Descent

by JustAProblem

Scars are a sign of pride and strength. A sign of survival. Naturally, this only applies to the physical scars and not the mental scars. No, mental scars are almost universally agreed to be negative and for good reason. Physical scars merely change how your body looks. Mental scars change how a person thinks. Rosan just wants to enjoy life. He didn't ask for all this.

47. Chapter 47: Black and White

Descent

Chapter 47: Black and White

For as long as they could remember, the Virus had always been a creature of untold violence.

They would proudly admit that they didn't think too much but why did they need to?

After all, they didn't need to be smart. That wasn't their job.

Their job was to destroy and one didn't need to think when it came to destruction.

But all that changed with the addition of one person.

One single person.

Rosan. Portgas D. Fucking Rosan.

From the moment he had eaten the Mod Mod no mi, Pestilence's (this had not always been their name) life had been thrown to hell.

You were telling them, that one little boy managed to completely turn Modification into… into this?

They had transformed into some bombshell of a woman who could suddenly feel like a human?! Some woman who suddenly realized how dangerous the virus was, so she resorted to sealing their partner?!

It had happened so fast that they nearly couldn't react.

What was this bullshit?! What was going on?!

Had they really just… gotten replaced in the blink of an eye? By some fucking brat? For what reason? What did the snot nosed brat have that the Virus didn't?

Pestilence hadn't known at the time. It had just taken a few words and Mod had already succumbed to some child's charms?

They had succumbed to the point that they were now suddenly able to have problem with what the Virus did? But why?

Did Mod truly think she (She?! SHE?!) could seal them away like this? Just who did the Devil Fruit think they were?

The virus had let Mod think they had been subdued and the moment an opportunity arose, they had slunk away...

That was when they saw the sight of Rosan and Mod hugging each other, properly meeting for the first time.

That was when they saw that stupid little brat hugging their partner with all the love in the world.

It was at that moment, that The Virus began to especially hate Rosan and when you truly hated someone, you would do anything to express that hatred…

Including, playing… smart.

The virus knew they weren't strong enough to exact revenge. They might have been able to deal with the little child but them against Mod?

Impossible. They would never be stronger than Mod. Judging by how Mod was looking down at that little boy, with emotions that she never had... The Virus would cease to exist if they made an attempt on his life.

They needed a different approach... and they needed to avoid the Devil Fruit at all costs.

So that's what they did. They donned the appearance of Rouge, copying all her mannerisms and learning from her. It wasn't much due to her abrupt death but it was enough.

Then they hid and plotted, avoiding Mod and Rosan like the plague.

The virus hated doing this. Hated acting like a background character. Hated scheming and plotting and wondering if they were ever gonna get an opportunity to do anything.

They hated this...

But they hated Rosan more. So they would endure because when they got their payoff... it would all be worth it.

So the virus played it smart. They learned about Rosan. They learned his likes, dislikes, fears…

And they used it all against him. They poisoned his mind with organic thoughts that didn't sound amiss. They gave him doubts. They filled him with anger.

All to weaken him. To weaken his resolve.

To break him.

But Rosan was ridiculously resilient. Too resilient for his own good. Nothing kept him down for long so long as he had someone with him.

So long as the boy was never lonely, he'd persevere through it all.

Rosan was smart enough to heed the words of the people who cared for him. They were his beacons. That raw untapped hatred of his, was dwelling underneath the invincible positive emotions he felt for his loved ones.

No matter how they poisoned him, it all failed.

Mod didn't want him to turn to a darker road, so Rosan listened to Mod. He buried that hatred deep, all while showering his new mother with love and care.

Nico Robin was a shining beacon for him that he desperately sought out, so Rosan shone brighter as a result. Even when he felt anger and hate... it was due to the injustices being done to the ones he loved.

The virus merely stored that information away and continued biding their time. As long as someone believed in Rosan, he would persist. As long as Rosan believed in something, he would fight.

What a conundrum… a boy who simply needed one person to maintain his fragile mental state. Combined with his incredible charisma, it almost felt as if his mind was being fortified by an invincible fortress.

After all, Mod was a permanent presence and she was all he needed.

The virus thought it would have been easy after seeing his mother die so abruptly. They even shifted the blame towards Ace to make it all the more easy.

But that Mod truly did care about him. Due to her presence, Rosan was able to fight through even hell.

They were perfect for each other and that pissed the virus off even more.

What to do…

The virus continued to interfere where possible, hiding the fact that they had never been captured in the first place and just slowly but surely turned Rosan crueler and crueler.

It almost peaked when Nico Robin had been captured. Their influence had shown through the most in that moment and The Virus feared that they would get found out...

But no, surprisingly Rosan actually saved them by instantly reining in his temper.

Nico Robin invoked even more change out of Rosan. The redhead was growing to love her to unprecedented levels.

With her addition, the virus felt that trying to crack him had become truly hopeless.

All their thoughts of giving up had changed one day, when The Virus felt the chilling weight of Seastone crash into them.

It had happened soon after Rosan had gotten captured by those people who had ambushed him.

The Virus had been watching the entire thing with amused eyes, not thinking for a second that Rosan was going to actually lose... up until he was knocked unconscious.

That's when confusion settled in. It was rare for the virus to be blinded to what was happening to the outside world so the abrupt weight of Seastone was utterly paralyzing.

Those little fucking scumbags were utilizing seastone?

The sheer and utter audacity to do such a thing!

Unfortunately for them, The Virus was only partially affected by the neutralizing cuffs. So they would be torn to immediate shreds. They would regret the moment they even dared to restrain them.

For a moment, The Viruses hate of being restrained by worthless trash, overpowered their hatred of Rosan.

But that was only for a moment.

As soon as the virus saw just what was happening to Rosan... as soon as they saw the pain the boy was being put through, they felt a devilish plan forming.

It was best to kill two birds with one stone and Rosan's weakness…

Was being alone.

The Virus cackled all by their lonesome.

No Mod. No Robin. No one.

No one but them.

It was glorious. The Virus was practically gift wrapped this opportunity after a moment of true hopelessness.

At first, The Virus sat back and observed as this Doc tortured Rosan. At first they did nothing, just watching as the redhead screeched and cried in pain and fear.

But despite that, he held strong. No matter how terrified he was of the man, no matter how much the pain made him cry... he understood that the alternate of that was becoming someone he didn't want to be.

It was actually admirable. The Virus felt their respect growing for the redhead as he persevered through the pain…

But his reasoning for persevering, was utterly disgusting.

Nico Robin? That was why? So to the end, he was a dependent little brat. Unable to do anything on his own.

Foolish. At this rate, he'd truly be trapped here forever. Why could he not just break so The Virus could offer their ever so gracious help?

The Virus refused to be chained down to such a pathetic human. One without any power for themselves.

So that meant there was only one solution to truly get Rosan to stand on his own two feet.

Turn him on Nico Robin of course. That's exactly what The Virus did. Turned him against the girl he loved with all his heart.

It was difficult because Rosan would never truly think Robin had betrayed him... so The Virus just whittled and whittled his defenses down.

And it had finally worked... It had taken a while but The Virus saw the fruits of their labor because it worked.

Too well.

It had worked too fucking well.

Nothing could prepare The Virus for what had transpired next.

Rosan didn't just break. He shattered.

All around The Virus, the mindscape shuddered, darkening as the bright sun overhead, was replaced by the pale moon. The temperature dropped slightly, cold rain pounding against the Viruses skin.

But that wasn't all.

No, The Virus watched with wide eyes as a castle began forming near their hiding spot.

What…? What was this? What on earth was going on with Rosan's body?

What was that blur that had just gotten dragged into this newly formed castle?

Unable to hide their curiosity, The Virus stepped into the castle. They had no idea what this castle represented so they would figure out if this was another way to get at Rosan.

That was the biggest mistake they had made to date.

As the castle continued forming, heedless of who had stepped inside, doors formed behind the copy of Rouge and abruptly shut, locking them inside.

The virus whirled around and rushed to the door, banging against it as it refused to budge.

What was this? What the fuck was going on?!

The Virus fruitlessly banged against the door with wide eyes as they tried to figure out what the hell just happened.

Were they trapped? What was going on? What did Rosan do?!

WHAT DID HE DO TO THEM?!

No matter what The Virus tried, there was no escaping and the virus let out a frustrated roar as they banged their head against the door and gave up.

The virus couldn't tell what was happening in the world anymore. They couldn't see! What was going on?! Why was it that there was a castle here now?! Was this some trap?! Could that little brat of an 8 year old really tell that they were the ones influencing them?!

No, that was impossible! Not once did Rosan ever indicate that he knew of their existence. Mod never told him either! The Virus had pretended to be sealed this entire time so the Devil Fruit should have nothing to warn him about!

So what was this...?

Was this the effect of Rosan breaking…?

Just… how powerful was this boy's soul? If The Virus knew this was going to happen... they would have never gone to such extents to break him.

They had no idea this would be the result! Rosan had never been normal but this was absurd!

This was how much his bonds meant to him? Was this the effect of his love? Just the lies that Nico Robin had betrayed him... caused this to take place?

What was happening on the outside?

They didn't know and that pissed them off something fierce. Unable to even admire the results of their work.

The Virus explored the castle with a furious expression, unable to find any escape. Not only that… it was freezing.

This was horrific.

What did Rosan do?! The virus felt like they had asked that question far too many times. If this was what was happening on the inside...

There had to be a way out of this prison. There had to be a way out of this cage.

What was it even supposed to be caging?!

As they pondered the purpose of this castle, the virus continued making their way through until they found what looked to be a throne room.

Their brows furrowed and they stepped inside the room.

What The Virus saw, stunned them silent.

Sitting there, on the throne… all by his lonesome, was the sleeping Rosan.

"What…?" the virus had said, stepping up to the body with genuine confusion.

Why the hell was Rosan here? Wasn't he supposed to be out there? Wasn't this entire thing caused by him?

The virus warily approached his unconscious body, glancing back and forth to assess if anyone else was around... before realizing it was just the two of them.

They placed a hand against the boy, flinching as a wave of pure emotion crashed into them.

Sadness, fear, anguish... all of it washed over them like a tidal wave.

The virus gasped, tears immediately forming against their will, as they were allowed to suddenly see glimpses of the outside world.

Their urge to rip their hands away from the boy vanished, as they were once again granted vision. It was like being allowed to drink water again after a long time...

So the virus kept their grasp firmly on the sleeping redhead.

Like this, they could see and what they saw was... another Rosan?

Huh?

This Rosan appeared lifeless and it took the virus a moment to realize that was just their expression, eyes half lidded and barely glowing, as one eye glowed a sinister shade of red…

Red like the viruses…

So this was what a broken Rosan looked like? Did he rip himself into two? What good was that...

Was he aware of this?

Likely not… but what did this signify? What did this second Rosan represent?

They thought back to the wave of emotions that had practically crushed them and pondered the hidden fury that they knew Rosan always had...

That same hidden fury was there on the forefront of the redhead, represented by those eyes. Behind his calm and lifeless facade, lie a rage filled boy...

It was lurking at the surface, waiting to burst out...

So was this boy all of Rosan's emotions besides his anger? Did Rosan rid himself of emotions?

...How psychotic. That was not what the virus intended. Ridding yourself of emotion was the last thing they wanted. It was those emotions that they preyed on to weaken them...

As the virus removed their hand from the sleeping Rosan, they suddenly lost all contact to the outside world and frowned.

They peeled the body of Rosan off the throne, pleased to see that just by holding them, they were allowed to see.

There was a bed nearby, so the virus climbed atop of it, continuing to maintain contact with the sleeping body.

How convenient. Was this castle perhaps made in Rosan's image? It was quite detailed and from what they knew, the boy did love his fairy tales so it stood to reason that they would know about castles.

Was it possible to escape this place? The Virus didn't know about that. The walls were impenetrable and everything was made of the same crystalline ice.

At least this boy managed to radiate an incredible warmth. The Virus wasn't typically affected by such things like hot or cold, but this castle seemed to defy many things...

To their slight surprise, the sleeping Rosan burrowed deep into the viruses' body, clutching them tightly as their shaky breath evened out.

The Virus gazed down at the boy with a confused expression.

Then, their expression turned pondering and a wide grin formed on their face.

---

The sleeping Rosan awoke randomly one day.

It occured at the same time the other Rosan unlocked the technique he called Shinigami.

The virus had been watching everything and to be honest... they were quite intimidated by the monster that Rosan had become.

The redhead on the outside had become even more unpredictable, growing his power and ruthlessness as the days went buy.

They saw what Rosan had done to that doctor and his wife. They saw what Rosan had done to every opponent he had faced...

The virus was beginning to fear for their safety if Rosan ever figured out they existed.

And the worst part of it all... was the fact that Mod watched it all. She didn't care much that Rosan had turned into this monster so that meant...

What did that mean for the virus? Would Mod watch as the redhead attempted to tear into them?

Rosan had already proven to be an anomaly. The virus didn't think they could stop him...

So how would this weak and caged version of Rosan help? Could they even help? The Rosan on the outside didn't look like his strength had diminished at all. In fact, he looked stronger than ever.

In comparison, this shaking and crying boy probably stood no chance.

The Virus, who had practically never let him go, watched in interest as the redhead gazed sleepily at them.

There were tears running down his face as he came to and the virus sneered in annoyance.

"Why are you crying?" they had asked with a scowl.

He flinched, those big purple eyes staring at them with confusion and sadness.

"I... I'm really scared," the child whispered. "I don't know what's going on. I don't know where I am…"

"Join the club," the virus sneered. "I don't got the slightest fucking clue of what's going on. I haven't known for months."

The Caged Rosan clutched them just a bit tighter and the virus stared down in annoyance.

"Oh... that's... am I alone?" he asked quietly.

The virus scoffed. "Alone? Do I just not fucking exist? How do you think I feel? My only company is a boy who's been asleep the entire time and the moment he wakes up, he starts crying. Not only that, he clutches onto me like his life depends on it and then asks if he's alone... fucking ridiculous."

The boy said nothing for a long while.

"You're alone too?" he asked eventually, gazing up at them once more with those big purple eyes of his.

The tears were freezing up as they fell down his eyes.

How badly did the virus want to pluck his eyes out. They hated how those eyes gazed up their person. Despised it completely.

"Who cares about how I feel?" the virus asked bitterly.

Mod sure as hell didn't. Threw them away at the first chance. Because of this fucking brat right here.

Partners... yeah right.

Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic —

"I care about how you feel," Rosan said quietly, clutching the virus tight.

The Virus paused at that, gazing down at the boy with a confused expression.

Him? Rosan? He cared?

Oh if Rosan knew what they had planned for them, they wouldn't have ever said that.

If Rosan knew that the virus hated them with every fiber of their being, they wouldn't be so comfortable.

"You care?" they asked in some amusement.

Rosan nodded against their body. "I've been sleeping but… you've been holding onto me the whole time right? I'm alone… but I don't feel as alone with you. I don't know who you are but thank you for staying with me," he whispered.

"It's not like I have a choice," they muttered bitterly, glaring at the boy.

But to their displeasure, he was already asleep, just sinking into their frame with quiet snores.

Ridiculous. Did he think the virus was just another one of their friends?

They looked down at the boy sleeping on their bust, looking confused for a moment.

"You just don't understand what I am," they said eventually, shaking their head at the dumb and naive child.

So that's what Rosan did. He ripped out his innocence and locked it into the castle.

The monster out there was what was left of it. That would explain why he was suddenly so cold blooded. His change in nature had been too drastic and too fast.

It made sense now, knowing that it wasn't natural.

The Virus gazed down at the boy once more, black sclera pulsing before they slowly but surely allowed their corrosive energy to seep into the sleeping child.

Not enough to hurt him because doing so made them feel… wrong. But it was enough for them to stake their claim...

For now. They would slowly but surely trickle into him and get the child assimilated with their essence.

When the day come for Rosan to claim this part of him, the viruses influence would run deep.

In the meantime, they would... observe this boy. He was incredibly valuable.

The virus wasn't capable of harming this child. This was Rosan's body after all...

But they had been playing it smart this entire time. They had learned patience as a result.

The smartest play they could make, was to manipulate and groom this boy into their perfect monster.

The Virus gazed out into the real world again, noting that they could see a tad clearer and mulled over their current dilemma.

Rosan was donning a set of jet black wings. He had drawn from the castle to activate them which was why the little Rosan here had woken up... but he had no idea that was the case it appeared.

Foolish, but that form they took…

Rosan called it Shinigami. The Kami of death. Those glorious black wings that signified all the violence that would soon follow in Rosan's wake.

Did the black signify that Rosan truly had fallen from grace?

I don't know who you are but thank you.

Just who were they?

They were a virus. Destruction given form. They were a plague who was slowly but surely spreading their sickness, degrading all in due time.

This Reaper was death correct?

Very well then. The Virus would be known as Pestilence.

---

"What's your name?"

Pestilence glanced down at the child in annoyance.

He was awake today for once, gazing up at them with curious eyes.

Pestilence noticed that he seemed to be awake more often and every time, he'd try to initiate a conversation with them.

"Does it matter what my name is?" they asked with a raised brow, gazing down at the child.

He nodded without hesitation. "I dunno where we are but everytime I'm awake, you're here. It looks like we're stuck here together so we should get along!"

Pestilence sneered. He had basically said the same thing to Mod hadn't he? Did this little brat really think they were that easy?

There was a hopeful look in his eyes, a far cry from the sadness and tears he normally exhibited.

"I don't wanna tell you my fucking name, how about that?" Pestilence scowled.

At the way his gaze immediately turned downcase, Pestilence thought they would have felt satisfaction...

"Oh, sorry," he mumbled, looking crushed. "I did it again... I assumed you were my friend without actually checking."

Pestilence felt their annoyance grow. "Why the hell would you assume we're friends? What gave you that idea?"

They didn't like looking at the redhead.

"...I thought..." Rosan began, backing away slightly.

"Thought what?!" Pestilence snarled. "Thought you just needed to say a few words to win me over? Thought I was gonna be like your precious Mod and coddle you every step of the way?!"

"..." Rosan wilted. "Sorry it's just... you look like my mom so I thought you would want to be my friend."

Pestilence clenched their fist. "You have no idea who I am, kid," they warned.

"I dunno who you are but... you picked her appearance right?" he asked knowingly. "I don't think anyone who looks like mama could be bad."

"You don't know anything about me. Stop speaking like you do," Pestilence warned again. "If you knew half the things I was capable of, you'd be crawling away in fear."

"But I don't know any of that," Rosan said with a frown. "I just know that I don't feel alone because of you."

"..." Pestilence scoffed and looked away.

He just didn't know what plans they had for them.

"Pestilence."

Rosan blinked and tilted his head. "Is that your name?"

"What the fuck do you think it is?" they bit back harshly.

The redhead hummed. "Can I call you Pe-chan? Pestilence is too long."

Pestilence twitched and glared at him. "I don't give a fu—"

They cut themselves off and took a deep breath.

"Call me whatever you want. I don't give a damn. Now come here," they demanded.

Rosan nodded and Pestilence only grew more annoyed at how happy the boy seemed.

They only wanted to keep contact to see the outside world. What the hell was going through his damn head?

---

"Pe-chan, why are we trapped in here?"

Pestilence gazed at Rosan and pondered the question. "Because you're weak," they said bluntly.

Rosan flinched at that, wilting in their hold.

The virus rolled their eyes. "Don't be upset because of the truth. You're weak so your other half discarded you like yesterday's trash."

"Oh..." Rosan said quietly. "So there's two of me now?" he asked cautiously.

"Yeah," Pestilence replied.

The other Rosan was currently happily in a relationship with the blonde by the name of Meiko.

"He's enjoying the life that you should be enjoying. Instead, you're locked in here with just me as your company," they snorted in amusement. "I'm not even supposed to be here."

There was a tense silence, before a sudden wave of negative emotion hit Pestilence, causing their eyes to widen.

"What...?" Rosan asked quietly. "Y-You weren't supposed to be with me?"

Pestilence blinked at that, warily gazing down at the child who's sclera were growing steadily darker over time.

"Nope. I entered while it was being created," she answered slowly, gauging their reaction

"..."

Rosan said nothing... before an intense anger washed over.

"You're trapped in here? You're a prisoner?" he whispered with wild eyes.

Pestilence flinched in surprise at that. "...Yes?" they replied, not sounding too sure.

"That's not right!" Rosan exclaimed. "You weren't supposed to be trapped in here!"

"He's more concerned about me?" Pestilence asked in surprise.

"I was too weak to be out there... but you didn't do anything!" the redhead frowned deeply. "We have to get you outta here."

Pestilence blinked, completely bewildered. "I can't go out there. This might be a prison, but this is the safest place for me," they said bluntly.

Rosan blinked. "Why? What's wrong?" he asked in concern.

The virus barked a laugh. "I go out there and I die. That little monster known as your other half is gonna slaughter me without a second thought when he realizes what I did. Don't even get me started on Mod."

The redhead looked conflicted. "That's not... no they won't," he replied.

Pestilence rolled their eyes. "Didn't I already tell you? I'm not a good person. Rosan has every reason in the world to hate me. Once he realizes I exist, I'm dead."

"But I'm Rosan... and I don't want you dead," Rosan replied frantically, eyes going wide. "You're all I have Pe-chan! I can't lose you!"

"Well in case you didn't notice... you're not the Rosan that matters," Pestilence replied blandly, white hair jostling in their amusement. "The one out there is getting stronger and stronger, and you're sleeping all the time. What exactly are you gonna do?"

"..." Rosan had a troubled expression on his face. "I'll... I'll stop them," he said.

Pestilence raised a brow in shock. "What...?"

"I'll protect you, Pe-chan!" Rosan said viciously, black sclera pulsing with protective fury. "I don't care if they hate you! You kept me warm and safe and you're my friend!"

The virus gazed at the redhead in disbelief.

They hadn't even manipulated him. Beyond placing their essence inside of him, Rosan had not suffered anything at Pestilence's hand.

This desire to protect them... it was just the boy.

"Shit," Pestilence thought in alarm.

Was this how he got Mod? Was it really this easy for him?!

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Pestilence said, choking on their words slightly.

"I'll get strong," he swore, eyes glowing with anger. "I won't let them hurt you. I'm your only friend right now so... so I'll keep you safe!"

Pestilence stared at them for a long moment and sighed. "Idiot... when did I say we were friends?"

"We're friends!" Rosan said assertively. "Since we're friends, I'll protect you, Pe-chan!"

Pestilence ignored the tingle and sighed. "Whatever you say, optimistic prisoner."

Rosan nodded and yawned, tucking easily into their body like they had done so a dozen times.

"Am I just a pillow for you?" they asked in some amusement.

"Tell me what happens in the real world?" he asked curiously.

Pestilence stared at them. "Fine. I'll tell you."

He smiled at them, before shutting his eyes. It didn't take long for his quiet snores to release and Pestilence grunted as they felt the breath brush against their skin.

Who was this kid? Did he even hear himself? He was going to go against himself to protect the virus who hated them?

How stupid was he?

"Stupid," they muttered, staring down at the idiot with a frown. "You're stupid."

Pestilence stared at that monster on the outside, the one who was capable of fighting a man with a bear zoan.

"You don't stand a chance against him," they muttered, feeling something unpleasant at the thought of the prisoner going against the Rosan on the outside.

Then, a thought occurred to Pestilence.

"How are you able to feel anger?" they thought in confusion.

Anger was the only emotion that Pestilence could never feel from them.

In fact... how was the Rosan on the outside capable of feeling emotion again?

...

Pestilence didn't like this. Pestilence didn't like these strange thoughts at all.

They wanted to go back to not thinking. Go back to the bloodlust that they so craved...

But it seemed impossible.

Pestilence had condemned Mod for falling for Rosan's tricks... but it seems they were no better.

Who was truly the pathetic one?

---

The castle had been steadily getting weaker.

Pestilence had an inkling but gazing at the steadily cold prisoner that was Rosan confirmed it.

The more the Rosan on the outside got better, the weaker the castle got... and the more emotions the Rosan on the inside lost.

Pestilence didn't really like that. They had been getting used to this boy.

Losing him would put a damper on their plans...

Not only that, he had been sleeping far more. He hardly stayed awake for more than an hour, quick to fall back asleep in their grasp as the virus watched the outside of the world.

The only reason they deigned to mention something new was... because right as the castle grew to its weakest, complete disaster struck.

Meiko, Rosan's lover... Rosan's goddamn lover had died in his arms.

The result was so disastrous that Pestilence jolted in shock at hearing the Rosan she was holding let out a scream of distress.

His eyes shot open, tears instantly flooding his eyes as he let out an anguished scream.

"H-Hey!" Pestilence shouted, wincing as the child's screeches nearly deafened her.

Rosan didn't hear them. The redhead just howled, tears spilling everywhere as the castle shuddered.

"P-Pe-chan, it hurts!" he wailed. "W-Why does it hurt?!"

Pestilence bit their lip in confusion.

What were they supposed to tell him? They didn't even know what was going on!

Was his body changing once more?! Was this the effect of the one named Meiko dying?

Rosan continued to wail in sheer agony and the sound was beginning to grate on them.

"Stop crying!" Pestilence demanded awkwardly.

"I-I can't!" the 8 year old sobbed. "I don't know what's happening to me!"

Pestilence reeled back in confusion as the child continued to sob. At the same time, in the outside world, the Rosan there's expression vanished.

"Did that crazy idiot shove all his emotions back into the kid?! What's wrong with him?!" Pestilence raged in annoyance.

Dammit all! What a nightmare!

"H-Hey..." Pestilence said awkwardly, running a hand through the redhead's hair. "It'll... be alright?" they tried.

They had never done this shit before. Reassure? Pestilence? This was normally the perfect time to break and take over their target.

Shit. Um... what was the right thing to do here?

Pestilence tentatively pulled Rosan into a hug and watched as the boy immediately latched onto them, shuddering as another sob ripped through their frame.

The virus cringed back and just slowly pat his back, even as the redhead began steadily falling asleep.

"He's seriously just shoving off his emotions when things go bad?" Pestilence said darkly, eyes flashing in annoyance.

That... wasn't very fair at all to this Rosan right here.

Take his emotions away as you healed... only to shove them right back onto him when you couldn't handle it.

Cruel. What a cruel punishment.

Pestilence didn't like that their Rosan was being submitted to it. Remain and suffer at the actions of the monster on the outside... or disappear and become one with the monster who had made him suffer.

There was no winning for him... So Pestilence needed to draw up a winning play.

Yes... Pestilence knew how to assure their freedom. It was obvious now.

As Pestilence decided on their course of action, they slowly but surely blanketed the child fully in their aura.

Yes it really was obvious. There was only one thing to do.

Save Rosan.

---

"Pestilence, Famine, War, Death… all names that herald the apocalypse," Sengoku muttered, staring at the grinning lunatic of a woman, along with the somber and cold man.

"Arrogant, isn't he?" Kizaru drawled, dusting himself off slightly.

"...No, he's right. If left to his own devices, Portgas D. Rosan will bring about the end of the world," Sengoku said gravely.

Not even a sure kill move had managed to put him down… he merely absorbed the life force of another human and restored his own vitality. Was Modification truly capable of doing such things?

The ability to Modify... somehow Rosan even exceeded what he thought the fruit could do.

Just what was he? What was Portgas D. Rosan?

Not to mention... what had happened to Kuzan? Where was he? Did Rosan somehow steal the abilities of Bartholomew Kuma? What had he done to the Admiral that was dominating the fight?

Troubling... this Rosan seemed to possess a technique that the other had never shown...

"They're talking about you sweetheart," Pestilence mused, eyes glowing in barely restrained joy.

"…" Famine said nothing, heavy gaze roving over all the soldiers there.

Pestilence pouted. "Aww, don't be such a stiff! It's your first taste of freedom in so long and you're brooding?!" they asked.

They turned towards Famine and crossed their arms over their bust. "Will a kiss make you smile?" the virus asked curiously.

Famine turned towards Pestilence with a neutral expression. "Now's not the time, Pe-chan. We're in the middle of a war," he replied softly.

"I think that makes it even more perfect!" Pestilence grinned eagerly.

"I mean just look! So many victims! It's a dream come true!" they sighed in exhilaration.

Pestilence disappeared from their spot and appeared in front of an unsuspecting Marine.

The marine attempted to step back from the exotic and terrifying woman, only for her dainty hands to grip him with excruciating force.

"It's rude to back away from such a beautiful person," Pestilence crooned, expression turning sad as their dress lashed out wildly in every direction. "You'll make them feel unwanted."

The poor victim tried to speak but he let out a cry of pain, that turned into a scream of agony as his arm began degrading.

"Isn't being a Marine so boring?" Pestilence asked curiously, eyes gleaming maliciously.

"Why not join my side! It's really nice over here. We'll consider this an apology for you being so rude to me~," they assured.

"White Rage," they crooned, black aura roiling off their body and surging forward.

"Someone help him!" A marine shouted in terror.

But despite the scream, no one was eager to close the distance between themselves and the maniacal woman pulsing with that strange black energy the Red Devil had used to drain the Marine from earlier.

Everyone was too afraid to become a skeleton and that fear paralyzed them.

How Pestilence loved that. They loved it so much.

The marine's screams of horror continued as the wave of dark energy washed over him, before anger filled his voice and he let out an unhinged screech.

Black goo began covering his skin and Pestilence watched in joy as their creation lunged forward, leaping onto his shocked and confused ally with pure violence.

He snarled violently and clawed away, letting out a shriek as the victim underneath him wailed in terror.

"Kahahaha!" Pestilence laughed, spreading their arms in joy. "Freedom feels so good!"

The virus laughed psychotically and as they prepared to fire off an even larger White Rage, they were suddenly forced to halt their action.

A beam of light careened towards the giggling Pestilence and they watched it approach with wide eyes, before a wall surged upwards and blocked it.

Famine floated over to Pestilence with a sigh, bodies dropping in his path as they felt the strength leave them. They began unintentionally kneeling for the black and red haired man, shuddering as he barely spared them a glance.

"What will we do?" Famine asked. He stared at Pestilence's creation, the corrupted man snarling ferally at anyone and attacking friends and foe alike.

"Seems like we're being targeted again by those Admirals," Pestilence frowned, eyes pulsing madly.

The war seemed to still be going strong. While the Whitebeard Pirates seemed to be evacuating, the Marines gave chase, hellbent on finishing the job.

"Look at them," Famine said softly, peering at the pursuing Marines. "Unable to think with nothing but their blades. Should such violent men really have a say in how the world should turn?"

"That's just how the world works," Pestilence shrugged helplessly. "Winners dictate the course. Losers have no choice but to follow it... and the only way to truly win, is to be the more violent person. Peace and kindness don't move people, rage and war does."

Famine sighed at that. "That same violence caused my life to spiral like this. Violence only breeds violence... so I suppose I have to become the most violent person alive."

Pestilence smiled at that but before they could say anything, the sound of footsteps interrupted them.

The duo turned around in unison, causing Pestilence to raise an amused brow at who had approached them.

"F-Father?" Ram choked out in confusion, wiping the tears from her eyes as she regarded the image of her father.

He looked... weird. He felt weird too. Ram was... she was really confused.

Tears continued to stream down her eyes, as she repeatedly sniffed and Famine gazed at his ring with a half lidded gaze, feeling a slight pang at the mess of her face.

"So you're awake, Ram," Famine said softly, wiping the tears from her eyes and watching as she shuddered under his grasp.

His heart panged again before he steeled it.

"Go ensure the unconscious ones make it out. They are fully incapacitated and you're very useful for them," he instructed, taking a step back.

Ram flinched back, doubt on her face.

"What's going on…?" she whispered in confusion. "Why is the virus out? Why is part of your hair black? Where's… where's Auntie?"

"What is this, 20 questions?" Pestilence asked, sneering at Ram.

Ram's teary eyes transformed into a glare.

"I wasn't talking to you!" she snarled immediately.

"Oh?" Pestilence asked in amusement. "Well I'm talking to you, bombshell," they mocked.

"Why you..." Ram growled, as anger replaced sadness. "What did you do to Father?! Where is Auntie?!" she repeated, hand transforming into a blade.

"That's enough," Famine interrupted before the two could come to blows. "There's no need to fight," he said softly.

Pestilence pouted. "Boo you're no fun. I was just getting started," they complained.

Famine said nothing, sighing softly as he focused his gaze onto Ram.

The ring flinched at seeing his black sclera and took a cautious step backwards.

Famine noted the movement and slowly closed their eyes, letting out a sadder sigh this time.

"Your assistance is unnecessary. Pe-chan is all I need currently," he said bluntly, turning away from Ram. "It's time for you to leave Marineford. Please take the others and flee."

The ring looked stunned at the order.

"L-Leave you? But why?! I can't just leave you!" Ram exclaimed. "W-What happened to you, Father? Who… who are you?!"

Famine's features darkened. "I gave you an order, Ram," he said firmly.

"Yeah, wouldn't wanna disobey daddy would ya?" Pestilence mocked.

Ram didn't know what was going on. Her father but not father was staring her down. The stupid bitch of a virus was out in the open…

"Auntie?" she called tentatively.

There was a tense silence and Ram was sure her Father heard her call for Auntie but he just continued staring, black sclera pulsing.

"...You should go, Ram. Please make sure the others make it out fine. I'm relying on you to keep them safe," Mod said eventually. "I'll be fine."

Ram hated that Auntie was lying to her. She was not fine… not by any stretch of the imagination…

But orders… but orders were orders.

"Under... Understood." Ram nodded stiffly, wiped the remainder of her tears. She hesitantly made her way to the unconscious bodies and frowned.

She glanced back hesitantly and met the backs of Father and the virus, before reluctantly turning away from them.

"I hope one of you wake up," Ram muttered to herself, fearing for father's safety.

She was scared for all of them. Luffy looked close to death... Ace's injuries were intense too.

Who was going to save Rosan?

...

Ram glanced back once more and met the gaze of Hancock in the distance.

"Bring them to the sea! I will help you, escort them away!" Hancock mouthed to the ring.

They had met during the trip to Impel Down so this wasn't strange to Ram at all. She initially had a problem with how grabby Hancock was with Father but it had gone away very quickly.

Ram nodded stiffly in response.

"Let us help you," Jinbe offered, carrying Luffy's body carefully.

"Us too!" the Whitebeard Pirates shouted, easily lifting Ace and Sabo up. "We'll help to the best of our abilities."

"..." Ram said nothing, just nodding her head slowly.

Pestilence huffed in dissatisfaction. "You should have told her off more. Don't tell me you're upset that she asked who you are," they scowled.

"...Of course I am," Famine replied softly.

"Well you shouldn't be. I'm the only one who's opinion should matter," Pestilence told him.

"What is this? What have you done, Pestilence? Who is this? How are you out?" Mod finally spoke up, biting her lip at the sudden turn of events.

"Whatever do you mean Mod?" Pestilence retorted. "I saved him like you wanted. Well done stabilizing his insides. He would have died without you."

"That's not… this isn't the Rosan that I know," Mod said hesitantly. "How is that possible. Where is my Rosan?"

"I wonder," Pestilence cackled.

Mod bit her lip and flinched as the connection forcefully cut.

This wasn't… what was going on? Where did this Rosan come from? Who was this Famine? Was he Rosan? Did Pestilence make him look like Rosan?

She needed to… she needed to investigate urgently.

Where was her Rosan?

Famine suddenly wrapped an arm around Pestilence's waist and leapt away, grunting as a sharp blade cut into his body.

He landed near a mass of people that whirled around to him but the man ignored them, black tendrils merely moving ominously.

It was soon made apparent as simultaneously, the bodies around Famine began panting, slowing down drastically as they seemed to age in real time.

"What's… happening to us?" A marine rasped, collapsing on his knees as the energy left him completely.

Famine's eyes didn't flit over to him, too focused on the wielder of the blade.

"I'm sorry. I can't seem to control my hunger," he said softly, wound sealing shut as his stamina was forcefully restored to him…

At the cost of the people around him... the black tendrils detached from their bodies and snaked back onto his hair.

"None deserve the right to stand in your presence," Pestilence sighed warily. "They must kneel to show respect."

Famine's white wings flapped idly, staring at the curious Hawkeye Mihawk with a tilted head.

"Who are you?" Mihawk asked, gazing at his own body and then the deteriorating bodies around the black haired man. "You are different from both versions of Ambitionless I've encountered."

"All of you are saying the same thing… I'm already tired of hearing it," Famine replied softly.

It was tiring, being constantly asked who he was. As if he were the impostor…

It was very grating.

Mihawk continued to gaze at the strange version of Rosan, expression neutral despite his suspicion.

How odd. Such a strong presence this one carried. It was draining just being close to him...

Such a strange ability… just what had happened to Ambitionless?

There had been a tinge of disappointment, at seeing him die due to the foolish actions of Fire Fist… After all, the redhead had done a phenomenal job this war.

To see him throw it all away due to his brothers stupidity... Mihawk was disappointed such a talent had been snuffed out due to forces out of his control.

It filled him with some satisfaction at seeing the redhead alive, but it seems like his death was merely the gateway for this strange entity to appear.

"You wish to battle?" Famine asked, ice beginning to freeze the floor around him.

Pestilence wasn't nearly as fearless as Famine was, gazing warily at the World's Greatest Swordsman.

Mihawk stared at the duo for a moment, before gazing at the retreating Ram.

Then, he placed his blade away.

"No. I've already tried my hand at killing you and failed. You've already died but yet you stand here alive. Clearly if you're meant to die today, it's not at my hand."

"Besides, the reason I'm interested in battling you is currently running away. I did not realize Ram was capable of even transforming into a human," Mihawk noted.

Pestilence scowled. "So what? That's why you've lost interest?!" they asked.

"Yes. My interest in you without Ram, has significantly dropped," Mihawk stated bluntly. "Not to mention, you aren't the Ambitionless I'm interested in either."

Pestilence snarled in annoyance, black waves roiling off their body. "I'll make you regret that one day," they muttered.

"..." Famine gazed at the retreating back of Hawkeyes.

"Fucking asshole," Pestilence said, sighing in relief.

"Hmph," was all Famine said, turning away from the Warlord.

"I envy how fearless you are," Pestilence sighed.

"You don't have to worry. I'll protect you," Famine assured.

Pestilence sighed in bliss. "Sometimes, I find it hard to believe I was won over... and then I speak to you," they said happily.

"How are you alive, Red Devil?!" Sengoku shouted, grabbing both their attentions. "You shouldn't be breathing! That attack was fatal!"

It didn't make any sense at all. How could he even move about?! What was going on right now?!

Who on earth was that woman next to him infecting their soldiers?! Some type of necromancer?!

"…" Famine stared at the Fleet Admiral with an expressionless face. "Alive... I wonder if you could truly call it that," he said eventually.

Sengoku stared at the strange version of Rosan with a look of confusion.

What did he mean by that? Was this even the same Rosan that had been terrorizing them?

It certainly didn't feel like it... this didn't feel like the Rosan who was desperate to save his brother.

This felt like a Rosan who was here to inflict damage and judging by his skillset... the weaker Marines were in a lot of trouble.

Was this the source of how all the previous wielders died? It had to have been… those corrupted Marines exhibited the same symptoms…

What exactly was going on?!

Sengoku hadn't been able to glean Rosan's Devil Fruit for so long because he had never actually seen an effective user of Modification.

No one could properly utilize the fruit if Vegapunk was not in presence and considering the man loved to stay holed up in Egghead and the fruit offered too much to just be used for his research.

Clearly they should have just left it with the scientist. Sengoku wasn't even sure if Vegapunk himself knew of all the things Modification could do.

In the first place, he never considered it an offense based fruit. It's applications in the sciences and quality of life were unmatched... Anyone who utilized it properly, would have been an impossibly valuable asset with their control over what they could change.

But Rosan... even if Sengoku knew about what Modification could really do, he wasn't sure he'd be able to apply it to Rosan until now.

Even now he was finding it hard to believe. None of this was making any sense to him at all!

Weapons of war… that's what Rosan was geared to be.

His love of violence, his adeptness at it... No matter what form he may have been in, Rosan specialized in warfare to a worrying degree.

Rosan was a person who thrived the more enemies he was up against and being in the middle of a war, with so many opponents he was stronger than, made him excessively dangerous.

It didn't matter if he was nowhere near the strongest here. His skillset allowed him to widen the gap between the people he was stronger than and that was a numerous amount of their soldiers. More than enough of a percentage to make him a worrying threat.

The rampaging beasts that the strange woman (who on earth was that?!) created, along with the bodies falling in close proximity to the black haired man were proof of that.

This Famine… he lived up to his name, draining the life force out of people with but a touch...

Sengoku didn't like the implications that Modification could tamper with such things.

And Pestilence… one touch was all they needed to convert a person to their side.

Horrifying. They needed to be dealt with immediately. Rosan could not make it off this island. He caused far too many casualties.

"That woman..." the injured Garp called out in disbelief, clutching his wound tightly.

Sengoku turned towards his friend in confusion. "What is it Garp? Who is that woman?"

Garp shook his head warily.

He had nearly gone and killed Akainu himself at seeing Rosan's corpse lying on the ground... but all of that paled in comparison to the sheer relief, and complete horror, at seeing the next set of actions.

Rosan had always been violent but this was... the feral nature of that beast before wasn't like his grandson.

Rosan's violence, while Garp condemned it, was usually targeted to a specific type of people and they always had thought behind his actions.

But this was just violence for the sake of it...

Not to mention...

"That woman looks exactly like Portgas D. Rouge," Garp said gravely.

Sengoku froze at that. "What...? You're telling me that white haired woman looks like his mother?!"

What the hell did that even entail? Did the Red Devil create someone in his mothers image?

He even had that random silver haired girl show up out of nowhere! Was he capable of creating life?!

"Borsalino, deal with them now," Sengoku ordered.

"Yes, boss," the Admiral drawled, vanishing in a burst of light immediately.

Famine grunted, as a kick connected to his midsection and sent him soaring away.

Pestilence shrieked as a beam of light pierced their stomach. The virus immediately clutched their stomach and stared at Kizaru with wild eyes.

"Looking at me with such scary eyes," Kizaru drawled, holding his finger out as he kept his distance from the strange woman.

Famine felt a wave of fury wash over them as Pestilence held their midsection and he held out a hand.

The Admiral stepped back as the ground surged beneath him and he easily dodged the white wave of energy, before allowing a wild beast to leap through his body.

He stared at the feral Marine with a bored expression, noting the black pulsing from their body and the intelligible noises they made.

"Well now this isn't very fair," Kizaru drawled. "Putting my own soldiers against me. How cruel."

"Go," Pestilence rasped violently to her minions.

More and more began swarming the Admiral and Pestilence snarled in annoyance, dashing over to Famine's location and immediately pushing him backwards.

"We should go," they said, watching as Famine's eyes zeroed in on the admiral fending off the hoard of their minions.

"…" he said nothing, eyes pulsing ominously.

"Famine! There's nothing left for us here. We still have business to wrap up," Pestilence urged, choosing to be the voice of reason this time. "We aren't strong enough just yet and we've caused enough damage. That Admiral's gonna come straight for us and I'm not losing you."

Famine finally abated at that and frowned. "Eventually... I will earn my retribution but for now, I guess you're right—"

He suddenly paused what he was saying, before suddenly going alert. His eyes suddenly glowed with a feral light.

His gaze snapped towards a direction and he launched himself towards it just in time to intercept Admiral Akainu.

Ram watched with wide eyes, falling on her butt as she summoned a barrier to protect her family to the best of her ability.

She had been trying to run away, staying back to guard them... but she hadn't realized they were still being pursued by the Admiral.

All three of them were being carried off towards the direction Ram dictated but the Admiral who had struck down Father wasn't letting them get away scott free.

He already landed a heavy blow to the Jinbe carrying Luffy and the youngest brothers injuries were becoming concerning to the point where Ram had taken it upon herself to try and ward off the Admiral...

To almost no effect at all. Ram wasn't useful without Father. There was only so much a weapon could do without their wielder.

There was only so much a daughter could do without her father...

Akainu naturally didn't take too kindly to that and had immediately attempted to punch a hole through Ram.

Ram wasn't really worried about getting attacked in her human form. She wasn't human after all... but Ram was pretty sure she didn't want to get hit by magma.

Famine's eyes glowed maliciously, as a wall surged and blocked the Admiral from delivering a fatal blow to her. He waved a hand and summoned a pillar of white ice that stabbed directly through Akainu's midsection, merely forming a hole in the man's body.

"F-Father?" Ram whispered in surprise.

"...Are you okay?" Famine asked softly, not looking back at her.

"I'm okay..." she mumbled, pushing herself up slowly.

"Good," Famine said softly, eyes glowing brightly.

Akainu grunted at that. He had only managed to slightly hit Straw Hat but not only was Jinbe guarding him with his own body, someone was interfering.

"How did you live my attack boy?" a battered Akainu scowled. He looked like he had been put through the ringer by Whitebeard and the fact he was still raring to go was admirable.

Famine's response was to simply outstretch his hand.

"Deprivation."

A wave of pure white energy shot out and Akainu grunted, transforming his body into magma and avoiding the area around him degrading into nothing.

It was as if the very life was being sucked out of it. If he stayed in it, it was likely he'd suffer somewhat similar results.

The ground began disintegrating, seeming to erode before his very eyes and Akainu regarded the technique with a cold expression, only for his eyes to widen as the ground underneath him opened and swallowed him.

Before he could anything, the top closed and shut on him.

"Father never fought like that," Ram noted nervously, watching the swift and ruthless move.

"Rosan?" Jinbe called cautiously, clutching his injury with one hand.

He flinched slightly at seeing the pitch black sclera of the redhead with black streaks.

"You are about to meet up with Hancock, correct?" he asked Ram softly. "I saw you two communicating."

"Y-Yes?" Ram stammered, feeling nervous in a way she never had before.

As she looked up at the neutral expression of her father, Ram distantly realized she was terrified of this man.

If Famine noticed, he didn't say anything. He just looked past Ram and hummed quietly.

Then, he outstretched his hand and palmed the floor.

The ground surged upwards into a direct path towards the ocean and at the same time, he summoned a pure white horse.

"Black Horse," he said softly, putting a hand against the horse.

His creation neighed and leaned against him, not making a noise as it was encased in pure white ice.

"Take it. This will lead you to the ocean," he said quietly, ensuring that none but them could hear it.

Ram shuddered at that and nodded stiffly. "W-What will you do?" she chanced.

Famine gazed at her, before turning away. "Be careful. They will not let you escape easily."

With that he flew into the sky.

Ram watched him go with a look of trepidation.

As Famine remained stationary in midair, he glanced at his Raid Suit.

"Almost completely destroyed," he said softly. "I've drained much energy but I still feel tired too..."

Pestilence appeared next to him in a flash, a look of annoyance on their face as they glared at him.

"Are you listening to me?" they asked, crossing their arms.

"I always am," Famine replied bluntly. "I listen to everything you say. But you're far too afraid currently. You finally have a taste of freedom and you're running away."

"R-Running away?!" Pestilence spluttered, rounding on him with a look of shock. "So now you're acting like a reckless idiot because of that?! I would have thought that you would be the voice of reason!"

Famine grunted. "Fear isn't a good look for you Pe-chan. You're much prettier when you're confident."

Their jaw dropped at that. "Afraid?! I'm cautious! Clearly it was a good decision because you've turned completely reckless right now. I swear, if you just listen to me we can really just— mghmm!"

Famine idly pulled Pestilence close and silenced them with a kiss, still assessing the situation as he watched Ram and co hesitantly board his horse.

"That won't work every time you asshole," Pestilence muttered with a scowl, sinking into his frame as they conceded.

"It hasn't failed me yet," Famine replied, eyes roving over to all the threats.

"You have a massive target on your back. They want you dead," the virus stated with a frown.

"I am almost out of energy. I need more... besides I have a lot of pent up aggression currently. It would be best if I just worked some off right now," he said idly.

"I've got plenty of ways to work off aggression but I guess I understand," Pestilence sighed. "Alright, let's go —"

"Zehahaha!"

"Hm?"

Pestilence and Famine both paused at that laugh and turned towards the source.

"Famine, I swear," Pestilence snarled, pushing the man back violently as his eyes narrowed. "That guy beat your brother and we don't know how clean it was or not, but if he was able to beat him, he can beat you. You don't have enough energy to be recklessly charging everyone you see. For Kami's sake Famine, you had a hole in your midsection not long ago!"

The redhead stared at Pestilence, eyes still narrowed before he let out a tense breath. "And you always pretend like you're so tough. If you're really that worried just say it," he grunted.

The virus nearly bit him, a vein of annoyance forming.

Annoying fucking...

"Well well! You've gotten even more interesting, Red Devil!" Blackbeard cackled, gazing directly at Famine with a wide grin. "You've shocked the world with all your actions! But that's not the most shocking thing that'll happen today! I'll have to take the stage for now!"

Famine watched as the one who defeated Ace grinned widely.

"Zehahahaha! Watch me! I'm about to shake the foundations of the world!" Blackbeard shouted eagerly.

"Teach, what is the meaning of this?!" Sengoku shouted in confusion. That confusion then turned into horror as he noticed the assortment of people behind him.

What on earth…? All these people… this was...

These were the level 6 prisoners of Impel Down! These were the worst criminals in the world!

Sengoku went pale. Did Blackbeard free all the prisoners from Level 6?! What on earth was he thinking? The sheer danger all of them emitted... there was a reason they wanted to be erased from history!

Wait a second… if all the prisoners from level 6 were set free then that meant…

Then it meant that even he was free...!

Whitebeard's eyes narrowed at the sight of Teach laughing.

"Teach," Newgate rumbled, ignoring the heavy burns Akainu inflicted onto him in their fight.

He was beginning to slow down, Rosan's boost to him wearing off little by little as the Emperor expended more and more of his stamina.

But it was still more than enough. Marineford was practically tipping at his power and it was thanks to that redheaded brat...

Whitebeard had felt the most guilt outside of Rosan's family at what had transpired. After all, Ace was his foolish son after all and despite Rosan being his older brother, Newgate had a responsibility that he hadn't been able to uphold.

He had forced Rosan to show far more than he probably intended and the redhead had expended himself far past what he should have done.

And the end result... was the redhead being the one who was struck a fatal blow.

To do everything right and still end up dead...

As the one being done the favor, it was an incredible shame for Whitebeard to bear such an ugly cross. He would never be able to handle the fact that someone had helped him so drastically and had died as a result...

Utterly shameful. Whitebeard was truly glad that the man had somehow survived, no matter how different he may have been now.

"That brat gave me a little bit of life... whatever happens to him, I'm sure he'll deal with it," Whitebeard grunted. "As for me..."

Blackbeard's eyes widened as Whitebeard's muscles bulged and he watched in horror, as the World's Strongest Man smashed the air with one arm.

"W-What the hell is this power?!" Teach shouted in shock, as a quake, reminiscent to a younger Whitebeard, raced towards him with crushing force.

"Showing your face in front of me? You must have a death wish," Whitebeard rumbled, glaring at him with all the fury in the world.

Famine said nothing, merely flexing his white wings as the air picked up from the heavy winds. He ensured Pestilence was fine and glanced at the action taking place below.

"He freed the criminals from level 6. That's not very good. Some of those people were very dangerous," the man pointed out idly, hand glowing as he contemplated sending a blast their way.

"We shoulda killed them like the dogs they were," Pestilence sighed, eyes roving over all the new pirates. "Now he's gonna be a problem in the future."

"Nothing changes. He still dies and his new crew will join for foolishly joining his cause. He caused this entire mess and kick started this entire war," Famine decided.

Pestilence shrugged. "Sounds good to me. He'll get what's coming to him eventually."

"So he's the reason this war started? That makes sense... but I'd still appreciate if you didn't try to kill him..."

The duo paused at that and turned towards the source, glancing warily at the figure across from them.

"...Teach is kinda my captain after all, I'm obligated to fight for him and I don't wanna beat up my son in the process. Missed too much of his life, would suck to start off on the wrong foot," Cutter grinned wolfishly, floating a relatively close distance to the duo.

He looked far more polished now, having cleaned up since his time in prison.

His pitch black hair was shoulder length and spiked downward, framing a handsome and rugged face that had stubby facial hair.

Cutter was tall. Taller than Rosan by what looked to be 3 inches.

Famine glanced at him, expression not betraying anything. "You've already started off on the worst foot possible," he informed him.

Cutter's grin dimmed a bit at that and he stared at his strange son with a curious expression. "How so?" he asked slowly.

"You joined the man that I vowed to kill no matter what. The same man who captured and handed over my brother to the World Government... and the same man who attempted to kill me. As far as I'm concerned, you're already dead," Famine said bluntly.

Pestilence immediately hissed at him through their connection. "Down boy!" they demanded.

The man scratched his unkempt black hair, spikes jostling as he peered at his son. "Raisa really didn't give you a good impression of me huh?" he mused. "Well, I can't really blame her. I did a pretty shitty move."

"We can't beat him. We stand even less of a chance of beating him than we do Blackbeard," Pestilence whispered through their connection.

"…"

"You're incorrect," Famine said idly, turning towards the pathetic sight of Blackbeard getting his face caved in slightly by Whitebeard. "Raisa did not raise me. We barely know each other. My animosity for you stems from your actions. You've yet to make a good one."

Cutter raised a brow high at that. "So that Sengoku wasn't lying huh?" the man mused darkly.

"You were raised by Roger's wife?" he asked calmly.

"You have a problem with my mother?" Famine asked warningly, turning his full attention onto Cutter. His eyes sharpened drastically and the air around him grew heavy.

Cutter shook his head honestly, shrugging his shoulders. "Not really, no. I'm sure the woman who raised you was a delight… she sacrificed her life to save her children after all… but I have a lot of issues with Roger."

"...I see," Famine said idly. "Tell me something Cutter… does your issue with Roger carry onto Ace now that he's dead?"

"That's the funny thing," Cutter snorted. "I wanted you to be the one who surpassed any kid Roger was going to have. Funny how you just tried to die for him."

Pestilence narrowed their eyes.

"...You wanted to raise me to kill Ace then. As one last play of revenge to Roger," Famine guessed.

"You're smart. Way smarter than me at least," Cutter chuckled. "Good answer. Since Roger died without me ever getting my revenge, I took a gamble and settled for the next best thing. I heard a few things after all regarding the South Blue."

"Ah, I think I get it now. After Roger died, your father lost his mind. Being unable to enact his revenge drove him to madness and he realized a child was the answer to some solution he had. I have no fucking clue how he came to that conclusion but insanity does things to people."

Famine mulled over Pestilence's thoughts. "Ace is my younger brother. I will not kill him. That will never be negotiable," he said bluntly.

Cutter sighed. "I figure you'd say that. You sacrificed your life for him after all…"

Those brilliant golden eyes of his peered at Famine's purple and Cutter stared almost curiously at him.

"So what exactly have you done to my son?" Cutter asked, expression not changing but air growing more dangerous.

Pestilence immediately went stiff.

"You aren't the same Rosan I met at Impel Down. You look the same... have the same voice... practically identical but you aren't him. Who are you? How did you become a different person?" Cutter asked in a friendly manner.

The man shrugged.

"Well, I guess that doesn't matter too much. Whatever you did to Rosan, return him. I wanted to speak to him more, not you."

Famine's brows furrowed and a flash of annoyance crossed his features that was quickly transforming into rage.

He was getting so sick of these accusations. What was it about him that made him not Rosan?

He was Rosan.

He was Rosan.

Why could no one get that in their skull? Why was he... being treated like an impostor? Was this not as much his body as the other?

Cutter idly dodged to the left, as a wave of black energy nearly consumed him whole.

"Wouldn't wanna get hit by that," he mused, eyes shifting to the person he was ignoring. "Is this your girlfriend? She's cute," he said proudly.

Then his brows furrowed. "But Blackbeard showed me a different picture. I thought you were dating some Devil of Ohara girl. She's also pretty cute. You have good taste... also are they fine with you sharing? The perks of being beautiful I guess," he shrugged.

Pestilence was snarling at the man now, eyes narrowed and teeth bared.

"Watch your mouth when you talk to him or I'll rip off your lips and sew it to your nuts," they warned.

Cutter turned his gaze towards the white haired woman and raised a brow.

"Who are you supposed to be?" he mused.

Pestilence scowled at him. "None of your fucking business. How are you even up here? What do you want?"

"I wanted to bond with my son," Cutter shrugged. "Now who are you? I'll give you once chance to answer only. I have a sneaking suspicion that you were the one that did something to him"

Famine stepped in front of Pestilence immediately at that, eyes narrowed.

"You aren't laying a hand on them. I'll make you regret every decision that lead to my birth if you do," he warned, protecting the virus with a dangerous look in his eyes.

Cutter snorted. "Kahaha! Is that so?"

Faster then either could react, Cutter appeared behind Pestilence.

The viruses eyes were wide and they whirled around, a bead of sweat falling down their cheek.

Mercifully, Cutter just pat them on the head.

"You aren't strong enough yet, fake son," Cutter muttered with a gleam in his eyes. "I've been in prison for 25 years and you still couldn't react well to me. You've got a lot of work cut out for you…"

"...But it'll have to wait. I've got obligations to fulfill but afterwards, I'll pick you up," Cutter decided, narrowing his golden eyes slightly.

The black haired man gazed at the battle field, predatory gaze peering at the battle happening.

"You can either return my son or I'll do it forcefully. The choice is yours," Cutter decided, rocketing off towards Newgate.

The former prisoner grinned ferally, scales covering his skin as he blazed through the air.

He made it just in time to intercept the fist attempting to strike the cowering Blackbeard.

A massive shockwave coursed through the battlefield at the moment of impact and many people were forced to cover their faces as a heavy wind nearly bowled them over.

Cutter threw his head back and laughed as he was pushed back slightly. "Man I'm rusty," he grinned excitedly. "It's been awhile since I got to move these bones of mine!"

The pirate glanced back at his captain and raised a single brow.

"Kahaha! A bad first impression, captain! I can't have much faith in you if you're cowering at the slightest problems!" Cutter said, grinning wolfishly at Blackbeard.

Then, he lunged forward again and the two clashed once more.

As his scales clashed against Whitebeard's fist, Cutter grunted and disengaged, shaking it idly.

He needed to train more… it had been a long time since he got to feel the sensation of even movement.

Blackbeard gazed at Cutter in shock, not expecting him to be able to weather a blow from Whitebeard like that.

"Zehahaha! Cutter! You're way more impressive than I ever expected!" he laughed gleefully.

Cutter snorted. "You thought I didn't have a bounty because I was weak? I don't have a bounty because they're trying to erase me from history and I've only committed one crime that I immediately got arrested for… isn't that right Sengoku?" he asked amusedly.

Sengoku was shaking in disbelief. Of all the things Blackbeard had done…

To free this man… that absolute fool! What was he thinking?!

"Rocks D. Cutter," Whitebeard rumbled in surprise. "You're alive brat?"

Cutter sneered at Whitebeard, all semblances of that friendly aura gone. "Yeah I am, traitor. Too bad you won't be for long."

"Traitor? What are you spouting brat?" Whitebeard grunted in some confusion.

"Don't play dumb. You think I don't know how buddy buddy you were with Roger?" Cutter raised a brow. "Well, whatever. You've already picked your side long ago and I'm here to cash in."

Whitebeard's muscles tensed. "Just try it."

"Trying means I have a chance of failing!" Cutter exclaimed grinning wildly, clenching his fists eagerly.

"Blackbeard! Do you have any idea what you've done?!" Sengoku roared in fury. "This isn't a man you should have set free! Why would you do such a thing?!"

Blackbeard laughed eagerly. "Maybe not for you! But for me?! Cutter is proving to be more and more valuable by the second!" he exclaimed.

Shiryu grunted. "He sure is hogging all the spotlight."

"A bigshot no name?" Catarina Devon mused with interested eyes, gazing at the man brazenly standing off against Whitebeard.

"He's got balls, I'll give him that," Burgess cackled with wild eyes.

Cutter rolled his eyes at the attention he was receiving. "Why is everyone so wary of me? I'm not my brother. I'm nothing like him at all… in fact, my son acts more like him than me and I've only heard about him today," he shrugged.

"Your son?!" Teach asked with wide eyes. "You have a kid?"

"Yeah that's right. He's damn impressive too," Cutter nodded in amusement, gazing directly at the Famine staring down at him. "The reason Sengoku there is so afraid of the Red Devil, is because I'm his father and my brother is his uncle."

There was a tense silence at that, before Blackbeard's eyes bugged.

"WHAT?!" Teach roared in shock. "You're that dreamers pops?!"

Blackbeard looked up at Famine with wide eyes, gazing rapidly between him and Cutter.

"..." Famine said nothing, merely ready to escape at a moments notice. Pestilence was clutching him with both hands to ensure he didn't get to do something stupid before they stopped him.

"The one and only," Cutter grinned wildly. "He's been making me proud and I've only known him for a few hours! He really is a Rocks isn't he, Sengoku?! Looks like your fears came true and I didn't even have to do anything else!"

Waves of horror coursed through the field at the fact that someone had confirmed to be the Red Devil's father.

It was not because they knew what Cutter was dangerous... it was because anyone who was the parent of the demon named Rosan could not have possible been good news.

It didn't help that their Fleet Admiral seemed so repulsed at the idea that this man in particular had been set free.

"That is cousin's father?" the retreating Hancock thought in shock and confusion.

Sengoku said nothing, red in rage as everything went to hell right before his very eyes... right before victory struck.

Portgas D. Ace was escaping Marineford, Portgas D. Rosan was somehow alive and Rocks D. Cutter had been set free, maniacal vengeance still firm in his stance.

The worst of it all, was that Portgas D. Rosan wielded a Devil Fruit he should have never in a million years consumed. He was quite possibly the worst person possible to be given a fruit like Modification because he seemed to be the perfect wielder for it.

20 years. 20 years he had wielded that Devil Fruit and it took them 20 years to finally realize that it was his Devil Fruit.

Not only that, Marshall D. Teach had pulled a cloak over all their eyes. His capturing of Portgas D. Ace, his ascension to Warlord, his visit to Impel Down... all of it was planned for this moment.

For the moment Blackbeard made his name known to the entire world.

He and Rosan were the same in that regard and Sengoku hated it. Two tactical monsters who orchestrated and planned their actions, waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

Sengoku hated the smart pirates. They would always pick and choose situations that turned advantageous for them, ensuring they benefited to the max degree from it.

That was Rosan and Blackbeard. Those two were the worst type of pirates to deal with because there was no dealing with them immediately, there was no luring them in. They were too paranoid to fall for such simple things like that.

That's why Sengoku had been pleased that Rosan died. With him out of the way, it would only be a matter of time before the entirety of the Straw Hats, Luffy and Robin in particular, completely collapsed.

But yet here he was, glaring coldly down at them. Nothing thrown his way was capable of permanently keeping him down. It was like dealing with the undead.

And now Teach was here to make matters even worse. Freeing Cutter was one of the stupidest things he could have ever done. The man was only fueled by mania and vengeance... and now he knew of the existence of his son.

This was a nightmare situation. Sengoku needed to salvage this to the best of his ability.

But how on earth was he going to do that?! Kuzan was nowhere to be seen, Sakazuki had temporarily vanished and Borsalino was dealing with their converted Marines with a reluctance that Sakazuki would chastise.

And to make matters worse, it looked like Cutter was about to engage Whitebeard in battle.

Sengoku grit his teeth.

When had things gone so out of control?! This war had evolved far beyond what it had initially been!

"So Newgate, did you have fun cozying up to Roger like the little coward you are?" Cutter asked curiously, clashing with the man one time and causing a temporary standstill.

The black haired man stepped away once more, eyeing Whitebeards naginata with an amused glint.

"You've become bold brat. Much different then that sniveling boy who used to hide behind his brother," Whitebeard retorted, clenching his fist as he prepared to spend his last few moments taking out as many of the Blackbeard Pirates as possible.

"Kahahaha! I was 10 when I watched my brother die and over the years, I watched the culprit attain all the glory in the world while I was forced to watch! The worst part is, I wasn't even able to enact revenge before he died," Cutter said, sardonic grin vanishing as his pupils transformed into slits.

"You, Linlin and Kaido sat there and let Roger do whatever he wanted. Vengeance never once crossed your mind… in my eyes, you're no better. So I'm going to kill you hear and get rid of your entire crew," the former prisoner swore.

"Just try it brat. You won't make it off this island," Whitebeard rumbled.

Cutter's grin was back.

"You've already got one foot in the grave, geezer. You think I plan on losing to that?"

He rushed his former crewmate once more and watched as Whitebeard tensed his arms.

The World's Strongest Man slammed a fist in Cutter's path that smashed into his scales, blowing the man back.

"Those look weaker," Cutter grunted, looking at the scuff marks on his chest. "I guess even monsters get old."

Whitebeard scoffed. "I have more than enough to put you in your place, brat."

"Kahaha! You might! I'm way too rusty but that never stopped me!" he grinned, lunging forward once more with wild eyes.

He picked up a discarded sword off the ground and clashed with Whitebeard. Sparks rang through the air before Cutter's weapon suddenly broke.

The man seemed to expect it, already dashing closer into his guard with his scaled fists extended.

Whitebeard anticipated it, fist already glowing with the exertion of his fruit.

Both of them collided with the others face. Cutter's features caved slightly, while a burst of blood spurted from Whitebeard, as the sharp and scaly fist crashed into his already damaged body.

"No haki?" Cutter mused, ignoring the damage to his face as Whitebeard's blood splattered on his face. "You really are too weak right now. Edward Newgate, a shadow of who he used to be."

Whitebeard ignored the man and gripped his naginata with his other hand, coating it in his Devil Fruit and slashing towards Cutter with serious eyes.

Cutter's eyes widened excitedly as it crashed against him. A spray of blood flew from his chest as the vibrations launched him backwards and he touched the injury.

He grinned. "I guess you aren't washed up completely!" he exclaimed.

Whitebeard grunted. "You're like a completely different person. Since when do you enjoy fighting so much?"

"Since I realized I needed to fight for myself if I wanted to change anything," Cutter grinned.

With that, the man began to change.

Cutter began growing to ludicrous sizes as the black scales across his body grew more pronounced. His body elongated as he ascended to the sky.

"What?!" Sengoku said in shock, gazing at the serpentine dragon in horror as it shadowed the sky.

Cutter snarled down at Marineford, large and intimidating and immediately grabbing everyone's attention.

Gold hair was littered across his body, as two whiskers jutted out. Spiky appendages adorned the top of its serpentine body and the dragon roared in amusement.

So this is the Devil Fruit he stole from the Iris," Sengoku said, sweat dropping from his features as he gazed at the enormous dragon that looked similar, yet ominously different from Kaido's.

"You ate a Devil Fruit?" Whitebeard wondered, gazing fearlessly at the black dragon.

"Yeah I did. A prize for severing the bond of the only person alive I could trust," Cutter rumbled.

"It's the Uo Uo no mi, Model: Kokuryuu."

A Devil Fruit guarded jealously by the Iris... because no person was capable of wielding such an evil ability.

No, people who ate this mythical zoan were driven into madness, unable to withstand the dominant will of this Devil Fruit.

When Raisa, who was currently unconscious, had been a child, she had scoffed at such absurdity, vowing to herself that any offspring of hers would be the one to tame such a Devil Fruit, since she had already chosen hers.

And Raisa's vows would have come true... Rosan would have eaten this Devil Fruit in another timeline perhaps...

But in this timeline the Devil Fruit belonged to Cutter.

With that, Rosan's father opened his mouth and roared, firing a gigantic torrent of water of all things that washed over the entire battlefield.

"Nothern Wave!" the dragon roared violently.

"W-Water?!" Someone shouted in horror.

Crocodile sucked his teeth violently, ensuring that he wasn't in the vicinity of that attack.

Many other Devil Fruit users were of similar thought, running away from the battle taking place around Cutter and Blackbeard.

Whitebeard grunted, watching as heavy blast of water made its way to him, and slammed a fist into the air parting the water around him.

Others who hadn't fled the danger zone were not so lucky. The pressurized water engulfed them and screams of shock emitted as they were temporarily submerged.

Cutter snorted and cut off the stream, before focusing again.

This time when the dragon opened its maw again, icy blue energy forming this time.

"Northern Ice!"

A beam of pure ice careened towards Whitebeard this time, freezing the very air around it.

Once more Whitebeard attempted to crash a fist against the air, only for nothing to come out as Teach finally made his presence known.

"Zehahaha! Can't use your Devil Fruit to stop it?!" Blackbeard roared in amusement, right as the ice crashed into Whitebeard.

The sheer force of the ice, caved Whitebeard's midsection in but to Teach's utter shock, the man ignored it, turning towards Blackbeard without any hesitation.

A fist slammed into the Dark Logia and Teach howled in agony as Whitebeard put as much power into it as possible.

He released Whitebeard due to the pain of the immensely powerful man and that was the single greatest mistake he could have made in the moment.

Power immediately imbued Whitebeard's naginata, as he filled it with his Devil Fruit and prepared to swing it downwards —

Only to stop in his tracks.

Blackbeard hesitantly removed his hand from his face in shock, only to see a clawed and scaly hand punching through Whitebeard's chest. They were covered in dark flames that instantly burned the blood seeping off it.

"Who told you to take your eyes off me?" Cutter asked quietly, eyes smoldering in genuine anger as he turned his eyes towards Blackbeard.

"And who told you to interfere in my battle?" he asked his captain. "Don't do that again. Good fights are hard to come by."

"Zehahaha! My bad but we've gotta move along!" Teach grinned apologetically. "You were getting too wild with your attacks! You nearly drowned me you know!"

The man sighed, removing his claw from Whitebeard and drawing a fresh spurt of blood. "I don't pay attention to the people around me when I battle. I only focus on anyone who can kill me," he said bluntly.

"POPS!" screams of anguish rang out but Cutter ignored them.

"Whatever. I'm not at the level I want to be at anyways. I was never going to be satisfied with this battle," he muttered, transforming back to normal.

Especially not after the war he had against Raisa. Even after all these years, Cutter could not forget such a thrilling sensation.

"You'll get stronger!" Blackbeard assured confidently. "The world's gonna revolve around us soon! The name of the new Era will be BLACKBEARD! ZEHAHAHAHA!" he roared in amusement.

"Actions speak louder than words... but this is a pretty good start," Cutter admitted, turning towards his next target without hesitation.

Whitebeard looked at Cutter, expressionless, as the man dealt a lethal attack to him.

Then he turned to the cackling Blackbeard.

"You are not him," Whitebeard said bluntly, ignoring his fatal injuries for the moment.

"?" Blackbeard tilted his head in confusion.

"The one Roger is waiting for… it's not you Teach," Newgate said firmly.

"You can sever bloodlines, but their flames will never be extinguished. There are those who have inherited Roger's will, there will be some who inherit mine. Wills have been passed down like this for centuries and they will continue to do so."

"Someday, one will arise who will challenge the world and shoulder centuries of history. Sengoku, you and the world government fear the great war that will come to this world one day!"

Sengoku went pale. "Just die! Someone shut him up!" he wanted to scream.

But no one heard his silent plea. Worst of all, somehow the footage that they had cut off, had turned back on.

How the hell did that happen?! Who did it?!

The fleeing Buggy sneezed.

"I'm not interested in the treasure, but when it's found, the whole world will be turned upside out. Someone will find it. That day will come because…"

With the last of his strength, Whitebeard raised his voice.

"...THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!" He roared.

"…" Cutter stared at Newgate with a tilted head.

"You're right. Wills are always inherited. You, Roger… I'm sure your wills are going to be inherited…"

Cutter grinned in a feral manner.

"If you have that type of influence on the world, it's only a matter of time before someone follows in your footsteps. Even if you're considered the worst person in the world!"

"Zehahaha! He's dead!" Teach laughed, standing up and wiping the blood off his face. "Amazing Cutter! I didn't know you had a Devil Fruit! A black dragon?!"

Cutter snorted, turning his gaze towards Garp with murder in his eyes. "I went through hell to get it. Literally and metaphorically."

Garp grunted and stood up, making eye contact with Cutter.

"Zehaha! Before you do what you're about to do! Watch me! I'm about to turn the world upside down!" Blackbeard promised.

Cutter took his eyes off Garp and turned towards Teach with a curious eye.

"Sure. Let's see it. Don't be too long though, I still have one more person that needs to die," Cutter said bluntly.

Blackbeard grinned eagerly and his crew jumped into action, throwing a black cloth over them both.

Famine and Pestilence watched with a blank and curious expression respectively.

"What's he doing?" Famine asked.

"No clue," Pestilence shrugged. "Do you have that Save Point ready? We need to go at a moment's notice."

"Yeah. Falling into the hands of my deranged father would be less than ideal," he said truthfully.

Pestilence nodded in agreement. "A darkness human and a dark dragon. Trash fits trash I suppose," they sighed.

"Hmph," was Famine's noise of agreement.

"What's going on?!" someone shouted in confusion as a few minutes passed with nothing happening.

"What's he doing in there?" Cutter asked his new crew, brows furrowed slightly.

Laffitte smiled. "Something that will shake the world. Just a little patience and your curiosity will be rewarded."

The gold eyed man peered at them and shrugged.

Then, after what seemed like eternity, the cloth was removed and Blackbeard's laughing visage greeted them all.

"Zehahaha! Now watch!" Blackbeard roared victoriously.

Terrified shrieks rang through the already scarred battlefield, as a wave of darkness began sucking in Marines.

"First, my Logia the Yami Yami no mi!" Blackbeard announced with a grin.

The man clenched his fist in a familiar position, much to the horror of everyone watching.

"And this…"

He smashed it against the air with brutal force, watching in satisfaction as it cracked on impact.

"Is the power that lets me destroy everything! The Gura Gura no mi!"

The world shuddered as an earthquake that shouldn't be possible, shook the world around them.

"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"

"TWO DEVIL FRUITS?!"

"HOW DID HE STEAL WHITEBEARD'S DEVIL FRUIT?!"

"ZEHAHAHAH! To all you commoners who love boring peace! To the marines who WELCOME TO MY ERA! I'M INVINCIBLE!" Blackbeard cackled in true victory.

Cutter's brow shot up in real surprise. "Well I'll be damned. That's quite the ability you got there. Two Devil Fruits? That shouldn't even be possible," he pointed out, looking genuinely impressed.

"Two Devil Fruits…?" Pestilence muttered in shock, dress moving wildly due to the winds caused by Blackbeard's tremor.

They rolled their eyes in exasperation, as Famine immediately stopped the flowing of their dress with an even tighter grip.

"The situation has gotten grim. I was unaware that a person could eat two Devil Fruits," Famine said idly, watching as a wave of sand formed near him.

"What is this redhead?" Crocodile grunted, gazing warily at the transformed man.

"Crocodile… you performed your job well. Good job," Famine said idly, inspecting the battlefield once more.

Crocodile glanced at him with a blank expression, biting his cigar as he nursed his wounds.

"How did you survive certain death?" he asked.

The former warlord gazed at the mysterious woman next to the man and frowned.

"If it were certain, I would not be standing here," Famine replied, turning to face Crocodile. "Is there something you wish to discuss? I would think you'd be leaving now. You've fulfilled your obligations."

Crocodile scoffed, gazing at the black that infected both the redhead's eyes and hair. It pulsed with a mind of its own, inky black material looking glued to his very being.

"That man down there is your father?"

"By blood," Famine said.

So that Rocks D. Cutter was this redhead's father. The same man who had killed the person Crocodile hated most in the world... was the father of the person Crocodile hated equally as much.

"You must think you're so funny, hiding all these secrets," Crocodile sneered violently. "Reaper? You think me a fool? Was Alabasta just a game to you?"

Pestilence snarled at that and turned towards him but Famine held a hand up.

"Alabasta..." he mused. "Yes. It was. I was never truly worried about the outcome... I knew I was going to win. Though your attack of Robin nearly cost you your life," he mentioned.

"I fucking bet," Crocodile snarled furiously, ignoring the way his body wanted to sag.

The idea that his plan was doomed to fail, the moment the Straw Hats had set their eyes on him.

"You played me like a fool, redhead."

"That I did," Famine responded. "The moment Robin said you'd kill her for coming back to where she belonged, I decided to humiliate you in the worst way possible."

Crocodile clenched his fist at that, staring hatefully at the redhead. "Don't think you'll get away with this."

Famine stared at him and tilted his head to the side. "Haven't I already?"

"You performed well. You alleviated some of the pressure off of me and the mission was a success. Well done, it is unlikely that I will bother you anytime soon so feel free to work as if you are free," Famine waved him off.

Crocodile simply grunted. "To be fooled by someone who practically threw their life away. You make me sick," was all he said.

"Don't forget your role in this world, Sir Crocodile. Well done on your performance today. Next time we see each other, I expect more improvements."

Crocodile scoffed.

"Next time we see other, I won't resist the urge to kill you. This form you've taken is pathetic."

With that, he vanished to where his subordinates had gotten his ship ready.

Famine gazed at the spot he had been at.

"Blow up the bug," Pestilence said venomously, eyes smoldering.

"There is no need. His existence is humiliating enough," Famine replied calmly.

"You're too fucking nice," Pestilence snarled in annoyance. "Okay fine. Let's get out of here."

"I agree. We should leave," he said softly.

His family had been picked up by a submarine that was being ran by Trafalgar Law… the pirate at Sabaody.

Good.

All of them, including Ram had entered it. They were all still unconscious but only Luffy and Ace's life were truly in danger.

Hancock should encounter them soon as well so they'd likely be able to take refuge in peace at Amazon Island.

Everything was in order then. It was just about time to go —

"HALT THEM! STOP THE PIRATES FROM ESCAPING! KILL THEM ALL!"

Famine paused at that, eyes narrowed slightly as he heard the ravenous voices below.

"Famine, wait!" Pestilence called out in frustration.

Goddamnit! He was so fucking reckless! Didn't he miss the part where his damn dad said he was going to take him back?!

Ugh! Fine! Pestilence would get their escape ready. Famine could have his fun for now but he was going to get a stern talking to after this!

The virus kept an eye on Cutter, watching as he and Teach conversed with each other, before the man turned towards Garp with violent eyes.

"He's distracted for now. Good," they muttered.

Famine soared through the air and landed directly in front of the still aggressive Marines.

They froze in horror as the air around them grew heavy to a draining degree.

"Look at you; Your allies are in agony, the island is sinking, the war is over and yet, you still have such bloodlust in your hearts," Famine muttered.

"This is what I hate about you Marines. You can't focus on more important things. Everything is just to sate your own desires. But don't worry, I'll sate that bloodlust for you."

With that, Famine held a palm out.

"I will be your opponent. Please try and kill me instead."

"Hunger," he said softly.

Bright white flames began conjuring at his palms, before Famine swiped downwards and sent tiny embers flying.

Howls of agony rang out, as the white flames captured a small group of people… and then it began spreading like the plague, catching more and more of his enemies as it grew larger and larger.

The flames continued to grow, spreading like wildfire as Famine stared at the white blaze he created.

"Ah such a shame," he said listlessly. "Maybe we are more similar than I thought. I find myself wanting more to sate this hunger."

He leaned backwards to avoid the swipe of a sword and saw the trembling figure of a small woman.

"Hm?" Famine mused, taking in her figure. "You are… the one who was at Alabasta. The Marine who fought with her all, despite being hopelessly outmatched."

Tashigi trembled slightly harder, feeling an unexplainable and draining weight on her shoulder.

But despite that, she still aimed her blade towards the monster.

Famine stared at her, tilting his head to the left before taking a step towards her.

She flinched and swung with all her might watching in horror as the blade swung sluggishly through the air. It was like watching in slow motion and she immediately knew that it was going to fail.

Famine merely caught it, appraising her once more.

"You lack the bloodlust the other soldiers have. I have no interest in killing you," he said blandly, releasing the blade from his hand and allowing it to fall limply to her side.

"I apologize for breaking your hand back then. Continue to fight for a good cause. Do not let the corruptness of this organization seep into you," Famine said quietly, walking past her to continue his gait.

Tashigi shook, sagging in terror as she attempted to muster up the courage to face him.

But she couldn't. She couldn't because Tashigi was terrified of the Red Devil.

"Tashigi!" Smoker and Hina called, rushing her in worry.

"He… let me live," she whispered in confusion. "When I looked at him… all I could see was death! There was… no way I was going to survive… so why did he let me live?"

Not only that... he apologized? But why? Tashigi didn't understand.

Here he was, mercilessly slaughtering their troops but yet... he was apologizing to her?

She didn't understand. How could she ever hope to understand a creature like that?

Smoker grit his teeth and stood up firmly. "Red Devil!" he barked.

"Smoker, no!" Hina shouted.

The redhead paused and turned a single head back. "You've been given the opportunity to live twice already, Smoker. Are you truly sure you wish to throw it away by testing me one final time?"

"You've been humbled. I've opened your eyes to the negligence and you seem to be stepping onto the right path. You should listen to Hina," Famine said mercifully.

Hina flinched at that.

"I say all this... yet you're still intent on fighting me," Famine sighed, black sclera boring a hole into all of them and making them shudder instinctively.

"Very well. But I did say before, that I won't toy with you like Alabasta."

Smoker had no time to react, as an elbow planted itself firmly into his sternum, bypassing his Logia effortlessly and making him bend over completely.

Famine stared down at him, somber gaze glowing.

Then, he planted a foot against Smoker's head and crushed him to the pavement below.

"There. That should do it," he said softly. "I've already saved my brother. You should be thankful for such a thing."

He removed his foot from Smokers head. "Ingrain this defeat into your head. Allow it to fuel you. You can use such fuel to make the world a safer place. That's your job after all."

Famine glanced at Hina and saw her take a step back.

He shook his head. "This is the last time I warn you all. It would be a shame for me to kill the few good Marines."

"..." Hina said nothing, simply averting her gaze and certain death in the same action.

Famine continued his path of destruction, merely moving forward as those around him tried and failed to contain him.

All the while, black lines would lash out and attach to anyone around him, utilizing Modification to siphon their energy into him.

As Famine walked, he suddenly stopped in his gait, due to a figure stepping in his path.

"This time, I'll make sure you're thoroughly dead," Akainu promised, magma seeping off his body as his anger mounted.

To say he was less than pleased at being buried underground was a vast understatement. The ground hadn't held the man for long at all, because he erupted like a true volcano, searing the area around him as he broke through.

But the damage had been done. Akainu felt properly humiliated.

"Is that so?" Famine wondered, breathing a breath of cold air as a pure white ice began freezing the area around him.

Akainu glared down at him. "You've thwarted our victory, spawn of Rocks. Because of you, the son of Roger and Dragon got away. Only your head will make up for this."

"You attempted to kill both my brothers," Famine pointed out softly, combining his icy display with bright white electricity. "That is not a crime I will let slide. I would be honored to guide you into the afterlife."

Magma began pouring out of Akainu, as he prepared to lunge.

At the same time, Famine prepared to bury him in an avalanche of ice.

"STOP THIS!"

Both Famine and Akainu paused, watching as a small figure stepped in between them both.

Famine tilted his head.

Akainu scowled in annoyance.

Koby was stood between both the Admiral and Pirate, trembling in blatant horror as an extreme heat, along with a debilitating pressure squeezed him.

But despite that, he stood firm in his resolve.

"Why are we still fighting?!" Koby sobbed. "It's a waste of human life! Both sides took catastrophic losses so why are we ignoring the injured who can still be saved?!"

Famine froze at that.

"If we continue to fight, we'll just be dying for nothing! That makes us no better than fools!" Koby cried out.

"…" Famine said nothing, before sighing.

Right as he was about to agree, he heard Akainu say, "You've cost me precious seconds. A soldier who doesn't serve justice has no place in this navy!"

And all his hatred came roaring back.

Of course a scumbag Marine couldn't be reasoned with.

Famine's eyes narrowed as Akainu lunged forward, intent on melting Koby with his magma but before he could interfere, a figure dashed forward at incredible speeds and caught the blow.

"Well said, young man. You almost broke through to Rosan of all people," Shanks said softly, warding off Akainu's fist.

Koby shuddered in terror at that, turning hesitantly towards the scowling Famine.

"Look at that. A young and naive Marine, spilling his heart out and making a good point… and what does this Admiral do? Attempt to kill him without hesitation. Do you think that's right?" Famine asked, looking genuinely upset.

"This is the problem with the World Government. You have scum like this, who only care for violence, standing atop the world and expect everyone to be okay with this. It's sickening," he scowled.

Koby was about to say something, but the pressure became too much and the young Marine fainted.

"I understand how you feel, Rosan… but the war is over," Shanks said softly, crouching down to pick up a familiar Straw Hat. "I don't know what happened to you… but for a brief moment I felt you die. Now, you're like this."

Famine said nothing.

"Thank you for taking care of Luffy all these years. He really grew up," Shanks informed him. "I knew I could rely on you."

"I am merely fulfilling my duties as an older brother. Do not thank me as if you played any part in my decision," he said bluntly.

Shanks sighed with a small smile. "You've done a wonderful job in this terrible war but there's been enough violence for the day. There's no need to fight anymore, don't you think?"

"No need?" Famine whispered. "You don't understand. I've been fighting my entire life. Whether you mean those words or not, I will always have to fight. The world refused the life I wanted to live when I was four. All I know now, is how to fight."

Shanks sighed. "That might be true… but this right here is not your fight. You've already got what you came here for, Rosan. You have more important things to worry about don't you?"

"…" Famine frowned, before a spike of fear reached him and he turned towards the frantic Pestilence, gazing down at him with horror in their eyes.

"Very well. I'm done here then," he said softly.

He did have more important matters to attend to.

Famine turned away from Shanks and began floating into the air.

"Rosan."

He stopped and turned, catching the Straw Hat thrown at him.

"Make sure whatever problems you have, you deal with them, alright?" Shanks smiled.

"…" Famine said nothing and soared away.

"You are in so much trouble!" Pestilence snarled, gripping him fiercely to make sure he couldn't run off again.

"I know, Pe-chan," Famine said softly, eyes glowing.

"No you don't! Take this serious! I'll seriously kick your ass if you keep acting so reckless!"

"I know, Pe-chan."

"Stop fucking saying the same damn thing!"

"You won't acknowledge anything else I say anyways."

Shanks stared at the strange version of Rosan with a neutral expression, before turning towards all the Marines.

"If any of you are still eager to spill blood, then I'll accept any challengers!" Shanks announced grimly.

A tense silence followed after his declaration.

"What about you Teach? Or should I call you Blackbeard?" The Emperor asked.

"Hm?" Cutter paused at that, turning towards the voice who said that and stopping in his path towards that.

"Zehahaha! I'll pass! I got what I wanted. I don't wanna fight you right now. Let's go men!" Blackbeard announced.

Almost as if sensing it, Blackbeard turned towards his most unpredictable crewmate. "Cutter! We can't take on both Marines and Red Hairs crew! You just got outta prison! It's time to experience the world!"

Cutter mulled that over and sighed. "I guess playing a little smarter would do good."

What a shame. His son had completely disappeared before he could retrieve him.

Maybe acting so reckless was too much. He could afford to play a little smarter.

"Fine fine. I'm done here then," he conceded, running a hand through his shoulder length spikes.

He kept a long, almost curious gaze onto Shanks, before snorting and walking away.

"This worlds got some new interesting faces, that's for sure. I hope you don't mind if I do my own thing most of the time... it seems fun," Cutter mused.

"Zehahaha! You've proven yourself already and you saved my life! Do whatever you want!" Blackbeard cackled.

Shanks watched them go with a grave expression.

"Everybody listen... withdraw now and allow me to save face," he said, watching as all the adrenaline seemed to drain out of the very beings of the people there.

All but Akainu seemed to come to the same consensus.

"I'll deal with the burial of Whitebeard. You've broadcasted this whole war to the world, I won't allow you to make a spectacle of their deaths," he said firmly.

He ignored the sounds of protest and gazed at Sengoku, who merely grit his teeth.

The results of this war... they weren't what he wanted at all. Whitebeard was a consolation prize... he may have been the strongest man alive but Sengoku was looking towards the future.

And in that future, neither Ace or Rosan needed to be alive. This war was meant to kill them.

He didn't even know where Kuzan was... but they had sustained far too many injuries.

There was no point going to war with another Emperor.

"Very well," he conceded.

The death of Whitebeard would be enough for now. In the current present, Whitebeard's death was the most impactful.

Sengoku would just have to rely on the future to deal with threats they'd have.

"Thank you," Shanks said.

"This war is over!" Sengoku declared to the world.

---

Famine and Pestilence appeared directly in front of the stunned Maro.

There were tears streaming down her confused eyes, as she stared at the duo.

"What...?" Maro stammered in confusion, unable to believe what she had just witnessed transpire. The Queen wiped her eyes

Famine did not spare a word, merely gazing at the Angel and Demon that were coming to.

"See? They're completely fine," Pestilence said, crossing their arms.

"It's good to be careful," Famine replied, verifying that they truly were fine.

The virus rolled their eyes and said, "Are we done here? We still need to wrap up our business."

Famine nodded. "Almost. I just need one more person to visit. They should be the most affected by this."

Pestilence sighed. "They should already know you're alive. I went through the trouble of hacking and restarting all the broadcasts... but alright," they conceded.

"Wait."

The duo paused at that and gazed at Maro.

"Who are you?" Maro asked, a stern frown on her face as she wiped her tears.

She couldn't explain anything going on right now. Maro had been in the throes of a mental breakdown before Kaori had hesitantly brought her attention back to the screen.

Angel and Demon had both fainted, the shock of the situation being too much for them so they hadn't seen the stream come back to life.

It was there that Maro saw something that was cause for extreme concern...

This person right here. The person posing as her Master.

"Maro," Famine greeted.

"Stop acting like this is normal!" Maro scowled, tears drying up. "What is this?! What's going on? Is this the virus?! Explain now!"

"M-Maro...?" Akemi called out in confusion, sniffing periodically as she gazed at the queen.

"All of you stand back!" Maro ordered, eyes lasering onto Rosan.

Everyone jumped at the tone of her voice. It was rare for Maro to take such a tone and they looked at what was happening with wide eyes.

Famine shut his eyes and sighed softly as he watched them all back away. "It does hurt when you throw such doubt on me," he said quietly.

"Well forgive me if I'm a little doubtful," Maro pushed, summoning her club. "But nothing is what I'm used to. Is that the virus?" she asked again.

Pestilence scowled at her. "And if I am?" they asked.

Maro's eyes narrowed. "Then I have a duty to uphold. Master told me about you… and he said on the off chance that he's incapacitated, then I have to be the one deal with you."

There was a grim determination in Maro's eyes.

"That's not necessary, Maro," Famine said softly. "I don't want to fight you."

Maro closed her eyes. "I don't want to fight you either, Master. But… right now you're not the person I'd proudly call my father. Somethings wrong with you."

"…" Famine closed his eyes as a sad frown crossed his face. "Pe-chan, you can stay out of this. Don't interfere."

Pestilence crossed their arms.

Famine would be pissed at them if they killed anyone here and Pestilence's whole style was based on destruction.

"Be fast," they muttered a little nervously. Like it or not, Famine wasn't fresh and Maro was not that much weaker than Rosan.

Famine nodded softly.

"M-Master?" Angel whispered in confusion, shuddering as a sob erected from her body. At the sight of her older brother, she launched herself up and tried to rush him, only for a hand to hold her firmly in place.

"That's not him Angel," Maro said, looking every bit the Queen she was. There was no joking, no goofing around… the Dokkaebi was utterly serious.

Angel looked confused, sniffing as Maro gently held her back. As she saw the completely serious look in Maro's eyes, the redhead went stiff.

Then she gazed back at Famine with a distressed expression.

"What's going on?" Demon wiped his eyes and gazed at his older brother with a distraught gaze.

"You guys didn't see it... but Master's been corrupted by the virus," Maro said softly. "Don't get close to him. I'm going to get him back."

"...The virus?" Aiko said slowly.

"What's the virus?" Akemi asked in concern.

Maro glared at the neutral Pestilence. "Them."

Pestilence shot them a mocking smile.

Famine carefully avoided their eyes and turned on a heel. "Come then. I wouldn't want anyone innocent to get caught in the crossfire."

Maro said nothing, trailing after him with a grave expression.

She didn't know what happened to Master, but Maro couldn't… she couldn't lose him.

She would never accept that. Whoever this impostor was, would see the full fury of Queen Maro of Celadon.

Maro kept her eyes trained on the man the entire time, even as he guided her to a battlefield outside of the castle and away from her civilians.

This was where her and Rosan fought in Celadon if they wanted to cut loose a bit. Fighting in the castle proved too risky.

Maro clenched her fist at that. This man... he was corrupted but he was also considerate. She was so confused. She didn't know this person but he still felt like her Master.

The trip had been completely silent. Not even the people following after them said anything, too caught up in the nervous airs of seeing how rigid and serious their Queen was.

The two stood across from each other, neither looking happy with the situation.

"I love Famine so I'll give him whatever he wants… but if any of you interfere in this match, you won't like the outcome," Pestilence warned them, standing a healthy distance away from their group.

"...Who are you?" Demon asked quietly, hiccuping slightly.

"Your daddy," Pestilence replied cheekily.

The virus raised a brow, as a blonde stepped in front of Demon.

"Don't listen to her, Demon," Mikita said strongly. "I... I don't know what's going on but I'll keep you safe."

Demon shuddered and nodded, glancing in uncertainty at what was taking place.

"Why... why do you look like our mom?" Angel asked hesitantly.

"Because Famine has a mommy fetish," Pestilence shrugged helplessly.

"Don't talk to them, Angel," Kaori said fiercely, stepping in front of the redhead.

Pestilence merely looked amused, as Maro's soldiers stared them down. "If not for Famine, I'd have already made you regret stepping up to me. What can you weak little soldiers do to me?" they asked.

"Stay away from them," Maro snarled warningly, clenching her club.

"Or what?" Pestilence crooned, sneering at the Queen without a hint of fear on their features.

Maro whirled, eyes blazing with fury as she vanished from her spot.

Pestilence's eyes widened as the Queen snarled down at her, orange iris burning a hole into her.

As she held her arm up to swing, she found that she was unable to.

"There's no need for that," Famine said softly, holding back the Queen's arm with a neutral expression. "The fight is between the two of us."

"Tell her to stay away from them," Maro demanded.

Pestilence rolled their eyes and moved even further away.

"Satisfied?" they crooned, conjuring an all black throne and taking a seat.

"Is that what Master has been dealing with all these years?" Angel thought in sorrow, tears surging up once more.

She thought she knew everything about him but... but realizing that his biggest issue to date was something she had no clue about...

It hurt.

Maro sneered at Pestilence and marched back to the battlefield, turning their gaze towards Famine next.

The two stared at each other, before rocketing off at once.

---

Maro's (who was still in human form) eyes sharpened dangerously as she conjured blue flames, launching them towards Rosan with intent to end this quickly.

Famine grunted, summoning a wall of ice that was quickly consumed by Maro's mystical fire. The redhead held out a hand and fired a wave of white fire that clashed with the next salvo.

He spread his white wings and launched himself into the sky, only to grunt as Maro vanished from his line of sight.

Famine discarded it being an illusion swiftly as his senses went haywire behind him.

Maro snarled behind him, Daisy poised to smash into him but much to her surprise, Rosan didn't attempt to defend himself physically, simply floating away from the swing, white lightning coating him.

She wouldn't let that deter her at all, vanishing from her spot again and appearing directly in his path.

Famine anticipated it, whirling around even before she appeared.

Maro effortlessly ignored the sparks surging across her body, only twitching minutely and she gripped her club, before bashing it onto Famine's midsection.

Famine applied armament right before the attack connected, grunting as he was sent plummeting.

She watched with wild eyes as he rocketed towards the floor and sought to push her advantage.

"No Ram, Raid Suit not properly protecting him... and just getting out of a war. This is my best chance at beating him," she thought predatorily, flames coating Daisy.

As Famine was launched downwards, he saw Maro launching towards him with purpose.

Right as he connected to the floor he palmed it, making the ground surge.

Maro saw the ground erupt, launching towards her with a purpose and she grunted, evading each and every one with expertise.

To her annoyance though, the grounds stayed erected, looming over her in the shape of snake like pillars.

Famine immediately closed the distance between the two and Maro felt the encroaching pressure pressing on her shoulders.

But she would not be deterred.

Maro swung Daisy that Famine ducked under, retaliating with an elbow that Maro sidestepped.

She was forced backwards as the pillars came to life once again and all the while, Rosan continued pressuring her.

The Queen snarled in annoyance as the snake pillars cut off her avenue of counter every time she saw an opening. Famine was using them to keep her totally occupied.

It was frustrating.

Maro scowled and vanished immediately, watching as the pillars focused on her once more and lunged to her position.

"Annoying. He understands how weakened he actually is," she thought, watching as Famine remained completely stationary.

The redhead held out a hand and Maro hissed as a flurry of shrapnel like ice flew towards her.

Her observation flared wildly and she leapt to the right, knowing she'd be more safe there.

As she landed, she immediately transformed into her full Zoan and smashed Daisy against the pillar there, breaking it completely.

Her observation flared once more and the Dokkaebi watched as Rosan soared above her.

She prepared for an attack but instead, he began darting through the sky, tapping every piece of broken stone and converting it to ice with Modification.

"He's fighting less like Master and more like Mod-chan," Maro scowled in fury.

As the sky dotted with the ice, Maro huffed and summoned an inferno of blue fire. She launched it upwards but the pillars made themselves known again, as two of them flew in the path of the fire.

"How is he doing that? Controlling the ground while being in the sky?" Maro wondered, narrowing her eyes.

It was then that she saw little black patches, similar to the black markings in his hair.

Maro's eyes widened and she summoned a new surge of flames, before washing over the entire battlefield with them.

Famine grunted as his connection to the ground was suddenly cut.

He didn't flinch as Maro appeared directly across from him.

"You're somehow using the virus to connect to the ground, allowing you to touch more things," Maro snarled in annoyance, club raised high.

"I'm surprised you noticed," Famine replied, holding out a hand and blowing her away.

Before Maro could recover, she was forced to avoid the army of ice rushing her.

They flew through the sky like shurikens and Maro hissed in annoyance, vanishing from her spot in a burst of flame.

"That won't work," Famine said softly, allowing the remaining ice to fly behind him, knowing that Maro was going to do such a thing again.

But to his surprise, the ice merely passed through her body.

"Oh yeah?" Maro snarled violently, appearing directly in front of him. "You're brains working too slow."

With that, she smashed Daisy onto him.

"Famine!" Pestilence shouted in worry.

They knew he was too tired! He didn't suddenly come out fresh because the other Rosan was gone! This was still the same body that got a hole blasted through it!

Famine rocketed through the air at ridiculous speeds, getting gasps of disbelief to ring out as he crashed onto the ground with a thunderous noise.

Maro sneered, landing on the floor after him.

She didn't say anything, staring at the body with a deathly gaze.

Famine sighed, blood spilling from his head as his body screamed in protest.

The Philosopher's Stone still wasn't even close to recharged either.

"Are you okay?" Pestilence asked him.

Famine said nothing and took a deep breath.

That's right, he was Pe-chan's only ally so if he disappeared, they were as good as dead.

He could not let that happen.

"Sorry, Maro. I really didn't want to hurt you," Famine said softly, black spreading through his body like a disease. It darkened his hair even further and he stood up, purple eyes shifting to red.

Maro's orange iris watched cautiously as he stood up, injuries not healing on his body.

Almost as if sensing a shift, Maro transformed into her hybrid form, just in time to leap away from a giant white claw.

She watched with wide eyes as a snarling wolf lunged at her.

"What...?" she called in confusion, unable to detect its intent with observation.

She yelped in surprise as another wolf crashed into her from behind, tackling her to the floor.

Maro snarled furiously as it bit her right side. The icy cold bite made her narrow her eyes and she howled in fury, erupted in blue flames, making the wolves leap backwards.

The realistic wolves only looked like that because of Modification... but they were really made of ice. Maro watched as they prowled the scene, keeping a safe distance from her but never removing their red eyes.

"Rosan's element is fire... but mine is ice," Famine said softly, as a pure white horse formed next to him. "While he may have just discovered how to use ice... I've always known how."

Maro scowled as the wolves lunged at her, launching herself into the air to avoid them, only to yelp as an icy white bird crashed into her, blocking her vision.

The pure white blue jay wasn't alone. More and more of the birds, that Rosan based his bird spies on, crashed into Maro and continued impairing her.

Before she could erupt in flames, a foot crashed against the right side of her head, sending her careening to the floor.

Her observation began going haywire once more and despite having her vision clouded, the Dokkaebi vanished from her spot, ignoring the crashing noise of what was probably Famine slamming a limb there.

The moment she appeared again, she heard a distorted neigh and a body slammed into her.

Maro, more annoyed then hurt, let out a frustrated snarl and erupted into more flames, burning the birds and getting them off of her.

When she opened her eyes, Maro was met by an army of creatures, staring down at her.

The most notable, was the giant dragon looming over them.

"Conquest," Famine intoned softly, floating stationary as an eastern dragon curled around him.

"Ice and Modification... terrifying combination," Maro thought grimly.

Famine didn't fight similar to Mod or Rosan. He sought to overwhelm in a different way. These ice constructs... powered by his mastery over Modification.

Whereas Rosan was a one man army, Famine could create that army.

The pure white dragon roared, opening its mouth and shooting out a pure beam of ice.

Maro leapt away from the ice, fire burning all around as she attempted to ward off the constructs.

Unfortunately, they seemed moderately resistant to fire.

"I can use fire as well," Famine reminded, pure white flames forming on his fingertips. "It stands to reason my creations would have some resistance."

"Shut up!" Maro snarled, honing in on him. She dashed towards him, still in hybrid form, and counted on her cloak of fire to protect her.

As she closed the distance, jumping in the air to do so, the western dragon made its presence known and smashed her back towards the ground with a giant claw.

At the same time, the fire burning at the tips of his fingers grew in intensity, while the serpentine dragon curled around his hand until it reached his fingers, opening its mouth once more.

In unison, the two of them fired off their blast, white fire and white ice surging forward with crushing intent.

Maro tried to avoid it, but she lost her breath as the pure white horse leapt forward, crashing its hooves onto her sternum.

Famine watched as his attack struck true, fingers still outstretched as a snow white bird landed atop it.

He floated there, just eyeing the dust with the unnerving red gaze on a painted black canvas.

The redhead was unsurprised to see a bleeding Maro standing up and glaring at him.

There were burn marks on her Raid Suit, speaking to the power behind his attack and he watched as the hybrid zoan dusted herself off.

Maro clutched her ribs and glared harshly at the army she was up against.

She took a deep breath and finally, fished out a familiar looking ball.

Then, she dropped it in her mouth and crunched it.

Famine didn't even get to register the fact that Maro slimmed down slightly, before a flash of blue appeared directly in front of him.

He leaned back slightly in surprise, barely avoiding the swipe of the slim club.

Maro, who had blue hair tied with a headband, pushed out a burst of explosive flame that adjusted her height above Famine and swung downwards, colliding with the head of the easter dragon.

She huffed, teleporting a short distance as Famine sent a surge of white fire her way and immediately went invisible, confusing the western dragon greatly.

Famine would not be deterred. He summoned his flames once more and turned to a direction, swiping them sideways and sending a wave of flames towards the location.

Maro appeared and transformed again, transforming into a hulking and huge form of her Dokkaebi, all while her white hair grew to ludicrous lengths. Her club transformed into a shield and she blocked the flames.

A wolf rushed her, only to yelp as her hand lurched out and grabbed its maw.

With an exertion of strength, she crushed its face and tossed it away.

As she was surrounded once more by the creatures, Maro tensed her fist and slammed both onto the ground.

All around her, the earth shook as pillars of blue flames erupted like volcanos, crashing into every grounded creature it could get its hand on.

But Maro wasn't yet finished.

She took a deep breath and her white hair remained, as she transformed back into her human form. She grabbed Daisy, now in the form of a wooden wand and waved it once.

The pillars of flame froze, before Maro ripped them out of the ground and crushed them into a ball.

Mage was her strongest offensive form when it came to actual application. Next to Ninja, it was her most overwhelming transformation.

As the balls of fire surrounded Maro, floating around her witch hat she glared upwards.

Then, Maro teleported from her spot.

Famine expected it. He fired a ball of ice towards the fireball shooting from his left and had his dragon cut off her exit, but she merely teleported again, forcing him to whirl right where she appeared.

Maro launched two more fireballs, aiming her wand like a conductor. They flew towards him and he grunted, extending his hand and summoning a wall of ice that it collided against.

An explosion of steam formed, leaving him completely obscure.

The temporary block of vision made him miss Maro teleporting yet again, this time appearing directly in front of him.

Famine grunted as he erected another wall to block the fireballs but to his genuine surprise, they collided with it... and phased right through.

Maro snarled violently, the tip of her want glowing as she conjured a prison of flames around Famine and the eastern dragon.

"Sorry, Master. I can't pull my punches," she apologized, tensing the complete circular flames and launching it towards the floor.

The noise was thunderous, as the flame prison exploded in a great blaze.

Maro huffed, dodging the furious western dragon and placing a wand against its maw.

It howled as flames suddenly engulfed its entire body, the flames spreading like wildfire.

Maro panted softly, as the effects of the rumble ball wore off and she stared at the floor.

She floated downwards and banished her flames, eyes narrowed in a mixture of sterness and concern.

Famine's body lie there and Maro heard gasps of concern from Angel and Akemi.

She wouldn't lie and say she felt good about this. Maro never wanted to hurt Rosan so badly, especially when his body had already been through so much.

How he could even still move was wondrous to her—

Maro froze as Famine's body made cracking noises but it wasn't the sound of bone repairing itself...

No it was the sound of glass breaking.

She watched in disbelief as Famine's body completely shattered, transforming into ice.

"But... what?" Maro said in disbelief.

"Black Snow."

Maro's wide eyes snapped open and she looked upward.

There, standing in the mouth of the burning dragon, Famine stared down at her.

All around him, white dots began forming and the man sighed sadly.

Then, the dots began forming until they formed a truly massive construct of ice... that looked more akin to a meteor.

"Avalanche."

Maro attempted to teleport away but her attention was taken away, as a furious and giant bear burst out of the ground and wrapped its arms around her.

She struggled weakly but the sound of flight caught her attention and she stared into the merciless red eyes of Famine.

"I'm sorry," was all he said.

With that, he locked her limbs to her sides in a block of ice and vanished, right as the ice crashed into her location.

Maro spat out blood as she was crushed to the floor, eyes rolling to the back of her head as the attack connected squarely with her.

Then, the ice exploded.

Screams of horror rang out as Famine landed on the ground.

Before him, Maro lie there, completely defeated.

"I'm not as strong as Rosan, so I have to fight differently," Famine said softly, serpentine dragon curling around his body once more. "The Famine you successfully struck just now, was just an ice construct... but I know you have Observation so I waited until the perfect moment to swap places with him."

"I'm sorry. It's an underhanded way of fighting... but as I am right now, I cannot meet any of you head to head," he apologized.

"I will do whatever it takes to save the ones I love... even if it means attacking someone else I love. I hope you understand."

---

"MARO!" Angel screamed in distress, rushing her immediately and grabbing the bleeding Queen. "Demon come quick! She's hurt!"

Demon snapped out of his stunned daze, ignoring the way his chest screamed at witnessing Maro and Rosan fighting.

He rushed over to his injured little sister, flinching as he ran past Famine.

Famine said nothing as Angel stared at him, genuine terror in her eyes. His little sister cradled her wife, all while maintaining eye contact with him.

He noticed the tears falling but said nothing, red eyes shifting back to purple as his hair lightened back to blood red.

He wanted to open his mouth but a hand grabbed him.

"We verified their state," Pestilence said, materializing next to him. They sent him a pointed look and he nodded hesitantly.

"Wait!" Aiko shouted, stepping up in disbelief.

Everyone else had been completely silenced at the sight of Maro's defeat.

"Are you really fine with this, Rosan?!" she asked. "Is this really fine with you? The Rosan I know would never hurt his family like this!" she barked furiously, pointing at Maro's prone body.

"...You don't understand... no one understands," he said softly.

"Don't understand what?!" Aiko snarled. "I don't understand why you're beating the hell out of the little girl you found and raised! Could you explain that to me?!"

"I didn't want to fight her," Famine said. "I insisted multiple times that we don't have to fight but she still chose this..."

"Because something's wrong with you!" Aiko shouted. "Do you think this is normal, Rosan?! I don't even recognize you right now! You're walking around with some lady who's terrorizing us and you just dropped a fucking meteor on your practical daughter! Do you think you're in the right here?!"

Famine turned away at that. "It... doesn't matter. I'm going to fix everything."

"Fix... everything?!" Aiko whispered. "FIX EVERYTHING?! LOOK AROUND YOU ROSAN!" she shrieked.

"We just watched you, DIE! We watched you die!" She snarled, slamming a finger against his chest and ignoring the pain.

Famine saw tears in her eyes as she scowled furiously at him.

"We just watched you die... and you come here and pick fights? What's wrong with you?" she whispered, clearly distraught.

"Your brother and sister... they cried and cried because they thought they lost you... and now they're staring at you like you just tried to kill someone they love because you did," Aiko hissed.

Famine flinched back, expression wavering slightly but Aiko was too furious.

"I watched you build up that little girl into this beautiful queen she is and now you're hurting her this badly? Just who are you because Rosan would never attempt to hurt Maro like this."

"..." Famine said nothing and Pestilence snarled, eyes pulsing madly.

"Be grateful," they hissed. "If you were anyone else, you'd be a raving lunatic at my hands."

Aiko flinched back at the hateful glare and Maro's soldiers leapt forward.

"Don't... don't fight them," Maro rasped. "There's no point."

They shuddered at her defeated tone and Angel let out a weak sob, holding her wife tightly.

Pestilence's eyes narrowed. "We're done here, Famine. C'mon."

The black haired man nodded softly and they promptly vanished.

"What's… what's going on?" Akemi asked in shock, hating the way her gut curled. It was a terrible feeling... one that kept clawing away and weakening her by the second.

She had never seen Maro and Rosan attack each other with such grimness. In fact, she couldn't even recognize that man.

"I'm sorry guys! I'm not strong enough! I couldn't save Master," Maro sobbed as she broke completely.

The queen let out a terrible wail, body shuddering as grief coursed through her body.

Angel teared up at the heartbroken look on Maro's face and exchanged a fierce kiss with her.

"It's okay honey. You tried your best… I don't know what's going on but Master will be fine," she reassured, tears flowing herself as the overwhelming emotions forced themselves out.

There was just so much going on… Angel didn't know what was going on.

Demon sniffed, wiping the tears from his eyes as Mikita and Zala both comforted him to the best of their abilities.

"C'mon Maro… let's get you checked up," Demon mumbled, watching as Angel lifted up the wailing Queen.

He felt his tears welling up again and collapsed on his knees, letting out a sob as the events of today caught up to him.

The soldiers of Celadon could only watch in despair, as their three leaders broke down.

They bit their lips, unable to muster up anything that could soothe them.

Aiko bit her lip as well.

She stared at the spot Rosan had just been at, before glancing at the almost inconsolable state of her sister. She maintained a tough facade but she knew she wouldn't be able to maintain it for long... because the leaders of Celadon were practically her little siblings and she couldn't stand to see them in such a dreadful state.

"C'mon soldiers," her voice cracked, as she tried to put on a strong front. "Let's put them all somewhere comfortable."

Zala frowned and pulled the ruler of Fregate into a hug, lifting the shorter woman up. "You too, Aiko. I'll bring you somewhere private."

Aiko shuddered at that and shut her eyes, allowing the tall woman to carry her away.

The soldiers could only hope that whatever problem Rosan was going through, was solved by him because they couldn't stand to see their rulers in this state.

They weren't sure what was going to happen to their beloved leaders, if something truly did happen to him. It would be disastrous.

---

"Not gonna go to Robin?" Pestilence asked curiously.

"...No," Famine told them, sitting in the room Aiko tended to reserve for him when he opted to sleep at Fregate.

Seeing as Aiko and Akemi weren't here, Famine would remain here to finish up his business.

"Why?" Pestilence mused. "She's calling you after all."

He said nothing. "Would... would that really be a smart idea?" he asked hesitantly, looking unsure of himself.

Pestilence sighed. "Probably not."

"...Pe-chan. Why does everyone hate me?"

Pestilence froze at that.

"Not a single person wanted to see me," Famine said softly, glancing at their hands. "All of them feared me… all of them want me gone… if even Robin wants that, I'm not sure how I'll be able to react."

Pestilence frowned sadly.

They wrapped an arm around his neck and sat on his lap, gazing at him directly in the eyes.

"You have to understand… you're not the same as that thief. They don't know your story… they don't know the hell you were put through."

"That's... true," Famine said softly.

"Even if they did, didn't I tell you? As long as you have me, there's nothing to worry about. You won't be alone and after all this is over, you'll be free," they reassured softly.

Famine remained silent but nodded, clutching them tightly as he sought reassurance.

"You're right… okay. I'm going to go talk to Robin then," he said. "I just want to see."

Pestilence nodded. "Alone, right?"

The redhead nodded, nursing his heavy injuries with a tired expression. "After all this is over, I'll sleep, okay?"

"You'll be getting an earful first. You've been too reckless today," Pestilence said, waving him off.

He nodded, before his eyes glowed and he vanished.

---

Robin could tell something was wrong the moment she laid eyes on the redhead.

But despite that, she didn't act as reckless as the rest of her family.

"I'm glad you're alive, Rosan," Robin said carefully, staring at the black canvas that was Rosan's sclera.

She was a mess to be honest. Robin was not in the state to do anything but... but right now she needed to think about the bigger picture.

"Robin," Famine said carefully. "You don't need to speak to me like I'm a time bomb. Say what you wish to say. No matter what, I will carry out what I plan on doing."

Robin sighed, hiding the trembling in her body as she replayed all the memories in her head.

"But will you be happy, Rosan?" she asked eventually. "Can you truly risk losing all your loved ones?"

"...I've already lost them," Famine said softly. "The moment they all rejected my existence... no the moment Pe-chan was condemned to death, this was the only path I could take."

So this... was a Rosan who loved Pestilence?

"Even you left me, Robin."

Robin froze at that, shuddering slightly as she was thrown for a loop. "Me...?" she asked quietly.

Famine sighed. "All of this began with you, Robin. The reason for my existence... the reason for Rosan's... it all starts with you. You are the catalyst and even though you promised, you left me," he said flatly.

Robin shut her eyes at that. "You're not being fair Rosan. Just because we're in a relationship, doesn't give you the right to throw such hurtful words at me."

"Stop that. I know you don't see me as Rosan," Famine replied softly. "Just because I'm not him, doesn't mean I don't have all the innate qualities he has."

He watched her with those eyes that could always see more than he let on.

"You say that... but your words truly do hurt. I regret our separation even more than you do, Famine," Robin said finally, turning away from him with a shake of her head. "But regardless. Your trick won't work."

Famine tilted his head. "My trick?"

"Yes, your trick," she said flatly. "You pretend like you're a different person, but you're Rosan until the end. You think I'll allow you to push me away so easily?"

Famine paused at that.

Robin shook her head. "You want to make me hate you so that you can do what you plan on doing with no regret... but I won't make it so easy for you. I already said I won't turn my back on you no matter what... so do what you plan on doing knowing that eventually you'll come back to look me in my eyes."

The redhead faltered at that, staring at her with slightly wide eyes.

Then, he shook his head.

"Liar," he whispered.

Robin stared at him with piercing eyes, before placing a hand on his cheek. "You and I both know that you can detect lies. Who's the real liar here?" she asked knowingly.

Famine jolted out of her grasp and shook his head again, harsher this time.

Without another word, he vanished.

Robin watched him go and instantly sagged down, tired tears forming in her eyes.

She didn't know what was going on. In the first place, Robin hadn't even recovered from the sight of Rosan getting his midsection burned.

Robin wasn't in the right headspace to fix anything. She didn't know what to do at all. She just wanted to fall asleep in Rosan's arms but she couldn't because Rosan was nowhere to be seen.

Yet even despite that... she was left with the task of trying to speak to the Rosan who was not her Rosan...

The Rosan who reminded her of little Rosan. Beneath that somber and mature air... Robin could see it all.

How could she not try to help after that?

"You're so selfish," Robin said to herself. "Just the most selfish boyfriend in the world."

A palm rested gently on her shoulder and she saw the concerned Koala staring at her.

"I know I'm no substitute... but I'm not having the best time either," Koala muttered. "How about you just vent to me until... all this is settled?"

Robin said nothing for a long while before something broke.

"His heart is so big and he's so caring... that he just wants to keep everyone he loves happy and content. But he goes to almost any extent to achieve it, even at the cost of his own health. I love that about him but... a small part of me wishes he was more selfish," she confessed quietly.

Robin felt terrible feeling like this but Rosan was her best friend and boyfriend. Couldn't she be a little selfish when it came to him?

"I know Robin. It must be hard," Koala whispered.

His heart was always so big... but just like Robin at Water 7, Rosan had a hard time seeing how his actions might affect others in the long run.

She hoped he was okay... Robin hoped whatever happened, he'd be okay.

---

"How'd it go?" Pestilence asked curiously.

"...Not like I expected," Famine admitted with a grunt. "But it doesn't matter."

They nodded curiously. "Alright, it's time then."

The two made sure to lie on the bed and shut their eyes, instantly falling asleep.

---

"I can't say I'm surprised about this turn of events."

Mod looked at the duo with furrowed brows, a firm expression on her face.

There were no tears in her eyes anymore. She was no longer crying.

There was just resolve. Resolve to fix this issue.

She had been blocked off from seeing the outside world due to Rosan here and that had verified something to her.

This was Rosan in some capacity. He was the only one with more authority than her when it came to his body.

However, Rosan had still given her quite a lot of control... which was probably why this Rosan couldn't just outright seal her away.

No if he wanted full authority back, he had to go through the safety measures to achieve that.

Aka... fighting her. Mod was the firewall preventing these two from having complete control of this body...

And she would not give it up to them.

Rosan trusted her to deal with Pestilence, so that's what she'd do…

"Pestilence… all I wanted was for us to all get along," Mod said softly. "I thought that since Rosan gave me a new lease at life, you deserved the same…"

"And I got it," Pestilence interrupted. "I have Famine right here. He's all I need and you know what that means? It means you're in the way Modification."

Mod said nothing for a long while. "And what of you Famine? Is this truly what you want?" she asked carefully, peering at him with those knowing red eyes.

She didn't have to have Rosan's immense emotional intelligence, nor his keen eye. Her son would never be able to hide his desires from her.

Famine stared at her. "You left me Mod. Left me all alone."

Mod flinched slightly. "I didn't leave you, Rosan. I would never leave you," she said softly.

"Yet you didn't even know who I was," he replied quietly. "I was all alone... you were going to leave me all alone but Pe-chan saved me."

Mod's expression cracked slightly. "I didn't know, Rosan!" she exclaimed. "Even now, I don't know! I'm so confused! I don't know who you are! I don't know where Rosan is and I don't know what's going on!"

Famine glared at her. "It doesn't matter that you didn't know! You're supposed to know because you refused to let me know! You kept shielding me and forcing me to rely on you... how did you ever expect me to fend for myself when you disappeared."

"And not only that... you never even once planned on telling me about Pe-chan. You never wanted me to find out about them... so I was just supposed to suffer alone," he said coldly.

She wavered at that. Famine was saying all the things she had expected Rosan to say if he had his emotions.

"I'm sorry, Rosan. I thought you were just so young... I didn't expect you to be getting attacked even at that age," she whispered. "I thought I had more time to nurture you properly."

Famine stared coldly at her. "Mom thought that too and she died right before my eyes. You knew that and yet you still followed in her footsteps like a fool."

Mod felt her heart twist at that and she bit back the tears that were forming. "I just wanted what was best for you, Rosan. Rouge raised you so well so I thought—"

"She died when I was 4. She's the reason this mess started," he interrupted, shutting her down. "She's a damn liar. She looked me in my eyes and lied... and then she died."

Mod shuddered at that, gazing at the redhead with wide eyes.

"I was raised by a liar. A liar who kickstarted this spiraling descent," Famine said, fangs bared as anger crossed his features. "And then there's you. You're not a liar but you're just as bad as her because you hide things from me over and over again and you never plan on revealing them. I put my trust in all of you... but none of you EVER trusted me."

Mod stepped back at that, eyes wide and wavering.

Was this... what Rosan thought deep down? It was, wasn't it? That was why Rosan had stopped telling her things in the past 10 years... that's why he admitted to almost losing all his respect for her.

It hurt to hear all those things aloud... it was like speaking to the Rosan who had unleashed all the dissatisfaction that had been buried underneath his river of love.

"I'm not perfect. None of us are," Mod said firmly, wiping the tears. "Rosan of all people knows that no one is perfect... and yet he still forgave me for practically betraying his trust."

It hurt... but that didn't matter. It was a mother's job to care for her children, even when they were in their rebellious phase.

No matter the hurtful things they said... Mod would always be there for her children and this was her son.

"I won't let you have my son's body. You may be Rosan... but you're being guided down the incorrect path," Mod said firmly.

"I'll be the one to correct that and when you finally step back onto the right path, mother will be there waiting with her arms open. Because even if you become the worst person in the world, I'll be there for you."

The woman said nothing else, immediately vanishing from her spot.

Pestilence only had a moment to react, before a punch of all things landed on their cheek, launching them across the air.

The virus yelped in pain at the hellish strength behind the blow, righting themself with wild eyes, before glaring hatefully at Mod.

"I'll make you regret turning your back on me, Mod," Pestilence snarled.

"I apologize for that Pestilence. It was foolish of me... but there are more things for me to worry about then making amends with you at the moment," Mod said softly, purple sparks lighting across her skin.

Mod leapt back with her enhanced speed, avoiding the precise swing from Famine and glowed purple.

A rush of lightning shot out of her hand, careening towards the man and Famine flapped once, before flying away.

She didn't have access to Ram... her power had been reduced by a bit without the girl but that was okay because Mod had access to everything else Rosan had learned.

Famine summoned a wall of ice that blocked the brutal stream of purple flames, before he summoned an army of ice structures once more.

"My unique ability is kind of useless in here," Pestilence muttered, wiping the blood from their mouth as black miasma began rolling off of her.

"Does that truly matter?" Famine asked softly. "She cannot defeat us."

Pestilence grinned wildly, eyes pulsing with madness. "I love your confidence~!"

With that, Pestilence cackled madly and let their black miasma fly free.

"White Plague!" they shouted.

The black chaotic energy consumed everyone of Famine's constructs, painting the snow white creatures black and causing them to grow even more feral and faster in nature.

Mod took a deep breath and steeled herself. She stomped the floor and broke off a piece of the forest's floor, grasping it and transforming it into a lance.

The first thing to reach her was the painted wolves and Mod scowled, lunging forward with the long reaching lance.

The first was unable to close the distance, already getting speared through the mouth by the weapon.

A black inky fluid flew everywhere and she watched as it melted the ground of the mindscapes... but Mod was not deterred, ripping the weapon out and glowing purple with electricity.

"Livewire," she muttered, stabbing the floor with her lance and letting loose a heavy stream of the purple lightning.

She released the lance but the damage was done. The weapon was glowing with the immense amount of electricity, acting as the conductor and the lightning spread all across the floor.

The grounded creatures yelped, seizing up as they were immediately captured by the surging floor.

Pestilence and Famine leapt off the ground, white wings growing from the redhead's back as an inky western dragon flew under the white haired woman.

A familiar serpentine dragon looped around Famine, drenched in Pestilence's corrosive energy and it let out a distorted roar, black spittle flying out.

Famine looked unbothered, red eyes peering at Mod the entire time.

Pestilence grinned wildly, red eyes pulsing maniacally as they watched Mod deal with the grounded creatures.

"Don't bother summoning grounded," they muttered shortly.

"Noted," he said, air freezing around him as flying creatures made their presence known. In the rain of the mindscape, it was dreadfully easy.

Unfortunately, the rain of the mindscape didn't only benefit them.

Mod didn't even let the birds, bugs and bats take in their surroundings. Her eyes glowed brilliantly and she shot a hand into the sky.

A streak of electricity rushed out of the raised hand, rushing high into the sky and Mod's cold eyes latched onto them.

"Emp: Storm!" she shouted.

A thunderstorm formed immediately and rapid bolts of lighting began crashing. The entire sky lit up with the unnaturally colored electricity, riddling the structures created by Famine mercilessly.

Pestilence scowled in annoyance, summoning the black miasma and transforming it into something solid, holding it above their head as a shield. "Seems like she already has an answer for them," they muttered.

"I see," Famine mused. "Very well then."

The air froze around him once more, before forming into a pure white scythe and he grasped it with a single hand.

At the same time, the black miasma formed onto Pestilence's hands, transforming into dangerous sharp and giant claws.

They rushed her at once, storm hampering them greatly but Famine weathered it well in their stead, summoning a shield of white electricity that protected them both.

Mod saw their approach, lightning strikes crashing around her and she narrowed her eyes, black wings sprouting from her back as she flew away from the duo.

Famine's eyes narrowed and he upped his speed, rocketing past Pestilence to immediately close the distance.

He abruptly halted his flight as an inferno of purple flames launched towards him, forcing the redhead to fly out of its path.

By the time the flame dissipated, Mod was nowhere to be seen.

Famine's eyes narrowed, only to glow in rage as Pestilence let out a cry of pain.

He whirled around and saw purple sparks roiling off the virus, Mod behind her with a cruel glint in her eyes.

"You are the weak link," she said assuredly, eyes glowing with fury. "That's why you manipulated Rosan onto your side. To even the balance."

Pestilence snarled and swiped with their claws, meeting nothing as Mod ducked under the wild swing.

Mod retaliated with a swing of her leg, flexibly arcing it through the air from her crouched position and planting the foot directly onto Pestilence's face.

A spurt of blood was released from Pestilence's nose and they skidded back, clutching the appendage with a furious glare.

More black miasma solidified around their body and Pestilence growled ferociously.

They launched themselves at Mod, swiping wildly with their claws as the woman weaved through each one.

"Pe-chan, step back!" Famine shouted. "She's goading you in!"

Pestilence almost ignored the order but they listened just in time to leap back.

They watched with wide eyes as Mod exploded in purple electricity, the burst nearly catching and putting them out of the battle right then and there.

That snapped the virus out of their hazy rage and they leapt to Famine's side, reassessing the clinical Mod.

Right now this wasn't a Mod that could be pushed around. Every move she made was going for the kill... and she was approaching it in the most logical manner appropriate.

When it came to logic, Mod was undefeated in this body.

Famine's eyes narrowed slightly and he stamped the electrical ground.

Mod immediately took flight, avoiding the pillars of spiky ice surging from them. Her movement did not stop there however, as the substance on Pestilence exploding, black ropes lunging after her.

The woman flew threw the air, avoiding the tendrils to the best of her abilities as they tried to grab and wrap around her.

Unfortunately, all of them were inhabitants of the same body so Mod's lightning would never have full effect onto the duo over there. It was only good for keeping the constructs at bay...

But much like how the constructs were somewhat resistant to Maro's fire, so too were they somewhat resistant to Famine's lightning.

Mod let out a yelp of surprise, as a darting bird suddenly crashed into her.

The inky black bird began pecking furiously and Mod hissed in pain as the black splotches began burning her. If not for the fact that this was the mindscape, she'd be in far more trouble...

But that mattered little with who her opponents were.

The black tendrils wrapped around her legs and lifted her, causing Mod's struggles to renew. She let out a cry as they tightened around and burned her but it turned into a cough as she was dragged into a punch.

Mod felt the breath leave her at the impact, staring into the somber gaze of Famine.

She hastily reached out and grabbed Famine's arm, before opening her mouth.

The cough she let out at the breath leaving her, was replaced by a roar, as purple flames rushed out of her mouth and crashed into the redhead.

But it didn't stop there, so intense were the flames, that they incinerated the tendrils grasping her as well.

Mod was released, panting slightly as she clutched her midsection.

She knew that attack wasn't going to do a lot to Famine because he had used the ice dragon around his body to shield him, giving him enough time to don the scales of Ragnarok.

The Devil Fruit was proven correct as the flames were banished.

Famine grunted in pain, burns marking his skin where most people would be reduced to ash. The construct protecting him was nowhere to be seen, completely destroyed by Mod's Annihilation attack.

"Despite everything I said, I really don't like seeing the pain on your face," Famine whispered, ice encasing his body to dull the burns.

"I won't stop," Mod said resolutely. "Not until I figure out what happened to Rosan. Not until I stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life."

"I see," Famine said softly. "Very well then."

Mod didn't know what that meant but she suddenly summoned a wall to block the approaching inky fist.

The wall only lessened the impact, but the fist broke through regardless and crashed against the blocking Mod with crushing force.

Pestilence sneered as Mod flew through the air, before the woman landed on the ground. She tumbled repeatedly before a tail sprouted and jammed into the ground, halting her.

Mod panted, bruises all over. Her vision blurred slightly and she noted that her thunderstorm had stopped.

She leapt back as a spike of ice sprouted from beneath her, tearing her dress due to clipping her and the woman stumbled backwards as a claw attempted to smash her to the ground.

Pestilence was not deterred, leaping forward to close the distance and causing Mod to be put on the defensive.

Mod ducked under a swipe of black claws, only to grunt in pain as the inky black substance spiked out and lengthened, cutting into her despite the initial attack missing.

Pestilence was going to push their advantage, only for the sharp black tail to slap against their face, causing blood to spurt as she was crushed to the floor.

Mod was relentless, wrapping the tail around Pestilence's neck and squeezing.

Pestilence let out a raspy gasp at that, clutching at the appendage with one hand.

Mod exploded in electricity, shocking Pestilence greatly.

The virus howled in pain, before they outstretched their hand, gut punching Mod with a liquid-solid tendril in the shape of a bar.

Mod hunched over at the attack but persisted, electricity holding strong as she attempted to squeeze the life out of Pestilence.

It was not to be however, as a wolf lunged and clamped her leg.

She attempted to ignore it to the best of her abilities, up until another wolf clamped her other leg, while a final wolf crashed into her back.

Mod cried out, loosening her grip enough for Pestilence to break free.

With no regards for the wolves biting Mod, the furious virus backhanded her with a giant hand.

Before she could right herself, she was gripped tightly, bones creaking as the black hand gripped her with crushing force.

"Annoying bitch," Pestilence snarled violently, hoisting her up and slamming her down.

Mod saw stars at the first slam, but that turned into seeing splotches in her vision as the second came... and then the third and finally after the fourth, she was launched away with disdain.

"Give up, Mod. You can't win," Famine said, watching as she shakily pushed herself up, arms slipping and causing her to crash back down. "I don't want to hurt you anymore."

The Devil Fruit panted harshly, blinking rapidly as blood spilled down her head.

Despite that though, she pushed herself up, crying out as her body protested.

"I'll never give up. I'm the one who caused this mess… so I'll be the one who fixes it," Mod said eventually. "I won't let you have your way... Pestilence."

Pestilence scoffed and walked up to the practically defenseless woman, staring down at their former partner.

"You could join us you know," they offered. "Despite everything, I still have a love for you just like how you still had love for me. Why don't you just stop resisting and join us?"

"So I can be your trophy?" Mod countered harshly, spitting out blood as she clutched her ribs. "No thank you. My loyalties lie with the person who sees me as a person, not a whore," she spat.

Pestilence sighed and shook their head. "I never understood why people remained stubborn when facing death. I'm not gonna kill you or anything... but wouldn't you rather be free than imprisoned?" they asked curiously.

Mod glared at her, blood blocking her vision slightly. "It's not about whether I'm free or not. So long as I have something to fight for... I will always fight for it. As long as Rosan's in trouble, I will be there to save him. I am my son's keeper," she said resolutely.

Famine listened to her words and shut his eyes. "I'm your son too you know," he replied quietly.

Mod shook her head. "If you were truly my son... we would never have gotten to this point," she said softly, coughing more blood.

"...I see," Famine said simply, turning away from her.

"Last chance, Mod," Pestilence warned.

"...Pestilence," Mod said softly. "Go fuck yourself."

...

Pestilence clenched their jaw in annoyance at that.

"Wrong answer. Foolish to the end... you truly are his mother alright," Pestilence sneered, raising their claws up high to pierce Mod.

"A shame. You really would have been such fine eye candy."

The virus swung down, intent on impaling her and getting sweet revenge… but she was unable to because of the strong grip grabbing their arm.

Then, the virus let out a wheeze of pain, as a punch crashed against their sternum, launching them away from Mod.

"Pe-chan!" Famine shouted in surprise, eyes widening in confusion before he was summarily kicked in the face.

The redhead was launched back, catching himself and feeling his disbelief growing.

Mod, whose eyes were shut, slowly opened them in confusion at the short scuffle.

What she saw, brought a fresh surge of tears through her eyes and Mod let out a strangled sob of disbelief.

"Two on one is a bit unfair don't you think…"

Rosan's eyes blazed in fury, sharp teeth bared as he smashed a foot into Pestilence's side, causing the virus to get sent flying backwards.

"...Especially when the person you're fucking ganging up on is my mother!" he snarled furiously, genuine rage in his eyes at hearing the pained sobs of Mod.

Pestilence gasped in agony, as they were launched backwards, halting their flight as they were caught out of midair.

"Are you okay?" Famine asked gently, rubbing the spot they were kicked at gently as a scowl of fury formed on his face.

"I'm fine," Pestilence replied, pushing themself up in disbelief. "But how is he here?!" they shouted.

Rosan sneered and turned towards Mod.

The Devil Fruit was looking at him with wide eyes, tears spilling up as her bloody lips wobbled.

Seeing her like this... the redhead immediately hoisted and engulfed the woman in a deep and heavy hug.

"I'm sorry for being late, Mod-chan," Rosan said in that voice of his, squeezing her gently as regret laced his tone. "You got all hurt because you were defending me."

"I-I had to!" Mod stammered, feeling her emotions well up at hearing his voice again. "This was the mess I caused a-and I knew you were still out there."

"I'm glad you never gave up. I knew I could rely on you... To the end, you fought for me. Thank you for giving me time, mom."

Mod sniffed. "Of course, son. I'd do it all a million times if I had to..."

Mod couldn't hold it back and let out a sharp wail, tears spilling as she furiously hugged her son. She gripped him with all her might and placed a flurry of kisses all over his face, smothering the redhead in love and relief.

"R-Rosan!" she sobbed, threatening to sag in his hold. "I thought… I-I thought you were. W-When I saw what happened I just —"

Another sob ripped through her body and Rosan's gaze softened drastically, taking one eye of his enemies to gaze at his mother.

"I thought I was done for too," he said truthfully, tucking her protectively into his frame as he gently kissed her bloodied head.

"I'll explain what happened to me soon… but first things first…"

Mod sniffed and nodded, a fierce expression on her face as she stepped back and turned towards the nervous Pestilence and furious Famine.

"You," Famine snarled, eyes lit in fury.

"Me," Rosan replied easily, eyes smoldering with rage.

"Pestilence. I tried. I really did," Rosan said, red flames licking his injured body. "I tried to forgive you because that's what Mod-chan would have wanted me to do. That's what Meiko would have wanted me to do."

Famine flinched at that name.

"I offered to let bygones be bygones. You saved this body... and I thought maybe it was possible to coexist with you," Rosan said truthfully.

His expression darkened. "And then your head got too big for you. Now, I'm going to rip you to shreds. Limb from limb, bone to bone. I'm going to skin you until nothing remains," he promised, flashing his incredibly sharp teeth.

Pestilence shuddered at that, only for a figure to step in front of them.

"You aren't laying a hand on them," Famine snarled, eyes boiling.

Rosan stared at the person with his face, properly gauging them for the first time. "And who the fuck is this supposed to be?" he asked with a confused expression. "Making a copy of me? Did you really think that was going to stop me?"

"Copy...?" Famine whispered in quiet rage. "I'm not a copy, you thief," he hissed, temperature dropping around him.

"Thief...?" Rosan raised a brow again.

Mod tugged him slightly. "I... I don't know how Rosan. I thought Pestilence got to you first and fully corrupted but seeing you here now... I think you two are both Rosan. He... reminds me of you when you had no emotions a bit," she said slowly.

The redhead pursed his lips at that and gauged the man, noting those pure white wings on his back.

Wait... pure white?

Rosan's eyes widened in realization.

Oh... Oh! That's why it had been so impossible to open the castle!

"Mod-chan… do you remember all those years ago, when Luffy said a big piece of me is missing?" he asked her randomly.

Mod nodded in confusion, before her eyes widened in realization. "You mean he was talking about him?!" she asked in disbelief.

"I don't know how Luffy knew but yeah. I think this is what he meant," the redhead nodded, raking a hand through his air.

So that's what the castle was housing. It was holding another piece of him… and judging by those pure white wings…

"This might be where all my innocence went... that explains why my shift didn't seem abnormal to me despite feeling like it should," the redhead informed her. "I think this is my light half."

"Does that mean... you're the dark half?" Mod asked, shock set on her features.

So that's why his wings were pitch black… That's why Rosan had become so cruel.

That's why he grew to hate Robin so irrationally, there had been no love to balance out how hurt he was!

"It all makes so much sense!" Mod exclaimed, turning wide eyes towards Famine. "But then... then why does he act like this? If he's your innocence, not even Pestilence's influence should have changed him."

Rosan was mulling that over as well, until a keyword stuck out to him.

Thief.

"Ah, I get it," Rosan sighed, locking eyes onto Famine.

"What is it?" Mod asked.

The duo of Pestilence and Famine just watched, preparing for the next course of action.

"Mod-chan, what was the castle housing?" Rosan asked.

Mod's brows furrowed. "Your emotions."

He nodded. "But my emotions aren't just some ball of energy. Something had to house them."

"Yes... it was likely Famine housing all of them," she replied. Despite the situation, Mod did love bouncing things like this between the two.

"Right... but am I still emotionless?" Rosan asked curiously.

Mod immediately shook her head. "No... in fact you have nearly all... your... emotions," she replied slowly, realization dawning on her face.

"So what does this Famine have?" Rosan asked finally.

"Your emotions... they can't be in two places at once," Mod muttered. "So if I had to guess, when one gains, another loses. That would mean, that as you lost chains and gained your emotions back..."

"I lost them," Famine finished coldly.

Pestilence snarled. "You selfish asshole, discarding all those crushing emotions at your convenience and only taking them back when you feel like it," they growled in genuine hatred.

"You have no idea what Famine has gone through. You forced him into that castle, forced him to store your emotions and now you think you can just take them away whenever you want?!"

Rosan hummed at that. "I see now. We cannot exist at the same time," he said finally. "Because if we both exist, one of us are doomed to suffer."

"Exactly," Famine said, air solidifying around him as he grabbed the frozen blade out of midair. "And if I cease to exist, you will do whatever you want with Pe-chan. I cannot allow that to happen. I will fight you with all I have and regain what was rightfully mine."

Mod bit her lip at that, mind racing at the revelations.

"What are we going to do?" she asked turning towards her son, feeling so much more confident at seeing his fearless visage.

"What to do? We're gonna beat the shit outta them of course," Rosan promised.

Mod jolted at that, eyes wide.

"Light half this, thief that… they hurt you," he said darkly, red flames surging from his body as he tenderly held her cheek. "I won't let them get away with that. Just follow my lead, Mod-chan. We'll deal with the complicated stuff after."

This was why… this was why Mod would forever be eternally loyal to Rosan. Nothing would ever make her change her allegiance.

Rosan was hers and she was his.

"Okay!" Mod said, eyes glowing brightly as a fierce and cocky grin made its way to her face. "We'll figure out the complicated stuff later. For now, let's show them a glimpse of our teamwork!"

Rosan's grin matched hers and he locked his eyes onto both his opponents.

"Famine was it?" Rosan called. "Fitting. A person doomed to have things taken from them, until they are left starving. You have never felt fulfilled... that name truly does suit you."

The redhead's eyes flashed violently. "But I am War. I'll show you exactly why my title suits me."

Famine's anger grew at that, sculptures forming around him. "War you say... very well then, War. I will give you an army to fight against."

Rosan grinned cockily, unbothered by that. He simply slammed a fist against his palm challengingly.

"There's a reason I'm the one who took control of our body. You're too weak to handle the world that I've braved all these years. Now come. Be a good little brother and accept what's coming your way."

---

Bonus!

---

"So your siblings hate you?"

Raisa scowled at that, hammering away at her ship with more force than necessary, not that she realized.

A hand grasped hers and Raisa whirled around, baring her fangs at Cutter.

"Don't touch me," she hissed.

Cutter sighed at her prickly attitude, used to it by now. If she wasn't in a sour mood, she was sleeping and even then she was probably still in a sour mood.

"Hey, calm down Red—"

"I told you that my name is Raisa!" the princess barked in annoyance. "You're supposed to be helping me fix this ship, not prying into my fucking life!"

The black haired man held his hand up in a gesture of surrender. "I am helping you fix the ship. You were smashing the hammer too hard on it. Anymore and you would have damaged it instead of fixed it"

Raisa blinked at that, turning towards the spot she had been hitting and noting that it was looking close to splintering completely.

"..." Raisa ignored the way her face warmed and slammed the hammer on the floor.

"I'll be right back. I don't have time to deal with your bullshit," she scowled, transforming into her hybrid form to fly off.

She was not going to destroy that ship. Raisa knew what she was doing. She was a princess... she merely hit it with the best force necessary to speed up the process.

It was all calculated. Raisa never messed up.

"Raisa," Cutter called out.

The princess paused in frustration.

"What do you want?" Raisa bit out, turning to glare at the man who annoyed her to no end.

"You realize how completely unreasonable you act, right?"

She froze and realized Cutter wasn't smiling anymore. He was just looking at her with a disappointed frown.

"I don't know what your deal is but I didn't sign up to be a punching bag," Cutter told her calmly, crossing his arms. "I'm just on an isolated island, all by my lonesome, training. If you're really hellbent on acting like this, then you should probably leave. That would be the best for both of us. I'm sure you understand the basics enough to fix the ship on your own."

Raisa shuddered at that, eyes wide at his words. She felt a weird knot in her belly at that, not liking the feeling whatsoever.

"Wait..." Raisa mumbled, not expecting such things to be said to her. "You can't say that..."

She was a princess. Raisa didn't get rejected. Whatever Raisa wanted, she got. Such was her right as a princess. And if Raisa's status as a princess wasn't enough to deem her worthy, then her status as a fighter surely would.

Because Raisa was not only a princess. Raisa was a warrior.

The redhead ran things on both ends, through politics and might. If her words did not help, then her claws certainly would.

So how dare this random man try and talk to her like this?! How dare he look down on her? Who did this commoner think he was?!

"How dare you speak to me like that?!" she snarled, landing back on the floor immediately and glaring up at him.

Cutter was tall, an imposing 6'8 compared to her 5'11.

But Raisa would never allow herself to cowed by such measly physical traits.

She pressed a sharp nail against the man's chest, knowing she could poke a hole into him if she so wished. "Show me some respect! The nerve of you to speak to me like I'm trash! Do not lump me in with anyone else you may have spoken to!"

Cutter rolled his eyes, completely nonplussed by her attitude. "I'm speaking to you like a human being, Raisa. Learn to be a little more humble. You can't expect people to let you talk to them any type of way."

Raisa scowled. "I can speak to anyone I want in anyway I fucking feel like! What are they going to do about it?!"

"Nothing probably... but I guess that explains why you don't have friends," Cutter sighed.

Raisa's eyes went red in rage and she launched herself recklessly at Cutter. "You stupid son of a bitch! I'll show you why I have no friends!"

Cutter's eyes widened in surprise and he grunted as Raisa tackled him to the floor.

He felt a pulse of excitement at the immense strength she wielded.

"Do you have any idea what you're doing?" he asked, pushing her grabbing hands back.

"Getting ready to kill you! I have no friends because I am unmatched!" she snarled, purple eyes pulsing in time with her rage.

"I'm not gonna pull my punches, Red," he warned her one time only. "If it's a fight you want, then it's a fight you'll get."

"Good! I've been stressed and since you called yourself a punching bag, it's finally your time to prove me wrong!"

"AND MY NAME IS RAISA!"

---

Raisa and Cutter both panted, laying on the ground as bruises and cuts donned both their bodies.

"You're... not as worthless as I thought you were," Raisa admitted begrudgingly, feeling light at the thrilling and exciting battle.

"And you're a terrifying prodigy. You're only 16? Hard to believe." Cutter laughed disbelievingly, body thrumming from that.

"...The last person who couldn't believe I was 16 thought so for reasons that ended with me bisecting him... but yes. I am 16," Raisa admitted bitterly. "It's the reason my siblings hate me."

Cutter turned towards her at that. "Because you're talented?"

She nodded, refusing to let the sadness she felt show. "I was born exceptional... I always have been above my peers. At just the age of 6, I was capable of contending with my fathers guards. Once I ate my Devil Fruit, it was no longer a challenge for me."

Raisa scowled bitterly. "But my siblings were not the same as me. Neither were gifted at battle like I was. They weren't even capable of pushing the guards to break a sweat, like I could. My parents took note of that... I was given nearly all the attention that should have been split between the three of us."

It took Raisa awhile to realize how much they favored her. They had begun showing it to her at 5, when she was capable of comfortably defeating Oren in one on one combat despite his two year lead on her.

They had blamed Oren for being a man, even father because Father could not defeat Mother and Mother was the true ruler of that island. After all, it was unheard of for the Iris line to give birth to men. It did not help that Oren, while talented for his age, was unable to contend with his younger sister.

When Dalia had become eligible to battle, her parents had high hopes for Raisa's younger sister. Surely someone that was practically glued to the hip with their prodigy of a daughter, would show the same talents she had...

But Dalia didn't have that talent either. She was even weaker than Oren.

That was when her parents decided that Raisa would be the one to inherit the throne. That was when they decided to focus their attention onto just her.

She had been 7 when that happened. It was only at 9 did she realize her siblings were being neglected due to the attention Raisa was being showered in.

At the mere age of 9, Raisa took it upon herself to try and include her siblings into things. Due to her gifts and talents, her parents never truly had a problem when it was Raisa who wanted it...

She had always been nice to her siblings, but the princess had gone out of her way to try and make them feel loved.

Too bad it didn't do a damn thing at all. They still hated her until the end... Oren hadn't even said goodbye when he left two years ago.

Raisa doubted she'd even see her little sister when she arrived at Wisteria again.

"That's not your fault. You didn't ask for any of that," Cutter said suddenly.

Raisa jolted in surprise at that, staring at Cutter with wide eyes.

The man sighed and shook his head. "All of you are kids so none of you are to blame... but you're the only one who tried to make things right out of your entire family. You tried on your end but they refused... that's no longer your fault," he said reassuringly.

"...Really?" Raisa asked quietly, not believing what she was hearing.

Cutter chuckled and pat her head. "It's not on you anymore. You're a nice girl Raisa so your arms will always be open for them... so it's on them to mend your fractured relationship. You did your best but sometimes, you gotta let people walk on their own."

Raisa listened to his words and silently pondered them, feeling inexplicably warm.

"I'm... sorry for being such a bitch to you," she said eventually.

Cutter snorted and it broke out into abrupt laughter. "Kahahaha!"

Raisa felt a vein of annoyance form at that and snarled at him, smoke puffing out of her mouth warningly. "Stop laughing at me you damn bastard! I'm trying to make amends!"

Cutter kept laughing at her. "Sorry it's just... I didn't expect you to say that! You're a strange friend, Raisa!"

Raisa opened her mouth and shut it as she realized a smile was threatening to form.

"Friend?" she repeated.

He nodded. "Yeah, you clearly need a friend and I don't actually think anyone else would be able to deal with you, so I'll be your friend. You don't have to be so lonely anymore."

Raisa felt her chest tighten at that. "Friend..."

To her surprise, she felt tears welling up but she forced them down, lest Cutter think her a weakling.

Queen's weren't supposed to cry after all—

Raisa went still as she was pulled into a hug.

"It's okay to cry you know? I won't think any less of you," Cutter said patiently.

Raisa shuddered at that, before the floodgates opened and tears fell down her eyes. She cried silently, but the shudder of her body would not fool anyone.

"Thank you," she whispered, squeezing him.

Cutter pat her head gently. "Don't thank me. This is what friends do," he said bluntly.

---

Raisa looked at her repaired ship with a conflicted expression.

On one hand, she was proud because the ship looked perfectly fine... but on the other hand, it meant she had to leave.

Raisa wasn't sure she wanted to leave.

"Lot on your mind?" Cutter asked knowingly.

"Yeah," she said honestly, sounding far more casual than before. "It's a little bittersweet... I won't lie."

They had taken about 3 months to repair the ship completely and in that time, Raisa and Cutter had become quite close.

It felt good to have a friend. Raisa had never had one. Royalty did not need friends, they needed loyal subjects. That's what her parents hammered into her over and over again.

She had confided with him, they had trained with each other and Raisa had learned about a life that extended beyond being the inheritor of the throne.

It felt... nice. It was the best Raisa had felt in her entire life.

She was so glad to have met Cutter... which was why it hurt so much to say goodbye.

"Cutter I—" Raisa cut herself off abruptly.

She wanted Cutter to come with her but as much as she hated to admit this... Raisa just couldn't help him.

Raisa couldn't help that anger inside of him. She tried... she really did, but there was nothing she tried that stemmed that inferno inside of him that he hid so well.

Raisa wasn't emotionally intelligent enough to help Cutter. Being emotionally intelligent wasn't something one could learn... it was an innate gift.

Cutter was emotionally intelligent.

Raisa was not.

So she needed to say goodbye.

"Thanks for keeping me company. It's been a while since I had someone to talk to," Cutter grinned, patting her head.

Raisa shuddered, before she broke and pulled the man into a tight hug.

"Thank you for being my friend, Cutter," she murmured, shuddering slightly. "I... I appreciate it. I've never felt so happy so... thank you."

Cutter stared down at her, those gold eyes of his shining with an unknown emotion. Then, he smiled slightly.

"Of course, Red. Everyone needs a friend. Now that you know how to be a good one, go out there and make some more."

Raisa sniffed and squeezed him tightly again. "Let's meet each other again, alright?" she demanded, big purple eyes glaring at him.

Cutter noted that they were always glowing, regardless of if she were active or not. It made it look like she was always about to attack someone.

"Of course. I need to leave this place once in a while anyways," he said, releasing her.

Raisa nodded. "It's no good to have no friends," she scolded, floating up towards her ship. "You need to make some too!"

"Sure sure," he waved, golden eyes glinting in amusement.

Raisa grinned happily, wiping the slight tears. "Bye Cutter! Next time you see me, I'll kick your ass! I'll be the strongest around!"

"I look forward to it, prodigy," he announced.

She kept waving even as she left his line of sight and Cutter sighed, smile leaving his face.

It was nice to talk to someone once in a while. He hadn't spoken to anyone since he killed every inhabitant on this island.

Raisa... what a talented girl she was. She was a real monster with that Devil Fruit too.

"Back to training," Cutter grunted, turning away from the sea.

Roger wasn't going to just die by his lonesome. Raisa had been a great training partner over the months but he needed more.

A prodigy... Cutter wished he was a prodigy like Raisa was.

Life would have been far easier if so.

---

Hi hi! Hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will be the end of this saga as we wrap it all up! Hope you enjoy :)!

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Chapter 48: Rosan