[Episode] The Fated Arrival

Quest Information:

It was the first hour of the day on a very lonely island in the West Blue. The island was peaceful around this time, similar to the untroubled ocean, and most civilians were in a suspended state. Businesses had closed shop since the late evening of the past day with a small community remaining conscious during this time period. This group consisted of store owners prepping for the next day, local residents who lacked shelter, and a band of unpleasant faces.

This band of faces, in particular, was a small but vicious pirate group with little recognition through the fairly tense West Blue. They had recently taken control of the island and intended to milk resources for future expeditions until nothing remained. One revolutionary pupil became aware of the situation while on a mission to discover a specific map. This map would assist him in traversing the Grand Line, which was necessary for him to acquire if he wanted to continue his journey, other than learning how to navigate or finding a navigator. However, the goal of finding the map was sidetracked due to the situation at hand, and his conscious wouldn't allow him to leave the issue unbothered.

This would begin the story of our Revolutionary companion.

At this time, most businesses were closed but one bookstore remained open. The owner, who was an elderly man with exaggerated tremors, comfortably sat on his wooden stool, reading a book called 100 Ways to Stop The Tremors, and patiently waited for his last customer to leave the shop. The man rarely had customers walk into his bookstore and he was fine with that. He knew that most humans were okay with being ignorant their whole lives. This customer, however, remained in the store for several hours, murmuring a couple of words every once in a while, and read various books that ranged from fishing to debunked conspiracy theories.

The owner was somewhat comfortable with his presence, aware that he was a visitor due to his strange militant attire. His aura didn't seem hostile, like the other visitors who had recently taken the island under siege. Surprisingly, those same visitors hadn't walked into the bookstore since the last tax collection, which only proved the elderly man correct.

Finally, after a long several hours of silence, the boy closed the current book he was reading which alerted the old man enough to release a quiet "Huh?" to himself while focusing on the nearing boy. As he reached the old man, the boy slid the book across the rough wooden counter before rummaging into his pockets. "There are many good books in here, but how much for this one," KD asked, revealing a rather open smile to the man who was intrigued by the teenager. "Thank you, young man. I'd say a couple hundred berri," The elderly man said, responding with a soft smile of his own, before shakingly reaching out for the book.

The elderly man grabbed the novel and inspected it. He was surprised by the boy's taste in reading. The book, which was pretty aged and dusty, was titled, History of the West Blue. "You've found a pretty good book, young man," the old man said, "You're the first person on the island to ever touch this book, even with the invaluable history inside," he continued, opening the book, revealing not a single name written on the checkout list, other than his own.

"I understand that our world is unique," KD responded, as the two bookworms exchanged their agreed items. The elderly man was impressed by the boy's response, their world was indeed unique. Unfortunately, not much information was known about their world. "Well I'm gonna head out now, take care," KD said, making his way towards the door as he waved goodbye. "Take care," the elderly man responded, waving back, as the boy left the building.

Suddenly, the man's joyous emotions left his body and reality returned. The bookstore felt more eerie without the boy's presence. What a wonderful young boy, the man thought to himself, shakingly getting up from his stool to finally close the shop. Will he ever come back, he thought again.

Several minutes later, the young Revolutionary was being chased by the same vicious pirates that intoxicated the beauty of the island. Swiftly, he ran through the empty streets, gasping for a chance at air. Little by little, he was gaining distance from his pursuers. "Hey, where the hell are you going? Get back here," One of the pirates screamed, his voice echoing through the empty roads, which were fairly lit by the dim street lights. As he gained a fair distance, the boy cut into a dark and cold alleyway. Several footsteps could be heard behind him, coming closer... and closer. The boy remained calm, for the most part, as he stepped deeper into the alleyway. The first part of his plan was now underway.

Once the small group of men caught up, their eyes caught a dark figure hidden in the darkest trench of the alley. On the ground, not too far from the entrance, lay a homeless man who was fast asleep on the cold, yet comfy pavement. "Hey!" yelled the main pirate in the group, who kicked the man, waking him from his slumber. "Find another alley to sleep before we kill you," ordered the man, which caused the confused homeless man to arise from his position, and make his way out of the alley.

Once the homeless man was far gone, the pirates advanced into the alley, weapons in hand, ranging from small knives to large cutlass swords. The dark figure, hearing their approach, slowly turned around to reveal his masked face and tattered cloak. The turn around halted the pirates, who seemed fearful. "Quite frankly, I'm not disappointed in your actions," the masked figure stated as he removed two blades from the inside of his cloak, slowly walking towards the group. "There's scum in every faction, including my own" he continued, as small rays of light reflected off his blades. "I cannot allow you to control this island any longer," the masked figure said, pointing his dagger toward the group, before bursting toward them in an aggressive fashion. "H-hey, what the hell are you-"

Stealth Barrage!