The Tinkerer [One Piece FanFic]

Chapter Four

~Maddox’s POV~

                Warm rays of sunlight kissed my face as salty sea spray splashed up in beautiful incandescent arcs shooting miniscule prisms of light as they crossed the sun beams. A cool briny breeze swept around me reminding me of the days when I still had my father and he’d take me out on a fishing boat. My heart hurt as I watched a younger version of myself sailing out with him and one of his underwater breathing mechanisms so he could scour the ocean floor for material to use in our inventing. He didn’t laugh at me when I told him I wanted to be a pirate some day; he just smiled at me warmly and told me I could do anything I set my mind to. Father was a dreamer and taught me to dream and to do everything I could to follow my dreams, no matter what anyone else thought.

                “Maddox look out!” Nami suddenly cried.

                I somehow sensed that something was flying straight toward me; I could hear it slicing through the air and miraculously reached up and caught the fishing rod before it could smack me in the face. Luffy was grinning from ear to ear while perched atop the hull of the ship next to Usopp and Chopper each holding a fishing rod.

                “Want to help catch dinner?” Luffy beamed completely ignoring Nami and Sanji yelling at him for nearly taking my face off.

                I smiled, “Sure.”  Oswyn trotted along behind me as I scampered off and swung my legs over the hull to sit with Luffy, Usopp and Chopper.

                Though I’d only been sailing with the crew for two days now, I already felt a sense of belonging. I’d begun to feel something I hadn’t felt in such a long time. This place, this ship, and my new friends, this was home. With them, I could be myself. They didn’t laugh at my inventions like so many others had in the village.

                “Do you know the island we’re headed to, Maddox?” Usopp asked curiously as the four of us cast our lines simultaneously.

                “I never really left Creo, but my dad used to tell me all kinds of stories from his days as a pirate, I think the next island we’ll come to is Long Ring Long Land, or at least that’s what dad called it.” I giggled, “He said it was a funny place.”

                “Guys! I got one!” Chopper cheered happily as he struggled to reel in his catch with his hooves.

                A big dark shadow loomed in the water below as Usopp abandoned his pole to help Chopper reel in his catch. Whatever Chopper ‘caught’ was bigger than our ship. Usopp and Chopper finally glanced toward the water, their eyes having been shut tight during their struggle, and for a moment I thought they’d pop right out of their sockets they grew wide as they spotted the dark shadow.

                “AH!” The cowardly pair screamed while clinging to each other for dear life.

                Luffy continued grinning from ear to ear, “Awesome!” He exclaimed as the beast finally surfaced. It was big, bigger than big. The colossal seaking reared its big serpent like head glaring down at us with glowing golden eyes and bearing razor sharp fishing boat sized fangs.

                “What’s all the noise over here?” Nami sighed abandoning her task momentarily to see what was wrong. Her eyes grew wide as saucers as she saw the massive beast and she joined the panicking duo with a shrill scream of horror.

                “Nami-swan!” Sanji burst out of the kitchen in a silly apron to see what had spooked Nami before staring at the seaking in awe and preparing himself for a fight.

                I looked to the remaining crew members. Robin was still engulfed in her reading either oblivious to the trouble or confident enough in the others’ abilities not to worry. Zoro was miraculously napping. It was baffling how he could manage to sleep over the screams of Usopp, Chopper and Nami.

                The colossal monster before us lunged, gnashing its sharp pointed teeth at us.  Usopp, Chopper and Nami all looked ready to faint and slipped to the deck of the ship in a trembling heap. Sanji charged the beast with a barrage of deadly kicks.

                “Gomu Gomu no Gatling!” Luffy cried and I stared in awe as he followed with a rapid volley of punches. His arms stretched to hit the target but he moved so quick it looked like over a hundred fists were pummeling the seaking.

                After Luffy’s attack, I was sure the beast would collapse. Though it now looked weakened due to the onslaught, it charged once more. Well it was now or never, it was time to prove myself as a part of this crew. I stood atop the hull as my heart pumped adrenaline through my veins and faced the monster with a smile. Internally I was a frightened, anxious mess of emotions, but somehow I managed to remain cool and collected on the outside.

                As the seaking prepared its next attack, I reached for my copper tool belt fastened loosely around my waist. A sense of calm washed over me as my hands gripped the ends of two sturdy steel wrenches. So long as I had my tools and my inventions, I was an unstoppable force. When I was a child I used to have pretend swordfights with my dad using wrenches and other various tools around the shop. I’d never actually picked up a real sword; my tools were all I needed.

                The wrenches spun easily in the palms of my hands, drawing the attention of the seaking. A thought crossed my mind before I launched my attack, I didn’t have a cool name to call it. I’d look like a fool if I just launched an attack without giving it a flashy name. As I was lost in my internal dilemma the wrenches spinning in my hands began to pick up speed. Got it!

                “Steel Boomerang!” I cried as I launched my attack and hurled the rapidly spinning wrenches at the colossal seaking. That sounded way lame aloud.

                “WOAH!” Luffy cheered as my wrenches cut through the seaking with ease, like a knife through butter, and returned to the deck still spinning swiftly.

                I caught my wrenches with ease and watched victoriously as the seaking’s golden eyes became unfocused and it collapsed into the water. We did it!

                “Maddie-chan!” Sanji called with a goofy dazed expression.

                “Maddie-chan?” I asked curiously as I felt my heart swell.

                Nami smiled, “I like it. It’s a fitting nickname.”

                Nickname? They were giving me a nickname? No one had ever given me a nickname before, though my only friends were mechanical animals lacking the ability to speak. Even the villagers, well some called me Mad Scientist Jr. and on occasion Gear Head and sometimes even Freak, but I’d never been given a nice nickname.

                “Is something wrong, Maddox?” Usopp asked worried as a single tear slid down my cheek and fell to the deck.

                I couldn’t help but smile, “It’s been awhile since I’ve been this happy.”