~Silence Is Golden~
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*One Week Later*
The Heart Pirates looked around the shore of the island in confusion. Nothing but grassy fields and mosquitoes surrounded them. The island had a spring climate, much to the crew's relief. After moaning about the submarine being too hot, they were welcomed with a cool breeze and open spaces. But despite the appreciated change in atmosphere, this still posed a problem. Their supplies were running low. And there was no town in sight.
"Umm…I know the map says it's supposed to be just up ahead but, are you sure there's a city around here, Bepo?" Shachi asked, glancing over at the bear in question. Bepo furrowed his brows, raising his head and taking a long sniff of the air. He nodded.
"I can smell people and lots of buildings. It's just up here." He pointed down the dusty path leading away from the shore. It disappeared in the tall grass. Summer switched her gaze from the polar bear to Law who stood away from the group of pirates. He stared towards wherever this town was supposed to be, his eyes narrowed either in suspicion or anger. Though, if one didn't know any better, he was always angry.
"Hmm…" He hummed. After another moment staring, he suddenly turned to the men standing on the beach. "All of you have a list of supplies you are responsible for. Find them quickly and return to the sub immediately."
The men around her nodded and set out down the worn path, talking quietly to each other casually as they walked. Summer began to follow but was stopped by Law's sharp voice.
"Miss Summer." She froze mid-step and unconsciously frowned. She half turned towards him, raising an eyebrow in question. His face held no amusement.
"You will accompany me in finding medical books, if possible." His eyes were hard, locking with hers as if daring her to defy him. His intensity left her too confused to argue, and she silently nodded her head.
Law glanced at Bepo, who was watching him carefully. Once Law began walking away, Bepo and Summer fell into step a few feet behind him.
The scenery didn't change at all, and what she first thought as a pleasant countryside began to seem like a washed-out background. The tall, wheat-colored grass did nothing than attract the infuriating bugs that now seemed to love to attack Summer. Shaking her head angrily, she scowled at the small creatures.
Focusing her attention to Law's back, she looked back on the way he seemed to freeze up when they set on the island. The thought got her thinking and she turned to Bepo.
"What's his problem?" She asked in a low voice, pointing to the sadistic pirate. Bepo looked at him as well, hesitating to answer.
"He doesn't like this island. There's something…off about it." She frowned, stepping over a large rock embedded in the dusty dirt.
"Something off? Like what?" Bepo opened his mouth but was cut off by Law's sharp reply.
"It's too quiet." He said, not turning around to look at them. Summer focused on the atmosphere around her. To her surprise, there was no sound other than the soft caress of the wind on the grass. However, she was still confused.
"How is that off? We're in a field."
"A city generates a lot of noise. We are supposed to be close to one, so the absence of such noise is rather odd." The path took a sharp left and Summer could see the rest of the crew had stopped on the path ahead of them, staring at something. When she could fully see, she stopped as well.
Before them, just as the map had stated, lay a town. It was quite large, their position a few hundred feet away giving them a view of its development. The buildings were all built in an older style from light wood, and lanterns hung from several posts out on the dirt street. People could be seen milling about the street, the men in light clothing and the women in sundresses, toting children along. Nothing seemed out of place. Except for one thing.
It was silent.
Despite the number of people walking around, not one of them uttered a word. The men passed by without even a glance. Even the children were noiseless, obediently walking alongside their equally quiet mothers.
Law pushed forward to the front of the group of pirates, his eyes still narrowed. Summer could see his knuckles go white white as his grip on his sword tightened. She stepped up beside him, still gazing at the town.
"What the hell is going on?" She muttered, intimidated by the bizarre silence. Law slowly shook his head. Sighing, he began to walk towards the town and everyone reluctantly followed.
"Something ain't right with this place, man…" One of the men whispered behind her. She had to agree.
'What kind of place is this?'
Upon entering the edge of the town, the people looked at the men with disinterest. They went about their business as if the sight of an entire pirate crew and a polar bear were an everyday occurrence. Sure, this was the Grand Line, but was it really that normal?
Penguin branched off from the group and approached a woman with her child. He stopped a polite distance away, aware that his status as a pirate made others nervous.
"Excuse me, miss…" As soon as the words had left his mouth, the woman's eyes widened and she scurried away, tugging harshly at the boy's arm. They fled into a nearby building and Penguin was left standing on the street. He jogged back to the group.
"I don't know what that was about." He rubbed his head in confusion. Shachi appeared beside him.
"I told you, women are repulsed by you." He smacked his friend on the head with his fist. Scowling, he turned to face him, holding up his fist.
"Oh yeah? Well-"
"Penguin."
At the sound of his name, he looked up to see Law staring at him and shake his head slightly. The engineer instantly quieted down, stuffing his hands in his pockets in shame. He kicked at a loose rock by his feet.
"Sorry…" He muttered. Law turned back to survey the town, glancing around at the people nearby. It seemed their presence wasn't what scared them but their words, though Penguin's had been innocent enough. The pirate captain hummed in thought.
Summer stood nearby, also inspecting the town. An idea struck her, and she walked over to a sandy-haired middle-aged man with a mustache. Using her knowledge of sign language, she signed the words: 'Do-you-understand-me?'
The man frowned in confusion and walked away quickly. She tried again with an older woman a few feet away, but got the same reaction.
'I'll take that as a no…' She sighed and returned to the group. Law gave her a questioning look.
"I thought that maybe since spoken words made them nervous, speaking in sign language would work. But I guess they don't understand it."
"You know sign language?" She shrugged and nodded in confirmation. He nodded slowly, turning over this new piece of information. His attention was turned away from her when he felt a tug on his sleeve. A young man stood there, glancing around in nervousness and shifting from foot to foot. Law raised an eyebrow.
"Can you help us?" The man quickly looked away and pointed to a house on the right. It was small and built much like the other structures in the town were. He started towards it and gestured for them to follow. The crew began to move forward but was stopped by Law's order.
"All of you, wait here."
They nodded silently, realizing that Law didn't want to put them in danger from a possible trap. Though it irked Summer to no end, she crossed her arms and waited with the rest of the men as Law followed the man into the house.
Upon entering the small house, Law noticed how plain it was. The room was bare of anything personal, furnished only with basic furniture and functional contraptions. This man was obviously either very poor or this was the culture of the island.
The man scurried around and straightened a few items before turning to Law. He wasn't quite as nervous as before, but still wrung his hands together.
"I guess you're wondering why everyone is so silent, right?" The man spoke almost in a whisper. At Law's nod, he continued. "The Governor Tobias decreed that any utterance in public was to be considered a disturbance of the peace and be punishable by death. Anyone caught speaking in public is immediately carried away by the his guards. It's like that for the whole island.
"The only places we are allowed to talk are indoors, but we really are supposed to speak quietly. Oh, I'm Henry by the way."
"That sounds quite troublesome." Law said with disinterest. To be honest, he could care less about the man's name, or the island's strange law, he only found it troublesome because it got in his way. He crossed his arms and frowned.
"I assume there is a market here." Henry nodded.
"You'll have to communicate without speaking, like show them a list or something." He glanced out a nearby window, though according to him speaking inside was legal. It seemed he scared easily.
"One more thing. How long does it take for a log pose to set?"
"Four hours. Umm…if that's all, I suggest you leave. If your crew is caught talking, the governor will find out." Law turned his back on him and was already on his way out. He half opened the door and paused.
"My crew can take care of themselves. Worry about yourself." He closed the door harshly behind him.
Summer tapped her foot impatiently on the ground, scowling at the clouds that floated lazily by.
'I hate waiting…'
The two engineers had the same problem. They sat on a nearby rock, getting up and walking around in agitation several times before sitting back down again. Even watching the two started to get Summer irritated.
Bepo, however, was the perfect picture of the word calm. He sat on the ground and closed his eyes in wait. A small smile rested on his face. The difference in attitudes was laughable.
A loud bang brought all their attention to the mysterious man's house where Law calmly exited and walked towards them. He held up a hand at their obvious questions.
"This island has a law that anyone caught talking in public is put to death. I don't fully understand either, but I want to get off this island as soon as possible. Gather what supplies you can and meet back at the sub within four hours. Show them the list and they will negotiate with you."
The men nodded and set off down the road while somehow keeping silent. Now that the odd situation had been cleared up and no obvious danger presented itself, everyone had visibly relaxed. The usually boisterous crew was now succeeding in restraining themselves enough to not get in trouble. Summer smirked to herself.
'Miracles do happen.'
"Miss Summer, are you thinking of something crude, perhaps?" Law's amused question broke her from her thoughts. His trademark smirk in place, he stared at her surprised face. She was about to defend herself, saying that she was doing no such thing, but he chuckled to himself and walked away before she could utter a word. She was left to stew in her dark thoughts behind him.
He paused and turned to look at her. "I hope you haven't forgotten that you are to help me find medical books." He began walking again.
Begrudgingly, she followed. She cursed him under her breath the entire way to the bookstore.
The man stared at the pirate crew as they split up and headed off in different direction, presumably to gather supplies. The girl and the bear stayed with the captain, much to his irritation. He hadn't gotten a good look at her face since the captain was blocking his view of her, but he was definitely suspicious.
His post on the bakery's roof gave him plenty of cover and a view of the whole street. His eyes locked onto the blonde, watching like a hawk as she walked towards him.
She stepped slightly to the left, revealing her to his full view. His eyes widened as his suspicion was confirmed. His stare pierced her figure until the trio entered the small bookstore further up the road. He hastily pulled out his snail phone and dialed the number he had been told to call in such a case as this. It was answered immediately.
"You better have something good to tell me…" The gravelly voice threatened. The man smirked, relaxing comfortably against the wooden beams of the roof.
"I found her."
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