Fresh Faces and Fresh Starts!

[SnowDog]

To say this place was what he was expecting would be the understatement of the year. The weather along the ride to Pirate’s Market was bright, sunny, practically wonderful. In an instant it all changed so suddenly, thick gray clouds and fog covered the island in a blanket of darkness the likes of which Goji has never experienced before. Still, if he wanted to become a pirate, he was gonna need a crew and this place sounded like the perfect place for him to start searching.

Pulling his dinky little raft towards one of approaching docks, the half-blood tied his vessel to a small post before disembarking and making his way inland. The sights and sounds of the bazaar-like island was like music to his ears. Merchants were trying to persuade him into their shops, con men trying to harass him into buying objects he didn’t need, there was an energy to this place Goji couldn’t quite place but it was a fresh and new experience, only slightly offset by the drab and depressing weather.

Goji approached one of the residential establishments, a small tavern sandwiched in between a couple of the shops. Upon entering, he was greeted by the differing aromas of fresh cooked food and the sweat and stink of the various pirate patrons. Few of those already sitting at the bar paid him any mind as he entered before returning to their own drinks and previous conversation. ”Well I better start asking around then...” he internalized as he approached the bar top. He spun the barstool around a it before setting himself up at the seat.

The barkeeper approached him to take his order, a rugged old man with a burly gray mustache and a few dozen scars scattered across his face, each one telling a different story.

“I think I’m good on drinks for now, however I did want to ask you, where would one go to find some possible crew mates?” The silverback captain inquired resting his arms against the bar top. Those half way listening in crooked their brow at the inquiry, some unintentionally snarling their upper lip a bit. Goji continued on, “Do you know anyone that’s looking for a crew you could point me towards?”

[goldberg]

It was a rough time finding a ride on the high seas for Glen not a lot of people had seen a Mink and even less trusted them. The children always seemed fascinated by him but the grown ups were always scared of him, which was upsetting for him. Finally he found passage on a ship as long as he agreed to stay under the boat with the cargo. He was not happy about the agreement but he needed to get to a new place to find some people to adventure with.



The trip was rather boring for him all he did was sit below and make sure none of the cargo got broken. Finally the captain came down and told him that they had landed on a island and it was as far as they were willing to take him.



As he climbed out of the ship he saw that they were at a island that looked like a huge market and the people all seemed dirty and mad looking. He left the ship thanking the captain for taking him this far and then he headed into the market to see what he could find. People kept staring at him and some of them saw him then started to follow him. He made sure not to head down any alleys that he could be cornered in.



He found a small tavern he slipped in and kept to the shadows and found a table in the corner away from everyone. He sat down to catch his breath and watched to see if the men had followed him in. After a few when they did not come in he concluded that he had lost them.

[SnowDog]

“This isn’t the best place to ask around.” The barkeep responded to the half-breed’s question. “You’re better off standing in the center of town with a sign around your neck. People in here are looking to unwind.” Those halfway listening to Goji turned towards him, sinister smiles stretched across their visages. The barkeeper picked up on this and decided to take a step back to let the pirates take it from him. If things got out of hand he could step in, but better to teach this kid the real way of pirates than let him go around making a bad name for everyone.

“Well what do we have here, boys?!” A rugged patron said, stepping up behind Goji’s stool, throwing his arm around the halfbreed’s shoulder as if they were good friends. Goji felt the man’s grip around his arm tighten some, failing to restrain his true intentions for the fresh-eyed captain. “Another wannabe pirate chasing the dreams and stories mommy would tell them before bed?!” This drew quite a few chuckles from some of the nearby patrons. “Listen here, kid! You picked the wrong town to come looking for friends in! Everyone here already works within their own crew, and announcing yourself like that just put a big target on your head! The competition around here is- well, let’s just say it’s pretty cutthroat! Eeeehahahaha!” Our the corner of his eye, the half-monkey boy could see the man with his arm around him was slowly drawing a blade.

“Oh! Haha, I get it!” Goji exclaimed with a wide smile on his face, laughing along to the Pirate’s joke, much to the surprise of those who were just chiding him, “Hey that’s cool and all, but I was just asking a question! If you’re all spoken for then I’ll go look somewhere else, thanks for helping!” The men that gathered around him stood in disbelief, they were shocked! What was with this freak? The man still wrapped around Goji leaned in closer and spoke in a slithering, hushed tone.

“I don’t think you do get it, you’re not walking out of here!” Before the halfbreed could further react, there was a sharp poke against his side, the man’s brandish knife now resting near millimeters away from his skin. Goji took a moment to analyze the situation. This wasn’t the first time he’s been put in a corner like this, his time spent in underground fighting rings tended to attract roughnecked individuals like this guy and his cronies. Still, for one of his first outings on his own as a pirate, this was quite the predicament he found himself in.

[Suriko]

There had been another pair of eyes watching the interaction between Goji and the other patrons of the bar. Though ti was not from a location most of the bar patrons were aware of. Down near a corner wall, in a hole that looked like it had been made by some kind of rodent, stood a rather diminutive humanoid. No taller than any other small creature, the man gripped at the shaft of his weapon, glaive ready to strike as he jumped to the wall above the hole. Just as it seemed that the small dwarf would smack into the wall, the hard surface seemed to stretch under his momentum, continuing to do so until it seemed to grow taut. Within seconds, Junpei kicked off the dented part of the wall, the potential turning to kinetic as he was launched with great speed at the half mink and the would-be captor. "Plunger Shot." Having aimed for the pirate's head, he would impact within seconds, the main point of impact being his fist as the combined force knocked the pirate away from the Simian half-blood.

Jumpy hoped Goji would be able to free himself rather than be taken with the man, but he really didn't have a chance to be sure as he careened towards another nearby wall. Flipping in mid-air, the miniature warrior made sure that his hand would meet with his feet, causing the surface once again to bow inward like a trampoline. Shifting just enough to target one of the man's cronies who were likely stunned by the sudden attack out of nowhere. "Bank Shot." He would fire himself like a projectile towards the one closest to Goji, dropkicking him hard enough to knock him into a set of table and chair. Wood splintered and practically exploded from the force of the impact.

Junpei continued to bank and ricochet himself off the walls fo the bar, just appearing as a black blur due to his tail and hair. If anyone had been aware of their surroundings, they would start to notice where the wall would spring back into being a hard surface once more, showing where Junpei had been. As he dealt with the cronies, he eventually landed atop Goji's head. he had a very wide smirk to go along with his playful expression. "So just cause he's trying to ask for some aid, you think he must be an easy target, eh? Too bad for you all, I'm not the biggest fan of bullies." Around the half-mink and the dwarf, all of those that had stood up looked like they had been knocked back by a cannonball witht he force they were knocked about the room.

[SnowDog]

Something from the other side of the fired off like bullet which caught everyone sitting or standing at the bar by surprise. Goji, taking advantage of the brief and violent confusion, wrapped his prehensile tail around the rude pirate's knife in an attempt to disarm him. The violent bouncy ball made matters easy and in a quick second managed to pry the knife from the pirate and held far away from his body. Looking around, those who tried to threaten him were now sprawled out across the floor, many of them looking as though the wind had been knocked out of them.

Goji turned his attention to the new presence in the room that just also happened to be standing on top of his head. The half-blood then reached up and gently picked up the small creature standing in his mane.

"Hey thanks for the save there!" Goji cheered, setting the dwarf onto an undamaged portion of the bar top, immediately taken back by the dwarf's appearance, "Oh wow you are tiny! I've never anyone so small before! Is that how you able to bounce around the room like that?!"

One of the thugs began to rise from his injuries, rubbing at the back of his head where Junpei had struck him. He looked around to take stock of who was still standing only to see the rest of his comrades were lying about in a similar daze and beaten state as he was. The man turned his glare towards the half-mink and dwarf duo.

"What the hell was that?!" He growled, wiping away at the spittle from his lip, "Who do you think you are to bring down members of the Leathernecks?!"

Goji turned his attention to the man struggling to stand up down the length of the bar from him. The half-blood only blinked twice as he stared blankly back towards the thuggish pirate. The was a moment of silence that hung in the air before Goji shifted his focus back to Junpei. Sticking a welcoming hand out as if to shake, the half-monkey boy smiled wide.

"My name's Goji!"

[Suriko]

The diminutive warrior was dusting off his hands and feet when he felt the half mink's finger grip around him gently, soon finding himself face to face with the man he had just protected. He stood on the bar, noticing the shock in the monkey man's eyes, as well as the bartender. As Goji spoke, the dwarf just grinned, twirling his guando in a fancy flourish as Goji began thanking him and asking him questions. He chuckled smugly as he would shake his head at the mink's last question. "It's definitely how I knocked those thugs around easily. But I'm also a bounce man that ate the bounce-bounce fruit." Placing his hand on the countertop for Goji to be able to watch, he pressed his weight down on the surface. The supposedly hard wood seemed to bow easily at the tiny warrior's touch, almost like rubber. within a few more seconds, the tension finally released, catapulting the dwarf into the air to land back down safely. "See, I'm bouncy..though I can't make myself bouncy."

Junpei's attention also turned to the ruffian that had managed to recover from one of his strikes. He knew he had held back somewhat, but he was still surprised to see the man conscious. His eyes rolled as the pirate mentioned something about Leathernecks, and the affront he had just made to them. Seeing that Goji was ignoring the man, he smiled back, his tiny grasp holding onto the tip of the half blood's finger with surprising strength. "Nice to meet you, Goji. My name's Junpei... Junpei Gerrick. I'm a dwarf." As the man continued to stumble to his feet, the polearm warrior kept his attention on him, waiting for the counter attack. the dwarf had noticed Goji's ability to free himself from the earlier situation, so he was curious what else the half mink was capable of. And he'd get to see as the man finally regained his footing, unsheathing a rather big cutlass as he rushed the half-blood, intent on causing fatal harm on him or the dwarf.

[SnowDog]

"Bounce Bounce Fruit? Damn, that sounds really cool!" The half-blood responded with a big smile on his face. There were so many new and interesting things outside of his home island he has stumbled upon along his journey has far felt like a brand new, eye-opening experience. First Giants, and now Dwarves! "Nice to meet you too, Junpei! Oh WOW, that's quite the grip you got! You're a lot stronger than you look, do you do a lot of fighting?"

The sound of rushing feet pulled Goji out of his conversation with the dwarf, darting his attention over towards one of the thugs that Junpei had struck down earlier now back up and rushing at him with a large sword. This wasn't the first time Goji had been charged at with a blade. In the underground fighting rings, Goji was often pitted against combatants who were armed with weapons while he was left without. Thanks to his enhanced reflexes, Goji narrowly dodged the man's blade as it lodges itself in the wall behind him, shaving a few strands of the blue fur that ran along his arm. In the time it took to let out a breath, Goji quickly shifted to his full gorilla form. Now towering over the Leatherneck thug, the gorilla man wrapped his massive hand around the man's arms.

"That was rather rude, don't you think?" Goji growled, hoisting the man up to with ease, now meeting eye to eye, "If you want to fight, you're gonna have to wait until I'm done talking with my new friend here!" Goji tossed the man aside, his gorilla strength sending him flying across the tavern and cratering into the far wall. The half-blood returned to his normal shape and let out a quick sigh, turning his attention back to the dwarf standing on the countertop.

"Sorry about that. So, what brings you to this island?"

[Suriko]

"I know, right? Though not be able to swim is kind of a bummer." Junpei Grinned at the half-mink's rather cheery attitude, finding it infectious as he calmed down almost immediately from the adrenaline his little bout had given him. As the attacker approached the pair, the dwarf warrior watched as Goji released his hand and turned his attention fully to his assailant. The small fighter watched with admiration as the monkey man's movements and reflexes were that of a seasoned combatant, one accustomed to fighting armed attackers while he himself was unarmed. As the attacker was lifted off the ground, Junpei returned his gaze back to Goji, in amazement at his transformation. As Goji picked up the man and reprimanded him, the dwarf had so many questions and was eager to ask them But he waited until the hybrid was done before seeing the large man tossed like a ragdoll into the opposite wall

With starry, wide-open eyes, it took all Junpei had not to fanboy out at the sight of the half mink fruit user. Trying to find his words, the half-breed be\at him to it yet again, realizing he had not responded to a good deal of his questions." I am a great warrior of my people. and I am actually searching for them. They were taken from our village to be sold off into slavery." the warrior lowered his head in shame as he continued on. "I wasn't able to save them in time. But I will not fail them a second time."

Smiling to Goji, he returned his question, wondering what his intentions were as he spoke. "What about you? it sounded like you were looking for a crew? to what end?"

[SnowDog]

Goji listened attentively to the dwarf share his story. The half-blood's eyes were quick to light up when Junpei mentioned that he was a great warrior of his people. The idea that he was just one of many other incredibly strong tiny people out in the world fascinated the monkey-boy. He had to see these teeny-tiny warriors first hand! Well, the other ones outside of Junpei here, of course. The bouncy dwarf then stated how a mistake he had previously made ended up with his people ended up in slavery. Goji's brow furrowed at the thought, years isolated with his mother on his home island had not prepared for the harsh reality of how this world operated. It almost sounded like something from a fantasy novel to the half-blood.

"What about you? it sounded like you were looking for a crew? to what end?"

"Hm? Oh! Yeah, I'm putting together a crew cuz I'm looking for Roger's treasure!" Goji finally responded, flashing a toothy grin to the dwarf, "I've been island hopping for the past few days trying to find people who want to help me find it!"

The man who took brief residence in the freshly made crater on the far wall finally slipped from his temporary domicile and plopped onto the ground with a distracting thud. Goji peered over to the limp body he was responsible for and briefly stared at his handy work before returning his full attention to Junpei.

"Hey, Junpei, want me to help you find your friends?" The blue-haired half-blood offered rather bluntly, starting to lean up against the counter, "I feel like I owe ya one after you helped get me out of that pickle. Heh."