Ch. 30- Don't Do It, Vegapunk!
One Piece © Oda
Blizzard, Aika, Kumi, and Jupiter © Me
"So, Vergo," Smoker said as he and the manipulative Vergo stood face-to-face. "What is this room? Looks mighty ominous."
"It's none of your concern," Vergo answered.
At that moment, Law awoke upon feeling Jupiter nudging him and saw the cigar-chomping Vice-Admiral.
"…White Chase…?" he whispered.
"Listen, Vergo," Smoker said. "I don't want the rank-and-file to know the truth about you. They look up to you like you're their father. If they ever found that you were a traitor-"
"I'm afraid it's a little too late for that," Vergo said. "I already met up with them on the way here."
Hearing this, Smoker tensed before he lunged at the treacherous man, armed with his jutte.
"WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO THEM, YOU BASTARD?!" Smoker questioned.
"You'll see," Vergo said as he spun his bamboo stalk in his hands. He imbued it with Haki before blocking Smoker's weapon with it.
"You seem awfully worked up about this, Smoker," Vergo noted. "Don't tell me you've actually grown to like those damned outcasts. Who cares about those lowlife rats? I'm the base's commanding officer, so I can do whatever I want to them."
Smoker seethed angrily at the proclamation.
"Either way," Vergo said, "now that you know my secret, you'll all be silenced."
POOF! BOOMP! The traitorous Marine blew into his bamboo stalk, causing it to inflate before he fired a Haki-imbued bamboo shoot from it, which nearly hit Smoker if he hadn't turned into smoke in time. Before long, the Vice-Admiral appeared behind Vergo, attempting to strike him once again with his weapon, but Vergo simply bended backwards, evading the attack before he attempted to kick Smoker, only for the Vice-Admiral to block it with his own leg. Vergo then swung his bamboo stalk at Smoker, but the latter dodged before punching him in the jaw with a Haki-imbued fist and sending him back into the railing behind him!
"I don't give a damn about how long you've known them," Smoker hissed. "I don't give a damn if you are the Base Commander! Away from the base, the Captain is responsible for their lives! AND I'M NOT LETTING YOU LAY EVEN ONE FINGER ON MY MEN, MOTHERFUCKER!"
Vergo stood up, holding a hand to his bleeding temple. Even though you could not see passed his sunglasses…one could tell he was shooting a death glare at Smoker.
XXX
Meanwhile, with Sanji and G-5 in Building B…
"What the hell is going on here?!" Sanji questioned.
It is revealed that they are now running through the corridor where Nami and the others were attacked by the dragon…and the place was still in flames!
"YEOWCH!" cried one of the G-5 men. "IT'S SO HOT IN HERE!"
"There's nowhere to stand!" cried another, holding one of his injured comrades. "What the hell happened in here?!"
"Hurry up!" Tashigi shouted. "Bring the injured forward!"
"And more importantly," Sanji began, "keep Tashigi safe!"
"YEAH!" the G-5 Marines cheered.
"NOW CUT THAT IT OUT!" Tashigi shouted. "I DON'T NEED PROTECTION! I CAN LOOK AFTER MYSELF!"
"Oh, come on!" Sanji said. "Don't be like that!"
"Don't try and play nice!" Tashigi barked. "We're enemies, remember?!"
"That's just what society tells us," Sanji rebuked, "but us pirates are free to do whatever they want!"
"I'll say this much, buddy!" said a G-5 swordsman. "When you blasted that Fake-Vergo, my heart almost stopped!"
"Yeah, man!" agreed a G-5 rifleman. "That sure was awesome, what you did!"
"SHUT YOUR MOUTHS!" Sanji barked. "I TOLD YOU, I DON'T WANT SUPPORT FROM YOU DIP-SHITS! I ONLY CARE ABOUT THE LADIES!"
"AND HE'S NOT YOUR BUDDY!" Tashigi shouted. "HE'S A PIRATE, FOR GOD'S SAKE!"
All of a sudden, KABOOM! A huge explosion went off, catching Sanji and company off guard. Everyone looked up to see that one of the gas tanks had exploded and blown a huge hole in the wall!
"Oh, fuck," Sanji cursed. "This isn't good! Now that gas is gonna get in!"
Sure enough, Shinokuni came seeping in through the hole in the wall! Not long after, another explosion went off, indicating that the other tank had exploded and had done the same to the other wall.
"RUN, DAMMIT ALL!" Sanji shouted. "UNLESS YOU GUYS WANNA BE STATUES, I SUGGEST YOU GET YOUR ASSES IN GEAR AND KEEP MOVING!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" some of the soldiers screamed…before they were caught by the gas and soon met the same fate as the ones that sacrificed themselves to save Tashigi, earlier.
"Oh, no!" Tashigi cried. "It's filling the spacious Building B, too!"
"Tashigi, don't stop running!" shouted Sanji. "If you stop to think, you'll end up just like your men! Just keep going, and whatever you do, don't take a wrong turn!"
Then, Sanji ran off behind the others.
"Wait! Where are you going?!" Tashigi questioned.
"I gotta help those guys!" Sanji said. "I know they're important to you, even though they're idiots! Just hurry and get them to safety! Even a mere second could be the difference between life and death!"
XXX
Concurrently, in the Secret Room on the 2nd floor of Building R, Caesar is watching everything on a monitor.
"Shulolololo!" he laughed. "Thanks to that dragon, the fools have to deal with Shinokuni, and I didn't even have to lift a finger! However…my experiment performance isn't complete if they all die this early!" He then turned to a guard while tilting his head in awkward manner.
"You there!" the scientist ordered. "Shut the gates to Buildings C and D!"
"Yes, Master!" said the guard. "But…what about Building R?"
"Leave just that one open," said Caesar. "We need to lure them into the first floor! They're looking for Gate R-66, and we don't want them to end up going the wrong way! So, let's funnel them all into the proper location! Shulolololololo!"
He then sighed as he sat back in a chair, surrounded by boxes full of schematics, blueprints, research books, journals, and other things.
"Ugh…how I hate this stupid room," Caesar muttered. "Building R, Second Floor…the 'Secret Room'…big deal! It wasn't my intention to come in here…but that detestable Straw Hat and his little friends have overstayed their welcome. It's time to see them properly punished. After all, I have Joker on my side! And now, I have the opportunity to kill each and every one of them in the ideal manner!"
"Master!"
Caesar turned…and saw at least over 70 guards, all crowded up in the same room as him.
"We're all ready for combat, Master!" said one of them.
"Yeah, but why are we in Vegapunk's room?" asked another. "I thought you hated that bastard!"
"Yeah!" agreed one more. "Vegapunk's the guy who caused the accident, 4 years ago! We've got a score to settle with him, too, you know!"
"Are we really supposed to be just standing around?!" asked another guard. "Why aren't we fighting them?!"
"Settle down, men!" Caesar said. "I understand your feelings, but please, hear me out. You people are my backup plan, you see! I can't have any unnecessary bloodshed! I would make me look bad!"
Hearing this made the guards stare at Caesar in awe.
"Master…you…!" one whispered with tears of admiration.
"Here's the plan!" Caesar said. "As I said, when we close the gates to Buildings C and D, the only open route through the lab is beneath us: the 1st floor of Building R! The Straw Hats, the children, friend and foe alike, all survivors will be forced into the room beneath us! And there are external vents in that room that can bring in outside air…meaning we can fill it Shinokuni! There will be absolutely no escape! SHULOLOLOLO! And who will survive that, I ask you?! It's a giant gas chamber with all the doors locked! My shadow brokers around the New World will get a live broadcast of the massacre that takes place! They will ALL know of my greatness! SHU~LOLOLOLOLO!"
As Caesar continued to laugh at his plan, the guards seemed a bit uneasy about it.
"Um…Master?" asked one. "I don't mean to question your wisdom, but…are you saying that you're the one who made that gas?! It seems an awful lot like Vegapunk's gas from 4 years ago…it kinda gives us the creeps!"
Just then, Caesar's laughter…was replaced by choked-up sobs.
"Oh, my friends…!" he whispered as he looked at them…with tears spilling from his eyes. "You…you just don't understand, do you?! This is a scientific battle of vengeance…my beloved men!"
"Huh?!" the guards muttered in surprise.
"Oh…how I tried to stop that madman, Vegapunk, on that fateful day!" Caesar preached. "I cried out, 'If this weapon explodes, what will happen to all the innocent lives on this island?! Don't do it, Vegapunk!' I begged…but my pleas fell on deaf ears! And even now…that menace still sits atop the Marine Science Division! Those blind fools still call him the Greatest Scientist in the World…and that is something I CANNOT forgive! How can the heartless man who tortured you and destroyed this island and left you all for dead…BE PRAISED AS THE GREATEST SCIENTIST OF ALL TIME?!"
(A/N: Like I said, before…shut up, Caesar, you lying piece of horseshit.)
"M…Master…!" Caesar's men sobbed.
"So we must prove to him!" Caesar exclaimed. "We must reluctantly create a weapon of mass murder…and show him that there is a mind greater than his! That I am, in fact, the most brilliant scientist alive: CAESAR CLOWN!"
He then sniffled and wiped away his crocodile tears.
"And then…when the Marines finally realize their mistake," he continued, "and give me the honor I so richly deserve…then…and only then…can my dream of world peace to fruition! That is all I desire, my comrades!"
Hearing this made Caesar's men burst into awed cheers and applause.
"OOOOOOOHH! MASTER!"
"Forgive us for doubting you, Master! Forgive your lowly, unfaithful servants!"
"You truly are our God of Salvation!"
(A/N: What a bunch of blind dumb-asses. I pity them, but at the same time, I can't help but be a bit annoyed at them.)
However, while the guards cheered, they didn't notice a wicked smirk appearing on Caesar's face as his mind went back to an event that happened 4 years ago.
Flashback; 4 years ago
"Don't do it, Caesar! Shut down the experiment!"
A younger looking Caesar looked back and saw several men surrounding him as he was about to put his hands in glass tube with gloves.
"What will happen to all the innocent lives on the island if that weapon explodes?!" asked one of his fellow scientists.
"Shut up, you incompetent shits!" Caesar shouted. "This is a military testing facility! We're all here because the Marines want a weapon that can kill as many pirates as possible!"
"No!" shouted another scientist. "They don't need an evil weapon that will also kill innocent civilians!"
"Shulololololo!" Caesar laughed. "That's called 'collateral damage', idiots! If they're stupid enough to be there, then they deserve what's coming to them! Wipe 'em all out, I say! That's what I call 'World Peace'! 'Evil'?! What's the difference between that and the experimentation you're doing on the human scum prisoners on this island?! Fleet Admiral Sengoku's ideas are soft…but I'm sure Admiral Akainu would love some of my weapons!"
He then went back to the experiment, mixing chemicals together.
"Vegapunk's just jealous of my brilliance!" he shouted. "Shulololololo! I hear his human enlargement experiment failed again! You can't just grow bodies like magic, idiot! You know what I said to him?! 'You need to kidnap growing children and pump 'em full of special drugs'! SHULOLOLOLOLO!"
Caesar's colleagues glanced at each other, feeling very uneasy. The scientist may've talked about World Peace, but he obviously had no regard whatsoever. All Caesar cared about was being known as the World's Greatest Scientist, and he didn't care how he got it.
XXX
"WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU SAY, VEGAPUNK?!"
Several days later, Caesar had just received some news he didn't want to hear from Vegapunk.
"You heard exactly what I said, Caesar," Vegapunk said. "You're exiled from the Science Division! Your shenanigans have gone far enough, and I can't keep covering for you, anymore!"
"YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" Caesar shouted before he wrenched his arms out of his fellow scientists' arms and turned a pressed a large red button!
"NO, CAESAR!" they all cried.
Just then…KABOOOOOOOOM! A huge mushroom-cloud explosion occurred, destroying the whole entire island!
Flashback end
Soon, the gate to Hallway C-B had just closed!
"Master! The C-B Hallway is sealed! Building C is now shut off from Building B!"
Not long after, the gate to Hallway D-B had been sealed, as well.
Soon, everyone had become trapped. Team Sanji and G-5 are running from Shinokuni in the center of Building B. Team Zoro and Nami are stuck in the Biscuits Room, facing off against Monet. Team Smoker, Law, and Jupiter are facing off against Vergo in the S.A.D. Manufacturing Room in Building D…
And where was Luffy?
Stuck in the garbage with Blizzard and Aika…as well as another individual.
It is revealed that this mysterious stranger that they are now in the garbage dump with…is a little pink dragon with yellow horns that looked like it could be taller than Luffy if it stood up on twos.
"A dragon?" Aika asked.
"Did….did you…speak?!" Luffy asked.
"What's up with this thing?" Blizzard questioned.
"W…who are you?!" the dragon asked, nervously.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Smoker...you're all right. Momonosuke, Caesar, and Vergo? Not so much.
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