#it's about these two boys who were like in a crew of bandits and were inseperable

[one-idea]

Shanks raise ASL part 9

First - Previous

Luffy made his way to Makino’s bar. It’s was late enough in the morning that the villagers were milling around. When Luffy made it to Party Bar he was almost surprised to not see any members of the Red Hair Pirates in there drinking yet.

“Luffy! What are you doing here so early?” Makino greeted the little boy when she saw him walk in. She was surprised to see Luffy but it wasn’t a bad thing. She was more surprised that he was here without either of his brothers or Shanks with him.

“Morning Makino! Me, Ace, and Sabo went hunting this morning! We wanted to catch something for Shanks and the crew. Did you know we’re going with him!” Luffy told her all about his morning and his plan, full of excitement for the future. He did so without any thought to how Makino would react to him leaving with a group of violent pirates.

Makino to her credit wasn’t to surprised or concerned. While she wished Luffy would wait until he was older to leave, she always knew he and his brothers were too big for their sleepy island. And she knew Shanks would protect the boys with his life, no questions asked, the boys would be as safe on the sea as they could be. Garp won’t agree but he had lost this argument long ago, these three boys were made to be pirates, not marines.

Just then the door to the bar was violently thrown open. A group of rough men walking into the bar. Makino recognized their leader almost immediately.

It was Higuma. He led a rival mountain bandit crew to Dadan’s and he was not fond of Curly Dadan or her family. He also had a hatred for Shanks after the last time the red haired pirate was in town and drank the Party Bar dry. He hadn’t been back since and Makino had hopped it would stay that way.

“I heard those weak pirates are back in town.” Higuma stated as soon as he walked into the bar his men spreading out. “I thought we’d pay them a visit but it seems the weaklings aren’t here yet. All the better I’d hate to kill the red head in here and dirty your floors when he’s not alive to clean them up.”

Makino had moved to try and put herself between the man and Luffy as soon as he entered but she wasn’t quick enough.

“Shanks isn’t weak!” The little seven year old bellowed, drawling the bandit’s eyes right to him. “Don’t you dare mock him and his crew. He could kill you without even trying”

“Oh I remember you, you’re the little brat who hangs around with the pirates.” Higuma stated as he moved closer to the little boy.

“Hey boss, I think I’ve seen him running around with Dadan’s brat as well.” Called out one of the bandits. Makino cursed the man in her mind.

“Curly Dadan huh, well looks like we’ll kill two birds with one stone.” The man said before he back handed Luffy across the face.

“Luffy.” Makino cried out running to the little boy.

“Trash the place boys!” Higuma called out to his men. They cheered and started flipping the tables and breaking the stools.

Makino looked at the destruction occurring and quickly grabbed Luffy. “Luffy lets go.” There was no way they could stop these men.

“No Makino! They can’t do this!” Luffy struggled against her as she tried to get him out of the bar. Higuma saw them trying to escape and blocked their path.

“Now where do you think you’re going?” He asked as he reached for Makino. With a scream Luffy launched himself at the bandit.

“Go get help Makino.” He called as he knocked the bandit over. Makino hated this. Hated the idea of leaving Luffy with these men, but she couldn’t fight them. If she stayed then no one would come to help them. So she ran. Ran as fast as she could to Woop Slap.

Higuma quickly threw Luffy off of him. The little boy landed roughly, groaning as he bounced off the ground. Luffy started to push himself up but wasn’t quick enough to avoid the kick Higuma aimed at his stomach. Yet to Higuma and the bandits’ shock instead of the boy being sent flying by the kick, his body streched with the impact.

“What the?” Higuma cried as Luffy’s body snapped back to normal. He reached down and grabbed Luffy’s cheek stretching it out and letting it snap back into place. “Devil fruit.” He whispered in awe.

“Hey boss we could get a lot of money from selling this kid.” Called out one of the bandits.

“Ya I heard some Celestial Dragons were going to be visiting the island soon. Maybe they’d buy him. I heard they love exotic things.” Another tacked on.

Higuma smirked as he bent down and grabbed Luffy by the neck, picking the struggling boy up. “That’s not a bad idea.” He said as he started to lead the bandits out of the bar.

Luffy tried to struggle out of his grip but nothing was working, so he did the only thing he could think of. He spat at Higuma. The man paused wiping the spit from his face, huffing out a breath of a chuckle. Before he slammed Luffy into the ground. The little boy cried out at the impact. He started to push himself up when Higuma stepped in the boy’s head.

“I’m not going anywhere with you!” Luffy shouted at the bandit.

“You need to watch yourself kid, no one who’s made me mad has lived to tell the horrifying tale.” Higuma said as he reached for his sword.

“Wait stop!” Woop Slap yelled as he and Makino arrived on the scene. “I don’t know what he’s done and I don’t intended to fight you over it. If you accept I’ll even pay you for it but please just spare the poor boy’s life.”

“Mayor!” Luffy called out intent on telling the old man to stop.

“Sorry but this rotten boy’s already made me angry.” Higuma said as he drew his sword.

“You’re the rotten one!” Luffy yell back. Never standing down from a fight.

“And your a lost cause which you can regret in the next life.” Higuma said placing his sword at Luffy’s neck. Both Makino and Woop Slap begged him to stop. But everything stopped when they heard a voice behind them.

“I was wondering why the bar was empty on such a fine day.” While his tone was light and jovial his eyes were hard, trained on Higuma and Luffy. He learned a long time ago to act as though nothing bothered him so that his enemies couldn’t see his weak points, but with a sword at Luffy’s throat it was hard to remember that. “So it’s the mountain bandits again.”

Shanks had been tracking the boy’s haki all morning. He’d noticed when Luffy separated from his brothers, when he crossed paths with Mihawk, and when he ran into the bar. He had also noticed when the multiple dull presences entered the bar after his son had. He didn’t hesitate to get the crew together and head over there. Something was wrong. He knew it. If he was right, hopefully they would get to Luffy in time, and if he was wrong well, drinks on him.

But he wasn’t wrong. This lowlife was back, but this time he had attacked Luffy. He and his men wouldn’t live to see the sunset.

“Shanks.” He heard Luffy gasp out from around the man’s shoe. His fist tightened at the sound wanting to remove this man from his son as quickly as possible. But this was delicate as Luffy was too close to the man. They would have to be careful.

“Pirates, just now showing your heads? Have you spent all this time scrubbing the village?” Higuma taunted but Shanks ignored him. He wasn’t going to rise to a weak man’s bait, especially when said man had a sword tip so close to his son’s neck.

Instead he focused on Luffy. “Luffy didn’t you say earlier that your punches were stronger than pistols?” He made the question light. Luffy’s response would allow him to gauge how hurt his boy was. If Luffy didn’t respond or only grunted then his boy was desperately injured and they’d have to act fast.

“Shut your mouth.” Luffy responded with his regular fire. Good he wasn’t hurt to badly then. Shanks was still going to kill all of these bandits for even trying to hurt him.

Shanks start to calmly walk towards Higuma and Luffy. “Listen I don’t know what you’re doing here but you might want to leave.” Higuma obviously didn’t know who Luffy was to Shanks. Good that would make this far easier if he thought this was a stupid pirate butting in and not a father protecting his son. “You wouldn’t want something bad to happen.” The threat was empty. Shanks could tell, as Higuma’s sword hadn’t moved any closer to Luffy. “And I I have just the man to deliver the message.” Higuma finished his threat as one of his men swung his pistol to be level with Shanks’s head.

Oh. He was trying to threaten Shanks. He was dumber than he looked. But Shanks stopped moving forward with the gun pointed at his head. He wasn’t worried. He was making a point.

“I’ll blow your head off if I have to, but that’s up to you my friend.” The bandit taunted and the men around them laughed. Just as Shanks excepted, all talk. He wondered how many weaker souls had fallen for this bluff. He could see the confident smirk on Higuma’s face and the fear in Luffy’s. This was Luffy’s first time seeing Shanks and his crew in a fight. He understood the boy’s worry, but it was misplaced. After today Luffy would know not to worry in situations like this, would understand men like this were not a threat. Yet a part of Shanks mourned the innocence Luffy was about to lose.

“Would you risk your life?” Shanks asked not looking at the man, but hearing his noise of disbelief. “Now that you’ve drawn your pistol are you willing to use it?”

“What the hell are you talking about?” The man asked in shock. Shanks finally turned to look at the man, his face would be the last this man ever saw. He could see Lucky Roux starting to move.

“I’m saying guns aren’t for threats they’re for actions.” And with that statement, Lucky’s gun went off. The bandit dropping dead.

Shanks kept his head down, silently hoping Luffy could forgive him one day for introducing this violence to him. He knew Luffy had fought before, had rescued him and his brothers from the Bluejam pirates, but killing someone so coldly was different. It was a violence that would have touched his son eventually as they traveled out to sea, but to have it happen in Luffy’s home village felt wrong.

He could hear Makino and Woop Slap’s horrified gasps and Luffy’s shocked breath, but he couldn’t focus on them now.

“You! You’re a dead man!” Cried one of the bandits.

“These guys fight dirty.” Called another.

Shanks could feel his crew moving closer around him, offering strength, if you fought one Red Haired Pirate you fought them all.

“Dirty?” Yasopp asked almost sounding confused and affronted by the word.

“Who did you think you were dealing with?” Benn asked, picking up were Yasopp left off. “We didn’t claim to be saints or anything.” His statement meant for the shocked towns people as much as it was for the bandits.

“You fellows are staring down a crew of pirates.” Shanks said taking in the fear from the men in front of him.

“Shut up!” One called. “We just want the boy not you.” That was the stupidest thing he could have said to Shanks. As if Shanks would ever let them hurt his boy.

“Listen up bandits.” He somehow managed to keep his rage out of his voice, keeping it calm and collected the whole time. “Whether I’m sprayed with alcohol, doused with booze, hell even if I’m spit on, most of the time I’ll just laugh it off and forget about it.” His head snapped up to look Higuma dead in the eye. His voice finally darkening. “But if you hurt a friend of mine, you’ll pay for it regardless of your reason.” It was a true statement, Shanks would set an island a blaze for any of his friends, but for his sons, he’d burn the world.

And this man was still. Touching. His. Kid.

Higuma just laughed. “So we’re going to pay? Lousy pirates kill them all men!” He ordered as all the bandits screamed and rushed forward.

Shanks didn’t move as Benn step forward on his right, his hand already on his gun. “I’ll take care of this. Shouldn’t be a big deal.” Benn didn’t want his captain wasting his time on these lowlifes. Plus they had hurt his nephew, he wasn’t letting them leave here breathing. He drew his gun, his movements were faster than these men could track, lining up his shot and firing. The bandits hadn’t realized one of their own had dropped before his next shot was fired. He decimated the whole gang in under a minute, lining his gun up with Higuma’s head. “You shouldn’t get to cocky. If you really wanted to fight us, looks like a battleship or something bigger would have been more useful.”

The man stood there in fear and shock but Shanks ignored him, his eyes tracking to his son’s slack faces. He was ready for there to be fear in his son’s eyes but instead Luffy was looking at Benn in awe. A quiet “Wow.” Leaving his lips.

Higuma panicked, finally removing his foot from Luffy’s face. “Hold on it was the kid who attacked us.” He cried out.

Shanks wasn’t about to let an adult blame a child for their actions. “I thought you were a wanted man.” This man was dying today.

Higuma, realizing there was nothing he could say to save himself, let out a cry and threw something on the ground. The thing exploded and for a heart stopping second Shanks worried the man decided to blow himself and Luffy up rather than fight them. But then the smoke started billowing out at them at a rapid rate.

“A smoke screen.” He growled. What a coward. When then the smoke cleared Higuma was there, but that was expected. What wasn’t expected was that Luffy was gone to. “Luffy?” Skanks called shocked that his son wasn’t where he last saw him. For a second he hoped the boy would pop out, maybe he ran away from the smoke.

But when that didn’t happen ice filled Shanks veins again. His hand flew to the sides of this head as he yelled out, “Oh no I let that guy take him!” He quickly turned around to face his crew in his panic. One of them had to know what to do. “What are we going to do?!” He screamed looking at Lucky Roux.

“Boss calm down! Stop freaking out we’ll find him in no time.” Lucky Roux tried to reassure him. They all knew just how important Luffy was to Shanks. They also adored the little anchor themselves. They’d spread out and search the whole island for the boy if they had to. Higuma wasn’t getting away from them, and he certainly wasn’t going to take Luffy from them.

The Red Hair Pirates took off to search the town. All eager to be the one to find Higuma and put an end to the man who thought he could take Luffy from them.

Shanks was about to run off as well when Benn grabbed his arm. “Captain I know your worried but,”

“No Benn! I can’t wait I need to find Luffy now!” Shanks head was consumed by worry for his son. He couldn’t believe his first mate would be the one to slow him down.

“And is there anything you can do that might help you find him faster?” Benn said giving his captain a pointed look. It took Shanks a second to understand what his first mate was getting at. Oh, his observation Haki. In his panic he almost forgot. He sent out a wave looking for his boy.

There. He could feel Luffy being taken away from the village, but he wasn’t heading in land. No he was heading out to sea.

“I found them. Come on Benn.” Shanks called as he took off running.

“Right behind you Captain.” Been called as he chased after the younger man.

#one piece #monkey d. luffy #portagas d. ace #fire fist ace #one piece ace #revolutionary sabo #one piece sabo #asl trio #asl brothers #mishanks #dracule mihawk #shanks is such a dad #shanks is luffy’s dad okay. #shanks #I’m sorry this took so long I had to go back and rewatch episode 4 #it’s coming the sea king is coming #next time we will check in with Ace Sabo and Mihawk. and we will see what happens to shanks and Luffy

[lewiscarrolatemybrain]

I have two inter-connected headcanons I would like to share

First, that Shanks was absolutely going to take Luffy with him right up until he learned that Luffy is Garp’s grandson. He himself got his start as a cabin boy on Roger’s ship, it’s not like he’s apposed to children being pirates. He brought it up to Makino and she explained Luffy’s family and Shanks realized that if he took Luffy he’d end up with Garp The Fist bringing the whole damn navy down on him for kidnapping the man’s grandson. So he reluctantly decided to leave the kid behind. A large part of him teasing Luffy about how he’d never be a pirate was less to do with making sure Luffy knew Shanks wasn’t gonna take him and more to do with reminding himself that he couldn’t bring Luffy with him, even though he really wanted to.

The related headcanon is that, originally, the Red Hair pirates were going to swing by Syrup and pick up Usopp after they left Dawn. They had it all planned out. Yasopp and Shanks in particular were real excited about it. Luffy and Usopp, growing up together on board, just like Shanks and Buggy. Even when they knew they couldn’t take Luffy, the plan was still to go get Usopp. Then all the stuff with the bandits and Shanks losing his arm happened, and Yasopp was reminded of just how insanely dangerous their lives are — how even with their skill and their power, they are not infallible, and a single mistake could mean injury or death for them, much less for a vulnerable child who’s counting on them. And Yasopp decided he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t bring little Usopp into that kind of danger.

When news that Usopp was sailing with Luffy reached the Red Hair crew, everybody decided it must have been fate.

#one piece #yasopp #usopp #red hair shanks #monkey d. luffy #red hair pirates #straw hat pirates #look I am team Fuck Deadbeat Dads #but I do think it’s interesting to explore other angles #and now I’m thinking of an au where Usopp and Luffy DID get the Buggy and Shanks treatment #….. ooooh that could be so fun

[goosewriting]

Across the Galaxy and Beyond

summary: some time after the Mantis crew split apart, Cal has an unexpected reunion with reader on Koboh

relationship: Cal Kestis x gn!reader

warnings: spoilers for Jedi Survivor, vague-ish mention of events from the Battle Scars book but i don't think it counts as a spoiler, hurt & comfort, flashbacks, kissing

word count: 8.9k 👀💧 ...i am unwell about this man what can i say

A/N: started writing this when i first started jedi survivor, and finally got around to finishing it now that i finished reading battle scars and the cal kestis brainworms are attacking me again. story doesn't follow the game exactly. also this could be read as a separate story from my wherever you go, i go trilogy, but i like to think it's the same reader and timeline lol so go read that if you haven't c:

Navigation: Part 1 (you’re here!) | Part 2 (wip)

(english is not my first language. constructive criticism and grammar corrections are very appreciated!)

— — — Part 1: Just like old times

After Cal's escape from Coruscant, the Mantis was pretty shredded. The main problem was the gyro, but upon entering Koboh's atmosphere, all systems started failing and the Jedi had to make an emergency landing somewhere on some cliffs. 

It took a lot of climbing and wall-jumping and fighting the aggressive local fauna, but after a couple of hours, Cal and BD finally made it to the outpost where Greez' cantina was located. On the way there he also encountered bandits who called themselves the Bedlam Raiders, as well as old Separatists battleships and battle droids, of all things. Just what has Greez got himself into?, Cal thinks to himself after saving a local from Rayvis, the leader of the Raiders, and outing himself as a Jedi in the process.

When Cal and BD finally enter Pyloon's Saloon, they meet with Greez. Since the Raiders have just been at the saloon (and the place doesn't look all too inviting either), there are no customers, so Cal and Greez catch up at the bar. The Latero is extremely happy to see the boy and his droid in one piece after all this time. Over a drink, the redhead tells him about the last job on Coruscant gone wrong, how only two of them made it out. He expresses his frustration, how the Empire is only growing stronger and everything he does feels pointless. Things haven't been easy since the Mantis crew split up. 

After catching up a little, Greez tells Cal that he has some spare parts and will take care of the ship. He'll send someone to bring the ship to the landing dock behind the saloon. In the meantime, he should take a breather and explore the outpost. Cal doesn't like feeling like he's wasting time, but with the state the Mantis is in, there really isn't much else he can do. 

The Latero shows him the room in the basement, telling Cal he can stay as long as he needs. Greez wasn't kidding when he said he had a room just for Cal: there was a meditation area in the middle of the round room, and even his old clothes and some unfinished tech projects were all stashed away in a big chest. 

They both sit down on the edge of the bed, and it doesn't take long for the conversation to take a direction Cal doesn't like. Not because what Greez is saying is wrong; on the contrary, he's probably right, but the redhead doesn't want to hear it. Not right now. Greez, in a genuinely concerned tone, goes on about how the game is rigged and Cal should walk away while he can, maybe even settle down somewhere. Cal lashes out for a moment, claiming someone has to keep fighting.

— — —

You approach the stable in the outpost riding on your nekko, humming a happy tune to yourself. You're lost in thought, letting your trusty mount walk the last stretch to the stalls by himself, as he knew the way. Once you reach the structure, you get off and start putting away your haul; you just came from a successful hunt. You'd skin and prepare everything later though, so you pack the preys away in special boxes where everything would be preserved for a couple of days. 

“Hello master,” a robotic yet chirpy voice greets you. 

You turn around with a smile, facing the Separatist battle droid you had found and reprogrammed to help you out at the stable.

“Hey there, Connor,” you greet back. You've told him several times not to call you that, but he insisted, saying you saved him and now his purpose was to serve you. You take a moment to inspect his blue and black markings that have started chipping more noticeably; maybe it's time for a new paint job.

“Did I miss anything while I was gone?” you ask, taking the saddle off your nekko and placing it onto the designated wooden beam. 

“Yes, in fact,” Connor replies, placing new food and clean water in the trough. “There's a ship on the landing pad behind the saloon that I've never seen before.”

“Is that so? What kinda ship?” 

“A modified S-161 Stinger, and it's pretty busted up. I'm surprised it even made it this far.”

You stop in your tracks, your grip tightening around the halter you just took off the nekko, which is now happily munching away on its fresh feed.

“Interesting,” you remark, putting the rest of the equipment away and turning around to face the droid. Since you spent most of the day down in some caves, you didn't see or hear anything. “Do you know who was on board?”

“I didn't see who came off the ship, but I overheard some prospectors talk about a newcomer that went one on one with Rayvis,” Connor comments, then leans in closer to you, looking around as if to make sure no one would be listening in on your conversations, when it's clearly just the two of you at the stable. “I also heard Turgle mentioning a Jedi being seen around here.”

“Huh,” is all you manage to say, feeling your heart pounding in your chest. There was no way he was here, right? After all this time? As far as you know, he doesn't even know you're here. So if it is him, he isn't here to see you, but Greez instead. It's probably because of the Mantis; Cal is in need of repairs. This thought immediately replaces the initial anticipation with a strange, cold feeling. 

“Can you believe it?” Connor goes on. “I've never even seen a Jedi. I would love to meet them.”

You take a long look at the droid, remembering the state you had found him in. He had never been in the war, actually. He spent several years in an abandoned Separatist camp, never even getting to be activated. So he only knew his programming: serve the Separatists, fight the clones and kill the Jedi. Yet he had never lived any of it. Reprogramming him had been easy in that regard, as his memory banks were mostly blank. Back then you were looking for a droid companion to help you out at the stables, and even though you know what battle droids mean to the Jedi, you can't help but think that they are kinda cute. The B1 models, at least. The B2 series and commandos are pretty scary. 

So you gave your new friend a name (you couldn't decide between Hank and Connor, but decided to go with the latter as it somehow suited his demeanour better) and a new purpose in life, and he seems content with that. The only fighting program you left in him is for defending the stable and nekkos. First and foremost it is his mission that they are not harmed. You also ordered him not to leave the outpost, for his own safety. You don't want the raiders to find him and get access to his memory bank. They would use the information against all of you at the outpost, and either scrap him or reprogram him to join the raiders. Once they were dealt with, however, you promised Connor you would take him around Koboh first, then show him the galaxy. 

“I'm going to the saloon,” you announce. “Can you take care of the rest?” 

“Roger roger!” Connor replies with a salute, getting to work. 

You find yourself smoothing out your clothes and hair as you make the short trip to the saloon. When you reach the bar you're met with Monk, the witty bartender droid. He greets you with a happy tone and some strange phrase that you don't entirely understand, as he always does. You ask for Greez, and he points towards the door to the side, saying he's in the basement with some old friend of his that just dropped by.

With a gulp and a forced smile, you thank him and head down the stairs. The urge to turn on your heel and run away grows with every step. As you're about to reach the door, you hear voices coming from the other side.

“-to be something more than a lightsaber.” That's Greez, you think. He sounds… sad? “Think of yourself. Settle down, find a home.”

“What home, Greez?” You swear your heart actually stops beating and accelerates at the same time when you hear the voice, his voice. “There is no home. Home was the Order. It was my teacher.”

You've stopped a couple steps away from the door so it wouldn't open and have you interrupt the conversation, but you involuntarily lean forward to hear better what Cal says next.

“It was everyone I lost… Home was the Mantis with you, Cere, Merrin, and–”

The automatic door whooshes open and Cal and Greez turn their heads towards you as they stand up from the bed they were sitting on. 

“I- I didn't mean to eavesdrop,” you sheepishly state after a moment of uncomfortable silence from everyone, approaching him but staying at a distance. “Hey, Cal. It's been a while.”

“Yeah, it has,” he retorts, and you can't really read the tone of his voice. 

You look each other up and down, taking in how different you both look since… Since the last time you saw each other. Since you split up. 

A thousand thoughts go through your head, and a thousand different feelings resurface, making your heart tighten in your chest, like there isn't enough space for everything it's trying to process.

Greez can't take the tension anymore, so he clears his throat loudly.

“Lemme show you something, Cal,” the Latero says as he walks towards a panel on the far side of the room. He presses a couple of buttons and a section of the wall slides open with a creak, revealing a path behind it. “This is an old smuggler's tunnel, you'll find spare parts in there. Just… be careful, I have a pest problem.”

With that, Greez walks by both of you, giving your arm an encouraging pat, before leaving the room. It's just you and Cal now.

“Spare parts?” you ask, trying to make some conversation. “For the Mantis, I take it?”

“Yeah,” Cal replies, looking at the tunnel entrance but not moving from where he stands. “Gyro's fried.”

You two stand there in silence, and you want to smack yourself in the face. You feel like an awkward 12-year-old all over again, not knowing how to talk to your cr– You stop your train of thought before you dare finish that sentence and potentially embarrass yourself further. The heat on your cheeks that refuses to leave your face since you've laid eyes on the Jedi can't possibly have gone unnoticed by him.

“You know, Greez has had this room set up for you for quite a while,” you tell Cal, shooting him a quick smile. “So I take it you'll be staying for a while, right? The Mantis isn't going anywhere.”

Cal shrugs and shoots you a quick, unsure glance, then casts his eyes back down, scratching the back of his neck. 

“I was just about to head out,” you lie. Your plan for the evening was to have a drink at the bar and unwind, but him being here changes everything. “You could join me and I'll show you around if you'd like…”

Cal looks at the tunnel again, weighing the options in his mind. One is going down there to fix the Mantis as soon as possible, then taking off to who knows where. The other… you're not so sure. And if you're being honest with yourself, you're too scared to ask.

“Sure, why not,” he finally agrees with a sigh and starts walking towards the door that directly leads outside from the basement, but you feel like something, or rather someone, is missing. You look around the room, scanning your surroundings for a certain droid, then turn back to Cal.

“W-Where's BD?” you ask, fearing the worst. You'd really hate it if something happened to him.

“Oh, he wandered off somewhere earlier,” Cal says and you release a breath of relief. After calling for him, the little droid comes hopping down the stairs and into the room.

“BD!” you greet the little companion, and he excitedly beeps at your reunion. He comes running towards you and you pick him up in a hug.

“Oh, how I've missed you,” you spin him around a couple of times, then set him back down onto the floor. “I have a droid of my own now, but you're still the cutest. Don't tell him, though,” you add with a wink. 

“You have a droid?” Cal asks as BD climbs onto his back and you all make your way out.

“Yeah, he helps me out at the stable,” you explain, pointing at the building as you reach the end of the stairs. The stable is practically behind the saloon. From these stairs it's a very short trek to reach the paddocks.

“Those are nekkos, right?” Cal questions, approaching the fence and looking at the two animals chilling in the sun. “I met Mosey earlier. She said she worked at the stable,” he turns around to look at you. “But she didn't mention you.”

You're about to retort by saying she couldn't have possibly known that you two knew each other, but you're interrupted by a chirpy voice.

“Master! You're back already?” 

At the sound of the familiar robotic voice, Cal instinctively draws his lightsaber, and turns towards the side entrance to the stable. You hurry to get between your droid and the Jedi; you don't want to see Connor get sliced today. Not by him. Said droid peeks out from behind the archway, and BD beeps repeatedly, alarmed. 

“Wait!” you exclaim, holding your hands up into the air defensively. “That's my droid!” 

“Your- Your droid?” Cal repeats, clearly confused. He puts away his weapon nonetheless.

“He's reprogrammed, and he's never even been in the war,” you explain, walking backwards as Cal starts approaching the stable to inspect the battle droid further, with you still between them. “He was never even activated. He's good, I promise!” 

“Master, who's this?” Connor asks, walking back into the stable to make room for Cal and you. “Is he bothering you?” The droid activates the blaster you had built into one of his arms, and Cal's hand goes to the hilt of his sabre again, while BD beeps in exasperation. 

“No, stand down!” you order, and the blaster immediately turns off with a whirr. “Will everyone please calm down?”

Still standing between Cal and the battle droid, you let out a huff, looking from one to the other. 

“Cal, BD; this is Connor, my droid,” you start introducing them. “My good and reprogrammed droid, whose mission is to protect the stable and the nekkos, nothing more.”

Cal seems unimpressed, still looking at Connor with narrowed eyes. You turn to the droid.

“Connor; these are Cal and BD,” you start. “And you know what? Cal here–” You look at Connor with raised brows and lower your voice. “–is a Jedi.”

Connor brings his hands up to where his mouth would be, gasping in surprise. 

“You- You are?” he asks, quickly going around you to take Cal's hand and shaking it vigorously. “It's such an honour! I've always wanted to meet a Jedi!”

“So you could get up all close and stab me in the back?” Cal retorts, his voice laced with uncharacteristic venom, and pulls his hand from the droid's grasp.

“What? No, I–” Connor starts but you push him to the side a bit.

“It's okay, Connor. He'll warm up to you, eventually,” you comfort him. “Please go get the nekkos ready for us?” 

You've never heard a sadder 'roger roger' in your life and it sends a sting of pain through your chest. 

While the droid goes to prepare your mounts, you turn around to Cal and frown at him. He crosses his arms in front of his chest defensively. 

“Why would you say something like that? He's genuinely excited to meet you,” you explain. “When was the last time someone was actually happy to see a Jedi, hm?”

“Not a battle droid, that's for sure,” Cal retorts with a huff. 

You look up at him for a moment, holding his rather cold gaze. You wonder just what happened these past few years that had him like this. Sure, you understand why he isn't a fan of battle droids. Normally you aren't either. But there's just something about Cal that's… different. He looks older, but it might just be the beard. He also looks more tired, carries himself differently. With confidence like he always did, but also in a “don't mess with me” way that wasn't there before. Gone is the spark in his eyes, that glimmer of optimism and hope, replaced by the promise of not holding back if anyone were to cross him. 

For several moments, you just look at each other, and you're sure he's analysing you just as you are him, and you wonder what is going through his head. 

“The nekkos are ready,” Connor announces, leading both of them out of their respective stalls by the reins. 

You allow the animals to sniff Cal and inspect him, while you give a short explanation on how to ride and guide them. Cal's mount is white with a dark face and legs, while yours is a dark purple and brown. After thanking Connor and waving him goodbye, you both hop onto the saddle and head out of the outpost. You know your way around, taking a route that would keep you hidden from the patrols, both the imperial ones as well as the raiders. You'd much rather deal with the local fauna. And you do come across a couple of rawkas at the river, and a pack of gorgers when heading further up the Southern Reach. But you two make quick work of them.

In fact, Cal has grown stronger, and not only that, but he also has a new array of weapons it seems; now he double-wields his lightsabers, and he also has a blaster, which completely takes you by surprise. 

Once you reach the base of the big silo, you get off your nekkos and climb the rest by foot, getting on top of the structure and sitting at the edge. It's not a super well-hidden spot; if the patrols under you decide to look up they would definitely see you, but it's a good vantage point to show Cal the different places. You point towards the landmarks, explaining them to him so he can orient himself and navigate beyond the outpost. You tell him about the caverns, the mines, to look out for different patrols and what areas to avoid; be it because of the raiders, like fort Kha'lin, or because of bigger fauna like bilemaws, goroccos and mogus. Especially mogus. They are fierce.

Once you're done with your explanation, you lean back onto your hands with a sigh. Cal attentively listened to everything, but he doesn't seem interested in keeping the conversation going, as he hasn't said anything.

He's looking out, scanning this corner of Koboh as far as he could see from here, taking in the view and probably trying to commit to memory everything you've said. You look at him from the corner of your eyes, your gaze falling onto the holster on his hip.

“So,” you try starting the conversation again. “You now double-wield and you have a blaster. Which, by the way, is pretty uncharacteristic for a Jedi, no?”

“A lot has changed, I guess,” is all you get out of him.

“Do you have any other new tricks?” you ask, and the memory of him re-discovering his Master's lessons after his escape from Bracca comes back to you, making you smile fondly to yourself for a moment. 

“Hmm,” Cal thinks aloud, also leaning back and finally tearing his eyes from the landscape to look at you. “There aren't any new Force-tricks, if that's what you mean. But I do have this.”

He brings one of his arms up, showing you the contraption on his brace.

“Grappling hook. Comes in pretty handy,” he explains, showing you some of the mechanisms. Your hands reach up to gently hold his wrist, so you can inspect the device better, and you could have sworn you heard his breath hitch at the contact. At that moment, you realise that's the first physical interaction you've had since he arrived, and you quickly let go. 

“We should head back,” you say as you stand up, dusting off your legs. “It will get dark soon, plus you must be hungry. I know I am.”

“Yeah, I could eat,” Cal replies, getting up to his feet as well, and BD beeps in agreement.

Cal climbs down the silo first, while you scan the area one last time for any patrols. When it's your turn, just as you're almost at the base of the rather unstable ladder, your foot slips and you lose your balance. You hold onto the next best thing, which happens to be Cal. Seeing you're about to fall, his arm reaches around you and he pulls you towards him while with the other hand he tightly holds onto the railing that goes along the walls of the structure. 

“You okay?” he asks, and when you look up at him this time, you're finally met with a pair of eyes that you recognise. There's concern in his gaze but also a certain warmth, amused at how you were a fierce warrior yet managed to be clumsy in small things like these. He found it cute, which you knew for a fact because he would tell you often, back then…

“Y-Yeah, thanks,” you mutter, separating yourself from him now that you're back safe on the ground. Feeling the heat spreading on your face, you can't help a sheepish smile. “Guess some things never change, heh.”

“Guess not,” Cal says with a small smile of his own, and your chest tightens at the sight. 

The ride back to the Outpost is silent, and you wonder if his body is also reacting as strongly as yours; ever since slipping, your skin feels like it's tingling, and your heart hasn't calmed down in the slightest. 

Once you're back at the stable and the nekkos have been taken care of, Connor mentions that Greez left some food for you, and hands you several small containers wrapped with a cloth. 

“You wanna eat at my place?” you find yourself asking Cal, who's scratching behind the nekko's ear. He turns around to you with raised eyebrows in what you assume to be a surprised expression, but he's quick to relax his face back to normal. 

“I have a room behind Doma's shop,” you explain, holding up the food in your hands and you gesture to it with your chin. “And Greez knows this is far too much food for myself.”

“Yeah, sounds good,” Cal replies, calling BD back to him, who was scanning some stable equipment. “Let me help you with that.”

Cal takes the food off your hands, and you say your goodbyes to Connor, who stays at the stable. It's a quick trip past the saloon's entrance into Doma's shop. She's behind the counter organising some of her merchandise, and returns your “hello” from afar without looking. Only when she hears Cal's greeting does she turn around. She shoots you a look and you know exactly what she means, heat prickling again at your cheeks. You give a curt shake of your head, quickening the pace to evade Doma's questioning, heading for the door at the back that leads to the place you have been calling home for the last year. 

It isn't much, but it makes do: one big room, that's both kitchen and a living space, with two doors at the far side that lead to a small bedroom and the refresher. The main room is decorated, you like to think it's warm, cosy and inviting. You even managed to thrift an old couch somewhere, refurbished it yourself, and it now essentially serves as the centrepiece of the room. There are several rugs on the floor, as well as piles of pelts and leather in the corner that you still have to finish working on so you could sell them. These days that's your main source of income.

Cal stands at the door for a moment, taking everything in, and you suddenly feel very self-conscious. The space is clean, but the fact that you can't read his face makes you a little nervous. To distract yourself, you take the food from him, bringing it to the kitchen counter.

“I think the food is still warm,” you say as you start opening the containers, the delicious smell filling both your noses. “Do you mind setting the table?”

Cal and you make quick work of getting everything plated and grabbing some drinks, then sitting down in front of each other at the wooden table to eat. You make some light conversation between bites, catching each other up on what has been going on in your lives recently. He tells you about some of the missions he's been on ever since the Mantis crew split up, and you tell him of your own solo adventures before you came to Koboh. 

When the plates are empty, your bellies full, and the conversation is about to die down, you ask if you can check out Cal's lightsabre. He unclips it from his belt to hand it to you, and you catch yourself being relieved at the fact he still trusts you enough to just give his sacred weapon to you without further inquiry. 

He's changed some parts and the materials, and you hold the device in your hands with the utmost care, admiring the beautiful design and intricate markings on the wooden accents. Rather suddenly, a feeling of regret and shame spreads out in your chest, thinking about how not only this sabre but also Cal himself went through so many changes, and you hadn't been there for any of it. There's so much you want to tell him, about how sad you are that you weren't there for him, about how sorry you are with the way you left, about how you've been thinking of and missing him every single day. But telling him that wouldn't be fair. You have no right to be selfish like that.

“So what exactly happened that got the Mantis in such a state?” you decide to ask instead, reaching the lightsabre over the table to give it back. Cal takes it with a deep sigh, putting it back to his belt, feeling immediately comforted by its familiar weight. 

“A job on Coruscant that went… wrong,” he starts, telling you how his team was gathering intel for Saw Guerrera, and it had all worked out until the very last moment, where everything went wrong, and he lost his whole crew in an instant. Only him and another person made it out of there. In fact, one of his crew members saved his life by pushing him out of the way and taking the blaster shot herself instead. 

You listen intently, and your heart grows heavier by the second; you can hear the frustration in his voice, the voice of a man who's this close to giving up entirely, because he's just so tired, but he can't. He won't. You know Cal took it upon himself to fight the Empire by himself if he has to. A trait you genuinely admire but also despise. After all, that was one of the reasons you left.

Then he mentions the Ninth Sister, and your attention is fully back to what he's saying. 

“I tried to get through to her, I really did,” Cal says, his voice cracking for a second. “But she wouldn't let up. I had no choice.”

“Did you…?” you ask carefully.

“I killed her,” he says matter-of-factly, but you can tell it's been eating away at him.

“I'm so sorry, Cal,” you offer, reaching across the table and placing your hand on his. “That couldn't have been easy. I'm sorry you had to go through that.”

He doesn't meet your eyes, his gaze fixed on his half empty cup instead, watching the drops of condensation slowly fall along the outside of the glass onto the table, staining the wood. But he doesn't pull away either, so you give his hand a reassuring squeeze.

“You look exhausted,” you finally tell him, and he lets out a breath through his nose, as if saying 'you have no idea'. You offer for him to take a shower here instead of at the saloon before heading back, telling him yours is nicer, to which he chuckles lightly, and he accepts. 

He insists you take a shower first while he takes care of the dishes, so you do just that. Once you're out, it's his turn. You hand him a towel and a change of clean clothes, and you can tell he wonders why you have them in his size, until he realises that they're actually his. It's an old shirt and lounge pants that you would always steal from him and had apparently taken with you. He doesn't comment on it though, instead he simply stares at the clothes in his hand for maybe a second too long, deep in thought. Then he blinks a couple of times, as if he just came back from zoning out, gives you a short 'thanks' and gets into the shower. 

While he cleans up, you take a seat on the couch, pulling up the novel you're currently reading on your holopad. Only now that you're sitting with your legs stretched out along the length of the cushions do you realise how tired you are, both physically and emotionally. Out of everything you could have thought would happen today, meeting Cal was certainly not on the list. Still, you can't deny that you're happy to see him. For starters, he's still alive. And you've missed him, much more than you care to admit to yourself. 

After reading the same sentence of your book over and over, failing to focus, you sigh and look at BD instead, who hops onto the coffee table and tilts his head at you with an inquiring beep. 

“Has he been taking care of himself?” you ask the droid, pointing over your shoulder in the direction of the refresher, where you can hear the water running.

BD lets out a sequence of beeps and boops, and you narrow your eyes at him for a moment. 'He keeps himself busy' he said. Is he dodging your question?

“Is that so,” you reply with a hum, and BD shoots the question right back at you. You're a bit surprised at his concern, and for a moment you consider opening up to the little droid, but you hear the water turn off, so you bring your attention back to your book again instead, trying your darndest to focus on what's happening in the story. The washroom door opens with a whoosh.

“Where should I put the towel?” Cal asks, still standing at the door frame. 

“Just put it in the hamper underneath the sink,” you reply over your shoulder, and in the corner of your eye you can see BD still looking at you, waiting for an answer. Then he tilts his head with an amused boop; he's got you all figured out. 

“Oh shush you,” you start scolding the little droid, but Cal appears, walking around the couch to sit down. Except that your legs are stretched across it, so you start lifting them off the cushions and intend to bend them at the knee to sit properly, but Cal gently grabs your ankles, lifting them off the couch to sit down, and places them over his lap instead. His hand comes to rest on your shin, and you can feel the warmth he irradiates seep through the fabric of your pants. 

“You looked comfy,” he points out, his hand gently rubbing up and down below your knee, while with his other hand he props up his head against the back of the couch. 

You swallow hard, unable to answer, and bring the datapad up to your face to hide behind it. Why is he being so nice suddenly? Is it because you aren't outside where others could see? Or is it because he realised he still has you wrapped around his finger so he's just teasing you? You're beyond confused at the sudden sign of affection after he's been so distant the whole day, like he hadn't planned on ever seeing you again. And to be quite honest, you deserve the cold treatment. After what you did, the way you left. 

Feeling the sting behind your eyes, knowing what's coming, you shrink further into yourself, holding the holopad even closer to your face to hide it from Cal's view. He can't see your expression from where he's sitting, so he gives a light chuckle, thinking you're just flustered. The sound feels like a dagger in your gut, and you unsuccessfully choke back sob.

Now Cal's face changes completely to one of concern, and he pushes the pad out of the way only to be met with your crying face. 

“Whoa, wait-“ Cal says, and he retrieves his hands, holding them both up in surrender. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to- I thought we-“

“I'm so sorry, Cal,” you croak, crying freely now, as you let go of the device and it falls onto the floor with a 'clunk'. “I'm so sorry for everything, for what I did. For leaving you alone.” Your hands wipe away at your cheeks in a vain attempt to dry off the tears, but they just keep coming. 

After the crew split up, the Mantis felt unbearably empty. After the failed mission on Hosnian Prime, after saying goodbye to Fret and Irei, who had definitely changed the dynamics of the crew (you still weren't sure if it had been for better or worse), everything felt like it started falling apart. 

The first to leave was Merrin, saying she needed to recentre her fire and find herself again, to be able to draw all the power she now knew she was able to use. 

Then, it was Cere and Greez. The Latero trusted Cal and left his beloved ship in his hands, telling him to look after it until he'd be back. Except everyone knew that he didn't really intend to. The loss of his arm had hit him harder than he wanted to admit, and for Greez it had been the wake-up call needed to “leave the game while you can because it's been rigged since the start”, as he would often say. Cere on the other hand took off with new-found determination. Her and Cal's goals weren't all that different: the endgame was to defeat the Empire, one way or another. However, Cal believed in taking action now, while Cere had her sights set on the future, being able to help those who would come next, long after she and everyone else were gone. She wanted to build a legacy, as the 'Jedi's knowledge was far too valuable to be lost to time and circumstance. 

After everyone was gone, it was just Cal, BD and you. 

The Jedi had become irritable, like he had already convinced himself that you would leave him soon too, as did everyone, apparently. You reassured him to the best of your abilities that you believed in what he stood for and wanted to stay by his side. However, now that you didn't have a whole crew to count on, you had to be more careful than ever.

“We have to be smart about this!” you'd plead, seeing Cal running head-first into danger time and time again. 

When the nightmares became too much, you'd hold him tightly, kissing his tears away as he'd cry out for his master, Tapal.

“You were just a kid!” you had yelled at Cal one time, when what was supposed to be a quick run-down of the plan had become a big argument. “You act as if the whole universe is counting on you and only you to defeat the beast that is the Empire. Do you think that that's your destiny? As dictated by the Force? We've had our share of big, successful missions as a group. Now it's time to back down, Cal. We're just two people, what do you expect we'll achieve here? It's time to move on.”

Needless to say, those words had not calmed Cal down in the slightest. Now he felt just as betrayed by you as he did by the rest. More words were thrown at each other like daggers finally let free after being pushed back for far too long in an attempt to keep some level of normalcy between you two. But there was no going back. So you did what you told him as well: you moved on. That same evening, you packed your things and left. 

Your heart bled and tears kept streaking down your face with every heavy step you took away from the Mantis, but at the time, you didn't know what else to do. You'd never wanted to leave Cal, and you hated yourself for doing this to him and to yourself, but what you had going on was no way to live anymore. Maybe, hopefully, now that you were gone, he would understand that. 

You know it had been a horrible thing to do, especially like that. After years of telling him how you'd follow him to the end of the world. After telling him every day how much you loved him. After promising you'd be there for him. The worst part was that being away from him was far more painful than it was with him. He left a void in your heart that only he could fill. You meant to go looking for him many times, but were too scared. You didn't deserve to have him back. Not after what you did.

But now he's here.

Between cries, you apologise over and over again, saying how what you did wasn't fair, that you wished you had never left and worked it out instead, that you missed him so much it was hard to breathe. 

Cal doesn't answer immediately, and you force your somewhat blurry gaze up to meet his eyes, and you see he's starting to tear up himself. He leans forward, lifting you up and settling you sideways onto his lap, enveloping you in a bone-crushing hug. You hold him just as tightly, crying into his shoulder.

“I'm sorry,” The more you say it, the emptier it feels, but it's all you can manage for now, and you mean it. “I really am.”

“I know,” Cal says, squeezing you a little tighter. “I felt it. When you gave me the clothes earlier.”

You remember the countless nights you've cried yourself to sleep in the very clothes he's now wearing, the times when you missed him so much you felt like your heart would rip its way right out of your chest, muttering your regrets into your pillow, as if it could carry your apology and bring it to Cal somehow. You groan in embarrassment; you always forget that your stuff also carries imprints he can feel.

“I'm so lame,” you mumble and pull back to look at Cal, giving him a weak smile that quickly turns into a grimace again as a new wave of tears come rolling down your cheeks.

“No, you're not,” Cal reassures you, one hand cupping your face and wiping over your cheekbone with his thumb. You lean into his touch with a sniffle.

“I've missed you too,” he finally says, placing a gentle kiss on your forehead. “And I'm sorry—” He kisses your cheek. “—for making you feel like you were less important than the missions.” A kiss to the corner of your mouth. “You're the best thing that ever happened to me and I took you for granted.” His lips brush over yours. “Can we try again?”

You close the minimal gap and kiss him hard, like Cal was the air your lungs needed after being underwater for too long. He reciprocates just as intensely, pushing you down onto the couch and climbing on top of you. When he finally breaks the kiss, you're both panting. You run your fingers through his hair as he trails kisses along your jaw, and you giggle at how ticklish his beard feels against your skin; that's a new sensation you'd have to – no scratch that, want to – get used to. Your giggles turn into a low moan as he bites the spot over your collarbone, and when you turn your head to give him better access, you're met with BD still on the coffee table, now sitting comfortably, looking up at you two as if it was the most interesting spectacle in the world. 

A strangled sound of surprise and embarrassment comes from your throat and you push Cal away a bit by his shoulders, to which he raises his head and grumbles in annoyance for interrupting him.

“We have an audience,” you whine, hiding your face behind your hands, and Cal lets out an amused laugh. BD beeps matter-of-factly.

“What do you mean 'don't mind me'?!” You turn to the droid and you swear that if he had a face, he'd be wearing the cockiest of grins right now. 

“Some things really never change, huh,” Cal comments with an amused smile, thinking back to all the times you'd become flustered when you kissed in front of BD, saying it was inappropriate or something. If only you knew that Cal often did it on purpose because he loved seeing your cute, flustered face.

“Unlike this right here,” you point out and bring your hands to his face, stroking over his beard, enjoying the prickly sensation. “This is new.”

“Do you like it?” Cal asks genuinely.

“You know I like your scars,” you say, tracing over the one on his lower lip. “As long as they're not covered up, I think I can get used to it. It does look good on you.”

Cal smiles down at you tenderly and for a few moments, you simply enjoy each other's presence, taking each other in. Making sure that this is real and it's happening, that you're back again. Until you let out a hearty yawn. 

“Let's get to bed before we fall asleep on the couch,” you say, rubbing your face, but stop to look up at Cal, who seems very content with his current position and hasn't moved yet. “You are staying here tonight, right? I mean, if you want to, you don't have to. Greez has the whole room thing for you, so I understand if—“

Cal interrupts your rambling with a quick peck. 

“Yeah, I want to stay,” he assures you and finally stands up, helping you get off the couch. 

“Let's go, BD,” you tell the droid to join you as you take Cal's hand and guide them to the bedroom. 

You climb into bed, BD at your feet as he would always do on the Mantis, and Cal lifts the covers to get in as well but stops for a moment when he sees the holopicture on your night stand. In the small frame he recognises Greez, Cere, Merrin, Cal, BD and you in the cockpit, all grinning at the camera. Smiling to himself, he finally gets into bed, hugging you to him.

“I have the same picture of us on the Mantis,” he says after letting out a content sigh at finding a comfortable position. “Guess we still were connected somehow all this time.”

You hum in response, a bit surprised at the romantic implication, as if you were lovers who found comfort in looking at the same moon even though you were separated. But you like the idea nonetheless, and you agree. 

The warmth both on your skin and spreading in your heart makes quick work of carrying you off to dreamland though, so before you can even give a proper reply, you're fast asleep in Cal's arms.

— — —

The next morning, you wake up to BD's beeping. You groan, turning over to cuddle a little longer, except that the other side of your bed is empty. You blink away the sleepiness in your eyes, and pout at the lack of Jedi in your sheets. Your nose is quick to pick up the scent of freshly brewed caf however, and the grogginess is quickly forgotten as you get out of bed and make your way to the kitchen, where Cal is preparing breakfast. 

After a quick meal and lots of stolen kisses, Cal announces it's time to go check out Greez's smuggler tunnel to find that gyro. 

“Be careful,” is the last thing you tell him before he leaves. 

“Always,” he shoots back at you with a wink and takes off. You playfully roll your eyes at that, thinking back to the countless times on the Mantis you've had to patch him up after a mission inevitably went astray from the original plan.

While Cal is looking for parts for the Mantis, you go back to your own things, checking in on Connor and the nekkos at the stable, as well as preparing some pelts and sewing up your most recent leather project. 

Time goes by fast as you skilfully work the needle and thread through the thick material, finishing the piece after a couple of hours. Setting it aside, you stretch your arms and back with a satisfied grunt. You check to see if your comms are working; they are, but there's no new messages. Strange, you think, Cal sure is taking his time to find that gyro. Is he not back yet? 

Suddenly feeling uneasy by your own thoughts of how he might have got lost in the tunnels, or how he may have encountered trouble down there, you decide to go check with Greez yourself. 

You quickly make your way to the Saloon, going down the stairs that lead to the bar with such speed that when you reach the end and see someone standing there, you bump into them before you can stop yourself. 

“Whoa,” a deep voice exclaims at the impact, and you push yourself away from the man's back you just ran into. He turns around slightly towards you. “You okay?”

“Yeah, sorry, didn't see you there” you reply, regaining your composure and walking around him to get a better look. 

He's not super tall, but he has a strong and broad build. Although you already felt that when you bumped into him and it was like walking into a wall. You give him a quick up-and-down, trying to gauge if he's friend or foe, but you can't quite read him. He narrows his eyes at you ever so slightly, probably doing the same.

“A new face, how rare,” you start, walking over to the bar and leaning on it with one arm. Your other hand finds its way to your hip, where you realise there is no holster or weapon; you mentally reprimand yourself for leaving your staff at the stable. 

“Care for a drink?” asks Monk from behind you. 

“No, I'm looking for someone,” the man says. 

“Of course you are,” Monk replies with sarcasm. You give the bartender droid a nod; you'll take care of this. As he wheels back into the kitchen, you hear him mutter something about how his bar isn't a lost and found counter. Before the stranger can go on however, the doors at the back of the saloon whoosh open.

“Who's this?” asks Greez as he enters the main room.

“I was just about to ask him,” you reply, your eyes still trained on the man.

“I'm looking for Cal Kestis,” the man in question says instead, and your hand on the bar involuntarily curls into a fist.

“Who? Kal Restis?” Greez asks as he approaches him. “We don't know any Kales. Listen, if you're not gonna order something, get out of my saloon.”

“No, not Kale”, the man says, getting slightly exasperated as he repeats the name slower, and Greez keeps getting it wrong on purpose. 

Just as you're about to intervene and send the man away, the entrance doors open and in comes Cal, a soft smile of self-satisfaction on his face. 

“Cal!” The man greets the Jedi. You hear Greez mutter “Oh, this Cal Kestis” under his breath as they clearly recognise each other.  

“I found the gyro,” Cal announces first, throwing a small mechanical part to Greez, who's taken by surprise but still catches it. Then he turns to the intruder with a smile. “You made it!”

“Good to see you, Cal,” he replies, and the two share a friendly handshake.

“Greez Dritus, this is Bode Akuna,” Call starts introductions, telling this Bode your name as well. You merely give him a short nod in acknowledgment as Cal continues. “He was on Coruscant. Wouldn't have made it out alive without his help.”

Oh, that changes things. 

You leave your spot at the bar and drop your rather cold gaze to join the group. Coming to stand next to Cal, you take his hand, and try your best to give Bode a thankful smile. He returns it, quickly catching on. 

“Wait a minute. Another one?” Greez quips, looking behind Cal. You were so focused on Bode, that you hadn't even noticed the strange looking droid that came in with the redhead. “Cal, you have a very bad habit of picking up strays.”

“I am ZN-A4,” the droid introduces herself with an exaggerated bow. The design and material she’s made of is something you’ve never seen before. “Humble servant of the Jedi Order.”

What.

“Oh, I take it you haven't broken the news yet,” Bode says to Cal, who sheepishly shrugs his shoulders. 

Cal then brings everyone up to speed, telling you how when he was in the tunnels with BD, they stumbled upon this old chamber where the droid was stuck, so they freed her. Turns out she's a droid that belonged to a Jedi from the High Republic, of all things. Her master, Sandari, had sent her to activate the so-called forest array (that strange building the other side of the river that doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the scenery; you've always wondered what it was but never found a way to get in). However, Zee, as everyone started calling the droid, is in really bad shape, and she'll never make it that far. She looks dejected as she says that if she fails her mission, then the key to Tanalorr may be lost forever. 

At the mention of the name, Greez chimes in, telling the group that there's an old prospector legend about Tanalorr being a world filled with treasure. But treasure or not, the important part is that it seems to be a real place, one potentially beyond where the Empire can reach: a safe haven. 

Zee is delighted and very thankful that everyone seems on board with her mission, and the group is quick to formulate a plan: while Monk gets her up to speed regarding the state of, well, everything, and she gets some much-needed repairs, Bode and Greez will take care of the Mantis. Meanwhile, Cal, BD and you will go to the forest array to check it out. 

As you're making your way to the stables, you nudge into Cal's side with your elbow.

“You didn't get hurt down there or anything, right? You sure took your time,” you ask him. It did not go unnoticed by you how in Cal's retelling of events, he skilfully left out how he happened to find that mysterious chamber in the first place. 

“The tunnels were pretty old and unstable, but we're okay,” Cal deflects, shooting the droid a quick look. “Right BD?”

BD beeps in response, and you shoot Cal a glare accompanied by a muted gasp, stopping in your tracks.

“You fell through a hole the equivalent of several stories?!” You can't believe this guy. 

“It's fine!” Cal tries to reassure you, bringing his hands up to your shoulders. “I promise, it's nothing a stim didn't already fix. So there’s no need to worry, okay? We have a job to do.”

You sigh in defeat as he places a soft kiss on your forehead. You first cup his face softly, then pinch both his cheeks.

“Just what am I going to do with you, Cal Kestis?” you ask rhetorically, taking his hand into yours and resuming the short trek to where Connor is already waiting and waving at you both. 

Once you're all geared up and hop into the saddle, you tighten the strap of your staff, adjusting its position on your back.

“Just like old times, huh?” you ask at no one in particular, scanning your surroundings and taking in the scenery; it just never gets old. Cal's nekko trots up next to you.

“Just like old times,” he repeats, with that boyish smile you can't get enough of, and the glint of adventure in his eyes. 

Your nekkos take off, and the freckles on his face seem to shine in the sunlight. They form the ever familiar star map that you'd follow time and time again, finding your way back to him. Because from the first time you looked at him, you knew: you'd follow this man across the galaxy and beyond.

— — —

A/N 2: if you understand the droid name reference you get a cookie 🍪

A/N 3: in the book Battle Scars there’s a part where BD tells Cal, and i quote, “Where you go, I go”, and when i tell you that i screamed omg (the first part of my “wherever you go, i go” fic was actually called ‘where’ but i changed it to ‘wherever’ when i added more chapters because to me it sounded better asdsdf) BD-1 and me sharing one brain cell obsessed with Cal fr😌

~~~~~

🐥 taglist: [link to join in my pinned post!] @dybynyght, @galaxtic-writings, @kalea-bane, @soka-writes-things, @padawancat97, @riddikulus-obsessions, @optimisticprime3, @starilicious, @ivelostmyabilitytoeven, @alternatescififandomelover

#goose feathers #cal kestis x reader #star wars cal x reader #jedi fallen order x reader #jedi survivor x reader #star wars x reader

[yonkokraven]

I was bored and made an AU, how would things change if the government stopped giving importance to the East Blue? What if two Opposing Marines disagree with the idea?

I introduce you:

The Scorching Crew AU.

warning: is an AU focused on Luffy x Uta + Ace and Sabo + strawhats. The world of One Piece will be touched on from a darker perspective, so, if you hold your stomach and know The Blue Lagoon: enjoy the introductory arc:.

-The world government ordered to keep a distance from the East Blue as it considered the chaos that was the rest of the world a higher priority, but there are two people (who would obviously never work together) who have their sights set on that sea: Garp and Akainu

-Garp doesn't trust Akainu one bit, not after Ohara, Aokiji was perplexed for days until he finally told him what happened: Children, families, everything fell under an attack by Akainu (except the well-known girl who escaped)

-Akainu does not talk to anyone, not even to his daughter, his mission is clear: eliminate all evil above and under the seas, and no matter how weak the East Blue is, he does not forget it: that's where Roger came from, and a little bit of information. known by now: that's where Xebec came from. He will not allow under any concept to underestimate that sea again and for another demon to terrorize the world.

-Garp goes more often to the kingdom of Goa, meeting Shanks at one of his stops warning him not to even think about approaching Luffy again, Shanks ignores him, the boy is happy when he is with him and when he is with Uta even more so.

-Reluctantly Garp sometimes stays, carefully watching Shanks' every word, and during one of his walks to visit Ace on the mountain, Luffy and Uta follow him.

-Garp doesn't find out, and goes to patrol other islands. Luffy and Uta run free through the forest (of course, Ben Beckmann wouldn't leave them unsupervised, always at a safe distance) and at one point, they meet Ace and Sabo in one of their escapes.

-Ace is cruel to Luffy like in canon, nothing that Uta can't moderate with a couple of hits (and one just in case to Sabo). From a distance, Benn pieces together the coincidences. Garp walking to the woods every afternoon during his visit and returning hours later? At first the crew's bet was that he might have a brother or sister, but not another hidden grandson.

-Luffy and Uta at one point take them to Makino's bar, Ben is good at faking surprises, and he didn't tell the captain anything, Shanks' immediate reaction upon learning the name of Garp's other "grandson" was a laugh. It wasn't possible that some idiot named his son after the Pirate King's sword, right?

-As time passes, the villagers go home, Luffy, Uta, Ace and Sabo still stay, and the more time passes, the paler Shanks gets, he is an alcoholic, but not to the point of seeing his father figure in the form of a child... no, it's not him, Roger didn't have freckles. Was it possible?

-Uta is having a good time, so Shanks doesn't see anything wrong with her staying as long as she doesn't leave the village while he's gone (Yes, not only did she leave, she did the stupid thing of confronting a bear with the three other children)

-Some time passes, and while the four of them were having lunch peacefully among Shanks' crew, Luffy demonstrates his greatest talent: being someone with a bottomless stomach. Ace, Sabo and Shanks spit out their drinks when they see Luffy's arm stretching abnormally.

-The situation of the mountain bandits is very different, and Ace claims to hate Luffy, but when he almost cuts Higuma in half with a metal rod, that hatred seems like a ghost.

-Shanks loses his arm in the same way, and while his crew cauterizes him, Uta is there with Luffy apologizing over and over again for chasing the bandits.

-Ace feels conflicted, Sabo, Luffy and Uta sleep, He just enjoys the breeze, drinking some orange juice when Shanks sits next to him, Ace didn't say a word when Shanks talked for hours about Roger "He knows." the child thinks.

-Sabo and Ace stop coming to the village, Shanks says it's time to leave after his stump heals, and Uta for the first time doubts what to do and tries to hide it. Shanks knows, Benn knows, Yasopp knows, everyone on the crew knows.

-Luffy says that he will become strong and be the Pirate King on his own, Shanks smiles and says that when the time comes he must prove that he is strong for such a feat, giving him his hat as a promise to see him in the distant future.

-Uta stops before getting on the ship, she wants to go to the sea, she wants to go with her father, but why can't she keep walking? Shanks knows, and sits with her for a moment on the dock.

-He listens to her, and smiles, using Conqueror's Haki on himself to not cry when she tells him her perspective "You want to go to the sea, but you don't want to go with us" and Uta cries, hugs him and apologizes. Shanks knows this is the best choice, the grand line is not a game.

-as the redhead's pirates leave the port, Luffy takes Uta's hand without taking his eyes off the pirate flag "We will see them again." On the ship, the captain can't stand it, he sits on the steps and covers his face, his first officer and his crew sharing that bittersweet feeling "We will see them again."

Right?

-Garp comes back a week later, he didn't know what was worse, that he basically now had to take care of Shanks' daughter, or that Luffy was swinging around the town like a monkey with long limbs "Son of a..." Makino and The Mayor covers both children's ears just in time.

-Garp drags Luffy into the forest, one thing is a hyperactive child, another is a hyperactive child with devil fruits, better hidden than in the hands of slavers.

-Dadan didn't have a pleasant day, but when she saw that at least Uta understood some basic human behavior, she was able to fall asleep. (No one tells her that the girl already stole a couple of weapons from the gang)

-The Gray terminal event happens differently, Sabo was never taken back to the city, but he was involved in the fire helping other people go towards the forest (obviously not in the direction of his gold reserve, the house from the mountain or the village)

-Blue Jam does not forget those who try to rob him, as in canon, Ace does not back down, the mountain bandits repel the pirates, but Ace stays behind, Uta throws him a gun, and Ace shoots.

-Ace is covered in bruises, Sabo has his hands burned, including one forearm, Luffy and Uta luckily did not receive much damage. Dadan is furious with the four, but doesn't say anything when he sees that Ace didn't change his horrified face. Dandan is just there being a support for one of her unofficial children, singing him to sleep, like when he was a baby.

-Akainu sails through the East Blue, guarding the celestial dragon (as much as it irritates him to do so) burning every pirate ship he sees, novice or not.

-Upon arriving in the kingdom of Goa, Akainu observes the outskirts, the ashes of an obviously intentional fire, the bones of people who he does not know if they were criminals or not, he becomes enraged.

-Garp sails as fast as possible to Goa, only a day late and Akainu goes to the only island he wouldn't have to go to in the East Blue.

-Garp calls Dadan and Makino when they are within reach, he asks them to keep the children in the village, as far away from the Kingdom as possible, he will arrive in one day, but not to let any marine see Uta, Luffy and Ace.

-Dadan yells at the children to come down from the tree house... there is no response.

-The forest is very large, and the bandits divide themselves and walk carefully. "Please, not today," Dadan prays every ten meters.

-Sabo, Uta, Ace and Luffy leave satisfied with looting food from the city, very easy since everyone was focused on the Celestial Dragon parade.

-Akainu sees four children walking away with a couple of bags, and the presences along the forest seem simply irregular to him, there is no smoke to indicate camps, who is hiding there?

-Dadan obviously scolds them, explaining how dangerous it was for the children to go to the city with the visit of the celestial dragon, no one dares to answer when Luffy asks what a slave he is.

-Dadan takes them after dinner to the village through the forest, Makino has already prepared 4 temporary beds for the children in a safe place, but along the way, a chill runs down his spine. Why? If this path is safe...

-Dogra and the rest of the Dadan Family regroup and eat, Magra opens the door thinking it was Dadan, she did not expect that the last thing she would see was a man almost three meters tall.

-Dogra is the last, and can only cry while Akainu asks him about the children, Akainu eliminates him, but now his conviction changes, he would not save the children, or at least not all of them, after all, the daughter of a demon cannot exist.

-Makino and Dadan were talking when they saw the explosion, the forest mysteriously erupted that should never have happened.

-Akainu walks between the fire of the trees and the magma under her feet, she would get answers one way or another, and the girl would not be able to hide.

-Luffy is the first to wake up due to the murmuring of the villagers, accidentally stepping on Ace who instinctively moves his hand to hit Luffy but instead hits Sabo, Uta wakes up due to the argument, but when they see through the window, their home in the great distance being burned, they just remain silent until Makino enters "Take your things, we have to go"

-Makino and Dadan go to the only boat in the village, Akainu with his observation haki as he leaves the forest, feels the panic in the movement of the villagers "They are here"

-Luffy forgot something, he felt the night wind in his hair, and without bothering to warn anyone he turned back to the bar and ran to look for the hat. Uta follows him, Makino follows them.

-Fire and magma consume the windmills, the vice admiral's voice is clear: "where is Akagami's daughter?"

-The screams of the villagers can be heard from the port, Sabo can't stand it and goes to look for Luffy "he's our brother, Ace!" and Dadan tries to stop them, fails, but he follows them.

-Wrong direction, Sabo's eyes meet those of the vice admiral, the man's cold eyes contrast with the hell that surrounds him "Where is Akagami's daughter?"

-Dadan hugs Ace so he doesn't see his face, and holds Sabo while he trembles and makes the best lie of his life "to the northwest of the island"

-Akainu turns and leaves, Ace hugs Sabo, who is in pain from a kick from the vice admiral that burned his skin.

-They force Ace to stay with the mayor and Sabo, while he goes in search of Makino and the two remaining children.

-The fire blocks people's way, and makes them take secondary roads in the village, so when Luffy already had his hat, the path they had to use to get to the port was to use the Northwest of the village to go around it.

-The mayor evacuates the people, Ace carries Sabo, hoping that Luffy and Uta are okay.

-The vice admiral notices the girl's two-color hair, he does not doubt it, nor makes a mistake, he advances at a determined pace.

-Dadan runs to the bar, and remembers Garp's greatest advice "if Luffy can't sleep, throw salt water at him, sea water weakens devil fruit users to the extreme, but a little salt water is enough to put the user to sleep without harming him"

-Luffy, Makino and Uta surround the village, and Dadan runs through the place with a bucket of salt water, Luffy or Uta's minds do not remember well what happened, but they remember the sound of the thud.

-The vice admiral attacked, and Makino pushed the children in time, although some magma fell on her shoulder, the blow did not melt her thanks to Dadan's bucket of salt water, which hit the admiral's head hard and also wet his body.

-Dadan yells at the children to run and take Makino, while he throws a knife from the bar at Akainu "Not at my children, you damn dog"

-Luffy and Uta help her walk, and Makino does her best not to fall until they reach the small ship.

-The ship moves away, with two children, a woman dying towards the unknown.

-The news inevitably reaches the rest of the world, Shanks can't believe it, and immediately calls Garp

-Garp does not answer, he just looks stunned at the disaster that is the place where he grew up, Akainu did this, got on his ship and left.

-Ace yells at him, yells at him until he has no breath left "This is what the marines do!?" and Garp doesn't speak, he just listens and lets the words echo in his head.

-Uta and Luffy are hungry, they spend four days at sea, they are not sure if they see things or not, but something bigger than an island was swimming in the distance. Makino stopped breathing on the third day.

-The tides take them away, and on the sixth day, they see an island in the distance and the tide is suddenly calm.

-They land on the island and Luffy hunts, it is difficult for him, he is weak, the animals are bigger, he hits hard, again and again until he succeeds.

-Uta is next to Makino at all times, waiting for her to wake up, she doesn't speak when she touches her chest and doesn't feel her heart, she just cries, and she cries until Luffy comes back. They both cry until the next day.

-Shanks returns to the east blue, and on the shores of Logue Town, he mutilates Akainu

-Dragon arrived with a storm, Shanks with the rough sea, Shanks shouts at Garp, Dragon shouts at Garp, the mountain in ashes trembles in this encounter.

-Shanks doesn't think twice: Ace and Sabo won't stay there, Ace wants to look for Luffy and Uta, Sabo too, Dragon proposes something to cover more ground, but only Sabo agrees to go with him, and he will meet Ace again as soon as possible or even when they hear something about his brother and the annoying singer who is always with him.

-Garp does not stop them, Garp will also look for the children and one more thing: Take Akainu to hell itself, and if that is not possible, to Impel Down.

-Luffy and Uta recover over time, they eat little, but each other's company means they have to be strong. Luffy trains, Uta is not left behind, both do not mature in a certain way no matter how many years go by.

-The clothes no longer fit for both of them in the third year, and they are not going to dig up Makino to loot his clothes. They quickly get used to the improvised loincloths made from their old clothes.

-Uta bleeds one day, Luffy doesn't understand why.

-two years later, Luffy sees Uta walking with something in her arms "Where did you get it from?" She says something that seems simple "I felt a lot of pain one moment and the next it appeared" but there are no other humans on the island "Uta, is that a baby?"

-Ace became stronger, more than he should for someone his age, the search for the East Blue ended in a few months, now he and Shanks (now officially an emperor) were in charge of reviewing the West blue, Sabo and the revolutionaries of the North Blue, and Garp from South Blue.

-Ace heard Shanks' nostalgia about Roger on the way, and it is already routine for him to just stay silent and contain his boiling anger.

-Shanks' subordinate gangs gather at the entrance to the grand line with Shanks, and say that they have not found either of them, not even in the records of the Sabaody slavers.

-Ace does not feel comfortable in these meetings, a captain named Linaria (who did not even reach her 20s and already has a great reputation) occasionally approaches him and encourages him, praising him for his strength and reward, Ace lets her speak, his heart feels warm when he listens to her.

-Sabo is divided, the search and the revolution do not let him rest, the cruelty of the world changes him, makes him strong but takes a part of him.

-Shanks and Ace talk, Shanks tries to be as soft as possible and not break down while saying what he never thought would say "it's possible that they..." Ace doesn't let him finish and hits him, saying that he will swim even in the calm belt or to the territory of the emperors if necessary to find them.

-Shanks freezes and asks out loud "did no one in the fleet check the calm belt?" He asked his crew and subordinates.

-Ace calls Sabo, two years without speaking and Sabo only listens in silence "We only have the calm belt left"

-Luffy hunts, already accustomed to using the spears that Uta learned to make despite the usefulness of his fruit, Uta and he take turns hunting, someone must take care of Maki after all.

-A ship on the horizon approaches, the Night Butterfly Pirates disembark quickly, and its captain can't be lucky when she sees Luffy, Uta, and the little baby. "Call Shanks!" It's her quick reaction when she sees that Luffy doesn't let them get close.

-Shanks and Ace were tied to the mast after almost breaking the Red Force's rudder to fight to steer the ship as fast as possible towards the calm belt.

-Benn calls Dragon and Garp, Dragon takes a few minutes alone to cry with relief, Garp flies his ship over the Calm Belt from the south blue to the grand line immediately.

-Shanks cries, a mixture of sadness, relief and joy when he sees Luffy and Uta, although Luffy when nothing has changed says "I shouldn't see you until I'm the pirate king", the redhead bursts out laughing, but when he sees the little girl Maki almost fainted.

-Ace is no different, he hugs his younger brother and cries until he sees Maki, almost drowning his brother by squeezing Luffy tightly around the neck.

-Uta cries with relief once they are on the ship, and they exchange stories with Ace and Shanks, when the redhead heard that they named the girl Maki, in honor of Makino, he almost needed Benn to take his blood pressure, the children were there from the beginning, in this island completely alone, and somehow their personality didn't change much even with so much pain they both experienced.

-Luffy is surprised when Garp comes onto the deck of Shanks' ship, and he doesn't speak, he just hits him with an attack so precise that it defies physics (his arm curved and he redirected the blow to hit Garp squarely)

-Garp listens to Luffy tell him that if being a marine means doing what that person (Akainu) did, he will never be one. Garp doesn't debate, he has no right to force him into anything when he couldn't protect him, and simply says "I'm glad you're okay."

-back on the Grand Line, Shanks' fleet gathers in the New World, Luffy and Uta sing to Maki at the party.

-Ace tells Luffy that now he is a pirate, but Luffy is not, in fact he is the only one of the brothers not to have a reward, and tries to tell him to live a normal life, but Luffy says that he will be the pirate king , Uta also wants to be a pirate, and he won't change his mind.

-Shanks tries to reason with both of them, but manages to get them both to promise not to start their journey for four years, and Luffy agrees, saying that he wants to return to East Blue and start there.

-Ace tells him that the kingdom of Goa is no longer the same, and the villages around the island no longer exist after what the vice admiral did, that does not change anything for Luffy, he knows how to hunt, Uta too, and they will live with Dadan

-Luffy freezes when Ace tells him that Dadan died that day, and the house no longer exists.

-Shanks says that they will help him build a place and get them things to live there, Ace looks at him and Shanks looks back at him "this is not the time"

-Dragon can't go to East Blue, Sabo can't look Ace or Luffy in the face, so he assigns two apprentices to supervise them both (not really being there for the revolution, but to become strong)

-Shanks' carpenter finishes the cabin quickly, Ace says that he will stay a year to help Luffy and Uta, and Linaria says that she will wait for him at sea.

-Luffy is strong, Uta is the same, and despite having no idea what Haki is, he gives Ace a great fight every week.

-The guardians of the revolutionaries arrive, Zoro and Kuina, who perceive Ace's Haki and immediately join the training "join my crew" says Luffy after seeing each training session of those two with stars in his eyes.

•○•○•○•○•○•○•○●○●○●○

Well, this is the beginning of the AU (and we haven't even gotten to the Alvida arc) I haven't yet touched on how Luffy's other future Nakamas are, and the biggest differences, what do you think?

The main idea is to take the story to a perspective of a Luffy not only surviving, but slightly more alert to the events to come. Who will join his crew? How did Akainu's presence affect the East Blue Nakamas? What happened to Akainu?

I plan to answer it over time, I ask you if you can share and comment to see how much support the AU can receive

#TheScorchingCrewAU #one piece au #uta one piece #uta op #monkey d luffy #monkey d. luffy #monkey d garp #akagami no shanks #shanks #portgas d ace #revolutionary sabo #one piece sabo #monkey d dragon #roronoa zoro #shimotsuki kuina #one piece makino #curly dadan #one piece headcanons #one piece hcs #luffy x uta #i plan to do more au with other ships #akainu sakazuki #one piece akainu #admiral akainu #straw hat pirates #straw hat crew

[betmagic]

Little sunshine au

Bath time

So there’s a bit of a change with the crew’s bathing schedule in this au

With Ace and Sabo being captains of the crew ( especially since in this au they spend a lot more time with Makino , who made sure the two boys knew about basic hygiene)I think they’d set a standard for how often they should wash up. Not that they tell everyone but set an example that the others fallow - even Zoro who canonically baths at least once a week.- so the crew bathing schedule at most every other or two days. so there’s no issue with how often one should bath.

The problem comes from the youngest member Luffy.

So basically luffy doesn’t understand why he needs to take bath , his mom is made of water and he visits her at least once a day so to his logic he’s clean( even though mom tells him he’s still dirty and it’s important to take a bath). This wasn’t much of an issue back on dawn. The boys tended to bath together ; especially after Ace got his devil fruit and as a precaution since he still gets a bit weak in water ( along with his narcolepsy), so they were able to keep Luffy from getting away. ( plus Sabo had told Luffy it was important to stay with Ace until he was done to make sure he didn’t accidentally drown , something Luffy takes very seriously)

- It was no problem since the bandits had a decent bathing area ( the bandits made it a bit bigger with Garps help - saying the boys liked bathing together so of course Garp made sure they had big enough bathtub/ Dadan definitely benefited from this renovation)

or they could go to the river if needed - luffy was instructed to stay close incase something like a crocodile or bear was nearby. So the brothers are used to bathing together.

This continues when they set sail, but the ship’s bathrooms only big enough for two people ( barely). The only upside is that at least he’s contained to just the ship( luffy knows if he escapes to the ocean , mom will just plop him right back on deck- she’s definitely entertained by his antics but knows it’s important to have a proper bath- plus he’ll be forced to have another bath) instead of a whole forest. No one else noticed since it was mainly Ace or Sabo in charge of bath time.

But so after they gather a few members ( after sanji or chopper)they start rotating luffy duty around. One of those includes bathtime; which the brothers did warn them that Luffy will escape if he gets bored. Luckily it’s not an issue because some of the crew members ( Ussop and Nami ) actually had a somewhat normal upbringing / at least until they were 8/ to suggest bubbles and bath toys.

Luffy loves the bubbles so hes content to stay at lest until the bubble eventually run out. Once the bubbles are gone he gets bored.

So He decides to escape Bare naked and all!

So imagine Ace and Sabo will be in the middle of meeting with nami about where to go next and supplies they need to stick up more to some yelling * and get to the deck to see that a nude giggling 6 year old is running around deck!

Shenanigans issue and eventually the boy is caught- depending on how clean he is will determine wether he needs to go back to the bath or not- this quickly becomes a reoccurring problem.

The crew do try to troubleshoot this of course, because simply telling luffy not to won’t work.they try to have someone take a bath with him- and it includes the girls / Luffy doesn’t really understand why guys freak out over girls body’s. He doesn’t act inappropriate either being careful of where he touches ( though mostly thanks to Makino he knows not all girls are okay with being touched and only if they say it’s okay) so bathing with nami or Robin isn’t as big a deal- unfortunately this does little to help and just adds a naked crew member who forgets to cover up or loses their towel during said chase.

So It’s a common occurrence on board ( they’ve excepted that they can’t stop luffy from escaping at this point) and it’s become as competition of sorts who can catch luffy first.( there are multiple towels hidden on deck for when luffy decides to dive or some gets knocked over to grap and cover him up) luffy thinks it’s fun thus encouraged to do it as much as possible even when his brothers are in charge.

This problem would be helped when they get the sunny, having a larger bath to fit 5-7 people

** I still haven’t come up with what they call this situation,definitely something like like we got a code 319 ! Or something Let me know if anyone has ideas please! ( im begging please i need help)

#BETMAGIC #one piece #little sunshine au #baby luffy #asl brothers #portgas d ace #sabo #monkey d. luffy #mother ocean #nika luffy #sun god luffy #straw hat pirates #bath time #shenanigans

[aloeanemonabee27]

OP ASL brothers older brother Ace au part 2

Luffy and Sabo accepted Ace's invitation on traveling with him and his crew, in that very same moment they said yes both of them packed their things (they didn't had lots of stuff to begin with) and they filled their pockets with treasure that it'll be enough for surviving a few trips until Ace return with his crew. Sabo left a letter on the bandits house so they know they left, as soon as they step foot on the Striker in the blink of an eye they were leaving Dawn island. The children were beyond excited, finally they will go to the sea and have a bunch of adventures with their awesome older brother! In the way Ace was telling them stories about his crew's adventures, the island he visited and did his best to answer their questions no matter how strange or difficult. The three of them landed on the closest island to take a break, of course with precautions to avoid any unwanted attention. Ace normally would go without worry, but now he has two brothers in his care and he needed to be careful and that was something he was no expert. The three of them went to a tavern so they could eat, especially the two Ds who are bottomless pits.

Ace needed to make a few errands so their brothers can be prepared for the outcome, now he knows what Dandan felt like provide him the first necessities for him to be alive, the difference is that he is not doing it for one child but for two and one of them is an uncontrollable ball of energy that can't be still in one place. And of course a spacious place where the three can be, as fast the Striker is, it's does not hold that much space. So basically the entire week being on East blue was Ace looking for essentials for his brothers so they can be prepared in Grand Line, them trying to keep themselves out of trouble. Keyword: trying, because in the same week a marine team recognized him and they tried to capture him. To make matters worse, they announced that "Firefist Ace kidnapped children", which of course it pissed Ace, like how dare they say he is now a kidnapper? Sure he steals, fight marines, disturbs the peace, be an occasional troublemaker, but a kidnapper never. A pirate he may be, but he has limits and morals damn it! In the end, he give up on fighting this matter, the government is the government so of course they're gonna say this kind of bullcrap cause c'mon, since when people are gonna belive that two actual children decided to join a pirate crew to the Grand line, who by the way the captain was their brother.

However this resulted in a problem, and that was him being chased almost every single day, to "rescue" this innocent children from this evil pirate grasp, in some point it's almost funny how this guys were trying to rescue children who weren't even kidnapped in the first place. Not only him, but Sabo thinks is hilarious too, makes some jokes about the matter but Luffy is more straightforward saying that the marines were dumb. In the serious side, Ace worries that one day another marine attack ends up being the old geezer. Ace fears if they encounter the old geezer, he won't stand a chance against him and take his brothers from him. The last stop on the last island on East blue, ended up being the most chaotic one before they left the Grand line. First of all, Ace was not happy docking on Logetown cause this was the island where his bastard of a father was born and executed.

At first, Ace didn't want to dock on this island for obvious reasons, even the little ones noticed this to the point that Luffy himself said that he won't go to the island if Ace didn't wanted despite him being more excited than anyone to explore this island. Looking at the faces of disappointment of the little boys, Ace relised that he can't just stop the excitment for adventure of his brothers because of his personal issues, he vowed that he'll raise his brothers to be the most freest persons in the world, him being a pirate himself should know any better. A pirate taking the freedom of another future pirate it's not fair, it made him release that he's being a selfish fool and a hypocrite, so he did his best to masked his troubles and put the best face for them and hyped then into adventure once more. Which fortunately, worked, especially for Luffy that just listening that they will explore Logetown he was the first to stepped out of the Striker and sprinted further into the island with Sabo hot on his trails so he can avoid that his little brother do his shenanigans.

Ace was following close behind them, as a responsible brother that he should be, he was supposed to watched them closely, but in the end he decided to be a little close and let their brothers do their brothers have their fun. "They deserve have their fun" he thinks with a smile on his face. With Luffy and Sabo, Luffy wanted to see the execution platform and Sano following behind him while yelling at him that they need direction's. In a short time, they gathered some attention. By chance, they encountered with Smoker and asked him about the execution platform, he told them where to go and giving the thanks the kids go to their destination. Smoker was hella confused about this kids being alone around here, he knew some kids can be curious about the execution platform where the pirate king died, but the children usually where accompanied by a grown up. Either they got separated from their guardians or something else, but before he could think of anything else, a marine went to him and informed him that Ace was here and he forgot about anything else and went straight to his duty.

Ace was just exploring around the island without having the enthusiasm about it, he was just walking around with his head on the clouds, after all, being in the island of the man he's trying to surpass isn't a pleasant feeling, not even helping unto the fact that the little ones that he passed around where talking about the pirate king and the parents giving them a reprimand about that evil man. Seriously, no matter how many times he hears it he won't ever get accustom to those comments, like his wound never healed in the first place and that allowed the shadows of his past to hunt him now. Without realizing it, he ended up in the last place where he wanted to be, face to face in the execution platform, he contemplated it not in intrest whatsoever, more like resentment. Resentment on all the problems his father had because of him, because on carrying his blood in his veins cost him a pain that he'll never get over the comments the people made about him, on how they cursed him and telling him straight forward he was a demon a child that should've never been born. That his mere existence is a sin, cost the life of an innocent woman that didn't deserved that kind of fate. Ace hated him because from the day he was born he never knew the freedom, only suffering. His thoughts where abruptly interrupted over a commotion, he came back to reality and saw people panicking over a child on the execution platform.

"Now who is irresponsible enough to leave their dumb children climb the platform?" he thought, as he sees the plank of the platform and sees Luffy. Oh it's Luffy.....wait "LUFFY!! GET DOWN FROM THERE!!" Immediately he went close to the platform, ignoring the fact that the security was looking at him, security be dammed his brother is doing a reckless "LUFFY GET DOWN FROM THERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!!" Sabo then appeared and joined Ace on shouting at Luffy to get down, but Luffy was so eager on his view and excitement that didn't noticed Ace or Sabo calling for him, as for things couldn't get any worse Smoker appeard with marine troops and they where surrounded. As Smoker was telling Ace to surrender and free those children- "LUFFY I SWEAR TO ANY LIVING THING ON EARTH IF YOU DON'T GET DOWN THERE YOU'LL GET IN BIG TROUBLE!!!" They where completely ignoring them, Smoker just shut up and saw in amusement how this people where interacting, it wasn't his imagination either when he listen to other of his fellow marines, commenting about how unusual the scene was totally different from what the reports say. This wasn't a kidnapper and hostage situation, this was a ridiculous sibling argument. Ace telling the boy named Luffy to get down, Luffy telling them no, Ace saying he'll be grounded for the next few weeks, is he actually punishing the kid to eat greens instead of meat? The kid Luffy actually was arguing about this too? And the other kid joined the scolding? What the hell is this?

The moment finally took action when Ace started to climb the execution platform to get Luffy, Smoker finally took action, using his devil fruit to surround Ace and push him down of the platform and so Ace was obligated to fight with him. The battle was complicated since Ace had to be in more places than one, fighting with Smoker and putting down marines to avoid for them to get any of his brothers. The battle seemed that the marines where winning, Luffy knew this and in his desire of helping he shouted a battlecry AND HE JUMPED "LUFFY!" Ace sprinted in the speed of light and with one leap he catch the little body and landed on his feet. He put the little boy down to see if he was hurt, seeing no injuries whatever Ace smacked Luffy's head "WHAT THE HELL WHERE YOU THINKING?! YOU COULD'VE DIED!! YOU THINK YOU'RE MADE OF RUBBER AH?!" And Smoker watched once again how Ace was scolding the little one, the other kid joined the scolding but was hugging Luffy after seeing he was ok. Getting serious, Ace ordered the boys to get on the Striker and wait for him so him can gain more time and the kids run. Ace stayed far behind to fight with Smoker, which the battle was inconclusive since Ace left in a hurry when he heard that back up was coming up. Finally, Ace arrived to the Striker where his brothers were waiting for him and they sailed away from the island once and for all. After the battle, Smoker informed the marine HQ about what happened, even he telling about what he saw he knew the government will twist the truth so he didn't give a damn what his superiors said and decided to take this situation on his own terms.

Finally, the brothers entered the Grand line, adventure is into them and they couldn't be more excited about it. By this time, Ace took out the Deuce's vivre card to reunite with him once again. It where exciting and dangerous days, but they managed every single obstacle in the way. Finally, the vivre card send him into a deserted island, full of vegetation almost like mountain Corvo, so they dock on the island and they started to explore. Ace let his brothers to have their fun as him was following the vivre card, when he arrived he saw his second in command and some of his crewmates and just by seeing Ace they became happy. They surrounded their captain, telling them how glad they are to see him again, glad that he was alive among so many other things and Ace couldn't feel any happier. Deuce got close to Ace and hugged him, telling him that finally he remember them as a joke which Ace laughed knowing damn well he wouldn't never forget them. The moment of joy was interrupted when the crew noticed their two little guests, where the hell did they came from? They looked at them, then looked at Ace and Deuce understood what his stupidhead of a captain did, still, he denied it until he heard it from Ace.

"Ace..."

"Yeah?"

"Who are these children?"

"Oh, them? My little brothers, they are accompanying us now. Say hi you two"

"Yo"

"Pardon WHAT-?! SINCE WHEN YOU-?! ACE GET BACK HERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!!!" Deuce then started to scream profanities and demanding an explanation while chasing Ace, the crew was astonished and Luffy was saying that Ace's crew is weird and funny which Sabo agreed with him with a laugh.

On the other side of the Grandline, a certain first commander was standing in the deck, at first it may seemed he was looking at the beautiful sight of the ocean, but this wasn't the case. Marco, the first division commander of the Whitebeard pirates was looking at the newspapers, specifically, he was looking through the news of the infamous rookie Fire fist Ace. The newest article informing the movements of Ace, the amount of chaos he caused on his last stop on East blue, seeing the newspaper make him sick. Unknown to the crew, for the past few months he was keeping track on Ace's footsteps, this perusing was both in a professional and personal way. On one side, he had to keep his responsibilities of First division commander, helping his captain on this problems of the major situation of what happened in one of their territories, on the other hand his personal side just boils from anger. Thanks to the little stunt Ace had cause, their ship had an unwanted tension.

In his years he have seen and fought with fools who thought they known any better, thinking they could beat his captain, but Ace was the biggest fool he have seen until now and in some point it disgusted him. He normally wouldn't belive what the navy said, but on one thing they could share is the same thought in bring that rookie down. Not only that he dared to to trespass their territory and do whatever he pleased, but he also dared to hurt his fellow crewmates, the coward then hid his sorry ass for heavens knows how long and maked his glamorous return with innocent children in his hands. Just how disgusting of a human being can he be, he thought. He has to be a idiot to think he'll have a free pass if he thinks that innocent children would be his salvation, then he is mistaken. Fire fist still, has unfinished business with the Whitebeard pirates, so he better prepares himself and he better don't hurt those children, otherwise...

"You better enjoy your breaths while you still can, Fire fist yoi. Maybe they'll be your last ones."

#random #one piece #one piece sabo #sleep deprivation #monkey d. luffy #asl brothers #one piece ace #one piece luffy #flame emperor sabo #fire fist ace #hiken no ace #op whitebeard #whitebeard crew #one piece marco #marco the phoenix #one piece thatch #edward newgate #whitebeard pirates #one piece fanfiction #one piece au #older brother #straw hat pirates #ace of space #op smoker

[ruby-freeinthesky]

𝕾𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖈𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖎𝖙 𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖔𝖘. 𝖂𝖊 𝖈𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖎𝖙 𝕱𝖆𝖒𝖎𝖑𝖞. Chapter One

Next Chapter

AO3

Family /'fam(I)li/ noun

Life's greatest blessing. A group that dreams, laughs, plays and loves together. Those whom you can always count on. Always present not only in the good times. The most precious gift.

> X <

[ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕆𝕟𝕖]

𝕾𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖈𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖎𝖙 𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖔𝖘. 𝖂𝖊 𝖈𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖎𝖙 𝕱𝖆𝖒𝖎𝖑𝖞.

Some call it Chaos. We call it Family.

> X <

Monkey D. Luna has wanted to be a pirate ever since she met Shanks, her idol. Hearing all the tales of his adventures just made her want to seek that too. She wanted to become like him and even better. She wanted to gather Nakama that were just as cool as his.

So, when Shanks was about to leave her island for the last time, going to leave the east blue, after the incidence with the bandit, Luna promised him that she will become a pirate. And not just any pirate.

"I'm going to become the king of the pirates! I'll be the strongest, the greatest and the freest pirate!"

Shanks grinned brightly down at the young girl, "The king of pirates, huh..." The grin gained a mischievous glint, "But you're a girl Anchor, doesn't that mean you will be the queen?"

Luna stuck her tongue out at Shanks while whipping away the tears falling from her eyes. "Nu-uh! There is only a king, so I will be the king and nothing less!"

Shanks grin softened into a gentle smile; eyes filled with love for the girl he came to see as a little sister. He let his eyes wander to the sea, eyes gaining a determined glint. He returned his gaze to the young raven-haired girl and plucked the straw-hat off his head and set it on her head.

This action made the pirate crew take a double take; they all knew that the straw-hat was important for their captain.

"Luna," Shanks said, "This hat is very important to me, it was left to me by my previous captain when I was just his cabin boy. I promised to myself that I will keep it safe, but it seems like a new promise will have to take place."

Luna lifted her shaking hands to grip into the hat as she continued listening to her idol.

"Luna. Promise me, that when you become the strongest, the greatest and freest pirate, when you become the king of the pirates, return it to me!"

Luna bit her lower lip to stop any noise from spilling out. Stupid Shanks for making her cry again. She jerked her head as a nod.

Shanks crouched down and let his arm out, "Well," he grinned, "I want a hug from the future king of the pirates."

Luna obliged with his request and threw herself at Shanks, arms around his neck in a hug. "I'll miss you," she whispered, eyes still teary.

"I'll miss you too, Anchor." Shanks murmured into her hair, "But we'll see each other one day, and I'll always be a call away. I'm giving our DenDen mushi details to Makino so that you will keep contact with us."

Luna smiled slightly, "I'll call you every day."

"Every day seems a bit much, doesn't it?" Benn, the first mate, said, coming over to his captain and the little girl, who became like family to the crew. He was watching the interactions between the red-haired captain and the young Monkey with an amused expression.

Benn received two nearly identical pouts from Shanks and Luna, "Every day isn't too much." Shanks grumbled, pulling away from Luna. "If I can't keep watch over her, I need to at least know everything going on."

"Besides, I have no one except Makino with you guys leaving." Luna whispered, voice saddened, "I'm going to be alone. And grandpa barely visits."

Shanks' and Benn's smiles slipped a bit, before they forced them back, even if strained. Luna is important to them both, an honorary member of their crew, and every single member of their crew adored her and wished to take *cough* Kidnap *cough* her, but they understood that taking a child onboard will be dangerous for her.

Benn moved forward to ruffle Luna's locks, "If that's the case, then you can call us."

Shanks pulled Luna in one last hug when one of his crew shouted out that the ship was set for sail. "I have a feeling that you won't be lonely." Shanks said. "That you will be making a new friend soon."

"H-how are you so sure?" Luna sniffed.

"I just am," Shanks winked, "Won't you believe your older brother for now?"

She nodded, standing on her tiptoes to lay a peck on Shanks' cheek, "Have fun and be safe."

Shanks eyes were soft looking, "I will, and you better take care of yourself, promise?"

Luna extended out a pinkie finger to lock with Shanks' own, "I'll try my best."

"Bahahaha!" Shanks let out a loud laugh, "I guess that's the best I can get from you Anchor."

Luna pouted, "Stupid Shanks." She grumbled and pulled away from him so that he can stand up and board his ship.

With the pirates onboard and ready, they started to wave at the villagers who came to bid them goodbye. And especially at Little Luna.

"Bye Anchor!"

"Don't get into too much trouble!"

"You better talk to all of us! You can't just call Captain only!"

"Don't get a boyfriend without our permission!"

The last sentence made Shanks freeze up and pale, "Don't even think of getting a boyfriend! Don't even get your first kiss!" He shouted.

The crew laughed at the overprotective nature of Shanks, as the ship started to leave the docks.

Luna gripped once more into her newly given hat to hid her tears, even though everyone knew that she was crying, but then suddenly she wiped them away and look at the leaving ship and shouting out at the top of her lungs.

"I'm going to get Stronger and a fantastic crew of my own! They will be my nakama for life, and they will be the crew of the future pirate King! So be ready to get your ass kicked by us!"

Shanks felt a big grin spread on his face, and this smile was contagious as the surrounding people also smiled widely. "We'll wait for you and your future crew!"

Sucking in one big breath before letting out a loud exclamation filled with will that made the sea quiet down in respect to the young one.

"I'LL BE THE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

And Shanks believes that she will do it.

(And it seems like sea did too. He looked down at the water, and tracked down the sea king residing by the island. The sea king was looking at the raven-haired young girl and moved his head down as if bowing.

'Captain...' Shanks thought to himself, 'She's the one, isn't she? The one you are waiting for...'

"Cap! Whatcha thinkin' about to look so serious?" One shouted.

"Probably about Anchor getting a boyfriend!" Another answered.

Shanks snapped at that, "Anchor is never getting a boyfriend!"

Yassop and Lucky Roo walked over to Benn, both laughing. "But Anchor can be quite thick-headed and oblivious, what if she doesn't notice the signs or if a guy forced himself on her." Lucky Roo said.

"Or a girl." Yassop added.

Shanks angry face turned into one filled with fear before he turned towards his most trusted friends. "You guys are right! We need to go back! We're taking her with us!"

"Absolutely not!" Benn interrupted before Shanks actually gave an order to turn around, which not many would go against when there is a chance to have Luna be with them. "You are the one who always told her no, and you promised that you will wait for her to become her own pirate. Are you going to break your promise to her? You know how much Luna hates breaking promises."

Shanks wilted at each remark made by Benn, before he slumped again the railing with a depressing aura surrounding him. "Anchor..." He wailed.

He got ignored by his crew, already having their fill of causing problems to their Captain.

Benn sighed, knowing that he will have to be the one to deal with Shanks in this state as his first mate and best friend. The one thing that makes him regret joining Shanks is this.

While Benn can understand where Shanks' worries lie, he knows that Luna is a strong and emotionally intelligent. She knows whom to trust and not to, she seems to know when someone intentions are to harm her or not. Shanks knows this, too, but his overprotective brother instincts seem to be taking over his head right now.

Benn pities whoever Luna is going to end up with.)

Monkey D. Luna was six years old when she promised Shanks to become the King of the Pirates.

#one piece fanfiction #one piece ao3 #female monkey d. luffy #female luffy #female portgas d. ace #female ace #female sabo #marco x luffy #law x sabo #smoker x ace #marine luffy fanfic

[theshatteredrose]

I'm curious if you have an OC for the EO5 School Boy (DLC) portrait?

Oh yes, I have two.

Keita (first boy portrait), who was introduced in "Turquoise Lotus Father (TTS Saga 2) is reluctantly part of the bandits crew.

Tsubasa (second boy portrait) who hasn't been introduced yet and won't be for aaaaaaages.

In my universe, the aliens being behind everything doesn't exist as I have an intense loathing for the idea. I've ranted about before so I won't do it again here.

But, yeah, the very short version is that scientists from earth in another attempt to preserve the human created an Yggdrasil Project on Mars and in preparation to colonize said planet, they also created these space pods filled with chosen humans who have been place in cryo-sleep, to be awaken when Mars is suitable for inhabitation, which would be thousands of years in the future.

Both Keita and Tsubasa, who were children of chosen scientists, where part of this project. So they were placed in cryo-sleep to be awoken on Mars thousands of years in the future.

But something went wrong. Some pods malfunction and awoken their charges early. A few even crashed onto the planet itself, forcing inhabitants to become survivors. While some pods haven't released their charges at all.

Keita was one who was left in his pod for way too long and was discovered by Keane, forced to become part of his bandits crew. Keita has vague memories of his time on earth and kinda knows he's no longer on Earth, but rather somewhere else. But he can't quite remember. He knows something is different. That something is wrong. He knows that he doesn't actually belong here. He remembers little things. Insignificant things, like toys and knickknacks that he used to collect when he was younger. Everything else, though, is a blur.

Tsubasa is still lying in a cyro-pod, asleep and unaware. Much later down the line in The Treasure Seekers saga, Drayce and his crew are the ones to find him and awaken him. Tsubasa is different from Keita as he will remember everything. And he will have to navigate a world where everything is now changed. And everyone he once knew is gone.

[merrigelblogs]

Re: the post about why your OC is still alive, I am making SO many eye emojis right now to know more. (All of them, but SPECIFICALLY the one regarding whoever's death would make a sacrifice invalid because WOOF that's my JAM)

FRENCHYYY YOU'RE A GIFT 🥺

The sacrifice one is for my first DnD character ever, my lil halfling druid boy Kieran Broadoak!! Since he was The First (and also my only DnD experience up till that point was the Adventure Zone LMAO) I of COURSE had to give him something tragic in his backstory, so like

Kieran's deal is that he's the oldest son of a farming family who ran away as a teen because he didn't WANNA take over the farm, he didn't WANNA settle down (with a WIFE??), he wanted to learn magic and be an adventurer!! And he ran away WITH a new friend who'd wandered thru town, a wizard named Surana who tried to teach him magic (unsuccessful, the boy was Not suited for wizardry) and then just ended up becoming a general mentor and close friend!

They traveled around until, in the heart of a forest in the dead of night, these two young'uns were caught by some particularly bloodthirsty bandits; Surana set herself up to defend her ward, but combat magic not being her specialty, things went haywire and the whole forest ended up being set ablaze; Kieran ran and barely escaped, but couldn't find any trace of Surana afterwards.

Concluding that she'd sacrificed herself to save him and feeling pretty shit about it! We actually found pretty early in the campaign that Surana did live and went on to be a part of a pretty cool secret magical order, but that happens.... 'bout 5 years later?? So until then, Kieran was just a wandering travel guide with no roots and no real connections who was. Kinda just getting by. (But it's cool bc then he met the party, found Surana, helped save the world, and now he's settled happily with his sweet buff human husband!!)

Also I yammered A LOT there but for kicks... quick summaries of the rest under the cut 👀

OKAY SO IN ORDER

"Got lucky and ended up with maybe the only one who won't kill her" = Aveline! She's not who she says she is and tho she hasn't REALLY let it slip, she's a pretty awful liar!! Lucky she's with a good crew hehe

"Magic and near-complete dissolution of the self" = Arc! Would say more but it's still a spoiler >:3c

"Determination and genius" = Temerity! Girlbossing her way out of poverty and aiming to pull her family up with her!

"Vast food supply left by those who came before" = Hiro, my as-yet-unplayed cleric for a post-apocalypse campaign! He grew up alone in a Gamestop because he's a Gamer Cleric (and I thought it was very funny)

"Somehow hasn't been killed by her habits" = Robyn! She is. Not trying that hard to live but she's still kickin'!

"Still has permission from the big eldritch parent" = My ol' space warlock Dandy! Was granted a physical body by his patron, is nervously aware that said patron Might be able to turn him into stardust at any moment

"Good question" = Mickey, another yet-to-be-played; my bard for an 80s-themed campaign! They're a college freshman who found out they have magic in a (seemingly) non-magic world and they. They really do act like it. I love them

THANK YOUUUU FOR LETTING ME BLATHER!!

#yammers #ask #THANK YOU FOR INDULGING ME #frenchy-and-the-sea

[stillunusual]

Pop Avalanche (issue #2) YEAR: 1987 CREATED BY: Brian Orchard (AKA Andrew Rainey), Boy Naughty (AKA Andrew Midgley), Camper Bob (AKA Bob Stanley) and Christoper X (AKA Camper Chris) LOCATION: Peterborough / Edinburgh SIZE: A5 WHAT'S INSIDE.... A fanzine that's "blue for a reason" and has an interesting take on mid-1980s zine culture: "You don't need to read it....we didn't need to write it....we don't need to listen to our records....but we do....do you understand what we're saying? Fanzines are not essential - fatuous views on trivial topics leaning dangerously close to egomania - but the trick is to make them seem to matter....enough to lure you the consumer into buying one at any rate".... It also has The Rolling Stones on the cover and an article about the apparent indestructibility of Keith Richards (Bill Hicks once said that: "I picture nuclear war and two things surviving - Keith Richards and bugs"), both of which would have been unthinkable a few years before, given that the Stones were one of the principal targets of punk's iconoclasm ("no Elvis, Beatles or The Rolling Stones in 1977"). The zine features a fine selection of mid-1980s indie bands, most of whom (ie Hurrah!, 14 Iced Bears, Razorcuts, The BMX Bandits and Talulah Gosh) remained stuck in the indie groove until they eventually split up, and a couple that transitioned to a rock-dance crossover sound under the influence of the rave scene, ie Primal Scream and Age Of Chance (who hailed from Leeds and almost made it into the charts with their cover version of "Kiss"). There's also a retrospective article about Josef K (who influenced all of the above) and a quick guide to up-and-coming bands which includes the future ambassadors of shoegaze - My Bloody Valentine.... Issue #2 of Pop Avalanche is slightly unusual in that it devotes four of its pages to hip hop, which was taking the world by storm at the time but didn't get much coverage in fanzines. Although the empty machismo and casual misogyny in a lot of rap lyrics was not something most indie kids could relate to, the music itself was both groundbreaking and exciting, so kudos to the Pop Avalanche crew for being open minded about it. They recommend the Streetsounds hip hop electro compilations and indicate that #14 was particularly good, although I think the cream of the crop was probably the next one in the series, which I remember buying on cassette and listening to incessantly back in 1986/7. Recent releases by the likes of Schoolly D, The Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Run DMC, Heavy D And The Boyz, Kool Moe Dee and a few others are also highlighted, as well as one or two by UK artists (who - to be fair - were mostly shit).... The zine's contributors also manifest their culture vulture credentials with articles about writer Martin Amis and comic actor Norman Wisdom. There's a brief mention of The Pastels, who published their own fanzine called Juniper Beri Beri, and a one page ad for a zine called Camping, which was a side hustle for Christopher X and Bob Stanley (who went on to become a proper journalist as well as forming the band Saint Etienne). Two other contemporary zines - The Legend! and Trout Fishing In Leytonstone - are described as "a load of old cobblers" and "trivial, derivative and monotonous" respectively. Click on the title above to see scans of all the zine's pages.... my box of 1980s fanzines flickr

#pop avalanche #fanzine #post-punk #indie #indie pop #indie rock #hip hop #rolling stones #1980s #1987

[mxbitters]

i just wish i could write some sort of high fantasy story that’s like based around  identity, particularly queer and racial identity, and also my hatred for colonizers but unfortunately i am Really Bad At Fiction,, also idk if it’d be considered high fantasy but regardless.. i.  i like my idea a lot..

#it's about these two boys who were like in a crew of bandits and were inseperable #one of them is indigenous (like..elf-ish idk how to make new things) and the other is whatever the equivalent of white in this world is #and like they kinda grow up together and at one point they're like really cute and like having big philosophical spiritual conversations #and like the former is in love with the latter and the latter.. idk let's say internalized homophobia #and anyway aforementioned white boy finds out he's the Long Lost Descendant Of A King whoop-de-doo #and so like he's told to go do it because he deserves to live a good life and the character i Relate To Too Much eventually leaves the bandi #bandits* because he doesn't want that to get in the way of their relationships. but something leads to something else and then like #the new king decides to seize the land they had lived on for millennia including sacred land and that's the last straw obviously #and so the character i am Projecting Onto re-enters this group and basically gets a fuck ton of pissed off people and monsters on his side #and like meanwhile the king's been going through some care bear movie style what the fuck am i doing development #and so like they push these assholes off their sacred land and then he realizes that lo and behold the government's shit and he like #he kills the old white guys or something (theyre probably sorcerers.. getting their power by sucking the life out of innocent people) #and maybe....... OOH maybe AHHHHHH by killing the old white sorcerer assholes the life goes back to the innocent people #and the final boss or something is the hardest battle of all probably bc he also has to fight his former friend/lover (catradora vibe ???) #bc he's used as a shield or something i dunno.. anyway once he kills the strangely mitch mcconnell looking asshole his bfs life comes back #and he's like what the fuck happened and then like they abolish the government and they all live in happy anarchy <3 #damn i came up with that whole last half just now.. #maybe i can write this but it won't be good lmao.. #hmm. can everybody tell i'm queer and lakota because yeah.. #this worldbuilding is gonna be a lot.. wait my friend's a dm maybe they can help if they don't mind.. AHHHHHH #wild. WILD #ideally a comic would be cool but i can't draw many angles..huh

[feriowind]

i wrote up a whooole feral luffy AU bit on twitter last night so am posting it here too (slightly cleaned up) hahaha

Feral luffy AU where the basis is that Luffy is the one who, somehow, set sail the day the celestial dragons arrived and had his boat shot down. 

 He's considerably further out to sea when this happens, and when he falls into the water, he's swept away by a strange ocean current. He winds up on a deserted island surrounded by the same strange currents and it keeps him stranded. 

 Ace and Sabo are devastated by the loss of Luffy, as is Garp, Makino, Dadan and the bandits, and later on Dragon and Shanks when they find out, attempts are made to locate Luffy's body but they never find him, the assumption that he sank too far out into the ocean due to his devil fruit. Ace & Sabo grow up significantly less cheerful without Luffy's presence, but their bond to one another is as strong as ever.

 Sabo fakes his death after begging Garp for help, anything to throw off his family from ever finding him again. Garp agrees because his hatred of certain nobility has grown significantly after Luffy's "death", and he can't stand the thought of losing another grandson.

 Luffy meanwhile, adapts as best he can. Surviving in this new jungle is painful, but doable despite the constant near brushes with death. The true hardship is how lonely he is without his brothers. Luffy has always thrived in the company of others, and without any he struggles, but again, Luffy adapts. 

 He manages to befriend some of the animals in the jungle, and accidentally discovers conqueror's haki when he nearly loses his hat to a predator, his one link to something beyond this island.

 The animals can't replace his brothers, but they ward off the loneliness. Throughout this time, Luffy makes multiple attempts to sail off the island with handmade rafts. Craftsmanship has never been his strong suit however, so they crumble instantly in the harsh currents.

 Perhaps due to luck, the currents always wash him back ashore instead of allowing him to sink and drown. Luffy's speech also slowly degrades over time. As much as he loves talking to his animal friends, the inability to hear someone else speak causes his words to slur and distort

 Ace and Sabo still hold true to their promise to set sail at age 17, but decide that they want to sail together instead of separating. When they finally set sail, they decide to take their time getting to the Grandline, exploring more of the East Blue at a leisurely pace.

After roughly a week of sailing, they get caught in a freak storm and are swept away by a giant wave where they too end up caught in the same strange current that stole Luffy all those years ago. The two wind up unconscious on Luffy's island, where Luffy finds them on the beach.

Luffy doesn't recognize them however, only that wow! For the first time since he arrived, there are other humans on the island with him that are alive! It's an exciting occurrence, and Luffy drags their bodies to the jungle where the tide won't reach.

When poking and prodding don't wake the two, Luffy sets off to gather food for his guests. He still remembers how tired and hungry he was when he first washed ashore, and figures they'd feel the same. As Luffy comes back, Ace wakes up in a panic.

Luffy rushes Ace in excitement and babbles. It's nearly incomprehensible to Ace however, especially in his panicked just-woken hazy-brained state. All Ace wants is to know where Sabo is and where this place is, and pushes Luffy away.

That's when Ace notices Sabo is lying just a few feet away asleep. The tension leaves him immediately and he's able to actually pay attention to the stranger trying to talk to him. 

Luffy is young and shorter than what he would have been had he been able to grow up on Dawn Island. His hair is long, wild and tangled, and he's dressed in furs and leathers. As Ace is studying him, he asks if he's the one who saved him and Sabo. 

For a moment Luffy stares silent, mind untangling the words until they make sense, and then he nods exuberantly. He tries to explain that he found them unconscious on the beach along with their boat, but Ace can barely decipher Luffy's speech. It sounds like someone speaking with a heavy accent at lightning speed.

But it’s then Ace notices the faint scar under Luffy's eye, and the strawhat hanging off his back. That in combination with Luffy's excited movements and speech sets off confusing alarms in his head.

Luffy's dead, Ace knows this, but he forces this strange kid to calm down and asks for his name. Again it takes a moment for Luffy to understand, and he replies. There's that same strange lilt to his words, but it's clear. Monkey D. Luffy! and it's said with a wide, proud grin.

Ace's world tilts then. Luffy? MONKEY D. LUFFY? His brain feels like its shorting out, refusing to register this new bit of information. He thinks he chokes a reply of some kind, but his mind feels blank. Luffy only laughs, not noticing Ace's shock.

In broken speech he asks for Ace's name too, but Ace doesn't hear his question, can only stare at Luffy's face. It can't be Luffy, he thinks. Because if it is... IF IT IS... They're only roughly a week's sail from Dawn Island. Just 7 days.

Is this boy trying to tell Ace that Luffy, in these past 7 years, was only a 7 days boat ride away? And they simply didn't look hard enough? He was here all alone while Ace and Sabo moved on? Ace's heart feels like it's constricting as his vision tunnels in on Luffy.

Luffy's finally noticed that this stranger is looking pale and ill, and pats him in worry. Is he sick? Does he need food? Are you okay, he asks. Ace grabs Luffy's arm then and stares at him with a strange expression. Luffy, it's me, he says, voice shaking. Ace.

Luffy's brows furrow in confusion and he tilts his head. Ace repeats himself, voice growing stronger. I'm Ace! he exclaims, and waits (prays) to see the light of recognition in Luffy's eyes.

Luffy mouths Ace's words silently to himself with frown. Ace? ...ACE! Luffy suddenly leaps towards Ace, landing directly on his chest and crushing him against a tree. He's directly on him and he's got Ace's head clasped roughly between his hands as he stares at his face intently

Ace? Luffy asks out loud, and starts repeating it over and over as he studies Ace's face. Luffy's grip is stronger than expected but Ace manages to give a jerky nod. The piercing stare breaks and Luffy's eyes water. ACE! he cries out in joy and it's the only word he can say.

Luffy wildly paws at Ace's face, then shoulders and arms, as if trying to make sure he's really there, and he's laughing and crying all at once. He then suddenly turns to Sabo on the ground and starts patting his body. He looks up at Ace with a hopeful smile and asks, Sabo?

Ace chokes back a sob because oh. OH. It's really Luffy! He was here this whole time and they never knew! Why hadn't they just looked HARDER? Luffy meanwhile crows in joy and triumph that BOTH his brothers are here with him. 

Ace gets down next to Sabo and starts violently shaking him. Wake up WAKE UP, how can he be SLEEPING when the greatest thing they thought they had lost was BACK. Sabo groans awake and is greeted by the pained teary face of Ace and an equally teary, but grinning stranger

 the shock of the scene jolts Sabo upright and he asks what's wrong? What happened? Ace just points to the boy beside him. It's Luffy, he says through clenched teeth, as if he were trying his best to stave off a breakdown. Huh? Sabo replies, what about Luffy?

 it's LUFFY, Ace grits out again, and this time Luffy chimes in with a cheery, Sabo! and leans in close to his face. Sabo is still confused and Ace nearly snarls in frustration. Luffy's ALIVE, Ace growls, and Luffy laughs. Sabo stares at Luffy and understanding slowly dawns.

 Luffy? he asks in disbelief, and Luffy nods excitedly before crowding in Sabo's face even more. Sabo! Luffy says with a smile and starts repeating his name like he had done with Ace earlier. Sabo, Luffy's been here this whole time, Ace says in a pained whisper.

 This whole time? And the same realization that Ace had grows in Sabo. Luffy, you've been here, all alone...? And we were so close? Sabo's body moves and wraps Luffy's body in a bone crushing hug. Luffy, I- we didn't know! Sabo stammers but it sounds like a terrible excuse.

 Guilt is devouring both Ace and Sabo but Luffy is only smiling. He's overjoyed that his brothers are here, and with their help he can definitely get off this island now! Things do work out!

 We have to go back to Dawn Island, Sabo says suddenly. We need to take Luffy home and we- we gotta tell Gramps! And Dadan and Makino! Luffy's okay! He's okay! And it's like a dam breaks and Sabo is the first one to break down into a full-body sob.

 Luffy gives a cry of dismay and does his best to comfort Sabo. Ace gives in and wraps both Luffy and Sabo in a hug. Both older brothers are whispering apologies to Luffy responds with just wrapping his arms several times around them both in one of his infamous rubbery hugs.

 like luffy had tried to explain earlier, the brothers' ship is beached on the coast and, surprisingly, only suffering a few minor scuffs. their departure is fairly swift, only waiting for the ideal weather after gathering some supplies and luffy's scant belongings

 Perhaps one or two of Luffy's animal friends joins them, but regardless, with the help of a 3 man crew, a sturdy ship, and an actual navigator, Luffy finally escapes the island, and the 3 brothers head home.

 Now all Ace and Sabo have to worry about is helping Luffy readjust to human civilization........

#one piece #feral luffy AU #art #i can only bring myself to write these weird long winded half summary half fic things lol #monkey d. luffy

[superherotiger]

Home is Where the Heart Is (Western/Outlaw Irondad AU)

Hey, hey everyone! I'm so excited to be sharing this fic with you all today because I've been working on it steadily for about a month and it's been a labour of love (and an up till 6am writing session) to complete it! I really hope you all enjoy this next instalment to the Western AU, and that it makes your heart all soft and fluffy before I inevitably throw in the angst in later instalments hah! There's a lot of fun interactions that I got to put into the chapter, and I just really hope you all enjoy it!

Also big thank you to my lovely discord family and especially @iron-mum for cheering me on as I wrote this instalment! Hope you all enjoy, and have a great day!

(Warning: Vague mentions of past child abuse)

~~~

Chapter Summary:

“So, do I get to join you for your adventure today?” the boy asked cheerily as he laid the blanket out and lifted the saddle on top of it.

“I assumed you would be,” Tony said nonchalantly, though it made Peter’s heart swell with an unexpected sense of belonging. “Unless of course you wanna go join Bird Brain or Ice Cap for a change of company?”

There wasn’t even a moment of hesitation before Peter shook his head and replied, “I’d like to stay with you- if… if you don’t mind…”

The sheepish twinge in Peter’s voice had the bandit softening for just a moment, before he concealed it behind a sharp sniff and said, “Alright then. The sooner we saddle up, the sooner we can head out.”

“And where are we going to this time?” Peter asked excitedly as he began fitting the saddles on with practiced hands.

An uncharacteristically fond smile flashed across the bandit’s features before he replied simply “Home.”

~~READ ON AO3~~

Preview:

“Why’re we splitting up?” Peter asked curiously as he brushed down the coat of his mare Karen, readying her for a saddle and the journey they were about to undertake.

“Our haul’s too big now to keep carryin’ around with us, so we’ll offload em’ across different hideouts,” Tony’s voice was quick to answer. “Less chance of getting stolen that way.”

Scoffing lightly, Peter teased “Who’d be stupid enough to rob the Avengers?”

“You’d be surprised kid,” Tony smirked as he walked past the stableboy with a playful ruffle of his hair.

“Yes, like those foolish ‘Ravagers’ that tried to ambush us once,” Thor’s voice boomed across the camp with glee. “They weren’t so keen to dance once we had run them into the canyon, hey?”

“Or how about that mangy Hammer crew?” Clint chimed in from where he was loading up a cart with chests of silverware and stolen jewellery.

A scowl pulled at Tony’s features just at the mere mention of the rival outlaw, spitting both verbally and literally into the dirt “Don’t remind me of that chicken-hearted little fuck, Barton. He’s lucky to still be breathing.”

“Especially after he tried to woo ya girl, eh?” the archer added with a mischievous quirk of his brow, only to scramble back a few steps when Tony rushed upon him like a deadly storm.

Before the famed Iron Bandit could get his hands on the equally as notorious Hawkeye though, a familiar redhead stepped between the two and fixed them each with a hardened stare, like a mother hen scolding her chicks. Peter couldn’t help but snicker under his breath at the sight of the two toughest criminals in the land cowering back from the Black Widow’s disapproving frown. “As much as I would love to see you boys throw a few rounds in the dirt, we’ve got work to do,” she said as calmly as ever. If there was anybody who could pull the rag tag set of outlaws into line, it was Natasha Romanoff.

And sharing one last defeated glance with each other, Tony and Clint parted ways without another word, knowing that there was no point in fighting the likes of Widow on the best of days. Scuffles amongst the team weren’t a rare sight to Peter. He’d been with them for almost eight months now and had witnessed more bickering and brawls than expected from the country’s most fearsome team of outlaws. But underneath the bouts of anger and frustration that came with living in constant proximity with each other, there was always a sense of comradery. An understanding that nobody would ever truly want to hurt the other, regardless of whatever stupid insult was thrown or disagreement held.

The Avengers were dangerous for a reason, and that’s because their individual strengths had come together to create something powerful and fierce. Their teamwork had made them invincible. And like any good team, they would fight and argue and tease, but at the end of the day they would always have each other’s back.

Peter still found it hard to believe that by some crazy fortunate stroke of luck, he had become a part of that team too…

“Snap out of it, Buckaroo,” a familiar voice cut through Peter’s thoughts, and with a shake of his head, the boy glanced up over Karen’s back to see the famed outlaw fixing him with a teasing smirk from the other side. “Daydreaming again, huh?”

“Sorry,” Peter chuckled, relishing in the fact that he was actually free to laugh these days without the fear of punishment. Without his joy getting drowned out under the wave of dread he felt every time he fell asleep in that rickety old stable…

No, he could smile and tease and be happy as much as he wanted now. And Peter was determined to make the most of it.

“So, do I get to join you for your adventure today?” the boy asked cheerily as he laid the blanket out and lifted the saddle on top of it.

“I assumed you would be,” Tony said nonchalantly, though it made Peter’s heart swell with an unexpected sense of belonging. “Unless of course you wanna go join Bird Brain or Ice Cap for a change of company?”

There wasn’t even a moment of hesitation before Peter shook his head and replied, “I’d like to stay with you- if… if you don’t mind…”

The sheepish twinge in Peter’s voice had the bandit softening for just a moment, before he concealed it behind a sharp sniff and said, “Alright then. The sooner we saddle up, the sooner we can head out.”

“And where are we going to this time?” Peter asked excitedly as he began fitting the saddles on with practiced hands.

An uncharacteristically fond smile flashed across the bandit’s features before he replied simply “Home.”

(Read the full story on Ao3 here!)

~~~

Taglist:

@joyful-soul-collector @lost-lunar-wolf @lbigreyhound13 @aixabi @zanderljones @milstrim @anarinette @sfabsha @appleschloss @sdottkrames @katthebookiestnerd

#irondad #spiderson #tony stark #peter parker #Irondad Outlaw AU #Western AU #my writing #james rhodes #happy hogan #pepper potts #ned leeds #maria stark #I'm literally so hyped that this is finished!!! #Please let me know what you thought!! <3

[human-do-a-worm]

Ramblings of an Old Soldier Part 3/3

Sorry about the wait. The second dose of COVID vaccine drains you a lot more than the first dose. Anyways here’s part 3, part 1 and part 2 can be found here.

Admiral Sturm sat on the park bench as he always did. Sipping on his coffee and reading the latest news from his datapad. Once again, the Unkall boy approached him and sat beside him on the bench. He noticed that the aging Terran was wearing a strange uniform, with the image of a furred beast embroidered on the chest and upper right arm.

“Good afternoon Mr. Sturm.” “Ah, hello there son. Back for story time again?” “Yes sir. I was wondering what happened after the summit. Almost all traces of you vanished from records 8 cycles ago, and the only mentions of you after that were how the Terran Navy wanted you back.”

“Well, as I said the other day, I became a merc. My crew and I were the best. We took contracts from the Segmentum Norrus, all the way down to the Serectan Void. We didn’t work like most mercenary groups. We sought out our clients, and saw a lot of business. Everything from running escort duty on supply runs to desperate worlds, to taking down entire groups of bandits and pirates. Wherever we went, outlaws and tyrants alike feared the sight of The Wolf’s Den.”

“The Wolf’s Den? I think we heard about a group of people using that ship last cycle in our Galactic History class. Something about taking part in the Gingral war, only a few cycles ago.” “Ah yes, the Gingral war. Some of the bloodiest fighting I’ve ever seen. That was the last contract my crew and I took. We started off in a small role; mostly just escorting supply freighters to the border colonies since most of the supply lines had been cut and the colonists were starving. Our last supply run had been going well, until 6 light cruisers decloaked and opened fire. We did the best we could, but the supply freighter carrying food and civilians was destroyed in only a few minutes.”

“We could have escaped after that. Made a jump to the nearest Unkall station and gotten reinforcements, but My crew and I all knew what had to be done. We knew that the Gingral had to pay. They may have outnumbered us 6 to 1, and they may have had us outgunned, but they didn’t account for us having a mark 7 jump core. We warped around behind them and took down 2 of the light cruisers rather easily, but then we took a hit. The jump core cut out, and we were relying only on engine power.”

“But The Wolf’s Den must have survived somehow. The history logs said that it served through the entirety of the Gingral War.”

“That’s almost right. We knew that we wouldn’t be able to keep her together much longer, so we did what all Terrans do in situations like this. We became unpredictable. We gave all power to weapons and blasted the furthest ship from us, then mustered to the airlocks. We put on EVA gear and as soon as we were close enough to the next ship, we boarded.” “Wasn’t ship boarding added to the prohibited activities of War after the Terran war?” “It was, but targeting civilians has always been among the prohibited activities of War, so we were still committing a lesser infraction. We blasted open the port hangar with a plasma charge, and cleared the first room. Then we cleared the rest of the ship up to the bridge and took out the last remaining light cruiser. Changed the comms channels to the ones we had on The Wolf’s Den, then modified the IFF tag accordingly. When we arrived at the Unkall station we had just left, they demanded an explanation, so we told them what happened.” “And you weren't reprimanded?”

“Oh, we were. There was even a small tribunal held to determine if we could still fight. That’s when the call came in. Rakthis had been attacked, with only a handful of survivors. I immediately got up and started heading to my ship. The Unkall admiral demanded to know where I was going. After calmly telling him that there was now a full scale war, we had work to do. I went to the hangar and got the light cruiser repaired and ready for combat, but not before renaming it. The Wolf’s Den was never destroyed, it just became another ship.”

“What happened next?” the Unkall boy asked. “Weren’t the forces around Rakthis said to be uncounted?”

“They were, that’s why we didn’t go to Rakthis. We went to Waalon instead. Then to Rek’lon, and finally to Scrurros. Everywhere we went, we pushed back the Gingral horde. My first mate, Sarah Callingham, had family on the outer colonies back in the Vrumoid war. Saw most of them killed in front of her when their shuttle was shot down leaving atmosphere on Vrall VII. Scrurros was a tough nut to crack, and she had more crafty ideas than I did. We landed The Wolf’s Den on the uninhabited side of the planet, then bought a grav truck from one of the farmers. It was hard to weld the armor plates on it at the right angle, but mounting the lasguns and mortar was rather simple. I stood in the back, manning two of the lasguns and the mortar while she and two other soldiers were up front in the cab. We got almost to the planetary capital before we faced any resistance.”

“But the history logs said that Scrurros didn’t fall until the later end of the war.” “That’s right. We couldn’t take the planet as easily as we’d taken the others. When the first mortar hit the shield on the planetary governance center, we knew we were in for a fight. We got the truck away with only a few shots on the armor, but we were pursued by the planetary militia. One of the armored gun trucks fired their heavy las gun and took out the rear grav drive. With the back end of the truck along the ground, our speed tanked to a crawl. I was able to keep the militia back for a while by pinning them down with the lasguns, but then another shot hit us, dead center mass.”

“How bad was it? Were you alright?”

“I made it out with only a few scratches, scrapes, and bruises, but Sarah and the others up front weren't so lucky. The shot penetrated the cab and blew up at the steering linkage. Only Sarah, myself, and the one crewman in the back with me made it out of that. We ducked into a nearby building for cover, only to find that it was a school. Not wanting to put the civilians in danger, we lightly dressed Sarah’s wounds and went on into the forest surrounding the city. We came to a cave at the foot of a mountain, and made camp inside.” “Who was the other crewman that was with you? I notice that you haven’t said his name yet.”

“His name was Richard Grumman. He was the newest addition to The Wolfpack, joining us less than a cycle ago. We hadn’t had much time to get to know each other. The Militia found us in the first week, and he was shot to death on the night they raided the cave. Sarah and I managed to get away, but we were far from being safe. The next night we got a transmission from The Wolf’s Den; They had been found, and were wondering what to do. Sarah and I were at least four days away from the ship, so I made the call and told them to leave while they had the chance, to keep fighting and never forget about us.” “So you willingly stranded yourself and an injured crewmate on a hostile planet just to save your crewmates? The stories about the Terrans must be true.” “You’ll learn that those stories don’t even tell half the story if you stick on a Terran ship for even half a cycle. Anyways, there we were, just me and Sarah on Scrurros. I treated her wounds the best I could, but she wasn’t getting much better. Eventually she died, less than half a cycle into our time on that world. I retired with her body to the farmer who sold us the truck, and paid him to let me bury Sarah on his property. Much like with the freighter, the Gingral would pay. I took stock of what I had. Two lasguns, three fragmentation grenades, an energy grenade, and a plasma charge. Not nearly enough to take on the forces of the planet, but maybe enough to make it possible.”

“So what did you do? The Gingral don’t just let prisoners get away. Especially not in the middle of a war.” “Well, I couldn't just storm the Planetary Governance Center. That would accomplish nothing but my own death. Instead I went for something better. Three grids away from the Governance Center was the Defense Center. The plan was simple. Get inside, break as much stuff as I could, and hope that was enough to take down their defenses. It took me ten days to reach the capital again, and another three to figure out how to get inside. Turns out the Gringal didn’t make their roof as secure as they should have. I opened up the ventilation system and got inside. From there it was a short trip to the bunker exterior.”

“Aren’t Gingral bunkers some of the hardest to break open in the entire galaxy? How did you get inside?” “Simple; I didn’t break in; I snuck in. I kicked out the vent and got inside the bunker, then closed and locked the door behind me and smashed the controls. There were only technicians and a few soldiers inside, who were easy enough to dispatch. The harder part was accessing the communications room. Aside from the door of the bunker itself, the communications room was the most secure place in the facility. The door was half a meter thick, and barred at six points. That would prove to be a great challenge, so I left it for later. I quickly found the controls to the weapons system, and took it down. The planet was now mostly defenseless against ships in orbit and low atmosphere.”

“So you took down the guns, but how did you get in?”

“The door was too hard to get through, so I made my own instead. I went above the room and opened up the three fragmentation grenades. Terrna frag grenades use a pressure sensitive explosive to detonate, so I poured it out above the room, then placed the plasma charge on top of it. I ducked out of the room and waited for the explosion. When that charge went off, it was as if the whole planet shook. When I went in to check on the hole, the charge had only just broken through the floor. It took hours for me to get the hole wide enough for me to wriggle inside, but it was worth it. I contacted the Unkall fleet, and they were there within the week. The planet fell and I was pulled from the bunker before the food and water stores were even dented.”

“So that’s why taking Scrurros was so easy for the fleet. There wasn’t as much resistance as the planet originally had. And you were the one to take it down?”

“That’s right. After the war, I was broken. My knees were all but useless for fighting, and I could barely stand without swaying. The Unkall empire never forgot what my crew and I did. We were paid many times more than what was written in our contract, and they even got me a home right here on Unkall Prime. Now I sit here, enjoying retirement in my old age. Though the Terran lifespan is almost 50 cycles, we’re usually out of our working years after only 30 cycles. Our bodies are too old and weak to do most of the hard tasks that we normally would.”

“So what do you do now? Surely after a life like yours you want to do something just as exciting after you’re done working.”

“I mostly just read now. When you spend your life as a soldier, you miss out on so much. I never settled down and had kids, and my time for that is even drawing to a close. I did take up a few hobbies here and there, but nothing really stuck. I still work part time for the Unkall empire, training their soldiers in virtual reality simulations is about all I can do, but I’ve given the Unkall the strength to protect their planets, and given their generals and admirals the knowledge not to go on any missions they will regret. I’m happy with the contributions I’ve made in my life, and if I had the chance, I’d do it all over again. By the way, I never did catch your name.”

“My name is Ruthal Nerzak, and I’m slotted to be a soldier in the Unkall Defense Force.”

“Well Ruthal, I hope we will meet again someday.”

With that, Ruthal stopped recording and went home, finishing his final report.

A few days later, Ukall prime came under attack. A colonial independence group made numerous strikes around the city, and Ruthal had been caught outside on his way home from class. He tried to run away, but was chased by one of the insurgents down an alleyway, when suddenly two lasgun shots rang out. Ruthal though he was dead, but he slowly opened his four eyes and saw that the terrorist was dead on the ground in front of him. Looking up, he was me with a familiar face

“Thank you Mr. Sturm, I thought I was surely dead.”

“Don’t thank me yet, we’re seven grids away from the nearest shelter, and there’s enemies all around us. You said you wanted to be a soldier, well your training just started early.”

Sturm handed Ruthal the lasgun from the dead insurgent, and after showing him how to fire and teaching him how to make sure it doesn’t overheat, he led the Unkall boy out of the alley and down the street. Two blocks later, Sturm pulled the Unkall boy into an alley.

“Alright son, listen up. There’s about fifty armed and angry people between us and shelter. Our espace routes have been mostly cut off, so I need you to listen to me and listen well. When I tell you to run, you run as fast as you can. We should be able to get past most of them by taking the alleys across the street. I picked up some kit off one of these guys. The flashbang should buy us enough time to cross the street, but I’ll have to think of something after we get to our next crossing.”

Sturm threw the flashbang far into the crowd of terrorists, blinding a dozen of them and allowing them to cross the street. After seeing how many insurgents were at their crossing point, Sturm and Ruthal entered a tall residence building across from a big shootout between the insurgent and Unkall forces.

“Alright, we don’t stand a chance of crossing that. Here’s the plan. We’ll get up high, and then open fire on them. If nothing else, we’ll draw their attention away from the defense forces and allow them to break through.”

“I can’t. They’re people, just like us.” “Look around you kid. There’s men, women, and children all gunned down by these guys. I’m not sure what that makes them in Unkall society, but to us Terrans, they’re no longer people; they’re monsters. As a soldier, our job is to get rid of the monsters, so that everyone can sleep soundly at night knowing they’re safe. Taking a life isn’t something one does lightly, but it’s still something that has to be done. It’s better that we take them out, because if we don’t, who knows how many more people they’ll kill. We don’t do this because we like killing, we do this because we love the people we protect, and we’d give anything to keep them safe.”

“But I don’t want to hurt them.”

“I understand. I’m not sure if the Unkall have a saying like this, but Terrans sure do. You have a big heart. You want to keep people safe, not put them in the ground. But sometimes the best way to keep people safe is to put bad people in the ground. We’re between a rock and a hard place. If we sit here and do nothing, they will continue to hold this street, but if we can take them down, even just one or two of them, we can make them fight on two sides, which is the easiest way to break through an enemy line. I recognize a few of the soldiers I can see from up here. I trained them myself. They’ll realize what’s going on and they’ll do the heavy lifting; we just need to give them a helping hand. So, are you ready?”

The young Unkall nodded, then Sturm and Ruthal braced their lasguns on the windowsill, and opened fire on the street below. As Sturm said, the insurgents shifted their position, attempting to defend against incoming fire from two directions. As the Unkall defense forces broke the lines, a single shot came from the street and hit Sturm in the neck

Bleeding badly, Sturm stumbled back, Ruthall catching him in his arms. As he was losing his grasp on consciousness, Sturm held Ruthalls hand

“Never forget what happened here. Never forget the atrocities you saw with your own eyes, and never be afraid to rise up against the monsters who make things like this happen.”

With that, Sturm closed his eyes. Unkall security forces soon burst into the room, seeing the state of the old Terran, they gave him the best aid they could, and sent him off to the hospital, with Ruthall at his side.

After a lengthy surgery and two pints of blood, Sturm woke up in his hospital room, Ruthall asleep on his lap. Colonel Rengar, a soldier in the Unkall defense forces entered the room.

“So Admiral, I see your retirement is going well.”

“Can the crap Colonel. How many did we lose?”

“Casualties are still being counted, but even one is too many.”

“And what about the boy, Ruthall. Why is he still here?"

"His family were among those killed in the attack. We haven’t told him yet, just that we’re still looking for them.”

“So what will happen to him?”

“We don’t know. He doesn’t have any living family, and in our culture friend’s do not step in for situations like these. He will likely be left to become an adoptee for some family here, but after this, I’m not sure who would adopt him.”

“I will.”

“What? You can’t be serious. The looks he would get, especially here in the capital. I’m not sure if he can take it.”

“He knows my story. He knows that I take care of the ones I call family. He didn’t hesitate to pick up a rifle and follow me through the streets today, and he only barely hesitated to fight beside me. He’ll make a fine soldier, and he’ll make a damn good son. Get me the documents dammit.”

“Very well.”

Ruthall woke up, and was told about what happened. He didn’t take his family dying too well, but was glad that he would not be alone. The next day that school was in session, Admiral Sturm put on his old Terran uniform, and walked his son into class. It was not easy adjusting to caring for a young Unkall child, but it was a change that Sturm was happy to make. He had known what it was like to be alone, and now he could keep Ruthall from knowing that pain.

The End

Let me know if you guys want a follow up series about Sturm and Ruthall on Unkall Prime, and how they live their lives together.

#humans are space orcs #humans are space oddities #humans are weird #earth is space australia #humans are space australians

[gildedmuse]

Yet another All Hearts inspired "Different Crew" ZoLaw AUs. This one gets it own post, not even because it's that great of a crew, just because I've been sick so they're taking longer than expected.

Last time we had Three of Spades (Zoro as a Spade Pirate) and Seeing Red where he was a Red Head Pirate.

This time, I present...

Zoro is just a bounty hunter who got swept up with this pirate crew - the XX pirates - and yes our boy has good instincts but the double crosses just went right past him. Which is how he ends up won and abandoned as a "prize" for the Foxy Pirates along with two other crew mates captured during Davy Jones Games. Zoro isn't happy about it, but his captain - despite being a bastard - made an oath when he joined the games and so until Zoro can win his own freedom he's stuck there. At least the games give him some worthy sword fighting opponents now and again.

Then one day a very strange ship shows up.

Now, Trafalgar Law isn't some idiot who is just going to be tricked into firing a pistol to play some games that are clearly going to be stacked against him. What sort of reckless, thoughtless, naive person could even be a pirate nevermind make it to the Grand Line? He's content to just smirk at these bad actors and swagger away when he notices, among all the masked faces, an unmistakable patch of green and gold.

It isn't that Law KNOWS him personally, but even back in North Blue there had started to be whispers… rumours of a young but fierce bounty hunter that not even a proper marauding villain wanted to cross. The Pirate Hunter, they called him, a boy who sounded more like a boogie man with tales of three impossible blades and a smile just as sharp. Law wouldn't have believed it himself except for the Wanted Posters.

Then, one day, Roronoa Zoro had just disappeared.

Another victim of the Grand Line no doubt.

The bandit's mask does very little to hide summer green hair or the three gold tear drops swinging from his ear. Nevermind the three katana all but buzzing at his side.

Law automatically resting a hand on Kikoku's handle at his shoulder. Oh, now this makes things interesting.

His crew is just telling off the idiots that had tried ripping them in. Can't they see how their captain would never fall for such a-

Bang!

….

Alright, Law announces - somehow still smirking, staring right at their swordsmaan - they'll play one game.

("But Captain!!" / "Captain, why!?")

Only don't these things come with official rules. Law wants to see them. In writing.

The only relief the crew has is that they know their captain. He's amazing and so long as he is the one competing. "Shachi, Penguin, Bepo."

("Captain!!")

So while Bepo is trying to win some race, Law suddenly disappears. He's in The Sexy Fox digging around, although he doesn't seem at all surprised to suddenly find a blade to his throat.

Zoro can't stand a cheat, and something about Law seems suspicious.

Cheating? No, not him. Law had just been looking for something. This very den den mushi in fact. It looks familiar doesn't it, Roronoa-ya?

Zoro feels like he can't trust this guy, but he's also curious. It is strange, he does think he's seen that den den mushi before. It's one of those video recording ones…

–🧡–

The real havoc happens when Roronoa suddenly appears on the playing field, all three swords drawn. It sure freaks out the three Heart pirate officers and they aren't even the ones Roronoa is headed towards. Even with a sword clenched in between his teeth, Zoro is making a hell of a racket.

They swore to him there was no cheating! They said they won him fair and square, that all their games were honorable!

(Now most of the top Foxy pirates know that's damn well not true, but the masses? That's another matter. And while Zoro is one of their top competitors, well, would YOU be brave enough to tell him the truth?)

They try denying, calming their swordsman down, bit Zoro is not letting up. He saw the proof with his own eyes!

Law has to say, he can understand the secret recordings for strategy, but it seems the act of an idiot to keep them, even if they were all locked away in that "unenterable" room. It's the mark of someone who is incredibly stupid or incredibly smug or both.

Call it what you will, Foxy doesn't see why Trafalgar is still smiling. Regardless of his little discovery, they've got his crew beat and that means they have lost one of their crew members. How is Trafalgar going to feel about Foxy's methods now that he is under his jolly roger?

Law just keeps smirking, holding out his hand which is suddenly ("Shambles!") holding the rules. The same one Foxy and crew swore by earlier. It's even open to a specific page.

74c. If at any time a team has more than three crew members on the field it qualifies as an automatic forfeit and the other team wins by default.

Now, with Roronoa-ya on the field, it sure looks like you have four crew members instead of the allowed three. Which means that regardless of who was winning before this, you now forfeit and the game is ours.

("Oh, captain!" Some of the Heart Pirates may break down in visible tears of relief. "We knew you have a plan!")

Foxy looks like he wants to fight it, but Law shoots him a look that just dares him to go ahead and try. Especially since currently Law's new swordsman still seems rather upset with him.

As Law is walking off (with the rest of the Hearts either mocking the losers for thinking their captain would be so stupid or just fawning over the genius of Law's strategy but also sticking close by their captain since who knows of these other pirates might change their minds and do one thing crazy) Zoro stops him, again with a sword barely brushing his neck. Trafalgar may have followed the rules but he's still a sneak and a pirate and Zoro (for good reason) no longer trusts any pirate. Ever. And if Trafalgar thinks just because-

Zoro-ya, Law says, two fingers confidently pushing the blade away from his throat, is that what you think? That Law is looking to take advantage of him? That couldn't be further from the truth. Zoro-ya is free to do whatever and whoever he chooses…

Wait…. Whoev-?

Might Law just suggest, of course, coming for him. With him, he means. At least long enough to get off this island and back to civilization. Unless he WANTS to stay here with his old crew. It's Zoro's choice of course.

There's something about the way Law stops and glances back at Zoro that makes his blood boil, but not like he's about to fight. No, this is something different. Like having a living, dancing flame in the pit of Zoro's stomach. Alright, sure. He's coming, he coming.

Yes, Law rather thought he might.

#the zolaw au nobody asked for #different crew aus #Zoro as a foxy pirate #Zoro's always a foxy pirate amiright? #heart eyes for these heart guys #They are Law's personal cheeeing section #Law Plan: Activate! #one piece #roronoa zoro #trafalgar d. water law #trafalgar law #the heart pirates #foxy pirates #zoro x law #zolaw #one piece fanfiction #but not really #and the saga continues #all hearts #amusing musings #one piece au

[doctorslippery]

Shea Longshanks – A human drug lord who has taken control of a wing of the prison and requires rent from others in his wing. He has a group of henchmen and acts as if he is a guard/warden.

Malcer Holden – A well-dressed half-elf necromancer who will not state why he is here. In return for information, he requires spoons, which he provides to his army of undead in hopes of digging his way out.

Zenbis Axor – A yellow dragonborn who will not speak to anyone she encounters. She possesses immense magical power but chooses to spend her days solitarily in her cell. Nobody knows the story behind her.

Durgar Steely – This dwarf holds an infinitely refilling beer glass and nobody in the prison has ever seen him sober. He is very friendly and can just about speak and walk normally.

Naroxius – The source of annoyance for much of the prison, Naroxius always manages to find a way to vandalize the prison. He has made clear that he will stop at nothing to escape, however all that he has managed to do is anger other inmates and staff. His current cell now consists of a wooden slab in the corner, after he fireballed his previous one

Argus Shatterhorn – A goliath and zealous follower of a crazed war god. He’s seemingly possesses an infinite trove of energy and vitality, laughing and preaching loudly despite being literally skewered to a wall in his cell. Nothing can shut him up short of magical silence, which he doesn’t seem to notice.

The Witch of Cretchreaver – A very polite sounding woman behind a foot of concrete and a metal door. She requests that you open the tiny hole so that she can get a look at you. She’s a medusa with her eyes pressed against the other side.

Slobfoot the Eloquent – An educated, well spoke goblin who tried to incite a political revolution. He gives a very deep, loquacious philosophical speech to the party.

Thaddeus Null – A blue dragonborn and self-proclaimed God. He doesn’t seem arrogant beside that, just comfortable and quiet. His followers are magically capable, morally bankrupt people who are trying to break him out as they speak.

The Rat – A wood elf who ratted out his bandit gangmates. Can’t be trusted, would sell their own brother for half a smoke. Nonetheless, they keep their eyes and ears open and know a lot about what’s happening in the prison.

Randy Shackleford- human, assailed a government agent with sand and authorities now cannot find his name on any records.

The Smuggler – A male gnome. He is the prison supplier who can find almost anything and smuggle it in the prison in exchange for the prison’s currency (smokes, food, etc.)

Daloriz – A blind vampire who overcame his sunlight sensitivity. He has blindsense, and his power is to the point where he can overwhelm most enemies. When spoken to, he is polite and mentions he has seen the future and knows he must wait here for the right time. Why is this vampire in prison? What is he waiting for? Who is coming? Up to the DM to decide.

Takaar ‘Two shields’ Alzurini – small time dwarf mob boss locked up for extortion and racketeering. He has boys on the outside planning to break him out.

Voracious Veronica – A cannibalistic human who is soft spoken. She claims she was a knight who resorted to ‘the worst sin of all’ when her position was under siege for months. Her skin is pale, her eyes are dull, and her gaze sends shivers up your spine. You’re almost certain she’s lying.

Gregor Brutalous – An imposing half-giant with jet black braided hair, dressed in clean formal clothing. He was a psychotic and incredibly powerful warlord, but years after his arrest insists he is trying to atone for his actions. He can easily escape (or so he claims) but refuses to leave as penance.

Marros Tarmikos – A merchant who was caught up in a bar fight with some religious fanatics. He knows a few secrets about the prison and seems to be a law-abiding citizen for the most part.

Gorgeous Gnurl – An orc pit fighter that lost his champion title to *insert NPC* and in a violent rage murders him and his entire team right there in front of the entire crowd.

Mordekai – Leader of a gang of wererats, he used his rats or ‘little friends’ to spy on people, and to blackmail them, or to sell their secrets to the highest buyer.

Torun Sacanti – This ex-palace guard was thrown in prison after he gave his friend a tour of the duke’s apartments. When asked why he is in prison, he will do whatever he can to distract the party from the question.

Tharon Ash – A Tiefling man who was kidnapped for a part in an infernal ritual but was arrested along with the cult when city guards caught them all. He will do anything short of murder to prove his innocence or escape.

Resh – This culinary master in orcish cuisine can barely speak a few sentences in common. Employed in the kitchen, he is known to sometimes get rowdy and confiscate the fingers of anyone who looks at him the wrong way.

Myrca Faro – Quiet and keeps to herself. She seems capable in many skills, decent in a fight, but is distant, mumbling to herself often, though what she’s saying can’t be heard. She was caught with her crew, but one of them testified against her. She doesn’t seem keen on reuniting since she doesn’t know who.

The Painted Claw – A charismatic rakshasa who enjoys gaining followers and leading them into a suicide pact. He is sending souls back to his master in the nine hells and he has been captured for now…

Habstrek the Painter – A former cart driver turned serial killer, she’s not getting out any time soon; she was captured during a time referred to in the local lore as ‘the summer of art’, in which she killed and drained the bodies of over twenty prison guards’ family members, apparently out of revenge for their extrajudicial killing of her apparently innocent husband, Algnir Half-Tusk. She’s fed via a wand charged with Create Food and Drink, as her cell door is welded shut. Guards hate her above almost all other prisoners, knowing she’d gladly turn her targets into further ‘paintings’.

Elgin Powell – charged with a dozen counts of kidnapping, he was a local mob boss’ favorite enforcer – with no bodies ever discovered, the families of his victims were denied even the peace of knowing that they were able to be contacted via necromancy. Reportedly, he kept his charges in a deep mine and they are, one and all, still alive, just shielded from scrying and blood legacy magic. Knows more about kidnappings than anyone local is likely to have ever considered.

Jimmy ‘Lumberjack’ Jackson – Woodcutter turned assassin. He was brutal, honest, and captured by the palace guards when they asked him to start signing his work; reportedly, he’s still working from inside of the prison, except his rates are infinitely more affordable. His signature weapon remains undiscovered – which is a neat trick, considering that it’s a massive war axe.

Anna – Kept in a dark room and bound with magic sigils, Anna is a deeply motivated, highly disturbed wandering killer, captured after a five-year hunt by professional adventurers; her modus operandi was to disguise herself as an orphan human child, infiltrate colonial outposts, and then systematically destroy food, water, and medical supplies, forcing the pioneers into madness, murder, and cannibalism. Rumors say that she’s responsible for the failure of two nation-states’ failure to expand their territories. She’s boasted she’d gladly take one another job, if freed.

Rankle the Bookkeeper – A master of puppeteering and palace intrigue, he went from entertainer to information broker in under a year; his spies consist of handmade puppets, each one capable of recording sights and sounds, he extorted vast amounts of funding from select projects and missions, lining his own pocket freely until he was captured under what many consider unusual circumstances. Some say that he did so to protect himself from the palace paladins and clergy, all of whom are above harming prisoners.

Coins and Pouch – Master forgers and loan sharks, these two brothers are a regular feature in the prison yard, dealing out loans with reasonable interest rates and obtaining rarities for other prisoners; it’s said that on the day they were brought into the prison, they presented a set of keys to a well-appointed cottage to the chief guard as a token of their appreciation. Ever since, they’re under protection and weekly payments continue to provide them with many creature comforts. Every year, on the anniversary of their incarceration, the guard that treats them the best receives a key to another cottage.

Aldac – Former adventurer, expedition guide, reformed arsonist, and now a leader of a prison yard ‘exercise group’, this monk is a dangerous person; some say that she’s building an army, others that it’s a cult, and nobody wants to test her in a straight fight since she crippled her last opponent in under ten seconds. Anything that requires focus and determination, she’s happy to offer her thoughts on, free of charge – provided that she’s shown proper respect first. Her sentence is for a triple life duration – tough luck for her, as her species is a long-lived one.

Thack – A monstrous human, he was a warlord by age fifteen, a respected bandit king at twenty, and captured during his attempt to seize the capital itself, turned over by his own command structure in exchange for lenient sentencing for war crimes. Passionate, charismatic, and mysteriously possessing a keen ear for music, he’s an example of what can happen to a Bard if they decide to turn war itself into a performance art. He’s making money through the writing of strategic, tactical and logistic guidebooks, periodically singing for the lost days of his misspent youth. He turns twenty-three in a month.

Rejoice-Cried-The-Kraken – Still living her best life, RJCTK is a priestess first, bandit second, and a model prisoner third, choosing to ignore her history of piracy and looting in exchange for running a small group of like-minded believers in the church she’s built in her cell; she served as a first officer on the flagship of a vast pirate fleet, choosing who lived and who was sacrificed to her deity, often by slow drowning or something that officials referred to as ‘hook dancing’. She makes a few extra coins giving nautical theme tattoos for fellow prisoners, each one a work of art worthy of a church’s stained-glass windows.

Prisoner #644 – Captured at the frontier, whatever it is, it’s only eaten six times in ten years, each time it was an unwary guard who strayed too close to the sealed cage covered in a thick burlap sheet. It hums at night, an eerie, unsettling event taking place only just before the onset of riots, uprisings, and acts of revenge on a wide scale inside of the prison. Recently, guards have reported that it has started to sing softly. Each of the Dead prisoners killed in the previous ten years are named, one by one, and it chuckled wetly when younger guards approach it.

Kishi the Kid – A 16-year-old changeling who attempted to steal the Crown Jewels. He’s stuck in solitary after using the persona of a guard to start a riot, and is well known for the many he’s started in the few months he’s been here

Cold Turquoise – The former cult leader of a Dragonborn pirate fleet. Will only talk in Draconian, and will give advice on how to operate a ship at a cost…

Henri Schum – Halfling Mafia-don. Used his resources and cutthroat approach to fund a smuggling operation on rare animals for collectors. Has 2 fingers missing on his left hand and has his ‘buddies’ rough up any new people who mention them.

Zarakos – Super beefy winged Tiefling. Brought in for attempting to rob a local bank and fly off with the loot, not accounting for the wizards that can cast Fly. Wings are always tied for obvious reasons. Not very smart, but very loyal. If you free his wings, he will follow you and your group until the end. Will carry and fly anyone that needs it

Kimnuan Shadestalker – Black kitsune assassin. She and her bard troupe would spread rumors about people so others would order hits on them. Specifically in for burning down a village after getting caught by the local authorities. If she can get access to her hands, she can summon a lute and cast spells to become invisible/incorporeal.

Binks Falkhorn- A scribe for 2 generations of very powerful wizards. Has not shown any criminal intent but is ordered to be imprisoned in solitary indefinitely after the wizard went mad and went on a killing spree, showing horrible power. His scribe is the last shred of evidence of the wizard’s work. It would be too dangerous to let the scribe roam free, but it would be foolish to kill him in case his knowledge became useful

Sparkler- A nine-year-old bronze half dragon who just wants to go home to her older brother. She was framed for a crime that she in no way could have committed. She is kept in a dark cell and is the favorite to be abused by the head guard. No knows her actual name because she rarely talks to anyone even when she is allowed.

Xnyxyh Halfheart – Channeling Chronurgy wizard without his spell book. He looks human and is locked up for various crimes. He will help anyone who can get him his spell book. However, if he gets it, he will finish becoming a lich. He does not care for anyone but himself.

Thornbull – an experimental warforged, who committed too many war crimes.

Thragg Jadewolf – half-orc spy. He looks like an ugly human. He is in prison for high treason. He infiltrated border settlements and opened the gates at night, sabotaged the defenses, etc., so the neighboring orc kingdom could conquer the settlements easily.

The masked man – this human wears a cursed mask, which he cannot take off. His crime: He is the elder brother of the current king.

The Wyrd Sisters – Three halfling sisters each identical except for different colored eyes, the Wyrd Sisters are prohibited from accessing the kitchen and mess halls, kept in solitary confinement from each other, and fed separately. This is due to their innate toxicity, their blood, saliva, and sweat producing an extremely toxic poison which when ingested, causes a terrifying and agonizing death in even small doses. They were arrested after their entire village was found rotting the next morning after drinking from the tainted well which they had poisoned. Rumors persist that their natural lethality came from a tradeoff with a powerful Demon.

Semaj Ironscreamer – An elderly Half-Orc Druid who has spent half his life in this cell. He was jailed after being involved in multiple eco-terrorist attacks on mining towns that had been dumping their industrial waste into the nearby rivers. Seen as a kindly grandfather figure by the other inmates and even some of the guards, Semaj is often the peacekeeper between those he can hear from his cell and dispenses wisdom to those who ask. Given the nature of his magic, Semaj is kept in an underground cell with no window and any visitors he receives will be checked for wooden objects and plant matter.

Azar – A former acolyte of the church who used his talents as a thief to steal back religious artifacts from wealthy aristocrats. Until one day he was set up by the Queen dowager to make it look like he was trying to assassinate her with the same knife she had killed her husband with. Is actually completely innocent of this particular crime, but with the weight of the crown bearing down on him his trial was anything but fair.

Vulmon Longroot – A 900-year-old High Elven Bard who was the very first prisoner ever put into this place. His crime? 800 years ago, he had been caught having an affair with all 11 princesses of the area and is actually the reason every member of the royal family has any access to magic.

Tybo the Mad Monk – An incredibly dangerous and violent martial artist who was known to wear the ears of his enemies that he killed in battle like a necklace. After a failed assassination attempt by one of his party members caused Tybo to go mad and kill his party, the Human Monk returned to his roots raiding ships along the coast before he was eventually captured and placed in prison.

Irving – he was just an ordinary peasant… until adventurers showed up in his life and destroyed it. After that he has dedicated his life to destroying them.

Dean Fisher – human. Scum landlord to good upstanding goblins. forgot to bribe a local official.

Greta Howitzer- A human horizon walker ranger who was once a famed demon hunter. But while hunting members of the cult of Baphomet, she lost her mind in Baphomet’s lair. She has the madness ‘The world is my hunting ground. Others are my prey.’ She now views all humanoids as demons and will go to any length to hunt them down. She was imprisoned after spending her money building a massive maze, kidnapping people, and hunting them down in the maze.

Dominic Halfcastle – Halfling, originally in jail for tax evasion, now known for being transferred due to the murder and consumption of multiple sentients, claims the ability to kill sentients with his mind, has displayed no actual psionic or magical power

Vestlev the Mad – War criminal of the highest order, he has been moved to a normal prison as a temporary holding place until a proper area is found. He looks old and disheveled but is a mastermind when it comes to the magical arts of evocation. From his cell can be heard incoherent babbling, but do not be fooled, he has escaped before.

Minkus the Feebleminded – Everyone knows it’s a mistake that he’s in the prison. He’s a real sweetheart if a bit soft in the head. Sometimes his cell glows at night though. Oh, and don’t let him tell you about his nightmares if he says you were in one…

Sir Jim Haggins – A true gentleman at heart, he wears his ragged suit proudly. He’s perfectly polite in every way. He doesn’t look kindly on the poor however, oh no. He detests the poor. So much so that his hunting lodge was full to the brim with human trophies when the authorities finally tracked down ‘the Slum-spree Killer’

Thiggund – This hairy brute is referred to by the only word he heads ever been known to utter. When the villagers of a small farming community found him by the road, surrounded by the brutalized remains of a merchant and his horses, Thiggund was arrested on the spot.

Unburned Barty – A slight man with an unassuming smile. He survived being burned at the stake without a single scar. He was moved into isolation after his cellmates kept killing themselves

Billy Pumpernickel – A gnome who is well known and loved in the prison, but actually committed a horrible crime. Everyone just goes with it, and other than the one horrible unforgivable thing, he’s just a pretty nice dude. Like ‘Hey, there’s Billy. Yeah, he mutilated a few kids, but only once. Nice guy.’ (Edit: This would just be hilarious when the players try to come to terms on how to treat him)

The Time Master – Real name, age, sex, & race unknown. (S)he exists 5 minutes in the future. The cell was locked, and an empty plate appeared with a note. The note had an explanation and instructions. ‘Please place a full plate inside the cell each time an empty plate is discovered. Failure to do so will create a paradox and subsequently release the prisoner.’

Elwe – An elf who walks through the corridors of the prison as if he was someone free, talks to the guards and other prisoners as they were friends. Says he is in prison due to stealing, is actually hiding from the king, who wants to kill him since he killed his father

Ozob – An old looking human with hair only on sides and a fire potion (Molotov) where his nose would be. Always angry. Whenever someone looks wrong at him, he says: you are so annoying I might sneeze.

Walks-Winding-Paths – A tabaxi shadow monk, she is kept in a fully lighted cell at all times, wearing glowing enchanted clothing. She is only fed by guards under a faerie fire spell, as otherwise they would cast a shadow which she could teleport into to escape. She will attempt to convince a party member to give her a cloak, bowl, or other object to block the light with.

Garth the Radiant – A paladin of the fallen angel Zariel. His guards are ordered to hit him every time they see him meditating or praying, as that would let him regain the spells, she grants him and summon his enchanted mace, Purity, to destroy his cell. If the party can bring him his weapon, or even give him ten minutes of peace, he will consider himself honor-bound to grant them a favor upon request. If their aims align with his, he might even fight alongside them.

Nibbles – Literally just a warlock cat.

Iydis Tyger-Eye – Former Guld Leader, she is high level Fighter and also a Were-Tiger. Killed the heads of other Were families, in an attempt to seize power and take control of the protection of the city, and its criminal underworld.

Rollins – Air School Elemental Wizard. Believes in Anarchy and Equality of all races. In jail for starting a revolution and killing the Queen.

Herman – Normal human who built Mythic Bracers of Shatter that are only attuned to him. Had used the Bracers to gain access and rob several small vaults. Then he was caught by an adventurer after going for heist to rob a merchant banker when he refused to harm others to escape with the goods. He refuses to teach/sell the knowledge of how to make the Bracers as he doesn’t want others to use it to harm someone.

Roscoe Tealeaf – A well-dressed halfling who smells of saffron. He brokers deals between prison factions. It’s no secret that he is trying to escape. He claims he was framed by a noble, or maybe arrested breaking into the noble’s vault. He’ll tell anyone who asks that the noble has a dangerous artifact. Roscoe is a lore bard that specializes in counter spell silence and general magic user shutdowns.

John ‘Musical Manipulator’ Green – Half-elf, in jail for making a whole court dance for hours on end to prove a philosophical point that the upper class will just do as they say to hold up appearances and are so comfortable in their wealth, they can watch it be taken away and redistributed.

Colin Green – human. John’s half-brother who supported him and helped with a second set up hands to pull off music. Tuomas Yurke – elf. the voice and magic behind all of this. Started to talk to John about these thoughts and with a few others began to flesh them out into a more concrete thought and into a sound. Loved by the low class, anticipated and loved by the upper class even though it is all a misunderstanding. The three of them are located at different corners and different levels of the prison so the music can’t come together and convince guards to open up cages. Mail comes from them from all over. 2 members of their group are still at large.

Vaelh’noo – Githyanki sorceress who once commanded a powerful fleet in the astral sea before she was captured in a botched raid. Her secret is that she allowed herself to be captured to escape the wrath of the lich queen, whom she plots to overthrow from the safety of her cell.

Quikiliar – A doppleganger (Rogue). Thrown into prison for impersonating a person of high authority, they’re known for frequently making their way into guard chambers by pretending to be one. They can get access to a lot of things if you ask for it, but almost always ask for some odd favor or trinket, usually personal, like a lock of hair or an image of someone loved.

Locke – Once a guard themselves, this warforged fighter was sent to jail after attacking someone due to a misinterpretation of their actions. Unfortunately, this was also another guard with good standing with the warden, who had them put in. They serve their time willingly but can be interrogated or otherwise convinced to disclose explicit info about the prison and its guard shifts and similar.

Breeze – An air genasi artificer, she was thrown into jail after selling several infused items for high prices and then the infusing a different item. Since then, she’s gotten in good favor with guards and other inmates by enchanting some magic items and plans to use these favors and connections to escape at some point.

Zaurok – A Goliath Barbarian, although he acts calm and meditates. Known for the rare outbursts, during which he flies into a rage after being provoked or possibly from being disturbed while meditating. The several escape attempts that’ve happened are from him simply breaking the jail bars. Since then, he’s been relocated to a cell made out of adamantine.

Slicer – Kenku cleric. Devoted to a god of trickery, they gained their name after a particular… Prank, on part of their god. Around the jail will often prank the various inmates but is also known to make distracting sounds at the guards at night. Likely to be able to convince with shiny objects to prank someone or create a distraction.

Color-of-Blood – An insane Tabaxi woman incarcerated for eviscerating several people. Can often be found singing quietly to herself songs usually about ‘meal preparation’. Is usually docile and doesn’t react to being talked to unless threatened which she may attack while loudly singing ’50 ways to skin a human.’

Reginald Mark – A mild mannered human male incarcerated for a chain of serial killings. He claims he’s possessed by a banshee, but no one believes him. His speech has a feminine undertone and his skin is cold to the touch. Those who threaten him are usually found in the morning choked to death with a horrifying look on their face.

Tee’vah – Tiefling rogue who doesn’t seem too upset to be there. If approached he will happily show off a copy of his wanted poster, listing crimes from arson to murder. Secretly a doppelgänger who is honestly just trying to provide for his family and have some fun. Can break out any time he wants.

The Dread Pirate Azuzula, Roger, and Primten – A Tiefling, an earth genasi, and an air genasi. Azuzula seems useless but the other two are competent sorcerers. Despite this they follow her words to the letter. In for piracy. Azuzula can’t spell and keeps ranting about her ship the Doom Squid. Will challenge people to fights.

Taryon Sandstone – A half-elf paladin who used to be a slave fighting in gladiator pits. After gaining his freedom, he vowed to fight for the freedom of other and became a powerful hero. After the tragic loss of a close friend, he went on an overzealous crusade against slavers, killing them and their family as well as anyone who had in any way helped them (ship captains, harbor employees, food/clothes/rope vendors, blacksmith, etc.)

Tilby Valenois – A gnome mage of sorts who has committed zero crimes besides somehow breaking into a maximum-security prison and… staying there? The security guards have tried to get him to leave numerous times but usually get charmed or subdued out of it magically. Nobody knows why the gnome wishes to be there, but he hasn’t been messing with the order of things much.

Adelai – A rather amicable young woman. Nobody knows for sure what she’s in for, but general consensus is that it involved a basilisk head and the water supply to a small town

Vass – A large orc man that was used as a phylactery for a lich. Vass has been hearing whispers of the lich in his mind and is slowly being possessed. He has started doing horrible things under the influence of the lich. Performing Magic’s that he has no right to know.

Endeer – A being that inflicts his victims with horrible nightmares in each of these nightmares a horrifying creature appears to the dreamer and offers them the opportunity to “Loose yourself from the chains of your labored slumber” if the dreamer accepts, they never sleep again as their mind descends in to horrible madness

Cultists of the Basilisk – These cultists are attempting to create the creature they worship a terrible all-knowing basilisk they know that they will be successful and that the basilisk will destroy anyone who knew about him and didn’t help create him so they only share their beliefs with those they deem helpful or worthy of death

Arnold Long – A half orc/elf, he looks like a giant of a human and seems pleasant to be around in a group of people. While it appears, he is a big stupid sweet teddy bear of a person, his record is full of brutal killings that may or may not have happened. The last killings were not too long ago after a prison gang isolated Arnold in the showers and bribed a guard to not interfere. Long story short, the gang WAS major player in the prison, now all of its muscle IS dead, and the guard went missing. Arnold is to be handled with care and kindness.

The ‘Statue of The Maiden’ – It looks like a statue of a naked elven woman that was bought by a merchant (deceased) from an artist (deceased) who sold it to a noble (deceased) for a gift to his wife (deceased) and children (deceased). All that is known is the statue moves when not observed and will eat and clean itself. It leaves flirtatious messages for the guards it likes and death threats to the guards it hates. The artist swore on their deathbed it was a mistake for them to create it but, this is the only place it has been stored where it does not kill thought it has maimed a few people who fail to respect it. Attempts to remove, destroy, or study it has been ‘unfruitful and unwise’.

Inspector Brundt – A beardless dwarf imprisoned for the crimes of tax evasion, swindling, theft, and gross debt. He knows how to get things and bribes the guards to get luxuries and messages through the prison walls.

Tur the Kobold – He seems stupid and harmless. Everyone assumes he’s just a patsy who took the fall for a bigger criminal. Occasionally, though, he lets something slip that only someone high-level in a criminal organization would know.

Axe Hands – A warforged barbarian who found great success as a military shock trooper, but also was involved in an incident where he dismembered a commanding officer. Sees prison as an ‘extended furlough” and is convinced he’ll be let out when the next war starts.

Clara – A human paladin. Recruited into the military, she was driven mad by the trauma of war and turned oathbreaker. Jailed for the same incident as Axe Hands, having used her healing abilities to keep their victim from bleeding out after being dismembered. Lives to see people suffer but remembers enough of her pre-oathbreaker life to maintain a kind, innocent facade when it suits her.

Harald Silverfinger – An elf wizard who sees humans the same way a scientist sees a bucket full of white rats; testing fodder. They’re close enough to elves to be useful for experimentation, but short-lived enough that killing them really isn’t a big deal. It’s rumored that the local guild is secretly helping him continue his work, using his fellow prisoners as test fodder.

Verdos – A dwarven female cleric. Believes she was morally just in murdering the children of a local village. Full of righteous anger. Judges everybody according to her own warped and insane moral code. Can often barely be understood. In maximum security for obvious reasons. Can offer a range of cleric services at prison prices.

Tabitha Binks – A Tabaxi Rogue. An orphan growing up on the coast, she quickly fell in with the Revelry pirates. Tabitha learned to use her claws as lockpicks and may teach other Tabaxi how to as well. She was caught at sea after ambushing a wealthy fur trader.

James the Changeling – A male changeling known for impersonating the guides and has so far escaped every prison he’s been in. He’s a new inmate already planning his escape.

??? – the cell appears empty, save for a stool. Could be they’re just using it for storage. But, then why does that stool make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up?

Ood – A very old, frail and nearly paralyzed Illithid who sits still in solitary confinement, his blind eyes wide open, and only blinks or changes his position once or twice per year. Said to have messed something up when attempting to become an Alhoon. Nobody knows why he’s there, but he occasionally sends nearly unintelligible telepathic riddles to the other prisoners. Rumor has it he has invaded the minds of everyone in the prison and lives vicariously through their dreams at night.

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