Traveling through the jungle with over seventy people is difficult and slow. The fact that they are carrying small crates of food and personal items adds to the exertion of the travelers.
The cold-blooded animals are attracted by the heat they give off and several insects are drawn to the sweat that pastes their clothes cling to their skin. Karmen notes the strange savageness that has grown in this jungle.
It's like everything has been trained or engineered to investigate or attack anything that moves. There is an unnatural hunger in these trees. She does her best to redirect the creatures and uses stunning poisons on the ones that continue to be persistent, but the flow of incoming creatures never stops.
She clears the path ahead of them by throwing her wire-wrapped darts at the grenades she'd placed along the path. She can trigger the poisons' dispersal to either deter or stun the creatures ahead while they're still approaching. With a single tug on the wire, she can retrieve her weapons without having to leave the group. It isn't a permanent solution, but it provides momentary reprieve.
Pierce weaves back and forth above their heads, catching and ferrying away anything that drops from the trees with armament haki-coated wings and hands. Camilla keeps the rear guarded, not-so-gently batting away anything else that approaches deep into the jungle with the butt of her spear.
The group is quiet and alert, not needing to be told how precarious their situation is or how quickly something could go wrong. As the ratio of salt in the air increases, so too does the group's confidence and restive air. Karmen can sense it, but there are still too many threats from the jungle to deal with to do more than call gentle directions and reassurances over her shoulder. She tells them that they're very near to the shore now, that they'll be safe once they reach it. Perhaps that was a mistake.
The anxiety coming off one man at the edge of the group is palpable. He is sweating and his eyes are darting from side to side. His feet take lurching steps toward the growing sunlight that can be seen between the trees. She can sense his heart pounding like a herd of horses in his chest.
A nest of scorpions rises from the brush just as that anxiety begins to boil over. So when his tense muscles spring away from the group, running toward the slight sliver of visible shore a mile away, it takes a few seconds longer for Karmen to rush to his aid. Just as she's turning toward him, a long, slender form drops from a tree with bared fangs. Pierce is on the opposite side of the group, swooping back for another pass.
Karmen barely has time to take a desperate leap. Her foot slips on a patch of mud. Her body lurches forward. Cries of surprise and fear fill the already deafening jungle.
One body crashes into another.
Fangs dig into flesh.
She'd missed.
That thought alone is enough to slow her actions as she moves to free herself from the tangle of limbs and the man's crushed supplies beneath her. This thought distracts her from the cold numbing pinpricks of pain seeping into her forearm. The deep green viper with black bands and a yellow belly is hungrily gnawing its fangs into her flesh. She makes sure the man beside her is unharmed before pushing to her feet, keeping the snake level with her shoulder.
The man stares at her arm, horrified. "Why would you do such a thing for someone like me?" he asks. "You don't even know me."
Karmen gives him a cheeky smile. "Dearest, I have a 100% success rate on these missions. I wasn't about to let you jack up my numbers. Besides," she says, voice softening, "you all have lost too much already."
Pierce lands beside her, hand on his tonfa but unsure exactly how to help. "Mistress, are you alright?" he asks.
"It's nothing I haven't dealt with before," she reassures him. "I'm fine."
As she speaks, the ground tilts until it's completely vertical.
The world spins like blood rushing from her head. Before she knows what's happened, she's back on the ground, face digging in the leaf litter and dirt. Instinctually, her hand wraps around the snake's midsection, refusing to let it go despite it digging its teeth into her harder.
She can hear Pierce's voice distantly as he cradles her into his lap. Is it the venom making him sound so far away or the shock that it's affecting her as it should, she wonders.
"Alright, maybe I'm not exactly fine at the moment," she says. "No matter. Everything we need is in my bag. Including a canister. We need to get this dear home with us. Alive." She sounds groggy in her own ears and her tongue feels thick in her mouth. "Need to study them."
Pierce fishes out a canister and holds it open for her. Despite rapidly losing feeling in her limbs, she deftly unhooks the snake from her arm and drops it safely into the capsule.
Camilla gets the man safely back to the group, staring frightfully back at her mentor.
The sky above feels blindingly bright, indicating that Karmen's eyes are dilating. She scans her body with haki, doing her best to pinpoint all the venom's effects so that she might try to combat it. Her blood is thickening, her muscles and organs swelling. If she doesn't act fast then her brain will be starved of blood and oxygen, despite what other damages may occur.
She makes her body move, more on readings of her haki than signals of her brain. She fishes a bottle from her pack and fills a syringe. Using the last of her maneuverability to position the antidote, she slams the needle into her heart and depresses the plunger in one deft motion.
The needle rests in tissue and muscle as she falls back limply into Pierce's arms, exhausted and sore. Heat radiates through her chest and through her veins like water trickling downhill. Air filters into her lungs. Slow. Chilling. Vital.
The needle pulses with each heartbeat, making the syringe twitch and jump. Pierce respectfully steadies it with his hand. "S-should I pull this out?" he asks uncertainly. She gives a heavy and decisive nod. He removes it gently and as smoothly as he can, laying it next to the trapped snake. "Is it working?" His voice is barely a whisper. It doesn't do much to help her hear him over the blood pounding in her ears.
She takes stock of herself again, wanting to make sure she's answering him correctly. Heat fades to warmth is radiating through her from her core, combatting the cold. Her blood is flowing easier and despite still being taut, her muscles have stopped reacting to the venom. It's easier to breathe now, but the world still seems too bright and distant around her.
"I'm better," she reassures him. "Not a complete vaccine, bud enough to get me home to make one. Cold water will help."
She sits up, rubbing her chest with clunky motions, and takes stock of the snake. It's looking a little worse for wear. Her own toxic blood must have had an effect on it. Blow for blow. She uncorks a bottle, coats her index finger in a thick green liquid, and smears it inside the snake's mouth before resealing him inside the canister.
Pierce takes it from her and places it back into her pack with the needle. With a swift rise, he hoists her arm over his shoulder and supports her waist as he sets her on her feet. As blood drips from her fingertips to the leaflitter, beetles and other insects crawl forward and begin devouring the red splatter. Something was very wrong with this jungle.
As they pass the relieved looking group, Karmen lifts her head to give Camilla a serious but reassuring look. "This is a little earlier than I expected for you to take point, but can you get us home?" It takes so much focus to make the words come out without slurring.
There is no hesitation in Camilla's nod. She takes the darts Karmen offers and positions herself at the front of the group. Without a word, she motions them forward and continues clearing the path. Karmen leans on Pierce while the antivenom works through her system.
After half a mile, she finds her feet falling with more strength and accuracy. She thanks Pierce and waves him forward to resume his aerial defense. He agrees but swoops lower and closer to the back where she walks.
Osian gives Maggie a look and drops to the back of the group. "Miss… Ghost? Would you allow me to carry you?" he asks quietly. "I know you sent your friend away to help protect us, but you'll need your strength to make the rest of the journey."
Despite her condition, it takes nearly tripping over a tree root for her to agree. He stoops long enough to hoist her onto his back before catching up to the group.
Karmen giggles softly to herself. When asked what she finds humorous she explains. "It's completely unrelated to the venom, I assure you dear, but I can hear my uncle's voice in my head telling me I need to train more," she says, remembering his words on Skypia. "He's a harsh man, but it's out of love. It's been a while since I was this out of commission. I have a lot more work to do."
Osian shakes his head. "I think I speak for the rest of us when I say that we think you're plenty strong," he says, looking over at the pulsing bite wound. "We thought you were done for when you were bit."
"I've built up a resistance to toxins," Karmen explains. "Any creature that can outmatch my natural tolerance deserves to bite me and live. That being said, I've essentially slapped a bandaid on my condition. I'll need to research its venom in my lab to resolve the situation completely."
"Will you make it that long?" he asks, concern evident.
"It will take us a few days, but I have enough antivenom from other vipers to make it home," she says. "This isn't my first fish race."
"Good," he says. "So, you're some kind of scientist?"
"A toxicologist would be more accurate," she says.
"I see. So you're not a doctor then. Where you're taking us, will there be medical care for Maggie? For the baby?" he asks. "What about supplies? What all do babies even need?"
She chuckles. "You didn't have to offer to carry me to ask that, dear. I can hear your mind still reeling from the news," she says. "We have a doctor who will be able to take care of them both. As for supplies, we can get you what you need."
His shoulders relax beneath her. "Thank you, Miss Ghost," he says, "for all of this."
"I died to serve."
As their conversation quiets, Karmen notes that Camilla is doing an excellent job. Knowing the seriousness of the situation. Maybe she even knows that the snake would have killed anyone else in a matter of seconds. She doesn't let anything slip by her. All snakes and biting insects are redirected to a different path. All deadly plants are safely skirted.
Finally, their feet leave the forest floor and dig into the warm sand on the beach. Karmen calls the rays who respond readily, happy to see familiar faces. They form a line, starting with Parvati, Raja, and Camilla's mount out into open ocean. Pierce takes Karmen from Osian and gets onto Parvati's back, strapping her in. She notes a distinct stiffness to his movements and wonders if he's upset that Osian carried her the remainder of the way.
Camilla looks uncomfortable as she removes her gas mask but opens her mouth to tell the group what to do. However, before she can get out a word, Pierce slides his own gas mask back into his visor and takes over.
There isn't a shred of doubt or shyness to his clear voice as he takes charge. Within five minutes, the supplies are strapped to harnesses and the soon-to-be patients are all grouped onto rays. Lastly, Pierce ensures that the capsuled snake has its own small air supply so it doesn't suffocate on the way home.
When everything is in place, he returns to Karmen. "Maggie will need to travel on the surface," she tells him. "It isn't safe for the baby to dive. It will add risk to our travels and it will be hard on her, but it is necessary."
"I'll stay on the surface with her and do my best to shield her from the sun," he says. "I'll keep my ears peeled for danger and train."
It's only now that she notices he has a set of wings wrapped tightly into a bundle on his back. Black haki covers them and she can see elevated levels of concentration by the set of his jaw.
"I'll take Raja. Parvati, take her deeper than the others where it's cold to slow the poison," he says. The ray flaps her fins in acknowledgment. He turns to Camilla. "The rays know what to do. Trust them and we'll get home safely."
She nods and moves toward her ray before Karmen calls out. "Give the perimeter rays the darts. Keeps the sea kings away."
Her face is full of concern, but her mouth remains tightly shut in a thin line.
"Don't worry. I'm alright, just tired," Karmen tells her gently around the aspirator in her mouth. "You're doing a great job. I trust you to get us home."
-Thanks. You're not supposed to fall asleep at times like this, right? Promise me you'll stay awake.-
Karmen gives a tired chuckle. "It'll be the least I can do for you since you're stepping up for me."
Alleviated, Camilla takes her place on her ray at the head of the pod.
Out of the corner of her eye, before she sinks beneath the waves, she sees Pierce taking a meditative posture on Raja's back with Maggie sheltered beneath his outstretched wings. The other rays dive, lower and lower, following the rise and fall of sandbanks to the drop-off. Above her, the rays swim unperturbed, happy to be away from the island.
They're hard to spot in Kudra's shadow. They should be safe.
The temperature drops to near freezing and all Karmen wants to do is close her eyes. Her body feels heavy and slow and she wonders if this is how Pierce feels as he hibernates.
Her mind wants to sink into the void of unconsciousness and rest. Rest would help the healing process, but Camilla's right. She doesn't know if she'll have a delayed reaction to the venom. She may need a second or even third dose of pseudo-antivenom before she can get home. She should stay awake until she can make a proper dose and treat the source instead of the symptoms.
To sleep perchance to never wake. To chance death without passing on the skillset to wake her up. No. She's got a snake to study. A beautiful specimen full of secrets just waiting to be plucked from the void. She can't let a little snack of venom get her down.
A dance could take her mind off sleep. To dance herself into a trance-like she did after each of Ikaika's benefactor balls. Afterward, when she'd stripped out of those revealing dresses and changed into snug pajamas, when it was just her and Pierce or Godwin. She'd dance in the safety of her room until her mind was floating far away from Valcour or Galival or wherever they were touring at the time.
She could always fall asleep easier then. When she chose to. When she knew she was safe. That's what she needs to do now. To choose when to fall asleep.
The ocean has a rhythm to it. An ebb and flow like a ballet. It's a dance that she wants to join. Her hands and feet are tied to Parvati's harness, so theoretically, the ray could feel her pulling against her bonds and interpret the movements as if she were giving directions through tugs. She pulls back by her wrists, finding the motion weak and labored. Still, her bond responds by pulling up into a perfectly rounded somersault.
The motion makes Karmen's head swim and blood pound in her ears, so she marks that move off her dance card right away. Next, she tries pulling on only one side, directing Par to pull up and spin as if on pointe. This motion is much less jarring and gives Karmen a floating sensation in her stomach. Par must feel the same, because she croons softly, raising her head back to nuzzle Karmen's forehead.
Parvati takes the next motions, remaining vertical and bouncing around. She swims up a few feet, then lets herself drop in graceful dips. Her fins wave through the water like sheets of silk billowing in the wind. There is complete trust and unity between them. Home and hearth.
After thirty minutes of their dance, Parvati decides that it's time to catch up to the pod. Karmen barely notices. The floating feeling remains and her surroundings remain aloof. She remembers a similar feeling when the crew was first traveling to Skypia when they were rocketed upward on the current and left desperately clinging to the ship. She remembers what Enel said about his powers, what had been plaguing her mind for weeks now.
He said his mantra and devil-fruit powers allowed him to read the electricity of a person's words from miles away. That he translated those signals into speech. She remembers Borsalino and his use of electricity to teleport on beams of light, of what it felt like to mimic his speed with her haki. She remembers the Pacifistas using technology to mimic devil fruit powers. She wonders, what electricity ran through them?
Her mind feels so malleable in this stasis. She can almost see the electric signals flitting across the sensors in Parvati's nose. They're pale jolts that ripple like waves across her skin. The snake floating behind her in her bag has similar signals, but those ones are shifting. Changing.
She lets haki pool in her fingertips. It takes a while for her to locate even a single one of her hands, but when she does it has a strong yellow aura.
Wondering if Camilla would look the same, she looks ahead and sees the woman's golden silhouette gliding at the head of the pod. Golden arcs sweep out of her, fanning through the water and curling to form a broad sphere that envelopes every creature with them. Above, Pierce is harder to read. His signals are wrapped in the black of his haki. Beneath, they dance and change like his rippling skin. Every few seconds, a gray pulse emanates from his lips, bouncing back to his ears.
Behind him rests the contained glow of Maggie with a swirling pool of energy in her abdomen. The creation of life.
Karmen watches the lights dance.