Sea of Dreams: Chapter 3

I wasn't looking to tread the exact path that Luffy and his crew had taken on their trip to the Grand Line. Instead of sailing towards Reverse Mountain and Loguetown, I instead headed in the opposite direction, further into the East Blue.

Due to the amount of pirates who visited my parent's tavern, I had a pretty good idea of what islands lay near my own and which to prioritize in hopes of finding a crew and after around three days on the sea, I had reached my destination.

Kara town was one of several major ports in the East Blue. Sitting on an average sized island, the town itself encompassed nearly its entirety. Dozens of shops and taverns were littered around its several square mile expanse, making it a regular destination for most crews frequenting the area.

It was the perfect place to find a prospective pirate crew to take me in.

I reigned my sails in, slowing my sloop to a stop along the wooden dock that acted as one of two ports for the town. There weren't many ships around me, only six or seven, but each of them dwarfed my tiny boat several times over, and two of them were flying a Jolly Roger in place of their normal flags.

I pulled up beside them, trying the mooring rope to a nearby sturdy post to keep my ship in place. There was a man nearby, sweeping the dock with a dusty broom. He gave me a nod as he saw me, which I returned before turning back to check on the barrels near the mast, opening them and gauging their emptiness. I nodded happily at what I saw.

Through my little three day journey, I had eaten through a little less than a quarter of my provisions. It was more than I had imagined I would have eaten but sailing a ship all by yourself turned out to be exhausting work. Still, I likely wouldn’t need to restock soon even if I didn’t find a crew to join, that was good.

Stepping off of my ship and onto the dock, I finally stood on dry land for the first time in what felt like forever. I breathed deeply, taking in the smell of fresh baked goods on the wind, rousing my hunger. I was dying for a meal that wasn't dried or salted.

“Hopefully I can find a crew here. Because I do not want to do that again.” I groaned, cracking my back, “Sailing alone is definitely not for me.”

“Not for most people I don't think.” The man minding the dock said as he came up. He gave me a smile that was missing a few teeth, “Sailing alone is a good way to end up crazier than a cuckoo. I wouldn't recommend doing it for more than a few days. A week at most.”

He looked at my ship as he reached me, giving it a critical once over, “Good wood in that ship. Thinking about selling?”

I raised an eyebrow, “I literally just got here and already you’re asking to buy my ship? Damn man, give me a chance to get my bearings will ya?”

He gave a sheepish chuckle, scratching his head underneath his straw hat, “Sorry miss, I’ve got a project I’ve been working on back home and that ship of yours has the perfect wood to finish it. DIdn’t mean to come off as rude or nothing.” He apologized.

I shrugged, “Its fine, I'm not exactly attached to it or anything but it's kinda my only way to get around right now. I don't exactly have another ship.”

I reached into my coat, “Here.” I tossed the man a folded stack of beri. It wasn't much, just a few hundred, but it should be enough to stop him from letting anybody mess with my ship, “Keep an eye on it for me. If everything goes well I’ll come back and we can discuss prices. Only if it’s exactly as I left it though.” I said seriously.

He tipped his hat at me, a smile on his lips as he put the payment in his pocket, “Will do miss. Happy hunting. I'd check the tavern first, down Main Street. You folk always seem to find yourselves there eventually.” he joked.

I chuckled as I made my way into the town, “Don't I know it.”

Kara Town was much larger than the one on Jam Island, though that wasn't much of a feat truth be told. As I walked along the main street, there were dozens of individuals walking with me and even more were perusuing various shops or stalls along the side of the street.

As I continued on my way towards the tavern, taking in the various stalls with slight interest, I couldn't help but notice the incredible amount of uniformed individuals along the streets and in the nearby alleys, seemingly just hanging around. There were dozens of them at least, each with white shirts and caps emblazoned with a single word on them. Marines.

They weren't doing anything interesting, seemingly just hanging around just like the rest of the people I had passed on the road, and I had even spotted a few of them perusing the stalls in search of something to buy. They were clearly comfortable with the area.

The sheer amount of them made me wonder what exactly they were doing here. It was a bit odd for a town with such prominent pirate activity to also host so many Marines. Was there a raid going on? Perhaps a nearby base had gotten word of this hotspot and decided to do something about it.

I certainly hoped not. That would make my quest of finding a crew to join much more difficult.

“WATCH OUT!”

“Oof!” I grunted as somebody slammed into me going mach fuck, bowling me over in the process.

I caught a shock of fiery red as I fell to the ground, the head of my axe scraping against the stone loudly as I landed. I grunted, closing my eyes and doing my best to keep my head from cracking against the hard surface.

“Sorry about that!” The person who had slammed into me apologized as I slowly regained my bearings. A hand grabbed my arm, what felt like rings digging into my skin as they gripped me and I yelped as I was quickly hauled to my feet, a steadying hand on my shoulder preventing me from falling over once again, “Didn’t mean to bump into you. I should’ve been watching where I was going, are you okay?”

I brought a hand to my face, brushing my hair out of my eyes as I regained my bearings, “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a bit dazed. Could’ve used a bit more of a heads up you know?” I said, taking in the person who knocked me over.

It was a woman, around my age but likely a little older, with fiery red hair that fell from under her black, tricorn hat. It hung in thick curls down her back, stray curls framing her cheeks and the massive grin on her face. She was wearing a corset that pushed up her already ample bust, drawing even more attention to it, along with a ton of gold bands on her fingers. That must have been what I felt when she helped me up.

Actually, she was practically covered with gold. Her arms, neck, and ears were practically covered with the expensive material, jingling merrily as they slapped against each other. Even her belt looked to be lined with gold, glittering in the sun and drawing the eye. Attached to said belt was what looked to be a rectangular box covered in thin white cloth, hiding it from view. Likely a coin box hiding even more gold. She must be filthy rich.

The likely reason that she wasn't afraid to openly display her wealth likely came from the rather dangerous looking cutlass hanging on her hip and the engraved pistol slung in the opposite side of her belt. This woman was very clearly a pirate and if my instincts were correct, a rather successful one as well one at that.

Any wariness I might have felt at the woman was completely ruined by the massive smile that split her face even as she checked me over for injuries. Finding none, she gave a small breath of relief.

“Heh, yeah sorry. I was a bit preoccupied with something. Didn't see you until it was too late.” She apologized again, patting me off before stepping back.

“Be careful around here yeah? No telling what types of people might be hanging around.” Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she leaned in close enough for me to catch the scent of cinnamon on her breath, “Why, there might even be pirates! Imagine that!” She said quietly, looking around as if telling a secret, before leaning back once more with a grin.

I chuckled as she looked around, finding her sunny mood a bit infectious, “I hope so. I’m looking for a crew to join.”

That got her attention and she turned back to me with curiosity in her eyes, “Oh? I thought you were already a pirate, you definitely look like one.” She took in my bandana and dark blue coat with scrutinizing eyes.

I grinned at the unintended compliment, “That was the plan. Dad always said you have to look the part of the position you want to apply for. Guess I was successful.”

“I’ll say! I thought you were a visiting captain or something!” She laughed, her chest moving in interesting ways as she did so.

I very carefully kept my eyes above shoulder level as I laughed with her.

“Anyway, so that means you don’t have a crew yet?” Was this woman even capable of frowning? Or even a placid expression?

I raised a brow, “No, not yet?”

Her grin increased in size and she leaned in so close our noses were almost touching, “Well then how about-”

“THERE SHE IS!”

Both of us whipped our heads to the side as a shout sounded out a ways down the street. We were met with the sight of an angry group of Marines running towards us. The clear leader of the group, a man with a rather thick mustache and a coat on his shoulders, brandished a thin sword towards the woman beside me.

“Surrender Firebrand! You must face punishment for your crimes!” He shouted. I raised a brow at the thick british accent he sported, before turning my eyes to the woman beside me.

Her eyes were wide but the smile remained on her face, “Ooh that was quick, thought I had more time. I’ve got to go! Here!” With a quick movement, she plucked the hat free from her head and put it on mine instead. I blinked in confusion at the sudden weight and she gave me a sunny grin as she turned away, “Do me a favor and give that to Brogy! He should be at the tavern, biggest guy there! You won’t miss him! Thanks!”

And then she was off, boots beating along the stone path and hair flying behind her as she made a hasty retreat from the area and the Marines who were following her. Said Marines didn’t spare me a glance as they ran past on their pursuit of the woman, continuing to shout at her as if that would make her slow down at all.

I pursed my lips as her fiery hair rounded the corner, disappearing from sight as it was quickly followed by the Marines. I had just met the woman and she trusted me to deliver her clearly valuable hat to her crewmate who I had never met in my life? She must have a few screws loose.

I pulled the hat off of my head, looking at it curiously. Brogy. That was the name of one of the giants on Little Garden wasn’t it? Wonder if there were any correlations.

I just stared at the hat for a moment before shrugging and putting it back on my head. I was heading to the tavern anyway, might as well fulfill a little side quest while I was at it.

“Now where is that tavern? I'm dying for a drink that isn't just water.”

~~~

It didn't take long to find what I was looking for. After a certain point all I had to do was follow my ears.

The tavern on Kara was much bigger than the one back home, nearly twice the size in fact, made of light wood that did little to keep the sound of rancorous partying inside.

It was even louder as I entered, a proverbial wall of noise slamming into me the moment I opened the doors and making me wince as I stepped inside.

There must have been at least three separate crews here, though they all mingled together as one. Dozens of drunken men and women swayed in time with an unheard tune, arms wrapped around each other as they grinned gleefully, raising tankards full of booze high into the air.

The barkeep was clearly happy with the business, if a bit busy, a strained smile on his face as he ran back and forth along the length of the bar, taking and filling orders as he went.

It was certainly a big departure from my parent's tavern, and I couldn't help but feel a bit out of my depth as I walked through the swinging door….

And straight into a brick wall.

“Ow! Shit!” I cursed as I backed up, rubbing my nose angrily, “What the hell?”

I turned my eyes forward and froze as I came face-to-face with, not a wall, but a massive bar chest peeking out from between the edges of a coat. And when I say massive, I mean massive. Each of the defined pecs were easily bigger than my torso. Lengthwise.

I looked up. And up, and up and up, until finally my eyes alighted upon a bearded face, staring down at me stoically. There was a large scar falling from his forehead down his features, crossing underneath the goggles he was wearing, making his already intimidating face even moreso.

“Well,” I said as I stared up at the giant man, feeling a small pang of fear work its way down my back, “you're a big one aren't ya?”

He didn't say anything, merely staring at me before his gaze moved slowly upward, stopping on something just above my head. I followed his gaze, finding him looking straight at the hat I had been given.

“That's my captain's hat.” He finally spoke, voice rumbling deeply in his chest like a thunderstorm, “Why do you have it?”

I blinked, recalling the redheaded woman’s words and the name she had given me. Guess there was a correlation, this man was certainly a giant,

“You must be Brogy.” I reached up, pulling the hat from my head and holding it out to the man, “Here, your captain told me to bring this to you. Seems she got on the bad side of some Marines. This one with a mustache seemed particularly angry with her.”

He stared at me for a moment before reaching out and grabbing the hat in his massive hand, the accessory fitting in his palm more like an egg than anything that belonged on one's head.

He sighed, apparently accepting my explanation as he put the hat somewhere in his coat, “ That woman… I told her she needed to lay low until we were out of the area but she just can’t help herself. Let me guess, she only said a few words to you before giving you her hat and rushing off?” He asked.

I shrugged, glad that the situation hadn’t escalated any, “Eh, something like that. She actually ran into me. Like literally, bowled me right over and damn near cracked my skull open.”

“That sounds like her. Nera’s gonna have a fit. I doubt she’ll let the captain hear the end of it for weeks.” He groaned before giving me a serious look, “Your crew ain’t gonna come seeking compensation are they?”

“I don’t have a crew.” I shook my head, somewhat confused how people kept making that mistake, “I’m actually here to look for one. Just set sail for the first time the other day and I’m hoping to find a good crew to run with.”

He raised a brow, “Huh, well I'll be. You certainly don't look it.”

I just shrugged, not sure what else to say.

He looked back at the bar, thinking for a moment, before turning back to me, “Well if no one’s gonna come try and knock my head in, then I guess that means we're friends. C’mon, I’ll buy you a drink as an apology for my captain.”

I tilted my head in confusion even as I followed the man to the bar, his heavy steps rattling the tables beside us as we walked, “An apology? For what? She didn’t really do anything wrong.”

He turned to look at me, his beard crinkling with his smile, “Aye. But I never give up an excuse to drink. And you look like you could use one.” He laughed deeply, causing me to smile as well.

“Well how can I say no to that?”