Chapter 8

In the Dim Light

Chopper opened the door. He had tears in his eyes and snot in his nose. Everybody was out on deck waiting to hear the news.

"...Their hearts... I'm sorry... everyone!"

Maxwell felt like a sword had been thrust through his chest.

"NO!"

"LUFFY!"

"ROBIN!"

Then Maxwell realized his breath had turned into fog.

"Such a shame..." Maxwell quickly turned around and saw Aokiji behind them. What was he doing on the Merry!? "I told you she was cursed... She brought this down on your heads."

Aokiji suddenly grabbed Nami, "WAIT—!" She was suddenly turned into a sculpture.

"NAMI!" Maxwell wasn't sure that his or Sanji's voice. The cook had shot out to kick at the admiral but Aokiji just grabbed his leg and frozen him too.

"SANJI!" Maxwell started to dash but Aokiji threw Sanji at him. The frozen cook shattered and Maxwell was thrown against the mast.

"YOU BASTARD!" Zoro and Chopper the rushed Aokiji. Chopper was in his Strength-Point and Zoro had all three katanas drawn. Aokiji grabbed Chopper using him as a meat-shield, making Zoro hesitate. Aokiji then froze Chopper and used him as a stepping stone to kick Zoro. The swordsman hit the wall, making it cave in around him.

"ZORO!" Aokiji casually walked up to Zoro, who was trying to get free of the debris. Aokiji grabbed him by the head, and Maxwell couldn't do anything to stop it. His body wouldn't listen to him!

"You could have prevented this you know..." Maxwell suddenly found himself in the middle of a temple—What!? "You could have just killed me and been the hero you always deserved."

"Instead..." Maxwell saw the statues of Luffy and Robin standing on a dias, "You let them die."

Aokiji looked at the stain glass window above the alter, then shattered the sculptures.

"NOOOOO! RRRAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWHHHHHHH!" Maxwell rushed Aokiji. A spectral blade appeared in his hand and he swung at the admiral. Up, down, left, right, he kept swiping at his enemy. Aokiji only danced around him. So when that didn't work, "BURN!" Maxwell clenched his fist and immolated the admiral.

"Hmhmhmhmhmhmph..." It was a deep, dark, evil chuckle, "To think you have grown so lax with this world."

"The f #$...!?" Maxwell turned around to see Aokiji. Except it wasn't Aokiji.

It was something... Something else...! It took Aokiji's form with the curly hair, sleeping mask, strong nose, and suit and tie. But his eyes... They were not like that before!

Yellow. Yellow with black sclera. And it had a malicious grin.

This wasn't Aokiji!

"What in...!" Maxwell tried to speak, but then he heard the booming sound of an opening door. And then the clanking marching armor. One Maxwell was familiar with.

The mage spun around to see hundreds of Templars. They were streaming in from three doors, one for each end of the hall. All of them were dressed in full armor, shields held aloft. Crested fin helmets with "T" shaped visors. Sharp shining armor over robes and sashes. The winged red sword, the Sword of Mercy, branded on every cuirass.

One Templar then took out a scroll and read it aloud, "In the name of the Prophet Adranste, Bride of the Maker. For the crimes of apostasy and the practice of blood magic. Maxwell Phillium Daylen Trevelyan, you are hereby declared Maleficar, and thus sentenced to death."

Maxwell was stunned. How had they found him!? The Templars aboard the Fade! They would never try to cross into it. This was a wholly different world for Andraste's sake!

The Templars drew their swords and started chanting an all too familiar verse, "...Foul and corrupt are they, who have taken His gift and turned it against his children. They shall be named Maleficar, accursed ones. They shall find no rest in this world, or beyond."

"And you are well into the beyond."

Maxwell spun around. Aokiji was in full Templar armor. A sword of ice was held aloft. How was this possible!? Aokiji wasn't a Templar. He was a Marine! What the f #$ was happening!?

Maxwell barely realized what was happening before he felt the cold bite of the sword on his neck.

O O O

Maxwell shot out of his chair, "GAH! Huh! Hah...!" He was panting, shaking even. Maxwell clutched his neck, thinking how it was about to be cut off. It was a dream! His heart as it was going a million miles and hour. He was alive, but that didn't bring him relief.

The mage covered his face and steadied his breathing as he leaned back in his chair, "Sweet Andraste...!" It was just a dream. A nightmare...

Wait... It was a f #$&*( nightmare. How could he have a nightmare?

The mage dragged his hand down his face. The mage was sitting, in a chair, in the corner of the dining hall. He must have fallen asleep trying to watch over everyone. They were all aboard the Going Merry, and Max had suddenly woken up in the middle of the night.

All of the crew was here too. Sanji and Usopp slept with their heads against the table. Nami and Chopper had fallen asleep together, cuddled up on the floor. Zoro slept against the wall, with his katanas both propped up and caressed in his arms. Luffy was snoring up a storm, sprawled out all over mattress. And then there was Robin. She was asleep, unfrozen, and lying in the other bed.

Maxwell sighed, thinking about everything that had happened today. First it was those Foxy Pirate bozos. Then it was encountering that admiral. Then they had to fight said admiral. Then Luffy told them to run while Luffy fought him by himself! Could he be any more reckless!?

"...Dammit...!" Aokiji had gotten to him, though Maxwell hated to admit it. The man was too strong. He was fickle and could freeze entire oceans. Or at least Maxwell thought he was fickle. Aokiji had been so nonchalant the entire time he was there. He would one things then doing another, like everything was a hassle. How was a guy like that part of the top brass of the Marines? It just didn't make sense.

He froze Robin, saying how she was cursed to destroy every organization she joined forces with. Aokiji then played around with them, trying to shatter Robin as they tried to save their crewmate. Aokiji then fought Luffy, leaving the rest of them alone. He didn't even try to pursue them. Maybe Luffy had half a brain afterall?

Maxwell snorted at that. Luffy having a brain... It was a boneheaded move. One that could have easily gotten him killed.

When Sanji and Zoro had gotten out of the water, with their frozen limbs back to normal, they had came aboard to massage the areas as fast as they could. Usopp switched out with Nami to confront them. "How could they have just left him?" It was a captain's order! One Maxwell was still grappling with...

Luffy just wanted to have an adventure. He rarely gave serious orders. It was always "Let's go to the next island!" "I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" He always got so excited seeing the next island on the horizon... That could have ended today...

Zoro and Sanji weren't happy about it either so they planned on going back and finding him. They argued. Sanji had pinned Usopp against a wall. It was their personal feelings versus their captain's ordrers. Zoro kept the peace when Maxwell couldn't, and the two went after Luffy.

And where was Maxwell? He was busy trying to defrost Robin with Nami and Chopper. He couldn't afford to ignore that just to break up a petty squabble. Maxwell had barely even begun trying to use his Spirit spells. He literally had to relearn on the fly to make sure Robin survived her frozen stasis.

Dispel... It was originally meant to remove hostile magics afflicting the body. It even helped to remove magical augmentations an opponent may have used... It also worked rather well on Devil Fruit users. Both Maxwell and Salem thought, since Aokiji was a Devil Fruit user, using the Dispel would help remove the ice and defrost her body.

It worked... to an extent. Maxwell hadn't practice Spiritual magic in so long, it was hard to make the spell focus. It was like trying to carry water with your bare hands when you wanted a bucket, You were literally standing in a river, when you wanted to divert it. Maxwell had only been able access to snippets of the power. The rest just flowed around him, trying to make him trip and drown.

But... bit by bit. Inch by inch. Maxwell did his work. He could only help accelerate the defrosting process in the shower. Chopper still had to splash Robin with the bath water. Nami helped nurse when she could. And Usopp moved between the washroom and everywhere else, carrying towels and supplies.

Then, Zoro and Sanji came back with Luffy... It was hard to look at. He was an ice sculpture too. Luffy, the one person Maxwell saw defy all the odds, had lost.

Luffy had lost, and Aokiji was nowhere in sight.

They had to work double time. Maxwell and Chopper had to split their attention between defrosting both crewmates. Then they had to stimulate their bodily functions. They let the others get involved. They needed to be alone to do this.

It was hard work... but they thankfully pulled through.

When they told the rest of the crew of their success, they were overjoyed. Sanji immediately volunteered to help any way he can. Nami picked up the laundry she was holding. Usopp had dropped down in relief, thinking they may have to go through that again. And they all agreed that staying around the island was their best option while Luffy and Robin recovered.

For assurances sake, they all slept in the mess hall. They wanted to be close, monitoring the two patients. Though... it seems everyone fell asleep.

"F #$..." He glanced over at Robin again, "You know... I can tell you're awake."

Robin opened he eyes at those words. She couldn't move very much. Her limbs felt heavy, but she could still look at him.

"...Do you want some water, or something...?"

Robin swallowed, trying to speak, "...Water..." It was like her throat had pins and needles.

Maxwell moved to the kitchen and grabbed a glass from the cupboard. Using a sink was simple enough. Just turn a lever and water flowed out. Use the warm water too, it took a bit before the water got hot.

He came back, sitting on the floor beside Robin's bed, "Can you move?"

It was subtle, but Maxwell saw her shake her head, "Alright... Hold on." He put the glass down and leaned over the patient. The mage adjusted her pillow and head so she could could drink properly. You don't drink lying down. You have to tilt the head so it does go splashing everywhere. Maxwell carefully held the cup to her lips so she could drink. Two hands, nothing more than a small trickle. Chopper had warned him as much.

Robin swallowed, and hummed when she wanted him to stop. She smacked her dry cracked lips, "Thank you..."

"Your welcome," Maxwell put aside the cup, "You've been through a lot today..."

Robin seemed to flinch at that. She had been terrified at seeing the admiral. But the crew defended her even as Aokiji spoke.

"...I won't ask about your past, Robin. Not here, not now. That's your business. What you were before, we don't care, even when we were enemies. We've all been through some shit... When you want to talk about it, that's up to you."

"But... When, and if, you do want to talk... Know that we're all willing to lend an ear." Maxwell rearranged the pillow again. He knew having a kinked head wasn't comfortable for sleeping, "Get some sleep..."

Robin stared at him for a moment. He was being especially calm right now. Even if he had use have a nightmare. She saw the suspicion...

...But maybe it wasn't her past? Was she actually cursed?

She let out a breath and closed her eyes. These were thoughts for another time.

Max could hear her breath begin to steady. He thinned his lips and frowned as he looked down at her.

20 years, on the run... That wasn't a life meant for anybody. Going from criminal to criminal... What had happened to make a little girl receive such a price on her head? And how did Aokiji factor into all of this? He was obviously sent after them. What was the point in talking?

He shook his head and went back to the kitchen to put the cup by the sink.

Maxwell walked out of the room and out on deck. The waves were calm tonight. It was cold... but nothing intolerable. He looked out at Long Ring Long Land. The moon was out. He could barely make out the details of the landscape.

The ground looked like a blanket of blue fuzz, the way the light hit the grass. Shades of black scattered the landscape, divots where the ground dipped into small corridors and hills. Flat as it was, the grassland did have some depth to it. Trees sprouted like black arrows in the dim light. No animals. They would have been easy to spot. The sky was cloudy, but that was towards the frozen end of the island. Aokiji's work. Nami said something about high temperatures going to low temperatures, wasn't it?

He slowly walked the length of the ship, taking in the scenery. His hand brushing along the rails. Maxwell stopped and took a look at Merry's figurehead. It wasn't much, but Maxwell could see the chips in her paint, "Freaking Foxy's..."

...He could rage about them later. Maxwell had other business.

"Salem. Mordred. Mineive."

The foci lit up, the spirits responding to their master. Maxwell energized the objects to levitate them and place them against the rails, near Merry's head. He'd rather not be looking down at his crotch this entire conversation.

"...How's Robin?" Mineive, from her sword hilt, asked first.

"...Alive. Seems a little on guard, but... that's to be expected." Maxwell wouldn't be as trusting either if his past tried to confront them on that... Actually he wasn't sure if he was being too trusting right now. He sat down on the ground, "But you already knew that."

The spirits were silent.

"...Um, we didn't," Mordred spoke rather carefully about that.

Maxwell frowned at the spirits, "What do you mean you didn't know? You have a direct to connection to my... Oh."

They did have a direct connection to Maxwell. But they weren't mortal like he was. Channeling in that much energy, trying to direct it. It was like that boulder to a pebble analogy, where the boulder sat at the bottom of a river. The only difference was that the size could come back. Maxwell still needed to improve his control.

"...Where did you end up?" Taking in the Fade like that; they were all swept into the current he was conducting. That's why Maxwell was alone in that dream.

"Charming little place actually..." Mordred's candle wick eyes seemed to jingle, "I found myself at a seaside villa with a half-circle courtyard. Saw an islander eating grapes. Wonderful conversation."

"Lucky you..." Mineive drawled from her hilt. It was all foreplay but the personalities they were based on did seem the clash... Or was it clesh? "I saw a castle. Reminded me of the Winter Palace back in Orlais... Completely empty though. Not a soul in sight."

"...Salem?" Maxwell noticed his grimoire was rather silent.

"...I remained here... Or at least, I stayed in the territory of Long Ring Long Land." Salem had been busy giving out instruction during the operation. It wouldn't be a surprise if he had remained. "I saw caravans of people go by. Settling for one moment, moving the next. Herd of sheep and horses moving in and out of focus. But I couldn't find you." Maxwell remained silent at that, "Maxwell... What happened to you?" He had noticed the psychic residue around his thoughts.

"...I had a nightmare," Maxwell spoke warily. Technically, he'd shouldn't get nightmares but, "I dreamed that everyone had died, and Aokiji had come back to finish the just... Yet... Something was wrong with the dream... It was as if..." Maxwell closed his eyes, "Something... Something had attacked my psyche... A demon."

The spirits lit up, suddenly alert to Maxwell's proclamation. "It wasn't the Horror. And that is what has me worried. This... This was something else... Something found parts of my essence and tugged on it like a fish on a hook. I saw Templars... Even if an Islander had learned of their existence, they wouldn't have been accurate depictions... These were detailed. Just as I remembered them, right down to the clasps... Something... Something is very wrong in the Fade."

"...When you first saw the Grand Line," Mineive spoke up, "The Fade was empty... That cloud, it was a barrier between the Grand Line and the East Blue. If something has taken up residence there... Then it was likely our fault."

"We'll have to be vigilant," Mordred seemed to agree, "That Horror hasn't been skulking around as usual. If we've caught something else's attention, we'll need to be ready."

"That means training..." Maxwell agreed with the spirit. That thing... That mockery, it just wasn't natural. It filed him with such dread... It was probably a Fear demon. Terror maybe, something along those lines.

"We're sticking around for a bit," Maxwell told them. The crew had quickly made the decision was they in the clear. "We can train around here. Without, holding back." They wouldn't risk the Merry though, not with all he can do.

Maxwell needed to train. It was time to accelerate his lesson plans. Maxwell couldn't afford just learning one spell at a time anymore. He had to finish the Spirit School and quickly move on with the next piece of knowledge provided by Salem and the others.

"Then we better get started."

O O O

Nami groggily woke up, rubbing her eyes. She had somehow uses Chopper as a pillow when she went to sleep. The little human-reindeer was sleeping on his stomach, exhausted from yesterday's excitement. Luffy and Robin were still asleep on the beds. Usopp was still sleeping on the table, but she didn't see Sanji.

Actually, she didn't see Maxwell or Zoro either. Where had they gone?

The navigator looked around. Were they being attacked again or something!? No, wait, there were three pieces of paper pinned to the door. Nami walked up to the door and took the centre page first.

"To the crew,

Gone out training. Current regiment isn't enough. I'll be in the bamboo forest. Be back by noon. Keep an eye on Robin and Luffy.

Maxwell."

"Training?" Nami looked at the door and took another note off the door.

"To my sweet Nami~

I'm following Moss-head so he doesn't get lost. You know how helpless he is. There are two pots of rice and curry for when you and Robin wake up—Oh and the shitty captain too. Be back soon, we'll have the old man in tow.

Your Knight in Shining Armor,

Sanji."

Nami rolled her eyes. She could practically hear the singing whenever she mentioned her or Robin's names. However she did look over at the kitchen and saw two pots. One seemed to have another note to it. Probably instructions. Sanji always tried to make the best food, even when he said otherwise.

She looked at the last paper.

"Gone to find Maxwell. Old man ain't wrong. I'll be back.

Zoro."

"So, our three biggest hitters are out training while the captain is sick? Jeez... At least do it nearby next time." She looked out the porthole in the door, "Although... This may be one of the few time they can train without holding back. I wonder how that'll go...?"

O O O

Maxwell, Zoro, and Sanji were in the forest. They were in a clearing, with bamboo shattered, sliced, and burnt all around them. They were circling each other like wolves, waiting to see who would be the first to strike.

Sanji walked with his hands in his pockets. His one eye scanning the competition. Zoro had all three katanas drawn, one horizontal, one raised, and of course, one in his mouth. He had his bandana on to show he was serious. Maxwell had one hand raised as a defense, while he held another bamboo staff. He was pointing it down and behind him, ready to swing another spell. Their only witnesses were the spirits inhabiting their foci.

Then, something changed. Maxwell had conjured a Spirit Blade.

"DIABLE...!" "Kyutoru...!"

Maxwell turned into fog, shooting up into the air, then turned back. He had both weapons ready to slash at the two. Sanji had his foot raised, and it was literally on fire. Zoro seemed to exhume a demonic aura, and looked like three swordsmen in one body. All three of them were set to clash.

*CLANG!*

Birds flew away from the tree tops as the three men collided.