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92.22% One Piece: Path to Power / Chapter 162: [162] A Hammer of Vengeance

Chapter 162: [162] A Hammer of Vengeance

[3930 words]

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"Hammer told me, just days before he was killed, that his son was enslaved before his very eyes. That son… that's you, isn't it? Quentin Kraft!"

Upon hearing his name, Kraft found the energy to move his head toward the mystery pirate. In turn, his own face was also discernible now. 

He was in his late twenties, though due to the conditions of the Starvation Hell, he was at death's door: dried-up and cracked skin, pale and haggard face and protruding bones from the lack of food and water. His condition also highlighted the many scars decorating his back and chest. Whips, stabbings, and burn marks were the primary contenders. 

.

Damien smiled at the sight of the man's attention. "I'm going to set sail under my own crew very soon, but no crew can be without a ship, and no ship can be without a shipwright."

"Do you want to get out of here, Kraft?" the pirate questioned. 

The broken man, Quentin Kraft, closed his eyes; his breathing had spiked more than his dried heart could support. 

He remembered how the previous decades had gone; it all came back within a few sentences that determined his fate…

"You damn brute! How dare you refuse a God! Cipher Pol…enslave this brute's son for me, hehe, now you'll know the price of disrespecting a Celestial Dragon! Your entire island will have my fury!"

He remembered his father's distraught face while chains were placed around his limbs and a remote explosive to his neck.

Years passed while he was marked with the Claw of the Dragon on his back and assumed the role of subhuman. His daily life consisted of being subjected to the whims of a Saint who was particularly fond of pushing the limits of human pain.

"Ehehehe! That's it. Get to work! If you wanna blame anyone, blame your pops, brat! Once you're old enough, I'm gonna make you carry me on your back like the dog you are!"

The snapping whip on his back and the electric baton jamming into his chest had become normal. And as he grew older, his saintly owner grew bored.

"Cheh, you're so tiny… I hoped you'd go big and burly like that Hammer guy. What a pity. Cipher Pol! I'm tired of this toy. Let him think over his father's sins in Impel Down!"

And just like that, three mandates uttered by a god had damned him in Starvation Hell. But it also allowed a certain Underworld Emperor to find his traces and report it to the Sin Incarnate…

.

Years of chains and scars had hardened him, but this—the faint promise of revenge—brought a tremor of life back to his broken spirit. Each lash, every dark memory branded across his back, burned anew, pulling him into the present.

"Revenge," Kraft mouthed, the word barely audible but weighted with decades of torment.

Damien hummed, unsurprised.

It was a simple yet powerful reason to persist in life in the One Piece World. Though it seldom ended well.

With a nod, the Sin Incarnate replied, "I can give you a chance at it, but a wise man once said, 'Know before embarking on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.'"

Watching from the side, Ares seemed quite pleased by the words and nodded. "A good saying. Which wise man said it?"

"Didn't I just say it?"

"…" Ignoring his speechless father, Damien extended his left arm through the gaps of the prison bars.

"You may feel life slipping away now," he said, his voice calm, "but consider this your chance to reclaim it." In his hand appeared a Devil Fruit, deceptively simple in appearance—a bright red apple with faint, mystical swirls that concealed an unimaginable power.

.

The apple fell in the eyes of the lifeless Kraft, bringing a yearning fire to break.

"Zoan-type, Human-Human Fruit," Damien introduced the ability he got from Wano. "Mythical Model of the First Man Adam."

"It will return your weak and withered body to its very peak of humankind. Follow me from now on, and I'll give you what you seek."

The magnetic words drew Kraft's attention, replaying again and again in his mind.

He had been here for over a decade, drying away and turning into a living corpse. Now, there was the bright light at the end of the tunnel, yet it was so bright that it left him apprehensive.

A string of life flooded out from his chest and came in the form of words, escaping his mouth that was as dry as a camel's tongue in the middle of a desert.

"A-Am I selling my soul to a demon…?"

Damien narrowed his eyes with a curious smile. He could sense that Kraft held some prejudices against pirates, credit to his childhood years. Yet all that precipitated significant loss and broken dreams, which were easy to exploit.

*Thwung!* The door flung open as the undying pirate entered, holding the mystical apple in the shrivelled-up Kraft's face.

The broken man's eyes locked onto the Devil Fruit while the voice of his 'saviour' echoed in his mind: "Once you're in hell, only the devil can help you."

"!!!" Kraft suddenly forgot the pain and weakness as every fiber of his being was commanding him to reach out.

An image of the burly and brash Quentin Hammer came to mind, forever telling his boy to seek great heights. "You worry too much, kid! If you want something, just go for it! I raise you in hopes you can forge the vessel to tame the seas! Dream a little!"

And so he did.

The bony hand slowly reached out from the floor, stretching with audible cracks and creaks as the fingers cupped the fruit. With great zeal, Kraft placed the apple in his mouth and bit down.

'You're gone…but won't dishonour your memory, old man!'

*Munch* The overpowering and disgusting taste was ignored as Kraft had no energy left to comment on it.

Bite after bite, he gulped down the fruit.

.

Damien returned to his father's side, patiently watching as the fruit disappeared into the prisoner. Ares smirked in appreciation of Kraft's determination. "I like this one," he applauded.

"!!!" 

A surge of life suddenly churned in Kraft's body.

The pulsating feeling rang down his entire body, from his muscles to his tendons and bones. His heartbeat drummed without stop, boasting great strength and rejuvenation. Vitality returned to Kraft's face as the deep shrivels and cracked skin began to mend, springing with life.

His bone-like arms swelled, his deflated chest popped, and his entire body began to grow. The seas of scars decorating his back and chest faded and faded until they disappeared—he was reborn!

He stood up, feeling the strength and energy coursing through his veins. Kraft also felt much taller, and it was true. He jumped from a measly 6' 2" to a somewhat respectable 8' 2", growing two feet (1.88 m → 2.49 m)!

The great shock was visible in his eyes as he muttered, "I-I can speak without losing my sense of thought, all these years of torture from this terrible heat… All remedied within moments…"

Damien nodded at the fruit's magical nature. "Adam was said to have been the best of humans. You are now the first human personified, granting you vast talents in all fields, boosting a normal person like yourself into something truly special."

Kraft heard the unbelievable words and had no choice but to believe them. He looked past the bars of the cell and met his saviour's eyes. "Although I don't know who you are and what you plan for the seas… I will fulfill my promise! My old man's legacy lives with me now!"

"..."

Damien examined the reborn Kraft. He had short silver hair that was kept upwards. His face was of a young man, brimming with life.

"Your father did what he dreamed of: he built a ship that could carry the pirates that would burn the World Government down."

Kraft listened in silence, allowing the pirate to continue. "But that dream of his was forged under the embers of the hellish life he had to endure after your capture. An honest dream darkened into hatred for the World Government, corrupting his mind."

"Much like his dream, the Titanic he made was brought down in a blazing glory."

Damien sighed, his eyes filled with sympathy. "Though I can respect a man dying for his greatest wishes, I also can't help but think what a waste of life it is." He glanced at the quiet Kraft, "I'm not asking you to swallow your anger at the World Government; just don't let it define you."

"Unlike the Titanic, I want something that can not only face off against the might of the World Government but also a ship that can sail into the eras to come, conquering everything in their wake!"

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump*

Damien walked into the cell again, standing arm's distance from the reinvigorated Kraft, looking down at the much shorter man.

"So tell me, Quentin Kraft. Can you do that?"

A bright fire lit up in the man's eyes as he heard the booming remarks. The lost passion and dreams returned in waves, washing Kraft away into a sea of ambition.

His blue eyes grew firm, ultimately accepting his newfound identity. "I'll do it!" he loudly proclaimed.

Damien hummed, noticing the burning fire in the man's eyes.

"Alright then," he replied, exiting the cell. "My name is Einar D. Damien, call me Captain from now on."

.

The two made their way out of the torn-up cell, bathing in the starving heat of the floor.

Boom!

A thick hand slapped Damien's back, ringing it like a gong. "I must say, you have an eye for talent!" Ares laughed.

"You don't have to infuse Haki to pat my back," the younger pirate quipped.

Damien then began walking away, caring little about the groans and wails from the cells nearby. Ares was just as casual, staying at his son's side.

Kraft gulped at the desolate land, somewhat stunned. "Are we… just going to walk out?"

"Keep up now."

[Floor One]

Crimson Hell was known for its needle grass and blade trees, which made it a living hell for its prisoners. However, the current battle had terraformed it into a flat plain.

"Morararara!"

The giant Mors walked through a horde of jailers, breathing in the duel with great enthusiasm. 

"Brother, w-what are you doing!?"

The exchange took place between two brothers, both jailers. 

"Auhhh!" The older one slashed at his biological brother with a swish, cutting his head off. 

"No, Nooo! H-How did it turn out like this?" the sibling killer murmured, his face pale.

Such things took place throughout the floor: fellow jailers turned on one another, cutting and shooting each other. Yet after each kill, the killers would weep and cry from their actions. 

"I-It's the escaped convict. He's doing this!"

The veteran jailer rushed through the area, slashing his weapon at the enemy five times taller than himself.

His swinging sword gave birth to a geyser of fresh, warm blood. It exploded like a fountain, bathing the jailer with crimson juice. 

"I-I got him!" he celebrated with crazed eyes.

*Wururu* However, the man was a little taken aback by the endless sea of blood bursting from his disintegrating enemy, swirling like it had a mind of its own.

"You fool, he's obviously an ability user!"

Before the jailer could react, a swarm of warm blood spiralled into the shape of Mors, standing behind his attacker. 

"Aughh!"

The man cried in pain as a red spike burst out from his chest, holding him to the sky while his insides fell to the outsides.

"Morararara! I haven't taken a life in thirty years!!!"

Bullets fired, swords slashed, yet the pirate simply reformed, cutting apart his enemies. 

.

While the jailers were distraught from the Bloodspawn's carnage, another fellow escapee was making her move: a bright flare suddenly went off, pure white in colour, blinding a battalion of guards on the other side of the floor. 

"He's having too much fun," a woman's voice broke out. "Logia-type: Blood-Blood Fruit—it's quite the primal ability."

It was Herja who was watching Mors' massacre.

The most obvious power of the Blood Fruit was that it gave its users control of the blood of others, bending it to their will.

"I suppose I cannot blame him for letting loose… Those cuffs were unnecessarily tightened." The woman turned back to her battle, bringing up great holiness from her body.

"My eyes!"

"So bright, it's brighter than my future!"

The blinding light came with a burst of energy, taking the guards into the air and instantly knocking them out. 

"S-So beautiful…!"

"She's an Angel!"

"Maybe we should let her free!"

The jailers watched in horrified awe as Herja's form shifted, her pale skin illuminating with an ethereal glow that seemed to cast the shadows back. Majestic wings unfurled from her back, feathers sharp and shimmering with gold as if forged from celestial fire. Her armour gleamed like molten metal, and as she rose, a crown of light erupted above her, casting a blinding halo that seemed almost too pure, too divine for the darkness of their prison. 

[Transformed Herja Image (in Discord)]

A tormented Ponos arrived to see two Level Six disasters obliterate their way through Crimson Hell, leaving hundreds of his men dead.

*Clack* The cane tapped the floor, carrying the hunched weight of the Chief Warden. "Such a combination of devastating pirates. Truly an unforgivable mishap on my part."

Before anyone knew it, all but Ponos was left to deal with them on this floor.

"I will die before you can step foot beyond the walls of Impel Down," he declared, his aged body coiling with an eerie purple glow. 

"Suit yourself," Mors quipped back, grinning savagely, his crimson skin pulsated with warmth.

At the same time, a wave of unease flashed on the Warden's face. 'Have they not yet received my emergency message?'

Herja, who was truly a sacred existence, couldn't help but smile with disdain. "Stalling is useless. I've jammed all your signals to Marineford with my light. No one will come to save you."

Ponos' grip over his cane tightened, much like the noose around his neck. "I assumed your ability would have run dry after all these years since your capture…"

The Fallen Angel bloomed with a proud smile, waving her divine wings. "My Faith-Faith Fruit may be bound by my followers, but what gave you the illusion that the Valkyrie Pirates were my only worshipers?"

The angel moved aside a few loose strands of her platinum-white hair, locking onto the lanky Warden, "The Celestial Dragons aren't the only ones who can make the fools of the Outer Seas accept their divinity."

"…" a grim air befell the floor, followed by a sigh from Ponos.

"Come on then." Ponos' eyes sharpened as he shot forth, his cane swinging with a violet light.

"Don't get in my way, Herja!" Mors smirked, slamming his maroon fist forth, carrying the weight of three decades of tolerance.

BAM!

Three more escapees soon arrived at the scene of the crime.

Damien stood with his father to his left and a changed Kraft to his right. 

The Sin Incarnate clicked his tongue at the devastation. What used to be a nightmare filled with prickly red needled trees to torment its inmates had quickly transformed into a flatland of dust and debris.

At its core was a disfigured Ponos embedded into a crater with a tree spiking out from his chest. His supposed murderer, Mors, stood tall with bruises over his fists. 

"The all-powerful offscreen Haki," Damien said under his breath.

"Impel Down has been inescapable since it was built. Their guard had dropped in quality," the giant man stated, calming down the blood surging through his veins.

The angelic Herja was as proud as she was divine in her angel form, gracefully floating in the air. She was the first to notice the anomaly: "Ponos. You're still breathing?"

The miserable Warden opened his tired eyes, feeling the metallic taste in his mouth, but it was the least of his worries.

"Hoh? As expected of the Pain-Pain Fruit… its user is also a tough egg to crack."

.

A sudden, desperate cry resounding across the first floor attracted everyone's attention: "Leave him alone!"

It came from a child no more than ten years of age. He was awfully tall for his age, the youth reflecting off the stoic face. 

Kraft narrowed his eyes, recalling whispers he heard while being locked up. "I heard Ponos was raising a kid he found floating in the Calm Belt. He has grown up."

"M-Magellan!" Ponos managed to speak. "I told you to stay put…!"

Damien hummed at the child, who shared a striking resemblance to the future Warden of Impel Down. 

"You want to stop us, kid?" 

The tall child harrumphed, his face turning furious.

*Gurrup* Thick purple miasma began coursing out of his body, falling onto the floor with a sizzling sound—it was pure toxin! 

"Oh, another crowd-control ability," Ares said with a smirk. 

*Szzz* The thick purple fluid flowed from the boy's pores, bubbling with harrowing sounds. 

"Morarara, this brat has balls, but he is far away from playing at this stage."

Damien glanced to the side, "Show me what you can do with that rifle."

Naturally, the man he was talking to was Quentin Kraft. 

Kraft, who had ransacked the jailer's locker room to find some more comfortable clothes, sporting a brown jacket over a white shirt. Gray cargo pants with dark boots and gloves. 

Around his head was a bandana and goggles, pushing up his silver-coloured hair. He had also picked up a vintage weapon, a sniper rifle, from a guard's locker.

[Quentin Kraft Image (in Discord)]

.

"My old man taught me to shoot at pirates before they could make land decades ago. For some reason, I feel like I can shoot a hundred times better now," he muttered to himself. 

The rifle was aimed at the bubbling Magellan, Kraft's bright eyes shining through the scope. His concentration sharpened far beyond what a normal human could.

Bang!

A shot lacking hesitation, zooming across and nailing the monstrous Magellan in the chest. 

*Splash*

A burst of purple poison ate up the bullet. 

But it wasn't over yet. 

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Kraft's aim was top-notch. There was not even a single degree of visible recoil. He pulled the trigger in a continuous and fluid motion, sending out three shots. 

The poison exploded once more, slowly deepening the crater forming at Magellan's chest. 

"Guns don't work on me!" Magellan roared, rushing ahead with his monstrous figure. 

Kraft felt the impending threat, yet oddly enough, his hands were even more stable, his eyes firmer. Without conscious thought, his fingers danced over the rifle, reloading with an effortless speed and mastery honed over countless battles. "He could've fooled me as a Logia..."

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

The rate of fire was more accurate than any robot could impose, and the precision of each bullet was flawless. 

Each projectile hit the exact same mark at Magellan's sternum, slowly digging deeper and deeper through the thick coat of poison. 

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Three more shots and the copious amounts of the corrosive liquid had splattered enough to open a small window where Magellan's chest was exposed.

Bang!

One last shot and the blitzing figure of Magellan paused in the air. "Ugh!" The young boy groaned, feeling a hole in his torso. 

He clawed at his chest, which began dripping with fresh blood. 

"Y-You!"

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

The bullets found their way past the gaps of the poison-flooded fingers, digging their way into the future Warden's chest and lungs. 

Magellan collapsed, his body falling with a loud clang. 

"…"

Kraft lowered the sniper rifle, shock visible on his face. "What the hell…" he murmured. 

*Smack* Damien's giant hand slapped his back, ringing him like a bell. "I told you that fruit bumps all your qualities to superhuman levels. Looks like your affinity with guns is pretty good."

His Captain's words brought Kraft out of his reverie. He slightly nodded, his mind swelling with shock, "Devil fruits really are truly incredible."

Ponos gnashed his teeth, finding the strength to raise his broken right arm in Magellan's direction. Each movement sent jolts of agony through him, but he forced his focus, channelling the depths of his pain.

.

"...Sorrow Step."

.

As he locked onto Magellan, the weight of his sorrow became a conduit, allowing him to bend reality just enough to fade Magellan from his place, teleporting him away in a surge of tortured willpower.

"You still have that much energy in you!?" Mors grumbled, slamming his giant foot onto Ponos' stomach.

Damien watched it all, examining the Pain Fruit user saving his pupil. With curiosity, he ambled ahead, walking till he was a meter from the grunting Warden.

"You channelled your grief and emotional pain from losing your protege, allowing your fruit to undo your worries…" he surmised, crouching down to look the man in the eyes. "Is that your Awakening?"

"That boy is the future of Impel Down… My death means little. Now go ahead and end me, pirate scum."

The Sin Incarnate chuckled at the man accepting death. "Don't worry. Your ability will not be forgotten like your life is soon to be."

The others watched Damien extending his arm toward the fallen jailkeeper.

The cracking skin followed by the absurd sight…

"It will never cease to amaze me," Herja sighed, shaking her head in envy as she saw Damien extract the Pain-Pain Fruit.

.

Meanwhile, Ares was having a discussion with the triumphant Kraft. "You can take down a brat, but without training, that talent is useless against real enemies."

The silver-haired escapee deeply exhaled, glancing at the Blood-human and Angel-woman next to his Captain. "Right… I'm still no match for the real monsters."

Damien extricated himself from the dead Warden's crater, addressing Kraft as he walked over: "I came looking for a shipwright and found a sniper and shipwright combo. It's not a bad find."

"Let's go outside now."

The band of pirates walked right outside with no care in the world.

As of now, Damien could be compared as the top-level threat in the world and was backed up by the likes of Ares, Mors and Herja; their combined power was enough to tear apart the New World.

With a firm nod, Damien led the group toward the exit, the oppressive darkness of the prison behind them. They stepped through the heavy doors, the chill of confinement fading as the distant sounds of the sea grew louder.

As they crossed the threshold, the blinding light hit Kraft like a wave, washing over him with warmth and vibrancy. The stark contrast from the cold, damp air of the Starvation Hell to the bright, sunlit world outside was overwhelming.

"I haven't tasted fresh sunlight in twenty years!" Kraft fell to his knees as they clanged onto the wooden floor.

Kraft inhaled deeply, the fresh sea air filling his lungs like life itself. He fell to his knees, overwhelmed by the weight of his newfound freedom, tears of bitterness and resolve trailing down his face. "Old man, I will finish what you started. You can rest in peace soon enough!" He looked over at his Captain, the reality settling in—he would build something the world would remember.

"I will definitely make it," he promised with thunderous resolve. "A ship that can conquer the seas!"

To Be Continued…

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Author's Corner.

Damien, Ares, Mors, Herja and Kraft have tasted free air once again. Recall the Adam Fruit gifted to Damien at Wano by Sukiyaki. Through Damien, Kraft sees a way to reclaim his identity, pay tribute to his father's legacy, and turn his suffering into strength.

What do you think is the first thing Damien will do with his freedom?

Images are available on Discord alongside other niche details: https://discord.gg/aJHHHPvb6q


Chapter 163: [163] Through the Abyss

[3865 words]

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"I take it you have your own way out of here, monstrous kid?" a hoarse voice broke out. Its heaviness began dulling the evening sun from the danger hidden within.

"I see you have a destination in mind," Damien glanced at Mors.

The towering monster from two eras ago returned a vicious smile. The bloodlust running through his veins throbbed in hunger, reflecting in his maddened eyes.

"Marineford," he spat.

Damien met the Bloodspawn's gaze, feeling the awakened insanity and bloodthirst radiating out from his body like tendrils of dark red.

>=-=----[]---<>---[]---=-=<

[Zenora Mors]

[Age: 66 years, 2 months]

[Height: 22' 7"] (6.9 m)

[Devil Fruit: Blood-Blood Fruit (Complete Grandmastery)]

[Fruit Rating: 6.5 Stars]

[Skills: Eternal Figures of War, Primitive Rokushiki, Son of Slaughter]

[Haki: Intermediate Mastery of Observation Haki, Advanced Mastery of Armament Haki, Grandmastery (II) of Conqueror's Haki]

[Strength: Top Tier Yonko]

-----

[Son of Slaughter: Convert wrath and pain into Conqueror's Haki.]

>=-=----[]---<>---[]---=-=<

'He's long gone into slaughter. Those Figures of War lead him only to mayhem.' Damien didn't comment on the Warborn's mind state and reminded him, "Don't forget our deal."

Mors grumbled, walking to the far edge of the wooden platform. Every step was a recollection of years of slaughter, finally reignited after three decades.

"Don't worry, I have no plans on dying there," he reassured, looking to the infinite skies. "I just want to test out the new batch of elite marines…"

"!!!" His eyes locked onto a group of birds high above. 

One such avian had a small cut on its face, just above the beak—a fresh wound. 

Mors suddenly exploded into a surge of fresh blood, squirming through the air and entering the bird's bloodstream. 

The feathered creature gave another cry before turning its flight toward the distant Navy Headquarters.

.

The only female escapee was also breathing in her liberation.

"I will repay this debt, Einar D. Damien," Herja softly spoke. Her whitened eyes carried grace, falling onto the figure of the mastermind of their escape.

>=-=----[]---<>---[]---=-=<

[Odinsdottir Herja]

[Age: 38 years, 7 months, 11 days]

[Height: 8' 6"] (2.59 m)

[Devil Fruit: Faith-Faith Fruit (Grandmastery (II))]

[Fruit Rating: 6 Stars]

[Skills: Grace of the Valkyrie, Beauty of Aphrodite]

[Haki: Intermediate Mastery of Observation Haki, Intermediate Mastery of Armament Haki, Advanced Mastery of Conqueror's Haki]

[Strength: Middle Tier Yonko]

>=-=----[]---<>---[]---=-=<

Damien removed the stats overview and bid farewell: "Until we meet again, Fallen Angel."

The woman gave Damien a slow, assessing look, her lips quirking in a curious half-smile. "Einar D. Damien," she said, almost to herself. "For a man pirate, you are... surprisingly tolerable." 

"I shall visit G-1 to buy you time for whatever it is you seek," She offered before shooting to the sky with a powerful beat of her angelic wings, leaving a shimmering trail in her wake.

"…"

"And then there were three," Ares said, walking up and beside his son. 

"I take it that we're borrowing those warships?"

Damien returned a grin fit for a pirate before strolling toward the vessel with hundreds of knocked-out soldiers. Just like that, the trio had begun sailing beyond Impel Down.

"Hmm? You actually want to enter the Tarai Current?" Ares asked, picking up the direction the ship was headed.

The Tarai Current was a giant spiral ocean current that flowed between and connected the World Government's three major facilities in the first half of the Grand Line; the judicial island Enies Lobby, the underwater prison Impel Down, and the Marine Headquarters Marineford.

It was caused by the Gates of Justice redirecting the water currents, locking it within a triangle.

[Tarai Current Image (in Discord)]

.

"It is a shortcut to where I want to go…"

Kraft stood to Damien's left on the ship's deck. "The only way to enter the Current is by opening the Gates of Justice that hold entry to Impel Down," he murmured.

The shipwright's breath was taken away as the gate in question was in view. It stood over a thousand meters tall, boasting the World Government logo and eclipsing each of the three significant facilities they protected.

"What an engineering marvel," Kraft breathed, gulping in surprise.

Damien nodded, looking at the semi-circle-shaped gate stretching to the heavens. "I wonder how many years it took to piece this mammoth together…"

[Gate Image (in Discord)]

The gate to Impel Down was closed, disallowing both entry and exit and prompting Ares' question: "Is that why you took a detour before we went to meet up with the others on Crimson Hell?"

Damien smirked, raising a hand with three fingers up: "And three… two… one…"

At his command, the colossal gate that was a beacon of World Government authority gave a resounding creak before opening up as if to embrace the incoming warship.

Kraft was still without words, absently watching the elephantine gates welcome them to the Tarai Current; Ares was more speculative: "Now, the only way to exit the Current is if you open the Gates of Justice of your desired exit point."

Damien hummed, feeling the warship being sucked into the grasp of the current while the gate behind them was closing.

If they fail to open another gate, the ship will perpetually spin in the Tarai Current and be unable to exit!

"As fun as raiding Marineford sounds," Damien aired his intentions. "I really see no benefit in doing so."

"So your goal is Enies Lobby," Ares finished.

And so they did.

The beauty of the Tarai Current was that it reduced the time it took to travel from facility to facility to less than an hour! 

Damien's goal was beyond Enies Lobby, but a thirty-minute trip to Enies Lobby was akin to saving three to four days.

[Thirty Minutes Later]

"The time and manpower it would need to construct these gates is beyond sense," Kraft shook his head, still taken aback by the sheer size of the gate—this one leading to the judicial island of Enies Lobby. "I have a damning thought that a lot of slaves died to make this…"

Damien couldn't help but agree, but right now wasn't the time to debate such things.

They had sailed to the edge of the Tarai Current with nothing but the humongous Gate of Justice blocking their way.

"How do you intend on opening that…?" Ares grumbled, somewhat annoyed by the hood he was forced to wear.

Damien, however, wasn't as stumped: "There's only one polite way to ask for entry."

*Knock* *Knock*

The kind pirate's knocking was not answered. 

"How rude," he sighed, taking out a transponder snail.

The other two watched with both curiosity and confusion as they heard the nostalgic dialling sound.

"Puru," "Puru," "Puru." 

"Katcha~!"

"Damien!? Y-You're okay!" a woman's voice burst out from the snail. The pirate lightly smiled at the phone with purple hair and tearful eyes. "I really want to punch you for not telling me what you were up to!"

Ares' brows furrowed as he cupped his chin. He watched as his son calmed the woman across the line: "Oh, that… Well, I think you know why."

Aurora, on the other side of the call, was glaring right into the eyes of the snail, her face scrunched up. 

Although annoyed and worried, she knew she probably would have done something reckless if Damien had confided in her.

"...Fine! But… are you coming home now?"

The pirate picked up the longing in her voice, even the slight tremble in the words. 

With a light sigh, he shook his head. "I need to swing by one place. I'll be back in a week or so."

Aurora shut her eyes, stabilizing her thoughts.

The Underworld Empress knew that Damien wouldn't be calling just to give a heads-up…

A moment later, she opened them again to reveal a calm pair of amethyst pupils. "What do you need me to do?"

The alter ego of Fulcrum was fully active, earning a nod from the Sin Incarnate. 

"Have your spies open the Gates of Justice at Enies Lobby."

The phone paused for a second before replying, "Okay."

Her firm words were followed by a dull roar through the Current.

Kraft ran to the edge of the deck, seeing the gates once shaking and slowly opening. Next was the bright light from the evening sun, forcing Kraft to flinch.

"And Rora," Damien softly spoke to the snail while watching the door grant them exit. "This will be the last time."

"...Come back safe."

"Katcha~!"

.

The Gate of Justice to Enies Lobby opened to allow them to leave, but it also raised some questions in Ares.

"Heh, I take it that was one of them?"

Damien pocketed the invincible transponder snail as he heard the distant alarms of the judicial island. "Yep. You'll have to wait a bit to meet her, though."

The War God chuckled, walking up to the ship's bow. "There's gotta be at least five thousand of them here."

But his grin flipped into a frown: "What a weak batch of soldiers, even those two giants."

"Rahaha! The God Valley Incident ate up all the elites of the era."

Damien narrowed in on the mighty island that decided the fate of prisoners. It was an island hovering over the middle of an endless abyss, reachable only by two bridges. The Tower of Justice dominated the horizon with its authoritative build.

"Justice, was it?" There was disdain in his voice.

With a wave of his hand, the Thirteenth Blade Ryushi appeared, quickly trembling in impatience.

"Bring down that tower," he whispered to the blade before tossing it through the skies.

*Vooosh!*

The screeching winds tore the atmosphere open. Thousands of eyes watched in shock as they saw the mighty weapon rocket toward the Tower of Justice with a crimson trail.

BOOOOOOM!

Enies Lobby was suddenly shaken by an earthquake, and a giant dust cloud exploded into the air, raining debris down.

"This ought to give Kong something to rip his hair out for…"

Damien wasn't done. He linked across the seas with Ryushi as an anchor. His infernal grasp stretched across the alarmed base.

"It's no fun bullying these guys, so I'll make it quick…"

*Snap*

With the snap of a finger, the endless red particles held onto the tower's remains. They pulsed and bubbled to their master's will, forming a red cube.

.

"Atomic Remodeling: Magnum Opus."

.

The cube shattered with harrowing sounds, unleashing a god-forbidden seismic event that spanned dozens of meters, bringing about colours and spectacles the mind could not imagine!

The sky was flooded with a mix of red, green, blue, black, white, and purple, turning the day into a beautiful hell.

The thousands of marines could only utter pathetic wails as the increasingly magnificent surge of energy that coursed through Enies Lobby swallowed everything around them. The Courthouse and the Courtyard disintegrated and then integrated into the burst of energy, spreading for tens of kilometers.

*Vzzzz* The air screamed, the seas quaked, and the sky trembled as the masterpiece left nothing but shredded land, turning the Judicial Island into a morbid canvas. 

"S-Should we fire back?" a marine uttered.

His superior, a Rear Admiral, slapped him upside the head, "You idiot! Whoever it is, he literally terraformed one of the Three Beacons of Marine Supremacy, and you want to take him on!"

The words left the recruit and others nearby in silence.

The Rear Admiral glanced at the distant ship carrying the three men. They were too far away to identify.

"I thought it was nonsense, but there are some pirates who won't take life if you don't get in their way…"

A quick scan would unveil five thousand living soldiers. Nearly every one of them was knocked out from the infused Haki, but they were alive.

"Although it reminds me of Endou a little too much… As expected of my son, Ruhahahaha!" The proud laughter boomed across the dull wastes of Enies Lobby, creating quite the contrast.

"But you know, I kinda wanted to stretch my muscles too!"

Damien rolled his eyes, looking at his father from head to toe. "Your body is holding on by the skin of your teeth. Just keep that hood on. I don't need Endou disturbing us because he saw your wrinkly face."

Ares scoffed, crossing his arms but remaining under the hood of his shroud.

Kraft also woke up from his reverie. With a shaky voice, he asked, "W-Weren't you trying not to bring attention to yourself?"

"Attacking Marineford and remodelling Enies Lobby are two different things. Trust me, this island is more about traditions than anything."

Damien shook his head at the superficial justice this island held while bringing out his right palm.

With another poof, a log pose was taken out.

"The needle is frozen, an Eternal Pose," Kraft quickly surmised. He looked up to his Captain in curiosity.

With some calculations in his mind, the shipwright aired a thought, "The needle points toward the Red Line but is biased toward the right…" A world map appeared in Kraft's mind as he connected the dots, "Somewhere in the West Blue?"

Damien slowly nodded, recalling the fateful location that remained a topic of today across every island with intelligence.

"Our destination is the ruins of God Valley!"

----------------------------------------------

While those responsible for the hell wrought on Impel Down were unknowingly sailing back to the fateful island, the third central government facility was facing its own terrors…

[Marineford]

The atmosphere at the Marine Headquarters was booming with pride. In the past couple of weeks, an Advent of Justice has begun!

It took place with Admiral Sengoku, Admiral Candidate Zephyr, and Vice Admiral Garp blazing their way through the New World, pummeling down any sparks of piracy. 

.

"Very good, you three did well," a joyous Kong talked to his snail. 

He was holding a conference call with the three top Marines on the receiving end. "Kongogogogo! Garp, your brat, you've finally done some good in your life!"

The snail shifted to the face of the jolly Garp, who was munching away at his crackers. "Bwahahahaha! Kong-san, since you want to give me a raise so badly, I'll reluctantly accept."

'When did I ever mention a raise?' Kong blinked.

But considering Garp recent actions of chasing down Silver Rayleigh into hiding and pushing back Charlotte Linlin to the confines of Totto Land, a raise was indeed due. 

.

"What about you two?" The Fleet Admiral questioned. 

The phone warped into the face of an afroed man with glasses. "Kong-san, I did find Shiki with the help of Ginrou, but that bastard got away, flying to the clouds and disappearing ever since."

Kong nodded, not overly concerned about the Golden Lion. 

Now, it was Zephyr's turn to speak. 

"I couldn't locate Redfield, Fleet Admiral. But I did have a run-in with Vitalius Shaw," he informed. 

Kong's eyes widened at the intel. "Shaw? He's just as aloof as Redfield. What did he want?"

The snail answered swiftly. "…He wanted saké, the same kind we supply to the Celestial Dragons."

The answer left Kong somewhat confused. 

"That pirate… he's hailed as a Level One Threat yet never acts like one. Go ahead and grant his wishes," Kong ordered. 

"Yes, sir."

[A/N: Vitalius Shaw's name was revealed back in Chapter 65 as a wielder of a Supreme Blade.]

.

Suddenly, the doors to the Fleet Admiral's office were busted open with a bang.

Hakuchō Asahi, the Director of the MCIS, rushed in with a look of dread etched on his face. "Fleet Admiral, it's not looking good! We've lost contact with both Enies Lobby, Impel Down and G-1!"

"""What!?"""

The snail was just as shocked, combining the surprise of the three other men on the phone with a single look of utter disbelief.

Asahi wasn't done: "We were able to connect with a feed at the Judicial Island. It's all gone; there's nothing left of Enies Lobby!" he grimly stated. 

Kong shot up from his seat, anger pulsating in his face. Black smoke coiled around his burly body, shaking the air in the room.

BOOOOM!

Suddenly, the very foundation of the headquarters began to shake as if hit by an earthquake. 

"What now!?" 

Kong and Asahi went to the wide window and saw something truly terrifying. 

Dozens of marine warships stood across Marineford Bay, opening a volley of cannonballs without mercy. Hundreds of canons plastered as defense were also aiming at the HQ, unloading fire onto the mighty walls. 

Thousands of officers below moved robotically. Their faces were struck with panic as they pulled the trigger of their guns and rockets. 

Boom! *Rumble*

The incessant fire left Marineford in tatters as it broke apart, raining debris below. 

"Some sort of conspiracy?" Asahi muttered, unsure how so many marines would suddenly open fire at their Headquarters. 

"No," Kong shook his head. "I've seen this power once before… something terrible must have happened at Impel Down!!!"

"Fleet Admiral, should I turn the ship?" Sengoku's voice echoed out from the snail. 

Kong turned gloomy, his metal arm crunching up with such strength that it was sparking the air. "All three of you pull back. We need more intel on the situation at hand… our Justice cannot be challenged any further!" 

He threw off his marine coat, narrowing in at the ginormous pirate standing at the base of Marineford.

Those infernal tribal marks with the colour of blood.

Zenora Mors. Thirty years after his capture, his tales remained active in Kong's mind.

Kong tore past the window, rushing to the escapee, distraught.

"Morarara! Let me see how tough the new Fleet Admiral is!"

Mors let out a guttural roar as his body twisted and expanded, crimson blood surging from within and coating him like armour. The blood pulsed and thickened, morphing into powerful, muscular limbs as it cascaded down his frame in a torrent of dark red. With each heartbeat, his form grew more menacing, tendrils of blood whipped around him, exuding a monstrous aura of raw, malevolent power.

A monster known as the Bloodspawn, a tormentor of the seas.

[Bloodspawn Image (in Discord)]

----------------------------------------------

Hell continued at each of the government's three government facilities. All the while, a lone marine warship made its way through Fishman Island into the Calm Belt and entered West Blue in a matter of a few days.

As they neared the site, Kraft sensed a shift in the atmosphere, like stepping into a realm woven with shadows and echoes of the past. This wasn't just an island—it was a graveyard of ambition, an open wound in the fabric of history.

A chill ran down the sniper's spine as he took in the unholy sight.

The clouds were in constant shock, echoing with dull tremors as if the heavens themselves had trauma from the past. Random bellowing tides were born every few moments to the point where no Sea Kings were bold enough to swim. 

Black lightning occasionally arced through the heavy air, sparking the region with ominous tension.

"I thought we came to an island…" Kraft muttered.

Damien stood nearby, arms crossed. "We did," he hummed, spanning his Haki. "God Valley. Where'd it go?"

'Whatever special life that flowed through God Valley, keeping it mainly intact during the war… it's gone too!'

The entire island had disappeared!

All that remained were shaken seas and hellish gusts. Though it seemed like the usual Grand Line weather, it wasn't far worse than that. It was simply unsettling to see nothing where something should be.

The only reason the Eternal Pose could lock onto the location was from the ruins of the previous war at the bottom of the sea.

"Hmm?" Damien frowned, peering at the seas. 

"What's wrong?" Ares questioned. 

"I hear two familiar voices coming from down below…" He gazed into the endless depths of the ocean, "Stay here. I'll be back soon."

Without waiting for any response, Damien jumped ship and into the sea, disappearing down below in a splash.

"He'll sink!?" Kraft thundered, staring at the bubbling waters. Ares, however, was a little more acclimated with his son's anomalous nature.

Damien only took a moment to reach the voice with his Fishman-Hybrid physique. 

He now stood afloat beyond the sea floor, gazing at a collection of ashes squirming in the shape of a man.

The body had lifeless eye sockets, gazing through the sea with a wild gaze. A feral smile etched through his fleshless jaws, laughing at the face of death. 

"!!" Suddenly, the depths of the ocean disappeared as Damien's mind was pulled somewhere else. The water was gone, and he was no longer at the bottom of the sea; rather, he stood in a pitch-black world. 

There was no light, heat, coldness, just perpetual gloom.

It was an otherworldly encounter, resembling Enigma's Mind World where he was forced to kill his own mother to escape.

And now, there was all but one man who could do all this…

Damien breathed, putting two and two together, "So you're still clinging to life, Xebec."

"Xahahaha! So you've come."

The figure of the monstrous Rocks appeared, standing in full glory in front of the younger pirate. Nothing but darkness around them.

"This place," Damien muttered. "It should be linked to your Awakening…"

Rocks gave a wild smirk, "Not only that, my Awakening also allows me to escape death in a way, reanimating myself beyond it."

The knowledge left Damien shocked. "So why not do it?"

"Xahaha!" the Abyssal Sin laughed with fury. "I lost once already; fate will keep it that way."

"..." 

The two glared at one another before Damien finally spoke up, "You were expecting me?"

Rocks exploded into another laugh, spit flying out of his cracked mouth. "Of course, after all, I know you better than you know yourself!"

The man ignored Damien's undisguised gaze and continued to speak. 

He pointed out a bony finger with accusation. "Your ambition is truly vast, equal to my own. Even with all the pirates under me, only you ever reminded me of my younger years!"

Damien crossed his arms, unfazed. "I'm not anything like you."

"Xahahahaha! Whether you accept it or not, you're exactly like me, boy!"

"You're willing to tear down the world to reach the height of strength, ready to challenge the majesty of the World Government to realize your ambition!"

The crazed eyes of the evil pirate were deadlocked onto Damien, peering into his soul. "I first knew it when you killed those Dragons at Sabaody Archipelago. Then you had your little puppet Fulcrum grab the Underworld with one hand and grab the News Agency with the other."

Such revelations weren't that surprising to the younger pirate, but what Xebec said next left him in pure shock.

Rocks' gaze swept over Damien, taking in every detail from head to toe. His lips curled into a wicked smile as he sensed the powerful, churning Conqueror's Haki radiating from the young pirate, brimming with ambition and raw potential. He lingered on the confidence blazing in Damien's eyes—a confidence that defied fate itself.

A low, sinister chuckle escaped him. "Hmm, I can feel it—the same hunger, that same defiance... Seeing you now, I couldn't be more pleased that I sent that little Mafia family to burn Renaissance to the ground!"

To Be Continued…

----------------------------------------------

Author's Corner.

While hell hits the world, the dark hand behind the curtain of what set Damien's journey in place has finally been revealed.

Images are available on Discord alongside other niche details: https://discord.gg/aJHHHPvb6q


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