The White Sea beach on Angel Island was unlike anything the crew had ever seen. The "island clouds" were soft as marshmallows, and the sand felt like treading on cotton candy.
"So these are Sky People? They really have wings!"
The crew marveled at the young girl, Conis, and her father, Pagaya, who had come to welcome them. The pair enthusiastically demonstrated the unique tools of the sky: "Waver" jet-skis and various miraculous shells known as Dials.
"This Waver... it doesn't need wind? It just uses a Dial to move?!" Luffy's eyes were practically popping out of his head.
"Luffy, wait! Those are hard to drive—" Nami tried to interject.
"WA-HOOO!! I'M DRIVING IT!!"
Luffy ignored her, jumped onto the Waver, and twisted the throttle. He launched into the sea of clouds like a rogue missile. After drawing several shaky, distorted "8" shapes and losing his balance, he flipped through the air and executed a perfect face-plant into the soft sand.
"Pfft..." The crew erupted in laughter.
The Scientist and the Scavengers
While Sanji was busy charming Conis and Pagaya with an impromptu "Heavenly Seafood Feast" using local Sky Lobster, and Zoro was already snoring against a cloud-tree, the rest were exploring.
In the supply area, Usopp was mesmerized. "Incredible! This 'Tone Dial' records sound, the 'Lamp Dial' gives light, and this 'Flame Dial'..."
Viktor squatted nearby, holding a discarded Breath Dial. He skillfully disassembled the shell with a set of tools, observing the biological structure inside.
"The principle of storing energy and releasing it... if applied to weaponry..."
"Caw?" "Woof?"
Klay and Lassoo were right beside him, each clutching a shell and mimicking Viktor's intense look of concentration. Viktor glanced at Usopp and smirked.
"Usopp, if you mount this on your slingshot to increase muzzle velocity, or put it in Nami's Clima-Tact to create high-pressure currents, your combat power will double."
The idea hit Usopp like a lightning bolt. "Brilliant!! I need to study this immediately!!" The two shared a dark, mischievous look, forming an unholy alliance for "resource acquisition."
The Arrival of the White Berets
The peaceful meal was shattered by a rhythmic sliding sound. A squad in white uniforms and berets arrived, gliding at high speed on special "Cloud Skates." It was the White Beret Union, led by Captain McKinley.
Ignoring Conis's frantic explanations, McKinley leveled a proclamation at the Straw Hats. "Illegal entry! And environmental destruction!!" He pointed at the bubbling pot of seafood. "That is a precious Sky Fish! You dare to poach it?!"
"You are under arrest!" To show his authority, McKinley kicked over Sanji's carefully prepared soup.
CLANG!
The soup spilled into the white sand. The air went cold.
"Hey..." Sanji lit a cigarette, his eyes shadowed by his fringe. "What did you just... kick over?"
"Seize them! And the father and daughter as accomplices!" McKinley ordered.
WHOOSH! The White Berets used Milky Dials to create cloud rails, zipping around like white ghosts.
"MY SOUP!!" Luffy pulled his head out of the sand and threw a punch, but the soldier used a Dial to boost away. Worse, because the ground was so soft, Luffy overextended and got stuck waist-deep in the clouds again.
"Wasting food... unforgivable." Sanji didn't even look at the blurring figures. He simply predicted the trajectory of the cloud rail. "Collier!!"
BOOM! Sanji shattered the rail with a kick. Two soldiers lost their balance and ate the dirt.
Meanwhile, cloud arrows flew toward Zoro. He didn't even open his eyes. Clack! Clack! He used his scabbard to parry every shot, then delivered a blunt blow to the back of McKinley's head as the captain tried to flank him. "Too flashy... and too slow," Zoro yawned.
The Flame Dial Sample
One elite member circled behind Nami, leveling a red Dial at her. "Die, criminal!"
FWOOSH!! A jet of intense flame erupted toward her.
"Ah!" Nami cried out.
SHING!
A black silhouette appeared in front of her. Viktor didn't dodge. His blade remained sheathed, but a layer of pitch-black Armament Haki coated the scabbard.
"Divide!"
He swept the scabbard, the Haki-infused blow literally splitting the stream of fire in half. Before the soldier could react, Viktor's hand shot out like a viper, gripping the man's wrist.
"I see. Absorption, storage, and release," Viktor noted the heat of the Dial, his voice dropping to a cold sneer. "But if you block the exit during the release phase..."
CRACK!
Viktor twisted the man's wrist downward, slamming the Dial's aperture into the sand.
BOOM!!
The suppressed heat exploded at point-blank range. The soldier screamed as he was launched backward by his own weapon, charred and smoking.
Viktor stooped down, picked up the dropped Flame Dial, and tossed it in his hand. "Thanks for the meal. Sample acquired."
Seeing his men decimated, Captain McKinley tried to hide behind a Cloud Shield while blowing a whistle for backup.
"HEY!! YOU GUYS!!" Luffy finally pulled himself out of the ground. His arms stretched back dozens of meters, his face twisted in annoyance. "YOU'RE SO ANNOYING!!!!"
"Gum-Gum... BAZOOKA!!!!"
The impact punched straight through the Cloud Shield. McKinley and the remaining dozen men were sent flying like bowling pins, disappearing over the horizon into the cloud sea.
The Divine Trial
The beach fell silent, save for the idling Waver. Pagaya trembled. "This... this is a disaster..."
"WREEEEEEE—!!!"
A piercing alarm wailed across the sky. A massive surveillance image was projected onto the clouds above—the stern face of a Priest. A cold voice echoed throughout the island:
"NOTICE! NOTICE!" "The Blue Sea Dwellers, the Straw Hat Pirates, have been upgraded!" "From 'Illegal Entrants' to 'Second-Class Criminals'!!" "In this Land of God... you shall face the 'Trial' of the Four Priests!" "No matter where you run... Divine Judgment will find you!"