Sorry for the absolutely, ridiculously long break. I hate leaving all the readers hanging. Which is why I'm looking for someone to collaborate with. I have the story mapped out, just haven't been able to write it. That being said I'm more than happy share the rest of the plot with anyone who wants to help me finish this story off with a DON.

~Sincerely, Who Wrote This Crap

Chapter 10:

Into the Swamp

"Alright everyone! Listen up!" Nami said. "We are going to be splitting up into three groups. Luffy, Chopper, and Sanji will be group one, Zoro and Robin will be group two, and me Brook will be group three.

Chopper raised his hand. "What about Franky?"

"If we want to win this fight we need to make sure we can commutate with each other," Franky said. "That's why I've also hooked up a Den Den Mushi into the speaker system," he explained pointing to a Den Den Mushi with blue hair. He held up three more Den Den Mushis. One was yellow with a red stripe running through it, another was green with three grey rectangles, and one an orange with blue swirls. "There are three other portable Den Den Mushi's that, not only call the central one in the Gator-Go, but also each other!

He handed them out to Luffy, Zoro, and Nami. "When we get there I'll leave it to you to scout out the area and report back to me so I can use this the Gator-Go to it's super potential!"

"Great idea, Franky!" Chopper praised.

Zoro looked over at Sarah." What are you going to do?"

"I'll be clearing be protecting the Gator-Go from any unaccounted for obstacl-," she looked at him for a moment then began speaking slowly as if he didn't understand big word. "I will protect," she held up her arms in a protective stance. "the Gator-Go" she pointed to the Gator-Go. "from anything," she waved her arms. "we," she gestured to his nakama. "can't see," she covered he eyes.

"DO YOU THINK I'M AN IDIOT?!" Zoro fumed. That's when heard Sanji laughing his ass off be hind him. He spun around. "YOU PUT HER UP TO THIS!"

Sanji waved his arm. He was laughing so hard he was having difficulty breathing. "Nope! She made that observation all on her own!"

Zoro glared daggers at Sarah.

She however smiled at whispered, "Sorry. I thought he could use a laugh."

Zoro huffed and walked away.

"Oi!" Sarah called after him. "The Gator-Go's over here. You're going the wrong way!"

Sanji's remarkably powerful legs failed him and he fell to ground laughing.

"You idiots get a grip and come on!" Nami yelled. "We're loading up! Sarah, we're counting on you to protect us-"

"Not that we need protecting!" interrupted Franky as he popped it torso out the hatch and struck a pose. "Gator-Go is super stro-"

Nami pushed him back down forcefully.

"-and find this monster's hideout."

"Okay, but it's like I said before," Sarah reminded her as she stuffed her gloves and sandals into her satchel. "I've never been to his hide out. It was Shanks and the rest of the guys that found it. I don't know exactly where it is. I could get you guys lost…"

Nami waved her arm. "Don't worry about it. With my sense of direction and mapping skills we'll find this place no matter what!"

"Oi, Nami!" Luffy was pounding on the glass from inside one of the Gator-Go's eyes. "Get in! I want to find this bastard! So get in so we can go!"

Nami gave Sarah a thumb's up and got in.

"All right!" Luffy pumped his fists into the air. "LET'S GO!"

No words were spoken as the Gator-Go silently slipped into the foggy swamp, with Sarah right beside them. She gave them a reassuring wave then swam deeper into the murky water, until she disappeared from sight.

They could barely hear the water parting around the eyes of the Gator- Go. The swamp was so quiet. There were no sounds of life out there. No birds squawking, no fish splashing, no bug buzzing. It was too quiet. It was unnerving and everyone felt it.

But that was nothing compared to how unnerving it was that for over the next two hours Luffy was just as silent as the swamp they cruised through.

During this time Sarah would swim off for fifteen minutes and come back. Using only hand gestures, she would silently report to Nami her findings. Nami would map them out, then point directions out to Franky who was piloting the sub.

It was only when Sarah left to make another observation run that Nami finally whispered in frustration. "This doesn't make any sense!"

Franky looked over to Nami. "Here," Frank handed the steering wheel to the closest crewmate. "Hold this steady."

"What's the matter, sis?" Franky asked.

Nami slammed her hand on the mounted table stand. "We've scoured this entire swamp three times and still haven't found a thing!"

"Three times?!" cried everyone except Zoro and Robin.

"Maybe there's something under the mud?" Chopper thought quickly.

"If there was, Gator-Go's sensors would have picked up on it." Franky told them.

"Did you test them?" Sanji thought. "Do they even work?"

"Ow! Oh course I did!" Franky retorted.

"Ah!" Brook had a sudden thought. "Are the sensors on?"

"What do you think I am? An idiot?" Franky was getting pissed.

"Maybe they're faulty!" Sanji suggested. He was starting to get pissed as well.

"Are you saying I do shoddy work?!" Franky snarled angrily.

Sanji snarled back. "Well, if we can't find anything, maybe-!"

"Sanji-kun!" Nami cried. Everyone shut up. Nami continued on the brink of tears. "There's nothing here!"

"Then where IS he?!" Luffy screamed.

"Don't yell at Nami-san!" Sanji shouted at Luffy.

"Oi! Be quiet back there!" Zoro shouted. "I'm trying to steer."

"Oh, sorry," they said. They lowered their voices. "If Nami-san says there's nothing here then we need to-"

"WHAT?!" The crew yelled when they realized that Zoro was at the controls.

Franky rush to controls and yanked the steering wheel out of the swordsman's hands.

Or at least he tried to.

"Oi, oi, oi! Let go!" Franky commanded. "You're going to crash Gator-Go into something!"

The sub jerked right.

"You're the one that said to take the controls. And I was doing just fine!" Zoro argued, not letting up.

"Zoro!" Luffy rushed over and pushed the swordsman and cyborg out of the way. "Let me have a turn!"

The sub jerked left

Horrified, Sanji and Nami ran over and began grabbing at the controls and their crewmates.

"Stop you idiots! You're going to break it!"

The sub jerked up.

"You're going to make us crash!"

The sub jerked down.

"I wanna turn!"

"LOOK OUT!"

The crew screamed as the careened at full speed into something very large-

BOOSHHH

-and very solid.

There were moans and groans as the crew picked themselves up.

"What was that?" Chopper asked rubbing his head.

"It appears we crashed into something," Robin said brushing herself off.

"You think?!" Nami yelled at Robin sarcastically. She had been no help whatsoever in keeping these idiots in line.

Chopper looked concerned. "Is Gator-Go alright?"

Franky smirked and gave him a thumb's up. "Are you kidding? Gator-Go is super strong! It's going to take a lot more than a little bump to hurt her!"

"Where are we?" Zoro asked Nami.

"HOW THE HELL SHOULD I KNOW?!" Nami yelled hitting him on the head. "You're the one that brought us here!"

"But where is here?" Brook asked.

Nami frantically checked her map. "I don't know! I don't recognize this place! We need to surface before you idiots crash us into anything el-AH!"

BANG

The crew was thrown to the ground again. Something very big and very powerful had hit the Gator-Go.

"What was that?!" Chopper asked as he peered out the glass, but all he could see was kicked up mud. The sub was hit again.

BANG

"Looks like whatever we hit-," Robin said.

"-is hitting us back," Zoro finished.

"EH?!" Chopper screamed.

BANG

"Franky get us out of here! We need to surface now!" Sanji yelled.

BANG

"I'm trying!" Franky grunted as he struggled with the controls. "There's something caught on her tail! It's pulling her down!"

BANG

"Doesn't this thing have any weapons?!" Sanji asked loudly so that he could be heard over the pummeling of the sub.

BANG

"Of course it does!" Franky yelled back. He desperately began pushing button after button. "But they're all jammed!"

BANG

Alarm after alarm started going off started going off. The Gator-Go's glass eyes were beginning to crack.

"Damn it!" Sanji cursed.

"Franky, we have to get out of here! Unlock the hatch!" Nami yelled holding onto the mounted table stool for dear life.

"I AM NOT ABANDONING GATOR-GO!" Frank roared over the alarms.

BANG

"Oi, Franky!" Luffy ordered. "Open up the mouth so we can kick this thing's ass already!"

"You got it!" Franky put all of Gator-Go's power into boosting her front two legs off the swap floor. It pushed her torso back until her head finally broke the surface. Now, with her head complete above the water and facing the sky, Franky opened the mouth.

Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy jumped out prepared to attack.

Only… there was nothing to attack. They looked around. Dead swamp trees and mist was all they could see. Once again the swamp was quiet.

Whatever had been beating up Gator-Go was gone.

The sub was finally able to surface. The rest of the crew climbed out of the hatch.

"Is it over?" Chopper asked hesitantly.

"It could be," Brook said.

"I doubt it," Zoro said not daring to lower his swords.

"OW! GATOR-GO!" Franky cried when he saw how beaten up she was. He rubbed her and vowed, "When I find out what did this I'm gonna-"

"You'll what?" came a voice from the high above a nearby tree. "Kick its ass? Kill it? We'll sorry to report you won't be able to do either of those things."

The fog cleared revealing a thin man in a long sleeved red platted shirt and tight green bellbottom pants. He was leaning back in a tree drinking a can of beer. And eerie smile contorted his five o'clock shadow.

"Oi! Are you the one that attacked Gator-Go?!"

"Me personally? No. That would be the work of my traps."

"So it is your fault!" Sanji pointed at him.

"My fault?" The trapper looked surprised. "They were just minding their own business. You're the ones that set them off."

"Why are there such dangerous traps here in the first place?" Nami asked angrily.

"Why do you think?" this trapper snapped.

"What are you protecting?" Robin asked.

He held out his arms. "My home of course!"

"You're home?" Chopper asked. "You live here?"

"Yep. The name's Brick," he took a sip of his beer and glared at them. "You all are on my property and-"

"Enough!" Luffy yelled. "You live here. So does the man that killed Usopp," he pointed to the trapper, lowered his voice, and asked, "Did you kill Usopp?"

"No," Brick said. "But I am the one who will kill you."

Everyone go into a fighting stance, Nami pulled out her Perfect Clima-Tact, Franky opened up his left hand, and Zoro placed his Wado in his mouth.

"If it's a fight he wants, it's a fight he's gonna get," Zoro growled.

The trapper smiled, "That's fine. -But first things first. That sub of yours' needs to go." He snapped his fingers and massive wires (at least two meters thick!) shot out of the swamp. The sudden surging waves cause by the wires knocked the crew into the murky water, except for Franky who had grabbed onto the hatch.

"Shit! They all fell in!" Franky cursed. He was about to dive into the water to save his friends when one of the wires slammed into the Gator-Go.

BAM

Then another.

BAM

And another.

BAM

As the giant wires relentlessly beat the sub, they were causing huge waves, which made it nearly impossible for the crew to see each other.

"NAMI-SAN! ROBIN-CHAN!" Sanji called out at the top of his lungs.

"I'm okay!" Nami told him from somewhere across the swamp. "Find Robin!"

Sanji took a deep breath and dove.

Zoro looked around for any signs of his crewmates. He saw a strawhat floating by itself.

"Luffy!" he called.

Seconds later he was pulling his unconscious captain up on a small tree, that was only big enough to keep them halfway out of the water. Zoro squished Luffy's chest till water was squirting out of his rubbery lungs.

Once Zoro was sure he was breathing, he noticed that the waves where beginning to calm down. It was thanks to Franky who was blasting away every wire that tried to hit the Gator-Go. Now, Zoro could see and hear his crewmates.

"Do we have everybody?!" Zoro yelled.

"I've got Brook!" Nami said from across the Gator-Go. She also had taken shelter in a tree.

"I CAN'T FIND ROBIN-CHAN!" Sanji cried panicking.

"What about Chopper?!" Zoro asked.

"I-I don't see him!" Nami's voice was trembling.

Sanji turned to the Gator-Go. One of her glass eyes had broken and was filling the control room with water. He took a deep breath and swam through the glass, praying to god that the controls still worked. They did! All the lights were still on and screens were still working. (Franky was right! The Gator-Go was super strong!) Quickly, Sanji scanned the area. His accounted for crewmates were all represented by red dots. He looked for any other dots. There were three. One was where the shitty trapper had been, and two were 18 meters to the left.

Sanji shot out of there like a bat out of hell. He took a deep breath when his head broke the surface-

only to see a giant wire falling down and about to crush him.

"Tobu Zangeki!"

The wire fell to pieces. Zoro was still holding onto their captain, having cut the wire using only air.

Sanji swam towards them, pulled himself out of the swamp, and immediately started jumping from branch to branch left of the Gator-Go.

"This way!" he called back.

Zoro took his captain's rubber arm, stretched it around the highest branch, tied it securely, and took off after the cook.

"ROBIN-CHAN!"

"CHOPPER!"

"H-here," came a weak voice below them.

"Robin-chan!" Sanji was at her side in less than a second. Robin's head was barely above the water. The only thing keeping her from drowning was a sturdy, forked branch she had lodged her wrist into.

Sanji pried her wrist out of the branch. It was raw and bleeding.

"I-I'm fine," she said weakly. "It's only a scratch."

"When I get my hands on that bastard-"

"Oi, love cook! Pay attention!" Zoro snapped. "Put her in a tree! We need to find Chopper!"

Sanji glared at him. But marimo was right. He gently placed the exhausted Robin-chan high up in a tree, took a deep breath and followed Zoro into the murky water. They tried and tried to look for their doctor, but it was hopeless.

"Damn it! I can't see a thing!" Sanji cursed.

"Zoro. Sanji," the two looked at Robin. To their shock it looked like she was about to cry. "It's been too long. If he fell into the water you won't find him alive."

"SHUT UP!" Zoro yelled at her. "I'M NOT LETTING THIS HAPPEN AGAIN!"

Nami's screams echoed through the swamp, "FRANKY! STOP!"

"Nami-san!" Sanji jumped into a tree. "Oi, Zoro, take care of Robin-chan and find Chopper!" he ordered as he headed back to the Gator-Go. "I'm coming Nami-san!"

When Sanji got there Nami looked at him with panic in her eyes. "Sanji-kun, he won't stop!"

Indeed Franky was still fighting strong against the relentless onslaught of wires. But despite his best efforts-

The Gator-Go was sinking…and sinking fast!

"Franky get off the sub! We need to go!" Sanji yelled.

"Hell no!"

The sub was completely submerged underwater and the swamp was up to Franky's waist. Yet he kept firing.

"I WILL NOT."

BAM

"ABANDON."

BAM

"GATOR-GO!"

"Damn that idiot!" Sanji growled.

While Franky was distracted with shooting down a wire, another one came up behind him.

"Basses Côtes!"

Sanji kicked the wire away from crushing Franky.

Immediately Sanji knew something was wrong. His leg was sticking to the wire! He couldn't pull it away!

The other wires seem to sense that they had caught him, like a fly in a spider's web. Suddenly, four smaller wires (a meter thick) shot out of the swamp and attacked Sanji, wrapping themselves around him until only his left arm and head were free.

Shit!

"SANJI!" his nakama cried below him.

With incredible speed, they retracted back into the swamp. But just before Sanji's head was about to go under, Franky grabbed his free arm. And pulled him back up.

Or at least he tried.

But the two were yanked into the swamp.

Faster and faster they were pulled down and Sanji had not taken a deep breath. He tried to hold onto whatever little air he still had in his lungs, but the increasing water pressure was making it almost impossible!

Something was still tugging at his arm. Franky! Sanji looked up at his nakama and caught his eye. Sanji shook his head and frantically began to gesture to Franky to go up. Franky shook his head back and continued trying to free his friend. But Sanji couldn't hold his breath anymore! Water fills his lungs as they descend deeper into darkness.

Panic overtook Franky as the cook's body began to spasm. DAMMIT! He had to get the kid out of here! Up until now Franky's metal abs had been protecting his lungs from the increasing water pressure. But he could feel the metal denting. Then with a sudden jerk the wires dragged them left, into a pitch-black tunnel. The next thing Franky knew the wires had yanked them up out of the water, onto something solid, unraveled, then disappeared -leaving Franky gasping for air, next to a lifeless Sanji.

Sanji!

"Oi, Cook-bro!"

Franky immediately began pounding on his nakama's chest, trying to force the water out of his lungs.

"Wake up!"

The cook remained limp.

"SUPER BREATH!" Desperately, the cyborg sucked in as much air into his lungs as he could and blew it into Sanji's mouth.

Nothing.

It didn't work.

Tears were forming in Franky's eyes. He couldn't lose another nakama!

"Dammit!" Franky sobbed. "WAKE UP!" He slammed his fist against the cooks chest.

And water came spewing out of the kid's mouth. He's gasps for air made Franky cry tears of joy as he propped up his unconscious, but undoubtedly breathing friend!

He pulled himself together as Sanji's breathing became more calm and consistent. Franky looked around. There was light coming through a grate high above them.

And below them… was a pile of rotting skeletons. Franky and Sanji were on top of the remains of the trapper's victims!

"OW!" Franky cried when he realized this. He did a little dance trying not to step on them, but they were the only things that were keeping them out of the water, so it was pointless.

Ignoring the gross, slimy bones beneath his feet, Franky began to seriously examine their surroundings.

They needed to get out of here. His bro was still in bad shape, so they needed to find Chopper and fast. And since there was no way they were going back the way they came, the only way out was up. However, the grate was a good 18 meters above them.

And to make matter's worse…

Franky was out of cola.

He had spent it all trying to defend Gator-Go.

Gator-Go…

She's gone, Franky remembered tearfully. He had to keep himself together –not that he was crying! He's nakama were still up there, trapped in the swamp. Luffy, Brook, Chopper, and Robin were all DF users. They would be helpless if they fell in the swamp again. And since he and Sanji were down here, that left only Nami and Zoro to take care of them.

This was NOT super!

They needed to get out of here now!

It was time for Franky to get SUPER creative!

Moments Earlier…

"Nami-san!" Sanji jumped into a tree. "Oi, Zoro, take care of Robin-chan and find Chopper!" he ordered as he headed back to the Gator-Go. "I'm coming Nami-san!"

Zoro glared at the cook as he left to go help the rest of their nakama. He didn't like taking orders from that idiot. Robin was fine! Chopper was the only one that needed help! Zoro took another deep breath.

"Zoro!" Robin weakly pointed behind him, "Zoro, look."

"Bwa bwa bwa bwa!"

It was that trapper bastard again.

"You look upset. Lose something?" he taunted.

"Where's Chopper?" Zoro snarled.

"I don't know," Brick said nonchalantly. "Wait. Which one's Chopper again?"

"Pink hat."

Brick nodded understandingly. "Yeah, I don't know."

"SANJI-KUN!"

"FRANKY!"

There were screams coming from the Gator-Go.

"Looks like something's going down over there," he nodded to the commotion. "Wanna check it out?"

"Shut up," Zoro growled. He picked up Robin and jumped from tree to tree until he was at the Gator-Go.

Or where the Gator-Go use to be.

"What's going on?" Zoro asked his panicked crewmates.

"Sanji-san and Franky-san were just dragged into the swamp by those wires!" Brook explained.

Zoro set Robin on the highest branch he could find.

"Those idiots!

"Wait!" Nami shouted. "Where's Chopper?"

"Haven't found him yet," Zoro answered.

Nami held up a hand to her mouth. She was on the verge of tears now.

"What's g'non?" Luffy had finally drifted into consciousness, but with two thirds of his body in the water he was almost too weak talk. He saw Nami holding onto Brook in a tree. She was yelling at Zoro, who was next to Robin. It looked like Zoro was about to dive in…

"Zoro, wait! Those aren't normal wires!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah I got that! They attack people!" Zoro snapped.

"No, I mean-!"

"They're sticky, heat seeking, steal wire traps."

It was that Bellbottoms guy! He just appeared in the tree next to Zoro.

"I thought up the sticky part myself," he boasted proudly. "Do you like them? I call them cable-kings."

"Where are …Sanji… Chopper… and Franky?" Luffy asked in a weak, but severe voice.

"Oh look who's decided to join us!" Bellbottoms said delighted. He raised his beer in congrats to Luffy then took a sip. "To answer your question, Strawhat, Pink Hat's body is probably still sinking to the bottom of the swamp."

Luffy's eyes widened. "What?!"

Bellbottoms continued. "And the Blonde Boy and Mr. Speedo, they were just dragged under by my incredibly impressive traps. As for their fate- well, let me explain with a visual aid.

"As you've probably figured out by now, this is not a normal swamp. In these parts the water is very deep. Very, very deep. So deep in fact that if a person were to be dragged all the way to the bottom of this swamp their bones and especially their lungs would be," he squeezed the can in his hand until the can was-

"crushed," Bellbottoms was laughing at their horrified expressions. "Bwa, bwa, bwa-!"

"Thunder Ball!"

A powerful ball of lighting struck Bellbottoms. It startled him so much he nearly fell of the tree.

"Shit!"

But it seems that's all it did to him. He didn't appear to be hurt at all. In fact, he seemed amazed.

"Did you just shoot lightning at me?!" he asked incredulously.

"Yep," Nami said smugly. "And there's more where that came from!"

His eyes widened. "Babe, that's AWESOME! Where the hell did you get that?! I totally want one!" he said sincerely.

That pissed everyone off.

"One of my nakama made it for me," Nami cried. "And you murdered him!"

"We'll that sucks," Brick frowned crossing his arms. "Can I have yours?"

"HELL NO!" the entire crew yelled furiously.

"So who was he? Pink Hat? Blonde Boy? Mr. Speedo?"

"It wasn't any of them! And they're not dead!" Nami added. Now she was crying. "His name was Usopp. He was one of my best friends. And you killed him!"

"Oooh, the Long-Nose kid," Brick realized. "I didn't kill him." He pointed to Nami. "You guys did."

"SHUT UP!" Luffy roared as Robin used her powers to pull him farther out of the water. "IT WASN'T OUR FAULT! IT WAS YOURS!"

"No, it wasn't."

"Yes, it was!"

"No, it wasn't!"

"Yes it was!"

"NO, IT WASN"T! IT WAS STRICKER'S!"

"Sticker?" Luffy repeated.

"No! His name is Stricker. And he's kinda the head honcho here in Dread," Bellbottoms explained. "Some call him the 'Living Nightmare'. Other's call him the-"

"Dumbass Dream Guy!" Luffy clenched his fist. "Where is he?!"

Bellbottoms sighed and pulled out another beer.

"Answer him!" Zoro drew Wado Ichimonji and pointed it at him. That got his attention. Bellbottoms stared Zoro right in the eye and took a long sip.

"GOMU GOMU NO PISTOL!" Luffy shot his fist right at Bellbottoms' face. But at the last seconds the asshole raised his hand and blocked Luffy's attack like it was nothing more than a spitball. Luffy's arm retracted back. The bastard was holding something in his hand.

It was an Impact Dial.

Everyone else got in their fighting stances. Robin crossed her arms, Brook drew his sword, and Nami gripped her Perfect Clima-Tact.

Bellbottoms sighed. "Okay, look," he told Luffy. "You can fight me, and try to get your revenge for killing your friends just now. Or you couldgo after Stricker, the guy who's responsible for bringing you here in the first place, and take your anger out on him. I would just keep in mind that most of your remaining crewmembers can't swim, " he pointed out. "So if they happen to accidentally fall in the swamp they'd meet the same fate as your other nakama."

Luffy growled, obviously torn between what to do.

"Luffy get everyone out of the swamp," Zoro said as he drew his swords. "Leave this guy to me."

Bellbottoms chuckled. "Oh, so you're the captain. My mistake. And here I thought it was that moron over there," he pointed to Luffy. "But this makes a lot more sense-"

"SHUT UP! I AM THE CAPTAIN!"

"You're right, you're right. It's not nice to tease an opponent," he said waving his hand. "I'm sorry. In fact let me tell you exactly how get into my home, as a symbol of my apology."

Nami, Robin, and Brook looked at each other.

"How?" asked Luffy angrily.

"You see that huge white tree over there in the distance? Tap it four times each on a different side," Bellbottoms instructed. "Then when you get to the door knock and say 'My name is Brick. I mean you no harm. And I call dibs on the weather stick.' That'll open the doors. Then the rest is up to you!"

"This is clearly a setup, " Robin said. Nami and Brook nodded in agreement. "He obviously intends to cause us harm."

"Definately," Nami said. "He even said he called 'dibs' on my Perfect Clima Tact just now."

"Indeed," Brook added, "This man makes my blood run cold- Ah! But I don't have any blo-."

"Nami!" Luffy yelled. "Take us to the tree!" he ordered. "Zoro," his first mate looked at him, "kick his ass."

"Aye, Captain."

Luffy grabbed the others took off to the tree. Zoro glared at the man whose blood was about to soak his blades. "You're setting us up, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm setting you up! You may be a pirate hunter, Rorornoa," Brick grinned, "but I'm a trapper."