"Wealth, fame, power. The man, who once owned everything, the Pirate King, Gold Roger. The words he said before his death sent all the people of the world out to the seas."

"My treasure? If you want it, I'll give it to you! Find it! I left everything in that place."

"Men, searching for romance, pushed forward towards the Grand Line. The world is now in the Grand Age of Pirates!"

Chapter 05: Claudio and Valdivina, Powers Revealed

Pearl, first mate of the Krieg Pirates, watched as fellow crew member Claudio tightly tied the man that Pearl had escorted from Krieg's chamber to a large wooden stake. Claudio was a petite man, standing no higher than four feet, but he was ruggedly handsome with his slicked back black hair and chiseled facial features, though his hair was slightly hidden by his off-white goggles. He dressed a little more casually, wearing a black denim vent with a large ghost spray-painted on the back, and cut-off denim shorts.

"Oi, Pearl, this is gonna be just like the last island, don't cha think?" Claudio did not turn to look at Pearl as he continued to secure the man. "Last time we did this, the islanders weren't workin' very hard... but then we did this and it perked 'em all right up!"

"Heh heh, yeah." Pearl crossed his plate-clad arms as he approached, sneering at the restrained man. "Sorry, old guy, someone has to inspire and motivate your people! We've got a schedule to keep!"

The old man, who was now wearing nothing more than tattered pants, merely raised his head and stared at Pearl weakly, his face beaten and bruised from being carelessly dragged to the stake. Pearl merely sneered back, prompting the old man to lower his gaze once more. "This injustice will not stand, pirates. Someone will stop you."

"Hahaha, like who!?" Claudio burst into laughter as he looked at Pearl to see that he was amused as well. "Nobody on this island's gonna stick up for you! Those candy-making losers on the other coast aren't gonna do a thing! Who else do you have to place your trust in, eh? That traitor, Gin?"

Pearl groaned, shaking his head as he glanced to the dirty ground. "Hmph, Gin. He was never the same since he was caught in the captain's poison back at that stupid floating restaurant in East Blue. I knew he'd ditch the crew eventually."

Claudio finished securing the old man as he turned to look at Pearl. "Yeah, but what took 'em so long? He never seemed happy with the captain's plans. You don't suppose it was that place in the sky a few islands back?" The Krieg Pirates had heard tell of sky islands, but it was't until the ocean mysteriously lifted them to one that they finally believed them to be real.

"The sky island?" Pearl tapped a plate to his chin in thought. "He never did seem to like the way we treated those winged people, said it wasn't right. I think that's when he started getting soft on us. Peh, what kinda pirate crew did he think we were? Eh, Claudio?"

"Oh boys, all this talk of Gin! You do know that he's back on the island, hm? Sabrina spotted him while scouting." Claudio and Pearl both turned to see Valdivina smiling at them. She hadn't even made a sound as she approached, but given the nature of what she could turn into, the two men were hardly surprised.

"Gin's back?" Pearl perked up, looking anxious. "Hahaha, good! Does the Captain Krieg want us to go and take him down?"

Valdivina shook her head swiftly, her long red hair bouncing as a coy smile rested on her freckled face. "No, sorry. He already spoke to the Iron Jaw, who was more than happy to take up the challenge of putting Gin to rest. According to Sabrina, he's holed up in a giant marshmallow at the moment... of all places!"

Claudio put his palm to his face and did his best not to laugh. "A giant marshmallow? Oh Gin, what kinda hiding place is that supposed to be?"

Stepping forward, Valdivina pushed the two men out of the way and motioned towards the old man. "If you boys will excuse me, the captain sent me to make an example of this one."

Pearl's eyes widened with surprise. "W-What? But with your powers..."

Valdivina shot Pearl an agitated glance over her shoulder. "The captain didn't say anything about keeping him alive. If you feel that he shouldn't die, run along like a good little first mate and voice your concerns before I do what I was told by the captain."

Pearl glared back at Valdivina, the tension between them was all too obvious to Claudio. While Valdivina was certainly stronger than Pearl, he was first mate on the basis of being in Don Krieg's crew the longest. She was obviously gunning for his position, a thought that almost terrified Claudio. Pearl was sleazy, but he was friendly to everyone in Don Krieg's expanding fleet. Valdivina on the other hand...

As Pearl turned and stormed off, presumably to go and speak with Krieg, Claudio turned his attention to the nearby shackled inhabitants of Spicetown. He took a deep breath, exhaled quietly, and then spoke up for all of them to hear. "Okay, spice people! Turn your gaze over here to glimpse what happens when you're not working on schedule! Your town elder here is going to be made an example of. I hope that it brings much motivation to all of you... or else any one of you could be up here next." He looked towards Valdivina slightly, lowering his voice so that only she would hear. "Don't kill him, you know that keeping him alive and in a bad state will keep them working harder than if he's dead. If you get too carried away, I'll stop you."

Valdivina scowled back at Claudio. She knew that he was fully capable of stopping her without laying even a single finger on her even if she would normally be able to tear him to shreds. That invasive ability of his made her uncomfortable, and she was always wary of him since he used it on her one time. Without answering Claudio, she turned back to the old elder of Spicetown and grinned fiendishly. He watched on nervously, unsure of what was going to happen, until Valdivina's body began to change before his eyes. Her frame grew and became more animalistic, fur sprouting all over her body that was coloured black, orange and white. The old elder's jaw dropped, barely even able to utter the few words that escaped him. "A-A Zoan user!"

Indeed, Valdivina had revealed her ability. Having eaten the Tora Tora no Mi fruit, she was able to transform into a tiger. The elder began to shake nervously against the ropes that bound him, hastily muttering quiet prayers as Valdivina playfully swiped at his bare chest, causing fresh blood to trickle. A cry of pain escaped the elder, and Claudio watched on carefully. Valdivina did not relent as she scratched him again and again, causing cry after cry from the man. Still, she was keeping the punishment within reason... until she violently locked her fangs into his shoulder and bit down hard, prompting Claudio's eyes to widen. She was biting dangerously close to the man's heart, and she was on the verge of causing far too much blood loss! Without hesitation, he criss-crossed his fingers and pointed them at Valdivina. "Shoji Shoji no Domination!"

Claudio's body dropped to the ground as his consciousness, a bright blue orb, darted into Valdivina's body. She let out an animalistic growl as she staggered and wavered slightly before straightening up, no longer in control. Claudio looked down at his large tiger-like claws and nodded in approval. "These are pretty nice! However..." He shifted Valdivina's body back into its human form. He turned and walked back to his body, grabbing hold of it and then looking over the enslaved workers of Spicetown who had watched in horror at what Valdivina had done. Claudio plastered a smile on Valdivina's face and waved to them all. "He's alive - for now. Get back to work, everyone! The harder you work, the higher his chances of staying alive are!'

And, with that, he began dragging his body away, not intending on returning to it until he had Valdivina well clear of the restrained elder. He rolled Valdivina's eyes and grumbled to himself. "Seriously woman, you get the slightest scent of blood and you lose control!"

TO BE CONTINUED