Chapter Text
The first thing Jaden noticed was the ocean.
Not because it was beautiful.
Because it was wrong.
The waves stretched endlessly beyond the horizon. Vast. Blue. Alive.
A different kind of blue than the oceans he remembered.
Not bright sapphire.
Not simple sky-blue.
This ocean was the color of deep oxidized copper under moonlight.
A strange blue-green that seemed to hide stories underneath every wave.
Jaden sat at the edge of a tiny wooden boat and stared quietly.
"...Yeah."
A wave slapped the hull.
"Definitely not home."
His inventory opened automatically.
A transparent grid appeared before his eyes.
Nobody else could see it.
Forty-eight cooked cod.
Tons of blocks.
Tools.
Materials.
Potions.
His trident.
His mace.
Everything exactly where he left it.
Jaden closed the inventory.
Opened it again.
Still there.
"Good."
That solved several problems.
The boat drifted peacefully through calm waters.
No monsters.
No explosions.
No people trying to kill him.
Honestly?
It was kind of nice.
For almost fifteen minutes.
Then smoke appeared in the distance.
Jaden sighed.
"Of course."
Trouble found him.
Or maybe he found trouble.
Either way, they had a habit of meeting.
A small island appeared through the morning fog.
Several buildings sat near a beach.
Fishermen ran back and forth.
Children pointed toward the sea.
Adults shouted.
Something was wrong.
Jaden adjusted the small blue-green cloak hanging over his shoulders.
The fabric carried a unique color somewhere between teal and storm-touched turquoise.
Not flashy.
But memorable.
He rowed closer.
As soon as his boat touched shore, a young boy ran past him.
"Pirates!"
Another child followed.
"There are pirates attacking!"
Jaden blinked.
Well.
That explained the screaming.
A third child nearly crashed into him before stopping.
The boy stared.
Jaden stared back.
"...Hi."
The kid immediately smiled.
"Your cloak looks cool."
"Thanks."
The boy nodded seriously.
"You're probably a pirate."
"Probably."
"You gonna help?"
Jaden looked toward the chaos.
Several ships had anchored off the coast.
Armed men rushed through the village.
Stealing food.
Breaking property.
Bullying civilians.
The usual pirate stuff.
The child stared hopefully.
Jaden sighed.
"Yeah, probably."
The kid cheered.
Children really were simple.
The attacking pirates weren't particularly strong.
That became obvious within thirty seconds.
Jaden walked through the center of town while chaos unfolded around him.
Nobody paid attention.
He looked like a traveler.
A harmless teenager.
The exact kind of person pirates ignored.
One large man shoved an old fisherman into the dirt.
"Get up, old man!"
The pirate raised a sword.
The blade never came down.
A hand grabbed his wrist.
The pirate turned.
"...Huh?"
Jaden stood there calmly.
The pirate laughed.
"Kid, move."
Jaden tightened his grip.
A crunch echoed.
The man's wrist shattered.
The pirate screamed.
Jaden immediately let go.
"Oh."
The scream got louder.
"I used too much force."
The pirate collapsed.
Several nearby raiders froze.
One looked at the fallen man.
Then at Jaden.
Then back at the fallen man.
Nobody understood what had happened.
Including Jaden.
Apparently his Minecraft-strength had transferred over pretty well.
Good to know.
Five pirates charged.
Jaden reached into empty air.
The trident appeared.
Metal gleamed beneath the sunlight.
The pirates hesitated.
The weapon looked dangerous.
The user looked half asleep.
The combination was unsettling.
One pirate attacked anyway.
Bad decision.
The trident moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
The shaft struck the attacker's stomach.
A loud crack echoed.
The pirate flew through a wall.
Another swung a club.
Jaden stepped aside.
The trident swept low.
Leg broken.
The pirate collapsed.
Third attacker.
Shoulder shattered.
Fourth.
Arm dislocated.
Fifth.
Knocked unconscious instantly.
The entire fight ended in less than ten seconds.
Silence spread across the street.
Jaden lowered the weapon.
"...Sorry."
Nobody was sure who he was apologizing to.
The remaining raiders suddenly became much less interested in robbery.
Reasonable reaction.
Their captain arrived moments later.
A scarred man carrying two axes.
Much bigger than everyone else.
Much angrier too.
"You!"
Jaden looked up.
"Hm?"
The captain pointed.
"You hurting my men?"
Jaden glanced around.
The unconscious pirates littering the street answered that question pretty clearly.
"...Maybe."
The captain roared.
Then rushed forward.
Jaden watched carefully.
Analyzing.
Distance.
Speed.
Weight.
Balance.
A habit from years of surviving fights.
The captain swung.
Jaden sidestepped.
The axe buried itself inside a building.
The pirate captain yanked.
Nothing happened.
The blade got stuck.
Jaden nodded.
"That seems unfortunate."
The captain snarled.
Jaden equipped a mace.
The heavy weapon materialized in his hand.
Nobody questioned it.
People were too confused already.
The captain finally freed his weapon and charged again.
Jaden swung once.
A single strike.
The mace connected with the pirate's chest.
A horrifying impact echoed through town.
The captain became airborne.
For a brief moment, everyone watched him fly.
Then he vanished into the ocean.
Splash.
Silence.
Several villagers blinked.
One pirate slowly lowered his sword.
"...Let's leave."
The others agreed immediately.
Less than ten minutes later, the pirates were gone.
The village survived.
People celebrated.
Children followed Jaden everywhere.
He wasn't sure why.
Maybe because he helped.
Maybe because kids just liked interesting people.
A little girl handed him a flower crown.
Jaden accepted it.
Another kid asked if he could throw pirates again.
The answer was no.
Probably.
Hopefully.
That evening, the village held a feast.
Jaden sat near the docks eating grilled fish.
The sunset covered the ocean in shades of gold.
For the first time since arriving here, everything felt calm.
Peaceful.
The village chief sat beside him.
"You heading into the Grand Line someday?"
"Maybe."
The old man laughed.
"Most people don't say maybe."
Jaden watched distant waves.
"Most people seem kind of insane."
"Fair point."
The chief laughed harder.
Night fell quietly.
Jaden returned to his boat.
The ocean breeze felt cool.
Comfortable.
Before sleeping, he opened his inventory one last time.
Everything was still there.
Potions.
Blocks.
Resources.
Food.
Tools.
The impossible advantages nobody else possessed.
He closed the menu.
Then stared toward the dark horizon.
Something sat far away beneath the moonlight.
An island.
Barely visible.
A massive silhouette hidden within fog.
Too large to be a normal island.
Too distant to identify.
Yet unmistakably there.
Waiting.
Watching.
The shape vanished as mist rolled across the water.
Jaden frowned.
"...Huh."
He didn't know what it was.
But he knew one thing.
Sooner or later—
trouble would lead him there.
And for some reason,
he was looking forward to it.