LW: New Arc to end the Year out, last chapter we checked in on the other Straw Hats, and now we move on to Luffy's assault on Impel Down. Enjoy!
Rubber King and Mirror Master - The inescapable prison: Impel Down.
Level 6 Impel Down
Garp sighs deeply as he gazes upon Ace's emaciated, silently weeping body "I'd hoped that you Luffy and Kaos would become marines when you grew up like your granddad, but no, you all decided to go be criminals and hoodlums, and not forgettable, minor pirates like Buggy the Clown, but the infamous kind. I suppose you've heard what your brothers got up to since they entered the Grand Line. Now, I don't expect us to get along, but spitting in the Government's eye by destroying Enise Lobby, that's crossing a line so far you can't even see the line anymore" His shoulder slump as he slaps his closed fist against his palm "I met up with them at Water 7 not that long after, tried to knock some sense into them, didn't work, pretty sure the lanky fucker was flipping me off while they were leaving, even after I told him about what a great marine his mother was. Also, that little rubber bastard went and got married and everything didn't even call or ask his grand dad's permission, the nerve" he pauses when he hears Ace wheeze and cough, though whether it was due to shock, or it was just the closest the boy would get to a laugh he wasn't sure, probably a bit of both "Then the 2 idiots got to Sabaody and caused and even bigger incident, but if there's one thing I've always loved about you boy's it's that you don't take shit from anyone" he laughs, his face softening slightly at the almost-smile Ace wore, mostly obscured by shadow "Oh, by the way, I told Luffy about his father, and I kind of already mentioned telling Kaos about his mom, kept my lips sealed on his Pops though, really don't want to be the one who opens that can of worms" he laughs again "They were shocked, that's for sure, but given the circumstances, anyone would"
"Our fathers can rot in hell" Ace hisses, causing Garp to frown "And fuck you for thinking any of us would have become marines. We have the blood of criminals in our veins, nothing was ever going to change that" he sneers "My name is Portgas because of my mother because I owe her so much, but I don't owe my father a damn breath. I don't even remember him, nor do I want to"
Garp groans heavily "I know I know we've been over this since I told you who your father was all those years ago. Jeez, the man tried…"
"I don't care. Listen to me Garp, my only father is Whitebeard, anyone who says differently is lying.
'Well, this is going to be fun' Garp thinks sarcastically, trying to hold back the grimace his face was trying to pull itself into.
Marine Vessel
"Hm, damn what's Buggy doing on the Grand Line?" Kaos muses, standing outside as Marguerite, Nagini sleeping within her back
"I don't know who that is" Shaula shrugs, then her eyebrow rises "Are you sure you're ok using that Imperfect Reflection for this long, your right eye is getting kind of bloodshot" she asks in concern
Rather than worry, Kaos laughs "That, is not exactly due to my Devil fruit, more a side effect of fighting a man calling himself God" she smirks as the section of her face around the eye shimmers in a scale-like pattern (a side effect he noticed from essentially fusing the reflect and snake fruits within himself) before reverting to normal, revealing his eye with it's cracked, lighting pattern through his pupil as well as the spiraling burn/scar around the eye itself "§If I was anyone else I'd be dead, he put a spear through my head, only the fact my Reflect armor on full power makes me just shy of a logia, meant I was able to survive long enough to heal, same with the scars on my elbow and shoulder§" she grimaces as the mirrored scales transform back into the blond kuja "§It's fine, just pain from time to time, but Chopper is sure it's nothing serious or that needs worrying about§" she adds, Shaula giving him a 'Don't fucking belevie that' look
"Are you 2 done chatting out here?" Hancock asks stepping onto the deck "We're almost at Impel Down, I can see the Gate from here, so at least try to act the part"
"Oh, does that mean I can continue to annoy Momonga?"
"Please don't, the bastard looks this close to having a brain aneurysm" Hancock sighs, while Luffy chuckles under her cloak.
Passing through the Gates of Justice was a strange feeling for the 2 straw hats, both realizing how close Robin came to following this exact path back on Enise Lobby, how hard they all fought to stop it… and now they're doing it willingly themselves. Also, the fact the prison was surrounded by more battleships than the Buster Call used did send a shiver of panic through both boys, they'd barely managed to avoid them then, this, would be almost impossible.
A little later
"Welcome To Impel Down Vice Amiral Momonga!" was the shouted greeting, then as to be expected at this point, cheering, wolf whistles and panting as Hancock followed the man alongside her familiar to enter the prison herself, luckily as a guest rather than a new arrival
"These, men, are an affront to my ears, may I please turn them to stone Vice Admiral?" Hancock asks, trying to stay in his good books until she'd dropped off Luffy, so asked instead of turning on her heel and turning 2 battleships into a rock garden.
Momonga grimaces as he remembers what she did to his men the first time they met before sighing deeply "Please don't, I hate to say this, but you've embarrassed the marines enough for one lifetime" he then turns his head to her "Your conditions for coming with us to Marineford was meeting Portgas, but I must remind you that Warlord or not, you're still a pirate and as such, will be subject to a full-body search and required to wear seastone cuffs while on the premises. Wouldn't want you to get any funny ideas about trying to rescue the boy after all"
Hancock tenses, if they do a body search they'll find Luffy no trouble, his fruit makes him rubber, not tiny or invisible after all "We'll figure something out" Luffy whispers to her, feeling her reaction through his arms
Nodding both as a reaction and her answer Momonga gestures to the guards who open the gates, then step into the greatest prison ever built, of her own volition.
"I don't like this" Kaos scowls "Nobody's escaped this prison, that's why everyone knows about it"
"Well Shiki did, but there were, interesting circumstances, so to speak" Shaula chuckles "Don't worry, the kid won't go through anything nearly as severe as that getting through this"
Impel Down
"Welcome To My Prison! Impel Down! Oops, jumped the gun there again, I'm actually just the Vice Warden for the moment, Hannyabal by the way. A pleasure to meet you Vice Admiral" A tall, potbellied man with horn brows greets
"Likewise" Momonga grunts, but shakes the man's hand to be polite
"We've been expecting you. Oh and this must be her, the Pirate Empress, MY pirate Empress, opps, sorry jumped the gun there, apologies. Anywho, Warden dumbass… I mean Chief Warden Magellan is waiting for you in his office on Level 4. Miss Domino here will be more than capable of guiding you there by herself" he explains "She'll also be doing the body search of you Empress, mostly because Sadie is elsewhere at the moment, my apologies"
"If you would follow me we can get this unpleasantness over with swiftly" the blond now identified as Domino says with a nod of her head, Hancock and Salome follow her to wherever this search would be carried out.
"If you were here as an actual prisoner we'd have simply brought you over to that cell over there, had you stripped of all your clothes and dunk you in a pot of boiling water. We call it Hells' Hottub" she explains as they walk, then chuckles at her own joke "It's a baptism and sanitation in one extremely painful step, quite efficient and economical if you were to ask me. Also, this prison currently houses many famous faces from around the world, not only the recently captured Fire Fist Ace, but former Warlord of the Sea Jimbe, Son of the Sea. Former Warlord Crocodile has been a resident of these walls for quite some time though with Cipher having been here even longer. For the record, both of your former comrades were model prisoners who didn't bat an eye at the baptism, and while he was before my time, I heard Cipher laughed while he was being dunked" reaching the door she pushes it open with a quiet grunt "Don't worry empress, our guests are searched in a private room, no perverts waiting to see your naked breasts jiggle in the open air. After you" she bows her head slightly as Kuja and familiar slink past her.
"Before we begin I'll ask you to remove your cloak, it would be so easy it's not even funny to hide something under that thing so it must be removed before you can be allowed to proceed further. Don't mistake this order as aggression, merely thoroughness, we do have a reputation to uphold after all. Also, we have Visual Den Den set up all over the prison, monitored at all times"
"Meaning the lack of perverts was a lie" Hancock mutters, back still turned to Domino
"I suppose" Domino hums then shakes the seastone cuffs in the warlord's direction "Also you'll be needing these, after all, it's well known you have a Devil Fruit and we can't have you using it while in Impel Down" the blond explains
Hancock grits her teeth "You call me a guest, and yet you expect me to wear those? You want me helpless in this place, how cruel"
"But necessary Ma'am" Domino states, stepping closer, while the guards watch eagerly from the Visual Den Den on the wall.
Hancock stares the blond dead in the eye, before with a flutter of eyelashes and a head tilt coos "Be gentle, I'm delicate" causing Domino to splutter and blush, dropping her guard long enough for a point-blank Love Love Beam, Hancock managing to hit the Den Den in the process killing the feed "Ok Luffy, it's safe to come out" she whispers, the rubber boy dropping out of her cloak and dusting himself off
"That was a close one, I was sure I'd need to somehow develop stealth skills in the next 3 seconds. Your power is really handy in a pinch, thanks for all this by the way" he says with a grin
Hancock chuckles "No problem Luffy, but I'm afraid this is as far as I can accompany or transport you, you're on your own from this point onward. They're pretty insistent on removing my cloak and putting those seastone cuffs on me, meaning there would be nowhere for you to hide, and no way for me to assist you, I'm sorry"
Luffy chuckles "Don't worry about it, you got me this far, I'll do the rest myself. Just, make sure Kaos doesn't do something stupid while I'm gone k? He's more responsible and crap than I am, but he's still a straw hat and more importantly, my brother, meaning stupid ideas show up more often than they should. Try to stop him if you can, or have Scorpion lady do it, she might be more helpful unless that ring is legit" Luffy hums
"Serpens-kun has a ring? Hancock squeaks 'For me, perhaps? So forward, Mama likes' she flushes, then coughs "I will not let him bring harm or death upon himself before you are reunited" she states, nose in the air and her familiar coiling around her legs
"Cool, though you might want to relax, or else he'll think you stole that seastone pillar from Momonga" Luffy hums, before jumping to a ledge out of sight of the Den Den "Ok, you can unfreeze the lady and the snail, I'll be fine from here" he calls, snapping Hancock out of her trance
Outside
"What's taking so long?" Momonga grunts
"This is unprecedented, though Domino is a professional, she's probably just being extremely thorough, a full, body, search, of Miss Hancock…." Hanyabal blusters, this nose dripping at the mental image
'Idiot, he'd have turned to stone the moment he looke away if he'd been on my ship'
Pura pura pura
"What?" the Vice Warden shouts
"Um, Sir. We've lost the feed on the examination room, something weird happing in there?" the guard on the other end asks
"I better go check. It's my duty as Vice Warden to make sure things are running smoothly, just business. Even if that business involves 2 hot chicks touching and potentially fondling each other…."
Before he gets any further the door swings open, Hancock steps out, missing her cloak and properly restrained in seastone cuffs "I see your guests are treated as poorly as your prisoners, are these really necessary"
Hanyabal coughs "Afraid so Miss Hancock. Everything ok Domino"
"Yes, all standard and expected, why, did the examination take too long?" she asks with a hint of concern
"It's fine, don't worry about it we're done anyway that's all that matters" Hanyabal waves off, missing Luffy sneaking out the still open door and clinging to the ceiling as he makes his escape.
"Before we visit Ace we'll be taking this elevator to the Burning Hell Level and from there Warden Magellan's office. As you might expect, the Burning Hell Level is, well really freaking hot, so be careful"
"It's fine, Amazon Lily is a tropical island and snakes are cold-blooded, we might actually prefer it there to outside for at least a while" Hancock jokes as they all step into the elevator.
Hancock barely twitches as they passed through Level 1, her time as a slave desensitizing her to screams of pain as the guards beat and whipped these low-level prisoners
"This is the 1st level of Impel Down, called the Crimson floor" Hayabal explains, acting almost like a tour guide rather than a Warden
"Why's it called that?" she asks curiously
"It's a secret, join the wardens to find out" he whispers with a wink "Then we have Level 2, the Floor of deadly beasts from Hell. Pretty self-explanatory I presume?" Hancock nods "Then we get to Level 3, the Starvation Hell, then finally Level 4 the Burning Hell floor, our current destination. While you can't tell from above this structure is quite expansive, it'll take a while for us to get down to Level 4 so you have plenty of time to take in the screams of anguish and pain from all the ways prisoners are tortured down here" Hanyabal explains with a light chuckle
Hancock purses her lips "And is Fire Fist Ace on the 4th Floor then?"
"No, and that's not even the bottom floor anyway. As I was saying we have a wide selection of ways to interrogate and torture…." Hanyabal kept talking but Hancock tuned him out, seeing just how much work Luffy would need to do to even get to Ace, never mind get him back up to the top floor. This is why Impel Down is inescapable, and why Kaos refused to go through with this prison break.
Meanwhile with Luffy
"Ace's Vivre card keeps telling me to go down, really wish it gave a bit more information" Luffy sighs as he runs through Level 1, hoping to find either Ace, or more stairs that will, in turn, lead him to Ace. His frantic searching took a slight detour when the universe (actually Buggy, but it was an accident) decided to fuck with him, dropping THOMP sized spiked weights, nearly crushing him multiple times over, then the spikes shooting from both sides of the wall nearly impaling him, luckily he managed to dodge and bend between them as it was probably safer than simply trying to outrun the trap.
"That was unpleasant and weird" Luffy mutters to himself as he walks past more cells that didn't contain Ace, the guys inside mostly unhelpful though one did point out that if Ace was in Impel Down, they'd have him holed up down on Level 5. Before any more information could be shared screams filled the hall as a blue-haired man came running towards them chased by big blue furry things that hooted like gorillas, which just confused Luffy until one swung at the prisoner with his axe, and split him right down the middle, prompting Luffy's brain to kick into gear and send him running in the same direction as the other guy, who was somehow not dead.
"Right Side"
"Left Side"
Unite
"Haha, take that you big ugly brutes, you can't hurt me I ate the Bara Bara no mi!" the bluenette cackles as he runs for his life, until he notices who was running alongside him "STRAW HAT! What the hell are you doing here?" Buggy asks
Luffy needed a second to remember who the clown yelling at him was, and didn't look too pleased when he did "Oh, it's you, Buggy"
"Yes it is and thanks for reminding me why I hate you so much! Speaking of looks like that King of the Pirates stik ain't working out too well for you if you're in here with me!" Buggy cackles
"Nope, I came here all by myself, only dumbasses like you actually get caught and put in prison" Luffy scoffs, nearly causing the clown pirate to stop in confusion, luckily fear kept him moving at his current pace
"WHAT? You threw yourself in prison, the biggest and most dangerous one, and yet I'm the moron?"
"Yes, now shut up I promised Kaos and Hancock I'd keep safe and because of you I've got all these axemonkeys on my ass!" Luffy shouts "So get out of my way!"
"Oh really, think everything's all about you huh?" Buggy growls, grabbing the rubber boy by the face, who retaliates by grabbing Buggy's face as the 2 keep running, the Blugori not slowing down, but also failing to catch up with them. One trying to slice them in 2 did on the other hand get them to stop fighting and reengage their brains, so they did have some use I guess.
"They're surrounding us. Wait, how come we can't just fight them?"
"Easy for you to say you haven't been tortured yet, these beasts are merciless and the human guards aren't much better" Buggy whimpers
"Well it wasn't like I was planning to lose dumbass, my cover's been blown already thanks to you so I need to complete my mission as quickly as possible, so punching through these goons might be the best option I have" Luffy argues
Buggy sighs "Just like that Red Head bastard, always annoyingly optimistic at the worst times. Fine I'll go along with this plan, it would fall apart in seconds without my brilliance anyway"
Both stop and turn, staring right at the advancing Blugori, then launch their attacks
Bara Bara Cannon
Gum Gum Pistol
Both punches were direct hits sending the beasts flying and giving both pirates a confidence boost that this plan might actually work, mostly Buggy.
Gum-Gum Whip
Bara Bara Eject
Big Top Tailspin
"That should deal with… ah bollocks" Buggy shouts as the Bluegori gets up after he tossed him around, resuming chasing the clown until finally, basically running straight into Luffy's fist, knocking the fuzzy beast out "Jeez, you sure got a lot stronger since Loguetown ay kid" he mutters as Luffy dusts himself off
"What are these things?" Luffy wonders aloud
"Sea Monkey called blue gorillas or Bluegori in here. Now stay on your toes there should be another 4… oh you beat them already"
"Yeah they're kind of tough but nothing I haven't beaten before" Luffy shrugs
"You came to bust us out? Right?"
"We'll be your best friend, honest"
"Shut up nobody cares about you weaklings. Anyway, why the hell are you here?" Buggy asks/demands
"To rescue my brother Ace, he's down in Level 5 apparently" Luffy answers
"WHAAAAAA! YOU BROKE IN HERE TO RESCUE ACE!" Buggy screams then whisper "You should probably stay quiet about that"
"You're not exactly setting the best example" Luffy chuckles then stops "Wait, do you know Ace too?"
"We ran into each other while I was on the Grand Line hunting you actually, he kind of showed up. We ate a bit, drank a lot and while we talked I like to think we became good friends so yeah I know him. It's a real shame to hear he ended up in this Hellhole" Buggy grimaces "Kind of a bonehead move on the navy's part though, they HAVE to know Whitebeard won't just sit on his ass and let them do what they like with one of his boys"
"So, any chance you can show me how to get ot Level 5?" Luffy asks
"Not on your life! You think we're friends now just cause we both know Ace? In fact, run along and die in here, it's not my problem after all. If you're not interested in escaping then I'll just leave without you" Buggy huffs, walking past him
"Ok, but you do know there are at least 10 battleships out there, hope you have some kind of plan to get past them" Luffy calls out, causing the clown to freeze
"That's not good. They must be expecting Whitebeard to break Ace out too, damn I picked a bad time to try and break out. Maybe I should lay low…." Buggy stops when he sees something out the corner of his eye "No, it can't be… but this is straw hat we're talking about so maybe" he hums, then seeing Luffy start to walk off leaps at the rubber boy "Wait!"
Bang, Bang
"I see them, they're on the upper level" a guard shouts, while the other keeps shooting
"Crap they found us"
"That's cause you keep yelling!" Luffy argues, Buggy's upper half latched onto his arm while her lower half ran behind them
"That's a pretty nice armlet you got there Straw hat, any chance you could give it to me?" Buggy asks desperately
"No way it was a gift from Nami, do you know how rare those are?" Luffy shouts
"Please, I'll help you get to Ace" Buggy offers, causing Luffy to stop for a second
"You mean it?"
"But of course! My help, for the armlet, seems fair to me. But first, we lose the goons. Quick, grab my feet, and don't get too far away!" Buggy orders, reattaching his body then separating from his feet and flying away, Luffy frowning as he picks up the remaining parts and runs after the flying clown "We'll be at Level 2 in no time Straw hat" he chuckles
"Level 2, you idiot I said Level 5!"
"Don't you know how numbers work, you have to go through 2 to get to 5! Seriously. Look this is how things work around here. The prison is built like an upsidedown tower, we're currently on Level 1, where the random riffraff are, but as you head down you get to Level 2 and so on, each housing more infamous and high bountied criminals as you go down. I've been sent down to Level 4 to be tortured a couple of times, but that's as far as I've gone personally, everything else is hearsay and rumors, though given how strong your brother is, Level 5's a fair bet. Though I have heard there's more even further than Level 5, where criminals so dangerous they're wiped from the annals of history are kept, but nobody knows for sure" Buggy explains "On 2nd thought THAT might be where they're keeping Ace, so at least you know where to go if it turns out he's NOT on Level 5. I can only get you as far as 4 though, you'll have to make the last leg of the journey yourself"
Luffy grins "Thanks Buggy, I thought you were kind of a dick before but I guess I was wrong"
"A deal's a deal, Meanwhile, if that armlet leads me to Captain John's treasure I'll have made quite the bargain out of this arrangement" Buggy chuckles until he realized he said it out loud, then sighed in relief when Luffy was still running as if he didn't hear him 'What a stroke of luck, this is truly a perfect day' he thinks
"Wait, this is a treasure map, cool" Luffy laughs tilting his head to look at the armlet "Bet that adventure would be pretty fun" he muses
'Crap in a bucket, I didn't plan for this' Buggy screams in his head, then reaches back to grab the axe he'd stolen from one of the bluegori Luffy knocked out "You can't live knowing that secret!" he yells as he raises the axe over his head and turns, only to see Luffy still following him, holding the armlet out to him
"Here you go, better take it now in case anything happens to me or I forget about it later, don't want you to have played tour guide to the underworld for nothing" Luffy says with a grin
"You're serious?"
"Course I am, I promised that I'd give it to you" Luffy replies with a shrug "Stupid clown" he mutters "Besides Ace is more important to me than any treasure"
"But what's to stop me from taking the armlet and leaving you down here to die?" Buggy asks/shouts
"Well, I've got your feet, but also you promised and your word is good enough for me" Luffy replies with a sunshine smile
'That smile and those trusting eyes! I'm a scoundrel Straw Hat, you can do so much better than me' Buggy thinks as he tears up, snatching the armlet from Luffy 'After all this time, I finally have the key to Captain John's secret treasure and I owe it all to you, Luffy. Thanks buddy, you're a real champ. Now, how the fuck do I ditch you and get the hell out of here?' unfortunately due to his daydreaming Buggy wasn't looking where he was going and plowed straight into a wall
"Oh I get it, we can make a shortcut if we plow through this wall. Awesome!" Luffy smirks then throws a punch, sending Buggy straight through the wall and into the Security hub for Level 1.
Meanwhile in the elevator
'God this is boring, maybe I should have demanded Shaula and Kaos come along, at least watching him piss off Momonga would be amusing. Or maybe he could fight that fat weirdo who thinks he stands a chance at earning my hand. Oh and then he takes me here on this elevator, claiming me before we break his brother out together' Hancock thinks, with a faraway grin, away in her fantasies as the elevator slowly trundles down into the abyss
Back on Level 1
Not exactly one known for restraint, or the word STOP, Luffy plowed through the wall, running through the guard room, and then out the other side, at which point he and Buggy fall into a strange, crimson forest
"This place is weird, how is there even a forest indoors and underground" Luffy groans as he and Buggy fall from the sky "And why is everything red?"
"You moron that forest is a torture chamber. Every leaf is as sharp as a razor, that's why they're called blade trees, and the grass is made of spikes that prick you like needles, it's called Spike-needle grass, not very imaginative but it does that it says on the box. The jailers release poisonous spiders, then chase the prisoners up and down the forest all day long. Spikes below, pitchforks behind, and razor blades everywhere else, they run until they're drenched in their own blood, suffering agonies they never thought possible. Welcome to Level 1 kid, also known as Crimson Hell"
"Wow this place really is Hell, are they doing this stuff to Ace too?" Luffy panics
"Don't think about it Straw Hat, now just worry about falling"
"That's stupid we'll get cut" Luffy points out, but Buggy laughs
"Not so fast. Throw my feet down directly below us, then my plan will be revealed"
"K" Luffy shrugs, doing as he asks and throwing the feet, which hit the ground, and while sliced continue to move as if nothing happened "Um, what just happened?" Luffy asks from Buggy's back
"You forgot how my Devil fruit works Straw Hat? The Bara Bara no mi means I can't be harmed by a blade, when those razors and spike cut me, my body splits and comes back together a moment later completely unharmed. This Level is a sinch for me hahaha, now we're aiming for the way into the Next Level. Lucky for us it's nothing too complicated just a hole in the ground, meaning no gates, no guards, and no checkpoints. Most people wouldn't dream of taking this path, but if you really want to rescue Ace, we'll just have to take the Dive to Level 2" Buggy explains as they fly through the Crimson Hell, finally stopping at a massive hole in the ground "Tada, we're here"
"Wow, I can't even see the bottom" Luffy gasps
"Very true, now I bet you're wondering why nobody uses this hole to get out of the Crimson Hell? It's not because it's dark and scary, but because this hole is a one way ticket to Level 2, an even worse torture than Level 1. Sure about this boy?"
"Yup, I'm going to save my brother!" Luffy declares, then leaps off Buggy's back to the shock and exasperation of the clown pirate "Wow, this is a deep hole, wonder what's at the bottom?" Luffy thinks aloud as he falls, Buggy getting knocked in by a Bluegori axe a few minutes later
Level 2- Wild Beast Hell
"I don't even care anymore, I'm going to end up their dinner eventually it might as well be today I suppose, go out when I will it, not when my body is too broken to run away" Sighed the former Mr.3, 'Loan Shark' Galdino
TBC
LW: And that's it, the start of the Impel Down Arc, also the 2nd last chapter of the year. Sorry, it's the way the weeks lined up, but on the bright side, that technically makes chapter 114 my Christmas/Stephen's Day present to you.
See you soon, and have a great Christmas everyone!