After six weeks of hard labor, none of which had anything to do with Buggy or his crew, the Morning Star was completely taken apart and the new ship was built.

And while Buggy did enjoy the very advanced facilities of the Morning Star, it was just too much of a risk to keep around. Stealing from a World Noble was a death sentence in and of itself, so if the Government found out that a group of pirates has been parading around in it committing crimes beyond that of the original theft…

Plus, the devastation Buggy wrought on that private shipyard probably didn’t make things any easier on himself. He wouldn’t even be surprised if there was a vice-Admiral hot on his tail, even after all this time.

The new ship, which had yet to be named, was slightly smaller than the Morning Star had been but still better in every way. That is, if the shipwrights built it according to Buggy’s extensive list of specifications.

He wanted the very best of who and what Outcast had to offer, which was actually pretty damn good considering it was an island without any World Government presence. (i.e. It’s self-governed by the people who live there.) They did assure him, though, that everything was built exactly how he had wanted it to be.

Enough room for fifteen people, a sizable cargo hold minus the cages, a medical bay with enough room for the medicine from the Morning Star, a separate room connected to the medical bay for special medical procedures, and a kitchen large enough for three people to cook at the same time.

It was expensive as all hell and forced them to sell off some of the more expensive furniture from the Morning Star. But unlike their other expenses, Buggy was too taken with his ship to make much of a fuss.

The beautiful white sails that proudly bore the Buggy Pirates Jolly Roger, a white skull-and-crossbones with a large red clowns nose (though he’d deny it ever being a ‘clowns nose’) and black crosses on the eye sockets, contrasted the hull’s sleek, ebony oak.

Fourteen broadside cannons on either side of the ship, a large ice ram to break ice sheets and charge enemy ships should the need arise, a professionally crafted figurehead of a woman wearing a crown holding up the cannon on the ship’s bow, and the name ‘Royal Blue’ painted on the back of the ship.

Buggy was sure the name came from the fact that his hair was blue. He wasn’t one hundred percent positive, but the looks Devlin had been giving the area above his eyes was more than enough to give him an idea.

Currently, the four of them were sitting around the ship waiting for night to fall. Since the island’s inhabitants were mostly active during the day, Solomon suggested they leave at night to not draw any attention. No attention was still the best kind of attention; especially so in a place like Outcast.

Solomon was taking a nap in a nearby corner; even after months of freedom he still felt the need to grab sleep whenever he could. At least now it was because he enjoyed it, rather than before when he did so out of necessity.

Devlin walked around their ship taking inventory of what they started with. Buggy was surprised to see her doing this, but also glad that she’d thought of doing so. It was something he hadn’t even thought of doing.

Buggy and Lilith, however, were up in the crow’s nest. Ever since she had told him about the nightmares she’d had, he made sure that she knew to come to him if it ever happened again. Which it had the night before.

“It was the same as last time…there was fire and screaming…and shadowed man too…” Buggy listened intently for any details that might have changed since the last time.

“…before…when he tried to speak…his head just moved slightly…but this time…I could see his mouth moving…actually…he had more features this time…but not enough to describe…” Lilith took in a deep breath and let it out, doing it exactly like Buggy had showed her to.

“Buggy…there’s still something I don’t understand. I’ve had dreams before…but never like this one…I could feel the heat from the flames…and I could smell the smoke……even after I’d woken up…”

He didn’t know how to answer that. It made him feel like shit to know that she came to him with this problem, and he had no idea how to fix it. At least not beyond talking about it and letting her frustration and anxiety out rather than holding it all in and letting it slowly tear her apart.

But it was enough for the time being. “Honestly…I don’t know why you’re having these dreams. But if they’re having this much of an effect on you…then it’s probably something important. So, I think you should pay attention to them. But that’s just what I think.”

He shrugged his shoulders, and she was quiet for a long time after that.

The Sun slowly disappeared beneath the horizon and the Moon began its slow upward climb in the sky. Maybe an hour or so after it began its ascent, Buggy and Lilith climbed down from the crow’s nest.

“Alright guys, it’s time to move out. Nobody’s around, there’s a good wind behind us, and Flevance awaits!” They nod, eager to get out to sea. “Lilith, release the lines. Solomon, raise anchor. And Devlin, help me unfurl those sails once those two finish.”

Solomon quickly raised the anchor then walked over to help Lilith with the lines. Seeing the two pile the unattached rope on the floor, Devlin flew up to the sails, working alongside Buggy’s hands to unfurl them.

Buggy watched from his position at the helm as the sails dropped down but remained next to lifeless as the strong wind from before died down to little more than a gentle breeze. But that hardly mattered when they had-

“Devlin, take us out!” A powerful wind was caught by the sails, causing the ship to lurch forward. “How was that!?” He smiled and opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by the sound of his Transponder Snail.

Purupurupurupurupuru. Purupurupurupurupuru. Purupurupurupurupuru.

It was faint, almost buried beneath the sound of the waves slapping against the ship and the wind howling in his ears. But it was enough to catch his attention.

“Solomon, take over for a minute. I’ll be right back.” Without waiting for a response, Buggy made his way to his room where the Transponder Snail resembling Shanks, complete with red hair and his Captain’s straw hat, was ringing loudly.

Purupurupurupurupuru. Purupurupurupurupuru. Purupurupurupurupuru.

‘It’s a good thing I’ve been training it to increase and decrease its volume, otherwise I might not have heard it.’ Catcha.

“You know, Shanks, when I gave you that snail I had the feeling you’d be needing me to save you sooner or later. I just never thought it’d be sooner rather than later.” Shanks’ voice came through, but without its usually relaxed tone.

“Buggy…you need to get over here as soon as you possibly can. Rouge’s life is in danger.” The amusement in Buggy’s voice withered. “Her life is in danger? How? Is it the marines or some World Government assholes?”

A frustrated sigh. “No. At least, not at the moment. We have her hiding in some abandoned cabin near the center of the island. There are marines here, but no one’s looking our way. Yet. They got here a couple of months ago and they should have been gone by now. But that’s not an issue…the danger is that Rouge hasn’t given birth yet.”

That…was unexpected. He did some quick math in his head. “I know I’m not a doctor or anything and my math does involves some guesswork, but shouldn’t she have had that kid, like I don’t know, three of four months ago!? What the hell is she doing?”

“She’s afraid of the Marines finding her while she’s giving birth. With good reason because if they do, they’re both dead. Right around the time she should have given birth, they showed up on the island. And now that she actually thinks it’s a good idea to leave, it’s too late. They’ve completely surrounded the island. No one in and no one out until they’ve finished.”

“What about your crew and your ship?” He was worried that if Shanks was off the island, there would be nobody for Rouge to get help from. But Shanks, as usual, had his bases covered.

“The ship we’re using is an old one. We hid it in a cove and made it look as though it’s been there for a while. Not exactly hard when you only have three people living on it.” Good. He was worried there for a second.

“Only three? Ha! I got four!” While it wasn’t the best time for it. Buggy had to. He finally managed to one up the bastard. Shanks chuckled at his friend’s childishness. “Okay, okay. You win. Now, how fast do you think you could get here with a doctor? And please say sometime within the next few weeks because I don’t think it’s exactly healthy to keep a baby in for this long.”

How fortunate Shanks called when he did. Any sooner and they wouldn’t have had a ship to go and help them in.

“Let’s see…” Outcast was probably two days away from Loguetown now that Devlin was able to generate a near unlimited amount of wind. And the redline was maybe another day or so away from there. Flevance is God knows how many days away from there and then maybe it’ll take another two weeks to get from the East Blue to the South Blue.

“I’d say about three or four weeks? I’m not sure exactly, but I’ll try and get there as soon as possible…How bad is it? Do we even stand a chance?” A short silence.

“I don’t know if they did this everywhere they went, but it’s getting bad. More and more ships are showing up every couple of days. And I’ve been hearing…rumors…about the World Government tracking down everyone who’s ever come into close contact with the Captain and killing them.”

Buggy, having heard nothing of this, cursed quietly. “Fuck.” But Shanks hadn’t finished. “And they’ve been taking custody of any women and children who may be related to Roger. I don’t know if they kill them, but…I think-”

“Fuck!” His hand slammed down on the table, leaving behind a splintered dent. “We’ll be there in three weeks. I’ll see you then.” Catcha.

Names of people and friends they’d met on their journey through the Grand Line had Buggy running back outside and taking his position at the helm once more. “Devlin, more wind. We need to be at Reverse Mountain in three days.” She didn’t question why. His hardened expression said it all.

After a few minutes of tense silence, Buggy offered an explanation. “Solomon. I know I said you couldn’t go home until the heat from the theft at Loguetown had died down, but after we leave Flevance, I’ll drop you off at Fishman Island if you still want to go. It’ll be on our way to the South Blue.”

The Fishman in question did nothing more than nod his head.

He looked away from his three companions. “What we’re about to do will put us on the World Government’s radar much sooner than I had initially planned. Which means the Marines will be on our ass 24/7 from there on out. So if you have any final doubts about being on my crew, then you have until Flevance to make up your mind. I’ll drop you off anywhere you want me to should you decide to leave.”

Another tense silence fell before Devlin spoke up. “What exactly are we about to do in the South Blue?”

“…Though I shudder to call him one…a close friend of mine needs my help saving someone we know. Let’s just…leave it at that for now…ok?”

After that, the winds that pushed the Royal Blue through the Calm Belt blew a little harder with each passing hour. Whether anyone noticed this, though, was unclear.

But if one looked close enough, the tiniest hint of a relieved smile made its way to the edges of Buggy’s lips. It felt good to know he wasn’t in this alone.