One Piece RP- Set Sail into the New Era of Pirates! Go forth, Star Eye Crew!

Terran growls loudly, a vein comedically popping in his forehead. “You aren’t taking this very seriously at all are you captain?!?!”

As he comes in sight of the Pacifista blocking the way to the docks, he sighs out of exasperation and draws his daggers. “What the nine hells did I get myself into....” He charges forward with a dagger drawn and wheels around on the balls of his feet, shoving the dagger into the Pacifista’s right kneecap. “Hey Ingward! Let’s smash this thing and get lost before Shirotora catches up to us!” He yells for him, holding his dagger steady so that if the Pacifista were to try to take a step it would likely trip and fall over.

Ingward grins, watching as the Pacifista is skewered through the chest by Artemis's attack. Upon being stabbed in the leg, the great automaton takes one step forward with its good leg, the shift of weight causing it to go off-balance and fall on its back. With a cry, he leaps into the air, collecting water on his leg from the air as he does.

"Fishman Karate: 5 fathom...!" With a roar, he flips and slams his leg down in a powerful axe kick that shoots a blast of water through the Pacifista's body and then back up as a high-pressure geyser that erodes its body away with its force. "ARABESQUE SACRED AXE-HEEL!"

The attack not only leaves the Pacifista's front a ruined mess, but also leaves it with a vast hole in its chest and stomach. Ingward leaps off the ruined form of the Pacifista and dashes off after his comrades, grinning as he does. His life as a slave was finally over. He was free, and hopefully, his Captain would be able to keep him that way. However, his thoughts also went elsewhere, to the warmth and comfort that he craved. "Lyra...I'll find you soon. Hold on..."

Artemis let's out a gleeful shout as she lands on the deck of her ship with a bounce. She looks over her shoulder as the other two climb aboard and grins. 

"This is your captain, Artemis, speaking!" She shouts, hopping up onto the railing to overlook the Archipelago, and locking eyes with the far back Admiral. "It's time for the Star Eye pirates to set sail! Ingward, dive under, and expand the soap coating! First stop..." She turns and points out to the ocean. "Fishman Island!!"

~~Somewhere in the New World~~

The light entered through the tiny window, quickly blocked as the mermaid looked out. All she saw was the darkness of the sea, and the occasional Sea King that passed by. The seastone cuffs on her wrists and tail clinked and jingled as she shivered in the dark depths and touched a hand to the slave collar around her neck.

Lyra never felt more alone.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she held in her tears. She wasn't a crybaby like her mother and grandmother. She held in her sadness and instead of a sob escaping her soft lips, a sad melody did.

"Gather up all of the crew...
It's time to ship out Bink's brew...
Sea wind blows. To where,
Who knows...
The waves will be our guide...
O'er across the ocean's tide,
Rays of sunshine far and wide,
Birds they sing of cheerful things,
in circles passing by..."


A single tear fell onto her cuffs; the only one that managed to escape. She looked out the window, up towards where the surface was, far far away.

"I just... want to know you're okay... Ingward..."

Shirotora: *a few hundred feet away, the muscular, armored form of Karn sits up from leaning against the support beam of another attraction, his shield suddenly igniting with silver flames* Time’s up. *he raises his shield and a vast line of flames extends into the air*

Terran: *he turns back and looks just in time to see the column of fire, shouting to Artemis and Ingward* Belay That! Shirotora’s gonna destroy the ship before we can even leave the port! Brace yourselves!!

Shirotora: Chimera Shockwave! *he slams his shield down in the direction of the ship everyone had just climbed aboard, a wave of silver flames roaring out towards their ship. But at the last minute, he gives his wrist a slight twist, turning the wave of silver flames just barely away from the ship and only scorching the back of it* That’s my last act of mercy for you Terran....Next time I’ll go for your throat.... *he mutters under his breath. He stands up and looks to the marine’s nearby* Gather the soldiers we have here and prepare to set sail! We have some delinquents to catch!

The shock from Shirotora's attack hitting the back of the ship causes the structure to yawn, the small vessel shaking from the force. Ingward looks to the back of the ship. Thankfully, the Coating was still intact. However, small portions of the rail were still burning with silver flame. He immediately runs over, pulling water from the air and using it to pat down the flames quickly. He then runs over to the helm, taking the wheel as he moves the ship away from the docks. "We were lucky he missed! Everyone hold on tight! We're decending!" 

With that, the ship begins to submerge, sinking into the ocean below as it speeds out of the harbor. Many of the Marine ships that were appearing in the bay to block their escape begin firing, a hail storm of cannonballs falling at the ship. However, with a few turns, Ingward manages to successfully weave the ship through the cannon fire as they finally disappear beneath the waves.

On the shore, one Marine rushes over to Shirotora, nervously saluting him as he gives his report. "A-Admiral! The Pacifista has been completely destroyed, and the pirates have escaped beneath the waves! We believe they will be headed towards Fishman Island, Admiral Kurokame's jurisdiction!"



~Aboard the ship~

As the Nova Fall flowed through the clear, blue ocean, darting through the mangrove trees that surrounded Sabaody Archipelago, Ingward looks back at where the Marines had been. He lets out a high-frequency clicking noise, his mouth gaping open as he aims it at their previous location. In a few moments, he closes his mouth and nods, a small smile of relief forming on his face. "Alright, we lost them. I didn't pick up any ships chasing us with my Echo-Location..."

He turns to Artemis and Terran, his smile becoming larger as he then places a fist, upside down, in his left hand and extends it to them as a salute. With that, he also offers a gratitude-filled bow. "Now, I can say this properly! Thank you for rescuing me from slavery! My name is Ingward, a pleasure to meet both of you! I look forward to working with you all in this crew!" He then looks to Artemis. "I think I've seen wanted posters of you before...my old master was into collecting wanted posters, so he could fantasize about capturing the pirates himself. They say you used to cause a lot of trouble with the Maelstrom Pirates before striking out on your own 3 years ago...Artemis Ptarma, or 'Star-Eyed Artemis', correct? As far as Pirate Shipwrights go, they compare you to the late Cyborg Franky in terms of skill!"

"Ah, so you've heard of me?" Artemis sat on the railing of her ship, smirking. as she tosses a rolled up paper to Ingward. "Perhaps I should introduce myself fully then!"

She hops down and curtsy's deeply to Ingward and Terran, her blue hair touching the deck despite it being in a ponytail. She looks up and removes her blindfold. Where her eyes should be, is nothing but galaxy.

"Star-Eyed Artemis, Logia devil fruit user, at your service! I thank you both for joining my crew, and may all our hopes aspire and dreams come true!!" she falls back onto the deck, relaxing as she watches the light from above slowly get dimmer and dimmer as the dove further into the ocean. She places the blindfold back on and sighs.

"Buckle down and relax; we have a long way to go, kiddos!"

The rolled up paper:

Shirotora: *he begins directing the troops to help calm down the other citizens and then addresses the marine who had just approached him* If you think they’re headed towards Admiral Kurokame’s then by all means, you have my permission to send message to him telling him that he will be having visitors soon. As soon as you finish though, continue to help the others relieve the trouble that those pirates just caused.


~Aboard the Ship~

Terran: *he scratches the back of his head as he walks over to pick up the piece of paper that was sitting on the deck of the ship* You can stop calling me a kid y’know. You look like you’re younger than I am. Hell I think ol’ fishface here is probably the oldest man on deck right now. *he walks over and sits on the railing, relaxing as he examines the paper he had picked up* ‘Star-Eyed Artemis’ huh? Nice name. *he looks over at Artemis* Perhaps now it would be prudent that we make food. You got a galley on this ship?

Ingward could not help but puff out his cheeks comically, a small vein appearing on his head. "I'm not that old! I'm only 26!" He sighs, scratching the back of his head. "Either way, thank you both again for saving me. If this ship needs a navigator, I can help with that. Aladdin, the old First Mate of my teacher's crew, taught me everything about navigation. I can also use my Echo-location to map out the sea floor and find sunken treasure, if you want. Now, about that food...If we need ingredients, I can always swim out into the ocean and catch something for us! My old teacher used to make me train by diving into Sea King nests, so there isn't much in the ocean that I can't handle!~" He smiles, punching his right palm as a brief show of force.  "So, Captain, I've been meaning to ask this...but why go to Fishman Island? Its heavily controlled by Marines, since the Straw Hats' era ended. On top of that, if we're going to be making port....it may not be wise for you two to be seen with me. Not that I'm saying anything negative towards you guys, quite the opposite. Its a long story, but the Royal Family, especially Queen Shirahoshi, the current Monarch of the island, are rather angry with me...Its my own fault, because I wasn't strong enough, but the last thing I want is to cause you two trouble..."


~Sabaody Archipelago~

Nearly an hour had passed, and Shirotora's efforts to restore order seemed to have succeeded. The nobles, now fished out from the water, were all safe, albeit very upset. As Shirotora was supervising the last few bits that needed to be finished, a Marine runs over to the Admiral, with a Transponder Snail in hand. "Sir! The call is for you!"

The snail itself was dark, oily, and wore a black, broad-rimmed cowboy hat on its eye stalks, a grin on its face as a voice with a southern drawl escapes from its mouth. "Greetings and bienvenue, my dear White Tiger!~ I understand you had a little trouble with some rather uppity pirates today on your day off? Whats the matter, get blinded looking at the stars, or did the fish-man's stench nearly knock you out?~ CREEEEHAHAHAHAHA!" The voice on the other end was clearly making light of the event to try and joke with Shirotora in a friendly manner, as if he was one of Shirotora's peers. "Now tell me, those punks heading into my neck of the woods?~"

"What kind of ship would this be if it didn't have a galley! Come, I'll give you guys the tour!" She steps over to a door and opens it. 

"First off; the lounge. The galley is through the saloon doors on the other side. Youll find that its pretty stocked, and the equipment is well taken care of. I would love to have sea beast, so if ya wanna fish for it," she turns to Ingward. "The ocean is all yours!"

"Next off, the living quarters. Since theres only three of us, we can get our ut own rooms, but when the crew gets bigger, We may have to double up."

"Down here," she climbs down a ladder. "Is the treasure vault and storage. Training can be done up on deck, and there is an undersea view room for when We're on top of the ocean. If you have any questions or concerns, do come find me. If we are going to be nakama, there has to be trust between us." She grins.

"Now... to answer your question, Ingward." The smile on her face disappears. "In the vaults of the Ruygu Palace are two very special pieces of treasure. The first is the Tamatebako, a box with the power to make one older. The second... a devils fruit. I kinda have a goal to collect them and if my crew members would want one, all the would have to do is ask and pick. But don't worry!" She pats his arm, since Ingward is probably taller than Artemis. "We'll be fiiiiine. Besides! If you've been here, you could help us get around!!"

~Sabaody Archipelago~

Shirotora: *he sighs, holding the snail with an almost bored look* There wasn’t any trouble at all. I just didn’t feel like getting blood on my hands today. Much less young blood. Besides, they were already headed to you so I didn’t see a point in destroying a theme park trying to catch them. The three headed towards you are an escaped Fishman slave, a young woman with stars in her eyes and a young man with a particularly good track record as a thief. By that I mean he’s a damn good one. The Fishman slave appears to be good at Fishman martial arts and the star eyed woman....I have reason to believe it’s Star-Eyed Artemis.


~Onboard the ship~

Terran: *he nods, stopping at the crew quarters long enough to set his things down before giving a lazy wave to Artemis and Ingward after the tour had completed* If you catch anything worthwhile bring it to the galley would you? I’ll take cooking duties for the time being. *he tells Artemis and Ingward as he walks away to the ship’s kitchen to see what things he had to work with*

~Onboard the ship~

Ingward nods, pursing his lips. "The Tamatebako will not be an easy thing to acquire, Captain...its heavily guarded, and considered a great treasure of the Straw Hat era. It was a key tool in Monkey D. Luffy's quest to become King. However..." He smirks, pointing to his chest with his thumb. "If it will help you become Queen of the Pirates, I'll have no qualms with helping you take it, and the Devilfruit you're after! I just ask for one thing in return...I want to distract the Royal Family while you sneak in and steal the items. There is some unfinished business I have with the queen, Shirahoshi...but I will get into that later. For now, do you want me to go out and catch us some dinner? I already have the ship's course plotted, if we stay straight we should reach the island soon."



~Sabaody Archipelago~

The snail gains a cruel, almost sadistic grin when it hears Shirotora mention Artemis by name. "Tu ne dis pas, you don't say?...Well now, this is a real interesting day, that's for sure! To think, the only daughter of the legendary Sabo, floating right into my lil' old lap! Aoryu will be pleased!~ I'll be sure to have my boys from Jungle roll out the welcome wagon for those three. I think Megalodon, Mammoth, and Terror-bird should be sufficient!~ However, I'll let Saber-Tooth know to keep their eyes peeled, just in case!~ Merci, my good Shirotora! Bonne soirée, and enjoy the rest of your day off!~" The snail clicks, turning itself off as the man on the other line hangs up.

"Distraction? Sure!" Artemis nods in approval of the idea. "It'll also give me a chance to scope out the place and see if there's anything else worth slipping out of th.... dinner?" Her eyes widen and she runs to the edge of the ship and points out to a sea beast in the distance, barely visible in the darkening waters. The yellow eyes of the striped zebra fish stared back at them. "Fooooood!!! I bet sea beast like that tastes amazing!!" Her hunger is definitely like her father and his brothers; not easily appeased.

Terran: *he starts to go through all of the available supplies onboard the ship. As he does so,the one thing he finds very strange is the large amount of meat in the galley. With a shrug, he takes two huge pieces of meat (with bones for handles!) andsets them in a pan to garnish while he collects the other things he needs. First he collects a few basic vegetables and a couple of limes, cutting them all up with surprising speed as he quickly begins to set all of his ingredients together in one place. The next thing he does is garnish the two huge pieces of meat with a little lime juice before preheating the oven, walking around the kitchen as he starts putting together the stew he was making. He takes out another large piece of marbles meat and begins cutting it up into chunks to put together into the stew with some carrots, corn and some peas and gravy. A nice, warm smell begins wafting from the kitchen as it begins to bubble and stew, Terran putting a lid over it to help seal in the heat and keep some flavor* This sure is a lot of meat. I hope those two don’t mind stew, ale and bone cooked meat!

Ingward looks out at the Zebra Fish, his mouth watering as he licks his chops and allows his eyes to flash hungrily. "Zebra Fish...good choice! Their meat is a bit tough, but chewy and juicy! It also keeps for a long while, meaning we can have a surplus for later! I'll get right on it!" He steps up to the rail of the ship, his muscles flexing as he builds up pressure in them before rocketing off the rail and out of the bubble.

Once he hits the open ocean, Ingward allows himself to swim and flip a bit in the water, savoring the freedom he had just acquired before turning his gaze back onto the Zebra Fish. He shoots through the water like a torpedo, charging straight for the Sea Beast with his hand in a spear formation. The fish immediately turns and tries to swim away, hoping its vast size and strength would let it out swim the Fishman. However, it wasn't long until Ingward was right above the beast. Aiming his hand, he darts down and slices the beast along the side with a single chop, splitting it from dorsal fin to stomach along its right side.

In a few moments, Ingward swims back with a seaweed sack full of cut up Zebra Fish meat. "I was able to clean it and cut it into large chunks that can be easily portioned, so we can keep track of our stocks. I figured it would help make Terran's job easier." Upon saying Terran's name, Ingward then smells the stew cooking, his mouth watering further. "It would seem Terran's already got food at the ready! This should help bolster our rations, then." He takes the sack down to the galley, entering and looking around for Terran. "Hey, Terran! I got some Sea King meat here from the fishing trip I just took. Where do you want me to store it?"


~The New World, Fort Ticonderoga~

Off the coast of Dressrosa, there sits a vast, city-like oil platform surrounded by smog and black clouds, with five smoke stacks billowing out black soot. This was Fort Ticonderoga, one of the largest Marine bases in all of New World, the only bigger ones being G5 and Marineford. It was here that Kurokame, one of the three Admirals of the Marines, made his base. Within one of the dark holding cells, a redheaded Mermaid sat in a large water tank, a layer of soap surrounding her so that she could still swim despite her condition. After a few moments pass and a random Marine enters, carrying a Transponder Snail with black skin sporting a black, broad-rimmed cowboy hat. When the snail speaks, the voice of Kurokame rings out in its usual, southern tone.

"Bon Soire, my dear Princess Lyra. I trust today finds you in good comfort?~ I wouldn't want my favorite security system feeling under the weather, now...~"

Artemis flies through the doors to the galley, practically drooling as she inhales the scent of the simmering stew. "Terran, this looks amazing!" She shouts, invading his personal bubble with no shame. "I bet it tastes even better!! Is it ready??" The captain finally steps back from the stove top and promptly takes a seat on the table, eyeing the meat with an endless hunger. The sound of Ingward leaving the bubble catches her interest, as she flies out once more, watching him easily take out the beast and bring it back in pieces.

"Ooooohh!! That was soooo cool!" her eyes have lit up under her blindfold and she drifts around the large sack of meat. "Now we'll definitely have enough to make it to Fishman Island! Damn! I still need to make the plan! Ingward, do you remember the layout of the Palace? It'll still be a while until we arrive, but I wanna at least have 11% of a plan by the time we dock!!"


~New World; Fort Ticonderoga~

"...I'm fine, Admiral-San..." she sighs softly, tugging at the sea stone collar as she moved. "...When will I be able to have a bit more room to move? I've been getting a little cramped."

Unlike her ancestors before here, Lyra never cried. Not here, not back then. While she was polite, she always had some form of attitude in her voice. All she could do was sit and wait, and hope that her love would find a way to rescue her from this ongoing nightmare.

Terran: *he looks from Artemis to the stew as she flies around the galley, then back outside. Terran sighs in exasperation, taking out some mitts and checking on the meat on the bone* Geez....I sure picked a winner for a captain...Hey quit flying around like you’re a bat outta hell! Food will be ready in just a few minutes so sit freaking still! *he begins to set the table, putting out all of the dishes he had prepared on the big table in the dining hall. Once it was all set, he began to move all of the food into the center, the delicious aroma slowly taking over the whole ship. He calls out to Artemis and Ingward* Hey! Food’s ready! Get in here before I eat it all!

~Nova Fall~

Ingward walks over to the ship's freezer and places the meat in, sniffing the air as the smell of the meat wafts in. He was starving, and that food smelled beyond heavenly. He rushes in and sits down, immediatly tearing into a hunk of ripe meat off the bone. As he wolfs down the meat as only a shark can, he looks to Artemis and nods. "I remember the basic layout of the palace. Before my emslavement, I was a member of the royal guards, and was the personal bodyguard of Princess Lyra herself. If you can give me a pen and paper, I can draw us a layout and we can have a plan ready well before our arrival. As for where we can dock safely, I know a place...Fishman District, Noah. We should be safe there if I'm with you. They don't mind Pirates, and my teacher should still be there. He was a pretty big name back in the Straw Hat Age. We should be safe with them."


~New World, Fort Ticonderoga~

The snail sneers, a small smirk on its face. "Well now, we wouldn't want you feeling uncomfortable, now would we? I shall have my men bring out a larger tank, post-haste!~ Now then, I'd like to get down to brass tacks, my dear....I have a little something for you. You see, a certain problem occured today. A Noble was accosted by a couple of pirates and his slave is now on the run. A rather large bounty has been placed on his head...well, I'll let you see for yourself.~ Corporal, if you please..."

The soldier walks up to the glass and places a wanted poster on it, taping it to the glass so Lyra could read it.

Artemis nods along to her first mate's works, tearing off huge chunks of meat and almost swallowing them whole. She holds the boned meat in her mouth and she fishes around her desk for a pen and paper, slapping it onto the table in front of Ingward as she flops back down and continues eating.

"Try to remember any and all details you can." She swallows another hunk of meat, then promptly starts choking. Artemis smacked her chest, her face turning bright red before she's able to force the food down her throat. Her head tilts to the side and she lets out a light snore, fast asleep.



New World; Fort Ticonderoga

Lyra moved over the the wall of the tank to get a better view of the poster. Her eyes widened as she moved back rather swiftly before smiling, a new determination shining in her eyes.

"Ingward... You really are coming!" She looks to the snail and grins. "Admiral-San, I'll be leaving soon it seems. So I think I'll thank you beforehand!"

poster:

Terran sits down and begins to eat some of the food he cooked with his new crew mates, frowning awkwardly as he watches Artemis go from choking to falling fast asleep. “Sheesh....She’s got more screws loose than a sinking ship....” he looks at Ingward, watching him as he draws on the map. “So tell me more about this place Ingward. What kind of security and things do they have? Any other treasures besides what we’re after?” He grins. “As a thief, I feel perfectly inclined to ask you for every little dirty detail you can give me~” He says to him, a glint in his eyes that openly said that he was excited to see any kind of pay day at their next location.

~Nova Fall~

Ingward looks amazed that Artemis could be so active and hyper one moment, and then pass out peacefully during a meal the next. Wss it a condition, or maybe just a quirk in her person? Either way, it caught him off guard at first. "My teacher said there are people in the world who do things like that...though, I never thought I'd be rescued by one..." Taking the pen and paper in his hand while he holds a meat bone in his mouth like a tooth pick, he begins drawing the layout of the palace.

"Ryugu Palace has five main levels; the ground floor, where the entrance is as well as the banquet hall and throne room, the second level which houses the servant's quarters and barracks, the third level which has the Royal bedchamber, the first basement which holds the treasure trove, and lastly, the prison on the bottom floor. The places where the most loot would be would have to be the Trove, the Bedchambers, and, in the case of high-quality and expensive foods, the kitchens. The Tamatebako will be held in the Throne room itself under the guard of Queen Shirahoshi, the current ruler of Fishman Island, and the Devil Fruit we're seeking will be kept secure in the Trove, under heavy guard. However, if we can incapacitate the guards outside the trove, all that loot will be ripe for the picking!~"

He spits the bone out, putting another hunk of meat in his mouth to chew on while he speaks. "I'll do my best to distract the Queen and her guards, while you two get the loot. Getting the Tamatebako will be the tough part, since I'll need to distract her directly while one of you snatches that box while she's unaware. Luckily, she hates my guts, so it shouldn't be too difficult."


~New World, Fort Ticonderoga~

The snail suddenly starts laughing, as if Lyra just told a hilarious joke, the soldier standing by uncomfortably. "Wait, wait! Vous plaisantez à droite? You're joking, right?! You actually believe he's coming? Ha! My dear, I only told you about his escape as a courtesy. I do not intend to let this little crew he's joined get past Fishman Island. Already, Agents Mammoth and Terror-Bird are on their way to the island to bolster Her Highness's security force...even if they fail, we still have another monster on his way...remember the Agent I sent to retrieve you from good Mr. Ingward so long ago?~ Agent Megalodon is chomping at the bit for another bite into that fishy sea-bandit of yours.~ Right, Agent?"

Standing in the shadows behind the soldier holding the snail was a cloaked figure with a hunched back, a shark-like mask on his face, and both his hands hidden under the cloak. The figure steps forward out from the dark, the light of Lyra's window shining eerily over his silent form. The cloaked figure walks over to a large piano sitting in the corner that Kurokame kept for Lyra to play, and sits down on the bench, his eyes never leaving Lyra, like a hungry shark.

The snail speaks, this time lower. "He beat that oily shark within an inch of his life last time. I won't afford him another inch again. Think of that poster as a final memento from your dearly beloved. Mais réjouissez-vous! Rejoice! Soon...you will be an available woman again! CREEEHAHAHAHAH!~"

Artemis wakes up and looks over the plans that Ingward drew out. She studies it carefully, taking in every detail she can. 

"Getting in will be easy. Its getting out that'll be the fun part." She nods, continuing her eating like nothing happened. "If you can be the best damn distraction possible, Terran can go for the box. I'll take care of the fruit below."


*~New World; Fort Ticonderoga~*

Lyra tugs at the chains, smiling. 

"With little due respect, Admiral-san, he will most definitely make it here. He will save me,  and we will take you out! Telling me this was a mistake; I have a new hope now. And that's the worst thing you can give to an enemy."

She splashes about a bit before settling down, trying to get comfortable,  and grinning mischeviously. 

"I'll take the larger tank whenever you can bring it. Would want your precious weapon breaking, would you?"

Terran laughs heartily. “Leave all of the loot snatching to me! I’m more than happy to use my talents to snag the treasures throughout the facility. However....I might be inclined to check out those royal bedchamber’s~ That sounds fancy. There might also be some pretty women up there that I want to meet.” He comments, grinning as he picks up a glass of wine and slowly begins to drink it. “Any ideas who or what will be in the prison on the bottom floor? We could possibly use that as a fun distraction for when we need to leave. Picking those locks on the prison’s could be pretty simple for me too. Of course, it’s your call captain.” He says, smirking at Artemis.

Ingward nods as he continues going over the map. "The Fruit is going to be the most heavily guarded of the treasures. Nowadays, Devil Fruit are even more valuable, since certain powers in the world are vying to use them to help with carving out kingdoms and crews of their own. The Tamatebako will be kept close to the queen herself. Because of this, Terran will need to be quick when grabbing the box. Once they realize I'm just a distraction, they'll chase us down with everything the Ryugou Kingdom has in their arsonel. As for the prisoners, its mostly former Fishman rebels who served the evil Hody Jones years back." His eyes narrow, as if the thought of the rebels gave Ingward a bad memory. "Trust me, they wouldn't be of much help. Besides, if they broke out, they would spread out into the island and cause havock for the people. I may be willing to become a thief, but the idea of causing that kind of trouble for a bunch of innocent people doesn't sit well with me."


~Fort Ticonderoga~

The snail does not seem bothered by Lyra's newfound hope. "HAHA! Your spunk is adorable. It will bring me great pleasure to see your reaction when my men bring back that fish's stinking head.~ We will have your new accommodations prepared soon...until then, Agent Megalodon...please, entertain our guest. I'm sure you both have much to catch up on!~ Corporal, we're done here." With that, the snail falls silent and the soldier withdraws, leaving Lyra alone with the cloaked figure.

The figure seems to look at her, finally speaking in a soft, cold voice. "...I believe you like music, Princess...shall I play a song for you?..."

"Perfectly fair, Ingward." Artemis noded as she swallowed another hunk of meat, lifting her blindfold to see the plans better. They see her left eye which has a neon purple iris, and where there should be white, it looks like space. "So, You're a distraction, Terran will snatch the box, I'll go for the fruit. I'm still learning things about my fruit, so this'll be a great place to test some stuff out!!" She grins like an idiot at her two crew members. "Maybe if we put a mustache on you, Ingward, they won't recognize you right away!"

Their captain stands up.

"We'll be there by nightfall (whenever that is underwater), and keep an eye out for other treasure."

~Fort Ticonderoga~

"Yes I do like music, but What did he mean by catch up?" Lyra tried to see the cloaked figure's face. "Who are you? Do we know each other?" She racked her mind for who it could be, always coming up short. It frustrated her a bit, but his identity would be revealed in time, she supposed.

~Nova Fall~

Ingward thinks to himself for a moment. A....moustache?....all he could picture was himself wearing a pair of thick glasses with a fake nose and bushy eyebrows and a fake moustache. He cringes slightly, imediately grabbing the lask hunk of meat off his plate.

Ingward finishes off his meat, swallowing it, bone and all, in one bite as he stands up and claps his hands together, bowing. "Thank you for the food!~ In the meantime, I'm going to let out a few sonic screeches so I can map out our route further. Once Fishman Island is in sight, we'll head straight for Noah." He couldn't help but smirk a bit. Here he was, coming home..."I hope my Uncle* is well...he taught me Fishman Karate and raised me like his own son."


~Fort Ticonderoga~

The cloaked figure sighs, turning around and sitting down at the piano. He moved his left hand up, a humanoid hand covered in what looked like dingy, grey, crab-like shell coming out from his sleeve as he uses only one hand to play. To Lyra's shock, he was skilled, even using only one hand. The melody was haunting, sad, and deep, like the ocean itself...and the worst part, she could recognize every note.

It was a song called "The Ballad of Davy Jones", and its haunting melody brought up images of her, Ingward, and a third Fishman, who's face and image was obscured in the shadow of the memory. She was singing and dancing, swimmimg while holding Ingward's hands and making him flow with her while the figure played from a large, conch shell pipe organ. That friend...only playing with one hand.


*Ingward referred to his teacher as Uncle here. This, however, does not mean they are related by blood. He was using Uncle in the same sense that many crime families such as the Yakuza or Mafia would refer to their seniors as "uncle" or "father".