I was thinking about Laugh Tale and wanted to bring up an old theory that might be worth revisiting due to new information.
What if Laugh Tale is at the center of the Tarai Current?
The forum search is down for now so I don’t know what people have said about it before or when, but a quick Google search suggests that back in 2012 people dismissed it because we still thought Laugh Tale to be at the end of the New World. But now we know that Laugh Tale could be anywhere in the world, not even necessarily in the Grand Line.
It would make sense if the World Goverment deliberately set up the three main institutions of its naval force around the former base of their enemies. With those, the hazardous currents and the Sea Kings that inhabit the area the World Government has the perfect defense against anyone trying to reach the island. You can’t enter the area from the sides of the triangle, only from the Gates of Justice that the Marines are constantly observing so they’re always aware of what’s happening and who would be trying to get in.
But how did Roger reach the island then if you need approval from any of the three Marines institutions and opening a Gate of Justice?
By cashing in his IOU from Garp for helping him defend the Celestial Dragons on God Valley 38 years ago. That would also add to the image the Five Elders have of the troublesome Monkey D. family despite Garp being considered a hero. It’s not only his whimsical nature but the possiblity that he is responsible for Roger being able to reach the last island.
The Straw Hats won’t have that luxury, but they have something else on their side that could help them instead: Shirahoshi, the Ancient Weapon Poseidon that can command Sea Kings. She could direct them to at least carry the Thousand Sunny beyond the currents on the border of the Tarai Current and/or keep the Sea Kings that live in there at bay.
The question remains though, if the World Government has been guarding Laugh Tale all this time, why didn’t they just remove anything that could be found there?
For people who haven’t played Golden Sun, more specifically its sequel The Lost Age, let me tell you about the ancient civilization Lemuria.
Lemuria was once home to the most advanced civilization of the world. It sat on top of an island in the middle of the sea, surrounded by strong currents that could only be traversed by people who knew which are the right ones to follow and who could make their way past the island’s guardian called Poseidon who’s described as gentle being and the true rightful king of the seas. But a world altering event has cut off their powers and influence and more or less eradicated them from the world. Over time the other tribes of the world forgot about them so that by the time the main protagonists act, their history is nothing more than a myth known to only a few scholars. But even in the current time, the instructions on how to reach Lemuria is still being passed down, hidden away and disguised, just waiting for people who are willing to listen and make their way back.
Sound familiar?
If we take the similarities we could assume that the World Government simply doesn’t know how to traverse the currents to safely reach Laugh Tale. The only way they could learn it is by reading the Poneglyphs which only the Ancient Kingdom and the Kozuki clan could read, who refuse to collaborate.
There’s even more minor stuff, like the area being a second Sea King nest besides the Calm Belt because they received the order from the first Poseidon to guard the area until the promised time has come, maybe Noah also has something to do with all of it, how the hell they were able to build the three gigantic Gates of Justice in the first place, Enies Lobby’s anomalies of constant day and the bottomless hole in the ocean being byproducts of either Pluton or Uranus during the war that probably took place when the Void Century started, specifically mentioning that the Gates of Justice have never been fully opened that just begs to happen at some point, Zou walking eternally because its destination might be Laugh Tale and it can’t get past the Red Line which would in turn circle back to the destruction theory…
What do you think?