Loguetown— Loni's Bar
"I'll pay you a generous finder's fee if you can find me a ship that suits my needs. And as we walk, you can tell me why I'm so lucky to know you."
"Oh, trust me, there is no one who can find a ship like I ca—"
And then the door exploded.
Half the bar dropped to the floor as Loni squawked her anger at the violent intrusion. Oscar just thought about the irony as he grabbed Mister Money and rolled them under the table.
"Sorry for yer doors, but that's how I do things. Strongest booze available, please."
Oh, you have got to be kidding... Oscar thought with a frown as he picked himself and Remy up off the floor to glare at the startling false alarm of a new customer. He had a mid to show this man how you treat people's doors. But he'd give him a chance to make good, so he put on a small smile.
"Finding a boat sounds like a plan, Remy my friend the North man! But let me wet my throat a bit more first."
"The marvel is not that the Bear posts well, but that the Bear posts at all.""Hey, the owner! Put these doors on my tab, I'll pay for them when I finish" said the new customer. His ears picking up mention of a ship, he glanced at Oscar and Remy and asked them "Why won't you just sack nearest Marine base? They have a lot of boats, provided I don't go too wild on the tax robbers and wreck the base too much."
My President is Funny Valentine.Gaz shuffled through the bounty posters. When were the fool marines going to start classifying bounties based on abilities? Shooting Star Hartley was obviously a DF user based on his picture, something like a meteor or a bullet man. Were bullet men magnetic? Did Gaz want to find out? Probably a pass on both with that high a bounty. He looked a bit familiar but then again it was hard to tell with the ability spam on the poster.
Gnome Hunter Carter. "Good thing I'm not a Gnome." Tropical didn't seem to find the joke that funny.
Remy Le Grande. Hum. Not even a marine bounty, more like a local one. Unofficial bounty posters always looked so rough. This one had red ink instead of the standard black. Just sloppy. At least he seemed to carry a sword, so there was something to go off of.
And then... Alexander Cross. The man with the broken gun from the weapons shop. How could she have just let him slip by? Well, if he was going to go around using a gun like some marine mook, let him. She'd be selling back Matt's newly-repaired pistol by next week.
"I can take this Alex chump, probably Remy, but look, Tropical, we're talking bounties East Blue only sees on its worst day. 88,000,000 on this Shooting Star? I'm not sure if I can handle that, honestly. And do these guys have subordinates that you know of? Don't forget, Blackbeard himself went a long time with no bounty. When folks this strong come in, they attract strong people." Gaz gripped her sword in its sheath. "Like me. Stronger, even."
So I'm a writer...Calcia, approaching port of Loguetown.
Two months ago, Calcia had been a normal Marine Lieutenant turned bounty hunter. She chased down Grand Line hopefuls, her highest ever having a 22,400,000 beri bounty. However, all that changed when Greenbeard attacked. The scattered remnants of Baroque Works, the Accino family,and herself had been absorbed into his pirate group.
Now, the tyrannic pirate had forced her to go into Loguetown to eliminate a group of pirates. Oh well. It wasn't that bad. At least she could catch some bounties.
There were some Marines in town, and some were outright murderous towards the pirates. But that wasn't her concern.
Her target was a 47,000,000 beri man, Itsuki. Iki Iki no Mi, a Paramecia. Nothing too broken. Also near the deathplace of the Pirate King was an 88,000,000 beri youth, Shooting Star Hartley, with another Paramecia, a Sekki Sekki no Mi. 45,000,000 Alexander Cross. A shoddy, privately paid bounty with 21,000,000 for Remy Le Grande. 60,000,000 for some fool gnome hunter. The list went on.
Her Miru Miru no Mi should be enough to dispatch the fools, or at least that was what Greenbeard had hoped for.
edited 13th Oct '12 10:24:00 AM by jcw3
Loguetown— Loni's Bar
"It sounds like an interesting hobby. Though I would prefer to be slightly more discreet in acquiring transportation."
Oscar was about to agree, but then Oscar had a thought.
He put a hand on Remy's shoulder. "Let's not be so hasty my friend. The man might have an idea! Let's head somewhere more private and have ourselves a talk."
When Remy turned to gape at him, Oscar just gave his shoulder a squeeze.
As the trio tried to leave the building, they were halted by an irate voice. "You planning to leave before picking up your friends' tab, Oscar?"
That stopped him in his tracks. "I'll just be a minute gents, you take your time."
He left Remy and Howard to get... acquainted. As he settled the three pirates' bills for the day (including his newest friend's door fiasco which they would need to have words on), Loni spoke so he was sure only he could hear, "Are you sure about this? That guy is a little loud for your tastes, and this plan just a hair too flashy."
Oscar put a hand on the woman's head and whispered, "I'm always sure sweetheart! Though it's very nice to see you worrying about me!"
edited 13th Oct '12 10:44:24 AM by OhnoaBear
"The marvel is not that the Bear posts well, but that the Bear posts at all."Loguetown - Loni's Bar
Howard noticed that Remi's colleague has left him. Nevertheless, he carried on with his explanation:
"By slightly more discreet you probably mean you ain't much keen to do wrecking along with me. Don't worry, guys, I can handle that part of my own. I'm probably one of the biggest fish in this pond, I mean East Blue, so I bet I can take on whole base on myself if I must!" the man boasted, grinning mischievously "You can steal the ship during commotion and you'll pick me in open sea. Don't worry about me, I'm nearly as good at swimming as Fishfolk!"
(OOC: I could have replied earlier, but I was busy with writing analysis of poem for my seminar)
edited 13th Oct '12 1:11:37 PM by CaptainKatsura
My President is Funny Valentine.Loguetown — Loni's Doorway
"Don't worry about me, I'm nearly as good at swimming as Fishfolk!"
Remy considered. The plan appealed to his nature as a trickster, though it was still more flashy than he would have liked. "The idea has some merit," he allowed. "Though I still think it'd be good to be cautious. There's no telling who the Marines have stationed here since Smoker left."
He looked at the other man. "I don't believe I caught your name, Mister...?"
Loguetown— Loni's Bar
Loni shoved his arm away. "Asshole. Your new 'friends' are waiting."
Oscar gave her one last grin and headed back to the waiting pair.
"I don't believe I caught your name Mister...?"
"Neither did I, my boisterous comrade!"
"The marvel is not that the Bear posts well, but that the Bear posts at all.""All right, my name is Howard Philips Carter. I used to be treasure hunter and archeologist, but I'm now a wanted man by the World Government. That doesn't matter much to me since I'll reclaim what those Marines seized by treachery!" the man introduced himself "I heard they dubbed me Gnome Hunter, which is apt nickname. What I seek is my collection of antique lawn gnomes nearly as old as artifacts from the Void Century. Smoker you say? I caught news he is stationed in the New World. I doubt they will find anyone nearly competent. As long as the new one is not Logia, it won't be a problem."
My President is Funny Valentine.Loguetown— Outside of Loni's Bar
...
"Lawn Gnomes, you say!" Oscar's grin was beginning to draw a little tighter at the corners. "And I don't think either of us mentioned Smoker."
He turned to Remy to confirm, who was distracted staring at Howard and seemed a little grimmer than he had at the start of their conversation.
I cannot wait for this to be finished, Oscar thought as he freshened his smile.
edited 13th Oct '12 5:33:36 PM by OhnoaBear
"The marvel is not that the Bear posts well, but that the Bear posts at all."Loguetown — Outside the Bar
Remy pinched the bridge of his nose resignedly. "We appreciate your...kind offer, but I really think we should just find a ship the old-fashioned way. I, for one, have no real desire to make the Marines my enemy as of yet."
He looked tentatively at Howard, hoping he would not take offense. "For what it's worth, though, I've been here several weeks and I've heard no mention of lawn gnomes. Perhaps a pink flamingo or two, but no gnomes."
"What a bummer. Now the evidence points out more and more to what I feared. My precious gnomes are at Marineford!" exclaimed Carter "All right, if you want to stay low key, I guess I'll steal ship myself. If you change mind, feel free to hop aboard when you get chance!"
My President is Funny Valentine."That sounds... fair, my friend. Best of luck on your most noble quest for antique kitsch!"
Oscar turned a whispered to Remy, "Well, with any luck the ends will be the same and we won't ever see that lunatic again. Now, let's see about getting a ship while the Marine's busy with Mister Crazy over here."
"The marvel is not that the Bear posts well, but that the Bear posts at all.""Captain Greenbeard. There was nothing left The Fruitcake, but we did not find the body of the Marine leader" relayed Greenbeard's first mate, a tall Barracud Fishman called Slooper. His entire body was a deep cyan colour, and his mouth was filled with short razor sharp teeth. "Then he survived." responded the deep tones of Greenbeard's rasping voice. "Get Calcia on the line, Simone. Slooper, get in the water and pull the ship" ordered Blackbeard's subordinate, and the Fishman nodded slowly. He dived into the water with all the elegance of his race, and a midshipman went to fetch a Den Den Mushi as the Fishman began to pull The Rotting Barnacle towards their location. Calcia's mini Den Den Mushi should be ringing now, thought the Captain. Unless she left it here again.
Almost at the same time, the Marines had reported all the pirates to Tropical, and he had now finally been given a fresh change of clothes and a fix up, leasurely taking his time. "Captain Tropical, sir. Aren't you in a hurry to stop the pirates entering the Grand Line?" requested a rookie Marine. "Not to worry, I put up a strong barrier in front of Reverse Mountain. No one will get around that."
It was true, a red barrier had been placed in front of Reverse Mountain, and several ships were trying their best to get through, firing their weapons, cannons and anything else they could in order to break the shield. But nothing doing. However, in Loguetown, the marines finally caught sight of Calcia, and recognising her from her Bounty poster, opened fire with their muskets.
edited 14th Oct '12 2:46:54 AM by BigDaddyP
Inspirational quote against powerful image of nature.Jack Boars
Unlike his crew-mates, Jack managed to keep a low profile when strolling through the city. Well..more or less. People were turning to observe a tall, heavily armed man, clad in several layers of fur, but he behaved well and was mostly quiet so their attention waned pretty quickly.
As for Jack himself, he was still marveling at the... commonness and peace of the usual East Blue island. Even Loguetown, which was relatively busy and full of pirates had an air of safety that was simply lacking on the Grand Line which was his original home. Speaking about pirates... He stopped briefly and looked (rather indifferently) at the scaffolding on which marines executed Gold Roger, the greatest pirate that ever existed.... Somehow, he wound up being a pirate himself. He should be ashamed, but it bothered him far less than he would care of admit. It was a fitting role for someone so cursed as he was at any way.
Without another look, Jack left the center of Loguetown and its scaffolding that uncomfortably reminded him about his possible destiny, and ventured into one of the smaller streets. In there, there was a hunting shop that was the sole reason for this whole journey into the city: his hunting rifle needed a special bullets and he used quite a lot of them last time, so he needed to restock. He faced only one problem: He arrived at the right spot, but somehow, the shop simply wasn't there. That should be impossible: he was a scout raised in Hunter's Paradise, even in city, his orientation sense was supposed to be flawless! He looked around with frantic intensity, as if the shop could hide itself somewhere, but after several minutes of fruitless observation, he gave up and asked a guy that was just walking next to him for directions:
"Excuse me, do you know where I can find Johnson hunting shop? It should be somewhere nearby..."
A rather pretty girl looked at Jack with an utter disbelief. She slowly moved her gaze onto a giant signboard that stated: JOHNSON & JOHNSON, SHOP FOR ELITE HUNTERS!!! in blazing letters that stood less than a half-meter from Jack. She asked in an unsure voice:
"Um, is this some sort of prank?"
Jack leaned his head to the side, a confused look on his face. That guy has quite a girlish voice.....
"Um....no? Is there some kind of problem?"
The girl sighed with exasperation.
"Ok, I bite - The shop is right in front of you."
Jack expression clouded. It was clear that the boy was making fun of him. He spoke with controlled voice:
"I have a perfect eyesight and I think I would see a shop if it would be right in front of me. So stop with your jokes and answer normally!"
The girl just sighed again. She clearly lost whatever little patience she had for that weird, fur-clad man and just waved her hand as she turned to go.
"Whatever. I'm sure you will find him on your own, so good luck." (idiot!)
Jack huffed, clearly annoyed by the rude behavior of that girlish sounding boy. Without another question he ventured again, turning sharply left and walking down a dark side street - he clearly got the street wrong "somehow", so he decided to take shortcut back to the plaza. The girl glanced at him one last time as he disappeared from view, a sudden expression of worry on her face.
"Um, you shouldn't go that way,its dangerous ther..."
But Jack was too far to hear her anyway.
edited 14th Oct '12 4:22:45 PM by Drakovicz
Has a compulsive editing and re-editing disorder.Calcia
The Marines poised their weapons, each firing at the Milk Logia with all of their power. However, that wasn't much. "Firing on a fellow Marine isn't very nice,boys,"Calcia chided mockingly, before pointing both of her arms at the group. "Expiration Date!"
Her entire body lunged forward in a single milk tsunami, and all of the Marines were blessed with a milky defeat. "Now, are there more of you idiots? Because I came to hunt pirates, not to fight Marines,"she thought to herself. Captain Tropical, the Marine stationed here after Smoker's promotion, was adequately powerful. She didn't think she could beat him if she drew his ire.
Loguetown — Near the docks
"Pretty slim pickings," Remy observed, shading his eyes and looking ahead towards their goal. They'd made a quick detour for Remy to pick up his belongings, and were now approaching the docks where a few ships lay anchored.
Things were getting tense in the town. Remy and Oscar could hear cries in the distance, and Remy had smelled gunpowder a few times — and also, strangely enough, milk. They hadn't run into any trouble yet, but Remy figured it was only a matter of time. Best to find a ship, get on it one way or another, and then leave this island behind.
"Well, what does my guide say?" Remy turned, grinning. "Any particular ship that I should have my eye on?"
And on one particular ship, a young cook was going about 'her' business. She has already bought needed supplies without managing to rise a fuss and now was working on her usual ritual - making a specific dessert reflecting the nature of the island. Of course as a mere Blues island, it didn't have much unnatural traits that she heard were common on the Grand Line, but nevertheless as an execution spot of the famed Gold Rodger, Loguetown was worthy of a rich taste.
Complex clockwork of the chocolate maker churned on the table while the cook was preparing other ingredients to add at the right moment, unbeknownst of the shipjackers lurking at the port...
Oscar took his time.
He furrowed his brow and focused his gaze on each ship in turn as he, in his mind, fumed about how the crazy guy's particular crazy made him forget about paying for a freaking door. Well, nothing for it now. Now he just had to pick some ship to barge onto.
Hmmmm. That one's too small. That one's too big. That one's way too busted. And then, he saw it...
"The marvel is not that the Bear posts well, but that the Bear posts at all."Loguetown
"Damn, they left me alone all of sudden like that" muttered Howard, taking a sip from his wine bottle. "Well, then I'll steal ship myself and will think twice over sharing it with them"
Resolved to wreck the local Marine base in search of both ship and his lawn gnomes, Carter started searching for said base. Any Marine was likely to be caught for "interrogation"
My President is Funny Valentine."Oh! Right, yes, I see. It looks like a very versatile power to have. Where did you find it, and how did it look like?" asked Max, getting ready to sketch the fruit after writing down notes. There was definitely an odd smell in the air though, something like milk but slowly getting sour. "Do you guys smell that?" he asked, then heard a loud wooshing noise. "I know you heard that" he amended, thinking quickly. If there was a fight to be had, he was at a disadvantage without his pen. "Hey, how about you two go check that sound out?" he asked, voice distinctly, and suspiciously, saccharine, as he motioned for the bartender.
"I need some empty bottles, a few napkins, and some spare alcohol. Any will do."
Inspirational quote against powerful image of nature.Loguetown Docks
Remy saw it about the same time Oscar did. This ship was much better taken care of than the others, the name Blue Stallion painted on the side in blue letters. A pirate flag flew from the mast, though it fluttered so much in the breeze Remy had trouble making out the design on it. "Bold, aren't they?"
His first thought was that the ship was currently empty, until he saw smoke rising from a chimney near the stern of the ship. So. Maybe a few people on board, but probably nothing I can't handle.
He started to walk towards the ship, then paused and looked back at Oscar. "Are you coming along, or would you rather receive your fee and leave before the trouble starts?"

(Loguetown— Loni's Bar)
Howard, in search of his favorite poison, arrived at the bar. He started to drink a bit too much since he had become a wanted man. Good for him, even being drunk didn't stop him from terrorizing law enforcers in search of what he lost. He kicked the door open, wrecking them in the process, and nonchalantly entered Loni's bar. "Sorry for yer doors, but that's how I do things. Strongest booze available, please." That little accident could potentially attract trouble, and that exactly what he pursued. Any brawl may summon Marines, so he doesn't have to bother to look for them. As if his high bounty weren't already enough good magnet.
My President is Funny Valentine.