Chapter 26: Where It All Began! A Captain's Deal!

 Ace had finally set sail and I had three more years before the next, and final, one leaves. That was plenty of time to get another Paradise run in, and to start exploring the New World. But, before that, we had to make it back to the beginning of Paradise.

 "So, are we passing by Polestar Islands again and resupplying for then, or..." Felix was trying to ask sensitively.

 Polestar Islands, home of Loguetown. The birthplace and execution place of my father. Up until now, I had been trying my best to avoid the place, and Felix understood. It was not that I did not want to go there, I felt that it had not been the time. In fact, it had been dangerous for me to go there. 

 Around the time Gol D. Roger was executed, the Marines were sent out on a massive and in-depth investigation to find any connections to Roger. Particularly, investigating all that may have been born before Roger's death, and about nine months after his death. Back when my mother was still prolonging Ace's gestation so he would not be killed, she did everything in her power to keep my lineage hidden. When the Marines would interrogate her about who my father was, she would repeat the same story that he was a Marine that had passed shortly before I was born. She even managed to get her hands on a Marine uniform and used it as fake memorabilia. The Marines hounded her for what felt like forever back then, but they eventually either gave up or believed her. Regardless, I was thankful for all of the sacrifices she made for Ace and me, and I wished I could have known both her and Roger longer.

 I felt that it was time to visit Loguetown to pay my respects to the man who had been my father. Not only that, but to see where it all began and ended for him. After all, I knew Ace wouldn't, so at least one of his children should.

 I looked to Felix and instructed him to tell Kit to set course for Polestar Islands. He was surprised, but gave a sharp nod before heading over to the navigation cabin.

 It took us a couple of days to get to Polestar. The island itself look mostly like a mountain with greenery and buildings here and there surrounding the rocky terrain. It was roughly the size of Dawn Island, if not a little smaller and lacking the noble, fancy buildings. 

 As we were pulling up to the docks, the crew assembled on deck. "Alright, friends," I started by getting their attention as I usually do. "If you hadn't heard yet, we're docking at Polestar Islands, specifically Loguetown. As most of you know, this is the birthplace and execution site of the late Pirate King. We'll probably only stay long enough to look around and resupply. In other words, feel free to explore and do as you please, within reason, while I do my own personal exploration."

 The group gave a combined "Aye, aye," and Felix came over to me. "Hey, I got a couple questions and concerns," he said as he leaned against the railing while Wynter started the docking process. "Got a moment before we get off?"

 "Sure, shoot," I told him as I used my abilities to ravel the sails.

 "First off, you sure you'll be alright here," Felix asked, heaving a rope up and over the mast to help tie up the sails. 

 I gave a nod. "Yeah, I should be fine," I told him truthfully. It was the truth, since I hardly knew Roger before he died. Plus, even though I slightly resemble him, the smooth features I got from my mother helped hide the features I got from my father. One would have to be looking for Roger's resemblance to see it, but I would still stay on guard since it was still there.

 "If you say so," Felix said as he caught the end of the rope he threw up. "Next, what do we plan to do about our Berry amount? We're running uncomfortably low and may only have a few restocking trips left. After that, we'll be in the red."

 I took the end Felix had caught and used it to finish tying up the sails. I had no idea what we were going to do for Berry. River and Felix were still technically deserters of the Marines, Wynter wasn't mentally stable, Kit was a little naive to the world, and I couldn't bring too much attention to myself to earn enough money to sail. Doc and Chef could always sell their skills to earn some money for the crew, but that wouldn't feel right. 

 I gave a shrug and told him, "Got it. I'll start figuring something out while we're here. Anything else on your mind?"

 Felix shook his head. "I'll try and think of some Berry earning methods, as well," Felix told me as he leaned back over the rail and back flipped onto the docks below. "Whelp, see ya later, then, Cap'."

 I raised two my first two fingers to the side of my eye and flickered it out in a farewell. Wynter tried to persuade me to let him tag along with, but I told him this was something I wanted to do by myself. He whined a bit, but gave up quickly when he saw how serious I was about this. "Just promise you'll be careful out there," he told me.

 I told him I would and he lowered the boarding plank. Kit was the first to run down and into the town with River running after her, shouting for her to slow down. Chef was sharing some story to Doc about a lasagna being stuffed into his pants once, and she would give him a pity laugh. Before heading down the plank myself, I gave Zephyr's rails a light pat and told her we'd be back soon.

 As I walked down the streets of Loguetown, the streets were lined with people and shops. I even managed to pass an arms shop and saw Wynter perusing inside. There were also an antique shop, hotel, glove factory, and other tourist traps.

 Then, I finally reached the main part of the island that attracted people from all over the world. The execution platform where Gold Roger stood. The platform was massive and eerie as the wood was weathered and the nails were rusting. I stood there, looking at the towering structure in awe. I stuck a hand out and placed it against the rough wood. I couldn't begin to image what the view up there must have been like for him, or what was going through his head before he was to be executed. Was it fear? Pride in what he accomplished? What would go through my mind if I were at the top of an execution scaffold?

 Before I could give it too much thought, a guy in a white Marine jacket with green fur and cigars strapped to his arm came and stood right beside me, looking up at the structure, as well. He had two cigars hanging out of his mouth, his jacket was open revealing his muscular body. His white hair slightly spiked up and backwards.

"To think such an infamous legend was ended up there," the man said out of nowhere, still looking up.

 I took my hand off the wood and sidestepped a few steps away from the creep as I said, "Yeeeeah, sure. Whatever you say, mister."

 The man looked down towards me as he placed a firm hand on my shoulder. I glared him straight in the eyes as I told him he had better remove his hand unless he wanted to lose it. "Fleet Admirable would like to have a word with you, Ex-Ensign Anne," he sternly said.

 I gave him a puzzled look. Why would one of the most powerful people in the Marines want to speak to me, of all people? My bounty was cleared and I hadn't caused any mischief since it was. Technically, I held the same standing as any other typical civilian.

 "Why would he want to speak with me," I asked, almost in a growl, as I yanked my shoulder free from his grasp.

 "Don't know, but he said he had some kind of deal to make with you," the guy told me. "He also mentioned it was lucrative and worth at least hearing him out back at the main base on this island."

   My ears perked at the mention of Berry. However, having been on the run from Delta for so long, I was hesitant on anything related to the Marines. I gave the guy a questionable side-eye. "How do I know I know I'm not walking into some sort of trap," I asked as I crossed my arms.

   "I, Smoker the White Hunter, give you my word that I couldn't care less about what you do, as long as you are not a pirate and your actions do not cause harm to others," the man, Smoker, promised as he exhaled smoke from his cigars. "The decision is up to you, if you want to earn a pretty Berry or not. You won't be detained as long as you act in accordance to the law while here."

  I looked Smoker over, looking for any telltale signs he could be lying. He seemed genuine enough and seemed like the type to hold his word. Plus, we were hurting for Berry. Who am I to look a gifted horse in the mouth, if it is actually a gifted horse. I gave a nod and told him, "Alright, I'll meet with the Fleet Admirable. But, if I sense anything fishy, I'm gone."

  "Like I said, I couldn't care less what you choose to do," Smoker told me as he turned and started to lead the way. "Alright, this way, kid."

   We walked down the busy streets in silence until we reached the compact blue building with the word "Marine" on the white sign. Smoker went forward and held the door open for me, which was somewhat surprising. Up until now, most of the Marines I had meet were simply rude and overly obsessed with Absolute Justice. Like my grandfather, was this man the exception as well? It was far to early to tell, since I just met him today.

   I thanked him and walked through the doorway. Smoker led me up a couple of floors and through a set of double doors that had a plaque that had Smoker's name on it. Safe to say this was his office. Inside was a wooden desk with a transponder snail sitting on it. The snail had its eye open, meaning there was currently someone on the other end. It had the Marine logo stamped on the side of its purple swirled shell. 

   Smoker went and sat on one side of the desk, while I scanned the room. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so I took a seat opposite of Smoker as he picked up the receiver. He held it up to his mouth and spoke, "Fleet Admirable Sengoku, I have returned with Portgas D. Anne, as you requested. She has accepted to hear your deal."

   The snail turned its eyes from Smoker to me. "I see," the snail, or Sengoku, started to say. "I will start by saying it is a pleasure to speak with you, Anne, and thank you for agreeing to meet with me."

   "Um, yeah, sure," I awkwardly said, unsure of what to say. What do you say to the head of the Marines? I would not have said I held much respect for him myself, due to the rocky relationship I had with his governance, but I never met the man. Until I knew him better, I was not going to give any disrespect or respect, and would try to remain as neutral as possible. "I'm honestly surprised you know who I am."

   "You're an interesting case, that's for sure," Sengoku said as the snail closed its eyes for a moment and gave a nod. "Between Vice Admirable Garp fawning over you nearly nonstop, and Vice Admirable Delta continuously sending in reports to have you investigated, it's hard not to take notice. But, we'll touch on that in a little bit. So, how your father, Dragon, doing?"

   I gave the snail a questionable look and stated, "Dragon isn't my father. And how would I know how he's doing? He's leading a revolution and wouldn't have time for someone like me."

  "You and Garp both claim that you are his granddaughter, yet you say you are not the daughter of Dragon," Sengoku pointed out. "Do you mind clearing that up for me, as Garp had no other children besides Dragon?"

   I froze as I could feel the icy adrenaline course through my veins. I had just realized I had messed up. I needed to be careful how I spun my tale, now. This man had the resources to investigate every little detail I gave him. I needed to keep it consistent with whatever I said in the past or keep it as vague as possible so that it could not be followed up on. "Gramps took me in when my mother and father died. I was a toddler at the time and he raised me as his own grandchild," I told him, keeping my nervousness under control. "I believe we are not here to discuss my family, though, and I would like to get back to the topic at hand. I'm a busy person, and I am sure you are, too, if not more so. Shall we get back to this so-called 'lucrative deal' that was mentioned?"

   Smoker gave a chuff at my cockiness and Sengoku cleared his throat. "Eh hm, yes," Sengoku said as the snail returned eye contact to me. "As I mentioned, Vice Admirable Delta Bleu has turned in numerous reports to have your previous bounty revoking investigated. He believed that there was no imposter and that your wanted status should be restored. A team was organized to investigate the previous imposter claim and it was found that there was no viable evidence to support this claim. This means that your wanted status will be put back into place. Unless..."

   My eyes widened what I heard I would have a bounty again. I mean, I wasn't as opposed to having a bounty, but where was the Berry deal I was promised? "Unless," I asked, narrowing my eyes as I started to suspect this may be a trap.

  "Unless you take one of two deals," Sengoku started to explain. "The first option would to become a Great Warlord of the Seas. You would enter into the service of the World Government and your bounty would be frozen for as long as you are a Warlord. You would be able to still sail and do as you please. The catch is that, whenever you received orders from the World Government, you would be required to carry them out and-."

   "I'll stop you right there," I interrupted the Fleet Admirable. "No thanks, I refuse to follow orders from a shitty government that oppresses it's people. Kind of the whole purpose I left the Marines in the first place. Next."

   It was silent for a moment, as Sengoku had probably not expected me to be as straight-forward as I was. "Eh hm, yes," Sengoku said as he cleared his throat again. "The second option is somewhat similar to the first. The second deal is to become a World Government bounty hunter."

   "How is that different from being a regular bounty hunter," I asked, lifting one leg and resting it on the other as I leaned back in my chair. "Like I just said, I don't plan on following orders from the government."

   "The differences between a World Government bounty hunter and a regular bounty hunter are higher pay and a private selection of bounties to pursue," Sengoku explained. "You would not be having to follow orders, per se. Your bounty would still be frozen so other bounty hunters do not pursue you. However, at least once a month, you would use a special issued transponder snail to tune into the nearest Marine base and report your current location. Based on wherever you are, you will be assigned a bounty to hunt down in that area of the sea. You can take on as many bounties as you please, and each bounty could earn you up to easily 100 million Berry, depending on your target. However, if you miss two months checking in, your status will be revoked and you will be deemed as a pirate, once more."

   I sat up straighter as I listened, taking in the information. "Wait," I started to ask. "If you have the locations of people with bounties, why do you need special bounty hunters? Couldn't you just send a squad to go and apprehend them? Why wait until a bounty hunter is in the area?"

   "That requires well-trained Marines, which are hard to dispatch nowadays," Sengoku said with a sigh. "Yes, the Marines have a lot of soldiers, but most are not able to apprehend these bounties on their own. That is where skilled pirates-for-hire and bounty hunters come into play. You have to use whatever resources you have wisely. So, what do you say?"

   I gave it some thought before I nodded and told him, "Alright, my crew and I can give it a shot. No harm in trying, at least. You got yourself a deal, Fleet Admirable Sengoku."

   "It's a pleasure to be working with you again," Sengoku replied before the snail turned to Smoker. "I trust you can take it from here?"

   "Yes, sir," Smoker answered. 

   The transponder snail gave one last nod before giving a click and going to sleep. Smoker got up from his seat, retrieved some paperwork, and walked over to the office's double door. "Alright, kid. Welcome aboard, I guess. Let's go get you your snail, then."

    I got up from my seat and followed after Smoker. He lead me down a series of halls until we enter a room near the entrance of the building. Inside, various transponder snails sat on a table. Smoker handed me the paperwork and ordered me to fill it out while he got a snail ready. I looked the pages over and it was mostly legal jargon stating what Sengoku had just gone over with me. I took a nearby pen and signed my life away, for all I knew.

   When I finished, I set the papers aside as Smoker brough over a cat-sized snail. It's body was a pale cream color with a green swirled shell and the Marine logo was stamped on the side. I took it from Smoker and held it in my arms. "You ever had a snail before," Smoker asked as he picked up the papers.

   I shock my head no. Smoker gave a sigh, but went over the basics of using it with me. He showed me the controls, explained how to contact the Marine bases and other nearby snails, and also demonstrated how to attach accessories to it if I was interested. Once he was finished with the demonstration, he led me back to the front of the building. "Thanks for your help, Smoker. I appreciate it," I told him as I started to go out the front door.

   "Stay out of trouble," Smoker warned. "They don't call me the White Hunter for nothing."

   I gave a curt nod and left the building. As I closed the door behind me and turned towards the street, I happened to see Felix, Wynter, Kit and River charging towards the base's front doors. "What do you think you're doing," I yelled at the four, causing them to skid to a halt.

   "Anne, you're okay," Kit exclaimed joyfully as she wrapped her arms around me.

   "What? Of course I'm okay," I told them as I stroked Kit's fur. "Why wouldn't I be?"

   "Well," River started to explain as he fidgeted with his hands, "Kit and I were roaming around and we saw you getting escorted into the Marine base by a tough-looking Marine guy. So, Kit and I were worried and we tried to look for help. We were able to come across Felix and Wynter arguing in front of the armory, and we told them what we saw. We came back and were about to come and rescue you."

   I slapped my forehead with my palm and rolled my eyes. "You four were seriously about to storm a Marine base and go head-to-head with an unknown amount of enemies? Do you know how much shit would have hit the fan?... But I do appreciate the thought."

   River and Kit gave awkward laughs. I dismissed the group if they wanted to continue exploring, and Kit did not hesitate to bolt away, causing River to run after her again. Wynter and Felix decided they had seen enough and felt like following me instead. I gave a shrug and told them they'd probably get bored, but they didn't care.

   The three of us made our way back to the execution platform. It was still as awestriking as before. Except, this time, I used my abilities to float to the top of the platform. The top wasn't every wide, maybe wide enough to fit three or four people. I sat down cross-legged in the middle of it and looked out toward the town. The sensation of sitting up here was breathtaking. The sunset sent out a wave of colors across the rooftops and bounced off of the buildings' windows. The air that blew my braided hair back was filled with the scent of a nearby bakery that was closing for the evening. 

   As messed up as it may sound, there were definitely worse places to have been executed. Not to mention, while my father stood in this very spot, there must have been a sea of people below him when he gave his final speech. Millions of lives touched by his words. This single figure was able to start a new era of piracy with his words alone. Just what kind of person can do that?

   After about half an hour of being alone with my thoughts, Felix climbed up and sat next to me, one leg propped up and the other folded. "Berry for your thoughts," Felix asked, lazily looking towards me.

   I brought my knees up to my chest and hugged them as I rested my chin on my knees. "Hey, this is a silly question, but I can trust you, right," I asked, unsure why I was even asking.

   Felix rolled his eyes. "Depends on what," he joked. "With secrets, sure. I don't really have anyone to share them with, anyway. Not falling for your charms, sorry, can't help trust me there."

   I playfully slugged his arm. "I'm being serious. I need to know I can trust you as if it were life or death. It's something I feel like you should know, if you're going to be my first-mate."

   Felix sensed my seriousness and became so as well. "Of course. I've followed you all these years and never thought of leaving. We've made it through Paradise multiple times together, and are planning to go to the New World soon. I'm sure whatever it is you're about can't be that world-shaking news to me."

   I looked back out to the horizon, where the sun had just disappeared under the waves. "I know what I want to sail for," I started to tell him. "I want to follow in the footsteps of my father. I want to see what he saw, live how he lived. He was able to touch so many lives without even having to meet the people he touched. It sounded like he lived a life he did not regret, even in his execution."

   Felix cocked his head to the side as he asked, "Wait, your father was executed? Who was he? What'd he do, if you don't mind me asking?"

  "My father was Gol D. Roger, and he was King of the Pirates," I told Felix with pride, but quiet enough that only he could hear it.

   Felix gave a deep laugh, thinking it was a joke. However, once he say I was still grinning softly and not laughing, he knew I was serious. "Wait, really?! You aren't pulling my leg?! Okay, I take back what I said, that kind of was world-shaking," Felix admitted. "So your youngest brother wasn't lying when he 'joked' about your dad being the Pirate King... You said that you were going to follow his footsteps, does that mean you're gunning to be the next Pirate King?"

   I shook my head as I told him, "Not at all. Luffy already called dibs on it. Rather, I just want to sail the world and see what he saw. See the places that made him feel that it was all worth it in the end. And lastly, touch as many lives as he did."

   Felix placed a hand on my should and gave a reassuring squeeze. "Sounds like a plan," he said with a snicker. "We've got a good portion of Paradise covered, so you've already got a good start to it. You've tried to help as many people as you can, when you can, so you have a good start there, too. We'll keep doing what we're doing and the crew will be along for the ride."

   I gave a small grin, glad I was finally able to share who my father was with someone. However, Felix and I rolled our eyes as we sensed a knife being thrown at Felix. He easily caught it and we looked down to see a glaring Wynter. "Keep your hands to yourself, before you lose them," Wynter shouted at Felix. "So much for checking up on her! If you two aren't coming down, I'll come up!"

   I let out a groan as I stood up. "We should probably head back to the Zephyr before we cause too much of a scene," I told Felix as I helped him up. "Besides, I got some news to share with everyone."