"We need to hurry!" Nami yells as she, Chopper, and Usopp go through the halls of Egghead Island, "We need to get to the Sunny so I can unload all this future treasure!" She says with dollar signs in her eyes.

"You mean get out of here alive, right?" Usopp and Chopper speak simultaneously.

"Yeah, that too." Nami nonchalantly says as she quickly goes back to ogling her pile of stolen Egghead treasure. Usopp considers it odd how Nami is putting treasure above her life, but he quickly dismisses it.

"This is Nami we're talking about," He thinks to himself. The "weakling" trio continued their trip down Vegapunk's laboratory, every window they passed showed different experiments and mini-labs. Of course, Nami always made a quick stop to look at each of them to see if there's anything valuable in them, only to end up disappointed most of the time. "But she never gives up," Usopp thinks as he looks at Nami, "She always gets back up and continues searching, even when it's a complete bust. I guess… I want to be like her."

"-p? Usopp?" Usopp didn't hear Chopper, too busy admiring Nami. "Are you coming in too?" He asks, pointing to the newly opened door.

"... Yeah sure, why not?" Usopp says as he walks in, patting Chopper on the head, "Guard the treasure while we're inside, otherwise Nami wi-"

"I know, geez, stop treating me like a kid!" Chopper whined.

"You know, the only people who say that act like children!"

Usopp left Chopper to his grievances while he explored the lab with Nami. It had seven separate tanks in the middle, each of which were opened up with nothing inside. Nami was scouring the rest of the room, searching under every computer to find some secret switch. Usopp went to check the observation room. When he got there, he found a journal.

Journal Entry #85099

Project Prometheus, Part 4

Testing the Seraphim's limits have been, for lack of a better word, frustrating. Each of them have devil fruits suited to their counterparts' fighting style and yet none of them have managed to truly live up to or surpass their counterparts, the latter being the main goal of Project Prometheus. I am truly puzzled. The Seraphim have their counterparts' lineage factor, fighting style, our newly developed Pacifista Lasers and now they even have lunarian genes. Logic dictates that they should be superior to how the Seven Warlords performed when they were children, and yet they somehow share the same statistics.

"So how is it frustrating?" Usopp thought. "If anything, the Seraphims feel like a straight upgrade since you don't have to deal with the Warlords' personality." Usopp felt that if he kept reading, he would probably find his answer.

To elaborate, this is not the frustrating part. It's good that the Seraphim are at least copies that this time don't have the Warlords' rambunctious personalities. The frustrating part comes from what they cannot use: haki.

"Ah, there we go." Usopp thought to himself.

The Seraphim do have souls, but in the same way Pythagoras' mobs have souls whenever all of us Vegapunks do game night (Currently we're doing a 40k playthrough with Edison as the game master). In simple terms, a Seraphim's soul is but a shadow of the original's. As a result, Stella has ordered us to wait for the Seraphim to come of age and let them grow up so that they become physically and mentally stronger.

"I should introduce Zoro to 40k. I bet he'd love it. Already introduced Robin to the novels and she can't put the books down!" Usopp happily thought as he remembered how he and the archeologist would talk for hours about their favorite factions.

However, Lilith has brought up an interesting suggestion: what if we give the Seraphim more lunarian blood? However, this idea was quickly shot down by everybody else present. She even suggested using half-lunarian blood! Lunarian blood is already rare on its own, but half-lunarian? You would be searching for a needle in a haystack! (For more information on half-lunarians, go to Journal Entry #80230).

In conclusion, Project Prometheus is essentially in limbo until the Seraphim can grow up and get strong enough to truly rival and surpass the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

- Dr. Shaka Vegapunk

After reading this, Usopp was left with one thought, "Half-lunarians? So, do they have half the power of lunarians or are they half-human, half-lunarian and get both of their perks?" Usopp then goes to Journal Entry #80230.

Journal Entry #80230

Project Prometheus

For those unaware, Project Prometheus is about the study and usage of the lunarian lineage factor. As a result, I, Dr. Stella Vegapunk, am conducting experiments on live subjects. I hate myself for doing this, but better me than someone like Judge. I'll treat the subjects with as much humanity as I can muster and do whatever they wish so long as it doesn't impede the pursuit of this project. I know it will not be enough, it will never be enough, but at the same time science demands sacrifice. If I must sacrifice part of my humanity for the greater good, then so be it.

Subject #1, who's name is Alber, is a full lunarian. He is 15 years old and approximately 6'1 tall with a slim body image. He is a part of the O'ka'ku tribe from the West Blue island sharing the same name, but he and his tribe were later discovered by people from the neighboring islands. Considering the World Government has put a $100 million bounty out for anyone who correctly identifies a lunarian, this was bound to happen eventually. Unfortunately, Alber is the last of his tribe. I just hope I don't have to do anything more invasive than harmless needles. The boy has been through enough.

Subject #2 on the other hand is a half-lunarian. Her name is B******a, she is a 17 year old who hails from the East Blue, although I have no clue what her home island is. Now is the right time to explain what a half-lunarian is: half-lunarians are people whose lineage factor is partly lunarian, but it isn't so abundant so as to take the dominant role. In a sense, the gene is sleeping and only fragments of it are in the body. White hair, brown skin, tough skin, above average strength/speed are common indicators of a potential half-lunarian. Here is the problem: half-lunarians can only show one of the above mentioned indicators. They are also genes that can be easily mistaken for something else such as age (both young and old), gender, religion, and even diet. Granted, the body will begin to exhibit more lunarian traits when put through enough trauma, but in order for them to truly awaken their gene they would have to go through the Lunarian Acceptance Ritual (more on this later). As a result, finding a half-lunarian is like finding a needle in a haystack. I have however managed to create a scanner that could detect how likely someone is to be a half-lunarian. I debated on whether or not I should use it freely, but in the back of my brain I knew I couldn't put others through the same things Alber went through.

So, on my own, I went to a random island in the East Blue and scanned it in its entirety. When I finally found Subject #2, I gave her a deal: stay with me for six months and let me experiment on you, and I will pay you enough money to pay your mortgage off seven times over. She of course accepted. I can only hope the World Government would give me enough funds to properly do this, otherwise I might have to send her home early. I need to keep Alber though, otherwise he would just be a slave in Mariejois. B******a at least has plausible deniability, Alber doesn't.

Onto the Lunarian Warrior Ritual. As the name suggests, it is a ritual held to honor lunarian warriors as they bring in new blood and set them off on a race throughout the "Holy Road." I have not been able to find the exact coordinates of this "Holy Road" but I have found the start and end points: *l**a*** and *an*. Those who complete the race become a warrior, and the one that finishes first place becomes a b**** w****** ** *h* sea. Strangely, neither islands are even close to the Red Line. I find this strange because, as discussed before when discussing lunarians, their original home was on the Red Line and yet they decide to stop at *an*. Perhaps it and *l**a*** share a deeper connection to the lunarians? This requires further study.

In conclusion, the main goal of Project Prometheus is to learn about and find uses for lunarians, along with the possibility of preserving their race (this part needs to remain unknown to the Celestial Dragons).

-Dr. Stella Vegapunk

Usopp closes the book, feeling like he just took a cruise vessel to the face, "That name… Could Subject #2 be…" Usopp quickly shakes his head at the thought of his mother, "No way, I would have noticed. She would have warned me! Then again, it's weird how her skin and hair color are the exact opposite of a lunarian's, and before she was sick, she was always quick on her feet." Usopp remembers how his mother would always seem to dance around the house, she even had a song she'd hum. "Doom Dut Da Da, Doom Dut Da Da" He remembers as she would make breakfast. "Is it just me or does that sound similar to Luffy when he uses that new form? What did Vegapunk call it again? The…" Usopp remembered it like it was yesterday, because it really was yesterday, and he immediately regretted it.

Just then, Usopp's observation haki picked up a big fight happening nearby. "Woah…" He thought as he read each fighters' signatures, "That big guy is wild! Is he a zoan, or is there an eight-legged tribe? Whatever it is, I want out of it." Usopp thinks as he immediately runs in the opposite direction, book in hand. That is until he stops at the lab's entrance. Usopp recognizes one of the people in that big spider's grip: It was Luffy.

"Chopper, Nami," Usopp says in an unusually serious tone, getting both of their attention, "Don't wait up." And with that, he smashes through the lab and heads down to help his captain out.

Usopp comes down to the Fabriophase and he sees that Saturn is about to kill Luffy. Immediately, he shoots at Saturn to try to get his attention. Saturn stares at him and tries to kill him, only for Usopp to survive it. He stares angrily at the so-called god, skin turning browner and knuckles turning paler. Even if he's the weakest in his crew, the fellow false god refuses to let his captain die. He made a promise to himself that he would not be in a perilous position anymore, that he would always swallow his fear and protect his crew even if it meant putting his life on the line. All eyes are on him now, Luffy noticing Usopp's demeanor change. He remembers the one other time he saw it: when he and the sniper fought in Water 7.

Usopp's body also starts to change. His hair starts turning gray and his back starts to morph. Black wings grow out of his back, and a flame now flickers behind his white hair. This time, Usopp doesn't want to run away. This time, Usopp doesn't want to feel like a fraud. This time, Usopp wants to be a brave warrior of the sea!

"How interesting..." Saturn says out loud, noticing the sniper's distinct similarities to that of a lunarian's, "Boy!" Saturn yells to the newly-made lunarian, "I'm impressed that you figured out the lunarian tribe's ritual on your own. In your ancestors' eyes, you are considered a brave warrior of the sea. A true honor, even amongst the eldest lunarians," Saturn drops Luffy and prepares his cane, "An honor you can take to Mariejois."

With that, Saturn charged at Usopp with impressive speed. Usopp is familiar with his bugs though, so he knows that when put to human scale, the spider is the fastest land creature in the world! And that isn't even taking into account how this is clearly no normal spider. Usopp knew his chances at beating this man, no, thing, was almost zero, but he knew that if he didn't at least try, he would get nowhere closer to his dream. "That's what Luffy always says," He thinks to himself as he gets up and shoots Saturn with his freshly-loaded slingshot, "How can I be a brave warrior of the sea by taking shortcuts?" With that, the sniper roars into action, fire coming out of him from every angle, burning through the Gorosei's tough exoskeleton and exposing his weak flesh.

"You dare..." Saturn angrily grumbles before slamming Usopp with his cane, knocking the sniper into a building with blood gushing out of him despite his lunarian heritage, "You lunarians always think you're the pinnacle of life just because you are more durable than most, but even the strongest of punching bags is still a mere punching bag!" He yells as he attempts to stab Usopp's back with one of his legs, "I suppose the younglings will have to make do with their new slave only having one wing!" He yells as he stabs his leg directly into the ground.

The dust clears, Saturn expecting to find a half-dead Usopp but instead finding nothing. Saturn sighs, "I suppose I got ahead of myself." Just then, the elder hears a voice from the distance.

"-Dawn Bazooka!" The newly re-energized Luffy exclaims as he launches Saturn into the sky, Usopp and Franky safely behind him. "Ahyahyahyahya! Thanks for saving Usopp, Franky!"

"Ow! I'll always have my bro's back!" The cyborg says as he makes his iconic pose.

"And Usopp!" Luffy yells as his eyes pop out of his skull, "You're on fire! And you have wings! And you're alive! You look like one of those S-guys Old Man Apple made!"

Usopp looks at a nearby window and uses it as a mirror. Sure enough, his skin was browner than he remembered, he now had wings and there was fire behind his newly-white hair. And, on his arms. "Wait, my arms are on fire and yet they feel… good?" Usopp thought to himself before vocalizing his thoughts, "It feels... natural? Like it's always been inside me, I could just never let it out until now."

"Ow! Well, if you're the same as the Seraphim, I guess that means we can do some serious damage!"

Franky was right. Sure, neither he nor Usopp could properly fight Saturn, but they can provide support for Luffy to deal proper damage. With this, they can get off of Egghead Island. With this, they can win!

Aaaaaand scene! Man, I forgot how much I love writing! Sorry I've been gone a while, it's my first year at college so I want to get a good start. I came up with this idea after the chapter released along with a theory about Usopp I've been cooking up for a while. Look at it this way, can a normal person really survive all the things Usopp's been through? Remember, normal people die to bullets, even in the One Piece world. I refuse to believe Usopp can survive getting his skeleton smashed multiple times, get put on fire, have his arms smashed by using impact dials, and still be okay. Normal people can't do that! Plus, Banchina was casted black in the LA. Keep in mind that Oda was in charge of casting! Probably a coincidence, but there's always a chance!

Be seeing ya!