Disclaimer: Godzilla and One Piece are the sole properties of Toho Co. LTD and Eiichiro Oda respectively. KP360 claims no ownership of anything save for any OCs, abilities, and locations.
Thriller Bark Opening: Dead or Lie by TRUSTRICK
Color Spread: The Straw Hats camping out on an island of mammoths. Gian in particular is playing with 3 baby mammoths, introducing them to Robin who chuckles.
The only word that could describe the scenario was pandemonium.
"Gomu Gomu no Pistol!"
"Atom Fist!"
"Dos Fleur: Clutch!"
"Strong Right!"
Each attack sent out repelled multiple undead, but the moment one fell, 2 more took its place. The horde of zombies surged forward, pushing the Straw Hats further inside the mansion. While they were not very strong, their numbers more than made up for it.
"Ok, Usopp and the others really got themselves caught in a jam here!" Gian gritted as he wrestled with a living bear rug. Gripping the snapping room ornament by the neck, he had to fling him hard into the distance, but by then some other zombie had already leapt at him again.
"These zombies are so weird!" Luffy called out "They're just made up of household objects!"
"By this point I guess it's basically confirmed that someone is making these poor things." Franky grunted as he punched away another corpse.
"Whoever is doing so must be fascinated by the intricacies of the body." Robin noted.
Eventually however, the wave did die down. The group was finally able to catch their breath. Scattered around them were the defeated forms of many undead, all unable to muster up more fights and, though they cannot feel pain, really did not wish to take another beat down. One of them, in a form that seems to be nothing more than a pig's head attached to a plaque, groggily regained its focus only to find itself being hoisted up by its collar; Luffy had picked it up and was glaring at him, his eyes intense.
"Where are my nakama?"
"A-All this struggling is useless!" the pig zombie spat "Our numbers are unending! We cannot feel any pain! There's nothing you can do to stop us!"
"If you've done anything to them…!" Gian growled as he stepped up, his right hand instantly lighting up in blue fire. Upon seeing that, the pig's demeanor instantly changed.
"G-GAAAH! T-THEY'RE RESTING IN THE BEDROOM JUST UP AHEAD!" previously defiant, the zombie now had a look of horror on its face as the blaze loomed closer.
"Tell me the truth!" the Kaiju-Zoan user shouted as he pressed the fireball closer. Gian didn't miss the change in attitude, and it's clear that the fire in his hand is something they're frightened of.
"I-I DON'T KNOW! THEY'RE SOMEWHERE IN THE MANSION! MAYBE MORIA-SAMA OR ONE OF THE GENERALS FOUND THEM AND DISPOSED OF-!" it didn't finish its sentence as Luffy tossed it away.
"If any of them get hurt, I swear I'll blow up this whole island just to find them!" the captain declared.
"Well, at least we know they're here." Gian nodded "They're smart, they should know how to survive."
"Plus, we now also know a weakness of these zombies." Robin realized "Or, at least that they don't like fire."
"There are so many corridors and stairs though." Franky mused "Where do we start looking?"
"Porky over there did mention a bedroom, he's probably leading us on but it's as good as a place as any." Gian shrugged.
"Let's go then, they could be anywhere at this point." Luffy mentioned, his voice acting like it's strained. Gian gave audible sigh as he realized the captain was up to mischief again.
"Luffy… take it off…"
"But this armor is just lying here!" the captain protested, trying to fit his body neatly into the knight armor on display "And when a man sees a suit of armor lying around he can't help but wear it!"
"WHAT ARE YOU EVEN ON ABOUT?!" and Luffy was left pouting as Gian stripped the knight's armor away with a scowl, the pieces falling to the ground with loud clatters.
"But it's so cool lookingggg!" Luffy wept.
"Come on! Did you already forget about Horror Movie Rule number 4? No touching old objects in weird houses or you'll be cursed!"
"No fair! You said there were only 3 rules!" the captain protested "You only just added that last one now!"
"I forgot to mention it earlier, it was always in the background!"
"Actually, he's right." Franky quipped "You never mentioned anything about a fourth rule, and he's also very correct that a man simply cannot resist putting on a nice suit of armor."
"You also went on about how you didn't believe in curses to Long nose-kun earlier." Robin smiled "I remember these things."
"See? You did make it up!" Luffy pointed accusingly.
Gian grumbled a bit, having no excuse to back himself up, before resigning to fate and picking up the headpiece.
"Fine, you can keep the helmet." He sighed with a chuckle "At least it'll protect your head."
"Yay!" the captain cheered.
Before anyone could say anything else however, the doors burst open once more.
"We've got more company!" Franky pointed out. The quartet turned to see another wave of zombies bearing down on them.
"And these aren't the same ones as before!" Gian realized, seeing the taller zombies. Unlike the horde from before, these newcomers were much bigger, each wearing a varied display of battle armor and decked out in weapons. Clearly whoever created them had the idea to model them after actual warriors, and it soon became apparent when they starting their attack.
"They're much stronger too!" Luffy noticed, flipping over as a heavy ax slammed into the ground where he stood "Everyone, stick together!"
And it was only then, that they noticed something was amiss.
"Wait... where did swordsman-san and cook-san go?" Robin noted.
Everyone blinked, before rapidly looking around a bit. It was hard to believe, weren't they all together just a moment ago? But it wasn't possible to deny it, considering there was just nowhere for them to go:
Zoro and Sanji had disappeared without a trace.
"We lost them too!" Luffy shouted.
"Weren't they with you?" Franky gawked.
"I thought they were with you!" Gian pointed back.
But not more thoughts could be given, for the General Zombies all attacked again. Forcing to defend, the group was slowly being forced deeper into the mansion.
"Damn it…" Gian gritted as he parried a sword slash with Atom Splitter. His mind was filled with a jumble of desperate thoughts, but one shone above the others:
"HOW IN THE HELL DID WE ALREADY BREAK RULE NUMBER 2?!"
Meanwhile:
"Usopp, Chopper, run!"
Nami barely had the opportunity to let out that warning when a mighty wind blade surged through the corridor behind them. The attack instantly diced apart the wall it struck, the 3 would've been victims as well had they not managed to swiftly turn a corner.
"Why is he still following us?!" the sniper wept. Despite putting some distance between them, the clip-clop of their pursuer's footwear was loud and clear.
"Yohoho… it does you no good to run from me!"
"HE'S HERE!" Chopper screamed. Indeed, turning the corner and wielding an obsidian black katana, the withered body of a warrior approached. Once a legendary Samurai from a faraway land, his premature death and following resurrection now found himself bound to Gecko Moria's will. The samurai's snow-white gi billowed from his body, his skull-like face twisted and gazed at his potential victims. Drawing his sword back, he once again charged at the 3 pirates, preparing to deliver a devastating thrust.
Had they not ran fast enough they would've easily have been skewered, evident by the large hole that now indented into the stone mere inches from where they were.
"We can't fight him! He's too powerful!" Chopper yelped as they continued to run. Attempting to escape may be their only course as of right now.
The samurai burst into the open air, his hollow sockets scanning the night. However, it seems that his targets have disappeared. The zombie warrior wandered around for a bit longer, seeking his prey out, but there was nothing to be found on the balcony of the mansion. Growling with slight irritation, the zombie wandered off, alerted by more noise that perhaps needed his attention.
It was only when the footsteps became more distant did the 3 unfortunate pirates raggedly dragged themselves over the edge.
"Hah…Hah…" Usopp panted "That was too close! We almost died!"
"How are there so many zombies here?" Nami panted "And why does that samurai sound so much like Brook?"
"Dr. Hogback said that there are many wild zombies on this island, and his research said that many of them originated here." Chopper repeated.
"And you believe that?" Nami sighed. The little reindeer was ecstatic to meet one of his personal heroes, so much so that he didn't even realize that the Doctor seemed off when they encountered him earlier. Throughout the conversations they had, while he had been polite enough, Dr. Hogback seemed rather distant and did not take much notice of them, sometimes even seemed to be brushing their questions off with off-handed remarks of his own.
"Of course! Dr. Hogback is a world renowned hero!" Chopper smiled "His work and selflessness have saved countless patients!"
Nami only sighed again; now was clearly not the right time to shatter the doctor's illusion.
"Forget about him for a second, what are we going to do?" Usopp exclaimed "We're stuck in this mansion, there are undead everywhere, this is a nightmare come to life!"
"In any case, we need to get out of here." Nami said "We have to get down to the ground, no doubt the others have gotten worried about us and are looking for us right now!"
Usopp nodded as he fished out some rope from underneath his robes before tying a knot to a pillar. The 3 inched their way down to the ground, reaching the hedges after some time.
"Alright, which way to the coast again?" Nami wondered.
"I can smell the sea, it's this way!" Chopper pointed, but none of them could do much as Usopp suddenly let out a shrill scream.
"G-G-Ghost!"
The sniper's shaking arm pointed in the air, soon alerting the other two as well as Nami let out a gasp and Chopper hastily hid himself badly behind her leg.
Because indeed, there were multiple pale specters waiting for them, waving their noodle like arms in the wind.
Alongside multiple animal-shaped zombies, horrific conglomerates of multiple organisms.
All headed by a floating pink-haired girl with a parasol, giving a big smile.
"Welcome to Perona's Wonder Garden!" the ghost princess grinned "We're here to make you enjoy your stay… forever!"
Meanwhile:
"Fresh Fire!"
"Atom Flame Wave!"
The pair of fiery assaults scorched the room, engulfing zombies in fire. But as Gian and Franky panted with exertion and the flames died down, they soon found with dismay that their attacks have not made as much impact as they've wanted. Some of the General Zombie's battle armor were tinted red with heat, while others melted and revealed the gnarled corpses underneath, sheltered from the worst of the heat.
With a cry they charged again, forcing them back further.
"Damn it! This isn't working!" the cyborg cursed.
"Don't give up!" Gian called out "There's gotta be some way that we can bust through!" any further dialogue had to be paused when a pair of claymores screamed through the air towards them.
"We're getting swarmed again!" Luffy called out, fists still flying into the metal helmets of the zombies "But we can beat them! They're still-!"
"Luffy, look out!" Gian shouted.
"Ittoryu: Sanjuroku Pound Ho!"
"WHA-?!" The rubber captain could barely note what happened before he twisted his body out of the way. The slice was powerful enough to knock multiple other zombies out of the way. As the dust cloud cleared, it revealed a tall figure dual wielding twin katanas.
"Zoro? Is that you?" Luffy called out.
"I am Jigoro of The Wind! I am here to bring you to our master!" it turns out the attacker was a warrior zombie, arguably a lot more human looking than some of the others. Aside from a tattered T-Shirt and twin swords, his hair still flowed wildly from his head.
"That sword stance…" Gian pondered "How does this zombie know one of Zoro's moves?"
"Master Moria will be expecting you." Jigoro muttered before getting into another stance. Gian immediately charged forwards, ready to intercept the attack, until he was struck in the side by heavy force.
"Ah shit!" he cursed as he tumbled to the ground; caught off guards, he winced as he noticed a small figure land in front of him.
"You've got to be kidding me…!" the Kaiju-Zoan user groaned "That body does not look right, how does-!"
"Oi! Nobody asked for your shitty opinions!" the zombie at his feet growled. It turns out Gian's attacker was nothing more than what appears to be a penguin with a dog's face stitched in place of its beak. It's even odder when considering the fact that the penguin-dog stood barely taller than Gian's shins, yet it packed the kick of a well-trained person. Gian narrowed his eyes; the two zombies somehow felt very familiar…
"Gian!" whatever thought he could've realized were dashed as his gaze snapped towards Robin, only to find her barely visible in the distance. More zombies had piled in at this point, now surrounding Luffy and him with weapons pointed at them. And the result of that was simple, Robin and Franky had been promptly cut off from them, a group of armed undead now packed around them as well.
"Shit, we're surrounded!" Franky cursed as he pointed his arm cannon at the group of approaching corpses.
"Robin! Franky!" Luffy gasped, barely managing to dodge another sword swipe from Jigoro as he realized their predicament. He gazed around, glaring at the approaching zombies.
"They've cut us off!" Gian called out "Are you guys all right?"
"We're fine! We're holding our own for now, but I can feel there's more coming and they're really pushing us"! Franky called back.
"Just hang on for a bit longer!" Gian replied "We'll fight our way to you!"
"Take your time, we'll manage!" the cyborg affirmed, grunting as his metal arms parried a broadsword "Though preferably not too long; these dead guys are starting to force us out of the mansion!"
"Ok Luffy, this is starting to get a little wild." Gian growled, taking a deep breath as blue wisps of atomic aura began to gather around him "But we're not about to lose to some long dead guys now, are we?"
"Of course we aren't!" the captain grinned, the two standing back to back against each other.
"A scar on the back is a swordsman's shame!" Jigoro challenged them "Yet I am covered in scars!"
"Well we'll just have to give you a couple more then, don't we?" Gian growled back. Already his hand was reaching back towards Atom Splitter; they were definitely going to have to fight their way out of this.
"Hehehehe…." The deep rumbling laughter that around the room made them snap their heads around. As the zombies closed in around them, they could hear footsteps echoing in the stone floor.
"Well, are you having fun, Straw Hat Pirates?" a gravelly voice growled out "I hope you find the hospitality of the General Zombies to be of your comfort!"
"Come out!" Luffy bellowed "Stop hiding in the shadows!"
"Patience, 'Straw Hat'! I do not need to have my fun with you yet, considering you have an army to get through before you reach me!" the air behind the zombies suddenly began to shimmer.
"Luffy, stay alert!" Gian warned as he raised his weapon "Don't do anything rash!"
"But I suppose you should have the privilege to see me in my entirety, just so you'll know who will be the one to deliver you to Moria-sama!" Absalom's grotesque form revealed itself as he deactivated his Devil Fruit, a sight that made the two of them frown.
"He just appeared out of thin air…" the captain whispered. Absalom now wore a black shawl covering a grey t-shirt, his eyes narrowed as he gazed upon the two pirates.
"Wait a sec…" Gian hissed "Something about him-"
"Perhaps it's a good thing that we separated you, considering your strength together could perhaps be too much even for this army." Absalom drawled "But this is where I leave you; I have more tantalizing targets to pursue, after all." The bestial-man licked his lips ravenously upon mentioning that.
And this was not missed by a certain Kaiju-Zoan user.
"So it is you…" Gian's voice was low as his head lowered "It was you on our ship earlier…"
"You have a good memory 'Beast Warrior'," Absalom growled "But I have no time to act upon-!"
Whatever he was about to say was cut off as Gian's flaming fist smashed into his face.
"…YOU WERE THE MOTHERFUCKER THAT MOLESTED ROBIN!"
"SHIT! HE REMEMBERS TOO WELL!"
And Gian did more than just remember. The General Zombies, knocked into the air as he was charging, couldn't even react when Gian pounced on the stitched up man, shouting profanities and lashing out viciously. Not even a squad of zombies could've gotten in his way. Of course, they soon realized their bearings that their leaders was getting the life beaten out of him, and immediately piled on the enraged Kaiju-Zoan user. Unfortunately for them, Gian was simply too single-minded at the moment to care about any potential restraints. The General Zombies were thrown off instantly by a pulse of atomic Aura as Gian didn't even register his assailants. More Zombies tried to get in the way of Luffy, only to be beaten back by the captain's flailing fists.
"Oh no! Absalom-sama's depraved deeds have caught up to him!" a few zombies cried out.
"WHAT THE HELL?! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE THE VICTIM HERE!" Absalom yowled in response.
"I AM GOING TO RIP EACH STITCH OUT AND THEN STRANGLE YOU WITH THEM YOU-!"
"-AAAAHHHHH! GET OFF OF ME YOU PIECE OF-!" Absalom desperately thrashed around as the blows of hate rained down on him. He tried pushing back, only to find his strength matched.
"So he's the one who snuck on the ship earlier!" Luffy realized angrily. His response was confirmed when Gian smashed another fist into the downed lion-faced man. Partially Transformed, the violation of his love will be dealt with swiftly. In desperation, Absalom tried to raise an arm and frantically pushed his palm towards his attacker's chest. What resulted was a large explosion that engulfed Gian in smoke, hoping that was enough to dislodge him.
Those hopes were swiftly dashed as Gian's flaming jaws reached out, more enraged than ever and now snapping at the terrified pervert's face.
"Damn it! This body is supposed to have the strength of some of the world's deadliest beasts, yet in the face of this deranged mad man my strength pales!" Absalom thought frantically. Heaving both hands in an attempt to pry Gian's jaws away from his face; a feat where he was only just barely capable of. Then he felt his feet leave the ground before slamming into the side of the mansion: Gian had tossed him straight across the room.
"STAND UP AND FACE YOUR PUNISHMENT LIKE A MAN!" the Kaiju-Zoan user charged immediately, plowing through hordes of General Zombies even as they forced themselves against him once more. Even as Absalom's explosive palm shots failed to deter him; his eyes red with fury, he didn't even feel the blasts. Waves of Aura flowed from him, fueling his power further.
"Get away from Absalom-sama!" Jigoro and the penguin-dog leapt at him, until a rubber foot smacked into them, knocking them back.
"You have no place there!" Luffy barked as he too, tossed around a few zombies. Gian gave the slightest attention to that action before he resumed his assault.
And he was almost upon his target yet again, when he felt something sharp cut into him. It was enough to cause him to recoil in slight pain, even as the wound closed.
"Yohoho… it seems you are in quite a jam, Absalom-sama. Seems like I've arrived just in time." The voice of the samurai zombie travelled through the air, his black blade now back in his sheath, his positioning behind the Kaiju-Zoan user as if he materialized out of thin air.
"Shut up, Ryuma!" the lion-man panted "Hurry up and restrain him! We've kept Moria-sama waiting for too long!"
"Of course…" The zombie chuckled as he drew his blade once more, now facing down the Partially Transformed Kaiju-Zoan user. Gian growled before observing his wound; it was not deep, but he could tell that Ryuma could've cut him much more seriously if the zombie had wished. He and Luffy also noticed that the zombies were no longer attacking en mass; they've rather been gathering in large proximities, blocking all entrances and exits to the mansion.
"So what's this? A graveyard rave?" Gian rasped "Seems like an awful lot of company just to take on a few people."
"Yohohoho… you honor yourself too much." Ryuma rasped "It is by Moria-sama's decree itself that you remain standing for as long as you have. It's what you two have that we need, and for that we need you alive."
"Let me guess, our shadows?" Gian hissed "Yeah, we basically know the gig by now. We've met a few that you've forsaken!"
"Well then, we can skip the whole introduction until Moriah-sama gets his hands on you." Absalom growled as he staggered back up. Giving his neck a loud crack, he raised his hand in a single gesture. The General Zombies surrounding them tightened another circle.
"They're all coming huh?" Luffy muttered "We'll just have to kick their asses one by one."
"Oh, and in case you haven't noticed, your friends have all been separated." Absalom sneered "We made sure of that."
It was only then that the two looked around, and with sinking realization that Robin and Franky were no longer visible. Only hordes of zombies surrounded them in the room. They were cut off, forced to fight their way through if they ever want to get out. Jigoro and the Zombie-Dog from before blocked them off from the back, Ryuma spearheaded the army, katana once again unsheathed. Luffy and Gian didn't want to admit it, but they were alone.
Just them, in a sea of growling flesh.
"Well, Luffy." Gian shook his head "Looks like my temper got us into a pickle yet again."
"From the way they talked, it seems they were after us to begin with." The captain stated "We'll have to fight our way out to save our nakama."
"It's a couple of hundred to 2, maybe more."
"Then we'll take those odds."
Gian smirked "Sounds about right."
And that's when the zombies charged.
"Faster! Faster!" Usopp begged as they ran through the garden. The rising cacophony of whoops and hollers followed them; the zombies on the garden were not far behind. Their only focus was on their prey, they haven't had this much fun in a long time.
So engrossed in their chase they ultimately didn't keep track of where their targets were. As the zombies stampeded past, a group of hedges shook before Usopp and Chopper spilled out, panting anxiously before letting out a long sigh of relief.
"Pah…Pah… I think they're far away from us now…" the doctor whimpered.
"We have to go! They'll be back any minute! Then we won't be as lucky this time!"
Chopper nodded glumly, before looking back in the direction they came from.
"What about Nami?" the deer sniffed. Usopp gritted his teeth at that; they were outnumbered, and hardly had the opportunity to do anything. Nami had to summon a thunder cloud as a distraction for the two of them to get away, it was the last thing they saw before the Ghost Princess' spirits bore down on her. Try as they might, they knew they were at a disadvantage if they continued to fight, with the two of them right now feeling pained at being unable to do more to help.
"We'll go back to the ship, we'll get everybody and rescue her!" Usopp declared "This place, there's definitely something wrong here! Brook had a good reason to warn us about here, and I can see why!"
"Y-Yeah…" Chopper nodded, wiping his tears away. It was then he chose to look up and gave a panicked gasp.
"U-Usopp!" he pointed with a shaking hoof "LOOK!"
"OH NO!" The sniper wept "THEY GOT CAUGHT TOO!"
Later:
Gecko Moria had to admit, watching his two prisoners thrash around was a little amusing, if not annoying.
He never doubted that Absalom or one of his other generals would've brought at least some of the Straw Hats to him, their control reaches all across the island, there was nowhere for them to run, and they could only retaliate for so long. The zombie armies under his command were good in that regard; so as long as their bodies were not damaged beyond repair, they can always rise and continued to fight, like an unending tide of death battering against flimsy gates. Ultimately, that was what finally brought down the two pirates. Luffy and Gian had mowed down countless undead, but more took their place. A few stray hits finally brought them to their knees, where they became promptly shackled and restrained, ready to be presented to their master. Indeed, all members of the Ruling Quartet of Thriller Bark were to be present, for this was a special occasion.
However, the two certainly didn't make it easy.
"Seriously! Somebody put a muzzle of 'Beast Warrior!'" Moria could hear Absalom's yowling even before he saw him entering the room. Even now, a few stray zombies were thrown around, landing with a groan and getting up groggily. Absalom himself appeared soon after, nursing a rather painful bite wound on his cheek. The source? None other than a pissed off Gian, eyes red and still gunning for the chimeric man. The zombies were forced to detain them within a massive iron cage, heaving with effort as they tried to bring them to the Master. Of course, the entire trip the two threw numerous punches and kicks, some landing on the zombies while others fell onto Absalom himself. By the end of it, the lion-man no longer wanted anything to do with them.
"So these are the ones that you ran into Absalom?" Perona scoffed "Who would've thought they'd give you this much trouble? And you've missed two of them!"
"Hey, at least I've gotten some of my quarry!" Absalom snapped back "Didn't you two run into Straw Hats as well? What have you accomplished?"
"Oi! I'm just the scientist!" Dr. Hogback scoffed "The dirty work is supposed to be your jobs!"
"It is because you are weak and unable to perform any other task." Victoria Cindry remarked.
"That's so mean!"
Moria chuckled at that "It is no matter, Thriller Bark is my domain, and they cannot escape that easily! It won't be long before they fall into our grasp."
"Two of them got away, my servants are looking for them as we speak, don't worry they will find them." Perona assured her master before turning to Absalom "I do have one thing for you though, consider this as something you owe me for, you pervert!" gesturing with her hand, two ghosts floated down, with Gian and Luffy's eyes widening in shock as they saw a bob of orange hair.
"My bride!" Absalom roared with delight as he hoisted an unconscious Nami up in his arms "This night is not a complete waste after all!"
"WHAT DID YOU GUYS DO TO HER?!" Luffy shouted as he slammed his head into the bars.
"Tch, you two are still here?" Perona hissed "Your voices are annoying! Keep quiet!"
"Kishishishi!" Moria laughed from his throne "Now, Now, let's not get too fired up here! These two are my special guests for tonight! They're about to undergo a task that only they can do!" Brushing his cape, the devil-like man gestured towards the two captives.
"Welcome to Thriller Bark, 'Straw Hat' and 'Beast Warrior'. I am Gecko Moria of the Seven Shichibukai, and this is my Island."
"We know who you are! Where are you keeping our friends?!" Gian shouted at the stocky devil-man. Moria only laughed at the indignation.
"Yes, you have that right! I was the ones that kidnapped your friends earlier, and their shadows now serve me! That swordsman and that cook had strong shadows, perfect for my army."
"So you're the one that took Zoro and Sanji!" Luffy shouted "Let them go!"
"Oh, don't worry! They've fulfilled their purpose for me now, I have no more use for them." Moria brushed it off "It's something you two will also grant me, only your shadows are far more valuable!"
"You really have no tact, do you Shadow-Man?" Gian seethed "Was Brook one of those victims too?"
"You mean 'Dead Bones'? He is no threat to me." Moria scoffed "Try as he might, he will never get his shadow back. But I care not about him, it's what you two will offer me that will finally give me my strongest pieces!" With that, the massive pirate stood up, lifting his arms up into the air.
"Let's get some lights in here! It's time for the collection!"
"Like hell you are!" Luffy roared, giving a well-timed headbutt to the steel bars. His strength enough to burst through, the rubber captain quickly burst through, steeling himself for the fight to come. Zombies immediately rushed at him, but were quickly dispatched by a wave of blue fire. The captain and the First Mate stood back to back, glaring at the opposition as they braced themselves.
"Kishishishi! You both have so much energy!" Moria cackled "I knew it was the right decision to collect your shadows!"
"In your dreams, Moria!" Gian growled "We're not sticking around!"
"Oh, you still don't get it." The air around Moria began to darken; a massive dark blot expanded around him.
"No one ever leaves Thriller Bark!"
"Luffy! Look out!" the two covered each other as best they could as countless bat-like apparitions, ink black and formed from the very essence of Moria's shadow itself, surged forwards. Luffy recovered first and threw a quick punch almost immediately, a punch that was easily blocked.
"You don't really expect to hit me with something like that, do you?" Moria taunted.
"Well try to avoid this then!" the warlord's head snapped over as Gian's mouth emitted a blue glow "Atom R-!"
But he was never able to fire off the attack as two shadow arms wrapped around his head, placing him in a headlock. He turned just enough to see who the attacker was: an exact replication of Moria made of shadows, its grip iron and barely enough of a struggle.
"Kishishishi!" Moria cackled loudly "Here's a little something you should know. Never attack the enemy until you know what they can do! And look at that, you're in the exact position I want you to be!"
"Wha-?" Luffy gasped, then he noticed it: both his and Gian's shadows were stretched towards the Shichibukai, exposed and vulnerable. Grinning wildly, Moria swung the arm blocking Luffy's punch, throwing the boy down to the ground. His other hand acted quickly, and in one fell swoop, reached down and did the impossible.
Luffy and Gian could only watch as the warlord simply yanked their shadows from the ground up, the two dark blots wriggling like freshly caught fish.
"Be honored, your shadows will be placed in two of my strongest subjects, in a way, you may live on inside them." with his other hand, a massive pair of shears were procured, its blades placed carefully around the base of the shadows.
"I won't let you"! Luffy shouted, leaping at the warlord.
"We're not losing here!" With a burst of Aura Gian Partially Transformed again, dislodging the shadowy doppleganger of Moria with all his might. He only had a few seconds to act.
But they would not get the chance to, for Moria's servant had plenty of reason to prevent anything from happening.
"ACK!" an explosion blasted Gian's abdomen, the range this close causing him to double over. Absalom stood over him, growling with rage as he looked down with contempt.
"Had it not been the fact that we need you alive, I would've punished you ages ago!" the lion man thrusted a few more explosive palms for extra measures "This is for all the shit you put me through earlier!"
"Screw you! You have no moral high ground from the way you've acted-GAH!" Gian's retort was silenced by another blast.
"Gian! Get away from him you bastard!" Luffy yelled, and in his distraction it slowed down enough for-
"Negative Hollow!"
"…I'm so worthless I should be reborn as a sea cucumber…"
"Geez, so loud and irritating." Perona scoffed as the ghost returned to her "At least now I don't have to hear you yap anymore!"
"Sweet dreams, you two!" Moria leered as the two watched, now too late to stop him "May the everlasting night of Thriller Bark always greet you!"
"Gomu Gomu no-!"
"Atom-!"
*Snip
And it was over, the two previously defiant youths slumped over without any resistance. All the light left their eyes as they fell into a stupor, now unconscious and unable to do anything. Luffy went down in an instant, while Gian's Partial Transformation receded into his body as if it were never there. And standing above them, holding their now writhing shadows in his palms, Moria stood triumphant before raising a fist to the air.
"I have them! I have them now!" he celebrated "The shadows of the ones who stormed Enies Lobby, only they can power our two most powerful pieces!" he glanced at the two prizes in his hand; even removed from its body, Luffy's shadows still put up a massive amount of struggling. 'Beast Warrior's' on the other hand, was completely erratic: every so often the thrashing shadow would morph between a man and a jagged mouthed monstrosity, speaking of the power that belied the man he took it from. Were he anyone else, even he could find it difficult to contain them.
But Moria wasn't the Master of Shadows for a reason. "
"Dispose of the bodies, let them wander Thriller Bark until the day they die. And as for you, Dr. Hogback!" there was no time to waste, there was no better moment "Let us go to the basement lab!" Moria commanded.
"At once, Moria-sama! Fosfosfosfos! I can't wait!" the mad doctor cackled before heading off.
"Now come along, my friends! Witness the birth of this army's power!"
"Can we hurry this up?" Absalom remarked drily, before giving a lecherous look at the unconscious Nami in his arms "I have a wedding to prepare for."
"Don't be impatient, this is important for us! Perona replied before floating off. Moria grinned before heading off after Hogback; the moment of truth is now!
Soon:
The cold mist hovered over the four as the doors to the cold chamber opened. Moria was unfazed by it however, for the excitement of what's to come means far more to him than a simple drop in temperatures.
The dim lighting of the cold storage made it hard to see, but the quartet could make out the gargantuan form just fine. The frozen remains was the largest corpse on the island, and the giant was once a terror to behold during its lifetime. Now, in death, it was about to once again shake the world.
"This is the body of Oars, the Continent Puller…" Perona remarked. The horned gargantuan oni-like giant easily towered over everyone, and in life his strength was infamous. 500 years ago the beast terrorized the seas, but it was now that he will fulfill his remaining purpose.
"This legendary warrior won't just settle for any weak shadow." Moria grinned "Only a shadow of comparable strength is fit to fuel it." Lifting up one hand, he held out Luffy's shadow towards the frozen corpse. Years ago Moria had unearthed the giant encased in ice, and has preserved it ever since in hopes of finding a suitable shadow for it one day. Today, that day has finally arrived.
"Now listen, shadow of 'Straw Hat' Luffy, I am your master, and the one who controls your every being. I will grant you flesh, for you to fight the battles in my place as a Zombie! Relinquish all in your past, my will is all that you abide by!"
"Now, with the transplanting of this shadow, you are REBORN!"
And with one swift movement, he shoved Luffy's shadow into the body of Oars. The dark block wriggled in futility for a mere second, before getting absorbed into the massive corpse.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then…
*Clink
*Clink… Clink…
*Crrrracccckkkkk.
"I always do love seeing this." Absalom grinned as he witnessed the giant hands begin to twitch, long red fingers slowly bunching up to form a fist.
Then, one by one, the chains restraining the titanic corpse began to snap one by one, and the beast's eyes shot open, full of fire!
"Fosfosfosfos! He's only awoken for a moment and it already has a hint of his legendary strength!" Hogback reacted giddily.
"Arise, Continent Puller!" Moria called out "Arise, OARS!"
And Oars, now in full possession of Luffy's body, responded with a bellowing roar that shook the entire chamber.
"He's perfect…" Moria relished in the awakening "'Straw Hat's' shadow really is the ideal one to host its power…!" turning to Hogback once more, he then pointed to the latched doors at the rear of the chamber, ignoring Oars' thrashing as he addressed the doctor.
"Now, we move on to our ultimate weapon! Bring out Project Alpha!"
"During the Night Raid, I've toiled tirelessly to combine the strongest muscles in the animal kingdom for this body!" Hogback hobbled over to the door before flipping the switch. Illuminating light then poured through as it revealed the glass coffin containing the remains of Project Alpha yet again and hoisted it open, now dressed with flesh akin to that of any zombie "Every shadow we've given it was immolated without quarter, it seemingly rejects all our efforts."
"I've said before, it will not reject this one!" Moria declared, holding out the struggling shadow of Gian closer. Before he discovered the bones of this mysterious warrior, he would've once brushed off the rumors surrounding it as merely an urban legend. It was only through the continued experiments toward it that he finally realized what he was missing.
"For so long, I have searched for the shadows of someone who bears the same mark as you once did, and have found nothing…" Moria muttered with fixated delight "It's only fair that now, one has been presented to me, and will now be given to you for you to tear this world asunder once more!"
"Hear my words, shadow of 'Beast Warrior' Gian," the shadow man recited his contract once more "I am your new master, and you are bound to serve me! Surround yourself with flesh, and fight for my will! Arise again, and be reborn!"
But this time something different occurred. The moment Moria pressed the shadow against the corpse, he was knocked by a strange shockwave. Slamming into the wall hard, the Shichibukai rubbed his head, before shouting in alarm as the body ignited in blue fire, engulfing the entire desk.
"Oh no! Not again!" Hogback cried out in fear as he tried to douse the flames, but it was too late. Once more, the flesh from the body had been burned away.
"Oh no no no…!" the doctor "It's happened again! I thought this time it really would've…"
"Just what is this pile of bones made of?!" Absalom barked "Just what kind of shadow does it accept?!"
"I'm so sorry, Moria-sama!" Perona tried to console "We managed to awaken one powerful zombie! That's not a complete loss!"
But she could see Moria's face drop in shock. For the first time ever, even Gecko Moria displayed a sliver of doubt towards this experiment.
"What am I missing? Why can't I awaken Project Alpha? Without it, I can't-!"
"Hold on…" and in the midst of his descent to despair, he realized something was different.
Like how the skeleton within the coffin was now beginning to be shrouded by an encroaching black fog, seemingly being emitted from the bones itself.
Or how its eye sockets were beginning to glow a dim red.
"Dr. Hogback…" Moria called out tentatively "Has that happened before?"
"This is strange…" the mad doctor mumbled "I've never seen this phenomenon before, maybe it's-WOAH!"
He had to stumble back to avoid a now spearing black tendril that shot out of the coffin, and it was lucky that he did. With a gasp, he realized that it had struck something else.
"M-Masters…?" A stray zombie accompanying them called out weakly, for the dark tendril was now impaled into its body.
Then it yanked backwards and, to everyone's surprise, pulled the zombie's shadow out with it. Collapsing back into a lifeless corpse, the shadow that once inhabited it now pulled into the skeleton, being absorbed all the same.
"We all saw that, did we?" Absalom whispered.
"What kind of zombie is this?" Perona gasped "I've never seen anything like it!"
"Oh, my dear…" and Moria's lips slowly twisted into a delighted smile "This is no mere zombie… we've discovered something far more archaic than that!"
"It's alive… IT'S ALIVE!" Dr. Hogback cheered. Although the skeleton remained motionless, all of them could tell something was up with it, and once it fully awakens, it could potentially turn their entire army from squads of zombies to an entire legion of the undead.
"Doctor, bring the weakest zombies of our ranks to this chamber. It would seem that the shadow that triggered Project Alpha's awakening needs more than just once to fully reanimate! Feed them to it!"
"Of course, Moria-sama! It will be done within the hour!" Hogback nodded "We have countless zombies roaming Thriller Bark unfit for our ranks, perhaps this way their shadows may serve some use!"
"And I've seen enough," Absalom grinned before hoisting Nami's prone for over her shoulder again "That was interesting, and I can't wait for it to be in our ranks, but I've gotta get married and I don't wanna lose my shadow before that!" Moria shook his head with a smile before dismissing the lion man.
"Very well, then the rest of us must prepare!" Moria declared "Perona, keep your Negative Hollows on the lookout for the pirates that got away, I will be taking their shadows for our army once we capture them as well! Perhaps their shadows will feed Project Alpha all the same!"
"Tch, you're really just gonna let that lecher go and leave the manual work to me? You better be making me some more cute pets after this!"
"Yes yes, you may take your pick of whatever Straw Hat shadow that remains." Nothing else mattered at this point, the two strongest pieces of his army were born, and he was ready to reclaim his glory.
Soon, all across the seas will feel the coming of an encroaching darkness.
A/N: And we're back with another chapter! I wanted this to be out much earlier, but the last few weeks have been a bit busier than I thought. I've started a new job, finished up my summer classes only for fall classes to begin again, and to top it off I had to go back to my old province to help settle some property issues.
G: Wow, travelling during COVID? No dignity.
We were being safe the whole time…
But yeah, here we are at last! I don't have much to say aside from you now seeing more of Moria. We'll have more in the coming chapter, including a full appearance of whatever has Gian's shadow now!
G: And thanks to some of our readers who actually gave some concerns over previous chapters. We can't change them much now so we can only improve. I know we didn't start off as badass as we could've been but hey, it's a process!
With that in mind, we'll see you next time!
Reponses to reviews:
To Chance Green G King:
Oh brother you'll be seeing more of it soon enough!
G: Quite ominous!
To Jaffa3:
As I've mentioned before, I will be doing Strong World and Film Z. They'll be introducing a few more Kaiju-Zoan users there as well.
To Guest 1:
G: Thanks for bringing that to my attention.
Ignoring that, you don't have to worry about a thing. That iconic scene isn't going to go to anyone else but Zoro, it's the one thing I will not change! Even if the roles are somewhat different this time around, this is one moment that belongs to Zoro alone.
To Shitabrick:
G: I don't know who that is.
Sorry, we live in North America and we probably don't know as much about the UK as we think we do.
But happy belated birthday! Hope it was fun!
G: Our condolences to your father. That's kind of a personal thing but it's always hard, trust me we know.
To Canadian Magus:
G: There we go! Though I think that fits well with rule 2.
You should've mentioned it then.
To Ragnas Bredvolts:
Well, I mean they didn't bother doing it the first time around, it never really affected things much just allowed them to get on the island.
G: And just wait until I see that stitched man again I will-
You have more important things now.
To Guest 2:
I have a lot of moments lined up for that! However Gian's shadow possessed being isn't quite a zombie, and it actually will affect the rest of Thriller Bark quite a bit.
To Guest 3:
B: Oh, I have to do that too?
G: Don't… it's better that you don't…
I still have to think of some VA's but I will have them soon in Monster's Log!
To Raidentensho:
G: Huh, we'll have to check out that one.
The Marine Science Division will be something that's brought up, with Vegapunk having a bigger role by then and some of the units used in Godzilla Movies being recognizable in that. At least, that's what I have planned, I don't know if they'll get put into application.
To Guest 3:
G: Oh wow… can I say triggered?
Oh boy where to start… First of all, I like to think you tried your hand at constructive criticism, but I literally can't read anything you've written. Seriously, use paragraphs, I have no idea what point you're trying to make.
G: And you misspelled so many words… So, so many words…
Also, your concerns are valid, at least the ones that regards Gian. I have admitted before that they aren't something that stands for the story now, and it's just something that's been done that I hope to change without fucking up the rest of the story. I haven't had the best grip of trauma on how to write trauma 5 years ago, I was way younger and had a much more shallow vision for this story which I can't do much about it now. However, other points that you've brought up have just been plain wrong. The reason Gian hasn't used his powers before will be explained in a later arc, once everything ties in together. Then you brought up completely false things, and I have to wonder if you've actually paid attention to some of the things in the series.
Knowing how to use a Devil Fruit instantly is inconsistent in the series. While some people have used it well the moment they've got theirs, others had to train for years. Hell, Luffy himself spent years mastering the Gomu Gomu no Mi to a point where it doesn't wrap around him anymore. So for Gian to not instantly know how to use it isn't farfetched at all.
As for Vegapunk, it's because he's so much of a blank slate right now that we're able to put whatever characteristics we can onto him. Since we don't know much about him at the moment, his character is up to interpretation, and considering that'll probably be the case until Oda decides to do something with him, we're able to characterize him however we want.
Lastly, Gian is far from OP, considering you haven't read past the first 2 chapters I can understand the confusion, but he's had a handful of losses. I haven't exactly made all of his battles curb stomps either. He isn't the most well-done OC, but I can proudly say making him a Gary Stu is something I've shied away from.
*Mic Drop
G: and one last thing, Mic drops work better if you actually separate it from the rest of your massive paragraph, you'll learn that as you space better.
Yeah, he knows. I just demonstrated.
To Gustavo Aldofo Montiel:
G: Aww, that's so sweet.
Now if only I understood Spanish, then I can say more to him.
G: Gracias!
Did you really have to do that?
To NazgulBelserion:
G: Well, I didn't exactly train much at all during that week.
Yeah, Gian didn't do as much training with the Red Hair Pirates as you think he did. They were mostly just escorting him to the drop off point so they could get him out of the New World. The reason for that will be given at a later point, but for the most part aside from a few control exercises and fighting techniques, Gian is mostly self-taught with his fighting history.
G: Besides, it was only what, like a week? What could I even have done?
To Zikarioa:
G: who's gonna tell him.
Well, considering each arc averages about 6-10 chapters, and we have 4 more major arcs to get through… I'm gonna say quite a bit.
G: It'll get here in like a couple of years probably. If you're still interested by then we'll be here!
Not that pessimistic!
To Vergil Leonidas:
G: And she picking up the pace!
Great points on all your critique and comments! A lot of time had definitely passed. I'll try to address them all:
Arlong Park: Looking back at it Deimo does feel less important as he did when I wrote the arc. My original thought was to have Gian interact with more people in ways that mattered when we got there, so I created an entire new village with a reference to an existing Godzilla movie to bridge that. By that point in time, I really did start to want Gian to do more than just follow the crew around and start to diverge the story more, so that was what happened. Not to mention, some of the dialogue changes means that I want some of the fishmen characters back for another arc later on, but I won't go into details on that just yet.
Loguetown: Not much to say here, you basically answered all of it on your own. I guess I wanted Gian to seem more cautious at the time, but you brought up some valid reasons.
Reverse Mountain: Yeah, that was definitely a steal from Gian there. It's what happens when you want to experiment with the story elements you've made. Sometimes it worked out, other times it didn't. I hope I've made up for it later with Luffy, but really, I recall my thought process while I was writing that part to be just get it over with as quickly as possible. I did really want to get to Drum Island after all!
So that's it for now, we'll see you all next time!
Leave a review so we have something to do while waiting for the third season of Cobra Kai!
G: DEFEAT DOES NOT EXIST IN THIS DOJO!