Cassandra hugged Damien as tightly as she could, savoring the feeling of his arm around her. "I'm so glad to see you again. Why are you so cold?"
"His body temperature is within normal human range," Raven reported from out of sight.
"Which is cold for him. Are you sick?" She stepped back and took in his additional horrific scars, many of which were infected. "What the fuck happened to you?"
He rolled his shoulders as Raven rapidly tended to his wounds. "An' I'm th' last one, ah?"
"Who's the slut?" a stout man demanded, stopping on Damien's left.
"I'M GOING TO DETONATE YOUR BLOOD ALLIGATOR!" screamed the sinewy masked woman on his right.
Cassandra ignored them, trailing a finger across the many deep horizontal scars on Damien's torso she recognized from Lyn's memory. "We need to get you fixed up. Let's go."
"You can't just tell us-"
Damien's nearly invisible backfist sent the male prisoner flying, shocking the female one into silence. "Aight."
They went through the hole in the dome and into complete chaos. Since it had become clear that a jailbreak was occurring, the guards had entered the Sphere of Life and engaged the Eutopians in combat. The Black Glove Pirates' faces by the gate lit up when the trio returned to them, only to freeze when they took in Damien's appearance. Even with Raven's ministrations, his wounds' infections were still evident. "What on-" Morgan managed.
"Yahahahar! You chucklefucks ain' been slackin'! Neat toy, Girlie! Can' wait t' play!"
"Of course," Alexander gasped. "There aren't any animals besides livestock up here, are there?"
Damien waved his hand near his head. "Choke on a cock, Sunshine. I ain' a movie theater. Wha's with Toro, and oo's that 'idden twatbandit?"
"She was experimented on and your new probationary crewmate, respectively." Cassandra enjoyed the sight of her fully assembled crew for one whole second before Damien bounded away to join the fight against the guards. "Time to leave."
"Forgive me for intruding again." She turned to the lanky man from before. "I may be of some assistance."
"Start by telling me where the seastone implants are."
He raised an eyebrow. "By our hearts."
"Defensive formation! Theo, X-ray and screen." NYMPHE landed next to them, holding out a tablet. "Good. Cain, give Miserie to Lyn, then help Aisha hold this one down and cover his eyes. Doc, take the implant out. Try to keep him able to talk afterwards. Fair warning, this will probably hurt a lot."
The man had no time to react before Raven knocked him over and injected him with anesthetic. She ignored his screams and cut her way beneath his rib cage, constantly glancing at Theo's screen to stay on course. She slowed significantly when she reached his heart, taking absolute care not to make a single mistake. A seastone pellet not much larger than a grain of rice appeared in Cassandra's outstretched hand. Raven applied her specialized medical paste and sewed him up before vanishing again.
"Still with us?" she asked him. "Can you move?"
He gingerly sat up, his face drenched in sweat. "What happened?"
She drew a pistol. "Stand up." He shakily climbed to his feet and flexed his fingers. "You feel good enough to fight?"
"It… appears that I do," he said, his bass voice full of astonishment. "Yes, I do. Astounding."
"Good. Doc, Theo, Cain, Aisha, see how many Users you can free. Tap Grade A seastone on everyone's skin to find them. Take your suits with you, Theo."
The man gingerly felt his abdomen. "A flawless surgery. I have never met so skilled a…" He trailed off in thought. "Unbelievably flawless." He met her level gaze. "Nancy Mandora. May I exchange a proper follow-up surgery for helping you specifically escape?"
The corner of her mouth twitched upwards. "That depends on how much you help."
His upheld index finger turned into the end of an ornate key. Pressing it against his stitched wound, he rotated his hand a quarter turn counterclockwise with a faint but audible click. "If you need anything locked or unlocked, be they doors, abilities, or memories, I can provide the key to your solution."
"The Users should be spicing things up. Alexander, Morgan, penetrate the domes again. As for you," she said, turning to Mandora, "lock my abilities."
After a moment's hesitation, he touched the tip of one middle finger to her chest and rotated the same counterclockwise turn. She imagined the border between life and death, that imperceptibly thin line that was so easy to cross. She remembered what it was like to stand on the very edge, the width of an atom separating the tip of her toe from the event horizon of that all-consuming darkness. Her heartbeat sped up, adrenaline surged through her veins, and her muscles twitched, waiting to do whatever was necessary to get away from that limit. "Voluntas Carnae."
She rolled her shoulders and cracked her knuckles. Amping herself up had definitely had an effect, but it paled in comparison to her usual boost. She gestured for him to undo whatever he had done, and her body fairly vibrated as energy rushed through her once more. "How long does it last?"
"Depends on the complexity of the lock and the strength of what is sealed."
"Protect these two. You'll die if you fail. Follow me."
Cassandra ran forward at a speed she knew Lyn could match, even with Miserie in her arms. Her placid face hid her unbridled sadistic glee. Finally, after three years, she was going to fight as Cassandra Libera with her life on the line. She had not trained until her sisters forced her to stop, had not pushed her body beyond its limits, destroying her bones and muscles as much as her Fruit would allow, so she could merely watch machinations unfold. A large group of people wanted her in shackles or interred, and she wanted them in pieces. There were no schemes to enact, no plans to follow, no plots to carry out.
It was just her and them. "Ferrum Bellonae!"
Pent-up aggression fueled her limbs as she crashed headlong into a group of guards. The first knife she dragged through someone's neck was intoxicatingly delightful. Her bullet crawled through the air and sank into another guard's forehead. She felt every ligament snap, every muscle tear, every bone break beneath her boot as she kicked an opposing prisoner. A cut along her forehead didn't even have time to bleed before it closed up. She had missed fighting as herself so much.
Regrettably, it wasn't just her and them. Although Lyn's agility kept most attacks from hitting her armor or Miserie's tough skin, Cassandra was still forced to deal with the occasional threat to their well-being. If only she could act like Damien, completely free of responsibility or consequences, focused solely on killing and staying alive. She subsequently remembered what he had suffered to save her life. Even he wasn't completely free to go wild.
A small groan filtered through the clamor of battle. Leaving her knife embedded in a woman's ribs, she wove her way back to Lyn, who was futilely trying to keep Miserie from squirming out of her arms. Cassandra led them to a more secluded area where they could rest Miserie on the ground, and Raven landed beside them to go over her physical state.
Miserie's eyes fluttered open, swiftly latching onto Cassandra as they tried to focus. "Cap… tain?"
"Sorry I took so long," she said gently, her gaze fixed near Miserie's ear. "We're back. All of u-"
Miserie literally crushed the air from Cassandra's lungs, sobbing with relief. Lyn shed her helm and joined in, tears gushing down her cheeks as well. Miserie's melodic voice was scratchy when she finally caught her breath. "She knew Captain would come for her."
Cassandra could only reply once she loosened Miserie's grip enough for her ribs to fuse back together. "Promised, didn't I?" she wheezed, noting how easily she freed herself despite Miserie's distressed strength.
After wiping her eyes, Miserie curled up into a tight ball for a moment, then burst out into a song that buoyed their hearts with joy. Despite Cassandra covering her ears in response to Miserie's deafening voice, she could still hear a lull in the fighting outside. Kissing Miserie's cheek, she ascended to the roof to get a better grasp of the situation. The guards had not been prepared for the prisoners' Devil Fruits, the Users pushing through the hole her pirates had made and heading to the next dome. Many Eutopians seemed more interested in fighting their captors than escaping, and their clashes were felling buildings left and right.
"How is Damien doing?" she shouted over Miserie's singing.
Despite the gravity of the situation, she would always find the HT snail's mouth never moving when Raven spoke slightly amusing. "He should be dead."
Cassandra frowned incredulously. "You still want to kill him after-"
"Few people with such numerous and grievous wounds would be alive, much less engaging World Government ultramax prison guards in combat," Raven cut in. "I suspect Guerra and Perang have provided him support to the best of their abilities, although Guerra communicates in a way I do not understand."
"Oh. So how long until he falls apart?"
"I cannot give you an accurate timeframe. He has survived until this point, so he is unlikely to die in the near future from the wounds he currently has so long as he does not receive too many new ones."
She sighed. "Miserie! MISERIE! We don't have time to sit around! Sing whatever you want, but move! I'm joining Damien! Flumen Salaciae."
Without any tall buildings to get her above the battle, the only way forward was through. Regardless of how badly she wanted to hack her way over to Damien, she didn't have the luxury of time. While nowhere near as tiring as when she had first tried it in battle, moving undetected through people's blind spots was still a challenge. She didn't need to be as careful as she had been against the Marines, but having to evade a fighter's knee-jerk reaction to her appearance put that much more strain on her muscles.
Unsurprisingly, Damien was part of the group that had plowed through the Sphere of Recycling and was brawling near the gates to the Sphere of Sustenance. A different set of Users were getting through the thick dome, allowing Morgan and Alexander to meet up with Cain, Aisha, and Theo. Cassandra staggered to a run when she escaped the main part of the mass of people and pulled Haruspex off her back. Two distinct groups of Eutopians were engaging the guards, each doing their best not to aid the other. Between them, Damien and the two prisoners from before were struggling to keep moving. "Ira Iunonia Invidia."
She worked her rifle's bolt as fast as she could, reasonably certain that if Damien hadn't attacked the pair helping him, she was in the clear. Seeing him fight without his flames was slightly surreal, but all the more reason to provide her support. Guerra and Perang looked back in confusion when her bullets found their marks, but Damien kept fighting without acknowledging her presence.
Even he paused, however, when they breached the dome enclosing the Sphere of Recycling. An enormous dog wearing an official uniform sat in the middle of the road, panting heavily with its tongue lolling out, flanked by a red-robed man scribbling in a notebook and a white-robed Birkan woman with her wings extended. "You came so far, but this is where you stop," she said authoritatively. "By the power vested in me-"
"Sorry, who're you?"
Everyone could practically see the woman's brain trying to shift gears while processing Cassandra's interruption. "What do you mean, 'who am I?'"
"Which word confused you?" Cassandra asked, her voice syrupy sweet.
The Birkan drew a sword engulfed in pure white flame, and a wide radiant disc formed above her head. "How dare you speak-"
Cassandra half-turned to the crowd behind her. "Can someone help me out?"
"Bice, vice warden; Bernie, chief warden; Publius, chief of security," someone shouted back.
"And you're giving us one last chance to surrender?" Cassandra guessed.
"Please, yes," the dog groaned. "I'm too hungover to deal with this."
She listened to the alcohol swishing in the barrel on its collar as she signed behind her back. "You know what, after all the work I put into finding this fucking place, getting here, and breaking in, I've realized that all I want to do is spend time with my nakama, even if it's in prison. I surrender."
Outraged cries sounded out behind her as the trio on the road blinked in surprise. "Really?" Bernie asked.
She held out her hands, wrists pressed together. "Of course. You don't know how much I've missed my crew. I'd give anything to spend the rest of my life with them. They'll all stand way back and not move."
Bice glanced at her superior. "Okay, if you-"
Theo opened fire, the full might of TITANIDE's weapon systems focused on the Lustratean officers. Publius ripped a page out of his notebook and threw it at the prisoners. A thick wall of transparent bricks materialized out of thin air, shielding his allies from the barrage. Cassandra pushed her way back to Theo through the charging crowd, then hopped her way up to TITANIDE's head. Satiating her bloodlust was one thing, but unnecessarily putting herself in harm's way when there were plenty of people willing to do that for her was another.
"Save your bullets," she ordered. "How many rockets do you have left?"
"Ten."
"Don't be afraid to use them. We're here to-" Instead of staying still, Aisha was running alongside the group of prisoners. Cassandra swiftly identified her target and leapt off of the battlesuit. She joined Aisha at Damien's side, her senses once again taking in the extent of his injuries. He was kneeling with one hand on the ground and the other on his chest, taking slow, irregular breaths. "What's wrong? You look worse than you usually do."
"HUMAN SKIN TAMBOURINE FOR THE BLIND!" Guerra shouted.
"I told you, you need to stop attacking," said Perang. "You're beyond exhausted. You need to spend every second you can getting some rest."
"What do you mean 'exhausted'?" Cassandra asked as her crew gathered round. "Miserie, try to stop singing. When's the last time he slept?"
Perang looked at her with amused scorn. "Slept? Chew Toy hasn't slept since he got here. He refused to join a side."
"Of course, you fucking did," she sighed good-humoredly. "We should get moving before the rest of the meat shield is used up. I'll deal with you later, dickbrain. You can fight, but don't die on me before we get you real medical treatment. Then you can die. Captain's Orders."
"Captain?!" Perang exclaimed while Guerra communicated her surprise with more gibberish.
"That's right. The only leader he'll follow is me. Aisha, don't switch with him; I don't want to find out if you can tolerate his current injuries. Cain, what do you have for me?"
"Warden Bernie is without a doubt a Zoan User, and Chief Publius can manifest anything he wants. Vice Warden Bice is unusual in a way I can't determine."
"She's blessed." Lyn's armor rustled as she helped haul Damien upright. "I don't know what that means for her, but I think her religion isn't too distant from mine."
Cassandra nodded slowly. "Then you do what you can if Bice comes for any of us. Theo, Alexander, Miserie, and Aisha, run for the exit. If nobody peels off, we'll follow you. Everyone else on Publius. His notebook looks to be his power's catalyst. Grandines Tempestatis!"
She fired three course-stabilizing bullets into the air and dashed forward. Sliding under a large wolf with knives for fur, she nearly slammed into a great golden gladiator that appeared out of thin air, its upraised shield blocking the falling bullets. Weaving around it, she swatted aside a harpy trying to claw her eyes out and a two-headed serpent, but still couldn't get a clear shot at Publius. He kept scrawling in his notebook and throwing out the pages, manifesting obstacle after obstacle.
Just as she passed one final manifestation, time abruptly slowed down. Publius' hand, however, moved at normal speed. His pen carved through her face, and it was only when he stepped aside that time snapped back to normal and searing pain nearly blinded her. She staggered to a stop, but still managed to dodge his sharp kick. Her teeth cracked from the effort it took to keep from screaming; it felt like something inside the wounds was preventing them from closing up.
Someone she didn't recognize blocked the gladiator's downward swing before it got near her. Her pain gradually diminished and her vision improved to the point where she could at least make out her surroundings. A pink person adjusted their footing as the large golden blade pressed on their armored arms, grunting from the effort. When Cassandra rolled to her feet, she saw that several other Eutopians were attacking Publius directly. That was fine with her.
"Doctor's orders!" she shouted. Her nearby crew members heard the code phrase and took off towards the exit. She glanced behind her to make sure Raven had successfully provoked Damien, though seeing him run using just his feet was slightly disquieting. Bernie eventually noticed the instigating group of pirates had left and charged after them, prompting Cassandra to yell, "Remember The Knave!"
Theo spun around on one foot and unleashed everything she had at the rapidly approaching dog. Morgan adjusted his course, his river-emulating elemental only briefly soaking the pavement as he passed, while Lyn used a door she had ripped off its hinges to surf on top. Frost gathered on Cain's armor and weapon as he used a Winter Island technique he had mastered in Impel Down, lowering his body temperature below freezing. "Hjarta Hrimthurs."
Bernie was about to catch up to Cassandra when a sudden concussive force dazed him enough for her to strafe away. A flashbang round further disoriented the warden and hopefully kept him from noticing Raven, who attacked again and left before he regained his senses. Cassandra's powered up kick staggered him a little, and the rocket slamming into his side only managed to make him slightly more unsteady.
"Mokryy Sneg." Ice spread up Morgan's elemental from his hand on Cain's back, incorporating into the water. Bernie was slowed enough by Damien tackling his back leg for Miserie to land a solid punch on his jaw. His fur blackened as Theo and Cassandra continued to pepper him with bullets, and Cain's spear rebounded off of him. He buckled when Morgan's icy fist came down upon him and was fully knocked over when Aisha charged into him.
Much to their disgust, vomit spewed from his mouth. Damien, who had moved onto the dog's face, took the brunt of the ejecta, and his very slight wince indicated how dangerous the vile substance was. A large follow-up burp filled the area with nauseating air that stuck to the backs of their throats, and the pirates were unable to stop themselves from coughing. "Aah, much better."
Bernie assumed his tall hybrid form and backhanded Damien away. Cain dug his heels in as Bernie appeared before him in the blink of an eye, but the paw connecting with his stomach still bowled him over. Draining the barrel around his neck with one swig, Bernie hurled the empty container at TITANIDE hard enough to stagger it and blocked Morgan's punch with one hand. While the icy fist shattered, water gushed through the cracks, enveloping Bernie's body and freezing again.
"Turn that frown upside-down!" A female prisoner with short green hair careened in, her psychotic grin intensified by the stitched wounds leading from the corners of her mouth to her ears, and brought her knives down just as Bernie managed to break free. "You look so much better that way!"
"Really, Plaine?" he groaned, fending off her flurry of slashes with a tankard he had pulled from his jacket. He was forced to dance away as Damien arrived like a bullet, his exhaustion and wounds largely forgotten now that he had a specific target to defeat, and Morgan launched a surge of water filled with large chunks of ice. "Do you really think-"
Perang slammed his palm into the warden's chest, knocking the wind out of him. A loud click filled the air, and he froze just long enough for Damien's kick, Cain's hammer blow, Morgan's deluge, Theo's last rocket, and Cassandra's overdense slug to send him flying into the distance. The thick golden key sprouting from Mandora's right shoulder turned back into his arm as he gave a gap-toothed smile. "I suggest we go."
"BOREAS ONLINE." Raven used her concussion technique to slow Damien enough for Cain to pull him into his arms as Theo doused them in nevermeltice gel. The ground outside the hole in the dome squelched underfoot as the pirates fled across it with Mandora, Plaine, and Perang in tow. They crossed the Sphere of Knowledge unimpeded and swiftly made it to Lyn and Alexander, the former having carried the latter to start on the next hole.
"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon," Lyn urged as Bernie emerged from the distant hole, sprinting towards them in human form.
"SISYPHOS Online." Theo fired her improvised ammunition weapon much more quickly than usual with Morgan supplying her with smooth balls of ice. "I Don't Have Much Left Besides Gas And Flame Attacks."
Cain grunted as Damien kicked his side. "I can't keep my body temperature low for much longer."
"What do you mean, unlocking abilities?" Cassandra asked Mandora.
"People can act closer to their full potential, but it is immensely taxing."
"Alexander! Come out here! Mandora's going to give you a partial Awakening. Make a sea fire moat as wide as you can and finish getting through the wall, then he's going to seal you back up."
"Maji Dife Lamne." Alexander planted his hand on the ground, and a massive moat encompassed them and the actual gates to the Sphere of Knowledge. Bernie halted as the wall of ocean blue flames erupted, eyeing it warily. After determining it was too far for him to jump, at least in human form, all he could do was glare with his arms crossed and wait for the flames to go out or Mandora's lock on his own abilities to break.
Alexander collapsed into Lyn's arms before completing the tunnel, but Cain, Aisha, and TITANIDE managed to break through what remained of the dome. Although not as tired, Morgan allowed the ice to melt in his elemental to conserve the energy he had left. Everyone piled onto the battlesuit but him and Cain, who was still holding Damien tightly.
"So who are you guys?" Lyn asked excitedly. "Why are you in here? You're even paler than me!"
Plaine's mad rictus widened. "Gwyneth Plaine, but call me Gwyn. I was just having fun, but some people just can't take a joke."
"As I said, I'm Perang. I helped Chew Toy in Eutopia."
"Nancy Mandora, espionage. Few things escape my notice when I have spun my web."
Cassandra looked at him in a new light. "So you're an information gatherer."
"Nooooo, why do you have to be that?" Lyn whined. "You're gonna steal her away from me!"
"We're girlfriends," Cassandra explained, "and I want to know everything I can before making waves. That's why Oya's coming with me."
"The judge of the Nacre Gates?" Mandora asked. "She's quite the character, from what I recall."
She shrugged. "I know a lot of characters. Well, unfortunately for me, I do keep my word when people directly help me out. It's why everyone trusts me so much. We'll stop by the town hospital where my doctor will fix you up properly, then get you on a ship. You're on your own after that."
"So you came for Caltrop?" Plaine inquired in a manic voice. "What'd he do for you?"
Aisha frowned. "I thought he was called Chew Toy."
She flinched slightly when Plaine turned towards her. "Caltrop, Chew Toy, what's it matter? Why'd you come all this way?"
"He's my navigator," Cassandra said. "Speaking of which, do you want to keep going for Bernie or are you cooled down enough to do your job? Or do you need to catch up on three years' worth of sleep?"
"Fuck off up Sunshine's cunt," he snarled. "I take us land to land, whether by sea or sky."
Miserie tilted her head. "How is Damien going to get them back to the real ocean?"
"That's Where Cain And I Come In. The Safest Way To Get Down Is With A Balloon, Either Made Of Cloth Or Using A Balloon Octopus, So There's One In TITANIDE's Container. A Cloth One, Not An Octopus. But We Designed A Wing System For Rough Winds That Will Take A Brief Installation Period Once We Find The Right Sized Ship."
"How will Damien fly a ship if he has never flown anything before?"
"Floating down with a balloon isn't exactly flying," Morgan stated, "and we would be much better served if you took time to recuperate instead of you trying to get us to an island while delirious with exhaustion."
Cain had to tighten his embrace yet again. "I'll sink to the cockblasted Locker before bein' too tired t' fuckin' sail."
"Forgive me for thinking years of partially-treated wounds would impede you in any way."
Cassandra shook her head and smiled as they chatted away. Nobody contested them as they crossed the Spheres of Knowledge and Making, although the Nacre Gates slowed them down. Unlike the other gates, however, they were attached to the gatehouse instead of a thick glass dome. Aisha, Miserie, Perang, and Cassandra pounded the surrounding walls until Theo, Cain, and Morgan were able to rip the gates right out.
Theo teetered backwards, then crushed Oya's judging desk underfoot as she charged with the gates held above her head. She drove them into the far wall, partially dislodging the entry doors from their frame. Another few whacks knocked the doors out, and they tumbled onto the drawbridge Lyn had lowered again. Casually tossing the Nacre Gates into the abyss, Theo led them across the bridge and back into Bed.
"Morgan, Mandora, come with me," Cassandra directed. "Everyone else, find and prep a ship."
They quickly arrived at the hospital, where Raven had already readied a room and appeared on the ceiling after Mandoras eyes were covered. "As you suspected, the incision made from my removal of the seastone from next to your heart will soon reopen," she droned as she numbed Mandora's chest and got to work. "While this surgery will fix any immediate complications, we do not have time to ensure you will heal properly. Another operation without time pressure will be needed, but if you do not physically tax yourself, it will not be necessary in the immediate future."
Cassandra watched from the roof until someone in a prisoner's outfit came running towards the hospital. The chubby fishwoman stumbled when Cassandra landed in front of her, small ocean blue flames flickering from under her feet as she fell over. "Are you a sea fire Logia or something?" Cassandra asked, prodding her with her rifle.
The fishwoman shook her head as she recovered her breath. "Adaptation Fruit. I know; the fishwoman can't swim, ha ha, isn't it ironic. The name's Kurina. Blocked Publius' soldier for you. Turned fireproof to cross it."
"So what do you want?"
"What he's probably going through," she said, motioning towards the hospital with a nose so long and broad her head was tilted slightly backwards to counterbalance it. "I adapted to moving with the incision, but I still have it."
Heaving a heavy sigh when Morgan looked meaningfully at her, she gestured for Kurina to go inside and unhooked Skipper's receiver. "I'm sending another one to you. Pink fishwoman with a Devil Fruit. Don't take as long, though. She didn't-" She paused as a dark-skinned Shandia woman wearing neither a uniform nor prisoner's stripes cautiously approached her, her outward-pointing white wings trembling. "What now?"
"You are the leader of this escape thing, right?" the buff woman asked.
"And if I am?"
"Can you help us leave?" She clenched her fists when Cassandra remained silent. "The World Government won't let anyone leave, and I want to give my son a better future. I'm sick of being here. I have said over and over again that people like us deserve more respect, but they just take us for granted."
"There are hundreds of ships outside. Go to one of them."
The woman huffed. "Can they protect me from the World Government until I find someplace safe for my family? I'm in danger. Someone in Heaven's Above died, and I accidentally ate their Devil Fruit. I can change my physical attributes at will."
"Congratulations."
Frustration evident on her face, she poked the air a few times, then appeared in front of Cassandra almost faster than she could see. "I can be fast." She strained to pick up the stone monument outside the hospital, then tapped the air again and effortlessly lifted it above her head. "I can be strong." She jogged over, then tapped the air and motioned at Cassandra's rifle. She rocked back when the round slammed into her forehead and left only a small mark. "I can be tough, any combination of that, and more."
Cassandra stared evenly at her, then sighed again. "Thank your lucky stars that I'm in a good mood because I have all my nakama again, your Fruit is interesting, and I can't pass up such a good opportunity to piss off the government even more. If you inconvenience me in any way, you'll find that I have no problems killing children and their parents in that order. Understand?"
The woman nodded emphatically.
"Good. I also expect some form of payment when we reach land - work, not money - and don't even think of fleeing. I found this place; I can find you. Go pack whatever you have. I'm not waiting for you."
"We're already packed."
Cassandra glanced towards the people hiding around the corner. "Then go outside and find my crew. I'll be there shortly."
Morgan waited until the Shandias had departed before speaking again. "That was generous."
"I'm going to a completely unknown island in the New World. It'd be nice to have some skilled allies that unquestionably owe me. I could desperately use a real intelligence gatherer, and Mandora clearly knows which way the wind is blowing. I'm sure I can find some use for the others."
"For how long will you coerce them?"
"Until they try to backstab me. Or annoy me."
"Will you allow them to join the crew?"
Cassandra laughed. "If they prove themselves useful, maybe. Oya's on probation, and I have no reason to refuse the others."
It wasn't long before Mandora walked out, clearly making an effort to move his torso as little as possible, and Kurina emerged soon after. Cassandra allowed them to ride on Morgan's elemental so they could quickly join the others. Cain and NYMPHE were putting the finishing touches on the large ship moored near the beach while TITANIDE shot missiles out of the air. Surprisingly, Plaine was still present, cackling as she hurled cannonball after cannonball at the looming white walls.
Landing on the deck, Cassandra looked over the people gathered. The Shandia's husband and son were hiding belowdecks, Perang stood beside Damien, and Miserie had barricaded herself inside one of the cabins. "Listen up!" Cassandra called out. "We have seven - technically, eight - passengers. In return for helping them escape, they are going to be helping us on the next island. They understand that if they attempt to leave before their debt is repaid or stab me in the back, there will be consequences. Isn't that right, Plaine?"
Plaine turned her unsettling smile on Cassandra without ceasing her barrage. "Don't you worry your pretty little head, sweetheart. Hands, although delicious, aren't on the menu today."
"Don't call me sweetheart. Cain and Theo, get us moving. Everyone else, keep defending the ship, but strap yourselves in when we go over the edge. Quick round of names so we're not shouting 'hey, you' when something goes wrong, crew then newcomers. I'm Captain Cassandra Libera, leader of the Black Glove Pirates."
"I'm Lyn, the first mate!" Lyn said instantly. "I can't wait to talk to you all!"
"Prince Morgan Zematsal, chef."
"Her name is Miserie," came the voice from an HT snail. "She sings and does underwater jobs."
"Aisha Rasul, mature adult."
"And that's my navigator Damien, my shipwright Cain, and my engineer Theo. Second mate Alexander is resting," Cassandra finished, pointing at the respective pirates as they pushed the ship away from land. "Hey, you still awake?"
The old crone gave a toothless grin as her head snaked up from EPIONE's bed. "Eh eh eh. Ophidian-"
"You all know Oya. Your turns."
"Nancy Mandora," he said, bowing deeply. "Happy to be of service."
"I'm Perang and surprised Chew T- Damien has friends."
"Kurina," she said shortly. "Goblin shark fishwoman. Adaptation Fruit. You don't need anything else."
"Minerva Maximilian. Pong and my little angel Reese are downstairs."
"Call me Gwyn."
Cassandra nodded in satisfaction. "I claim no responsibility if something happens to your family. Damien, you're not just tired; you're wounded too. Can you please let someone else take the wheel?"
"Try me, spermslurper."
"Worth a shot."
"Do you require some assistance with him?" Mandora murmured.
She stared pensively at the helm. "What's the price for locking injuries?"
"Accumulated strain, stress, and pain when it unlocks or breaks."
Scoffing, she gestured for him to follow her. "Not a problem. Okay, pay attention, Damien. The clouds end less than a nautical mile out, and while I'm not sure what you can do on the way down, none of us have any better chance of doing something useful if things go bad. Once we're back on the Blue Sea, unless we land in fucked up weather, I'm not giving you the Triple Pose until Doc fully treats you. Do you know how to use one?"
He looked scornfully down at her. "Your brain and your twat switch places?"
Perang grabbed Mandora by the throat just as his finger became a key. "What're you gonna do to him?"
"He's going to help, so let him do his thing." Mandora kept his composure and locked Damien's pain away before Cassandra waved him off. "We'll fight you on land to catch up, but I got here as fast as I could from Impel Down, so we all need time to prepare."
"Ah, tha's where those blaggards went? Was just me an' Toro up 'ere?"
"I didn't actually know you were here, just that Miserie was. Stroke of luck for both of us, wouldn't you say?"
"Yahahar! Saves me th' trouble of 'untin' you down, shovin' an anchor up your asshole, and seein' if you can pick the Locker's lock!"
She kissed his arm. "Speaking of down, READY YOURSELVES! TIME TO GO!"
Everyone tensed as the ship tipped off the clouds. Once it was clear that the enormous hot air balloon wasn't going to rip free from its tethers, Lyn was the first one leaning over the railing in an attempt to see the ocean below. She was swiftly yanked back as the ship descended into the powerful winds that moved Sky Islands about. Damien forced Theo away from the wing controls crossing the main deck as they were blown this way and that, and Cassandra couldn't decide whether she was surprised or not that their descent became a lot smoother.
The ropes connecting the ship to the balloon were audibly strained to their limits. Free of her previous duties, Theo tended to the central fire in NYMPHE, adjusting it according to Damien's shouted instructions. A particularly strong cross-breeze nearly swept everyone outside of the cabins overboard, and the railings Lyn collided with barely held together. Only repeated and increasingly insistent orders got everybody inside.
Nothing compared to the unexpected barrel roll centered around the balloon. Cassandra stumbled to keep her balance as the deck spun out from beneath her feet, the knife she dug into the deck only delaying her fall. Raven was by her side holding her in place before the blade came loose, and she watched Theo do the same with Damien and Perang. For a few heart-pounding seconds, there was nothing beneath their feet but several thousand meters of open air. Cassandra's body didn't immediately boost her senses enough to slow her perception of time, and she wondered if it was because Raven was holding her or because she knew she could do nothing to change her situation.
They dropped when the ship swung beneath them again, and while the deck tilted wildly from side to side, there was no indication of a second rotation. Cassandra tried not to listen to the absolute havoc occurring inside as everything was thrown about. So long as TITANIDE didn't punch a hole through the hull, all injuries could be sorted out later.
Theo cheered when they finally descended below the tempestuous winds. Everyone flooded out of the cabins when Cassandra confirmed their safety, Raven tending to the pirates' injuries, although they were unable to see anything underneath them until they sank below the cloud cover. The dark waters frothed and churned, and even Cassandra couldn't conceal her anticipation with being back on the planet's surface. Despite the poor lighting, she was still able to make out other descending ships, most of them in pieces.
"Now, Girlie!"
"PROMETHEUS!" Having climbed to the deck as well, KYKLOPS lifted its arm and spewed fire into the balloon's cavity. As their descent gradually slowed, everybody was unable to keep their eyes away from the blackening fabric. The ship shook as one of the balloon's panels broke apart, then another. NYMPHE hovered over the railing to keep an eye on their altitude, where Theo remotely modulated the flame so the balloon wouldn't come apart too quickly.
There was a brief moment of freefall when the balloon's structural integrity failed, but they just as suddenly crashed into the ocean. Water splashed everywhere, everyone sliding about as they tried to stay upright. As much as the ship creaked and groaned, it remained in one piece as it stabilized. Relieved laughter sounded out as they realized they really had fallen for seven kilometers and lived to tell the tale.
The appearance of small fires on the surface of the ocean gave everyone pause. The orange tendrils all converged on the ship, going through the wooden planks as they surged into Damien's body. The air dimmed, leading TITANIDE to wrap around him and the pirates to brace themselves. Seconds ticked by, and it slowly became apparent that the subsequent explosion was never going to come. When TITANIDE pulled back, Damien was unconscious on the deck, flames coursing along his wounds.
"Okay," Cassandra said, uncontained happiness filling the air as Miserie dove into the sea, singing her heart out. "We made it. Morgan, get started on something to eat. Once everything is sorted out and stowed away again, one of our fine assistants will help out. I'm guessing not you, Plaine. Theo, I'm ordering you to take a break. No remote piloting, no repairing, just go join our dumbass summoners in the sick bay for some rest. Mandora and Kurina will be there afterwards for their final follow-up."
Every Lustratean but Plaine stepped back when she unleashed a burst of Conqueror's Haki. "Remember, if you're not wearing a black glove, not following my orders is a really good way to find out what the bottom of the sea looks like." Satisfied, she knocked on TITANIDE. "That goes for you too. Let's finish our conversation."
Once the forecastle cabin was cleared, Cassandra deposited Oya on one of the prepared chairs and sat on the other. "I'm still considering turning you into a pretzel once we hit land and telling everyone we decided to amicably part ways."
Oya's head moved closer until they were face-to-face. "Unrepentant addicts do not rebuff highs more intense than they've ever had simply because the syringe has been previously used."
"Are you going to keep this up?"
"A painting hanging by a single wire is still on display."
Cassandra scoffed. "That may be true, but the wire is under no obligation to keep the paint from fading. There's no way some of my crew will leave you to die, but only one of us is willing to put the effort in to learn how to keep you from falling apart, and she is not going to understand anything that comes out of your mouth if you keep talking in circles."
"A city's populace may draw attention to problem areas, but civic planners act on data."
"The good thing about you being so old is that my crew will understand if you die during a medical procedure. Raven's good, but she's never worked on people more than a third your age. I won't even tell them if you didn't communicate something Raven needed to know."
Oya's sightless eyes bored into hers. "Is it out of habit or delusion that you persist in the fantasy that you will let me perish?"
"What, can't you See the answer?"
"The question was not for my enlightenment. Your greatest se-"
Cassandra had a pistol pressed against Oya's forehead in the blink of an eye. "You're right in that I'm way too greedy to let you perish, but let me make something clear: if you even think about blackmailing me, I will draw out your agonizing death for as long as I possibly can. That's not a joke or idle threat. No matter how frail you are, no matter what my crew thinks of me afterwards, I will do my absolute best to make sure you wish you had never been born. See if I'm lying."
A gummy grin spread across the ancient woman's face as she leaned back. "Smashing a glass will not unspill the wine, merely leave shards underfoot, but so long as the table holds, it matters not how fractured the legs are."