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Chapter 48:

Outbreak

The intercom crackled to life.

"To all my cute babies around the island," a female voice said. "Order code 42-42-56—" It clicked off, coming back a moment later. "O-Order code… Order code 623-6377, initiate."

Suddenly, the lab was filled with the roaring of animals.

"That sounded like Velo's voice," Kaku observed as the group slowed to a stop, each set of eyes moving a different direction connected to a different cry. "She didn't sound happy, neither. Something tells me she didn't want to say that."

"Well, she said it," Nami commented. "Whatever 'it' is."

"And now we get to deal with the fallout," Smoker frowned. "This stinks."

"That is the biggest understatement of our situation," Law said. "I have seen many of her creations and—"

"That's not what I mean," the marine grunted. "Even with our limited interaction with her, this does not seem like something she would normally do. This is a cover for something else."

"Masking something amidst chaos," Tashigi realized.

"Exactly. But what? Something is happening right now that we don't know about it, and if we let it happen, it will build into something that will be far worse to deal with later. Tashigi, we're going."

"You're jus' gonna ditch us?" Gin demanded.

"We cannot leave this be," Smoker replied. "I'll be honest, I don't trust you all. That said, I have less trust for Caesar or any of his lackies here. They are our mutual enemies. Tashigi and I will investigate this matter while you all continue on to face Caesar Clown. Are we clear?"

"We don't take orders from you," Sanji said, breathing out a puff of smoke.

"No, but you'll do it anyway because he currently has hold of the Heir of Chaos."

"Dammit," Gin sighed. "I hate it when marines're right."

"Then this is where we part for now. Tashigi, let's go."

"Sir!" The pair took off back the way they'd come.

"Come on," Nami insisted. "We don't need them. Let's go get Ace before anything happens."

The young mother lead the group, Gin, Sanji, Kaku, Kin'emon, and Law following her as the Warlord in their group directed her to a certain hallway. There he stopped them.

"Caesar's lab is nearly directly above us," he said. "I can use my powers to teleport us there and get the drop on him, but we need to hurry. He's not alone. We'll need to move quick since he'll see my Room."

"What are you waiting for‽"

In response, Law reached his arm out palm-down, a ball of translucent blue forming beneath. It expanded, moving past the walls in a sphere around him. The man turned his hand upward, a twist of his fingers causing the group the vanish.

"Oh shit," Sanji muttered, his head spinning at the sudden displacement as they landed on the floor above.

"What sorcerous prowess," Kin'emon commented.

"He's behind this door," Law said, gesturing toward a single, metal door directly ahead of them. "We need to move quickly."

Someone screamed from within.

Nami shot forward like a rocket. Not as quickly as some of her crewmates could, but a worried parent possesses many limits beyond the average person no matter the universe. She forced the door open with a crash.

The inside was a mess, overturned or destroyed barstools and couches littered the ground with debris and obstacles, each covered in some green, nearly-opaque gunk. Caesar Clown cowered at the far side of the room, something like a giant slug undulating its massive, green, slimy body toward him on the ceiling. Its point of origin was a hatch in one of the walls, far smaller than the slug but still spitting out the back side of the creature as more and more of its bulk entered the room.

"Help me!" the scientist cried, flinging a ball of some gaseous chemical toward the creature. The gas coated the side of the slug, permeating its mucous-covered hide before the affected slime flaked off to be quickly replaced.

"Th' Hell is that?" Gin questioned, taking in the disgusting creature.

"It ain't natural, I can tell you that," Kaku said.

"What a vile abomination," Kin'emon agreed, fingering his swords. "Shall we cut it down?"

"I don't care!" Nami yelled. "Where's my son‽"

"Nami-Swan!" Sanji shouted, pointing at the creature. "It's swallowed him!"

Looking closer, there was a toddler-sized darker mass within the slug. Arms and legs flailed, trying to escape the creature to no avail.

"Get him out!" she screamed, lightning already crackling at the end of her Clima-Tact.

"Donna, ya can't hit it!" Gin warned. "Lightnin'll shock th' Young Master, too!"

"Hell Memories!" Sanji called, fire surrounding his form. He shot forward, burning shoes already smashing into the sides of the creature. It let out a sort of hissing shriek as the heat caused its liquids to flash boil, its viscous skin shriveling as it dried out.

"Foxfire Festival!" Kin'emon added, his swords slashing through the dried abomination. It all but exploded into cubes, leaving a mucous-covered but very-much-still-alive child suspended in the air. Nami leapt forward, catching Ace before gravity could drag him all the way to the floor.

"Ace!" Nami cried, tears from a mixture of emotions running down her cheeks before falling on the boy. Her son coughed, spitting up globs of the slug's innards as his hands tried to wipe away the residue from his eyes. "Ace! Oh, my baby boy, are you ok‽ This is why I wanted you to wait with Sunny and the others!"

"M-Mommy?" He spit up a final piece of gunk on the navigator's coat, but Nami couldn't care less about her outfit at that moment. She pulled him close, uncaring for the slimy stuff that still covered him.

"Oh, Ace!"

"Mommy!" Ace hugged her back as well as he could, tears streaming down his face cutting through the mucous there. "I'm sorry, Mommy! I'm so sorry!"

"It's ok now," Nami insisted, rubbing the back of his head. "Mommy's here. It's ok."

"SCREEE!" the remaining parts of the slug thing cried, coiling as if to lunge toward the reunited mother and son. Gin flashed forward, interposing himself between them and the monster with his electric wings spread and a ball of yellow forming between his palms.

"Ten-Million Volt Lightnin' Shot!" he yelled, the sphere of condensed lightning shooting forward. It impacted the rest of the creature with the echoing BOOM of thunder undercut by the dying screams of the monster. It shriveled in a puff of steam, turning into a trail of black that crumbled to pieces upon hitting the ground.

Ace didn't look up, his face buried in Nami's coat as she curled herself around him.

"Alright, what th' Hell was that?" Gin demanded. "Another one o' Velo's little pets?"

"One apparently specially-designed to kill Caesar," Law nodded, hard eyes falling on the scientist in question as he stepped into the room.

"Ah, L-Law!" Caesar said, a shaky grin coming to him lips as his former lacky approached with even steps. "I-I knew I could trust you!"

"Shut up, you worm," the Warlord spat, drawing his sword to level the blade at the man's throat. Black mist formed over the metal, coating it in Armament Haki. "Where are Velo and Monet?"

"I-I don't know!" Caesar insisted, hands up and back pressed against the corner. "Velo left right after you did, screaming something about Monet!"

"They've always disliked each other," Law said. "Why would…?" He trailed off, his frown deepening. "That's what the distraction was for."

"Law, what's going on?" Sanji demanded.

"We're too late. We'll never find them in time."

"Never find who? What are you talking about?"

"Velo didn't release her creations because she wanted to," the pirate captain said. "Monet made her. She's abandoning the lab. I don't know why, but they apparently don't need Caesar anymore. Fuck, there goes my plan."

He spun, Haki-coated sword swinging through the air, but Caesar had already begun dispersing himself into various gasses. The sword cut through nothing as the Logia scientist fled into one of the vents. Law growled, cutting Caesar's desk in half as he spit out a curse.

"So what now?" Kaku asked. "We've got Ace back but Velo's, what, running away? Where to?"

"Velo's not running," Law corrected. "She's being taken for something. Whatever she knows makes Caesar more of a liability than an asset. Monet's using Velo's monsters to slow us down. There's only one place Monet would go, though."

"Then we don't need t' catch her," Gin suggested, the others turning to look at him. "Iffin we know where she's goin', then we don' even need t' follow her trail. We jus' gotta get outa here."

"That's right," Nami agreed, getting to her feet while still holding Ace close to her chest. "Let's find everyone else, get back to Sunny, and get out of here. Law, you can tell us what your whole deal is on the way."

"It appears I don't have a choice," the Warlord acquiesced. "Fine, but I don't want to repeat myself. I'll explain later."

"What is the plan, sir?" Tashigi questioned, running in Smoker's wake. The man didn't answer with words, only grunting as they turned a corner. Both marines slowed to a stop, watching as a giant salamander swiveled its head unnaturally to look at them from the wall, the limp form of one of the yellow-hazmat-suit-wearing workers hanging from its mouth. The lizard's body was protected by a layer of plated, spike-covered chitin and the tail of a scorpion hovered beside its back. Sharp teeth had torn through the plastic of the worker's suit, blood dripping from it onto the floor. Transparent eyelids blinked across its golden-irised eyes —one before the other— before it hissed at them, the sound slightly muffled by the corpse in its mouth. It turned tail and ran down a different hallway, its legs seeming to stretch and contract with each step.

"Was… that a body?" Tashigi asked.

"This place has become a hunting ground," Smoker commented, "and we are not the top of the food chain. We must do our best to learn why Velo caused this and where she has gone."

"We don't have any idea where she is, though," the woman pointed out, her eyes still on the last place they'd seen the killer salamander. "What of the workers?"

"They are of no concern," the Commodore grunted. "They were complicit with the kidnapping of the children and we don't have the manpower to track them down and arrest them. Leave them to their fates here. What we need is a map or a system that might show us where Velo went."

"With all due respect, sir, Velo may already be out of our reach by now. If not now, she will be by the time we fight our way through the monsters."

"Then we need to learn where she will be."

Something screeched in pain down a hallway, indistinct voices yelling at each other over the cry. Smoker and Tashigi glanced at each other before running that direction, the sounds of battle getting clearer as they drew close. Smoker threw his hand out, stopping Tashigi in her tracks, just before something crashed into the upcoming corner they were about to turn.

"Yeah!" a voice cheered. "Take that, big boy!"

"Our battle is not yet over," another voice warned. "Do not celebrate prematurely, Merry."

The creature in question nearly filled the whole hallway with its bulk. Its skin was a thick, calloused grey that faded into brown at its legs and neck. The legs seemed almost too short, leading down to massive hooves, and the head was that of a massive boar. Six wicked tusks grew from its snout, twisted around so that two pointed upward, two downward, and two directly ahead. Its beady eyes were red as blood, anger and malice clear to see.

"BAROOOO!" the beast cried, scrambling to its feet.

"We don't have time for this," Smoker growled. "Tashigi!"

"Kamaitachi!" Shigure turned to little more than a flash of steel, a dozen lines cutting themselves open along the creature's flank. It trumpeted and turned, preparing to thunder toward the marines. Tashigi planted herself between it and Smoker, Shigure leveled and ready. In the close quarters of the hallways, it would be all but impossible to dodge the creature's charge.

"Shave! Iron Horns!"

The boar's eyes widened as something impacted its side, driving into the creature. Red splattered from its opened wounds now pressed against the wall. It's mouth opened but made no sound.

"Viente Fleur: Double Slap!" From the ceiling above came two large hands, pressing the already-wounded beast into the floor. It moaned but did not get back up, allowing the hands to disperse into flower petals.

"This place is a lot more interesting than the burning side!" Merry laughed, her visage appearing in the space between the boar and the corner. She blinked. "Oh, marines. That explains why it turned. I thought I'd just knocked it stupid and it wanted to run."

"Merry, be amicable," the other voice warned, Robin appearing behind her. The woman's head tilted slightly as she took in the marine personnel, one hand unconsciously covering the mei dai carrier around her and the dragon egg within. "Pardon. Are we acquainted? You both seem familiar."

Tashigi turned her sword toward them but hesitated. This allowed Smoker to walk around her, using his hand to push her weapon down. She got the message, huffing as she replaced Shigure in its sheath.

"I am Commodore Smoker," the man said, "acting head of Marine Branch G-5. This is my second, Captain Tashigi. We—"

"Oh, you're Smokey and the lookalike!" Merry grinned. "I was hoping to meet you two at some point! I've heard complaints about you! Mostly from Zoro."

"Lookalike…?" Tashigi muttered.

"Why does everyone insist on calling me Smokey?" the Logia growled. He shook the thought away. "No, that's not important. You two are members of the Straw Hat Pirates."

"Indeed," Robin nodded. "Though no longer prepubescent, I am called the Devil Child and this one is our resident free-roaming spirit, the Ghost Ship."

"'Ghost Ship' Going Merry, at your service!" the Klabautermann bowed. "Traveling the land on my own two feet!"

"Right," the Commodore muttered to himself. "Law did say you two were part of a group that was captured and had escaped."

"If I may inquire, what brings your presence here?" Robin questioned.

"We aren't here to fight," Smoker said, trying to head off any conflict before it could manifest. "We currently have a tentative truce with your crew, facilitated by your… second Klabautermann and finalized by your navigator. We split off from a group of your crewmates to track down the woman who instigated this madness, Dr. Velo. The others were after Caesar Clown."

"I cannot say either of us is familiar with the name Velo," Robin said. "I surmise it was her voice on the announcement?"

"That's right," Tashigi nodded. "We think she released her beasts to slow us down."

"Well, as one familiar with quick exits myself, it is almost guaranteed she is outside your grasp already," Robin said, tilting her head as a half-dozen memories flinted through her mind. "It would behoove you more to ruminate about your own exit and safety now and consider where this Velo has gone afterward. And Caesar Clown? Is that not a rather famous scientist?"

"He is," Smoker confirmed. "Used to be on the Government's payroll until this place had its accident. Something tells me it might not have been so accidental if he came back."

"Regardless, we are present now to deal with the fallout."

"That is what I said."

"What more can you tell us of the situation?" Robin asked. The boar moaned, shifting. Merry moved first, summoning one of her wooden hammers from her spectral essence before smashing it against the boar's skull. Its eyes rolled, the beast slumping again. "So?" Robin asked, unperturbed.

"The other group was after Velo for her kidnapping of the Heir of Chaos," Smoker began slowly, one eye on the boar while the other eyed Merry warily. "En route, we met with Trafalgar Law who told us possession of your captain's son had been transferred to Caesar."

"That explains the heightened emotions at the range of my senses," Merry commented. "I think Mrs. Nami's got Ace back if that's the case. I'd have sensed it if something bad happened."

"You possess Observation Haki?"

"Not yet," the fairy sighed. "Like other Klabautermanns, I can inherently sense my crew, but only them." Tashigi opened her mouth. "Please, don't ask me how it works. We've narrowed it down to a cognition thing but couldn't figure out the specifics. I have to acknowledge them as crew; they have to think they're crew. Bada bing, bada boom, I can feel them."

"Well, it's not the weirdest thing we've seen," the female marine said with a shake of her head. "What of the rest of your group?"

"Coby and Uncle Usopp went after Captain Luffy since Coby sensed him. I imagine they're on their way already." She tilted her head. "I think they're moving this way, actually. Wanna wait with us?"

"We need to at least attempt to find Velo," Smoker muttered, but it sounded like even he didn't expect any attempt would bear fruit at this point. "Failing that, we must capture Caesar Clown for his role in all this."

"I don't feel too strongly one way or the other about him," Merry admitted, Robin humming in agreement. "I mean, we'll do what Captain Luffy says to, so it's him you need to convince. If you want to find Velo, Coby might be your best bet. His Observation has the best range out of all of us."

"Sir, we should—"

"Stand down, Tashigi," Smoker ordered. "They are not our enemies at the moment. Rather, we should start moving."

"Why do you say that?" Merry asked.

"Because something's watching us." Smoker turned slowly to cast his gaze back the way they'd come, but nothing there caught his eye. Even so, something in his Observation didn't feel right. He moved, shoving Tashigi to the side.

Something long and thin stabbed through his elbow, the pierced parts of his body turning into smoke. He pulled back as the thing retracted, the marine catching only a hint of dark, muted yellow leading back to something shimmering. It stood as tall as the marine with long, slender legs and a thin, pear-shaped body. The way light bounced off it made the creature —for a creature it must be— hard to discern even with it directly before them. It lunged, its beak stabbing through Smoker's shoulder only for the man to turn into smoke once more.

"Run!" he ordered, Tashigi and pirates taking off down the other corridor. The thing let out a thrill like a bird but did not follow them, Smoker's last glimpse of the thing seeing it blend into the darkness and disappear.

He didn't want to take any chances, following the women with one eye still looking over his shoulder as Merry led the way. The Klabautermann skidded to a stop in the middle of some random hallway, jumping up to the ceiling before kicking off it to smash a hole in the floor with her horns. The tile cracked, Tashigi's yelp lost in the noise as the floor below them crumbled.

"Merry!" a voice cheered from below. Smoker spun, he and Tashigi landing on their feet as Nico Robin slowly came down, held aloft by wings made of bloomed limbs. On the floor below, directly under where Merry had made the hole, stood the captain of their ship. The Long-Nose knelt to one side, a hand on the shoulder of the Tri-Horn. Said young man was on his knees, gripping his head with a pinched expression.

"Captain, what's wrong with Coby?" the white-haired fairy questioned.

"I don't know," Luffy answered. "He just dropped, muttering something about lights."

"Please, Coby," Robin whispered. "Get a hold of yourself."

"It's just like then," the roset whimpered, tears forming at the corners of his shut eyes. "The lights… They're disappearing one by one… So many of them… Everywhere..."

"It's his Observation," Smoker said. "Vice-Admiral Garp informed me that something similar happened to him at Marineford. What he's sensing are all the workers of the laboratory being killed by Velo's monsters."

"Marines!" Usopp screamed, pointing at them.

"Oh, hey Smokey," Luffy blinked. The marine bit back a retort, knowing it would do less than nothing to the way Straw Hat addressed him. "When did you get here?"

"About the same time your wife and crewmates broke out of containment to return to your ship," the Commodore grunted.

"I'm glad they're having fun," Luffy grinned. "I don't have to fight you this time, do I?"

"No, not this time," Smoker said. "We are here on this island to arrest Caesar Clown, the man behind the operations here. He—"

"Oh, Merry!" Luffy interrupted, pulling two hammers from the plethora of weapons holding his person down. Only then did Smoker fully comprehend that there was a pink lizard of some sort wrapped around the pirate's neck like a sort of boa, the samurai's legs held in its coils. It was doing an admiral job of pretending it didn't exist. "Here are your hammers. I found them."

"Thanks, Captain!" the Klabautermann said. "My spiritual ones are fine and all, but they just don't pack the same punch as these babies."

"Caesar Clown ordered the kidnapping of your son," Smoker said, redirecting Luffy's attention back to him.

"He what‽" the pirate captain demanded.

"The Cat Burglar, Electric Devil, Black Leg, Spring Wind, and the samurai" —the lizard around Straw Hat's neck twitched— "should have rescued him by now with the help of Trafalgar Law, but you should know it happened."

"You want us to fight him for you," Merry accused.

"It isn't out of the question," Smoker admitted, deciding that being forthcoming with his intentions would be best. "Now that Velo has released her monsters unto the island and most likely gotten away, it is safer to travel in groups. If she has not escaped already, you yourself said Tri-Horn would be the best hope of finding her, Ghost Ship. We don't have much time, however. Every moment we wait his is another Velo has to get away and another chance for one of her creatures to find us."

"So we need Coby, huh?" Luffy asked, tilting his head. He turned, kneeling before his second-ever crewmate. "Wake up, Coby!"

Luffy punched him, Coby's head smacking against the floor.

"Straw Hat!" Tashigi gasped. Smoker felt his own jaw drop a little.

"Oww!" Coby whined, now clutching at the lump on his head. "Dammit, Luffy! What was that for‽"

"Felt like it," Luffy shrugged. "Besides, we need you to do stuff."

Coby opened his eyes, having to blink several times before he fully comprehended Smoker and Tashigi. It took him another second before he recognized them.

"Commodore Smoker?" he asked, shooting to his feet. "Captain Tashigi? So you two were the lights I recognized."

"I won't say it's nice to see you, too," Smoker said. "As I explained to the Devil Child and Ghost Ship, Velo —the woman who made the creatures running around— seems to be on her way out. Can you feel anyone moving quickly?"

"Give me a moment." Coby closed his eyes and focused, extending his senses into his Observation. He pulled in a breath and held it, blowing out slowly. Pushing down the horrid void that formed as lights he could sense were snuffed out, he extended his range to fill the entire building. He could practically see his crewmates, a group in the building and the rest on the shore surrounded by other lights, none hostile. "I don't know Velo's light, but it might have something to do with the two standing at the very top of the mountain… wait. There's a third. It's real dim. Especially compared to the two nearby."

"Dim?" Smoker questioned. He followed it with a curse. "She's got backup."

Despite her lack of a coat, Monet didn't seem bothered by the biting cold at the very top of the mountain. No wind whipped their faces here, something that Vergo was glad for even if it meant little in the long run. Velo's unconscious form was draped over the Vice-Admiral's shoulder with little care, his expression as stoic as ever.

They stood there quietly for a few minutes, Monet tapping one of her talons against the hard earth to some tune only she could hear as they waited. Eventually, a steady, deep rumble started to grow, interspersed with a repetitive chop chop chop as a yellow blob started to take shape.

"Vergo!" a voice said as the yellow blob got closer. "Monet! Good to see you, dasuyan! I'm ready to get you out right nnnniiiiyyyyyoow, dasuyan!"

"Buffalo," Monet smiled. "Perfect timing."

Buffalo was a large man, taller than Vergo by only a few inches but wider by more than half. His black hair spun around his head, creating a mirage-like mane from the sheer speed as it acted like a plane's propeller. His arms were extended to either side like wings, the man settling on the mountaintop beside them. His coat was a bright yellow with a pair of chains crossed over his chest and back, a collar of fluff helping to ward off the cold. A pair of buck teeth were on prominent display as he smiled, a smiley face with a slash through it tattooed on his teeth. His hair continued to spin.

"Get on! I'll get you all back to the Young Master in nnniiiiooo time at all, dasuyan!"

"Thank you, Buffalo," Monet nodded as Vergo climbed onto the other man's back. "I will fly on my own, however. You needn't worry about carrying me."

"Oh, ok. If you say so, dasuyan." He buzzed, his seemingly-scrawny legs carrying his bulk and Vergo with their cargo to the edge where Buffalo threw himself over the side. The air buoyed them, the man taking flight once more. Monet spread her wings, taking to the air, and settled alongside them. "So? What's the plan, dasuyan?"

"I've already talked it over with the Young Master if that's what you're asking," Monet said. "As soon as I told him Velo was beginning research of how SAD is made and her goals and theories for advancement, we knew we'd be taking her back at some point. He almost told me to kill her off then and there, but he decided to wait instead."

"I see, dasuyan," Buffalo replied. He would have nodded if doing so would not have affected their flight. "That explains the lab the Young Master has been building these last few months. It's a lot smaller than this one, though. Are we sure it'll be enough, dasuyan?"

"It will have everything she needs," Monet assured him. "Caesar's a great chemist, but Velo's a biologist. She knows the chemicals in the body. There's no way Velo could have made SAD on her own, but Caesar's formulas and her studies on those who have eaten SMILEs were just the starting point she needed to improve its effectiveness. According to her notes, she's nearly cracked what she calls GLAD. If all goes right with her calculations, it can theoretically bump the SMILE success rate to 50%. She wasn't going to just give it to us or Caesar, though, for obvious reasons."

"I'm certain the Young Master will be pleased," Vergo commented. "Not only have you prevented an end of our cash cow with Kaido, but you are also saving us money since we no longer need to fund Caesar's inane research facility. Good work."

"Please," Monet grinned. "Your assignment has been a lot longer than mine."

"And it is not over yet," Vergo agreed. "I have taken some vacation days to visit you all, but I must be careful that I am not recognized and word reach back to the Navy."

"Don't you worry about that," Monet said. "We'll take your secret to the grave."

"Other people's, that is, dasuyan!" Buffalo laughed. "Settle in. We've got a little way to go still, dasuyan."

Monet's den-den started to ring.

Caesar remanifested himself, a scowl on his face. The screens before him showed the various visual den-den feeds from around the island and within the laboratory, but nothing he saw was good. On one screen, his minions fleeing from a two-headed bird. Another, two trapped in the pincers of a semi-aquatic hybrid. Yet another, a whole group being devoured by a spiked lizard. And yet another, two monkey-like creatures dumping out the vats that held his entire collection of SAD and laughing about it.

His scowl devolved into a snarl, a scream of rage forcing its way out of his throat. Caesar turned to the table beside him, his hands sweeping the various beakers and flasks from its surface. They shattered over the tile, their contents splattering and mixing, but Caesar didn't care. He was ruined. It would take months if not years to repair all the damage Velo's creations were causing, the time needed expanding with every splash of red and fallen body.

His minions were stupid and easy to get rid of one by one, but they were loyal and very, very hard to replace.

"Damn it," the scientist hissed. Minutes. That's all it took for his plans to fall after Velo made that damnable announcement. Something seemed to click, Caesar's head snapping up at a thought. He turned back to the cameras, scouring each one for a hint of either of his aides.

Law had aligned himself with the invading pirates and marines, who were themselves in three different groups. Velo's creations were everywhere else, but he could find no evidence that any of them snagged either Velo or Monet. Almost-literally fuming, Caesar floated over to the snail in the corner, quickly punching a number into the side of its shell. The snail woke instantly, humming its dial tone.

"Answer me, Monet," the scientist hissed to himself. "Answer me."

CA-LICK

"Hello, Doctor."

"Monet!" Caesar all but yelled. "Good, you're still alive. Are you aware of the situation in the laboratory? It appears Velo has betrayed us."

"I am well aware," the harpy replied. "More than you know."

"Good. Very good. Get to work subduing the beasts. After that, I want you to bring Velo to me. She thinks it's funny to pull this and cost me so much manpower? I'll show her. She's the next test subject for my hallucinogenic gas. We'll see how her cybernetics take to the chemicals."

"Sorry, Doc. Not this time."

"Not this—? Monet, what are you—?"

"The family doesn't need you anymore," Monet said, her voice slow as if she were trying to explain to a child. "Velo improved on SAD behind your back. She's more valuable than you are. More… controllable, too. And when we have her working for us in Dressrosa, we're going to save the Young Master so much money by not dealing with you. He also wasn't happy of your little side business selling Velo's failures and not going through him to do it. After all, Joker doesn't like it when games are played without him. It's been fun, Doc, but I'm going home. Honestly, I'm surprised you're still alive for us to talk, but alas, this is the end. Have fun in Velo's zoo, though. I hear some of the exhibits are killer."

"Monet, you bitch! Get back here and—!" The snail clicked off, going back to sleep. Caesar stared at it, a thousands words trying to make their way out of his throat but none completing the path. All that came from him were strangled half-sounds that did little to convey the rage and betrayal he felt in that moment. Screaming, he threw the snail. The poor invertebrate skid across the tile, doing little to alleviate his anger. Something moved on one of the screens, dragging Caesar's attention to it.

He paused, shuffling over. Slowly, oh so slowly, a mad grin spread across his face.

"Oh Smiley~!" Caesar sang to himself, his finger flicking a clear box from a big, red button. "Come to me~! I have a treat for you~!"

End of Chapter 48

Pandemonium unleashed and three foes going back to Dressrosa already! As I'm sure you can tell, Punk Hazard and Dressrosa will be so different from Canon, so I hope you're enjoying it! Creation of (most of) these creatures is credited to Ninja of the Purple Mask, a Patron and member of the Coby's Choice VIP Discord. Truly, discord has been sewn this chapter.

Read and Review!

-SwordOfTheGods