Chapter 1.5: A Brief Intermission
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Bounty or Newspaper Headline"
AN: Sorry it's an intermission/sidestory chapter. But it does mean yall get something this year at least.
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Nineteen Years Ago, Punk Hazard
Working tirelessly within his lab, the greatest scientific mind in the world, Dr. Vegapunk found himself once more pondering the weakness of his human body. So much time he was forced to waste on meaningless things like eating and sleeping when he could be inventing or researching the Ancient Kingdom. "Hm, perhaps I can come up with a solution to that," the genius pondered. Things would certainly be easier that way. They'd also be easier if he could trust Caesar Clown with some of his research but that man was only interested in chemical weapons of all things. What good were inventions that could only be used for indiscriminate destruction anyway?!
Contrast his own newest invention, the Recycle-Wan, a robotic dog that ate litter and scrap then processed it for recycling. Far more useful than poison gas. As he worked, a pair of Coos flew in, carrying a package between them. "What could they be sending me now? Don't they know how busy I am?" With a sigh, he paused in his work to open the package, which was indeed from the World Government. Inside was one of his own refrigeration units. Now properly curious, Vegapunk opened the container and peered inside. "Genetic samples?" Indeed, the container was filled with vials of blood, hair, bone fragments, and flesh samples. "Well, I might as well look into this. Maybe they brought me something of interest." With that said, Vegapunk checked that his current project would keep while he was away and went to analyze his new samples.
An hour later, the scientist was pouting furiously over the test results. Besides being upset at what exactly the World Government had seen fit to send him, there was also his irritation that he could have saved so much time if they had simply labeled the samples properly with who they came from. "Why would they remind me of my failure by sending me samples from those two?! It's not even like I lost the data I gathered on those sisters before!"
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Seventeen Years Later, One Week after the Paramount War
A party was in full swing on the deck of the Red Force, one of the most infamous ships in all the world. This was hardly an unusual state of affairs to be perfectly honest, but this party was considerably more raucous than usual. After all, their little anchor had not only succeeded in saving his brother but he'd also gotten married. Granted, they weren't invited to the wedding, but given the brides' notorious distaste for men, that was hardly surprising. "Let's hear it for Luffy!" One of the crewmen shouted. The rest roared their approval before downing their drinks.
"Kid's come a long way since his first bounty just a few months ago," Lucky Roux remarked with a smile before biting off a chunk from his ever-present rack of meat. "Shame we didn't arrive in time to see him at Marineford."
Beckman shrugged as he took a casual drag off his cigarette. "Blame Kaidō for trying to start trouble like always," the first mate paused to tap off his ashes, "Though I doubt we'd have changed much given Hancock's surprise appearance. Don't think anyone saw her coming."
"Given they're married, I certainly hope Luffy did. For his own sake if nothing else," Shanks joked. The others laughed as he thumbed through the new bounty posters for the Straw Hat crew with his one hand. Setting the lot down, he picked up his tankard and took another swig, "Anyway, Anchor's got a solid start to a crew it looks like. What do you think?" he asked their youngest crew member.
Picking up Straw Hat Luffy's newest bounty poster, the young woman smiled cheekily, the circular braids of her two-toned hair perking up. "Well, hope he's not a sore loser that after all this time, my bounty's still higher," Uta the Siren, musician of the Red Hair pirates, teased good-naturedly.
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Within his private room in Onigashima, Yamato danced happily while holding a newspaper aloft. The headline read "Marines Humiliated at Marineford, Portgas D. Ace Escapes Execution", beneath which was a photograph taken of Ace and his brother Luffy fleeing the execution platform in the Marineford plaza. The son of Kaidō danced like the man he admired so much: Kozuki Oden, his long white hair (which faded into turquoise and then blue as it neared the tips) swayed as he stomped his feet. He was so overjoyed that his friend managed to escape with his life.
Yamato had already hung Ace's new bounty poster up on the wall, along with his brother's crew. "Wahahaha! You even finally got a proper bounty, Ace!" To be fair, even in the New World, most people would consider a bounty of over half a billion to be impressive. But Ace's position meant he was functionally the 2nd Mate of the Whitebeard Pirates. While Yamato only really had his father's crew to go from, the damn bull-gorilla's top three subordinates all had bounties roughly double Ace's. So he was glad to see his friend receive a bounty fitting of an Emperor's third in command. "Fire Fist Ace. Wanted Dead or Alive. 1,005,000,000." Heaving a happy but longing sigh, the young oni muttered, "Two more years. The day Lady Toki promised will come and we'll be rid of my father once and for all. I hope to see you there." After a moment of consideration, he added, "Your brother too. Especially if he's anything like you."
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Fourteen Months after the Paramount War, Ten Months before Straw Hat Reunion
Deep within one of the forests on Amazon Lily, Luffy hastily blocked a kick from his eldest wife, his arm blackened with armament haki. Fortunately, he had grown strong enough that even Hancock couldn't break through his haki with pure force, but that didn't stop her kick from launching him through the nearest tree. He immediately righted himself and launched towards her, seeking to intercept the woman rather than simply let her dictate the pace of their battle. Stretching his arms out, Luffy grabbed Hancock's bare shoulders and shouted, "Gum-Gum Bell!" His forehead blackened and rushed towards the Empress's face as his arms retracted, only for her to block his attack with the chain of her shackles, instantly negating his attack and his Devil Fruit. Grabbing him by his shirt, she instead smashed her own forehead into his nose. His head went flying backwards as his neck stretched out until it went taut then came rushing back… right into another headbutt. This time, when his head returned, it was once more infused with haki, causing Hancock to reel backwards and release her husband as their heads smashed together.
By unspoken agreement, both fighters took a moment to catch their breath after their latest exchange. While Luffy was clad in a red vest and blue shorts as was his preferred style, Hancock had forgone her usual dresses and was instead clad in a simple pair of orange shorts and a sarashi. Lastly, she wore a pair of seastone shackles around her wrists as a handicap. They weren't the purest seastone the Kuja Pirates had but they prevented her from using either her Devil Fruit or haki so long as she wore them. Combined with her husband's rubber body, there was little worry of doing too much damage to him. Though according to Belladonna, she and her sisters only had a few more weeks of being able to train their husband before such duties would have to be handed off to their subordinates. Remembering why this was brought a smile to her face as she rested a hand over her womb.
"You're growing well, Luffy darling," Hancock complimented him. And she wasn't lying; already her beloved was nearly unrecognizable from when he'd landed in her bath just over a year ago. If he kept it up, by the time their daughter was born, she'd be fighting him seriously for his training.
Luffy gave her one of his trademark grins, "Thanks Hancock!"
A red flush suffused her cheeks. No matter what she did, she was weak to any sort of praise from her beloved. She dealt with it using the traditional methods of tsunderes everywhere: violence. "Break's over!" With that, she grabbed Luffy faster than he could react and swung him overhead, planting him headfirst in the ground.
Fifteen Months after the Paramount War, Nine Months before Straw Hat Reunion
"You have to let your haki flow more, husband," Marigold instructed her sole student. "Don't just coat yourself in armament haki; let it flow into your target to destroy them. Like this." The muscular woman threw a straight punch at one of the boulders Luffy was using for training, her arm blackened from the elbow down. At the last second, her fist stopped mere inches from her target. A moment later, the far side of the boulder exploded outwards.
"Right!" Bracing himself, Luffy tried once more. Haki coated his arm and he punched towards his own boulder, stopping just short of impact. Unlike the much larger orangette's attack, Luffy's spiderwebbed the surface of his boulder. "Tch."
"That was emission rather than internal destruction," Marigold explained. "Still, it's a considerable improvement. If you can do that consistently, you'll learn internal destruction in time." She frowned for a moment as she pondered how to better explain things. Really, the best way to grow one's haki was through combat. However, this wasn't a technique she was willing to use on an ally, never mind a loved one, even if she weren't on the verge of being forbidden from combat until her daughter was born. Though, perhaps… "Come here a moment, husband."
"Huh?" Though he was confused, Luffy did as she asked. Reaching down, Marigold placed her hand on his shoulder and concentrated. This was actually a bit new for her, especially since she didn't use a snake weapon like many of the Kuja did. Her naginata simply wasn't comparable, being a hunk of steel rather than a living being. "What're you-" Luffy's confused question was cut off when he felt it. Something flowed into him from the point of contact and after only a few seconds he realized it was her Armament Haki. Unlike when they'd fought over a year ago, or when he sparred against one of the other Kuja, it wasn't violent or harmful. It was… well, he wasn't good with words so the best he could describe it as was that it was Marigold. Unbidden, he reached out and put his hand on her leg before mimicking her actions. The pair said nothing as nothing needed to be said. They simply stood there, both of them bare to each other in a way mere nudity never could accomplish.
Seventeen Months after the Paramount War, Seven Months before Straw Hat Reunion
Sandersonia couldn't help but smile smugly. Of her sisters, she was the only one who could still train with their husband. While her older sister was unquestionably the strongest of them, even she wasn't as skilled with Observation Haki as Sandersonia was. So here she lounged on a white chaise custom made for a woman of her stature, her husband seated between her legs and resting his head on her pregnant belly, her wings folded around them both and her flames carefully suppressed. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it," She offered.
Frowning in concentration, Luffy said, "This is weird."
She shrugged, "I don't know. It's not like we've ever met another of our kind."
"Do you think she'll have wings like you?" He asked.
"Our daughter will be as beautiful as her parents." That took Luffy a moment to parse. He sometimes forgot that the Kuja considered strength and beauty to be synonymous.
"Huh. That's neat. Hey, I felt her kick! She feels strong."
"Kuja only ever give birth to daughters. I don't know why."
"How do you know she's a girl?" He asked. He thought you didn't know if a baby was boy or girl until they were born.
"Can you hear our daughter, love?"
Making a sound of frustration, Luffy said, "Darn, I lost it."
His wife merely chuckled good-naturedly. "Future sight takes a lot of practice, love." Lifting him up, she planted a kiss on his lips, one he eagerly returned. The two quickly lost themselves in the moment, especially as the kiss deepened and their tongues dueled. At least until they smelled something acrid, like burning fabr… "Oh shit!" Sandersonia leapt off the lounge chair, carrying her husband with her, as she realized her flames had reignited and set the chaise on fire.
Twenty-Two Months after the Paramount War, Six Weeks before Straw Hat Reunion
Hancock stood in front of Luffy, ready to train him once again now that she and her sisters had recovered from giving birth. Though she never said so out loud, she still occasionally squeed over having twins. Her younger sisters were spectating this training session, each of them looking after her daughters in addition to their own. Today, the lunarian woman was clad in a simple red bikini and a pair of sandals, looking more like she was going to the beach than fighting someone. Meanwhile, Luffy was wearing a pair of yellow shorts and a blue open cardigan. His precious hat was being looked after by Enishida, something she never stopped blushing about, even more so than carrying his child. Initially, he tried leaving it on one of the statues in the palace, but one of the Kuja couldn't help herself and tried it on. She'd later been found encased up to her jaw in Enishida's syrup after the lady's maid caught her.
"Today dear, I won't be holding back beyond not using my Devil Fruit," Hancock stated imperiously. "So you had best shown me just how strong you've become."
Luffy simply grinned fiercely at the challenge. "In that case, I better go all out from the start!" The three sisters expected a lot of things to follow such a declaration. They expected their shared husband to infuse himself with haki. They expected him to activate one of his Gears. What they didn't expect was for him to instead shrug off his shirt and pull off his shorts. Only once he stood naked before her did he coat his limbs with haki, the red flame-like appearance showing he was using his Conqueror's Haki in addition to Armament. "There, now I'm ready!"
Rather than take a stance, Hancock stared blankly. "Luffy darling, why are you naked?"
"Because being naked makes you stronger on this island! That's what Poppy told me!" The Empress facepalmed at her beloved's words.
Off to the side, Marigold and Sandersonia enjoyed the show. "Poppy huh? Smart girl; she's going places," Sandersonia smirked, licking her lips as she stared. Her younger sister nodded silently, too transfixed to speak. Sure, it was nothing they hadn't seen before but that didn't make it any less appealing.
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Twenty-Three Months after the Paramount War, One Month before Straw Hat Reunion
The tiny island of Sphinx was largely ignored by the outside world. It had no particularly useful natural resources or even a port town and it was notoriously poor, giving few ships any reason to stop there. But today was different. Today, the island nation was surrounded by over a hundred different ships, some were civilian ships but the vast majority were pirates. Sphinx currently had more visitors on its shores than natives, and they had all come for one thing: To pay their respects to the late Edward Newgate, known throughout the world as Whitebeard.
In a field outside the island's sole village, Whitebeard's massive tombstone was marked by his naginata driven into it, his coat and the Moby Dick's jolly roger tied to the weapon. The area around the grave was covered in flowers and planted swords from attendees with a crowd numbering well into the thousands gathered around.
Unlike many funerals, there were to be no speeches nor a memorial photo. Instead, Marco the Phoenix, First Mate of the Whitebeard Pirates, raised a sake cup high. Once the crowd mimicked his actions, he shouted out, his voice thick with emotion, "To the greatest father any of us ever knew! To Pops!"
"To Pops!" The entire congregation echoed before downing their sake.
Over the next several hours, the crowd would slowly disperse back to their ships and spend the rest of the day drinking and reminiscing about Edward Newgate. Stories were told, laughs were shared, and tears were shed. But through it all, they remembered a man the world called a monster, the marines called the Strongest Man in the World, and they called Pops.
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Twenty-Three Months after the Paramount War, Two Weeks before Straw Hat Reunion
Sometimes, Sengoku felt that if anyone ever needed to understand the idea of leadership being a burden, they only had to look at him. Sure, he was grayer now than he'd been two years ago, but he nonetheless felt younger than he had since before Roger's execution. While unofficially, he arguably had authority equal to the admirals, on paper, his authority only extended to the base where he oversaw the current batch of trainees. Seeing those young men and women working to one day become marines did his heart good, possibly literally. Even better, recruitment numbers were up even as Kuzan lowered conscription rates. The former Fleet Admiral repressed a cringe as he remembered those measures. Unfortunate, but necessary after the disaster that was the Summit War. Over a hundred thousand marines had answered the call to war; more than half of them went home in a box.
That more than anything had convinced Sengoku it was time for him to step down. The so-called war was the worst loss of materials and manpower the Marines had suffered in his lifetime, and they hadn't even accomplished their goal of executing Fire Fist Ace. Only some relative no-name pirates had been killed; they might have been infamous in their own right but compared to the others who were present, they were barely a consolation prize. As far as Sengoku was concerned, the closest things the World Government had to victory that day was that the deaths of Teach and his crew happened quietly so their treachery never became public knowledge, and that Newgate's injuries might have hastened his inevitable death. Well, that last bit was probably just wishful thinking on their part. Newgate hadn't died for nearly two years after that battle and had been on life support beforehand.
The sound of a cannon firing broke him out of his spiraling thoughts, his armament haki instinctively coating him in an instant as his head whipped towards the sound. It wasn't hard to find the perpetrator, everyone was staring at the sheepish looking man with varying degrees of alarm, disbelief, and confusion. Said man was clearly trying to sink both himself and the still smoking cannon into the ground through sheer willpower. "RECRUIT!" Sengoku roared as he functionally teleported in front of the young man, "Would you care to explain to me why you fired that cannon during an exercise on equipment maintenance?!"
As the panicking recruit tried to stammer an explanation, he was fortunate that the cannon had contained gunpowder but not a cannonball.
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One Week after Straw Hat Reunion
The Perfume Yuda had almost reached Amazon Lily's waters when they were hailed by a single, tiny vessel, casually floating at what would be considered a polite distance from their territory. None of the Kuja Pirates truly wondered who was onboard; only one man would sail such a small ship in the Calm Belt. Well, Mihawk probably could but he certainly had no reason to. Those above deck all looked to their empress for orders. Under different circumstances, they might already be loading the cannons or unleashing the Yuda. But between both who this visitor was and the number of children aboard the ship, such assumptions were not to be made. Hancock frowned for a moment from where she was feeding her daughters before deciding she'd at least hear the man out, "Let him approach. Do not start trouble in the presence of our daughters."
The women were quick to comply, the ship's navigator belting out orders to bring them alongside the Striker. Once they were close enough, a rope was thrown down, allowing the two ships to be anchored together. Though the Yuda hissed hungrily at the intruder, a burst of Conqueror's Haki from two different sources dissuaded them from attacking. After tying off his ship, Ace called up, "Ahoy Perfume Yuda! Permission to come aboard?"
From up above, Hancock's voice rang down, "Permission granted!"
With an easy smile on his face, the young man leapt into the air, a large box tucked under his arm as he easily landed on the deck of the far larger ship. Looking around the deck, Ace couldn't help but comment, "Wow, there sure are a lot of kids around here for a pirate ship."
From her seat atop Salome, the snake carefully positioned to avoid the flames on her back, Hancock demanded, "What does the newest Emperor want with me, Fire Fist?" Motherhood had not reduced her presence even minutely, causing her to stand out even if one disregarded her wings or silvery hair. Not even her daughters, Gardenia and Botan, currently suckling from her breasts made her any less regal. The twin infants were almost identical down to their tiny wings. The sole exception was their hair, each being half black and half white but on opposite sides from one another. Her sisters were in their cabin, caring for their own daughters. Unlike her twins, Marigold and Sandersonia found their children slept remarkably easy while sailing, the rocking of the ship seemingly helping soothe them.
Ace blinked in surprise, having not expected to see his sister-in-law topless. But he quickly recovered and got to the various reasons for why he'd come here personally when he could've sent one of his Division Commanders like Marco or Vista. "Well, for a start, I was planning to gift you some quality sake as a late wedding present (sorry about that by the way, it's been really hectic these last two years), but I'm pretty sure nursing mothers aren't supposed to drink," Pausing for a moment, Ace set down his load in front of his fellow Emperor. "Still, it's yours and it'll still be good in another year or so. Congratulations on the kids… er, are all of these Luffy's?" Though he'd had two years to get used to the idea of his clueless little brother being married, and presumably having kids, this was a bit much. "Just how many kids does my little brother have?"
A beatific smile on her face, the Empress of Amazon Lily answered, "My darling Luffy-kun has twenty-six daughters and another forty-five on the way." Once she and her sisters had given the go-ahead for her subjects to bed their husband, Luffy had proven incredibly virile. The only rule laid down was that all such liaisons had to be done for the express purpose of breeding more Kuja. Though initially confused by the idea of being married but having sex with other women anyway, the young man had dived right in with the enthusiasm and vigor he was quickly becoming famous for.
"Damn crybaby's gonna outpace Big Mom in a year at this rate," Ace muttered. Seriously, the boy pretty much had a small village worth of daughters. Having overheard his comment, Hancock merely smiled wider at the idea. Her husband was going to breed an entire generation of Kuja! Pulling himself back together, Ace continued, "The other reason I came was because you're my brother's wife, which makes you my sister. And I don't want to fight my sister."
The Empress arched an eyebrow at her junior's words. While she certainly appreciated family, if not to the near religious extent that the Whitebeard Pirates did, she wouldn't let it define her allegiance. Was he really proposing what she thought he was? "You seek an alliance between our forces?" She questioned him. All around them, the crew that had previously faded into the background started, shocked at the proposal.
But Ace shook his head, smile still in place. "Not really. Our groups are too different for that to be viable long-term," He countered. "Instead, I was thinking a truce. We'd just… stay out of each other's way."
Hancock smirked back, "And the fact you're still fighting to keep your territory secure from Linlin and Kaidō has nothing to do with it, I'm sure." The Kuja nodded in agreement, though none dare speak, unwilling to interrupt a meeting of such powerful individuals. It was well known in the New World that the two eldest Emperors still alive were making attempts on Ace's territory, especially Big Mom. Her appetite for domination was only matched by her appetite for sweets. Still, neither of the former Rocks Pirates had an ounce of respect for the other three Emperors, seeing them all as arrogant upstarts. Admittedly, even the late Newgate had felt the same. Anyone who wasn't from "their era" was just some snot-nosed brat who didn't know a damn thing about the world.
"Well, I won't argue that, though it's rather rude to just come out and say it," Ace joked. Inwardly, he groaned a little. It felt like Shanks was the only Emperor with manners. Still, he had another card up his sleeve, one he was sure the Serpent Empress wouldn't be able to refuse. "There's also that it'd be right awful of us to fight and force Luffy to choose between us."
That got Hancock's attention. While it was true she, her sisters, and Luffy were married and deeply in love, if she did say so herself, it was equally true that Luffy had known his older brother far longer. She couldn't say with certainty who her beloved would choose if pressed. After a moment to think (and burp each of her twins), she finally answered, "You make a sound argument, Fire Fi- no, Ace. As you are my husband's brother, I will agree to a truce between our forces, at least until your position as Whitebeard's successor has been properly secured." After a moment, the Empress's face softened. In a warmer voice, she asked, "Would you care to stay a while and hear about what Luffy-kun's been up to?"
Grinning broadly in a manner that shouted just who his little brother was, Ace exclaimed, "I'd be happy to!" Privately, the youngest Emperor thought, 'Hopefully he's been training hard to become strong enough for the New World, not just spending his time up to his ass in ass.'
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Omake for chapter 1: Jailbreak.
Within the bowels of Impel Down, a Transponder Snail rang energetically. "Puru puru puru puru puru puru puru puru puru." Unfortunately, its owner was currently on the toilet, where he spent most of every day. As such, he was unable to answer the snail and get forewarned of what was about to happen. Instead, he became aware of it at the same time everyone throughout the prison did: When the room shook like it was at the epicenter of an earthquake.
Krack-thoom!
Loud but muffled cursing could be heard coming from the bathroom seconds before the owner stumbled out, hastily tightening his belt. A towering man that stood nearly five meters tall, he wore a black suit along with bat wings and horn-like ornaments. His name was Magellan and he was the Chief Warden of Impel Down. He had barely picked up the Transponder Snail to call for information, the snail having already disconnected from the earlier shaking, when the entire prison was rocked once again. This time, dust fell from the ceiling as it shook.
Krack-thoom!
"This is Magellan, someone answer me, what is going on?!" He barked into the receiver. He needed information, damnit!
Thankfully, there was a prompt response. One of his underlings spoke, screamed really, into the Snail, "Sir! We're under attack!"
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On the deck of the Perfume Yuda, Luffy looked ahead at the prison before them. "I thought Ace was being executed at that Marineford place. Shouldn't we be going there?" He asked the youngest of his fiancés. At least, he was reasonably sure that's what the newspaper said.
In her hybrid form, Marigold grunted slightly as she rested next to him. Though the Yuda pulled their ship at a respectable speed, they wouldn't have been fast enough on their own for them to reach Impel Down in time. So it had been her duty to hasten their journey. Though the real challenge hadn't been conjuring enough wind, but avoiding creating too much. Marigold knew from experience how easily she could create a typhoon that would capsize any vessel. Now that they'd arrived, she could finally rest from having spent the last few days awake. "Sister decided it would be easier to attack Impel Down where Ace is being held. There will be fewer forces here and it will take time for reinforcements to arrive."
"Oh, well that's okay then." Luffy was a little annoyed he wouldn't get to help rescue Ace but he'd been overruled. The dancing lady had said he might make it harder for them to save his brother so he'd wait if he had to. But it was just so boring!
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Sandersonia looked around in curiosity as she and her sister crashed down to the third level of Impel Down, ignoring the alarms that had been blaring since they arrived. They could move through quicker but using a stronger attack to break through multiple floors ran the risk of crushing Fire Fist in his cell. As such, Hancock was merely stomping through one level at a time. After the forest of trees with bladed leaves and spiky grass on the first level, the monstrous beasts on the second, and now the oppressive heat and apparent starvation on the third, Sandersonia found herself wondering: Did Impel Down copy the World Nobles or did they copy Impel Down?
She didn't have long to wonder as Hancock raised her blackened foot and stomped down once more, causing the building to tremble as the floor opened beneath them. Immediately, the heat became far more intense and the scent of blood flooded their noses. Looking down, they saw an entire lake of boiling blood beneath them. Both sisters opened their wings further, catching the rising hot air as they glided downwards.
They reached the ground near the giant pool right as the prison's Chief Warden arrived on scene. He was even taller than she was, having nearly half a meter on her. Surprisingly, he didn't even demand to know why they were there. The man simply created a massive multi-headed serpent out of some purple liquid he secreted. "Hydra!" Magellan declared as the poison beast lunged towards them. Instantly, Sandersonia transformed and six of her eight heads came crashing into the hydra's three. To the shock of the watching prisoners, rather than die horrifically, Sandersonia spat streams of fire from her mouths. The hydra was boiled to nothingness. Her remaining two heads bit into Magellan's sides, ignoring his poison armor as her fangs dug into his flesh. With an almighty pull, Impel Down's strongest defender was ripped in two.
"Are you done playing with your food, sister?" Hancock asked, arching a single eyebrow. Sandersonia gave a sheepish smile as she spat out Magellan's remains and changed back into her normal lunarian form. Another stomp broke them through into the Frozen Hell. But this time, the hole caused more than just some debris and perhaps an unlucky prisoner to fall down to the next level. A few particular cracks reached all the way to the massive cauldron of blood. That slight instability was all that was needed for it to start tilting. Though some of the boiling blood spilled out to the rest of Level Four, the majority flowed down into the Frozen Hell of Level Five. The scalding hot liquid poured out into the ice and snow, instantly melting any it came in contact with, including several frozen prisoners.
Sandersonia side-eyed her older sister, who merely shrugged to cover up her mistake. "Fire Fist should be fine. A commander in an Emperor's forces can easily withstand such things."
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"Oh my, those two sure are making a mess of things," Queen Ivankov mused as he (currently) watched Hancock and Sandersonia break through or outright ignore Impel Down's defenses. He sat within Newkama Land's main café area, watching the jailbreak unfold on their surveillance snail. The death of Magellan along with the general chaos of their actions, particularly the gaping holes left in each level and the incapacitated or killed guards along the way, certainly helped Newkama Land's cause by distracting the remaining guards. However, if they didn't find Ace, they might try to find the rumored Eternal Hell, which would take them right through his queendom and expose the paradise he and Morley had created. It'd be better to bring them in quietly.
"Inazuma!" The scissor woman, for the moment, appeared at his side almost instantly, a wine glass in her left hand. As always, her clothing perfectly matched her hair, being orange on the left side and white on the right. "If you could bring our new guests down here, dear? Before their mess becomes our mess." Glancing back at the projection where prisoners were crowding around the cooling pools of crimson slush, he added, "And do make sure none of that blood gets in here. We just scrubbed the floors."
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"Where did they go damnit!" Domino, the blonde Head Jailor of Impel Down, demanded within the surveillance room. Behind her ever-present sunglasses, she was as shaken as the rest of them over the Chief Warden's death, but they had a duty to carry out and she'd die before she forsook her duty. Until the now Chief Warden Hannyabal arrived, she was nominally in charge of the prison so she was responsible for containing the intruders.
Sadly, responsible or no, that didn't change the situation. An Emperor had broken into the prison and was currently in the one place they had almost no actual surveillance in. "We don't know ma'am. All we can tell is that they're not near the staircases to Level Four or Level Six."
God, she hated being proven right. Worse, they could fly and had made a giant hole in the ceiling so fortifying the entrances would do little. Still, little was more than nothing. As such, she singled out one underling and ordered, "I want every available guard fortifying the entrances to each level! Some of the prisoners got loose as those two stomped their way through and I will not be the one to let them escape!" He hadn't even turned to leave before she addressed another guard, "Have you contacted Marinefored? How long until reinforcements arrive?"
Immediately snapping to a proper salute, the guard answered, "Yes ma'am! They're en route now and should be here in eight hours!" Domino nearly tore her whip in two at that news. In eight hours, they'd be lucky if Impel Down was still standing!
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Edward "Whitebeard" Newgate was en route to Marineford, along with dozens of allied crews, when the call came. With how large and how loud the Moby Dick was at any given time, he barely heard the Transponder Snail ringing and only truly noticed when one of his sons ran up to him with it. "Pops! Pops! You gotta hear this!"
Grumbling a little, the world's strongest man reached down for the offered snail and spoke into the receiver. "Make it quick, I'm busy." Honestly, who in the world had the gall to call him when everyone knew his entire fleet was on their way to war? It had better not be that snot-nosed brat, Red Hair again.
The voice that spoke through the Transponder was probably the last one, make that third to last after Roger and Oden, he expected to hear. With his typical carefree smile showing through on the Snail, Portgas D. "Fire Fist" Ace laughed, "C'mon pops. I thought you always had time for one of your kids." The sound of their comrade's voice calling out silenced the entire ship as they stared in shock at the snail in their pops' hand. "Anyway, my annoying little brother and his fiancés broke me out of prison and we're all heading towards Amazon Lily." In a lower tone he muttered, "I can't believe that little crybaby is getting married. Shit, I hope Makino gave him the Talk. I'm not doing it."
His muttering was interrupted by Marco who, like always, was best suited for rolling with the punches. "So I guess that means we'll need to have two parties then. One to celebrate your escape and another to celebrate your little brother's wedding."
Whitebeard cut in even as the Moby Dick adjusted its course, his children all knowing what his order would be even without him saying it, and signaling the other ships as well. "Amazon Lily? Why of all islands would you be going to Amazon Lily?"
Ace's smile became a little strained and his voice was filled with disbelief, "Because somehow, Luffy's engaged to the Serpent Sisters." Everyone within earshot stared at the Transponder Snail in shock at that bit of news, one woman getting smacked by a boom due to her lack of attention. "You better break out the good stuff because I plan on drinking until I forget the last month."
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Unrelated Omake: The Kings and Queens of the New World
Within the New World, it was a well-known fact that you couldn't get anywhere without haki. This was especially true for Logias as they'd quickly learn the invincibility they had coasted off of for so long no longer applied. It was equally well-known that Haoshoku was simultaneously the most potent, valuable, and rare. The odds of any one person possessing it were less than one in a million, and while most of the strongest crews were led by a "Conqueror", even the Emperors didn't have more than two or three users within their forces. And their total forces and allies almost invariably numbered in the tens of thousands. As such, the idea that a small crew could have half of the known Conquerors in the world was not just ridiculous but clearly impossible. Of course, people quickly realized that one should always bet on the Straw Hats, even if the opposition is the entire world.
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It had started out small and simple. So much so that even those who witnessed the events merely chalked up the chill they felt as the raw emotion present. A few recognized what they saw and knew they were witnessing the birth of legends. The rest would kick themselves for not understanding just how far a crew of apparent nobodies would go.
Zoro stood ready as he prepared for one final clash against the world's greatest swordsman. It was all down to this; one final attack to decide: Either the best in the world or death. No matter what, he was going to put everything he had into it. Unnoticed by all but one, a tiny wisp of something leaked into his swords. It was faint, barely there at all really, but Mihawk realized the boy before him had potential to become far more than others he'd faced over the years. The world seemed to pause as the two stared each other down. Then, at some undetermined signal, they both rushed forward. Zoro unleashed his strongest attack with all of his will poured into it, only for two of his blades to shatter. However, unseen by all, a tiny scratch, barely breaking the skin, formed on the chest of the world's strongest swordsman. Only the man himself noticed, and it made him smile. Oh yes, this boy would go far.
As everyone in Cocoyashi Village marched off to fight the Arlong Pirates for their atrocities, not the least of which was how Arlong betrayed Nami and invalidated the last eight years of her life. The young navigator remained kneeling in despair at the lives that were about to be lost and the realization that Arlong never intended to hold up his end of the bargain. And then she happened to spot her tattoo, the one she was forced to get by the monster who had murdered her mother and enslaved her. "ARLONG!" She roared in pure hatred, a minor wave of indescribable force rippling outwards from her simultaneously.
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Staring down at the courtyard in pure horror, Vivi was forced to watch as her people slaughtered each other. Friends and neighbors turned against one another because of one man's thirst for power. And no one would listen to her no matter how much she screamed and pleaded. By chance, her gaze fell upon one rebel, not even a grown man, he looked younger than her. And even as she watched, he was cut down by a member of the royal army. She wouldn't be able to say later exactly what happened then; all she knew was that she felt something deep inside her snap. Taking a deep breath, the crown princess of Alabasta screamed, "I said, STOP FIGHTING!"
At the time, she'd swear it was a miracle. The people heard her and froze where they were, many of them still halfway through an attack when they simply froze. When the bomb carried by Pell went off, the spell was broken, but no one could find it in themselves to resume.
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"Sogeking… shoot down that flag."
"Yes." Usopp knew he was a coward. He'd always known it. He couldn't even bring himself to face his friends after storming off, even for the sake of saving another friend. So yes, he knew what cowardice looked like. And right now, he saw it in Robin's face as she glared at them, heard it in her voice as she insisted that she wanted to die. And he might be a coward, but he wouldn't let anyone insult his crew, not even themselves. As he drew back his new Kabuto, Usopp knew with every fiber of his being, that this was the shot that would define him. Whether he fired a million more or none at all, this shot was the one that would save one of his friends from herself. So the coward aimed with not just his eyes or his hands, but with his heart, his soul, his very being. "Phoenix Star!"
The pellet burst into a great phoenix as it soared towards its target, almost seeming to let off a warcry of its own as it flew. When it struck, the flag didn't merely burst into flames, but burnt up entirely near instantly, the flames somehow even spreading to the roof of the Tower of Justice.
Through her tears, Robin stared down at her crew no, her friends, the people who had just declared war on the world itself for her sake. That buffoon Spandam was saying something but all she could hear was her captain demanding she admit the truth, that she didn't want to die. Hope finally surged in her chest for the first time in years, possibly since she watched Ohara burn, and she remembered Saul's parting words. No one was born into the world to be alone. One day, she'd have friends who would stand with her. 'I thought wishing for it was forbidden. No one would allow me. But, if I'm allowed to then…' "I WANT TO LIVE! TAKE ME AWAY FROM HERE!"
As Luffy grinned in response, the CP9 stared in confusion at Robin as their director fainted, foaming at the mouth.
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Later, some of the onlookers might claim that all of the Straw Hats stepped forward at the same time, but all of them, even Jinbe who hadn't joined them yet, knew they were following their captain's lead. Eleven people leisurely walked forward, even as an army of one hundred thousand pirates and slaves ran forward to surround them. Their numbers were genuinely impressive, ten times what the Straw Hats had faced at Enies Lobby and nearly fifty times what Baroque Works had fielded. It didn't matter in the slightest.
A wave of power pulsed out from each member of the Straw Hat crew, both present and future. Though the largest came from Luffy, none of them were insignificant. To the New Fish-man Pirates and their slaves, it was as though they had found themselves surrounded by an entire school of Sea Kings. Some lasted slightly longer than others but within seconds, all of them succumbed to the darkness. Hody Jones and his officers could do nothing but watch in horror as their entire army lost consciousness, all without the humans seemingly doing anything.
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AN: This took so long for a variety of reasons, among them being that I wasn't sure if I was actually continuing the fic and the realization that I'd eliminated almost every post-Kaidō villain. For that reason, I'm glad Aramaki is a psychotic cunt. Yes, Uta is still a Red Hair pirate. Unlike "One Piece: Red", she never summoned musical Satan and destroyed a kingdom but she did insist on continuing to sail with her adoptive father. Speaking of, Tot Musica isn't a separate entity in this story, but instead a creation of Uta when she Awakens her Devil Fruit.
So, Yamato. I'm personally one of the people who doesn't think canon Yamato is trans but is just a very diehard Oden fan, particularly with lines like "Oden was a man so I had to become a man too". Or the Vivre Card stating Yamato is "Female" but Kiku (who is unambiguously trans in canon) is "Female at heart". However, in "Serpent Empress", Yamato will be going through a character arc of realizing that "being Oden" isn't superficial things like how you dress or what pronouns you use, but deeper parts like Oden's generosity and sense of adventure.
Virgin Hody Jones: Takes four energy steroids then fights underwater (making him 32 times stronger than normal) against some scrubs with his hands shackled in an attempt to seem badass.
Chad Boa Hancock: Fights her husband while wearing seastone shackles. Still kicks his ass.
So the two omakes. The first was a random idea of how things would've gone if they'd attacked Impel Down instead. The second was a fun thought I didn't feel like posting alone or continuing. So like all such ideas, it's up for grabs. I didn't show everyone's first usage of Conqueror's Haki because I genuinely couldn't think of ones for everyone. And while I do know that infusion is very advanced, just take that as writer's prerogative; they did it instinctively but it'd be years before they can do so intentionally.