Nami and Morgan were hardly pleased at having their "private time" interrupted and with how much the two had built up the guts to approach the other like they did, they would've accepted nothing less than: 1. They found land, 2. Someone died or 3. The world started raining money and the Merry could start talking. "That's it?" Morgan asked the two rogues as he saw the growing cacti on the island.
"Welcome to Whiskey Peak…You've upheld your end of the bargain so we will do the same, bye bye darlings~!" Miss Wednesday and Mr 9 said before backflipping over the side into the water, leaving nearly everyone confused.
"Let's just focus on getting on the island first, we need to get the Pose reset anyway…" Nami mentioned as she brought the task back at hand; "Besides, if they do decide to show back up…They're not exactly strong."
"Still, what if they come back with reinforcements? They did say that they were going to come here regardless after taking on the whale…" Zoro pointed out as he remembered they had a Log Pose on them before taking it off of them.
"Well, they didn't really act much more then organised bandits, if they do come back with reinforcements then we can kick their butts around the…island?" Morgan assured them but trailed off when he saw a crowd cheering for them with a giant "WELCOME" sign at the shore. "Okay, that's new…"
The Straw Hats were used to being treated with suspicion and outright aggression from the last few islands they had landed at; it made for a jarring and surprising change to see dozens of people clamouring for their attention.
"WELCOME, NEW PIRATES!"
"WE LOVE YOU!"
"PLEASE COME LOOK OUR WAY!"
It didn't take much for the likes of Sanji and Usopp to start basking in the adoration; The chef turned on a dime when he saw a pack of girls all cheering for him and the marksman of the crew simply basked in the praise regardless.
Everyone parted so that Morgan and the others could get off the ship without getting mobbed by what looked like an eager crowd, however as luck had it; in front of them was a large man with a large hairdo that made him look like a judge in a bolo tie.
"Welcome New Pirates, to Whiskey Peak!" The Man would eagerly introduce; "I am Igarappoi, the mayor of this town and an advocate fo-" He elaborated but he quickly got himself into a coughing fit before starting to vocalise; "Ma~ Ma~ Ma~! An advocate for welcoming capable pirates who could venture into the Grand Line so easily." Igarappoi explained and welcomed the group.
"Wait, you said welcome? I thought this place was supposed to be a Pirates Graveyard? A catacomb of broken ships and dangerous people…." Usopp mentioned; being the one most thrown out of the loop thanks to his anxieties.
"Oh, you must understand; some of the sea here is like that but rest assured…You will be welcomed here for as long as you wish." Igarappoi would say with a kindly smile on his face as everyone headed into town; "Though you may wish to hold on to your enthusiasm beca-" He started but then his coughing fit started again and he straightened up his suit; "Ma~ Ma~ Ma~! Because the whole town has arranged for a grand party to be held for our new friends here…So feel free to eat, drink and share in revelry as much as you want."
Zoro smirked at the sound of being able to drink an entire party dry with no consequence while Usopp and Sanji were more then eager at the prospect of a no holds barred party, leaving Nami and Morgan to decide on how to approach things; especially after the sudden disappearance of the two on their ship.
"Tell me, how long will it take for this Log Pose to charge on the island?" Nami asked the mayor as the others were getting sucked into the welcoming atmosphere.
"I wouldn't worry about that for now, it can take some time but you may feel free to check in the morning…for now you may enjoy yourself on good food and wine." Igarappoi assured her; explaining to her that while some islands charge faster than others, it wouldn't be done in under a day.
"I think we can at least afford to stay for a little while…At least until this thing is ready." Morgan admitted to Nami as he noticed her hesitation; "Besides, it's not often that we get a chance for people to willingly resupply us without taking out a pirate."
As the two headed into the town to undergo the party in it's full swing; Igarappoi's jovial and welcoming look changed to one of a sinister and more foreboding sneer; "Go ahead and party all you wish pirates, once you're stuffed and drunk…we'll rob you of your money, your ship AND your lives…Best to let Miss Monday know about them…And contact the Millions."
"Count me in for the party but I don't drink so I'll pass on the booze." Morgan mentioned with caution as he had a mug put in his hand and both Nami and Zoro drank their's down.
"You needn't worry, young man…Our refined vineyard and brewers may make wines and alcohol but we can also make non-alcoholic juices for the religious or the abstaining." A rather large and statuesque nun would assure him with a deceptively gentle voice.
——Several hours later——
With the party now in full swing; everyone had their merry fun, Sanji was revelling in being fawned over by the ladies, Usopp was drunkenly telling his tall tales to audiences while Nami and Zoro were engaged in a drinking contest with the other villagers.
"Damn, look at the guy go!" A portly man would chuckle as he watched Zoro topple another drinker in his midst.
"You're telling me…But check out the girl! She's even outdoing the nun!" remarked a rather skinny looking woman as she watched Nami drain her mug and sent the same nun collapsing to her table.
However the rather peculiar thing was that Morgan was in on this too with the "Abstaining" crowd, each of them were trying to see how much that they could drink with Morgan outdoing each of them as they came along along with scarfing down food.
"Sheesh, their captain's got an iron gut…To eat that much food and drink all that."
"He's doing pretty well for someone who says they don't drink…."
Igarappoi meanwhile was smirking as the pirates seemed to be too wrapped up in their revelry to notice some things were…off. "Typical pirates, they'll stuff food and drink in their mouths but won't question it if we have a smile on our faces…Though the amount they're drinking is surprising, I had the brewers pump more and more alcohol into their drinks but they're still going strong…The green-haired one's drunk enough to knock down an elephant…but the navigator's not too far behind…"
Morgan was starting to sway as his "non-alcoholic" juice was getting to his system; "Com' on! I can keep it going!" He would stammer before grabbing a bite of a nearby leg of broiled meat, the liquid courage keeping him going and earning the rather rowdy cheers from Nami and Zoro as they each took another drink, making their opponents in the game topple like dominoes.
"Damn, Kid…You're really giving it the business, you've kept up with some of our more competitive drinkers…you sure you haven't done this before?" A bearded man mentioned as he took his seat in front of Morgan.
"Dah-Dadan's boys gave me a little some'n some'n way back and it was greeeeeeat! She clobbered their asses but it was fun." He slurred as he grabbed his mug; "Lesdothis….." He grinned with that same competitive spirit before he drained down another mug.
This carried on through the night as Igarappoi kept a tally of their drinks on a chalkboard; saying that it was to keep their scores for the game but was actually an encrypted signal to get them passed out, though after a few more intensified drinks passed their way seemed to knock the group out for good.
Zoro: 63 Full Drinks
Nami: 58 Full Drinks
Morgan: 50 Full Drinks + 1 Spilled Drink
Sanji: 46 Full Drinks
Usopp: 39 Full Drinks and 4 Spilled Drinks
After what felt like hours to Igarappoi, he stepped outside for air and he adjusted his bolo tie while staring up at the cactus shaped mountains but stopped when he heard a set of heeled shoes behind him; "Please tell me that they are tired out." He grumbled as he didn't bother turning to face what looked like the Nun.
"Yes, I looked over each one; they are all currently out cold…lucky for us, we had enough of the strong stuff to put them to sleep…The Red head, the swordsman and the buff looking one all simply needed more to do the trick." She said as she looked to the grim looking mayor; "Will this be worth expunging all of our resources on pinning down these no-name pirates, Mr. 8? We still haven't heard back from Mr 9 or Miss Wednesday yet." The Nun asked as she finally revealed Igarappoi's codename.
"Not out in the open, Miss Monday! And no, I managed to find this in one of our News Coo's deliveries." Mr 8/Igarappoi would say as he held up Morgan's Wanted Poster. "I find it hard to believe that such a plain looking man could have a wanted poster but I don't believe in half measures." He pointed out.
Miss Monday nodded as she then saw the other two making their way up to meet them; "It's them." Her voice was more curt as she had her name revealed by her cohort.
"I'm sorry, Mr. 8…We have been unable to secure the whale…." The bluenette would apologise and bow her head to her superior; "There was an old man who was protecting it and he was a lot stronger then he looked…"
Mr 9 angrily adjusted his crown and huffed; "And to top it off, we ended up becoming chore boys to convince those boorish pirates to let us land here!" He would then crane his neck and saw Morgan passed out in the window; "THAT'S THE GUY!"
"You were caught by them?" Miss Monday asked as she tilted her head in confusion; "That is a frightening coincidence that they show up here…."
"A coincidence regardless, since we have them right where we want them; we can steal it all….First their money, then their ship….and once that ship is ours, we can use it to surprise attack that whale and harvest it for food." Mr 8 plotted as he then turned to face the bar; "But first we make sure that these pirates don't fight ba-"
"WAIT!" Mr 9 yelled out as he remembered something; "That girl has something that could be valuable…."
"What are you talking about? If it's treasure you want, then wait until we've kil-"
"Not just any treasure, Mr 8… That redhead is their navigator and while I was snooping around their cabins to see if I could find anything of use." Mr 9 elaborated before looking around in case someone was spying on them. "I found a rather strong looking lockbox in her room that could hold something of note."
Miss Wednesday would knowingly glance to him; "So that's why I found you unconscious in the hallway…So what makes it special? Besides it being strong…" she asked him; the fact that he brought it up now of all times admittedly made her curious.
Mr 9 had a smirk on his face as he knew that his little tidbit of info got their attention; "I was about to find out by busting it open but that muscleheaded oaf stopped me before I could! He let it slip when he mentioned that she was cagey about money but this box was something else entirely." The kingly man grinned as he recounted what he could remember.
"Something more important then money? Perhaps it's a memento or something like that." Miss Monday pointed out; "It is hardly rare for someone to lock away treasured possessions."
"Ooooor she could have something REAL valuable like an Eternal Pose or a transponder snail or something like a-" Mr 9 listed off as he imagined all the potential in that heavy box.
"Or a Devil Fruit…." Miss Wednesday added with a rather serious look; "It makes sense for something that would be more valuable than money."
Mr 8 nodded as he mulled it over; "If you can get your hands on the box first, then it's contents are your's." He relented as he looked to the three with a more serious look; "But going after it means you have to contend with anyone else who knows or finds it so I refuse to hear you complain if you lose it."
Miss Monday and Wednesday nodded with a renewed focus while Mr 9 wasn't exactly eager in sharing or giving up his prize. "Think about it Mr. 9…If we open up the box and bring it to the Boss, he may give us another chance…The Unluckies haven't reported us yet so we may be able to redeem ourselves if it is indeed a Fruit."
"Plus I can always find out what's inside for myself and beat the information out of her." Mr 9 said with a rather nefarious smirk and twirled his bats; "I'll admit she is rather cute…I may just have a little fun with her before I break her~" He giggled a little too loudly as Miss Wednesday looked like she was about to throttle him while Miss Monday and Mr 8 were both disgusted by his words.
"Yeah, I'd go ahead and NOT say that out loud." A new voice would say and brought the four out of their space as a familiar green haired man was on the roof staring down at them; "Because if Sanji or Morgan heard that, you'd end up a bloody smear." Zoro grinned as he heard the whole thing.
"What?! Bu-But how? You shouldn't even be conscious, let alone talking with the amount of alcohol we plied you and your crew with!" Mr 8 sputtered as he was genuinely thrown for a loop.
"Heh, The booze was good but it's nowhere near enough to get me drunk, though I will give you credit for getting Morgan to drink alcohol; he's pretty funny to watch get hammered." Zoro chuckled as he kept his gaze trained on him; "So...It's nice to see you show who you really are, Igarappoi…or should I stick with Mr 8, it's easier to call you Baroque Works guys by those codenames."
Miss Wednesday growled as she stepped back; "So you know about our group…You must be pretty deep in the underground if you know who we are."
Zoro shook his head; "Nah, I only know about you because one of you tried to scout me…Hard to call yourselves a secret pirate group if you have your codename tattooed to your face."
"So that's what happened to Mr 7…" Was the collective and rather embarrassed thought shared between them.
"Well since you know who we are, you know exactly what we do to people like you." Mr 8 said ominously as he pulled out the most peculiar weapon that Zoro could think of: A saxophone.
"Millions! Kill him and move on to the rest of his crew!" Miss Monday called out to the minions waiting in the wings as they began pouring out with the main officers of Baroque Works getting ready to take on the one still sober crew member.
——A few Minutes Later——-
There was a groggy moan as Morgan pulled himself up into an upright position from where he was sat, "nnnn….Must's dozed off for a minute there…." He mumbled to himself while his head was swimming in tar. With a quick grip to the table so that he didn't fall over on his wobbly legs; he carefully made his way around the room, fumbling in the dark and then going out the door into the night with a rather single-minded thought: "Bathroom…"
While Zoro had been fighting off the minions and taking on the likes of Mr 6 with his shotgun saxophone; he had left a good number of unconscious Millions thrown about the streets, leaving Morgan to think that everyone took the party outside after he fell asleep. The air seemed to help sober him up as he answered the call of nature into the river; that and noticing that most of these people weren't sleeping but injured and unconscious from Zoro's fighting back, with a renewed worry; Morgan grabbed the nearest guy and tried to find out more: "Wha-What happened here?" The Straw hat asked with concern.
"H-Haramaki….he cut us down…Fighting the others…" The guy groaned out before losing consciousness and leaving the less than sober Morgan to take in these words before getting up to find Zoro, wherever he was.
——One long fight with Millions and the Frontier Agents later—
"Please…Haramaki….I'll do whatever it takes, but make sure that Miss Wednesday makes it back to Alabasta." Igarappoi begged Zoro as he was laying on the ground.
The three sword style wielder was about to question this more when a loud explosion was heard nearby, clearly intended as a warning shot; "What do you think you're doing, Mr 8?" A man in a long dark coat drawled as he had his finger pointed towards the two like he was aiming an invisible gun.
"It's rather sad to see you and your friends so beaten down, Mr. 8~" A rather obnoxiously loud woman cackled as she twirled her parasol in her hands; "A somewhat high ranking Frontier agent like you should have no problems with the most brain dead pirates that step onto the shore."
"Mr 5?! Miss Valentine's Day? Why are you here?!" Mr 9 gasped in shock as it was one thing for multiple Frontier Agents to show up in one place but for an Officer Agent to be here meant trouble.
"It's quite simple, the boss wanted to hear back about your endeavour with that whale…and not only did we find out that you failed but you also can't even collect a bounty here? That's shoddy work, even for you…" Mr 5 sneered as he threw forward the smoking and injured body of Miss Monday.
"G-Get going, Miss Wednesday….I'll hold them off." Mr 9 tried to reassure her as he twirled his bats; "Haramaki, you may be a ruffian and a simpleton but get these two out of here…Allow me to stall them." The crown wearing man yelled out as he tried to stall the two.
Zoro was confused by the new faces but knew that with what Igarappoi was saying, the others might be able to help more.
"ZORO!" A very loud and still inebriated Morgan bellowed out as Zoro looked back from where he was after he finished putting down Igarappoi.
"Took you long enough to wake up, though I think you should take a little more time to re-" Zoro grinned, happy to see that his captain was awake though still mindful that he also drank a ton of alcohol for the first time and didn't exactly look steady.
"You've got nerve to attack these people!" Morgan slurred as he walked into the square; ignoring the bemused looks of Igarappoi and Zoro, "They fed us and gave us a place to rest….AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY THEM?!" Morgan then cracked his knuckles as his ire grew.
"Alright, you need to understand, these guys are all bounty hunters that were after us once we a-MORGAN!" Zoro tried to explain but barely managed to finish it when he saw Morgan picking up speed and rushing at him with what looked like the start of a flying kick.
"Take THIS!" Morgan yelled out though he ended up tripping over his own feet and fell flat on his face; "….Ow…."
"Okay, Morgan is definitely drunk off his gourd…I need to either knock him out or sober him up." Zoro sighed before twisting his swords so the backs would be able to try and "pacify" his captain. "Look, Morgan…Just take some deep breaths, maybe drink some water and we can talk about this once yo-WHOA!" Zoro snapped his head back as Morgan's leg snaked upwards in a high kick and got him back on his feet.
"I'munna kick your ass!" Morgan shouted as he swayed back and forth on unsteady legs, before he rushed forward and delivered a swift volley of open handed strikes that managed to push past Zoro's swords and palm him in the chest to knock him back.
"Gh…Remind me to never let you near a bottle of booze ever again…" Zoro grumbled as he tried making his counterattack, making sure that he was using the backs of his swords and aiming for non-vital spots; the key word being "Tried".
Morgan looked like he was buzzed beyond comprehension and moved like it too, but each step and move around the area in his drunken haze allowed him to weave and avoid Zoro's more tentative attempts on him but still ended up taking the pommel of his sword to the side of his head; "My turn!" He called out and then ducked under another swing and rolled forward into a flying headbutt, knocking the wind out of Zoro and into a wall that then caved in.
"Kyahahahahahahaha! This is hilarious, this supposed big bad bounty hunter from the East Blue is having trouble with reining in a drunk bum!" Miss Valentines Day cackled in amusement as she watched from a roof.
"It's sad honestly, but I don't have the time to play babysitter for the two of you so let's put you both down!" Mr 5 rolled his shoulder and then let his index finger slide up his nostril to start digging for gold.
"I call dibs on the cute one!" Miss Valentines Day announced excitedly as she started to float and kicked off to try taking down Morgan while Mr 5 rolled his eyes and aimed his booger covered finger at Zoro like he was taking aim.
"Excuse me…." Morgan growled as he got up.
"Do you mind…" Zoro got to his feet with an equal grimace.
"WE'RE BUSY RIGHT NOW SO BUTT OUT!" The two of them yelled as Miss Valentine's Day got kicked in the head and sent her floating in the air while Zoro used a light slashing combo to take down Mr 5 before he could activate his Fruit powers.
Igarappoi simply watched in awe as the two Officers crumpled to the ground with a rather graceless sound.
"Igaram! Thank goodness I found you, we need to….what happened?" Miss Wednesday rushed toward him as she had a furrowed look of worry on her face but changed when she saw both Morgan and Zoro take both Officer Agents out.
"P-Princess! You need to get to safety! What if they get back up?!" Igaram reprimanded her as he was leaning against the wall; "I think those two could be able to help…but we need to get to a safer place right now!"
"Alrighty, now where were we?" Morgan hummed to himself as he bobbed his head and took a swift knock by Zoro who was still trying to knock him out.
"Let's see if we can find out who's the strongest on the crew." Zoro mentioned as he was still caught up in the moment, though considering that Morgan was dangerous right now meant that he had to end it quick.
"Martial Arts vs Sword styles, It's on!" Morgan yelled as he stomped down, cracking the ground before rushing forward to clash with Zoro who returned the gesture in kind.
Zoro swung his sword out and Morgan blocked it with a wide kick and then proceeded to repeat those actions between each other as they were both stubborn and competitive enough to keep it going.
"WILL YOU TWO KNOCK IT OFF!" Nami's voice broke the bravado and the backs of their heads as she knocked them both to the ground in an attempt to finish the fight; it managed to surprise Zoro enough to stop him in his tracks, but due to his lack of focus and his general wooziness; Nami ended up sending Morgan tumbling to the ground at her feet.
"Nami? What're you…."
"I was going to ask you the same thing! Zoro, what happened out here, who were those two there and why is that blue haired girl hanging around?!" Nami rattled off her questions as Zoro rubbed his head.
"Well, she's apparently being looked for by the two there…and as for the other stuff…"
——A few minutes of explanations and repeats later—
"Oooooh! so that's why you took 'em out…You could've just said that they were bad guys." Morgan said with a cheeky grin as Zoro pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I DID try to tell you, but you weren't having any of it…" Zoro repeated once more; "Talking about how they fed us and gave us room here."
"Okay, before we have that conversation again…Let me get this straight, YOU are a princess?" Nami turned her attention on Vivi and Igaram once she got their names while Zoro and Morgan argued.
"Yes…I am the princess of the desert kingdom known as Alabasta." Vivi explained; "Igaram here is my Bodyguard and my most trusted advisor."
"Okay, that seems simple enough…but why exactly is a princess from such a place working for an underground Bounty Hunter syndicate?" Zoro pointedly asked as he glanced to Igaram who cleared his throat.
"Well, you see…There is currently a civil war going on in our own kingdom and some of us have reason to believe that it wasn't started by the Kingdom or it's people…" Igaram explained; "We decided to go undercover without the King's knowing in order to find out more and we discovered the truth about all of it…"
Vivi bit her lip in dread and continued; "It wasn't about rebels fighting back against the King…Baroque Works framed him and want to claim the throne for their president…Mr 0…"
"Mr 0…If you know about the whole plan than maybe you know who it is? If you report him to the Marines then maybe you'll stop him before this big plan." Nami asked as she was starting to get concerned but found herself cut off by Vivi.
"No! Even saying the Boss's name or seeing his face is tantamount to taboo, I know he wants the throne but I don't know what for…But all I know is that that man must be stopped, I'll never forget what I learned there!" Vivi swore to herself as she then looked to the others; "I know this is a lot to demand but please…help me get back to my kingdom, I have nowhere else to go and those other Agents know who we really are now."
"It'll be pretty dangerous right? So as pirates, it's only fair that we get a good reward for delivering a princess." Nami grinned as she was in business mode; "Remember, we did help save you before."
"Y-You can't be serious! We are in dire need of help, have you no hea-"
"N-No Igaram, it's fine…Once we arrive in Alabasta then I will talk to my father and he can arrange for you to be rewarded appropriately." Vivi promised to Nami as she then looked to Morgan who was currently hugging around Nami's waist in a drunken fit of affection while Igaram got up to vanish behind a rock.
"Hey…Hey Nami…You gotta tell me how you grew two extra heads, because I wanna kiss 'em~" Morgan mumbled with a giddy smile on his face, causing Nami to flush red at this and lightly nudge his kissy face away from her in a flustered display while Zoro laughed at seeing Morgan like this.
"Y-You go back to sleep!" Nami stammered as she tried to stay focused; "Be that as it may, we should be able to get going, the Pose should've set and we can get on our way….Plus he may not look it, but our captain's scary strong! Whatever this Mr 0 throws our way, we can handle it." Nami optimistically remarked with Vivi looking both slightly reassured at Nami's word but also worried at the fact that their supposedly strong captain was debilitated like this. "Are you sure that he's okay?" Vivi asked the two who were still conscious; "I only saw him fight a little but can you really vouch for him?"
"You only have yourselves to blame for having him like this…" Zoro reminded them; "The guy's perfectly capable when he's sober, he's a 45 million Berri bounty that could take on several high bounty pirates in the Blues, escape Marine capture twice and he took down a Fishman boss all by himself."
"That is impressive, but the boss is a whole other level! He's the ringmaster behind the biggest bounty hunter cabal there is, he's got connections and money to get just about anywhere and anyone in his back pocket, to top this all off, he has the connection to the World Government as a Warlord…There's truly no one more dangerous here then the likes of Crocodile!" Vivi tried to argue the case but found her blood running cold when she realised that in this tirade, she revealed the information that was never meant to be made public. The silence was palpable as Nami and Vivi were in different states of shock while Zoro was dumbfounded that Vivi could let this slip that easy.
"Hehe, that name sounds pretty funny…" Morgan giggled to himself, completely oblivious to what was now implied for the group since they all heard that info along with the sound of scribbling.
"W-Wait…That can't be the…" Vivi was then becoming more terrified when she saw that an otter and a buzzard was nearby; "The Unluckies…"
"Unluckies? What are they? Vivi, please tell me that this is a good thing!" Nami picked up on Vivi's trepidation and started to shake her.
"They…They take note of agents or enemies that threaten Mr 0….and deem them ready for execution by any means." Vivi said in a shaky voice as Nami feverishly rocked her back and forth.
"You all need to go. Now!" Igaram stated bluntly as he came back to the group, wearing what looked like an ill fitting version of Miss Wednesday's outfit; "I can try throwing off the tracks for a little while but you and your crew need to take Princess Vivi and get her far away from here as fast as possible."
"But what about you? We can take you with us!" Nami tried to convince him as she looked to Zoro who agreed but looked equally as confused to the new outfit.
"I'm afraid I cannot, even if I wanted to…If we all go together, then it will make their jobs easier and win killing us…if I stay then you'll have a head start." Igaram then started to walk with the others towards the ship, making sure to stop and grab both Usopp and Sanji before they left.
—On the Shore—
"Take this too…" Igaram would say in a falsetto voice as he handed Nami a different looking Log Pose; "This is an Eternal Pose; regardless of where you are in the world, this will always take you back to it's original destination…I trust you all to keep Princess Vivi safe…and in return, I will do my best to ensure you have a good head start."
After a heartfelt but still solemn goodbye, the Straw Hats along with Vivi left the pier while Igaram stayed behind as the decoy on another ship.
However before anyone could say anything consoling to Vivi or ask about what to do next; the ship that Igaram was suddenly burst into an explosive mess and littered the sea with sails and driftwood.
"IGARAM!"
"Well well~ Looks like you've been busy~" A rather sleek sounding voice could be heard from the bow of the ship as a woman clad in purple and wearing a cowboy hat sat with her legs crossed.
"Who….Who the hell are you?!" Morgan yelled at her, even though the alcohol was waiving in his system, he was still belligerent enough after watching one of Vivi's friends die.
"Patience dear~ You don't want to make yourself too worked up~" The woman chuckled as the hat on Morgan's head began to float up towards her.
"You have five seconds to give that back and apologise for Igaram…" Morgan growled as the others were equally as incensed by the lady's callous nature.
"Do not worry, I am not here to kill you…In fact, I am here to extend an olive branch to you, Miss Wednesday…But seeing as you've been operating as a double agent…I'll just call you Vivi~"
"What could you possibly want, Miss All Sunday?" Vivi asked with a sense of anxiety; "You've already gotten your hooks into my home and now you've taken my friend!"
"I'm giving you that head start you wanted, I've already been kind enough to let you learn about Mr 0's true identity…but you must be aware that everyone in Baroque works will be coming after you now….Unfortunately that part is out of my hands." She mentioned off hand like she was discussing the weather patterns of the island.
"Why…If you chose to let me discover his name, why let me go?" Vivi asked as she felt her body shake with a mix of anger and fear.
"Simple, games aren't fun if there's no stake…Now there is, you go back to your kingdom and tell everyone that Crocodile is a crooked pirate who started the whole thing…Or you fall at the hands of the number of pirates who want your title….and your body~" She would say with a smirk before looking to the others; placing the hat back in Morgan's hands from a distance; "The same goes for you all too…"
"Nanimonai Island? What's that place?" Morgan asked as he read the tag of the Pose that was nestled in the hat.
"Simple, I've decided to be a sweetheart and lead you to a nice, calm and peaceful island where nothing could go wrong…or you can choose to go to somewhere rife with danger: Little Garden…It's your choice but I hope you make it a good one, handsome~" She mentioned with a wink at Morgan before jumping over the side and landing on her own ride, leaving the crew in silence as they came to terms with what she said.
"So…Miss All Sunday?" Nami asked Vivi who looked like she was about to collapse with Sanji being his usual self and catching her mid stumble.
"She's…She's one of the highest ranking female officers in Baroque Works…A demon of a woman and Mr 0's assistant." Vivi explained; "I'm not sure if we're safe for a little while longer or if we're in even more danger since she knows about us…"
"Well, she did say the log pose lead to an island with no risk and it's close to Alabasta…" Nami said as she looked over a map but then straightened herself up when she heard the not so subtle sound of a splash from the side of the ship.
Morgan had thrown the Pose over the side of the ship to the horror of Usopp and Nami, earning him a shaking from the pair as they got hysterical.
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?! WE HAD A SAFE PLACE TO GO!" Nami/Usopp screamed at him as they had him by the collar and shook him about.
"I really don't think it's a good idea to shake him like that…" Zoro mentioned as he explained to Sanji about what happened after the two passed out.
Once the two let go, Morgan explained: "We thought Whiskey Peak was a safe island but it turned out to be a den of lions and now we're being chased by a group of very dangerous Bounty Hunters."
Nami was the first to calm down about this since most of what Morgan said was making sense; "Well…That's a good point…BUT you still threw away a perfectly safe island because you want adventure!" She got back on the reprimanding with Morgan's face not changing at all.
"So you're willing to accept a Log Pose given to you by a woman who works the closest with the head honcho who's after us….And on top of that, someone who very easily snuck onto our ship and knows that we could be going there? If we go there, it could be a trap or worse..."
"I…Okay, you're right on that part…We'll set sail for Little Garden…not like we have a choice now anyway…" Nami mentioned as she grabbed the pose and the map.
Morgan was happy; he had the chance to party for the first time and do it with the friends he made…but there was something else building up inside of him; was it doubt about whether throwing out the Pose was a good idea? Was it fear of a stronger opponent or getting sunk at sea? Or maybe guilt for not doing more?
All he remembered was the sound of Nami's voice getting frantic and everything going black…and then nothing.