Author's Note 1: Guys, I'm very sorry for not updating in months – had to study for my semester (WHICH I PASSED, BY THE WAY! YES!). There's the last semester I've got to pass as well, so it's gonna be hectic. Wish me luck.
Chapter Six: Race to Alabasta
Noctis' amber eyes were glowing strangely as he explained the characteristics of the Dancing Cobra Hypnosis technique to the mayor of Coral Village – one of the only few people who hadn't been caught in the dreading hypnosis and had stayed clear from the Blacken Serenade Circus. He looked like an old man ready to bite the dust because of his awfully long, white beard and his wrinkled face, but Saber could notice both the wisdom swirling in his eyes and the mistrust he was feeling toward the twins (they were, after all, the main tools for the mayhem Blacken Felicio had been creating around). Even though he must have wanted to get rid of the freaks all by himself to protect the village, he couldn't have fought age as his frail body was trembling all over. His gloved hands were gripping his cane tightly, and his sharp stare never left the Alabastan duo, which was a bit unnerving and mostly deserved. Saber swore he could sense the old mayor's urge to beat them up for doing his town wrong.
But his voice was firm and strong as he spoke with Noctis. "Let's say I'm going to believe what you're saying for a moment, because it sounds like you really know that technique," he ruffed, smoothing the left side of his mustache with his fingers. "If you say that they won't remember their time as puppets under this madman's control, I'll need proof. Visual proof that you're telling the truth and not trying to pull off another stunt. But the core of the problem is you two." He emphasized his words by shoving his cane to Noctis' face, only missing him by inches as the acrobat backed away just in time and nearly hitting him. The anger was now fully visible on his face and, Saber noted with a sigh, legitimate. "After everything you've done under his command, why the sudden change of heart? Why should I trust the bastard's key to his sickening plan? The only thing I should do about you two is put you in the hands of the Marines."
Saber's green eyes found the twins' faces, which had gone pale due to the threat and the horrible things that would likely happen to them if they were handed to the Marines; while he didn't have Lelouch's Terror-Terror powers to sense fear from anyone around him – and around the world if he could be that powerful enough –, his keen senses never failed him and could pick up any emotion. He couldn't taste it like his friend, but he was able to tell from the jerky and nervous reactions the mayor's words were causing; Nasse's expression was heartbreaking, because she didn't look like the fierce acrobat and fighter of the circus anymore, but more like a frightened little girl who was about to beg for her life. And the tears that were gathering in her unseeing eyes were tugging at his heart. Noctis was trying to uphold a brave front, but the hybrid could tell he was itching to burst into tears.
He hated it. He hated seeing people cry, especially his siblings. That always made him so sad. Even though Noctis and Nasse were partly responsible for hypnotizing people, he could tell they were genuinely trying to amend themselves for what they've done – as far as he could tell, they hadn't killed anybody. Their hands weren't exactly bloody, but they weren't pristine clean either. Their punishment could be lighter, should they be arrested by the Marines, but the World Government would downright execute them right away.
"We want to do the right thing for once in our life, that's a choice we have never been given due to a situation that would have left little hope for a possible future," Noctis pleaded, albeit calmly. He placed his sister behind him to protect her, as if fearing that the old man might try to snap at her. Saber nodded, praising him. "I'm not going to tell us our story, because that's useless by now, but our reasons to help are completely genuine because we do now have a choice. And we've chosen to help by getting rid of the effects of the hypnosis."
The old mayor didn't look convinced. "You could have chosen to run away from Felicio as soon as you had the chance, boy. You could have taken your sister and run away from them all, that could have prevented this whole mess with this hypnosis thing."
The hybrid scoffed, scowling. Noctis may have asked him not to interfere while he'd try to reason with the mayor, but he had his limits with idiots and all he wanted was to get out of this island with Lelouch – and they really needed to get going, because whoever was after them would catch up soon enough. He cast a worried look at his very comatose friend, who was almost slumped in the comfortable sofa of the mayor's office; his face was surprisingly relaxed, but the constant widening and narrowing of his pupils in his half-lidded eyes set him on edge. He looked like he was about to fall asleep and never wake up, even though he'd still be breathing. The dose of terror he used on Orion must have drained his mental strength to the point he'd be really close to losing it, and ready to unleash pure terror-filled nightmares all over the island. Lelouch should go see a doctor before they could set sail, or he wouldn't be able to navigate through the Grand Line in the best of shape, and it would take him a while to recover before he could use Felicio as fish food for Sea Kings. Damn blacklisted Devil Fruit, damn Vergo for stealing it.
"Have you ever heard of the saying 'Don't bite the hand that fed you', mayor Soprano? I'm sure you must have at some point, because you're an intelligent and wise old man who didn't become mayor just by crushing your rivals like peanuts." He leaned back on his seat, now staring at the three other people in the room. "These two led a harsher life than you think, and they took the hand that gave them what they needed to survive – proper care, attention and a roof. Granted, I don't know how they've really been treated by Felicio and I don't care, but this was the man who saved them before they could die. They were able to live, they've grown, all thanks to this bastard. How could respectful and grateful kids could ever turn on the person who saved them from a terrible fate?" His green eyes narrowed dangerously at mayor Soprano. "Even you couldn't be this stupid and biased. Tell me, we're listening."
The old man visibly stiffened, his face contorted in an offended expression, which Saber almost counted as a good hit. His words must have struck home – they must have. But to his stupor, mayor Soprano still found a way to get angry, even though he had a right to be. "I don't really care if they lived one ground breaking life or not, what matters is the fact that they still hypnotized people for that freak! And what was his goal, anyway? Take over the World Government with an army of zombies?" He directed his glare towards the twins once more. "Did you even try to dissuade him from using that technique? That would have saved us the trouble and we wouldn't be in this godforsaken situation."
"We did warn him about the consequences of using that technique!" Nasse cried out as she clutched her brother's coat, making Lelouch twitch as he lazily glanced at her, silent through the ordeal. Even through his comatose state, he still could sense the fear emanating from Noctis and Nasse – which was pretty amazing, considering his exhausted mind. Such emotion could never be blocked from him, unless it was dulled by some weird, very strong meditation. "It was like he wasn't even listening to whatever word we were saying, because he didn't seem to care at all. And even if we could have gotten away from him, there were the others to remind us of the gratitude we should feel toward Felicio – he saved them as well, you know. W-we were all entitled to him...but –"
"But that didn't really matter, did it?" Saber cut her off, drawing all eyes onto his person. He was staring directly at the twins, his gaze unwavering and expressionless. "Once he discovered that you were capable of casting a very strong hypnosis on people, thanks to that technique Lelouch was ready to kill you for, he no longer saw you as his proteges or whatever you and Noctis actually were to him. Hell, did you ever matter to this madman?"
"To be honest, I don't think any of you ever really mattered to Felicio," Lelouch piped in, having managed to sit up next to Saber thanks to his help. His mismatched eyes assessed the twins, who struggled to hold his stare due to his pupils narrowing and widening constantly. He still hadn't fully recovered from his nightmare trip he's inflicted on his victims, and that was going to take a while, but he was far from falling asleep. "But that's not the question right now: I may be indisposed at the moment to perform the counter-spell for the Dancing Cobra Hypnosis, but I'm sure you two would be utterly glad to help them out. Felicio and the goons were all taken care of – you can either kill him or have him executed for his crimes...but don't forget that you are now criminals." His eyes narrowed down on the twins, who flinched under his gaze. "It's not my call to kill you and I couldn't really care...but didn't you say you were from Alabasta? Surely you must know what's been going on there."
Lelouch looked downright exhausted when he gazed sleepily at his Transponder Snail, which was now connected to his mentor's, but he still found the will and the strength to talk about his recent fight with Orion. N o matter the consequences, he still had to report to Vergo because a, he owed the older man a lot things in his new life (including all the new accesses to the Marines' classified informations, the navigation and history books he could have never afforded and his training. His body still remembered the hard and nerve-wrecking workouts it had gone through), b, because he would have never gotten so far without his mentor's network and influence around a world he still knew so few about – the late Lelouch Lamperouge would have thought that his intelligence alone would have been enough to survive in the harsh and unforgiving Grand Line, how awfully wrong he would be. He would have died before he could have reached the age of ten – and c, because he was the only one, beside Sabertooth, he could talk about his Devil Fruit abilities with.
There was still so much Lelouch had to learn, and having someone on his tail would only make things more complicated. Should he terminate the threat before things could get any worse, he would have to erase his trail and disappear from the World Government's radar for a while. Vergo wasn't just his mentor: for the first time, in his second life, he could say that he actually had someone to look up to. That felt kind of nice, because there had been no one to look up to and admire for Lelouch Lamperouge after he'd been exiled with Nunnally; his hatred for Britannia and Charles zi Britannia had reached such high levels that it was barely contained at times, but he had to control himself around his sister, because she needed him the most back when they were still children – a crippled, blind girl couldn't have gotten far in the war zone that was Japan, now renamed Area 11.
"I didn't know I could reach this deep," Lelouch said as he slightly rubbed his eyes. The food he's been given had done its effect for the moment being, now he needed to rest. He would have to order other rounds of plates, but later. "Whenever I use the Memoriabilia on someone, the attack takes me far into my victim's most secret nightmares and the fact that they're unable to stop me from doing so is rather unsettling – because I can feel more than just their fear and see their nightmares. Now that I have a somewhat more fitting description of my Devil Fruit, I can definitely confirm that I can review someone's memories, especially the worst, trigger them in the mind and revive old buried fears as long as I want and as much as I want."
"Isn't that what you did with Doffy, Lelouch?" Vergo inquired, sounding curious. "Back when I first introduced you to him?"
"Yes. Wasn't it obvious by the violent reaction he's got right after he saw those horrible memories? I thought he was going to impale me to the wall when he looked down at me with that stupefied and, dare I say, troubled stare. If Trebol hadn't stepped in, I think he would have." Lelouch sighed, reclining in his seat. His mismatched eyes gazed sleepily at the snail, blinking. "I think what triggered my powers to reach for his memories was the fact that he has a very, very fucked up past and that it took him time to master his old fears. That's not something you can get away from in one piece; even as an adult, he was still haunted and had frequent nightmares of that particular night. I always suspected there was something unsettling about Doflamingo, since he's got the Conqueror's Haki and even unlocking it as a child is very rare, but I guess I shouldn't be this surprised: his mind was overcome with so much stress at the time, and he was no ordinary child. Looks like he was meant to create big waves in the Grand Line..."
And he really wasn't. What didn't really surprise Lelouch was the fact that Doflamingo had shot his father shortly after having nearly been crucified by the civilians the Donquixote family had decided to live with, despite their status. Lelouch wouldn't judge the Warlord for executing his father – in front of his brother, whom he had scarred and later executed as well – because he himself had eradicated his parents without shedding a single tear of regret, Marianne and Charles had both deserved to die. Donquixote Homing had a very... optimistic, idealistic and naive perception of the world when he had decided to give up his status as a Celestial Dragon and live with what his breed called 'lesser and insignificant creatures'. He really thought he and his family would be accepted among normal civilians, despite the horrors other Celestial Dragons had done to people who had family in the island they had come down to.
The man clearly meant good – he truly did. Lelouch had seen and could feel how humble and kind Donquixote Homing was, compared to the other bastards he used to live with. But the fact that young Doflamingo had to understand the very harsh and cruel way that giving up a higher status to a lesser one would mean leaving all the past privileges you used to get so easily in the past was even more...cruel. Even if you give up your status and claim to be someone else entirely new, you'll still be the past person everyone has seen and known. So, for the people on the island they had lived on, the Donquixote family was still Celestial Dragon breed.
I can almost relate to him, Lelouch realized with a gulp. Except that his father was a five-star son of a bitch. Doflamingo and Rocinante had loving but oh so naive parents. They meant well and clearly were so different from their goddamn breed, but their error was that he'd been so convinced that they would be able to cohabitate with the common people that abhor their kind with the strongest hatred that could ever exist. And that had been fatal to them. There will never be any other Celestial Dragon like Donquixote Homing. Never. This was a unique man with a unique perception of the world who, by some miracle, had a different view of normal people and hadn't been brainwashed by the words of his kind. Doflamingo had executed his loving father, who took everything away from him – his power, his status, everything – and Lelouch had killed his own father and mother when they threatened God himself. In a way, both of them had to be eradicated. In a twisted way, Donquixote Doflamingo and Lelouch Lamperouge were alike.
And that was kind of terrifying, considering the fact that the Warlord had outright executed Homing in front of his dear brother. Then again, Lelouch had shot both Clovis and Euphemia, but he regretted killing only one of his two siblings. And even now, he couldn't really look at her ghost without thinking of her real form, rotting in a grave back in Britannia – she didn't deserve that, Lelouch knew it.
"I'm one of those who saw his huge potential, so it's no surprise that you could see it as well," Vergo continued, an edge of pride in his tone that almost made Lelouch snort in amusement. "Back to you: how do you feel after using your powers? Sabertooth said that you were about to literally eat the clown when he stopped you. Never took you for the cannibal type, Lelouch."
Of course Saber would say that. "I swear, Sabertooth...alright, I got no excuse for nearly snapping and losing my control over my powers, but had he not been there to knock me out of my phase, I would have done something to the bastard. I know I would have, because I could almost taste that clown's fear and it would have been heaven in my mouth. It should be frightening, but I kind of like it," he added with a chuckle before regaining his serious exterior. "I can only imagine what I can seriously do with it, that must be why someone is after me. My best bet, it's the World Government."
"And if you want any more precision, try the Cipher Pol. Those bastard preachers of Dark Justice are always looking for new assassins to do the dirty work for the Five Elders, so I guess we shouldn't be surprised to find out that you're their next target to add in their collection: you're the very rare kind of genius that suddenly pops up out of nowhere, with a perfect mastery of the Six Powers (and I'm pretty sure you've been working on the Rokuogan as well, so don't even try to deny that fact), who is an expert navigator and strategist and possesses one of the most dangerous blacklisted Devil Fruits of this world. So I'm wondering who could try to get –"
Vergo fell silent so suddenly that it made Lelouch freeze in anticipation. When a full minute passed, he started to feel uneasy; his mentor being silent had never been a good thing, it usually meant that he was either mad or thinking. And whatever it was, it couldn't be pleasant.
"...if that's really him behind that circus, then that's a problem," the Demon Bamboo muttered darkly. "That guy has always been too ambitious for his own good."
"And who's too ambitious for his own good, pray tell?" Lelouch asked, now very curious.
His mentor was silent for a few seconds, surely waging his options, before speaking again. "Lelouch, listen very carefully, and I don't care if you're too tired for this because I won't repeat myself: there's a secret branch of the Cipher Pol that is supposed to be unknown for everyone outside the World Government and the Marines – even the simplest soldier is conscious of its existence. It's called Cipher Pol 9, or CP9 for short. They're a special branch that is handed extreme missions only them can accomplish."
Lelouch almost rolled his eyes. Why wasn't he so surprised? Something like that from the World Government had to be expected. "Any particular reason they're given extreme missions? I'm ready to bet Saber's next stack of derringers that a complete mastery of the Six Powers has to be required. That and something else."
"CP9 is the only branch of the Cipher Pol to have the right to kill."
A gleam in the navigator's mismatched eyes suddenly sparkled and lit those strange orbs of his. Ah. An assassination branch in the Cipher Pol. Now that piece of information was interesting: having the right to kill meant that they could choose whether their target could be a threat in the future or not, thus killing would solve any future problems with that person. If CP9 had to remain a secret, that must mean that they were those assassins who wouldn't be punished if they compromised a mission by killing the target, because that was a right they were given. That and the fact that they could blend in very easily. If you include Cipher Pol Aigis Zero for being the most powerful of them all (and the lapdogs of the World Nobles, on top of that), CP9 must be almost just as powerful and ruthless.
Well, if CP9 was after him, that was going to be problematic.
"I see," Lelouch said after a long minute of thinking. "And who's their chief? Assuming he's the one who wanted my file so desperately that he had to resort to using bounty hunters?"
The Transponder Snail showed a sneer, imitating Vergo. "That is the core of the problem: their chief. His name is Spandam, and I'm still dismayed that he's been given the position of head of the Assassination Cipher Pol branch." There was a disgusted sound from the Vice-Admiral, which almost made Lelouch smirk in response. "Not only is he so weak that even a child could maul him in a brawl, but he is weaker than the average soldier. If you're wondering how he gets to boss the CP9 agents around without getting killed, just tell yourself that they only respect him because he's their chief and nothing else. He got the position just because his father, Spandine, used to be in CP9 as well – and they are both absolute loosers. It's pathetic, really. Unfortunately, Spandam is incredibly ambitious, maybe too much for his own good: I'm ready to bet my next meals that he's already drooling over the fact that he thinks he's about to capture you, and the fact that he got his position as chief of CP9 through his father is infuriating. He's always boasting that the World Government would praise him as a hero for capturing infamous criminals, such as Nico Robin for example – her being the very last Oharan who can read the Poneglyphs makes a prized and golden target. This is absolutely sickening just to even think about him."
Lelouch cocked his head a little to the left, supported by his fist. He looked deep in thought. "I've read about her. She's called 'Devil's Child', responsible for destroying and sinking battleships in Ohara when the World Government decided to rain down a Buster Call on this island. But I don't think an eight-year-old child could have done that, that's too ludicrous... but having a bounty of seventy-nine millions Berrys on her head at only eight? Damn. I can relate to her in her case with my Devil Fruit," he said bitterly.
"If you get found out, Lelouch... there's a chance you'd get a bounty, higher than you could ever imagine. And your only crime would be being the wielder of the Terror-Terror Fruit, a blacklisted Devil Fruit that was supposed to be securely locked away in Mariejois. That would be about the same as harming one of the Celestial Dragons. You'd get killed on the spot, so they can recover your fruit, or thrown in the lowest level of Impel Down, where the most dangerous criminals of the world are kept to rot until they die. That's not a fate made for you, Lelouch. Spandam is treading on a very dangerous path if he thinks he can have you for free – if that's really him who's after you. But what the hell could he really want from you? That idiot couldn't have found out about your Devil Fruit, could he?"
Lelouch raised a brow and smirked, challenging. "That's for us to find out, although it's not going to be a lot of fun. That Spandam guy sounds like a piece of work and a bloody pain in the ass. The World Government is after your protege and said protege happened to have eaten a blacklisted Devil Fruit, which was supposed to be kept secret for as long as this organization existed, and is now in possession of the dreadful blacklist. They have all the reasons in the world to hunt me down and kill me, they would recover the Terror-Terror Fruit and make it look like it had never been stolen in the first place. Schemes and schemes to keep all populations in the dark so they wouldn't suffer a blow," he scoffed, scowling. "But this Spandam... what you said about him is quite intriguing: I get the fact that they think that capturing Nico Robin would ensure the World Government some 'peace', I can't help but think that someone like the chief of CP9 must have some hidden motivation to have her hostage and prisoner. The archaeologists of Ohara must have been on the verge of discovering something really big to have their island completely obliterated by a Buster Call," he said with a heavy frown. "And pinning the blame on a little girl so that the World Government would be able to keep everyone in the dark is low. Very low."
"That's their number one strategy in a nutshell, and getting the Marines to obey their commands doesn't require strength – it's their job to protect all populations against evil, even though they're wrong most of the time. But that's not very important right now: pack your bags and leave this island.You and Sabertooth need to get going to Alabasta at godspeed. I suspect that princess Nefertari Vivi is bound to return very soon to put an end to the future civil war Crocodile is about to trigger." There was another pause in his speech, to which Lelouch found curious. "She could use some help."
The navigator, who was about to take a sip of his tea, jerked in surprise and stared incredulously at the Transponder Snail. He didn't even hiss at the warm liquid that splashed on his leg. "I beg your pardon, Vergo?" he asked, forgetting to add the -san after his name, because he was sure he didn't hear what he just heard. "Did you just suggest that I should help the princess? Why should I? She won't even remember me meeting her in her palace, that was years ago. Her father might, but as for princess Vivi?"
A small frown appeared on the Transponder Snail, barely visible because of the dark shades over the eyes, but Lelouch knew all too well he shouldn't cower. He never would ever again, not even in front of Doflamingo. "Lelouch, just because you're my protege doesn't mean that you should forget about respecting your mentor. But yes, that's what I'm saying." A sly smirk slowly appeared on the snail's face. "You shouldn't underestimate a girl's mind, as young as it was, especially when there's a fair chance she might have developed a crush on you. With your looks, it can't be hard to attract a flock of girls and women to your person, even as a child. Her father will remember you for sure – nobody can just forget about such a brilliant child who was suicidal enough to be under Sphinx's crazy tutelage."
Lelouch didn't know what was worse: the fact that his friend thought that he was a cannibal, or Vergo telling him that he should use his charismatic persona (or whatever the hell he meant by that...) to get close to princess Vivi so he could help her in her quest. He fought an annoyed groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose, eyes shut. Even as Lelouch Lamperouge, the mere idea of being interested in girls never popped in his head, although he had a large fan club in Ashford. While he persuaded himself that Euphemia may have been the first girl he ever loved, feelings and love just couldn't reach him before C.C and when they finally did, they struck very hard and painfully.
Shirley. Kind, shy Shirley Fennette who had loved him unconditionally.
Her death really shook him, but her feelings for him struck him harder. Why was it always when someone close to you was dying that you realize their true feelings about you, whether it was love or hatred? Death almost didn't matter in this case, because the realization of something that should have been found out much earlier was too painful; using his Geass to try saving Shirley's life was the kind of desperate action that made him realize a lot of things about her – not only that she loved him, but that he cared so much about her. Maybe not in the way she would have wanted, but still. Lelouch cared. He really did.
Having taken a decision, he opened his eyes and gazed at the snail. "I'll think of something. I'm not promising that I will help to get rid of Crocodile, but I still want to know what her plan is. So yes, we should get going right now."
Vergo hummed, approving. "Godspeed." Then he hung up.
Once the conversation was finished, Lelouch yawned for a few seconds before slumping in his seat, suddenly more exhausted than ever. He had a lot in his mind, schemes to think of just to terminate a threat without revealing his Devil Fruit abilities and getting rid of potential agents on his tail. And all this required cunningness and energy, which he didn't have for now.
"Damn, what a mess," was all he said.
He sat there for a little while, immobile and silent, then got up to snatch his backpack. He had a monkey to retrieve, two twins to take with him, a clown to use as fishbait for Sea Kings and a Desert Kingdom to travel to.
"There you are, monkey man," Lelouch said as he slowly sauntered up to his friend, dragging an unconscious and heavily chained up Blacken Felicio behind him by the foot. He couldn't particularly care if the clown got hurt in the process, because he was feeling way too lazy and tired to make him walk. "Gathering supplies, are we? We'll need them for the trip to Alabasta, as there's still many islands to pass by to make it to the Desert Kingdom."
Saber beamed at him, green eyes glowing. "You mean you'll need," he corrected, laughing as Lelouch scowled at him. "Ah, don't be so grumpy, the townspeople are grateful towards us for getting rid of the Blacken Serenade Circus, so they'll supply us with everything we need. And you do need the food more than me," he added, suddenly turning more serious as he leaned in to whisper. "Using your powers to a certain extent makes you quite comatose, Lelouch, and this is something you should work on. Clearly, you still haven't explored everything this Devil Fruit gives to its wielder, and that must be partly why you always limit yourself and need to eat in order to stay sane. You'll replenish once we're onboard."
Mismatched eyes slid over to the place where the gigantic tent once stood, only to find it empty. Right after Blacken Felicio's defeat, the news had spread over to all the citizens that haven't been hypnotized like wildfire; led by their mayor, they had locked up all the clowns – the corpse of the giant one was still down there and would likely be left there to be eaten by maggots, it was too big to be moved, anyway.
Nevertheless, Saber was right: Lelouch still had too much to master from the Terror-Terror Fruit, but the idea of getting to the bottom of his powers was making him very uneasy. The Geass, as it was unexpected, had revealed itself to be more dangerous than he had originally thought – just having to shoot Euphemia, because she wouldn't stop firing and killing people due to the influence of the Geass on her mind, to fully stop the madness he had unvoluntarily triggered was a painful consequence he didn't want to happen again in the Grand Line. But somehow, he had a feeling things wouldn't go as smoothly as he thought in a world where even the impossible was possible.
"Hn, you don't need to remind me that," the genius replied in a hushed groan, rubbing his eyes with the other hand. "Speaking of being onboard, have you seen those Freesia pirates around? Just to make sure they haven't fled the island in fear that I'd scalp them for doing so?"
Saber shoved more food in his backpack, which had become quite enormous, while responding. "I saw Ferret near the library of Coral Village twenty minutes ago, but he left soon after getting some books. Looks like he's hoping to catch up to you!"
"Not talented enough, he's still pretty basic and relies too much on his sight, which hinders his sensitivity to the changes in the atmosphere. And the twins?"
"They're waiting for us inside the restaurant. What?" he said as soon as he caught Lelouch's miffed scowl. "They were hungry, I wasn't going to forbid them from eating after everything they've through just because of the two of us!"
About ten minutes later...
"WHAT THE – WHERE THE HELL ARE THOSE BASTARDS?!" Lelouch shouted, irate, as he stared at the empty bay.
"WHERE THE FUCK IS THE SHIP?!" Saber yelled, somehow even more irate.
Sometimes, Lelouch should just listen to the voice that tells him 'don't go scaring the heck outta people', because fear would always drive people to do something beyond stupid or possible. Somehow, he was kind of expecting those pirates to do something while they were away, taking advantage of their absence, but still: that would only drive Lelouch to kill them for that, if they managed to catch up. Fortunately, both and Saber didn't leave any personal belonging onboard, as that would have become a problem later on if those idiots ever decided to throw them overboard – Lelouch had the Eternal, Log and Tri-Log Poses on his person, his books as well (especially his logbook, that one was precious), and Saber had all his weapons. The only problem?
No ship, no travel to Alabasta.
Lelouch rounded up on Noctis and Nasse, who were standing behind them awkwardly, and glared murderously at them (even though they didn't do anything wrong). Somehow, he still managed to look both exhausted and bloody furious at the same time with his eyes blazing in fury. "We need a ship. Now!" he barked at them. "Those bastards are going to bleed once we catch up to them, or maybe the Florian Triangle can take care of their fate so I won't have to waste my time strangling their sorry asses for leaving us in this god-forsaken island."
Noctis nodded frantically, actually surprised at Lelouch's ire, and bolted back into the forest. The others followed suit, one with his mind submerged in many ideas to make the pirates pay for their betrayal and looked beyond pissed, another with a sulking expression on his face that clearly showed his discontent at the situation they were now in. The last one just looked sheepish and shy, using the hybrid as her personal shield because she didn't want to get in the navigator's sights.
No matter how good-looking he was, even when he was angry.
Mayor Soprano didn't look surprised as he looked at Lelouch's utterly displeased face. "What? No ship to leave the island?" he mocked, raising a brow. "How unfortunate!"
Screw his manners, there was no time to be diplomatic. And he was still pissed. "And you didn't lift a damn finger to help your citizens when those clowns were hypnotizing them to become their zombie-puppets, you just screamed and your blood pressure threatened to put you in the hospital," Lelouch shot back in a drawl, making the mayor tick with a nasty glare. "Do you really want to go there with me, old man? I'm not in a patient mood right now, so do you have a ship we can take so we can leave?"
Surprisingly, the ship was in good shape when the mayor grudgingly presented it to the little group; what made Lelouch grin like the Cheshire Cat was the fact that it was a galleon, bigger than the Freesia pirates' ship and loaded with cannons that could do a lot of damage with Sabertooth in charge of them. While Lelouch had let Captain Wen, Ferret and that stupid first mate take care of the helm because he was the head navigator, and had to keep an eye on both the sea and the weather, he certainly didn't mind being at the helm because he had become damn good at it – part of becoming the best navigator ever, you see. Once Vergo was sure Lelouch had become accustomed to the helm of his ship, he'd let his protege ride them safely to any destination they needed to get to in the New World.
And with this little beauty, Lelouch, Sabertooth, Noctis and Nasse were ready to go through the Florian Triangle and face whatever they'd find in that supposedly 'haunted' place – after all the stories he'd heard from various sailors, he'd like to go through the actual Triangle and see for himself. There was apparently something in there: one or two sailors, who had managed to get through the god-forsaken area without encountering ghosts, were able to catch sight of two giant, bright eyes in the fog. But nothing else.
If that wasn't something interesting, then Canterbury Lelouch wasn't a genius. But alas, Alabasta was more important, so whatever was in the Florian Triangle would have to wait until they were finished with Crocodile.
"The good and best thing is, I won't have to argue with those imbeciles anymore about who should keep an eye on the sea and the weather, even though I could that myself," Lelouch grumbled as he threw his backpack and other enormous backpack (that was full of clothing and accessories, because they truly needed some for now) on the couch of the cabin, then went back up to find Saber and Noctis conversing on the deck. Nasse was going up the stairs, probably toward the kitchen, her steps steady and confident. Again, the fact that she was using her brother's sight as her own made him very curious.
" …pretty cool to go back to your home country, right?" the hybrid was saying, smiling widely at the acrobat. "After all these years spent in that damn circus, you two deserve some time back in your native land just to get acquainted with everything once again. Aren't you a little bit excited?"
Noctis looked a little hesitant. "Well, I don't really know how to feel about going back there," he admitted as Lelouch jumped up there to check on the sails. "It's been so long since we last talked about Alabasta that I kind of feel alienated from it, and it's our native country we're talking about. But I'm more concerned about the problems that are plaguing it, with a Warlord being there and creating more discontent." His golden eyes looked up to follow Lelouch's nimble and lean form that contorted in a disturbing way. The navigator looked pretty serene as he waited for the wind to pick up. "I...don't even know what to expect anymore."
Saber followed his gaze, resting his green eyes on his best friend. He was quiet for a few seconds before replying to the younger acrobat, solemn. "Worried about Lelouch going back on his word?" he guessed, crossing his arms. "Don't. Save yourself the trouble because we were going there anyway, so you two don't worry your pretty little heads. Lelouch will get us there without any problem, he wouldn't deceive you when he saw your sorrow...but our main concern is the Florian Triangle." His expression grew annoyed, almost frustrated. "That's gonna be a hassle."
"Yeah...I'm still wondering how we got through it without so –"
"Talk later, the wind is finally picking up!" Lelouch's authoritarian voice scolded from above. He had come down from his perch and was running towards the helm, an excited smile on his lips. "We're leaving! Saber, raise the anchor!"
"Aye aye, jack-o-lantern!" Saber responded, a smile of his own lighting his face.
They didn't have to be told twice, as if their little group had acknowledged Lelouch as not only their navigator, but also their leader; even Noctis was moving along, unfolding the sails with new found vigor and confidence in his actions. It wasn't just those two strangers he was hoping to be acquainted with, it was about the aura they both exuded whenever they were together or apart. Although they were terrifying – especially Lelouch – and a thousand times stronger than he and his sister were, Noctis wanted to believe that he and Nasse would be just fine tagging along with this strange duo.
Behind them, the wind blew. A nice, strong breeze that inflated the sails and lurched the galleon forward, and they were finally riding the waves to leave the island. Lelouch could barely contain his excitement as he maneuvered the helm like a pro, ignoring all the cheers and thanks from the citizens shouting their goodbyes to him and Saber; the weather wasn't too bad for now, and hopefully would remain like this for a little while until they encountered another storm. He chuckled rather merrily, his eyes shining and hair whipping around, and smiled. It was still a pretty long journey until Alabasta, but it was worth the ride as the race to get there would only mean that he would get to see Sphinx once again.
Ah, the memories of the old man were refreshing, even though his insane training had been nerve-wrecking; excluding Vergo, Sphinx had not only become his first master when he popped up into this crazy world, but also his first friend. It was different from Suzaku, but even more meaningful; when he met Suzaku Kururugi, it took them some time to finally accept themselves as friends and his Britannian origins only made things rather tense. Lelouch had been glad they could have worked it out, even though everything that happened afterwards was just... plain maddening. But Sphinx? The Alabastan never pried again when he understood that his pupil had never wanted to tell about it, he never judged him (mainly because he had kept quiet on his origins, that would only cause unnecessary headaches) and accepted him. He just accepted him, regarding of who he really was. That was very refreshing to know. And this new world was just another challenge of its own, a place where Lelouch Lamperouge didn't have to exist and fear that he'd be recognized one day as the exiled prince of Britannia: in the Grand Line, Lelouch Lamperouge, Lelouch vi Britannia and the Holy Britannian Empire were absolutely nothing to fear, so those names held no value to anyone.
It looked like the gods had graced him: this world wasn't just a haven, it would be his new home – for him, Canterbury Lelouch. It just felt so good to remember this that he couldn't help the hearty chuckles that shook his body. It was just that good. More than anything.
"A second wind at life I shall not waste because of revenge, this I promise," he said softly, his eyes shining with determination as they looked forward and never strayed. Then his smile widened a little bit, genuine. "Brand new world... start me up!"
Yeah, he thought with new found ferocity, brand new world, start me up. He had a pretty good idea of what was awaiting him in Alabasta; if the Warlord Crocodile was trying to just take over the country by pretending to be a hero and framing King Nefertari Cobra, then there had to be a side goal to his plan. There just had to be one – what good the Desert Kingdom would bring this former pirate? The country's funds must be pretty low for the time being, if they hadn't had any rain in three years. Three years was a long time. And it couldn't just because Crocodile was fed up with his title, he had the Baroque Works to make up for it. Whatever the goal this nasty organization of his had, Alabasta must be hiding something big, something very precious the royal family must be guarding at any cost – for a greedy Warlord to trigger a civil war within the country, it had to be pretty important and dangerous. From what he could remember from King Cobra, he wouldn't surrender that easily without a fight.
His stomach decided to let him know that it was still craving for food, for it suddenly growled very loudly – that was pretty uncharacteristic of him, but he clearly couldn't care anymore. He gritted his teeth in annoyance, just as his expression soured. This Devil Fruit was pretty demanding and if it were an actual person, it would have hollered at him like a petulant, bratty child!
"Oh, for crying out loud," he grunted, glancing toward the cabins. Did he really have to eat now? "We just set sail, we've been at sea for...seven minutes, and I already have to stuff my face? This is unfair."
He glanced from right to left, front and behind, checking if there were any pirate ship or World Government vessel that might be tailing them – because the threat was still very present. Since no one was there yet to have a go at them, he might as well try to eat some lunch and then go meditate on the deck – Saber could take the helm for a while he tried to find some peace and think all he's discussed with Vergo.
Just as he was about to call for his hybrid friend, the feline face, ochre eyes and red hair belonging to Noctis appeared in his sight. Needless to say, he looked a little apprehensive as he approached Lelouch with slow steps; he was grimacing, kept looking down but would sneak a few glances at him, then would immediately look away. It was more than shyness, the navigator could sense it – his Devil Fruit was tingling and poking him to 'take a bite at him'.
Damn. Noctis was still pretty scared of him.
Lelouch couldn't blame the acrobat for feeling that way; the Terror-Terror Fruit was a predator on a league of its own and was merciless towards those who were unable to master their fear before it overwhelmed them, turning them into easy preys the wielder of the damn power wouldn't have too much difficulty in devouring. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose for a moment. Him nearly losing control over his powers could have had greater consequences on the whole town, and especially its citizens: it had always been very easy to scare the hell out of people, you just need to say the right words sometimes, dig up their worst fears, and you have a bloody nightmare that you can't wake up from. He was feeling a bit guilty that the twins had had a foretaste of his Devil Fruit when he didn't even need to kill them anymore, but he knew that apologizing for what he had unconsciously done wouldn't really make up for it.
Lelouch suddenly cleared his throat, making Noctis look up at him. "Yes?" he asked, glancing casually at the Eternal Pose in his hand. They were going at the right direction, so no worries for now.
"H-Hum," he stammered, hesitant. "I... wanted to see if you needed anyone to take your place at the helm. Well, if you want."
"The monkey told you about my powers, didn't he?" Lelouch guessed, blinking twice to remain concentrated on the sea. He smirked when Noctis answered with a yes. "Saber worries too much for his own sake, but he does have a point there: I still haven't fully recovered from my terror-nightmare trip, it drains a lot of energy to use special attacks with this peculiar Devil Fruit and I have to rest. But as the navigator of this ship –"
" – you shouldn't fall asleep when you're at sea, because our course might change in a second," Noctis finished for him, nodding in understanding as he leant on the railing next to the leader of their group. "Right, I forgot about the nonsense of this mysterious ocean and how much work it gives to all navigators. What a pain!"
The atmosphere between them was lightening up, as if the tension that had been there was suddenly being lifted. Lelouch's smirk softened a little, immediately sensing the poking and tingling in his mind were dying out slowly, as if disinterested. Noctis' fear of the New World navigator might have subsided just a little, but it was a start nonetheless. They just had to keep talking so they could get to know each other, even though that might be difficult for Lelouch, since he still couldn't trust the twins for now.
"If you think that Paradise is crazy, then wait until you can get in the New World – that is, if you ever manage to get there in one piece," he said, his mismatched eyes starting to glow. Even his voice had taken an eager tone, though he probably didn't realize it. "The sea is just... marvelous to sail, because it's a much more worthy challenge to all the best navigators in the world. Take the example of all swordsmen wanting to fight against Dracule Mihawk, one of the seven Warlords of the seas and the greatest swordsmaster of this world: they all have one unique and same dream, to become the strongest. His title made him legendary, as legendary as the Four Emperors ruling the sea of the New World, and it appealed to all those who are eager to measure themselves to him." He gave a short chuckle, shaking his head. "I can't imagine the number of those he already crushed, but I'm pretty sure he's waiting for the one who would take his mantle. The greatest always get bored when they don't have enemies worth their strength, they look for lesser preys just to kill time because they now have all the time in the world. Well, the sea of the New World is pretty much our 'Mihawk' and we navigators all aspire to conquer it. Whoever will be the next King of the pirates will have the second best navigator, should the One Piece be real and found sooner or later."
Lelouch fell silent, still smirking proudly. He might not have noticed the way Noctis was looking at him, but he could feel his awe. Truth to be told, he hadn't talked like this in a very long time – ever since he died and was reborn in the Grand Line; his rebellion against the Holy Britannian Empire had been genuine and legitimate, but the passion he had felt during his time as Lelouch Lamperouge and Zero didn't seem to compare to the one he was feeling as Canterbury Lelouch. They were different: the passion Canterbury Lelouch always felt was akin to a blazing inferno that just couldn't be tamed, always powerful and stronger than any fire. Whenever he fought, whenever he set sail, he'd feel it in his guts. It might be the calling of the sea and adventure, because Lelouch couldn't see what else it could be. The late Lelouch Lamperouge didn't have much of a future in his world, since his origins as one of the princes of the mighty Britannia could have crippled him, should he have been recognized somewhere by Clovis, Schneizel or even Cornelia – all the others, minus Euphemia, Nunnally and maybe Odysseus, could just fuck themselves. Especially Carline and Guinevere!
"I don't know if you and your sister have dreams yet, but maybe you could sail the Grand Line on your own once our business in Alabasta is done?" Lelouch suggested, glancing at Noctis. But then, his eyes darkened a little as he remembered something unpleasant. "Speaking of the Desert Kingdom and its problems, maybe it's time to tell you about what's actually going on there. Go get your sister, because that concerns her as well."
Days passed, some uneventful and others pretty busy as they finally stumbled upon pirates and bounty hunters to boot – flying on flying fishes to catch their preys, how original! But this Duval guy wasn't all that annoying, if you looked past the fact that he didn't take Lelouch's dismissal very well – throw in a good glare to him and his men, and you're all free to go. The most amusing part of meeting that group of bounty hunters was Sabertooth winning all their earnings by beating their most talented players at poker in about ten minutes: who knew that hybrid was so fond of games like that? Lelouch was aware that his friend loved money, but that was a bit extreme to bleed Duval dry. And his reply to all this?
"We need more money to last the trip to Alabasta, right? So they better not whine that I was the one who bled them dry, others would have done worse. But since we're in a hurry, I had no choice but to step up my game and make them cry fast."
Saber had been crying out of joy ever since they got back on the road, counting and calculating their earnings and some of the treasures he had taken, but even he wasn't that dumb to just put it all in the safe; hiding it well in their temporary galleon was the solution, and if pirates came to fight them and loot their money, a little trip to the bottom of a Sea King's stomach would calm them down – just like Felicio must be right now. The clown had been disposed of by two very eager and vindictive twins, who were more than delighted to take care of him. Listening to his wails while he was getting thrown into the mouth of a giant Sea King catfish – Lelouch and Saber had been retaining it by his long whiskers, smirking as they kept pulling at them to open its mouth. Afterwards, the marksman had braided those whiskers as an apology to the giant catfish – Lelouch didn't see how that would make it up to it, but the monkey had assured him with a smile that it was fine, that it wouldn't hold a grudge against them. The navigator had rolled his eyes, ordering Noctis to take the helm so they could continue their journey.
But the most memorable moment was when they finally entered the infamous Sea of Ghosts – in other terms, the Florian Triangle.
Lelouch had groaned when the fog suddenly appeared out of nowhere, obscuring his vision a little bit. That really wasn't idealistic for a navigator, because he needed a clear view of what was around him. This was the one thing he hated whenever he was at sea, but he was still feeling giddy about the whole thing; the Florian Triangle, the supposedly haunted place where thousands of ships have disappeared.
"Didn't Vergo say that the Warlord Gekko Moriah has made this part of the sea his residence?" Saber asked his mismatched-eyed friend, frowning at all the fog around them. "Kinda hard to think that anyone would live in a haunted place such as the Florian Triangle..."
"That's correct," Lelouch confirmed, checking the Eternal Pose to make sure they were still going in the right direction. Doing so, he was also using his Haki to guide himself through the thick fog. "Out of the seven Warlords, this Gekko Moriah might be the weirdest of them all. Vergo-san revealed me pretty interesting facts about him that not many people know about that Warlord, and the one that got my attention was the fact that he drastically lost to one of the Four Emperors in the New World, Kaido, and is still mentally scarred about that defeat."
Nasse, who had joined them outside, looked disturbed. "One of the seven Warlords? He lost?" she exclaimed, more than surprised.
"I guess there are more big shots even stronger than them," Noctis grunted, also pretty amazed at the fact. "I've heard that the three Admirals aren't to be taken lightly either, since this is the highest rank right after Sengoku's."
Lelouch shook his head as he answered. "No, they're definitely amazing powerhouses that currently reside in Marineford because that's where the greatest can be found, even though they freely roam the Grand Line whenever they must have time on their hands. Actually, Vice-Admiral Monkey D. Garp, nicknamed "the Hero", is one of their greatest assets because of his insane strength and his knowledge of Haki." His eyes narrowed a little. "I wonder why he refused to be officially made Admiral, this man is simply amazing to have fought against legends such the late Pirate King, Gold Roger, and Shiki the Golden Lion."
Since they mostly had nothing better to do during their blind travel through the fog, they simply discussed and kept a lookout around them; Lelouch had stated that the weather would be fine for now, having checked everything that would eventually put them in trouble and still checking, but he was relaxed for now. Noctis and Nasse were still reeling from all the informations he had shared with them so far, their expressions were somber as they stared into space, and Lelouch couldn't blame them to be worried. Even though they had left Alabasta years ago and felt alienated, this was still their country – their native country.
The contortionist himself was at a loss at Crocodile's intention towards the Desert Kingdom: framing the king of this land for bringing a forbidden powder to his country was pretty low, considering the devastating effects it could have on lands.
"He's brought Dance Powder in Alabasta?!" Lelouch exclaimed, his mismatched eyes widening in surprise and horror. "Does that bastard even know what devastating effects it has on lands once the rain it created finally dried?!"
Lelouch scowled in annoyance. He had to give Crocodile some credit here: by bringing great amounts of Dance Powder in Alabasta, he managed to take the rain away from the country for three whole years because that would be a great disadvantage to him, due to his powers. The Sand-Sand Fruit may be a powerful Logia Devil Fruit, but water would give the advantage to everyone as he won't be immune to physical attacks anymore. The Dance Powder had done its effect; King Nefertari Cobra was successfully framed for having great amounts of the damn product shipped to the port of Nanohana, and great unrest among the citizens will finally cause a civil war between them. Crocodile wouldn't even have to lift a finger if everything went according to plan – Princess Nefertari Vivi coming back to stop his projects wouldn't be a blip on the radar, especially if she didn't have a single clue about whatever he might be really looking for in Alabasta. Taking over her country? No, a pirate wouldn't be interested in running some country that was on the verge of dying, even though it was still fighting.
And even though the Nefertari family was one of the descendants of those who created the World Government, alongside the Donquixote line.
"Tch! This fog is pretty damn thick," Saber cussed, frustrated. "I kinda want to use my Haki, but that would be a useless waste of energy. Hey, Lelouch," he addressed his best friend, who was also looking around. "Did you sense anything around?"
"No, nothing yet," Lelouch sighed, still holding the helm. "Not a single soul around the perimeter, though I'm sure Moriah's around somewhere in this place. Let's not forget that the Florian Triangle is enormous, his boat might be a few miles away from our position right now."
At his words, the twins and the hybrid groaned in frustration, all already tired of this place. Lelouch snickered to himself, amused beyond belief. This was just the beginning.
All of a sudden, they heard something in the distance.
"… Yohohoho..."
Everyone perked up, Lelouch being first as his eyes slowly widened in surprise and their pupils shrank gradually fast. He was, somehow, spooked. Saber, Noctis and Nasse all started looking around them for the source of the sound, dismayed.
"What the hell?" the hybrid mused, frowning. "What is that?"
"Who's singing?" the twins exclaimed together.
"… Yohohohohoho...Yohohohoho..."
Dismayed as well, Lelouch walked away from the helm to jump on the deck and scanned the area, getting ready to defend himself and his friends against whatever – or whoever – was lurking around and... singing.
The sound reverberated once more, this time closer to them. And when Saber was about to lose his mind, the silhouette of a very damaged ship appeared before them, advancing very slowly. The wood was ancient nad creaking, the sails were torn apart Lelouch's eyes widened even more, if that was possible, as he stared numbly at the vessel. He could hear the twins gasping right behind him, stupefied, he could sense Saber's wonder and amazement at his side, along with the sharp intake of breath that left his lungs. The sound, sorrowful and utterly creepy, echoed from there alright: so whoever was singing was onboard that 'ghost ship'. But who the hell could that be? His Haki couldn't pick up anything alive around four miles ahead and around.
The ship was awfully slow to make it to them, but it eventually revealed the singing 'ghost' that was spooking them all. There was a lone figure onboard the slightly larger and battered ship, rather slim and leaning on deck. When they finally could get a good look at him, Lelouch's gaze became completely blank as he stared numbly ahead, Saber's jaw grew slack and his mouth fell open as his green eyes widened greatly, the twins didn't refrain themselves from shrieking out loud.
"IT'S A SKELETON!" they both screamed, holding each other. Their eyes had even rolled to the back of their heads.
"Is he wearing...an afro?" Saber wondered out loud, still a bit disturbed and his eyes twitching. "You've got to be kidding me..."
"LELOUCH, LET'S GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!" the twins both hollered at their navigator as they grabbed his shoulders, shaking him wildly. "THAT THING IS GONNA KILL US!"
But they shut up almost instantly as the skeleton – with an oustanding afro, mind you – resumed humming. He was holding a cracked tea cup, was staring ahead of him with (blank?) empty sockets that didn't have eyes anymore. His clothing was just as battered and torn, but he looked pretty elegant-looking despite the fact that he was an obvious skeleton.
"Gather up all of the crew...
Time to ship out Bink's Brew..."
Eerie as it sounded right now, Lelouch's brain instantly recognized those lines: they belonged to a song pirates always sung at certain times of joy and sorrow – Bink's Brew. Quite endearing, because he liked the background of that song. And right now, the skeleton sounded very sorrowful, as if something extremely bad had happened to him in the past, prior to this encounter.
Lelouch's eyes never left the figure as the ship drifted by them, carrying the singing skeleton as he released one final "Yohohohoho!". His pupils were still tiny and his eyes wide, and he just stood there, deadly silent. Was that actually possible? That the undead could really come back to life? The possibilities of something like that happening were just too...weird; the Grand Line being full of mysteries getting crazier by the second in each adventure, it was still amazing that things like that could be real – his own Devil Fruit was proof of that, every Devil Fruit was just one of the mysteries and wonders of this world.
He came back to the world of the living when Saber's tuft slammed violently on his head, nearly making him fall on his knees. "Did you see that? Lulu, wake up!" the hybrid shouted excitedly as he repeatedly slammed his tuft on his friend's cranium. "That's the first time I've ever seen a singing skeleton, we need to investigate further!"
"NO, WHAT WE NEED IS TO GET THE HELL OUT OF THAT PLACE!" Noctis countered, still screaming loudly and his hands clamped on Lelouch's shoulders. His anxiety rolled off him like waves and his fear seemed to be increasing each second they were spending in the Florian Triangle to bicker whether they should chase the skeleton or leave. "WE'RE NOT MONSTERS LIKE YOU, SO WE SERIOUSLY GOT TO GO BEFORE THAT SKELETON CHASES US!"
Lelouch growled as his hand snatched Saber's tail to stop it, having now a growing headache, and his other hand shrugged Noctis' hand off his shoulder. He knew that going through the Florian Triangle would be exciting as the stories sailors would tell were all the more mysterious and strange, but Saber and the twins going crazy become of some singing skeleton? Was it even worth the headache right now?
"All of you, calm the hell down!" Lelouch exclaimed loudly, pulling at Saber's tail. Then he looked at the drifting galleon, his pupils having grown back to normal. "Singing skeleton, eh? Well, it's going to wait until we get our business done in Alabasta. We don't have much time on our hands for now! Why are you all going mad because of this, anyway?"
After this, he spent more than three hours having to reassure the twins, whose nerves have been tested. Had he been more grounded and rational, he would have been very upset at this encounter with this skeleton; the rational Lelouch Lamperouge would have insulted everyone would claim to have seen something like this, but Canterbury Lelouch had abandoned all common sense ever since he decided to take that second wind as his ultimate chance to live and have the full, happy life he should have had.
But still, they had to get back to the Florian Triangle at some point – that skeleton, Moriah's ship being somewhere, and that mysterious silhouette with shining eyes... they were worth investigating, but not now. Alabasta was the priority and 'helping' the princess to save her kingdom was another side goal.
"It's getting worse and worse," Lelouch commented as he read the later news on the newspapers, delivered this morning by the News Coo. His frown deepened when he read that many soldiers of the royal army had left to join the rebels – probably tricked by the real enemy because they must have felt 'betrayed' by their own king. "Baroque Works sure thought of every detail in this plan, I'm actually surprised at the severity of the situation. Crocodile shouldn't be taken lightly because of this, it's going to be very difficult to stop this madness."
Nasse was conflicted as she gazed into the distance. The navigator had told them that they were finally approaching Alabasta, after days and days of travelling with only docking very few times when it was absolutely urgent to restock their supplies. What will they find once they get there? Will Alubarna be in ruins and ashes by the time they'll make it to the capital? It was a bit stressful just to think that a Warlord's greed was the cause of all this...and for what purpose?
She gulped, blinking her blind eyes. Her lips quivered a little bit.
"Please...let home be safe for now. At least for now."
Lelouch, who was sporting a rather loose white shirt with the symbol of a widely smirking cat wearing a crown, pants that ended right past his knees, white shoes and black gloves, smiled when he finally spotted the long awaited island they've all been dying to see – especially Lelouch, who really couldn't contain his excitement at the idea of seeing Sphinx once again. He could already feel the familiar heat of the desert, he could almost picture his first master's house, where he first began his training. Nanohana... those were good memories.
"Land ho! Look what I just found!" he shouted to the others, uncharacteristically ecstatic and his eyes shining with excitement. "We've finally arrived at Nanohana, guys... hm?" he mused as his well-trained eyes noticed another ship that was anchored not far from the port, partly hidden.
The Jolly Roger was unknown to him, but the black sails confirmed that this ship belonged to pirates. As for the Jolly Roger, he'd never seen a skull with a straw-hat on its head, so the crew might still be new. In other terms, rookies for now. Lelouch hummed as he looked at their ship with a critical gaze, crossing his arms. It had already withstood some damages, but the caravel seemed overall still a bit alright – now, he was no shipwright, but he knew for sure that a small caravel such as this one would never stand the waves of Paradise and those from the New World would just smash it into pieces in minutes.
But still, the Jolly Roger looked nice. And kind of... amusing.
"Aaaaaah, some pirates are joining the fun in Alabasta?" Saber said with a wide smile, stroking his sword with a hand and holding... a cane in the other. "Cool, the more the merrier. Here, that's for you!" he declared as he tossed the cane at Lelouch, who deftly caught it.
The navigator looked confused as he inspected it. The cane looked both solid and stylish, having an eagle's head made of silver as the base and pommel – something a wealthy aristocrat would use, but not him. He looked up at his friend, raising a brow as a question. Saber rolled his eyes with a smile.
"It's not just a cane to use when you'll grow old, you jack-o-lantern," he admonished lightly, amused. "It's a cane-sword, created in Coral Village just for you. A gift, the blacksmith said," he added as a precision. "Figure you could use some weapon combined with the multiple martial arts you excel in and mastered."
Ah. That was pretty thoughtful of Saber, and actually nice from the blacksmith. Looking back at his new weapon, Lelouch took out the sword, admiring the blade. It was sharp and well polished, though he'd have to take care of it now (it was a good thing that Sphinx taught him how to use weapons such as knives, daggers and other stuff back when he was still under his tutelage. That may prove to be useful in this battle for Alabasta's freedom and rebirth). Smiling, he thanked his hybrid friend as he sheathed the sword.
"Now... have you ever seen this Jolly Roger before?" Saber asked as he inspected the ship as well. "It looks cool, more inviting than most of the others that exist – even though Whitebeard's is the coolest with its mustache."
"Not at all, so there's a slight chance we might run into those pirates in the desert," Lelouch said as he went to drop the anchor. "Whoever they are, I don't know if they came here to make things worse or not, and we still have no clue of the princess' return to her beloved country. Might as well scan the area to find her. But before that, we need to get outfits for all of us; that heat is going to be our doom if we don't protect our skin from the harsh sun of the desert – especially you, monkey!" he said as he pointed to Saber, nearly hitting him with his gloved finger. He narrowed his eyes at an innocent-looking Sabertooth. "You're from a winter island, so the heat will roast you like meat in minutes and even though your tuft has absorbed enough cold to last months, you're still going to wear robes, understood?"
Smiling widely, the hybrid nodded twice to show that he got the point. The twins came to join them on deck, looking awed to see the port of Nanohana once again after all these years spent away (again, it was weird to think and be aware that Nasse could see by using her brother's sight through their unique bond. Weird, but very unique). They could notice the changes, but there must be hope to be reconnected to their native country; one does not simply forgets his origins, no matter how many years he spent away from his land.
Now that everyone seemed ready to go, Lelouch nimbly jumped on the railing, smiling once again. He swung his weapon expertly in his hands, staring ahead.
"Alright... let's land, everyone!"
Author's Note 2: Alabasta... finally!