章 4: The Escape Begins

The atmosphere in Level Six of Impel Down was charged with an almost palpable tension. All the prisoners who had just been freed—Luffy, Jinbe, Crocodile, Ivankov, and Inazuma—waited expectantly, ready to rescue Ace. Well, all except one.

Instead of the typical determination and focus the others had, Alaric was stretching as if he had just woken up from a pleasant nap. With a broad smile on his face, he flexed his arms above his head, making satisfied noises as if he were at the beach rather than in a high-security prison.

—"Ahhhh, it feels so good to stretch after being chained up for so long!" —Alaric exclaimed, lifting one leg into the air in an exaggerated fashion, causing the others to look at him with a mix of astonishment and confusion.

Luffy tilted his head to the side, clearly bewildered.

—"What's that guy doing?" —he muttered, scratching his head.

—"Seriously? Stretching?" —Crocodile complained, visibly irritated. "This isn't the time for… yoga."

Ivankov, with his characteristic drama, observed the scene with his hands on his hips and a thoughtful expression.

—"Oh darling, it looks like someone has been storing a lot of energy while being chained up! What impressive flexibility!" —Ivankov commented with enthusiasm, though his eyes revealed he was also somewhat perplexed.

Alaric, oblivious to the looks he was getting, continued stretching. First, he bent forward to touch his toes, then he tried—without much success—to put one leg behind his head, resulting in a ridiculous wobble that almost made him fall backward. Instead of being embarrassed, he just laughed and patted his thigh.

—"Wow! My skills are still intact!" —Alaric said with a self-satisfied smile as he shook off imaginary dust from his ragged clothes.

Luffy watched him with wide eyes, unable to help but smile at the chaotic energy of his new ally.

—"Hey, that guy's funny!" —Luffy exclaimed, laughing.

—"More than funny, he seems like a lunatic..." —Jimbe murmured, crossing his arms with a sigh.

But suddenly, Alaric's carefree smile vanished, and his posture changed in an instant. He stopped dead in his tracks as if he had sensed something the others couldn't see or feel. His eyes, which were usually filled with a strange joy, became serious and penetrating.

—"Wait a moment…" —Alaric said, his voice taking on a drastically different tone. He turned his head slowly as if trying to locate something in the distance, even though there was nothing visible. "I feel something… something that shouldn't be here."

Crocodile raised an eyebrow, clearly irritated by the sudden change in Alaric's behavior.

—"What the hell are you talking about now?"

—"My spear… Phobos…" —Alaric whispered, as if talking to himself. His eyes shone with a mix of excitement and urgency. He quickly began pacing in circles as if trying to locate the source of an inaudible call to the others. "My beloved Phobos is somewhere around here! I can feel it!"

Ivankov looked at him with a mix of surprise and curiosity.

—"A spear? Oh darling, I didn't picture you as the type to use a spear!"

Alaric didn't even acknowledge Ivankov's remark. He was completely focused, his eyes darting back and forth, searching for something invisible.

Suddenly, in a move so quick that no one could react in time, Alaric vanished from their sight. In the blink of an eye, Luffy, Crocodile, Ivankov, Jinbe, and Inazuma were left standing, staring at the empty space where Alaric had been just a second before.

—"Huh? Where did he go?" —Luffy asked, blinking several times in confusion.

Crocodile snorted, his face full of frustration.

—"Tsk. We shouldn't have freed him. He's clearly insane."

However, before anyone could add anything else, Alaric reappeared, running at an impossible speed, darting through the corridors of Level Six. He moved so fast that he was only visible for brief moments, like a lightning bolt crossing the shadows. The others could barely keep up with his path.

—"There he is! Ah, no, not anymore!" —Luffy shouted, trying to keep pace.

Meanwhile, Alaric raced like a gust of wind through the underground level, following the presence of his spear with supernatural precision. Finally, after a few minutes of frantic running, he stopped in front of a small, closed room. Without hesitation, he kicked the door, sending it flying through the air.

—"Found you, Phobos!" —he exclaimed with almost childish enthusiasm.

There it was, in a dusty display case, the spear Phobos. The spear was a masterpiece of forging: a Saijo O Wazamono, among the highest quality weapons. Its blade, a dark color like the night, was forged from a material that barely reflected light, giving it a striking and lethal appearance. The shaft was made of jet-black metal, adorned with runes etched into it that seemed to glow faintly, almost as if they were alive. The spear exuded an intimidating presence, as if fear itself had been imbued in its blade.

—"Ahhh, my dear Phobos! You've waited patiently for me!" —Alaric said as he took it with reverence and raised it into the air.

Just as he was admiring his weapon, something else caught his attention. In one corner of the room, he saw a pair of black pants and a black cloak hanging, probably from some guard or prisoner. Alaric's eyes lit up.

—"This is perfect!" —he said with a satisfied smile. "Time for a wardrobe upgrade!"

Without thinking twice, he began tearing off his tattered clothes, throwing them to the ground with a dramatic gesture. With a speed that could barely be considered human, he put on the black pants, which fit him surprisingly well, and then wrapped himself in the cloak, making the edges billow dramatically in the wind, as if he were posing for a fashion magazine.

But it didn't end there. At the back of the room, Alaric discovered a dirty mirror and wasted no time approaching it to check himself out. He adjusted his hair, arranging his jet-black mane that fell elegantly over his face. His gold earrings, a gift from the pirate empress Boa Hancock, glinted in the dim light of the room.

—"Wow, I look quite dashing," —he murmured, scrutinizing himself carefully and fixing a stray lock of hair. —"These earrings really make me stand out. Thanks, Hancock; you always knew what looked best on me."

While Alaric was admiring himself in the mirror, completely absorbed in his appearance, the others caught up with him, breathing heavily from their attempt to follow him through the prison corridors.

Luffy, completely bewildered, approached with his mouth slightly open.

—"What are you doing?"

Alaric, still looking at himself in the mirror, raised a hand with an elegant gesture.

—"What I always do, Mugiwara. I make sure my presentation is flawless. You can't face the world just being strong; you need to look good while doing it."

Crocodile, visibly exasperated, crossed his arms.

—"This guy is impossible."

Jinbe couldn't help but chuckle under his breath, though he tried to hide it. Ivankov, for his part, was enjoying the spectacle.

—"Oh, darling! You're quite the heartthrob!" —Ivankov said, clapping enthusiastically. —"That cloak really enhances your style!"

Satisfied with his appearance, Alaric turned to face the group with a confident smile.

—"Now I'm ready. Let's go rescue Ace."

Luffy, though still a bit confused, grinned widely.

—"Yeah! Let's go!"

As the group prepared to move on, Alaric's energy remained undeniable. Despite his eccentricities, it was clear that his strength and speed were extraordinary. However, more than one person in the group couldn't help but think:

—"Are we sure freeing this guy was a good idea?"

Alaric, completely renewed with his new look and with Phobos, his imposing Saijo O Wazamono spear resting on his shoulder, couldn't help but smile with satisfaction as he moved through Level Six of Impel Down. The air around him seemed to charge with an invisible energy, something only the most perceptive could notice. His stride was carefree, but there was a clear determination in his eyes.

As he approached the cells where some of the world's most dangerous prisoners were still held—those who had laughed at him when they saw him trapped in the same conditions—Alaric couldn't help but stop for a moment. He looked inside, seeing the hopeful faces of those men and women. Hope for liberation. Hope to escape from the prison that had been their home for so many years.

—"Hey, hey, Alaric, aren't you going to free us?" —shouted one of the prisoners, an intimidating pirate with scars all over his body. His tone was almost defiant, as if he still hadn't fully grasped the change in situation.

Another prisoner, slimmer and more cunning, smirked from his cell.

—"Come on, man, we were comrades once. Don't leave us here while you go off with those rookies."

Alaric stopped in front of them, turning his body with almost theatrical grace. His lips curved into a slow, mocking smile. His eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief.

—"Free you?" —he repeated, pretending to seriously consider the suggestion. He raised an eyebrow and looked at the prisoners one by one, as if evaluating them. —"Hmm… I don't think so. Why would I free a bunch of incompetents who couldn't even escape on their own?"

The prisoners fell silent, surprised by the coldness of Alaric's words. Before they could respond, he began to laugh, a soft but contemptuous chuckle.

—"You laughed at me when I was chained up, remember? How ironic, isn't it? Now, look at me. And look at you… still in those miserable cages."

With an arrogant smile, Alaric leaned slightly forward, just enough for the prisoners to see the deadly glint in his eyes.

—"I'm doing you a favor… by leaving you here, of course. After all, I wouldn't want you to embarrass yourselves trying to keep up with me."

The prisoners gritted their teeth, but they knew there was nothing they could do. Alaric turned away with indifference, his black cloak billowing behind him as if sealing his decision. Without looking back, he continued on, letting the echo of his footsteps resonate down the corridor.

Luffy watched the scene in silence, not fully understanding the dynamic between Alaric and the other prisoners, but he shrugged it off. In his mind, the only thing that mattered was finding Ace and getting out of there.

Ivankov, who had always been an excellent reader of people, watched Alaric with renewed interest.

—"What arrogance, darling!" —Ivankov remarked loudly, though with no hint of resentment. In fact, he seemed more intrigued than annoyed. —"That man has confidence to spare."

Crocodile snorted but didn't say anything. He appeared to be assessing Alaric more than he let on. Jinbe, meanwhile, frowned, reflecting on what he had just witnessed.

The group continued moving forward, following Alaric, who led with a surprisingly brisk pace. With each step he took, the pressure in the air intensified. The dark corridors of Level Six seemed to shrink under the overwhelming presence of the former vice admiral.

Suddenly, several Impel Down guards appeared out of nowhere, trying to block their path. They were feared by all prisoners, combat-trained men ready to thwart any escape attempts. But Alaric didn't seem fazed. He didn't raise his spear or even appear to pay them much attention. He kept moving as if the guards were nothing more than a minor annoyance.

One of the nearby guards, weapon in hand, shouted:

—"Stop! You won't get past us!"

However, just before the guard could make a move, his eyes rolled back, and he fell to the ground, unconscious, foam coming from his mouth. The other guards, witnessing this, tried to retreat, but they fell one by one, as if an invisible force was crushing them.

—"What's happening?!" —Luffy yelled, staring in disbelief as the guards fell without even having exchanged a word with Alaric.

Crocodile, watching from a safe distance, clicked his tongue.

—"This guy is toying with us. He hasn't even had to lift a finger."

Jinbe, though always calm, furrowed his brow even more.

—"This… this is Conqueror's Haki… Haoshoku Haki."

Ivankov, who had maintained a carefree demeanor until then, placed a hand on his chin, deep in thought.

—"Oh! So that's it! I knew there was something more to him, darling! Not just anyone can make the Impel Down guards fall with just their presence!"

Meanwhile, Alaric continued forward, ignoring the fallen guards. Each step he took seemed to reverberate with latent power, an invisible pressure that crushed anyone daring to stand in his way.

Luffy watched the scene with a mix of surprise and excitement.

—"Hey, hey! That's incredible! He didn't even have to fight!" —he exclaimed, clearly impressed. Although he had witnessed the power of Haoshoku Haki before, and even possessed it unconsciously, he still didn't understand how to use it.

Alaric, walking without paying much attention to the others' reactions, subtly smiled upon hearing Luffy.

—"Fighting is boring when you already know you're going to win," —he commented arrogantly, without turning to the group. —"True power lies in making your enemies fall without lifting a single muscle."

His tone was nonchalant, almost as if discussing something trivial, but the message behind his words was clear: Alaric was in a league of his own.

The other members of the group, though impressed by the display of power, didn't let it distract them from their mission. They needed to reach Level Six and find a way to get to Ace in Marineford before it was too late. However, as they advanced, they couldn't help but feel somewhat uneasy about Alaric's presence. Not just because of his strength, but due to his unpredictable nature.

—"If this guy decides he doesn't like us…" —Inazuma whispered to Ivankov. —"We could be in serious trouble."

Ivankov nodded, though he didn't seem as concerned as his companion.

—"Oh, darling, there are always risks when working with powerful types! But well, it seems that this Alaric at least knows how to have fun."

With each guard that fell without resistance, Alaric's authority as the leader of the group grew stronger and stronger. Even Luffy, with his free-spirited and rebellious nature, seemed willing to follow the eccentric former vice admiral.