Mass x Acceleration - Chapter Seven
Title: Mass x Acceleration
Chapters: Prologue + 7 Chapters
Rating: R
Pairings: Eventually
Summary: A game plan is set in motion, and Sanji and Nami are finally able to start healing.
Mass x Acceleration
By Dixxy Mouri
Chapter Seven: Bon Fire
Shanks returned sometime later with a plate of poorly made sandwiches and a pitcher of ice water balanced on a single tray. “Thank you,” said Nami. She and Sanji sat on the edge of the bed, choosing which of the sandwiches they wanted. As she settled on two pieces of white bread holding a badly mangled piece of turkey, she looked at the emperor in worry. “Is Mac okay?”
“He’ll be okay - he just needs his beauty sleep is all.”
Nami looked at the emperor in curiosity. “I have to ask - why, exactly, is Mac flying your flag?”
“Yeah - wouldn’t that get them in trouble with the Marines?” asked Sanji.
Shanks crossed his legs. “It’s not at all uncommon among the other pirates in my league to have entire islands or sometimes small archipelagos considered their ‘territory’. Apple Island is part of my territory, which means most pirates are too scared of retribution to even come within spitting distance of this place, the World Government mostly ignores islands like this because the response it would get from someone like me in retaliation would be a huge mess . . . and they don’t trade with anyone other than other islands under my protection.”
“And what do you get out of it?” Nami asked. Sanji swallowed, seeing where she was coming from. He frowned. Of course Nami wasn’t going to like the idea of a pirate lording over an island of innocent people and controlling their trade. Even if Shanks had saved them, this revelation wasn’t going to sit well with her. At all.
I guess even the scars Tesla left aren’t enough to make us forget our other traumas. . .
Shanks smiled. “Free booze! It’s great! Sometimes we have parties with the villagers - don’t get me wrong, my boys and I can have a great time on our own, but it’s way more fun with more people! And sometimes it’s just nice to have a quiet, normal place to go. It’s cold here now, but during the warmer months it’s nice to wander into the orchards, find a nice spot with a bottle of wine, and drink and reminisce.”
Nami paled. “Alcohol? Parties? And wandering around drunk in an apple orchard?”
“What else would I want? I mean yeah they give us a good discount on meat and apples and stuff, too, but they’re good people. I like them. Especially Mac - he doesn’t have the constitution for it and I don’t think he’d take to the lifestyle, but he’s got some tough as nails determination that I look for in my men. I respect that.”
“And not letting them trade with other islands?”
Shanks shook his head. “It’s more the other way around - the other islands don’t like trading with them. I mean, okay, a few islands under the flag of the other emperors once in a while, yeah, and SOMETIMES a particularly ballsy merchant trader will stop in port for like, a few hours, but personally I don’t care who they trade with - it’s their stuff, I just want a few barrels of booze a month for protection.”
“Wait, just a few barrels?” asked Sanji. “I’ve heard of emperors charging a lot more than that.”
“Well, if they want to be assholes about it, then yeah - Big Mom charges highway robbery for her protection. But my goal isn’t to run the island into the ground, and the price of protection was something Mac and I negotiated on - definitely enough to be worth my time but not so much it would break the island’s economy, and even then if they’re a little short I don’t give a shit, they can get me a little extra next time or something else or whatever,” said Shanks. He shrugged. “I’m guessing the little lady has had some bad experiences with pirate run islands?”
“Yeah, I have,” she said. “When I was little, the Fishman Pirates took over my island and demanded 100,000 berries per adults and 50,000 per child on the island a month, and he killed anyone who couldn’t pay.” She closed her eyes. “My mother couldn’t pay for our family, so Arlong killed her. And then he made a bum deal with me that if I could raise 100 million berries he would let me buy back my village and leave us alone.”
Shank reached over and took Nami’s hands. “I promise you that what we have here is nothing like what happened to your village. You can ask Mac to back me up on this but here is my arrangement with the islanders. Over the course of the year, without any influence from me, they produce about one thousand barrels of hard cider. That’s just the alcoholic stuff - not counting the soft stuff so the kids have something to drink, not counting the apples they use for eating and pies and feeding their livestock, and not counting everything else anyone here does for their livelihood, like Miss Ria’s sewing shop or Braeburn’s smithy. In exchange for protecting their island, I get 100 barrels of that cider a year - anything more and we gotta pay for it. That’s it.” Shanks was nodding along as he spoke, gently speaking with Nami. “No price per head on the island. No killing people if they can only get me 99 barrels - hell, if they have a bad harvest I don’t care if all they can get me is one barrel. I see these people as friends, and I take care of my friends.”
The navigator seemed to relax, satisfied that this wasn’t like what happened to her island. Shanks seemed like he honestly was more interested in partying with these people, not screwing them over. “You said you wanted to talk with us more . . . I guess you want to know what happened on Tesla’s ship,” she said softly. Sanji squeezed her hand. “
Shanks stared at the last sandwich sadly. “Well, based on some information Buggy told me, your crew was worried you’d been force fed Devil Fruits,” he said. As soon as he’d mentioned the Devil Fruits, he watched the other pirates hesitate to respond, but by the way they looked at each other and the way their hands were shaking, he knew he had his answer. His voice lowered. “So he did.”
Nami put her hand over her stomach. “He had us held down and forced our jaws open while his cronies shoved them into our mouths and made us bite down.” She clenched her eyes shut. “There were a lot of seastone restraints in the beginning to keep us from using them to fight back. But after a while we . . . kind of lost the will to fight back. We were tired of being hurt for fighting back . . . he even tried to take our names away from us.” Now she was rubbing the back of her neck, tearing a little. “And for a while . . . he did. Just a few minutes ago, when you told us to come out . . . that was the first time we’ve heard our own names in months . . . even from each other.”
Ria had mentioned they were mum about their names . . . son of a bitch, Tesla, really?
“I think this is good enough for now,” Shanks said, choosing his words carefully. Normally he wouldn’t treat anyone on Luffy’s crew so delicately, but these two were pretty badly damaged goods. There’s no telling if they’ll ever be well enough to join their captain again. Even if most of the others died . . . these two may be suffering from the worst fate. “I’m going to talk with some of my men to lay out some ideas for what we’re going to do next. You two will definitely have a say in what happens to you but for now you probably need some rest.”
The pair looked at him with unsure eyes. Shanks closed his eyes and shook his head. “Luffy is a good man. He had his flaws and I’m sure you know that, but he defends what he cherishes to the death.” Shanks turned his head to where his arm used to be. “Sometimes people ask me why I’m not bothered I only have one arm. Sure it’s a little harder to do some things but I think I’m doing pretty well for anyone, never mind a one armed man.”
Nami stared at him. “I don’t get it.”
Shanks smiled. “So he never told you,” he said quietly. He cleared his throat and began to tell them a story. “When Luffy was just a kid, my crew was staying in his home town. He liked us, we were his friends, and one day he got really mad at us for not standing up to a bunch of thugs who came into our hangout. I think we got into a fight with him or something, but you know what he did? Even though we were mad at each other, when those thugs came back . . . Luffy defended us. A seven year old kid stood up to a band of mountain bandits who were all twice his size or bigger.” He closed his eyes. “We stepped in to try and keep something from happening to him, but he got dragged away anyways. And in the process of getting him back . . .”
Sanji felt his hands start to shake. “You lost your arm . . . to save Luffy.”
“Yeah. That’s the short version of it,” said Shank.
“Sanji-kun?” Nami asked,
Memories of seeing Zeff without his leg for the first time flooded Sanji’s head. He was crying, but he couldn’t talk. Nami put a hand on his shoulder and was looking at him in confusion, but all the young man could see was images of his foster father, and it was making his stomach churn. He put his face in his hands.
“No, no, seriously, it’s okay! I get along just fine without it! I’m one of the Four Emperors!”
“It’s not that,” Sanji said. He closed his eyes. “It just hit home. Someone I care about lost a leg.”
Shanks stood, patting Sanji on the head. “Are they doing okay?”
“He owns the best restaurant in the entire East Blue,” he said.
“. . . you don’t mean Red Foot Zeff.”
Sanji nodded. “He adopted me when I was ten. And it was my fault he lost his leg. We didn’t always get along . . . we fought most of the time, especially once I got older . . . but we cared about each other. He was basically my dad, and I spent too much time arguing with him and not even time respecting him and trying to make our dysfunctional little family work . . .”
Shanks hugged Sanji, surprising the young man and startling him. It snapped him back into reality, making him realize how wet and salty his cheeks were. “I’m sure he knows, and I’m sure he misses you. But you have to trust me on this one - right now, the best thing for the two of you to do is stay here on the island and let the world think you’re dead until you’ve had a chance to recover - if you even decide to go back to Luffy. You’ve got a long road to recovery ahead of you, and most of its going to be up here,” he said, pointing at his head, and then to his chest, “and in here. You’re going to gain back all the weight you lost pretty easily, and your hair will grow back, and the withdrawal will get better and better, and all that will probably happen soon enough. But emotionally? That’s going to take time, patience, and support.”
Sanji and Nami let that sink in. Shanks was right - right now, they had to stay on the island. They were in no shape to go looking for Luffy anytime soon, and even if he did show up they wouldn’t be able to go with him. The only way they were safe from Tesla is if he thought they were dead or someone else killed him first. Shanks was going to find Luffy, sure, but they didn’t know how long that was going to take.
The sound of the door opening and closing downstairs could be heard, followed by Ria shrieking. Shanks sighed. “One moment - it looks like my reconnaissance team is back and I need to go sort things out with them.” He politely excused himself and disappeared out into the hallway, calling after the blacksmith and seamstress to “chill the fuck out”.
Sometime after Shanks left, Mac had woken up, Gala had shown up, and everyone but the mayor and the doctor were chased out of the house (despite Ria’s protests). After giving his patients a quick exam to make sure they were okay and giving them warm milk to help them relax, the doctor also prepared to return home.
“You’re not mad at us, are you?” asked Sanji, lying in his own bed with his milk in both hands.
Gala shook his head as he pulled his coat on. “Think nothing of it,” he said. He smoothed out the garment and began circling his scarf around his neck. “Not all pirates and evil, and even if you had told me I don’t think I would has suspected you were the evil type. Even if that wasn’t enough, Shanks has given me his word that he has a lot of respect for your captain and trusts the two of you based on that alone.”
Nami put down her finished mug on the nightstand. “You guys must really trust Shanks.”
The doctor closed his, chuckling lightly. “I’m more loyal to him than my own king,” he said. Gala sighed and turned to them. “Get some rest. Shanks will be back in the morning and I’m sure he’s going to want to talk with you some more - I think whether they’re wanted or not Miss Elstar and Mr. Braeburn will be back as well.”
“Shanks said they were watching . . . that man’s . . . ship,” said Sanji.
“They spotted the ship and realized what he was after. There are two things defending this island when Shanks and his men are away. Usually, all we need is the first line of defense - the flag of the Red Hair Pirates,” said Gala. “Just its presence is warning enough to most who try to bother the island - I doubt Shanks needed to do much more than just intimidate your tormentor away.”
“And the other?” asked Nami.
“Miss Elstar and Mr. Braeburn are both trained in combat and the only ones on the island - aside from, perhaps, the two of you - who have any specialized training of the sort. Prior to the event that led to Shanks coming to this island, there was nothing like that here. There is a sheriff, but an exciting day for him is taking care of a rowdy drunk, and there was never a Marine base here. Certainly the island was aware of the piracy on the Grand Line, but for whatever reason our island was almost never visited by pirates and when it was no serious incidents happened - they drank, traded, and left. Over the years those who knew how to handle weapons grew out of practice, out of shape, or died.”
“What happened that led to Shanks protecting this island?” Sanji asked.
“I wasn’t here at the time and I don’t know all of the details, but the island was attacked and devastated by pirates - as I explained before, no one knew how to fight and the only one who stood his ground was Mac. I don’t suppose the two of you noticed his limp?” he said. This caught the attention of the young pirates. “Mac didn’t stand a chance, but he stood his ground anyways. So one of them took out his knee, and they kept him alive to watch the carnage.”
“Mac . . .” said Nami.
“That didn’t last too long - Shanks and his men had been on the other side of the island, having heard rumors about how good the hard apple cider here was and wanting to, well, get drunk. Naturally there was a lot of noise going on where the other pirates had landed, and when Shanks and his men went to investigate, saw what happened with Mac, and, well, they were impressed by his guts. Mac’s never been very physically apt, but doing what he did required a lot of bravery. So Shanks and his men took care of the rest of the pirates, one thing led to another, and the island has been flying under his flag ever since.”
“And Ria and Braeburn?” asked Sanji. He sat up, leaning on his knees. “I saw Braeburn’s war hammer when I was at the forge last night, but Ria doesn’t seem the type - does she fight with fabric or something? Does she have a fabric Devil Fruit or something?” He furrowed his brow in thought. “Or maybe she sews her opponents together?”
Gala raised an eyebrow. “She uses nitoryu - two sword style fighting. And no neither of them has any Devil Fruit abilities,” he said dryly. “Of course since then Mac and Shanks organized a small militia to defend the island should someone try to cause an incident - a few of his men train them whenever they stop by the island. They certainly aren’t anything much, but Shanks thinks they’re good enough to hold off the average pirate crew on the Grand Line, especially with the talents of our seamstress and blacksmith backing them up.”
“But that doesn’t make any sense,” said Nami. “You said no one on the island could fight.”
The doctor shook his head. “That’s correct - those two weren’t here eight years ago. Neither was I, for that matter,” said Gala. He shook his head. “It’s getting late and I think it’s important the two of you get some rest so I’ll save the details for another day, but as you can imagine this island doesn’t see a lot of visitors or newcomers aside from the occasional newborn baby. Since Shanks took over the island there’s only been a handful of people who’ve moved here, and it’s always an unusual circumstance that brings them.”
“Like us,” said Sanji.
Gala patted both of their shoulders. “Don’t worry about that right now - your first priority is getting well. Shanks will be by again tomorrow - I’m sure he wants to talk more with the two of you to figure out what he wants to do next. In the meantime I’m going to head home for the night, one of you is going to hop into the other’s bed, and we’re all going to get a good night’s rest.”
Sanji and Nami glanced away from Gala, giving him an awkward good night. The doctor turned off the lights and then they did exactly what he said they were going to do. The cook climbed into the navigator’s bed and wrapped his arms around her, resting his head on the pillow he’d dragged from “his” bed.
“Why can’t we sleep if we aren’t together?” asked Nami.
“We did it for almost a year - our bodies are probably used to it or something,” said Sanji. “And I don’t know about you but Tesla almost finding us . . . I’m still scared. I don’t want to try breaking that habit tonight.” He squeezed her tighter, and Nami could feel he was tense. “Besides, everything we had before Tesla took us is gone - you’re the only thing I have left from my old life.”
Nami nodded. “Right now, you are my most precious treasure.”
“Coming from you that means a lot.”
“Yeah, well, right now I’m not sure treasure is doing it for me anymore.”
“I hear you there. Ria’s pretty hot but she isn’t doing anything for me.”
Nami patted his cheek. “It’s okay.”
Sanji frowned, looking away from her. “I don’t want to talk about that right now, actually.”
Something wasn’t right with the cook. He looked lost. He was right - Ria was pretty, sure, but he hadn’t reacted to her the way he usually did. At first Nami thought that was, well, maybe a good thing, but now she was worried. Sure, she didn’t feel the need to hoard treasure anymore, but she didn’t want to reject the idea of financial security completely. Sanji-kun, are you . . .?
In that moment it didn’t matter. For the moment they were safe and that monster couldn’t touch them. He didn’t even know they were alive, because now the whole world was going to think they were dead. This was their chance to get better - they’d figure out everything that needed to get fixed as they went along. “All right,” she said.
The laid there in silence, holding each other until they fell asleep.
The following morning, Shanks brought over a stack of wanted posters reflecting the Straw Hat’s current associates and members. Sanji and Nami saw that Ace had apparently allied himself with Luffy at some point, and for some reason Mr. 2 Bon Clay was in the stack as well. Nearly everyone had gotten some kind of bounty increase, and Brook had gotten an updated photo.
“Not long before the two of you went missing, Ace ended up in Impel Down,” Shanks explained. “Luffy and your crew broke in and busted him out, but I suspect that they were also looking for the two of you in there as well. Everyone except your weird looking antler dog got a bounty increase and they picked up that Mr. 2 character.”
“The ‘weird looking antler dog’ is a reindeer who ate the Human Human Fruit,” Nami explained.
“Oh?” said Shanks.
“Yeah. He’s actually our ship’s doctor,” said Sanji.
“. . . yeah that sounds like something Luffy would pick up,” said Shanks. He crossed his legs. “I thought you guys might want something, even if it’s just pictures from their wanted posters. You’ve got a big pile of nothing right now so . . .” He looked away, nervous. “I’m sorry, was that rude?”
“It’s true,” said Nami. “Everything we have right now has been charity.”
“We’ll find a way to make it up,” said Sanji.
Shanks thought about this. “Actually, that’s not a half bad idea,” he said. “Think about it. You guys are going to be here a long time, yes? I’m not saying you need to run out NOW, but you’re probably better off trying to integrate with the other people on the island - you know, blend in a little. And that will probably warrant jobs and places to live - or a place to live, if you wanted to share a space.”
“Yeah, we can probably do that,” said Nami. She tried to hold back a grimace. Sanji-kun was a chef before he became a pirate, but what could I do? They probably already have maps of the island, they probably don’t need a navigator . . . what the hell am I going to do? I don’t have any skills that would get me a job here! She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Worry about it later - you and Sanji-kun still have a lot of healing to do.
“Sounds reasonable,” said Sanji. He shuffled through the wanted posters. “I probably want to get back into the swing of things - Luffy isn’t a picky eater, but he definitely has his favorites.” He chuckled. “Braeburn was telling me there are some small restaurants and cafes on the island - I can probably find work at one of those places, yes?”
“Probably,” said Shanks. “And you, Miss Nami?”
“Nami is fine, and I’ll figure something out,” she said. She was a little nervous though, and not just about finding employment on Apple Island once she was healthy enough to find it. Nami was clutching the edges of Robin’s poster, but keeping her eyes on Ace and Mr. 2’s posters. She wondered what made Ace decide to leave Whitebeard’s services, and more importantly, where the former Baroque Works agent fit into things. Did Luffy replace us? I guess he would need a navigator and cook to keep things running smoothly in our absence . . .
Shanks didn’t notice Nami’s distress. “Hey, so, I want to introduce you guys to three of my best men. Although I definitely think it would be good for you guys to get out and about on the island once you’re doing better, I don’t think it’s a good idea for too many people on my ship to know about you guys to keep the risk of you getting found out as down as possible.”
“But your three best men you’d like to have in on this,” said Sanji, trying to act like he wasn’t paying extra attention to Zoro’s wanted poster. “Because you need some help in finding Luffy and the others.” Shanks nodded, stood, and politely excused himself to fetch these men he spoke of.
Shanks returned and introduced Sanji and Nami to his three most trusted men (a tall man with a gun named Benn Beckham, a fat man who was constantly eating named Lucky Roux, and a marksman with dreadlocks named Yasopp), and at that point the pair remembered something INCREDIBLY important about one of them.
Nami gasped. “You’re Usopp’s dad!”
Shanks was about to go into something about their game plan to find Luffy when the outburst happened. Nami covered her mouth with her hands, worried she’d done something wrong, but it was comforting to see someone who looked a little like Usopp. She could mostly see it in his eyes and his smile, and it was almost enough to bring her to tears.
“You . . . know my boy?” asked Yasopp.
Seeing that Nami wasn’t quite composed, Sanji stepped in. “He’s one of us,” he explained. Yasopp was staring at the two of them dreamily, anxious to hear more about his son. “He’s actually been with Luffy longer than I have, and he used to talk about you and how much be wants to be like you all the time.”
“He’s really smart - he’s an inventor and a handyman. He made my weapon - it’s a metal pole that produces hot and cold air to create small storm systems,” said Nami. “He’s kind of a genius when it comes to stuff like that. And an amazing sniper! He even beat Daddy the Father in a sniper’s duel with a slingshot!”
Yasopp was beaming. “That’s amazing!”
Sanji grinned, shuffling through the wanted posters for Sogeking’s poster. “Here’s his wanted poster - Sogeking is sort of . . . it’s complicated, but anytime Sogeking does something it’s really Usopp.” He handed the poster to Yasopp, who was looking at it with tears in his eyes. Proud, manly tears.
“He’s got his mother’s nose,” he said, wiping away some of the stray tears.
Benn patted Yasopp’s shoulder. “There, there.”
Lucky Roux ripped into another leg of something (turkey, maybe?). “So let’s send Yasopp.”
“Hn?” asked Shanks.
“Well, remember when you left Luffy all those years ago you said you didn’t want to meet with him until he became a great pirate?” asked Benn. “I think Sanji and Nami will agree that, for Luffy, this is nothing less than taking Roger’s crown and declaring himself the King of the Pirates. So, really, you shouldn’t be the one to go looking for him.”
“That’s a point,” said Shanks, looking like he was just realizing this.
“So then we can send Yasopp out on a private errand - it would keep the Marines and Tesla from getting suspicious, too. Sending out Yasopp and a handful of guys for a private search party isn’t anything suspect, but you and the flagship trying to find Luffy is going to raise all kinds of red flags we don’t want up,” said Benn. “Yasopp never made any kind of promise to keep himself from Usopp and it might be good for them to see each other after so many years apart.”
“An act of good faith - sending someone on Shanks’ crew with a personal tie to one of ours will add legitimacy to Yasopp’s claim for the rest of the crew who doesn’t know and trust Shanks like Luffy does,” said Sanji. “There’s no way Shanks would know to send Yasopp if Nami and I hadn’t told you guys Usopp was one of ours.”
“I would have probably sent Benn instead - being the first mate and all,” said Shanks.
“So we send Yasopp as our proof of like for Sanji and Nami,” said Benn. “All agreed?”
Yasopp looked at Shanks excitedly. Clearly, he wanted to see his son.
Shanks nodded. “Sounds like a plan to me.”
One day later, Yasopp and a handful of Shanks’ men left the island to look for Luffy.
Two days after that, Shanks and the rest of his crew prepared to leave.
Shanks’ ship was still visible from the cliff side near Mac’s home. Bundled up in coats and blankets and with Cobbler lying at their feet, Sanji and Nami watched privately as the Red Hair Pirates left. Nami rested her head on Sanji’s shoulder, closing her eyes as she gripped the blanket over her shoulders.
Cobbler whuffed in the silence. Nami cracked a small grin as she reached down to scratch him behind the ears. Sanji joined her, and the dog licked his hand. They continued to watch as the ship got farther and farther away, until it was nothing more than a little speck of light on the horizon. Nami and Sanji grabbed each other’s hands and squeezed.
They barely noticed Mac, Gala, Ria, and Braeburn show up just as the light of Shanks’ ship vanished, now too far away to see. Cobbler did take notice, however, and barked a greeting. Sanji and Nami turned to their hosts, to see Ria balancing a tray of hot, spiced apple cider, Gala and Braeburn were carrying chopped wood - firewood - and Mac was carrying some sort of bag. The mayor extended the bag towards them as the doctor and blacksmith started to piece together a fire.
Sanji and Nami opened the bag and paled at its contents. The thin, sickly colored hospital gowns that scientist had dressed them in - it was what they’d been wearing when they’d escaped, and for some reason the islanders hadn’t gotten rid of them. The gowns still smelled like Tesla’s ship, and the scent brought back some of the horrible memories. Being tied down for hours on end, being thrown in the Tank for poor behavior or receiving electric shocks to get them to stop saying their own names, and spending every night in that cold, lonely little cell with only each other for comfort.
Sanji and Nami understood why they’d been given these things. The bon fire wasn’t being lit for warmth, it was being lit for a different purpose. Mac and Ria looked at them with sad eyes as Gala and Braeburn stepped away from the flames. Sanji and Nami looked at each other, slowly nodded, and pulled the shirts from the bag. They gripped each other’s hands tightly as they approached the now roaring fire.
They tossed the shirts in.
The shirts ignited quickly, and they had to step back to avoid getting burnt. Watching the fibers blacken and curl and shrink was somewhat satisfying, though. They hugged as the hospital gowns withered away into ashes, flying up into the night sky where they would never have to see them again, where they couldn’t remind them of the horrors they’d endured.
Now they could pick up the pieces of their shattered lives.
Author’s Notes
And that ends the first “act” of Mass x Acceleration. The next “act” is going to focus on their adjustment to life on Apple Island, introduce more of the islanders, and spend a little more time with Ria and Braeburn.
An important thing to note here is that MxA does not have a “three act structure” (although you can probably squish the “acts” I’m going to have into one)- hence why the term “act” is in parentheses. I guess you might call them movements, with over-arching themes and plots dictating how things are going to go.
Now as far as “who showed up on the Thousand Sunny”, that is a difficult question to answer. ORIGINALLY it was supposed to be Shanks. However, as has been pointed out in reviews, Shanks doesn’t want to see Luffy until Luffy is worthy of being a pirate and this would be stretching it for an exception. So I decided to send Yasopp instead.
Now before we get onto act two, I want some feedback from you guys so I can see what’s working, what’s not working, and what’s keeping you all coming back for more. Obviously I can’t make you answer these questions but I’d appreciate it if you did:
Of the original characters (Mac, Gala, Ria, Braeburn, Cobbler, the twins), which is your favorite and why? Is there a character you actively dislike (this is different from a least favorite as you can still like a least favorite)?
What is your favorite part of Mass x Acceleration so far?
What is your LEAST favorite part of Mass x Acceleration so far?
Do you have any predictions for the story based on what you’ve read? This can include anything you might have picked up from the other stories (A Force Against Inertia, “Sought”, or “Vanished”) as well.
When we return it’ll be after a short time skip (a few weeks their time, hopefully not our time @_@).
Dixxy