~Third~
"Why'd you stop?"Zoro asked turning back to Chopper, him the reindeer and Nicole had gone out to gather some food "All that racket seems to be getting farther away"Chopper said "Yeah they seem to be calling a ceasefire for the night"Nicole said "Yeah sounds like the right idea let's go"Zoro said walking on ahead, Nicole quickly following "Don't leave me behind!"Chopper said going after.
"Sanji we found tons of great stuff"Chopper said as they got back to camp "Excellent let's see the haul"Sanji said "We found walnuts, aloe, banana, garlic"Chopper said "A ton of herbs"Nicole continued "Rats and frogs too"Zoro added "Nice it all goes in the pot"Sanji said "Disgusting you don't expect us to eat that mess do you?!"Nami asked.
"Oh silly me, Nami i promise i'll take the garlic out"Sanji said "The garlic's the only good thing!"Nami yelled "Is our navigator having another melt down?"Robin asked as she walked over carrying something "Now that's what i call a gemstone"Nami said "Big yes but it's not a gemstone"Robin said "Hey that's a big salt crystal nice find Robin"Sanji said.
"I found it on the shore and i figured we'd find some use for it"Robin said "Not only is salt fatal to our survival but without it my food would taste awful"Sanji laughed chopping up fish, "If i take half of the garlic and aloe i can use it to make an antiseptic and burn ointment and use it to heal the sky knight"Chopper said ruffling through their haul.
"Yeah? You need any frog?"Zoro asked "No, no frog"Chopper said, Nicole giggled a bit "Nicole my dear could you do something for me?"Sanji asked "Sure thing what do you want me to do?" Nicole asked "Just drop this rock in the pot would you?"Sanji asked pointing over to a glowing red hot rock "No prob"Nicole shrugged drawing her sword and borrowing a second one from Zoro.
Nicole picked up the rock and dumped it into the pot, Sanji closed the lid and now to let it cook, Zoro wondered off but Nicole stayed back, she wasn't sure what she could do now so she just took a seat and started wondering, what was her role in the crew? Did she have a role? She supposed there can be more then one swordsmen, yet she's not exactly that, she sold herself as a blacksmith which she is, sort of she hasn't actually made anything yet cause she doesn't have any of the equipment for it, although what kind of a ship would need a blacksmith on board.
Before she could think about it too much further though Sanji called for everyone to take a seat as food was almost ready to be served "Now if you'd all listen up while you eat i'll explain how we'll handle this tomorrow"Nami said as Chopper went around giving the ladies some of the soup Sanji had made while Zoro took a seat next to Nicole, she gave him a smile but Zoro knew something was bothering her.
"Anyway let's review Noland's book first, he discovered the city of gold four hundred years ago however after leaving the island and returning with his king he found the gold ruins had vanished luckily we know what happened to these ruins, the city was shot in to the sky like we were"Nami said.
"Do you really think a whole island could have done that?"Chopper said "Well it's the only thing that makes sense remember that Cricket said everytime this phenomenon occurs it's in a different location"Nami said "Yeah that explosion was enormous i'm not surprised it lifted an island"Usopp said "It's just hard to believe that the forest we're sitting in is the same one we saw back on Jaya"Zoro said.
"I believe it has something to do with the odd composition of island clouds up here look at all the trees, fish and wildlife something about this environment dramatically increases growth rates which explains how a society here could of been swallowed up by these forces"Robin said.
"That also explains why the south birds who saved us were huge i couldn't believe it"Chopper said "Yeah four hundred years of growing will do that do a bird"Zoro said "I doubt those birds were the same ones shot up here four hundred years ago"Nicole said "Then why did those south birds go to such lengths to save you guys?"Sanji asked sitting next to Zoro after offering him a plate of the food.
"Uhm i don't know but when they saw him they referred to the sky knight as god"Chopper said "Huh?"Usopp and Nami asked "He's god?! So if we beat that guy the our job here is done?!"Luffy asked "No you idiot, god is probably just a title the people here give to their ruler like king or whatever"Nicole told him.
"Now does any one recall what Noland's log said about the city of gold?"Nami asked "I do it's a city of gold!"Luffy said "You're such a dumbass do you ever think before you talk?!"Usopp yelled at him "The skulls right eye, that's where the city of gold lies"Robin said remembering the last thing Noland wrote almost exactly.
"That's it, check it out i matched up Robin's map of Jaya with the old Skypiea map we found in the shipwreck of course this isn't exact and there might be some incorrect over lap but when you match up the location of Crickets house with the broken part we found up here, this is what Jaya looked like found hundred years ago"Nami said matching the maps to form a skull.
"Neat it's a skull"Luffy said "It is a skull"Chopper said "Well?"Nami asked "Way to go Nami"Sanji said "We did it!"Chopper cheered "Okay but where in the skulls right eye?"Usopp asked "I'm thinking right here"Nami said pointing to the center of the right eye with an illustration of a building "It's the one structure that's inside the eye and they haven't found it yet because of all the people who've tried we're the ones who had both maps"Nami said.
"Of course we must be lucky pirates"Usopp said "It kinda makes sense"Zoro said "Hidden treasure!"Luffy yelled "Treasure!"Chopper yelled "The only thing left to do is make out way to the skulls eyes but since we can't leave the ship unguarded tomorrow morning we'll split the crew up into two teams, this is our time on the other side of this island lies more gold then we ever dreamed"Nami said.
~skip~
"So what's on your mind?"Zoro asked as him, Nicole and Sanji were setting up a huge pyre, Nicole sighed "I'm just unsure about my role in the crew, it feel like i do nothing yet everything at the same time you know?"she shrugged "I'm sure you'll figure something out"Zoro said "But that's the thing i've been on this crew just as long as you and i feel like i've contributed nothing" Nicole said.
"Don't say that you add a lot to the crew"Sanji said with a smile trying to cheer her up "Yeah like what?"she asked "Well like uhm you"Sanji trailed off he actually had to think about it "Exactly, so just forget about it"she said, Zoro wanted to cheer her up too but he had no idea what to say or do either "Luffy take a look"he called as they finished the pyre.
"Is this enough wood for your fire?"Zoro asked "Can you idiots think for one second?!"Nami yelled at them "Don't worry wild animals are afraid of fire they'll stay away"Sanji said "But they're surrounding us we have to run or we die!"Nami said as sky wolves closed in on them freaking out Usopp and Chopper.
The alpha growled barking at Sanji "Chopper i think it's trying to talk you mind translating?" the cook asked "You jerks are being so loud we can't even hunt why don't you dumbass humans go to hell and sleep already?"Chopper said translating the wolf "Who's a dumbass?!"Sanji and Luffy asked getting angry "I didn't say it it was the wolf"Chopper said.
"You rotten two leggers better not muggle in and take what doesn't belong to you"Chopper said translating the wolf "No we're not like that we were brought here against our will"Chopper said "This is our forest you think you can just come in and build fires?"he said translating the wolf "Sorry"he said "Everything here belongs to us the land the trees and the air"he said translating the wolf before Nami knocked it out.
"Nothing's keeping me from that treasure"she said the pack started growling at them ganging up on them as they got closer "Great everything's gotten worse again now we're gonna get eaten by wolves didn't see that coming"Usopp said "Do something!"Nami yelled at him "What can i do?"Usopp asked.
The alpha barked making the pack back off "Back down boys we may have the numbers but they've got the raw power it's not worth it, girl you pack one mean punch there, gotta say you're my kind of angry"Chopper said translating the wolf, "So uh that's what a happy ending looks like"Usopp said "I guess so"Zoro said, Nicole just sweatdropped.
"Then i have an idea, campfire!"Luffy cheered and all the strawhats started partying with the wolves "I'm surprised you're getting along so well with the cloud wolves, i know of no one else who can have such ruckus festivities on Eneru's land"Gan Fall said having had enough rest, "It's good to see that you're awake are you feeling any better?"Robin asked "I apologize for being such a burden to you all"Gan Fall said.
"It's no trouble at all"Nicole said waving it off as she was scratching and petting a wolf laying in her lap while sharing a drink with Zoro, the wolf seemed to be in heaven enjoying the attention it was receiving, "Yeah you're too hard on yourself old man, you saved Chopper and you kept our ship from being blown to a million pieces"Zoro said.
"That's my duty"Gan Fall said taking a seat "There's plenty of stew left would you like some?" Robin asked him "Thank you no, not right now"Gan Fall said "Hey thanks for everything! Sky knight guy! Let's dance!"Luffy said "Yeah let's dance!"Chopper said "Chopper have you been drinking?"Zoro asked him.
"Hey old man i've got a question Conis is she okay?"Sanji asked "Very much so i've sheltered her and her father at my house they're fine"Gan Fall said "That's good"Sanji said relieved to hear it and then they started tossing Chopper around for no real reason, the reindeer seemed to enjoy it though.
"I'm sorry for eavesdropping but i heard your conversation earlier about how this land was known long ago by the name Jaya"Gan Fall said "Yeah that's right"Robin said "But i believe you've yet to learn how this island on which we sit came to be known as such holy ground"Gan Fall said "A wild guess, your people invaded this land when it first landed the god back then claimed it as holy land driving out the native people dooming them to near extinction"Nicole said "A pretty good guess for a wild one"Gan Fall chuckled a bit.
"The ground of upper yard must remind you blue sea people of your home far below, it is similar right?"Gan Fall asked "It is"Zoro simply said "Yes you're lucky what you see all around us and below us does not naturally exist in the sky, island cloud can support plant life but it can't generate its own, greenery and soil are both foreign things to our life here, our people have out own name for this, it's called verth, those living among the clouds hold this sacred it's what they all desire"Gan Fall said dropping the dirt in his hand back to the ground.