Chapter 18

The Blue Phoenix

Chopper and the group had taken the snow leopard to a nearby hut, as Chopper worked on bandaging the snow leopard's scars, on his arms, and on his body when he took the ragged shirt off. A few scars were so severe they had to be stitched, with a little help from Hunter. "Those scars were really bad," he said, as Hunter brought a bag of fruit from the ship. "But with all those bandages, and some stitching done, you should be able to recover."

"And some fruit to help your starving state," Hunter said.

The snow leopard ate a dragonberry, as he said, "Thank you all. That stitching hurts, but it should help. I need lots of rest too."

"And that's what you need," Chopper said.

"You know, for a reindeer, you make a great doctor, knowing how to treat my wounds."

Chopper blushed. "I... I..." Then he began dancing, giggling. "Don't flatter me! That won't work on me! Nope, not at all!"

"Are you of the snow leopard tribe?" Usopp asked.

"Yes, I am. My name is Granstone, warrior of the snow leopards."

"Ah, nice name," Brook said. "Barlin-san would be happy to see you."

Granstone jumped with a gasped. "B-Barlin, you say?! Is he with you?!"

"Yeah, we came all the way to Dante's Freezer to look for survivors, and here you are," Franky said.

Granstone grabbed his head. "Oh, thank goodness... his father... we couldn't save him...! Oh, sweet ancestors, Barlin... please... bring him to me..."

"I already took care of that," Hunter said, as Luffy and the others came in.

Barlin gasped to see Granstone. "Granstone!" He exclaimed, stepping in. "Oh, thank the ancestors! All that time ago, I thought I was the last one of the tribe!"

Granstone's eyes tear up. "Oh, Barlin! I was afraid you and your father were goners...! Oh, your father... I couldn't save him...!"

"I know... I miss him..." Then Barlin cleared his throat. "But if you're here, does that mean... are they still alive?"

"Most of the tribe was massacred, but the rest of us were kidnapped as slaves to the Dark Master Malefor, in the crystal wasteland where we had suffered from intense labor and pain, with scraps of food that kept us hungry. But after hearing about Malefor's defeat, we had managed to fight back, and had escaped the wasteland, by raft. But our raft was soon destroyed by a giant prison ship that came to the dragon world."

"A prison ship, you say?" Raymond asked.

"They call it the Great Prison. It is a gigantic ship that is built to hold lots of prisoners, even dragons. It is heavily guarded by rats, apes, even those who once served Malefor. But I do not know who built that ship, nor has it ever existed in the dragon world for some time. We were captured and held as prisoners. But I had broken my chains and escaped, using a boat to make my getaway. All the others, they're still prisoners on that ship."

"Great Prison? I never heard of that when I once served Malefor," Cynder said.

"Neither have we," Spyro said. "Something doesn't seem right, but I think that ship might have come from another world."

"Probably from the same barrier we went through," Nami said. "If only we knew how to get back home..."

Then the group heard a loud boom outside the hut. They ran outside, and they saw the rats invading the village. Among them is a small rat with wood armor.

"Ha ha ha ha! We're back!" The rat said.

"Damn, it's those rats," Franky huffed.

"They must've found the door to our village," Barlin said.

"You guys are so easy to follow," the small rat said. "Your footprints were easy to track, my nose picks up your scents, and by golly, were you so easy to follow!"

"You just said that twice in a sentence," Zoro said.

"So? It gives me character! I am Squeaky, the smallest but strongest pipsqueak of the Rat Tribe!"

All was quiet. Luffy suddenly sputtered and exploded into laughter. "His name! It's funny!" He fell on his back, kicking his feet and pointing at Squeaky.

"How dare you laugh at my name?!" Squeaky shrieked, his face red with anger. "I'll have your head for that!" He pulled out his axe and charged as he jumped forward. "Time to chop!" He swung to attack Luffy, but Zoro quickly rushed in and blocked the attack with his swords.

"You're gonna have to go through me first!" Zoro said.

"Not if I beat him first!" Sanji said, jumping in and kicking Squeaky.

"Hey, he's mine!" Zoro yelled.

"Screw you, moss head, I hit him first!" Sanji yelled back.

"I saved our captain from getting cut up, so screw you!"

The two glared at each other as they growled.

"This is no time for that stupid rivalry!" Nami said.

Squeaky got up. "Get them all! Capture them!" He yelled out.

The rats charge in for an attack. Spyro and Cynder charge in as they use their claws, before Spyro tackled one rat.

Zoro held his swords as he put the third one in his mouth. "Alright, let's see how you guys handle my swords. Three-Sword Style: Tatsu Maki!" He swung his swords as the tornado hit the rats.

Raymond held his blades as he fought with a rat, before he swung his blade, sending a swirling flame that hit the rat. "Ha! Flames really rock," he said.

Luffy had managed to calm down after a while of laughing, when he saw Squeaky jump in.

"I'm gonna make you suffer for laughing at me!" Squeaky yelled as he held his axe.

"Collier Shoot!" Sanji said, kicking Squeaky with his leg as Squeaky flew and crashed on a wall. "Luffy, you gotta learn that not all enemies are something to laugh at."

"But his name is so funny it fits him well," Luffy smiled.

Barlin shot magic from his scepter, as streaks of silver hit the rats. Granstone ran to grab a staff made with wood and stone, as a rat jumped in.

"There's no point in breaking free, prisoner," the rat said. "Give up and return to the Great Prison."

"Never!" Granstone yelled, grabbing the staff.

The rat pulled out his own staff, and the two fought with the clashing.

The rats ran toward Robin, but she just crosses her arms as the arms sprout and grab them. "Guess you hadn't learned. Try my Dos Fleur, and Clutch!" She moved her arms, and the arms bent the rats with bone cracking sounds as the rats screamed.

A large rat with a club stomped toward Nami as she held a segment of her Clima-Tact at him. "Don't make me use this," she said as a bubble appeared.

"Ooh, you gonna blow bubbles at me with that? What a laugh!" The large rat laughed.

"I warned you. Gust Sword!"

The bubble popped, and a gust of high pressurized air hit the large rat as he yelled out and went flying backwards, crashing on the ground.

The rats started running toward Luffy, as one of them yelled, "Ratsono wants you and that snow leopard with the alchemy! You're coming with us!"

Luffy got on his feet and charged. "No way in hell I'm turning myself in without a fight! Gum-Gum..." He jumped in the air. "Stamp Gatling!" He threw a barrage of multiple kicks as he hit the rats.

"Heavy Point!" Chopper said, changing to his human muscular body form, as he punched and kicked some enemies, and another large rat with a club charged in and swung it. "Heavy Gong!" He said, punching the club as it hit the rat in the face.

Brook saw a bunch of rats charging at him and ran, as he passed through them, holding his sword, as he started sheathing it. "Three-Verse Humming: Arrow Notch Slash!" He sheathed his sword with a clack, and the rats screamed when slashes appeared on them, and they collapsed.

"Extra Hachis!" Sanji said as he threw multiple kicks at an armored rat. "And Collier Shoot!" He kicked the rat's neck as he flew and hit the rats.

"Weapons Left!" Franky said as he fired bullets with his left arm.

Usopp aimed his Kuro Kabuto and fired a Pop Green at the rats. "Green Star: Bamboo Javelin!" The rats screamed when bamboo shot up from the ground and hit them.

"Alright, enough is enough!" Squeaky said, as he and the other rats brought in a catapult and loaded it with stones. "Fire!"

The rats pulled the rope, and the catapult fired stones.

"Look out!" Hunter called out.

Just then, a flaming blue phoenix came rushing in, hitting the stones as they break apart. Everyone was surprised, as the phoenix landed on the ground and transformed, revealing a man with a purple jack and a blue sash with a gold belt, knee long pants and sandals, with blonde hair and a sleepy look. On his chest is a tattoo with a cross and a crescent moon symbol, and on his leg he wears some straw decoration.

"Wow, who is that guy?" Sparx asked.

Squeaky gasped at the sight of the figure. "It can't be," he cried. "Anything but Phoenix Marco of the Whitebeard Pirates!"

"No way! It's you!" Luffy exclaimed.

Marco grinned and said, "Long time no see, Straw Hat. I'm glad you're alright." He scowled at the rats. "But we'll talk later, once we take care of this pest problem." His arms blaze into flaming wings, as he flew with his feet changing to talons.

"Am I seeing this? How does he do that?" Raymond asked.

"You would have changed forms if you have eaten a Zoan Devil Fruit," Zoro said.

Raymond did a sharp inhale. "Right, I forgot that part."

"Don't just stand there, rats! Capture them!" The muscular rat yelled.

The rats charge in, as Barlin quickly used alchemy powers, turning a piece of metal into a catapult. "Use the catapult, Granstone! We fight fire with fire," he said.

"Gladly!" Granstone said, loading stones into the bucket, and he pulled the rope as the stones were tossed at the rats.

"Let go of me!" Cynder yelled as a muscular rat grabbed her.

"Cynder!" Spyro cried, as he ran and tackled the muscular rat, but he grabbed him too, as they both squirmed.

"You two will make fine prisoners of the ship," the muscular rat said, but he screamed when Marco flew in and kicked him in the gut, as he dropped Spyro and Cynder.

Spyro shook his head and looked at Marco. "Thanks. Your name Marco?"

"That's me. I was First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates."

"So you're a pirate too. I'm not surprised," Cynder said.

"Hey, stop talking!" The muscular yelled, getting up. He charged to attack, but screamed when Cynder hit him with her poison.

Spyro charged and tackled the muscular rat, only he rubbed his head from a hard impact. "That hurt."

Sparx flew to him and said, "What, you just hurt your head hitting someone so strong and muscular? And I thought you were strong."

"You'd feel the same way if you were in my wings, Sparx," said Spyro.

Squeaky jumped in with his axe. "Who cares? You'll make perfect prisoners, even you, Marco! Too bad your captain is dead now and can't protect you!"

Marco glared and said, "Seems like you rats hadn't learned a thing when we bested you all those years ago."

"And that's why we of the Rat Tribe hate pirates like you." He then jumped, raising his axe. "Time to chop!"

Marco switched to his hybrid form, wings and talons, and flew as he blocked the attack with his Haki, and he spun around as he kicked Squeaky, sending him flying and crashing on the ground.

The rats fired more stones from the catapult, but Raymond flew in and knocked the stones with his karate moves. Then he used his gauntlets to attack the rats, before using earth and fire powers to destroy the catapult.

Squeaky angrily got up. "Get them! Get them all!"

But there was no respond. He looked around, and he gasped to see all the rats were knocked out, and he saw everyone surrounding him. He crawled to his axe, when Zoro held the sword to his face and said, "I wouldn't grab that, if I were you. You guys have already lost fair and square."

"You don't scare me, Pirate Hunter," said Squeaky.

"It's time we wrap this up," Barlin said, and he shot magic from his scepter, as iron chains wrapped around Squeaky like a birthday present.

"Hey! No fair! We were supposed to win!" Squeaky yelled, squirming around.

Luffy fixed his hat as he said with a scowl, "If you were to have a good team, you would have. But you guys were no match for us either way." Then he stretched his arms backwards. "Game over, Squeaky! Gum-Gum..."

Squeaky started panicking and squirming. "No, no, wait, mercy! Please! Don't do this to me!"

"Bazooka!"

Luffy launched his arms and hit Squeaky with his hands, as Squeaky went flying out of the cavern and into the sky, his scream echoing into the distance. Some of the Straw Hat Pirates put their weapons away, as the battle was over.

"I say, how did much of you have such powers?" Granstone asked. "I never saw moves like those before."

"Let's just say some of those have Devil Fruit powers," Nami said. "These fruits give powers, but those who eat them lose their ability to swim."

"And some of us have our own powers, like my Three Sword Style moves," Zoro said.

"And my Black Leg Style moves," Sanji said, smoking his cigarette.

"I see. How did you humans come to our world anyway?"

"From some kind of barrier that brought us here," Usopp said. "And now we're trying to head back to our world."

"I believe there is a way to get you all back to your world," Barlin said, "but after such a tremendous battle we had with the rats, we shall lay low for now."

"Yeah, I'm exhausted," Raymond said. He turned to Marco and said, "I would like to know about you, since we just met during the battle."

Marco formed a grin. "I'm sure you will. I have quite a story to tell."