Mock Town announced itself before coming into view. Voices drifted over the water—laughter harsh, jeers loud, and private conversations buzzing beneath. Liam stepped onto the dock last, his boots landing softly on warped wood. The air smelled of salt, spilled liquor, and blood not fully cleaned away.
The town sprawled ahead, crooked buildings standing out in stubborn defiance. Pirates lounged in doorways, watching the crew with curiosity or disdain. A three-fingered man spat. Another, pistol at his hip, grinned, sizing them up.
Luffy bounded ahead, grinning. "This place is *wild*!"
Nami's hand hovered near her clima-tact as her eyes scanned the alleys and the half-open tavern door. She had been in towns where the law was whoever survived. Manageable, if you stayed sharp.
Robin's eyes traced every crack, face calm. She had seen worse, but here, silence could cut as sharply as any knife.
Vivi moved with steady steps, just behind Nami and next to Robin. She kept her chin up, doing her best to match the others' pace. Carue pressed against her leg, feathers ruffled as they moved down the street together.
Liam didn't sp
He noted the crowd parting for a heavyset man with a scarred lip, laughter stopping near a window, and the quick glint of a knife. This wasn't chaos—just a different order.
He shifted his stance slightly. The air here felt like a challenge.
Liam was last into Mock Town, sharp-eyed and alert. Danger here differed from the East Blue.
Mock Town vibrated with barely hidden violence. The crew's steps vanished in the noise. Ahead, a squat, leaning building creaked its rusty sign: The Rip Tide. Trouble would find them here soon enough.
Bellamy was the kind of person who always found strangers first.
The door swung open before Luffy could reach for it, revealing a man with a grin too wide for his face, gold glinting at his wrists and throat. His eyes locked onto Luffy's straw hat, and the grin sharpened.
"Look at this," Bellamy announced, voice carrying over the sudden hush. "Fresh meat walking in like they own the place."
Sarquiss lounged against the bar, fingers tapping the hilt of his sword. "You hear that, Bellamy? They're asking about Sky Island."
Bellamy threw his head back and laughed, the sound bouncing off the walls. "Sky Island? You're kidding me. You actually believe that fairy tale?" He spread his arms, addressing the room. "These idiots think there's an island in the clouds!"
The bar erupted—not in laughter, but in a low, eager murmur. Patrons leaned forward, drinks forgotten, eyes bright with the anticipation of a spectacle.
Luffy blinked. "Yeah. We're going there."
Bellamy's smile twisted. He stepped forward, tension in his legs hinting at the Spring-Spring Fruit. "People like you," his voice almost gentle, "are why pirates get laughed at. Chasing dreams over gold."
Sarquiss pushed off the bar, his grin all teeth. "Let's teach them what real pirates care about."
The first punch came fast, Bellamy's fist snapping forward like a released spring. Luffy's head snapped back, blood arcing through the air. He hit the floor hard.
Zoro's hand twitched toward his swords—then stopped. He exhaled sharply through his nose and stood still.
Sarquiss kicked Luffy in the ribs, the crack of bone audible. "Not so tough now, huh?"
Liam stayed still, fingers loose, breathing even. He watched Luffy curl, push up on his elbows—no anger, no defiance, simply acceptance.
Bellamy loomed over him. "No comeback? No big speech?" He spat, the glob landing inches from Luffy's face. "Pathetic."
Luffy got up, blank-faced—not angry, not feigning calm, simply standing, untouched by fight or pride.
Bellamy's grin faltered for a fraction of a second—confusion flickering where cruelty had been carved. Then he scoffed, turning away. "Waste of time." He jerked his chin at Sarquiss. "Take the gold."
Sarquiss grinned, scooping Cricket's pouch from the counter with a flourish.
Outside, the street hushed. Afternoon light flattened the dirt, the boards, the blood congealing on Luffy's cheek.
Zoro spat red onto the ground, rolling his shoulder. "You're gonna let that stand?"
Luffy rubbed his ribs absently. "Heard something."
Usopp hovered, fingers twitching near his slingshot. "Heard *what*?"
Luffy tilted his head, considering. "A bird."
Nami's grip on her clima-tact tightened. "A *bird*?"
"Yeah." Luffy scratched his nose. "Singing."
Sanji's cigarette trembled between his lips. "You let them—"
"They weren't the fight." Luffy shrugged.
Robin's gaze lingered on Luffy—the vacancy of anger, the ease in his stance. Her fingers absently traced her book's spine.
Chopper pushed forward, paws already glowing pink. "Let me—"
Luffy waved him off. "I'm good."
Zoro didn't protest when Chopper turned to him instead.
Liam watched Luffy in the flat light, blood drying, unbothered as if he'd stubbed his toe. Not patience or wisdom—just a choice, made and done.
Liam nodded.
Luffy grinned back, bright as the sun cutting through Mock Town's grime.
Behind them, the bar's door swung open again. Heavy footsteps sounded, followed by a laugh that rumbled like thunder.
Blackbeard paused at the threshold, his gaze sliding over the crew before settling on Liam.
Liam didn't look away.
Teach's smile stayed steady, but his eyes grew sharper, as if he was sizing things up. He tipped his hat and walked by, chuckling.
Liam let him go.
For now.
The bar's stale air clung to them as Blackbeard's laughter faded into Mock Town. His crew followed: Doc Q's cough, Burgess's bulk, Van Augur's quiet focus. They were pieces of something bigger, just out of sight.
Robin's fingers tightened on her book. "That man," she murmured so only Liam heard, "is the kind of storm that drowns you before you know it's here."
Liam exhaled through his nose, watching Blackbeard's back disappear around a corner. "Yeah."
Luffy stretched his arms overhead, popping his knuckles. "Weird guy."
Sanji flicked ash from his cigarette, eyes narrowed. "Weird doesn't cover it."
Zoro adjusted his swords, gaze tracking the space Blackbeard had occupied. "He's trouble."
Nami chewed her lip, thumb brushing the clima-tact at her hip. "We should—"
"Not here." Liam cut her off, quiet but final. The street wasn't the place for this conversation. Not with Mock Town's eyes and ears lurking in every shadow.
Robin's smile was thin, humorless. "Agreed."
The crew moved on to the next run-down tavern, hoping its walls overheard less. Liam lingered, heartbeat steady and strong, like a drum.
Blackbeard knew—not everything, but enough. He sensed Liam's stare, the promise between them like a waiting blade.
Liam flexed his fingers, the ghost of a threat still humming in his bones.
Teach would remember.
And so would he.
The next tavern was worse. Grimy walls, air thick with stale beer and something fouler. A pirate missing an ear stared at Nami—she stepped around him, her elbow brushing Liam as a quiet warning.
Luffy flopped onto a bench, stretching his legs beneath the table. "Meat first, then answers."
Sanji sighed, already scanning the room for a kitchen door. "Priorities, Captain."
Robin slid into the seat beside Liam, her fingers tracing the grain of the wooden table. "You knew him." It wasn't a question.
Liam watched the bartender wipe a glass with a rag that might have been clean three years ago. "Yeah."
Vivi leaned forward, voice hushed. "Who *is* he?"
"Bad news." Liam tapped the table once, a silent punctuation. "The kind that doesn't go away."
Zoro folded his arms, scowling. "So we make it go away."
Liam shook his head. "Not yet."
Chopper fidgeted with his hat. "But—"
"Not yet," Liam repeated, softer this time. The unspoken *not here* hung between them.
Nami exhaled sharply, counting the coins in her purse like they might have multiplied. "Fine. But when it's time—"
"When it's time," Liam agreed, meeting her gaze, "you'll know."
Outside, the wind picked up, rattling the tavern's cracked windows. Somewhere in Mock Town, Blackbeard was moving—plotting, drinking, laughing that laugh that rolled like distant thunder.
Liam flexed his fingers under the table, feeling the phantom weight of a blade not yet drawn.
Teach would remember.
And so would he.
The tavern door swung open, letting in a gust of salt-laced wind and the sound of Mock Town's relentless chaos. A man stumbled in, clutching a bottle of rum like it was the only thing keeping him upright. His gaze swept over the Straw Hats—lingering on Robin's crossed legs, Nami's scowling face—before he snorted and staggered toward the bar.
Robin's fingers stilled on the table's grain. "You spoke to him."
Liam didn't look at her. "Yeah."
"What did you—"
"Enough."
Nami's foot tapped under the table. "You can't just *not* tell us—"
"He's hunting," Liam said, finally meeting her eyes. "Not us. Someone else."
Zoro's grip tightened around his tankard. "Who?"
Liam exhaled slowly. "Doesn't matter."
Luffy slurped noisily from his bowl of stew, oblivious to the tension. "Meat's good."
Usopp's knee bounced under the table. "But—"
"It's handled," Liam said, voice low enough that only the crew caught it.
Robin's smile didn't reach her eyes. "Is it?"
Outside, the wind howled through the alleyways, carrying the scent of rain and something darker. Somewhere in Mock Town, Blackbeard was laughing—that deep, rumbling chuckle that sounded like a landslide gathering speed.
Liam flexed his fingers, feeling the ghost of Teach's gaze like a brand.
He could not stop what was coming. He had never believed he could. But Blackbeard had heard him, and sometimes that was all you could do. He had done it, and now they would move forward.