Chapter 3 - Percy's Devil Fruit
Percy set the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia back down on the tray and opened the book. The pages were filled with the names, crude drawings, and descriptions of dozens of Devil Fruits. None of them looked familiar to him, but as he flipped through the pages, he started to remember bits and pieces of information, courtesy of Saint Jalmack's unwelcome memory dump.
The pages were filled with the names, crude drawings, and descriptions of dozens of Devil Fruits. None of them looked familiar to him, but as he flipped through the pages, he found that he could recall bits and pieces of information. It must have been because of Saint Jalmack's memories that had been transferred to him.
Skimming the pages, he tried to remember what he now knew about Devil Fruits. They were magical fruits that granted incredible powers at the cost of never being able to swim again. They came in three types: Paramecia, the most common Devil Fruit type, that granted any one of a wide variety of "superhuman" abilities other than the ability to transform into animals or into elements of nature; Zoan, that granted the power to transform into a specific animal, as well as transform into a hybrid form; and Logia, that grant the power to create, control, and transform the user's body into an element of nature.
Almost all of the Devil Fruits were crossed out. He assumed those were the Devil Fruits Saint Jalmack couldn't find or had been eaten by the people summoned before him.
"Most of the ones left are Zoan Devil Fruits..." he muttered to himself as he flipped through the book. That was a little surprising. Weren't the Paramecia types supposed to be the most common of the three.
"Not many of the people I summon are interested in eating a Zoan Devil Fruit," Saint Jalmack explained as if reading Percy's thoughts. "Unless it's one of the Mythical models, but those are hard to find."
Percy nodded absently, still trying to recall what he could about the different types. Mythical Zoan fruits were supposed to be the rarest, even rarer than Logia, and were the most powerful of the Zoan types, granting the user the ability to transform into a mythical creature. Ancient Zoan fruits, which allowed the user to become a prehistoric animal, were also quite rare.
But no one even wanted the Ancient models? Percy thought, seeing a few dinosaur models that weren't crossed out. He guessed that kind of made sense. Only the Mythical Zoan fruits gave their user "powers" so to speak. Normal and Ancient Zoans only let a person transform into an animal.
Compare that to a Paramecia type that could literally give you any power other than turning into an animal or a natural element, and it was obvious why so many people chose a Paramecia fruit. He didn't even bother asking why there weren't any Logia fruits available. Those would have been the first to go, and any Saint Jalmack might have once had were probably lost somewhere in the Grand Line.
He flipped back through the book, trying to decide which Devil Fruit he was going to eat—if he was going to eat one at all.
"Huh?"
A particular Devil Fruit caught Percy's eye. One of the few Paramecia types not crossed out. The Kopi Kopi no Mi. According to the book, it allowed whoever ate it to copy the abilities of other Devil Fruit users. He traced the drawing of the fruit under its name, then looked up at Saint Jalmack and back down at the actual fruit next to the encyclopedia. It looked exactly like the illustration.
"I don't get...?" he said, "How come no one else wanted the Kopi Kopi no Mi?"
The ability to copy other Devil Fruit powers sounded incredibly powerful. From what he could remember of Saint Jalmack's memories, it was the only way anyone could have more than one Devil Fruit ability. The details were fuzzy, but he had a vague recollection that something terrible would happen if someone tried to eat more than one.
"Obviously I haven't had it for long," Saint Jalmack said, his tone condescending. He was staring at him like Percy was an idiot for even asking. "I was only recently able to track down Chameleon and kill him. You three are part of the first group I've gathered since then."
Percy glanced at the fish-man holding the silver tray, the only slave not wearing a green gel-like collar. He wondered what kind of Devil Fruit power the collar represented, but he didn't dwell on it for long. His attention was drawn back to the Kopi Kopi no Mi.
If he ate this fruit, he could copy the powers of any Devil Fruit user he met. It was a smart choice, but Percy hesitated. According to Saint Jalmack's memories, eating a Devil Fruit meant losing the ability to swim. As the son of Poseidon, the idea of willingly giving up his ability to swim felt wrong on a fundamental level. The ocean was a part of him. Could he give that up?
Did he even have a choice?
If he refused, he would be killed on the spot. And even if he did escape, what then? He would be stranded in this world, in a body that wasn't his, with no way to get home.
No, the only way forward was to play Saint Jalmack's game. To find this One Piece and hope that it held the key to getting back to his world.
His decision made, Percy reached for the Kopi Kopi no Mi.
"Room!"
Sir Gawain summoned another transparent bubble and the fruit vanished just as Percy was about to touch it, reappearing across the room in the knight's hand.
"Naturally," Saint Jalmack said, from the screen, "I also can't have you just taking a Devil Fruit and running off to some island in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere, trying to scratch out some meaningless life farming or fishing or some other useless thing. Sir Gawain?"
The knight nodded. "Room!"
Another bubble appeared, this time around Percy. Sir Gawain drew his sword.
"Mes!"
Percy looked down. He didn't know what he was expecting to see. A gaping hole? A river of blood? Instead, he saw a glass cube floating in front of him, a still-beating heart inside.
His heart.
"Shambles!"
The glass cube containing his heart vanished, and in its place, the Kopi Kopi no Mi appeared, hovering in the air where his heart had been before gravity took hold and it dropped into Percy's still outstretched hand.
"A neat solution, wouldn't you agree?" Saint Jalmack's voice dripped with smug satisfaction. He glanced at Sir Gawain and gave a slight nod.
The knight's fingers tightened around the transparent cube containing Percy's heart. Percy gasped, his legs buckling beneath him. He collapsed to his knees, one hand still clutching the Devil Fruit while the other clawed at his chest. Sir Gawain's grip remained tight, and black spots started dancing in Percy's vision.
"Understand?" Saint Jalmack asked, his voice cold.
Still on his knees, Percy managed to nod. The message was crystal clear. This was how Saint Jalmack was going to keep them from running away. No matter where they went in the world, he was holding their lives in the palm of his hand.
At a gesture from the Celestial Dragon, Sir Gawain loosened his grip on the cube. The crushing pressure in Percy's chest immediately eased, leaving him gasping like a fish out of water. Which, considering his dad was Poseidon, was pretty ironic.
"And your Devil Fruit?" Saint Jalmack asked.
"I'm going to eat the Kopi Kopi no Mi," Percy said when he got his breath back. Fun fact: having someone squeezing your heart is as horrible as it sounds.
Saint Jalmack smiled. "Very good." His gaze shifted to where Ren and Itsuki stood, both of them having watched Percy's ordeal with horror. "What about you two?" he said, "Hurry up and pick a fruit."
Itsuki stepped forward, his eyes quickly scanning the pages of the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia as he flipped through the book. It didn't take him long before he was pointing at one of the illustrations.
"The Hito Hito no Mi: Model Lunarian?" Saint Jalmack scoffed. "You know, I thought that was going to be the first to go, but everyone else I summoned was too scared to eat it. Afraid of the World Government coming after them."
Itsuki shrugged, seemingly unfazed by the potential danger. "I can handle it. The power will be worth the risk."
Percy frowned. I really need to sit down and sort through Saint Jalmack's memories…
He couldn't remember all the details, but he did know that the Lunarians were a race of beings who once lived on top of the Red Line. And that despite being almost extinct, the World Government was still hunting them to this day, offering a 100,000,000 Beli reward for any tip about a lunarian's whereabouts.
If the World Government thought Itsuki was a natural Lunarian after eating the Devil Fruit, he would undoubtedly become a target. They would stop at nothing to capture him. Then what? Would he be experimented on? Tortured?
Percy glanced at his own heart, still beating in Saint Jalmack's hand. No, he realized. If Itsuki was captured, Saint Jalmack would probably just kill him and offer the fruit to the people he summoned.
Ren stepped up next, not waiting to be called on. It took him even less time than it did Itsuki to pick a Devil Fruit. "The Saru Saru no Mi, Model: Humandrill," he said, tapping the illustration. "That's the one for me."
Percy looked at Ren's choice, wondering why he had picked that particular fruit. It just looked like a monkey to him. Why not pick a dinosaur or a bird?
Again, it was Saint Jalmack's memories that answered his question: Humandrills were a species of highly intelligent mandrill native to Kuraigana Island, capable of imitating humans so much that they will mimic any trait they witness.
Saint Jalmack captured a troop of Humandrills and using the power of the Peto Peto no Mi, which allowed him to control animals, he turned them into bloodthirsty warriors he now used them as guards for his Devil Fruit collection, their mimicry skills making them powerful fighters.
Along with the Hito Hito no Mi: Model Lunarian, the Saru Saru no Mi, Model: Humandrill was probably the only non-Mythical Zoan fruit that granted its user an actual "power" beyond just transforming into an animal.
Once he ate the fruit, Ren would gain the Humandrills' ability to copy fighting techniques just by seeing them.
Saint Jalmack snapped his fingers and pointed at two of his slaves. "You two, fetch the fruits they selected," he ordered.
The two slaves shuffled over, moving cautiously around the watchful Humandrills, and hurried to sift through the cart. One of them found the Saru Saru no Mi first, a purple fruit with swirls that matched the illustration in the book. He brought it over to Ren, keeping his head bowed. The other slave took a bit longer but eventually located the Hito Hito no Mi: Model Lunarian near the bottom of the cart.
Once all three of them held their chosen fruits, Saint Jalmack leaned back on his throne, a cruel smile on his face.
"Go on then, eat up. We haven't got all day."
Percy looked down at the Kopi Kopi no Mi in his hand. This was it. The moment of truth. He glanced at Ren and Itsuki who were already choking down their fruits, their faces contorted in disgust. Those two hesitated at all.
Taking a deep breath, Percy raised the fruit to his mouth. He hesitated for just a moment, thinking of the ocean, of his father's domain. Then, with a silent apology to Poseidon, he closed his eyes and took a bite.
The fruit was foul, worse than anything he'd ever tasted. His teeth sank the tough leathery skin with a sour squelch and it took all of Percy's willpower not to spit it out. An unnaturally unpleasant flavor flooded his mouth—somewhere between rotten meat and stale ashes. He gagged but forced himself to chew and swallow down a chunk of Devil Fruit.
For a moment, nothing happened. He waited, expecting to feel different somehow. But there was nothing. No surge of power, no tingling sensation. The rancid bitter taste coating his tongue and throat was the only physical sign he had consumed a Devil Fruit at all.
Had it worked?
Percy looked down at his hands, half-expecting them to start glowing or something. But there was no change. He felt completely normal.
"Excellent," Saint Jalmack said, clapping his hands together. "Now, that you three have accepted my gifts, confirm your status and give yourselves an objective evaluation."
Gifts? That's a nice way of saying you force-fed us Devil Fruits under the threat of death and gave us salves to fight, Percy bit back a scoff. Then the rest of the Celestial Dragon's words sank in.
"Huh?" he blinked in confusion. What did Saint Jalmack mean by status?
"Excuse me," Itsuki spoke up, his furry face scrunched in thought, "but how are we supposed to evaluate ourselves?"
Ren sighed loudly, like he couldn't be bothered to explain it. "You mean to say that you two haven't figured it out yet?" He shook his head in disbelief. "Didn't you realize it the moment we arrived here?"
Percy glared at Ren. So he just knew everything. Was that it? Guess he was some kind of genius.
"I mean," Ren went on, "haven't you noticed any weird icons hanging out in your peripheral vision?"
Icons? But since he mentioned it... if Percy looked off vaguely and focused on the soft edges of his field of vision, there were little marks there. He could see them too.
"Just focus your mind on that icon," Ren instructed impatiently.
Percy did, and heard a soft beep, like sitting in front of a computer. The icon expanded into a semi-transparent window filling his field of view. It was like opening a game menu.
Name: Percy Jackson
Level 1
Strength: 5/1000
Endurance: 10/1000
Durability: 2/1000
Speed: 5/1000
So this was what Saint Jalmack meant by status? There were some other stats listed too, but Percy decided to ignore them for now.
"Level 1... that makes me nervous," he muttered.
"Good point," Ren said. "At this rate, who knows if we'll even survive long enough to make it to the Grand Line, let alone find the One Piece."
"It looks like some kind of RPG interface?" Itsuki said, poking at his own screen.
"What you are seeing is one of the powers of the Game Game Fruit," Saint Jalmack said. "It allows me and anyone in my "party" the ability to view their own status, skills, and potential. Another gift from your most generous benefactor."
Then he gave them a menacing smile.
"Of course, I will need to see if you deserve to keep these gifts before you set sail. I won't waste perfectly good Devil Fruits or my time on losers with no potential."
Saint Jalmack clapped his hands and three Humandrills stepped forward, each wearing a bright green gel-like collar around its neck. One wielded a giant windmill shuriken, another stood empty-handed, and the last had a replica of Dracule Mihawk's legendary blade Yoru strapped to its back.
"You will each pick a Humandrill. A month from now, after you've had time to adapt to your Devil Fruit powers, you will fight your chosen Humandrill to the death. If you're not strong enough to win by then..."
Saint Jalmack didn't bother finishing the threat. The message was clear. Succeed or die.
"We'll go in reverse order this time," Saint Jalmack pointed at Ituski. "Dog boy first."
Itsuki stepped forward first and immediately chose the empty-handed Humandrill
Ren was next, oozing confidence as he walked right up to the Humandrill with the massive shuriken and tapped it on the chest.
That left Percy facing with Humandrill carrying the replica of Mihawk's infamous blade, who was probably the strongest.
At least it's not a person, a morbid voice in the back of his head pointed out. He immediately felt guilty for the thought. He didn't like the idea of killing one of the Humandrill. Even if it was "just" an animal, it felt wrong. But what choice did he have?
It was kill or be killed.
"Naturally, I also understand that the idea of being stuck on a ship for months on end can get quite...boring," he said, his voice dripping with false sympathy. "That's why I'm offering you boys a little incentive. A reward, if you will."
With a snap of his fingers, the Celestial Dragon summoned a second Fish-Man slave. This one was carrying a book filled with pictures of people, mostly young women. Unlike the other slaves in the room, it didn't have a green collar around its neck.
"Choose anyone you like," the Celestial Dragon ordered casually as if he wasn't asking them to destroy someone's life. "Think of it as a little...companionship for your long journey. After all, what's a grand adventure without a beautiful woman at your side?"
Percy stared at the book, his gut twisting with revulsion. Selecting a person, as if they were nothing more than a commodity to be claimed? It made him sick.
This is wrong, he thought, as he reached for the book. These are people's lives, not bargaining chips or prizes. But what could he do? Refuse and die? Saint Jalmack would just summon someone else. Someone who probably wasn't as experienced as Percy when it came to life-or-death quests. He'd been going on them since he was 12 after all.
At least this way, he might be able to save anyone else from being killed.
"Don't worry, I won't sample whoever you pick," Jalmack smiled obscenely. "They'll be all yours. I've got more than enough."
Percy couldn't bring himself to flip through the pages of the book like he did with the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia. He got a few pages in and it didn't take him long to notice the pattern. Most of the women in the book were young and beautiful.
Jalmack's words just made him stop completely. He pointed at the picture of a pink-haired girl and hoped that maybe he was using Jalmack's twisted idea of a reward to do something good. Save someone from a bad situation. It was a small hope, but it was all he had.
And if nothing else, he could just take the girl back home while he was trying to find the One Piece.
"A princess? Good taste." Saint Jalmack nodded in approval when he saw Percy's choice.