's torso quickly followed behind.
"Grandpa...hurck...Ryu..." Apis was sobbing inconsolably. Nami hugged her as best as she could. You wanted to comfort the little girl, but hesitated.
'Nami's probably better than me at this sorta thing.'
"That is...very astute of you, Missy."
"NAMI-SWAN! I'M BAAAAAAAAACK~<3"
"Shut up and get on already!"
"Good work you two," Grinning, you waved from the deck as Zoro and Sanji boarded the Going Merry. Suddenly, a shiver went down your spine. You had barely any time to react when Luffy slammed on top of you hard enough to rock the entire boat.
"Yo!"
"Uuuugh....Cap...you're gonna really need to work on your aim a bit...and your landings..."
"GET OF (y/n)-CHAN, YOU BASTARD!"
"(y/n)? Why're you on the floor? You having a nap or something?"
"Do I look like Mop-boy to you?"
Another tremor, even bigger than the one before, started to make the Merry tremble.
Sanji fell on his side, "An earthquake?"
"Again?" Nami huddled near Usopp into a corner.
"Grandpa Ryu..." Apis was looking out at the spot where the dragon had been. He had sunk completely. She bowed her head, "My promise to Grandpa Ryu...I couldn't keep it..."
Luffy finally got off your back, and started to walk over to Apis. You rolled into a cross-legged position.
"I couldn't take him to the dragon's nest..." She slumped, fully defeated.
"Grandpa Ryu's wish came true."
Apis turned in shock to your captain.
"The dragons are calling. Can't you hear them?"
Her eyes widened as a large shockwave spread out from where Ryu had died. You braced yourself against the railing, eyes widening as you saw the land rising towards you from under the ocean.
"I do so love it when I am correct!"
'I really, really wish that I wasn't though...'
"You couldn't have stopped his death, Missy."
"When Mello thought that the name 'Millennial' could be related to their migratory period," Nami yelled over to you from where she was hanging on from on the other side of the Merry, "was he thinking about how often that their nest appeared from? Such as...every millenia!"
You smiled weakly as rocky outcrops erupted from beneath the sea, "The dragon's nest was right here all along! This flock couldn't all have appeared by chance if they were scattered across the entire world!"
"Lost Island...what a perfect name!" She grinned in awe, "If it only surfaces once every 1000 years, there is no way any living human would remember it surfacing! We are lucky enough to witness it resurface!"
The entire crew looked out upon the beautiful choral landscape as the circling dragons started to swoop down and crow in happiness. Even though you didn't really believe in chance, you were mildly surprised that the Merry had not been impaled by a large rock like some of the marine ships.
The noise was amazing, it sounded like you had entered some sort of tropical paradise. Screeching and crowing filled the air, as the crew and Apis disembarked the Merry.
"Amazing..." Usopp didn't know which way to look first. You couldn't really blame him, every direction was as spectacular as the last, with vibrant colours and little rock pools.
"Could this be..." Apis looked up at Luffy.
"Yup," he beamed, "This is the dragon's nest that Grandpa Ryu wanted to go return to."
The small girl suddenly saw a large body in the distance, and started to run in that direction.
"Oi! Oi, Apis!"
"APIS!"
Shaking your head at them, you pointed at the body of Grandpa Ryu. They stiffened. Nami clapped a hand to her mouth. Luffy began to walk with uncharacteristic seriousness towards the body, you and the rest of the crew following close behind.
Apis was up to her waist in water when you finally caught up, crying her eyes out.
Usopp bowed his head, "It feels like some strange twist of fate. The place Grandpa Ryu fell turned out to be the dragon's nest. I...I hope that he can feel at peace now."
"He's fine," Luffy declared confidently, "Before he sank, he said his wish had come true."
You walked over to one of the rock formations, "These sure are interesting shapes."
"I bet...these are Millennial Dragons." Sanji stepped behind you, "Look at this rock here, looks like a dragon, don't you think mademoiselle?"
Nami moved over beside you, "They do...and I think it's because during those 1000 years, they were under the ocean. Their bodies became calcified."
"I see..."
Zoro smirked at Usopp, "Did you understand a word of that?"
"Nope, not a bit."
"It does mean that neither Nelson or Eric will get a bit of dragonite out of them," you smiled weakly, before looking back at Apis.
She was bawling in front of your captain, "Grandpa Ryu, you liar...hic...this is the dragon's nest...hurk...If we've found the dragon's nest...then open your eyes! Talk to me! Get better again!"
"Silly gramps..." you muttered as her sobs echoed around the island, "this is why you should have told her."
Zoro looked at you in shock, "You knew..."
"I can see the future...why so surprised..." You looked down, "Believe me, I wanted to tell you guys...but he didn't want Apis to worry..."
"You're beating yourself up about something you couldn't have prevented."
'I hate this ability sometimes. He didn't deserve to die.'
You heard the swordsman hesitate, "...how much haven't you told us."
"There are things that I don't know about myself, and many others I'm still figuring out how they work. In this case I can only really see the lifespans of people who are definitely going to die if there is no intervention. And I only know about it if I make contact with them, so it's quite temperamental. Anyways," you raised your head to look at him, "everyone has things they want to keep to themselves."
Zoro paused before nodding.
"Have you been harassing (y/n)-chan, Moss head?" Sanji dashed over. "Are you alright, mademoiselle, is this green bastard annoying you?"
You giggled at Zoro's expression, "Thanks, Sanji, but I'm fine."
"(y/n)-CHWAN SAID MY NAME SO SEXILY AGAIN~<3"
"Missy...look over the other side of the lake."
Doing as Mello suggested, you watched as a round boulder shaped object cracked. Your eyes widened as a baby dragon emerged, and was quickly surrounded by adults crooning over it. The young dragon made eye contact with Apis, and to you it almost seemed to smile. It chirped happily.
'Is that who I think it is...'
"Judging by the look on the girl's face, I think so. She can talk to animals after all..."
She smiled determinedly as she walked away from the happy scene, "Thank you everyone. When Grandpa Ryu said, 'Return me to the dragon's nest', I think I understood what kind of place this might be, and why he wanted to return so badly."
"Apis..."
"It's incredible here," She grinned, "Now, let's go back to the village! I bet the villagers are scared out of their wits!"
Everyone smiled.
"You've got a strong will, kid," You tilted your head, "The village and the dragons are in safe hands!"
Luffy grinned from ear to ear, "Alright! Let's grab our ship and get off this island! Man I am hungry..."
As everyone started to walk back to the Merry, Luffy babbling to Sanji about what sort of meat he wanted, you started to feel a sense of unease, "Something's off..."
"You too?" Zoro grimaced.
Sanji puffed on his cigarette, "If that's coming from you of all people, this is not looking good."
A loud scream came from behind you.
Usopp, Nami and Apis turned around with various looks of panic on their faces. The man on the rock combed his wet blue hair back into its trademark quiff.
Luffy tilted his head, "Man...you're still here?"
Eric smirked, "Indeed...any longer and I would have drowned." He spread his arms and started babbling about the beauty of the dragonite or something. You had quickly zoned out.
"How is it he survived again?" Sanji placed a hand on his chin, "I thought he had a devil fruit."
"WHAAAAA! A DEVIL FRUIT?!"
"Right, Usopp's never met him..." Nami paused in thought. She suddenly tapped her fist down, "Oh right, Ryu threw him into the air after he attacked Apis."
You looked up and whistled softly, "That was some air time..."
"WOULD YOU JUST LISTEN TO ME!" Eric didn't take being ignored well.
"Not interested." Luffy picked his nose.
"WHAT!" He collected himself, "...fine. Then you can watch, while I claim the live dragonite for myself!"
"Don't you dare!" Apis ran forward.
Usopp dashed forwards to grab her, and dove under the attack Eric sent their way.
She sat up, "Even if I have to risk my life, I have to protect them. This is a sacred place for the Millennial Dragons! I will protect this place...FOREVER!"
Luffy nodded in understanding.
"You still intend to stop me?" The man frowned, "Then you all shall die here. Sickle-sickle whirlwind!" He swiped at Usopp and Apis.
They were about to be it by the attack when Luffy moved in front. An X sliced its way across his chest, ruining his top, and he fell to his knees.
The two cowering behind stopped shaking, "Luffy!"
Zoro and you took a step forward, your hands inching towards the weapons at your hip.
"He's mine." Luffy stood back up as if nothing had even happened. His eyes darkened, "I made a promise."
"If you're sure, Cap." You giggled as you leant back, "Give him hell."
Zoro smirked.
It really didn't take him long. Although the rubber man got many minor cuts, Eric's already injured leg meant that he was no match for Luffy's sheer willpower. The blue haired man was sent flying for the second time that day thanks to a gum-gum bazooka.
Luffy grinned, "I win!"
Zoro finally relaxed his grip on his swords.
Apis beamed, "We did it!"
"ALRIGHT!" Luffy punched the air from where he was sitting on the Merry's railing, "Let's set sail to the Grand Line! Apis, you wanna come?"
She shook her head as she stood on the shore with the rest of the villagers, "I've had so much fun being with you guys, I'd like to, but I'm going to stay here on the island. I want to learn more about our customs from Grandpa Bokunen, and just as our ancestors protected the Millennial Dragons, I will protect the dragon's nest. I will wait for the day when the baby dragons will return to this island."
Usopp tilted his head, "Wait a minute...the next time they'll come back..." He started hastily counting on his fingers.
Apis giggled, as she explained how her descendants will carry on and protect the island forever. "It's crazy," she finished, "but you guys do crazy things every day, don't you?"
"We do?" Luffy pouted in confusion as the rest of the crew silently screamed at him.
"I sure hope so!" You grinned, "That's what I signed up for after all!"
You sailed away from Warship Island, waving your goodbyes to Apis and the dragons until they were little dots on the horizon.
"So how much do you know about this...Reverse Mountain, (y/n)? You came from the Grand Line, right?"
You tilted your head slightly as you watched the rain dash against the portholes, "Not much I'm afraid, Nami. The rumours that went through Loguetown were vague at best. I think that you're supposed to sail up the mountain..."
"Up the mountain? That's impossible."
"We met dragons who are at least 1000 years old and have a living weapon with a tattoo that has a mind of his own and a rubber man on our crew."
"Shishishi!"
"I'll believe it when I see it, that's all" Zoro scoffed as he leant back against the wall.
Nami sighed, "But that's what the map says, so I guess we've no choice but to go with it."
She turned back to you, "I thought you came from the Grand Line, but you don't seem to know about it that well?"
"I was born there, so I never had to enter in this sorta way. And the way I left was...unconventional." You shuddered as you remembered flying right over the Red Line in a massive paw print. That had hurt.
"...I'm not even going to ask."
Nami looked at the map before talking about how she thought Reverse Mountain would work, which was something about strong currents.
"...In other words," she finished, "if we can't make it into the canal...the Going Merry will slam straight into the Red Line, and the ship will be destroyed."
"So..." Luffy put a hand on his chin, "it's a mystery mountain."
"Now this is getting good!" You pumped your arm in the air enthusiastically.
"IF YOU THINK THIS IS FUN, THEN YOU CAN GO AND DO THE SAILS!"
"...yes ma'am."
Looking up at the big red wall, you felt dwarfed, "To think I flew over that monster...I can't even see the top..."
"You can fly, (y/n)? SHISHISHI! THAT'S SO AWESOME! CAN YOU TEACH ME?"
Zoro's expression faltered, and he looked like he was going to say something before deciding otherwise.
"Hate to say we told you so Zoro." You clapped his back.
"I don't believe it...The water really IS climbing up the mountain..."
"Make sure we go straight between those water gates, okay? If we don't-"
"The ship will be smashed, we know already." Usopp groaned with the strain of pulling the rudder to the side. Sanji decided to help, and soon both of them were pushing the helm harshly to the side with all their strength.
CRACK!
They both stared with wide eyes at the broken piece of wood that used to be the rudder.
"WE'RE GOING TO HIT THAT ROCK!" Nami screamed as she cowered in the corner, "MAKE US TURN STARBOARD!"
"They broke the rudder," you said calmly, "Cap!"
"THEY DID WHAT!?"
"Yeah!" He quickly sprinted to the edge of the ship and jumped off, "Gum-gum...BALLOON!"
The massively inflated Luffy managed to bounce the Merry off of him, and into the middle of the channel safely.
You saw him fall behind, "Shit...Mellontas, appear and grapple!"
"You could show some panic for once!"
As soon as he appeared in your hands, you aimed him at Luffy. The scythe extended and managed to blunt the blade before he wrapped it about the rubber man.
"Shishishi...Thanks (y/n)!" Luffy grinned as he stepped back onto the deck as you retracted and recalled Mello.
You were giggling profusely as you held onto a railing. The incline had increased dramatically and you were having the time of your life as the ship rocketed to the top. The little ship passed through the cloud layer, and suddenly the sun hit your beaming face.
Suddenly the ship reached the top of the mountain, and without warning shot forwards. You watched as even the very spray from the sea started to freeze around you. With a shock of excitement, you noticed that your feet had departed from the deck and you were in free fall. You and Luffy laughed heartily as gravity tugged you and the ship down, landing in the descending side of Reverse Mountain. You ran towards the front of the ship and leant forwards, grinning ear to ear.
'Caspar, Moko, I'm going to show you that I'm not like the murderous psychopath the government made me be!'
Ruining the moment, you felt a throb from your temple.
"...a whale?"